Flipping a coin in the air, catching it, then determining whether it has come up heads or tails is a common way to start off a game or settle a question.
I did once during my first trips in Thailand and got some angry reactions: "no no nooooo please!".
So I promised I will never ever do that again.
Now I know it is a plain stupid idea to do this in Thailand!!!
Symbolic values are important in Thailand, most Thai are superstitious, the King has a divine status and must never be insulted, ...and the king is pictured on the coin.
Every tourist in Thailand will be told not to insult the King, so as a tourist you could decide to shut up about the King completely. Good. But not good enough, as you would not think about it this way, would you?
In fact, I was flipping the king in the air. I tried to argue and telling them a coin is just a coin, but it didn't help...
So if you try to catch a coin that you see rolling over the ground, just let it go, don't step on it with your feet to stop it. Don't spit or bite on a bank note with the Thai king, and always stand up when you go to the movies (yes, you have to salute the king before every movie), ...
But if you want to find the shortest way to a Thai jail (they call it monkey house, or better: monkey houe, they cannot pronounce the s at the end), pointing your middle finger to a picture of the Thai king will get you there in no time... :-)
