Prior to heading to Thailand, I remember reading how you could not speak poorly of the king or royal family. If you are caught saying unfavorable things, you could end up in jail!
While in Thailand, I told lots of locals how I loved the king and even bought one of those rubber bracelets (like LiveStrong) to show my support for the king! (not that I know a thing about him)This article is pretty crazy. It explains what this man did to speak poorly of the king. He translated a banned biography of the king and posted it online while living in Colorado.
Can you imagine getting sent to prison for breaking this rule while not even in Thailand???
Here is a link to the article from Yahoo: Man Sentenced To Prison For Royal Insult
That is hilarious! I’d also wonder what they would do to you for buying the tix for locals…
When I was in Bangkok, my wife and I went to see Muay Thai at Lumpini Stadium. It is very confusing when they sell you the tix. There was 3 diff levels of seating & they tell you how sitting in the back is dangerous to get you to buy seats upclose (and much pricier). We went for the 2nd level which I enjoyed. I got to watch the shady bookies taking the bets and still had a pretty good view.
That’s crazy!
Thailand can be a bit scary when it comes to law enforcement.
I tried to buy a ticket to a kickboxing match in Bangkok through a local. (Tickets pay about 1/5th the price that foreigners do for the same ticket.) I got ratted out by a food cart vendor who saw the deal happen. He alerted the police and I had to beat a hasty retreat. I have no idea what the consequences would have been, but I didn’t want to find out.