Home Safety Against 'outsiders'; Advice Needed.......

[flying]

I keep my head down and keep going; never acknowledging them.

They must think that you are un unfriendly git. Smile and stop giving the "white" a bad name. Cycling to work is not Thai thing. What would a bunch of construction workers in the UK think if a Chinaman went past on a unicycle and ignored them? - there is no difference.

Man that was funny Thanks .....choked on my coffee

[flying]

They began shouting (and one started stumbling after me a little...) "What is it?" It is a book..... What is it? It is a ant".... what is it? It is a dog.." but shouting right down the street, louder than Thai's generally like to be (in my experience)....

Just my opinion but that is a little funny isn't it....

Seems like they definitely think you are a English teacher....Are You?

Do you speak some Thai too?

Would have been funny at that point to tell them in Thai how well their English was. No need to stop long just pause & Say something small like

Wow....Koon Poot Pasa Angrit ..!Dee Mak !!!

Ever notice no matter how bad a Falang screws up Thai that the Thai's always say

Wow you speak very well. I have always found that they are also very happy when

given any encouragement when they want to show you they can also speak your language.

Edited May 13, 2009 by flying

[monkfish]

I think they might just be curious?

Try these suggestions, see if the reaction is the same.

1. Wear jeans,t-shirt, flip flops etc put you briefcase or rucksack in a plastic bag, hang the plastic bag on the handlebars, smoke a cig whilst riding

and if possible use your cell phone at the same time. (this may take some practice)

2. Trade the bike in for a pick up, shave your head, get some tattoos.

If the reaction is the same get some security bars, dog etc.

[Sabum]

Those kinds of guys can be EXTREMELY dangerous, your gut feelings are not unfounded. I dont want to give out too much personal information here so I'll pm you MY tragic experience with construction workers working beside my foreign girlfriends apartment.

[sanook2me]

I think they might just be curious?

Try these suggestions, see if the reaction is the same.

1. Wear jeans,t-shirt, flip flops etc put you briefcase or rucksack in a plastic bag, hang the plastic bag on the handlebars, smoke a cig whilst riding

and if possible use your cell phone at the same time. (this may take some practice)

2. Trade the bike in for a pick up, shave your head, get some tattoos.

If the reaction is the same get some security bars, dog etc.

I love number 1.... don't forget wobble all over whilst peddling ....

[BigSnake]

I disagree with your putting all workers in the same little bad apple box, however you are so right on to be concern about the safety of yourself and the wife. Make sure she is aware of what's going own, secure doors and windows when home alone, alert neighbors and police of your concern. May I also suggest a small dog IF and only IF you and the wife can deal with the mess and give it proper care.

[johna]

Buy them nothing, they will see you as weak and ask for more.

Has your wife been verbally abused, no, so its only you they are winding up, if you can not solve the problem yourself, make a donation to your local police welfare fund and let them sort the problem.

Involving the police will earn you no ones respect.

[Ulysses G.]

Did you see Straw Dogs? You need lots of pans of boiling water.

[JoeThePoster]

That is odd....your comment about taking off the rose colored glasses suggests that you not only worry but are fearful that they are thinking something bad

I think you have confused me with the OP. The glasses seem to have blurred your thinking.

[thaihome]

Did you see Straw Dogs? You need lots of pans of boiling water.

TH

[Jonny B]

i too would not buy them anything, i had some labourers doing some work for me and did buy them beers on occasion to be nice and in the hope they would be nice and do a good job in return, instead they just took the piss, did a shit job and always requested beers at the end of the day. Be nice and find out what they are actually saying, if it is rude then talk to their supervisor and tell him if it continues you will get the head of police from your area to pay a visit, the supervisor definately wouldnt want that incase they are working iilegally.

[flying]

That is odd....your comment about taking off the rose colored glasses suggests that you not only worry but are fearful that they are thinking something bad

I think you have confused me with the OP. The glasses seem to have blurred your thinking.

Could be & it sure wouldnt be the first time

But no biggie.......... Mai Bpen Rai

Edited May 14, 2009 by flying

[harrry]

Did you see Straw Dogs? You need lots of pans of boiling water.

Well he did say his wife was prgnant,but just, Isnt it later you need the hot water

[coconutmonkey]

That is odd....your comment about taking off the rose colored glasses suggests that you not only worry but are fearful that they are thinking something bad

I think you have confused me with the OP. The glasses seem to have blurred your thinking.

Could be & it sure wouldnt be the first time

But no biggie.......... Mai Bpen Rai

OP here.

Nope, I didn't write any of those comments in the quote above.

Anyhow, thanks with the great responses and many PM's suggesting great advice.

I can see others here have had problems/and worried about these kinds of things before. Thanks again to all.... much appreciated.

Most sorry to those who have already suffered from similar incidents and have Pm'ed their terrible experiences.... I didn't know there were so many.

Cheers

[toybits]

It seems that you assume that these construction laborers have nothing but bad intentions against you. Not a good start I believe. Your build has nothing to do with your security. If they wanted to hurt you, they could (if they wanted to or if you provoked them).

It is too bad that you do not even seem to understand what they are saying. I assume that your wife is non-Thai. Otherwise, you would have some knowledge of the local language.

My advice to you is to learn the language quickly. You will earn the respect of people really quick if you did. I believe there is no better security system than this.

Hi,

I live in BKK.

Many houses are being re-constructed in my moo-baan, and the house opposite mine is next on the list.

The same work-crews have been fixing them all up the street. When they see me, the lone falang, ride past on bicycle (shirt and tie) to go to work every morning, the workmen sneer, laugh and yell stupid things, and try to arouse my interest. I keep my head down and keep going; never acknowledging them.

It is only a matter of time before they know where I live, and that my beautiful young wife (newly pregnant) stays at home alone from 6am to 5pm..... (gotta work!), she does home internet business.

From experience I see these guys as a danger; low wages (Thai and maybe Burmese), low perceptions of falangs as being rich, uneducated at the best of times...... I think it's only a matter of time until they will want to start something terrible if they know where I live...... any suggestions?

Extra notes: I'm not a largely built guy, I don't give off that 'mean' essence, I don't know how I can deal with this situation. Any suggestions?

[coconutmonkey]

It seems that you assume that these construction laborers have nothing but bad intentions against you. Not a good start I believe. Your build has nothing to do with your security. If they wanted to hurt you, they could (if they wanted to or if you provoked them).

It is too bad that you do not even seem to understand what they are saying. I assume that your wife is non-Thai. Otherwise, you would have some knowledge of the local language.

My advice to you is to learn the language quickly. You will earn the respect of people really quick if you did. I believe there is no better security system than this.

Hi,

I live in BKK.

Many houses are being re-constructed in my moo-baan, and the house opposite mine is next on the list.

The same work-crews have been fixing them all up the street. When they see me, the lone falang, ride past on bicycle (shirt and tie) to go to work every morning, the workmen sneer, laugh and yell stupid things, and try to arouse my interest. I keep my head down and keep going; never acknowledging them.

It is only a matter of time before they know where I live, and that my beautiful young wife (newly pregnant) stays at home alone from 6am to 5pm..... (gotta work!), she does home internet business.

From experience I see these guys as a danger; low wages (Thai and maybe Burmese), low perceptions of falangs as being rich, uneducated at the best of times...... I think it's only a matter of time until they will want to start something terrible if they know where I live...... any suggestions?

Extra notes: I'm not a largely built guy, I don't give off that 'mean' essence, I don't know how I can deal with this situation. Any suggestions?

Dear Toybits,

It seems there are some assumptions here.

1) Build: That was a statement to affirm that I am neither intimidating by size, nor would I be easy to walk over as they trudged into my house. Agreed, I have felt they do have bad intentions, though mostly from previous encounters (please read up the page where I detailed 2 of these), which I believe are not bad, though slightly 'hostile' encounters at the least.

2) I speak Thai well, as my wife for 4 years doesn't speak English at all. So, she is Thai. While my Thai is quite good, quite honestly, you can imagine they don't care to use language like "Khun ben kwai" (with clear pronunciation), as opposed to something colloquial that I don't understand.... a different dialect? A slang phrase I don't know? It certainly isn't Paasaa-Dthai (southern) nor passaa-glaang (Bangkokian).

I can PM you my telephone No. if you would like to speak Thai with me

But of course, thank you for your suggestion. That's what I did request.

Edited May 14, 2009 by coconutmonkey

[lovinglife]

Buy an alarm system, that will give your wife a feeling of security when she is home alone as it has a panic button on a remote connected to a 170db flashing siren outside. You can also arm it at night when you go to bed, experience says that any intruder will avoid your property as soon as they are aware of it and certainly won't hang around when the noise starts up. I got a top quality system for 7,000 baht and paid a guy 1,000 to instal it. PM me if you want his contact details.

[MJP]

Right then. They're construction workers so will understand this well.

Get a great big stick. Hardwood. Proper.

When they come through the door, put on a big tick paddy accent "Nouw if ya downt gett outta 'ere, ouim gonna giv ya a great big TUMP!"

Seen it work on sites across the world.

[lioness]

They formed a chain across the road? well this is warning bells for me. I had a similar incident in a Tesco carpark, fortunately I saw what was going to happen and managed to avert it by doing a quick sprint into Car Care and then getting them to see me into my car. If I hadn't done this I believe I would have been bashed and robbed, maybe worse. One can never be too cautious.

If they have ill intent they may well find out where you live, all Farangs are considered rich so it is a concern and I think you are right in being cautious. Maybe a big dog, or a housemaid so there is someone with your wife during the day.

And buying them a beer is not the answer, I think it could lead to further unwanted problems.