Category: Thailand

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.

Voided Elections, Impeachment & Protests in Thailand

May 16, 2014

In my last political update, things in Bangkok were looking pretty calm. Most protest sites had been cleared and consolidated to Lumpini Park. Government-wise, a lot of things were up in the air: the election had been declared void and caretaker prime minister Yingluck was facing two sets of charges (one for the removal of the head of the National Security Council and corruption charges for negligence in her overseeing of the rice subsidy program.)

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Bpai Tiao: Yasothon’s Bun Bang Fai (Rocket) Festival

May 13, 2014

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.

Previously, I posted about the festivals that I was planning on attending this year in Thailand, one of which was the Rocket Festival in Yasothon. That took place this past weekend and I made it out to rural Isaan just for the occasion.

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Jazz, Thailand and King Bhumibol

May 6, 2014

While Thailand certainly has it’s own classical music genres that originated with the royal courts about 800 years ago, and folk music, don’t think that there are no modern or international genres enjoyed here. If we move chronologically through the development of music in Thailand we next come to the proliferation of jazz in the 1930s. Jazz continues to hold a special place in Thailand’s musical repertoire as the King is not only a jazz saxophonist but a jazz composer as well.

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Swearing and Cursing in Thailand

May 4, 2014

One thing about Thailand and Thai people that they are extremely polite, particularly because of the value of saving face. I can’t say that I’ve heard anyone really curse or swear. However, that’s not to say that it is not a part of the language here. Check out this video of an American professor’s first time being cursed at in Bangkok.

3 Kinds of Folk Music in Thailand

May 2, 2014

Much like classical music in Europe at the time, Thai classical music was and is generally reserved for and enjoyed by the upper classes. However, that of course didn’t stop the commoners from using their local instruments to create their own musical stylings. Often this is referred to as folk music. There are three major genres of Thai folk music: luk thung (ลูกทุ่ง), mor lam (หมอลำ) and kantrum (กันตรึม).

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Two Tokay Geckos Take on a Snake

April 27, 2014

I have had my own experiences with tokay geckos in my house. Honestly, they kind of freak me out. This video has been making the rounds on my social media recently. Based on the women talking, it’s in Thailand, somewhere. Pretty much, one tokay has a snake coiled around it and another tokay comes to help. Watch the video to see if the defense was successful!

An Overview of Traditional Thai Instruments

April 25, 2014

To have any conversation about music, I think you must begin with what is making the music as it is often the instruments and how they are used that will give a genre its unique sound.

Thai instruments fall into three main categories: string, percussion and wind instruments. Alternatively, instruments are divided into four categories based on how they are played: plucking, bowing, striking or blowing. Furthermore, many instruments are specific to certain regions of Thailand and are found predominantly in certain genres of music, but now I’m getting ahead of myself. Back to instruments. more “An Overview of Traditional Thai Instruments” …