geisha

2 hours ago, Scouse123 said:

 

 

He should, he helped make the bent rules.

Gosh , you seem to know everything about him ? You ought to help out in this investigation!  Sounds like a personal grudge to me against all police , or a case of putting all your eggs in the same basket.

5 hours ago, Modern Coding said:

 

 

It was a Frenchman missing the good old 80s:

 

 

 

Great advert tho ,for the time . 

On 4/1/2024 at 9:37 AM, rexpotter said:

This was normal behaviour in Bali where I just left, due to them.They stole from the small mom and pop grocery shops, and they were well known for running off without paying for their bills at restaurants. In fact they had to start making people pay in advance because of them.

Bali has been ruined by mass tourism and the awful Russians behaving like they’ve taken over. They’ve practically ruined Phuket too. Most are cheap Charly’s , they reserve the front rows of the beach chairs in Phuket , seen it myself, pay in advance of course , not that I’d sit there, all my Thai friends there are disgusted by their behavior. Gone are the old days of the friendly farang buying everyone a beer at sunset.

10 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

The world would be a better place without drugs.

But lets look at reality. What do you think will the above mentioned users do if cannabis is illegal? Will they just stop taking it or any other drugs? Or is it more likely that at least some of them will take illegal drugs?

There are lots of problems with illegal drugs, this is why they made some of them legal.

I’m in a mixed mind. I agree the world would be better without , and that there are a lot of problems with drugs. 
I honestly believe the legalization of cannabis was very badly thought out, and it sent a very bad message to the whole world !! The last few years ,IMO, has had a rise in a huge amount of thugs/ thieves/ dealers and crazies on big bikes. Thailand has the reputation that anything and everything goes. Where some western places like Amsterdam handles it properly and quite strictly, it still attracts people wanting a cannabis cafe. Added to the age old reputation for prostitution, Thailand is now considered a drugs haven. 

On 3/30/2024 at 4:14 AM, thaibeachlovers said:

Just for interest, here's Eckardt and Piperell at a book sale event ( my photo )

I’ve got most of their books still.

On 3/28/2024 at 12:37 PM, ballpoint said:

A selection of hotels in 1967, and their prices.  $18 for a double at the Oriental. Might spend a year there.  And the Nana is described as being "just out of town".

 

Also stayed at the Rajah , if I remember correctly it had a large forecourt with Taylor shops and a popular travel agency . Was the Dynesty opposite ? 

6 hours ago, Rampant Rabbit said:

yeah never  see  Thais  peeing  anywhere including  once at a PTT  gas  station not more than 40metres from the actual toilets

Of course not !  The Thai men use the beach ! All those lines of waiting taxis and tuc tucs, just a few meters to the beach to have a pee right where your children are playing in the sand tomorrow morning !!!  That’s why I never use the beach. My pool is cleaner. 

1 hour ago, n00dle said:

 

The Atlanta Hotel has a rich history, built in 1952, it has the first swimming pools in Thailand. i had never heard the anti venom story in the wikki. They even had a yacht on the Chaopraya.  The original Art Deco lobby remains unchanged.  

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Atlanta_Hotel_(Bangkok)#:~:text=History&text=The first owner of The,Company to manufacture snakebite antivenom.

The family is an odd one, after being something of a haven for drug smugglers in the 70s, things took a very moralistic  turn. Even today, while they have lightened up they is still a chance you will be turned away or asked to leave the premises, if they don't like the way you look.

 

I haven't eaten in the restraunt since before COVID but one page of the meu used to (and still may)  says this:

 

The clientele is very specific, return visitors, NGO's anyone seeking oasis in the area. The rooms are plain and the pool has seen better days but it is still remarkable.

Sadly the woman who ran the coffee shop passed last year and with her went some of the most wonderful inexpensive Thai food in the area. I used to eat there often, others tried but were unsuccessful.

I have several friends who begin and end their stay in Bangkok at the Atlanta and have been doing so for years. i always take time to spend a day by the pool when they do. 

The Atlanta was my hotel for my first visits to Bangkok. I was younger and felt safe there. Fantastic building, 1 st pool in Bangko I think ?  Loved the map room, the restaurant was fantastic, some of the best authentic Thai food I ever had. Lots of journalists  stayed there and I met really interesting characters. Later in my professional life, I based my restaurant menus on the Atlanta ones. I still have the cut outs and the menus which I copied by hand. Still have them. My menus are still going strong today although I retired a few years ago and sold up after 35 years , So the Atlanta menu lives on. 

2 hours ago, NanLaew said:

Ah, so those golf carts from two different companies that I observed whisking passengers from their international arrival gates to immigration yesterday are fakes and don't exist.

 

I see.

Often the buggies are used by passenger assistance airport service. You or your insurance apply for this before the flight  stating your medical needs. I unfortunately had use of it once . Very good service. As for Fast track companies, they’ve been around forever. I used them years ago. Very good service, I used their limo too to make it all easier. Of course Fast Track, whether the airport legal one or the advertised one, does not make baggage arrival faster !!!!  Different service altogether . It’s a service which needs a complete reorganization, it’s much too long. I rarely wait more than 10/15 mins  in Heathrow or Paris. 

I bought the BP due to Trink and Post Box , which was good in those days. Yes, Trink was one of a kind, entertaining and representative of the 80s for me. Bangkok was so different then, exciting, interesting. I looked forward to his stories and the house maid from Yasathon . Some of the comical ones I’d cut out and send to a friend back home , in the days we wrote letters. I still love Bangkok , I’d live there if it was breathable. 

On 3/25/2024 at 9:47 AM, somo said:

Looking for advice. I'd prefer a hotel with some life to it. Not too fussed about the price.

Thanks

Centara or Center point Terminal 21. Should be lively.

On 3/26/2024 at 1:57 PM, schweizer said:

Thanks for your replies, I have told him this before but he seems to have a romantic idea of sitting on the beach being fed food by young ladies in bikinis

 

I shall give him the address for Bangkok Hospital 😉

Hi, if I had to eat, I’d sit across the road from a nice restaurant, there’s a few on Beach road Jomtien, there’s Akvavit / great food, and further down towards the night market there’s a great restaurant too, does good pizzas , it’s a hotel with big restau , they do Elvis  shows nights on weekends. They might even deliver to the beach if you buy all the drinks from the lounger staff. 
l think it’s Soi 8 corner beach side.

13 hours ago, DonniePeverley said:

What did they think would happen when they allowed Russians a 6 month visa. 

 

They weren't just going to sit in their rooms and play dominos. Clearly they don't want to be in Russia, and some will seek means of work/business. 

 

It's been clear for nearly a year they were buying businesses, and operating with free will. Sri Lanka recently had to stop their long visa for Russians as a result of the local population growing fed up. 

 

Now they've given Chinese the free visas to come and back and forth too. Same issue is going to start. 

 

The barriers Thailand had up to protect it's population (employment, rising rent prices from long stayers, etc) were just thrown away in a few days with some strange decisions. 

This taking over by certain nationals in Phuket is not just since a year. On Kata beach a good few years back, much before Covid, the Thais burnt down Russian signs and shop fronts ! They had already moved in ! Slowly in the beginning they have bought up all the cheaper condos, and since the war in Ukraine started they’ve really taken off. I was there visiting Thai friends and did they have stories to tell. Phuket is ruined! Exploding cost of living, condos, restaurants dishing out any old rubbish as there are too many customers, they can’t manage ! Shocked me . Everyone knows what they are doing, illegal taxis, illegal rentals to their own kind, property , you name it. I escaped back to Bangkok , and breathed a sigh of relief . My visits in the future will be a few days to visit my Thai friends , I have only one good western friend , all the others have long left . 

10 hours ago, ChipButty said:

I dont know about that, it all went quiet

I think there was a horrifying accident in Rawai Phuket 2 night ago. Apparently Russian on a big bike drove into the back of 2 people ( 1 Thai one Swede ?) killed outright.  Phuket is becoming more and more dangerous.

The problem is , how can the Thai police/ immigration know who to let in and who to refuse ? No one can know in advance who is going to cause trouble/ thieve/ deal/ drive like maniacs /  or become violent , can they ?  They can be rich , poorer tourists, badly dressed or tattooed from head to foot , no one knows.  A nice looking man of about 70 terrorized a small condo I stayed in , played loud music all night, generally an obnoxious person and behaved threatening. I had to be moved to another room, he was all smiles when confronted by police . Just a very nasty person.  Hard to tell when someone looks decent. So how to filter out the bad ones ??

23 hours ago, eboy said:

I live in Pattaya and I hate Songkran. Having people throw water on me as I walk down the street or sit in a song thau sucks.

 

Is there a quiet, peaceful, respectful spot in Thailand that I can go to for Songkran where I won't be subjected to the Pattaya-style chaos? Preferably someplace with decent lodging and restaurants and pretty scenery.

 

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

How about the mountain / hill villages around north Chiang Mai /Chiang Rai? Somehow doubt they do all the water throwing, but could be mistaken, any answer ?? Beautiful area in my memories. 

3 hours ago, TheFishman1 said:

I don’t understand why are they having difficulty getting Big joke a  warrant, they don’t know where he is how hard is it to serve the guy a warrant they know where he lives they know where he is because the Rennett security guard wouldn’t let them in the housing complex where he lives holy guacamole, and now he’s gonna go on vacation with his family to England want to serve the Guy war and get them into talking with you before he leaves the country or do you want to leave the country, very confusing how you can’t give somebody a warrant TIT 

Well, maybe you should read more national news. The case has been taken over by the NACC as ordered by the PM himself, and will be investigated by them, and not the police. 

5 hours ago, crazykopite said:

Corruption is rife in the police in the past i refused to make a donation if I had I could have had it done and dusted within a few hours and my property returned instead I had to wait a further few weeks ! I would imagine if Big Joke sings a lot of high ranking police will be going abroad on extended holidays never to return as I doubt they hold as much power as the fugitive has !

He’s not a fugitive. His trip was planned before and with permission from PM , also his trip was not hidden from the press but widely publicized. 

On 3/22/2024 at 2:44 PM, still kicking said:

No different but years ago it was just males 

Years ago women didn’t drive, and weren’t allowed in pubs .

3 hours ago, ThaiFelix said:

Maybe he can pick up the other Big Joke named Boss while in Europe.

 

It amazes me the two parallel but conflicting threads about Thai police incomes.  On one side you have the very low salaries, momma noodles and near bankruptsies reported among Thai police on one side and then there is the contradictory thread where the other half have unusual wealth, businesses, mansion and family in the UK sipping tea plus fleets of luxury vehicles which is all "above board"??

Quite a difference between a cop on the beat and a General Commander of the Royal Thai Police don’t you think ?  Add to that , everyone !! has a right to have a personal fortune, doesn’t stop them from doing the work they want , don’t you think ?

7 hours ago, herfiehandbag said:

Short notice trips for a family to the UK are quite expensive - if you are on a policeman's salary!

He is a General and deputy commander of the RTP , not a traffic policeman. Apart from that he is issue from a wealthy family and has with his wife a personal fortune.