What is it with female shop workers in Thailand.  This morning I had to visit, The Post Office, Tesco, Big C and a shopping mall.  Universally, the females in the shops, and they were all female,  were miserable, unsmiling and slow. Tesco was by far the worst, as it always is.  What is it with these people? They look suicidal most of the time.  Walking past a lot of other shops, same thing, female staff standing around looking bored, miserable and hacked off.  Land of Smiles, maybe somewhere, but not around here today, or any other day.  Came home before I succumbed to depression.  The tourist people need to change their strap line to " The land of maybe you will get a Smile, if you're very Lucky".  Not as catchy I admit, but more truthful. 

An episode of QI that had David Mitchell on as a guest sums it up for me.

 

I might be wrong but as far as I remember you live in Pattaya?

Smiles not everywhere, yes so true.

Should you be surprised? No.

 

May have something to do with the large seizure of dildos a couple of weeks ago and 2nd hand market unappealing but just guessing here

Or they have turned their frown upside down and its got lost in translation????

i usually wave my left hip in a forward motion that sets

other body parts in motion sideways, it breaks the ice without fail

I would be pissed off too having to stand about all day,

for a pittance of a wage,but it helps a lot if you smile

first, When I first came here 30 years ago,everyone 

seemed to smile at you,young ladies and that never

happened to me in the West...but Thais seem a lot

angrier now ,not so many smiles,and drivers ready 

to kick off if you sound your horn at them when

they have nearly took the front of your car off by

cutting in front of you.

regards worgeordie

1 hour ago, KhunBENQ said:

I might be wrong but as far as I remember you live in Pattaya?

Smiles not everywhere, yes so true.

Should you be surprised? No.

 

Rayong, but it was Pattaya. 

I've noticed a dip in the mood post-election. I would put it to everyone, whatever their political persuasion, being pissed with the outcome,.

 

I tried a light-hearted, Unhappy with the elections, eh, with an attendant at a club and he looked away and froze. Situation's bad enough to not have to take shit from a stupid farang. Never tried that trick again.

yes, there are times when it can seem "loss of smiles". BUT as noted by others, minimum wage etc, and none of us are happy all the time, if we all walked around with beaming grins there would be those wondering about that too.

 

In my experience, if you smile first its usually returned. 

Talking about smiles, what about the "wai?"   It's just about extinct.

2 hours ago, Pilotman said:

Rayong, but it was Pattaya. 

I don't want to say it's only Pattaya, but (globalized) mass tourism spoils the mood at most every such place in the world.

Just look/watch what people they have to deal with.

So many arrogant, frozen faced people, shouting if no one understands their language. Holding up the queues with general counseling on mobile phone handling or whatever at the 7/11 cashier (dressed only with trunks). So many examples...

Sure you can get a smile if you approach in a friendly manner but not guaranteed.

 

 

Just now, KhunBENQ said:

I don't want to say it's only Pattaya, but (globalized) mass tourism spoils the mood at most every such place in the world.

Just look/watch what people they have to deal with.

So many arrogant, frozen faced people, shouting if no one understands their language. Holding up the queues with general counseling on mobile phone top-up or whatever at the 7/11 cashier (dressed only with trunks). So many examples...

Sure you can get a smile if you approach in a friendly manner but not guaranteed.

 

 

yes, it does seem more common in Pattaya, but Bangkok is getting as bad and as for Phuket, well, worse than anywhere I have ever been in Thailand. 

It is a very geographic specific thing. I find in the smaller cities, that most Thais are warm and friendly. It is very easy to get them to smile and laugh. In Pattaya, Samui and Phuket, it is worse. Those three spots have the most jaded Thais in the country. Bangkok is OK. I find for a huge city, the people there are pretty nice. 

 

But, they are also very intuitive, and they are very responsive to what you are putting out there. If you are friendly, warm, respectful, kind and light hearted, most Thais return that. If you are serious, they want nothing to do with you!

Talking about smiles, what about the "wai?"   It's just about extinct.

Good, might stop foreigners trying to imitate them, at all the wrong times.

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19 hours ago, worgeordie said:

I would be pissed off too having to stand about all day,

for a pittance of a wage,but it helps a lot if you smile

first, When I first came here 30 years ago,everyone 

seemed to smile at you,young ladies and that never

happened to me in the West...but Thais seem a lot

angrier now ,not so many smiles,and drivers ready 

to kick off if you sound your horn at them when

they have nearly took the front of your car off by

cutting in front of you.

regards worgeordie

You beat me to it.

When I first came to paradise, ladies were universally slim, DDG and smiled a lot. Now they are often chubby, plain and nobody smiles anymore. To be sure there are still slim, DDG girls, but despite their grandfathers working in sweat shops they think their <deleted> doesn't stink and the sun shines from their nether regions. If they smiled, their caked makeup would crack and fall off.

 

My last GF ( 2000 ) before I got married had the most wonderful smile. It was like the sun was rising behind her eyes. Sadly, my wife didn't have a smile like hers.

I do think that its alot to do with the Thai economy .

30 or so years ago , Thais were generally poor  , the people were bought up in poverty and everyone was happy to be working and earning money , previously in the mom & pop shops, restaurants, hotel ,shops, they were family businesses and genuinely happy to see felang customers spending money and improving their business , these days the workers are no longer family members in small businesses , they are likely to be employees on a monthly salary and have no qualms about whether to come back for repeat custom , their only concern is their monthly salary