Thailand Contradictions

[Voice of Reason]

There is a sea of information on the web about Thailand and her people. I have wasted many nights reading about Thailand on the internet, when I could have been more productive.

One thing I've noticed is that a lot of this information contradicts. It feels like a hypothetical police investigation in which one witness says the suspect is black, and the other witness says the suspect is white.

For all these late nights spent browsing articles written by tourists and expats, I have been none the wiser in my pursuit of knowledge about how Thai people are.

Here are some of the more vivid contradictions:

Thais are rude / Thais are polite

Thais are unfriendly / Thais are friendly

Thais hate farangs / Thais like farangs

Thais are money hungry and greedy / Thais are generous

Thai women hate white guys / Thai women love white guys

I hate Thailand / I love Thailand

What is the reason for all these contradictions? Is it simply because Thais are complicated, and westerners can't work them out, and hence they don't know what they're talking about?

For the record, in my experience so far in Thailand I lean more towards the negative connotations.

[pete98146]

Interesting topic... It's funny because you'll also get contradictory opinions about Thais on this forum as well. I think it's fair to say that your average Thai has MUCH disdain for your foreign sex tourist. Unfortunately unless proven otherwise, they view ALL farangs (white skins) as a sex tourist. Even so, most Thais will paint a smile on their faces and not show outward hostility but on the inside it can be a different story.

But things are changing in Thailand. IMHO, normal people are discovering Thailand for other reasons than cheap sex. Many are there to visit the beautiful beaches and/or retire on a permanent basis. Once the Thais find out you are there for non-sexual purposes they tend to be much friendlier. But make no mistake about it, Thais are very image conscious people and your outward appearance is 10x more important than here in the States. The more presentable you are to the Thais the more they are willing to accept you. Every time I'm in Bangkok, I see hundreds of ratty looking Brits running around.....you can imagine how the Thais feel about them.

Your nationality may also come into play. Thais are racist as a motherf*cker. Who does the best? Other asians and those with aryan features. Who does not so well? Anybody else. So much of the Thail attitude is based upon their perception of you. Is it fair? Nope, not always! But as they say TIT (This is Thailand).

Hope that helps.

[ladislav]

Both claims are right. Half the Thai people are like this and half the Thai people are like that. This would not be obvious were you of the same race as them, but if you stick out, you attract both reactions in equal proportions.

Those who love Thailand do not usually speak the language and have no idea what the people are saying. They see smiling faces who say what, to them, sounds like "tring trang-trung-bang-boong-bung". I mean imagine you are a black guy and you go to some racist place in the US and they insult you with every racial epithet in English imaginable while smiling mockingly at you. But if you don't speak English and don't understand what they are saying, you would probably not mind it at all. Same there.

Some guys come with huge multinationals and work within such an environment. Or they stay in tourist areas. Again, not speaking the language.

Average white/non-Oriental people who go there and want to live normal lives on normal salaries, and who try to fit in, learn the language and adjust, they see both sides in equal proportions. Some do not care.

Plus visas are hard to get.

Anyway, if you are a non-Oriental, I strongly recommend against going and living in Thailand or getting involved with a woman there or tying your life with that country. Go to the Philippines instead.

I remember there was a black guy once ( in the US) and he spoke on television and he stated in anger and indignation that if you are young black male in the USA- you have already committed a crime just by being one. He refered to how people looked at him, how they were afraid of him and the bad vibes he was getting. Police harassment, etc.

Same in Thailand via-a-vis a white guy- of you are a young white guy- you have already committed a crime, are a nuisance and they just don't want you around( 50% of the population). The other 50% is welcoming and friendly to you.

Plus most people there are very ignorant, but their arrogance exceeds even the Japanese arrogance.

As far as attributing the prejudice to sex tourism- it is only part of the story. Asian sex tourists seem to get zero problems there. It is racial antipathy- they, as the Japanese, were taught by their gov't and educational system that fa-rangs were colonizers who wanted to subjugate their country. And as Japan they used to have a no gaijin policy. Except that the Japanese dislike Asians worse than they dislike white people while the Thais view Asians as brothers whom they defend against the imperialism of the evil, smelly, hairy fa-rang. Who turned out to be a sex maniac as well- another stain on the reputation.

But oh, the farangs have so much money- how can we get it?

Do yourself a favor- do not repeat the mistake that others have made and moved to Thailand.

Google: "Don't move to Thailand"

[Banano]

If you take away interaction between Thais and foreigners that involes 'money transaction' I think there would be no interactions at all...Im yet to see farang man/thai man friendship..

All women are using whities for moeny, they even joke about it,

p4p women love white guys/ non p4p women are NOT fighting over white guys

Thais are money hungry and greedy / Thais are generous

well,Thais give money to temple but they do it in expectation to get more back, more they give more return on investment they expect..
They expect you to be generous and tip them,but im still looking for Thai women who will pay HER OWN drink(not my drink) once in the blue moon..


Thais are rude / Thais are polite

They appear smiley but I feel they like to talk crap about farangs, i dont understand the language but you get vibes when people talk about you even though you dont understand wht they sayin,


My conclusion is there isnt much love between us and them, its more about economics thats connecting us
Days are gone when white american was an attraction in LOS