Accused of urinating in public, spitting on the street, or kicking a sacred temple bell — free-spending Chinese tourists are receiving a mixed welcome as their soaring numbers help Thailand’s economy.
Growing outrage over the perceived disrespect of visitors from the China saw authorities print thousands of Chinese-language etiquette manuals earlier this year in a bid to keep the tourists in check.
Last month a photo of a young girl urinating in the grounds of Bangkok’s Grand Palace triggered outrage and sometimes racist comments, as Thai netizens claimed she was Chinese.
In March a Thai model’s video of tourists from China jumping the queue at an airport was viewed more than 2 million times and saw a similar rant against Thailand’s largest group of foreign holidaymakers.
At the Wat Rong Khun, also known as the White Temple, in northern Chiang Rai Province, owner Chalermchai Kositpipat complained about the state of the toilets after a recent visit by a Chinese group.
“We had problems with some Chinese who defecated anywhere, so I asked the guides to explain to them that rules must be respected in Thailand,” Chalermchai told media, having earlier threatened to refuse the nationals entry.
However, he stopped short of issuing a ban and like Thai authorities is loath to cut out the Chinese at a time when they are bucking the trend of dipping visitor figures in the kingdom, where tourism accounts for 8.5 percent of GDP.
Last year around 4.6 million Chinese nationals visited Thailand, with the average tourist spending 5,500 baht (US$169) per day — more than the average European visitor.
Their collective contribution, expected to reach US$5.6 billion this year, is not one the ruling junta can afford to lose as it struggles to revive a sclerotic economy — one of its key promises after seizing power from an elected government in May 2014 that was paralyzed by months of protests in Bangkok.
At the White Temple tour guide Pin Su says her job has become an art in diplomacy due to the growing number of Chinese visitors.
“They do not always pay attention, they spit, talk loudly, sometimes they leave the toilet in a catastrophic state,” she said.
“But I cannot remind them every day that we must be careful to be clean. I do not want to offend them. And all these tourists, it is for Thailand,” she added.
Bangkok’s generals have been busy courting Beijing as they build diplomatic allies after last year’s coup was widely condemned by Western nations, including longtime friend the US.
Late last year the two nations forged new agricultural ties, and Beijing was also granted a railway contract to construct two new lines crossing Thailand.
With the easing of visa rules between Thailand and China, where the middle classes are increasingly holidaying abroad, even more Chinese tourists are expected to arrive in Thailand this year.
Thai authorities appear keen to downplay the incidents.
“Chinese tourists do not create problems for us. They are nice tourists,” executive director at the Tourism Authority of Thailand Srisuda Wanapinyosak said.
“But sometimes there might be cultural misunderstandings as we have different cultures,” she added before running through the tips laid out for the Chinese in the new manuals.
Archeologists in Peru on Thursday said they found the 5,000-year-old remains of a noblewoman at the sacred city of Caral, revealing the important role played by women in the oldest center of civilization in the Americas. “What has been discovered corresponds to a woman who apparently had elevated status, an elite woman,” archeologist David Palomino said. The mummy was found in Aspero, a sacred site within the city of Caral that was a garbage dump for more than 30 years until becoming an archeological site in the 1990s. Palomino said the carefully preserved remains, dating to 3,000BC, contained skin, part of the
‘WATER WARFARE’: A Pakistani official called India’s suspension of a 65-year-old treaty on the sharing of waters from the Indus River ‘a cowardly, illegal move’ Pakistan yesterday canceled visas for Indian nationals, closed its airspace for all Indian-owned or operated airlines, and suspended all trade with India, including to and from any third country. The retaliatory measures follow India’s decision to suspend visas for Pakistani nationals in the aftermath of a deadly attack by shooters in Kashmir that killed 26 people, mostly tourists. The rare attack on civilians shocked and outraged India and prompted calls for action against their country’s archenemy, Pakistan. New Delhi did not publicly produce evidence connecting the attack to its neighbor, but said it had “cross-border” links to Pakistan. Pakistan denied any connection to
TRUMP EFFECT: The win capped one of the most dramatic turnarounds in Canadian political history after the Conservatives had led the Liberals by more than 20 points Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday pledged to win US President Donald Trump’s trade war after winning Canada’s election and leading his Liberal Party to another term in power. Following a campaign dominated by Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats, Carney promised to chart “a new path forward” in a world “fundamentally changed” by a US that is newly hostile to free trade. “We are over the shock of the American betrayal, but we should never forget the lessons,” said Carney, who led the central banks of Canada and the UK before entering politics earlier this year. “We will win this trade war and
Armed with 4,000 eggs and a truckload of sugar and cream, French pastry chefs on Wednesday completed a 121.8m-long strawberry cake that they have claimed is the world’s longest ever made. Youssef El Gatou brought together 20 chefs to make the 1.2 tonne masterpiece that took a week to complete and was set out on tables in an ice rink in the Paris suburb town of Argenteuil for residents to inspect. The effort overtook a 100.48m-long strawberry cake made in the Italian town of San Mauro Torinese in 2019. El Gatou’s cake also used 350kg of strawberries, 150kg of sugar and 415kg of
RSS