PingRoundTheWorld

It's less that westerner business is down, and more that it is low season, and the type of westerner visitors now is leaning more towards young guys who'd rather spend time and money in a nightclub or at least a gogo rather than a beer bar. I think it's the demographics that changed rather than the numbers.

Sadly many of the owners encourage this behavior. Short-sighted and stupid: instead of giving customers a good experience so they become repeat customers they try to rip them off so most will never return. I do not however share your pessimism. Yes- Bangkok nightlife isn't great anymore, but Thailand as a whole is not dead just yet. Pattaya is always packed, and plenty of girls out for a mixture of fun and business, not just pro. Especially the younger girls- they are picky about who they will go with, but at least you know they chose to rather than just go with any willing wallet.

I know around 10 girls who work or worked there (we drink together in a different afterhours bar sometimes and had some house parties together). Half are just friends, the other half I slept with. Aside from one who was more greedy to her own detriment (I stopped seeing her), most of them did not ask for much. At the bar they always buy their own bottles. They do make a lot of money, and sure know how to spend it, too. I doubt they save much, if anything. They get asked to send money constantly by family members and "friends" back home. It doesn't matter how much they make - it always runs out. I'm sure there are some girls who are smarter with money and do save, but most do not. As for Billboard- yes, it is probably the best gogo bar in Bangkok, maybe even Thailand, but it's an anomaly. The majority of the venues in Nana Plaza and cowboy are usually deserted, especially later at night. Funny anecdote: the first girl I met in Thailand worked in one of those bars. She stopped going there and just stayed with me for a few months. The first few weeks she asked me to pay her bar fine (500 baht) every night, but later she just stopped paying them. It's utterly ridiculous that they get no salary, no benefits, and aren't even employees - yet they are expected to compensate the bar when they take time off or quit. Her last bf actually paid the bar a lot of money to "buy her" so she could safely quit. That's why she decided to just stop paying - they were already paid. The mamasans were angry at her, but did not pursue anything further. After we broke up I got with two of her best friends/ex-coworkers, because, well, these...girls...ain't loyal. Also this was 2016 so they weren't that old, lol.

Well.. they did a 180 on that one... pun intended. I wonder if immigration officers at the airports are aware of this...

They do in Pattaya...

One of my exes used to search through everywhere to find "evidence" of other women when I was out. She even threw out some things like bottle tickets and a VIP card since she thought of it as "finding whores" (her words), so I threw her out...

No. They will be raised in Isaan. 🤣

Nobody wants a "family friendly" Pattaya. We love it precisely because it is sin city. Take that away and it's just another boring seaside town.

They should go bust for how they treated Carlos Ghosn. He had zero chance of a fair trial as both Nissan executives and Japanese authorities plotted against him. In Japan being extravagantly successful and displaying it for all to see is in itself a crime in some people's eyes. Japanese CEOs typically draw modest salaries and pretend to live modest lives (at least when the public can see). Was the some book-bending? maybe, but probably not enough that would make anyone go after him in another country. Japan is unique in it's disdain for outward displays of success. Sadly the fact he was incredibly successful in turning the company around earned him plenty of enemies. Bottom line is: he made the company successful, they threw him under the bus and destroyed themselves in the process. Anyone hearing the stories would think twice about buying a Nissan, and personally I wouldn't touch it with a stick even if I'd consider another Japanese brand.

Cngratulations, now you are officially qualified to work as a bar girl or a freelancer. Score points in life, one achievement at a time!

Welcome to the land of wine and Quran.

She's a queen alright, but not sure if I'd call her a beauty. Well past her prime, yet still a prima donna apparently. It is indeed frustrating when airlines market the same class and rates for different types of premium seats, but the way to handle it is not - file a complaint with the airline and move on. Bitching about it online and even worse attacking people who had nothing to do with it is exactly how not to handle oneself.

Something tells me there's a lot more to this story... Hotel staff wouldn't come until the next day? 3 rooms? slept in her brother's room? what a mess.

Absolute false nonsense. There is no enough data and studies to conclude anything such as that, existing data shows harmful effects (to a lesser degree than cigarettes), and not all vapes are created alike: some companies use ingredients that are not (supposed to be) harmful, while others (Chinese crap comes to mind) will stick anything in there if it makes it taste good (addictive). There have been many documented cases of vape users being hospitalized and even dying due to toxic ingredients in specific brands.

Whine whine whine, it's Buddha day - you're not allowed wine. Amazing how Thailand actually takes a step in the right direction, allowing digital nomads to legally stay and work in Thailand instead of being forced to do border runs at the mercy of immigration officers and how they feel that day, and people who've had to suffer through that beaurocracy in the past complain. Be happy for those eligible for it, and on with your day. The only group that can be ****hurt is people who just recently bought Elite at the inflated price. Everyone else, including those who bought Elite before the price increase, really don't have anything to complain about. Also keep in mind the DTV is subject to change - which it very likely will - if not this government, the next one may decide they don't like how it's going and cripple or axe it. With Elite or retirement at least you're on a visa that has a long proven history which isn't likely to change too much.

Yes, spending. It doesn't matter how you try to spin it - owning a house is a huge expense, NOT an investment. Real estate is a pretty **** "investment" all around.

Why are you here?

Trash in, trash out.

That has not been my experience in Bangkok. The venues I frequent there do treat me well (but I also pay well). It's worth noting these venues are all foreigner owned and managed. In Phuket it's 300% all about tourists. They absolutely treat tourists better than locals, I remember one venue where they kicked out and banned a local girl and her group because she had a fight with a Thai girl visiting from Bangkok. They literally sacrified year-long revenue for a chick that'll be gone next week. Nuts. Pattaya seems to be somewhere inbetween: some venues will treat you better if you're a regular, others won't. It also depends whether it's high season (they dgaf about you) or low season (nicer). My experinces are mostly with nightclubs. I don't know about other types of establishments as I'm not a regular in those.

Exactly. This is why so many poor people go back to being poor after winning the lottery. Instead of investing the money and letting it grow they immediately start spending. I'm willing to also bet that they'll let the remainder sit in a bank account earning minimal interest instead of investing it... Congrats on the win, but make it count instead of wasting it.

Another day, another brilliant idea by this absolute genius of a PM.

I really don't understand owners that encourage staff to rip off customers. Sure, in the short term they might make more money, but in the long term customers experiencing poor treatment will not return. There's this trend going on of girls who'll gladly drink with you all night, yet give you a lame excuse if you ask to bar fine them. It already existed in some gogos before Covid - usually hotter girls who moonlighted there for extra income - but now it seems a lot more prevalent and even encouraged by owners. Again- they might make more money now on the drinks, but a guy who spent 10k baht on lady drinks to be told "I don't go with customers" is simply not going to return. Again a Bangkok problem- the average age in Pattaya is much younger. Young women now avoid Bangkok and choose other places to go work, so you're left with remainders of the same old crew who've been working for 10-20 years already. Contrary to common sense, the older she is, the more money she will demand. Not sure if this is due to more obligations and expenses, Thai society where older should be more respected, or simply delusions that she's more experienced therefore should be paid more. Probably a combination of the three. Ultimately Bangkok is no longer hospitable to this, uh, "hobby". In Pattaya now, had a girl over each night I was out. All of them were happy to come (pun intended), stayed until evening, and left with two notes and a smile. Such a different experience.

Actually yes. Many many years ago when I used to live in Texas I visited LA and met some Austin chick who moved there. She bought us the first round of the night, and I completely blacked out from that point on. I doubt it was her who spiked it - more likely someone was trying to drug her and I got it instead. What followed was a haze of blackout with random memories of talking to random people, and puking in a Taco Bell parking lot. I have no memory of this, but eventually she and her guy friend helped me back to my hotel room (as confirmed by my parents who were visiting LA with me). I woke up much much later with a raging headache that lasted for 3 days. I'm a very strong drinker and can knock out a bottle of vodka and still stand, so it's impossible I would black out from one drink, nor have I ever experienced a hangover as intense as that, so I'm 100% sure it was spiked.

Now that's some scary ****. Obviously none of us will be affected, but being "targeted" simply because of where you live or other factors is.... big brother is watching.

They do? I'm not aware of such requirement. 🤣