Any "This is Thailand" Stories?

[Jelli]

10 hours ago, zzaa09 said:

It is quite pathetic and telling regarding those long-timers that haven't bothered acquiring the acclimation skills that should come natural.....

Will always be considered ignorant, unknowledgeable and disconnected Farang.

Unfortunately, reflective of all too many here.  

Ignorant by whom lol? The only Thai that are educated are those with professional degrees. Even then, medical professionals, engineer especially in Thailand but even home countries are not educated in a classical sense. They aren't even well schooled in their own history and culture.

 

Your posts are just hollow and condescending.

[likerdup1]

1 hour ago, Jelli said:

Things that have proven issues and obstacles in becoming more proficient in Thai

 

While I have spent the last 15 years in Thailand the 15 before that was spread out living in three other countries with as good or better language skills than my Thai. I've lived in seven countries each no less than 18 months.

 

I'm vested in nothing here other than my wife. No citizenship, not even PR. Grovel for annual extension.

 

You'll never have a meaningful conversation with a Thai other than your partner so it's chit chat and utility

 

My wife had good reason to learn English. Communicate better with me, travel outside Thailand, communicate with my family which she has visited often and in their homes, skill that if she gets retired at 55 (to 60) English is a marketable skill.

 

My Thai is sufficient enough to get most things done. Many Thai too quick to compliment. I'm lost in government offices, hospital, bank but probably be ok if I acquired that vocabulary.

 

Given what's going on in Thailand and in the world it's not implausible we end up back in the US. It would not be my first choice and my wife even sees how broken it is but the world is in a mess and the future is quite uncertain.

 

Finally, going back to my second point. I had a friend that lived in China for years. He was all about China and Chinese culture down to the tea thing. He was a strong hsk3 and believed he could hit 4 - but he bolted. Between the hassles of schools stealing from him, visa hassles, costs with relocation changing jobs and finally just having enough...he left. Every minute of study, every ounce of effort just wasted energy and life.

 

Having said all this I don't disagree with your post. I'm going to regroup and study up again but there will always be limits.

 

I had a good shot at PR due to my job and marriage but at 5 years and 200k this is a silly fool's errand. As for citizenship same story.

 

Everyone has excuses and those are mine

I'm by no means fluent, but have enough experience and study to for instance rent a condo from a Thai who knows no English. Be able to have some conversation with Thai owners of my favorite restaurant. If I run into a pretty Thai girl who smiles at me but knows no English i can talk with her a bit, get her number, find some things about her and setup a date. On the other hand, if I watch Thai news.. I get about %50 of what they are saying. I'm by no means fluent but I made effort to learn 10 years ago and make an effort to speak Thai with Thai people whenever I can.

I find it especially useful to do things like compliment the service I get from hotel staff, be gracious for help I might get at a store or restaurant.

As you have illustrated many Thais will compliment me saying in Thai... wow, you know a lot of Thai. I find it goes a long way to show that at least some foreigners are not bombastic insensitive and arrogant people expecting, as guests in Thailand for Thai people to cater to them and tolerate their ignorance of Thai culture, etiquette and language.

This actually makes me think of another funny thing I see sometime. Foreigners attempting to wai to Thais and failing miserably at doing it properly. LOL.. Like a foreigner making a monks wai to a Thai waitress! LOL

Advice: If you don't understand how to wai properly to Thai people.. either look it up on Google or don't do it at all!

Edited October 14, 2023 by likerdup1

[safarimike11]

14 hours ago, SingAPorn said:

A friend who bought a brand new house  from a reputed place in Hua Hin is having a nightmare with all the issues depiste the so called snag list being handed out just after the COVID.

 

By what I understood, the (farang)  developpers mainly try to push to make the buyer shell out more money for "upgrades" and do not respect or seem to care on the initial agreements during the construction.

 

They also can  try to dissuade the owner's claims and say that this or that is not necessary to be replaced, Reactivity can take months before comming over to do the repairs on the snag lists. Never buy or even rent in such places. Obviously all places are not the same. But no point in taking a useless risk with one's life's savings,

This is what my wife has always said: If you have the money/time/knowledge, buy a plot of land and have your house built. I live on a muban that was built in 2010, when we bought the house. The workers were Cambodian, so what did they care? The muban was - as is often the case - built on a rice paddy. I had the grass - on 3 sides - dug up and had my own Thai builder lay tiles on the 3 sides - one at a time, with a sand base, rebar wired into a grid, 8 cm of concrete (concrete mixer truck) and the tiles laid when the concrete had set. However, we still had/have cracks and gaps all around the base of the house, which I have filled in periodically. The owners who didn't do what I did - and just left the grass - have it much more serious. I won't bother including pictures, but in some cases, the house looks like an island surrounded by sunken grass. Also, around a year after moving, all 4 external walls of the house developed hairline cracks all over. My wife - who used to work in the office of a large national house-builder, said that they used "80% cement, meaning that the other 20% (of the cement) was sand. These cracks were potched up by the same Cambodian workers who built the houses, hence the repair lasted around 2 years before all the same cracks returned. I got my wife's nephew, who was then aged 17, to do the job again under my supervision. It took him about a month and as payment I gave him my Ninja 300 motorbike. As for the plumbing, I have dealt with all the burst underground pipes myself. (All the weak joints eventually failed due to my installing a pump). As for and electrical, my wife's brother - who is a real electrician - rewired where necessary and replaced most of the circuit breakers, that were underrated and kept tripping. The guy next door, who bought the house with a mortgage from his bank, had to have the top of his roof replaced; we got those builders to do the same repairs to my roof for a few thousand baht.

[safarimike11]

13 hours ago, 1FinickyOne said:

let's hope your brain doesn't explode all over the forum... 

 

but, you do have me curious

You are one funny guy; ever considered actually writing something of value on here?

[safarimike11]

20 hours ago, 2baht said:

Oh wow! What an experience! ????

Your posts are just hollow and condescending.

[2baht]

2 minutes ago, safarimike11 said:

Your posts are just hollow and condescending.

What should I do, Mike? ????

[safarimike11]

Just now, 2baht said:

What should I do, Mike? ????

I personally recommend Decongestyl suppositories.

[2baht]

3 minutes ago, safarimike11 said:

I personally recommend Decongestyl suppositories.

????Not bad Mike, a bit hollow and condescending. It's a pity only few take any notice of you! ????

 

 

Edited October 14, 2023 by 2baht

[safarimike11]

6 minutes ago, 2baht said:

????Not bad Mike, a bit hollow and condescending. It's a pity only few take any notice of you! ????

 

 

Write something of value on here - go on, you know it makes sense.

[safarimike11]

2 minutes ago, safarimike11 said:

Write something of value on here - go on, you know it makes sense.

Oh well, never mind.

[Jelli]

4 hours ago, Jelli said:

Things that have proven issues and obstacles in becoming more proficient in Thai

 

While I have spent the last 15 years in Thailand the 15 before that was spread out living in three other countries with as good or better language skills than my Thai. I've lived in seven countries each no less than 18 months.

 

I'm vested in nothing here other than my wife. No citizenship, not even PR. Grovel for annual extension.

 

You'll never have a meaningful conversation with a Thai other than your partner so it's chit chat and utility

 

My wife had good reason to learn English. Communicate better with me, travel outside Thailand, communicate with my family which she has visited often and in their homes, skill that if she gets retired at 55 (to 60) English is a marketable skill.

 

My Thai is sufficient enough to get most things done. Many Thai too quick to compliment. I'm lost in government offices, hospital, bank but probably be ok if I acquired that vocabulary.

 

Given what's going on in Thailand and in the world it's not implausible we end up back in the US. It would not be my first choice and my wife even sees how broken it is but the world is in a mess and the future is quite uncertain.

 

Finally, going back to my second point. I had a friend that lived in China for years. He was all about China and Chinese culture down to the tea thing. He was a strong hsk3 and believed he could hit 4 - but he bolted. Between the hassles of schools stealing from him, visa hassles, costs with relocation changing jobs and finally just having enough...he left. Every minute of study, every ounce of effort just wasted energy and life.

 

Having said all this I don't disagree with your post. I'm going to regroup and study up again but there will always be limits.

 

I had a good shot at PR due to my job and marriage but at 5 years and 200k this is a silly fool's errand. As for citizenship same story.

 

Everyone has excuses and those are mine

To add one more additional issue... Thai is not English, Chinese or Spanish. It's not used whatsoever outside the nation's borders.

 

Here's a bonus. Thailand is imo moving backwards not forwards economically and politically. Things have not been functional since about 2004-5.

[BritManToo]

17 hours ago, SingAPorn said:

A friend who bought a brand new house  from a reputed place in Hua Hin is having a nightmare with all the issues depiste the so called snag list being handed out just after the COVID.

 

By what I understood, the (farang)  developpers mainly try to push to make the buyer shell out more money for "upgrades" and do not respect or seem to care on the initial agreements during the construction.

 

They also can  try to dissuade the owner's claims and say that this or that is not necessary to be replaced, Reactivity can take months before comming over to do the repairs on the snag lists. Never buy or even rent in such places. Obviously all places are not the same. But no point in taking a useless risk with one's life's savings,

Been in the same Moobaan 3  bed house for the past 10 years from new.

Snag list, incoming wires from meter reversed, septic tank lid not screwed down.

No other real problems, wire to the gate light failed, incoming water pipe joint broke under the kitchen patio, few tiles off in a really bad storm, kitchen sink waste pipe blocked and had to dig it out ...... that's about it, completely happy with the house.

Edited October 14, 2023 by BritManToo

[1FinickyOne]

3 hours ago, safarimike11 said:

You are one funny guy; ever considered actually writing something of value on here?

only when warranted - - otherwise laughter is good medicine.