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National Dress
although there is no official national dress, the traditional dress has been adopted as the unofficial national costume and can be seen on both formal and informal occasions.For women, it is a full-length pasin, a rectangular piece of cloth worn like a skirt or sarong and generally made of Thai silk. The pasin can be of any color and generally has contrasting bands around the hem. It is worn with a long- sleeved silk blouse. On formal occasions a sash may be worn across the breast from the left shoulder to the right part of the waist. For men, the traditional dress consists of trousers with a suaphra ratchathan, a short-sleeved shirt (long- sleeves for formal occasions) with a high collarless neck. On formal occasions, a cummerbund is tied around the waist.

National Day
December 5, the birthday of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, is the Thai national day. It is a public holiday.

Public Holidays
Most national holidays and festivals are of religious nature and serve to evoke a sense of devotion to the monarchy, the religion, and the nation. Some are celebrated by the lunar calendar and thus their dates vary from year to year, while others are celebrated according to the solar calendar.

Currency
The Thai unit of currency is the Baht. Notes are in denominations of 1,000 (brown), 500 (purple), 100 (red), 50 (blue), 20 (green), and 10 (brown), baht, There is also a 10 baht coin which has a copper centre with a silver border and 5 and 1 baht silver coins. The copper colored coins are the 50 and 25 Satang. Note: 100 Satang = 1 baht.

Weights and Measures
The metric system is used throughout Thailand. Numerals on vehicle speedometers, highway markers and speed limits all indicate kilometers; food is purchased in Kilograms or Khiit (1 Khiit = 100 gm); petrol, water and milk in liters. However, fabric can be bought in meters or yards.

Land Measurements
Thailand has its own system of measurement for area. Thai basic unit is a rai, equal to 1,600 square meters; 1 acre = 2.5 rai; 1 hectare = 2.47 acres = 6.25 ral. One rai = 4 ngan = 400 talang wa (square wa) and 1 wa = 2 meters.

Customs
The traditional greeting is a ‘wai’. This is a prayer-like gesture, with the palms pressed together and the tips of your fingers level with your nose- the neutral position. The higher the wai, the more respect is being shown. Return the same greeting as your Thai host or business colleague: if he extends his hand in a handshake do the same; if he wais, then you may do the same.

In Thailand, the head is considered to be the high, sacred part of the body, and the feet the lowest. This means that inferiors will generally try to keep their heads at a lower level than those they consider their superior with their feet as discreetly hidden as possible. When sitting on the floor your feet should be tucked away under your body. Whilst sitting in a chair, you should not cross your legs as this often leads to pointing your feet at someone. Touching someone’s head, even a child’s, is considered disrespectful and should be avoided. When entering a Thai home always remove your shoes. Never place your feet on a table or chair.