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Bangkok-Thailand
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| Thailand is a Southeast Asian, predominantly Buddhist kingdom
almost equidistant between India and China. For centuries
known by outsiders as Siam, Thailand has been something of a
Southeast Asian migratory, cultural and religious cross-roads.
With an area of some 510,000 square kilometres and a
population of some 57 million, Thailand is approximately the
same size as France. Thailand shares borders with Myanmar to
the west and north, Laos to the north-east, Kampuchea to the
west, and Malaysia to the south. Geographically speaking,
Thailand is divided into six major regions: the mountainous
north where elephants work forests and winter temperatures are
sufficiently cool to permit cultivation of temperate fruits
such as strawberries and peaches; the sprawling north-east
plateau, largely bordered by the Mekong River, where the
world's oldest Bronze Age civilisation flourished some 5,000
years ago; the central plain, one of the world's most fertile
rice and fruit-growing areas; the eastern coastal plain, where
fine sandy beaches support the growth of summer resorts;
western mountains and valleys, suitable for the development of
hydro-electric power: and the peninsular south where arresting
scenic beauty complements economically vital tin mining,
robber cultivation and fishing. |
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| Thailand enjoys a tropical climate with 3 distinct seasons –
summer from March through May, rainy with plenty of sunshine
from June to September and cool from October through February.
The average annual temperature is 28°C (83°F), ranging, in
Bangkok, for example, from 30°C in April to 25°C in December. |
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| Time in Thailand is 7 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT+
7). |
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Archaeological discoveries around the north- east hamlet of
Ban Chiang suggest that the world's oldest Bronze Age
civilisation was flourishing in Thailand some 5,600 years ago.
Successive waves of immigrants, including Mons, Khmers and
Thais, gradually entered the land mass now known as Thailand,
most slowly traveling along fertile river valleys from
southern China. By the 11th and 12th centuries, Khmers ruled
much of the area from Angkor. By the early 1200s, Thais had
established small northern city states in Lanna, Phayao and
Sukhothai. In 1238, two Thai chieftains rebelled against
 Khmer
suzerainty and established the first truly independent Thai
kingdom in Sukhothai (literally, 'Dawn of Happiness').
Sukhothai saw the Thais' gradual expansion throughout the
entire Chao Phraya River basin, the establishment of Theravada
Buddhism as the paramount Thai religion, the creation of the
Thai alphabet and the first expression of nascent Thai art
forms, including painting, sculpture, architecture and
literature. Sukhothai declined during the 1300s and eventually
became a vassal state of Ayutthaya, a dynamic young kingdom
further south in the Chao Phraya River valley. Founded in
1350, Ayutthaya remained the Thai capital until 1767 when it
was destroyed by Burmese invaders. During Ayutthaya's 417
years as the capital, under the rule of 33 kings, the Thais
brought their distinctive culture to full fruition, totally
rid their lands of Khmer presence and fostered contact with
Arabian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese and European powers.
Ayutthaya's destruction was as severe a blow to the Thais as
the loss of Paris or London would have been to the French or
English. However, a Thai revival occurred within a few months
and the Burmese were expelled by King Taksin who later made
Thon Buri his capital. In 1782, the first king of the present
Chakri dynasty, Rama I, established his new capital on the
site of a riverside hamlet called Bangkok (Village of Wild
Plums). Two Chakri monarchs, Mongkut (Rama IV) who reigned
between 1851 and 1868, and his son Chulalongkorn (Rama V,
1868-1910) saved Thailand from western colonization through
adroit diplomacy and selective modernisation. Today, Thailand
is a constitutional monarchy. Since 1932, Thai kings including
the present monarch, H.M. King Bhumipol Adulyadej have
exercised their legislative powers through a national
assembly, their executive powers through a cabinet headed by a
prime minister, and their judicial powers through the law
courts. |
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| Throughout her long
history, Thailand has gently absorbed immigrants. Many were
skilled as writers, painters, sculptors, dancers, musicians
and architects, and helped enrich indigenous culture. People
inhabiting Thailand today share rich ethnic diversity – –
mainly Thai, Mon, Khmer, Laotian, Chinese, Malay, Persian and
Indian stock – – with the result that there is no typically
Thai physiognomy or physique. There are petite Thais,
statuesque Thais, round-faced Thais, dark-skinned Thais and
light-skinned Thais. Some 80% of all Thais are connected in
some way with agriculture which, in varying degrees,
influences and is influenced by the religious ceremonies and
festivals that help make Thailand such a distinctive country. |
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Theravada Buddhism is
the professed religion of more than 90% of all Thais, and
casts strong influences on daily life. Buddhism first appeared
in Thailand during the 3rd Century B.C. at Nakhon Pathom, site
of the world's tallest Buddhist monument, after
 the Indian
Buddhist Emperor Asoka (267-227 B.C.) despatched missionaries
to Southeast Asia to propagate the newly established faith.
Besides moulding morality, providing social cohesion and
offering spiritual succour, Buddhism provided incomparable
artistic impetus. In common with medieval European cathedrals,
Thailand's innumerable multiroofed temples inspired major
artistic creation. Another reason for Buddhism's strength is
that there are few Thai Buddhist families in which at least
one male member has not studied the Buddha's teachings in a
monastery. It has long been a custom for Buddhist males over
twenty, once in their lifetimes, to be ordained for a period
ranging from s days to a months. This usually occurs daring
the annual Rains Retreat, a a-month period during the Rains
Season when all monks forego travel and stay inside their
monasteries. Besides sustaining monastic communities, Thai
temples have traditionally served other purposes – – as the
village hostelry, village news, employment and information
agency, a school, hospital, dispensary and community centre –
– to give them vital roles in Thai society. The Thais have
always subscribed to the ideal of religious freedom. Thus
sizeable minorities of Muslims, Christians, Hindus and Sikhs
freely pursue their respective faiths. |
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| Spoken and written Thai
remain largely incomprehensible to the casual visitor.
However, English is widely understood, particularly in Bangkok
where it is almost the major commercial language. English and
other European languages are spoken in most hotels, shops and
restaurants, in major tourist destinations, and Thai-English
road and street signs are found nation-wide. |
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