Tourist Report

Intro

Thailand is a very beautiful and interesting country. Although I have never been, I can't wait until I am able to see this wonderful place for myself! In this tourist report, I will be covering four topics: unique cuisine, entertainment, popular souvenirs and religious practices.

Unique Cuisine

While travelling in Thailand, there are many different, but delicious meals for a tourist to try. One popular dish is called Guay Teow, which describes any type of noodle soup. This soup can be made with chicken, pork or beef and they are rarely vegetarian friendly. It is also made with either rice, noodles or egg noodles; delicious!

Another delicacy to eat while traveling in Thailand would be Pad See Eiw, which means Thick Noodle Dish. Chicken, pork or beef can be stir fried with soy sauce and wide rice noodles to create this dish. It usually also contains broccoli or cabbage. This is a great option for people like me who don't enjoy eating spicy foods. If you do enjoy spicy food, it's recommended that you add dried chili flakes.

When travelling through Chiang Mai, trying Khao Soi should be on everyone's list. Khao Soi translates to creamy coconut curry noodle soup. This northern Thai dish consists of a curry base, boiled egg noodles, meats and is garnished with fried ground chilis, shallots and deep fried egg noodles. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

This next dish may be simple, but sounds very delicious. Kai Med Ma Muang or Chicken with Cashew Nuts is a Thai delicacy you have to try. This dish contains stir fried chicken with cashews, soy sauce, honey, onions, mushrooms, pepper and chilies. This sweet and flavourful dish is a must try!

Lastly, the classic Som Tam (Spicy Green Papaya Salad) is another must try while travelling in northeast Thailand. This increasingly popular dish usually contains shredded green papaya, tomatoes, peanuts, shrimp, carrots, garlic, lime juice, and chilies (of course). (Proebst, Iona. August 13, 2018).

Entertainment

Thailand has many things to do in terms of entertainment. One popular thing to do while in Bangkok is to visit a fish spa. These spas have special tanks for you to put your feet in, and have fish eat away any dead skin and impurities. Sounds interesting for sure, but some reviews mention that this procedure feels great, but not if you're ticklish.

A fun and exciting way to get active on your trip is to try Muay Thai. Muay Thai is a Thai martial art that focuses on using punches, elbows, knees and kicks to hit your opponent. It's a great way to defend yourself if you ever need to. (Root, Rebecca).

Next off, I'm going to list some entertainment options found in the capitol city of Bangkok. The Moon Bar, located on the roof of the Banyan Tree Hotel, offers an incredible view of Bangkok and if you're there at the right time, sunset. Please note that customers will not be allowed in if they're wearing sandals, shorts or ripped jeans. Drinks are 350 baht each but contain strong amounts of alcohol and come with snack options of cashews, wasabi peas and chips. Located in a lush rooftop garden, this bar is great to visit early or later in the night.

If you're looking for an experience similar to seeing a show in Las Vegas, it may be worth your while to check out Mambo Cabaret, a group of sixty or so dancers who entertain crowds with dance revues, lip-syncing songs, comedy routines and choreographed routines with elaborate and colourful costumes. This group performs three times a night, seven days a week. You can purchase tickets at the door or online beforehand. (Stamboulis, Dave. 2020).

An authentic activity to partake in while in Chiang Mai is a Khantoke dinner. These dinners feature northern Thai recipes, staff in traditional Lanna costume and dance routines. Different restaurants include different forms of entertainment. Some offer welcome parades, Attayaranasiam combat fighting, dance drumming, Kingkala Bird dance, sword dancing, or musical serenading. Guests usually sit and eat on the floor. (Chiang Mai Cultural Shows, June 2019).

Souvenirs

While travelling through Thailand, there are many different souvenirs you can purchase to bring home for yourself, friends or family. One popular souvenir is backpacker bracelets. Chances are if you've been to Thailand, you've seen people wearing these bracelets. This souvenir won't break the bank, as they are very affordable. There are many people in Thailand that make these bracelets and sell them in their street shops. One popular trend right now is to collect a bracelet from each country you travel to in Southeast Asia, as they may help you reflect on your time there or remember a special memory from your travels.

If you have some room in your luggage for a larger souvenir, you may want to consider purchasing a Buddha statue. These can usually be made from wood, stone or jade. There are two popular styles of these statues; The Guatama Buddha, which is tall and slim, or the Maitreya style, which is bald, shorter and has a more heavy set figure. Be aware if you are purchasing an antique statue, you may require a licence from the Fine Arts Department of Thailand. If you do not have room for a larger statue in your luggage, you also have the opportunity to purchase Buddha in the from of jewelry, such as small amulets, pendants or necklaces. For an authentic feel, you can get these pendants bless by temple monks for good fortune and health.

A classic souvenir to bring back from any vacation is liquor. Thailand is the 4th largest producer of sugar cane in the world. This sugar cane is used to produce rum in Phuket. Consider purchasing a bottle of Chalong Bay Rum to bring back home to friends and family. Most rum around the world is produced from molasses, not sugar, which gives Thai Rum a unique taste. You can add this liquor to any tropical drinks, such as a classic pina colada. While in Phuket, you can take tours of the distillery and learn about how this rum is processed, produced, and even have a taste test! You can purchase a cocktail book here as well. Some full or half size bottles come with traditional Thai ingredients infused, like lime, lemongrass or Thai basil. Delicious!

For the art lover in your life, consider purchasing them a decorated coconut shell bowl. These decorative bowls can range between 150-300 baht and can be found at many Sunday markets or street shops. Ensure when you are purchasing that there are no chips or cracks in the varnish and be sure to not serve anything hot in them as this may ruin the design. These bowls can popularly be found in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. One very popular location every tourist should visit while in Thailand is the famous Khao San Road, which is a street in Bangkok that is full of shops and restaurants. You'll have no problem finding any souvenirs here!

Lastly, a very popular souvenir among people my age (millennials) is elephant pants! These pants are commonly seen on backpackers throughout Southeast Asia. The elephants are designed with bohemian patterns while help represent Thailand, as the elephant is the national symbol of Thailand. They are also very comfortable and stylish. Not all elephant pants are designed with bohemian patterns, they can also include tribal patterns, mandala or peacock designs. These pants can come in a variety of shapes, sizes and materials. The most common are made from pure cotton and can be full length or ankle length. These pants are very popular and can be found at most markets in Thailand.

Bonus souvenir: If you're feeling really adventurous while in Thailand, consider getting a Sak Yant Tattoo. In order to get one, you must arrive at a temple without any planning or discussion, and a Thai monk will give you the tattoo he feels you need. You have no idea what you're going to end up with, but the tattoo is a blessing. (Kavey Eats, 2018).

Religion

Thailand has no official religion, which allows Thai people to follow whichever religion they prefer. Buddhism is the most common religion found here, which 95% of the population following it. The remaining population is divided up by Muslim with 4.6%, Catholic Christians with 0.7%, and 1% split between Hindu, Sikh and Jewish. The largest population of Muslims in Thailand can be found in southern Thailand and Bangkok. Hindu is only found in Thailand due to its remaining influence from the Khmer Empire, which lasted from 802CE to 1431CE and covered Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. Christianity was introduced in Thailand in the 1550s by European missionaries but was not as popular as Buddhism. (Travel Online, 2020). As Buddhism is the most popular religion, I'm going to focus on it for this report.

Originating in India in the 6th century BCE, this religion was founded by Prince Siddhartha, who ended up achieving the ultimate goal of enlightenment, which is when a Buddhist finds the truth about life and is no longer reborn into suffering, as they have reached Nirvana. Buddhism became the primary religion in Southeast Asia in the 12th century.

There are 7 steps to reach enlightenment, which are: mindfulness, investigation, energy, joy, relaxation / tranquility, concentration and equanimity. Mindfulness means to maintain awareness of reality. The next step is investigation of the nature of reality. Energy also means determination or effort. Joy is fairly self explanatory. Relaxation consists of tranquility of the mind and body. Concentration is a calm, one point state of mind or clear awareness. Lastly, equanimity means to accept reality as it is without craving aversion. This is the final step of achieving enlightenment and ultimately, nirvana (Jansen, K. 2005).

In Thailand there are approximately 300,000 monks, which are members of religious communities living under vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. Every man in Thailand is required to become a monk for a period of time before becoming 20 years old. They are expected to remain monks for 3 months, but some will only stay for days or weeks. Young men become monks to receive good karma. In order to become a monk, they must go through multiple rituals including shaving their head and eyebrows. There are also hundreds of rules they must abide by, including always wearing a robe, not drinking alcohol, not speaking loudly in public or laughing. They are usually very friendly to foreigners, and some temples have monk chats, where tourists can sit with a monk to chat about their lives. Please note that if you see a monk on public transportation, it is expected of tourists and locals to give their seats up for them. (Iverson, K. 2017).

Conclusion

Overall, Thailand is a beautifully unique country filled with tradition, culture and many different entertainment options. From delicious noodle soups to having a spa treatment performed by fish, there is something for every kind of traveller here. I cannot wait to get to Thailand and try out all the amazing activities and see all the amazing sites. I hope you learned something from this report and will consider Thailand for your next exotic vacation.

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