Still loving it
Dear Hillary,
I love your column. I have been coming to Asia from the US for almost 20 years. I bought a condo here, got a driver’s license, bought a car, and have a retirement visa. I even arranged my funeral, when that becomes necessary. I am continually amazed how stupid western men are when they come here. They do not act the way they would back home and take women for granted. I frankly think they deserve to get taken for all they are stupidly worth or claim to be. I hear too many of them bragging (mostly lying) about how great they are, how much money they have etc., I hope they get robbed. I live here and have many Thai friends. I respect them for their lifestyle and do not care that I may have more money than they. Those idiots who come here to do the wrong thing deserve to get ripped off. So, to those who do not learn or respect the culture, spend your money and get the hell out.
Kingston
Dear Kingston,
Anyone who starts their email with “I love your column” goes straight to the top. Flattery will get you everywhere, and some chocolates and bubbles gets you even further! It is well known that there is a certain group of foreigners. Unfortunately you are correct that many westerners who write their CV on the plane coming over, thinking that coming from a first world, anyone in a third world country will never know the truth – but the social networks soon show up the frauds. After that it is downhill from there. I am glad to hear you have some Thai friends and you respect their lifestyle, which can be quite different from the westerner’s, but you are here in Thailand and have really made the grade. Well done.
A fool and his money
Dear Hillary,
I just came from a big shopping center and saw an old man argue with his young Thai girlfriend outside an expensive jewelry shop. She was pointing at very expensive diamond rings and he was trying to pull her away. I think he probably has to pay her huge salary because here the older and uglier you are the higher the price is so he think he pays her enough and judging by the shopping bags, she was doing very well that day. My point is we foreigners don’t care sometimes how much we pay but we all hate very much to be taken out for a fool.
Gordy
Dear Gordy,
Why do I get the distinct impression that you are talking about yourself, being ripped off by a gorgeous Thai girl, that you thought was a girlfriend, despite a hefty “salary”, though what is a lot for some people is merely nothing relatively. All I can suggest for you is to stop going to shopping centers and hanging around young Thai ladies who are window shopping. For all you know, she might have been going to buy him an expensive diamond ring! Then again, Up Umbrellas, as a squadron of pigs just went by overhead.
Looking from the other side
Dear Hillary,
My name is Maleeporn, and I am a Thai woman from Pattaya the sin city, who have been reading Pattaya Mail and your column for years. I wrote to you once long time ago, could not remember what it was, in hand writing. I enjoy learning foreigner’s point of view in life – I mean yours and your readers’, the style of putting out their opinions, their home countries and everything. Personally, I always admire their punctuality and being discipline which we Thais are so weak at this. Your column is very helpful to me to learn the differences of people in this world. As I am studying Humanities at Ramkhamhaeng University major in English, I would like to say here that I have learned a great deal of knowledge from your column, and this has helped my studying to become a very interesting one. I thank you. You are like my religion here. I hope you keep doing this useful job for a very long time. Lastly, to have my letter for a change in your column would not be so bad, yes? Readers need vacation, too.
Always,
Thai woman
Dear Thai woman,
How kind of you to write again, even if you can’t remember what it was. Yes, there are many differences between farangs and Thais, and more than just big noses and round eyes. Foreigners have learned how to use a wrist watch, whilst the Thais think of them as fashion accessories and are still inventing excuses for being late. One day they will fix the traffic in Bangkok and hundreds of people will be without the ‘rot dit’ excuse, and then all we will have left is to blame the six hour clock system. And honestly, if Pattaya is a “sex and sin city”, what is Bangkok, with its Patpong Road, Soi Nana, Soi Cowboy and 3,596 karaoke bars? Or London, or Amsterdam, or Munich, or Sydney, or Mumbai?
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