Kerryd

"An extra 200 baht per panel" says it all. They illegally modified a restaurant into a nightclub. I highly doubt they were looking at doing a quality job of it. I suspect it was their plan all along - as there is already a large "Mountain" bar/bistro next door to where this place was (one of those places with a high, open, corrugated tin sheet roof). The new "restaurant" appears to have been specifically built to be a low, enclosed roof kind of building. The kind you can use air-conditioners in because you aren't cooling a huge open, empty ceiling space. And once they got their "restaurant" license, they probably went straight into turning the place into a nightclub. Google maps shows the "restaurant" was under construction in Feb 2022 and the news articles say the nightclub had only been open a couple of months so it's not like they started a restaurant and weren't getting any business so they made the switch to become a nightclub. They knew they couldn't get a license for a nightclub due to the area they were in. So they pretended they were a restaurant instead. Hence the use of the soundproofing panels, to try and keep the noise down so it wouldn't be as obvious from the outside. The bar/bistro next door seems to be a busy spot so a large number of vehicles around there wouldn't attract any "official" attention as it could be assumed they were customers at the two restaurants. I'm curious though, does the "flame resistant" soundproofing do a better job (at soundproofing) than the "inflammable" soundproofing ? One would assume that the more expensive option would do a better job but the extra expense may be due to the inflammable materials used and not from being a better sound reducing option. And this isn't the first place to burn down due to the material used. Last year (Aug 2021) there was a place right next to the Courthouse in Jomtien that burned down. The Fairy Sweet Village restaurant. 2nd time in less than a year that it had caught on fire actually (the first time being in Sept 2020). From the news article about that fire: "I turned on a switch before there was a bang and a fire broke out, spreading quickly across the roof of the building due to foam material used.” In that case, the foam material was mostly used for decoration, not soundproofing. Probably not even "flame resistant" foam.

Same. People running out the front entrance, the roof has open flame, then reddish smoke comes out the doors, then it turns to thick dark smoke and suddenly "whoosh" - there's a burst of bright yellow flames coming out the door. People can be seen exiting and running around on fire. I was shocked how many just kept running and no one was trying to put out the flames and almost no one was doing the "stop, drop and roll" to put out the flames on themselves. At the end of one video you see a guy standing about 5 feet in front of the person filming and there's a patch of flame on the back of his jacket and he's just standing there unaware and no one is trying to put it out.

So they haven't detected any other cases in Thailand other than the one Nigerian tourist, but now they are thinking he may have contracted the disease in Thailand ? He arrived in Thailand in October 2021, spent some time in Chiang Mai before going to Phuket. In July he went to the hospital as he'd developed blisters on his dick. When they figured out it was monkey pox they told him to come in for treatment but he decided to skip the country instead. What about the 19 people he supposedly had "close contact" with in Phuket ? Supposedly they were all tested by 25 July and the results were supposed to be back by the 28th. I just saw a report on an English language Chinese news site dated 2 days ago soys that a 2nd case has been discovered. A Thai man in Bangkok.

My 1st trip here (Feb 1993) I think the exchange rate was about 20/1 (Baht to Canadian). I remember buying 5 t-shirts for 100 baht and laughing at the bargain prices. In 1997, much of SE Asia was hit by the "Asian Flu" banking crisis brought on when Rakesh Saxena, an Indian national working for the Bangkok Bank of Commerce, swindled the bank out of billions of baht before fleeing the country (to Canada of course, where he lived in luxury for over 10 years, committing even more crimes, until finally being extradited back to Thailand). His swindles cause the collapse of the Bank of Commerce, which lead to massive losses at other banks (who buy/sell/lend each other money all the time). That cause the Thai baht to take a dump of course and led to unrealistically high exchange rates for awhile. By the early 2000's, things had settled down and, unfortunately, Thai banks started dropping their interest rates. A lot. Remember that after the Tsunami in Dec 2004, the World Bank offered to loan Thailand money and Thaksin, despite being a crook himself, basically told them to shove it. (Because the money came with "strings attached". Conditions that the World Bank expected Thailand to meet in order to get the money. However, Thailand had mostly recovered from the banking crisis a few years earlier and, aside from the downswing after the tsunami, tourism numbers had been on a stead climb.) They really didn't need to borrow money from anyone. Around 2008-2010, I was getting 32/33 baht to the dollar and the US was around 35-37. That was when oil prices were going through the roof. It was quite annoying at one point when the Canadian dollar was worth almost $1.10 US, but the US dollar was getting 3 baht more on the exchange rate in Thailand (because the Thai gov't had pegged the exchange rate to the US dollar instead of letting it float naturally). (And no, it wasn't worth buying American $$ and then converting to Thai baht as the loss on the exchange fees would negate any gains on the rate differences. I had calculated at the time that I'd have to be doing over $100,000 in transactions to even make a small profit, which could be wiped out in a moment if the rates changed before you could get a transaction completed.) Then of course, the Liberals (in Canada) got into power again and our dollar took another massive dump. Historically, going back to just after the end of WW2, every time a Liberal gov't is in power, the Canadian dollar loses value. Normally, when a Conservative gov't is in office, the dollar gains strength, or at least doesn't take a massive drop. After Trudeau gained power, our exchange rate went down to around 23/1. Not far off from where it was back in 1993. It's up to about 28/1 now, but more from the Thai baht losing strength than the Canadian dollar gaining strength. Transferring money is a <deleted> shoot because you transfer a wad today and next week kick your self because you could have gained a couple thousand baht if you'd just waited a bit longer. Or, you wait a bit longer and realize that you should have done it a week ago because doing it now means you'll lose a couple thousand. I'm sure a lot of people thought the baht would take a massive drop when the stopped letting tourists into the country. How the baht didn't drop dramatically I can only guess. Most likely the gov't just set the exchange rate ("pegged it") to the US dollar to prevent a massive drop in value. Just have to hope some other con artist businessman swindles another bank out of billions and causes another Asian Flu. Just so long as it doesn't happen to "my" bank !

It was called the Blue Lagoon before that. Some Scandinavians owned it (part of the Samurai motorcycle club). They relocated to a place just off of Beach road. The owner of the Wet 'n Wild was using it as a front and was on the run from the cops "back home". He apparently upset the wrong people over here as well and got busted back in 2009 I think it was. Never heard what happened to the bar after that. Used to be a hoot to go there on a Friday evening as they had the cheapest drink prices of any go-go and never any customers ! I'd be in there alone at 10 pm with 20-22 half naked dancers. Dancing on those large, metal, reflective tables. In their little short skirts with no knickers on. It was rough I tells ya ! (The bar got in trouble a few times after I took girls up to the pool, or the sauna, or the jacuzzi. Apparently we "made too much noise".)

Checking to see if I have any "safe for ThaiVisa" photos of the tank there. Hmmm - appears I may have to edit a couple. Almost forgot to check the reflections and what appears on the far right. Never liked the "green" water. Kept telling the manager they should clean that tank and fill it with fresh water but that would have taken effort (and money) so they left it as is. Some fond memories of that place.

Wet 'n Wild

The original story shows 4 scooters in one photo. But it was most likely 10 as they said 10 people didn't have licenses (and you can't bust a passenger for not having a license). The ones confiscated were probably the ones without the proper tax decals (which would probably mean they also had no insurance). And these were scooters, not big bikes. Probably like those annoying kids with bored out mufflers that go screaming down the highway all the time (usually without helmets as well).

I got another email from Paypay yesterday, informing me (again) that my (personal, not business) account would be suspended if I didn't register with the NDID. Which of course we can't do. I posted in PayPal's "help" forum. I noted that not only can we not get a Thai ID, but we can do things like get driver's licenses, open bank accounts and buy condos using our Passports as ID. Doubt I'll get an answer there. I also emailed the NDID and asked them if there was an alternative method of registering, like using our passports, which are good enough for pretty much everything else in Thailand. I'm guessing I won't hear anything from them either. Ah well, PayPal won't miss all the money going both ways from people living here, will they ? They seemed to take notice when this scheme first broke and we were going to have our accounts shut down last Spring, which was then delayed "indefinitely". Got to lol. On one hand they are trying to attract people to come to Thailand and then on the other hand they are trying to make it so no one wants to be here !

Just over 16 years ago was the Route 999 Nightclub fire on #3 road (not far from #3/North Pattaya Rd intersection). 8 (or 15 depending who you believe) died in a fire started by someone (a welder I think) working on the air conditioners on the roof (or under it). Same deal, people died when they tried to use the fire exits and found them chained and locked (to prevent people from sneaking in or out). It was fortunate that the club hadn't opened for business yet or the death toll would have been much higher. And the New Year's Eve nightclub fire in Bangkok. (Santika Club - 1 Jan 2009.) 66 died in that one. The club had one main entrance/exit, a private staff entrance and a third exit that was locked "to prevent robberies". And it's the same story every - single - time. The authorities promise a crackdown on (clubs/condos/hotels) and nothing is ever actually done. Until the next tragedy strikes and then the authorities will - again - announce another crackdown (and then go back to doing nothing - again).

So tough that he admitted he carried (at least) 2 knives and a bottle of hydrochloric acid in his "man bag" in case he got into a scrap and his two balls buddies weren't there to back him up. Like when he went into a rage because a much smaller man (Canadian school teacher if I recollect) said something about his tattoos so he whipped out a knife and slashed the guy. How he managed to get away with that I don't know. Anyone else would have ended up in the slammer and then been deported. He was arrested a couple other times as well and always seemed to get away with whatever it was they arrested him for. He used to brag that he had a string of women paying him for "protection". (Yeah, how many women in Pattaya pay someone a weekly fee for "protection".)

I seriously doubt there is a "flood" of expats suddenly, for no reason at all, moving back "home". Nothing has changed, here or "there", that is dramatic enough to cause a sudden flood of relocations. Any who wanted to return "home" could have done so at almost any time over the last couple of years. Now, just when the country is opening up to tourists again, those expats suddenly want to go back to (wherever) ? I don't think so. Sounds more like some lawyers trying to drum up business more than anything. Back "home" it's still freezing cold for half the year (or more - they just had a large snowfall in Alberta - in June !). Prices for everything are higher than ever. No significant change in the politics (the same crooks in different stripes doing the same things as before). Some will go back when their health deteriorates to the point they know they will need quality (i.e. free) medical care. Reminds me of my old home in Canada, way out in the boonies in a very remote community. Lots of "elderly" types liked the solitude, until they got to a certain age and needed to be close to a hospital. Then they'd move to a retirement facility or cheap home "in town". Personally, I can see no reason to move "home". It's unlikely they'll mess with the Immigration requirements anymore (for a few years at least). Prices, for some things, have gone up but overall it's still cheaper to live here than in many "western" countries. The weather is pretty much the same (not so much rain during this rainy season so far though). Still love the food. Still love riding the Harley all year round. What reason is there to leave ?