Did This Ever Happen To You?

[Samaaw]

yes all the time!!! the worst are the thai german mix !!!! only jokeing!!!

and don't forget the one's who can't spell - lol

[impulse]

I usually just wait the extra 15 seconds if the cashier doesn't send the offender to the back of the line. But then, I'm a wuss and I don't really like to wallow in negativity for small things that seem to be part of the culture I don't quite fit into.

[monkey4u]

Just tap them on shoulder and point to back of queue, then say DARK MAR in a loud voice

It works wonders

Who wants to be called a dog's arse in public by some old farang

[MILT]

It comes down to the cashier. I don't frequent 7-11's but at times have no choice.

When this happens to me I just step back and let them do their thing. It comes down to a few more min. of waiting. (Wow)

No Big Deal! Most if not all of the time the cashier will point out that I was there first and sometimes just blow them off and take my sale first.

In India it is so bad that unless you verbally say something you will end up (after being first or second in line) back of the line. In India one has to be aggresive!

In Thailand I leave it up to the cashier.

[Estrada]

Thais have always good at queuing, the only problem is that their queue is sideways along the shop counter!.

20 years ago it was a lot worse, but the advent of the BTS, has helped to get most of them in the habit of queuing sensibly. The Banks, telephone/internet providers (tickets numbers required) and BIG C/Tesco Supermarkets has also forced them into line.

[HUAHIN62]

Tap them on the shoulder ask them to get their fat ass out if the way and push through to the counter. My wife taught me the Thai phrase for the fat ass part. Use it even if the woman are thin, it will make her worry for the next week. Normally the woman that skipped the que is to shocked to say anything and the 7/11 staff have a good laught.

[Samaaw]

Another solution is to get your Girlfriend / Wife / Partner to do the shopping for you - the only downside is: 1) You might pay higher prices 2) you might not get the change

[Estrada]

yes all the time!!! the worst are the thai german mix !!!! only jokeing!!!

and don't forget the one's who can't spell - lol

Exactly.... should be "ones" not "one's", in this case due to your general reference in the plural...

[kennypowers]

Happens here in BKK sometimes. I don't tolerate it. You should have see the 7/11 staff crack up laughing when this guy tried to jump in front of me the other day. He lost face, put it that way.

Most Thais are very polite and often motion me to go first. But there's always the odd idiot who wants to exercise a bit of "I'm Thai so I go first" bravado.

[JLCrab]

I was in PRChina 25 years ago and it was all strictly a matter of practicality: Whatever it was, there was never enough to go around so, if you were polite and waited your turn, it would be all gone before you were served. You would then have to go home to your family empty handed.

So what was the point in being polite?

[richardjm65]

Tapping them gently on the ear with a '45 seems to work.

[BudRight]

To be fair, I've had this in Chicago.

[NoshowJones]

I politely tap them on the shoulder and point to the back of the line making sure that the clerk sees me do it. Normally the clerk will not serve them and tell them to get in line. And I usually get a really dirty look in return.

I was in a 7-11 and tried to pay at the checkout for a can of juice, I was at the checkout by myself, put the can on the counter and offered my money to the girl, there were two other items on the counter, the checkout girl pointed to them and then pointed to a woman who was still shopping. It would seem I was supposed to wait while the woman was shopping and paid for her items before I was going to get served. I removed the items, put them on a shelf, laid my can of juice on the counter and walked out.

[LemonSqueeza]

simply put you are irrelevant, even the locals can see it.

[NoshowJones]

Learn "maa gaawn krup". It means I came before you/first. Make sure you nail the tone (middle) on the maa, or you'll be saying the dog came first, or the horse came first.

Say it with a smile to the cashier - avoids any direct conflict with the interloper.

It works especially well when you have 3 Russians and 2 Chinese in front of you and they actually came first. Just smile say maa gawn krup to the cashier and she'll give you a huge grin and serve you first.

Good idea, but, referring to your first sentence, leave out the Krap or Krup.

[joebrown]

Just as annoying is after waiting patiently to get to the front of a long queue, a Thai steps in front of you with 5 or 6 items. The ignorant sod has already placed a purchase on the counter and then walked away to continue shopping, knowing that on his/her return all they have to do is jump the queue, pick the single item up, pay for everything, and if you're lucky, give a "sorry, I forgot these" smile!! Cheeky B------d.

[hobz]

This has happened to me a couple of times here in chiang mai. After i realized it could happen it hasnt happened again. I guess it only happens when . Im putting my guard down.

The opposite happens alot, people say "no you first" and i say the same and i point out that i have many items and they only have one and i let them go first or vice versa.

[NoshowJones]

Happens everywhere in Asia. There aren't really any queues here.

The worst in Thailand is on buses in Bangkok. The woman go into a frenzy to get on first, get into a seat first, and get off first. They will squeeze through tiny gaps to get in front of people, race elderly men to get into seats first and ignore pregnant women standing.

They think men should be the only ones to stand for others, regardless of the circumstances.

Someone should tell them that being female is not a disability.

What about the buses and skytrain where adults continually give their seats up to young children?

[cbluck58]

It is just as bad at the airports and in planes - what is difficult to understand about ' remain seated ' or ' please board rows 12-30 first ' - they even announce it first in Thai and then in English .

Also , it is not just Thailand it is the whole of Asia.

[NoshowJones]

Just tap them on shoulder and point to back of queue, then say DARK MAR in a loud voice

It works wonders

Who wants to be called a dog's arse in public by some old farang

I would not advise that, it will get you into big trouble.

[arminbkk]

Some of the situations desribed in the comments, especially the one where people (the posters) do react, are I think good examples

of the Thai 'lose face' thing: doing nothing (thus letting yourself get walked all over) or letting everyone know that person is in the wrong....

with both someone is losing face.

But 'doing nothing' is sure not going to escalate things.

It does not happen to me often, but I usually go to the same branches.

They 'know' me. So in the situation that possum1931 (post #46) described, the staff will attend to me first, not have me, or anyone else, wait.

However, I do see it happen to others often. Some posters say that it is normal in Thailand, but I've heard from Thais

and from their expressions when it happens, that it is not so normal.

It is usually the more 'low-so' people that do it.

So in that respect, it is similar to the West.

What I also see often, at BTS, but especially MRT.....a person will wait but stand quite back from the door, 2 meters or more. Everybody else queues behind this person.

What I do, but only if the queue is not long yet, is I will just go stand near the door. I don't consider that jumping the queue as there is not really a queue yet.

[ChrisB87]

Happens everywhere in Asia. There aren't really any queues here.

The worst in Thailand is on buses in Bangkok. The woman go into a frenzy to get on first, get into a seat first, and get off first. They will squeeze through tiny gaps to get in front of people, race elderly men to get into seats first and ignore pregnant women standing.

They think men should be the only ones to stand for others, regardless of the circumstances.

Someone should tell them that being female is not a disability.

What about the buses and skytrain where adults continually give their seats up to young children?

Men, yes. I don't see many woman doing this.

When my GF was pregnant we would be on a bus full of woman sitting down trying not to make eye contact with her. If there was a man sitting, he would usually give up his seat. According to my GF, woman don't think they should have to get up because they are women. They just pretend not to see her. On a few occasions, the conductor had to tell someone to move to let her sit down because she had been standing so long.

Edited October 30, 2013 by ChrisB87

[NoshowJones]

Happens everywhere in Asia. There aren't really any queues here.

The worst in Thailand is on buses in Bangkok. The woman go into a frenzy to get on first, get into a seat first, and get off first. They will squeeze through tiny gaps to get in front of people, race elderly men to get into seats first and ignore pregnant women standing.

They think men should be the only ones to stand for others, regardless of the circumstances.

Someone should tell them that being female is not a disability.

What about the buses and skytrain where adults continually give their seats up to young children?

Men, yes. I don't see many woman doing this.

When my GF was pregnant we would be on a bus full of woman sitting down trying not to make eye contact with her. If there was a man sitting, he would usually give up his seat. According to my GF, woman don't think they should have to get up because they are women. They just pretend not to see her. On a few occasions, the conductor had to tell someone to move to let her sit down because she had been standing so long.

I watched a man in his forties stand up to give a schoolgirl about 12 or 13 his seat. He stood for a full hour on the 40 kilo journey.

[rascalman]

Yes, I politely say excuse me you no see que? I had this happen at a bar, customer walking in front of me. I had been waiting. Again I told them I did not like this etc..

[davetrout]

every country do this not only thais there are impaitent people all over our world

[super22k]

They come into the shop.Pick up one item,place it on the counter,then do their shopping.They come back to the counter with their shopping and use the one item to go to the front of the queue.

I tell them firmly to get to the back of the queue which they do. If it was a massive man or a gang maybe I would think twice so be careful.

[givenall]

If they try to do this I give them a dirty look and step in the front of them

Sent from my ST25i using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[hanno]

Happened to me many times but compared to China, Thailand is easy. If you queue in China (or Vietnam) it helps to be built like a front row and be able to use one's elbows; being polite will not get you anywhere.

[Stokakrishna]

very common at the ATM's, people just walk in front of you, i always give them bashing for it. and they seems surprised

[rct99q]

Oh yea..... I agree has happened to me many times. Also while waiting to have meat items weighed at Macro I've had women put their items in front of mine on the counter top almost pushing mine backwards. I guess it is "me first" mentality, or maybe Western people "don't count."

You have never been shopping with Loatians.....omg. Try standing in line at 7/11 or at a Macro in among a pack of these hill billies and makes the Thai people look gracious in comparison. When you say something they stare at you with this far off look that sort of reminds me of a brain injured person....the outside looks fine but behind the eyes there is nothing working. It always makes me think of the move Planet of the Apes...