Thailand
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Thailand, formerly known as Siam - which means "Land of the Free" - offers something for everyone. The capital, Bangkok, is alive with commerce and street-bustle nearly every hour of the day and night. Whether in big cities like Bangkok, the countryside of Chiang Mai or on a pristine beach of Phuket, Thailand offers business and leisure travelers a safe, friendly atmosphere full of possibilities. The full moon party in Koh Phangan transforms the beach in Haad Rin, thousands of people, music and lots of alcohol makes this a night to remember.
Indeed, one reason Thailand is among the most visited countries in Asia (more than 10 million visitors annually) is because of its accessibility and extensive tourism infrastructure. Don't let this put you off, but take it for waht it's worth.
Thailand has fabulous architecture, diverse hill-tribe villages, ancient ruins, beautiful islands, excellent shopping, and all the amenities as well. The balance between comfort and excitement is up to you: Stay at a five-star hotel or trek through the jungles; eat at gourmet, buffets, or buy fruit from local vendors. Shop in underground malls, buy cheap but beautiful clothes, or wander through outdoor markets. Thailand offers a curious mix of the ultramodern and the simply delightful.
Meetings
Couchsurfing Bangkok Group is one of the most active group.We're get together pretty much often in organizing and attending the meeting almost everyday such as go clubbing, potluck,picnic in the park, movie's night, sightseeing in the city or outside bangkok.
Please visit Bangkok group and Thailand group
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Thailand culture
Leave Your Complaints Somewhere Else
In America, and most of the western world, people like to complain. We like to complain about a bad restaurant, about a bad neighbor, or how homework sucks, or how a teacher is just terrible. We like to insult our leaders (who hasnt made a Bush joke?), or just whine on a bad day. Complaining is part of western culture. Its part of who we are.
In Thai culture this is very much not the case. In the land of smiles its considered crude to complain. If you have a problem, deal with it, no one else wants to hear it. Its also very rude to complain to someone that is causing you distress, as it is pratically insulting them in front of their face!
Being opposite cultures in this respect is obviously bound to cause serious friction. Lets start with the impression a Thai would have watching a foreigner complain. Mostly, the foreigner will appear as an "ugly American." There is good reason - complaining is really crude and offensive in Thai culture! Even worse, it is considered 10x more rude to complain to your elders. Complain to someone older than you, and you are doing a double whammy by breaking the age rules of Thai culture, too!
But Americans see nothing wrong with criticism. Its everywhere, our newspapers, our blogs, our protests, our letters to politicians. Most Americans think criticism actually makes the world a better place. After all, how could a problem get fixed if no one points it out? Ignoring the problem only makes it worse!
Balance Many foreigners living in Thailand get very frustrated when their 'letters to the editor' and other complaints get shot down and/or ignored. "What is wrong with those Thai people!? There is obviously a problem, why wont they admit it?! Mai bpen rai isn't going to cut it!!!" But being in another culture, you have to play by their rules - not yours. But this can sometimes be frustrating as it often goes against core beliefs . . . so there must be a balance, a middle way in which both sides can be happy yet save face. I call it sugar coated constructive criticism. =P
Thai's actually do complain, but not in the direct western manner. Instead they go at it from the side, being extremely careful and sensitive at the same time. If you and them have a common friend, they will talk through the common friend to get things resolved. Back during my first Thailand visit . . . I screwed up . . . a lot . . . so I would get a lot of complaints through my Thai friend as it was considered much more polite that way than approaching me directly.
But also, you should know when to complain. Pick your battles wisely. Not worth a huge inconvience to remove a small inconvience. Highly sensitive constructive criticism, only. Nothing direct. Be especially careful if you are talking to someone older than you. The Way Just remember that going the direct route, in Thai culture, makes you look un-refined and arrogant. Being extra tactful can get you a long way!
Don't Be Unique
Western culture is inundated with a culture of individuality. Everyday we hear things like "be yourself" and "everyone is special." Everyone wants to stand out and get attention from his or her peers. We only conform enough just to fit in to our chosen click, and no more.
But Thai social culture is very different. The best way to fit in is to be just like everyone else. Besides, your peers are always watching and will gossip bad things if they find out you are different =P Be more humble around others, as the monks teach. Of course this just seems very strange to a westerner's perspective. Be like everyone else. Don't stand out, its rude. Jump off the cliff with everyone else!
This means you must join karaoke with them (gasp!) and do anything else the group decides to do. Saying you don't want to when everyone else does is just plain anti-social behavior.
Unfortunately as a westerner you will always stand out. Whether it be your western habits, the cultural mistakes you make, or just the color of your skin. Thais will always gossip more about you, always watch you more intently, and always think you are never one of them. But at least try with the below general rules, as they will get you far in making friends =) Some General Rules Suppose you are hanging out in a group of all Thai friends, you should always be a part of the conversation. Just nodding your head and smiling occasionally is considered rude. Say something every now and then, even if you are a quite type. Sounds easy, eh? But what if you don't speak Thai and that's the only language they are speaking? Yes, Thai's (who are fluent in English) have got mad at me because I didn't join an all Thai language conversation (before I spoke Thai). Annoying, no? There are two solutions. Interrupt with your clever English conversational material, or just walk away. Unlike in westerner culture, walking away from a conversation is much less rude than just smiling and nodding. One of those instances where your upbringing will cause a clash of the cultures . . .
You should also be aware of the type of people you are around. Different groups require you to be a different person. I have hung out with elite ultra-conservative Thais, as well as poor off the street Thais. They all have different standards. The less elite the Thai, the more westernized and accepting of you they will be. I actually enjoy being with the common Thais much more than the elite because they have much lower standards that I need to reach =P
Share! Thais like to share things more than westerners do. It's a great way to show social interconnectedness. If you are traveling with Thais, you will often notice everyone buying food and passing it around. I recommend you doing that too, even if you cant read the Thai packing labels or even recognize what the heck you are getting. After all, if you don't like it, someone could =P
Just remember, in Thai culture, the nail that sticks out gets hammered! Doing as the Roman's do will get you far . . .
Thai Eating Etiquette
I remember my first time in Thailand, eating with everyone else. Obviously we all try, no matter where we are, to hold some resemblance of politeness, and at least try not to make a fool of ourselves. So with me thrown into another culture, obviously those two things would be of primary importance to me.
My first month in Thailand I really had no idea what was going on, often because my friends would 'forget' I didn't speak Thai, but also because the culture in Thailand is so dramatically different from my own. As with many other things during the adjusting period, mistakes are likely to happen.
If there is any place where being polite is more important, it is at the dinner table. And I do not mean when you are hanging out with your good friends. I mean when you have your friends parents sitting at the table with you. This is where you are bound to mess up. I remember thinking to myself, 'do as the Romans do.' I remember also thinking, 'show western table manners to the extreme.' You probably are thinking the same.
And that's why you will fail miserably.
See the problem is that there are rules that you wouldn't even consider for a second, rules probably that would seem very strange to western people. Anyway, without further ado, lets start with the rules:
Monks eat first. If there are any other monks in the room, and it's meal time, don't even put food on your plate until every monk has put food in their mouth. I won't even start to mention how offended a Thai would be if you break this rule. Quite often you might even be expected to serve them food.
Elders eat first. If there is anyone at the table a significant age older than you, say 5+ years, don't eat anything until each of them have put food in their mouth. It would be considered being disrespectful to your elders if you eat before them, as if you have the nerve to forget about their well-being first. But what if the elder doesn't eat or isn't hungry, or just taking too much time? Easy, offer them to try some food. Just hand them a plate and say, 'here try this pad thai, its really delicious.' Anything reasonable to hoax the elder to eat is fair game.
The elder sits at the head of the table. This isn't much different than the western tradition of sitting the most important person of the occasion at the head of the table - the birthday boy, the company boss, a guest speaker, the guy who is paying for the food, etc. But in Thailand, its all age based. So what about a situation where you would be eating with others from your company, and your boss is much younger than someone else in your company, who sits at the head? Good question . . .
The eldest pays for the meal. Of course you should offer to pay your part, but don't push it. The elder pays for the meal and is proud to pay for it. It is basically his/her way of saying 'thanks for being my guest and eating with me, and this is what I have to offer you in return.'
Eat 'chinese style' or 'family style.' Most people familiar with asian restaurants know how this works. But I will talk about it anyway. At a restaurant (or at home) the group orders food together, and when served it is placed at the center of the table. Then everyone can take whatever they want from the center plates and place it on their own plates. At first it may seem a little strange, but when you aren't familiar with half the foods you see, wouldn't it be better if you can sample a little of everything? And of course, everyone splits the cost when it comes time to pay.
Ok the above rules seem fairly normal, reasonable, or just plain obvious, right? Now I will talk about the weird and counter-intuitive rules.
Don't eat all the food on your plate. That's it. If you finish all the food on your plate, you are insulting the cook or host. You are telling them that they didn't feed you enough, and that they are poor cooks. For a westerner this rule may be a little hard to follow. In western culture we are taught to 'clean your plate.' 'How dare you not eat your beans, there are starving kids in Ethiopia!' But don't worry this rule isn't followed to often. At restaurants its perfectly ok to clean your plate. If you are invited to eat a Thai persons house where an elder cooks the meal, then follow the rule. I have once even seen the cook of the meal herself intentionally scoop some rice to the side of her plate to be polite.
Eat fruit last. If you are eating a meal, don't touch any of the fruit until you have finished your meal. I once got some fruit and put it on my plate with other food and everyone started staring at me. Ok I guess the staring was becoming an everyday normal, so I just ignored it. But then my friend leaned over and whispered, 'you aren't supposed to eat fruit until you finished your meal.' 'Ummmm, oops.' 'Yea it just occurred to me it makes no sense so I don't know why, but just so you know not to do it again.' I guess it is the western equivalent of 'no dessert until you have finished your meal.'
Only put enough food on your plate for a mouthful or two. In western culture it is considered normal to 'pile it on' when it comes to food on your plate. As long as you can finish it, its ok to put as much food on your plate as you want. But in Thai eating etiquette, this is very impolite. You should never put more than a few mouthfuls of food on your plate at any time. This rule isn't very important to follow when you eat with the younger Thai generation, but with the older generation this is very important. I remember getting my friends' parents really mad at me because I started to 'pile it on.' They even scolded me in their broken English, definitely not cool . . .
Eat pizza with a fork and knife. In Thailand, pizza is NOT a finger food. I remember eating my seafood pizza at Pizza Hut in Thailand, and I somehow managed to convince my friend to eat pizza with her hands. It was weird.
Never stab food with your fork. If you are ever going to use a fork, only use it to scoop food onto your spoon. Thai people either use chopsticks when eating Chinese food, or they use a fork to scoop food onto a spoon when they eat thai food. Oh, and the spoon always goes in the right hand, the fork in the left.
When passing food to an elder, NEVER pick up the plate to do so!!! You must slide the plate across the table. Plate being lifted up = bad. I got a lot of people mad at me because I just picked up the plate like any normal american would when asked to pass . . . This could get weird when the food item is all the way on the opposite side of the table . . .
That concludes my list of Thai Eating Etiquette for now, Ill write more when I think of more. I wish you luck.
Thai Bathrooms, the Basics
The Thai Bathroom, Basics Not all of Thailand has adventures that are fun. A particular adventure that most westerners do not like to . . . ummm . . . venture is the Thai bathroom. Believe it or not, using the loo is not a universal skill. Don't just walk in assuming you know how to turn on the hot water or flush a toilet. The Thai Toilet Also known as the squatter, this hole in the ground can be quite confusing for a westerner. All of us has been taught to always sit on the toilet seat. But in this case, you squat. This basically involves you standing on each end of the hole, and bending down. Use your imagination . . .
I have heard many a Thai make fun of westerners using the squatter. I once a group of Thai's joking about some white girl who would sit on it, and they laughed at how 'dumb' she was not to know better. I myself was very confused. I remember my first time seeing one, and not knowing exactly what to make of it. Ill open myself to embarrassment and say I (not knowing better) sat on one my first few times too . . . but I cleaned it first I swear!!!!
The Bucket Now the next question is, where is the toilet paper? That's right, that convenience that any 'normal' person couldn't do without. No good 'ol tp . . . Looking around you will notice a bucket of water. No tp, and a bucket of water. Figured it out yet? Well, what would you do if all you had to wipe yourself was water and your left hand? Use your imagination . . . Don't think you will shake someone's left hand over there again without thinking twice, eh? They do this in India too - discrimination against left-handers isn't so rare there.
Personally, I am smart (at least prefer to keep my hands clean) and not only carry a roll of toilet paper wherever I go, but backups in all my luggage. However a caution I must point out, flushing isn't like a western toilet either, so you cant just throw your toilet paper in the hole or you will risk clogging. Toilet Flushing Again, a hole in the ground, a bucket of water, and no flush valve thing . . . Conundrum . . . Actually it is simple. Just fill the bucket of water to the top, and then pour the water into the hole all at once. Repeat till the hole is empty. Fairly simple, but again, also very alien to those who are only familiar to the western toilet.
Thai Showers You probably know by now that the average Thai person takes three showers a day. The reason to shower so often is because its always so freakin hot and humid over there. If you don't shower 3 times a day they will think you are dirty. Dirty! I usually compromised and just did 2 =D. When I say Thai person, I mean a Thai person in Thailand. Most Thais when they come to the US take showers like any other [dirty] American. Unfortunately what you may not like about Thai showers is that they are always freezing cold (even though its 90F+ outside). Not everyone likes cold showers . . . But you are in luck. Some wealthier Thais have these water heater things in the bathrooms that heat the water straight out of the spicket. Just turn them on, adjust the temperature dial, and you are set to go. Public Thai Toilets Always carry a few baht around when traveling, as using a public bathroom isn't free . . . This sign says there is a bathroom behind the store for 3 baht. Memorizing the top row could come in handy when looking for a toilet . . .
Tips
Insider Tips from a Local Expert, Everything you want to know about Thailand
There is so much you could do in Thailand. Here are some of the things that may make up the highlights of your trip:
- See the Grand Palace and the “Emerald” Buddha in Bangkok
- Meet fellow travelers at Khao San Rd
- Watch Thai boxing (Muay Thai) at Lumphini or Ratchadamnoen Stadium
- Sun bake on the beautiful beaches of Southern Thailand
- Trek in the jungle in Khao Yai, Khao Sok, Kanchanaburi or Northern Thailand
- Meet and stay with Hill Tribe people and learn about their culture
- Learn to cook Thai food, to meditate, to give a Thai massage, to fight in Muay Thai style or to be an elephant mahout
- Get a Thai massage
- Eat affordable Thai food every day
- Swim in waterfalls in a jungle setting
- Shop in malls, night bazaars and morning markets
- Meet a pachyderm
- See the remains of earlier Thai kingdoms at Sukhothai and Ayuthaya or visiting some of the Khmer ruins in Thailand
- Take part in Songkran, Loi Krathong, or other Thai festivals
- Rock climb, white water raft, mountain biking, trek, …
- Scuba dive or snorkel from Koh Tao or Koh Similan
Mobile phones
Bring your GSM compatible phone to Thailand and buy a SIM card here at a 7-11 or similar convenience store or at a phone shop. Mobile phone coverage is good in all Thai cities, but can’t be relied upon when trekking through the jungle. AIS and DTAC have some of the best coverage while Orange is more for Bangkok. You can top up the phone by buying top up cards at the convenience stores (which are ubiquitous) and the cards have simple instructions in English on how to use them. SIM cards can be brought for around 100 Baht with credit on them.
Pay Phones
There are numerous pay phones around and some can do international calls. You may have to have a card for such a call, brought again at the convenience store of your choice. Make sure the card you buy matches the phone you want to use. There are various brands.
Polite behaviour
Thai society is overwhelmingly polite. The Thai people love having guests in their country and they love being hospitable and seeing you have a good time, but the behaviour of many tourists leaves Thai people a bit “confused”. Please try to be a good guest. Here are a few of the things to remember so you can be a polite visitor in Thailand:
- Be aware that Thais consider the feet low, so don’t touch things with your feet or point the soles of your feet towards people or Buddha statues. Don’t step over people or food. Go around.
- The head is high and so it is best if you don’t touch people’s heads. Keep your head lower than elders and monks when possible.
- The Royal family is loved and it is totally unacceptable to say or do anything that is offensive towards them.
- Always remain calm and in control. Don’t get angry. Don’t shout. Do smile at people.
- Act and dress with modesty. Couples should keep the kissing and hugging to the privacy of their bedrooms. Outside of the main tourist areas and the centre of Bangkok and Chiang Mai, it is appropriate for you to dress conservatively and cover your shoulders and stomach and cleavage. When swimming at the non tourist areas it would be polite for women to wear shorts and a t-shirt, not bikini.
- Monks are respected. Please give up your seat to them on public transport. Please dress respectfully when going to a temple.
Religion
By Thai law and culture, all religions, religious people and religious objects are respected. Please follow this respectful tradition so as not to offend anyone. The population of Thailand is about 94% Buddhist and 5% Islamic.
Buddhist temples. When entering a Buddhist temple please wear neat, conservative and polite clothes. Singlets and short shorts are neither respectful nor polite. When entering the hall please take your shoes off.
- Please do not kill anything in a Buddhist temple.
Buddhist Monks
- When meeting monks please remember that women cannot touch monks or hand things directly to them (you can put something down in front of them instead).
- Please don’t give them money. Although it has become common practice it is not beneficial to their spiritual path.
- One of the best experiences you can have in Thailand is to get up early and watch or take part in the giving of alms to monks. All over the country monks will be collecting alms at around 6 – 6.30 am. Please go have a look.
