Thailand (Lonely Planet, 13th Edition) - China Williams [639]
The official year in Thailand is reckoned from 543 BC, the beginning of the Buddhist Era, so that AD 2009 is BE 2552, AD 2010 is BE 2553 etc.
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TOILETS
As in many other Asian countries, the ‘squat toilet’ is the norm except in hotels and guesthouses geared towards tourists and international business travellers. These sit more-or-less flush with the surface of the floor, with two footpads on either side. For travellers who have never used a squat toilet, it takes a bit of getting used to.
Toilet users scoop water from an adjacent bucket or tank with a plastic bowl and use it to clean their nether regions while still squatting over the toilet. A few extra scoops of water must be poured into the toilet basin to flush waste into the septic system.
Even in places where sit-down toilets are installed, the septic system may not be designed to take toilet paper. In such cases the usual washing bucket will be standing nearby or there will be a waste basket where you’re supposed to place used toilet paper.
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TOURIST INFORMATION
The government-operated tourist information and promotion service, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT; www.tourismthailand.org), was founded in 1960 and produces excellent pamphlets on sightseeing, accommodation and transport. TAT’s head office is in Bangkok and there are 22 regional offices spread throughout the country. Check the destination chapters for the TAT office in the towns you’re planning to visit.
The following are a few of TAT’s overseas information offices; check TAT’s website for contact information in Hong Kong, Taipei, Seoul, Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Stockholm and Rome.
Australia (02 9247 7549; www.thailand.net.au; Level 20, 75 Pitt St, Sydney, NSW 2000)
France (01 53 53 47 00; tatpar@wanadoo.fr; 90 Ave des Champs Elysées, 75008 Paris)
Germany (069 138 1390; www.thailandtourismus.de; Bethmannstrasse 58, D-60311 Frankfurt/Main)
Malaysia (603 216 23480; www.thaitourism.com.my; Ste 22.01, Level 22, Menara Citibank, 165 Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur)
Singapore (65 6235 7901; tatsin@singnet.com.sg; c/o Royal Thai Embassy, 370 Orchard Rd, 238870)
UK (020 7925 2511; www.tourismthailand.co.uk; 3rd fl, Brook House, 98-99 Jermyn St, London SW1Y 6EE)
USA New York (212 432 0433; tatny@tat.or.th; 61 Broadway, Ste 2810, New York, NY 10006); Los Angeles (323 461 9814; tatla@ix.netcom.com; 1st fl, 611 North Larchmont Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90004)
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TRAVELLERS WITH DISABILITIES
Thailand presents one large, ongoing obstacle course for the mobility impaired. With its high curbs, uneven footpaths and nonstop traffic, Bangkok can be particularly difficult. Many streets must be crossed via pedestrian bridges flanked with steep stairways, while buses and boats don’t stop long enough even for the fully abled. Rarely are there any ramps or other access points for wheelchairs.
A number of more expensive top-end hotels make consistent design efforts to provide disabled access to their properties. Other deluxe hotels with high employee-to-guest ratios are usually good about accommodating the mobility impaired by providing staff help where building design fails. For the rest, you’re pretty much left to your own resources.
Counter to the prevailing trends, Worldwide Dive & Sail (www.worldwidediveandsail.com) offers live-aboard diving programs for the deaf and hard of hearing.
Some organisations and publications that offer tips on international travel include the following.
Accessible Journeys (610 521 0339; www.disabilitytravel.com; 35 West Sellers Ave, Ridley Park, PA 19078, USA)
Mobility International USA (541 343 1284; www.miusa.org; 132 E Broadway, Suite 343, Eugene, OR 97401, USA)
Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality (212 447 7284; www.sath.org; 347 Fifth Ave, Suite 605, New York, NY 10016, USA)
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VISAS
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (www.mfa.go.th)