Most of us include black in our travel wardrobe. I read that people in Thailand save their black clothes for funerals and hardly wear them in the streets. Is this true?

First I have heard of 'that one'. In tropical climates black or other dark colors are not worn that much, people dress more 'cool, more brighter colors. For evening wear a black dress is perfectly normal. Black shirts/t-shirts are quite normal to be worn by men, but during the day it is normally brigher colors that are worn, there is certainly no 'etiguette' issue here. Doubt you plan to wear black by day, black perfectly acceptable in the evenings.

Darling, you obviously have never been to SE Asia before. You will DIE of heat exhaustion if you do. Wear light colors in natural fibers. Believe me, the streets of Bangkok are like saunas.

OOOPS! I meant to say you will die of heat exhaustion if you wear black, not if you go to Thailand.

Thanks for the tip, Sarah and John; you've given me extra time in this world.

I'm glad that this subject was mentioned because I have a lot of black in my wardrobe. I'll be in Thailand the first two weeks of March. From what I've heard, its always hot there. I suppose wearing closed-toe shoes isn't recommended either with the sauna-like temperatures?

Anna, unless you are visitng temples wear sensible sandles(that give some toe protection if possible, crazy sidewalks!). Loose fitting cotton, loose blouse, loose long shorts, you will be fine. It is hot, dress for comfort. For men loose cotton shirts, my husband always says he is much cooler in a large than normal size cotton shirt that in a T-shit or Golf-shirt, that is beacuse with a 'real' shirt the air flows around inside the shirt as opposed to a tight fit.<BR>Evenings again light loose fitting cotton. Use a high factor filter in place of any heavy make-up.

Here's some good clothing advice given to me prior to my first trip to SE Asia: You want to wear clothes that touch your body as little as possible.<BR><BR>E.g., A loose, open-weave cotton shirt is a lot more comfortable than a T-shirt.

As I once unfortunately found out, 100% nylon or polyester is miserably hot!

<BR>For the record, black is not the color of mourning in Buddhism, white is. People wear white to funerals. You may not see a lot of black on the streets in Thailand, but that is because of the heat, not because of any cultural taboo.<BR><BR>There are dress concerns in Thailand when visiting temples, most specifically when visiting the Grand Palace in Bangkok, which is a series of temples. No shorts are allowed, even on men. Closed-toe shoes are required. If you are using a guide, I would ask if you have any concerns on that point. <BR><BR>One thing I have always done when touring in Bangkok use an umbrella on a sunny day. You will feel stupid for about 1 minute until you realize that you are much cooler than those around you. Local women use them all the time as well. It has saved me more than once on one of those blazing sunny days walking around the Grand Palace!<BR>

like I've posted before DON't throw that black shirt or pants out.. or atleast your darker clothes it is best too bring darker shirts it hides the sweat better.. you WILL sweat like a 500 pound obeese man running a merithon.. plus thias wear plenty of black hell many school/collage uniform consist of black pants/skirts..<BR><BR>And like the rest of the planet black outfits are still the trendy things too wear at clubs.. <BR> <BR>