Kaoboi Bebobp

Patsfrang, turn into Pattaya North Road. Take the first Soi on your left (approx 100 mtr). Follow this Soi until you see BigC on your right hand; for Foodland: pass BigC and turn left at the traffic lights. You're on Pattaya Klaang with Foodland on your left hand after 300 mtr

Thanks, Joe. I had forgotten that the soi you mention goes all the way through from P. Klang to P. Nua. I think that's Soi Yume, isn't it? That should be faster than going all the way down to 3rd Road.

Yes, it's Soi Yume (nickname) but is Soi Paniad Chang.

Are the traffic lights still working on that intersection? Wouldn't surprise me one bit if they did

If I remember correctly the traffic lights at Suk/Klang has been off since Sunday.

So they've got that part right

No lights working at all. Good luck at rush hour everyone when trying to squeeze into northbound traffic that's been cut to (effectively) 2 lanes, sometimes 3.

The turn onto Pattaya Klang from Suk is completely and permanently blocked by concrete barriers now. Rush hour traffic heading to Suk will be even more of a nightmare, if that's imaginable. No lights to control northbound flow and allow Klang motorists a chance to blend in. Just a complete free-for-all so try to do the best you can. LOL

Those of us on the Darkside are kind of barricaded here. The 2 km roundtrip to the southbound u-turn is silly in non-rush hour. Rush-hour should be a complete shambles. The only reasonable thing I can see doing to get to Big C Extra is to turn north off Siam CC and head to the subsoi (can't remember the number) to go to Soi Yume.

Three years of this? I just might have to move.

Cambodian drivers are not much better and just as reckless. But the Thais, if they're allowed into Vietnam, had definitely better sharpen up because Viet police are not so cuddly. And let's face it, Thai drivers have little or no English and will find all the road signs in Khmer/English or Viet/English another barrier.

I was just reminded of something, as I watch a movie on Sophon. They often broadcast the movie with the zoom up, so credit names, background scenery and some characters are cut in half. Laughable.

The reason I haven't upgraded or switched, is I'm not sure I'm staying around much longer. Probably leave the region this year.

We were in Central Pattaya yesterday and had no issues

Had a coffee and a bite to eat at Black Canyon, good service with no issues and surprisingly saw no staff playing with their phones

Also asked the concierge/information desk where to find a certain store and she pointed it out with a smile

Black Canyon is definitely one of the better businesses for service and consistency. The staff seem to be well trained and tend to stay longer. Some of the staff at Big C Extra I've seen for several years.

The audio/video synchronization has been off for days. Where SyFy was, a duplicate Universal Channel was running in its place (fixed now). Movies come and go, black out, come back, run in Russian on the English channel or run with European language subtitles, on and on.

What a joke!

Lovely photos, canarysun. Freshly painted traffic lines and paint-marked speed bumps. Amazing!

^^^ Agreed, luudee. Both male and female clerks will step right in front of you while you're shopping, reach across in front of you as you're eyeing the goods, push carts into your path, won't move when you're surveying the goods, on and on. They haven't got a bloody clue. My favourite though is the sawut dee ka/krap from just about any direction a couple of aisles away when they have nothing else to say.

I think there's definitely a difference in service quality between the beach side and my side of, let's say, Buakhao. Might even put the divider line at Third Road. I dislike going to Buakhao and beyond for some product or service because of bad service attitude and a high level of tourist weariness. However, convenience store and fast-food clerks must get the worst of the worst. No wonder they're surly what with dealing with blank-faced Russians, uncivil Indians and Chinese and drunk palefaces.

Second, how clerks treat customers is often reflective of poor or unsympathetic managers. I am also aware that in some shops, maybe all, in Central Festival, anything missing from inventory must be covered and paid for by staff. Sometimes this can take quite a cut from the monthly salaries.

Outside of the tourist zone, especially here on the Darkside, service is pleasant and the shop folks are lovely. To the OP, try living and shopping east of Third and north of Klang.

When you get a proof of address from Immigration for something like a car registration or driving licence. It can only be done after you have do a "90 day" report.

I wonder what will happen to this rule?

Totally wrong.

Not totally wrong. It's the rule at Chang Wattana. At Jomtien, where I live, immigration does not require a 90-day report for an Affidavit of Address in the Kingdom. But my information is from last year.

Haven't been able to open the report page. Everybody must be looking and checking browsers.

Take it easy folks, don't want to break it before it gets going.

THAI is expensive if you fly from BKK to any other country, but not the other way around. Its pretty much the same for all airlines, tickets cost more if you fly from the carriers home country. Is that something many just found out?

This is very true. Two years ago I changed my flights origin back to my home country because it saves hundreds of dollars. Also decided to spend more time in Canada and get away from the hot and rainy seasons.

The only time I've flown on THAI is because of codeshare connections with origins in North America. I have never bought a THAI ticket despite flying to Cambodia, Lao and Vietnam frequently, as well as North America. This is because THAI's airfares were grossly out of whack with every single airline flying to these destinations.

Earlier (post 47), someone said returning regular Thais, officials and hi-so's got secret super discounts. That's because THAI reckons foreigner passengers can pay the difference and then some. True to form, the Thais make foreigners pay.

In another fresh thread, THAI is under advisement by the ICAO that all of its safety standards are suspect and a soon-to-come decision may mean THAI could be banned from European airspace. http://bangkokpost.com/news/transport/471296/air-regulator-downplays-possible-thai-airline-blacklisting

All that said, I've had fine flights with THAI. I just don't look to them when I want to get anywhere for a reasonable fare.

Only been 3-4 times to At All bar. Definitely a cheap place to drink but I didn't like the heavy chair and table layout. Very crowded layout too. They should have standup table along the edge and stools. Anyway, I won't eat at a bar in which the waitresses, running around with their hands in dirty glasses and whatnot, who handle the food cooking too. No thanks.

Agree. Aim for a hotel or guesthouse on St 172, from St. 51 east to the river (wat, really since 172 ends at a temple). Lots of them. Lots of good eating places there too.

It's generally $7 on a tuktuk from the airport to 172. You can buy a ticket at a kiosk on the left as you exit from customs. But don't take the $12 ticket (rip off scam). Or just walk outside the terminal and grab the same tuktuk for $7. Don't take a moto taxi. It's one hairy ride into downtown on a well beaten Daelim moto. I stopped using motos a few years ago.

Don't know why you say the $12 taxi from the airport is a scam??!! I paid my $12 and a very polite driver took me in his spotlessly clean, Toyota Camry to the riverfront!! He was so good, I arranged for him to do the reverse journey 3 days later - worked a treat!!! I think the price is very fair for reliability & safety!

Ah, might be talking about two different things. I asked for a tuk tuk to 172. I was given a ticket that said $12. I said no way and walked out to the tuk tuk ranks and took one to my street for $7.

Agree. Aim for a hotel or guesthouse on St 172, from St. 51 east to the river (wat, really since 172 ends at a temple). Lots of them. Lots of good eating places there too.

It's generally $7 on a tuktuk from the airport to 172. You can buy a ticket at a kiosk on the left as you exit from customs. But don't take the $12 ticket (rip off scam). Or just walk outside the terminal and grab the same tuktuk for $7. Don't take a moto taxi. It's one hairy ride into downtown on a well beaten Daelim moto. I stopped using motos a few years ago.

Raids in the beach area have been going on for months now. I don't think they will end. What the point is, I don't know. Maybe it's to send a lesson to all the clubs and bars that they're living on borrowed time and there will come a time when Pattaya's current setup will have to change, that the entertainment segment will have to move/hide or shrink or (doubtful) disappear.

The beach?? Do you know about Pattaya? about 3rd Road?

There is about 1.5km (or 1 mi) between M Club and the beach

Yep, am well aware of the difference. I failed to make clear that my remarks about the area from 2nd to Beach have been a hot zone for raids and the raids are obviously spreading. It is hard to discern a pattern to the raids but they are legion.

Police are also really focusing on drugs, setting up choke points around Klang and Arunothai over to 3rd. I've driven through 4 drug search stop checks (never stopped) at this location. Plainclothes cops are focused on Thais exclusively, confirmed by my GF. I've personally watched two dealer takedowns off Buakhao and Tang Mo. And several times now roundups of suspects of some kind filling police pickup trucks heading to a station on Nern Plub Wan.

Lots of activity but to me anyway, no pattern other than my speculation in my original post.

Raids in the beach area have been going on for months now. I don't think they will end. What the point is, I don't know. Maybe it's to send a lesson to all the clubs and bars that they're living on borrowed time and there will come a time when Pattaya's current setup will have to change, that the entertainment segment will have to move/hide or shrink or (doubtful) disappear.

Not my problem since I'm a non-participant. But maybe five years from now, Pattaya will be completely different.

It will work if you had put a good chunk of top-up money on your SIM account before you left. When you last put in money, your provider would have sent an SMS detailing the top-up total and expiry date. So check your phone messages from the provider.

That whole strait-jacket meal standard is utterly irrelevant in my life. But what I do is vary every meal in terms of nutrition content, variety and volume throughout the day, and day to day. And dessert never enters into it.

They have this brand at Foodland sometimes.

Anybody used thai driver license to register ???

I think I've only used my Thai license to register. It photocopies just as well as a passport.

Now I'm thinking I should move back to the bright side of town. As we all know and expect, the project will take 5 years instead of 3 and take current traffic problems beyond nightmare levels. Add in the fact the new Tukcom 2 (if indeed that tower beside Foodland is the new Tukcom) will flood Klang with more traffic and come onstream during the tunnel construction. An epic clusterf**k!

Is RARO'S still for sale over there on the Darkside ?

He posted earlier in this thread.

Two things about registering your SIM:

1. If you lose your SIM or it stops working or you need a nano SIM (Apple), you can go in and get a new one. A couple of years ago, I got a new True SIM after losing mine. No charge -- at the time.

2. You need a history of registration, 12 months (I think), before a mobile company will accept a request to have your phone number ported over to a new provider.