superstition
In Thailand people are very superstitious.
Beneath I summed some hints you better follow if you don't want to get in trouble:
- Do not stroke a Thai child on the head. That is reserved for the parents.
- Before entering a temple, always remove your shoes.
- When entering the temple do not step on the porch.
- Never aim the soles of your feet towards a Buddha.
- When visiting locals, do not hum a tune after sunset.
- Do not measure how tall a Thai person is. This is only allowed for identity cards or passports or for medical reasons.
interaction with Thai
You should never raise your voice or loose your self-control, in other words remain calm under all conditions.
It is recommended to let you guide or drive in traffic by Thai. Some of the police officers are corrupt and will wrongly fine a "farang" (=the Thai word for a non-Thai) to earn money.
Never throw Thai money on the ground and never put your foot on it. Thai money shows an image of the King. Standing on top of the image of the King is equal to lese majesty with severe punishments/penalties as a consequence.
You better not buy in shops where the articles have no price label. Otherwise you shall pay a multiple of what a Thai needs to pay for that same article.
Do not buy a second pair of cheap glasses. During measurements they shall remove a nose support from your original glasses and say you have lost it. Provided extra payment they shall install 2 cheap nose supports and you loose your expensive original ones.
Inform yourself before buying something, for example use the internet to have an idea how much something costs. If a shop does not have the specific item you are looking for be cautious for so called alternatives that they offer you. These alternatives are not always equivalent or even unfit. For example: you need tires with a deep profile for your SUV, the shop does not have these in storage but they offer you other tires that are not suitable to go off-road.
In the morning at 08.00 AM and in the evening at 06.00 PM the Thai anthem "pleng chat thai" reverberates on TV, radio and through speakers in the streets. If at that time you are present in a public building (i.e. a hospital, cinema, ...) you must get on your feet if you were seated and stay silent until the anthem has finished. If you do not respect this, it can get you into trouble because contrary to the country side there is a lot of social control in a public building.
