The Bangkok Podcast | Expat Life In Thailand Via Expats From Canada & America

Greg talks to Hassan Ghiassi, the creator and organizer of Aristotle’s Cafe, a Bangkok group that focuses on meetups that involve discussions and debates on questions voted on by the participants themselves.  Firstly, Aristotle’s Cafe is a format, and the location is not fixed. At the beginning of each meetup, the attendees submit questions and then vote on what to discuss. But does the same format work equally well in different cities and cultures? Greg raises issues from his own experience about difficult people dominating discussions, as well as cultural issues involving Thai people supposedly being ‘shy.’ Have now worry, Hassan says, his long experience running the ‘cafe’ in several different countries have shown him that most participants - including Thais - often shed their reluctance to express opinions in the right environment.  But AC isn’t just for youngins! Hassan says that the group gets all types - older farangs yearning for English language contacts, Thais wanting to improve their English, and p