Bangkok’s devotion to shopping means the city experiences three rush-hours a day. The third occurs when the shops close. What would a world look like in which 80s-style malls and bricks-and-mortar consumerism survived to the modern day? In Bangkok today, Amazon is a coffee shop, online shopping is frowned upon, and the mega-mall dominates minds,Continue reading “The consumer 1980s you remember grew up and became Bangkok”
Tag Archives: Travel
Big Yellow Taxis Need to Park Somewhere
Are there uncontacted tribes in the concrete jungle? Or are we travellers just the mutant spawn of excessively photoshopped travel journalism and the white room horrors of package-holiday mind control? Step out and you’ll soon discover paradise is not a place, it’s a delusion occupied by seekers boarding the flight from reality. Out there,Continue reading “Big Yellow Taxis Need to Park Somewhere”
Exploring the Peerless Piers of Thailand’s Koh Kood
Perfect blue skies. Perfect blue seas. The Thai island of Koh Kood is an affordable and accessible alternative to the Maldives, with the bonus of the world’s best cuisine. Thailand’s islands are rightly popular destinations. Koh Samui and Koh Chang are perhaps the most visited; Koh Phangan is famed for its full moon parties. ManyContinue reading “Exploring the Peerless Piers of Thailand’s Koh Kood”
Living on a Burmese Train Station
Pyinmana, Central Myanmar, is a railway town halfway between Yangon and Mandalay. Between 2015-2018 I documented families living on station platforms, informal economies, and everyday life during the brief period of political reform . After the 2021 coup, these images now mark a world few will see.
Bangkok is not your futurist dystopia
I grew tired of Bangkok’s tourists, relentless consumerism and Hello Kitty, and made a Logan’s Run out along one of the city’s major waterways. I expected to find those oft-described gleaming spires of Bladerunner-like urban futurism. Instead, I wandered through a crumbling Heath Robinson environment, finding only low-fi make-do-and-mend survivalism. For some time, I’d beenContinue reading “Bangkok is not your futurist dystopia”
Jumping aboard Singapore’s Knight Bus
Singapore’s Harry Potter: Visions of Magic dives into the world of the Daniel Radcliffe movies. With controversy surrounding the pending HBO remakes, fans should enjoy the nostalgia while the magic remains. By Lee Russell Wilkes I can’t shake noticing Harry Potter got into Hogwarts solely because of who his parents were. If the exclusive schoolContinue reading “Jumping aboard Singapore’s Knight Bus”
Crafting Kings Heath’s Art Scene
Nook Gallery is creating space for Birmingham’s artists. Why doesn’t Birmingham get the cultural credit it deserves? Despite a rich creative community, its artists are often overlooked — not least by the city itself. When you picture cities famous for their art, Birmingham doesn’t compete with Paris, Madrid, Florence, or even New York. Sadly, theContinue reading “Crafting Kings Heath’s Art Scene”
Remember Not to Breathe This Weekend
What drives a European security expert to hold his breath for six-and-a-half minutes while floating face-down in a Bristol swimming pool? Is this the ideal weekend activity for the terminally lazy? Relax, take a deep breath and move as little as possible. The catch? You can’t breathe for several minutes while submerged in water. WelcomeContinue reading “Remember Not to Breathe This Weekend”
When Indian Food is the Mildest Option in Bangkok
If Thai food were a language, it would be Italian: stylish and loud. Negotiating the menu every time you eat is intimidating. It all looks appetising but what is it? After your fifth tom yam gung, you’ll be begging for something familiar. Three Tiers Bangkok, like any self-respecting capital city, caters for all budgets. TheContinue reading “When Indian Food is the Mildest Option in Bangkok”
Still a Big Wednesday?
I hate surfers. Loathe them. Meritless conformists uniforming themselves in Rip Curl branding and braided hair, group-thinking themselves counterculture icons. If the Nordsee had been warmer in the 1930s, surfing would have been the Reich’s chosen sport. You can imagine my scepticism when approaching John Milius’s celebrated surfer movie ‘Big Wednesday’ (1978). Yet, I can’tContinue reading “Still a Big Wednesday?”
Lee Russell Wilkes 