Honeymoon in Thailand - Experience, advice, and suggestions from those who have been

[Ghoul]

my understanding of the wai is as follows.

-Never initiate a wai towards anyone younger than you.
-you dont initiate towards someone lower on the social ladder than you?
-use the informal wai in nearly all regular context and only the more formal versions for monks.
-you are expected to return a wai

All in all it doesnt seem all that different than the "smile and nod" from nearly everywhere else in the world

In general don't initiate. Say "thank you" if the situation warrants it, they'll likely respond with a wai or "you're welcome".

Don't worry about the social class aspect. Thais don't expect foreigners to understand the nuances involved.

Always use the informal version.

Return a wai.

99% of visitors make no effort, so even a clumsy return will result in a surprised and delighted response.

Thais are the most chill people in the world. Don't raise your voice, ever.

Don't argue with cabbies. or anyone. If you get screwed a little, just pay, everything's a bargain anyway. You never know who's an ex Muay Thai fighter, many are taught from childhood, lol.

Tipping is never expected, but appreciated and received with grace. It distinguishes Americans from others and engenders a lot of good will towards us, vs cheapskate Euros, Australians, and especially other asians

 

[Ghoul]

Nice.
I know people who spend a lot of time abroad and don't really get involved with understanding the local culture and learning even a bit of the language, just because everyone else happens to know at least a bit of English.
Being adventurous and open minded always makes you look at things in a different way and allows you to relate them to your thinking and experiences.
I certainly commend you for making an effort, because i am sure that a lot of foreigners living there don't bother. It will stand you in good stead.

In my experience most western expats become Thai. You can't help it. The country and its pervasive peaceful vibe seeps into you.

Only partying foreigners tend to be badly behaved, unfortunately. Indians, Chinese and some Muslims have their own distinct sequestered communities and tend not to assimilate, which is one reason the country's name was changed from Siam to THAIland only 75 years ago, to send a clear message about who's culture would be predominant...but Thai history is a fascinatingly complex topic unto itself.

 

[iris]

my understanding of the wai is as follows.

-Never initiate a wai towards anyone younger than you.
-you dont initiate towards someone lower on the social ladder than you?
-use the informal wai in nearly all regular context and only the more formal versions for monks.
-you are expected to return a wai

All in all it doesnt seem all that different than the "smile and nod" from nearly everywhere else in the world

Tom, could you please post here a few pix of cool things you have seen/liked, when you get back?
Would love to see the place through your eyes, as I will never go.

Thanks and have a safe journey

X

 

[UncleBuns]

You can get very nice well made custom fit clothing in Thailand. WAY cheaper than in the US and if you go to a good shop very well made. Definitely worth it if you're into nice clothes. The experience is fun picking the cloth and styles.

 

[Ghoul]

You can get very nice well made custom fit clothing in Thailand. WAY cheaper than in the US and if you go to a good shop very well made. Definitely worth it if you're into nice clothes. The experience is fun picking the cloth and styles.

I was going to suggest it, but with his schedule he won't have time for the initial fitting and follow up alterations. When I did shorter trips there, I'd spend 4 days in Bangkok, then get the final adjustments on 1 more day spent there on the way back.

 

[BigTomJ]

Yeah, I've heard repeatedly that getting customer made suits and shirts is big thing in Bangkok, but I doubt we will have the time.

With our current itinerary we are just trying to see and experience as much as we possibly can in the time we have.

I'm the future I imagine we will take a return trip with a more leisurely itinerary for things like that

 

[Ghoul]

Yeah, I've heard repeatedly that getting customer made suits and shirts is big thing in Bangkok, but I doubt we will have the time.

With our current itinerary we are just trying to see and experience as much as we possibly can in the time we have.

I'm the future I imagine we will take a return trip with a more leisurely itinerary for things like that

I've never heard of anyone not wanting to return to Thailand after their first trip. Hell, the American expat community, one of the smallest until recently, continues to expand, mostly with younger and middle aged people, while the brits and aussie retirees, previously dominant, decline in number.

 

[Dr.V.P.C.]

So much fun
Great cheap sea food in the streets and food marketing ,also fresh cold delicious dragon fruit
Don't miss the thai massage parlors... (what you will do and with who, is up to you... if you want to try some new thing ... this is the moment)

 

[BigTomJ]

Got into Bangkok last night, we are staying maybe half a mile from the Grand Palace.

So far spent the day exploring and walking around, getting a foot massage, and trying a bunch of food.
This is pretty much our only free day for Bangkok other than going to a MT fight tonight at the stadium.

So far we both love it, we got 2 weeks to go and a lot to see.

Couple days in Bangkok, 5 days in chang mai for the lantern festival, and then down to Phuket to relax for the end.

I'll post occasionally in here as we go.

 

[BigTomJ]

1 week in update.

11/8 at around 10:30pm, hotel by midnight
11/9 free day to explore and muy Thai fight at the stadium that evening.
11/10 visit floating and railway markets
11/11 grand palace, emerald buda, and wat arrun tour
11/12 leave Bangkok for Chaing Mai early AM, arrive around 10am. Staying in old city.
11/13-11/14 two day jungle trek, stay with local Karen hill tribe village, and elephant sanctuary.
11/15 Thai cooking class


Bangkok was a lot of fun, the muy Thai fight was fantastic, that stadium is so well ran and very entertaining. Really good match ups as well.
Floating markets and railway markets were underwhelming and touristy, but we were able to see past the touristyness to see and appreciating the culture there.
Grand Palace and Temple tour was exhausting, it was very hot and this was the day our jet lag caught up to us, but still beautiful and a worthwhile tour.
We spent a lot of our evenings jumping around to rooftop bars or Chinatown trying all kinds of street food.
So far I don't think I've had a single bite of anything that wasn't delicious.

In Chaing Mai it is drastically different than Bangkok, English is a bit less common here and there is a lot less hustle and bustle.
First day we basically just relaxed and hung out at cafes to get some rest before our big hike.
The second day we went on our 2 day hike.
We hiked for about 2 hours or so up into the mountains to a waterfall to take a dip and have lunch to take a break for a bit, then about another 2 hours to the top of the mountain to the village.
We stayed the night at the village where they introduced us to some local customs and foods and prepared a delicious dinner for us, as well as a great breakfast the next morning.
After breakfast, we packed up and hiked for about another 2-3 hours down the mountain, where we were picked up and brought to the elephant sanctuary. One of the elephants had a 2 year old baby that excitedly came right up to us and was playful the whole time.
The whole experience is easily the highlight of the trip so far. We did the whole thing with a group of great people from all over.
The cooking class was a lot of fun and definitely a good use of half a day, now we just relax until the festival tonight to go watch the parade and release a lantern.

Oh, and all the food, massages, shopping, ect so far has cost us less than 300-400$ USD.

So far Thailand is 10/10