The Little Enchanting Things About Thailand That Still Put A Smile On My Face

[tim armstrong]

It has to be the smiles for me. The fact that you can tease little kids walking along the street, and their parents join in, and don't think you're a threat. Even if you are an old farlang, women smile at you in markets or shops or anywhere else. Sometimes you can even get a smile out of a policeman, especially if you know them. Old people are a bit more of a challenge, but if you are respectful they smile too. So many little things.

The other one is unpredictability. I never know whats going to happen. My wife went quiet yesterday ( an unusual phenomena) but I could hear activity in the kitchen. Went to investigate, she's on the floor surrounded by bowls of mince and some long white stuff. She had decided to make sausages. Why? - don't know, just seemed like a good idea. Never done it before. Several hours later we now have many kilos of the best sausages I have ever tasted!

[travelmann]

It has to be the smiles for me. The fact that you can tease little kids walking along the street, and their parents join in, and don't think you're a threat. Even if you are an old farlang, women smile at you in markets or shops or anywhere else. Sometimes you can even get a smile out of a policeman, especially if you know them. Old people are a bit more of a challenge, but if you are respectful they smile too. So many little things.

The other one is unpredictability. I never know whats going to happen. My wife went quiet yesterday ( an unusual phenomena) but I could hear activity in the kitchen. Went to investigate, she's on the floor surrounded by bowls of mince and some long white stuff. She had decided to make sausages. Why? - don't know, just seemed like a good idea. Never done it before. Several hours later we now have many kilos of the best sausages I have ever tasted!

And the local Cat'/Dog population????

[Godolphin]

This is a great thread and dispels the negativity which we see so much on Thai-falang forums IMHO.

I love it when you are on a motorbike or just walking and a truck comes past you with a crowd of Thai construction workers sitting in it after a days work.

Men. women, some old, some young, fatigued after their long day on a job which may get them 200baht, if that.

Just smile at them and you will get so many beautiful, sincere smiles back.

Salt of the earth.

Maybe what our ancestors were like a couple of generations back.

[F1fanatic]

This is a great thread and dispels the negativity which we see so much on Thai-falang forums IMHO.

I love it when you are on a motorbike or just walking and a truck comes past you with a crowd of Thai construction workers sitting in it after a days work.

Men. women, some old, some young, fatigued after their long day on a job which may get them 200baht, if that.

Just smile at them and you will get so many beautiful, sincere smiles back.

Salt of the earth.

Maybe what our ancestors were like a couple of generations back.

The beautiful, blue sea always reminds me how lucky I am.

I too, had the misfortune to get a motorbike puncture one morning. I 'phoned my local repair man and whilst waiting for him to arrive (20 mins?) FOUR Thai men (it was a quiet road - so was nearly every Thai man), stopped to ask if they could help or give me a lift!

The taxi driver who, giving me a lift back from a friend's place where I'd been celebrating my birthday, refused to let me pay him as he'd been told it was my birthday ! Certainly wouldn't happen in England....

[roamer]

Self delete.

Edited November 3, 2010 by roamer

[Millard]

Thanks for that reminder of the sunsets, smokie36. I spent a few days on Koh Lanta last November and got some really nice sunset images there. Here is an example for those folks that haven't been there yet.

David

Beautiful pics, David. Thanks for sharing.

Edited November 3, 2010 by Millard

[Genericnic]

Thanks for that reminder of the sunsets, smokie36. I spent a few days on Koh Lanta last November and got some really nice sunset images there. Here is an example for those folks that haven't been there yet.

David

Beautiful pics, David. Thanks for sharing.

My pleasure Millard. If you haven't been down there yet, you should go. Well worth the trip.

David

[sirineou]

This is somthing that continuesly facinates me about the Thai people,

Their ability to Do so much with so litle, and always be happy about it.

I am reminded of one time last May, when we went out for diner, even though we have a car, we always like to take the Motorbike , more easy to park, and much more fun to drive, my wife was driving, and I was siting in the back, It started to rain, rather heavily,and my wife sugjested that I use the small colapsable umbrela she keeps in the storage box. So here we were, driving on a motorbike in a heavy rain, me trying to hold an Umbrela over us, and laughing all the way.

The simple stuff , always put a smile on my face.

[David006]

...been down with "something bad" for a week ...picked up on the plane to/from BKK.mo doubt.....typical male I won't go to docs or hospital...

...wife's twin sister wanted to go get her friend with a truck ( she don't drive or have a truck..)to drive 150km from her town to our house, pick me up and take back 100km to a hospital...she seemed to think it was "bad luck" if I was to die...( we are just waiting for local amphor to send for us to pick up marriage registration cert)

better now by the way...now the bloody rain has stopped for a while... :rolleyes:

now just waiting for another beautiful sunrise...gotta love it!!

Definitely a "feel good" thread...thanks!

[tim armstrong]

Definitely a feel good thread. Travelman - I've tried dog by mistake, but not in the sausages. Come to think of it, I haven't seen the cat for a few days ?

[Loz]

You bunch of softies!

Alright then. The Massages. When you get someone good at a quality place there is nothing like laying down for a good massage and leaving so relaxed that you could forgive the idiots in traffic on the way home. Well, except the one I turned into a hood ornament.

[Kilgore Trout]

I love the fact that if I stop in a garage for something relatively minor on my motorbike they rarely want any money. Back home that definitely does not happen.

[Richb2004v2]

I saw a monk walking past my house the other day with a fag hanging out of his mouth. I couldn't help but smile.

[Loz]

did you tell the fag to zip up and the monk to stand up?

[sillyman99]

Farangs who left their home countries to stay in Thailand then spend 15 hours per day indoors on an anonymous internet forum complaining about it.

That makes me smile.

[ozzieovaseas]

Yeah, good thread..

Nice to see some positive stuff about LOS now and again. Maybe its the weather right now..perfect for those of us who like to trek around on foot without sweating bucketloads.

And funny to see posts about motorcys, just witnessed....not 30 minutes ago, on a very busy road..

Four people on a bike...1 kid up front, father (i assume) riding, 1 kid in the middle, mother on the back....nothing unusual there i guess...

except the mother was holding (or balancing?) 2 of those big square egg holders IN EACH HAND..i think they hold about 30 eggs each?

SO the guys ducking and weaving through traffic like no tomorrow and i couldnt help but dream up various scenarios for the demise of the 120 eggs

dam_n, and bugger me, i reckon they would have made it home without breaking any

[Richb2004v2]

I saw an overloaded motorcycle go over on it's side the other day. All the passengers jumped clear and no one was hurt, but I did smile. 'What wild and crazy cats these folk are' I thought as a car slammed it's breaks on and narrowly avoided mashing them all to death.

[F1fanatic]

I love the fact that if I stop in a garage for something relatively minor on my motorbike they rarely want any money. Back home that definitely does not happen.

Yes! What is it about the motorbike repair men? The ones I've used have been not only good - but seem to hate charging anything!

My local repair man goes out of his way to be helpful and charges virtually nothing - I always feel guilty at how little he charges..... He's always busy though, so hopefully has a v good business from the number of customers.

[Tonto21]

Some of the things I like about living in Thailand, I regularly mountain bike around Mae Taeng, up in the mountains I meet lots of the local farmers and hill tribe people, with whom I now know and sometimes chat with, my favorite are the school kids, who were once very shy, but now want to practice the new English word of the day on me.

Another thing I like, (I know it drives some TV’s mad) the early morning old Thai songs and local news bulletin from the village public address system 2 times a week.

This always make me smile, fact; when my wife or I go into our garden we keep an eye open for cobras, me, to save being bitten……..The wife, to save going to the market food shopping!

[blazes]

A month or so ago I was taking my son back from school and I stopped to adjust something with the motorbike. It's a semi-rural area where the school is and I stopped at the entrance gate to a house with a small fruit plantation in front of it. I didn't notice at first but there was an old woman by the gate and we started having a chat about my boy and where I lived etc. Then she was like " hang on a minute, I'll go and get you some mangoes ". She came back with a big bag of mangoes for us. Very generous. I grew up in SE London where 1) there are no mango trees

2) people don't do something for nothing

That put a little buzz on my day.

South London?

I would never have guessed there were no mango trees in S E London, or indeed in London generally.

Who are these two lady boys in the YouTube?

Yes, Sartre was right: all too often "hel_l is other people".

[phaethon]

So, I'm riding my bicycle down my soi when a motorcycle taxi pulls alongside me. We're both still moving and he holds out his hand, we shake and he accelerates away...

[Starlifter]

That my drink never gets half empty before it's refreshingly refilled. The more it's refilled the more I smile

[IanForbes]

Today, a friend and I walk out to Tesco in Chiang Mai together because my friend needs a new microwave and we can't carry it on the motorbike. It's only a couple of kilometers and kind of fun climbing in, on and over all the debris that lines every Thai highway. We plan to take a Tuk Tuk back with our purchases because they are too big to carry. As we enter Tesco, Mike waves to a Tuk Tuk driver who he's ridden with once before. Nothing is said and the wave is all it took. After an hour's shopping the tuk tuk driver is waiting for us. No words are needed. He loads our stuff and heads off with us and our stuff in tow. We arrive safely at our destination in the city and with a quick smile and a "Kup n kup" I hand over 100 baht. Simple and neat.

I can go away for two or three years and when I finally return to some little shop where I once ate a meal or made a purchase, I'll be greeted with a "Hello Kuhn Ian"

Gotta love it.