Thai Hotel

Many people like the thrill of riding fast motorbikes and driving rally cars, some enjoy driving 4 X 4 vehicles in wild terrain at speed or just seeing how fast their 10 year old car can go, whilst others prefer a complicated game of Mah Jong or chess, maybe even the occasional game of Russian roulette. The psychology of Thai drivers includes all these traits and more.

Driving in Thailand is not for the feint-hearted. If you happen to be from one of the few countries in the world who drive on the Left side of the road you have a slight mechanical advantage because you are used to driving on the “wrong side of the road,” and with the steering wheel on the “wrong” side, but even these benefits will not help you much in Thailand.

Whilst the laws of the road are very similar to your home country’s, the Rules of Engagement are quintessentially and pragmatically Thai. Compared with Western countries the passing of a driving test is a minor formality which takes around 10 minutes in a car park with red cones. Until you pass this “test” you can drive anyway without ‘L’ plates if you are with another driver.

The general knowledge of any sort of Highway Code is virtually non-existent and such things as undertaking at speed and a total lack of signalling, even when turning across several lanes of traffic is normal practice.

In towns and cities motorbikes will cut you up left and right at the same time. Another will probably pull out in front of you and expect you to stop for it, whilst pedestrians weaving between traffic queues do not seem to notice cars or motorbikes heading for them at 50 kms per hour and only inches away.

In country districts where the roads or tracks seem to be appallingly potholed in places, any rules of the road are entirely forgotten by the local drivers who have been driving round these hazards for years. They will of course use the bit of the road without holes which may or may not be the correct one. It is possible to find yourself on entirely the wrong side whilst someone going in the opposite direction passes you on his wrong side. 4 X 4 vehicles are a must for country tracks as cars suspensions and ground clearance just won’t cope.

If you have a driving licence from your own country as well as an international one, you have the patience of a holy-man, have eyes in the back of your head, the reflexes of Michael Schumacher in a Formula 1 Farrari, a crystal ball for checking out the local traffic and to make sure that the ‘puddle’ in front of you is not a metre deep, then you may wish to come to South-East Asia to check out this dangerous pastime. It’s actually very good fun!

Interested in this subject? Try this link for more of the same.

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A tour of the National Museum in Bangkok, which traces the
early Thai civilizations in the region and the history of
subsequent kingdoms, is like taking a stroll through the
corridors of time. The short tour gives the visitor an overview
of more than a millennium of history of the kingdom.

Our tour starts with the origin of early Thai civilizations in the
first section in the National Museum. There’s evidence of
civilizations dating back to the early Stone Age from relics
discovered in Lampang and Mae Hong Son in northern
Thailand and Krabi to the south.

Civilizations existing around 3,600 BC were discovered in
Ban Chiang, Udorn Thani in northeast Thailand as well
as Kanchanaburi and Chonburi. There are conflicting theories
as to where the early immigrants came from. However, there’s
sufficient evidence to show that there were civilizations in the
area for more than 1,000 years.

The next section in the National Museum covers the 7th - 13th
centuries when the Khmer empire, based in what is now
Cambodia, was at the height of its power. The influence of
Khmer culture covered the northeastern region of Thailand
and extended all the way to Lopburi in central Thailand.

Historical sites like Phanom Rung in Buriram and Phimai in
Nakhon Ratchasima are testimony to this influence.

The 13th century saw the rise of the Sukhothai
kingdom. The kingdom reached its pinnacle under the
reign of King Ram Khamhaeng from 1279 - 1298 AD.
Sukhothai not only grew in political and military stature, it was
renowned for its art, architecture and culture. It was King
Ram Khamhaeng who started the Thai alphabet.

The Ayutthaya section in the National Museum is the
most substantial. Founded by King U-Thong in 1351,
Ayutthaya was a city bounded by three rivers, the Chao
Phraya, Lopburi and Pasak. It grew rapidly and soon eclipsed
Sukhothai and the other kingdoms.

At the height of its influence, Ayutthaya was a major
commercial center with three main palaces within a walled city
with its network of roads and canals and protected by 16 forts.
Trade with China, Portugal, the Netherlands and Japan
flourished.

Ayutthaya was captured and sacked by Burma in 1569. The
city was revived in 1584 by King Naresuan. Unfortunately it
was overrun again and completely destroyed by the Burmese
in 1767. Built up over four centuries, Ayutthaya with its 34
kings from five dynasties crashed to an abrupt and tragic end.

It was left to Phraya Taksin, son of a Chinese immigrant, who
escaped the destruction of Ayutthaya to reestablish a new
capital in Thonburi. In a series of campaigns he drove
the Burmese out of Thailand and reunited the various
kingdoms.

The grand finale in the tour of the National Museum covers the
Chakri dynasty started by King Rama I in 1782 when he
established Bangkok as the new capital to restore the
former glory of Ayutthaya.

It was the dawn of a new era, Rattanakosin. After a massive
Burmese onslaught was repelled, they were never a serious
threat again. The prospect of a united Thailand with secure
borders became a reality. Under the reign of the Chakri Kings,
the next 200 years, saw the gradual emergence of a modern
Thailand.

The National Museum in Bangkok captures more than a
millennium of history of the early Thai civilizations, the rise
and fall of the various kingdoms and dynasties to the present.
It encapsulates the cultural ballast and very soul of the Thai
nation.

For more on King Taksin of Thonburi visit the National
Museum when you Tour Bangkok Legacies and
stroll through the corridors of history. The author Eric Lim, a
free-lance writer, lives in Bangkok Thailand.

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Meet my new Thai keyboard. Beautiful ain’t she?
With this baby, I can now type Thai faster
and with confidence!

Okay, there’s something I would like to confess…

I don’t have a Thai keyboard! Huh? So what?

What do you mean so what?!! Well, if you can
type Thai without looking at your keyboard, it isn’t
so much of a big deal. But I can’t! Not until now…

The real problem to typing in Thai is…

For the beginners in Thai language, using a non-Thai
keyboard to type Thai can be quite frustrating
and frankly a waste of time..

Why? Because
you will be spending most your time trying to figure
out which key belongs to which Thai alphabet.

If you’re someone who refuse to memorize
things that are simply unimportant (in this
case, the exact key to hit for each Thai alphabet
on your keyboard), this little tutorial can help you
solve that problem.

You’ll learn how to create your own
Thai keyboard easily, step by step, without
spending any money at all (that’s assuming that you
already have all the tools at hand.)

If you can buy a Thai keyboard
easily, by all means, go for it. This guide
is actually for people who don’t have access
to a Thai keyboard.

Having said that, building your own Thai keyboard is a wonderful
learning experience. By merely investing some time
and with some patience, you will be able to cleary distinguish
the subtle difference of each Thai alphabet.

Without further ado, let’s begin, shall we?

To build your own Thai keyboard, you will need a:

Printer and a piece of paper to print the Thai alphabet keys.

Keyboard. (If you’re using a notebook,
buy or use a spare ps2 or usb keyboard.)

Double sided tape.

Transparent tape.

Pair of scissors.

Ruler.

Creating your own Thai Keyboard, step by step…

Thai alphabet keys. Print this out and stick it to the corresponding keys
on your keyboard. Starting from the top left is key 1, 2nd row key Q,
3rd row key A and the last row key Z.

First, print out the above thai alphabets. You will
need to resize it to half the key size of your keyboard.

Now stick the back of the first row with double sided
tape so that it will stick to the keys of your keyboard.

Note: Do not peel off the outer layer yet!

Next, flip the paper over and stick a layer of protection
over the Thai alphabets using a transparent tape.

To ensure that the transparent tape is clear of any dirts
and fingerprints, simply pull it out fast only stick the tranparent
part onto the paper.

Now, cut out each row of the Thai alpabet with
a knife or a pair of scissors. Be sure to cut according to
the line printed.

Finally, peel off the outer layer (double sided tape) of each
Thai alphabet and stick it to corresponding keys on your keyboard.

If you got confused which key belongs to which alphabet, simply
refer back to the Thai alphabet keys above.

Voila! You did it! Simple isn’t it? Now, it’s time
to enjoy your new Thai keyboard. Let’s start
typing Thai already…

You can find view the original article here at
(http://mythaisensei.com/thai_writing/create_thai_keyboard.html)

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