Graduation at the Farming University

(Editor's note: This post was written a while ago, but I only got around to editing it today. I'm hoping to get more material up, especially some analysis on the political events in Bangkok, but that's going to take a while for me to research properly. In the meantime, please enjoy this lighter material.)

So there was graduation at the Farming University the other day (in this case “the other day” refers to a day over a month ago). Instead of working on mushrooms I got to observe the ceremonies. The morning was a pleasant event, where the graduating students (something like 1400+, I think) took group photos based on their major. It’s truly astonishing the amount of photos Asians is capable of taking. I think it stems not from a love of photography but from having photos of themselves taken. Because Thais are really generous and bring a communal spirit to everything they do, it’s social norm to take many photos of other people so that they’ll take pictures of you. As a result, many photos are taken, and it’s this drive to the point where the diminishing marginal returns of getting a photo of you taken are below the effort that you have to exert to take a photo of someone else.

While the group photos were happening, students and their families were taking photos together around displays that had been set up featuring each major. The engineering faculty had large Styrofoam pieces cut into the letters “Engineering” with cardboard wrenches and hammers, farming had pictures of plants, and the English Major’s display had a couple of bicycles leaning against haystacks, symbolizing the longstanding connection between rural cyclists and the English language.

The photo-shoot having concluded, the actual graduation happened.

Sort of.

Because Mahawittyalay Rajamongala Lanna, Nan (University of the Auspicious King Lanna, Nan) is a state-run University, all of the graduating students receive their diploma from a member of the royal family. In this case, it would be princess Sirindhorn. Princess Sirindhorn is the Monarchy’s representative in the North. She has a palace in Nan that she heads to every year (rumors abound about when she’ll come, but word is that she’ll be here in February) and directs a number of charity efforts in the region. She’s probably the most capable of the King’s children, and I honestly think that she’ll succeed him, despite being the youngest and a female. A few years back the King changed the inheritance laws to allows a woman to succeed him, and Sirindhorn has done the most representation of the Monarchy abroad.

But why is the (I would argue) Heir-Apparent in the North? See, the North is the political base of the Red Shirt party, the closest thing Thailand has to an anti-monarchy movement. Don’t get me wrong, the Red Shirts still adore the King, everyone in Thailand does. That said, they’re also big fans of this guy Thaksin Shinawatra, and he and the King have a less than friendly relationship. But that’s a blog post for another day (one I should write soon, the recent protests in Bangkok have really been heating up). By fostering a positive relationship between the next queen and the North, the King is trying to keep Thaksin in check for another generation.

But back at the ranch (technically farming University) the students were preparing to receive their diploma from the Princess. They rounded them up in the gym, all 1400 of them, and they sat and watched a movie on how to bow and take their diploma from the Princess. Then every single student practiced with one of the teachers on stage. All 1400+ of them, in full graduation robes (which, by the way, are much swankier than ours in the US) bowing, taking three steps to the “Princess” grabbing their “diploma” bowing again and taking three backwards steps. All 1400+ of them. I sat on the sidelines and worked on the “Farmer Frank” blog post, and most of the teachers used the rehearsal to get work done or play on their phone.

Afterwards, the students and teachers had dinner together, there was live music, and it was pretty pleasant. A fun time was had by all.