By YSG

If I were to be asked to put my finger on when the germ of an idea of a study tour to Bangkok was sowed, it would be as precise as October 2003. Then I was invited for a conference in Bangkok, and had decided to arrive a couple of days earlier to check out the famous travellers’ haven of Khao Sarn. Marc Askew’s excellent monograph on the ‘City of Angels’ unravelled the social and political fabric of the city from the multiple perspectives of various sites – Khao Sarn was one of them.

But the transition from an idea to reality took an experimental detour through a study tour to Penang in July 2004. There, we looked primarily at various themes which were to be rehearsed again in Bangkok a year later.

The central idea of most study tours is to examine the familiar through lesser known if not novel perspectives. Here, I propositioned that a creative dialogue might be created if lesser known voices were placed in critical conversation with more familiar voices. In this particular instance, the unfamiliar voices would be those of civil society. Whether this particular cohort of travelers all see and hear the same thing is again part of the adventure, and can only be gleaned from their respective travelogues as found in this collective blog.

Making the study tour a reality required much goodwill from contacts in Bangkok. Here I must thank the singular contribution of Ms Kanokrat Lertchoosakul, lecturer at the Faculty of Political Science in Chulalongkorn University. Without her help in contacting the NGOs and individuals that we had the privilege of having discussions with, and in providing a lively cohort of her own students in guiding us through Bangkok, the trip would have been that much poorer.

Going on a journey together is always fraught with the risks of misadventure. I must also acknowledge the discipline, good spirits and enthusiasm of this particular group of travelers in putting thoughts and experiences to cyberspace for all to read. It is highly probable that they will visit Bangkok many more times in the future. But it is my hope this particular trip would remain particularly special and lasting.

The In Search of Bangkok travelers with in the center, Ms Kanokrat Lertchoosakul (left) and Dr Ubonrat Siriyuvasak (right) at Chulalongkorn University

Most of the In Search of Bangkok travelers on a boat cruise along the Chao Phraya River, on our last night in Bangkok

By Fikri Jermadi

It was late afternoon at the Duang Prateep Foundation.

The scene: Juli, Kerry Ann, Shazana and May Yee sitting at the end of the steps shaking their heads at yet another one of my lame jokes.

The scenario: Malina at the end of her wits as I made up for the semester she spent in Australia. We were all waiting for Sze Ning and her group to finish interviewing some of the slum residents. Then Malina had a bright idea.

“Fikri,” she said, looking at me in the way that makes me feel as autistic as my brother (probably true, that). “OK, how about we try this, OK? Let’s make it so that whenever you have to do…that thing of yours, that you do…” she tailed off, trying to find the right words. “Whenever you have to do one of them, you should make a sign, indicating that you want to say those statements you want to make.”

“A sign?” I asked, wondering how serious she is.

“Yes, a sign,” she replied, her right hand loosely holding her left. “This is so that we know that you want to make those jokes and statements. And then we will decide whether you can say it or not.”

She paused. “Just until tomorrow at least. You can last that long.”

I pondered that for a bit. “Does that apply to all jokes and statements?”

“Yes.”

“What if I think that the joke or statement is not lame, but you guys think it is?”

“Well….that will be your prerogative. But knowing you, I’m sure that won’t be a problem.”

I smiled. “Knowing me I will probably be making that sign all the time!”

Pause. “Yes.”

I fell quiet again, thinking like a lawyer trying to see the loopholes in a contract offer. “What if I’m pointing out something obvious that is lame? It’s not something that I am creating.”

“Well…you still have to do the sign.”

She’s good , I thought, feeling like a rat in a trapped box. The crowd, by now, is looking on in rapt attention; I notice Juli trying to stifle a smile. But she doesn’t have to be.

“What is the sign like?” I asked, trying to buy more time.

“Err…like this.”

Hmm

“What if I want to say something that is lame, but it’s on a smaller scale?”

“Then you make this.”

“OK, OK…” I said, mentally picturing myself standing back and holding up both hands, but not quite doing so. “What if I do that? What happens next?”

“Then you will have to wait until someone said, ‘What’s funny, Fikri?’”

“What if no one says that?”

“Then that’s too bad.”

I let a hint of desperation enter my voice. “But if it’s really good…?”

“Then you have to be patient, and hope that someone says the magic words.” She finished that sentence with a smile.

Damn.

“What if I don’t do it?”

“Then for every time you break it, we add on an extra hour to the deal.”

The more I looked at it, the more it reminds me of the Lame Ban that I undertook for a month earlier this year. We all know how that turned out…

“Alright,” I agreed. “I’ll do it.”

“Good,” Malina replied, stretching her smile. Behind her, the rest of the gang did the same.

I smiled as well. I outlasted the Lame Ban. I’ll outlast this. History shall repeat itself.

[Editor’s note: Our initial plan was that the ban was to last for 24 hours. But he’s still doing the sign. Perhaps he misheard. I haven’t the heart to remind him that he’s been free to say anything anytime for the past two days.]

By Shazana

The first International Conference of Asian Queer Studies that we attended at Ambassador Hotel not only hosted a series of talks, but also a plenary session which featured a panel of Asian Queer Film Makers.

Of the most fascinating was film-maker Michael Shaowanasai with his film, The Adventure of Iron Pussy.

Screening clips of the film, audiences caught a glimpse of the male protagonist, who works as a regular 7-eleven convenience-store worker by day and a trans-gendered secret agent by night called Iron Pussy. What was hilarious - at least what could be captured in the few clips screened - was the character’s flashy sense of dressing and melodramatic mannerisms.

What was very striking about Michael Shaowanasai, as a personality, was his spontaneity and almost natural ability to entertain and capture audience attention.

After five minutes of boring mumbo-jumbo about the background of Asian queer cinema by the MC, when it came to Michael’s turn, he turned around to the MC and said: “What is the question again?”

I thought this was hilarious – it was the most natural aspect of the entire conference.

And talking about the difficulties in making the film, he said that the most difficult thing was getting nice shoes that fitted him. “You can’t get size 44 in Asia”, he said. Not exactly typical conference lingo, but yet everyone listened.

If you get a chance, do not miss out on watching this film. For those in Monash University Malaysia, Dr Yeoh will be screening it on campus after Bangkok. Be sure to take notice of signs across hallways.

Picture taken from: Film Festival Rotterdam.com

By Suet Yeing

When we first reached Khao Sarn from Bangkok’s international airport, the only thing that was running through my mind was “shopping, shopping, shopping!” and “buy, buy, buy!” After a hearty meal with our guides, I was delirious and all pumped up to terrorize the road side traders with my killer bargaining skills. Excited-nya! True enough, within ten minutes of look-see, the shopping bug hit me when I saw a cute top. I asked the trader for the price of that top, and I got a shock of my life when he told me that it costs 400 baht! When I started to reason with him for a better price (well, to tell you the truth I offered him 50 percent of the original price), he told me his best offer was 350 baht, “farang” (foreigner, usually Caucasians) price!

I was annoyed and truly offended because I felt as if I was just another dumb tourist walking around obliviously along Khao Sarn road, waiting to be slashed by scheming traders when we utter the famous line in all shopping history…”How much?” As I walked on and continued in vain to buy something, anything, that is below 200 baht that I can fit into, I felt that all hope was dashed, because with my really stylish bermudas, old Adidas t-shirt, a cap and a backpack, as well as a really lost look when they utter Thai phrases at me, the word “S-U-C-K-E-R” was all over my forehead!

Well, honestly, we cannot run away from these scheming Baht-crazy locals. Unless we can miraculously speak fluent Thai by going through some crash course before we land ourselves in ‘The Land of Smiles’, we will be sulking instead (but them victimizing us and squeezing every baht available from us does make them smile, guess it all makes sense!). But after shopping in Khao Sarn, Chinatown, Siam Square, Jatujak and almost every stall that I walk past (to brush up my bargaining skills and annoy them by not purchasing in the end…)Here are a few pointers on how to stay sane and not to return home financially damned:

1. Always smile no matter how obnoxious the trader is and start having small talk with him/her (complimenting on them being good looking works 60 percent of the time)

2. Make sure your conversation does not end after ‘How much?’ if you really want to purchase that object. Just put on your “tak tahu malu” face and ask for a lower price.

3. Always start with 70 percent less than the original price given by the trader and increase the offer from there. (The no.1 excuse that I give is that I will be going back the following morning and I have limited cash… I know lying is a sin… but hey… whatever makes the transaction smooth for me…)

4. If no.3 doesn’t work, repeat no.1 before you start begging them for ‘cheaper la… cheaper’ again (It can really get annoying… then you will piss of the dude)

5. If you really like it then you should get it. If you can do without that object (meaning you won’t be whining to people around you after leaving the place) then I suggest you scout around for a better price or risk killing yourself when you bump into the same thing going for 1/3 the price after you bought it!

6. If you do not want to get it then I suggest you show your biggest smile, say “thank you but no” and get out of there A.S.A.P . Usually they would just curse at you in Thai, which really doesn’t bother me because what I don’t understand can’t piss me off…

These six rules are what I have abided to during my entire shopping experience in Bangkok, and I turned out alright and not financially ruined. So hope it helps…

By Joanna Lee

Food. Food. Food. I was so hungry just now; I could hardly use my brains. Well, its not that I use it very often, but just now was just bad. I could not wait to get myself to Chinatown to get my article down and also to get my stomach filled.

The quest was simple. All we needed to do was to get ourselves to Chinatown and to look for a story to write and to makan. Sounded easy enough. Well…not that easy. First of all, we had to get a tuk tuk, then we had to bargain the price, and while on the ride we had to pray hard that we get to Chinatown in one piece. That’s a lot of work.

Upon reaching there, (thankfully in one piece) another problem popped up. There was just too much food, too much to choose from. Practically the whole street of Chinatown is filled with food vendors; it was food heaven.

Check out what we ate …

Down town Bangkok- Food Heaven

Seafood for the soul

Old school stuff- Kaya and bread

All in all, we spent about 250 baht each on food tonight. Cheap and GOOD. We were going from shop to shop trying out the varieties of food.

For the first time in days, we could speak to the people without the help of our student guides or having a hard time speak to the people using simple English and actions to show them what we wanted. The people there spoke mainly mandarin and hokkien. This is good with me, not really good in those two dielects, but it was enough to get the message through.

That was good enough for me.

By Yasir

In the 1970’s Thai students stood up to the military government of that time and were successful in toppling the regime. This resulted in a period which saw the practicing of freedom of speech and the initiation of an open society. But as with all such sudden freedoms, the short period (1973-1976) ended in blood shed. This led to a lot of students joining the Communist Party of Thailand (CPT), in their guerilla warfare in the jungle. This period of armed confrontation was defused in 1980 when the military offered to give amnesty to these political dissidents. This was the start of the political and economic realignment in Thailand, and also can be said as the birth of the media as a commodity; as a profit making machine.

The media and communication scene during this transformative period is a good reflection of the changing political economic situation. The mass media boomed with the economy in the late 1980s and early 1990s and went down with it in 1997 when it crashed. The new media such as the Internet and multi-media as well as the telecommunications sector expanded rapidly.

This changed the ideologies of the youth along with these changes. The strong minded freedom fighting youth had grown old and new generations came up, but softer and more accepting of the political situation (a society which was not so free after all). My question is: “Are they content with what is around them, namely the system in place?” What drove about a quarter of a million students to rally and overthrow a dictatorship can motivate them to similar ends at this day and time.

Some people like Dr Ubonrat Siriyuvasak say that youngsters have their freedom of expression through modern forms of media such as web blogging and chat rooms. Obviously they can say what they want in cyberspace, but in my opinion their freedom is limited to virtually a small box. As the media owners are looking to make more money, there is little or no incentive on their part to provide a voice to those who do not. What is “aired” is what appeals to the owners such as adverts or messages by high paying sponsors.

The youth of this day may have higher purchasing power than their predecessors, but that is not freedom. Freedom to buy what you want or what you want to watch on television does not justify as “more free than before”. In my opinion, the youth have silenced themselves consciously, but with an added catalyst of more money circulating in the economy. Money that they get to spend— be it money spent for internet, newer TV channels, at clubs or elsewhere that they find fancy—now places them in the same levels as the youth of America and Europe.

Freedom, according to Dr. Ubonrat, is “the power to negate, the ability and freedom to say no”. But do modern Thai youth say no to the monopoly
that belongs to the Prime Minister of Thailand? Thaksin owns media companies, internet service providers, telecommunication companies and many more. This family business may be construed as a tool of propaganda to control the masses; do the youth realise that they could be akin to the unsuspecting people in the movie “Matrix”?

I guess if the media portrays or draws up a picture saying that it is the perfect picture of life, you would not have doubts about a freer or perfect life. The modern media of Thailand has achieved this hegemony over the citizens, especially the unsuspecting youth. So in conclusion, I would like to say that if you perceive a perfect picture to live by, you would hardly be inclined to go against the system asking for more. One may be content with what one has, thinking its perfect in all ways possible, but one must be aware that it just might be silently sucking us dry.

By Yong Sze Mun

The first word that pops out in the minds of everyone when “Thailand” is mentioned is “shopping” and “food”!

So, what can you get in Thailand which is cheap and good? Stuff you buy off the streets, of course. The clothes sold here in Thailand are quite fashionable and there are so many things to buy ranging from shoes to clothes to accessories to cushions to display items, and the list can go on and on.

I think you can really shop till you drop if you have lots of cash… or until you are broke, as is likely the case. If you are not careful you might not even be able to pay for the airport tax to get home. So make sure you have at the least 600 baths and above left to get to the airport and pay for the tax.

Well, for now, the cheapest pair of ‘happy pants’ I have seen so far is 90 baths, whereas the prices of skirts vary according to material. The cheapest bikini you can get is about 199 baths. A normal sized samurai sword will set you back about 1500 baths and the cheapest rubber slippers is 45 baths. Lastly, the most economical pair or earrings I have nabbed are 19 baths whereas necklaces are going at 100 baths for two.

I noticed that the prices of stuff quoted in Khao San Road are around the prices of things you can get in Malaysia. In other words, it is a little bit on the expensive side. Perhaps this is because it is a tourist area. As an alternative, I suggest everyone wait for the weekend to shop at a market called Jatujak. Shopping advice: Buy things in bulk, and you might be able to get your haggled price through… so long as it is reasonable, of course.

I also noticed that some things you can find and want to buy from Jatujak might not be as cheap as hoped. I remember things used to be cheaper when I came to Bangkok a few years ago. The only reason I can think of is because the ‘Farangs’ (foreigners) have been hood-winked into paying more and the shopkeepers have reacted wisely to this opportunity to increase their profits, thus lessening our chances of getting ourselves a good bargain.

Having said that, some of the items in Khao San Road is actually more fashionable than the ones in Jatujak. I think each place has its own individuality. With our very own queen of shopping, Kwan Suet Yeing with me, I was fortunate to buy most of the things at quite reasonable prices.

All in all, I have really shopped till I practically dropped in Jatujak… a record seven hours straight; walking up and down Khao San Road numerous times. My purse is officially empty and I am now broke all because of shopping!

By Shazana

Riding in a cab on the way back from Patpong, Sasi, Malina, Fikri and myself were pulled to the curb by the Thai police. I knew this was probably a routine security check, but I could not help but feel a little adrenaline rush. The plot of the film Brokedown Palace, began to flash across my mind - two young tourists who come to Thailand, in search of fun, and ended up being falsely prosecuted on charges of smuggling heroine.

With torch lights beaming down upon our faces, the policemen stood by the car windows, two on each side of the car, curiously asking us where we were from, after realising that we could not speak the Thai language.

“Malaysia”, I replied hesitantly, unsure, for some reason, whether it was wise or not to disclose such information.

Soon we were all politely asked to step out of the car. They shuffled through our bags and requested for our passports – all done in friendly gesture. Satisfied with our documents, they sent us back into the car – phew!

It was good thing that we had all brought our passports. I dare not even dream about what would have happened if we had not…

Relating the story to Dr Yeoh, he said that perhaps the security checks were related to the series of bomb attacks on the London transport network which happened that morning and reportedly killed 33 people.

Or perhaps, it was really nothing to shout and bang about – just a regular security check – something that happens all over the world.

By Yasir

Khao San is where it is ‘happening’, as it is filled with motels and inns, tourists
and vendors of anything that has a price. It is the way it is, perhaps because there are more Farangs (foreigners) than locals. Locks of blonde hair, everywhere. We have all heard of Chinatowns, ‘Little Indias’ and so on, but I would prefer ‘Farang Town’ in reference to Khao San.

I heard that some of the tourists stay here for a (long) month. It seems that they like the ambience of this place and its offerings. I too would be happy to change US dollars for oodles of Thai bahts and spend it on massages and cheap, fake designer ware.

Could Khao San road be the Malaysian counterpart of Petaling Steet? More or less similar, Khao San is crammed with small stalls displaying a multitude of wares ranging from hair braiding services to fried bugs (roaches, maggots and all). The good thing about this market place is the wide walking space in the middle of the road (but, you will have to swerve drastically at times to avoid vehicles gunning by). Other than that, Khao San remains a backpacker’s heaven.

The road parallel to Khao San has different restaurants and
clubs. You see girls and guys on the road advertising their respective businesses: “Buy one cocktail, get one free”. This one time I ‘misheard’ the phrase as, “buy one cocktail, get me free”. It would have been something different but I guess in Thailand, this is not such a strange phrase afterall.

Apparently, the new governor of Bangkok (according to Ms Kanokrat Lertchoosakul, from Chulalongkorn University) wants to close down the existing small shops on the Khao San road temporarily to paint all the buildings according to a selected theme (similar colours, designs and so forth). Perhaps it would probably make the place more attractive, but this would be a long time of absence for vendors, which would mean bad news for tourists who apparently have such a liking to this place.

I am learning more and more about this place since day one and I look forward to taking in more of this diverse metropolis till July 11. God give me strength.

By Juliha b Mohd Noor

There is speculation that the recent move by the Thai government to legalize prostitution would be to reap the economic profits that the flesh trade brings about annually. About 4.3 billion dollars or 3 percent of the Thai economy is fueled by the flesh business of 100,000 to 200,000 Thai women. However the unofficial figures seem to suggest that almost 2 million Thai women are in the sex industry.

“The issue of prostitution has been reduced to an issue of taxation for state income generation,” says Virada Somswasdi, an academic who studied the issue of legalization of prostitution in Thailand.

The human circus in Bangkok, particularly in Patpong is one area that exemplifies the issues that Somswasdi speaks of. The average tourist who walks down the aisles under the neon lights, elbowing their way from one strip joint to another will not fail to notice that 90 percent of the labour force in the red light district of Patpong are women. Barely dressed, clad in what could be minimal clothing - these women call out to all. Men and women alike - alluring them with their flirting and flesh, into the bars where the real acts begin.

For as little as 200 baht, one could comfortably sit oneself in a strip joint with a complimentary drink in hand watching women in their more flexible positions with a pole as their best friend for the entire night. Gyrating to music, these expressionless bodies slide and shake, exposing their breasts and genitals for the viewing pleasure of the majority male crowd. These women not only strip and do lap dances but have certainly included premium services in the bag to stay ahead of the competition. Some of the acts that greet patrons to such establishments are akin to a scene from ‘Ripley’s believe it or not’. The writer bore witness to such acts that evidently showed how the vagina is not only a reproductive organ but a receptacle to inanimate objects like strings, pins and needles. The vagina also transformed itself into a horn blowing and bullet shooting mechanism.

Academics like Somswasdi is of the view that the Thai society fails to understand that prostitution is about the flesh trade and involves a high risk of exposure to violence characterized by bodily harm health hazards and mental trauma. It is about the violation of human rights. This is visibly apparent in the red light districts of Bangkok where the voracity for cash overrides the violation of human rights. For the writer, walking down the streets of the flesh trade here shows how the lure of the dollar is clearly redefining the biological functions of the human anatomy.