Bangkok residents are finding ways of making the most of the current flood situation, both aesthetically and economically. This photo, taken on Ngamwongwan Road in Northern Bangkok, near Nothanburi Province, is proof that flooding and fashion are not mutually exclusive concepts – the young woman pictured looks quite stylish. Those red boots are rubber boots, and they make wading through filthy floodwaters more enjoyable for wearers and onlookes alike.
Also on Ngamwongwan Road, wily retailers are aiming wares at a new demographic: flood victims. The pictured boats can be yours for only 3,600 baht (about 117 USD) each – if you don’t feel like taking our advice on building your own boat.
On a more serious note related to boats and economics, Thai news groups have reported that Bangkok boat taxis are sabotaging Thai army trucks by placing spikes in roads, as a means halting the army’s movements around flooded areas of Bangkok. The recent floods have caused an economic boom for boat taxis, who have been charging exorbitant rates to locals wishing to travel into flooded areas. The army trucks, which carry locals around flooded streets for free, are bad for business.
Low-level sabotage of army and Thai government actions have continued around other areas of Bangkok , as residents of flooded areas have destroyed sandbag dams as a way of draining floodwaters from their home areas. As floodwaters continue to build up in various areas of the city, it should be expected that such examples of sabotage will only increase, as frustrated locals will continue to fight having their homes and livelihoods sacrificed in a bid to save inner Bangkok.
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