The two flower garlands girls at Don Mueang Airport — who wear traditional Thai attire and pose in pictures with tourists for a living — have been suspended from work after they were mocked on Chinese social media … for not smiling enough.
As their job is to welcome Chinese tour groups to the “Land of Smiles” before they board their tour bus, the two young women, whose names were withheld, had to apologize to the entire country at a Tourist Police press conference yesterday … for not smiling enough.
We wish we were making this up.
In two viral clips on Chinese social media, each woman can be seen handing out flower garlands to tourists and giving the camera a rather forced smile. However, the smiles quickly disappear after they send off each tourist onto the bus.
The videos quickly became a viral hit in China, where several social media users made parody videos of the girls.
One of the garland girls speaking at yesterday’s press conference said that it was simply a hot day, and they were exhausted from work. And to be fair, Thai traditional dresses are usually made from less-than-breathable fabric. Take it from us, it’s the last thing you’d want to wear in the summer heat.
“That day was really hot, and some Chinese tourists mocked me, but I didn’t know that they were taking a video and I’d be widely criticized,” she said.
“I feel stressed and sorry because internet users verbally attack me. I’d like to apologize to the society for my inappropriate action,” she said.
Their boss, Taweesit Chokesermwong, who makes arrangements with tour groups for flower girls, also apologized. He said that the women have been suspended from work to “calm themselves down” as they’re emotionally distraught over the incident, Spring News reported.
He said that, at times, the girls are tired from having to greet several tour groups back to back, before they can take a break.
