Laura from the UK has been living and working in Thailand for a few years now, as well as all the amazing things about the country (food, friendly people, cost of living, beaches, islands etc) there are some really annoying things you will encounter when travelling or living here.
I’m Thailand’s number 1 advocate, I love it and ill tell anyone who will listen how amazing it is! But there are some irritating, annoying or just down right weird things that happen on a regular basis here, so be prepared for a moan:
1. People talking on the phone in the toilets…
I just don’t get this, when i walk into public toilets and every other cubicle in use is chattering away on the phone. Who does that? I can even understand if you do this in your own home but at work? or in a shopping mall? Dafuq?!
2. Fork and a spoon…
Most Asian dishes can be eaten either with chopsticks or with a fork and a spoon so if fair enough that the standard cutlery supplied is a fork and a spoon. However sometime you just need a knife in your life. I once ordered steak, it came with a fork and a spoon when i asked for a knife they looked at me like i was a complete idiot.. I’m dying to acquire these mad spoon skills that allow you to cut steak!
3. Thai National Anthem…
8am and 6pm everyday they play the national anthem in certain places (parks, train stations etc), if at any point you hear the anthem you must stop and stand still until it finishes, I quite like this quirky tradition what I don’t like is the fact that I normally have my headphones in and only realise its playing when I start to get death stares from all the Thais standing still around me. Luckily a sheepish look and quick apology in the way of bowing my head and they’re all back to their happy smiley Thai ways again!
4. When the lady boys look better than you…
Every so often your having a bad hair day (actually this is like 90% of the time in Thailand’s humid climate) and your on your way somewhere and you see this lady boy who is groomed within an inch of her life, she looks like she’s walked straight out a magazine. That is not fair, even the lady boys look more lady like than me. Doh.
5. Being ripped off…
I’ve lived in Thailand for almost 2 years, so I know roughly how much I should be paying for thing yet i look like a backpacker straight off the bus so every single time I go to buy something I have to go through this whole drama of haggling the seller down from their widely inflated backpacker price to a vaguely normal Thai price! This is probably worst with Taxi’s and Tuk Tuk’s although learning to speak some Thai has helped a lot!
6. Thais that wont speak Thai…
I know lots of Thai’s want to practice their English, but when your trying to learn Thai its incredibly annoying that everyone refuses to speak to you in Thai, even if they cannot speak English they would rather point and signal that speak Thai, So frustrating!
N’awwwww Thailand i’m sorry for my rant, I love you long time! Its partly these random and bizarre things that make this an amazing country to live in!
Are you working abroad and have you got any others to add? What are the weird/annoying things about the country you live in? Leave your comments below!
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