London Lowf

That's why I'm back in the UK for three weeks - Patong has been a nightmare recently, especially when they had that "event" on the beach over the Constitution Day holiday.

I'm now paying B12,000/month for a small 48sq.m. raised one bedroom apartment in a private family-owned soi with a garden and a clear mountain view and parking underneath. The Russian couple next door in the other half of the raised and gated building are paying B16,000. I am more than happy with my deal. In the current market I think that my landlord (actually an elderly Thai landlady) could get close to B20,000.

And I thought that I planned my mongering like a miltary operation! TIT - just turn up anywhere and flash your Rolex and they'll coming running just like they always do for you (allegedly).

They don't look like any construction workers that I have seen - maybe the Chinese like to dress up to pour concrete!

When I first came to Phuket the abandoned development at the southern end of Nai Yang was a bit of a nmovelty. Then Covid came along and virtually every work-in-progress got mothballed and permanently abandoned - my regular ride along the west coast is now littered with them being reclaimed by nature. One notable exception was Laya Wanda Vista Resort which has been resurrected and now looks like it will be completed which surprised me as I thought that was Chinese money. On my last visit I was very surprised to see that virtually the entire stretch between Siranat National Park and Banyan Tree is a construction site - obviously, so far the cash is flowing in but I agree with Mises above that the market will collapse in the not too distant future. I believe that this is all being funded by Russian money but eventually the Ukranian situation will be resolve and the world will open up again to them - some will be happy to stay, but many will go elsewhere. Phuket is a bolt-hole at the moment and a great place for a holiday or retirement, but spending the rest of your life there with a family?

In the wake of a robust global economic resurgence, Phuket has emerged as a magnet for inbound migration, shaping a vibrant and eclectic Russian community in the heart of Asia, reveals C9 Hotelworks’ latest expansive investment dossier on Phuket’s economic landscape. FIFY

Exactly!

The traffic in Kamala is fine but if you travel north or south during the daytime you will suffer congestion - I only use a scooter and so I'm not bothered but a car would be a different matter. I guess that it depends what you're used to.

Yes indeed. Riding around the back roads of Kamala these days there are no "For rent" signs any more - a year ago there were plenty. It would seem that there is now a lot of Russian money coming in to Phuket and going into long-term rentals and new constructions. For example, the two houses next to my place have sat empty for years and are now sold. Last week I renewed for another year and my rent has gone up 33%, but still a good deal.

My first close contact with a Thai was with a London escort over ten years ago – after she had "cleaned me up" and tied my shoelaces (in that odd way that they do) she gave me a wai as I departed, and I thought that it was really cute and very endearing. This became a weekly pursuit for me and was the reason that I became interested in holidaying in Thailand. The escorts always did this, and I regarded it as a respectful “Thank you” and I never felt an obligation to return it, although I always acknowledged it with a smile and a nod. Now that I spend a lot of time in Thailand, albeit as a tourist, I am repeatedly waied by every bar and restaurant that I visit, and I have only ever returned it once* – it is a custom that I have not been bought up with. Maybe they think I am rude? It never stops them welcoming me as a regular customer. The closest I have to a friend here started as a business relationship and he has never waied me, just handshakes, and neither does his wife or sister – are they rude? But they are Muslim and so that makes me think that it is primarily a Budhist custom rather than a universal Thai one. I always use the same driver (a Muslim friend of theirs) for the airport run and pay over the odds for the convenience, his safe driving and good service and he has never waied me either. Does he hate me? So, rightly or wrongly I have been conditioned over the last ten years to believe that it is initiated as a servile show of respect amongst Budhists – for that reason I have only ever waied once* and that was an IO who sorted out my incomplete paperwork for my first ever TR visa extension. The most prolific waiers seem to be ladyboys who go absolutely OTT and make a huge show of it when they greet each other and then start complimenting each other on their clothes, figure and hair. The second most prolific are the two-week millionaires who have been relieved of thousands in the tourist bars and restaurants – it makes me cringe to see that. Maybe they're the good guys and I am the clickhead? It doesn't keep me awake at night. If the Thai authorities had more respect for me rather than making me jump through hoops (even a simple 60-day TR visa and extension is a pain) and dreaming up threatening tax schemes then I would seriously consider relocating – in which case I would feel more inclined to fit in with the majority. As it is, I always feel that I am an outsider but that suits me just fine at the moment.

I usually go to Bangla at least five nights a week for beers, food and people-watching. I generally arrive at just after 11pm and the last week or so I struggled to find a good spot in my favourite bars and a couple of times ended up down Soi Sea Dragon. I usually head home at about 2am and by then it is dying - but of course it costs the bar owners nothing to stay open longer. Not my favourite bar (loud distorted music) but Kangaroo is a good example. It is one of the biggest and most popular and it is impossible to find a decent slot at the front at 11pm - at 2am there are plenty of spaces.

Since the OP has their sights on a Scoopy then I would guess that they have hired/ridden one? Not my choice as I think that they are designed for shorter riders and I even found a Click too cramped. And by the way, plenty of Thai males ride a Scoopy - they do not see a vehicle as a virility symbol in the way that many western men do - it's just a cheap way to mobility.

Agreed. I now spend most of my time here and realised that renting was money down the drain. I considered buying used but you really have no way of knowing if it has been looked after - has the oil been changed regularly? Has the drive belt ever been renewed? Has it been on it's side in a flood? I am reasonably knowledgable (had a superbike in the UK and always serviced it myself) but, apart from obvious crash damage, you really have no idea. If you possibly can, buy new.

Agreed up to a point - come here during the off-season in June and July and it is a real shock and will make you wonder if all that recycling that we do back home is any more than virtue signalling. Only up to a point because the beaches do get cleaned up by the local authorities, beach traders and volunteers once the winds and tides change in the approach to high season. I'm not sure what they do with it all, probably bury it somewhere for the next generation to deal with. (I bought an ice cream, a tin of tuna and a bottle of water in the Seven today and the server asked me three times if I wanted a bag. I despair!)

Plus 1 for Nai Yang - a quiet town compared to the more hectic Patong/Karon/Kata/Kamala. I ride there two or three times a week from Kamala for beach time. The beach is very long with a National Park at each end - there is a bit of tourist hustle in the central area (beach loungers, bars and restaurants) but it is all relatively laid back. The beach is sheltered by a reef and so is very calm all year round and the slope into the water is very gentle no matter what point in the tide and so it is very safe for kids. The planes are currently approaching over the sea and so you don't hear them from the beach - during the southwest monsoon wet season (approximately May to November) they take off over the sea and you do ocassionaly notice them, but not intrusive. But..... the big bonus is that, because of the reef, there are no noisy jetskis or parasailing power boats. There are some longtails but they don't seem to move much. Also, the beachside bars bars do not blast music out like on some of the other beaches. The next town down, Nai Thon, is even quieter and there are no loungers or jetskis allowed on the beach. The slope into the surf is much steeper though, especially at high tide, and so not as child friendly. Neither location suffers from the horrendous traffic congestion of much of the rest of Phuket.

Safe sex is virtual sex. I had a good run but I've pretty much lost interest these days.

I rode past yesterday and it was quite busy. The sunbeds/loungers have simply been pulled back under the trees - effectively they are still on the beach. The traders seem to be operating as usual and doing a decent trade. Surin remains the scruffiest and tackiest beach on Phuket - I only ever ride past it occasionally out of curiosity.

500 Baht and they will issue it while you wait. Don't want to pay? Collect tomorrow. I paid. (Phuket Town, June 2023)

I can honestly say that I have never seen anyone, male or female, that I thought was improved by their tattoos - in fact I have swiped right (or is it left?) on numerous freelancers who have desecrated their bodies in this way. There are plenty of ways to improve your appearance - good diet, excercise, personal grooming, decent clothes.... but a low-grade and totally unimaginative piece of permanent art is simply pathetic. Many may consider me a conservative bigot but I look on tattoos in the same way that I look on reversed baseball caps, beer guts, sunglasses at night and #23 sleeveless t-shirts - people that I tend to avoid.

It's a better post than some of the dross that has returned to this site. Personally, I get rather irritated when my regular 7 runs out of white almond Magnums -and it happens quite regularly.

Really? So, what exactly was the point of the raid?

I think that we all knew that this forum was primarily older ex-pats - but I'm surprised just how high the numbers are. What happened to the other point of interest - male/female/other. I'd guess at least 95% male.

The irony!

Fair enough - you seem to have good reason to be dissatisfied.

Now that I have a lot of my stuff in Thailand I only need a carry-on backpack when popping home to the UK - I would never put soft luggage into the checked luggage system. Whatever works for you is fine.