mike2011

You could do a Thai tourist visa in PP and thereby avoid the dreaded in/out stamp and the counting of your exemption stamps. Just an idea, I dont know how many stamps you already got. It might be worth a thought.

yes the new bus station is a bit out of town but not too much (e.g. Ubon, Chiang Rai). Last time I arrived there I got mobbed by the providers on arrival. Ridiculous prices asked. I went through the 'back door' the street to the back and not on the main road and prices dropped significantly. You do not seem to be a backpacker, thus you will have to put up with them.

A songtaew should be ok as the distance is not that far. It is walkable without much stuff in the morning or late afternoon. Having said that, you will be tired on arrival. So swallow the extra 100 baht and dont worry.

When I am traveling and working, I often just go for a quick bite. Regularly the staff points me to the worst possible table, near the entrance, the toilet, kitchen door, you name it. I politely point to the table I want and then they make their decision of selling a meal or not.

In your case, it was a plain insult and even directly into your face. of course you do not return and you gave them the publicity they deserve. Well-done. I can understand that you do not want a fight when going for a dinner with the gf. They factored that in when behaving in their very own way.

If you're really mad. Next time you go to a pizza place and have a large bill. Walk by them the next day. Ask for the manager, hand him the receipt and thank him for his behavior. Report back on his smug face.

As far as I can see the CEO website got a lot of the photos from the girls' facebooks. If I recall it correctly, people give fb the rights to the photos and the marketing of these by uploading it. Thus, I think that CEO stole the photos - be from the two girls or fb.

The additional pics did not add anything to clarify the story or bring in further details. They were just taken to bash the two girls, admittedly not the smartest of their kind, and attract traffic. So it was for a purely commercial purpose.

The people were bragging how much traffic they got and how 'their' material was taken over by the UK press.

I am far from defending the stupid behavior of these two young ladies. But it seems that a lot of parasites have jumped on the story to feed at their cost. I am often not happy with the moderating here on TV though I do understand the limitations imposed by Thai law. By now I can see some benefit in it as the worst examples of posting on those two Cambodian boards, including derogatory postings on deceased tourists and ridiculing their families, are not taking place here which is a relief.

Going beyond the immediate context this all is something that saddens me. Remember the strikes in Cambodia with people getting shot? These two ladies attracted more attention than the misery of thousands of underpaid workers in the sweatshops. While many feel the call to comment on some boobs they cannot even clearly see, the same crowd has no interest in real life issues. Of course, I had immediately some slippery comment on my mind, who won't?, but then taking a step back and see what is going on should make us realize that we are not highschool bullies anymore and have advanced maybe just a little.

As JulieM pointed out, rightly I think, minimalist is not necessarily cheap. Cheap food that does not provide the right nutrients and contains high levels of sodium, saturated fats etc. only makes you sick or obese. Now we have some examples of such people in Pattaya among the longterm expat community.

Minimalist might be understood as going to the market, compare prices, buy fresh produce and cook your own meals from scratch or maybe as close to it as you can do it. I cook myself and I know what is in my food which is good for my body and also my mind.

I also do not see how taking advantage of other people can be called minimalist. There are many more fitting descriptions for this kind of attitude. I personally encountered it more with affluent business people and the like. People with more limited means come often across as being more decent and reasonable. The expressions of contempt of less well-to-do people expressed here on the thread confirm this.

Minimalist can also be responsible. I do not need the daily hot shower and aircon as I am more adapted to the climate. By now, aircon has a negative impact on me if I am exposed to it for too long. Not using energy guzzling appliances is a good thing like using more efficient appliances. It protects our environment, we have no other to switch to, and global warming is an issue. I wont see the full impact but the kids I know might. In other words, minimalist in terms of energy is the opposite of being selfish and is very responsible. Maybe this is something the think about more often.

I also use the backpack at the supermarket. It insulates the purchases against the heat. I wont save one baht but I save the company (and environment) several plastic bags a week. Not even a drop in the ocean, I know, but the attitude is noted at the cashier and hopefully other people will get the point. It took decades in the west to end the plastic bag culture or at least reduce it.

The one thing which is a bit disappointing to me is that personal consumption is taking is taken as a measure for assessing a person. I know that this is very American where the first, maybe the second, question is about income. Sadly many cannot leave this attitude behind and focus on more substantive matters.

Trust me, living in a tropical climate you do need a daily shower, so do your fellow man a favor and have one. You do not necessarily have to use hot water but puh-lease use soap.

Not just one, i think 3 are good a number. Depending on your level of activity more and use the right soap. Now read the highlighted part again and you will see that it refers to a 'hot' shower. I do not use hot showers anymore, just too warm plus it is not good for your skin (aging) - ask the ladies. Better be handsum.

As JulieM pointed out, rightly I think, minimalist is not necessarily cheap. Cheap food that does not provide the right nutrients and contains high levels of sodium, saturated fats etc. only makes you sick or obese. Now we have some examples of such people in Pattaya among the longterm expat community.

Minimalist might be understood as going to the market, compare prices, buy fresh produce and cook your own meals from scratch or maybe as close to it as you can do it. I cook myself and I know what is in my food which is good for my body and also my mind.

I also do not see how taking advantage of other people can be called minimalist. There are many more fitting descriptions for this kind of attitude. I personally encountered it more with affluent business people and the like. People with more limited means come often across as being more decent and reasonable. The expressions of contempt of less well-to-do people expressed here on the thread confirm this.

Minimalist can also be responsible. I do not need the daily hot shower and aircon as I am more adapted to the climate. By now, aircon has a negative impact on me if I am exposed to it for too long. Not using energy guzzling appliances is a good thing like using more efficient appliances. It protects our environment, we have no other to switch to, and global warming is an issue. I wont see the full impact but the kids I know might. In other words, minimalist in terms of energy is the opposite of being selfish and is very responsible. Maybe this is something the think about more often.

I also use the backpack at the supermarket. It insulates the purchases against the heat. I wont save one baht but I save the company (and environment) several plastic bags a week. Not even a drop in the ocean, I know, but the attitude is noted at the cashier and hopefully other people will get the point. It took decades in the west to end the plastic bag culture or at least reduce it.

The one thing which is a bit disappointing to me is that personal consumption is taking is taken as a measure for assessing a person. I know that this is very American where the first, maybe the second, question is about income. Sadly many cannot leave this attitude behind and focus on more substantive matters.

Can you quote one single poster who has said they measure a person by his level of consumption?

I find it very annoying that Paddy still expects people to engage with his views. He had nothing better to do than to construct (= fake) a story in order to participate. The fake simply reflects his stereotyping, worldview but nothing else. If it had been a somewhat exaggerated post based on a real person, we all would have accepted it.

He cannot expect to be taken seriously or as a person worthy a response. He is a troll and doing a disservice to this forum and discussion.

In a way he is a character worthy of certain scenes in Pattaya. I do not mix with those person in real life and refuse to do so here.

I apologize to the community for this negative post. I had held back my reaction but that impudent shamelessness was too much.

I trust that this is still ok with moderators as the troll was allowed to continue - so a reaction to the troll is well in place, me thinks.

As for my posting on the substance of the discussion here, I stand by it.

Good that all went well and that you managed to get through this difficult trip to Bangkok.

In a way, your emergency was one of the rare occasions where the forum really mattered and could make a difference. If was an opportunity for the community to show its best and also its worst. It is up to the moderators to make improvements as to the worst side.

Many share your views.

As JulieM pointed out, rightly I think, minimalist is not necessarily cheap. Cheap food that does not provide the right nutrients and contains high levels of sodium, saturated fats etc. only makes you sick or obese. Now we have some examples of such people in Pattaya among the longterm expat community.

Minimalist might be understood as going to the market, compare prices, buy fresh produce and cook your own meals from scratch or maybe as close to it as you can do it. I cook myself and I know what is in my food which is good for my body and also my mind.

I also do not see how taking advantage of other people can be called minimalist. There are many more fitting descriptions for this kind of attitude. I personally encountered it more with affluent business people and the like. People with more limited means come often across as being more decent and reasonable. The expressions of contempt of less well-to-do people expressed here on the thread confirm this.

Minimalist can also be responsible. I do not need the daily hot shower and aircon as I am more adapted to the climate. By now, aircon has a negative impact on me if I am exposed to it for too long. Not using energy guzzling appliances is a good thing like using more efficient appliances. It protects our environment, we have no other to switch to, and global warming is an issue. I wont see the full impact but the kids I know might. In other words, minimalist in terms of energy is the opposite of being selfish and is very responsible. Maybe this is something the think about more often.

I also use the backpack at the supermarket. It insulates the purchases against the heat. I wont save one baht but I save the company (and environment) several plastic bags a week. Not even a drop in the ocean, I know, but the attitude is noted at the cashier and hopefully other people will get the point. It took decades in the west to end the plastic bag culture or at least reduce it.

The one thing which is a bit disappointing to me is that personal consumption is taking is taken as a measure for assessing a person. I know that this is very American where the first, maybe the second, question is about income. Sadly many cannot leave this attitude behind and focus on more substantive matters.

Scouse thanks for the info. Which accountancy report did you read? Siem Reaper also had some input but has not found his reference yet. I am interested in this info as I have some term deposits in Cambodia.

I check the online annual reports and the auditing reports. Plus I checked who are the shareholders. A of the Microfinance institutions are scary while others appear to be sound as Thaidrew had mentioned above.

If you could share a link, I am sure many would profit.

The whole incident is as insignificant as it has been exploited for cheap publicity by people. A struggling Cambodian expat forum owner went through the facebook accounts of the ladies and posted their pics. Evidently reproduced here. By taking those fb pics out of context they obtained an entirely new meaning and the posting is nothing less than character wilfull assassination for a few extra views on the website. The British press was not slow to follow and here we have the same phenomenon.

The girls were a bit out of place and that was it.

Many issues concerning Cambodian society that matter do not receive any attention. it tells us all about this form of zero journalism.

I hope they take the owner of Cambodia Expats Online to court for plagiarism and teach him a lesson.

I have read the rich Thai argument many times. It does not convince me. It surely holds true for places near the Royal Cliff, a place where the local royals are said to be hanging out.

The idea that a 'rich' Thai family would stay in one of those 28-45 sqm condos is somewhat ridiculous. Rich Thai would not rub shoulders with Ian from Liverpool, Hans from Berlin, etc. They also do not want to be seen anywhere close to a place where a working girl walks in.

Thais get a better price for their places forming 51% Thai part of the building. That will help them but even if you have a car most will need a credit like they do need it for, yes, the car. The renting out is probably true but on a much smaller scale than is suggested.

The real capital input into the condo market on part of the 'Thai' side is on the company level with those condos reportedly sold while being on 'resale' by the developer. He booked these as sold since he had to show the bank high sales figures for his credit. In that perspective, the 'Thai' share is not the explanation why nothing bad has happened to the condo market. On the contrary, it is a ticking time bomb. Once the developer is in trouble, the whole bubble will burst.

I knew one family who owned a small condo down in Na Jomtien. They bought it very cheaply following the 97 crash. Yes they keep it empty and sometimes they drop by. They would have never bought one of the badly built and even worse fitted-out condos that are now on offer.

The Thai argument is in my view largely an argument that is put forward as nobody can really check its veracity and the visitors from BKK might seeem to lend some credibility. On closer inspection, it is hot air from an agents mouth. Nothing unusual and to be expected. If the Thai market would be so smoking hot developers would have dropped the Thai 'discount' in a heartbeat and charge higher prices than they do for farangs.

In Greece the saying was either you have a cat or a snake in the house. Add to that the huge rodent population in SEA cities and I think there is a good case for arguing that cats serve a purpose. Anyone with kids, a house, and a garden should have a few cats. The best for house owners is to adopt three male kittens, which is usually the male share of any litter, and raise them. They will stay together and rule their territory. Some ladies will sooner or later be attracted to the boy group which is ok as losses due to snake bites are to be expected.

Qualifier: the rodent population referred to earlier excludes those of the two legged kind some of which are populating this thread. This should be obvious to anyone as rats are actually intelligent, a praise some posters here cannot hope for.

Any public hospital a couple of hundred baht maximum. Private hospitals: the sky is the limit.

Anthony, what you say is very interesting. Could you tell us a little more. I am sure many of us like to learn from your knowledge.

Maybe we should stop the discussion? It is getting absurd and when fiction takes over there is nothing left to debate.

Well done, and the info is very valuable! So it is not 1500 Baht under any circumstance. What they do insist upon is the perceived fee of the electronic visa. This is really interesting. You have stood your ground half way. This is not bad at all given the well-deserved abysmal reputation of that border checkpoint.

The motorbike bastard screwed you badly but it was not major bucks. So also not really bad.

In SHV: If you like pizza go to Olive Olive at the Golden Lion Roundabout. An excellent Magherita is only 5 USD and very nice and large.

Samudera supermarket is a good place to change money. THey also have good Italian bread. 100 meters up the street in the direction of the big covered market is a Vietnamese bakery, same side of the street, with cheap and fresh baguettes. Try the Vietnamese noodle shop on Tola street also very good value and good food.

Enjoy your trip and thanks for posting!

By the way, why dont you post the visa information in the Cambodia section of the forum and in the sub section for visa? This will help a lot of board members.

Sia was good some ten years ago. After that, well same bad service at higher prices. Now they try new tricks. late flights out of Singapore serve only a snack but no full meal anymore. Excuse is the people want to sleep. They give a f.. about people connecting on long flights.

So after having been treated this way I accepted their reasoning and put in a special meal request. On the plane I got again a sandwich I could not eat. Asking for my special meal the attendant told me that the request was submitted too late. I thanked the person and asked for the purser. The man came and I told him in no uncertain terms that I hate to be lied to by his staff. He made strange face and when I told him that my request had been submitted 3 months ago and whether SIA needs 6 months advance now - that was it. All he would do was to bring me a bottle of water. I filed my complained and just informed him that they lost 2-3 round trips a year to THY. THY flies the same route with by now better service.

Should I add that SIA never responded to my complaint (Star Alliance gold card member) other than a automated email?

SIA economy is by far no longer the best. The Premium might be an attempt to cover for their cuts while demanding more money. Ok. See what the other airlines do for you.

We are the customers and it is our money they want. They are not doing us a favor as some airline staff seem to believe.

Paddy, any reasonable reader has understood your point and I trust most will agree with you. At least for my part, I do. No need to get so fired up about these homeless guys. As for the person at starbucks: If you are so upset it is only fair to complain to the branch manager about him. This way you will help the staff and get the situation resolved. No doubt other customers will benefit from your action as well.

To be fair, however, the old guy in the original post does not seem to fall into the same category as the person you mentioned. On the contrary, the old man does all to avoid coming into a situation like the person at Starbucks. Thus, there are variations and important differences and we should keep them in mind.

Many of us, as also mentioned during the discussion, come from families where the parents had experienced bad poverty in their youth.This marked them for life and it also left an impact on us. I appreciate my parents input and it helped me. it also made me sympathetic to people who have less and taught me not to judge people by their wealth but character. Your posting shows a person of bad character and equally bad conduct. That is his own fault and he does not stand for anyone but himself. So let's not generalize too much and take each and every one as one person at a time.

asdecas, why dont you first check this section and see what we post before you open your fool-mouth? What I dont love about Thaivisa is that people who do not contribute anything of substance still feel the urge or post. Like soi dog marking its territory. Impression is identical.

Back to topic:

Hotels: Siem Reap has a fully developed tourism industry catering to almost every possible style you like. Thus, you can get hotels in all price ranges starting from a dorm bed to 5 star. I think tripadvisor will help you to narrow down your choice and then someone here might be able to report on his experience with that hotel.

Your hotel will probably offer a free or cheap airport transfer which would help you avoiding the tuktuk mob at the terminal.

There are many scams in SR aimed at unsuspecting tourists. You can do some reading on the travel websites like Lonelyplanet or again tripadvisor and get the right info.

If you read the post mentioning Siem Reap in the last 3 weeks here you will find out that one member just got a taxi with aircon for USD 20 for going around the temples. That was excellent value and maybe the member still has a contact number. A message to him might be worthwhile and facilitate your stay considerably.

I dont know your tastes. For my part I love the temples and I believe that doing some reading ahead of time will improve the experience. Depending on your budget you could hire a guide.

Food: Dozens and dozens of places available within walking distance in the center. Again, the problem is not the lack of choice but the abundance.

If you have specific questions about certain places and maybe day trips to Preah Vehar, Koh Ker, and other locations the members here will surely give you good input. A day trip is nice as you see bit of the country as well and these impressions will stay with you in your mind.

Thanks that's very interesting. I am spreading some term deposits over a number of microfinance institutions. The better ones have their annual reports online. Some are in part owned by western companies/Trusts/banks or a japanese bank. Most of the smaller ones are very dubious.

I would be interesting if they name the bad apples. The percentage looks high but numberwise the smaller and dubious institutions seem to be in the majority. Which would confirm your source.

I thought Visionfund run by US missionaries should be ok as those guys are very good about money )

Looking forward to read this report.

Hi again,

sorry cant help with hotels in Poipet. I used Aran Garden 1 and 2. The better of the two wants 250 for a fan room while the other, not so nice 175 baht.

Bus Poipet-PP. I usually use Capitol bus. More choices and rather good buses. No break downs so far and I use them a lot.

Bus from Pattaya: I thought it was 263 as posted on a website but one member here paid 250. The lower sum would be in line with the fare reductions.

Train: No need to Hualamphon station! You take the BTS as planned to Asoke and then take the MRT in the other direction (= north) for 1 stop. You exit at New Petchburi Road. There you walk RIGHT at the railway tracks and wait on the platform for your train. This is cheaper and gives you more time. Google maps shows the airport link station which is left of the road. Google earth is of little help as the airport rail link blocks the view.

The train supposedly arrives 15 minutes after leaving the central station. Never happened to me. A 5.35 PM arrival is also highly unlikely. Add an hour. Same speed and same track and same road crossings in BKK - so no miracles happening.

Since you expressed your wish to save as much as possible:

You can take the 2nd class bus to ekkamai. That's the one with an orange stripe. It does not leave from Pattaya Nua bus station but stops at the intersections of Pattaya Tai (that;s the terminus I think) as well as Klang and Nua. The bus picks up passengers along the way and does not use the sky way. It takes much longer but you save some baht which might serve your purpose. In BKK, assuming you still have time, you could take a bus up Sukumvit. You will see how the traffic situation is and decide accordingly. Noonish should be ok. 8-10 baht to Asoke and there is also a bus up Asoke to Petchburi MRT station. This way the connection in BKK will be under 20 baht.

Perhaps even better: Exit Ekkmai bus station and use the BTS overpass and go to Ekkamai street (across from the bus station) take a bus up Ekkamai and connect at Khlong Tan railway station. Even cheaper and faster. You enter the train station from new Petchburi road.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Khlong+Tan+Railway+Station/@13.7432801,100.5901881,17z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x30e29e458e8fb9ed:0x9e12025783d69e6b

Another possiblity: 130 Baht Jomtien to airport bus. THen take the free shuttle from the terminal to the bus station which is called Public Transportation center or maybe the bus takes you there direct (never did that as I had to take a flight). From the bus station a motorbike to train station maybe 3 kms. (30 baht?).

Another variation: Take the 2nd class bus only to Chonburi and switch there to a 2nd or 3rd class (fan) bus to Chaosensao (or on google: CHachoengsao). There a motorbike ride to the train station. google maps shows a wrong location for the bus station. This should be the cheapest route. It depends a bit on your luggage of course. The train leaves there at around 2.20 (or later if delayed).

These variation seem to be confusing at first sight. However if you think about it you are making a huge Uturn. It starts at Chaosensao and ends at the central train station. Wherever you can cut this 60-70 KM Uturn short you win time and money. No need to get all the way into central Bangkok.

I like Klong Tan station as it has facilities unlike the stop near Asoke, Chaosengsao is a big station as well. You wont be allowed to talk to the hundreds of university students there as this is my exclusive privilege .

http://www.railway.co.th/checktime/checktime.asp?lenguage=Eng

One of the most notorious persons involved in such deals as Paddy described above was noone else than Mr. T..., a most prominent politician, himself. He collected through his brother and other people 5% of shares on IPOs for 'streamlining' the process. No problem if the company went bust 2-3 years later as the gang had sold its shares right away. Similarly, these people received condos as gifts. I doubt that this clan ever changed its mode of operation or that other individuals in such a position were any better.

Does anyone remember the tallest building in the world in Jomtien? What phantastic story.

With the US economy gaining steam and slowly increasing interest rates and the recovery of real estates values, the industry here will presumably depend more on funding like paddy described it. Question is, how does that fit with the alleged cleanup and anti-corruption campaign of the junta? This might add additional pressure on the industry.

Siemreaper. that's interesting information. Do you have more on these analyses? I have bank in a Cambo and therefore I am pretty much interested in learning more about it. Any input is very much appreciated. THANKS!

Excellent seafood. Give me a break..... They failed to mention the backpacker budget services around the end of 3rd road towards the hill. Plus the numerous temporary employment options for lady backpackers in the hospitality industry, similar to CM but not quite.

If you take the airport link to Makasan you can go so Ban Sue, that's the other terminus, and hop on the train there. This in case it is getting tight. It will save you 30 minutes or more. Might be worthwhile.

3 rd class to CM is a bad idea. You will be done for a whole day or more.

If the sleeper does not work out. Get a VIP bus and some rest. You will be early in CM and in a much better shape. Depending on the time of day it is better to take a taxi to Morchit bus station rather than 2 tickets for the rail link, 2 subway tickets to Kampang Peth subway station, and another 50 baht from the station to Morchit. You still pay more with the taxi but again if your luggage is limited and you dont mind transferring it is a doable. Escalators everywhere. Buses leave Morchit a few hours after the train departure, this might be helpful if the plane is delayed.