Thailand - Pa Dong Tribe

In Thailand, there is a traditional tribe where the women are known as Giraffe women because of their unique necks caused by the coil of the rings. This tribe has taken refuge in the country in order to avoid persecution from the Burmese government. As you watch the video below, you will get to know the details of why they are being persecuted. The Pa Dong tribe are humble and kind people. Their refuge in Thailand has lead them to become a tourist destination, where foreigners are intrigued by their customs. The girls are the only ones who wear the neck rings. They start this process when they are young because their bones are most flexible. The girls do this as they believe that beauty is worth the pain. The long neck look is an illusion. This is because the the heavy rings around their neck pushes the shoulder down, and therefore the neck looks elongated. The rings are a tribal identity for the women. The women don't see that the rings prevent them to who they might be but rather the rings represent who they are. Hope you all enjoy this video.

Beauty in Africa

We'd just like to take note that this post is not aimed at generalizing the idea of beauty in African culture.

Our main focus for this post is on a video that we have come across about the Mursi Tribe of Southern Ethiopia. It features a woman exploring the tribes customs and values where she reveals the ideas behind the lip plate (see video below).

This lip plate is the tribes symbol for beauty, where the bigger the lip plate, the more beautiful you are.

In a way this parallels itself to western culture as well as we go from a simple piercing of the ears to extreme mutilation, for example having surgery to create elf ears, or more so as we know, the famous snake man and tiger man.

Cultural taboo

What is it? Well first of all, in this world of ours we have many different cultures. As a result, as human beings we fail to appreciate and acknowledge each others differences.


Why is it that one thing may seem normal to one culture and yet seem weird to another.


Why do we all see things differently but yet we live under the same sky and breathe the same air?


We believe that if two people went on the same exact journey, then the end result would still have the two people see things differently - and this is due to their culture.


This blog aims to explore topics and ideas that occur in different cultures and nationalities with an open mind and in an environment where we can all discuss these issues without being prejudiced towards one another.


Attached is a picture that we think our layout would look like:

We hope you enjoy this blog and contribute your opinions and ideas.