Introduction
For school, Saxion Hogeschool, I am doing my free minor at Siam University in Bangkok. After 4 months at school and traveling around, I made a report about my experiences at school, the culture in the country, and the norms and values. Enjoy reading the report.
The Education System in Thailand
The education system in Thailand includes government, private, and international schools (which are also private). The system, and many of its schools, are split into 3 distinct stages, covering pre-school, primary, and secondary education. Each stage consists of several separate levels, much the same as kindergarten, primary, and secondary schools in Western countries are split into separate years (Bangkok Prep, 2021).
At Siam University, I took 6 different subjects. I chose these subjects at the beginning of the year based on which subjects were related to social work. I also chose to take Thai classes. I think it is important when you are in a country for a long time to also learn to speak the language a bit.
Differences from the Dutch school system include that the lessons at Saxion last an hour and a half per lesson. At Siam, the lessons last three hours. That took some getting used to in the beginning. We do have breaks to get coffee or a Thai tea.
In the Netherlands, we don’t have a school uniform. You can wear all colors. Only you are not allowed to wear very short skirts or crop tops. Other than that, we are free to wear whatever clothes we want. In Thailand, it is different: they wear school uniforms if you are in school, from primary school to high school and university. You do get others as soon as you go to another school. At Siam, we also have a school uniform, but we get to choose which shoes we put on, except for open shoes.
What I have experienced is that the school systems are very different. The hours of a course are different. I prefer the Netherlands because, in my opinion, three hours is too long. The concentration is gone after an hour. I like the school uniform because in the morning I already know what to wear. It is very easy.
Food
Food in Thailand is very different from food in the Netherlands. Here, they mainly eat rice or noodles. There are many different noodles: Chin Kee Noodle, Phra Nakorn Noodle, Mee Krob Vilaikul, and many more (Tours, E. B., 2022). They all taste different.
Street food is also of great importance in Thailand. Many Thai people therefore get their food on the street. There are more street stalls with food than supermarkets. It is cheaper to get food from a stall. Many of the people therefore do not have a kitchen in their apartment. Those with a house often don’t have it either, or they don’t use it often because it is easier to get food from the street.
There is also the 7/11 shop in Thailand. This shop is open 24 hours, 7 days a week. Should you wake up at night and feel hungry, you go to the 7/11 to get a snack. There are 8,127 stores in Thailand. In this number, there are 3,648 stores located in Bangkok and its vicinity, so there is always a 7/11 within walking distance.
In the Netherlands, we don’t have that. Maybe in Amsterdam, there are a few that open till 02:00 am. In my home village, all the stores are closed at night. The only thing that opens at night is the gas station, but that is too expensive, so we wait till the next morning to go to the supermarket and get the food that we wanted.
Also, we are used to having 3 meals in a day: around 7 to 8 am breakfast, around 12 pm lunch, and around 5 to 6 pm dinner. During breakfast and lunch, we often eat a sandwich with sausage or cheese. Dinner is often potatoes, vegetables, and meat.
In Thailand, people often eat one big meal during the day and only smaller snacks otherwise. Pad Thai is therefore a very popular meal to eat in Thailand. There are many ways of preparing it, but the basic ingredients remain the same. In the Netherlands, we have breakfast, lunch, and dinner, most of the time at the same time every day, and each meal is a big one.
In Thailand, the culture is to share food with each other. So not like in the Netherlands, where 1 pizza is for 1 person, but 1 pizza is for 4 people. Additionally, more things are ordered so you can choose what you eat. I personally think this is a very nice custom because you share your food and eat together. It is much cozier, and you don’t have to choose what you want because you can have it both ways. I think this is great to do with friends and family, but also with new people.
I like Thai food, but I am not into hot food. I can’t handle it that well. The way of eating in Thailand is something that I really love because you’re sharing the food and don’t have to choose. When you’re sharing the food with friends, you pay attention to the friends and not to something else like the mobile phone.
Culture
The culture here is different from Holland. As described above, the school and the food are different. Dealing with each other is also different here than in Holland. Most people in Thailand believe in good and bad karma. This means that when you do good for someone else, you yourself can expect good things; with bad karma, it is the other way around. If you do bad things for someone else, it will be returned to you. Because of these thoughts, people are very helpful to each other.
In the Netherlands, we greet each other with a handshake, 3 kisses on the cheek, or a hug if you know each other well. If you meet the person for the first time, you give that person a hand.
Greeting is also different. In Thailand, you bow to each other to greet each other. If they are new or unknown people, they often use their hands to appear polite.
In the Netherlands, we greet each other with a hand, 3 kisses on the cheek or a hug if you know each other well. if you meet the person for the first time, you give that person a hand.
Learn About Myself
First, I am not a city person. I miss my village with the nature around it. If I wanted to walk through nature here, I would have to take a taxi to get away from Bangkok on foot. The big buildings, the polluted air, and the heavy traffic I had to get very used to, especially during the first month.
I also had to get used to the fact that people here greet each other differently. I was used to giving each other a handshake, 3 kisses on the cheek, or a hug. Once I made some friends, it was still bowing or shaking hands. I find this very awkward because I am a hug person. What I mean by that is that when I see a friend or someone in need of a hug, I give them one. For example, when I heard in April that a family member had died suddenly, it was nice to be able to get a hug from someone.
Staying positive and looking forward to the little things is what I have learned, especially in the past few months. One hundred forty days in Thailand is a very long time for me; I miss my boyfriend, family, and friends. If I just start counting down the 140 days, it will take four times as long. By looking forward to the little things, the days go much faster. For example, in January, it was moving into the little apartment; in February, the first Thai class, cooking class, Thai, Krabi, Chang Mai, and so on. Today, it’s already the middle of May, and I’m about to travel around Thailand with my parents. That means it’s the end in sight, which on the one hand is super sad, but on the other hand is also really nice because I miss my family.