Letters from Thailand Quotes

“Why is it that every nation considers its own customs reasonable, and those of other nations amusing?”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“I was of the opinion that a good heart was not money in the bank. You couldn't buy a bowl of rice with sympathy, I used to say. But two baht worth of rice with love at the supper table is a feast, and I know, because we starved on roast pork.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“Tan Suang U," he said with a slow smile, "many a boy has strayed in the season of his youth and returned home to make his parents proud. I do not think that your Weng Kim is a bad boy.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“I read in a magazine the other day that Hindu Indians do not mourn their dead; instead they rejoice, believing that the loved one has gone to a better place. I cannot imagine that, myself, for how can the heart not ache with the sorrow of that terrible finality? Do these people have no feelings?”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“But why bother?" asked Weng Kim. "That is exactly the point, Weng Kim. We are Chinese, and Chinese people do bother. Thais were still eating rice with their fingers fifty years ago, and now they use whatever the foreigners use. We have used chopsticks since ancient times; they worked better for the purpose intended than fingers did then, and better than forks and spoons do now.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“The major difference between written Chinese and Thai is that Thai is written with an alphabet: 64 symbols, each with its own sound. When you put them together, they make "words"; there are no characters. That makes it rather easier than Chinese, for in Thai, if you know how a word ought to sound, you can read it when you see it. Writing is not so easy, for the letters must be combined in a particular manner, and for some sounds there are several possible letters; I do not know why that is so. Still, a man can study on his own, with the book as teacher. I know enough of the language to learn in this way because I have been listening to it for years. To learn this way when I first came here would not have been possible. Before long, I shall be able to read and write fluently; if only the Thai wouldn't write their words all run together in a string! That is what they do; there are no spaces between the words.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“I have never put a piece of ice into my mouth, or taken an iced drink. Cold liquid rushing down into a man's stomach is unnatural, as anyone with common sense must agree, and 1 have observed that old people who take iced drinks become stiff and move painfully. Thailand is very hot, and cold drinks only increase the heat within our bodies. I decided long ago to drink only hot tea, which cools the blood.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“A long time ago, daughter, we Chinese married strangers, because most of the people who lived near us were of the same sae. By the time a bride could visit her parents, perhaps two weeks had passed. And sometimes it was such a distance that the 'bride' arrived with one fat baby clingingtoher skirts and another in her arms. But it remains our tradition to honor a married daughter on her first visit home, even when her journey is from the shop next door.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“Marriage is an important step in a man's life, but I confess I don't understand why we have to spend'so much money in celebrating the perpetuation of our race. Ceremonies are only a show of wealth, at best a gesture of good will toward our friends, and I think perhaps it all goes too far. I wonder if you agree with me”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“Ang Bui also told me that Thais cremate their dead instead of burying them. They believe that a man's spirit cannot be released and reborn unless the body is cremated. What do you think of that? I think it is more reasonable to respect other people's beliefs than to argue on behalf of one's own, which in any event can have no good result.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“Of course, we Chinese are not allowed to own land, but Thai landowners are always in need of money.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“I don't know if it's because they're protective of their daughters or not, but all the men eat together, boss and employees included, and the women eat whatever is left. I don't like it; I think a family should eat together.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“Suddenly I realized that mosquitoes were clustering on my neck and arms. Even before I came up here, other boys were complaining about them. How could I not realize we must be near land? So, this is the first sign of Bangkok — mosquitoes, clouds of them. If they were organized, they could carry us to shore one by one.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand

“The Thai have a proverb, "Sweet sickens, bitter heals'.”
― Botan, Letters from Thailand