Thailand Tourism
Information and Travel Guide
 The
Kingdom of Thailand lies in Southeast Asia, with Laos and Cambodia
to its east, the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia to its south, and
the Andaman Sea and Myanmar to its west. The country's official
name was Siam until 24 June 1939. [1] It was again called Siam between
1945 and May 11, 1949, when it was again changed by official proclamation.
The word Thai means "freedom" in the Thai language and
is also the name of the majority ethnic group.
 History
 Due
to its geographical location, Thai culture has always been greatly
influenced by China and India. However, different indigenous cultures
have also existed in Thailand since the Ban Chiang culture.
The first Siamese/Thai state is traditionally considered the Buddhist
kingdom Sukhothai founded in 1238, following the decline and fall
of the Khmer Empire in the 13th - 15th century.
A century later, Sukhothai's power was overshadowed by the larger
Siamese kingdom of Ayutthaya, established in the mid-14th century.
After Ayutthaya sacked Angkor itself in 1431, much of the Khmer
court and its Hindu customs were brought to Ayuthaya, and Khmer
customs and rituals were adopted into the courtly culture of Siam.
After Ayuthaya fell in 1767, Thonburi was the capital of Thailand
for a brief period under King Taksin the Great, until a coup d'etat
in 1782. The current (Ratthanakosin) era of Thai history began in
1782 following the establishment of Bangkok as capital of the Chakri
dynasty under King Rama I the Great.
 European
powers began traveling to Thailand in the 16th century. Despite
European pressure, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country
to have never been colonized by a European power. The two main reasons
for this is that Thailand had a long succession of very able rulers
in the 1800s and that it was able to utilise the rivalry and tension
between the French and the British. As a result, the country remained
as a buffer state between parts of Southeast Asia that were colonised
by the two colonial powers. Despite this, Western influence led
to many reforms in the 19th century and major concessions to British
trading interests. This included the loss of the three southern
provinces, which later became Malaysia's three northern states.
In 1932, a bloodless revolution resulted in a new constitutional
monarchy. During the war, Thailand was allied with Japan. Yet after
the war, it became an ally of the United States. Thailand, holding
an unstable government, went through a series of coups d'état,
but eventually progressed towards democracy in the 1980s.
In 1997, Thailand was hit with the Asian financial crisis and the
Thai baht was soon worth 56 baht to the US Dollar compared to about
25 baht to the dollar before 1997. Since then the baht has regained
some strength and currently trades around 36-38 baht to the dollar.
The official calendar in Thailand is based on Eastern version of
the Buddhist Era, which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian (western)
calendar. For example, the year AD 2007 is called 2550 BE in Thailand.
Geography
At 513,000 km² (198,000 sq mi), Thailand is the world's 49th-largest
country. It is comparable in size to Spain, and somewhat larger
than the US state of California.
Thailand is home to several distinct geographic regions, partly
corresponding to the provincial groups. The north of the country
is mountainous, with the highest point being Doi Inthanon at 2,576
metres (8,451 ft). The northeast consists of the Khorat Plateau,
bordered to the east by the Mekong river. The centre of the country
is dominated by the predominantly flat Chao Phraya river valley,
which runs into the Gulf of Thailand. The south consists of the
narrow Kra Isthmus that widens into the Malay Peninsula.
The local climate is tropical and characterised by monsoons. There
is a rainy, warm, and cloudy southwest monsoon from mid-May to September,
as well as a dry, cool northeast monsoon from November to mid-March.
The southern isthmus is always hot and humid. Major cities beside
the capital Bangkok include Nakhon Ratchasima, Khon Kaen, Udon Thani,
Nakhon Sawan, Chiang Mai, Surat Thani, Phuket and Hat Yai (Songkhla
Province).
Economy
After enjoying the world's highest growth rate from 1985 to 1995
- averaging almost 9% annually - increased pressure on Thailand's
currency, the baht, in 1997 led to a crisis that uncovered financial
sector weaknesses and forced the government to float the currency.
Long pegged at 25 to the US dollar, the baht reached its lowest
point of 56 to the US dollar in January 1998 and the economy contracted
by 10.2% that same year. The collapse prompted a wider Asian financial
crisis.
Thailand entered a recovery stage in 1998, expanding 4.2% and grew
4.4% in 2000, largely due to strong exports - which increased about
20% in 2000. Growth was dampened by a softening of the global economy
in 2001, but picked up in the subsequent years due to strong growth
in China and the various domestic stimulation programs of Prime
Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, popularly known as Thaksinomics. Growth
in 2003 and 2004 was over 6% annually.
Thailand exports over $105 billion worth of products annually .
Major exports include rice, textiles and footwear, fishery products,
rubber, jewelry, automobiles, computers and electrical appliances.
Thailand is the world’s no.1 exporter of rice, exporting 6.5
million tons of milled rice annually. Rice is the most important
crop in the country. Thailand has the highest percent of arable
land, 27.25%, of any nation in the Greater Mekong Subregion . About
55% of the available land area is used for rice production .
Substantial industries include electric appliances, components,
computer parts and automobiles, while tourism contributes about
5% of the Thai economy's GDP. Long stay foreign residents also contribute
heavily to GDP.
The main natural resources of Thailand are tin, rubber, natural
gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite,
and arable land.
Culture
Theravada Buddhism is central to modern Thai
identity and belief, though in practice it has evolved over time
to include many regional beliefs originating from animism as well
as ancestor worship. In areas in the southernmost parts of Thailand,
Islam is prevalent. Several different ethnic groups, many of which
are marginalized, populate Thailand. Some of these groups overlap
into Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia and have maintained a
distinctly traditional way-of-life despite strong Thai cultural
influence. Ethnic Chinese also form a significant part of Thai society,
particularly in and around Bangkok. Their successful integration
into Thai society has allowed for this group to hold positions of
economic and political power, the most noteworthy of these being
the Thai Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, who held power from
2001 until September 19, 2006 when he was ousted by a military coup
d'état.
Like most Asian cultures, respect towards ancestors is an essential
part of Thai spiritual practice. Thais have a strong sense of hospitality
and generosity, but also a strong sense of social hierarchy. Seniority
is an important concept in Thai culture. Thais will bow to the feet
of their parents or grandparents to honor them. In addition, the
elders always rule in family decisions or ceremonies.
 Muay
Thai, or Thai boxing, is the national sport in Thailand and
its native martial art. It achieved popularity all over the world
in the 1990s. Although similar martial arts styles exist in other
southeast Asian countries, few enjoy the recognition that Muay Thai
has received with its full-contact rules allowing strikes including
elbows, throws and knees. Association football, however, has possibly
overtaken Muay Thai's position as most widely viewed and liked sport
in contemporary Thai society and it is not uncommon to see Thais
cheering their favourite English Premier League teams on television
and walking round in replica kits. Another widely enjoyed passtime,
while not a sport per se, is kite flying.
The standard greeting in Thailand is a prayer-like gesture called
the wai (see namaste). Taboos include touching someone's head or
pointing with the feet, as the head is considered the most sacred
and the foot the dirtiest part of the body. Stepping over someone,
or over food, is considered insulting. However, Thai culture as
in many other Asian cultures, is succumbing to the influence of
westernization and some of the traditional taboos are slowly fading
away with time.
Books and other documents are the most revered of secular objects
- therefore one should not slide a book across a table or place
it on the floor.
Thai cuisine blends five fundamental tastes: sweet, spicy, sour,
bitter and salty. Some common ingredients used in Thai cuisine include
garlic, chillies, lime juice, lemon grass, and fish sauce. The staple
food in Thailand is rice, particularly jasmine variety rice (also
known as Hom Mali rice) which is included in almost every meal.
Thailand is the world's largest exporter of rice and Thais domestically
consume over 100 kg of milled rice per person per year [14]. Clearly,
rice is an important part of Thai culture. Over 5000 varieties of
rice from Thailand are preserved in the rice gene bank of the International
Rice Research Institute (IRRI), based in the Philippines. The King
of Thailand is the official patron of IRRI.
Thai culture has been greatly shaped in recent years by its vibrant
and free press. There are numerous English, Thai and Chinese papers
in circulation and Thailand is the largest newspaper market in South
East Asia with an estimated circulation of at least 13 million copies
daily in 2003.
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