Thai news stories

Do you speak English Khun Noy?

By surapong, Created on: 26/07/2010, Last updated on: 07/01/2016

» Ms Noy’s gonna need some English lessons in order to pass her tests to prove that her command of the language is good enough before being granted her visa. The number of Thai women from the Northeast marrying foreigners is rising every year. Over the past few months, almost 2,000 people have shown...

• prajna commented : [quote="BigJay":1kccbfce][quote:1kccbfce][/quote:1kccbfce]Well, this regulation is both fair and unfair. I am one of the Thai women who is about to marry a German guy. The unfair point for me is that, I graudated with bachelor degree from the USA and double master degrees from the Netherlands and I still have to pass a German test before getting marry. [quote:1kccbfce][/quote:1kccbfce] To Modsquad... As you traveld and studied the world I'm sure you'll have no problem getting the VISA. You know why? Because you are obviously very, very,very,very rich. 99.9% of Thai's who travel to western countries for any reason most especially for studying are spolied rich. So no need to worry. As with everything else for the rich, your daddies pocket book will pay for everything. and please don't try to deny it. We all know you are amongst the Bangkok ELITE when it comes to cash money!![/quote:1kccbfce] Dear Khun BigJay, That's so unfair of you to misdirect your anger at Khun Modsquad. Your understanding of Thailand's educational realities is inconclusive. You're correct that there are indeed such rich families. But there are also many Thais who don't fit such descriptions that you perhaps don't know of or are aware of. From personal experience, I can attest that it doesn't take money to study abroad or travel the world. In many developing countries, there are poor citizens who excel academically with hard work. They apply for and receive scholarships to study in foreign countries. Have you ever met any of these scholars originally from humble backgrounds? At night, they study at home in rural areas without electricity for lighting. Perhaps they have to carry water from a well to their houses as well. Likewise, there are employers who sponsor such overseas trips (conferences, short-term assignments, job transfers, etc.). I'm a Thai woman who now resides in the States. My poor family is from Ubon, where we lived until 1975 when the U.S. withdrew its troops as well as political and financial commitments, and my Thai father lost his job at an American airbase as a result. School text books left at the abandoned base became my ticket to learning; I started by looking at pictures but learned little since I'm not so smart. To help my family, I worked like everyone else by making paper bags from newspaper prints and gluing them with tapioca starch and collecting and selling recycling materials. Eventually, I went to college and got a degree from one of the well known universities in Bangkok. Stocking and shelving library books, periodic paid internships at college, doing part-time, temporary gigs for political campaigns and selling raffle tickets at annual Thai Red Cross fairs (งานกาชาด) helped pay for some college tuitions. My parents also supported me. It was my jobs based in the U.S. that took me to around the world. I took time off for vacation by extending my stay when work sent me overseas. I used per diem put aside to pay for personal lodging and accommodation. Very, very, very, very rich among 99.9% of Thais? Nah. I shop at Wal-Mart for expired bread at 40% off. I eat two small meals a day and drink tap water. To save money. You may have to switch to a small paint brush before starting to broad-brush a portrait of someone like Khun Modsquad.

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