Greg and Ed interview Ron Weaver, aka ‘AmericanThaiGuy,’ on his life as an expat in Thailand as well as his excellent Thai language skills. Ron begins by waxing rhapsodically about his first visits to Thailand, when he fell in love with the weather, the food, the nice people, and shockingly, the women. Although he loved the country, communication was so frustrating that he vowed to learn the language. But unlike 95% of expats who make that vow, he actually did.
The guys trade language learning stories and agree that necessity is the key motivational factor: if you feel as if you don’t HAVE TO learn the language, you probably won’t. Ron was able to put himself into the mindset that he HAD TO speak Thai if he was going to survive in Thailand and that allowed him to put in a good five years of work to get fluent.
Ron discusses various Thai learning strategies and explains his rise on social media as an explainer of Thai culture and language to foreigners. An excerpt from Ron’s popular Instagram channel demonstrates his unique teaching style, in which he often role plays more than one character in humorous situations. In addition to teaching the quirks of Thai, he also has his own podcast, unique in the whole country, in which foreigners speak to each other exclusively in Thai.
Tune in next week when Ron delves deep into his experiences as an African-American in a country infamous for its preference for light skin tones.
Don’t forget that Patrons get the ad-free version of the show as well as swag and other perks. And we’ll keep our Facebook, Twitter, and LINE accounts active so you can send us comments, questions, or whatever you want to share.
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Bangkok for Nerds! Understanding the Chaos With Some Sweet Math [S7.E16]
Stuart McDonald from Travelfish on Tourism Recovery in Thailand Through Visas, Backpackers...and Weed? [S7.E15]
Stuart from Travelfish Talks How (and how not) to Help Tourism Recover Sustainably [S7.E14]
Bangkok History Highlight: 20 Years Later - Looking Back at the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami [S7.E13]
AmericanThaiGuy Ron Weaver on the Complicated Issue of Racism in Thailand [S7.E12]
Foreigners Acting Badly: What Does it Take to Push Thais Over the Edge? [S7.E10]
Our Friend Mookie Could Raise Her Kids Anywhere. So Why Thailand? [S7.E9]
Ahh, Memories... Greg and Ed Discuss Those Vivid Early Bangkok Days [S7.E8]
Adventures in Filmmaking With Expat Extraordinaire David Cluck - Part 2 [S7.E7]
Adventures in Filmmaking With Expat Extraordinaire David Cluck - Part 1 [S7.E6]
Land of Frowns: Ed Details Lessons Learned from a Thai Divorce [S7.E5]
Dr. Natthawat Hongkarnjanakul on Thailand’s Space Ambitions [S7.E4]
Expat Wins! Six Situations That Level Up Your Bangkok Life [S7.E3]
Photographer Tim Russell on the Fading Glory of Hualamphong Station [S7.E2]
New Year Resolutions: How to be a Better Expat in Thailand [S7.E1]
Holiday Bonus Show Preview!
Our Bangkok Survival Kit: Tips and Tricks if You're Exploring Bangkok on Foot [S6.E70]
Childline Thailand: Tackling Abuse & Neglect, Offering Hope & Safety Part 2 [S6.E69]
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