Playing the Angklung

One of the most unusual musical instruments that I have come across in Thailand is the "angklung". It is made from carved bamboo tubes which are attached to a frame which is then shaken to produce a note. Each frame has bamboo tubes of different lengths which produces different notes. Normally the musician will stand and hold one or two of these frames. However, this is the first time I have seen them sitting down with a total of seven angklungs per person.

Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 03.18.2010

Ivory Trade in Thailand

Every now and then, a shipment of illegal ivory is confiscated at Suvarnabhumi Airport. This is a picture of a press conference that I was invited to attend where 2,000 kilos of ivory had been seized with an estimated street value of 50 million baht.

Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 02.1.2010

Thai Puppets

This is a picture of some Thai puppets on sale at a temple in Chiang Mai. I bought two of them which now hang on the wall at my house. They always seem to look better in the shop. But, I guess that is because there are so many of them there.

Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.31.2010

HTMS Thonburi

This is a picture of the memorial for HTMS Thonburi at the Royal Thai Naval Academy in Samut Prakan. The ship was badly damaged during a battle with the French on 17th January 1941. Thirty six sailors lost their life. The ship was later salvaged and repaired by the Japanese. It then saw service as a training ship before finally the bridge section and forward guns were brought to the academy to serve as a memorial for the brave sailors that died during the war.

Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.17.2010

Royal Crematorium of Princess Galyani Vadhana

Sanam Luang in Bangkok has been used for several hundred years as a temporary cremation site for members of the royal family. This is a picture that I took of  the royal crematorium of HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana in 2008 at Sanam Luang.

Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.14.2010

Fishing Wharf in Samut Sakhon

This is the fishing wharf in Samut Sakhon. Fish in great qunatities are offloaded here every day and an army of workers then have the task of cleaning the fish before it is sent of to market. Many of these minimum wage workers are illegal Burmse immigrants.

Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.9.2010

Thai Wedding Ceremony


Two Thai people take part in a wedding ceremony in the bride's house. Earlier they had invited nine monks to give them a blessing. Now the elders of each family are discussing the "sin sod" which is a kind of dowry given by the groom to his bride's parents.
Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.8.2010

Thai Fruit Carving


In some restaurants that you might visit in Thailand, some of your dishes will come decorated with what looks very much like flowers. But, in reality they are really edible fruit or vegetables. At the hands of a Thai artisan, a simple tomato, melon or pumpkin can be turned into a bouquet of flowers.
Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.7.2010

Steam Trains in Thailand


One of the greatest journeys I have been on in Thailand was by steam train. If you are lucky, you might be able to go on a steam train yourself. They still run trips between Bangkok and Ayutthaya two or three times a year. These  usually operate on 26th March and 23rd October.
Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.6.2010

Thai Puppet Dance

Performers dressed in black put on a puppet dance at the re-opening of  Suvarnabhumi Airport in 2008 after it was closed forcibly by the yellow shirts. The show was part of the brainchild of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) who thought it would be a good way to apologize to passengers as they finally made their way home.

Posted Under Thailand Pictures on 01.2.2010