Why can't I 'wai?'

Even after all this time, I still feel awkward wai-ing. I’m like a half wai-er. My wai is often followed by a nervous giggle.

The 'wai' is the way that Thai people greet each other and consists of pressing your palms together, fingertips toward the sky and oh-so-slightly bowing your head . . . or not. The placement of your hands depends on the amount of respect you want to show for the other person, based on your job and age in relation to the other person's. You are not required to 'wai' people who are considered to be below you (shopkeepers, taxi drivers, children), but you can do an 'accepting wai' if you want to. Students should always 'wai' their teachers in greeting, but in practice, at least at my school, this is not always observed, particularly with foreign teachers. People on the streets or in shops will sometimes have even the littlest of children 'wai' me and it took me a while to train myself not to 'wai' back (which apparently looks very silly to Thai people).

The highest 'wai' would be for the king, with hands above your head. The second highest 'wai' is for Buddha and monks, with thumbs at about bridge-of-the-nose level. I've got those 2 levels down- it's the other ones that are a little blurrier to me and most commonly used. I'm never sure if I’m putting my hands up far enough, so I'm sure I come across as a sloppy wai-er. I’m trying to observe others, but I still can’t completely understand the rhyme or reason to it. TEFL provided us with a culture class on the last day of training and we were told that, when in doubt, it is better to 'wai up' than to 'wai down,' so at least I try to follow that rule. Hopefully there's still time for improvement!

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