Showing 1 - 10 of 23
Designing age-friendly cities
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 04/10/2025
» 'Over 45% of all districts across the country have already entered a completely aged society. Three districts with the highest ratio of seniors are in Bangkok," said Assoc Prof Niramon Serisakul, director of the Urban Design and Development Centre (UDDC).
Creative destruction
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 16/06/2025
» Salinee Hanvareevongsilp's family moved home for a job opportunity when she was five and the land was subsequently developed into Siam Square in 1965. Still, it remained her favourite haunt. She frequented three movie theatres in the area -- Siam, Scala and Lido. In Matthayom 3, she protested against Japanese goods on Rama I Road.
Rising rents threaten the vibrant street food scene of the once-booming Banthat Thong Road
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 09/06/2025
» As night fell, neon signs gradually lit up Instagrammable restaurants and cafes. Despite pouring rain, tourists were taking photos of a dessert shop's logo of a boy holding a bun at an iconic intersection. Some eateries were teeming with customers, with a long queue of them spilling onto the sidewalk. Some, less popular, saw staff sitting idle. Others put up advertisement for lease.
A vanishing heritage
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 10/07/2023
» If it were not for a handful of visitors, the Chao Mae Thap Thim Shrine would completely vanish. Flanked by metal sheet fences, a narrow alley leads to the remnants of age-old communities. An entrance is adorned with red lanterns. A facade is painted with mythological figures. A roof is embellished with tile dolls. The smell of burning incense wafts through the open gate. Inside, deities are worshipped on an altar with a gilded frame.
From nature to your wrist
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 16/12/2022
» In the rural Japanese town of Shizukuishi in Iwate Prefecture, a new wooden studio for Grand Seiko blends with its natural surroundings. A swooping roof and clear glass window offer a sublime view of Mount Iwate, over 2,000m in height, where rocks unfold their true colours when snow melts. Set in lush landscape, the studio bears witness to wild creatures, including antelopes and foxes. In the midst of nature, craftspeople, known as takumi, are breathing life into mechanical watches. It is a place that embodies the brand's philosophy of the nature of time, in an environmental and technological sense.
Recalling Bangkok's dark side
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 16/06/2022
» Many places are veiled in darkness. Arguably, they were once -- or still -- a reminder of things that should be left unsaid. You may entertain the thought of them, but should not make them known. Who wants to hear of social evil and death? But these places can offer a deeper understanding of what our city is made of.
Euthanasia a service not a sin for the elderly
Oped, Thana Boonlert, Published on 04/02/2022
» Have you ever imagined how you might die in old age? I remember once telling a close friend that I would use a "sleeping pod" -- if euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide were legal. But in Thailand, it is only terminally ill patients who have the right to forgo treatment in such a way that allows them to die "naturally". Under Section 12 of the Public Health Act, they can make a will denying the use of public health services that would prolong the end stage of their illness.
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.
Joy amid hardship
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 10/05/2021
» Rusty tin shacks sprawl under high-rises and billboards. Rubbish scatters and floats down the foul-smelling river. Last year, fire broke out near a local mosque. With the third wave of the coronavirus outbreak, the Klong Toey neighbourhood is hanging by a thread.
Snacking towards bad health
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 20/04/2021
» After working all day, a worn-out mother does not have time to buy something fresh for dinner on the way home. Instead, she raids a convenience store in her condo and puts frozen food in a trolley. She also picks up her son's favourite potato crisps because it can keep him busy in front of a tablet while he waits for his dad to come home from work late at night.