Some One Please Explain This To Me, It's Bull S....

[Aujuba]

Sounds like the Beverly Hillbillies!

[lazeeboy]

Hi All,

I'rd just like to start by saying i'm not bashing every Thai as i have a fantastic girlfreind with a baby due on the 5th of october and i really can't wait as i truly beleive it will be the best thing whats ever happened to me at my young or not so young age of 29 years old.

Today i had to do one of my 90 day visa runs to the lovely poi pet border, leaving Thailand was no problem and every thing was going smoothly. Once we had to enter the Kingdom again it was a nightmare!!! there was this tiny little hitler telling all these Cambodians bi bi or go go to a different line, after all this had happened all the lines were reshuffled to the amazment of the westerners who thought he'd done a half decent job he'd turned out to be a power controling freak! After being in the new line (next to the Thai line) there was another line opened for Thais, to many peoples supprise the Thais standing at the back of the cue had run full pace to the new one including an old lady who was left on the floor with no help from her fellow country persons. I mean what the .... is going on there???

Two days ago i went to tesco's and the crap you have to deal with there what with people leaving there trollys in the middle of the ile why there looking and the family of 10 who've only come to try the free sample's. Then theres the 5+ people who are looking around but don't even have a hand basket between them. I've even seen the kids racing up and down in trollys, whould you let your children do this? Like ride around on a bike with a price tag on it knowing full well your not going to pay for it, or go for a work out on the exersise bikes?

Dose anyone understand the BIG jump in there socitiey with these matters, if so please help me to understand as my little will be half.

Many thanks and kind regards.

Chris.

take a chill pill,these things happen at home too,you just didnt go shopping enough

[ashacat]

Try shopping in "Marketplace" on Tonglor. It is far less stressful than Tesco and Carrefour et al.

[jaede]

LOL Yeah right the guy is only 29 .... not yet married ... not yet a father ... but the stress of going to the western style grocery stresses him out? That is a guy that just aint cut out for living in Thailand!

What the hel_l does his age, marital status, if he is a father or not got to do with being cut out to live in Thailand...??? Supermarkets stress me out, <deleted> it places full of half educated, disrespectful morons in any country stresses me out, but I live in Thailand just fine.

Have a feeling he was just venting his frustrations.... Like so many do!!! Give the guy a break... or just ingore him and go back to your bottle of chang and go feed your buffalo

Edited June 14, 2007 by jaede

[lannarebirth]

OP,

You blow into Thailand, and get a woman pregnant...and then you complain that someone who puts a shopping cart in the middle of a store aisle is impolite. What are you, a comedian?

Best you peddle your insights elsewhere. Irony is neither understood or appreciated here.

[a2396]

LOL Yeah right the guy is only 29 .... not yet married ... not yet a father ... but the stress of going to the western style grocery stresses him out? That is a guy that just aint cut out for living in Thailand!

What the hel_l does his age, marital status, if he is a father or not got to do with being cut out to live in Thailand...??? Supermarkets stress me out, <deleted> it places full of half educated, disrespectful morons in any country stresses me out, but I live in Thailand just fine.

Have a feeling he was just venting his frustrations.... Like so many do!!! Give the guy a break... or just ingore him and go back to your bottle of chang and go feed your buffalo

"places full of half educated, disrespectful morons". SE USA or Alaska has got Thailand beat any day on this one. Oh yes and don't forget to add belligerant & arrogant, fortunately lacking among most Thais.

[duke69]

....for a illegal immigrant in LOS, cheating law and abusing of a weak run-out and run-in system....you should be a little bit more flexible, after all do you want the Thai to keep you in LOS and change according to your standards too??

In Rome do as romans, and if you don't like there is home with mum and dad waiting 4 your come back

[sukanyacondo]

I cant afford a Ferrari or 60 foot boat yet do you think any owners would mind if I used it??

Seriously, equating "using" another persons possesions can hardly relate to sampling free promotional food that is budgeted for or given by the products company. I also hardly think "borrowing" the use of a bike/other play thing etc for a short time relates either.

If you are going to make a point, at least use a thought out comparison that holds some weight.

Hmm maybe an extreme example but it still applies. I wasnt talking about the free promotional food Ill eat a s much of that as they want to give me.

[kmart]

OP,

You blow into Thailand, and get a woman pregnant...and then you complain that someone who puts a shopping cart in the middle of a store aisle is impolite. What are you, a comedian?

Best you peddle your insights elsewhere. Irony is neither understood or appreciated here.

"Oh yes it is!" *audience retort*

A commodity rarer here than rocking-horse poop maybe, but all the more valuable for it, imo.

[sukanyacondo]

well by the time that 30 odd kids have bashed the carp out of the "new" toys on display they are not exactly new anymore are they?

Its a shop not a playground.......

ouch, bashed by a fellow scot.

Hah, but anyway, i guess i see your point on that one. However, i still stick with not finding the point made by sukanyacondo as exactly fitting to what i said. A tad extreme comparison imo.

I guess it boils down to the fact i dont really mind tbh, poss because i dont shop in supermarkets enough to have it irk me.

Is your avatar who i think it is????? you mean you're an avid "Roobarb" fan too???

[Etrigan]

....and what exactly do you plan to do when your baby is born and the lot of you go to your local Tesco, and....wait for it.......... everybody starts touching your beautiful child's head? And I mean EVERYBODY.

They will.

My kids, my friends kids, all the same. Heck, one woman almost picked him up out of his pram. This is normal behaviour here. You have to accept it if you want to assimilate (sorry couldn't resist), I mean, fit in.

And in answer to your question, I do let my boys ride Tesco bikes that I have no intention of buying, why? Because in this country, nobody minds! The local Tesco manager loves my kids, unlike his Western based counterparts. Live and let live. This is not the west. When in Thailand, do as the Thais. Simple.

[t.s]

With regards to the supermarket..Isnt it the possibility that some Thais go for entertainment because they are poor?

I don't think we should begrudge a child riding a bike for a short while(when it is something the family could never afford for him/her) or families going just to sample free luxury food.

agreed.

but then i wouldn't be caught dead in a Tesco either way.

[t.s]

OP,

You blow into Thailand, and get a woman pregnant...and then you complain that someone who puts a shopping cart in the middle of a store aisle is impolite. What are you, a comedian?

Best you peddle your insights elsewhere. Irony is neither understood or appreciated here.

i beg to differ.

though i see no irony in this remark

Edited June 14, 2007 by t.s

[kayo]

I am just SO fed up with people abandoning supermarket trolleys at Thai immigration on the Cambodian border crossing and the checkout girl at Tesco Lotus demanding to see my passport.

I mean !

<deleted> !

Chris congrats on the forthcoming baby.

I get your rants, but I disagree. Change the things you can and don't worry about the things you cannot change dude.

Why not make an honest woman out of the mother of your child?

Then ensure that child grows up educated, and doesn't become one of the people you complain about.

[LinkPopularity]

wow, complaining about kids in the Lotus ???

first of all, to me it's just 1 more reason why I walk around here with a smile on my face !

but then again, if those non-problems already p!sses you off, what's going to happen when you get confronted with a real problem ???

[eek]

Is your avatar who i think it is????? you mean you're an avid "Roobarb" fan too???

Hah yes, it is Custard Crazy cat.

Edited June 14, 2007 by eek

[Furbie]

I love the people who blame the poor behavior of Thais in places like Tesco on Thai culture.

According to my tour book: An often overlooked part of any visit to Thailand is a trip to the local hypermarket, where you can witness Thais in their native garb engaging in the centuries old Thai activity of completely screwing up the shopping experience by placing their trolleys sideways in the middle of an aisle, letting their children run amok, walking around for hours at the world's slowest pace so they can enjoy some air conditioning, and generally getting in the way of people trying to shop. NOT.

What you need to remember is that the hypermarket, the large department store, even the escalator are relatively new to Thailand – you basically have a society that is one generation away from the rice paddy – and in many cases still on the rice paddy. In the village, you really don't need to get out of people's way. What you witness in Tesco is basically a society facing extreme growing pains as modernization proceeds at a very rapid pace in a fairly traditional county. They are not intentionally leaving the trolley there, they just don't know any better.

Though I will admit, one of my biggest issues with Thai society is the lack of courtesy. Thais are amazingly polite people in face to face situations. However, when a Thai has no investment in someone – meaning they are not a customer, friend, relative, colleague or acquaintance - they generally have very little concern for the other person. Clearly, this is not a trait found only in Thais, but can be very frustrating to Westerners who generally try to avoid inconveniencing others. Westerners will hold a door open, we will leave a seat open between us and the next person if there is room, we will respect a queue, we will (generally) keep the volume down, etc. Thais, on the other hand, sometimes appear to go out of their way to inconvenience others.

You really need to remind yourself that they are not doing it to annoy you. In fact, if you ask a Thai to move their trolley they will likely be amazed that you can't get by and move it straight away. That being said, I never shop on a Sunday.

[lannarebirth]

OP,

You blow into Thailand, and get a woman pregnant...and then you complain that someone who puts a shopping cart in the middle of a store aisle is impolite. What are you, a comedian?

Best you peddle your insights elsewhere. Irony is neither understood or appreciated here.

i beg to differ.

though i see no irony in this remark

I think iit's ironic, but you may use sardonic if you prefer.

[hgvneil]

I think the OP has a long steep road road ahead of him.Learn to chill out or it will keep getting steeper.

[PRGUY]

Sorry but I am begginning to think that my English and communications skills must be getting worst, I could not really decipher what the OP was trying to say and yet I see so many replies....can someone decipher for me.

[v8tfcorty]

ive been here since last november and commute 6 days a week from pattaya to laem chabang..

a lot of things piss me off and the whole shopping thing is one, not to mention driving daily..

ignorance to your surroundings seems to work for me especially whilst driving... they dont like being cut-off or denied to push infront.

i tried common courtesy whilst driving but that just added 20 mins to the trip to work ... now its go hard or go home..

Edited June 14, 2007 by v8tfcorty

[soundman]

ive been here since last november and commute 6 days a week from pattaya to laem chabang..

a lot of things piss me off and the whole shopping thing is one, not to mention driving daily..

ignorance to your surroundings seems to work for me especially whilst driving... they dont like being cut-off or denied to push infront.

i tried common courtesy whilst driving but that just added 20 mins to the trip to work ... now its go hard or go home..

Forget driving farang style. Learn Thai style. Here are a few pointers:

I am more important than everybody else - clear the road.

Who cares about getting caught speeding - that's just a mild annoyance which you may be able to talk you way out off anyway.

I am in front - If you're behind it is up to you to avoid me.

My car is more expensive than yours - get out of the way.

Red light - mai bpen rai, I'm late for work.

Indicators - What's the point, as i'm so important, everybody should know where I'm going & react accordingly.

Rubbish - Better out than in, wind down the window & let it fly, someone will pick it up.

Fortuners - The current fad until the economy improves & everybody can buy benz's again.

Road rules - Something to be forgotten when walking away with your new liscense.

Cheers,

Soundman.

[frikkiedeboer]

Hi All,

I'rd just like to start by saying i'm not bashing every Thai as i have a fantastic girlfreind with a baby due on the 5th of october and i really can't wait as i truly beleive it will be the best thing whats ever happened to me at my young or not so young age of 29 years old.

Today i had to do one of my 90 day visa runs to the lovely poi pet border, leaving Thailand was no problem and every thing was going smoothly. Once we had to enter the Kingdom again it was a nightmare!!! there was this tiny little hitler telling all these Cambodians bi bi or go go to a different line, after all this had happened all the lines were reshuffled to the amazment of the westerners who thought he'd done a half decent job he'd turned out to be a power controling freak! After being in the new line (next to the Thai line) there was another line opened for Thais, to many peoples supprise the Thais standing at the back of the cue had run full pace to the new one including an old lady who was left on the floor with no help from her fellow country persons. I mean what the .... is going on there???

Two days ago i went to tesco's and the crap you have to deal with there what with people leaving there trollys in the middle of the ile why there looking and the family of 10 who've only come to try the free sample's. Then theres the 5+ people who are looking around but don't even have a hand basket between them. I've even seen the kids racing up and down in trollys, whould you let your children do this? Like ride around on a bike with a price tag on it knowing full well your not going to pay for it, or go for a work out on the exersise bikes?

Dose anyone understand the BIG jump in there socitiey with these matters, if so please help me to understand as my little will be half.

Many thanks and kind regards.

Chris.

be grateful you dont live in an isaan village. i love the life, and have gotten used to, and "grin and bear it" when the locals invade my privacy,my house, park their new pickup so it obstructs my driveway- or the whole soy, graze their buffalo on my newly planted lawn, throw their litter in the street outside my home and generally show no consideration for anybody else, but there is one thing that has earned a couple of them a crack along the side of the head: i just cannot believe that isaan "males" of all ages see nothing wrong in putting their hands down my son's pants, in fact seem to have a fascination about small boys' penises. this was an almost daily occurrence when i first got to the village, and it happened right in front of me! i have "trained" a few of them, and thankfully the word has spread, and it doesn't happen anymore. i will and do tolerate, and accept and make excuses for almost any of their other transgressions, and put it down to cultural differences, lack of : education; breeding; respect etc, but nobody must try to tell me that molesting a small child should be tolerated "because i am a guest in their country"! it is no wonder there are so many "gender confused" boys in our village- they recieve an early training! i sit in wait for anybody to post in defense of this practise, and dare anybody to tell me to "accept it or get out of thailand!"

frikkie

Edited June 14, 2007 by frikkiedeboer

[PeaceBlondie]

Sometimes, after reading a thread on ThaiVisa, I am tempted to get out my passport and check which country I'm in. Earlier this week, at the biggest outdoor market in Moscow, I was repeatedly pulled into market stalls in a manner which would have gotten the vendor soundly thrashed in America. When Tesco finally arrived in Hua Hin, I rejoiced that I no longer had to squeeze my way past the useless employees who clogged the aisle at the previous excuse for a 'supermarket.' I always enjoy the wide aisles at Tesco, which after all is a BRITISH grocery chain.

To the OP: I hope your little rant here was an exception to your normal behavior, because if you react like this to the Thai culture every day, you'll be a raving lunatic before you become a father. And guess who are often the worst behaved people in tourist areas......

I hope you soon learn to enjoy Thailand and Thais..... especially since your family will soon be 50% Thai

[November Rain]

When Tesco finally arrived in Hua Hin, I rejoiced that I no longer had to squeeze my way past the useless employees who clogged the aisle at the previous excuse for a 'supermarket.' I always enjoy the wide aisles at Tesco, which after all is a BRITISH grocery chain.

PB, I think they must have recruited some staff from that other "supermarket", or at least had their staff over for a "training" day! Now, the aisles may be wider, but the gossipping staff are just as bad as in the other place. Take into account that the shelf filling equipment is larger & there are more staff to stand around & gossip, and you have exactly the same problem! Seriously! On a busy day, there is absolutely no difference trying to negotiate your way around either place!

Hope you're doing well & getting some well-earned R&R.

[Jet Gorgon]

You must turn American in these cases and use your trolley as a weapon. Like a tank steaming down the aisles. Saying "Nong" also worked for me (ie, I'm here and want to go through, get TF outta the way. Please.)

One of my pups did Tesco once. I parked in the shade, rolled down the windows, said "stay", and then she followed me in. Not my fault the auto doors opened for her, was it? I saw her checking out dog treats in aisle 22. (Oh, sh***t.) She cruised the shop, paid special attention to the meat section and then ran for "mom" when the security guards started chasing her. Obviously, "not my dog" did not work when the little sh*t caught up with me at the checkout counter. Still, got great service, NR. They just wanted me and the mutt outta there. Try it. You got 150 of 'em, right?

[November Rain]

^^ I'm obviously far too polite, Jet. My "Ka tort ka" (sp?) is getting me absolutely nowhere! Will try the tank approach

[PeaceBlondie]

NRain, I'm sorry to hear that the staff have gotten that bad; it must be in the drinking water.

When I'm impatient, I'm a mover and a shaker. If a trolley is in my way, I walk over and move it. I never had the nerve to move one that was being held by a motionless customer, but I might some day. Same way with motosais - just move them over and go on. You could try what worked for me on Soi Binabat one night - shouting at the top of my lungs!!

[Boon Mee]

NRain, I'm sorry to hear that the staff have gotten that bad; it must be in the drinking water.

When I'm impatient, I'm a mover and a shaker. If a trolley is in my way, I walk over and move it. I never had the nerve to move one that was being held by a motionless customer, but I might some day. Same way with motosais - just move them over and go on. You could try what worked for me on Soi Binabat one night - shouting at the top of my lungs!!

And the important thing is to keep smiling all the time - a sincere smile.

Might have to work on that bit but it can be done.

[Maigo6]

i sit in wait for anybody to post in defense of this practise, and dare anybody to tell me to "accept it or get out of thailand!"

frikkie

Freaky the bore ,

if that happened to my son, I would press charges of sexual assault.

If that would not get anywhere in the society I was living in, I would change the society I was living in for my sons sake.

Or do you accept it, oh no, you smack the local guys in the head instead ..............

You must be really popular in your village.