Things that really shocked you about Thailand

[Coldmike]

Really? A bicycle? I have one at my moo bahn in Bangkok and sometimes use it to got to 7/11 at the edge of my neighborhood. I would absolutly NEVER ride one on any main street anywhere in Thailand. My wife, kids and dog would be safer on my tiny moterbike... with or without helmets.

[Siani]

Really? A bicycle? I have one at my moo bahn in Bangkok and sometimes use it to got to 7/11 at the edge of my neighborhood. I would absolutly NEVER ride one on any main street anywhere in Thailand. My wife, kids and dog would be safer on my tiny moterbike... with or without helmets.

Yes, really a bicycle Good form of transport The Chinese use them all the time...Chinese cities have a long legacy of bicycle use due to relatively low incomes, ... and the Dutch. Much cheaper mode of transport if you are on a low income

[aragon]

Really? A bicycle? I have one at my moo bahn in Bangkok and sometimes use it to got to 7/11 at the edge of my neighborhood. I would absolutly NEVER ride one on any main street anywhere in Thailand. My wife, kids and dog would be safer on my tiny moterbike... with or without helmets.

Yes, really a bicycle Good form of transport The Chinese use them all the time...Chinese cities have a long legacy of bicycle use due to relatively low incomes, ... and the Dutch. Much cheaper mode of transport if you are on a low income

Indeed the Chinese (and others) have a long history of bicycle useage, but having lived in China (Tianjin) and witnessed several messy and unfortunately fatal accidents involving cyclists and trucks, it's not a mode of transport I would advocate on any busy road, much less a Thai one.........

[richard]

BUT you are all thinking western logic and practicality


A motor is status
A house is status

It has fu*k all to do with means, safety or ecology

A Thai thrives on status and as soon as a down-payment can be made on a motorbike with a 10 year repayment period they are gaining status points

As soon as they net a farang......more points
As soon as farang buys house..........more points
As soon as farang buys 4*4.............more points

If you choose to live here FORGET western, sensible, logical thinking. It will drive you nuts

GO WITH THE FLOW

[GLCQuantum]

Cold Mike [Mod Edit] said....

Really? A bicycle? I have one at my moo bahn in Bangkok and sometimes use it to got to 7/11 at the edge of my neighborhood. I would absolutly NEVER ride one on any main street anywhere in Thailand. My wife, kids and dog would be safer on my tiny moterbike... with or without helmets.

Ermmmmmm...... Bicycles........ errrrmmmmmm........ the safest mode of getting somewhere bar walking (check the stats)[Mod Edit]

[Mod Edit]GLCQuantum, you have been warned about this unprovoked flaming before by PM. The fact that you ignore (don't open) your PMs does not mean the warning has not happened. Please do not continue with such flaming in future, or we will have no option but to take action.

[GLCQuantum]

Richard said....

A motor is status
A house is status

It has fu*k all to do with means, safety or ecology

A Thai thrives on status and as soon as a down-payment can be made on a motorbike with a 10 year repayment period they are gaining status points

As soon as they net a farang......more points
As soon as farang buys house..........more points
As soon as farang buys 4*4.............more points

If you choose to live here FORGET western, sensible, logical thinking. It will drive you nuts

GO WITH THE FLOW

You seem to know your stuff on this.... f**k me you guys really hang around with the garbage of Thai society don't you. Ever tried venturing into the real world while you park your bus here or are you content with the squalid riff raff you seem to love in Hua Hin. Before you speak about 'Thai's' try meeting some of them.

[GLCQuantum]

Good stuff mods.... because the 'M' word is truly so offensive....

Carry on girls

[richard]

Good stuff mods.... because the 'M' word is truly so offensive....

Carry on girls

GLCQ had a bad day?

Don't worry. We all go through that phase of growing up

[zingerhk]

How people with so little, can live so happy?

[Pleng]

10bt charge for checking your balance from another bank's cash machine.

Nearly had a heart attach when I found that one out.

[Tzen Tse]

I agree with all of the above.
The trash, the lies, the noise, the traffic, ...
But I had another big surprise about 5 years ago in one of my first Temple visits.
It was a Buddhist religious gathering, but a the toy stand, the only toys they ware selling for the local children where "guns" or toys related to fighting and violence. How do you rime that?

[Takiap]

Good stuff mods.... because the 'M' word is truly so offensive....

Carry on girls

Is it alcohol?

[GLCQuantum]

Forgot about this one.... whoops

[MisterClean]

So, most people have been here some time; be it months or years. Many others visit frequently.

Have you ever discovered anything that really shocked you about Thailand. As in, after having been here so long/for so many times, you just couldn't imagine it being so.

For example, just before I moved here, I was watching a documentary on Thailand (feeling a little home sick! ) and I discovered that street food is far from indigenous to Thailand; in fact 60 years ago you wouldn't have seen one street food stall. Apparently the Chinese brought the concept over and look how it took off!

For something (street food) that is these days so embedded into the daily lifestyle of Thais of all generations, that to me is one of the first things that comes to mind when hearing the word Thailand; and is always one of the first things I mention when describing Thailand... to think that 60 years ago that didn't exist in any way, shape, or form was mindblowing.

Why is that mind blowing? 60 years is a long time. Sukhumvit Rd was a friggin rice paddy 60 years ago, now its Times Square!
They probably didnt even have resturaunts for Thais as Thailand that long ago was a backwater.

Has anybody else had a super-shock moment when learning of something about Thailand, past or present?

[rempejek]

Have you ever discovered anything that really shocked you about Thailand. As in, after having been here so long/for so many times, you just couldn't imagine it being so

What about this one:

Late last year the Thai Government announced measures to make special working visas for foreign nationals, whose native language is English, to come to Thailand and work in schools.

Nearly one year on and with the Thai Government pushing back its inauguration into AEC, little appears to have been achieved; leaving many to suspect that the Thai Government, come 2016, will again delay its presence in the AEC.

The official Thai slogan for Thailand, or at least one of them, is ‘The Land of Smiles’. Unfortunately it is nothing unusual to see this slogan twisted into ‘The Land of Scams’ as Thais are often accused of scamming foreign nationals out of their money.

Especially for the foreign teacher and those schools into business with these so called agents.

Website meebal dot com foreign-teacher-scam-thailand

http://meebal.com/foreign-teacher-scam-thailand/