|
Bangkok's
in the 1990's
Numerous
districts in Bangkok are centers in themselves, each unified by
common features rooted either in ethnic character of a specific
function or business. Thus Ratchadamnoen Avenue and its environs
remain the center for government ministries and in ternational
agencies, while there is a major concentration of commerce in
Chinatown. Silom Road has become the primary banking and
financial district and the Sukhumvit Road area is predominantly
a middle-class residential section. Those seeking entertai nment
are attracted by the neon glare of Patpong and New Phetburi
Roads, where there are hundreds of bars and restaurants.
Outlying
residential districts, meanwhile, continue to expand rapidly as
more housing estates and shopping complexes are built to
accommodate both the flow of migrants converging on the capital
from upcountry and the new generation of young married coupl es
who are increasingly leaving their parents' homes for places of
their own. Heavy industry, too, is concentrating on the outer
fringes of the city, with industrial parks springing up along
major highways leading out into the country. To facilitate com
munication between the suburbs and downtown areas, an elevated
expressway has been built. A ring road project, the major
portions of which have been completed, will also relieve
congestion by permitting through traffic to bypass the city
center.
Older
Bangkok residents lie in separate, private houses, located
either in high-density neighborhoods or, increasingly rare, in
relatively spacious compounds in long-established residential
areas like Dusit and Bangkapi. Rising land values, however, are
producing new housing concepts, especially in the more congested
inner city. Though Western-style apartment buildings are
inhabited mainly be foreigners, more and more Thais are moving
into " town houses," projects in which they own the
actual land and building but share a common wall with their
neighbors; hundreds of these projects have been constructed in
the city, some consisting of several dozen units in an area that
once contained a single dwelling.
As
the 1990's got underway the biggest residential boom was in
condominium construction. This era dawned with the passage of
the Condominium Act by Parliament in 1979. According to a survey
conducted in 1982, there were 48 condo projects being impleme
nted in the country, most of them in Bangkok; another survey at
the end of the decade found more than 220 such projects, with
whose in the capital being concentrated on Sukhumwit and
Rachadapisek Roads and along the Chao Phraya River. An important
factor in the sale of condominium units has been a desire to
escape the traffic jams which add hours to suburban commuting
times.
Throughout
Bangkok, lining main roads and side streets, are innumerable two-three-and
four-story shophouses which contain specialty shops, restaurants,
or small factories that are generally family concerns. Workers
and family are commonly housed on upper floors. Such dwellings
rarely have recreational space or gardens, though imaginative
roof-top plantings can be glimpsed on some. Automobiles are
generally parked inside on the ground floo r and children play
on the sidewalks outside. Poorer people often live in single-storey
houses made of scrap lumber, concentrated around the port area
and in certain suburbs. Government public housing usually takes
the form of lowrise blocks of simple flats located throughout
the city.
The
rapid growth of Bangkok has severely strained its facilities and
led to a number of serious problems. The city now has over a
million registered motor vehicles and because of the limited
road surface traffic congestion is heavy in downtown areas. M
oreover, some parts of the city are sinking due to the pumping
of water from artesian wells to supply suburban projects and
drainage is inadequate in others; both have resulted in periodic
flooding during the rainy season. Experts are presently working
o n elaborate plans to relieve these problems, among them an
elevated system of rapid public transportation and extensive
flood-control projects.
Bangkok's
population is predominately young. Over half the residents are
under 30. Numerous new schools, both public and private, have
emerged to meet the needs of this high concentration of young
people, as well as two "open" universities for those
wh o cannot be accommodated by the older institutions of higher
learning. The young have also influenced the life of the city in
other ways-most of the capital's shopping centers are youth-oriented,
as are its entertainment facilities.
The
city's cultural life is greatly enriched by its minority
communities. Chinese and Indians account for nearly 10 per cent
of the capital's population and contribute to its variety of
cuisines and festivals. Japanese and Asians from neighboring
count ries also figure prominently in the city's cosmopolitan
atmosphere.
Western
influence has been instrumental in creating a taste for new
fashions and new life-styles, reflected in such things as golf
and tennis, delicatessens and boutiques, music and drama,
libraries and popular games, architecture and interior
decoration . Fast foods from the West, too, like hamburgers and
pizzas, have become popular with young and old alike.
Leisure
in the city
The
stress of city life make leisure activities vital, and weekends
find Bangkokians dedicated to having a good time. Sometimes
there are local temple fairs featuring food and traditional
forms of entertainment like the ever-popular li-ke. Sporting eve
nts draw large crowds, whether they be of purely local interest
or involve foreign footballers boxers or gymnasts. Several
museums, a planetarium, art galleries, and a cultural center can
be visited for instruction as well as relaxation. There are
dozen s of modern air-conditioned cinemas throughout Bangkok,
most of them showing Thai and Western movies. The most popular
local productions are melodramas with equal measures of comedy,
romance, and epic adventure.
Several
amusement parks are located on Bangkok's outskirts, with
carousels, Ferris wheels, roller coasters, shooting galleries,
and ice cream stalls to keep young visitors cheerfully occupied
for hours. Lumpini Park, in the heart of the city, is crowded on
weekends with footballers and strollers, as well as joggers and
others in search of physical fitness. Chatuchak Park on the
outskirts is the site of the famous Weekend Market featuring
several acres of stalls selling a remarkable assortment of goods:
household pets, every conceivable kind of fruit, fresh
vegetables and spices, clothing, Buddha amulets, various
handicrafts, potted plants and trees, secondhand books and
records, and probably, if one is persistent, the proverbial
kitchen sink. The new Rama IX Park, presented to the city on the
occasion of His Majesty King Bhumipol Adulyadej's 60th birthday,
is another popular place to excape the city's clamor; Thailand's
only true botanical garden, it also features an imposing
pavilion with displays of the king's life and interest.
Bangkok
boasts some of the most varied nightlife in the Orient. Visiting
ballet, operatic, and folk dance troupes from Europe, The U.S.,
and various Asian countries frequently appear, and film
festivals are held by foreign cultural organizations like th e
Alliance Francaise, the Goethe Institute, and the British
Council. Patrons of nightclubs and supperclubs, many of them in
the city's leading hotels, are entertained by international as
well as local performers. Discotheques with the latest gadgetry
fl ash and throb to the insistent beat of music played at top
volume.
Bangkok's
cosmopolitan quality is particularly evident in the incredible
variety of foods offered by its countless restaurants. Diners in
the city have a choice of French, Danish, Italian, German,
Japanese, Middle Eastern, Swiss, English, Mexican, Korea n,
Indian, Vietnamese, Burmese, and American fast food outlets, as
well as of course, superb Chinese and Thai cuisine.
Although
Bangkok abounds in markets, shops and department stores selling
every possible kind of merchandise, those who prefer to spend
the day at home in the city's residential lanes can buy what
they need from it inerant vendors who bring necessities right to
the door-step, selling charcoal (for cooking), fruit, ice cream,
noodle dishes, grilled chicken, handmade brooms, pots and pans,
and countless other items.
Urban
Values
Buddhism
is at the center of the Thai view of life and forms the
foundation of most attitudes, in the city as well as in the
village. But just as even the toughest material will change its
shape under pressure, Buddhism has undergone certain alterations
caused by the stress of Bangkok}s fast-paced urban life style.
In
the village, the wat is the heart of social as well as religious
life. Bangkok}s monasteries to day inevitably play less of a
social role and are normally visited only for religious
observances or for one of the festivals scattered throughout the
Bud dhist year. Accessibility is the main problem: in rural
areas the wat is generally just a short walk away, while in the
city a visit often entails a long, hot drive in heavy traffic.
Therefore, many Bangkok homes have a room set aside for family
Buddha images and a small altar. This little private sanctuary
serves as a place for prayer and meditation in the morning and
evening-daily rituals that in a village setting would be more
often performed at the wat.
Urban
surroundings also rob many monasteries of the tranquil
atmosphere which characterizes their upcountry counterparts.
Nevertheless, monks continue to practice their meditation in
them, apparently undisturbed, by the bustling life outside, just
as th ey go out each morning to collect food offerings from city
dwellers as anxious to make merit as villagers. Many Bangkok
residents also go there to study meditation during their off-duty
hours from work.
Formerly
everyday life was highly structured and circumscribed by
Brahmanic ritualistic taboos, and some of these still linger in
modern society. Wednesday, for example, was deemed an
inappropriate day on which to cut hair and accordingly, some
Bangkok barber shops close each Wednesday.
Astrology
also retains its ancient influence and is used by many people to
determine auspicious dates for major undertakings. Today it
enjoys a kind of reassurance-consultancy role, as certain types
of psychological counselling do in the West. Buddhist monks,
Brahmans, and professional astrologers cast horoscopes according
to which the and hour to embark on a trip are decided.
Purchasing land, starting a new business, or opening a shop are
also often subject to an astrologer's calculations, and few co
uples would agree to be married without first determining the
suitability of their union and the most auspicious day and
minute for the ceremony.
Traditional
Thai life-styles, which survive virtually intact in upcountry
villages, have undergone extensive reshaping under the pressures
of urban demands. Family ties in the city, for example, are not
as pervasive as in the village, and young married couples often
set up housekeeping on their own.
Modernization
has greatly extended the grange of employment opportunities open
to people migrating to the city. A decade or so ago, virtually
the only acceptable course available to a newly-arrived girl was
to take a position as a domestic. Nowadays, s he may prefer a
job in one of the light industries-sorting transistors,
assembling pocket calculators, or working in one of Bangkok's
huge textile plants. An incidental effect of this development
has been the introduction of an increasing number of labor
saving electrical appliances into middle-and upper-class homes.
Considered a wasteful extravagance only a few years ago, washing
machines, vacuum cleaners, and microwave ovens are now popular
household items available at all department stores.
Despite
all the apparent changes, however, traditional Thai values are
still strong beneath the surface of urban life, a reflection, no
doubt, of the fact that the over-whelming majority of city
dwellers have come from village backgrounds and also of the
potent strength of Thai cultural heritage, which over the
centuries has so often demonstrated its ability to bend without
breaking. |
