In contrast with Thailand, where a surprising number of their leading movie and TV actors (and actresses... have we fully retired that word yet?) are biracial.

In contrast with Thailand, where a surprising number of their leading movie and TV actors (and actresses... have we fully retired that word yet?) are biracial. My extended family in Bangkok keep complimenting my three half-Thai kids on the bridges of their noses being high enough to keep designer sunglasses up off of their cheek bones. (Edit: at first, I was confused about "big nose" being a compliment. Most Western fashion brands don't account for/have special models for East Asians typically having higher cheek bones and smaller noses, resulting in sunglasses that never quite fit and hover above the nose.) I think part of it is economic, but I like to think a good part of it is that Thailand has been a meeting ground for centuries. First, it was a meeting place between Chinese and Middle Eastern merchants, and later Europeans when they started to cut out the Middle Eastern middlemen. Still later, Thailand was a neutral buffer state between British (Burma/Myanmar) and French (Vietnam) empires. Neither Britain nor France attempted to take over the buffer state, as it would have caused the other empire to immediately invade. Thailand was never strong enough to have full control over its affairs, but managed to turn that into its niche as a neutral middle ground.