Showing 1 - 10 of 29
Thai Tributes to Queen Elizabeth II
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 23/09/2022
» In the wake of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Thailand has joined in paying tributes to and mourning the world's and Britain's longest-reigning monarch. Here are a few heartfelt highlights.
Come Rain or Shine
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 16/09/2022
» Everyone and their mother are well aware that floods suck, period. But give it to the Thais who manage to make the most of the rains as shown in these pictures, which I hope will lighten up the heavy rain (with no intention to glamourise it).
What's in a (soi) name?
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 24/06/2022
» At the front of practically every soi in Bangkok, you'll notice a pole with a blue sign with white letters at the top proclaiming its name. However, if you look closer you may find many sois in Thailand can brighten your day with their curious names. Here are a few for your entertainment.
Rethinking Election Posters
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 08/04/2022
» The English idiom goes "Don't judge a book by its cover" but I'll say "Let's judge candidates running for Bangkok governor by how they put up their posters". It's a mouthful but I think it's a legitimate point to ponder.
Stop the Madness
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 18/02/2022
» A very eccentric man by the moniker of K Roy-lan (K Hundreds of Million), who is said to be a real estate businessman, has been on a scary spree lately. On Feb 1, he stopped his car in the middle of the road in front of CentralWorld and released snakes. He later poured red syrup on his body and threw a glass bottle, while being in Siam Paragon. He then threatened to release snakes at Thammasart University and, most recently, carried a bag of snakes with him while staying in a hotel.
The Highway to Inequality
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 10/12/2021
» What does equality mean to you? At a ceremony to launch a rental housing project for low-income families, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said last Friday:
When the Streetlights Go On
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 18/06/2021
» Lampposts have posed a lot of questions since last week. If you've been around Thailand, you're bound to spot fancy lampposts that are equipped with sculptures at the top. These sculptures represent something unique about their locality like what a province is known for or simply are mythical creatures. They are nothing new in Thailand but become the new talk of Thai town after people raise questions, rightfully so, about their costs and necessity. Some suspect good old corruption and collusion between local govt officials and the contractors who built them. They are paid for by the taxpayers' money, after all.
How to Name Your Car Like You're One of the 0.1%
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 19/02/2021
» The 0.1% of Thais (not 1% 'cause Thailand has the highest wealth inequality in the world, you see) may rejoice at the recent news that soon you can pay an extra fee to give your vehicle a real name on a licence plate instead of the two-alphabets-and-numerals combo the 99.9% are familiar with. The new rules will allow a combination of more than two alphabets, vowels, tone marks and numbers in a vehicle registration plate for a personal car with no more than seven seats. In short, you can name your car after you or give it a person's name. For example, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha can name his "ประยุทธ์ 2 กรุงเทพมหานคร (Prayut 2 Bangkok)" to commemorate his second term. The plan is expected to be implemented around the middle of this year and you can bid for such a plate with starting price of B1 million. Money raised this way will be spent to improve road safety.
Dealing With A Covid-19 Side Effect
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 22/01/2021
» One side effect of the Covid-19 pandemic that you may have overlooked (besides amassing a vast collection of hand sanitisers and exposing govt inefficiency -- kapow!) is more waste, especially plastic. Inevitably, it is exacerbated by our appetite for food delivery while we're WFH during this quasi-lockdown. The first wave saw an increase of plastic waste by 60% in Bangkok due to the higher demand for food delivery as estimated by Thailand Environment Institute in May last year. Thailand Research Development Insitute also claimed that one such order can contain up to seven pieces of plastic waste (so opt-out of utensils when you order please).
Before we go to the moon...
Guru, Pornchai Sereemongkonpol, Published on 18/12/2020
» On Monday, Anek Laothamatas, the minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, revealed that, by the middle of next month, a plan to send a spacecraft into the moon's orbit in seven years from now will be announced. According to him, Thailand will be the fifth Asian country to achieve this extraterrestrial feat, following China, Japan, South Korea and India. Khun Anek added that taxpayers' money will be used to yield tangible results rather than just more research and teaching, at the launch of a project to crowdfund locally-made vaccines against Covid-19 led by Chulalongkorn University.