1. ] [p[ The land of smiles...

2. Overview Thailand is an independent country, home to 67,386,383. Located in the heart of southeast Asia. Bordered by Burma and Laos. Thailand is a kingdom, a constitutional monarchy with a King, Bhumibol Adulyadej. Who is the world’s longest- serving current head of state. Bangkok, the capital, is the largest city in Thailand. Thailand is the world’s 50 th largest country in terms of total area, with a surface area of 513,000km 2

3. Culture Thailand’s culture is influenced a great deal from India, China, Cambodia and Southeast Asia. Their national religion is Buddhism. The traditional Thai greeting (the Wai), is offered by the younger of the two people meeting, with their hands pressed together, fingertips pointing upwards as the head is bowed to touch their face to hands, coinciding with the spoken words, “Sawasdee khrap” for males, and “Sawasdee ka” for females. The wai is a sign of respect and reverence for another, similar to the Namaste greeting of India and Nepal. Thais have a strong sense of hospitality and generosity.

4. Religion Thailand is 95% Buddhist, with 4% Muslims and 1% Christians. Buddhism is supported by the government, monks receive a number of government benefits, such as free public transport. Buddhism is strongly influenced by traditional beliefs regarding ancestral and natural spirits. It is common for most Thai people to own spirit houses, miniature wooden houses in which they believe household spirits live. They provide offerings to these spirits to keep them happy. These spirit houses can also be found in public places and in the streets of Thailand, where the public make offerings.

5. Customs Physical demonstrations of affection in public are common between friends, but less so between lovers. It is thus common to see friends walking together holding hands, but couples rarely do so. Touching someone on the head is considered rude. The foot is considered to be the dirtiest part of the body and the head the most respected. Pointing at or touching something with the feet is considered rude. There is a strong emphasis on the concept of sanuk; the idea that life should be fun. Thai can be quite playful at work and during day-to-day activities. Displaying positive emotions in social interactions is also important in Thai culture, so much so that Thailand is often referred to as the Land of Smiles. It is also customary to remove one's footwear before entering a home or a temple.

6. Thai Cuisine Thai cuisine focuses on five main tastes: sweet, spicy, sour, bitter and salty. Chillies, garlic, lemon grass, lime juice and fish sauce are commonly used. Jasmine rice is included in almost every meal. Thai cuisine emphasis’s on lightly-prepared dishes with strong aromatic components. Thai cuisine is known for being spicy.

7. Visiting Australia The main purposes for visiting Australia are: employment, education, holidays, business and visiting family and friends. In 2006 the number of visitors from Thailand totalled 73,969 28,669 visitors came for a holiday, 11,586 came to visit friends and relatives, 13,593 on business, 2,683 for employment, 11,191 for education and 6,247 for other purposes. In 2006, travellers from Thailand spent a total of $310 million on trips to Australia, with an average expenditure of $4,559 per trip.

8. They may require.... Thai people are generally happy, hospitable people. They would not need any special products or services. They do not like conflict or confrontation, the only thing they would require is a peaceful festival. They have many customs which they could show to our society and many great foods for us to experience.

9. Benefits to the festival Having Thai people participate in the festival would allow Australians to appreciate the Thai culture and find out more about Thailand. They would be able to experience: – a range of Thai foods – Their happy and hospitable nature – Thai boxing -‘Muay Thai’, the national sport – learn the ‘wai’ greeting – and find out more about Buddhism, their national religion. This would only benefit the citizens of Albury, as we have many Thai people living in Albury and many local Thai restaurants.

10. Bibliography https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the- world-factbook/geos/th.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thailand http://www.wordtravels.com/images/map/Th ailand_map.jpg http://www.paradise-pattaya.com/image- files/thaigirlwai.jpg http://www.thaispicy.com/assets/images/thai -food.jpg