ART ATTACK
Recently, I went to the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, also known as the BACC. At first I thought it was going to be boring, but it was not. On the ground floor, there was a temporary sculpture exhibition about corruption and cheating. They wanted to collect enough signatures to make the exhibition permanent, and my parents signed the petition. On the 2nd to 4th floors, there were many photos of Bangkok. Some of the photos were funny. On the 5th to 8th floors, there was abstract art, where every picture had its own meaning. I couldn’t understand all of the pictures, but I think I understood some of them. Theethad Thipsoda, That sounds like a fun way to spend the day, Theethad. I enjoy visiting the BACC and other art galleries around Bangkok. One of the purposes of art is to make people think about life or various issues, and it sounds like the work you saw at the BACC did that for you. Some of the more abstract stuff that doesn't make much sense to you now might take on a whole new meaning at another time in your life. — Editor |
CARD CRIME
Recently I saw news on TV about ATM skimming. Thieves used hidden electronics to steal the personal information stored on the card of their victims. Every time when I have to use the ATM, I feel so scared that one day I might be a victim and a card skimmer might access the cash in my account.
I think that even though there is amazing technology nowadays, we're still not safe from thieves.
Thanakrit Promsuwan,
Bangkok
I read that story in the news as well, Thanakrit. This kind of card skimming crime has actually been around for a long time — I remember it happened to a friend of mine about 15 years ago. Unfortunately, no matter how high-tech things get, thieves will always find a way to steal money. In fact, sometimes the most high-tech systems can actually make it easier for them. — Editor
ROUGH RIDING
My name is John and I’m now studying in Matayom 5 at an international school. I love riding bicycles a lot, especially vintage ones. I’m always getting together with a gang of friends to ride our bikes around the city whenever we have free time from school. But there’s a problem I’ve noticed with Bangkok streets nowadays.
The children in our city do not have enough safe cycling lanes where they can ride a bike. Many of the local streets are small and have too many cars, and they are no longer safe for us to ride bicycles. I see more and more news about road accidents every day.
The city should build proper cycling lanes for people with bicycles.
John Haley,
Bangkok
Cycling is a great mode of transport, John, but you're right about Bangkok not being a particularly safe city for cyclists. Things seem to be gradually changing for the better, though. As cycling continues to become more popular, more proper bike lanes are being built around town, and there seems to be a little bit more awareness about traffic safety issues for cyclists. Remember to always wear a helmet and bright clothes when you ride! — Editor
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Vocabulary
- corruption (n): dishonest or illegal behaviour, especially of people in authority
permanent (adj): lasting for a long time
petition (n): a written document signed by a large number of people to ask for something to be changed or done
abstract (adj): not representing things in a realistic way, but expressing the artist’s ideas about them
vintage (adj): typical of a period in the past
access (v): to open a computer file in order to get information
