Thais are sometimes Jealous of others and Snobbish

A cultural trait, first observed in Carol Hollinger’s excellent book, “Mai Pen Rai means Never Mind”

As with other nationalities, Thais can be incurable snobs. Pannee was hosting a get-together for members of a local club and she took an instant dislike to an unaccompanied single lady, a fellow Thai, who was one of the invited guests. The lady was being quite civil and not making advances to other men, or anything like that. She was still cold-shouldered.

Pannee ran a small travel agency before she gave it up to marry a well-off Thai and not need to work anymore.

Later, at a meeting of the same club, she started a conversation with a fellow member. “Are you still living in that small rented house in Maerim?” “Oh yes, still there” was the reply.

Thais are good at these “put-you-downs”

It’s an effective way to say or do something to show someone that he or she is not better than other people and should not be acting in such a confident and proud way

The Thai lady in question had moved to a pleasant house in a select area out of town, more expensive by far than the house Pannee was living in. It was a clever lie, she did not rise to the bait but she undoubtedly stopped Pannee being so haughty.

Those friends who overheard the remark, and who knew where they both lived, tried to hide a faint smile. They knew she had already put Pannee in her place.

There are snobs everywhere but there is a minority in Thailand that think they are superior, often after marrying a well-off Thai or farang.

You know the type

A person who thinks he is better than someone else, a person who wants to think he is better than someone else, a person who wants to think he is better than someone else but knows he is not, or a person who wants to think he is better than someone else and even thinks others believe it.