Urban legends in Thailand
Urban legends are commonplace all around the world. I receive enough of them in my mailbox everyday that I could compile a book of made up stories if I wished to do so. Thailand has it’s own fair share of stories, although I’ve mostly heard them from foreigners. I’ve no idea if they are true or not, but I’ve heard them on more than one occasion and even told them a few times myself.
The first story of Thailand is about a man and his wife who were out driving one day, and somehow they ended up driving into the khlong. They managed to escape from their car and were rescued and taken to hospital. After being checked up and discharged they returned home. Within a few days, the man collapsed and died instantly. The autopsy revealed that he had contracted some kind of flesh eating disease that had eaten its way through his brain. This particular urban legend usually comes up in conversations that take place within sight of a khlong, but whether it’s a myth or not I don’t know.
Another, similar story involves a member of royalty. It’s usually told as if it happened to one of the princesses (though it’s never clear which one). The tale goes that the princess, who could not swim, fell into a pool of water. Being the princess, all the people in attendance refused to help her because they were not allowed to touch members of the royal family. The princess subsequently drowned. I don’t know if this Thai fable is true or not, but I have a hard time believing that a group of people would simply let a princess, or anyone, die. That being said, this is Thailand, and the way the monarchy is revered this might be fact rather than fiction.
My final anecdote for today is one I’ve heard many forms of, but I suspect that they may all be greatly exaggerating the truth (if there even is any). This topic is often the result of a conversation based around making sweeping generalizations of Thailand and its people. It goes like this: a group of Thai people are at a club when a farang walks past to go to the toilet. One of the girls comments how cute the farang is, which then prompts the said girl’s boyfriend to follow the farang into the bathroom and beat him senseless with a pool cue. Has this ever happened? Has anyone ever known of this happening? Or is it an urban myth? Maybe we’ll never know.
I’m sure there are countless more stories that other people have picked up during their time here, so share them with me. I’d like to hear them.
Techno’ tags: Thailand, Urban legends
April 22nd, 2007 at 1:55 pm
one word on the last story….wachalerm…the owner of ice bar. do your research
April 22nd, 2007 at 2:50 pm
You learn something new every day.
April 22nd, 2007 at 4:48 pm
With regards to the first story, the singer Big of Thai pop group D2B crashed his car into a klong and suffered brain damage from the water:
“The young singer had a road accident in which his car plunged into a polluted canal. The bacteria in the water entered his nasal passages and eventually into his brain. Big went into a coma but survived after months of treatment that cost millions of baht and he is still struggling to survive today with severe brain damage.”
nice new layout by the way :)
April 22nd, 2007 at 8:57 pm
The second one is a real event that occurred during the reign of King Rama V. His wife HM Queen Sunanda Kumariratana (1860-1880) fell into a river but no one could help because at that time there were specific punishments for anyone touching a royal person.
From Queens and Consorts of Siam http://www.soravij.com/queens.html -
The Queen ( Sunanda Kumariratana) was a much loved wife and first queen of King Rama V. Unfortunately, she died at just 19 years of age, while pregnant, from drowning. The Queen was on her way to Bang Pa-in Summer Palace, on the Chao Praya River, when her boat sank. The old Siamese customs prevented anyone from touching the queen except for the king, making it quite impossible to save the young queen. Her only daughter, Princess Karnabhorn Bejraratana (nearly 2 years old), died with her.
April 23rd, 2007 at 12:07 am
Wow. So they are all true. That’s made my day!
April 23rd, 2007 at 10:32 am
what happened at ice bar? I’m curious…
April 23rd, 2007 at 11:22 am
Never heard of the first one but the second and third are true. First one sounds about right too to be honest.
April 24th, 2007 at 7:17 am
The most lasting is the legend of Nang Nak (Mrs. Nak) — the loyal wife of a Thai soldier. It is said that she still roams the Phra Khanong disctrict and you could hear her cry from miles away when it’s raining.
April 24th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
There is also the story of Tipyavadi, a young princess who fell in the river near Ayuthuya during a Loy-Kratong trip. She got caught up in some plants and miraculously floated far downstream to safety without anyone even noticing. It was considered such a miracle that she was elevated to a top spot in the heirachy, where she caught the eye of Rama II and ended up marrying him.