Happy New Year from a somewhat bruised Bangkok - last night, several bombs went off here in the Thai capital, and one in nearby Nonthaburi, killing three people and injuring at least 36 others, both Thai and foreigners. No one has yet claimed responsibility for the bombs, which exploded in two waves, one in the evening and the second at around midnight, in assorted locations including the bus station near the large Victory Monument intersection, two police booths, a market in the port area of Klong Toey, outside a restaurant, and near the pedestrian flyover between two downtown shopping malls. A bomb at Lumpini Night Bazaar was found and disposed of, and another found on the first floor of Seacon Square shopping mall was removed to a parking lot where it exploded harmlessly.
Despite some reports that the second wave of bombs ‘targeted foreigners’, that seems unlikely, as there were no bombs in Khao San Rd (a suspected bomb turned out to be a false alarm) or any of the farang nightclub strips; it’s more probable that the tourists were caught in the midnight blasts because they’d missed the warnings to stay indoors after the first wave.

At this point, police are not connecting the bombs with the separatist insurgency in the south. Fingers - seeking political mileage, perhaps - are pointing vaguely at opponents of the military coup which ousted the Thaksin government last year; however, the simple fact is that at the moment the persons responsible are still unknown.

All official New Year’s Eve celebrations were cancelled after the first wave of bombs, and Stu and I decided not to head out to Soi Cowboy to party with the bar girls, just in case.
One’s own reactions are always worth observing on occasions like this. I’ve always been a pro-Palestinian, anti-Zionist, for example - and still am - but I feel like I’ve had just a small glimpse into what life might be like in those cities where bombs are a constant concern. I can see how, after quite a short time of this kind of thing, it would be difficult to feel anything towards the perpetrators other than a desire to stop them, however much you might intellectually sympathise with their cause.

Anyway, basically, taking the official advice to stay indoors today. I did go for a walk early this morning, and things were pretty ordinary, except for the occasional soldier around. Two very drunk Thai guys gave me effusive New Year greetings and tried to get me to come into their house. After I disengaged myself from their handshakes, a woman walking past shook her head and said, “Mao.” I figured that meant drunk, which my phrase book confirmed. So that’s my first Thai word of the year.