Rough Guides - The Rough Guide to Thailand (Travel Guide eBook)

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Contents

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Introduction to

Thailand

With over thirty million foreigners flying into the country each year, Thailand is Asias primary holiday destination. Yet despite this vast influx of visitors, Thailands cultural integrity remains largely undamaged a country that adroitly avoided colonization has been able to absorb Western influences while maintaining its own rich heritage. Though the high-rises and neon lights occupy the foreground of the tourist picture, the typical Thai community is still the farming village, and you need not venture far to encounter a more traditional scene of fishing communities, rubber plantations and Buddhist temples. Around forty percent of Thais earn their living from the land, based around the staple rice, which forms the foundation of the countrys unique and famously sophisticated cuisine.

Tourism has been just one factor in the countrys development which, since the deep-seated uncertainties surrounding the Vietnam War faded, has been free, for the most part, to proceed at death-defying pace for a time in the 1980s and early 1990s, Thailand boasted the fastest-expanding economy in the world. Politics in Thailand, however, has not been able to keep pace. Since World War II, coups dtat have been as common a method of changing government as general elections; the malnourished democratic system when the armed forces allow it to operate is characterized by corruption and cronyism.

Through all the changes of the last seventy years, the much-revered constitutional monarch, King Bhumibol, sitting at the pinnacle of an elaborate hierarchical system of deference covering the whole of Thai society, lent a measure of stability. Furthermore, some 85 percent of the population are still practising Theravada Buddhists, a unifying faith that colours all aspects of daily life from the tiered temple rooftops that dominate every skyline, to the omnipresent saffron-robed monks and the packed calendar of festivals.

Where to go

The clash of tradition and modernity is most intense in Bangkok , the first stop on almost any itinerary. Within its historic core youll find resplendent temples, canalside markets and the opulent indulgence of the eighteenth-century Grand Palace , while downtowns forest of skyscrapers shelters cutting-edge fashion and decor boutiques, as well as cool bars and clubs. After touchdown in Bangkok, much of the package-holiday traffic flows east to Pattaya , the countrys seediest resort, but for prettier beaches youre better off venturing just a little further, to the islands of Ko Samet and the Ko Chang archipelago , with their squeaky white sand and shorefront bungalows.

Fact file

• Divided into 76 provinces or changwat and one special administrative area (Bangkok), Thailand was known as Siam until 1939 (and again from 1945 to 1949); some academics suggest changing the name back again, to better reflect the countrys Thai and non-Thai diversity.
• The population of 69 million is made up of ethnic Thais (75 percent) and Chinese (14 percent), with the rest comprising mainly immigrants from neighbouring countries as well as hill-tribespeople.
• Buddhism is the national religion , Islam the largest minority religion, but nearly all Thais also practise some form of animism (spirit worship).
• Since 1932 the country has been a constitutional monarchy. At the time of his death in 2016, King Bhumibol, also known as Rama IX (being the ninth ruler of the Chakri dynasty), was the worlds longest-ruling head of state, having been on the throne since 1946; he was succeeded by his son, who became King Vajiralongkorn (Rama X), though at the time of writing the coronation had yet to be held.
• The world record for nonstop kissing was set in Pattaya on Valentines Day, 2013, at a gobsmacking 58 hours, 35 minutes and 58 seconds.

Few tourists visit Isaan , the poorest and in some ways the most traditionally Thai region. Here, a trip through the gently modulating landscapes of the Mekong River valley, which defines Thailands northeastern extremities, takes in archetypal agricultural villages and a fascinating array of religious sites, while the southern reaches of Isaan hold some of Thailands best-kept secrets the magnificent stone temple complexes of Phimai , Phanom Rung and Khao Phra Viharn , all built by the Khmers of Cambodia almost ten centuries ago. Closer to the capital, Khao Yai National Park encapsulates the phenomenal diversity of Thailands flora and fauna, which here range from wild orchids to strangling figs, elephants to hornbills.

At the heart of the northern uplands, Chiang Mai is both an attractive historic city and a vibrant cultural centre, with a strong tradition of arts, crafts and festivals, and a burgeoning line in self-improvement courses from ascetic meditation to the more earthly pleasures of Thai cookery classes. Plenty of outdoor activities and courses, as well as hot springs and massages, can also be enjoyed at Pai , a surprisingly cosmopolitan hill station for travellers. Chiang Rai s array of museums and temples is almost as fascinating as Chiang Mais, while the ancient cities of Lampang, Nan and Chiang Saen provide further excuses for travelling through the glorious mountainscapes.

With Chiang Mai and the north so firmly planted on the independent tourist trail, the intervening central plains tend to get short shrift. Yet there is rewarding trekking around Umphang , near the Burmese border, and the elegant ruins of former capitals Ayutthaya and Sukhothai embody a glorious artistic heritage, displaying Thailands distinctive ability to absorb influences from quite different cultures. Kanchanaburi , stunningly located on the River Kwai , tells of a much darker episode in Thailands past, for it was along the course of this river that the Japanese army built the ThailandBurma Railway during World War II, at the cost of thousands of lives.

Thai boxing

Such is the national obsession with muay thai , or Thai boxing, that when Wijan Ponlid returned home from the Sydney 2000 Olympics with the countrys only gold medal (for international flyweight boxing), he was paraded through town at the head of a procession of 49 elephants, given a new house and over 20 million baht, and offered a promotion in the police force. Belatedly perhaps, muay thai has recently entered the canon of martial-arts cinema: Ong Bak (2003), Tom Yum Goong (2005) and their various sequels were global box-office hits, and their all-punching, all-kicking star, Tony Jaa, who performed all his own stunts, has been appointed Cultural Ambassador for Thailand.

Though there are boxing venues all around the country, the very best fights are staged at Bangkoks two biggest stadiums, Rajdamnoen and Lumphini, and are well worth attending as a cultural experience even if you have no interest in the sport itself.

Sand and sea are what most Thai holidays are about, though, and the pick of the coasts are in southern Thailand, where the Samui archipelago off the Gulf coast is one of the highlights. Ko Samui itself has the most sweeping white-sand beaches, and the greatest variety of accommodation and facilities to go with them. Ko Pha Ngan next door is still largely backpacker territory, where you have a stark choice between desolate coves and Hat Rin , Thailands party capital. The remotest island, rocky Ko Tao , is acquiring increasing sophistication as Southeast Asias largest dive-training centre.