JemJem

Man, people who like to drink on holiday mostly do so at various bars, pubs etc. Especially if one flies half way round the world, what is the point of only drinking at your hotel? People should use common sense and leave their expensive jewelry in their home countries (or inside the hotel safe, at least when going out drinking). And, of course, it is best not to have a lot of cash when on a boozy night out. In this case, the guy apparently actually didn't have a lot of cash with him. The not-so-cheap ring's gone though.

There are some harsh, nasty comments in here sadly. We don't really know what happened to her. Maybe she had been doing drugs and in that case, okay, we shouldn't have much sympathy for her. But, maybe she was having some sort of psychotic meltdown. Anyway, I hope she is at least fairly okay now. But, as is the case with many stories, there wasn't and won't be a follow up most probably.

I think it is silly and dangerous. You might have a problem. Note : I am not pro-Putin regime or anything like that.

Is it just me, or do you folks also think that Khao San was a lot more fun, say between 2000 and 2010, than afterwards? Actually, once, there was a trip of mine in 2008 or 2009 where I stayed at Khao San entirely. Nearly 2 months, I think. Of course, some would say it was even more fun in the 90's, or even earlier. Possible. Too bad I never went to Khao San those times.

Some kind of joke?? I used to be very worried about Covid too, man. Until recently actually. But, there is no end to this madness. Suppose you only take that elevator when alone. But how about if someone with Covid had taken that same elevator half a minute ago or so, and without you knowing about that of course?! And of course, there are all sorts of other places where one has the chance of catching it. No end to it, man. As for the original matter, we will probably never know if that person has been caught. As with most such stories, there is no follow-up news later.

Yes, alcoholic drink sales are banned on Thai trains. How about taking your own drinks onto a train and drinking in there ? I am kind of guessing that is banned too.

Are you ready to brave the crowd of thousands in a relatively small space, just to see them from a distance ? 🙂

Good that no one got killed or seriously injured. I doubt that the Aussie guy will get into significant legal trouble, but, I think we can be almost certain that all this is gonna cost him quite a lot of money.

Well, for many nationalities, the tourist visa has lost its relevance actually, now that visa exempt stay is 60 days (with a 30-day extension possible inside Thailand). Of course, for other types of visa, it is a different case.

This is so sad and upsetting. And, what makes it worse is that it seems like more and more governments around the world have been normalising relations with the Taliban regime, which will probably never go away in the foreseeable future. Can any of us really see the Taliban ever holding proper, free and fair elections ?! Also, recently, on YouTube, I have come across several videos of some Western traveller YouTubers who had gone to Afghanistan. Their main message was like 'Hey, it is not so bad here in Afghanistan. The Taliban is mostly misunderstood. They actually care about their people, and the West should stop spreading lies and misinformation about them'. What is strikingly missing from their videos is any interaction with women there. In fact, women are rarely present in their videos. I don't know what to say about these naive, gullible people. Sad!

AND doner kebab of course 🙂

The thing is, in almost all of such cases, there is no follow up news later. We can only just guess what will happen or has happened. There are so many possibilities. In this case, maybe the attacker will settle the stuff with the couple and not face any charges. If there is no settlement, the authorities might still just give him a free pass and only deport him (with or without a certain entry ban for the future). If he goes to court, as we can all guess, there is a number of outcome possibilities. We will probably again just guess, folks 🙂

I agree. Of course, whether this new movement will bring significant change remains to be seen. For now, there is reason for optimism. I think there is good hope for Thailand and other South East Asian countries, regarding human rights and freedom of expression. I am guessing and hoping that things won't turn out like 'Arab Spring' did eventually_like a big farce. As you know, the human rights and freedom of expression situation is generally at a very poor level in the Middle Eastern countries and Turkey. I have lost hope about those countries. But, I feel there is definitely hope for Thailand.

I guess so, because in some countries, there would have been a quite high chance of him getting lynched.

As far as I know, language schools don't usually provide a work permit, unless things have changed in recent years. But, all (or almost all) schools, colleges and universities do. The guy most probably worked at a language school.

I have also been to Malaysia. A few times to Penang. On my first visit, I was surprised to see that the 7-11s sold beer 24 hours a day. I mean, I knew that Malaysia was not as strict as, say, many other Muslim -majority countries on this issue, but I had thought that they probably would have some hour restrictions in alcoholic drink sales. By the way, is the sale of alcoholic drinks banned on all trains in Thailand now? And, if yes, what about taking your own beers to a train and drinking them there? By the way, I have quit drinking due to health reasons, but I am against most bans and restrictions. I fully agree with the age restrictions though.

Cheers for the openness. Good luck, mate. Is it easy getting long term stay right in Cambodia? I mean, after all, both you and your partner are foreigners there.

You might be right. But, anyway, I have a feeling that this investigation will most probably be wrapped up very soon (maybe it already has been), and the death will be declared a suicide even if the husband killed her. Anyone thinks otherwise?

Or maybe not. Or only very little info. There is a high chance he won't be able to recall any or most of what happened.

Why would they let Korean tourists stay short time but not some other nationals?

He is probably not on a year long visa. Possibly visa exempt stay (and then an extension and then another visa exempt run or maybe just overstay).

It is sad that around the world, overall, even in the mainstream media, now there is only very little talk about the hostages held by Hamas (and maybe also by other extremists). Where the heck is the majority of those hostages, is one question to ponder on. I think most people think they are being held in Rafah (in tunnels maybe or in so called safehouses or both), but to be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if at least some of them have been taken to Egypt (consider the dozens of tunnels between Rafah and the Egyptian side). Also, just how many of the hostages are still alive, is another question. Some were probably killed by Israeli air strikes, some were probably killed in cold blood by terrorists at various times AFTER having been taken to Gaza, and some were killed on October 7 in Israel and then their bodies were taken to Gaza, as the Israelis confirmed for some found bodies already. I have a bad feeling that the no of hostages alive now is a very small number. I hope this is an incorrect feeling.

That is true. The no of tourist visas applied for will vastly decrease from June 1 on, unless they make tourist visas valid for a stay of, say, at least 3 months (which I doubt they will do anytime soon).

I am guessing probably not that long. Also, I am guessing he will do 2-3 years in Thailand and do the remaining jail time in the UK. I could be wrong of course.

Thanks, folks. Now, 2 things to be done by me : 1) Choose 1 place among the many that have been mentioned above. 2) Gather the courage to go to that place. Sadly, I am one of those people who keep delaying the visit to the dentist. And, since I haven't done a good job in taking care of my teeth, I am going to have to pay the price (both financially and also I am afraid I might lose some teeth and then require implants, and all the pain and discomfort that come with all this). I really hate myself for this.