Culture Lesson

May 4th, 2002 at 12:00am

So, I am in transit to Ko Samui, currently on the ferry – should be there in about an hour. This is a proper car ferry – a huge vessel, totally different from the ferry to Ko Lipe and the Perhentians which are more like small fishing boats cum ferry where you have to hop ship from the main boat to the longtail to get to shore (no pier). Anyway, it’s a beautiful day, sunny and warm – a great day for a boat ride.

My mind was wandering on the minibus ride here this morning as always, but today I was thinking mostly about farangs (foreigners) and their lack of understanding, respect, or interest in Thai or Asian culture. So I’m going to make this journal entry a little culture lesson for anyone coming to Thailand or SE Asia who is interested in knowing what’s right and wrong. Not every tourist is completely ignorant of course, but I can tell you that after being here for almost 7 months I have been witness to many, many (yes the majority) of foreigners being completely disrespectful of the local culture. So many of them seem to have this attitude of well I can do what I want when I want and I don’t care. So if you feel that way well that’s a shame because you’re missing out on learning so much and I can tell you that you will be treated differently so just don’t be surprised or upset when no one is friendly towards you.

It’s so simple really. All you need to do is look and listen. OBSERVE the locals. You will learn everything you need to know. Don’t be so high and almighty about Western culture. Ask if you don’t understand – people are more than willing to explain things to you. This is especially true when you meet someone who speaks English very well – take advantage of it and ask them some questions.

What started me on this today was watching a Western girl in our minibus getting nice and comfortable by putting her feet up on the seat in front of her (right behind a Thai woman’s head). This is a clear violation of basic Thai rule #1 – NEVER put your feet near someone’s head! For Buddhists the feet are considered the dirtiest part of the entire body, and if you’ve ever been in a squat toilet in Asia you’d surely agree. Likewise the head is considered to be the purest, cleanest part of the body which is closest to Lord Buddha, so one of the worst insults to a Thai person is to put your dirty feet near their head. I’ve seen bus drivers actually pull over and threaten to kick people off the bus for doing this. You will NEVER see a Thai person doing it so just don’t do it!

Look. Listen. Rule #2 – Don’t go topless in Asia! Come on girls, get it together, really. You are not on the Cote D’Azur here! This is Asia and these people are very conservative. Do you ever see ANY Asian women topless on the beach? Every guidebook there is on Asia will tell you to please show respect and keep the bikini top on so why can’t you do it? Simple. so simple.

Easy stuff. If you go to visit a temple, cover yourself! Show respect! I cannot believe how many women in bikinis and men in shorts (no shirt) I have seen in temples here. They even have signs in English before entering some of them requesting to wear clothes and offering to rent clothes for the duration of the visit and still I watch people walk right past. It’s appalling. Cover your shoulders and wear something below the knee. SIMPLE!

One more thing for you poor farang – there is no such thing as a line in Asia. It’s survival of the fittest. So if you find yourself in a post office, McDonalds, or the market, do not be afraid to do as the locals and push yourself to the front. Otherwise you will be sitting there all day – trust me!

Anyway it’s up to you – you can ignore everything I’ve just said but you won’t get any sympathy from me if the women won’t talk to you and the men are harassing. And if you don’t want to open your mind and learn then stay at home because you’re making me look bad!

Whew. Ok I’m off the soap box now…thanks for letting me blow off some steam! The other thing that really gets me going a lot is how Americans are treated by other Western nationalities – you know the whole’it’s cool to hate Americans’ thing going on out here. It’s something I could not even write about for a long time, but it’s happening everywhere and it’s very real. I can tell you that I have had more than one European, Australian, and New Zealander say to me as an American that we’got what we deserved’ on Sept. 11, 2001. Oh, you can imagine my replies! But I’ll save that rant for another day…

Entry Filed under: Koh Samui,South,Thailand