Guest Posted July 29, 2002 Report Share Posted July 29, 2002 I dated a Thai girl who is a poorly paid bookkeeper/accountant. She is very socially conservative. A real "GTG." Unfortunately, she would bring at least two friends on every date for which I invited her. They were "chaperones." It got expensive, and very irritating. But, I don't really think that she was trying to exploit me. And, I do think that she really liked me. I stopped calling her because I got sick of "dating" her friends. In retrospect, I wish that I would have tried to settle the situation. Maybe she would have stopped bringing her friends if I had requested as such...Maybe if I had agreed to only date her in safe public places or something. I don't know. Nevertheless, there is no excuse for the behavior of the woman mentioned in the originating post of this thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 29, 2002 Report Share Posted July 29, 2002 "If what you say is true, what kind of pleasure is there in going to Thailand? Even considering having a lot of sex, it is in my eye, a mark of low self-esteem to still go while knowing/thinking you are the next cow to be milked. that's ok too, but, IMO, I do not lend Thailand such an overall condemnation." P127, Well, I think your reading into to this a bit deeper then I would have expected. My general thinking is that I hear a lot of references to farangs being treated as important guests of some kind. I can't say I have spent a lot of time in the village scene or a professional work environment, but my impression is that a farangs place is quite restricted anywhere outside the usual tourist enclaves. But I stand corrected! As far as being the next "cow to be milked", well I expect as much wherever I travel. The recent post about the two tiered pricing of the airport bus is no surprise. The so called "skin tax" in India (where tourists pay extra for everything) is par for the course in any developing country, including Thailand. I don't feel bad about it, it's still a bargain (for now at least). And actually, it is for this reason that I don't travel in Europe anymore and I don't travel much in the States either. I see you don't lend Thailand such an overall condemnation, well I hope you don't think I do? In any case, I generally have started to think a farangs place there is not held in as high a regard as I once thought (IMHO, that is). Even so I meet excellent Thai people who I have become friends with, but I have also met some who later surprised me by what they expected of me. Anyway, the same can happen anywhere in the world. I wonder though does it happen more in some countries then others? No don't answer that! Of all the places I've been I think Thailand is not bad at all. (ever been to Russia or El Salvador!) Oh well I asked for feedback on this... Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 29, 2002 Report Share Posted July 29, 2002 To quote Mama Javu... "You can take the girl out of the province, but you can't take the province out of the girl" Said many times as I was complaining about my (now separated) Filipina wife...and generally true. (if you flame my mom I'll cry!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted July 29, 2002 Report Share Posted July 29, 2002 i read deeper into it because some posters will only have that much to say, that a farang is to be milked, period. If you have been traveling you know Thailand is one of the most benign places as far as fleecing farangs, and the farther away from the tourist scene, the more benign it gets. A friend here just had an acquaintance of his whose wife got murdered when she came out of her tourist hotel in venezuela. For a few bucks. South America, the whole of the african continent can be very unsafe for a tourist, his/her life, not just 100 bahts double-pricing. If you talk with other travellers to Thailand, some from this board, we all relativise the downside of dealing with thais sometimes, but in the written form, on this forum and others it just seems there is no evil the thais would avoid to make 20 bahts out of you. ridiculous. A guy pays tourist price to see awaterfal then sleeps with a cutie all night long for 25$, how much complaining is there in that? Ahah. As far as farang status is concerned, we are not thais, and we do not want to be thais, we are mostly self-assured people, grounded in their own culture, who have achance to open up to another society, whose doing will somewhat often puzzles us, and whose 3rd world economy will attract people towards us whose purpose is less lofty than making friend with us. You start your first trip knowing that already, you can deal with that downside and still live thru moments that makes travelling a great experience. You weigh the pros and the cons of your experience and then decides which part of the balance matters the most. there are definitely aspects worth being warned about in LOS, but does double-pricing reflect on the whole experience of being in Thailand. Do the little rip-offs that make you put your own hand in your wallet make it that sordid of a place? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cardinalblue Posted July 29, 2002 Report Share Posted July 29, 2002 fripence, Unfortuately, this type of thing happens way too much in LOS. Iy is a sad commentary about the lack of manners, etiquette, and social graces. The bottom line is that you were taken advantage of. A falang who expressed a gracious offer, and she took you to the cleaners. it is called a total lack of respect for you and she had no intention nor interest in developing a genuine friendship with you. Let it go but learn from this lesson. But can you prevent it from happening again with someone else? Probably not..... You will win some and you will lose some. Cardinalblue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 29, 2002 Report Share Posted July 29, 2002 Post deleted by DoxyBlue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 30, 2002 Report Share Posted July 30, 2002 Many more years ago than I care to remember, when I first ventured to Asia, I stood in line waiting to buy a watermelon. I watched everyone in front of me lay down 3 coins and depart with their fruit. When my turn came, I proceeded to mimic those before me. The vendor shook his head and said "No, 20 coins!" After much discussion, I was allowed to buy one for 10. As he explained, you can afford it and they can't. Two of the primary rules in Asia. 1. There is a flahing neon sigh on your forehead that says RICH-STUPID, RICH-STUPID. You are rich because your plane ticket cost more than they made last month (or year) and you are stupid because you probably don't speak the language, truly understand the culture and certainly don't come from their village. 2. There are 2 kinds of people in the world,,,,smart people and stupod people. If you are stupid enough to pay ten times what something is worth.....then I am smart enough to take your money. (Shades of PT Barnum !) That said. I have also had long time experiences in China when the local shopkeepers insisted to their staff to charge me less than they charged locals. I guess the face was worth it to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacko Posted July 30, 2002 Report Share Posted July 30, 2002 I would say you are sadly wrong about the Thais lacking manners, etiquette and social graces. The described behaviour is confusing, and deplorable, but I am still looking for a good answer in the thread. I believe they just see us all as weathy, and it is expected for wealthy people to spread it around. They would gain great face from having a wealthy person take out all their friends and family. I have found the Thais to be a very polite nationality. They do not put their feet up on tables, chew with their mouths open, eat with fingers or pass gas and think it is funny. We could learn from them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
check_bin_krap Posted July 30, 2002 Report Share Posted July 30, 2002 Jacko, the behaviour described by OP has nothing to do with normal Thai behaviour. Its just the kind of people you come across from time to time anywhere. Totally lacking in manners and very rude. Quite the opposite of traditional Thai manners actually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted July 30, 2002 Report Share Posted July 30, 2002 Actually, IMO, it's the waterfall coupon that gives you a free "ass". Add handling and local taxes, not included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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