baboe Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 Came back by bus from Siem Reap to BKK today. Two things happened that made me wonder... . First from Siem Reap to Poipet (Thai border) there was a guy (tourist) who lighted up a cigarette in the bus... OK, he had the window open and hold the cigarette mostly out of the window but the fact that he was sitting several rows behind me and I immediately noticed (smelled) that somebody lighted up a cigarette tells that it was very noticeable throughout the whole bus. . Second, from Thai border to BKK, half of the bus was asleep when suddenly 2 guys (tourists) decided that the whole bus had to listen to their music. They connected their iPod to some speakers and put it on very high volume. So, my question now. Is it just me getting old or so or are these indeed cases of not having respect for others... ? I was always tought that you can pretty much do whatever you want as long as you show respect for others around you and don't try to impose your own things on others. Maybe I should not mention it but all three of these people where of the same nationality (will not say which one). Maybe a coincidence, maybe not... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboe Posted May 18, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 Oh dear, the PC police is riding again... If you would read my post again you would understand I'm not judging. I'm just ASKING if this is a case of not having respect for others. If somebody is judging here, it's obviously you! Back to topic please. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboe Posted May 18, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 As if you're not saying anything with your gentle 'asking'. Sure, I don't deny that I didn't like that behaviour. And I'm sure I'm doing my fair share of things to upset people also but I'm pretty sure I will never do anything such as those examples where people so blatantly ignore others and impose their things to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hullboy Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 As if you're not saying anything with your gentle 'asking'. Sure, I don't deny that I didn't like that behaviour. And I'm sure I'm doing my fair share of things to upset people also but I'm pretty sure I will never do anything such as those examples where people so blatantly ignore others and impose their things to them. You should be commended for not ramming their heads through the window, though you would have had more then a good enough reason. Id sooner listen to the music on loud speakers as opposed to listening to that noice you can just about hear from headphones. Im dying to know where they were from, you shouldnt have said that now we all need to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitschiguy Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 Also from Matthew Chapter 7: Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law . . . I like your way though baboe . . I agree with you. Ipods come with in-the-ear speakers to enable the listener to listen, at full volume if so desired, without disturbing anyone else. As for smoking; Llighting up on a bus is just taking the piss. There'sno need for it. It's not even legal in England. It's disgusting. Thais don't do it, so why should anyone else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duanja Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 I have never travelled across country by bus before. I just travel between provinces in Thailand by bus. I never face something like that on the bus coz I make sure that I will travel with the first class bus which endorse a certain regulation for passengers. So if **** happens, I could go and tell the hostess to deal with it without having to face the annoying person myself. If I should ever go with a second- class bus, I know that things gonna turn to be a little bit messy like smoking, and noisy music. As I know about it in advance, I will accept things as they are assumed to be because it is not the case that I do not have other choices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboe Posted May 18, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 I politely asked them to keep quiet but they didn?t care. Exactly the reason why I kept quiet and didn't say anything (or ram their heads through the window :-) I know from past experiences that 80% of the times when you ask it politely they look at you with a face as if YOU are the one disturbing others or being intolerant. Or worse, they start verbally attacking you. And although I hated the smoking and hated the loud music (it was not even worth the name 'music') I would hate it even more to get into an argument with them... So I kept calm and was thinking : ZENNNNNNNNNNNNNN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
condotown Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 It reminds me of a few years back when I was returning to Beijing on the bus tour of the Great Wall. There was clearly a sign in front of the bus which designated no smoking. My friend and I were the only two non Chinese on the bus. As the bus got moving, I smelled cigarette smoke and out of reflex stood up and walked to the source about three rows back and ripped the cigarette out of the guy's mouth and threw it on the floor and stepped on it. I shocked everyone including myself. It was a long and quiet ride back. I slowly turned partially around about halfway back and was vindicated a bit when another passenger shot me a "thumb's up" and a big smile. I would like to know the nationality of the offensive people. I wonder if they are the same nationality as people like me who wouldn't allow that kind of behavior without making them aware of the inconsideration of their actions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboe Posted May 18, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 I have never travelled across country by bus before. I just travel between provinces in Thailand by bus. I never face something like that on the bus coz I make sure that I will travel with the first class bus which endorse a certain regulation for passengers. So if sh*t happens, I could go and tell the hostess to deal with it without having to face the annoying person myself.If I should ever go with a second- class bus, I know that things gonna turn to be a little bit messy like smoking, and noisy music. As I know about it in advance, I will accept things as they are assumed to be because it is not the case that I do not have other choices. Well, bus from Siem Reap to Poipet was not 2nd class but 100th class... I accepted indeed that somebody was smoking there (honestly, I absolutely HATE smoking. I will always walk away when somebody lights up a cigarette next to me. But didn't have that chance now). But still, fact that it is a 100th class bus is no excuse for somebody to behave like that. About the other bus, from border to BKK, it was a 1st class bus (best I've ever seen in Thailand, and I've taken many buses here. It was even better then most buses I see in Europe). But... no hostess! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboe Posted May 18, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 It reminds me of a few years back when I was returning to Beijing on the bus tour of the Great Wall. There was clearly a sign in front of the bus which designated no smoking. My friend and I were the only two non Chinese on the bus. As the bus got moving, I smelled cigarette smoke and out of reflex stood up and walked to the source about three rows back and ripped the cigarette out of the guy's mouth and threw it on the floor and stepped on it. I shocked everyone including myself. It was a long and quiet ride back. I slowly turned partially around about halfway back and was vindicated a bit when another passenger shot me a "thumb's up" and a big smile. Great story Don and I would love to have the nerves to do the same. I'm not at all afraid if things would turn 'rough' physically. I can stand my man. But I would just hate it if things would get verbally. I'm just not strong enough verbally to stand my men then... I would like to know the nationality of the offensive people. I wonder if they are the same nationality as people like me who wouldn't allow that kind of behavior without making them aware of the inconsideration of their actions. Well, let's not focus on the nationality. It really doesn't matter. I'm not exactly sure where you are from but it might be possible indeed that those guys where from same country. But that would only show that the nationality here doesn't matter indeed : everywhere you will have people who know how to behave and people who don't have a clue about that... Generalizing from my part now that all people of that country don't know how to behave is absolutely wrong. I shouldn't have mentioned the last two lines of my original post. I guess I was judging here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackyB Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 Quit crying and go drink another fruit shake! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hullboy Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 I shouldn't have mentioned the last two lines of my original post. I guess I was judging here... Its OK to judge people...... everyone does it........ even them evil PC people...... difference is theyll quote some contradict themselves to deny it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeanW Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Tourists will behave like that simply because they are in a foreign place, see a lot of differences between their culture and the thai one, perhaps interpret that as giving them more freedom to do the things they wouldnt do at home. In my experience, if you approach them and politely ask them to refrain, in 90% of cases they will. In the other 10% of cases you can put their heads through the window and I bet others on the bus will be willing to help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kayle Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 If what they do really bothers me, I will definitely say something to them even though they might not care - well, you have to take the chance right? One thing that really annoy me "queue jumping", One day I was waiting for a taxi to go home. After waiting for a while there are 2 men coming they obviously saw me waiting there so they decide to go stand on my right hand side not far from where I was standing at all - mean that the taxi will see them before me. They must think they are clever... Not long after that the taxi came, they hailed the taxi and it stopped. I went straight to the door and look at them and said "sorry, I was here before you". They looked at me with a face that shows that they can't believe that I would really do it and back off. Too many people get away from doing such things to take advantage from other people all the time because they think nobody will say anything. You should give them a lesson sometime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboe Posted May 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Nice analysis Sushi and I tend to agree with most of what you say. I have thought about group behaviour many times when I saw it, including thinking if I would do the same if I would be in the group... So I think group behaviour is indeed a very interesting topic to discuss and it does indeed formulate itself a lot when traveling... (maybe I'm going to cause distress again but for everybody who travels a lot it is obvious that one nationality shows a very big kind of group behaviour. To the point that many guesthouses in Asia, Africa and South America simply refuse to accept travelers from that nationality (go to Ko Tao, you will see the signs : "XXX not welcome".) But that said, I think that the 2 'incidents' I described are not both caused by group behaviour. In the 'cigarette' incident, the guy was alone. We were in a bus with 20 tourists (all Western). There were no real 'groups'. Just some people on their own and some couples (ok, in strict sense they form a group already). So, fact stays that this guy did light the cigarette when he was there totally alone, not having the 'group safety net' behind him. In the iPod case, it is more fuzzy however. They were two young guys so you can indeed consider them as a group. Thinking about it, it is indeed highly likely that this incident wouldn't have been occured if it was only one guy traveling with an iPod. In that case he would probably just have used the earplugs. Hard to tell for sure, but likely. So, maybe yes, case of group behaviour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannyboy Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Tonight ladies and gentlemen I'd like to draw your attention to Matthew Chapter 7.Judging Others 1"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. 6"Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces. how about something like.. let the person who never commits a sin cast the first stone.. hypocritical is the word. Explain to me in some detail where the hypocrisy lies. Everyone gather around , two newbie's ready to fight....... Handbag's ready ladds ? ( Where is Tatt2 ? He loves stuff like this .......... :twisted: ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannyboy Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Everyone gather around , two newbie's ready to fight....... Handbag's ready ladds ? ( Where is Tatt2 ? He loves stuff like this .......... :twisted: ) Newbie? Thanks for voting Newbie ? I would consider being a member since the 7th of May this year a Newbie ! Thanks for voting ? I didn't ! That's one of the great things about premium membership, you CAN see who voted for you and not just visited. Have a great day and a warm welcome to all Thailandfriend newcomers........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboe Posted May 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Everyone gather around , two newbie's ready to fight....... Handbag's ready ladds ? ( Where is Tatt2 ? He loves stuff like this .......... :twisted: ) Newbie? Thanks for voting Newbie ? I would consider being a member since the 7th of May this year a Newbie ! Thanks for voting ? I didn't ! That's one of the great things about premium membership, you CAN see who voted for you and not just visited. Have a great day and a warm welcome to all Thailandfriend newcomers........ Thank you for the welcome! so no fight? :twisted: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannyboy Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 i don't see in the terms and conditions that ppl with an older profile are to be received as more respectable and sensible, i.e., less of an ass. (not saying u're an ass though) Yeah it does , you must of missed it ! All Newbie's pay respects to the older and considerably more wiser TF members by way of beer at all forthcoming TF events , this practice continues until the TF members annual meeting when applications by a Newbie to upgrade to full member status is discussed and each case by the order of merit is voted upon....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannyboy Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 i don't see in the terms and conditions that ppl with an older profile are to be received as more respectable and sensible, i.e., less of an ass. (not saying u're an ass though) Yeah it does , you must of missed it ! All Newbie's pay respects to the older and considerably more wiser TF members by way of beer at all forthcoming TF events , this practice continues until the TF members annual meeting when applications by a Newbie to upgrade to full member status is discussed and each case by the order of merit is voted upon....... I tend to delete my profiles before it comes to that, it's cheaper. First time in October 2005 if I remember well :wink: mmmm.......erm..........ooooooo...........ya got me........ :roll: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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