Gonzo the Face

Donnyboy

Did you fail to read the forum rules.

56) Anyone making posts on the subject of Coyote Dancers without an accompanying photograph will be banned.

.......................

Nice knowing ya.

Gee LP ..... give the poor guy a break..... they were Coyote Dancers and I am sure he came home with cameras with broken lens'

I knew Hugh. He did like a drink.

What did he do for a living? He was always off to different places and always seemed to have cash to support his Thai life style.

He was involved in film making...... I know a few years ago he was off to Madagaskar to film some exotic and little known rare cat.....then it was off to the Amazon to go a zillion miles upriver on a filming expedition...Not for sure but I think some of the things were on or by or for National Geo....

Not too mention his world reknown fishing club south of town...... a couple years ago when the Mae Ping flooding was so bad , according to him, the river rose to a level as to flood his ponds and all his giant catfish swam away....

Those knowing Hugh a little at least, can realize his stories had a percentage of truth in them..... what that percentage was is for each to judge...

He was one of the CM Falang Fixtures, and I know for one,,,, I feel sadened by his passing...

Gonzo

This won't make many of you happy. I'm certainly disappointed. Several months ago I heard that the tourism authority is planning a handicrafts exhibit on the Royal Flora grounds from Nov 2009 to Jan 2010. I guess the good news is that there is nothing planned for the next two winters.

Has anyone else heard anything about the handicrafts show?

You are correct.... doesn't make me happy..... but on the upside, we now know what happens when they do a busy season Expo... by experience .... and can now plan accordingly... some options would be 1]closing during the busy season and considering the low season as the new busy season..... or 2] maybe getting a job driving a Taxi Meter at the airport.....

On a more serious side , I think by having the experience of knowing the problem, it may not be eliminated , but somewhat eased by readjusting and advance planning..... maybe

Last night [sunday] about 9:30 - 10 PM, around the Rama IX bridge, there must have been at least 20 vehicles with sirens running up and down Rattanakosin and Doi Saket Gao.... I was a bit out of it to go and chase them, but it sounded like something very serious.....I thought first thing , it was another bus smash up....

Anybody know what it was all about ??

Gonzo

I'm not surprised that taxi's are charging a flat fee during the holidays. It's not right but this kind of thing happens just about everywhere at holidays times.

Last time I used a blue and yellow was from the airport to get us home. When we got to our house the driver bashfully said he'd "forgotten" to switch the meter on! Well we said not a problem and told him the fare was 100 baht as that was the fare last time we used the taxi from the airport................ and thats what we paid him. His little face was a real picture (He didn't get a tip either, although I could have given him a verbal one).

Some posts here mention you have the choice of saying yes or no, but its not that simple for a lot of people who live outside of the city. I cant remember when I last saw a tuk tuk out my way and songtaels are few and far between. Lets also not forget people who cannot drive............or maybe they have a disability or a chronic health condition etc, these people do not have a choice.

So Gonzo it is good you bring this issue up here and perhaps there is a way over charging by way of flat fees in a metered taxi can be stopped.

While it is not a big thing to those of us who have the ability to brush it off, you have to admit that it is another piece in the puzzle of keeping tourists away from CM. I try and advise all who are coming to CM of what they should expect to pay for transport from the Airport , Bus and train stations. .... and I am not shorting the drivers with the quoted rates, but not gouging the incoming guests either......

I am sure they get some no and some yes... You guys represent the no... But the 'yes' has been the easiest way for them, so why should they care what is being said here? I can't see this as making one bit of difference.

Well Ajarn, sorry to disagree , but with all due respect , if posting here keeps one person from getting ripped off, then I think it does make a difference. and if we all stick our head in the sand, then guess what ,,,,, we become the same as the Thai's and the mai pen rai...

Jeezze No...... I was just talking with Abe 2 days ago and he brought up the Hugh's Name......

I hope that there is some mistake, but if there are some out there who know the name, but not the face, or know the face but not the name, this is Hugh....... on one of his better days.

Because we open kinda early and late for him..... he would occassionally stop in for some homemade tomato juice with a little morning eye opener

If its true, I'll really miss him....... and have to sneak in a one little one for him..... RIP

PS Does anyone know where his Rover is parked......

Taxi Bandits strike again..

It would seem to me that the Taxi bandits are somewhat unionizing.......

I have had two [seperate] guests arrive today with the story that the Taxi Meters, are refusing to use the meters and saying to the customer that the fee [normal 70B meter] is a flat 300B.... They are telling the customer that it is because of the holiday.

Why, Why, Why do the absolute pea brained crooks not see that just because they can make a few more baht today, the maybe tomorrow they may not have any tourist to rip off ...!!!

Why ? I'll tell you why ,,,,, because one in the hand is worth two in the bush and to most people here, there is no tomorrow.....

Now I'll email all my incoming guest not to take the meter taxi bandits.....

I thought there was some official control at the airport.???? Like in Bangkok where they give you a card with the Cab # on it.......

My g/f said that it was reported on television last night that a farang drowned in the moat during festivities yesterday but I haven't seen any mention of it anywhere. Anyone know about this????

I just logged on to ask the very same quesion.... I was told also that it was on Thai TV news last evening....

Binterested infndig out more if anyone knows

gonzo

Another unexplainable is where are all the travelers who made up the 38% increase in air travel to and from CM over the past 12 months.

I think it is a past government figure... need I say more..... probably from the TAT from a boss who was reading a Playboy Mag. at the time....... that number is thrown around in the mag quite frequently

Time for me to stick my 2 cents back in.....

I have to partially agree and partially disagree with UG and some of the others.

Good or bad, up of down, may really depend on what segment of the hosp/tourist business you are in....It may also depend on what level of that segment you are in...

I am in the hospitality/tourist business.... Guest House, Bar, Restaurant. I do get a lot of back packers and I do get a lot of those a little above the backpacker set. Our income is generated not only from rooms, food, beverage, but revenue to a large degree is generated from tours, treks, massage and the like or ancillary services.

The Royal Flora , good or bad....

Strangely, I found it both good and bad....

November, and December were very good for the room accommodation end...

January was the best month in 10 years, for rooms, both in revenue and room nights.... January is normally the best month of the year, but as I said , this January was the best on record.....

Now to the make up of the room rentals...... traditionally we run approximately 90% expat, 10% Thai...

This past period [Royal Flora] the Thai % age was slightly more than 20%.... the falang %age was made up of the slightly better economic level category.... I think this was probably the push down effect.....the mid price hotel rooms were taken up pretty much by the Bangkok Thai going to the Flora, and this left the mid range customer either to move up and in most cases out of the price affordability or to move downward into a guest house at a lower price.... and these rooms were hard to find as they were occupied by more of the Thai's who could not afford the upper levels of cost rooms, but still HAD to go to the RFE..

Room rentals was great...... now as the younger folks might say, the restaurant and bar business during this period SUCKED !!!

Not only were the better heeled falangs going out to better restaurants as they were now saving money on room costs, so they could splurge a little, but the Thai's in house were all on-the-street-eaters, who wanted to bring back their food and use my plates, glasses, etc. Which they did not once they found there was a corkage fee for their use.

Neither of these two economic groups were into the touring, trekking etc..... another it SUCKED for this segment of business.

Now with literally hundreds of the huge painted double-decker tour busses jamming up the streets about 18 -20 hours per day, the fast majority of the local food and drink business went to Hel*.....

The Royal Flora type of exhibition I think is a good thing and would like to see more of it...... but definitely not in what is the SEASON , when we are already usually full of tourists...... This Exhib. at this time of the year is the most idiotic scheduling thing I have ever seen...... In the low season it would be great........ in the high season its a disaster for the majority of tourism/hospitality related business other than maybe transport ..

Now we have [after flora] the myriad of smaller problems, as well as the overall world not being in the safest travel times, adding to the numbers that are definitely down ... now .... and for the year to date compared with past years....... date for date..... year for year....

But as Shakespeare said "The Sun Don't Shine On One Dogs Azz Forever" [that was Jimmy Bob Shakespeare]

OMHO maybe it was 3 cents worth..... Kataut

I'm glad [or not so glad as the case may be] to see that many other of the longer stay people seem to agree that the season has been slower with fewer tourists than usual..

The hospitality business to which I am closest, indicates a 25 to 30 % shortfall from last year... that comes to me both as in revenue and in numbers of guest/customers.... This is calendar year 2007 vs 2006 year to date.

I would guesstimate that a very small fraction of this is due to the new immig regs....... My opinion is that it is a accummulation of things.

Some small amount due to the change in governments........ a larger portion due to the perceived danger of coming to Northeren Thailand and trying to breathe..... some small portion to the South Thailand Problems......and a very large part to the media coverage that today can and is flashed around the world almost instantly.....

Most of the seasoned travelers have enough common sense to check things out locally before venturing off, and of course all the travelers from last year , would not be coming back to Thailand again this year anyhow...... I think it is the new, first timers to

Thailand who are summing up all the difficulties and just plain deciding that "maybe Thailand, with all the difficulties I have read about, best be put off til another year, and besides my money will go further in........ wherever...

But this too shall Pass.......

Gonzo

Being close to the Chiang Mai business community, it would seem from all that I have seen to date, that this year the tourism industry and related hospitality industry numbers are greatly lower than that of the past several years...

Would some others out there who are connected with business in the area care to comment on whether their business annual numbers are up or down ??

Right now on Songkran Friday it seems that there are a lot fewer foreigners in town than usual.....

Sincere comments appreciated.

Gonzo

Well it appears that the good Mr. Samak may have done a Don Imus......

Has been convicted of Defamation of Charactor and has been sentenced to 2 years making little rocks out of big ones....

But maybe he can get assigned to the Prison Kitchen, where the good Gov., can show off his Pad Thai recipe.

Well it really looked for a while this afternoon like we were going to get a real downpour... I thought this was it ,,,,, the severe thunderstorms that were supposed to hit between Monday and Thursday.... but.... nada, zilch not a drop - o...

Did any in any of the surrounding areas get any rain this afternoon /// ???

Gonzo

CM - Lampun Rd going south along the river , right at the turn in to the old Rimping SS , from there south had been closed for

Sunday and Monday..... I was told that it was closed pat Gymkana Club .... Don't know about today, but it got me two times... Real mess

You're not supposed to say that on the forum..........split personality thing u no.... like Siamese Twins separated before birth...

Just a guess, from an old bureaucrat here: if one set of regulations is too difficult to enforce or for the staff to comprehend, find some far easier excuse to say no to the clients, especially to those clients (perpetual 'tourists') who aren't paying anything to our agency.

Ah, so these folks have no visa issued by the MFA staff, and they have stamps in their passport that show they've been in Thailand a lot. Let's see, to whom do we give stamps for entry without a visa? To real tourists. Okay, real tourists should have a flight out of Thailand...voila, no counting of days, no counting of visa-free stamps.

All behaviour is caused. Governments do things for a reason. Do you see that the staff at the border crossings is greatly increased? Do they have time to count days, or stamps? Nope. Are they bright enough to recognize a squatter (an illegal resident who pretends to be a tourist) just by glancing through a passport? Yep.

With all due sympathy to those who cannot get real visas: you are in a bind. You are between a rock and your home country. If I were a second-level boss at a border crossing, without increased funds or staff, I'd cut down on the workload for my staff. Perpetual 'tourists' would soon learn not to cross at my bridge. Especially if my boss's boss hinted down the chain of command that we had to make do with the staff we have, and how to do it.

Very well put..... Amen

John, John, wherever you are....... do you need another manager,,,,,, I would like to apply for the job......seems that you are most generous and giving....

No doubt that will include a refund to John for the money he paid up front

HRH Queen Victoria, has been resurrected, on Easter Day, no less, and is taking up residence at True Blue?

My dear fellow, this is terribly poor form. At an Oz restaurant, owned by a Scot...tut tut

Tut Tut n common lee known that maybe Vicki will be a more suitable neighborhood....... she wasn't all that prudish you know

Was wondering why thee has been no comment re the photo in Chiang Mail Mail current issue about Queen Vic going into The world reknown TRUE BLUE site....

Must be Queen Vic Lite then..... Was sort of looking forward to there being the bank there, maybe even a drive thru where you could go straight thru and have quickie,,,,, I mean cold one in the BBC''''

Won't John be suprised when he gets back and finds someone has had his restaurant all redone for him.....

I agree with the temple to refuse from the sale of those pictures, if these people were sincere in doing charity, there're tons of other ways to do that. At the end of the day, those stars who are featured nud_e in the pics are the one who are going to get a lot of attention. I doubt the sincerity of these stars to pose nud_e for charity, they are just going for more publicity for themselves.

Accepted...... but so what???? they are in it for the publicity, the money and if some good can come for others..... who am I too judge....

I , wouldn't even buy a photo of me nud_e..... cie la vie said the old folks, goes to show you never can tell

this news about the rebranding was announced towards the end of last year?

anyway they have more competition coming online soon with 2 hotels in locations within walking distance of the NM.

whats is all the expansion of hotels all about in CM? Obviously they know more about future tourist inflows in CM than we do or was it part of the grand plan from thaksin of CM being the tourist hub of Thailand. With a brand new extention at the CM international, there must be something going on?

perhaps the tourists will be coming for the seasonal magic show of Doi Suthep during feb/march....... now you see it ,now you dont....

I somehow get the feeling that the owners of all of these new hotels and jumbo projects , like the now defunct convention center, were palsy walsy with the former government administration and were planning on making a killing with this being the hometown of the former leader..... they put big bucks into the starting of these projects knowing with Mr. T in the drivers seat that there would be lots of new and big things that he would be putting into his hometown to make a name and $$$$$ for himself...... they went along for and with the ride not thinking that the bubble would break after they committed and jumped in...... once the big man fell out of grace and power , there was no way they could back out as they were years and millions of $$$$ into the game....... so now we wait and see

OMHO

Maybe ,,,,, just you and the Maytag Repair Man