I lived in Thailand for two years and three months, from 2013 to 2015, where I worked as a Primary Teacher Trainer as a Peace Corps volunteer. You’ll find Thailand travel tips, culture explainers and my personal experiences in these posts.
Sports are frequently a big part of a culture. They are a way for people to bond and recreate. In Thailand, I’ve encountered a different level of enthusiasm for some sports I’m familiar with, as well as some new and different sports. But what about the world’s most popular sport? Is it also popular here in Thailand? I am of course talking about football, otherwise known to Americans as soccer.
In Thailand, a bpai tiao is a trip of any length. I’ve written about some of my more significant bpai tiaos to tourist destinations here, to be used as travel ideas and tips.
In the 12th century, the Khmer empire dominated what is now know as Southeast Asia. Their main city and capital is the famous Angkor complex, which includes Angkor Wat. However, the empire stretched across Thailand, where they also built other cities and temples. Like Angkor, they are now ruins, and some of them aren’t very well preserved. However, Phanom Rung in Buriram is wonderfully well-kept and an excellent destination for tourists. Check it out!
Here in Thailand, the culture around sports is a little bit different than that in the U.S. Volleyball is really popular, and sports unknown in the U.S., like dtagraw, are too. I’ve also noticed a sport that looks vaguely familiar, but upon closer inspection I realized I knew nothing about: futsal.
Sports in Thailand are a bit different that sports in the United States. The big popular sports in Thailand are either not that popular in the United States, or they aren’t even played there. One sport that isn’t played in the U.S. is dtagraw (ตะกร้อ).
After months of protests, the dissolution of the government, new elections, impeachment and martial law the military recently conducted a coup d’etat. Here’s a video with a short explanation of what’s happened.
In my experience in the States, volleyball was a sport played mainly by high school girls and occasionally people at the beach. My personal experience with the sport is limited to the volleyball unit in my Team Sports class in high school, which I took to fulfill the P.E. graduation requirement, and a few volleys back and forth in some sand on a beach somewhere. I grew up playing basketball and soccer mostly, which is interesting to most Thai people as these are considered “boy” sports. Volleyball is a “girl” sport, so it is often assumed that I want to get in on the rotations of friendly pick up matches.
So it happened. The military insisted it was not happening for two days, but it’s happened: a military coup was staged today at 5 p.m. (UTC +7:00). I am safe and sound, far from Bangkok with no plans to go anywhere near there any time soon, but here’s my story and take on what has been going on here.
When I think of sports back home, I think of the big four: baseball, basketball, football and hockey. I grew up outside of Detroit, which has a sports franchise in all four of these sports, and 75% of them have had championship or near championship runs during my life time (poor, poor Detroit Lions). When I moved to Portland, I became more aware of the growing popularity of soccer with their newly minted Major League Soccer team, the Portland Timbers, but still, like most Americans, was not quite able to jump on board with the so-called beautiful game. Perhaps it was the flashbacks to playing as a child and working as a referee as a preteen. In any event, moving to Thailand has totally disoriented me in terms of sports.
Martial law was declared this morning by the military. They are insisting that it is not a coup. Things are calm where I’m at, so no worries there. Considering that there was no clear rule for who was to replace Yingluck, this isn’t entirely surprising.
This follows months of protests, the dissolution of the government and new elections. The situation is still unfolding, and as more information comes out and I see how my friends and colleagues are impacted, I’ll update you.
In Thailand, a bpai tiao is a trip of any length. I’ve written about some of my more significant bpai tiaos to tourist destinations here, to be used as travel ideas and tips.
Last month, I took a trip to Chiang Rai and visited some of the biggest tourists draws there: Wat Rong Khun (the White Temple) and Baan Dam (the Black House). Here’s a video for you to experience the Baan Dam yourself!