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My wife and I are flying down to CM today. We would also be interested in meeting the OP or others. We'll be vacationing there for 10 days.

Cheers!
Yvon

Perhaps coffee some morning at Starbucks, Taepae Gate?

Welcome to Chiang Mai. Hope to meet with you. I am from Chiang Mai.

hey, got a question. When you guys who are not thai or a hill tribe, go to CM.  And when you meet people from this board, who pays? A. Each person pays for themself.  B. Thai National pays for foreigner.  C. Thai - but tribe pays for foreigner.  D. Foreigner pays for Thai national.  E. Foreigner pays Thai - but tribe.  F. Foreigner pays for everybody.  G. Thai pays for everybody?

Cecco:

Excellent questions, but what do YOU think?

khup khun krup,

I want to know the experience of others.  My experience is that only the highest class of Thai's pay for others, and when they go, they pay anything and everything, with true honor and cheerfulness.  But, the upper class Thai's rarely associate with any other class of Thai or any foreigner.

The other classes of Thais and variations of Thai never ever pay, and they invite extra people to eat for free, get free entrance, and even receive covert commissions off of the bill paid by the Chao tarng chat. 

One of my friends, and hopefully future boss, is born of two Thai parents.  The family is of the highest and most powerful class in Thailand.  He was taken to a foreign land where he grew up with an extended family.  He is now in Thailand  running the aging parents' business.  He does not call himself Thai, and although he is doing business in Thailand which is a major portion of the Thai economy, he is constantly complaining to his parents that he is treated with racism, is never treated like a Thai, and wants to leave Thailand in order to conduct business from another country.  The parents will not allow him to change countries.  My friend employs thousands of Thai's.  When my friend attends dinner with Thais and he pays. While is far far more wealthy than myself, when I go, I try very hard to pay 50% of the time. My friend has told me situations where levels of wealthy thai's,  but not the highest levels of thai society, have brought scores of extras to dinner, when he invited two people, scores of people came.  And, they ordered whiskey's etc, bringing one dinner bill to more than $2,000 baht and all walked away leaving him with the bill.  He has also told me stories of Thai wealthy business people inviting him to dinner, spending liberally, and entertaining large numbers of their family/organization group, and then claiming to forget their credit card, and living him with the bill.  Many such stories have been told to me, by a broad selection of people.  I have witnessed and experienced many such stories. Therefore, I find it easy to believe them all.

When I see thai's offer to befriend people, using the internet, i have an immediate fear and suspicion.  Thai's lose face when they associate publicly with a prathed seekow (foreigner who is white) and call them "farang" which literally means "fruit to be peeled," and is the name of a fruit called "guava."

If you go to thai2english.com and type in the word "foreigner" you can see a list of the options of words Thai's have for addressing foreigners, and the vocabulary does not include "farang," which is always used in conjunction to fruit, vegetables, or a clarinet.

But, I was wondering what those of you on the net who agree to meet with a Thai or derivation of Thai, ever find an exception to this rule where a Thai meets you, allows people to order freely, and the Thai (Thai derivation) pays for everybody and gives you a commission for what they pay on the bill?

My experience seems to be universal from any and all people that I meet who have ever done anything with Thai's below the highest class of Thai (who would rarely, if ever, associate with us).

My experience and association base is that Thai's befriend you only to get what they can for free, and when they find that you are not paying for things, bringing them gifts, and giving them money (because gifts don't count), that they call you keneow (cheap, miserly).

When I see Thai's offer association on the internet, I wonder if anybody has ever had an interaction with a Thai (below the highest classes) who pays.

I truly love (d) a Lisu, and after 4.5 years of life together, her family demanded that  I buy her a house. I have given them a great deal over the years, but nothing given (or stolen) counts.

They have tribal meetings which direct her as to her behavior with no regard for the sanctity of our marriage. 

Foreigners can buy houses in the following ways:

a. A woman can procure land in her name, with her solely earned finances, and bring it into a marriage.  She can will it to a foreign husband upon her death, and he can own it it in his name, to protect it for the children.  The LTO has never ratified this existing law, and it's never been allowed.

b. A King can give land to a foreigner (like BNH in Bangkok) and that can exist in a foreigner's name as the King is above the law.

c.  Americans can use the Amity Agreement.

Thai's require foreigners to sign away their rights to litigate when they purchase homes with land included.

When the woman demands a man buy her a house, and relationships commonly dissolve, the woman is allowed to keep the house, as foreigners are required to pay cash for her house, and she sells the houses, rids herself of the foreigner by force or untimely death, and she sells the house.  She pays commissions to the people who assist her in getting the foreigner to buy the house, she negotiates inflated prices for the home and other furniture, causing the foreigner to over pay, and then she is given a kick back (commission) by the seller for how her beloved was over charged.  And, the family stops working, lives with and off of the foreigner who supports them all.

The woman is usually controlled and when economic difficulties come upon the foreigner, he is sent away (or terminated), she liquidates everything for a pittance of the original cost, Thais get 20 million baht homes for 3 million, and everybody is happy, except the fruit to be peeled.

This seems to be the law of the land, as was so well publicized lately in the incident in Germany.

Hello!

Don't you think that some of you are going off-topic?

Please concentrate on the meeting.

Thank you,
Harmonie.

Harmonie:

Who invites is a very important question.

According to the rules of Thai Culture, whomever invites, pays.

If this is not made clear, Thais can bring large numbers of people, and stick the foreigner with a bill.

If a Thai invites, and this is made clear, it is clear the Thai pays.

If it is not clear, the Thai will NOT pay.

Thai culture is very important here.

Oh, I see cecco!

Now that you have explained about who to invite, you should talk about the meeting.

You may start a new topic about the Thai culture on the Chiang Mai forum if you want.

Harmonie.

Meeting Very good.

If I am not feeling like a thai (the thai) are going to stiff me (others) with the bill, then I am happy to discuss everything.

Actually, I am quite interested in the history of the sword of chiang mai, and would like a learned person to help me learn more than i know now.

Also, i was wondering if meetings can assist us with the problems we incur in our integrating into Thai society. And, I was wondering if we can get Thailand to help us, as we really are trying to spend less money, not more money because of our nationality.

Cliff