skylar

I wouldn't classify any of the universities in Thailand as being an international university. When I think of international universities 9of calibre), I think of RMIT in Saigon or maybe Monash in South Africa or Malaysia.

Hmmm, I forgot to mention that Korean barbecue places in Sydney at least are really popular... mainly with Asian Australians though (not necessarily Korean) and farang who have Asian friends or connections to the Asian communities. I find Korean food to be very meaty; not at all similar to Thai or Vietnamese. It's like the Asian version of the meat and three veg English diet.

It isn't politically correct. It's the truth. There seems to be a lot of people out there who choose to conveniently ignore it and see what they want to see.

Yes, you do get bad eggs. One maid decided to keep some of my My Little Ponies. Then, I noticed that my Super Nintendo disappeared. My Swatch watch went missing. I was playing around the bar area once and I opened a disused cupboard to find... an empty crystal decanter wrapped in socks and a man's formal wear evening shirt!

Bad luck for you, khall. Maybe a few, well-laid rumours would be more effective? TIT, after all - the country thrives on gossip. In all honesty though, it's not just farangs who get burnt. A maid of my Thai teacher stole from her before she came to live in Australia. And I've heard the maid - male of the household relationship a couple of times as well.

asked her to be friends again: kind of wanting to initiate a relationship <snip>

She knows you don't really want to be her friend... your ulterior motives are as plain as day!

1. Do I still have a chance?

2. How can I win her back or what I should do?

1. No.

2. Give up.

My partner once told me that guys don't actually go away unless directly told by a female.

Indeed my Esaan family probably does aspire to all that Siam Para(dise)gon offers, this I do not deny..and it is preferable to a bar stool and smoke filled environment.

My statement intended to be a general comment on the up-market malls of this genre..sure in all capital cities,where sometimes the gap between rich and poor is not so evident/defined, these places exist...it just seems to me that whenever I am in Bangkok these monuments tend to be in ya face and truly western...guess I like the village market but did buy a 10 000 baht, beautiful shirt at Erawan Bangkok in one of their in ya face stores...just a baht away from a revolution: Dukkha

And so the truth comes out

When you take in a maid, it's like extending your family. Make sure your wife picks someone who's going to fit in, and be agreeable to you as well as her. You can't just order Thai staff around. It's more personal than that; it's like having a paid friend or surrogate relative or something like that.

I'm a little suprised with the farang perspectives on maids, as I wouldn't describe myself as feeling nervous or annoyed around a maid. It's nice to have someone to come home to, who's got a meal cooked for you and is playing with your pets. Also, Thai maids don't do absolutely everything. Your wife will do certain things for you and for herself.

There's benefits to having a family, but you do have to put out a bit more if they have children - it would be kind to pay for their school expenses, and it would be well received. In return they'll serve your family with utmost dedication. If you and your wife form no bond with your staff and pay them meanly, then they won't defend you from critics or protect your house from thieves (could be their visitors, your visitors, randoms living in the area and beyond). If you wanted a family, it's probably better to go with a young family (younger than you and your wife), so that proper deference can be maintained. My mother had problems with a maid (married, with children) who was older than she was.

The employer-employee relationship is so informal. I think about it in symbiotic terms - you need them, and they need you, and you are both working towards the same goal - a happy, healthy (and clean!) and efficiently run household.

You have to give them Thai holidays off, as well as one day off a week for a full time staff member. The New Year bonus is also traditional. I'm pretty sure a gardener would be fine for doing other tasks... they'll be glad for the extra work. I haven't heard of any cases where hospital cover has been provided... and I guess it's less important now with the 30 baht scheme. However, it is wise to have family compassion or sick days.

I, too, can attest to the fishing rod thing. But, oddly enough, when I was pregnant and hanging out with the fishing boys, they all wanted to touch my stomach and almost begged me to step over their fishing rods. Apparently pregnant women are good luck for fishermen??? Or, maybe there's something to that because when you're pregnant, the whole menstruation thing becomes a non issue and there's life growing inside your body. Who knows???

As long as you didn't sit on the stairs while you were pregnant... apparently that's meant to be something dreadful. Does anyone know why?

That is just gruesome.

There's many men in Australia who are nurses, and they wear trousers and a top... sorry, no sporrans allowed. Child care and teaching are also in demand, particularly for men, and yes, there are a number of men in both of these occupations as well.

I was under the impression that the word 'Thai' is a common component of Thai-Chinese surnames.

I was 11 when my father announced to our family that we were moving to Bangkok at the end of 1992. I had no idea where Thailand was, or what to expect. My father showed me on a map where it was in relation to England, and I don't even think I was suprised or concerned.

My most vivid memory was seeing so many people in the arrivals hall and meeting our driver for the first time. He led us out of Don Muang into the open air and the first thing I experienced was the humidity and heat that literally slapped me in the face the moment I stepped out of the airport!

Donz, he already knows where to go, he just has nobody to go with. Since you're familiar with these places, you can help him out...

You may find that there will be more demand for your German skills than your English skills. Why not try the following to give you some options:

Thai - German Chamber of Commerce at http://www.gtcc.org/

Thai - Swiss Chamber of Commerce at http://www.swissthai.com/

Goethe Institut Bangkok at http://www.goethe.de/ins/th/ban/deindex.htm

Deutschsprachige Shule Bangkok at http://www.dssb.org/

Christliche Deutsche Schule Chiang Mai at http://www.cdscm.org/

German Embassy Bangkok - Leben und Arbeiten in Thailand - has some info on German schools at http://www.bangkok.diplo.de/de/04/Leben__u...terbereich.html

There's also this rather unhumourous TV thread: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...pic=21423&st=15

Good luck!

I can't believe nobody has suggested this one: marry an Australian!

The problem is this is the last place my friends want to visit.

Ouch.

Now that's a funny camping misadventure, skylar. You should have joined the Boy Scouts.

Hmm, after reading numerous articles about Thai kids who mysteriously disappeared during their scouting trips, I'm glad I didn't have the opportunity to join

You missed the boat when we had this discussion Also, the Songkran festival is at Tumbalong Park (Darling Harbour) in mid-April, so keep your eyes peeled for any announcements.

Here's the thread. Happy hunting! http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=61664&st=0

A lot of Westerners don't like the concept of suki... I explained it to some people from work when we were trying to decide where to go out, and they all looked horrified and didn't like the idea at all. I admit that I was pretty suprised.

Are you sure that wasn't from excessive amounts of beer?!?

Nice one, suegha. Beer isn't my bag, though - I'm a tequila or vodka drinker. I just think I ate way too much.

Prolonged use of laxatives means that her intestines won't do any work for themselves and she will have to rely on them to go to the bathroom eventually. Not nice.

I thought whiskey was Irish and whisky was what was made anywhere else.

so, they always put some sugar in their bread, which is too much for westerners. it is pretty same in any other part of Asia I think.

Thais always put some sugar in everything that can possibly have sugar added to it.

The next time I go back to Thailand, I won't eat so many spicy dishes as I developed heartburn that lasted for 2 weeks as well as putting on heaps of weight - I came back a real porker. Mai suay!

They look like the eggs of a quail... tasty

I don't see how farangs living in the countryside can be classed as exploitation of local resources, and don't see what is so belittling about it. There are 'rich' and 'poor' Thais as well as farangs in Thai cities, Thai regional areas and overseas.