It’s hard to shift gears and move from one country and culture to another. That’s the way it is with Thailand. We keep saying and thinking, “Yes but in Myanmar they do it THIS way, their temples look THAT way. One thing’s for sure, Thailand, or at least the part of greater Bangkok we’ve seen so far, is much more developed than Myanmar. We drove maybe 30 miles north of the city center and saw nothing but commercial and apartment buildings – not one splotch of grass except underneath a major power line. It’s hard to say Bangkok is stylish or impressive or beautiful the way Hong Kong is. But it certainly looks prosperous and dynamic.
We didn’t escape Myanmar entirely. We visited Ayutthaya, which was the capitol of Thailand from 1351 to 1767. That makes its dynasty the longest-lived in Thailand’s history. During that interval kings of Myanmar to the north invaded and conquered twice. The first invasion was in 1549. The invaders laid waste to Ayutthaya. In 1597 the army of Ayutthaya defeated the Myanmar army in a famous elephant battle in which the king of Thailand slew the invading king of Myanmar.
The Myanmar-ians invaded and conquered again in 1767, again laying waste to poor old Ayutthaya. What we saw today, then, were the remains because soon after the second defeat a Thai general, after bloody infighting, declared himself king and built a new capital elsewhere. That didn’t last long and soon Phra Phutthayotfa Chulalok became king (Rama 1) and built a new capital at what is today Bangkok.
It’s hard for us to feel sorry for the Thais in all this. My natural inclination at least is to root for the Myanmar home team.
We did visit the ruins of the former capital city of Ayutthaya about 50 Km north of downtown. We had a demonstration of traditional candy making (actually a candy method imported from India many years ago). And we took a 20-minute boat ride down a nearby river in one of those long, skinny passenger boats (two barest) with a huge truck engine connected to a long shaft and a tiny propeller.
Rama 1 founded the Chakri dynasty of Siam (now Thailand) that stretches to Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangku, Rama X, the tenth and current king of the dynasty. His father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama IX, died in October 2016. Thailand held his cremation ceremony last month after a year of mourning. He was much beloved, having served 70 years from the end of WWII in 1946. Thais believe the king is divine, hence the long period of mourning and the elaborate cremation ceremony. Check out http://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2017/10/26/thailand-cremation-king-bhumibol-adulyadej-sje-lon-orig.cnn to see what I mean.
Interestingly, Rama IX was born in Boston while his father was studying medicine. Rama IX was therefore a U.S. citizen, creating a close tie between Rama IX and a number of U.S presidents. Rama IX was anxious to receive U.S. support to ensure that Thailand did not become overrun by a communist movement as was the case in neighboring Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. Rama IX provided significant support to the U.S. effort in the Vietnam War.
During Rama IX’s rule there have been 18 military coups, the most recent in 2014. The coup government was approved by the king; the military government remains in place today.
Politically, there are two camps in Thailand. The Conservatives are closely aligned with the King. They represent the vast majority of Thai wealth. The Liberals wish to have a more open and democratic government. Political discussion in Thailand is difficult however. Article 112 of the Constitution makes it a crime to criticize the King, punishable by three to 15 years in prison. Each offense is charged separately. Someone making 10 negative comments can be jailed for 150 years.
Whatever the political system, the Thai economy, at least as indicated by what we saw from the bus today, looks quite healthy. Almost 50% of Thais work in agriculture so we are not seeing that sector driving around town. Corruption, defined as lack of “openness”, is high although not as high as Myanmar. Thailand is in the top 10 compared to the top 5 for our home country of last week.
We’ll undoubtedly learn more over the two days.
Tonight we cruised up and back down the Chao Phraya river on a converted rice barge. The riverbanks were well illuminated by the Temple of Dawn and the Grand Palace. The weather was perfect – cooler than the heat of the day with a gentle breeze, despite lightning in the distance.
