On October 13th, 2016, the Kingdom of Thailand found itself, for the first time in 70 years, without a King. The loss of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who peacefully passed away at the age of 89, caused an immeasurable wave of grief to envelop the nation.
We at Bangkok 101 mourn the loss collectively, and offer our deepest sympathies to the Thai people. We grieve together as a nation—whether we were born here, or have made Thailand our adopted home.
The Kingdom is now in an official period of mourning, and out of respect a number of planned events and celebrations have been cancelled or postponed. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has issued a statement that they would like all visitors to Thailand to continue with their travel plans as normal, and to kindly be advised of some basic guidelines that can be found on their website: www.tatnews.org
November’s Cover
Of the countless images of the King now circulating the web, one particular photo has clearly struck a chord—having been shared already by tens of thousands of people. The iconic photograph was taken by Napan Sevikul, a consultant at the Siriraj Museum and illustrious photographer who took countless photos of the King over many years. He graciously allowed us to feature this spectacular Royal moment on our cover, and we at Bangkok 101 express our gratitude for his willingness to share this unforgettable photograph with even more people.
The image itself, taken in 1982, shows HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej in the mountains of Ban Mae Kae Noi in Chiang Dao district, Chiang Mai. Khun Napan accompanied the King from 1976-1987, during his expeditions in the north.
“On that afternoon, the weather was hot and humid. While His Majesty was looking at the terrain in front of him, a powerful gust of wind suddenly came up, frightening everyone. But the King stood still as if nothing happened, and just kept working. This memory has stayed with me for the past 30 years, especially the image of him on that deserted plateau.”
— Napan Sevikul
