Thai culture, and especially rural, small town Thai culture, is socially conservative and does not tolerate immodest or disrespectful behavior by its own. As a member of the Warm Heart community, you are “one of our own.” We ask that you behave properly and do nothing to embarrass us or Warm Heart. We do not want to have to excuse your behavior – and we hope that you do not feel that it is appropriate to force others to excuse your behavior by explaining: “Oh, (s)he’s a farang.”
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Public displays of affection
Public displays of affection are considered extremely inappropriate by Thais. Hand holding, cuddling, kissing, butt pinching, or any behavior of the sort is disapproved of even if one is playing around. Thais are extremely sensitive to the sexualized culture that tourism has brought to Thailand and the fact of sex trafficking in the area. Don’t be part of the problem.
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Heads and feet
In Thai culture, the head is the most sacred part of the body and the feet are the dirtiest. Do not touch or lean on anyone’s head. When sitting, please be sure not to point the bottom of your feet directly at anyone. For example, sitting in a circle on the floor with your legs stretched out in front of you is not acceptable because the bottom of your feet point at the person sitting across from you in the circle. This gesture is equivalent to giving someone the finger in the US.
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Partnering up
It happens, but be careful and be Thai. Both men and women should be cautious and pay careful attention to their regular interactions with their Thai peers. Any physical contact, even if intended to be entirely innocent or friendly, can be misinterpreted. Take your lead from the behavior of your Thai colleagues and if in doubt, ask. No, actually, just ask.
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Commercial sex of any sort
Thou shalt not. End of story.
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Drinking and noise
Thais love to drink, sing karaoke and otherwise have a good time – but not in public. Getting loud and drunk in a bar, yelling and singing in the street at midnight, throwing up on the sidewalk, these are typical tourist behaviors and completely unacceptable in Phrao.
For an excellent introduction to the general dos and don’ts of life in Thailand, we recommend Dos and Don'ts in Thailand by Kenny Yee and Catherine Gordon.