Ugly Songkran

Songkran Festival, also known as Thai New Year, is famed for the water-splashing activity, annually attracting load of tourists from all over the globe to visit the Land of Smile. Thai New Year Days typically fall on 13 14 and 15 of April each year. People usually splash water each other to lessen the heat during summer. The trowing of water is not, however, the major activity of the celebration. Songkran is traditionally a time to visit and pay respects to elders, including family members, friends, neighbors, and monks.

Regarding Bangkok, the most famous spot to enjoy the festival seems to be Kao San Road, but the Silom Road is also becoming more popular thanks to its prime location.

I haven’t went out to join them for a few years. Perhaps, I think the Songkran tradition become more and more deteriorated. [You can close this window right away unless you want to acknowledge the dark side of the beautiful culture.]More teen gangsters emerged, and they were everywhere during the festival. Don’t know where the hell they cam from. They were mad, and tended to throw water to almost everyone with no care. I was very excited while I sat on the bus. I was safe thanks to the closed windows, but I felt sorry for those who sat near the opened windows. (Wondered why they didn’t just close.) Yes, they were wet. Besides, I noticed every spots that played Songkran would have bottles of alcohol. They played music aloud, danced, and some showed the inappropriate manners. It didn’t look smart after all!

The worst thing can’t be anything but the violent quarrel in Silom. Songkran in Silom in the old days were glorious, but it has been dominated by teen gangsters recently. I heard there were so many quarrels took place in Silom area, and they even fired the gun! I can’t believe such an incident would occur in the business zone in Bangkok.

Players should have better common sense, knowing what right or wrong is. I’m not in the position to ask them to comply with my request. At least, I wish I would see the better Songkran next year. And lastly, Happy (Thai) New Year.

Airport Link

Two months ago, Bangkokians proudly presented a new rapid transportation service, Airport Train.

The idea to connect Airport Link with BTS (Phaya Thai Station) gives commutors a convenint route to travel from dontown to the remote aiport. It will be more ideal if we have a bridge connecting Airport Link with BTS.

Until the moment of this writing, we have to go down from the BTS and then again go up the Airport Link. I don’t mind this as long as we have an escalator. However, please don’t expect to drag your luggage and walk in beauty as if you were a flight attendant. You will never do that thanks to the bumpy and ugly pavement. Even in the rainny day, you may get to exercise your brain finding the way how to elude the flooding.

Come on! Please take some action, government. Load of expat tourists and business people always walk on this way daily!

What would your government do about this?

I found the great note explaining the red shirt dispersal in Bangkok. Please read this before you judge. I don’t beg you to believe. I’m open-minded enough. Ah, and please don’t cling to CNN too much.

What would your government do about this?
Published: 20/05/2010 at 03:51 AM

This is going to be a long note, but I want my overseas friends to understand what has been happening here in Thailand.

I would like to present a case against the international media’s reporting on the situation in Thailand, particularly Bangkok.

Most of you will likely will be seeing only scenes of soldiers shooting or injured people being carried away on international TV channels for 30 seconds, but never get to know the background.

The truth is, the Thai government has been too accommodating by withholding the use of force since the rally started two months ago (with the exception of the April 10 event, when the soldiers were ordered to move in without live ammunition and subsequently got slaughtered by unknown gunmen shooting from among the red shirt protesters).

The majority of us support the government in dealing with the terrorists hidden amongst the protesters. It held talks with the rally leaders and offered peace solutions to them 10 days ago.

The prime minister publicly urged the protesters to disperse for fear of violence created by the terrorists. But the plan wasn’t accepted.

So, it came time to block food and water supplies from entering the centre of the protest.

If the demonstrators were peaceful, they wouldn’t rush out to throw rocks, firecrackers and even bombs at the soldiers’ barricades — thus causing the soldiers to defend themselves by firing rubber bullets and live rounds.

It has been very frustrating for the law abiding citizens of Bangkok — we even voiced our dissatisfaction at the government for its failure to uphold the laws.

The situation was like Bangkok was being held for ransom. A lot of businesses got affected because it’s happening right in the middle of the major commercial area.

Again, think what your government would do if there were a large group of protesters blocking all traffic at Orchard Road in Singapore; Times Square in New York City; Ginza in Tokyo; or Knightsbridge in London. For two months.

They set up barricades to search through personal belongings of everyone travelling through the area.

Also think what your government would do if those protesters invaded a nearby hospital, causing doctors and nurses to evacuate patients — some of whom were newborn babies in incubators and those in ICU—to other hospitals.

And most important of all, think what would your government do if the protesters were found to have a large stockpile of M79 grenades, M16 and AK47 assault rifles.

Do you think your government would be as tolerant as the Thai government has till now been?

—
Source: http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/178473/what-would-your-government-do-about-this

What would your government do about this? If I had to anwswer this, I would say it will never take place in Singapore, New York, Tokyo, and London. Their citizen are developed!

Not end

The endless demonstration of the red shirts persists, while the government and the military can do nothing rather than broadcasting several warns against them. It’s useless. Up to this point, the tension is more intensified since the red shirt announced they will be expanding to Silom Rd–the heart of business and financial hub.

In the late morning today, the red shirt declared the cancellation to expand to Silom but would do so somewhere else. Their destination hasn’t been disclosed. Well, hope they won’t back out their words, seizing Silom. Providing that Silom is under red shirt, we shall get ready to see the next episode of bloodshed!

PS. This is probably my last blogging about  sh*t politics. It’s not worth for my available space.

We don’t need your aid…

The political uncertainties in Thailand are so notorious across the world that several countries show their concern over the status quo. The tension was escalating till Apr 10 when the government decided to seize the area back, resulting in bloodshed incident. A Japanese correspondent was shot to death. Red shirts and soldiers were badly injured, and some were dead.

Again, The United States played a role of world’s police urging Thai government to ban violence. I’m just curious to know how the U.S. would manage if they also face the same trouble: two negotiations fail and the protesters remain stubborn and ruining the nation. Sure, the arm force will be their alternative as well. So, the U.S., please keep your nose back. We don’t need your aid.

Endless chaos

Before reading this entry, please be noted that I am not red, yellow, blue, pink, or whatever. I am color-blind.

I consider myself the one who pays little attention to politics. Catching such news is unavoidable as it involves with my current job and our lives. At this point, I feel terribly bored with the endless political chaos in Thailand.

The red-shirted movement kicked off about a few weeks ago, and it has been going on while I am typing this piece of writing. It was originally boasted to be a non-violence demonstration, yet I do not see it is what they declared after all–seizing Phan Fha Intersection and the whole Rajdamnoen Avenue, splashing the blood in front of the Government House of Thailand, bombing, and marching around Bangkok on weekends. Two negotiations between red-shirted leaders and the government failed. If the third time could be made, please do not televise it. I bet it would give the same outcome, and it wastes our valuable time for soap opera and sitcom. Oh, we need to say thanks for this negotiation, for it invented a new trendy vocab—Weng: a blockhead.

Yesterday, the red shirts declared a war against people in pink who start anti-violence campaign. So pink is considered harmful. What is the next color to be prohibited? The red shirt still went ahead to the US Embassy in order to pass the letter to Hillary Rodham Clinton, hoping to ask help from the US. Sorry man, I don’t think US has time to aid us since they are currently striving for their Health Care Reform.

Today, the situation is even worse when the red shirts hold Ratprasong Intersection resulting the neighboring shopping malls and shops closed. It is estimated that the total financial damage is 200 Million Baht, more or less.

I don’t say they have no right to protest for the true democracy as you bragged. (We all know you do this for your proud boss who sipping a cup of joe while enjoying the riot from monitor.) However, please do not bring any trouble to us. What you are doing now is just similar to what the yellow did last year at the airport. You are ruining the economy.

If the red shirts achieve their goal, the yellow will be back. How on earth could we escape from the vicious circle?

Please, we need no tunnel!

Beginning since last month, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (MBA) kicked off the project to build the tunnel at Baromraj Chonnanee intersection and Samyaek Fai Chai–Thonburi region. I bet a lot of people in neighboring area are in doubt why the Gove does this. We regularly do not have so heavy a traffic that the tunnel is needed. If you ask me, I can abruptly say back, “I don’t second this project.” Likewise, many keep raising hell over the construction of both tunnels. Going to work this morning,  I saw the rude messages painted on several pieces of white cloth deploring the tunnel construction. I know it is far late to abort it, but may I leave some questions for the plan maker?

Dear BMA,

Have you seen the outcome of your silly decision? Do you know many people get distressed thanks to the advent of tunnel? Did you do the public hearing before you go with the project? I know you do not care. This project is the way to generate money for your pocket! We rather need the BTS extension, not rubbish underpass.

Sincerely,

The tunnel is being constructed at Baromraj Chonnanee intersection.

The construction will surely cause more traffic. What’s more terrible is the trees on street isle are cut down. That means the little space left in Bangkok is diminished by the hand of those who encourage us to plant more trees for our Green Bangkok. Such a paradox practice!

Interview truth?

After people read the shocking headline on the Internet or newspaper yesterday, Timesonline finally releases the full transcript of interview with exiled Thai PM to prove the writer didn’t distort the story as he whined on his Twitter. Please visit Timesonline.co.uk to find out yourself what the ousted Thai leader actually said during the interview.

Note: True Internet user may be uable to access. I couldn’t get into the website at home but not workplace.

New BTS stations, are they foes to someone?

I was yesterday that I went do my errand in Bangrak. Going back home, I chose the minibus service in Klongsan area. Yes, I had to cross the river by ferry boat, and I found something odd happened to it.

BTS has just lunched its two new stations, Kring Thon Buri and Wongwian Yai. That means some passengers can mover over the Chao Phraya River by the sky train. However, I also witnessed the huge impact of this project. It took place so fast.

Uncrowded boat in the evening

As we can normally see, the boats are always loaded with lots of commuters, but there were only a handful of people on the boats yesterday. The pier is no longer busy as always. Some street vendors have vanished. They might move a new location where more people walk past. The heyday of the ferry boat in Sathorn pier has probably gone for good due to the extension of the sky train, BTS.

Hopefully, they won’t close down their business in the near future.

Bloodshed Songkran

Falling in the forth month of a calendar, Songkran festival should have been the time most people enjoy splashing water or stay with family and relatives. However, the first day of the festival truned into the war in the heart of Bangkok. Yes, I’m talking about the red-shirt who happened to come protesting and destroy such a special time and the ASIAN Summit Meeting.

Receiving the makes us updated all the time but too much will make us crazy. I admit that I like to hear the news, the news about the red-shirt always came into my ears all the time as my dad always turned on TV for this news and criticized. Honestly, I felt nauseate because of it. Really wished to turn it off suddenly (if I could).

Well, what surprised me most is the government was able to bring the normality back earlier than I thought. The red-shirt moved back and finally ended its protest. Cool! After the crazy things had gone, Songkran festival seemed to be reborn as a great crowds came out to splash water as it should be. Yahoo! The city became lively again. Thanks.

As for me during the festival, my parents and I went to my father’s hometown as always so as to visit our relatives out there. We also had a n opportunity to do Rod Nam Dam Hua ceremony (the ceremony that you pour the water on the elders’ hands and bless them) altogether with the agnate (15-16 people including me) Don’t forget that Songkran thing is not only splashing water but also the time for you and your family.