Welcome to Sunday, Bangkok!
Most of this week’s media coverage has been taken up with the plight of Rahaf Mohammed — a Saudi teenager who fled her homeland alone before barricading herself in a Bangkok hotel room and tweeting herself out of being deported. Much has been made of her story from both her critics and admirers, but Rahaf is clearly relieved and excited about being granted asylum in Canada, where she arrived on Friday.
Let’s see what else has been enraging and entertaining Bangkok this week…
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News
Tourist dies after being hit by Khao San bus in suspected suicide
This is the story of the currently unidentified Caucasian male who was hit and killed by a bus in the Khao San Road area, in what authorities suspect was a suicide attempt.
The man, believed to be a tourist, was hit by the number 516 bus next to Bowonniwet Vihara temple.
Witnesses say the man was repeatedly crossing the street before the accident, before laying down in the path of the bus, before he was hit by its back wheel and dragged for a few moments.
Police investigating death of French woman on Koh Samui
The fully clothed body of 42-year old French woman Isabel Bailey was pulled from the sea around Thong Kate Bay on Koh Samui this week.ย She had been studying at a language school on the island and had left that morning on her motorbike to visit a waterfall.
Local police are investigating the death and are so far refusing to comment on whether her death was an accident or the result of something more sinister.
Hundreds of foreigners arrested for immigration offences
In the latest phase of “X-Ray Outlaw Foreigners”, 375 people were arrested across the country early on Friday morning for immigration offences including visa overstay and illegal entry, as well as other criminal matters.
These latest raids were apparently the 28th phase in the operation, which is aimed at eliminating foreign criminals in Thailand who are perpetrating crimes like drug trafficking, romance scams and credit card fraud, as well as abuse of the visa rules.
A total of 6,498 people have been arrested so far as part of the operation.
Blogs
Is the internet taking over from Bangkok’s red light districts?
An interesting, speculative blog post here on the Life In A New Country blog regarding what some may consider to be the decline of Bangkok’s infamous red light districts.
The author posits that the internet is taking over from these areas when it comes to paying for sex, thanks to the fact that you can usually pay less, enjoy more privacy and read reviews online rather than braving the tourist hotspots of Soi Cowboy et al.
We’ll confess that this isn’t our area of expertise, but from an outsider’s perspective, the author seems spot on: these bars still thrive with tourists and expats looking for a good night out, but for those simply looking to strictly, er, pay for play without any of the neon accoutrements of the Bangkok bar scene, going online for a hook-up seems to make more sense.
Life in Thailand can be a daily struggle
An interesting opinion piece here in Khaosod English about the recent furore over the news that Thailand has the world’s largest income gap, with 1% of the population controlling over 66% of the wealth.
The author argues that it’s not just Thailand’s poor that struggle — even the middle classes have to go above and beyond to ensure that their children retain their place among the middle class and keep up with their peers.
He concludes that unequal societies cannot expect to be happy and that Thailand has failed to “bring many on board” but doesn’t offer any solutions. In our mind, putting that wealth into the education system across the country and encouraging young people to strive for greater social mobility could be a good place to start.
Where to visit in Western Thailand
A fab little blog here from the Expique team on where to visit in western Thailand — one of the country’s most forgotten areas, despite the abundance of natural beauty and authentic ‘Thainess’. They’ve got all the big hitters in here like Hua Hin and Kanchanaburi, as well as some lesser travelled areas too.
Forum Threads
What to expect (financially) as a digital nomad in Chiang Mai
A classic Reddit thread here on how much it takes to get set up as a digital nomad in Chiang Mai — specifically how much money you need to survive for a couple of months and the prospects of finding a ‘real’ job if that whole digital nomad thing doesn’t pan out.
The original poster seems somewhat naive — although, granted, that doesn’t necessarily separate him from many of the remote working wannabes up north. He’s learning web development, although has no tangible experience in it, has never lived in another country and doesn’t appear to have the English skills to pass muster as a TEFL teacher if it doesn’t work out.
Some solid advice in the replies — ideally, you need to already have an income generating business before you move as well as a good network of potential business opportunities.
What to do if you fall in love with a massage girl…
A lovesick Thaivisa post here from a young man in his twenties who’s fallen head over heels for a Thai massage girl one year his senior. He’s told her that he loves her, wants to marry her and have her open a Thai restaurant with him… meanwhile, she won’t kiss him in public and has told him that she would rather be just good friends.
So what gives? Our hero is asking the folks at Thaivisa whether he should marry her or just stay friends with her, but it seems as though the lady has all the power to decide in this situation.
And why does he want to marry her? Because she is ‘so pure’, apparently. There’s nothing like an exceedingly pure massage girl.
YouTube
A bit of WTF on a Sunday afternoon…
Return of the seal dog pic.twitter.com/cl5sZRbsDo
โ sweet3mango (@sweet3mango) January 10, 2019
A Bangkok fairytale pic.twitter.com/sbgbyxLPoO
โ ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฏ (@NeilShelley) January 10, 2019
Dinosaurs are put in place last night at the Pracharat Park in preparation for Children’s Day. pic.twitter.com/UoMLXTIXo2
โ Khaosod English (@KhaosodEnglish) January 10, 2019
Pizza Company with yet another creation that should have been drowned at birth. #BangkokFoodies pic.twitter.com/pnk45FVfnZ
โ Ian (@iamKohChang) January 8, 2019
In and out of Thai immigration at Chaengwattana with a visa extension in my hands in 14 minutes – SAY WHAT!? #bangkok #thailand
โ Chris Wotton (@chriswotton) January 9, 2019
Somchai The Dogs Top 4 Things To Do in Samut Prakan.
1. Buy a packet of Walkers crisps from Villa Supermarket
2. A beer and a burger at The Stockroom
3. Feed a crocodile a piece of meat on a string at the Crocodile Farm.
4. Visit every 7 Eleven on LaSalle Avenue (12)โ Somchai (@bkksomchai) January 9, 2019
T-Shirt of the day. #StarbucksThailand #Rayong pic.twitter.com/iItBFBbeOV
โ Bernd Krell (@bekrell) January 9, 2019
Advertising fail in #Thailand#Bangkok #fail #lol #humor #funny #funnyphotos pic.twitter.com/45z8Pt73SO
โ Stephen Kaposi (@realstevekaposi) January 8, 2019
๐ ๐ ๐ pic.twitter.com/M6jfD1nl2t
โ Stickboy Bangkok (@StickboyBangkok) January 9, 2019
On my day off I only drink 1 beer
Cr Photo Thai visa pic.twitter.com/VfUb7H6vPlโ Thai gazza (@Thai_Gazza) January 9, 2019
Donโt get me wrong. Iโm delighted Thailand caved and @rahaf84427714 is, for now, safe. But her experience is an anomaly for refugees seeking safety in Thailand and we must not forget that.
โ Jerome Taylor (@JeromeTaylor) January 9, 2019
โฆ@ep2983โฉ met a monster in the park.#Bangkok pic.twitter.com/vi3BZu64fp
โ Frank Pritchard (@pfc1410) January 10, 2019
Wat Arun today with moody sky #Thailand pic.twitter.com/JYkBExFpF4
โ bangkok charlie (@bangkokcharlie) January 9, 2019
Bang Bao Pier this morning #Thailand #amazingthailand #sunrise pic.twitter.com/z2xmzC8nrx
โ Travel & Tantrums (@TantrumsTravel) January 10, 2019
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Chill out in Thailand๐ด โ ๐#DiscoverThailand โ ๐ธ Photo by @danmaniel
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Sunrise in Chiang Rai. That view ๐ Photo by @agirlwhoblooms #traveleroftheweek
And that’s been The Week On Sukhumvit — see you next time!
