A monk I talked to at Wat Arun taught me a little about the number of ways to Wai (or pay respect). A Wai to the heart is respect from the heart, usually to family and friends. A wai to the chin is in respect to ones elders. A Wai to the lips is in respect of teachers because they speak knowledge. A Wai to the nose is in respect to parents, who gave you the breath of life and a Wai to the Forehead (or third eye) is in respect of monks or Buddha.
I'm sure there are many other little idiosyncracies but I think that's about as much as the monk felt I could handle. He did point out that Thai's do like Farang to Wai, in the right way. So one doesn't Wai someone who has done a service like a waiter or a porter or a taxi driver, but you would Wai a person who has gone an additional step to say help or assist you, or who has done something for you that's not a service. Interesting as most of the Guide books tell us not to Wai as it's not appropriate.
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