Locations

If a library visitor asks us:

Where is the audiovisual room?

There are many ways to reply. The typical reply in Thai English would be to say:

The Rewat Buddhinan Music Room is on the U2 level of the Pridi Banomyong Library.

However, for many reasons, this is not the fastest, easiest, or most helpful answer for an English-speaking visitor to hear from a Thai person. One thing to keep in mind is that people who are not Thai are not familiar with Thai names. So outside of Thailand, people have never heard of Rewat Buddhinan or Pridi Banomyong. They do not know who they are. Also, because of the Thai style of pronouncing names rather quickly and without clearly defined consonants, the English speaking visitor may not even recognize that the stream of syllables are part of a name. It sounds like nothing identifiable to the English-speaking visitor. For this reason, it is most helpful and efficient to avoid wherever possible giving Thai names in answers to English-speaking visitors, when simple directions are requested. Of course we must respect such important Thai people as Rewat Buddhinan and Pridi Banomyong and we do so by naming important libraries and areas of libraries and faculties on the TU campuses after them. But when trying to provide basic information that may be urgent, it is always best to reduce the information to an absolute minimum when trying to communicate to someone who may have a language problem. So, depending where the conversation is taking place, it can be shortened from the long sentence typically seen in an English class workbook:

The Rewat Buddhinan Music Room is on the U2 level of the Pridi Banomyong Library.

to the following:

Downstairs.

or

One flight down.

If the English-speaking student or ajarn has asked the question at the entrance to the Pridi Banomyong Library, it is enough to say downstairs and point downward, or say one flight down and point to the stairs or elevator. That will point the visitors in the right direction. After they have gone down stairs and are on the U2 level, they can start again to look for the Rewat Buddhinan Media Center. If they are on the correct floor of the library, they will surely find it before too long, as they will be able to recognize from screens where students are watching films and a room where students are listening to audiotapes that this is an audio-visual center. If the question has been asked on the U3 level of the Pridi Banomyong Library, the answer would be slightly different, but just as short:

Where is the audiovisual room?

Upstairs

or

One flight up.

With both responses, while saying upstairs or one flight up, it help makes the information even clearer by pointing upwards or towards the stairs or elevator to show the English-speaking visitors in what direction they should be going. In some cases, it may help to ask further questions before giving this information, but only if the visitors seem so confused or lost that it is not even certain they really need to go to the audiovisual center. Always give information first, whenever possible, before asking further questions. This is the most polite way to respect the time of the visitors, who may be in a hurry. Usually, we will not need to ask further questions. If the visitors seem uncertain when they ask:

Where is the audiovisual room?

We can say:

Downstairs. Are you looking for films or recordings?

At this point, the visitors may reply:

No, I need to see a periodical.

At this time we can save the visitor the trouble of going to the wrong collection by saying:

Then you need the periodical room.

(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)