Genmai

June 13, 2022

13 minutes ago, daveAustin said:

You gotta get their eye first. Unless you are a Brad Pitt type, approaching totty out of the blue, esp here, usually doesn’t go down too well.

Thanks, I hadn't actually considered this since it's pretty normal in my home country. Will be more careful about that. Anything else that comes to mind?

June 13, 2022

5 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

What do you look like?

Early 30s, in shape, white (seems to matter to some people) and dress plain but clean.

4 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Sawadee khrup

Sabadee mai?

I've done literally that and they just look around trying to find any reason to escape.

June 13, 2022

Guys, can I get some advice? Maybe I'm not bubbly or smiley enough but when I approach somebody they look either startled or annoyed or both (this is in Chiang Mai)... What do you y'all say to them?

Serious answers only please

December 24, 2021

3 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Fortunately the vast majority of Thai’s are polite enough and welcoming enough to make their own decisions and judgements, however, there are a minority influenced by such comments which are a dog-whistle to the media who play their part in perpetuating the ‘foreigner = bad’ myth to score hits on their news / web pages.

If the ones with negative sentiments are a minority then where was the outrage over Anutin's earlier comments about dirty farangs? Recall that he later did "apologize" - to the media for losing his temper, rather than to the foreign community. He followed that by doubling down with a later remark that Thai people should be wary of the dirty foreigner amongst them.

Where were the "majority of Thais who are polite enough and welcoming enough to make their own decisions and judgements" then? Similarly where were they

when the admin of Spotlight Phuket page was making video after video after video using every profanity under the sun about how much he hates foreigners, or when he encouraged Thai people to take slingshots and pelt foreigners with rocks? That page has been deleted but I still have screencaps of the many hundreds of comments - all in support and many with selfies of ready slingshots. Or when a bunch of Hua Hin thugs beat an elderly foreign couple to the ground and kicked them in the head all while a busy market of "polite and welcoming Thais" looked on? Where are they now in the Israeli case to even suggest that the blame in this fustercluck could potentially lie closer to home?

Could it be that those narratives don't get challenged simply because they lie close to Thai people's sentiments? Seems like either the "vast majority of polite and welcoming Thais" are either not polite and welcoming enough to voice their beliefs - or more likely they were never the "vast majority" to begin with. A stray dog getting shot receives more sympathies by Thai netizens.

It's easy to point the finger at politicians/news/web pages for perpetuating xenophobic narratives. It's much harder step to extend that blame to regular people around you who don't lift a finger to question them.

December 24, 2021

9 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Yeah watch out for rushes to judgement.

Is that your coy way of suggesting that overall perception of foreigners in Thailand (and particularly in the media) is positive?

December 24, 2021

10 hours ago, SteveWilts said:

I can't believe how many commenters actually support this guy!

I can't believe how many commenters actually believe announcements from Thai officials at face value. Nobody is supporting the guy, just that some are questioning the media narrative in light of Thai people's begrudging sentiments towards foreigners and the fact that we haven't yet heard anything from the Israeli himself.

December 21, 2021

4 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

I just Googled Vipassana Meditation as I had no idea what it was.

Now I know....a load of cobblers. Sitting thinking about your problems never cured anything. And the site I read says it take a couple of years to get yourself sortrd.

Judging from your utterly unhelpful comment I'd be amazed if you could muster the willpower to sit through an hour of proper Vipassana practice. You're not meant to "think about your problems" but rather to observe your own impulses and reactions rising up in response to "problems". Doing so trains you to catch yourself before you commit to dumb actions like posting uneducated brainfarts and dumping on a spiritual practice that has been of nothing but immeasurable benefit to humanity and has great potential to bring positive change to OP.

December 21, 2021

3 hours ago, connda said:

Exercise. No prescription needed.

Seconding this. Make sure you have all the other basic stuff checked - routine, good diet, a friend or 2 with above room temperature IQ, productive pursuits, etc.

Also, as per forum rules I can't suggest anything illegal but it might be a very very good idea to read up on pot edibles. Changed my life in a way that most people can't appreciate unless they've experienced 15 years of lying in bed for hours every night with a million useless racing thoughts. Now it takes 15 minutes to catch those sweet sweet zzzs. During the day I'm focused and mellow, Thai shenanigans don't matter so much anymore. No withdrawals even if going cold turkey after many months of daily use. Maybe a hospital here can prescribe you with oil drops? Anxiety and insomnia are 2 conditions they can prescribe them for. If not, most Thais are capable of finding some provider on Twitter/Instagram for you. Good luck.

December 15, 2021

I would also add that in a properly regulated industry consumers would have greater access to the 4 components of e-liquids (vg, pg, nic, flavors) to mix their own. Virtually impossible in Thailand so 90% of the stuff is mystery juice in a bottle with a label slapped on from Somchai's Shed that tastes like cotton candy syrup.

December 15, 2021

And did the study make a distinction for long term smokers who have already damaged their peckers and other organs beyond repair and have recently switched to vaping? Smoking cigarettes absolutely does destroy your body in a fantastic myriad of ways and vaping provides an excellent alternative to that (much to the detriment of tobacco conglomerates who fund these "studies").

14 hours ago, webfact said:

Dr Prakit Vathesatogkit, president of Action of Smoking and Health Foundation, meanwhile said researchers in Australia found that people who smoke an average of one pack of cigarettes daily face a 40% higher chance of experiencing erectile dysfunction.

Completely irrelevant for the purposes of talking about effects of vaping. Downing bottles of laokhao is gonna wreck your liver so a glass of wine at dinner is now also bad? The two are hardly in the same universe.

14 hours ago, webfact said:

Dr Roengrudee said the study found that nicotine and other chemicals used in e-cigarettes have an adverse effect on the male sexual hormone testosterone.

What "other chemicals"? E-liquid contains 4 things - propylene glycol + vegetable glycerin (2 things that make up the stage fog in your kid's theatrical productions - which have overwhelmingly been proven as completely safe), pure nicotine and flavorings (optional). There is literally no reason for manufacturers to put in any "other chemicals" as it would unnecessarily increase costs. If you're scared of propylene glycol then stop consuming frozen foods or using toothpaste since that exposes you to more PG than vaping does.

As for nicotine, yes it has the effect of constricting blood vessels which could lead to reduced blood flow. You know what else does that? Coffee. Do we see mainstream news articles describing the dangers of coffee because of "studies" about caffeine causing ED? No.

Looking to ward off Alzheimer's? Nicotine might actually be your friend: https://www.bmj.com/content/302/6791/1491.short

"The risk of Alzheimer's disease decreased with increasing daily number of cigarettes smoked before onset of disease (relative risk 0.3 in those smoking greater than 21/day v 1 in non-smokers). These findings suggest an inverse association between smoking and Alzheimer's disease."

You're not going to find that kind of research being talked about in the media tho!

3 hours ago, SiSePuede419 said:

Vaping THC, no problem.

In fact it was a bad batch of THC vape juice laced with Vitamin E acetate (to thicken the oil) that put a bunch of people in hospital years ago. That unfortunate incident is still being used to justify vaping as dangerous but it's really just another reason to properly regulate the manufacturers. Tobacco companies would never allow that to happen here tho which is why we keep seeing this kind of misinformation.

November 25, 2021

Hi all, I would like to go back home for Christmas and am wondering if anyone knows what the procedure is for flying back to Thailand if I have a work permit and nonB visa? I asked at immigration today and they said all I need is a re-entry permit and no Thailand Pass needed. I highly doubt this is the case but there is little information about this.

June 5, 2021

Quote

Does COVID-19 origin really matter?

-By Tulsathit Taptim

Well done Mr Taptim, spoken like a true member of the 50 Cent Party.

February 3, 2021

51 minutes ago, Medelline said:

people like you think their superior the perfect whites yet you brought this in to this world

Let me be the first to apologize dearly for my ancestors who brought the burden of civilization to much of the world. I will gladly assist you in availing yourself of some of their advancements. Like medicine, electricity and pants. After all, you don’t want to be engaging in cultural appropriation, do you?

At least it seems you have already unchained yourself from the oppression that is proper grammar and punctuation....clearly another construct of white supremacy designed to keep the black man down.

February 3, 2021

54 minutes ago, Alpharius said:

Thais have a really bad habit of stereotyping.

So do Americans when it comes to someone with an opposing opinion.

55 minutes ago, Alpharius said:

I wouldn't be surprised if Thailand put a ban on black people altogether after this.

The most violently persecuted minority group in the world is Christians living in Muslim countries. Would you also be not surprised to see Christian countries banning Muslims from entry?

February 2, 2021

4 hours ago, mr mr said:

lets stick to the fact this poor fella was brutally attacked by a POS human. who cares what politics or color he is a piece of garbage i think we can all agree on that ?

Because if it's a black/asian/latino/arab then it's a "POS human". But when it's a white person then suddenly its yet another instance of muh systemic racism. You don't think its odd in today's climate that a perpetrator's race is never mentioned if its ever anything other than white? If it was a white male you can bet there would be 100s of "white supremacist" headlines. How strange that nobody talks about "black supremacy".

You may not care about politics - but politics sure as hell cares about you. That's all one can say without risking being muzzled these days.

November 29, 2020

Hi all,

Newbie here looking to get into motorcycles and hoping some more experienced members can give me some advice.

My riding experience is very limited, just driving some clunky 2 stroke clutch thing on forest roads as a kid at home and here in Thailand just sitting on the backs of scooters. I've driven a scooter a few times before and honestly keeping the feet placed in front like that feels very unnatural. Much prefer straddling the machine like with a real motorcycle, that feels less awkward to me.

I will be taking lessons at a driving school and practicing in the moobaan and Sunday mornings on empty roads before attempting anything else. Not a fan of speed. Obviously a newbie but I just can't help being captivated by motorcycles every time I see one. In particular those kind of retro-classic style naked things I think are super cool.

I'm looking for a beginner-friendly motorcycle that will be used mainly for getting around town (CM) and eventually when I'm more experienced I'd like to go to national parks on camping trips. 183cm and 90kg, can lift heavy no problem. I'm looking at the royal enfield interceptor 650 which reportedly has great comfort and enough power to get around - but not enough to do anything crazy. The RE Himalayan seems to be geared towards more rugged terrain and crappy roads which is an option that would be nice to have in the future. One potential issue of RE is the lack of service/spare parts in TH if I need something replaced. Seems like Honda/Kawasaki have a much better network here? For this reason I'm also looking at the Kawasaki W250. It's in the same price range as the 650 but not as much bang for your buck? Kawasaki also has an adorable (and more affordable) W175 which I like the look of.

What I really don't intend to do is fly down highways at ridiculous speeds. Just leisurely chugging along. If there's any riding groups in CM that are open to newbies I'd love to be involved in that too.

November 2, 2020

On 10/31/2020 at 8:57 AM, rooster59 said:

But when nothing happened they went to immigration in Surat Thani where they were told it was not possible to change a Non-B into an education visa

These guys are really really dumb. It should have been obvious to them that the school is slipping envelopes to someone in immigration. The Thais have their own ways of circumnavigating their own asinine systems. Once the farangs showed up at immigration and kicked up a stink - OF COURSE everyone was going to wipe their hands clean and leave them hanging out in the wind. Yes yes OF COURSE it is "not possible to change a Non-B into an education visa" - unless the right person receives the right amount of money, but now that these idiots have brought up the clandestine relationship to everyone's attention they're on their own.

They should have waited a few extra days and pressured the school directly. If it's a real school with offices and staff - not so easy for them to run. Instead they chose to interrupt the bribery that was being done for their benefit. They could have had a few years of chilling on a tropical beach learning a language. Instead they are going to be sent back to their covid infested winter hellscapes.

This should be Rule #1 for farangs, printed out in giant letters and handed to every arrival to this country - "When Thais are doing something - DO NOT INTERVENE! If it fails then the blame is squarely on them and you can pursue recourse on that basis. If it fails after your intervention the blame is squarely on you!"

I say all this as someone who accidentally signed up for an ED visa with a dodgy school.

October 21, 2020

13 hours ago, polpott said:

The real reason that American missionaries come here both then and today. They've done a lot more harm than good over the years. Saving souls? They should try saving their own first.

Used to get a lot of American Mormons knocking on my door in the UK. I always used to tell them the same thing, "Don't come to my country telling me how to live my life when your country is in a far worse state". Hypocrites, one and all.

1 hour ago, Grumpy one said:

The good old missionaries could not have been a bigger curse on the world if they tried

What gave them the right to try and force their beliefs on anyone

Shall we adopt the same logic towards North Korea? Or places in Africa practicing sacrificial infanticide? Or India where reluctance to adopt civilized toilet usage results in mass open air defecation? Or even South East Asia where local animist superstitions were supplanted by Buddhism? Or literally any NGO operating anywhere?

Shall you levy the same criticisms toward Thai Buddhist temples operating overseas? Or have you swallowed the guilt-trip pill that so many Westerners (white cis-gendered hetero males in particular) have been getting shoved down their throats for decades?

Very few systems can be said to be perfect. But perfect is the enemy of good. At a certain point one has to make a stand and say "our system may not be perfect, but it has its benefits".

There is 0 shame in having pride in the Western heritage of bringing civilization to far-flung corners of the globe. If you think that Thais and other less developed places in the world have been "forced" into a Western mindset then I'll say they are free to abandon it - along with other Western advances like electricity, pants, medicine and eyeglasses.

October 21, 2020

This is why I always say the safest diet in this country is imported beef jerky washed down with copious amounts of whiskey.

October 20, 2020

3 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

Some things dont change , Westerners coming to Thailand and thinking that they should be revered and are superior , expecting Thais to bow down In front of them , because they are much better then they are

I've yet to run into one of these arrogant all-knowing farangs that some posters here claim are running around the country telling "Thais to bow down in front of them".

The more likely situation is that the following chain of events is constantly being played out:

1 - Westerners pay a local for a product/service

2 - Observe that it's all done half-assed

3 - Make suggestions based on their own observations/experience of the same thing being done properly in their own country

4 - Locals stubbornly refuse to adopt the suggestions because reasons xyz

5 - Nonsense ensues. The foreigner either gives up and does it themselves or everyone's panties get twisted

I long for the day when like you I no longer have to depend on other people to get important things done. Then I can go online and berate others for having a superiority complex.

October 20, 2020

1 hour ago, ukrules said:

You're all discussing a fictional book like it's some kind of historical document

From an interview with the author here: https://www.prestigeonline.com/th/pursuits/art-culture/exclusive-interview-pitchaya-sundbanthad/

Quote

In the book the character Phineas Stevens says that the Siamese “live as if they have been born sea nymphs that only recently joined the race of man” and they “have neither the capacity nor the desire for literacy”. Do you think Thailand’s literary scene is improving?

"Those words reflect the views of 19th century missionaries whose accounts I came across during my research. The truth is that there has long been a writing tradition in Thailand but much of it remains largely unread beyond the Southeast Asia region. I think that’s changing, but making Thai literature more widely read in the world will require stronger organizational support, much like what I’ve seen in Japan and Korea. I think it’s time."

October 20, 2020

1 hour ago, Elkski said:

"One storyline follows Phineas Stevens, a 19th-century American missionary and doctor assigned to work in Bangkok. He's initially uneasy in Thailand, hoping to be transferred away; he harbors suspicions of the Thai people who he's meant to treat, writing in a letter, "They are a proud, even arrogant people, having yet to come under the domain of a more advanced nation. They seem to regard our own purpose as merely to serve and sustain them in their lifelong pursuit of frivolity.""

Here's the rest of Phineas's letter from the book:

------------------------------------------------

He hoped Andrew would soon receive the letter he had sent this afternoon, without the reverend’s knowledge, for it also contained a petition to the Society for his immediate transfer to Canton, Rangoon, or wherever else his medical skills could be better applied, with adequate resources and due seriousness of endeavor.

In the same letter he also wrote of his recovery from a mild gastrointestinal illness, he believed from overripe mangoes devilishly selected by the cooks, and how Miss Lisle had taken charge of his care during that period, cleaning him, performing tasks that should only be asked of one’s hired aide or kin. She eliminated marauding mosquitoes from his room and read to him from the few English tracts available to them. Such magnanimity yields much its intention, he’d written, and noted how grateful he was to count himself among such kind souls in this alien territory.

He continued,

"The Siamese as a race thrive in the aquatic realm. They live as if they have been born sea nymphs that only recently joined the race of man. A traveler arriving at the mouth of the Chao Phraya steams upriver along mangrove beaches until the muddiness yields to long patches of coconut groves, alongside of which one may observe fishing villages where frog-limbed men, with spear or woven trap in hand, serenely perch on poles protruding from the water. Farther on lie endless expanses of wetland grass until the land solidifies into forests of flowering trees, fragrant in the breeze, and banana plants of endless variety. The wilderness gives way to towns where women squat at the shore with their washing and canoes as numerous as autumnal waterfowl in the Hudson’s marshes row out, each with its freight of cooped poultry or mounds of fruits ready for the floating markets. And an hour beyond, before one can be lulled to an afternoon slumber, lies the capital, its riverside lined with rickety stilt houses that look incapable of withstanding even the most delicate wake of a modern steamer yet somehow maintain a mysterious integrity. Their occupants drink, swim, wash away their filth, and fill pots to make soupy meals of their catches, everyone joined in the same confluence of fluids.

It is my conjecture that the waterborne city inspirits our undoing. Its fluvial systems—the natural ones and also the mesh of canals throughout the capital—carry to us miasmata that weaken the body.

Daily, we face our catastrophes, if not by pestilent vapors, then devised by bureaucrats, birthed from faithlessness, selfincurred. I comprehend the Society’s preference for men and women of youth, as ample health and vitality are needed to withstand the corrosion of these climes.

I am less concerned for myself than I am for the mission. Since my arrival attendance at service has not increased beyond the dozen or so minority Chinese families converted years prior. Piles of translated tracts and pamphlets lie untouched. Few Siamese pay us heed, unless they are seeking medicine or soliciting us to purchase their goods. The reverend is rightfully proud of what he has managed to achieve at the station under the circumstances, but there are times when I believe him prouder of his bountiful rambutan trees. Miss Crawford and Miss Lisle hold fast to optimism, despite caring for children who prefer craft lessons to the learning of letters and maths. The man Winston, to no surprise, harbors no apparent worries.

Whatever blessings of civilization are accorded to the Siamese will, I fear, bear little fruit. They are a proud, even arrogant people, having yet to come under the domain of a more advanced nation. They seem to regard our own purpose as merely to serve and sustain them in their lifelong pursuit of frivolity. If you ask me, they are full of guile as well, having played off the ambitions of the French and the British, whose territories surround them, so as to profit from the impasse and continue to fly their elephant flag. Without significant headway into the interior of the country—there being no concession for missionary efforts similar to the Treaty of Nanking—I fear the reach of the mission will remain severely limited. Despite the outward friendliness of the Siamese, especially when my medical capacities are needed, the opposition to our presence is profound. That the reverend even managed to secure land for the mission and to procure materials for its construction is a minor miracle.

Another hindrance lies in the people’s devotion to demon worship. Few have either the capacity or the desire for literacy, and even the Tripitakas and other texts of their own faith are a mystery to the majority of the people. Seeking solace outside of the passivity encouraged by their religion, the Siamese have embraced the worship of charms and objects, whether a tree or a termite mound.

My dear Andrew, I hope that I have not encumbered you with my distant despair, a world apart from the comforts of our valley, and that instead my musings shall provide you with some thin trickle of amusement. I hereby include a promised watercolor of frolicking parrots to guarantee a lift in your mood. It’s very rudimentary, I’m afraid, as I’m forced to get along with the means available. The green comes from soaked pandan leaves, the yellows from turmeric. May their pungent odors fade before your receipt of these words.

Did I tell you in my previous letter what became of the previous occupant of my room? A hooded cobra trespassed the mosquito screen one night, and when the man woke, the snake was roused as well. Not a waking hour passes in that room without my suspicious glance at crevices between the floorboards.

I hold little fear, however, as I consider these present circumstances trials meted by His hand. From my own treatment of patients, I’ve found that body and spirit are often restored by what most consider tribulation, be it piercing to let foul humors or the administration of black calomel to purge disease and restore balance to the constitution. To be touched by Grace, a soul must not fear enduring harm.

Yet, I must admit, the knowledge of your prayers does provide me with immeasurable comfort. Will you continue to pray for us here, as I pray for you all? Earthly survival, as transient as it will ultimately prove to be, presents a very desirable prospect. By His grace, may I hope to see each morning light?"

-----------------------------------------------------------

There's also a chapter about how he tries to intervene and save a man dying of injuries - only to be treated angrily by the crowd as an annoyance and obstacle in the way of a local witch doctor.

October 19, 2020

47 minutes ago, webfact said:

Thaivisa notes that he is set to find out just how seriously the Thais take cruelty to animals.

I think we're more likely to find out how much leniency Thai officials will show their Chinese masters despite despicable behavior ????

October 16, 2020

The great:

Gorgeous mountains (when you can see them)

Delicious vegetables

Access to international tourist market if trying to sell something (pre-covid times)

International airport with loads of direct flights to other Asian cities (also pre-covid times)

Range of hospitals

The good:

Judging by accounts immigration here seems to be fairly reasonable

People are fairly easy going and don't give me grief for screwing up small things

Easy to find great places to eat

Northern food with its herby palate is a welcome change to regular Thai food

High elevation = strawberry season

The bad:

Far from the coast = limited iffy seafood

Dogs, stupid driving, noise and poor service like everywhere else

That easy going nature I mentioned? People can be way too chill about getting things done

Nightlife sucks

Low English level

Despite aspirations for some UNESCO status there seems to be 0 aesthetic regulation on ugly garish buildings

Worsening traffic

Lack of culturally dignified events

Public transportation will never be a thing here

The ugly:

Smog

Feels like a 4/10 town. Not terrible but not really anything to make a memorable impression. After a few years I've still got no idea why so many Bangkokians come up here for the weekend. If doing it all over again I'd probably choose Penang.

October 14, 2020

2 hours ago, FarFlungFalang said:

Well if they are angered over this then they are to blame for being angered over this.If someone else was angered over this then they would be blamed for being angered over this.Who else would you blame for being angered over this?They have only themselves to blame for being angered over this.I'm not angered over this so I'm certainly not to blame for being angered over this.Are you angered over this?If people can't control their anger then they are to blame for it.

a riveting rebuttal, thank you for sharing.it all makes sense now.

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