Reconciliation starts now

The tragic events of last night were devastating for anyone who loves the city of Bangkok. Watching images and reports flood in of landmark buildings like the Central World mall and beloved Siam Theatre going up in flames was heartbreaking. Today many people are quite rightly feeling very angry. But anger isn’t going to get Thailand out of this mess.

A minority of protesters have without doubt acted in a senseless and mindless manner. It is hard to find any justification for these acts of vandalism and arson, the results of which will surely only serve to undermine the causes they claim to fight for and reinforce the divisions in Thai society.

How many protesters were involved in the uncontrolled rioting last night is unclear. I’ve read figures suggesting up to three thousand people. These hardliners urgently need to be brought under control and subjected to a genuine process of justice.
It would be easy to tar the entire red shirt movement with their brush. But if we do that will Thailand ever emerge from its current cycle of protest and conflict? It should not be forgotten that earlier in March estimates of up to one hundred thousand people were involved in the red shirt protests, most of whom engaged in a peaceful and positive manner. No-one who witnessed the earlier red shirt parades around the city could call them violent. Frustrating and inconvenient perhaps, but not violent.

It would also be easy to forget the large number of people who have never joined the protests but sympathise with the red shirt cause. In recent democratic elections at least half of the electorate have voted for Thaksin affiliated parties. That adds up to tens of millions of people. You might not agree with them but they can’t be ignored. They won’t go away.

Neither will endless blaming of Thaksin make Thailand’s problems disappear. Don’t get me wrong, I am no fan of Thaksin. The human rights abuses committed during the war on drugs and Tak Bai incident under his Government were despicable. I deplore corruption in any form and his moves towards authoritarianism and control of the media were deeply disturbing.

However, I strongly believe that Thaksin is a symptom of Thailand’s problems not the cause. Thaksin is a shrewd politician and publicist and he was simply the man who was clever enough to take advantage of the underlying conditions in Thai society. He worked out how to harness the divisions in Thai society and use them for his advantage. You can certainly accuse Thaksin of increasing those divisions but not of creating them. The disparities in income, education and opportunity that fuel this conflict were there long before Thaksin. To use a metaphor Thaksin may have pulled the trigger but the gun wouldn’t have worked without gunpowder.

It would be easy to take out our feelings of hurt and resentment from lasts night’s events on the whole of the red shirt movement, but if we want reconciliation and a democratic peaceful Thailand, we mustn’t do that. The red shirt movement is well known to be split and we need to engage with and empower the peaceful factions if we want to isolate and weaken the violent groups.

Tonight as you enjoy another night in under curfew shed a tear for your favourite mall and cinema but tomorrow be prepared to forgive and forget. Try to understand the motivations and demands of those on both sides of the conflict. We need to return to the middle ground if we are ever going to get out of this turmoil.

Staying Home as Bangkok Burns

Working as a teacher in Bangkok over four years, I've become accustomed to the ebbs and flows of Thai politics. Coups and protests have become a peculiar part of everyday life. In a very non-threatening manner, these incidents always seemed to be occurring somewhere else and subsequently had very little effect on my life.

One of the charms of living in Thailand is that throughout all these events, life went on as normal. Old ladies still made Pad Thai on food stalls in the street, teenagers carried on playing online games in internet cafes until the early hours and the guards outside my apartment continued to sleep contently through their night shifts.

This time it’s been a bit different. The protests have moved from 'somewhere else' to the heart of Bangkok's commercial centre. To the luxury malls around Siam Square, the business districts of Sathorn and the bustling nightlife of Silom. When I see images of violence in these areas that I know well, it suddenly seems very real.

I've watched video clips of commuters running terrified from a grenade attack at Sala Daeng station, where I regularly catch the sky train. I've seen photographs of columns of soldiers marching down Sathorn Road, past the building where I take Thai language lessons. I've read reports of gunfights in Suan Pluu, where I get my hair cut and pick up vegetables from the market. It's a bit too close for comfort.

After a trip home to visit my family, I arrived back in Bangkok on Thursday night, just in time to see the prolonged anti-Government 'red shirt' protests descend into chaos. As I sat in the taxi, heading back from the airport, we passed trucks packed with soldiers and policeman and my improving Thai listening skills regularly picked out the words 'soldier', 'violence' and 'guns,' as drivers reported the situation to each other over their radios.

My house and workplace are located on a small street off the Sathorn Road, about a fifteen minute walk from the limit of the red shirt protest zone. Far enough away to feel reasonably safe, but close enough to be boxed in by the army blockades. I haven't left my street in five days. Most of the main roads out of my area are intermittently occupied by army patrols, red shirts burning tyres and the chaotic exchanges when they meet. The sky train and underground services remain closed indefinitely. At the moment it seems like the safest option is to stay put.

With all schools closed for at least a week, most of my colleagues have escaped the city altogether, passing their time on the beach until the trouble blows over. It is worth pointing out that, despite the disturbing images broadcast worldwide on the news, the conflict is very localised. Across most of the country and indeed most of Bangkok the atmosphere is calm and life is carrying on as normal. Thai friends who work in the outskirts of the capital are expected to report for work as normal. Even work improving the drainage and resurfacing the road in my street continues. Foreign friends holidaying in nearby Ko Samet tell me the vibe there is still relaxed and peaceful.

I've always been interested in politics and while I'm neither brave nor foolish enough to go to the protest area myself, I've been keenly following events on the internet. The Thai print media, especially the two English language newspapers, are widely regarded to be at best restricted and worst quite biased in favour of the Government, so I've been trying to gain a more balanced perspective by following events online. Many foreign correspondents are using Twitter to report in real time what they are seeing on the ground in the protest zone. Endless clips have been uploaded to You Tube, alleging to show terrible acts by the red shirts or soldiers. Blogs like New Mandala entertain lively debate on the causes of and possible solutions to the conflict.

Thai society traditionally values conformity and, working as a teacher, I've seen first-hand how the education system focuses on rote learning of bulk content over development of independent thinking skills. As a result most Thais appear quite accepting of what they are told and are reluctant to question authority. This is causing the debate here to become highly polarised and dominated by blatant propaganda on both sides.

Some of my more high society Thai friends are now joining a rapidly growing campaign on Facebook, to discredit what they believe to be biased coverage from international networks like BBC and CNN. Biased, presumably, because it challenges the Government's accepted line. On the other hand, I've spoken to taxi drivers who vehemently deny that the red shirts are armed with anything but slingshots and repeat wild claims about Government conspiracies, that they heard on red shirt community radio shows.

Most of my work colleagues are tired of the situation even if they are enjoying the time off work. They can’t understand why the Government has allowed the protest to continue for so long and are glad that its finally being resolved even some of the military’s tactics seem a little heavy handed. People question why the protesters were allowed to set up camp in the first place. “It wouldn’t have been allowed to happen in my country”, is a response I’ve often heard.

With my Thai friends the reaction is more mixed and the emotions run stronger. The stakes are higher for them. They can’t just up and leave if it gets bad and are quite rightly worried about the consequences for the future of their country. The split within my group of friends mirrors the split in the country. My richer friends, often educated abroad, I met at parties playing western music in the upmarket bars of Thong Lor and RCA. They’re firmly sitting on the yellow side of the fence and often quite stridently. But I have other friends that I got to know at underground metal concerts. Many of these are people who have come from the rural provinces to work in Bangkok for as little as a hundred baht a day. Almost without exception they support the red shirts.

I’ve been surprised by the strength of feelings about these issues as Thais are usually quite reluctant to show their feelings in public. One of my friends works as a style consultant at a high end fashion shop in Central World. He’s been unable to work for over a month now was nearly in tears as relayed his fears for the future of Thailand. Like many, he blames Thaksin for stirring up trouble and thinks the Government are fully justified in their actions. The lady who makes ice tea in a shop down the road from my school is more pragmatic. With the school closed and most local businesses shut her sales are down, but she supports the Government dispersing the protest as it may at least lead to an improvement in following weeks.

The conflict is often billed as the rural poor coming to protest against Bangkok’s urban elite. There is some truth in this but it sometimes forgotten that Bangkok’s population includes a huge number of rural born casual workers. Just as in the West, immigrants often fill the jobs that the natives don’t want and so it is in Bangkok. Talk to a street cleaner, motorbike driver or food stall owner and you will invariably find that they were born in the Northeast of Thailand. Ironically, it is these people who have in many ways been worst affected by the crisis. When the Economy is hit, it is the casual work that dries up first.

Many friends have had to return to their home provinces. Without work they simply can’t survive in Bangkok. One of my flatmates expressed alarm this morning. “”7/11 has sold out of MAMA noodles,” he told me. “What will the poor people eat?”. To many foreigners this would seem like a joke but he’s actually quite serious. At six baht a packet, these instant noodles are what casual workers fall back on when they can’t afford any other food. My red leaning friends know the protesters won’t be able to hold off the military indefinitely and seem quite resigned to what is happening. They’ve got used to yellow shirts throwing insults at them, regarding their alleged limited education and lack respect for the monarchy. They’ve got used to seeing videos of civilians being shot and listening to Government claims that the violence is all instigated by red shirts. However angry they might be about this, they’ve learned to accept it. They don’t feel empowered in their society and don’t feel their voice will be heard.

Currently, my feelings about the situation are more of depression than fear. The conflict is taking place in a localised area which I can avoid and is in no way targeting foreigners. But Thailand is a country that I have grown to love and to see it falling apart like this makes me deeply sad. It is hard to imagine how the current standoff can be peacefully resolved. Even if the protesters do withdraw, or the army forcibly removes them, it seems likely that there will be lasting consequences in Thai society.

A version of this article was first published on the Australian website New Matilda.

http://newmatilda.com/2010/05/20/staying-home-bangkok-burns

Update

Since I wrote this article events have moved on and tensions have escalated. The army cleared the protest zone and hardline protesters have moved around the city, setting fire to landmark buildings like the Central World shopping mall and the Thai Stock Exchange. I don’t think any of my friends or colleagues would have any support for such mindless actions. I go to bed tonight feeling that something significant has changed in Thailand and wondering how long it will take the country to recover.

Japan

Had a brilliant time in Japan.. lots of things I want to say about it.. but too busy at work to write anything right now.. In the meantime I am putting lots and lots of photos on my flickr site..

Its a slow process but I've got 3 sets on so far..

Kobe, Takao Mountain, rock concert..

http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardinthailand/sets

I think you can access this page to see the sets

if not try this one

http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardinthailand

Rich xx

Happy Songkran

small songkran, originally uploaded by richardinthailand.

For three days in April the whole of Thailand goes crazy as they celebrate the unique bizarreness that is Songkran festival.

Songkran is the Thai New Year, but the traditional practices of pouring fragrant water on the hands of the elderly to show respect has mutated into an all out all day and all night water fight during which the entire nation take to the streets to douse soak each other with buckets, hoses and every kind of water gun imaginable.

And then there is the clay.

Songkran just happens to be on my birthday and the atmosphere on Khao San road was unbelievable. Thousands of people were on the streets but everyone was so happy and the whole thing was incredibly friendly. Can you imagine the mayhem and fights that would break out if this kind of thing was attempted in the UK!

In the evening the party moved on to Silom where the nightclubs had an inch of water on the floor and the DJ was hidden in a plastic tent and you danced whilst trying your best to avoid the bucket of ice and jets of cold water.

If you are planning to come to Thailand it's worth braving the heat of the Thai Summer to experience this unforgettable festival.

This is my first batch of photos, taken with a waterproof disposable.. will be putting up some others my friends took over the next few weeks.

Philippines

DSC02012, originally uploaded by richardinthailand.

I went to the Philippines last month.. but when I got back I was ill and moving house and disconnected from the internet so I never got around to writing about it..

Anyway.. it was beautiful and I had a great time (apart from the being ill) and here is a picture of me sitting on a rock pretending to be a pirate.

There are lots more photos on my flickr page

www.flickr.com/photos/richardinthailand

Censorship and the military junta

Its easy to forget that there ever was a coup and that Thailand is currently run by a military junta.. there have been very few changes in most people's daily lives since the events of last September..



The new "government" seem to be fond of quickly introducing new laws without thinking them through properly. There was controversy a few months ago when one such law was introduced requiring that foreign nationals or company wishing to invest money in Thailand must deposit 30% of the total investment in a Thai bank for a few years.. Within hours the Thai stock exchange and baht had crashed and the law was repealled.


The coup has impacted on my life in subtle ways.. I had been looking forward to the Bangkok Heineken Rock Festival in January. Unfortunately my plans were scuppered when a law was introduced banning all sponsorship by alcohol. After losing their major sponsor the festival was cancelled. An idea was floated that the legal age for alcohol consumption might me raised to 25. I would be ok but that would have prevented half my Thai friends from going out. Fortunately that plan has so far remained on the drawing board.

Something I read in the Bangkok Post newspaper this week has left me even more upset though. After the owners refused to remove a short video clip mocking the King of Thailand, the government have banned any use of the "You Tube" website in the whole country of Thailand.

You Tube is one of my favourite websites. I normally use it to watch music videos.. New independent bands post their videos on the site and fans can upload TV performances and clips from concerts. Living a long way from the UK its a great way for me to keep up to date with new music. Its also a good way to share music with friends, as I did when I posted links for some Thai pop songs in my blog last week.

Now I am fully aware how much the Thai people love and respect their King. Any form of criticism of the royal family, let alone open mockery is not culturally acceptable in this country. The government's reaction however seems somewhat excessive. Due to the actions of one individual who posted the clip, an entire nation have been denied the opportunity to enjoy all the other benefits of this site.

Surely a degree of "turning the other cheek" would be appropriate here. I would never have even realised there was a video clip moking the King if this gross act of censorship hadn't brought it into the news. It brings me back to my attempts to resolve childhood disputes in the playground as a teacher. If someone says something ridiculous and stupid about you, its not worth dignifying it with a repsonse.

Cynics might feel that this King clip is a convenient excuse. Users can post whatever they like on You Tube. So in addition to music videos, you can view just about anything you can think of.. from bad jokes and miming to pop songs to 'brainiac' style Science stunts and practical jokes.

Political groups have also utilised You Tube for campaigning. When nearly a hundred Muslim's in the South of Thailand died from heat exhaustion after being bundled into overcrowded trucks, there were clips on You Tube. There is nothing to stop opposition politicians from posting speeches on the site. I'd imagine animal rights campaigners have probably posted clips exposing alleged malpractices at research centres.

Surely the military junta wouldn't be taking advantage of the situation regarding the King clip, in a country where no-one will question anything regarding the monarchy, to remove a possible campaigning tool for pro-Thaksin and other anti-coup groups?

In the meantime I mourn the loss of my favourite music website. I can't see the current standoff being resolved any time soon.

Technical hitch sorted

New posts got photos now.. found a better internet cafe..

There's a quick one about my new job and longer ones about karaoke and working conditions for Thais.

If you go to my FLICKR page.. there are some photos you can look at there.. Am going to make a real effort to take more photos here.. promise!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardinthailand/

Rich xx

New Job

I've just completed my first full week in my new job so thought now would be a good time to jot down my first impressions.. Let's see if I still feel the same when the real term starts in May. Apologies if there's too much teacher speak.

FOr the uninformed I was working at a Thai High School teaching English to teenagers.. I'm now teaching Science at a Primary school as part of their English Program. It's the Thai Summer break at the moment (HOT season) but some of the kids are back at school for "Summer School" (AKA cheap babysitting for the parents).

The students..

All boys.. only 7 to 11 in a class for Summer school and only teaching for (less than) 2 hours a day.. but even so.. they seem very well behaved, well mannered and studious, yet still with personality.. fairly wide range of abilities but they all appear to understand English pretty well.

The staff.. much younger than in my old job.. fairly balanced male / female too. I think its 16 Australians, about 5 Brits and 5 Americans, plus a few New Zealanders and South Africans. As I'd hoped their attitude is much better than the old school.. enthusiastic people who are committed to teaching and excited about being in Thailand. None of the suffocating negativity of the old job.

Resources seem good.. all classrooms have LCD projectors, there's a Science Lab and stacks of Thesauruses and atlases have appeared on my desk already. The main resource storeroom is being re-catalogued at the moment so I haven't had a proper look through everything yet, but it seems like there are lots of useful things there and money available for new things if they're needed.

The management of the school regarding planning, discipline etc seems VERY organised, but in a way that puts structures in place to make the job easier not harder. There is a real feeling of working in a team, which is a BIG plus after my small school in the UK where I had to do everything by myself. Planning is shared and effectively stored from previous years which should reduce the workload a LOT and behaviour policies are consistent and sensible which together with general high expectations should make classroom management easier.

I'll be working with a Grade 5 team and a Science team (and Grade 6 team as well I guess) so lots of meetings beckon but I think I'll appreciate the support and chance to discuss things.

Summer school is very low workload. I teach the same English and Maths lesson to 4 classes each week and I've already finished my worksheets and plans for the rest of Summer school so I'll have lots of time to get ready for the new term.

So far so good :)

Tonight Matthew.. I'm going to be..

Anyone who knows me will know that I am just a little bit obsessed with music. Sadly the countless hours of listening to records while singing to myself and dancing around my bedroom have failed to develop much proficiency in the skills of singing and dancing. Not that I've ever let that stop me from having a lot of fun when I go to nightclubs or karaoke.

Signing karaoke at a pub in England can be a rather harrowing experience… stepping up to the microphone on a raised stage in front of a baying mob of drunken strangers. Obviously if you can pull it off, performing in front of a crowd can give you an amazing buzz. But as I mentioned before I am no professional singer and karaoke can easily go horribly and painfully wrong.

I think it must be a little in joke amongst karaoke DJs that they change the pitch of the song ever so slightly from that of the record. Why else would it be that suddenly you can't hit the notes of the very same song that you so successfully warbled in the shower that morning? The problem is that once you're on stage and the song has started there's nowhere to hide. You've got to finish it, weird pitch changes or not and the stage can be a pretty lonely place when you're messing it up.

Another flaw in the English karaoke system is the waiting. If the pub is busy, after handing in your little slip of paper and downing a quick drink to settle your nerves, you can be waiting for 30 minutes or an hour before you get the chance to sing. By this time overenthusiastic dosing of "dutch courage" may well have further limited your already limited singing talent. Rarely would you get the chance to sing more than two songs in an evening, so there isn't much chance to get in the practice one needs to make perfect.

It doesn't have to be this way!

In Asia, where karaoke is insanely popular there is an alternative.

In Thailand you can hire out a small room by the hour and sing with a group of friends. Often drinks and even food can be ordered to the room and you can sing till your hearts content, avoiding the various stresses and inconveniences discussed above.

Look back at the dodgy curtain in the UK.. just how much cooler is this?

You're singing in front of your friends, so the stress and public humiliation factors are removed. If you chose a song and then realise half way though the first verse that you can't sing it you can just cancel it and get on with the next one. If the pitch is a bit off you can usually adjust it yourself to suit your vocal range. And of course with just you and your friends singing you can get through a lot more songs.

Another bonus is that you don't have to sit through ear-drum bursting out of tune versions of "I Will Always Love You" or be subjected to drunken wailings of "I Will Survive" by wronged women. Although I guess that depends who your friends are.

I don't know this girl.. she's probably a very good singer.. but her mouth is open unaturally wide

If you miss the magic of performing in front of a real audience, there are still plenty of karaoke bars in Thailand. But at least you can get some practice in private and perfect your performance before you get up on the stage.

I'm trying to learn some Thai songs at the moment, half to baffle / impress my Thai friends and half in a genuine attempt to learn a bit more of the language. Although quite how often I'll be able to use phrases like "love has pierced my heart, I try to pull it out but it won't come out" is another question. Below are You Tube links to my top 5 karaoke songs. They all have English transliteration so you too can sing along!!

1. Bie - I Need Somebody



2. Ice - Kon Jai Ngai



3. Four Mod - Love Love



4. Neko Jump - Bpuu



5. Dan Beam - Bpai Naa Rak Glai Glai Noy



As Catatonia once said..

"its just a three minute song.. it doesn't last very long.. but it will take you to a place I know you'd rather be.."

"Don't be so serious na"

Thailand is famously known as the "land of smiles", and often portrayed as some kind of tropical heaven on earth. Thailand has certainly given me countless wonderful experiences, but after living here for nearly a year I'm realising that there might be a bit more behind the smiles. Namely, that life for many Thais in this country is very hard.

Obviously tourists visiting any country tend to see the best side of things and when you factor in the "rich" effect of how much the average Western currency can buy in Thailand its easy to see why the country is a "paradise" for tourists. But many Thais seem to have the same attitude, happily telling you that everything is wonderful in their country and being very reluctant to discuss or even accept that there are any problems here. I'm often chastised by my friends for being "too serious". Certainly one of the charming things about the Thai people is the way that they don't complain and shout about things, but it amazes me that these things aren't at least discussed a bit more.

I have to admit that what I am about to write has to be placed firmly under the category of "allegedly" or "apparently". I haven't researched these issues or looked at them in any objective manner. The following are simply my opinions based on what I have observed and been told by friends in my time here. Inevitably friends' comments may have been exaggerated or misunderstood.



I don't know what the official poverty line is in Thailand but I can start from what I spend and count back. My average expenditure for a month – including rent, bills, transport, food and everything else is around 25,000 baht. With an exchange rate of around 70 baht to the pound this is equivalent to around £350 but with this money I can live a very comfortable life, living in my own apartment, eating out every day and going shopping, to the cinema and for drinks in the evening with much more freedom than in London where I can to count every penny.

As a "farang" living by myself I doubtless spend a lot more than the average Thai, who might save money for example by sharing a room with 2 or 3 people, using buses instead of the sky train and being rather more sparing with the air conditioning. At a rough guess I would imagine that 10,000 to 15,000 baht a month would provide a fairly comfortable lifestyle, albeit without some of the luxuries I have got used to. Anything less than that I imagine would be tough to survive on, certainly in Bangkok.

Prices in Bangkok don't compare easily to those in the UK, with some items much cheaper and others much more expensive. A studio flat will cost 3000 – 5000 baht in the less central areas of Bangkok, travel on the sky train is 15 – 45 baht depending on the length of journey, while the bus is cheaper at 6 – 15 baht. Eating out is cheap, 20 – 30 baht for a standard rice or noodle dish on the street while a big dinner at a good quality restaurant with a group of friends might come to 200 baht a head. Drink is more expensive with a bottle of beer at the pub usually hitting the 100 baht mark.



Thailand has a significant minority who are conspicuously very rich, driving massive 4 by 4s and shopping at the exclusive Paragon department store. Unfortunately this small section of Thai society seem to distorted how many westerners in Bangkok view the Thai people in general, leading to the kinds of ridiculous complaints and prejudices I encountered in my previous job. Thailand also has a culture of keeping up appearances and not "losing face" so while people may project an image of being wealthy the reality may be rather different.


The majority of Thais that I know however, work very long hours for very little money. I don't like asking friends about their salaries too much but it seems that well qualified people with degrees or masters are lucky to earn 20,000 to 25,000 baht even with a several years of experience. The experiences recounted to me by friends about part time and less qualified jobs are quite shocking. One friend told me that he worked at a bakery for 100 baht a DAY (that is less that £1.50), while another friend was working full time hours as a chef for about 6000 – 7000 baht a month. Certainly I have seen full time jobs advertised for around that mark on the doors of restaurants and shops in the mall.





Full time work in Thailand generally means long hours, the minimum for a regular job would be Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm (an extra hour on the UK). However people working in jobs like the bakery described above inevitably end up working many more hours in order to earn a useful about of money. Certainly working 6 day or 7 day weeks is not unusual and I've seen the same girl in my local 7-11 store at 7am on my way into work and again at 1am when I've got back from a nightclub on the same day! The people who run the food stalls on the streets also normally work 12 hour days 7 days a week, maybe closing once a month.


One of my friends, who studied for a masters degree abroad currently works for a company who have won the franchise for visa processing for the British Embassy. March is apparently a busy month and staff are expected to complete the processing of all applications on any given day, no matter how long it takes. So my friend has been working until 9pm, midnight, even 2am on one occasion, and is expected back at work at 8am the next day as usual. This extra work incidentally does not earn him any overtime payments.



Most of my friends are fairly well educated, but for those that aren't life is rather more difficult. Officially education is free for all in Thailand, but students are expected to pay for uniforms, books and other materials, which can prove a real barrier for poorer families. In other situations children are required to work, supporting the family business. For people with a lack of education or any other barrier to work, life truly is a struggle. You see so many reminders of this in Bangkok that you almost become desensitised to it.

People don't recycle their own rubbish in Thailand. They throw everything away and then other people empty the bins and pick out any plastic and metal items they can sell to a recycling plant. I've seen people wading and swimming through the foul Bangkok canals to collect rubbish for this reason. The other constant in any market or main shopping area is the beggars. Disabled people with missing limbs dragging themselves along the gutter, blind people stumbling along busy roads wailing karaoke songs into a microphone and perhaps the saddest of all incredibly young children left by their families on the streets to beg.



This piece is not intended to be a criticism of the Thai people. I have an enormous respect for the way that they do "get on with things" without complaint and with their trademark smiles. Indeed I think one of the reasons I feel more comfortable in Bangkok than London is the fact that people are not so driven here. By describing the problems I've seen I'm really aiming to highlight the obscene hypocrisy and lack of understanding of many of the foreigners who live in Bangkok exhibit and just why it makes me so angry to hear them talk in such an selfish and uninformed manner.

When I see all these things it makes me realise how incredibly lucky I am to have been born in a rich country into a family who have loved and supported me and encouraged me in everything I've done. It is also this which makes me so angry when I see people in the UK not making the best of their lives and not taking advantage of the amazing opportunities they have been given.

In my new job I'll be earning what seems like an obscene amount of money considering what many hard working people survive on in this country. As such I am determined to give something back, be it donations to charity or when I'm settled into my new job volunteering my time to support one of the community projects I've read about. I just wish more tourists and expats would open their eyes and do something to help less advantaged people in this "tropical paradise" they so much enjoy.