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Yeah, way too much imagination and initiative... 😕 Actually, I was thinking that it might be a good idea to revamp the entire idea of how arrivals are set up. I was thinking maybe it should be more like how departure gates are set up, with cafes, seats, etc... Make it a relaxing area rather than a like a cattle chute. On another note... speaking of arrivals, a friend of mine was just threatened by those who have the power to allow one into the country (whose office shall remain nameless here....) because he had said something negative about long queues at their processing counters at the airport on Twitter/X. They demanded he delete his post and apologize or be refused entry! I haven't asked him yet how on earth they got his Twitter... just got the message 5 minutes ago. Sounds like Communist China! But nope, it's "democracy" in this country that will remain nameless here, but is likely where many of us live or have lived or visited and enjoy talking about..... I was thinking about making a post in the forum about it, but thinking I'd rather enjoy entry to go smoothly next time I have to run the gauntlet. How can one raise an alarm about this stuff without such risk? This is so nuts! So, not only may one be brought to court over factual statements that hurt someone's feelings, you may now be denied entry to the country altogether.🤯

Immigration could make a few bucks off the situation by opening a coffee kiosk where people could fuel up while they wait. And if they wanted to engender any good will toward themselves, they could even offer it for a low price in any currency and still make a few Baht out of the deal. To me, that would be intelligent. They aren't going to fix the wait, so might as well work on the comfort and attitude level of their visitors. Heck, they could even have a couple of people there offering 5 or 10 minute foot massages for 50 Baht. Get a little refreshed after a long flight and trudging to Immigration and stand in line feeling a little better. At the least it would look nicer. I'm not usually in any rush. I'd probably grab a cup of tea or a cold fresh fruit juice and have a seat for a few minutes. Give you a little time to prepare yourself for the line as you watch it move for a little bit, rather than entering it with frustration right away.

It might take a little bit longer than that for the cameramen to get a few good pics....

All of the brawls? I was traveling in the US recently... took maybe 10 or 11 flights. That's 20+ times through US airports in a short time period. Didn't see or hear of a single brawl in any airport I passed through nor did I hear of any brawls in any other airport in the country at the time. How do I have the misfortune of taking part in this American pastime? Or is it not really a thing, except in social media?🤔

One person's treasure, another's trash. You make judgements, but have nothing in hand (nothing upstairs either, apparently) with which to objectively judge. But there's a seat for every ass, just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What's it to you if people make a lot more money than you do and are happy to spend it enjoying their lives in the way that they like? So what if they even willingly paid triple? And maybe they even leave tips that are not expected, even of very large amounts because they enjoyed the service and they are happy to do so. How stupid that must seem to you🤯 Or are you just jealous that you can't afford to go up the Eiffel Tower or even to Pai? In Pai, there are some very cheap hostels, guesthouses, or even homestays. Or you could always do it with a tent and go camping! Then you could really look down your nose at those dummies staying in luxury resorts with private villas or in boutique hotels! Imagine the foolishness of those numbskulls!

But then you have to deal with the drivers on the road😂 The odds seem that this may be even riskier than having an unruly passenger on your flight....

lol Can't imagine what kind of world you live in.... btw, not a tourist. So, no idea what makes you think you have some sort of proof.... Yet another out of context nonsense claim. On the other hand... you are self-categorizing quite well as you blather on.

Well established? By who? If it is so well established, there must be many studies you can pass on to me. Just one would suffice. Not so sure if that claim is particularly the case... as the average tourist needs to have money to travel and typically, people from higher socioeconomic backgrounds travel more than those from lower ones. And typically, people from higher socioeconomic backgrounds have higher IQs, for a number of reasons. Of course, that is not always the case, but it is the case on average. I'd like to know where you read or how you can possibly know that the average tourist is an idiot. That's quite the statement. Personally, I believe it is wholly inaccurate. Not that you care... but it would be nice to read claims made like this, with some sort of logical or evidentiary substance to them, rather than claims made out of whole cloth. You wouldn't want to inadvertantly find yourself self-defenestrated out and into the category which you are throwing others....

Probably right, but it might also create issues for airlines and the tourist industry staying in business too. The average IQ of the VAST majority of nations, as in probably around 150+ countries, is under 100, according to various companies that report such things. The UK, US, Germany, India, Russia, and many others come in under an average IQ of 100. Although, some companies report a few of those just squeezing in at 100 or above. But China, Japan, and South Korea, some of the top countries sending tourists to Thailand these days, are among the top 5 countries, as far as average IQ goes, so they will have a bit easier time. But even the highest average still isn't towering over 100, at all. Depending on the company reporting, it can range from around 106 to 108. But, at least it could be a concrete step toward getting quality tourists!

Lucrative has been given a new definition. Who in their right minds would believe working in a berry field would provide lucrative pay???? So what if the pay is more than Thailand! The worker needs to live on the economy they are working in. A berry picker on what planet will make lucrative pay? Absolute, total, and utter stupidity to believe such a thing.

I don't imagine he'll be traveling around the country much at all. He'll likely want to hole up in his place and focus on recovery after his long critical illness. He probably needs to gain some weight back. After an illness like that, he must have lost 10kg, who knows, maybe more! I lost 18 kg during my critical illness over about the same time period as his. So, I'm sure he won't be seen in public as he needs to focus on regaining his health, energy, and etc... Poor guy.... So sad to return to his country only to be so miserable.... a real pity.

I didn't say or insinuate that you did assume anything. You didn't and I thought that was nice. I was in agreement with you and was just adding some personal context as to why.

I think assuming the best is nice, although not always accurate. I know what it's like having everyone assume the worst. I survived, not unscathed by any stretch of the imagination, but survived an accident thanks to wearing my riding jacket with body armor, riding gloves, boots and good Italian helmet (ECE standard). Pretty much everyone assumed the accident was due to recklessness or just some sort of ineptitude or lousy abilities. In fact, it was due to an unavoidable (unless you had some kind of super-human abilities) horrific road condition, of which are occasionally seen on some of the lesser maintained Thai roads. Assuming the best until one knows better is a decent way to treat our fellow humans. Yes, I had insurance too. All worked out well in the end. It just took a good number of months to recover.

I guess you'd have to read the posted articles in full to know that....🤔 Did you think a drone took that pic? Or some boat just hanging around them without helping?🤯 Or maybe you were being funny in that a boat didn't assist, but rather people from another boat assisted??🙃

simple answer - no, you are not. The question that immediately comes to mind is, why? Why on earth would you be fine with someone taking advantage of you? You know she is essentially lying and stealing from you. You've already likely made her richer than anyone else in her entire village, including the village Poo Yai, unless she has relocated in the meanwhile to a nicer place or started building her own house on your dime. Don't feel sorry for cutting her off, if that thought ever came to mind. I imagine you know already... but just for the heck of it, I'll say it. There are actually a lot of working girls who are quite decent. Unfortunately, you didn't find one of them. I think your odds aren't so bad to just try again. I'd think it wouldn't be that hard to find one who'd also like, from what it sounds like, your pretty easy going preferences. Plenty would be happy enough to stay in BKK, whether with you or at her own place. Just look around a bit, should be pretty easy, unless you're fat, bald, ugly, and missing half your teeth. No offense if that describes you, it would just narrow your odds a bit, that's all 😛 But if you're a nice guy, the field is very easy, especially if they can get even just 10-20k a month from you!

Maybe the helmsman of the assisting boat?

Those two statements may seem to not make sense (especially when seeing the pics, showing not particularly rough seas as was reportedly the case), although they could make perfect sense, but I highly doubt the writers/translators know how that could be. Perhaps Thailand needs to make a law similar to what is in place in the U.S. (probably elsewhere too, I don't know). There is a difference between life vests and life jackets. Life vests in the U.S. are not approved as emergency personal flotation devices, life jackets are certified as such. Life vests and life jackets have different purposes and different construction. Life jackets are required to carry on board for safety. Life vests are for pleasure purposes. "Life vests" are named poorly and shouldn't have the word "life" in them, since that conveys something that they are not designed or approved for, although in an emergency they are certainly better than nothing. I'm assuming this is not understood and the reporting is ambiguous without a clear understanding of the differences by the translator. But now I'm really curious about the laws in Thailand regarding this. I wonder if anyone on here might know...? Not like a law would mean much here, but you never know... someone might actually pay attention.

I think there are bigger fish to fry.... Oops! I guess fried fish causes pollution too! 🤫

I found it interesting, and completely staying in character, that the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Intergovernmental Committee ( https://ich.unesco.org/en/decisions/18.COM/8.B.10 ) was presented information about the whys and wherefores Songkran should be considered as worthy of safeguarding, included information about how it is practiced among diverse groups including ethnic groups across Thailand and thus is good for the local communities and nationally, promoting better dialog, etc... They failed to mention how it could also promote better dialog and understanding between the communities of their region of the world, which I thought strange since we're talking about the UNITED Nations here.... Since it is a tradition largely derived from India, even the name "Songkran" coming from the Sanskrit language, not to mention the practices also obviously derived from that of practices from the Indian tradition. And also, since it is practiced in similar ways by 8 or so different countries surrounding them. So, they share a tradition in common. Isn't that wonderful!? Shouldn't that be a great thing to mention in the nomination? Something that can foster better relations among these nations who are so often at each other's throats in other ways? Somehow, it seemed more important that it be deemed a Thai-centric tradition. For some odd reason, that wasn't surprising. I was almost surprised the whole idea of "Thainess" didn't come up in the nomination. I suppose if promoted otherwise, as a remarkable transnational custom, some tourism cash might flow to other countries if people thought to see different variations of the tradition rather than thinking how amazing Thailand is to have such a unique tradition.... But nah! Nobody would ever be so pompous and self-centered as to think such a thing and avoid promoting it as a great melding of cultures across borders. Just coincidence, I'm sure.

Yep, they'll do anything to attract those quality tourists.

Meanwhile... Chinese products in virtually every industry under the sun are undercutting prices of Thai made ones.... But, oh no!!! ELEPHANT PANTS!! OMG! We MUST stop it! wtf?????? soft power? 🤣

Not worth the time of day to explain, if it doesn't matter to you.... Nothing personal, just don't want to spend my energy on it. Happy enough to agree to disagree.

Sadly, this story is not surprising. Hopefully, now that is has been brought to light, some police will suffer repercussions and the monk will be put to death. I'm not holding my breath for any discipline at all to happen to anyone, other than maybe a few baht exchanging hands....😔

If you doubt a very simple story about abusing monetary donations, then you surely will never believe such a hideous accusation as the rape of a 7 year old....🤔

Completely agree. I don't remember specific years, but definitely before 2008, maybe even better pre-2000. At any rate, it was a lot better in many different ways.