the stench of Thailand

[seajae]

. Is it just me or do all you find the smell where ever you go a bit off, doesnt matter if it is Bangkok, Chang Mai, Phuket where ever, you cant walk(or ride) down the street without copping that stench. Even in houses, toilet doors are louvered, do thai people like to smell/know everything that happens in there, I have searched the supermarkets looking for disinfectants but Dettol is the only thing they have apart from floor cleaner listed as disinfectant but it doesnt even have a clean smell to it. The house drains smell something shocking as do all the drains in the streets, there are some areas that you have to hold your breath so you dont smell anything or you will throw up. Rubbish is simply tossed down where ever they want, blood, gutts, shit is just thrown in the gutter and left to putify. Why is it that thai people simply do not understand that this can cause sickness, I have talked to my wife about it and she just doesnt understand what bothers me about it so I have put it down to thais simply never learning about germs & hygeine. Just like going to the markets and seeing flies all over the food or frozen meat in the supermarkets that is turning green/yellow, no one cares but then I suppose this explains why so many people get the runs all the time.

Ok thats my bitch for the day, just cleaned and mopped all the floors in the house with disinfectant(dettol) in the hot water I used then tipped some down all the drains as well, even after a couple of years I still find this is something I cannot get used too, apart from this(and a few other minor things) I love it here.

PS. I am not knocking Thailand so I dont need all those TV replies that simply want to put anyone with an opinion down, just like to know why it doesnt bother locals and how everyone else copes with it.

Edited September 4, 2013 by seajae

[Totster]

I believe us westerners are too sensitive to, as you put it, "germs and hygeine [sic]"

Refrigerate this, wash this with dettol, cook this to a precise temperature.. it's health and safety gone over the top. Don't forget just a century ago people didn't have refridgerators, didn't know about cooking things to a certain temperature (just relied on knowing when it was cooked) etc... The human race still survived.

While I agree that to our standards things seem rather dirty here in some cases, I don't worry about it. Our bodies are able to build immunity against germs so these conditions won't affect us in the long run.

So, in conclusion, Thailand is not the place to be if you are a mild hypercondriact or have a sensitive nose/stomach, but we each have our foibles eh ?

totster

[hanno]

It has never bothered me, but then I grew up in Africa and spent 20 years in Vietnam and Cambodia......

[Beechboy]

I always step off the plane and "smell" the heat and I'm happy.

Wouldn't eat street food though ........... but that's been covered elsewhere.

[seajae]

I believe us westerners are too sensitive to, as you put it, "germs and hygeine [sic]"

Refrigerate this, wash this with dettol, cook this to a precise temperature.. it's health and safety gone over the top. Don't forget just a century ago people didn't have refridgerators, didn't know about cooking things to a certain temperature (just relied on knowing when it was cooked) etc... The human race still survived.

While I agree that to our standards things seem rather dirty here in some cases, I don't worry about it. Our bodies are able to build immunity against germs so these conditions won't affect us in the long run.

So, in conclusion, Thailand is not the place to be if you are a mild hypercondriact or have a sensitive nose/stomach, but we each have our foibles eh ?

totster

I can live with it and I am not that hyped up over cooking etc as I grew up on a farm with out all the mod cons they have now, meat kept in a meat safe etc, its just the smell, even in Australia we put the dunny away from the house before proper toilets were used to stop the smell permeating the house, I just put it down to common sense, after all you dont shit in your bed.

[seajae]

I always step off the plane and "smell" the heat and I'm happy.

Wouldn't eat street food though ........... but that's been covered elsewhere.

street food isnt a problem if you eat where the crowds eat, its the quiet places that arent recomended.

[CharlieH]

If you live in a sewer you soon get used to the smell, ( no offence intended) Its amazing what you can get used to, the rest you just have to learn to adjust and adapt to. It is a different culture, rules, environment standards etc.

All comes together to make the glorious tapestry that is Thailand.

Personally, other than some places in Bangkok, cant say I have ever really noticed it, most public toilets have staff and smell really clean etc, certainly never " got up my nose" anywhere that comes to mind.

[MrJohnson]

I have always thought that TAT should dispense with 'Land of Smiles' and introduce 'Land of Smells' as a marketing tag line. Far more appropriate. All jokes aside, I am always amazed at how you can walk along a street in Thailand and have your olfactory senses bombarded with some of the best and worst smells in the world. I love walking past the garland sellers near the Erawan Shrine - beautiful floral aromas transport me to a tropical botanic garden. Ten steps on as I reach the intersection of Rajadamri and Ploenchit my senses are assaulted by the drain - smells from the depths of the Chao Phraya, a toxic blend of putrid, anaerobic fecal matter, food scraps and other refuse. Down on through Siam Square I pass a gaggle of office girls on the way to lunch leaving a heady trail of perfume down the footpath, next I pass the delectable barbecue chicken and also plunge headlong into a vat of boiling oxidized oil full of Chinese doughnuts – heart attack via my nasal cavity straight to the aorta. Just as I am about to expire my nose is cleared with a wrinkled old crone stirring up a mix of Thai basil leaves, pork and chill. Hoo Haa! Please pass me a tissue. Several sneezes later and I recover, eyes still misty but I’m back on my feet. Oops, pee corner, tucked just next to the escalator entrance to the BTS. ‘Don’t breathe through your nose’, I tell myself. Five minutes later I am happily enclosed in the sterile, and frigid, cabin of the BTS. All good! No, I spoke too soon. A crowd of sweaty westerners, scantily clad in Beer Lao singlets boards the train. Maybe that train wasn’t so bad after all. No, just kidding. Anyway, I am now writing to TAT to make my suggestion about ‘Thailand – Land of Smells’. What do you think, does it have legs?

[HeijoshinCool]

It can be amusing to watch the thought process.

I watched as the director of the local elementary school pasted a half-dozen posters on the walls of the kid's bathrooms. How to wash your hands .... lots of step-by-step photos.

Unfortunately, the school never provided any of what was pictured----soap, paper towels, or even running water.

[somtampet]

A slight over reaction.Thailand is clean compared to some parts of EUROPE,and London.

The smells are both good and bad,but that doesnt mean the thais are dirty.

btw

there are 100,s of toilet,sink,general cleaners in big c/ Tesco Lotus

[Jasun]

I've learnt to hold my breath or use shallow breathing techniques whenever i'm passing an open drain. But I find those bad smells are counteracted by the wonderful aromas of blossoming jasmine, joss sticks and freshly cooked lemongrass and basil leaves. And don't even get me started on whatever they put into those pink Sunsilk bottles.

[razorramone]

Phlon Chit up to Nana BTS smells nasty as hell. Mochit also. Is 'chit' the thai for shit?

I'm guessing its due to poor sewer-water infrastructure.

Edited September 4, 2013 by razorramone

[jackr]

A lot of it is the wrong type of stuff going down the storm drains (that don't drain well) coupled with high heat. It doesn't bother them, they're used to it, though that scruffy pair of sandals you're wearing is much more of an issue.

[sbk]

You people have clearly never walked past an area where chou tofu is made (fermented tofu). You'd stop complaining about the very minor smells of Thailand if you had.

[Berkshire]

Yes, the smell of Thailand can be somewhat unique, both good and bad. The Thais are just as repulsed by certain smells as the rest of us. But specifically, I have heard Thais complain about the stench of certain farangs. I hope some of you guys realize that you seriously stink. Especially the young guys who think they can go all day long without a shower.

[Thaddeus]

I once worked in Runcorn for a couple of years, you get used to it.

[irishsmile]

Hmmmmmm........... Nose + clothes peg ???? Lol )

[cpofc]

Having sailed into hundreds of different ports in Asian Countries, many had their own 'signature' odours. Singapore was always a standout. In the still, early morning air, you could smell Singapore long before you ever sighted land. I loved it so. Home again.

[rene123]

I actually thrive on all the contrasts in Thailand. In a matter of a 5 minute walk my senses will bounce between being frightened by traffic or a miss-step on broken pavement, or, be elated by a child's laughter or a puppy that wants its ears scratched. Or, immersed in the scents of blossoms and Thai cooking, and then get over powered by the stench of sewers and traffic exhaust. I can walk in a National park and be surrounded by butterflies, or stand under a cool waterfall on a hot day.

[LuukKoeyKorat]

Following on from SBK - try walking past a place making fresh Kanom Jin noodles....the fermentation smells are truly awful..but tastes great later!~ :-)

[Commander Tamson]

I have always thought that TAT should dispense with 'Land of Smiles' and introduce 'Land of Smells' as a marketing tag line. Far more appropriate. All jokes aside, I am always amazed at how you can walk along a street in Thailand and have your olfactory senses bombarded with some of the best and worst smells in the world. I love walking past the garland sellers near the Erawan Shrine - beautiful floral aromas transport me to a tropical botanic garden. Ten steps on as I reach the intersection of Rajadamri and Ploenchit my senses are assaulted by the drain - smells from the depths of the Chao Phraya, a toxic blend of putrid, anaerobic fecal matter, food scraps and other refuse. Down on through Siam Square I pass a gaggle of office girls on the way to lunch leaving a heady trail of perfume down the footpath, next I pass the delectable barbecue chicken and also plunge headlong into a vat of boiling oxidized oil full of Chinese doughnuts – heart attack via my nasal cavity straight to the aorta. Just as I am about to expire my nose is cleared with a wrinkled old crone stirring up a mix of Thai basil leaves, pork and chill. Hoo Haa! Please pass me a tissue. Several sneezes later and I recover, eyes still misty but I’m back on my feet. Oops, pee corner, tucked just next to the escalator entrance to the BTS. ‘Don’t breathe through your nose’, I tell myself. Five minutes later I am happily enclosed in the sterile, and frigid, cabin of the BTS. All good! No, I spoke too soon. A crowd of sweaty westerners, scantily clad in Beer Lao singlets boards the train. Maybe that train wasn’t so bad after all. No, just kidding. Anyway, I am now writing to TAT to make my suggestion about ‘Thailand – Land of Smells’. What do you think, does it have legs?

First name's not Samual is it?

Brilliant post mate!

[MrWorldwide]

The OP needs to visit Jakarta - they don't call it 'the Big Durian' for nothing.

[seajae]

hahahahaha, seems everyone has experienced it. Have to admit some of the scents are great, food smells are very mouth watering and some of the floral ones are just brilliant. It is the other ones that grab me though, I have had to put up with some pretty bad stench over the years, probably the worst was the clean up after cyclone tracy in Darwin, 6 weeks of hell and some of what we saw and smelled was pretty bad although some of the smells here come damn close.

Edited September 4, 2013 by seajae

[norrona]

easy solution is to walk round with a menthol stick up your nose!

[Jdietz]

Yeah, definitely not bashing...

[Totster]

Another meaning of Los, land of stupidity.

4th time lucky there Possum.... 555555555

totster

[krisb]

Buy a peg.

[geriatrickid]

I believe us westerners are too sensitive to, as you put it, "germs and hygeine [sic]"

Refrigerate this, wash this with dettol, cook this to a precise temperature.. it's health and safety gone over the top. Don't forget just a century ago people didn't have refridgerators, didn't know about cooking things to a certain temperature (just relied on knowing when it was cooked) etc... The human race still survived.

While I agree that to our standards things seem rather dirty here in some cases, I don't worry about it. Our bodies are able to build immunity against germs so these conditions won't affect us in the long run.

So, in conclusion, Thailand is not the place to be if you are a mild hypercondriact or have a sensitive nose/stomach, but we each have our foibles eh ?

totster

Really? So how come the magical ability to build immunity against the "germs" does not protect the thousands of Thais who die each year due to GI related illness?

Why do Thais have such a high mortality associated with simple infections?

Sorry, but you should check out the WHO data for some basic illnesses.

If Thais were blessed with the ability to protect against bacteria, there wouldn't be a TB crisis going on now would there?

Food borne illness is rampant in Thailand. Because it is neither tracked, nor reported on does not mean that there isn't a problem.

[Hedghog]

I adore the Thai scent.

Musky,with a hint of perfume,from the soap they last used.

It's a shame some are hairy.

Sent from my GT-P7500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Chittychangchang]

I actually quite enjoy the varied aromas around Thailand

Having a sensitive nose i find the different variety's of scents and aromas tantalising compared to the sterile western enviroments.

My first memory of Thailand is being hit with a wall of sensory stimulation as i walked out of Don Muang arrivals ten years ago.

The heat is the major contributing factor to the "stench".

Enjoy and embrace or return to the boring OCD sterile west.

CCC