Giving a Face to the Egyptian Protests

As I watch the Egyptian protests continue to unfold and reach new levels of upheaval, I keep thinking of the people I met in the country along the way.

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A Return to Normalcy in Bangkok

In a foreign concept that doesn’t sit well with the Western mind, Bangkok has reverted to normalcy in just under a week. Mai pen rai, or "no worries," we’ll survive. The large mall complex (the same shopping centers that were rendered shut for nearly a month) around Ratchaprasong has reopened, the BTS SkyTrain and MRT have resumed service and people are bustling about the city as though last week's crackdown were nothing but a distant memory.

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Photo of the Week: Bangkok Burning

May 19 saw the worst violence Thailand has seen in nearly two decades as the Royal Thai Government handed down orders to crackdown on the red shirt anti-government protesters that have been occupying the city since mid-March. I watched the day’s events unfold from a safe distance in a friend’s apartment-cum-expatriate refugee camp not far from mine, which offers an iconic view of the Bangkok city skyline.

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Celebrating My Layoff Anniversary

One year after being laid off, I’m sitting and reflecting on one of my worst weeks ever…from Bangkok, Thailand. I’m nearly five months into travel, living in Bangkok and show no signs of slowing down. Turns out, losing my job was the best thing that could ever happen to me.

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Deadly Clashes Continue in Bangkok

Over the last two days, much of central Bangkok has been turned into war zones. Militia lines the streets, snipers have taken position on rooftops and rounds of live bullets have been fired and grenades lobbed into the streets, with no signs of things coming to an end.

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Red Shirt Protests Turn Ugly in Bangkok

The political upheaval is brought to us by two opposing camps: the red shirts and yellow shirts. Both groups are driven by Thaksin Shinawtra, the former prime minister of Thailand, who was ousted by the military in coup in the fall of 2006. While the red shirts support him, the yellow shirts do not.

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