Thailand Voice

Tragic really, Thailand would have the grassroots movement she needs – but there is no leadership. People are yearning for betterment and fundamental change – but their leaders just led them them into another pipe dream. Over the coming hours and days… Read full story >>>

In most cases the largest town for each of the 75 province is the town which contains the provincial administration, and has the same name as the province. But there are some exceptions. Originally I was only aware of Hat Yai, which due … Read full story >>>

Leaping into the morality debate ring, as someone recently wrote. Momma always told you to be nice and not to lie. There will be consequences, you were told. And indeed. You cheat, you get cheated. You betray. In a moment you’re the betrayed. Morality , a… Read full story >>>

Beyond The Mango Juice kicks off the year with a slimmed down monthly blog review format. Due to the increased content of my Thai blogroll I have been forced to omit entries from my world blog links as the ever increasing length of the review has forced me to compress future … Read full story >>>

Many a foreigner visiting Thailand’s shores have shaken their head looking at the Thai power supply which at best could be called Spaghetti! Now I am no expert on power but it really does amaze me how anyone can actually have a half … Read full story >>>

The makers of the Alpha 6, ADE651 and the GT200 are all in the UK – hazard a guess they are not in the US after legal problems in the 90s for the previous companies selling the scam devices. So last Tuesday, BP sent an e-mail to the Brtish Embassy in Bangkok with some questions… Read full story >>>

Have already noted that the Iraqi PM has ordered an investigation into the faux ADE651 bomb detectors used in Iraq (they are essentially the same as the GT200 devices) and the use of the devices in Iraq still continues to create headlines. The National … Read full story >>>

Below is a Nation Channel clip of one of the hosts examining a GT200 bomb “detection” device with a guest: … Read full story >>>

They’re one of my favorite spots in Thailand, the hot springs of Hin Dat north of Kanchanaburi, one of Thailand’s most romantic places. To cut a long story short: The public bath with beautiful hot spring water pools are open from 6 am to 10 pm each day. … Read full story >>>

Thaksin Shinawatr has come up with the latest threat: If there is another military coup, “I am ready to set up a government-in-exile to recoup democracy.” He was speaking on a video link to the red-shirt rally at Khao… Read full story >>>

The Thai Star known as Goh Tee is one of Thailand’s most loved comedians. Goh Tee ( โก๊ะตี๋) was born Jaroernpohn Onlamai on the 31st December 1980 and attended the Wat Phra It primary school in the central Thai province of Ang Thong where … Read full story >>>

Angkor, the ancient capital of Cambodia is a haunting place in which you’ll surely find great beauty. In each of the temples there are many beautiful girls, full figured and voluptuous and wearing only a sarong. It was Kent’s quest to find and to photograph as many… Read full story >>>

He’s the “most Thai foreigner” I know. After years of work in the twilight of Bangkokian nights and his recent front line coverage of Thailand’s political conflict he has become something of a celebrity around here. Thai Politicians of all sides and… Read full story >>>

Just stumbled upon this site: Critical Asian Studies . A worthwhile read caught my eye: “Demanding Daughter Duty: Gender, Community, Village Transformation & Transnational Marriages in Northeast Thailand.” A study about the increased favorable acceptance of Isaan women with foreign partners. An in-depth study about a social phenomenon not known some years ago. … Read full story >>>

It will still take years until Google’s Streetview will come to Thailand, but already now it has a similar website showing views from the road for a few selected towns named MapJack . From what they write on their website, they take a much simpler and therefore cheaper approach than Google, but still their views are… Read full story >>>

Children’s Day (วันเด็ก) is celebrated on the second Saturday of January each year in Thailand. In observance of Children’s Day 2010, lots of Thai twitter users have changed their avatars to childhood photos. Prominent figures like newspaperman Suthichai Yoon ( @suthichai ) and hip hop artist Joey Boy ( @joeybangkokboy ) … Read full story >>>

Rhynchostylis gigantea (Lindl.) is an epiphytic Thai orchid widely distributed in every region except the South of Thailand. Rhynchostylis gigantea is found throughout most of S.E. Asia and China. The flowering period for this Thai Orchid is December – January. Read full story >>>

The Bangkok Post: A complaint was filed against Gen Surayud in 2007 for alleged encroachment but prosecutors decided not to seek his indictment because they believed he had bought the land without realising he might be breaking the law…. Read full story >>>

Lately even the pro-establishment news website TAN was calling for the sacking of the ICT minister : “Almost one year as the ICT minister, Ranongrak Suwanchawee has failed to show the public any tangible achievements but a series of failed … Read full story >>>

It’s hard to not notice the Thai passion for food. Most first time visitors to Thailand are impressed with the sight of people cooking along street corners and alleys. The scent of garlic burning in hot oil, the fragrance of sweet sticky rice and mango (khao niauw ma mouang), the activity early … Read full story >>>

Wanna know about the inner workings of the Royal Thai Police? You heard all the hearsay and read some of those stories. But do you have proof? Did you learn anything the hard way? Here’s an eyewitness account: Recently I was visiting a friend in Rangsit. It was a Friday night and we decided … Read full story >>>

Dokmai Garden is a secret garden, hidden away slightly off the beaten track but within easy traveling distance of Chiang Mai. Dokmai Garden is privately owned by the Seehamongkol family who, as a labour of love, have turned a former Longan orchard… Read full story >>>

I read this article on Jeff Friedl’s blog about the trouble he had with face recognition in the Google Picasa 3 photo management application. See http://regex.info/blog/2009-12-07/1388 . I used version 3.6 for the PC. Jeff had a lot of trouble with the user … Read full story >>>

The cultural tradition of this country has Buddhism at the heart, making Thailand truly unique in my eyes. Everyday, just by speaking Thai, I get reminded of my belief. But like all things beautiful when they become mundane and perfunctory, … Read full story >>>

From the movie “Phobia 2″ (which I haven’t seen yet) here is a very cool song by the group Nologo. Hope you like it. Read full story >>>

They thought no one on the outside world will ever hear those torrents of hatred, but then again, they’re actually no torrents of hatred but … utterances of devotion and pride. Pure affirmations of love and dedication till death. Judge for yourself. This is scary stuff not … Read full story >>>

The word ของ (kɔ̌ɔng), which means “of” in English, is used to show possession. For example, “Josh’s car” or “your friend.” It’s a pretty simple grammatical concept for Thai, thankfully. All you have to do is remember the structure: Noun + ของ + possessor I put… Read full story >>>

The entity behind the independent news site Prachatai, The Foundation for Community Education Media, and Chulalongkorn University have organized a dinner talk on Thailand. The blurb is below: Dinner Talk on “Thailand in Transition: A Historic Challenge and WHAT”S NEXT?” Date:Tuesday 8 December, 2009; 6:30pm-10pm Venue Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit. … Read full story >>>

เป็น The word เป็น (bpen) means “to be/is” in Thai. It is a very common and important word to learn and, more importantly, to understand how it’s used.   In its most simple usage, เป็น is used to join nouns… Read full story >>>

It has been Remembrance Day this week, which on 11th November at 11 a.m. includes the time set aside for remembering those who died in the First World War and, indeed, all the many other wars in which lives have been lost. Although few people pay much attention to the occasion here, Thailand … Read full story >>>