xthAi76s

The oikos site is a good one. But there is no singular Thailand Climate - inland parts of Thailand are not in Humid Tropical climate zones and the dryer portions of the year can be more of a Sahel climate - with hot and dry seasons, even if periodic, heavy rains occur. So evap cooling can be made to work, along with thermal mass and air movement. In the humid, Coastal Tropics, passive cooling is more difficult. No matter your location, one is well advised to carefully analyze the actual onsite climate and wind patterns. Then use this info as design criteria. Here are some strategies:

Shade sitework & exterior walls from ever seeing the sun- planting, external shading devices, louvers, overhangs...

Use light colors for roof and exterior walls, and use radiant paint on walls that do get direct sun,

Keep window glass completely out of direct sun, and use a real spectrally-selective window film if you can't.

Go Big, R-30, on attic insulation w/ radiant barrier, and highly ventilate attics,

Roof ponds cool even in humid tropics, but are expensive & tech challenges, but there ya go,

Shut your house up when outside temp begins to warm up, and let your inside, cooler air & masses buffer it til late in the day,

Weatherstrip all openings so your cooler inside air is not blown out & replaced by hot outside air- this occurs quickly even in a light breeze;

Use shaded, insulated thermal mass on the inside walls & floor slabs, and

Use low-level air movement to maximize thermal comfort without disturbing hotter air near the ceiling.

One thing people look past as they focus on building tech only, is sitework design: bodies of water cool by evaporation, and shaded gardens up-windstream of your house or in a courtyard cool the air by evapo-transpiration before wafting into your house - the plants breathing out water vapor cools the air as well as cleans & oxygenates it. Locating sitework paving, car storage or your kitchen upstream does the opposite!

Internal heatloads can have a large effect as well, with refr's & freezers being the worst, plasma TVs & lighting being factors as well. Manage your internal heatloads carefully so you have less to fight. LED lighting, Thai [exterior] Kitchen, or at least use a chimney/stack effect to get your refr/freezer loads away from occupied zones. But this only works if cool air replaces that exhausted.

A house that is finely attuned to its site micro-climate, as well as to the larger climate zone, is a work of art created by someone who is willing and able to dig a bit deeper.

Where can one find real, good spectrally-sensitive window films in Thailand/Bangkok? From my research, the best films all seem to be sold outside of Thailand. Thanks.

Actually, I just searched more thoroughly and found another of your posts re Southwall ()

when you have 15 bank accounts and atm cards from every bank in the country ............and no money in any of them

because you dont get paid for another two weeks ........

Ooh, low blow to the gut...

I'm not sure I understand what you are trying to get across in either of your sentences.

Tesco in Thailand is good for cheap shorts, cacks and a backup for beer; why would one use it for anything else?

Hmmm... Let's say I have 10 items to get. Let's also say that I live near a Tesco Lotus. I will get what I can from Tesco Lotus, say 7 items, and then do the remainder of my shopping elsewhere. I often complete my shopping at Emporium.

its not really all that dishonest ,

those noodles would last for years ,i have bought jars of coffee ,crates of beer and probably other stufff in the past that has a use by date but doesnt really change

dishonest would be changing the dates ,or hiding the expired date with a sticker and selling it for normal price

they are giving people a choice to buy a poduct for 4 thb thats perfectly fine to be eaten

differnt if it were fresh meat or dairy product that might cause a risk but these are as "wholesome" as they ever were .......

Sadly, this is quite necessary in Thailand and esp as many of Tesco Lotus' customers are dirt poor. Helps that poor Thais have stomachs like nuclear fission reactors. They wouldn't buy if they were always getting deathly ill.

What do you gentlemen think about this list from CNNGO: http://www.cnngo.com/bangkok/shop/5-best-bangkok-tailors-218990

1. Narin Couture http://www.narin-couture.com/

2. Rajawongse Clothier http://www.dress-for-success.com/

3. Perry's

4. July Tailor http://www.julytailor.com/

5. Duly http://www.laladuly.co.th/

I think your rap sucks.

Doubtful you'll make bucks.

But you can try your luck.

Cause people don't give a @uck.

Thais ARE the cutest people on the planet.

But this thread ... not so cute.

On basis do you make your opinion? In what ways are they the cutest?

Opinion? No, you misunderstand. It is RESOLVED. No credible challengers were proposed so the motion carries ...

OK. Well, I'm glad it's resolved. It was fun to try to convince you otherwise. Carry on.

Thais ARE the cutest people on the planet.

But this thread ... not so cute.

On basis do you make your opinion? In what ways are they the cutest?

Japanese cute tradition

As in Furby and Tamagotchi.

Yes, and especially Pikachuu

Whether male or female, when you think you've reach a sufficient point in the societal hierarchy that you are now permitted to attend "I'm an important Thai Walking College" so that you can learn how to walk like the upper class by gently kicking your feet out 45 degrees (rather than the normal commoner walk where most of the energy for walking is utilized in a completely forward motion).

You start posting pictures of your food on facebook.

You post pictures of your very average-looking, unspectacular, likely rather cheap and quite boring food on facebook.

You're right. I think the hot weather is getting me out of my typically mild disposition.

Yes, the point is that we all have different opinions and that we shouldn't be attacked for our opinions. Sorry about that, mauGR1.

It's true, though, that many men find subservience in women cute. The entire Japanese cute tradition is created around this central concept. Same thing in Korea. Actually, before I am crucified, it's the same male chauvinism all over the globe.

aneliane

Does have a point. Fashion sense here is how you'd expect it in any 3rd world country that is heavily concerned about face. It's quite poorly done, tacky and usually concerns itself with how to inflate perceived status. Very tacky. Ever been to Shanghai? It's like that. Wearing some expensive brand labels from head to toe to inflate status. Thais seem to do this but with less money even than the moneyed Chinese, with poorer fabrics, and knock-offs that make them look quite silly to anyone who has lived in a REAL chic city -- Seoul, Tokyo, Paris, New York, LA.

It's just like the purchasing of all these average BMWs and MERCs. Just for face. No true style sense of their own. They could care less. They want to create an image (even it's a poor one).

In Thai, it is called "srang paap" which means "to create a picture". Like most other things in this laidback beach-like nation, the picture is more important than anything else. It's why Thais are rather good at design but poor in engineering. Good at copying latest fashion but poor at understanding that some of true style is the quality of fabrics and the fit etc.

Sorry, but aneliane is correct.

Are you and Aneliane purporting to be some sort of fashion experts? I would love to see how you guys dress because I'm relatively sure neither of you will come close to the "REAL chic (folks) in Seoul, Tokyo, Paris, New York, LA." Get real. Normal people dress for comfort and appropriate for the occasion, and they wear what they think looks good on them. It's the same most everywhere. Unless your gospel is "The Devil wears Prada," I doubt if you're cut-out for that scene. So putting down the Thais when you're really not much better is rather presumptuous.

Well just get out on the street and see for yourself how many people wear nylon, instead of cotton, plastic instead leather, acetone, viscose and all those really sticky and super uncomfortable fabrics just because they look just like the catwalks lol

All I can say is...have you been to America lately? How does the average American dress? That's the point. Very few Americans/Thais are truly fashion savvy. And that goes for every other nationality.

As for xth's contention that it's all about "inflate perceived status"....how in God's name would he know that? Perhaps he's envious that certain Thais can afford the MERC's and BMW's and he can't. Jealousy is a terrible thing.

You've said much while I was away. Sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you.

I know you know some of this, Berkshire, because I've seen some of your more intelligent posts. I would know about inflating perceived status because I've read books on it, discussed it with Thai intellectuals and my wife and her family. I encourage you to go to your nearest Asia Books and purchase and read "National Identity and It's Defenders - Thailand Today", ISBN: 9789747551884. It touches on these kinds of things. Thai society is among the most hierarchical in the world and Thai people are concerned quite seriously with status, how to detect it and how to promote or display it. That's common "Thai 101" knowledge for a knowledgable person living in Thailand which I know you are.

Anyway, I am not a fashion expert. You are correct there. I only stated my opinion.

I am not jealous of Thai people with MERCs or BMWs. I don't drive in Thailand and neither do I want to. I won't tell you how financially secure I am in my young age because I'm sure you were baiting for an answer of that sort

I hope I answered everything, Berkshire.

Thanks

Now this has turned to a debate on fashion..Well, maybe it's just me, but i don't care much about people clothes..If i think about cuteness, i think about gentle manners.

Style in behaviour is more important than style in clothing IMHO.

If i think about beauty, a slim body and a straight back are better than any well studied make-up.

As yes, the prototypical Asian virtue of subservience. I too like it. This is certainly one way to define cuteness.

Another way could be to find it cute when a Japanese girl allows a man to ejaculate into her closed mouth while looking at him as if to say "I don't understand. What is happening." Some people find this kind of thing cute.

So, we all have different views of what constitues cuteness. And that's fine, imo.

aneliane

Does have a point. Fashion sense here is how you'd expect it in any 3rd world country that is heavily concerned about face. It's quite poorly done, tacky and usually concerns itself with how to inflate perceived status. Very tacky. Ever been to Shanghai? It's like that. Wearing some expensive brand labels from head to toe to inflate status. Thais seem to do this but with less money even than the moneyed Chinese, with poorer fabrics, and knock-offs that make them look quite silly to anyone who has lived in a REAL chic city -- Seoul, Tokyo, Paris, New York, LA.

It's just like the purchasing of all these average BMWs and MERCs. Just for face. No true style sense of their own. They could care less. They want to create an image (even it's a poor one).

In Thai, it is called "srang paap" which means "to create a picture". Like most other things in this laidback beach-like nation, the picture is more important than anything else. It's why Thais are rather good at design but poor in engineering. Good at copying latest fashion but poor at understanding that some of true style is the quality of fabrics and the fit etc.

Sorry, but aneliane is correct.

If you're concerned about Thai women's fashions, be grateful that it's now and not 15 years ago, when the clothing was really bad. In comparison, IMO, the stuff they wear now is pretty good.

I think the opposite, when I came here first in 2000, women had real Thai style elegance, some women were still wearing traditional Thai clothes, not the one you see now like the Karen women in Kao san Rd who wear horrid-green plastic slippers, cheap western style shorts and quickly slap on their karen hat to sell you a hammock.

Some stalls in Chatuchat were selling some traditional outfit with great fabrics with a modern design, but now they all been replaced by fake aromatherapy shops

I was amazed by the simplicity and the sheer quality of the clothes. And most important they looked distinctively Thai.

Nowadays, it's difficult to difference a young Thai from let's say a Taiwanese, or Korean.

They all wear the same cheap nylon copies and are all dolled up and trying to look like Japanese girls in cheaper version

Exactly. Traditional Thai clothing is not only beautiful, it was often made with rather luxurious fabrics (like silk and linen) and it was rather appropriate for the climate. It's like the beautiful traditional Thai homes and living quarters. They were gorgeous, smartly built for this hot @ss climate and done in wonderful hardwoods that, to this day, are highly regarded around the world. They are increasingly being replaced with cheaper, Western-style homes or very poorly constructed/designed condos (aka: ovens). They are losing their way in this regard by poorly copying the West and rich East Asia (Korea, Japan, China).

aneliane

Does have a point. Fashion sense here is how you'd expect it in any 3rd world country that is heavily concerned about face. It's quite poorly done, tacky and usually concerns itself with how to inflate perceived status. Very tacky. Ever been to Shanghai? It's like that. Wearing some expensive brand labels from head to toe to inflate status. Thais seem to do this but with less money even than the moneyed Chinese, with poorer fabrics, and knock-offs that make them look quite silly to anyone who has lived in a REAL chic city -- Seoul, Tokyo, Paris, New York, LA.

It's just like the purchasing of all these average BMWs and MERCs. Just for face. No true style sense of their own. They could care less. They want to create an image (even it's a poor one).

In Thai, it is called "srang paap" which means "to create a picture". Like most other things in this laidback beach-like nation, the picture is more important than anything else. It's why Thais are rather good at design but poor in engineering. Good at copying latest fashion but poor at understanding that some of true style is the quality of fabrics and the fit etc.

Sorry, but aneliane is correct.

To be fair, though, I would never and have never just made such posts without good reason. The forum topic is about this issue, so I gave an opinion. Never started a thread as such and never brought up the subject where it wasn't asked.

So? That is the point of the thread. Farangs think they can discern racial differences that certainly no biologist or scientist can discern and that these racial differences make for a different woman, family and life experience. See, you are supposed to be a sophisticated Western guy who is beyond all these Thai and third world Voodoo beliefs about ethnic and racial superiority theories that went out with the Third Reich. Instead you have bought into a recent Thai myth about Chinese families somehow being prettier, more honest and hi so than normal Thai families. And the sad part about it is you can actually find Thai pseudo scientific documents to back up this nonsense. Anyway I was writing to that Zatoachi guy who said men never said their Thai Chinese wives were better than the Issan ladies. Which of course is not true because men on Thai Visa say that all the time.

Farangs think they can discern racial differences that certainly no biologist or scientist can discern and that these racial differences make for a different woman, family and life experience.

Of course one cannot be certain, but these stereotypes, often based in some fact, are what have protected us humans and allowed us to evolve. Certainly, if our Neanderthal ancestors had not stereotyped lions and tigers as beasts who 'often' eat people, perhaps we'd not be here today... The truth is that there are many Farangs who marry bar girls or just straight up prostitutes. It's been going on for decades, and it's well documented. And, it's just fine, right? If a man is not breaking any laws or hurting anyone, who am I to judge? But, who in this world has the time or inclination to judge everything they encounter every minute of everyday with absolute objectivity? Those kind of people are probably not very common and not very successful. One simply cannot live this way. It's far more efficient to posses some stereotypes and judge the vast majority of people within this framework but always be open and sensitive to the fact that any person could fall outside of the stereotype.

Me: "Where did you meet your wife?"

Farang 1: "I met her while she was working in Soi Cowboy in between shifts servicing other diseased Farangs and Thais."

Me: "Can she read Thai?"

Farang 1: "Barely."

Me: "Did she finish grade school?"

Farang 1: "No."

Me: "Is she or would she be generally looked down upon by successful and poorer Thais?"

Farang 1: "Yes, probably."

Me: "Is she generally considered to be attractive by her own people's standards?"

Farang 1: "No, not at all. She's generally considered to be 'throw away'."

Me: "Where did you meet your wife?"

Farang 2: "I met her while she was working in Soi Cowboy in between shifts servicing other diseased Farangs and Thais."

Me: "Can she read Thai?"

Farang 2: "Barely."

Me: "Did she finish grade school?"

Farang 2: "No."

Me: "Is she or would she be generally looked down upon by successful and poorer Thais?"

Farang 2: "Yes, probably."

Me: "Is she generally considered to be attractive by her own people's standards?"

Farang 2: "No, not at all. She's generally considered to be 'throw away'."

etc.

At some point it's more efficient for me to just assume that when I see a disgusting-looking, fat, poorly spoken, sloppy, seemingly not very bright, seemingly unaccomplished, poorly dressed Farang who is not interested in learning really anything about Thai culture, who can't speak more than a handful of Thai words and who has no interest for improving, who perhaps used to be a low paid, unskilled worker back in his country or origin

who

is married to a darker skin Thai woman who comes from Issan, and dresses a certain way, and talks a certain way in Thai and in English (whose Thai often wouldn't be highly regarded by even Thais), who is poorly educated, who, for some reason that is beyond me, along with her Farang husband MUST hold hands while walking (although the majority of other kinds of couples don't seem to be required to do this in this godawfully hot place ...

There is a statistically significant chance that they are a certain kind of couple. And, when it turns out that I was right, could I have known simply by looking at them? Of course not. But, this is what we call educated guessing and useful stereotyping. Try living a day without stereotyping and see how far you get. It's a (sad or great -- depending on how you view it) fact of human life and evolution. Many scientists have argued that it was entirely necessary for our survival.

See, you are supposed to be a sophisticated Western guy who is beyond all these Thai and third world Voodoo beliefs about ethnic and racial superiority theories that went out with the Third Reich. Instead you have bought into a recent Thai myth about Chinese families somehow being prettier, more honest and hi so than normal Thai families.

In fact, what is different about people like me and people who are more simple is that I may utilize the stereotypes as a fundamental starting point when a certain set of criteria has been established. However, I am not so rigid that I would allow the initial stereotype to trump further evidences of people being outside of it/different. Also, I did not say that the things I posted were MY beliefs; I said they seemed to be, on average, THAIS beliefs about their own Thai-Chinese populace. Important distinction, I think you would agree.

EDIT:

I'm checking out of following this one. I think we got some good feedback and answers to the OP. To each his/her own. Enjoy the week everyone.

Were are all these guys they lament about? I don't ever see anyone making forums talking about "My wife is Thai Chineese and she's better than all you lo-so essan bar girl spouces" But yet I see tons of guys complaining about men talking about their Thai-Chieense wives. It looks like they are just petty hating crabs, mad at the world because they settled for something that took less work to aquire and don't wanna see you shine.

Apples & Oranges man, ain't there room enough in the bowl for us all? Stop Hatin

Zatochi said, "I don't ever see anyone making forums talking about "My wife is Thai Chinese and she's better than all you lo-so essan bar girl spouses." But Zatochi just hasn't been reading the posts. Another poster said, "I'll respect your choices and any decent human being would, but I'll draw a line if you start trying to compare your bar girl to my wife." Another poster prefaces everything he says about his wife by referring to her as an exotic Thai Chinese.

To be fair, though, I would never and have never just made such posts without good reason. The forum topic is about this issue, so I gave an opinion. Never started a thread as such and never brought up the subject where it wasn't asked.

Interesting. I have pretty fond memories of north Vietnam. If nothing else, those wide walkable streets with people spitting sunflower seed shells all over the place and the decidedly more forward attitude of Vietnamese women was wonderful. Can't say I noticed the breasts though. As per my memory though, I don't think I can call Vietnamese girls cute, on average. They generally seemed quite frank and direct -- maybe a bit tough. Beautiful, though, yes.

However, there is nothing in Asia that can rival the bodies on Thai women.

IMO, on the whole, Vietnamese women have better bodies, but Thai women are prettier.

Hmmmm.... I also like Vietnamese girls, but I didn't really notice their bodies in the same way. Admittedly, I spent most of my time in northern Vietnam; not sure if there would be a discernable difference going south..

Yes, but, and for some of us who are forced into caring about this type of thing. It's one thing to know that this ridiculous superficiality is not in and of itself important, but it's another thing to know that image is indeed an important part of the game -- esp in these 3rd world countries where people are far more likely to judge a person at FACE value at least initially (and then even throughout much of a relationship). Indeed, many here in Thailand and similar as of yet developed countries know not how to judge to 'properly' judge a person (at least not in a way many of us Westerners would consider proper).

These things are as important here as they were in Europe and America a hundred - a couple hundred years ago. Sucks, but it's true. Who I marry can open/close doors for me here -- despite my own family history and background/accomplishments.

That's actually very quaint, kind of turning the tables on the old gold-digging accusation. How to select your spouse based on how her economic status and family connections can help my career.

I don't suppose you're Asian are you?

And before you get defensive, I'm not saying at all there's anything wrong with it, just funny to see when so many guys get on their high horse about women making their partnering decisions based on the same kind of material considerations.

I am not one of those guys who thinks anything is wrong with whoring oneself in the name of monetary reward. My life revolves around money. It's all I care about. It comes even before sex. I want to die a rich, unhappy man.

hmmm.....obviously the guys who think Chinese are cute havent stood next to a bus load of them at the airport or at King Power in BKK.......

If were talking women..thai and Vietnamese for me.

More my style right here. Chinese girls from Shanghai area are particularly beautiful. More delicate than real Thai girls. Silkier hair. However, there is nothing in Asia that can rival the bodies on Thai women.

I know, this is about cute and not sexy. But, Thai women can be sexy as heck (in terms of body appearance).

I would have thought it was simply because when people discuss their wives on this forum they may fear that others may perceive that 'they married a bar girl' and they may not want the prevailing notion to be that is what they did if they didn't so they go out of their way to mention 'Chinese-Thai' as a nod to 'my g/f isn't or wasn't a hooker'.

Granted not all darker skinned girls are hookers or want your money and not all fair skinned girls are innocent virgins but I always perceived the mentions of wives origins as letting others know they haven't married a hooker.

I am not married to a Thai but if I was and they weren't a former bar girl I may wonder if everyone thought my wife used to be a bar girl as it seems it's quite common

Nice post.

I suppose managing the perceptions of one's peers - even if you've never met them - is really important for those who measure themselves by life's more superficial benchmarks.

Who I marry can open/close doors for me here -- despite my own family history and background/accomplishments.

Yeah . . . . but not on Thaivisa

LOL! Right! Can't deny that at all.

No mate, that's Brussels sprouts named after the Belgian city; looks like your Ivy League education came up short if you can't spell where you live with your HiSo wife

OK, you got me. Sorry.

Note:

I thought about playing the game with you, but I anticipated that it wouldn't be much fun since we both know more-or-less how it's going to go.

You bait me. I rip you. You come back. Perhaps another guy joins in on either side. The mod comes in and deletes our stupid posts and issues us warnings. One or two 'responsible' posters make posts about getting back onto the topic. You and I get a bit upset that we typed these long-winded, silly posts that are now deleted and realize that we are powerless to get them back, and because we have no real interest in actually arguing our points with each other, rather than sending personal messages to each other, we instead just give up, more interested in selfishly feeding our individual boredom, ignoring each other for the rest of the day, and we get back to posting random, often silly things on an anonymous board.