Good morning, Bangkok. And a happy Sunday to you!
Despite powering towards the supposed end of the rainy season, it’s been a damp few days in Thailand’s capital. Friday night saw a storm of epic proportions — Pattaya was particularly hard hit too.
If you thought the weather was bad in #Bangkok, check out this poor biker caught in a flooded #Pattaya street tonight pic.twitter.com/lVJOpfyfTZ
— Stickboy Bangkok (@StickboyBangkok) October 28, 2016
Crikey.
But, of course, there’s been plenty more than the weather enraging and entertaining Bangkok this week. Let’s take a look at the best news, blogs, videos and social media updates of the past 7 days…
News
Skirting the line between grief and an income
This is an interesting piece on the situation currently faced by Bangkok’s red light district workers — specifically those in Soi Cowboy — as they attempt to find some compromise between mourning their late King and continuing to bring in much-needed income.
A member of the WOS team visited Cowboy around a week after the bad news (he had a friend visiting! He never normally goes! etc etc) and found it a relatively subdued affair with much of the trademark neon lights turned off, a few bars closed and music levels on low. There were still a fair few punters carousing around but by far the most baffling sight were the dancers inside the bars, continuing to ‘do their thing’ yet decked out in black costumes as a mark of respect.
What would Southeast Asia look like if every proposed railway was built?
A fascinating article and map here on what Thailand — and the whole of Southeast Asia — would look like if every proposed railway project was carried through and built. The answer? Hella connected.
Such construction would see SEA with a similar infrastructure as Western Europe, facilitating much easier and more convenient travel between regions and countries. Sure, we imagine such development would require price increases, but we for one would be happy to accept that.
Blogs
The changing face of Bangkok
A beautiful blog on the pace of change in Bangkok with a focus on the Phra Khanong neighbourhood. The photos are the real star of the show here, depicting interesting scenes of people at work, monks on their alms rounds, and the general scenes of daily life in this city.
A year in rural Thailand
This is an interesting look back on a year teaching in a government school in rural Thailand on the Ajarn blog. The writer reflects of the various idiosyncrasies of being a teacher in Thailand, including playing Santa Claus at Christmas, the humbling effect of Wai Kru day and an indoor camp fire.
Reverse culture shock
The Greg To Differ blog talks us through a recent visit to the author’s homeland, Canada, and the ways in which he experienced reverse culture shock after 8 straight years of living in Thailand. This will be a familiar story to many an expat — the wonders of hills after spending serious time in flat Bangkok, properly kitted out construction workers, awful malls and, er, insipid television.
We can only assume he hasn’t seen too many Thai lakorn to compare it too…
Forum Discussions
How far can your Thai wife walk?
A classic Thaivisa thread here ribbing on the stereotype that Thai ladies are not so keen on walks of any magnitude. Some claim that if a walk of over 100 metres is anticipated, a motorcycle ride is required. Other posters regale on their wives’ ability to cover marathon distances in a shopping mall, at the market or on the way to temple but have achy legs in any other walking situation.
Our favourite answer:
Prices in Thailand vs Prices in the UK
Another Thaivisa thread here, stretching over a marathon 14 pages at the last count, comparing prices in Thailand and back home in the UK. This subject is so popular with Western expats that you’d assume many people only moved to Thailand in order to take advantage of the cheap transport available here. When they move back, it must be because buying cars in Thailand is so expensive.
Looking at the comparisons given by the original poster, we can assume that they have no experience of entertainment, household spending and transport prices in London. That shit was expensive.
YouTube
And then #MotherNature put on a show. #Sunset #Bangkok #Thailand #Travel pic.twitter.com/dCz2oLZwzv
— Eric Hoffman ✈️ (@TheHusbandInTow) October 27, 2016
Funny: security at the Chaeng Wattana govt complex xray all bags when you enter. Then, inside, there is a shop that sell giant jungle knives
— KristoferA 🌏 (@KristoferA) October 28, 2016
#ExpatProblems
I’m losing touch with a lot of the manufactured outrage that my friends back home experience through US media. darn— Mr. Blackheart (@Mr_Blackheart) October 28, 2016
And that’s been The Week On Sukhumvit — see you next time!
Featured image is by My Train Pix (CC BY-SA 2.0 licence)
