Showing 101 - 110 of 133
Peeking into the past
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 10/10/2013
» Several important dates in modern Thai history happen to fall in October. The 23rd is Chulalongkorn Memorial Day, a public holiday declared to mark the legacy of King Rama V, the farsighted monarch credited with abolishing slavery and modernising many aspects of our society.
Mending the heart of a neighbourhood
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 30/09/2013
» Standing tall and graceful on the western bank of the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok is the 60.5m-high white Phra Borommathat Maha Chedi of Wat Prayurawongsawas Worawihan. The almost 200-year-old iconic temple (or Wat Prayoon, as the locals call it) made headlines when the restoration of its ivory-white stupa and the adjoining hall, Pharin Pariyattithammasala, won the Award of Excellence in the 2013 Unesco Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation, marking the first time that a Thai project has been recognised with such an esteemed honour.
Mapping Siam's history
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 26/09/2013
» Most tourists do not want to miss the Grand Palace, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and Wat Pho when in Bangkok. However, very few people know there is a map museum at the heart of Rattanakosin Island.
Echoes of a Storied Past
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 12/09/2013
» Kanchanaburi has long been a popular destination for day-trippers. Legions of tourists, both local and foreign, regularly make the short trip from Bangkok to visit scenic Sai Yok Waterfall and remnants of the infamous Death Railway like Hellfire Pass and the renamed "Bridge On The River Kwai". But astonishingly few visitors venture into the oldest section of this laid-back town which boasts some fine examples of architecture, well-preserved buildings dating from just before World War II right back to the mid-19th century.
Savouring a sylvan past
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 22/08/2013
» In the late 1760s, when King Taksin was busy establishing his new capital in Thon Buri following the sacking of Ayutthaya, this was a sparsely populated frontier area. Those were unsettled times and the residents of this rural outpost probably lived in constant fear of attack by enemy troops.
Weaving a legacy
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 16/07/2013
» Her face and hands are full of lines and wrinkles, but her memory is still sharp. Nguan Sermsri, of tambon Ban Puek in Chon Buri province is still teaching others how to weave the rare Ang Sila cotton textiles at the ripe old age of 93. Six months ago, she was the only Ang Sila cotton weaver in Thailand. But since then, the ancient art has been revived and passed on to a number of local women.
Time to impose controls on hazardous e-waste
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 28/06/2013
» A few days ago, I read that the Thai Social Enterprise Office had to extend its deadline for accepting donations of old mobile phones from the general public due to the poor response to its appeal. The donated phones were to be given initially to a sample group of 100 needy disabled people under the One Stop Service for the Disabled Project organised in association with the 1479 Call Centre.
Portal to the past
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 20/06/2013
» To city folk, who prize it as place to buy fabric, garments and other goods at bargain prices, its name is now synonymous with what tourists call Chinatown, but Sampheng was once the bustling heart of this capital of ours, an important port and trading hub with a cosmopolitan tolerance for all faiths which, in addition to temples and shrines for Buddhists of different schools, also accommodated places of worship for Muslims.
A prince in art
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 24/05/2013
» About 100 children and adults wearing red jongkraben were learning Thai classical dances at Ban Plainern, the private residence of Prince Narisaranuvattiwongse _ the Great Craftsman of Siam. Here in the lush tropical gardens around the beautiful traditional Thai wooden house in Klong Toey, classical dances are taught in the morning and traditional Thai music in the afternoon every Saturday.
Where past and present co-exist
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 09/05/2013
» It is one of the capital's oldest districts, but mention its name to a foreign visitor and the first association will likely be with the bustling backpacker belt centred on Khao San Road. But to native Bangkokians and long-time residents, a reference to Bang Lamphu may summon up the gleaming-white image of Phra Sumen Fort, its crenellated ramparts dominating the Chao Phraya River and the approaches to Thon Buri, or make them long for Phra Arthit Road and its artsy little cafes or nostalgic for the time they first explored these winding streets and alleyways back when they were students at nearby Thammasat and Silpakorn universities.