Category Archives: Stories from the Thai Press

2012 has been full of tasty stories, but the Thai language newspaper Thai Rath has chosen Thai Society’s Top Ten Tastiest Stories of the Year. These are my favourite eight..

Superstars: Love lives (and especially Miss Tak ‘Bongkoj’)

This year innumerable Thai stars have tied the knot with their one and only sweetheart. They include Woonsen, Tai and Nathawut etc… Though not yet married, but engaged; special mention goes to Tak (Bongkoj Khongmalai). Miss Tak, 27, who is famed, alongside her huge pair of watermelons, for posing half nude for every magazine and newspaper publication in Thailand, got engaged to billionaire founder of Dtac. Even though her fiancé has almost reached retirement age, Tak claims that when she first met him, she didn’t realize who he was and how rich he was; she just simply fell in love at first sight. Thailand’s reporters and gossip-mongers, however, reckoned that Miss Tak had fallen in love with the sight of wallet and not his ageing wrinkles.

Technology: Iphone

Owning an Iphone has this year turned into an absolutely must for any trendy Thai. 30% of female Thai university students admitted in a poll that carrying an Iphone to university was the most important thing in their daily lives. Another 25% of Bangkok students said that they wouldn’t be seen dead on the skytrain using a mobile phone which was not an Iphone.

Unthinkable TV: Thailand’s Got Talent

Even though one can see plenty of bare breasts on Pattaya Beach or a Patpong go-go bar, such an eye-sore is totally unacceptable on Thai TV (according to the censors and Ministry of Culture that is). Unperturbed, Work Point Studio owners of Got Talent franchise, showed on-air, peak time, an audition of a female ‘artist’ who during her performance threw off her shirt and then her bra. Top Thailand Got Judge, Ms Benz ‘Pornchida’, threw a frenzy and ran out the studio while scolding the other two male judges who ‘passed’ the performance. Work Point were later fined 500,000 baht for daring to air the bare-breasted performance on Channel 3. TGT judge, and supermodel, Benz ‘Pornchida’ was, herself, soon after lambasted on Thai language Internet forums, as she herself had posed nude for body painting on past occasions.

Very Naughty: School Sex Clips

This year the Internet has been over-flowing with secretly taken clips of Thai students bonking all over the place. We have seen clips of Thai students doing it together in classrooms, teachers’ rooms, KFC toilets, cinemas and even at bus stops. Much of the blame for such naughty activity has been put on parents and other elders for not having taught their children that such a thing is unacceptable within Thai society. What is even more astounding is that the age of the kids in these sex clips keeps getting younger and younger.

Look Rich: Red Car License Plate

While many of Bangkok’s top single women are more in love with their Iphone than their mothers, Bangkok’s trendy young men have jumped on the red car license plate fashion. More than 20% of these red plate owners have admitted that they wouldn’t drive any other car. “A red plate means new car, means I got lots of money, and so easy to pick up hot girls” admitted Suttichai a third year Engineering student at Chulalongkorn University, whom before owning a red license, had only had one date in his entire life.

Politics: Obama Comes to Thailand (to the delight of PM Yingluck)

Swanky President Obama literally swept PM Yingluck off her feet with his warm charm, nice smile and hunky body. Photographs of the happy couple were posted all over the Internet, and especially the ones of Yingluck were she is almost watering at the mouth at the sight of Obama. “Prime Minister Yingluck is totally in love with Obama; her cheeks flush a bright red every time she looks in his eyes” claimed an anonymous source within her cabinet. It is yet to be seen whether Obama has the same feelings for Yingluck.

Sports: 2012 World Futsal Championship

No other sporting incident in recent memory has embarrassed Thailand’s sport’s lovers so much as the fiasco at Thailand’s hosting the 2012 World Futsal Championship. After spending tens of millions of dollars building an indoor stadium to host the finals, FIFA refused to give Thailand’s Futsal Association permission to use it for play. The association and Ministry of Sports were up-in-arms, however, FIFA were right in spotting that the stadium hadn’t actually been finished building. The government later ordered an inquiry into a possible corruption scandal.

Soap Opera: Raeng Ngao

No other TV soap opera has caused as much storm as this. Taking the censors to the limits, Raeng Ngao with its ‘18yrs+ only’ warning was the most loved (and loathed, especially by the authorities) soap opera of the year. See previous blog.

(The following is a brief Thai>English translation from various local news sources)

Customers at Melody Karaoke, in the close vicinity of Prachacheurn Police Station, were originally charged an astonishing 30,000 Baht for 3 hours of karaoke. Charges included 100 Baht for a piece of candy.

It all started with a former policeman from Phayao province, Mr Atthaphan, who attended Melody Karaoke along Ngam Wong Wan Road in Bangkok with his girlfriend. After just 3 hours or so of having a fruit snack, a bottle of whiskey and enjoying a bout of karaoke, Mr Atthaphan was astounded to get a bill for approximately 30,000 Baht. After complaining of course, he was given a reduced bill with all the prices on, but it still run at an extortionate 16,350 Baht.

“This is not unique for Melody Karaoke; this thieving establishment has a well-known history for scamming patrons” says the Thai language Manager newspaper

At 12:30, last Tuesday, Pol Lt Col Suraphon from Prachacheurn Police Station received a report from a former Pol Lt cop, Mr Atthaphan, 42, that not only was he physically threatened to pay an extortionate bill, but Melody Karaoke also seized his and her mobile phones. Mr Atthaphan went on to say “We entered the karaoke at about 8:30, asked for a private karaoke room and ordered a bottle of whiskey with water and soda. Since we fancied a bit of company to help sing a few songs we also asked that a couple of hostesses come and join us”.

(After bargaining down the original bill of 30,000 Baht, Mr Atthaphon received a reduced one at just more than 16,000 Baht)

Yet, when Mr Atthaphon finally got the actual ‘correct’ bill he found that the karaoke had charged for the company of 7 hostesses, at an incredible 1-1,200 Baht per girl. With fast mouths, the girls supoosedly drank orange juice worth 3,900 Baht, sucked a few candy at 100 Baht a pop and munched on 3 plates of rose apples at 600 Baht

Even at the reduced charge of 16,350 Baht, Mr Atthaphon just did not have enough money to foot the bill – he only had 7,000 on him. He was then threatened by a bunch of bouncers to go immediately to the ATM machine next to the karaoke and withdraw the remainder. To make sure he wouldn’t do a runner, they seized the mobiles.

According to reporters, Melody Karaoke have been running a scam for a long time – just a few days previous another few gullible teenage customers got a bill for virtually 50,000 Baht – unable to pay the bill, they seized a motorbike.

Prachacheurn police claimed that they could nothing to help get any of the money back, as the couple had already willingly paid the bill. This, however, is in stark contrast to the law which specifically states that any establishment selling beverage or food must have a menu with prices on it. Melody Karaoake did not have one, and so the couple did in fact, not have to pay a single baht – Prachacheurn police looked over the matter though, and told the couple to just go home and forget about it. “16,000 Baht isn’t the end of the world” one police guy was reported to have said.

People living in the local vicinity claim that some Prachacheurn police are actually taking kickbacks from scamming karaoke bars like Melody. Prachacheurn police, however, deny this claim.

(The following is a brief Thai>English translation from various local news sources)

At 10 in the morning of 24 September, Mr Sanan, administrative chief of Phatthalung province was in charge of perhaps the first ever televised wedding between endangered Sakai people. The Sakai is an indigenous tribe who live in the deep southern jungles of Phatthalung, Trang and Satun. Most of whom are illiterate and can not even comprehend the Thai southern dialect. In fact, their language is closer to Malay and Thai Sea Gypsy than standard Thai. The Sakai are hunters and instead of rice, yam is their stable diet. They are seldom seen outside of their jungles.

Back to the story. The local tourism board of Phatthalung thought it would be a grand idea to arrange and promote such a rare wedding and so invited a whole bunch of respected local officials and 400 tourists to enjoy the festivities. 54 Sakai tribal people from neighbouring Trang and Satun provinces were also invited.

In the morning, the atmosphere was tense as the bridegroom Mr Aitaoyao (age approx. 35) was led by a local village headman and other respected state officials to nearby Papong village to ask for the hand of his wife-to-be Ms Binla (age approx 18). As the groom’s procession went along there was great frenzy. On arrival at the wedding ceremony, everyone was able to witness the bridegroom making a dowry offering of two pieces of traditional red Sakai cloth, a cow and some local fruits.

All the locals, tourist and relatives and friends of the couple were invited to join in the wedding ceremony. Mr Sanan the administrative chief, next finalized the marriage by putting a crown of red flowers over the heads of the happy couple and gave them each a nice official marriage certificate.

Before the wedding, however, the couple had already been living together as boyfriend/girlfriend, but with the opportunity to boost tourism in Phatthalung province, a proper traditional Sakai marriage was arranged.

(The following blog is a brief/rough translation of a leading report published in the Thai language Daily News newspaper, May 3)

Unbelievable! Hi-so websites now online full of young women with gorgeous bodies, long hair, really fair-skin who boast they come from well-to-do hi-class families are now selling their knickers over the Net.

To hide their identities however, the lasses hide their faces from the camera. Normal hi-so women have turned around and vented their anger at what they see as immoral behavior bent on destroying society and culture. Doctors have said it is just an odd sexual fetish.

Our investigative team has found that pupils, students, other youth and even working folk have been happily forwarding mail to each other of adverts for used knickers for sale. One forwarded mail our team uncovered was of one lass with a nice body and fair-skin (face hidden) who was selling not only her personal knickers collection, but also an array of other naughty items such as stockings and boots. Prices ranged from 400-3,000 Baht per piece.

After further investigation, our team found out that this young woman in particular was named Wan, 23 years of age, a graduate of a prestigious university in Chiang Mai province and currently worked as a secretary. Wan claimed she was from a well-to-do hi-so family who was only using the profits made from her used knickers trade to save up for a car. Wan was adamant that she only sold pieces of her clothing and not her body. Her email address is sweetygirl_hot@hotmail.com

Like Wan, most of the vendors post their phone numbers for a quick sales deal or chat with potential customers on MSN. You can’t see any of their faces, but all the lasses reckon they are clean and good-looking – what you can see however, is that all the women have fit bodies. On top of just receiving the well-worn ‘nice-smelling’ knickers, customers also receive the added bonus of a free video clip of the garments actually being worn.

Dr Prithat, a psychologist in Chiang Mai, explained that this kind of fetish, originating in Japan, was new to Thailand. He said that “Even though the customers have a kind of mental disorder, they do not suffer from anything serious which needs treatment”.

Well-known hi-so lass, Miss Nuanphan, told us that she had also received the email forwards and admitted to being totally shocked and asked herself “Are these vendors really Thai people?” She went on to explain that women like this were an embarrassment to the hi-so establishment and that they weren’t right in the head.