Georgette, darl, I am not sure you are the right person to be conducting this study. Every second topic you post is about strangers talking to you, looking at you, asking questions, sitting at your table, commenting on your luggage, asking about your nail polish, or generally failing to leave you alone. Now suddenly you are looking for the friendliest town in Thailand. For heaven’s sake, pick a lane, sister. The ideal location for you appears to be a place where everyone is extremely friendly but also never speaks to you. A sort of socially advanced village where people wave from a safe distance, admire your high viz vest, respect your toothpaste analysis work, acknowledge you are on an important data collection mission, and then immediately bugger off before conversation becomes necessary. I suspect if you moved to the friendliest village in Thailand, by day three there would be a new topic. “Why do all these friendly people keep saying hello to me?” Then another. “Why can’t people in my village simply leave other people alone?” Then another. “Extroverts need boundaries. Too much friendliness is no good.” Personally I think the friendliest place for you would be a small island with three residents. One retired bookshop owner. One ladyboy, maybe two just in case extra assistance is required. And one sweaty expat in a Chang singlet living quietly in a one bedroom dump at least 300 meters away. That gives you enough people for statistical analysis without becoming overwhelmed by unnecessary social interaction. Perfect balance, girlfriend. Friendly enough to observe. Not friendly enough to actually interact.
