King of the Malls

The King is a big deal over here in Thailand. Maybe you have read in the news that the Thai government has banned You Tube from all of Thailand. That is because some stupid-head back in the United States made a video that disrespected the king, and posted it on the popular video-sharing site. When You Tube refused to remove the video at the Thai government’s request, Thailand banned You Tube from being accessed in all of Thailand. When you try to visit You Tube, you are rerouted to a government site. And I have read that anyone trying to access You Tube in Thailand through a proxy server could face jail time. Scary.

It is clear that disrespect of the King is a big no-no over here. I have heard other stories of foreigners being arrested for stepping on money (the bills have the King’s picture on them, and the feet are considered to be the lowest and dirtiest part of your body.) So if you ever come to Thailand, don’t point your feet at anyone, and do not touch the Thai’s on the head, since the head is the most sacred part of the body. Also, make SURE you don’t touch their left hand, whether it’s a high-five or a hand shake, since that is the hand that a lot of Thai’s use to wipe their backside with. (This is probably only in the more rural areas.)
I have also noticed that the Thai’s like to wear yellow shirts on Mondays and sometimes on Fridays. This is out of respect for the king, and most shirts have the King’s emblem on it. You will also find yellow flags with this emblem on it all throughout Thailand. Also, before every movie you watch at the movie theaters, they play a music video dedicated to the King, and everyone in the audience must stand while it is playing.
Speaking of movies, Elisabeth and I have seen Spiderman 3 three times now, and once in IMAX. We have a lot of spare time, and sometimes our only escape from the exhaust and insane crowds are the movies. Elisabeth says going to the movies for her is like visiting a little piece of home, since the movies are in English. The theater we go to is located in the Siam Paragon Mall, an upscale shopping mall that has become our favorite mall of all time.
The Siam Paragon is one of the largest shopping centers in all of Asia, and is located in the center of Bangkok’s Skytrain system. Elisabeth and I have spent several days here in Bangkok wandering around this gigantic mall, our eyes wide and mouths drooling. We make sure to visit at least once a day for either lunch or dinner, or both.

One area of the mall that was in our budget was on the very bottom floor. It is Siam Ocean World, and it is well worth the money if you are ever in the area. They have the most interesting exhibits, like a car and refrigerator aquarium. The staff is very friendly and the place is clean. Elisabeth and I had a blast.


These sharks tried to snag my ice cream.


So my advice to you is, on your next trip to Bangkok, visit Siam Paragon!