Showing 1-10 of 17 results
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(Un)friendly greetings
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 19/06/2012
» It is a tradition for people in many Asian countries to greet each other with queries like, "Have you eaten yet?" and "Where are you going?" Since Jan 22, 1943, the word, sawasdee, initiated by academic Phraya Uppakitsilpasarn, has become the official greeting in Thailand. Meaning good fortune and prosperity, it can be used in place of "good morning", "good afternoon", "good-day", "good evening" and even "goodnight". However, many Thais, in particular those upcountry, still greet each other the old way that refers to eating and whereabouts.
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Spare a thought for others about you
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 14/08/2012
» Last week I went to the cinema for the first time in six months. Unfortunately, six months hadn't changed anything, and I still had to witness _ rather endure _ the lack of etiquette on part of some movie viewers. As usual.
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Laws of nature
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 08/11/2012
» Next year should be the beginning of less difficult times for all creatures in Thailand since the country's first law to prevent cruelty against animals and improve their welfare is expected to come out. After eight years of effort by activists and politicians, the Animal Welfare Bill passed the first parliamentary reading last month and has to be approved on the second and third readings before taking effect. The whole process usually takes no more than 180 days.
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Fuming over first-car scheme
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 27/12/2012
» The worst is yet to come for Bangkok's traffic. Over the past few months, I have spent twice as much time as before stuck in traffic jams. Although I am not an expert, I believe this has something to do with the government's first-car scheme. The programme allows new car buyers to claim tax rebates of up to 100,000 baht per vehicle per person. Since its inception, more than one million new vehicles have been purchased, or about 30,000 new cars a day. By the end of this year, the number of the "first cars" is likely to exceed 1.2 million.
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Double pricing headaches
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 05/02/2013
» Perhaps it is boring and repetitive to discuss double pricing. Yet new experiences have prompted me to revisit this thorny issue once again. Sad but true, double pricing occurs frequently in Thailand, and other parts of the world, and is either accepted or grudgingly tolerated by many people. To me, it probably depends on different cultures and regulations in each country or area.
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Opening our eyes to the plight of the blind
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 15/03/2013
» Never before had I experienced and understood the difficulties faced by the blind until last week. My left eye became badly infected and had to be covered with a dressing for four days. Technically, I was temporarily half blind except when I sometimes felt so uncomfortable I tried to peek at things through the gap between the gauze and my cheek. To relieve some of the embarrassment about wearing a big gauze pad over my eye, I donned big sunglasses, even at night, during those four days.
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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.
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The land of fewer smiles
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 06/08/2013
» Thailand is nicknamed the Land of Smiles and Thai people are known for being friendly, polite and kind. However, this seems to be a thing of the past. In recent years, I have had many uncomfortable moments with Thais who are not so well-mannered and kind.
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True meaning of Loy Krathong floats away
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 20/11/2013
» Loy Krathong, one of my favourite festivals during childhood, just passed. On the full-moon day of the 12th lunar month, many Thais float their krathong down a river or even a pond to pay respects to the Lord Buddha and seek forgiveness from the goddess of water for any misdeeds against her. The word loy means "to float" while krathong is a lotus blossom-shaped vessel containing candles, incense sticks and flowers. What I love most about the festival is that it is the time for the reunion of family and friends. What I hate about it is that the purpose of the tradition has been distorted in some ways and some people go overboard and can put others in danger during the festival.
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Facing up to the reality of office syndrome
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 10/01/2014
» Every second I have to sit in front of my computer I have to endure back pain and an ache in my right shoulder. Sometimes it gets so bad it feels as if these parts of my body are being pierced with a sharp knife. The pain has been with me for more than five years now. First, I simply assumed there was something wrong with my back. Later, I learned that the discomfort I regularly suffer is very common and is often classified under the catch-all term "office syndrome".
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