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"The Rounds" Friday, January 14, 2005
* * * * * * * * * * Headlines Some Countries Lifting Travel Advisories Sri Lankan Astrologer Predicts Another Tsunami Tomorrow Cool Season Drifting to an End Announcement from U.S. Embassy -- Not Bad Advice New Bars in Queen's Park Plaza And That's Enough for This Time. . . . * * * * * * * * * * Some Countries Lifting Travel Advisories I have been following what various governments are saying about travel to Thailand in the wake of the Boxing Day tsunamis that struck here and elsewhere around the Indian Ocean rim. Mid-week the Nordic countries lifted their warnings, and travel agencies there plan to resume tours to Thailand as early as the beginning of February, a welcome sign. In terms of generating income from tourism, Thailand is one of the hardest-hit countries affected by the disaster. As income is critical to the victims, it is a relief to see votes of confidence, however tentative and cautious they may be. [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * Sri Lankan Astrologer Predicts Another Tsunami Tomorrow Several days ago a Sri Lankan astrologer captured headlines with a prediction of a further tsunami tomorrow, Saturday the 15th. Even skeptics took note. Why? -- because the same astrologer predicted a major catastrophe would strike the island nation in December, predicted so early last year. All we can do is hope he read his tea leaves wrong. . . . [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * National elections are coming next month, and the tsunami disaster certainly hasn't tempered campaigning, at least not here in Bangkok. Posters are everywhere, obstructing vision. Irritating trucks are all over the place, the drivers yak-yak-yakking through loudspeakers their campaign messages. It's impossible to predict what this political season will bring the Kingdom. Were there to have been no disaster, the currently-ruling TRT-led coalition would be a shoo-in. But disaster did strike, and however unfair it may be, the government has taken some major hits of criticism. It has been said the government was warned but didn't act. Well, let's look at that a minute. Earthquake prediction remains extremely inexact. When I try to imagine myself in a position of national leadership, I like to think I would try to do the best possible for my nation. How would I react to such a warning? -- with caution. Maybe a disaster is in the offing -- or maybe not. For sure the threatened areas are income generators. To issue a warning would certainly negatively affect income. Given tourism's importance to Thailand's yearly income, it isn't hard for me to imagine the quandary in which members of the leadership must have found themselves in the face of such warnings. This is not a popular stance to take; many of my friends are critical of me for it, especially those who know I have no love for the current government; they ask me how I can possibly defend it. It's not a question of defending anyone; it's a question of pausing to reflect how one can reasonably act in the face of tentative evidence. I doubt reflection will be on voters' minds very much as they go to the polls. It is well within the realm of possibility the ruling coalition could take a major hit, at the least -- and, conceivably, even lose, though I personally doubt such a result. Whatever the outcome of the pending election is, it will be important, important because the results will indicate the mood of the nation and the faith of the electorate in the national leadership. Stay tuned. [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * Cool Season Drifting to an End This has been a positively splendid cool season, so I don't want to see it go. But it is, I think; the past 2 or 3 afternoons have seen temperatures up substantially, meteorologists' predictions notwithstanding. That plaint said, it surely has been a nice year, the nicest, in terms of weather, since I arrived here a decade ago. The mornings have been cloudy and pleasantly cool, so there's still hope. [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * Announcement from U.S. Embassy -- Not Bad Advice The following is the text of an e-mail I got from the American Citizen Services unit, to whose information service I subscribe. It contains some useful information, so I want to pass it along.
SUBJECT: PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT - THAILAND [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * New Bars in Queen's Park Plaza Over the past 2 or 3 months some bars in QPP have closed, then have been re-opened recently under new ownership. QPP remains as odd as some other local venues in that one bar may be packed while the next one is utterly empty. Some of the "new" bars -- presumably without followings -- have been busy, while older, established bars have suffered a dearth of customers. I'm gradually becoming convinced that the type of tourist visiting The Land of Smiles is changing. In years past, nightlife tourists were indisputably major contributors to the industry; now they seem to be far fewer, though friends in the hotel industry say their establishments are running near or at full capacity. The same is true of my handful of preferred venues: Washington Square (of course), Sukhumvit Soi 33, and Soi Cowboy. Bars are changing owners, and the number of customers varies greatly. The number seems to have picked up in the nearly 3 weeks since the tsunami struck; I assume that's partly due to people changing their destinations from southern ones to the north half of the country. [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * Frantic relief efforts for tsunami-affected areas continue, governmental disclaimers notwithstanding; it's difficult to understand why government spokespersons say no help is needed when people on the ground say they desperately need aid -- in some sort of organized fashion. And at this point, the organized part of the equation is important. An acquaintance drove to a Tesco Lotus -- a super-store something akin to a Wal-Mart -- and loaded up with a variety of supplies he knew could be used, then drove to an unglamorous spot opposite a devastated island. He hit a major traffic jam at a T-intersection, traffic coming from the south, north, and east carrying supplies to the coast to the west. The Army had a checkpoint, and soldiers were going along telling drivers that while long-term aid is desperately needed, for the moment people were being looked after, and no supplies were needed right that second -- there wasn't anyplace to warehouse them, and no personnel available to distribute them in any case. That scene is repeated daily as people try to help. Fortunately, organization is gradually coming together. My friend with trucks here is still trying to help, but, wisely, he is making his trucks and drivers available to groups who have some sort of control. We've backed off trying to get stuff together for now; there is plenty of material available for the time being -- but we want to be there when "relief fatigue" sets in and supplies start running short. Predictably, sad stories continue to come in as we learn this friend or that has lost someone, or was injured, or has someone dear missing. But the human spirit is reasserting itself, as it always does. Will the scars remain? -- don't be silly; of course they will. But the region will get past this, even Indonesia, the most heavily affected nation. And there is some potential good. Several knowledgeable observers are hopeful the disaster will draw Indonesians in Aceh Province together and separatists will set aside their political agendas in the face of a compelling need for unity. [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * And That's Enough for This Time. . . . As I'm sure everyone understands, it has been darned hard to get worked up about writing this column. I love doing it, normally, but events have been might distracting. A reader -- another Bangkok webmaster, in fact -- wrote me after last week's column went up, telling me I apologize too much, and he's probably right. I don't know if I, he, or anyone else here can really convey the mood, try though we might. I personally have never been somewhere something like this has happened, so I have no previous point of reference. I talked to a friend from China who went through the Tangshan earthquake in the P.R.C. in 1976, in which at least something approaching a million people were killed. While the scale of this doesn't begin to approach that, he said he's experiencing emotions similar to those he felt then. But as I said in an earlier story, the human spirit is reasserting itself, and good deeds abound. Such is always the positive side of this sort of situation; people one would never dream would look beyond their own noses end up being among the most giving. I'm still getting requests for information on where to send aid. The fact of the matter is that I don't really know. I do know, however, you need to be mindful about where you send any aid. Even with the best of intentions, it's easy for well-meant aid to be misdirected at this point. If you have appropriate special skills and wish to help, and so choose -- contact me and I *can* and will put you together with someone to direct you where to go and what to do. Thanks for being patient. [Friday, January 14, 2005] * * * * * * * * * * Enough for one go . . . Until next time -- Mekhong Kurt * * * * * * * * * * E-mail Change Notification Sign-up Sign-up here for e-mail notification when I add or change something on the site. Just go to the sign-up page. * * * * * * * * * * Where Is *Your* Name??? So you've been a slacker and still haven't signed up for the free BangkokAtoZ.com Updates Mailing List??? ;-) Well, get with the program and sign up right now to be notified via e-mail whenever we add something to the site -- that way, you don't even have to visit the Updates Page to see if there's anything new -- we'll let you know by e-mail. If you want to sign up, just go to the sign-up page. I'm pleased to say that more and more of you are signing up, and I urge all of you not to hesitate! * * * * * * * * * * Where is *Your* "Traveler's Tale"???
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Copyright © 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007 by Kurt T. Francis, except as noted otherwise. Materials by Christopher G. Moore, Dean Barrett, Richard K. Diran, Sonia Pressman Fuentes, and Hardy Stockmann are copyrighted © by those respective authors. All rights reserved. Please see the Copyright Notice for further information. Click here for our Privacy Statement Please direct all inquiries to mekhongkurt at bangkokatoz.com |
