In Thailand, we greet each other by gracefully raising both hands near the head or chest and pressing our palms together like as in prayer and say "Sawadee Krub" if you're a male or "Sawadee Ka", if you are a female. This gesture is called a "Wai" and it's our traditional and current way of greeting and showing respect to each other. Sounds quite simple right? …Wrong! You also need to know why, when, and how to wai. You certainly don't want to go around and wai everyone you bump into, people will think you're a bit insane. Why Wai? We Wai each other not for the sole purpose of greeting, but the wai is a gesture of respect. The greeting is done just by saying "Sawadee Krub/Ka" and the wai adds respects to the greeting. We also wai when someone gives us a gift and say "Kob Khun Krub/Ka" while receiving the gift. So you see, the main purpose of this gesture is actually to show respect and not simply a way of saying "Hi". Read More