The rules of the game, Thai-style

One thing I forgot to mention. It is a big trend in Thailand at the moment to glue (I assume) strands of Tinsel into your hair. Seriously, we have seen tonnes of young girls with this done. It is a pretty big trend, even the manager assistant at this hotel has it done. At Chatechuck market, we saw a man walking around with a sandwich board with packs of multi-coloured tinsel taped to it, all for sale. Strands are glued in individually, and throughout the entire head of hair, usually several colours of tinsel at a time. It is then trimmed to be the exact length of the wearer's hair. I can't find any links or reference to this anywhere, I would have gotten a photo if it was not so rude. Maybe I can make a friend with hair tinsel, and ask what the deal is.

Rules of the Road, Thailand.

#1 - he is who biggest has right of way
#2 – lanes are optional
#3 – going the wrong way on a one way road is ok, as long as you assume that people can see you
#4 – the more emmissions you can spew from your engine, the more tourists you can drive around for baht.
#5 – The speed you can go is directly proportional to how many Singha you have consumed this morning.
#6 – first come, first served
#7 – yellow line is not to divide the two lanes, it is for motorcycles to follow, coming in either direction.

Rules of Dining, Thailand

#1 – appetizers will come when appetizers want to come, not before main courses, and not after drinks are served necessarily.
#2 – Sharing meals is a much better idea. This way, you can taste various dishes, and not have to stare at your partner hungrily as they slurp the last of their dish before yours has even arrived.
#3- If you are white, they will give you ketchup. Ask for Siracha and chilis etc when you order.
#4 – if you are white, you must ask for spicy. They will question you to confirm. Say “Ka. Spicy. Ka”
#5 – you must motion to your waiter if you want service, turn palm downwards and move fingers inwards.
#6 – do not tip more than 20 baht.
#7 – do not sit down to eat unless you have more than an hour. Even for breakfast, just in case.
#8 - make sure you order enough food, taking into consideration that one or more dishes may not arrive.

Are you smarter than a Thai 5th grader is one of the most popular shows in Thailand right now. Its exactly like the Western versions, except in Thai. Oh, and the kids “wai” all the time. its brilliant. Thais would crowd around the communal tv in the alley outside of Buri, all the flowershop workers, and watch it. We put it on the other night here, and watched the entire thing. It was incredible.