Bangkok report April 2018

[a447]

I've been a student of languages all my life. I speak more than one.

I usually am quite happy to allow others to practise with me - I even mentioned in this report how I'd been teaching the guys in the bar. The only way to improve is to talk to native speakers. It's how I learnt.

But there are times when we are busy and have to get on with other things. I can't just switch on "English teacher mode" at someone's convenience, as much as I'd like to.

But I was never rude to him. Never. I always smiled when I was showing him I had work to do. It's just that he wouldn't give up and kept asking me questions.

At other times during the day, I was more than happy to speak with him.

The way the Thais use the English word "friend" is not the same as the way we use it. It's a much looser term in Thailand. You can be called a "friend" after just sitting with a guy for a few minutes in a bar.

I doubt very much that he would ever use the Thai word "puan" (friend) when referring to me in a conversation with another Thai.