《TAIPEI TIMES》 Bangkok adorned with drawings depicting Taiwan

/ Staff writer, with CNA

People traveling on the Bangkok Mass Transit System （BTS Skytrain） or the city’s bus network until the end of next month might catch a glimpse of drawings depicting things related to Taiwan, such as tourist hotspots and popular street foods.

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The drawings include images of a pair of Formosan bears traveling to see sights such as the giant Buddha statue at Fo Guang Shan Monastery in Kaohsiung and sampling foods such as the notorious stinky tofu.

The creations are by Thai illustrator Rasika Saiseang, better known by her pen name “Yeedin,” and were commissioned by the Tourism Administration’s branch in Bangkok to attract more Thai visitors to Taiwan.

Statistics compiled by the agency showed that 414,000 Thai nationals visited Taiwan in 2019. As of July, 217,200 Thai tourists had visited the country and the goal is to attract 320,000 this year.

Yeedin was invited to Taiwan in early June to gather inspiration for her doodles. She visited sights such as New Taipei City’s Jioufen District （九份）, the Taitung Hot Air Balloon Festival and Cingjing Farm （清境農場） in Nantou County.

Yeedin said that Jioufen was her favorite place, because it was filled with stories and stunning scenery.

As an artist she also loved Treasure Hill Artist Village （寶藏巖國際藝術村）, and Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in Taipei, because they give artists a space to be creative, the Thai illustrator added.

Yeedin was also impressed with Taipei, calling it “cute.”

There were lots of pavements and it was very clean, she said.

Yeedin said that increasingly more Thai nationals have been visiting Taiwan and that she regularly heard people speaking Thai during her trip.

People from Thailand want to visit Taiwan because the country is convenient and relaxing, with plenty of places to shop and visit, she said.

Yeedin added that most tourists from Thailand tend to visit landmarks such as Taipei 101 and coffee shops, which inspired her to showcase parts of Taiwan that are not as well-known.

“I want to present locations that are not very well-known to the people of Thailand,” she said. “I want more people to know about Taiwan.”

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES