While Sukhumvit has been caught up in the pressure of severe BTS delays this week, the rest of Thailand has, as usual, seen plenty of scrapes and hi-jinks go down.
First, we had the British backpacker showing potential signs of mental disturbance going ‘missing’ in Krabi, alarming her parents to the extent that Interpol were involved, only for her then to turn up smiling in a Black Canyon coffee shop at Krabi airport.
The closure of tourist attractions for failing safety standards, the ongoing threat of Burmese hackers to Thailand’s online autonomy, and further reveals from the Bangkok bombing trial have also been dominating the week’s zeitgeist.
Here’s the best of the week’s news, views and social media from Bangkok and beyond…
News
Teacher strikes school children, says they look like “hilltribe children”
A teacher in Pathum Thani was caught on video striking two female pupils around the head, telling them not to wear warm clothes as it made them look like “hilltribe children.” The teacher in question, Thanabadee Polrak, a 59-year old Maths teacher, is said to have been angered by the students after they had not done their proscribed homework.
“After the video clip went viral, all concerned parties have wrapped up the investigation into the incident. There were talks with parents and the students … and the parents did not want to pursue charges [against Mr Thanabadee],” said Surachai Pinyochai, director of Thammasat Khlong Luang Withayakhom school.
Two Chiang Mai tourist attractions closed after accidents
The Flying Squirrels zipline and Grand Canyon in Chiang Mai have both been given 15 day suspension orders after a number of injuries and even deaths. Their safety standards and procedures will be rechecked during this time in a bid to prevent further accidents. We think we’ll be steering clear for a while…
Underage staff at Patpong bar spurs temporary closure
Pink Panther – a go-go bar on Patpong Soi 2 – has reportedly been hit with a 7-day closure order after underage staff were found on their premises in a bust on Friday night.
Blogs and articles
The female fighters of Northern Thailand
This brilliant VICE article goes behind the scenes at the annual Wat Santai boxing festival to examine the burgeoning female fight scene in Thailand. Nik Hjalmarsson, co-owner of Santai Gym, tells the reporter that the festival’s focus on high level female performers is that “women are more interesting,” and “the best women are in northern Thailand.”
Photo by Matthew Yarbrough for VICE
Weird things people search online for about Thais
Thanks to a viral blog post on Thai people, Chicinitie gets an awful lot of traffic to her blog from people searching Google with questions about Thai culture and customs. She’s charted here some of the weirdest things people have Googled to get to her blog. Our favourites:
- Do Thai people eat people
- Thai people pointing at things
- Do Thai women skewer their faces
- Why do Thai women spend such time in the toilet
We’d be particularly intrigued to hear comments on the last two points… Any face-skewerers out there?
Thailand’s most underrated museum
The Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles, located in the Grand Palace complex, is often overlooked by the tourists who swarm Bangkok’s most famous attraction but it offers a fascinating and personal look at the complexities of Thailand’s silk-making heritage and the transcendence of some of the dresses and fashions made in its industry. Plus – it’s air-conditioned!
Forum Discussion
Are the Thai girls who demand fancy dinner dates actually on commission?
After having an online date demand dinner at Sirocco and no less, one Thaivisa user wonders whether she, and other girls of her ilk, could actually be on commission from these expensive restaurants rather than searching for true love on Thai Friendly. He theorises that they could simply be using these head-over-heels farangs for a fancy dinner and nice cash bonus to boot.
Our favourite, and most on-the-nose piece of dating advice from the thread:
Videos
A drug bust caught on GoPro…
ข่าว 16.00 น. ตำรวจสระบุรียิงสกัดจับรถผู้ต้องหาพยายามหลบหนีข่าว 16.00 น. ภาพเหตุการณ์ตำรวจสระบุรียิงสกัดจับรถผู้ต้องหาพยายามหลบหนีหลังเจอด่านตรวจ #ThaiPBS
Posted by Thai PBS ข่าว 16.00 น. on Friday, 26 February 2016
American Bro visits the Grand Palace and… Chatuchak Market
Be Smart – Be Responsible – Be Safe. When in Thailand, always transport your cock safely. pic.twitter.com/oGTcHgQ28e
— Geoff G Thomas (@geoffgthomas) February 27, 2016
It took 2 full flasks of patience, several days, and 329 signatures, but yes, you can link your Citibank US and Citibank Thailand accounts.
— Justin Dunne (@justindunne) February 25, 2016
Gone are the days when you can throw up in the back of a Thai taxi at 6am while the radio plays “Steppin’ Out.’ https://t.co/zlm0obV38E
— Tracy Vanity (@TracyVanity) February 27, 2016
A photo posted by Lou (@worldscatcher) on
And that’s been The Week On Sukhumvit; see you next time!
Featured image is by César García Pont and used under a Creative Commons licence
