Bangkok Damaged

On Saturday 29 May at 4 o'clock in the morning, the curfew in Bangkok and other provinces was finally lifted. The state of emergency remains in place until further notice, but this has no impact on daily life. With things back to normal, the damage can be assessed. Arson attacks were committed against some 30 buildings in Bangkok (more in the whole of Thailand), including some landmarks as indicated earlier. On the pictures above, you can see the serious damage to CentralWorld (Zen & Plaza) and some other buildings such as the torched Electricity Board. One interesting anecdote is about the statue of an Indian goddess (Kali if I am not mistaken), which is standing in front of CentralWorld (near Zen). The head-only statue is now blamed for brining bad luck as that part of the building has been most badly damaged: it burned for hours and partially collapsed. The other side of the building (with the Isetan department store) is relatively untouched and rumors go that it has been protected by the more auspicious religious statues on that end. Thais strongly believe in spirits and the supernatural so this explanation makes perfect sense. For the same reason, the statue is now covered with a white cloth (before and after pictured above). A final word on the temple pictured above (Wat Pathum Wanaran). It was a 'safe haven' during and especially near the end of the demonstrations and where the last red shirts were assembling before going home.

Weekend in Pattaya: from the Sanctuary of Truth to Walking Street

First an update on the situation in Bangkok: normalcy has been restored, the curfew normally expires on 1 June.

Tom had some visitors over from Belgium earlier this month (Adam & Eva, these are their real names!). Their original flight had been delayed due to the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland and now they were in Thailand during the turmoil. They were fortunately not in Bangkok during the military operations and returned right after normalcy was more or less restored. In order to escape the curfew, we decided to leave Bangkok for the weekend (together with Jeroen, a colleague of Nirmala). We opted for Pattaya, not for its limitless charm but rather for convenience: it is a relatively short and comfortable drive from Bangkok (with two alternative highways). In addition, the city council had somehow pulled off to have the curfew lifted just for Pattaya, even though it was still in force in Bangkok and 23 provinces, including the surrounding areas. The (in)famous nightlife must have suffered greatly...

We found a nice design hotel in the middle of the city, but secluded enough to be isolated from the night life. We visited the Sanctuary of Truth, a shrine made entirely out of teakwood (no nails or screws). In the evening, we went for a walk and drink on Walking Street, the main 'entertainment' area of Pattaya, quite a contrast with the serenity of the Sanctuary. On the way back to Bangkok the next day (after a lunch near the beach), an impressive cloud formation hovered above the expressway, offering spectacular vistas of nature at work.

Bangkok update

The situation in Bangkok is slowly returning back to normal. The curfew has been extended until Sunday (each night from 21h00 until 05h00). Streets are empty at night, the curfew is respected. Many people have left Bangkok since Wednesday, but life in the city is coming back up to speed, including traffic jams etc. Above a picture posted by someone on the internet, comparing a movie scene (top picture) with the a real picture of the Bangkok skyline on Wednesday. The resemblance is striking.

Bangkok violence & curfew

Bangkok, 19 May 2010. The forecasted temperature for today was about 35ºC, with high humidity. The radio said it would feel more like 48ºC, one of the hottest days of the year. The government and army decided to crank up the heat a little more by launching an offensive against the so-called "red shirt" demonstrators who have occupied central Bangkok for several weeks now (see previous posts). The offensive started this morning in Silom, quite close to where we live. When I woke up, I saw a black cloud, thinking a thunderstorm was underway. Then I saw the messages on my phone and the news on internet (and then TV). The black smoke was coming from burning barricades and, later during the day, burning buildings. The government body CRES (Center for Resolution of the Emergency Situation) announced a curfew from 20h00 tonight until 6h00 tomorrow morning. Even before the curfew took effect, the otherwise busy and bustling streets of Bangkok became eerily quiet, except where they were burning that is. An empty main road during rush hour is a strange sight. Several buildings were put ablaze this afternoon, after the red shirt leaders surrendered. CentralWorld, Bangkok's landmark mall and one of the biggest shopping centers in Asia, has reportedly burned down. Other buildings on fire were the Stock Exchange and a number of banks. You can check the different international news sites for a much better coverage and pictures (last one taken from a website). Nirmala and Wolfgang are still in Belgium and will probably stay there a bit longer until things have calmed down.

Bangkok riots

Beste familie en vrienden,

De situatie in Bangkok is weer geëscaleerd de laatste dagen en er waren vandaag ernstige confrontaties tussen betogers en ordetroepen. Nirmala en Wolfgang (oudere foto) zijn nog in Europa, Tom is alleen in Bangkok maar woont en werkt buiten de afgesloten zone waar de onrusten zijn losgebarsten. De kaart boven geeft aan welke buurten in het centrum zijn getroffen. De foto's zijn oudere foto's van bij ons in de buurt in Bangkok. Voor diegenen geïnteresseerd om het laatste nieuws uit Bangkok zelf te volgen zijn dit nuttige nieuwswebsites: www.nationmultimedia.com en www.bangkokpost.com.

Dear family and friends,

The situation in Bangkok has (again) escalated over the last few days and there have been serious clashes today between police and demonstrators. Nirmala and Wolfgang (older picture) are still in Europa, Tom is alone in Bangkok but house and work are outside the affected area. The map above gives a current overview of where the troubled zones in the center are. The Bangkok pictures are older pictures of our neighborhood in Bangkok. Here are some useful websites for those who want to follow the latest news from Bangkok: www.nationmultimedia.com and www.bangkokpost.com.