Visit a Thai prison via YouTube

GlobalPost
The World

A Thailand-based blogger, teacher and chronicler of Thai prison life has found a YouTube gem: a clip uploaded from a Thai prison that offers a glimpse of life within.

This particular high-security prison, Bang Kwang, has a fairly grim reputation.

But here we find a guy with an American accent goofing off with his buddy."If you look behind me," he says, "you see lots of drug use and illegal activities going on."

Behind his shoulder, we see two Thai inmates handling what might be a pipe. The two buddies laugh it off. Another clip shows off his personal outdoor hut.

One former inmate-turned-memoirist described Bang Kwang as "a place where sewer rats and cockroaches are the only nutritious food."

The blogger who posted these YouTube clips, Richard Barrow, offers a much more nuanced perspective at his "Thai Prison Life" site. A spin through his catalogued inmate testimonials suggest they're more likely to eat green curry or pork and rice than "sewer rats."

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