I can admit it: I have embarrassed myself numerous times by doing things I thought to be normal, but turned out to be taboo. Most travelers can probably relate to this, but you have to remember I am living with a family not surrounded by other foreigners who are making the same cultural mistakes. These are some highlights:
- I was hanging my wet laundry on the lines and figured it would be alright to place my jeans next to a shirt. Wrong! Seeing that I was pinning up my pants, Wanida rushed to my side. As it turns out, they have a separate low-to-the-ground rack, for pants and skirts. The lines are no taller than my shoulders, but definitely tall enough for the members of the family to walk under. They are out of the way, but I guess that doesn't matter. Lesson of the day: It is bad luck for people to walk underneath pants or skirts. The explanation I received went something like, "if Thai people walk under, they must go to the Buddha to the temple many time." Enough said.

-It was our day to stand outside the front of the school and welcome the students in before assembly. Knowing I wouldn't get a chance to eat breakfast that day, I made a point to carry a big bag of fruit with me (bigger than usual). Before assuming my post, I booked it to the canteen to wash an apple. I began eating it on my stroll over to the front of school and finished it as I waved the students inside. I then reached for a banana, but Wanida said, "no!" I wondered what the problem was. Maybe she was hungry and wanted this banana, not one of the three others in the bag. She informed me it is rude to eat while standing. Especially because we are teachers, we should be setting a good example.
Memories of every moment I stood and ate something in Thailand began crowding my head. There were too many to count! Had I been impolite for weeks before this, yet she never told me? Sure enough, I had. Now, I make sure to scout out a chair before I snack. Wanida asked if it was this way in America. I didn't know how to describe frenzied Americans grabbing their Starbucks latte and gulping it down before reaching their car, every food product with a "grab and go" label, and the entire concept of Gogurt. Americans would never adopt this rule, I'm