kokesaat

Thanks for the quick replies. I'll put the hints/suggestions to the test in my next class.

Does anyone have any pronunciation details for ต as compared to ด , such as those offered in pronouncing ง

"Place of articulation

Manner of articulation

The sound of ง is pronounced with the tongue touching the soft palate (that is the place of articulation), and it is pronounced by expelling air through the nasal cavity (that's the manner of articulation)...................etc."

I've tried all the existing hints on pronouncing the letters...........I've failed (according to my 'teacher'). I need exact mouth, tongue, nasal (if any) details. Any help appreciated.

It took me a while to get the hang of ง but that's behind me. I have not, however, been able to get the hang of ต versus ด at the beginning of words. My Thai teacher (non-professional) has basically given up on me with those two sounds....she says I sometimes get it right. Any chance Rikker or anyone else can provide exacting instructions as were provided for ง?

David,

Thanks for the correct spelling and background. Just what I was looking for.

That would help explain why Thais don't grow it around their homes. Anyone have the scientific name for this plant?

Pardon me if I'm using the wrong part of the forum for this question.....but since it's partly in Thai, I thought this would be a good place to start.

My wife uses a leaf in her steam bath that's called ไบ นาด (bai nat)......it's a longish leaf that grows on a shrub.......it's one of those kind of leaves that sticks to each other (sort of a roughish surface). I've been told that, although many Thais like to grow this herb, it must not be grown in the vicinity of one's home........I guess some sort of bad juju. Anyway, I'm trying to find out more info on this plant. Any help is appreciated.

I'm always looking for shortcuts/easy ways to remember anything that has to do with Thai language. Learning high/middle consonant tone rules seemed easy enough, but I had problems remembering that low consonants with a dead short vowel were high tones and low consonants with a dead long vowel were falling tones. Then I had a eureka moment while working on a passage from Tong Daeng (ทองแดง), one of the King's dogs, that was describing the dog's posture (ท่าสงา) When I first looked at the word, I thought it might be ท่าส งา .....and then, light bulbs came on! It couldn't possibly be ท่าส, because IF it WAS ทาส, there wouldn't be a tone mark because the syllable would be a falling tone by virtue of it being a low consonant+long vowel+dead syllable end. While that may not make a lot of difference to anyone else, it is just another shortcut/way to remember Thai tones and decypher thai script.

On that note, it's been some time since I've seen anyone refer to the outstanding Thai Cheet Sheet v.12 by NguuMuu at http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/lofiversion/...php/t46552.html A ton of rules all crammed together on one page in an easy-to-read format.

If you like reading about dogs I can recommend the Scooby-Doo books available in many bookshops. The stories are in both English and Thai and now come in a box-set of 12 books for about 500 baht.

Scoooooby Dooooby Dooo

รักสงบ, if you have one of those books available, could you give me a few lines so I can get an idea of the difficultly level? English or Thai would be fine. Thanks

Seems to be a lot of folks following this thread who might be able to help me out: My Thai wife and I were married in 1973 in Thailand while I was in the US Air Force. I was subsequently stationed in Taiwan where my wife had our only daughter. Since I was in the Air Force under official orders, our daughter was given a State Department 'Birth Abroad' birth certificate.....and received an American passport when she was about 6 months old. Our daughter has spent virtually her entire life either overseas (accompanying my wife and me while I was in the AF) or in the US where she now resides. She can not speak/read/write Thai.

Now that my wife and I life in Thailand (for the past 8+ years) and have a small piece of land and home, we'd like to explore obtaining Thai citizenship for our daughter.....in the event she would like to retire here (like us) and take over our home/land after we die. Our daughter is 32years old.

Realizing our daughter isn't the equivalent of a Tiger Woods, we seem to remember his being offered Thai citizenship after he became famous.....he's the son of a Thai mother and American father, but I'm not sure where he was born.

Anyone have any suggestions on how to pursue this?

Thanks

Questions about tones are to the everyday-Thai what questions about English grammar are to the everyday-American. Most of us (them) don't have a clue unless that's our specialty. I would recommend finding a Thai teacher who can explain (to you) the different tones.

I've heard the saying ผักชีโรยหน้า used in referring to something that is covered up/swept under the rug. ผักชี is coriander (parsley).......โรยหน้า means 'to be topped with'. As I understand it, the idiom refers to the way you spinkle parsley (and mint) on top of lahb to give it a nice appearance. I've also heard that the King uses this term to refer to areas that are cleaned up just before he visits. Any one have any further insight?

I've just started reading The Story of Tongdaeng, Biography of a Pet Dog. The book is a welcome respite from Benjawan Becker's Advanced Reader.......and more my level of vocabulary. In describing the special characteristics of Tongdaeng, reference is made to the dog's จมูกแด่น. The book, which provides an English translation, says it's a nose with a white spot. My wife says it's more like a pushed up nose (but not as in a pug's pushed up nose). I can't find anything in the dictionary. Anyone have any ideas?

I've just started reading The Story of Tongdaeng, Biography of a Pet Dog. The book is a welcome respite from Benjawan Becker's Advanced Reader.......and more my level of vocabulary. In describing the special characteristics of Tongdaeng, reference is made to the dog's จมูกแด่น. The book, which provides an English translation, says it's a nose with a white spot. My wife says it's more like a pushed up nose (but not as in a pug's pushed up nose). I can't find anything in the dictionary. Anyone have any ideas?

In last week's Bangkok Post Learning Section, พูดภาษาไทย, Frank says to Chai, "Chai, let's go play basketball." Chai replies,

ไปสิ อยากออกกำลังกายอยู่พอดี

The post translates Chai's reply as, Good idea! I was just thinking of getting some exercise. My Thai teacher says the อยู่พอดี roughly translates to "I was just thinking the same thing". Can anyone offer some other examples of how อยู่พอดี is used in a sentence? I can usually dissect these sentences and figure out the flow, but am having difficulty with this one.

Thanks from Udon

I'd appreciate any information/website that might explain the ceremony held at a Thai temple where 9 stone balls are dropped into holes around/in the temple. The ceremony is called 'dat wai luk ne-med'

A ceremony like this was held near my village recently, but I haven't been able to find out any info on how/why these ceremonies are held.

Thanks from Udon

I've tried to download the Thai course from http://www.fsi-language-courses.com/forum/...=78&KW=thai but gave up after about an hour (nearly 10meg). Can anyone tell me how big the file is.....or better yet, when downloading a pdf file, is there a way to know how big of a file you are downloading??

Thanks for the help from Udon

Our 90day checks were also due on Christmas day. My wife and I walked into AEK Udon Hospital's Immigration office in Udon today, handed our 90day forms to the clerk, didn't say a word, and walked out with a renewed 90day check good until 8 Mar.

I completed the 40+ series of Maani and am now almost finished with the 9 lesson Mary Hass series of reading lessons. The big advantage of both series is the online (downloadable) voice files and the repetitive nature of vocabulary from one lesson to the next. I feel like I'm making excellent progress....but now I'm getting the shakes worrying about what I'll do for a follow on to Mary Hass's excellent program. Might anyone be aware of another reading/writing series that uses the repetitive vocabulary style of these two programs? Any/all help appreciated.

Neem is one of the easiest trees to grow on our small farm in Udon. We've got a variety that isn't as "kom" as the kind you find along side the highways. And, it flowers about 2-4 weeks before the standard variety..........we've sold 5-7 thousand baht worth of the young leaves/flowers each year at the local market.

Might anyone have insight into the possibility of obtaining Thai citizenship for a daughter of an American servicemember (now retired) and his Thai wife of 33 years? Our 32 year old daughter would like to obtain dual citizenship to give her added options when she decides to retire. We've been led to believe that any child born to a Thai woman is 'a Thai citizen', but in our case, our daughter was born while we were stationed in Taiwan. She has all her old passports, birth certificates, etc. Any information would be helpful.

Lopburi,

The OP did not mention pension,  he said income.

My guess is :

Income should need a new letter each year as the amount can vary.

A pension letter can be used every year if your address is the same.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Sorry about that, Thetyim, I was referring to my "pension" letter (not income). With few exceptions, most everyone in Udorn has been able to use theirs for the past 4 years....but I'm wondering if the letters "expire" after 5.

Thanks for your interest and assistance.

I obtained my notarized letter from the US embassy in Aug 2000....showing my annual income. I am up for annual visa renewal each Oct. Does anyone know if the notarized letter is still required? And if so, is it only good for 5 years?

Pianoman,

I have a cockatoo.....supposedly Australian, bought in Botswana, shipped to Udorn, where the owner wanted to bring it to the U.S. It's easier to bring a Thai bride to the U.S. So the owner gave it to me a few years ago. Good bird, but not 100% sure of the sex (think it's female). A few years ago I saw a cockatoo in one of the local pet stores, 10,000 baht. Haven't seen one since, but I'd be willing to be they can arrange to get one.

If you're ever in Udorn, drop me a line.

A good friend of mine, a retired teacher from the UK, lives in a remote Isaan village. He's elderly and uses the computer solely for emails. He has traveled in the past to England for an annual health checkup and refills on prescription medication. He told me that he would no longer be eligible for these health checkups as he had been out of the country for too long. He also mentioned that he could no longer vote for the same reason.

I'm skeptical of what my friend believe (I'm American)......I'm afraid he may not be getting the right info (he's gotten bad info on visas, banking, etc in the past). Might someone on this forum be in touch with info on this matter. I appreciate all replies.

Thanks from Udorn, Thailand

Several Americans in Udorn are having their military/social security pensions electronically deposited into the Bangkok Bank of New York and subsequently electronically transferred to their local Bangkok Bank account. The fee for this service is nominal (less than it would cost to ATM their money).

I have a British friend who lives in the countryside who has his teacher's pension sent via paper check to the local bank each month. The bank puts a hold on the check for 30+ days. I'd like to know if anyone from the UK has found a way to transfer their pensions electronically as many Americans are doing. As always, your help is appreciated.

Cheers from Udorn