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South
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Posts posted by South
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OK, thank you for the varied responses. Some of you seem to have veered off in another direction.
Anyway, what I was trying to say was, if people have the sense to find their way out here, surely they have the sense to find out very simple information.
It seems every other day someone is asking how to get from Swampy to Pattaya/Bangkok or wherever when there are countless ways all well advertised. Other 'daily' questions can all very easily be answered with just the tiniest amount of research.
Garyh, thank you for your agreement on the issue.
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Err, HMS Bulwark is a ship .... Afghanistan is landlocked
I'll give you a week to suss it out, I'm sure you'll work it out.
Amphibious ship?
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British Royal Marines ready to go to ‘war’ over Thai gun confrontation
Published
by
Andrew Drummond
on September 12, 2009
in General News
. Tags: Andrew Drummond, Big Trouble in Thailand, Bravo, Gavin Hill, Jack Tebbott, jet ski scam, JJ, JJ Naiman, Phuket, Rory Bremner, Royal Marine Police Sergeant, Tim Wright, Vera.
(More rushes from ‘Big Trouble in Thailand)
“Thailand is awesome. The people are good and sound. Today was a bit different” - Marine Jack Tebbott
Link: JJ: My uncle is big Captain in police station
From Andrew Drummond, Bangkok, September 13
Royal Marines who claim they were swindled and held at gunpoint while on R&R in Thailand said tonight that they were ‘ready to go to war’ over an alleged cover-up of the incident.
Royal Marine Face-offThe Marines of Delta Company, 40 Commando, based in Taunton, who were held at gunpoint by a Jet Ski operator on the Thai holiday island of Phuket, said they would take the matter to government to government level, if Thai authorities tried to shift the blame.
And they added that they would stick by a British producer/cameraman, who filmed the whole incident, and who now faces arrest accused by the Thai authorities of ‘setting up’ the scene for filming.
“The Thai authorities should choose to hold an adult approach to this incident. If not, we are willing to raise the level of this dispute to that of a diplomatic incident, though of course we will have to go through legal channels,“ said Marine Police Sergeant and Detachment Commander Tim Wright.
The row follows an incident which happened when Delta Company were on ‘R &R’ on the Thai holiday island of Phuket earlier this year.
Royal Marine Police Sergeant Wright (right) confronts JJ
Royal Marine Police Sergeant Wright (right) confronts JJ
The marines were held at gun-point and surrounded by Thai thugs after one of their number, 21-yr-old Marine Jack Tebbott, from Leicester, was accused of damaging a jet-ski and faced demands of over £1,200 in compensation.
Violence was only avoided when Royal Marine Police Sergeant Tim stepped and agreed to authorise a payment.
Marine Sergeant Tim Wright
Marine Sergeant Tim Wright
The whole scene was captured on film by British cameraman producer Gavin Hill. The Jet Ski thug, known as JJ, has since been arrested on charges of extortion. But he has given a statement saying that the film was set up.
Yesterday Thai authorities began steps to try and block a series currently running on a minor British television channel and they said they wanted to question the producer over the ‘set up’.
They have also countermanded all ‘film release’ forms which were required for the filming and transmssion. Last night Royal Marine Police Sergeant Tim Wright from London said: “From what I gather people in Thailand are trying to impugn the reputation of the Royal Marines and of the producer cameraman involved.
“I have told the producer cameraman Gavin Hill that I and the lads will stand by him. What he recorded on film was the absolute truth. I do not like my integrity or that of the Marines being questioned. I live by my integrity.
“I especially do not like my integrity being questioned by a two bit swindler. If need be we will escalate this to a diplomatic incident. We also would like to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to put out an official warning on their Travel Advisory to Thailand.
“It is quite alarming to see how the film maker s are being treated. The Thais should be dealing with the problem not trying to blame someone else.”
The row over the ‘jet ski mafia’ began after the first of an eight part series called ‘Big Trouble in Thailand’ went to air last Monday on the Bravo Channel. The film shows the Commandos, who had arrived in Thailand on HMS Bulwark after a tour in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province, restraining themselves as the armed foul mouthed gang leader made his threats and demands for money.
Marine Jack Tebbott
Marine Jack Tebbott
Although the channel has only a small audience in the UK, copies have been circulating heavily in Thailand.
In the programme Marine Tebbott is accused of causing over £1000 worth of damage to a jet ski and eventually pays out the equivalent of £627. But Sergeant Wright, who examined the boat, insisted that the damage was old, very old, by examining the stained fibre glass”
He had already had to deal with other cases: “‘You are a crook. You are corrupt,” he tells JJ who replies: “I’m a f….g normal person. I am a businessman”. In rushes released yesterday JJ also claims: “I’m not worried. My uncle is big police here!”
A Royal Marine said later: “We could all have got out of their but there would have been claret spilt.”
The ‘damaged jet ski’ con is widespread in Thailand and complaints have already been made by several Embassies, including the British, Australian and Chinese, to the Thai authorities.
Prior to the film’s transmission the Provincial Governor had been ordered by Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister to act to end the rip-offs to preserve the country’s image for tourism.
Reliable reports say that corrupt police take a 20 per cent cut from all payments.
Gavin Hill - hung out to dry?
Gavin Hill - hung out to dry?
Meanwhile producer Gavin Hill, who was working for comedian Rory Bremner’s Vera Productions, said: “At the moment our relationship has come to an end. They have not given any support. They are also not honouring some promises I made to the Thai authorities or corrections I am making to the scripts.
“They appear to have left me out to dry. The Thai authorities are trying to get the series stopped. But actually if they look at it closely they come off quite well. We were primarily looking at British tourists on holiday.
“I actually love Thailand and would not wish to harm the country at all. The authorities cannot see who is doing the harm.”
The series which was shot with the co-operation of the Thai Tourist Police was originally called ‘Thai Cops’. The title was then changed to ‘Big Trouble in Tourist Thailand’ and the Thai Film Board protested.
“I told the production company that title was offensive to Thailand, but my views were apparently not ‘taken on board’ as they claimed they would be. It’s a mess.
““The situation with the Marines and JJ was real and menacing. It was not set up or scripted. I just recorded what happened”.
Err, HMS Bulwark is a ship .... Afghanistan is landlocked
Anyway, just had a look at the first 4 episodes. People who come from their home countries to an unknown foreign country, especially one as 'laid back' at Thailand sometimes tend to get themselves too 'relaxed'. From what I saw from the 'victims' on that program, it was nothing but first time visitors who had very little idea how this country works getting themselves into trouble with things that would possibly be 'overlooked' in their home countries. The naive Cumbrian girl, the inexperienced 'marine' and the pished up Ozzy guy all fell into a trap that I'm sure many many newcomers to Thailand find themselves in, year in, year out but for them, luckily or not, it is not captured on film. A severe learning curve for them and hopefully very good lessons for others who want to grace these shores.
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Am I being an old cynic here but in the last few months I have been reading some, in my opinion some very stupid stupid (meant to be repeated) threads.
Examples:
What is the cheapet way to get from Swampyboom to the city?
Which is cheaper, Tesco, Big C, or Carrefour etc?
How much sinsot should I pay?
Is there a bus from Bangkok to HuaHin?
t seems to me that those asking those questions have made a very serious mistake by leaving their own villages/towns.
Has common sense gone out the window?
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I had some close friends get arrested and detained for over 24 hours a couple years back after they got busted for playing a friendly game of cards in one of their apartments. There was money involved in the game of course, but it was a small amount (a few thousand baht) and it wasn't like one of those big organized casinos that you hear/read about getting raided quite often. All the participants were friends except for one who was new to the game and had got invited by someone to join in on the fun that night. It turned out the guy was an (farang) informant for the local police, and several uniformed officers came to the door shortly after the game started.
BTW, my personal feelings are that this guy is a piece of sh*t. Where I come from if you get in trouble with the police you take responsibility for your actions and don't try to weasel your way out of it by getting others in trouble.
1st paragraph = what they were doing was illegal
2nd paragraph = maybe
Do anything illegal in any country, sooner or later you'll be caught - you've no choice but to accept the consequences.
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In response to some of the comments regarding my post:
4) As for the "30 seconds". Take any man, or woman, who has been studying martial arts for over 30 years as I have, put 4 "assailants" (who have no idea of what they are up against) within "arms reach", and I can pretty much guarantee that it will take 30 seconds or less to be over with.
ok ok, if you say so ....................... now go back to your video game.Anyway, to get back on topic - 2 weeks earlier, exactly the same happened to a Thai friend of mine on exactly the same soi, so please don't just say this is only against farangs - it is a circumstance of a lot of things and pretty much anyone can be a target.
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Service is good, extremely good and staff friendly in biz or 1st especially but their hardware (planes) are very aged against the likes of Singapore, Malaysian. Cathay and dare I say China Air. Flew with them a couple of months ago ex Europe and pretty much the same aircraft as 20 yrs ago. They need some serious upgrading to begin to be able to compete with other regional carriers.
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Twin Lotus Hotel, Nakhon Si Thammarat We were just there. $36 a night with breakfast. across from the Tesco lotus shopping center.
You can also check out Nakhorn Garden Hotel. about 700 baht per night with breakfast
Nakhon Garden B445 as of last month
Twin Lotus B1200+
Grand Park B600 old block / B700 new block
Ligor around B1100+
Thai Hotel B250+
ThaiLee B120+
This is great, South. Can you provide *s (max5*) and contact numbers for all some of the hotels you have identified? I will be coming to NST in October with g/f and baby and need a place to stay. Doesn't need to be the Dusit, but shouldn't be a "dump". Thanks very much,
Other hotels around as well
Recommend Ligor , Nakhon Garden or Grand Park as they are all central for the town centre. Twin Lotus is a few clicks out.
No real need for phone numbers as standard rates apply, less if Government employee or if you have good bargaining skills. If it is not a special occasion you will have no problems finding a room.
The only festival I can think of next month is Lad Phra in which communities pull these 'large contraptions', some with no wheels from one place to another temple, usually some distance away. This is more popular in the rural areas such as Romphibun and Lansaka. It's basically a community gathering with regular 'beer' stops along the way.
Btw: Tenth Lunar month is the next festival in October followed by Loy Kratong in November.
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Twin Lotus Hotel, Nakhon Si Thammarat We were just there. $36 a night with breakfast. across from the Tesco lotus shopping center.
You can also check out Nakhorn Garden Hotel. about 700 baht per night with breakfast
Nakhon Garden B445 as of last month
Twin Lotus B1200+
Grand Park B600 old block / B700 new block
Ligor around B1100+
Thai Hotel B250+
ThaiLee B120+
Other hotels around as well
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Things to see - waterfalls, LaemTalumpuk, Wat Phramahat, Nangtalung and the list goes on. Just drive around and you'll come across something interesting
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I did that a few years ago .... the plan being to try and follow the land border as much as we could. From here we drove to Surat, Chumphon, Bangkok, Pattaya, Koh Chang, up the Cambodian border etc etc and basically all the way round back down to where I am here in the south. We took 12 days (some of which had a lot of km's) due to time restraints but it was very enjoyable indeed. For your trip though, a fortnight maybe just a little too short timewise but still doable. As for camper vans ...... never seen one here.
Go for it and enjoy.
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Hi I have been over 11 times from Heathrow to BKK allways going direct with Thai airways.
Sorry, but I'm not having that ... 'over 11 times' and the OP still doesn't know?
Air New Zealand via Auckland is maybe a route you should look at.
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You don't say what kind of visa (run?) you're doing.
If it's just a border run, Sadao, It's closer. If you're going for a new visa, from Nakhon it has to be Penang. If however, you're just want to see a bit more of Thailand, then do as Roota stated.
Incidentally, albeit a few years ago, I did that route and to be honest, found nothing but only very genuinely friendly and over generous people.
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If you enter on an O-A can you still get a work permit and keep this visa type or do you need to leave the country and get a different type like a B?
Thanks for your help!
As far as I know, a Non O-A is a retirement visa and working is not permitted. To obtain a WP a Non B (or O) are needed.
Correct me if I am wrong. -
hi to everybody
I will coming to nakhon si tammarat airport
i just want know the shortest and quick way to ko samui
how much its should cost, and how much time its take
thanks
mishka
Mini bus to the Donsak ferry, about 1 1/2 hours then 1 1/2 hours on the ferry. About 200 Baht in total.
are possible to take some ferry direct from nakhon si tammarat?
You will have to come into Nakhon city centre first by mini-bus or limousine from airport. You will then need to get another mini-bus from the Donsak mini-bus station at the north end of Rajadamnern Rd (opposite the fish market). About 1 and half hours to Donsak, get a ferry another hour and a half and you're on Samui. No ferry direct from Nakhonsrithammarat City. If you're by yourself, you can get from Nakhon airport to Samui for well under B500 and including waiting times etc, work on about 5 hourse from airport to the island.
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ask: where to get tshirts printed / embroided ? and where to buy tshirts in bulk? (same shop would be ideal)
add: wheel barrows sold at Home Mart ( between Lotus and Robinsons on same side).. down the left hand side of building in ware house area.
KY Jelly and condoms - 7/11, next to the Halls mints.
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I am in need of new dentures. Does anyone have any experience of buying them in or near Nakhon Sri Thammarat. What was the quality like and what was the cost. They want £500 in the UK
A fifth of that, good quality and a happy customer. Down the end of the road behind Carrefour.
before .................>
after ....................>
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The recession must be hitting Manilla pretty bad then.
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I know there are loads of ferries to Langkawi both from Satun on the Thai side, and several locations on the Malaysian side, but can you take a vehicle on any of them? Finding differing info on the internet unfortunately.
It has been a few years but there was a vehicle ferry that ran every few days or so, and f I remember correctly you had to leave your vehicle until the next sailing while you took the passenger ferry. It ran from Kuala Polis on the Malaysian side.
You're better off leaving your car on the mainland and renting on the island IMHO.
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I have my Non O stamp in one expired passport. Since then I have filled another and am now on a third since getting that Non O. What I have done is just stapled the three passports together and hand all three in when going through any immigration point. All other countries are only interested in the up to date passport whereas Thailand does like to see the extensions and sometimes the Non O stamp. I suppose technically you could get away with your second passport as long as it has the extension/s stamped in it but it's easy enough just to staple the passports together. Nobody has ever said a word and the only downside is that sometimes it takes time when they are looking for a specific stamp.
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I have to go to Hong Kong in a couple of months and I have had the thought that I might attempt to drive from my home in Thailand. Has anyone attempted this, any advice or information would be appreciated.
If you're feeling energetic, I had a Dutch friend who cycled from Singapore to Hong Kong .... nuts he was but he made the trip ok.
He made a blog of his trip Here
You might find some useful information ... or maybe not.
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Does anybody remember around 10yrs ago a British registered truck that brought people overland from Europe to this neck of the woods. Don't know what happened but it was parked outside the Crown Hotel on Suk Soi 6 for a few weeks. This truck had been converted with seats and other stuff needed for an overland journey.
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I'd like to spend a couple of nights in Sichon sometime in early July and I'd like to know what is the best beach resort in Sichon. I would prefer not to spend any more than about $100/night though. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
I wouldn't go in sea there though, unless you like swimming in sewage ..... terrible it is.
"wouldn't go in the sea there"....???? Well...I live in Sichon, and I swim here almost every day....."sewage"....NO WAY! My 2 year old son and his friends also swim here regularly together with both Thai and farang tourists..... this is a nice place indeed! But yes, we have some prawn and fish farms in the area, but I find the beaches and the water very nice! Actually the beaches are rated better than the ones in both Koh Samui and Phuket! Sichon beaches are rated 4.5 Stars compared to only 4 Stars in Phuket and Koh Samui!!!
Well, what is the name of those 'brown fish' floating by the, Platurd? You can even see the Platurd discolouring the water from the air. Terrible, smelly and wholly unhygenic. I'm talking Hat Piti here and this was last weekend. Sure, Khanom, Khoa Plai Dam and others are maybe cleaner but Hat Piti is disgusting with all the effluent from Sichon floating past. Give me the beaches on the west coast or the islands anyday.
(couldn't find the 'vomit' smiley) -
I'd like to spend a couple of nights in Sichon sometime in early July and I'd like to know what is the best beach resort in Sichon. I would prefer not to spend any more than about $100/night though. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
I wouldn't go in sea there though, unless you like swimming in sewage ..... terrible it is.
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I heard from a friend yesterday that a big shot business man was executed while driving in Nakhon Sri Thammarat on Wednesday!! Reports say he stopped at traffic lights and was then shot... any news reports on this??
He was fined B400 for not going on the green!
Warning: Beware Bangkok's Bike-borne Bag Blaggers!
in Bangkok
Posted
Sorry, I had to quote it ..... been going on for years - nothing to do with the papers and pretty much pandemic in tourist areas throughout the world. Nothing new.