Living in Thailand

[Opebo]

Upon visiting Pattaya I have found that a favorite porn site of mine - porn hub dot com - has been blocked. It worked recently upcountry, but has not worked at any internet shop I've tried here. Other sites like redtube and youporn are still working.

Is this a nationwide censorship or just an action implemented through some local IP? Anyone else finding their sites blocked?

[Macheath]

One funny story - I like to take my mending to an adorable 50ish lady down the soi. You know the sort of lady who sets up under an awning with her 30 year old sewing machine. Well, this lady sometimes refuses payment for very small jobs! She charges around 30 baht to hem pantaloons, but she sews buttons on for free if you have a button (not that I keep buttons around, but you know how some shirts have extra buttons provided at the bottom of the placket).

Charming lady? I think so.

I think I mostly read this stuff because of serious dearth of male company around here - especially if you don't guzzle beer and smoke. And then amidst the dross you occasionally find a gem and have to laugh out loud:

Opebo - You mostly have me convinced that you're an unreconstructed arsehole, and then come out with something like this. It's obvious you're a smart and funny guy, but pantaloons and plackets! Well fuck me sideways I am impressed!

Thanks for that, also an explanation of the origin of Opebo please if not too bleeding obvious?

[Diagonal]

I left South Europe, bored of listening people talking shit about others. I will left North Europe, soon, tired of people watching other as a shit. (or sexy., if you lucky)

In one mounth I will be in BKK to start a new work. And Thanks to you. I know I will find all together. At the end of the day maybe there are right. But the most extrenge is why thais, and us, don't think the same about ownself?

I will head of the kitchen, with about 8 thai staff. I had observe the thais catering workes, during my last holidays, humbles, conformists, happies, unlukies, resignes and sensibles.

However, since I read a bit of this threat I start to think I my be wrong. Anyone have an idea about what I will find in this laboral relaption?

PD. I will tell you where I will work. In case anyone want to try this new Restaurant.

[Member #3428]

Maybe it doesn't matter to the vast majority on here because they just come and go, and that's it.

But, how would you feel if you knew the person calling you a Farang, in an office meeting for example, speaking in Thai to other Thais about you, as if you weren't there?

If there are any African-Americans reading this discussion, how would you feel if you came here and Thais called you the "N" word?

same difference.

I live it daily in my own country and when traveling for work so I am never far from it. You would think by now you would make light of it and go with it instead of battling something that is ingrained into the local culture. As you said they advertise it on their taxis and publish it promotional web sites and paperwork. Objecting to it and making a case out of it only increases the locals comments about you in a negative way. Your co-workers who you belittle by your reactions are sure to back stab you from now on. Instead of making a joke about it and laughing about their comments you confronted it only to make matters worse in the future. It is best to make light of it so they see you understand the language and meanings behind such terms and then it will lose the appeal and novelty for them to do this and it will stop over time.

Respect is earned not given away freely especially to foreigners. If my friends called me a derogatory name then I would be offended but then they would not be friends would they so why would it matter? When work mates refer to me in derogatory words it does not bother me as I know they are jealous and envious and I have thick skin and could care less about childish petty items like this.

When others who have nothing to do in my life call me by terms and sayings that are less then complimentary why would I care what they say? I have more important things to worry about then what strangers call me.

[Old Thai Hand]

The word farang comes from the middle east. In the middle ages all westerners (crusaders) were franks. farang or fereng (arab alphabet gives only consonants). for example: Syphilis was known as ferengi sickness as being imported by them.
The Indian Ocean trading network linked thailand with the ME and thus they took over the term from the lingua franca of this network.

So farang means actually Frank = French.

You're sort of correct, if one believes this version. But, the arab source is actually far too late as an origin of the word. I subscribe to the Greeks being the earliest source (i.e. barbarian), which then was taken by Alexander to Persia, and adapted into Parsi (modern Farsi), then into arabic, across to Northern India and finally at some point into Siam. Remember that the Siamese likely never saw a European before the 15th century and prior to that would have only known of the "white man" from Muslim traders using a variation of Farenghii, Faranghii, Ferenghi, Parengi, Pereng etc.

[Old Thai Hand]

So why does it matter what others who don't know you call you? Are some folks so insecure and sensitive that folks need to spend long time correcting people instead of just smiling and moving on in life without caring what others think or say?

Maybe it doesn't matter to the vast majority on here because they just come and go, and that's it.

But, how would you feel if you knew the person calling you a Farang, in an office meeting for example, speaking in Thai to other Thais about you, as if you weren't there?

If there are any African-Americans reading this discussion, how would you feel if you came here and Thais called you the "N" word?

same difference.

[Old Thai Hand]

So the nice time you hear the word "farang" spoken by a Thai regardless of the context, think about the number of little Thai pussies (and asses) that have been stuffed and is being stuff at this every moment by "farang" dicks and smile and brush it off.

Except that 99% of the "Thai" (more often than not, Isaan) pussies being stuffed by Farang are those that no self-respecting Thai would go near. So, it's not exactly a badge of honour to wear with pride. It actually adds to the lowly status of the majority of foreigners.

[NicFrenchy]

It's funny, I was watching my Thai female staff yesterday and you can totally tell which ones have been porked and which ones have not.

One of the ladies came to the office with such a huge smile on her face that all her co-workers came around adn a chit-chat session ensued.
There, the Thais got to exerce their 2 favourite hobbies: Eating and yakking.

When I joined the party, one of the girls was quick to translate that the said girl finally have sex with her BF (whom she met a few days ago)...

[Member #3428]

It turns you on telling Thai people what to do and being a smart bumhole?......... As a Farang, I have no problem being known as a Farang by people who won't know (or care) the country I'm from.

I totally agree with you. Personally I don't see why folks get their panties all bunched up about because someone calls them a Farang. We are visitors in another country and we are their guests.

And these anal retentive people who object so much are usually the ones that look down upon and talk trash about the country folks anyways and want to stick to their high society types or pretend that they are superior. But it's funny because it seems like everyone of us gets screwed over by either a low end girl, a mid society girl or a high society girl, we all get screwed over at some point. So does it really matter so much what people who do not know you call you? Why would people even spend one second on worrying what others who you don't know call you.

In my country, I'm a half breed and our word for foreigner literally means "Piece of Shit" but it has been used for a long time and has been adapted into everyday culture and usage. And quite frankly Foreigners to our country are usually pieces of shit, from the ones that "Know it All" to the ones that assume they have some rights or title to be in the country and work and live.

I still work in four Asian Countries and I realize that this is the same attitude that a lot of these countries have. To many folks, from the poor to the folks with higher jobs who are afraid of losing them to outsiders, Foreigners are pieces of shit, to be tolerated for their economic benefit and skills only.

So why does it matter what others who don't know you call you? Are some folks so insecure and sensitive that folks need to spend long time correcting people instead of just smiling and moving on in life without caring what others think or say?

[M P Lurker]

When I hear someone referring to me as "farang". I usually stop them in their tracks and remind them that as they are "Khon Thai" then I am "Khon Farang"

Introduces a semblance of politeness

But if they refuse, and bearing in mind that I live in lower Isaan, near the Cambodian border, I normally respond with "Kmer pood mai dee!" That invariably shuts them up.

It turns you on telling Thai people what to do and being a smart bumhole?

"Farang" is sort of slang (more formal would be Khon Taang Chaat)

As you are clearly not a Guava (also called Farang) then "Farang" only is O.K. Khon Farang is not really used.

Khon Thai (Thai person) is used instead of just Thai since Thai is an adjective. Could be a country a food or anything Thai.

Also Khon Farangseyt (a French person)

As a Farang, I have no problem being known as a Farang by people who won't know (or care) the country I'm from.

[AndyBKK]

No the farang know how the blacks feel when you call them black, right? You have to realized that it took the blacks how long to get equality in America and that was with them being born there with parents and grand parents being born there. On top of that they speak perfect English and are not there to fuck all of the white girls.

You can not go to a foreign country some thousands of miles away on the other side of the planet and not expect to be treat like an alien from another planet. On top of this most, not all, but most farangs come to Thai to do what. Fuck Thai girls first and teach English second. How would like like it if the Thai made 10 times more money than you (Americans and Brits) and go to your country and fuck and marry all of the hot white girls, leaving you to be so depress that you have to drink cheap whiskey to get over it.

Hello! Thailand is two faced. One face is the "we welcome tourists" face and the other one is "we only want your money you can leave your stupid ass at home" face. Too bad there is no way to have the Thai girls beam to your bedroom after payment that way you will never have to hear the super derogatory word " farang" spoken.

So what I am trying to get at is that the Thai society as a whole think lowly of white male tourist and expats. This might be the results of decades of "farang" invasion of Thai pussy. So they will use the term "white foreigner" which when spoken in their native comes out as "farang" and talk shit about you.

And sorry there's nothing you can do about it because the Thais love to talk shit about other people. They call each other "gay buffalo" and "fucking ducks" all the time.

So the nice time you hear the word "farang" spoken by a Thai regardless of the context, think about the number of little Thai pussies (and asses) that have been stuffed and is being stuff at this every moment by "farang" dicks and smile and brush it off.

[Bumholes1]

When I hear someone referring to me as "farang". I usually stop them in their tracks and remind them that as they are "Khon Thai" then I am "Khon Farang"

Introduces a semblance of politeness

But if they refuse, and bearing in mind that I live in lower Isaan, near the Cambodian border, I normally respond with "Kmer pood mai dee!" That invariably shuts them up.

[Thaifun]

if you challenge thais on it, because one of the several correct terms for foreigner (which none of them use) is actually 'khon dtaang chad", they will likely back down and appologize. "farang" is slang. its origins are debated. but two of the most widely accepted ones are that it either comes from ancient greek and parsi (faranghii) and literally means 'barbarian', or it comes from the thai corruption of "francais", "farangset" meaning french. in either case, it's very negative because, in the case of the latter, the french were seen as evil because they attempted to conquer siam in the 16th century and raped and pillaged in various places.

the word farang comes from the middle east. in the middle ages all westerners (crusaders) were franks. farang or fereng (arab alphabet gives only consonants). for example: syphilis was known as ferengi sickness as being imported by them.
the indian ocean trading network linked thailand with the me and thus they took over the term from the lingua franca of this network.

so farang means actually frank = french.

[Opebo]

I couldn't agree more with OTH about the term farang. Obviously I defer to his language ability, but in my own experience the term has usually had a negative connotation.

I wonder if it would be acceptable to refer in Thai to 'farang' and to oneself as 'khun cee caiow', which I believe means 'Mr. White' or 'White person'?

I suppose this line of disscussion does belong in the 'racism against foreigners' thread, but let me just add that even though I do get a few negative comments, by far and away I benefit from Thai racism and classism. For example I make double what Thais make for similar work. And here in the upcountry I'm generally undercharged or not charged at all for things, and I think only once or twice has anyone tried to overcharge me.

One funny story - I like to take my mending to an adorable 50ish lady down the soi. You know the sort of lady who sets up under an awning with her 30 year old sewing machine. Well, this lady sometimes refuses payment for very small jobs! She charges around 30 baht to hem pantaloons, but she sews buttons on for free if you have a button (not that I keep buttons around, but you know how some shirts have extra buttons provided at the bottom of the placket).

Charming lady? I think so.

[Old Thai Hand]

If you do live here for a while. The Thais will start to address by your name and not as a white person. If you teach here your students will call you "ajarn" so and so.

And yes, if you actions make you out to me a dirty bag then the Thai will refer about you by your name and still talk shit about you.

Well, I've had official memos from the university addressed to: "All Ajarn Farang" and a group of us were actually introduced this way at an open house for new students and parents. It was clearly designed to separate us out from the "real", and more important Thai faculty. Can you imagine at an American university some dean saying, "We'd like to introduce first, the Caucasian faculty and then, all the African-American faculty"? Can anybody say, ACLU and NAACP?

On the first day of my last job, I was waiting at the photocopy office and a Thai faculty member walked by and said in Thai to the copy girl, "Be careful. We have Farang here, now." I realize that this may sound innocuous. But, the underlying implication is that we are somehow less-than-human. I turned to the Thai faculty member and snapped back in Thai, "Don't worry. I'm not dangerous". Needless-to-say, she was embarrassed, realizing that I had understood her.

One other thing that I find disingenuous are those "I (heart) Farang" signs on taxis. It's patronizing and condescending. What are we, puppies? Not to mention that, in fact most taxi drivers don't (heart) Farang", at all.