The tanks are here
It has been an eventful, mad rush of a few days. At the time of writing, the much talked about military coup is but 24 hours old. This has truly been the most exciting and interesting time of The Lost Boy’s stay in the Land of Smiles. With hindsight, most people have been saying that the coup did not come as a surprise, but to The Lost Boy at least, the fact that a coup happened at all was really rather shocking. The rumour mill had been churning out rumours of a coup for months, but nobody thought it would happen this suddenly and in this manner. It felt as if some real element of history was being made, and it was utterly enthralling.
Is it the end for cube head?
It was a little after 10.30 pm. The Lost Boy and friends were at Café De Moc near Khaosan Road. It was the weekly extravaganza of Club Professionals, and a special guest DJ had been lined up to wow the bustling crowd inside of Club Astra’s little nephew. Everything seemed normal until a friend of The Lost Boy’s called and passed on a message about a mob heading towards the area. ‘A mob?’ thought The Lost Boy. ‘It must be the anti-Thaksin protesters. Maybe we could join in.’
Some confusion spread amongst the patriots of Café De Moc. A decision was made to turn the music off and cancel the night. Jokes were made and whilst the Thai contingent bolted and headed straight home, the clueless Farang group were left to contemplate whether or not it was an overreaction. The group decided to leave and head to RCA. At this point a tank casually sped by. ‘That’s just a coincidence. Right?’ said The Lost Boy.
Upon embarking on the trip towards RCA, it quickly became apparent that it was not a coincidence as a number of other tanks and armed soldiers were positioned in the middle of the road. At this point nobody really understood what was happening. It was rather exciting though, if a little peculiar. Was civil war about to erupt?
The trip to RCA was finally cancelled and the contingent went their separate ways. Whilst the Farang seemed to be caught somewhere between panic and excitement, the Thai friends of The Lost Boy seemed a little more concerned and frightened.
It was not until The Lost Boy got home and started scanning the wires, Google News and the BBC that the pieces fell into place. The story became utterly engrossing within minutes. All the news agencies around the world listed the Thailand saga as their top story. The phone began to ring, and a mild hysteria seemed to be building up, although this was all from the confines of The Lost Boy’s room. The Thai television stations only made the night all the more mysterious with their prerecorded programmes.
Local websites became overcome with traffic as everyone sought to find out exactly what was happening. MSN windows popped up at a phenomenal rate. Friends from the UK offered excited words of support, Thai friends abroad spoke with concern and sadness, and those in Bangkok took a stance of absolute bewilderment. It was like some kind of surreal dream.
No one news agency could paint a complete picture, and it took multiple readings to see the entire situation, although it remains to this day riddled with ambiguity and confusion.
Occasional statements from the Thai television channels relayed stern yet intriguing messages. Rumours ran wild. In one moment Thaksin was on a plane heading back to Thailand, in the next the army was about to open fire on the government house. The coup was successful, then it wasn’t. Everything was normal, then it was a national holiday. His Majesty the King’s stance on the situation was unclear. Speculation became the norm and the night wore on frantically.
Two friends who had defied the advice of the Café De Moc faithful had headed down to the government building. They spoke of a scene of calm confusion. It was like something out of a compelling novel. TV channels were blocked and the rumour was that the phones were next.
The Lost Boy followed the story avidly via a BBC live feed. The tension mounted as there was always the possibility that the situation could become volatile. The Lost Boy’s poor mother emailed to advise him to come straight home and to stay indoors.
Although it was experienced from the relative safety of The Lost Boy’s home, this could not deter from the feeling of something remarkable taking place. For a Westerner, the very notion of a military coup happening in this manner is completely alien. It was an experience The Lost Boy won’t forget, and it was certainly the most interesting thing to happen in the 14 months that Thailand has played host to The Lost Boy’s curious person.
At this moment, Thailand is the centre of the world. Where will it all end?
The Lost Boy – if you don’t like it, don’t read it
