Lifestyle

Let’s go to Thailand

Ashleigh Rolle

When one hears the words ‘military coup’ it is natural to also think of anger and violence.  Thailand changes this assumption.

Over the past couple of months Thailand has been making headlines and not in a good way.  Things were made worse when, last month, the country declared martial law.

Internationally, news outlets speak in skeptical voices about the situation and as a result many foreigners have been questioning if the country is safe for its citizens let alone tourists. 

Wanting to find out about the safety of those in Thailand as well as the tourists that would subsequently visit the beautiful nation I approached a few of my friends living there. All of whom told me the same thing “the military is promoting peace and will continue to do so.” The people of Thailand are not only safe but many of them are happy that the coup took place as they hope to create a government that is truly for the people.

If having actual Thai friends wasn’t good enough a very close friend of mine visited the country the week martial law was declared and not once did he feel threatened or unsafe.

With One Young World currently in the process of evaluating potential bid cities and Bangkok presenting itself as a serious front-runner one would argue that this couldn’t have possibly come at a worse time but Pearly Ingkakul, a member of the One Young World Bangkok bid committee issued this statement:

One Young world encourages us to be the power of change. Thailand is changing in front of our eyes. By having the summit here in Bangkok the world will be watching One Young World and see how they can help us and guide our young generation towards reforming our country.

No country is without it’s issues and despite the fact that a military coup is a bit on the extreme side, it’s safe to say that the majority of the people are pleased with what’s happening in the way of progress.

Tourists have nothing to worry about when visiting Thailand and One Young World need not fear the quality Bangkok will bring to the table. Exercise the same amount of caution you would when vacationing in any other country and just remember to have a good time.

Thailand is an experience you would never want to miss out on.