OCT. 23 - 26. 2014 \\ SPARK CONFERENCE 2014 \\ THAILAND
BUILT TO LAST
ABOUT THAILAND
Every year travelers around the world are packing their bags and heading to Thailand whose capital — Bangkok — is now the most visited city in the world by international tourists, according to the third annual Global Destination Cities Index released by Master Card.
Being the capital city, Bangkok metropolis is the centre of politics, commerce, industries ,cultural activities and also the seat of Thailand's revered Royal Family. With its reputation among travelers as "the west exotic country in Asia" and the Land of Smiles, Thailand is the most popular tourist destination in South-East Asia due to its wealth of beautiful natural sceneries, unique culture, varied worthy historical heritage sites, gorgeous islands and beaches and the mouth-watering, delectable recipes.
Location
The only country in Southeast Asia never colonized, Thailand was known for centuries as Siam. The Kingdom of Thailand , the 50th largest country in the world ,is located on the heart of Southeast Asia on the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea. It is bordered by Laos to the Northeast, Myanmar to the North and West, Cambodia to the East, and Malaysia to the South. Thailand extends about 2,500 kilometers from north to south and 1,250 kilometers from east to west, with a coastline of approximately 1,840 kilometers on the Gulf of Thailand and 865 kilometers along the Indian Ocean. Its geography divide into four natural regions : the mountains and forests of the North; the vast rice fields of the Central Plains; the semi-arid farm lands of the Northeast plateau; and the tropical islands and long coastline of the South peninsula.
Weather
About 7 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT+ 7), the country has a tropical climate and temperatures typically range from 19 to 38 degrees C (66-100 F); monsoon rains fall predominately from May to July and cooler, drier weather occurs around November and December.
Culture
With roughly 61.5 million of population,Thailand is a melting pot of different ethnicities who live together despite religious differences. Thai people are mostly ethnic Thai, with other ethnic groups mixed in :Burmese, Chinese, Lao, Khmer and hill tribes. The vast majority of people are Buddhists, with approximately 10 % being of other faiths including Islam, Christianity, Hinduism and Brahmanism.
Festivals in Thailand mainly celebrate the seasons and Buddhism. They are celebrated all year round, but two of the most famous festivals are Songkran (Thai New Year) and Loi Kratong. About Thai food, rice is considered the staple food for Thais, eaten in mostly every meals, from breakfast to dessert. While Thai food has a reputation for being spicy, it is actually based on a balance between different flavors including spicy, sour, sweet, salty, and bitter. One distinctive aspect of Thai food is the use of fresh herbs and spices as well as the inclusion of fermented fish sauce in nearly every dish . Many worldly-renowned Thai dishes are such as Tom-Yam-koong, Pad-Thai, Ma-sa-Man, etc. Thai people are extremely friendly, hospitable, warm-hearted and welcoming of foreigners.
By those features, they can epitomize "Land of Smiles" reputation that is very accurate in describing the Thai view of life. Thais are very proud of their country, very loyal to their King with His Majesty the King recognized as Head of State, Head of the Armed Forces, Upholder of the Buddhist religion and Upholder of all religions and are also strong believers in the Buddhist value system caring for others.