Nirmal Ghosh describes a Bangkok that is recovering from a trying time.

In Bangkok

THE United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) which is the loose name for the pro-government crowds who are opposed to the royalist right-wing People's Alliance for Democracy, is withdrawing from Bangkok. 

They are doing this to give the government breathing space after it announced that a referendum will be held on the current political crisis. 

This means there is little possibility of a clash in the next few days. 

But there is a possibility of a new move by the PAD, which is very good at creating issues and incidents to keep public interest alive and sustain the pressure on the government. 

Meanwhile, Bangkok hums along as usual. It is a city of 10 million and of many layers. It may have suffered the equivalent of a heart attack on Monday night, but it has a strong heart; now, approaching another weekend, it is partying again.

There is a resilience and vigour in Bangkok which dances in the sizzling barbecues and hot selling souvenirs on the sidewalks not only of Patpong and Prathunam, but also at Saphan Makkawan and even Government House, where the crowds drawn by the political drama of the last week, still need to eat and occasionally shop.

There is no dampening the entrepreneurial spirit of this city, and so long as they do not get hit on the head in a riot, local vendors working hard to make a living enjoy the political crowds because they sell a lot more. 

During Monday night's battle on Rajdamnoen, when a man from Nakorn Ratchasima died right in front of the United Nations building, a 7-11 around the corner from the mayhem had its shutters down – but its door open. It was full of people; I myself went in there to buy a notebook and a bottle of water. 

Governments may come and governments may go, and chaos occasionally roils the streets, but Bangkok goes on regardless. So does much of Thailand, where a beach off Phuket or Krabi is a world away from the sound and fury of politics.