This is an adaption of a talk that I gave at a local high school in Arlington, Texas. I will also be delivering a similar speech to the Baylor University Global Community program's end-of-year banquet as the keynote speaker. Originally a powerpoint presentation, I have adapted it into a post for the blog.
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There are a couple different ways that you can study a culture. It's really interesting to look at the way outsiders view a culture and compare it to the way that one views his or her own culture. As an exercise in my M.4 (sophomore) English class last term, the students were asked to think of items to include in a "culture capsule". Bear in mind, my class is made up of urban Bangkokian sixteen year-old Thai students. It would be interesting to see what people of different cultural, socio-political, ethnic, and age groups would have come up with. The prompt was something like this:
"If you were to create a list of items to represent Thailand to someone who has never been there, what would you include?"
This is the complete list that my students came up with:
1. Royal Thai Elephants
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| Ayutthaya |
Elephants are everywhere in Thailand. The animal itself is the symbol of Bangkok and can be found on clothing, art, architecture... the elephant represents good luck in Thai culture, and it's not uncommon to see elephant rides and elephant mahout camps on a tour of Thailand. The Thai people love their elephants. Even ancient Siam was famous for their seemingly invincible war elephants
2. รำไทย Ram Thai (Thai Dancing)
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| Thai Opera |
Ram Thai is Thailand's proudest fine art form. Thai dancers practice for years to achieve their iconic graceful moves. I wish I had a better picture of the dancers actually performing. If you look at their hands while they're dancing, you'll see that they have learned to bend their fingers backwards to look more graceful. Dancers famously perform at the Erawan Shrine in downtown Chit Lom, Bangkok, offering prayers for good fortune. The dances tell traditional Thai stories, and the costumes and music are an integral part of Thai culture.
3. Temples / Religion
While Theravada Buddhism is the official religion of the royal family of the Kingdom of Thailand, the king is seen as the Defender of All Faiths, and religious tolerance and freedom is practiced in the country. Theravada Buddhism is one of the oldest forms of Buddhism, and incorporates aspects of Hinduism along with traditional Thai animist and Buddhist beliefs, as well as reverence for important monks and the king. Temples, shrines, statues, and saffron-robed Theravada monks are a common sight on every street corner in Thailand.
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| monks celebrating the start of the rainy season in Kanchanaburi |
4. Floating Markets
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| Ampawah |
While today many the floating markets are mostly tailored to tourists, they are a representation of a traditional aspect of Thai life. You can hire a longboat to paddle you down a canal where vendors will sell you fruits, vegetables, and full meals from their restaurant and shop boats! Now many of the floating markets are built as stores along boardwalks.
5. Tom Yum Soup
If you ask a Bangkok local to choose one food to represent Thailand, they most likely will recommend tom yom goong, a spicy herbal soup made with delicious pepper and boiled shrimp. You can ask for "farang style" by ordering "phet nit noi"... just a little spicy! (That was one of the first Thai phrases I learned. Thai spicy is very different than Tex-Mex spicy!) Tom Yum is a cheap, healthy, and delicious street dish that is popular throughout the "Big Mango".
6. Pad Thai
If you've only had one Thai dish, chances are you've tried pad thai. Pad thai, a fried noodle dish with shrimp or chicken, fresh lime, and peanuts is a street food favorite throughout the country, and variants are found in Bangkok, the northern mountains, and in the south.
7. Mango Sticky Rice
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| my favorite |
Without a doubt my favorite Thai dish, mango sticky rice is a delicious dessert that I will go far out of my way to get. The sticky rice is warm and sweetened with coconut milk, and the mango is sweet and cool. It's refreshing and delicious! It's always a good day if they serve sticky rice for dessert at school. Black sticky rice with taro root and sticky rice with red beans are tasty, but by far my favorite is when it is served with mango and coconut milk.
8. Bangkok Tuk-Tuks
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| with a portrait of the princess in the background |
These things are definitely a rip-off, but they're fun. You will overpay by about 400-500% versus a metered cab, but you can't deny that they're an iconic sight around town. They aren't how locals travel by any means, and really only cater to tourists, however you can't miss these brightly-colored auto-rickshaws careening around the city. They are literally built around a moped, and the battery sits between the drivers feet. They are named for the sound they make, "
tuk tuk..."
9. School Uniforms
Uniforms are a major part of school life. At my school, the students have several different uniforms. The standard daily uniform consists of blue shorts (for boys) or skirt (for girls) and a light blue shirt. There's also a gym uniform that includes dark blue sweatpants and a white polo, and a formal uniform with a grey jacket and purple tie and scarf. During certain months, all M4, M5, and M6 boys have to participate in military training and have to wear their uniform to school on specific days during the week.
Even university students must wear uniforms in Thailand. All primary and secondary school students wear blue variant uniforms, and university students wear black and white uniforms.
10. The Colors of the Day
Colors are very important in Thai culture. Every day of the week is represented by a color, and the teachers at my school must wear the color of the day. It's easy for me and the other men at my school; all we need are a few colored ties, which you can buy on the street for about two dollars. I feel sorry for the ladies though. They have to wear full colored outfits every day! Yellow is the most important color, as the king was born on a Monday. During the king's birthday month in December, we were required to wear yellow every day. We wore blue throughout all of August to celebrate the queen's birthday as well, since she was born on a Friday. Everyone's birthday color is seen as a lucky color for that person. I was born on a Monday, so my lucky color is yellow- just like the king's!
11. The Flag and Royal Standards
You see flags all over Thailand. The national flag flies from almost every building, but the royal standards are a common sight as well. The blue flag is the standard of Queen Sirikit and the yellow is the standard of King Bhumibohl. The king and queen are represented by yellow and blue because they were born on a Monday and Friday respectively. Other members of the royal family have their own flags too, but you don't see them unless it's a special celebration honoring that person.
12. Siam Paragon Mall
Bangkok is home to possibly hundreds of shopping malls, from the mega-chain Central Plaza to the crazy and chaotic MBK center where you can buy anything from cell phones to sim cards to bootlegged DVD's. No mall in Thailand is as famous or as prominent in the urban-elite Bangkok culture as Siam Paragon, downtown Siam Square's famous luxury mega-mall. My students wanted to include Paragon because they were concerned that when many foreigners think of Thailand, they think of "jungle huts". In fact, Bangkok is one of the biggest, busiest, and most modern cities in the world. Siam Paragon was the most "Instagrammed" place in the world in 2013! Inside you can find the expected dessert cafes, an international food court, and a cinema, but Paragon also hosts a five-star hotel, a (really cool) aquarium, and lots of luxury brands like Armani, Luis Vuitton, Harrod's of London... you name it!
13. Wai
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| global marketing |
A wai is the traditional respectful greeting in Thailand. You put your hands together in a prayer-like manner and bow your head. People wai at different levels to show different degrees of respect. When my students wai me, they have to bow deeply, but I am only supposed to accept the wai by putting my hands together. As a student wais lower than a teacher, ones bows to show respect to authority. Likewise, when I see the headmistress or an important teacher at my school, I have to wai to them like my students do to me!
On a similar topic, when my students are talking to me in my office, especially if they are asking me a question, their head must be lower than mine. That means, if I'm sitting at my desk, the students should kneel on the ground to speak to me. It was awkward for me at first. As the youngest teacher at the school, I was only four years older than some of the seniors, but when in Thailand...
Every class starts with a unison "good morning, teacher" and a wai, and ends with a "thank you, teacher" and another wai. Students wai when I pass things out to them, or when I tell them they've done well on something.
Before I moved to Thailand, I was worried about knowing how and to whom to wai. My predecessors told me at orientation "you'll just figure it out" which I thought was entirely unhelpful. Honestly though, that was completely true. After a while you understand who you should wai and how deeply, and we soon mastered the "carrying stuff one-handed wai!"
When I met the princess last month, we did not wai! We had hours and hours of bowing and curtseying practice. If I were to meet the king (awesome, but unlikely), I would have to prostrate on the ground to show respect.
14. Portraits of the King and Queen
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| credits to buddhachanneltv.com |
There are portraits of the royal family everywhere. Our school has a portrait in every classroom, and our office is full of paintings, photographs, and framed newspaper clippings about the king and queen. King Bhumibohl (Rama IX) is Thailand's beloved king, and the longest reigning monarch and head-of-state in the world (going on 68 years on the throne). Some people even wear amulets bearing the King's image around their necks for good luck.
Here's a tip: if you are going to eat at a Thai restaurant in the US or abroad, check to make sure that they have displayed a portrait of the king and queen. If you see one, it's very likely that the food will be high-quality and authentic, as the restaurant is probably owned and operated by Thais.
This is the copy room at my school. That's just one wall- pictures of the king are everywhere! When you understand how the Thai revere their king, it makes perfect sense.
15. Thai Alphabet
นี้เป็นภาษาไทย (This is Thai)
The Thai alphabet consists of 44 consonants and 28 vowels. My students are very proud of their alphabet, as it represents an important part of Thai heritage. They were very proud when they taught me how to write my name! (
ไมเคิล)
I've been learning to read and write Thai this year, and it's not going too poorly! Because Thai is an alphabet system (instead of a character-based system like Chinese), it is phonetic. It's complicated, but I think it is a cool script!
16. Chao Phraya River
The Chao Phraya River ("Chao Phraya" is a royal title that is commonly analogued to "Grand Duke") is really Bangkok's heart. Bangkok is a relatively new city, founded in the late 18th century after the sack of Ayutthaya, and the river was its lifeblood that helped the city boom into the modern metropolis that it is today.
17. Durian, the King of Fruit
It smells like stinky socks, rotten meat, spoiled eggs, and gasoline, but it tastes like vanilla ice cream. Durian, known as the King of Fruits, is a strange, strange thing to eat. People either love it or they hate it, but you can't deny that durian holds a special place in Thai culture. It's not my thing, although fried durian chips aren't bad.
18. Mangosteen, the Queen of Fruit
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| the purple ones |
Mangosteen (the round purple fruits) are more my speed. The thick purple skin will stain your fingers, but peel it back and you'll find a sweet, soft, white center. Mangosteen is the Queen of Fruits in Thailand, and is recognized for its cooling properties. They often serve them at lunchtime at my school. (Incidentally, the red spiky ones are called "rambutan". They're good too.)
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| at Erawan National Park |
Thailand is an ancient country with a rich culture. Although the modern world has definitely arrived in Bangkok, traditional ways of life have not been forgotten. My students may be glued to their iPhones, and they may love Instagram and Snapchat, but they will never forget to wai, or go to the temple to make merit. Thailand is a kingdom where the old and the new converge, and it is a beautiful place.
I learned some very basic conversational phrases like this early on, even before I moved to Bangkok last year, but I've really been working on reading and writing. My real issue is my extremely limited vocabulary. Even if I can read or sound out a phrase, I often have no clue at all what it's saying unless I really understand the context.
