Showing 71 - 80 of 239
Easy-peasy Chinese on TikTok
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 19/05/2020
» TikTok, one of the most downloaded social media apps in recent years, is rapidly attracting more users during the lockdown period with fun and creative short videos. But the contents the popular platform offers cover not just lip-syncing, singing, dancing, stunts, pranks and crazy challenges.
Seeing how silk is made
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 14/05/2020
» Just a few minutes' walk from BTS National Stadium sits Ban Khrua, the old community by Saen Saep Canal that decades ago produced silk fabrics for Jim Thompson, who helped promote the Thai material to worldwide fame. After the mysterious disappearance of the legendary American entrepreneur in 1967, family-run silk workshops in Ban Khrua gradually went out of business. But not all of them.
When you're free to move about the country
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 07/05/2020
» It's going to be a while before we find out whether or not the easing of coronavirus lockdown measures, the mass scrambles for alcoholic beverages, and the exodus over the recent long weekend will reverse the trend of the pandemic control in Thailand that seems to be going well. Let's hope they won't. At the same time, let's not forget that in many parts of this small world, the Covid-19 situation is still not getting any better.
Keeping an eye on worshippers
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 30/04/2020
» Wat Ratchabophit Sathit Maha Simaram on Fueang Nakhon Road in Bangkok's Phra Nakhon district is known for many things. Established 150 years ago under the order of King Rama V to be the symbolic temple of his reign, this important Buddhist place of worship houses the cremated remains of eight monarchs of the Chakri Dynasty and is the residence of the current Supreme Patriarch. Architecturally, the temple is a rare example of East-meets-West design, with an exterior that is distinctly Thai and interior showing strong Gothic influence.
Banding together to help those in need
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 29/04/2020
» Chula Marketplace, aimed primarily as an online marketplace for students and alumni of Chulalongkorn University affected by Covid-19, is one of the fastest-growing groups on Facebook. In just a couple of weeks, the group has grown to over 218,268 members and counting. However, to make the numerous products and services offered by members available to the wider public, the closed group recently launched a spin-off, which can also be accessed on Facebook.
Skipping ahead
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 23/04/2020
» Earlier this month when I launched this bi-weekly Travel Diary series, I had a gut feeling that this coronavirus pandemic could drag on a lot longer than many people had thought. Maybe it could even take a whole year. However, feedback revealed that readers were more optimistic and believe it won’t be that long. Some even suggested that it would benefit them more if — instead of featuring destinations suitable for the season that matches the current time of year, but may not be useful if the travel ban is still in place — I should just skip a couple of months ahead.
Forget social media and try twitter
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 10/04/2020
» By now, you are probably either getting used to social distancing or feeling bored to death by the lockdown. If you're in the first group, kudos to you. But suppose you're among the latter bunch for whom binge-watching and all those silly social media challenges no longer, or never, work, there is still another thing you may wish to try: listening to bird songs.
Thailand's abundance
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 09/04/2020
» April is usually the height of the hot season. The sea, both in the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman, is at its best. The forest, meanwhile, may seem lifeless, yet actually there are a lot of interesting things going on in the ecosystem. Most waterfalls, for example, may not be boasting powerful cascades, but the calm, clear water reveals a fascinating array of fish and other aquatic lifeforms that thrive. And guess what: even during this dry period of the year, there are falls in some protected forests where the water continues to flow down rigorously, regardless of what month is shown on the calendar. Too bad I don't have their photographs in digital form and no time to dig through the piles of slides.
Samet Ville Resort
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 02/04/2020
» Three weeks before the lockdown, having cancelled a trip to Japan, I decided to use my leave days at Ao Wai instead. This beach on Koh Samet of Rayong Province is one of my all-time favourites. Over the past 25 years, I've visited Ao Wai numerous times. Unlike most beaches on the island, this peaceful haven has only one resort. Somehow, I've never written about it until now.
A time for solitude
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 26/03/2020
» Starting on Thursday, Thailand is under a state of emergency. Hopefully, this will help the country cope with the Covid-19 pandemic more effectively. At the time of writing, a full lockdown is not yet announced. But in line with the emergency decree, it's likely that social distancing will no longer be urged but enforced. Only with people staying calmly at home will it be possible to keep the highly contagious virus under control. China has shown that such stringent measures worked. If everybody complies, it should bring a good result here, too.