i spent the last week of march and the fi rst week of april at the thai resort of chiva som and the sri lankan resort of villa main, which is nestled in a natural forest filled with a variety of animals and birds.
everywhere i went, i witnessed extreme wealth side by side with brutal poverty, as well as kindness and honesty. there was an almost c o m p l e t e absence of dishonesty and a total lack of courtesy. i never heard flattering remarks that belittled the speaker, but instead, a lovable sense of self-esteem and unmatched politeness.
since childhood, i have been fascinated by the kingdom of siam, the land of magic and elephants, which changed its name to thailand in 1949. thailand has a population of approximately 70 million and attracts 35 million tourists annually. covering an area of 513,000 square kilometers, its population consists of 75 percent ethnic thai buddhists, 14 percent chinese thais, and 3 percent malay muslims.
thailand has remained independent, unlike its neighboring countries, and this has been a source of pride for its citizens. the name “thailand” means “free land”. external factors played a big role in preventing thailand from being occupied, as it served as a buffer zone during the colonial era between british-ruled burma and malaysia, and french ruled laos and cambodia. as a result, both colonial powers chose to maintain thailand as a neutral zone to avoid direct confrontation. switzerland serves as a similar example in this regard.
thai kings were renowned for their diplomatic skills. they made many concessions in exchange for preserving the country’s independence. they introduced western-style educational, legal, and military reforms, and succeeded in establishing a strong centralized system that remains intact today.
the term “siamese twins” is derived from siam, due to the fame of the conjoined twins chang and eng bunker, who were born in 1811 in siam and died in 1874. the twins became famous through their circus performances that toured the world, and hence the name.
it is worth noting that southeast asian countries, in general, have a higher rate of siamese twins.
modern thailand traces its origins to 1238, with the formation of the sukhothai kingdom. under the leadership of king ramkamhaeng, the kingdom expanded, and theravada buddhism, which originated in sri lanka, was adopted as the majority religion, a tradition that continues to this day.
in 1511, the portuguese established the first european contact with siam. the dutch arrived in the 17th century, and competed with the portuguese in trade. the french also arrived around the same time, but their religious and cultural influence was short-lived, and they were eventually expelled, along with other europeans.
the british arrived in the 19th century with greater force, following their conquests of india, bur- ma, and malaysia. they concluded trade treaties with thailand and gained significant influence there. as a result, thailand, along with japan, is one of the few countries that was never colonized by britain, despite the fact that cars still drive on the left side of the road.
arab sailors were familiar with ceylon in ancient times and referred to it as serendib. the explorer ibn battuta visited the island in 1344, believing that adam had descended upon its mountain after being expelled from paradise. the portuguese arrived on the island in 1505 in search of spices and named it ceylon, a name derived from the island’s ancient designation.
in 1638, the dutch colonized ceylon and renamed it zilan. in 1815, the british took control, and expelled the dutch and other colonial powers. the british brought large numbers of tamils from india and encouraged the cultivation of tea, rubber, and coconuts, as well as the extraction of sapphires.
ceylon gained independence in 1948, and officially changed its name to sri lanka in 1972. how- ever, for commercial reasons, the old name remained associated with iconic brands such as ceylon tea, which is the world’s most famous tea brand, the bank of ceylon, and the ceylon petroleum corporation.