Dress for Success Fashion in Surat Thani before arriving, I was unsure if such a thing existed. After reading article after article like a star obsessed People reader, it seemed as though the heat and rain made being fashionable dubious. But boy, was I wrong. The culture here values style over substance, so appearance is money. For women, long pants or skirts are the way to go. Pants, y all! All the pants that I have are made of linen, and that really helps to combat with the heat. Though I love my linen pants, be forewarned, they are made to be airy, and they are, but you will still be sweating. Said sweat makes for pants that stretch out almost instantaneously. Non-linen pants are great as well just be conscious of how thick the material is. The Art of Wearing a Skirt As far as skirts go, they need to be a little on the longer side. Children like to touch you, and I have had some risky moments with my skirt being tugged on/up/and all around. If you intend to ride a motorbike, however, and if it ends up being a semi-
automatic like mine, a skirt can make the driving challenging. Too much flow risks it flying up, and to tight poses a threat to driving at all. It is an art to be mastered. With that, the longer the skirt, the more class you offer to the roads of Thailand. You are white and in Surat, bets are on you being a teacher. They know. Another great thing that can be done is adding leggings beneath your skirt or a dress if they are not quite long enough! Voila!
To Top it off As far as tops go, we wear everything from button ups to nicer shirts tucked into our skirts and pants. Sleeve length is important, however, because you do not want to expose too much of your shoulder. Nicer tank tops with cardigans are nice, but keep in mind, once you wear that cardigan, it is useless until it is washed, and laundry can be a slow process here, depending upon where you go. Shoe Bang Being a shoe girl, I was worried about this above all! Some days, I rock my Toms with a cute skirt. Boys, Toms are great for you as well. But most days I pair cute flats or wedges that are easy to put on and take off with my outfit. Women here do everything in heels! The other day I wore some cute sandals, but since I have to take my shoes off to teach at Noonoy as well as at Super, the hassle of buckling and unbuckling them was not worth it for me, so keep that in mind trying to buckle a sandal in a skirt while retaining lady-like status is no easy task. Note: It is hard to buy shoes here if you have a larger foot, and this goes for both men & women.
Solid Find, Ladies The last thing I will say is that I found some AMAZING, skirts at Earthbound Trading Company before I came. They can be tied at different lengths and in different ways to look like different skirts or even a dress; they are made from recycled saris, and it is like five outfits in one little skirt. But, I m not a Lady.. Now for all you ever so patient men reading this article, being fashionable in professional attire is much more easily attainable for you. The male teachers here wear slacks, khakis, and the like for pants. A polo or button up seem to be the go to, though, if you feel like going the extra mile, on occasion, a tie can even be thrown into that mix, though it is far from required. Add some Toms or dress shoes and a belt, and you look every bit the teacher you are. The only thing that could make your outfit better is a watch, and trust me, you will need and love that accessory.
The Days are Colored (No, really) For the weekdays whilst you are at school, you may find that you fit in more if you wear the color of the day. In Thai tradition it goes back to astrological rules tied loosely to Hinduism and the colors go as follows: Monday is yellow; Tuesday is pink; Wednesday is green; Thursday is orange; Friday is blue. You feel a greater sense of unity when you match the staff at your school, plus I think that they enjoy and respect it. It s Getting Hot in Here Thailand is hot; the other day I looked up the weather, boldly, for the first time, and it said that it was ninety but felt like one hundred and one. Linen is great. A blazer sounds like a coffin of fire, but I have a few vests that I love to slap over a t-shirt to add some pizazz. The Thai teachers wear skirts, pants, and polos as their typical attire (in the appropriate color of the day). As an added note, for those of you who might be tatted up like Amber, Joe, and myself, these will need to be covered at Thida and Suratpittaya. Don t Fret With all the above being said, clothes get recycled here. People come and go, and their clothes seem to mostly come and not
go, so there will always be new pieces to add to your wardrobe. Note: The black and white polka dot skirt that Brittany has already allowed me to borrow in pictures. Keep in mind while packing though that certain things are hard to find here; Thai people are notoriously tiny, so if you have long legs, hips, a decent size chest, or a normal sized foot, it can make shopping treacherous, and clothes wear and tear here. Accessories are an easy find and steal, and when you do find things that fit, they are cheap and exciting! Pack for Success: Professional Wear 6 or 7 skirts (if they re your thing, gentleman ) 5 to 6 pairs of pants Brown & black belt or the reversible kind if you so choose Four or five solid pairs of dress shoes/flats/toms Leggings A few dresses Ten to fifteen button ups/dress tops/polos/blouses/the like Undergarments galore (for time of laundry & because normal sizes can be hard to find for us girls)