Sep 14
2009Before coming to Thailand we had a few sessions with a Thai tutor to try and pickup some basics before we arrived in Bangkok. We had about 6 lessons in total and thought we were doing ok but once we got here we realised just how hard the language is to speak and understand. In my four weeks here I’ve hardly spoken any Thai except ‘hello’, ‘thank you’, ‘how much?’ and telling the taxi driver the address I want to be taken too.
Hopefully we can arrange some lessons soon and get learning Thai. It really would be a shame to be out here for a few years and not pick any up. There are lots of Thai language schools out here but I think a few of us will get together and hire a private tutor for one or two sessions a week.
I have a Thai phrase book which comes in handy but as Thai is a tonal language it can be hard to know how to pronounce the words. I think I will get a few CDs and listen to them in the background from now on and hope some of it sinks in!
Here are some links to some Thai language schools in Bangkok and some Thai language websites if you are interested in learning the language:
Here are some Thai language books and CDs that should help you to learn to speak Thai: Thai Language Instructional Books & CDs