Thailand. The features of character of Thais and their reasons to be proud

Thai people – a small but very interesting nation

So, what do we know about Thai people? They, like many other Asians who are lucky with the climate, don’t like it for unknown reasons. Living in the constant heat, they are hiding from the sun, don’t like to tan, and believe that Russia has good climate because it’s cold. This is true! And all this happens in a rather funny way 🙂 Thais believe that white skin is beautiful and tan only spoils the beauty. They even say that Russians come here beautiful, and then become not very beautiful 🙂 So every fashion guy in Thailand tries to reach the most possible pale color of his face. As it is useless to hide from the sun, because any way it will find you and “grill” a little 🙂 So they use special cosmetics – white concealer or tonal creme. And those who do not have enough money for good creme just spread cheeks and nose with some white substance 🙂 And they don’t care that it is visible and you can even see fingerprints 🙂 In general, it is better to do something, but not be brown 🙂

Thailand is the best place in the world, that is why everybody comes here 🙂

 

Thailand is very touristic country that is visited by tourists from all over the world! But the interesting fact that a lot of Thais don’t like to travel at all 🙂 Of course, It is not about young people who really enjoy exploring the world and try to travel all places that possible 🙂 But as for older generation, many of them don’t like to travel. Of course some of them don’t travel due to lack of money, but some of them just don’t want to do it. Because when people from all over the world come to visit Thailand, that means that Thailand is the most interesting and cool place, otherwise why do they go here? There is some truth in these words, what do you think? 🙂 And also many Thai people don’t want to leave the country because of admiring of their King and Royal family. They are real fans of the King and the Royal family, I will tell you below why.

The cult of the King Bhumibol Adulyadej and the Royal family

The King here is admired and inviolable person, like the rest of his family. So do not even think to make a joke or insult the king in the presence of Thai people. They can not only become angry and beat you, but they can complain to the police! The fact is that insulting the King in Thailand is a crime and you can go to jail. I will tell more about it below. Also you can’t step on banknotes with the image of the monarch, and if you decide to pay in the shop with the money from your swimming trunks (some tourists like to do so), they won’t sell you anything, and can just kick out of the shop.

And the King’s Birthday is a national holiday and is celebrated by all the people of the country! They wear yellow clothes (favorite color of the king) and have fun for the whole day 🙂

So, how the King deserved this love of the nation:

First, he came from simple people, his mother was a simple woman, but this did not prevent him to become a king. For a couple of years before the birth of Bhumibol there was issued a decree that allowed person to ascend to the throne, even if only one parent was of Royal blood.

Second, after the elder brother of Bhumibol the King Rama VIII was killed in the Palace, he made a promise never to ascend on the throne, stained with brother’s blood. So now he rules from his residence – Chitralada.

Third, being a Buddhist by religion, he has passed through the mandatory for every Buddhist obedience – the service in a Buddhist temple, where the king not only was dressed in the orange robes, and prayed, but also walked barefoot among the simple people collecting donations for the temple.

 

Fourth, thanks to him, many Thai people now have higher education. It is free of charge in Thailand, and he personally handed a certificate and took pictures with every graduate in the beginning. Many Thais do not hide the fact that they went to university just to get a picture with the King. Of course, eventually, the number of graduates became so huge, that King didn’t have enough time to congrat all of them. However, the King still visits some universities to handle a diploma to graduates, and some universities are visited with other members of Royal family for the same reason.

Fifth, after his coronation, he promised to devote his life to country and people and never to leave the borders of Thailand. Bhumibol Adulyadej rules Thailand for 70 years already and still never broke this promise.

All these facts make us be sure that Bhumibol Adulyadej is a real loving and caring father of his people. 

Attitude towards tourists in Thailand

As in many touristic countries, a tourist is a money bag 🙂 And the more money people can get from him, better for them and their families. And Thailand is not an exception.

Don’t be surprised if taking taxi to hotel here, taxi driver will be insistently offering you to stop in brothel, some shop or to smoke marijuana. Because if you visit a brothel or buy something in the shop, this guy will get a small commission from owner.

As for marijuana and other drugs – don’t try it, and especially do not buy drugs for yourself! First, because drugs is a bad thing and we are categorically against it. And second, you can go to jail for using and distributing drugs in Thailand. But sometimes I have a suggestion, that this law applies only to tourists because locals usually share margin with police and they do not touch them. So if you try marijuana, offered by taxi driver, you will have to pay a lot, because if you refuse, he can call the police or will take you directly to the police station. After that you will be happy to pay any money to the driver, and police officer, not to spend your vacation and the next few years in a Thai prison. Dealers of marijuana also often work together with the police, and some of them can point you to the officer. In this case, police officer will take a big sum of money from you and share it with the dealer later.

If you decide to hire a scooter – be careful on the roads! The traffic in Thailand is chaotic and Europeans need time to adapt to it. If suddenly you bumped into a car or a scooter of the local person, it is better to pay the money and resolve the issue peacefully, even if you believe that you did not break the rules. First, because you still don’t know the traffic rules of Thailand (if they really exist), and second, you still will not prove anything to the policeman. For him, local resident is the poor Thai guy, who needs to feed his family, and you – the foreigner, and if you arrive in another country for the vacation – that means that you have extra money 🙂 In the end you will lose a lot of time trying to prove your innocence, but still will pay the money to the Thai guy and to the police officer because he have spent his time for you 🙂

As I said above, the insulting of  the King and members of Royal family is a breaking of law and you can go to jail for 5 to 15 years for this. Therefore, it is better to respect the King. First, because he’s a really good and decent person who does not deserve insults, and secondly, if you get in a Thai jail, it will be impossible to release you even by using of diplomatic relations and efforts of Embassy representatives of your country. There is one case when a resident of Thailand was sentenced to 60 years for a jail for an offensive post about the King in a Facebook. The post consisted of 6 points and he got 10 years for every point, but his lawyers managed to decrease the penalty in 2 times, so the guy was sent to jail for 30 years! And recently there was a unique case – a man was sentenced to 37 years for insulting the dog of the King! Now his lawyers are fighting for him and trying to prove that the law about not insulting the royals, can not be extended to their pets.

Therefore, you must remember that Thailand is a wonderful and beautiful country with its culture and tradition, which is certainly worth of visiting! Here you will taste delicious food, relax on the beach and enjoy the high level service. However, tourists here – is just a source of income for the locals. And here you will be pleased and appeased until you pay money, respect local rules and do not violate the law.

National sports of Thailand – Muay Thai and Thaiball

Thailand is one of the few countries where you really need to be careful not to enter into conflicts with the locals, even if you feel yourself a cool guy and push more than 100 kg in gym, and your opponent look small and thin 🙂

Probably everyone of us heard about fighting sport – Thai Boxing, or Muay Thai, which is somewhat similar to Kickboxing, but more focused on foot-kicks. More over, it is a fact that Thai Boxing is not just sport, but a national treasure and proud of Thailand! That is why every second man here has regular training of Muay Thai, first, because it’s cool, and secondly – from idleness. Here people sometimes really nothing to do in free time, so they go to the beach, to the bar or sport hall. Plus, it is good for health 🙂

Therefore, every time you have a conflict with a Thai, remember that there is a high probability that with his small height, he can easily jump and kick your head with the leg 🙂 And if you would like to go to the police, it is a very small chance that they are going to work hard to find your abuser. Most likely they will take a statement from you, mentally will take a side of the Thai guy and just won’t care about your problems 🙂

So, why Thais are so successful in Muay Tai? The answer to this question you will get from… Thai volleyball or Thaiball! Look at the photo below and it will eliminate all your questions 🙂

Some of you will think that this is possible only during competitions and for professionals, however, on photos below you will see how simple guys play thaiball after work 🙂

So, when we were kids, we used to play football or basketball, and they played thaiball and kicked the ball over the head by foot over the net!

Of course, this does not mean that in the evenings you must stay at home and do not go out! The vast majority of Thais are extremely friendly, especially towards foreigners, however, it is not a good idea to look for a reason and to get a conflict with a locals 🙂

Do you want to have breathtaking adventure with us? Then check our Tours List with tours for individual travellers and organized groups!

Author – Dmitry Doronin

Did you like the article? Then follow us in social media!

                  

Want to get regular inspiring newsletters with our new articles, dates of trips, interesting books and movies about travelling, announcements about our contests with gifts and other useful information for travellers?

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTERS