Showing 1 - 10 of 14
Straddling two worlds
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 11/12/2025
» When I visited Istanbul for the first time, I learned a joke from Gocke, my local guide, who goes to work by undersea train every day. "But you can't see anything," she laughed. For her, it takes only four minutes to cross from Asia to Europe, under the Bosphorus Strait that divides the ancient city.
A creative plan to restore the glory of Khon Kaen's business district
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 01/06/2023
» 'Chuka, chuka, chuka." Gone are the days when people made their own garments, but sewing machines still hum from a narrow corner of an old shophouse. Stacks of different clothes and mannequins take up space on the ground floor. Staff cut fabric, engrave names and sew white uniforms in an assembly line. Aunt Wan graces them with buttonholes, producing hundreds of hospital gowns for doctors in Isan.
A bitter farewell
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 15/05/2023
» The Robot Building on Sathon Road is a childhood superhero that comes to life. Standing on staggered floors, the chunky android is studded with nuts and bolts. Its head boasts metallic-lidded eyes and two communication antennae and its frontal body is outfitted with black glass and blue stripes like armour. It is ready to fight a monster in the urban jungle.
Songs for life as it's no longer lived
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 17/04/2023
» Ad Carabao's new song Prachathipatung revives the myth of vote-buying and ignorance in rural society. The title is a coinage blending prachathipatai (democracy) and tung (money). On the track, parents ask children to return to their home village to vote for local politicians who give them money. It puts into song from the political discourse of an urban middle class that expresses disdain for villagers along with antipathy for one type of money politics as well as full-fledged democracy.
A call for help
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 23/08/2022
» We pull on layers to protect our vulnerable core. When they break, we are exposed and desperate for new shells, but they take time and do not come easily. Sometimes, we borrow them from the dead.
Giving new life to canals
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 01/11/2021
» Once known as the Venice of the East, Bangkok has seen its vast network of rivers winding through the capital vanish due to urban development. Construction has filled in klongs (canals) for roads and houses and the remaining waterways have become neglected and clogged with rubbish.
Building a sustainable future
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 29/10/2021
» Clad in face masks, urban dwellers brave not only the coronavirus but also smog. Bangkok has been suffocating in polluted air from various sources that release greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, into the atmosphere.
Lessons of history
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 13/10/2021
» After decades of military authoritarianism, student demonstrators in Bangkok began to call for the restoration of constitutional rule and a return to democracy. In the face of the challenge, the entrenched generals refused to negotiate and arrested the protest leaders, claiming they were influenced by communism. It paved the way for the popular uprising of Oct 14, 1973.
For all mankind
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 04/08/2021
» Over 60 years ago, Moscow launched a beach ball-sized aluminium satellite, Sputnik 1, into space for the first time in history. Its beep radio signal kicked off the space race between the Soviet Union and America at the height of the Cold War. When US astronaut Neil Armstrong landed on the Moon, his small step became "one giant leap for mankind".
Divided we fall
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 28/06/2021
» In 2019, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha stormed an election campaign rally stage with a promise to end turmoil and move the country forward. He managed to survive attacks from all sides, from an oath gaffe to anti-government protests. However, nobody imagined that the coronavirus would present a real challenge to his rule. After 18 months, the crisis has battered the country with 218,000 infections and 1,600 deaths so far.