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Smegma
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You are right Hardon. A lot of what you say and a more detailed explanation in general is in the link provided in the previous page.
As many do not like to click on foreign links, for the benefit of the lazy ones, I cut and paste from that site;
The Thai Wai
The Thai sign of salutation or mutual recognition is to raise both hands, joined palm to palm, lightly touching the body somewhere between the face and chest. The higher the hands are raised, the greater is the respect and courtesy conveyed. The person who is inferior in age or rank in the social scale of precedence initiates such a movement of the hands and the person receiving the salutation immediately recipocrates. The Thai salutation may be rendered while sitting, standing, walking or even lying in bed during illness. In rendering a salutation while standing to a most respected person who is sitting, one, as a decorum of good manners, will stoop or bend the head at the same time. When taking leave, the departing person will offer a salute in the same manner, followed in turn by a corresponding salute of the other person. Such a salutation is called a wai in Thai, and is often seen in Thai society.
When to wai. The question of when to wai and how to wai is learnt from the earliest days of childhood. It comes naturally for a Thai, but is a problem for the visitor. A wai is not only reserved for greetings and farewells, but for a manner of other reasons too. When a person is receiving anything from a senior, he will raise his hands as a wai to the giver as a polite gesture of thanks before or after receiving it as circumstances demand. When someone is asking someone's pardon or favour, one usually makes such a wai too. During a Buddhist sermon, monks and lay persons will sit respectfully with their hands to chest level in a wai. A group of students passing their teacher at school will come smartly to attention and wai and bow with almost military precision. On buses and in taxis passengers wai sacred places and revered statues of past kings as they pass by. Even the drivers quickly take their hands off the wheel for a quick wai to a shrine put up to protect road users.
Who to wai. The best advice to farang (westerners) in Thailand is that unless you receive a wai first, stick to the handshake with men and a polite smile with women. As you spend more time in Thailand you will soon learn some important rules:
* Do not wai servants, labourers, children and other people of an obviously lower social status than yours.
* If you receive a high wai, reply with a lower wai.
* The safest people to wai are monks and the very old (but not if they are your servants or street vendors!).
* The appropriate deference position is shown by lowering the head and body, not by raising the hands.
* Remember, a wai is not a "hello". Overuse would devalue its meaning.
How to Wai. Children are taught at a very early age how to show the proper respect to their seniors. They are drilled in both the home and at school to perform the wai correctly. The following pictures demonstrate how to wai correctly. For a foreigner, it is best to bring your hands up so that your thumbs are at about nose level. You might also like to bend forward slightly depending on how much respect you want to show. The picture above of Leonardo giving a wai to the press was correctly done and was much appreciated by all of the Thai people watching. One final thing to remember is that the raising of the hands to wai and the lowering of the hands to a normal position should never be done with a sharp movement but rather in a more or less graceful manner such as in slow motion.
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Thai Girls : Meet Sexy Thai Girls
Posted on: 2:46 am on Jan. 6, 2004
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Smegma
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V-J many thanks, now I know for sure I understand what you meant. And I agree. See, I asked you because had I said that I disagreed and that you were wrong... well.... I would have been wrong in trying to correct you (as you were rigtht already) and the whole thing would have been simply a comunication missunderstanding.
Anyway, what is the point of superior intellect, if the people you address do not understand you. (I am pressuming I am among those in your targeted audience)  -that is why it is fun sometimes to have these exchanges.
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Bangkok Women : Meet Sensual Bangkok Women
Posted on: 2:53 am on Jan. 6, 2004
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Vancouver Jay
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My next undertaking involves the banning of the letter "c" from the English language. Stay tuned.
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Thai Girls : Meet Sexy Thai Girls
Posted on: 3:03 am on Jan. 6, 2004
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Smegma
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You are almost there already! your post didn't have a single one of those letters -besides the use of the letter itself when referring to it.
Do you want us to start adressing you as Vanouver Jay? If you want it... easy to please you.
I just did it!!! Me too. See Ma, no Cs in this post either... Oopps!!
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Bangkok Girls : Meet Sexy Bangkok Girls
Posted on: 3:13 am on Jan. 6, 2004
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Kryptonite
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His new name is "Toronto Blue Jay" 
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Thai Women : Meet Matured Thai Women
Posted on: 3:27 am on Jan. 6, 2004
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Vancouver Jay
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The best advice to farang (westerners) in Thailand is that unless you receive a wai first, stick to the handshake with men and a polite smile with women.
I still don't like it. The point is that as a Westerner you are wholly outside of the norms. Return a handshake if it's offered, but otherwise just take a wai with a nod or a smile.
In the extreme example of non-initiation, Westerners are told not to wai when meeting Thai Royalty. Why then make the effort with Thais of lesser status?
As far as returning a wai, here's a thought-experiment: On being greeted by two thais of equal status, one gives a you wai and the other does not. What do you do? My answer is, you simply don't talk to the one who doesn't.
My wai'ing history is very brief. In all, I've only wai'ed 5 people: my girl's parents; the headman of her parent's village; the administrator of her son's school; and the abbot of the village temple. I wouldn't have bothered at all if the boy and my girl hadn't been present or if we didn't have an ulterior motive. Her boy has standing orders not to wai me save when non-family are present.
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Bangkok Women : Meet Beautiful Thai Girls
Posted on: 3:59 am on Jan. 6, 2004
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MickTheKick
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On my first trip to LOS and my first visit in a gogo bar (G Spot in 1999 – good old days) I was very impressed by one of the dancers and watched her very directly from a close by bar stool. Still a newbie to the game I felt that I owe her something after a while but didn’t want to barfine someone in the early evening and so I had no other idea than tipping her on stage by putting some bath note into her boots. She was very much surprised (of course) and wai-ed me. I was not used to wais at all and was very impressed by seeing this in a gogo bar but had an intuitive understanding of what it was. This was the beginning of my ongoing journey to understand the land of smile.
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Bangkok Girls : Meet Attractive Thai Girls
Posted on: 5:19 am on Jan. 6, 2004
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Smegma
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V-J.... somehow..... I feel that I do ok with my own wais... maybe becuase I have many Thai friends and most of the time when I meet other Thais... I often happen to be with them and over the years have learned from just being with them again and again and again.. and from following and picking up the small details from them.
And without going into much more detail that what has already been said....... for the one that wants to know more than the usual go-go bar customer... I think the advice given is spot on for 98% of the cases. those who want to get the remaining 2% have to stay here and learn a lot.
Anyway, it is the same in the west. Not every farang is well versed in high society customs back home. may guys stay seated when greeting senior people. many gues do not get up when a lady is leaving a table at a restaurant... and so on. The point is not to teach here in one thread and in 5 minutes how to be super polite and to master the wai as per Thai society... but to give some guidelines. same like in the west would be not to put your elbows on the table while eating and not to open your mouth while chewing. Just an example.
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Thai Girls : Meet Active Thai Girls
Posted on: 3:23 pm on Jan. 6, 2004
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Arcadius
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I'm not at all sure Westerners stand 'wholly' outside Thai behavioural norms - if you live & work here, there are some aspects of your manners and behaviour you simply must modify or you're liable to do yourself real damage.
I don't think this applies to the wai though - Thais understand perfectly well this isn't customary elsewhere, and I think they'd far rather you didn't attempt it than lose face & embarrass everyone by f_cking it up. All you really need to do is acknowledge the thing properly.
Advice I had from an old-timer was never to wai deliberately (except in rare situations where this is demanded of you), but wait until you've unconsciously absorbed enough Thai manners for it to come naturally. That way, you're far more likely to get it roughly right, and it won't look forced. I've only notched up two spontaneous wais so far, but I guess they'll gradually become more frequent.
In my experience, it's not at all uncommon to be waied by BGs - both inside & outside the bar. I can't imagine any circumstances where it would be appropriate to return it. If you want to treat BGs and other "obvious inferiors" as equals, that's fine - but far better to do it farang-style.
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Thai Women : Meet Matured Thai Women
Posted on: 6:44 pm on Jan. 6, 2004
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ThaidUp
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Quote from Smegs "same like in the west would be not to put your elbows on the table while eating and not to open your mouth while chewing. Just an example"
But unlike the West you can pick your nose here in public
I think you guys are making too big a deal out of this greeting. I am a minority farang living in a Thai community and I see Thai's waiing back and forth and they are very casual about it. I think any waiing that a farang does here is appreciated for the fact that we are trying to adapt to their culture and they are not standing back critiquing us on proper form.
I think we are too self conscious about it since it not our normal greeting. I doubt that Thai's are having a long thread on the merits of a proper handshake in the Thai message board and we are not critiquing them on their handshake form which usually is a limp fish. Appreciation is noted for the effort.
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Bangkok Girls : Meet Attractive Thai Girls
Posted on: 8:30 pm on Jan. 6, 2004
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