The Status of Foreigners in Thailand The views expressed in this article are my own, based on living in Thailand for

eight years. I am white, from Wales and have lived in cities and a village since I moved here. I don't know how Thais treat other Asians; blacks or Arabs, altho ugh I have an inkling. I am what most Thais would call a 'falang' (correctly: farang), which refers to a white Caucasian. It is part of the word the locals called the first Europeans that came to the area, the French (falangset or farangset). Status in Thailand is a very important concept. Much more so than I ever noticed in Europe; more even than in Britain with its class society, where high status people walk all over us, although we try to pretend that they do not exist. In Thailand, the highest status goes to either to the royal family or the Buddhi st monkhood. I have been told, but there isn't much in it and it might be a pers onal decision. The king is almost universally liked - even loved - and monks are universally respected too. In fact, it is against the law to insult either the king or the monkhood Next comes a very complicated combination of factors, which are basically: job, age and wealth. you probably have to be born here to fully understand it instinc tively, but experience helps too. Age definitely confers respect. Technically, if you walk past someone who is muc h older than you, you should reduce your height to below theirs, but they don't expect foreigners to do this. Jobs convey respectability. A teacher does not earn much, but carries the title 'Anjan' (teacher) all his or her life, even in retirement. It is a huge mark of respect. Only people of impeccable character are allowed to teach Thai children, or so the theory goes. Wealth counts for a lot and much more than it probably used to but I am not 100% sure of that. So where do foreigners who come to Thailand fit into all this? Well, most foreigners who come to Thailand are getting on, so they score on the age scale. Furthermore, most Thais have never been abroad on holiday,so if you c an afford to come here and not work, you must be well-off. Therefore, foreigners score well on the wealth scale too, although if the truth be known, many foreig ners living in Thailand have far less than the richest 10% of villagers. Most ex-pats are retired from good jobs or at least they say they are. I only kn ow one man, who admits to having been a hod-carrier. Many claim to have been in the CIA, the SAS or the SEALS, but if you really want to boost your status here, just say you were a university lecturer. So, all in all, we foreigners come pretty high up the social scale. However, tha t is how you rise in society, but you can also do things to subtract from your s tatus. This is where some foreigners shoot themselves in the foot. This list of faux-pas are not really in any order as they might be personal. The first no-no is being loud and obnoxious; complaining and criticising all the time.

The second is being arrogant and flashy. Third is being mean (tight-fisted). Being a 'cheap Charlie' is pretty bad, simil ar to being 'trailer trash' in the USA. Fourth is arguing with people, especially your wife, in public. On the whole, if you are a typical, decent, quiet old man, you will be well thou gh of. By the way, drinking too much and too often is quite acceptable, so long as it d oes not lead to any of the above behaviour. Most Thais drink like fish anyway, a lthough in villages they tend to drink at home or in a friend's house. <a href="http://behind-the-smile.org/wordpress/">Behind The Smile ~ Lek's story as a Thai bargirl</a> : ISBN: 978-1-475-21688-2 : Published by CreateSpace 19-42012. Try: <a href="http://packageholidaystothailand.org">Package Holidays to Th ailand</a>.