Thailand Voice

Over the past few days, the red shirts have been streaming into Bangkok to join the protest site on Ratchadamnoen Klang Avenue. On Sunday the red shirts from Samut Prakan came together to join the protest. The local red shirt radio had been broadcasting for several days…

The Thai government over the past few years have been so focussed on first the yellow shirts and then the red shirts that hardly anyone has noticed the rampant increase of drug use in Thailand. It is almost getting to epidemic proportions …

One of the most important events in the Thai Buddhist calendar is Makha Bucha Day (sometimes spelled Magha Puja). It takes place on the full moon day of the third lunar month which is usually late February or early March. This year it was today, 28th February 2010. Like many…

(The crime scene of almost every Farang ‘murder’ in Pattaya – the infamous Pattaya hotel balcony) As a Farang in Thailand we have all heard some of the most laughable quack-wack Thailand myths: ladyboys who have coaxed clients back to their rooms only to drug ‘em and cut out …

Thailand’s Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva (L) passes a sack of rice to U.N. World Food Program’s Regional Director for Asia Kenro Oshidari during a ceremony at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport February 1, 2010. The Thai government on Monday dispatched its first batch of 100 tonnes of rice to…

I think one of the first phrases I learned when I arrived in Thailand was “gin khao reu yung?” This is a phrase that asks if you have eaten yet but is really more of a greeting than an inquiry. They are…

If you are in the Suphanburi area this month then I strongly suggest that you go and check out the Don Chedi Fair. This commemorates the glorious victory of King Naresuan the Great which took place on elephant back. As well as the show, there is…

TOUR2 : Bang Nampheung Floating Market, The Erawan Museum, Reclining Buddha at Bang Phli and finishing with a meal at sunset at the Bang Pu Seaside Resort. Samut Prakan Province is sandwiched between Bangkok and the Gulf of Thailand. As it is so close to the …

Thai cuisine involves the balancing of contrasting flavors, spicy and subtle, sweet and sharp. It is also concerned with aesthetic value, for the Thais believe that food should please the eye as well as the palate. One particularly delightful aspect…

(Would be extremely difficult to get these two mixed up – but Mrs Clampton did) Due to the positive feedback from the last blog “The Legendary Edith Clampton (Mrs)” , I think it’s only fair to write up a part 2 and include some of the readers’ responses – some…

Whenever we have new foreign teachers at the school, I always take them out to a restaurant as part of their orientation. This is partly to introduce them to my favourite Thai food on a menu. But, I also want to point out to them some of the finer points of Thai…

The annual National Children’s Day for Thailand took place today. Children are considered as the most valuable resource of the country. There is a Thai saying that goes, “Children are the future of the nation, if the children are intelligent, the country will be prosperous.” To help stimulate children to…

I talked before about the eating habits of Thai people. I mentioned that they seemed to snack all day and still remain quite slender. However, this is not saying that there are no obese people in Thailand. Far from it. There are quite a few very chubby students at my school. I would …

Judging by these photos that I took early this morning, not everyone was nursing hangovers after welcoming in the New Year at midnight last night. Like thousands of other local people from Paknam, I was up early at 6 a.m. to head down to the City Pillar…

One of the better preserved traditional markets in Thailand can be found in Suphanburi Province. It is called Sam Chuk 100 Year Market and it still has its original wooden shophouses that date back to the reign of King Rama V…

One of the most spectacular cultural shows in Bangkok is undoubtedly at Siam Niramit: Journey to the Enchanted Kingdom of Siam. So many people had been talking about it on the Paknam Web Forums that I thought that I should make an…

Today, people from all around the country are coming together to celebrate the 82nd birthday of H.M. The King. Many of them are wearing pink which is an auspicious colour believed to help make the King better. The Thai monarch has been in Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok since 19th September for …

Long-tailed macaque monkeys are offered food during the annual Monkey Buffet Festival, in front of the Pra Prang Sam Yot temple in Lopburi, 150km (94 miles) north of Bangkok November 29, 2009. The festival provides various types of food and drink to the local…

Buddhist Monks receive offerings at the takbat ceremony on November 28, 2009 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. During the ceremony, held in Nimanhaemin Rd, approximately 10,000 Buddhist monks received offerings, including food, drink and money. (Getty Images) More Thailand pictures can be found at www.ThaiPhotoBlogs.com .

Thai mahouts stop for free food for their elephants during festivities at the 49th Surin Elephnat Roundup in Surin, Thailand. The event brings together mahouts and elephants from all over Thailand. Once used for logging and transportation elephants today in Thailand have been replaced largely by cheap motorcycles …

If you go to Thailand on holiday, you will most likely find that the local food is one of your highlights. You will find this both delicious and cheap. Here are some of my favourite Thai food dishes. 1. Tom Yum Egg Noodle with Red Pork (baa mee tom yum) 2. Egg Noodle …

Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn (R) of Thailand tours a rice field at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) during a visit in the town of Los Banos, Laguna province south of Manila on November 17, 2009. Princess Sirindhorn is here to lead in the celebrations of the institute’s…

This is the Thai version of pork soup that is a little on the spicy side. In the ingredients below you can see diced potatoes, pork, carrots, Chinese celery, lime, stock cube, bird eye chillies and plum tomatoes. You could use chicken instead of pork. Boil the pork in the stock until nearly…

As the fireworks and firecrackers are going on non-stop for the third day running, and the city is celebrating with the biggest and most colourful parade of the loy krathong festivities, I am at home listening from a safe…

(The following is a brief Thai> English translation from various local news sources) Customers at Melody Karaoke, in the close vicinity of Prachacheurn Police Station, were originally charged an astonishing 30,000 Baht for 3 hours of karaoke. Charges included 100 Baht for a…

There are dozens of hot springs around Chiang Mai, some are well-known and extensively developed like Sankamphaeng, others are only just more than small pools of water in the forest. Pong Dueat is on route 1095, one of the attractions …

Everyone knows about Loy Krathong that happens on the full moon in November. However, not many people know that we have another Loy Krathong in October. The phrase “loy krathong” means to float a bowl shaped container. It is not a festival like Christmas which celebrates a particular event. You can actually float a krathong…

One of my favourite festivals in Thailand is undoubtedly Luang Phor Pan Worshipping Festival in Bang Bo District of Samut Prakan. I went last year for the first time and had no idea what to expect. There were so many surprises that…

During the school holidays in Thailand, it is common for Thai students to ordain as novice monks for a short time. In the olden days, before there were government schools, poor boys would ordain in order to get an education. However, these days, their parents want them to ordain for a short time during…