# Dos and Don’ts in Thailand



## Aommii072 (Feb 11, 2015)

Thailand is famously known as the “land of smiles” because this country has friendly people. Thais know that foreign visitors have their own customs and different ways of doing things. 

However, foreign that need to travel in Thailand should be known about of dos and don’ts in Thailand that you will earn respect from Thai hosts. Here is a list of Dos and Don'ts in Thailand, be particularly careful about the Thai Royal Family and respecting Buddhism. 

*Do: When you greeting with Thai people*

- Say “Sawasdee”: Say “Sawasdee ka” for female or say “Sawasdee Krab” for man when you greeting with Thai people.

- Do greet Thai people with “Thai Wai”: For Thai wai you can do it with way, your palms pressed together at chest height, bow slightly and say Sawasdee ka” for female or say “Sawasdee Krab” for man.

- Do smile a lot: A smiling face is a sign of respect toward surrounding people.

- Do introduce yourself with your first name.

- Do take off your shoes when invited to someone’s home.

*Do: When you visiting a temple*

- Do respect all Buddhism: Buddhism is religion plays a very important part in everyday Thai people life. You can get arrested if you disrespect a Buddha image.

- Do dress properly: when you visiting a temple and religious sites, you should wear dress properly.

- Do take off your shoes when you visiting a temple.

*Do not in Thailand* :bowl:


- Don't disrespect the king or Thai Royal Family

- Avoid kissing or hugging in public.

- Don’t touch a Thai person on head or ruffle their hair and don’t touch a Thai woman without consent.

- Don’t take Buddha images out of the country: It’s against the law to take or send Buddha images out of the country unless special permission.

_Credit : Bangkok.net_


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## tod-daniels (Dec 1, 2013)

Anyone with marginal googling skills can glean this drivel off the inter-web..


> Do greet Thai people with “Thai Wai”: For Thai wai you can do it with way, your palms pressed together at chest height, bow slightly and say Sawasdee ka” for female or say “Sawasdee Krab” for man.
> 
> Do smile a lot: A smiling face is a sign of respect toward surrounding people.


I dunno about the wai, because in the almost 11 years I've lived here I've never wai'd a single thai, NOT EVEN ONE!! It doesn't matter how tight their uniform was, how much bangles and bobbles they had hangin off it, or how much imaginary power they thought they had over me.. 

Thaiz I talk to say to a person foreigners do a piss-poor imitation of the thai wai, and it's almost as if we're poking fun at them.. Foreigners do not know the first thing about the myriad of rules governing how to wai, where to put your hands on your chest, how deep to bow and/or how long to hold the wai. These are things beaten into thaiz from the time they're little kids and they do it on auto-pilot.. Most foreigners wai the wrong people 100% of the time.. 

I live by this motto "*STUPID FOREIGNER; WAI'Z R 4 THAIZ*".. Never wai'd never will..

I also almost never smile.. Thaiz will smile when they are uncomfortable, angry, and when they slit your throat.. Goin' around grinning like an idiot is not going to endear you to these people..

I've read this post of yours on more than one forum. I gotta ask you; are you the foreign contingent of thai culture police or just another sheep-like, sock puppet, wanna-b-thai foreigner? 

Thank god you didn't say "we are guests here". Guests don't pay, and I've paid my way from day one..

Give it a rest...


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## Aommii072 (Feb 11, 2015)

tod-daniels said:


> Anyone with marginal googling skills can glean this drivel off the inter-web..
> 
> 
> I dunno about the wai, because in the almost 11 years I've lived here I've never wai'd a single thai, NOT EVEN ONE!! It doesn't matter how tight their uniform was, how much bangles and bobbles they had hangin off it, or how much imaginary power they thought they had over me..
> ...


First of all, i'm sorry if i you're not happy and misunderstood about the article that i've post.

And i'm a thai, not a foreign wanna like you said, and i think that wai is the thing people do to respect each other and it's a thai identity.

From the article If you don't want to do it, it's ok cause it only just a recommendation. 

I'm so sorry and thank you for your opinions.


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## tod-daniels (Dec 1, 2013)

Hey, sorry Aommii072, that I came across so ฮาร์ดคอร์ (hard core)..

I'm all for thaiz embracing who/what they are.. That's fine and I got no problem with thaiz being proud to be thai. 

Sheesh, I'm proud every day to be a born-bred-corn fed american too. 

Again, I apologize for my overly แรง statements..

However, you do know what I say is true about foreigners wai'ing here. They seem to wai 7/11 workers, service staff at restaurants and limbless beggar too.. 

That makes me sad, for you people (the thaiz) that foreigners know so little about the action that they don't know when/how to do it correctly...

Just a note; even wikipedia says this;


> Waiing remains to this day an extremely important part of social behavior among Thais, who are very sensitive to their self-perceived standing in society.


Now that means to me that it is NOTHING but an action to show who is superior and who is subordinate in thai society or who has more power, influence, money etc. 



> As a rule of thumb for foreign tourists and other visitors unaccustomed to the intricacies of Thai language and culture, it is unwise to initiate a wai exchange with someone who is younger.


That would mean 90+ percent of the time foreigners shouldn't wai thaiz, seeing as most are older than the thai who's wai'ing them.. Plus you left out NEVER EVER wai children because of the thai myth that it will shorten their lives..



> However, one should always return a wai that is offered as a genuine sign of respect.


 In over 10 years here and having be wai'd thousands of times I probably can count on one hand with fingers left over the times I've been wai'd by thaiz and it was a "genuine sign of respect"... Like I said, thaiz are programed from birth to wai, unconsciously, on auto-pilot, without ever thinking about it. 



> Corporate wais, such as those performed by convenience store cashiers, can generally be 'returned' with a smile.


 I'd say that sentence will work in almost 100% of the cases when a thai wai's a foreigner.. 

The stuff about royalty, monks, buddhist stuff, is all right on the mark..

Good luck, again I'm sorry.


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## Aommii072 (Feb 11, 2015)

tod-daniels said:


> Hey, sorry Aommii072, that I came across so ฮาร์ดคอร์ (hard core)..
> 
> I'm all for thaiz embracing who/what they are.. That's fine and I got no problem with thaiz being proud to be thai.
> 
> ...


Yes, i understand you and thanks for the opinion once again


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## tod-daniels (Dec 1, 2013)

MrsE; I don't know how you could possibly warp what I said into


> "someone who feels he has the right to behave any which way he wants with absolutely no respect for anyone else"


Where I come from "respect has to be earned" it is not handed out willy nilly. 

However I am polite and courteous to a point when I deal with any one without regard to race, creed or color... I tolerate stupidity, ignorance and someone having an over inflated view of their own self importance poorly. Strike that, I mean VERY POORLY. I know I'm not important here, I have no illusions that I somehow make a difference, and I am fine with that...

Also, if you'd look at when my posts were made you can see they are not months old but days old.

Unfortunately, NOPE, I haven't changed the slightest bit on how I act here:confused2:.. I treat everyone equally in regards to us all being human beanz, err human beings. 

Not being thai, I can interact with the lady mopping the floor as easily as I can with a CEO of a company, thai police or immigrations officers. I do this by treating everyone the exact same, not by mindlessly following a convoluted flow-chart of where someone is on the "imaginary bamboo ladder 'o success" which thaiz seem preoccupied with all the time in their interactions... 

While I totally know why thaiz act so thai, in fact I've spent HOURZ and hours researching why thaiz do the crazy thingz they do; in the same breath I'll tell you I don't waste even a second of my life thinking that I should 'ape', 'mimic', or 'mime' ANY of that stuff sold to us as "thai culture" or "thai-ness"..

Coming up on 11 years here and it's worked for me just fine, however your mileage may vary..


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