Lesson three: Learn Thai from a white guy

Posted by on Aug 17, 2011 in Language | 7 comments

Lesson three: Learn Thai from a white guy

I continued my lesson today with Brett from Learn Thai from a white guy. Today seemed like a Muay Thai fight with some vowels that I didn’t like. For some reason these the vowels are killing me. It’s not like I’m perfect at any of the other characters, but every time I see these it’s like I’ve just taken a bit hit of stupid and my brain goes blank.

เ เ(?)า แ


So I’ve just spent the last hour with a good bottle of Rioja and used the flash cards that Brett supplies and have at last figured it out. I think! This really was part of the second lesson but quickly we realised I was struggling with this concept. We eventually got on to some other stuff and learnt some new squiggly lines such as:

ง ่ ้ ็


The first and second lesson seemed to go great, partly due to the excitement of learning something new and having an empty canvas of a brain to work with. But on day three it was a completely different story, my wee little brain didn’t want any more squiggles to remember. Brett has the patience of an experienced teacher but most importantly recommended I practice drunk. My French teacher never recommended that!

I must spend more time with the flash cards he supplies, it’s the only real way to learn. Practice, practice and more f**king practice!

Thanks for all the comments and encouragement it is a real help!

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  • http://www.intophuket.com/ Lawrence Michaels

    I typically speak better Thai when I’m drunk then when I’m sober (at least I think so). I think the lower inhibitions allows me to be less worried about speaking incorrectly then I normally would. Sure I make plenty of mistakes, but I am also saying a lot of things. On that note, I wouldn’t recommend attending class while drunk, I tried that once and I couldn’t even read anything that I had written.

  • Snap

    I’m starting to think Lawrence and I are related…I don’t speak Thai…unless I have to, or if I’ve had a few!

    Before I came to Thailand I watched Stu Jay’s videos on vowels, and it sunk in…for good! http://stujay.com/2009/06/19/cracking-thai-fundamentals-video-clips-stuart-jay-raj%E2%80%99s-thai-vowel-hand-signs/

    Of course, if you’re like me, one resource just doesn’t cut it. You need to bombard yourself with many. But! I do recommend the first video on that webpage for basics.

    PS. I’m a visual and painful learner ;)

  • David Swarthout

    @Colin – keep up the good work. But try to treat it as fun. That’s helping me get into my studies which have somehow become an enjoyable project for me. I mean, I’m trying to read nursery stories in Thai! That’s pretty cool by itself. And definitely watch those two clips Snap included in that earlier post.

    @Snap – Thanks for posting that link. I watched the two Stu Jay videos about vowels and they were fantastic. Cleared up a lot of confusion for me. He explains a few other things quite well too. For instance, why it is that Thais recite their alphabet with sample words following each character? And what’s with all this “sa-ra ai” stuff? Highly recommended.

  • Snap

    David, I got those video links from Womenlearnthai.com… and some men too ;- A wealth of learning Thai resources, mostly free! Do you know it?

  • David Swarthout

    @ Snap – yes I am using it constantly. The reviews of language schools and other resources are excellent. I discovered and then purchased the Thai-English Talking Dictionary on the site.

    I have looked all around for more instructional videos from Stu Jay but all I can find are interviews and such. While I agree that he is a fascinating and talented subject, I sure wish there was more of his instructional material available free. I am trying to decide exactly how best to pursue my studies of Thai when I get back to Bangkok next month. Maybe his method is worth a shot? I’ve watched a bunch of the AUA Language School videos and like the idea of total immersion (with no homework and no vocabulary) but haven’t learned anything from that process yet. Of course I’ve only spent about 10 hours with them. More time will be required, sure.

  • http://www.faranginthailand.com Colin Steele

    @lawrence I’ll try hard to not attend any class drunk!

    @snap Wow those videos are great, the whole muscle memory technique works for me. It makes thing quite clear. It’s a shame he didn’t continue the series. I have never had the desire to learn a language before so this is all new to me. Thanks for the video links a great resource.

    @David thanks for the encouragement. strangely I really am enjoying the whole process of learning a new language. I’ll just keep on going for it and only 2 days till I arrive in Thailand to really start learning.

  • David Swarthout

    Me too. At first I thought, no way can I ever learn this. But now that I’m starting to be able to recognize characters and vowel formations, I’m getting stoked about the possibility that I just might be able to pull it off. And I love the cool shapes of the Thai consonants. I just downloaded a Thai handwriting practice book from BuyThaiBooks.com and I’m practicing drawing them. Cool.

    You must be in Thailand by now. I’ll be there in a month and I can hardly wait. Best of luck to you and keep up your studies. Encouraging you will only help me continue my own effort to learn this beautiful language ;-)

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