It's long past time that I get serious about my Thai language studies again.
Recently this country-wide COVID-19 lockdown has shown me that just having a non-immigrant visa is not nearly enough to guarantee that I can stay in the country. Now, lots of people who are legally employeed in Thailand or are married to a Thai national have been prevented from re-entering the country due to border closures. I understand the situation, but I also would like to have a little more security if I inteed to stay in Thailand long-term. I have a few options, but both permanant residency and citizenship require at lest an intermediate Thai language proficiency.
I studied Thai actively by myself for a few years, but the last few years were busy. I know that's just an excuse, and I know plenty of people who were fluent in Thai by year 4 or 5 in Thailand. I'm ok at speaking Thai. In fact, I'm probably better than the majority of expats who live here (many sadly never even try to learn the basics). I can have a basic conversation, and I can read well enough. I can get by. I can travel and place an order and have a basic chat with someone, but I need to get better!
A few weeks ago, I heard an episode on the Bangkok Podcast by an Australian Bangkok-based polyglot named Stu Jay Raj. At the end of the episode, the host gave a shout-out to his book. I promptly contacted Mr. Raj to buy a copy of his book, and he sent it to me directly the very next day. It's a hefty book, but it seems really promising. The book promises to be a more natural way of learning the language.
Let's see how much it can help me with my language studies.
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