Yes, I remember the quiet Patpong from 1970. I used to stay nearby at a small hotel in Surawong. There were a couple of nice cool bars for a drink during the day. I don't remember it at night. I think I used to go to hotels and restaurants to eat. One of the Patpongs had a restaurant called the Thai Room which served Mexican food.

The Australian Embassy was on the corner of one of Patpong 2(?) and Silom. It occupied a couple of floors upstairs in a fairly small building. Opposite, perhaps on the corner of Convent and Silom, there was a nice coffee shop called the Saigon Tearoom if I remember rightly. Like Sukhumvit, Silom was a pleasant tree-lined road in those days.

From http://www.oldbangkok.com/hotel-images/pages/ambassador.htm

What is now the Ambassador [Hotel] started as the Chavalit Mansion/Chavalit Hotel, located right on Sukhumvit Road. The larger building on Soi 11, which houses the modern day Ambassador, was built at a later date (early seventies) as an expansion of the Chavalit. The whole operation was eventually renamed the Ambassador and was, at the time, Bangkok's largest hotel with 1,000 rooms. The Chavalit Mansion was at first a serviced apartment primarily used by the US servicemen. It bacame the Chavalit Hotel after the contract with the US military expired with the winding down of the war in Vietnam. Upon the departure of the US servicemen, Chavalit claimed 9.6 million baht in damages to the hotel, though the US government offered only 2.2 million in compensation based on a list of 300 damaged items submitted by the hotel.

My memory of the Chavalit Mansion is of an old colonial-style building. I don't know if it included serviced apartments, but may have. I didn't know that New Petchburi was the main R&R area. Thank you.

Thanks Lopburi3

It makes sense that Gaysorn in those days would be on the Ploenchit side of the intersection given that's where it is now. My memory is clearly wrong on that. 

I have a clear visual memory, though, of an arcade running along the Daimaru side of the road heading towards Pratunam. I guess it had another name. I may have had a small account at the Chartered Bank there.

The Thai Yanok was the only bar I remember on the right hand side of Ploenchit past the Erawan. I don't remember how far past it was.

I don't know if it was a bar or club or hotel, but I remember going to a palce called Chavalit Mansion in the Sukhumvit area. It was quite nice from memory. Had strobe lights, which I thought was pretty cool. A bit more upmarket.

...........................................

Many thanks for the responses, especially Filer's and Lopburi3's. Filer, I second DDDave's suggeston.

Lopburi3, are you talking about the area at the beginning of Ploenchit Road on the right side after the Erawan Hotel? That is, diagonally opposite what is now Zen (and what I remember as Daimaru). I seem to recollect the President Hotel as being on the left side of Ploenchit going out towards Sukhumvit. There were bars on the right side. I remember the Thai Yanok was somewhere down there, though I have no visual memory of it. I think it was a favoured hangout of GIs on R&R. I seem to recollect a bowling alley, too, about where Amarin Plaza is now.

Wimpey's (Whimpy's?) definitely existed on the left hand side of Rajdamri heading towards Pratunam. I fairly clearly remember it at the end of an arcade. The Chartered Bank was in the arcade. Also a nice restaurant (with white table cloths?) and, I believe, ML Manich Jumsai's Chalermnit Bookshop.

Memory is fallible, so I'm grateful for any information that will rectify mine after 51 years. Bangkok was an exciting place then for a young man. I lived and worked in Vientiane in those days and a trip to Bangkok on the overnight train from Nong Khai was always a great experience.

Many thanks for the responses, especially Filer's and Lopburi3's. Filer, I second DDDave's suggeston.

Lopburi3, are you talking about the area at the beginning of Ploenchit Road on the right side after the Erawan Hotel? That is, diagonally opposite what is now Zen (and what I remember as Daimaru). I seem to recollect the President Hotel as being on the left side of Ploenchit going out towards Sukhumvit. There were bars on the right side. I remember the Thai Yanok was somewhere down there, though I have no visual memory of it. I think it was a favoured hangout of GIs on R&R. I seem to recollect a bowling alley, too, about where Amarin Plaza is now.

Wimpey's (Whimpy's?) definitely existed on the left hand side of Rajdamri heading towards Pratunam. I fairly clearly remember it at the end of an arcade. The Chartered Bank was in the arcade. Also a nice restaurant (with white table cloths?) and, I believe, ML Manich Jumsai's Chalermnit Bookshop.

Memory is fallible, so I'm grateful for any information that will rectify mine after 51 years. Bangkok was an exciting place then for a young man. I lived and worked in Vientiane in those days and a trip to Bangkok on the overnight train from Nong Khai was always a great experience.

Another video from my friend Mutawinji Greg, based at Bunya Mountain, Queensland.

I don't know for sure, but as it is a Thai consulate I would expect it to issue visas to any eligible passport holder.

Went to the consulate today. Put my application in for a 60-day visa at 11.30 and picked up the visa at 1.30. Excellent service and the ladies were very pleasant. Only a few minutes wait to put in the docs and no wait to collect.

I've sorted this out, thank you. Paid a bit extra and have free cancellation.

Not at the last minute. That would have to be an emergency. But possible cancellation or rebooking for different dates some time before the original booking. Most hotels in my experience will charge a penalty, the % depending on how close to the booking time you cancel. I'm OK with that, though a cancellation well ahead of time should only incur a small penalty, if any.

Hi, I'm a bit out of touch with hotel bookings in LOS. I want to book a hotel in North Pattaya for Christmas Eve and Christmas Night to join my son and his family. His hotel and others in the area offering discounted rates are asking for prepayment, meaning that the total amount is to be paid prior to the stay, with no money back.

I assume that this means any change of plans and I can't cancel, even some considerable time before the stay. Is that right?

I would expect to be able to drive down to Pattaya and check in as planned, but who knows what the future holds?

I'd like to be able to make a booking that is refundable if my plans change. Any advice would be most welcome.

Yes, I thought it was strange at the time. Perhaps it was just Thai Airways Brisbane who had a problem with it.

Thank you for your reply.

Thank you, Ubonjoe, for this very helpful information.

I shall follow up the Thai study option as well as the multiple entry tourist visa.

One further question. When I bought a plane ticket a couple of years ago having a 60 day tourist visa the travel agent would only write the ticket for three months. She'd been told that Thai Airways wouldn't issue a ticket for a period longer than the duration of the visa (60+30 days, I suppose).  If we are able to stay for, say, 5 or 6 months, can we extend the return date of the ticket in Bangkok? 

My wife and I, a retired Australian couple (wife from Laos originally), would like to spend more time in Thailand where we lived for quite a long time.

We're thinking of 3 - 6 months each year, but would prefer not to do visa runs. One visa run after three months would be OK.

Neither of us have any plans to work, but I would be interested in doing an advanced Thai language course.

Is there a visa class we can apply for that would meet our needs?

I just tried to "like" a member's post and got a message that I was not allowed to do so with that member.

What's that all about?

33 minutes ago, BookMan said:

 

Brissie has a long road ahead...Difficult to seee them playng finals for years

Will they be there in years to come? They have huge debt and declining support.

Perhaps an amalgamation with the Suns? 

Two AFL teams in the Brisbane-Gold Coast corridor has been a badly failed project, in my view.

http://view.tmclient.ticketmaster.com/?qs=5114e330c86716230022ec01f84f5ab23ba916e441f412459bfcb32ec68ffed6443c025006fcd26d321065f821d43caffcd4ecbd9461567bbe01f94a55ee00a056a8b5257d184dc7cf1cdc4f768661d2
 

Justin Leppitsch was never given a fair chance coaching the Brisbane Lions

Posted about 4 hours ago

PHOTO: Justin Leppitsch did not exactly have the finest playing stocks in Brisbane. (AAP Image: Julian Smith)

RELATED STORY: Brisbane Lions sack coach Justin Leppitsch

MAP: Brisbane 4000

We may never know if Justin Leppitsch can or cannot coach.

Whatever his inadequacies, they were grossly outweighed by those of the environment in which he tried to ply his skills.

More at:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-29/justin-leppitsch-was-never-given-a-fair-chance-at-brisbane-lions/7795264

Pretty tough, but he really had run out of chances. I wonder who will be next?

How different things might have been if the AFL hadn't set up a second team in SE Queensland. The code's pretty sick here right now.

Lost by 48 points and they're stoked

You know your side's struggling when they regard a 48-point loss as a really good effort. Such is the case with the Lions' coach and leading players boosting themselves after the Hawthorn game.

Mind you, any sort of effort would be commendable after their no-show against Collingwood. I attended that game and left at three quarter time. Most of the previous two quarters I'd spent reading my Kindle. It was awful. The worst performance I can remember by any team in the VFL/AFL.

I'm in Thailand now and won't see any more games this season. I doubt I'll be signing up again for the next.

How long can a club get away with saying they're a young side and things will pick up? The Lions have pushed this line for 10 years and it's wearing very thin.

How long can fans expect to be patient? I used to wonder what it was like to be a long-term St Kilda supporter with so little to show for it. I guess you just expect to lose and enjoy the better moments. Actually, I'm OK if my side loses as long as they make an effort and display some skills, but if they're just not up to AFL level and appear to be lazy and stupid as well, as the Lions did against the Magpies, then it's hard to keep the faith.

Oh well, one never knows what's around the corner. Sometimes it just takes one good game to turn things around.

PS. Of course the AFL hasn't helped football in Queensland with its stupid decision to set up another club on the Gold Coast, but I've already ranted about that (last year?) so I won't go on.

As Croc said your taken 3 flags within the last 15 ys a lot better effort than that ordinary team St Kilda, the Dees, Bulldogs and a few others.

You dont know what suffering is...try 2 grand final play offs since 1964 walloped in both and record GF score in one...Saints 1 Flag and made 3 others, 70s and 80s they owned the bottom spot on the ladder with us and only 12 clubs in those days.

Demons the worst ever team up until this year form since 2006.

Its always the board....they cut Voss just as he was getting somewhere, sat on the back of the triple cups and stop doing being proactive, good clubs bounce back fast.

Also true GC shouldn't have been created, 16 clubs is about all the comp can handle 14 was all that there should be.

I went to every game in 1984 and we won only one with a goal 1 min before the final siren against the dogs who had been leading all day.

You have NO idea what suffering is....just ask Saint Kilda, Footscray, Melbourne, North Melbourne up until the mid 70s, Swans until Roos took over as coach....no god dam idea what suffering is.

Well you and Old Croc are both right. I haven't forgotten the glory days and I can remember them being last in 1998. However I'm talking about now and the past few years. The Collingwood game was really the pits. You had to be there to know how bad they were. Yet the club had been talking up this year no end and I think there was some belief that they'd move up. And they still might.

I've had my grizzle and that's that. I won't give up on them. And bugger the AFL.

Lost by 48 points and they're stoked

You know your side's struggling when they regard a 48-point loss as a really good effort. Such is the case with the Lions' coach and leading players boosting themselves after the Hawthorn game.

Mind you, any sort of effort would be commendable after their no-show against Collingwood. I attended that game and left at three quarter time. Most of the previous two quarters I'd spent reading my Kindle. It was awful. The worst performance I can remember by any team in the VFL/AFL.

I'm in Thailand now and won't see any more games this season. I doubt I'll be signing up again for the next.

How long can a club get away with saying they're a young side and things will pick up? The Lions have pushed this line for 10 years and it's wearing very thin.

How long can fans expect to be patient? I used to wonder what it was like to be a long-term St Kilda supporter with so little to show for it. I guess you just expect to lose and enjoy the better moments. Actually, I'm OK if my side loses as long as they make an effort and display some skills, but if they're just not up to AFL level and appear to be lazy and stupid as well, as the Lions did against the Magpies, then it's hard to keep the faith.

Oh well, one never knows what's around the corner. Sometimes it just takes one good game to turn things around.

PS. Of course the AFL hasn't helped football in Queensland with its stupid decision to set up another club on the Gold Coast, but I've already ranted about that (last year?) so I won't go on.

Fantasy League: I'm in. Leonine Times. Hoping 2016 won't be such lean times. For the Lions, that is.

Thanks gents, it's only taken me 15 rounds to jag a win.

I saw your score BookMan and wondered what happened.

North murder you even when you don't pick them

Still 8 rounds to go BookMan.

Some real tricky ones next week as well.

Gee/WB

GC/GWS

ADE/Port

Coll/WCE

Syd/haw and

ST/Rich

all i need is 4 straight weeks of 9/9. Have i mentioned my 2013 form before?

Sydney were awful against Brisbane. So many unforced turnovers; poor handballs, poor kicking, poor effort. Hawthorn is going to smash them next week. I expect Buddy to have a good game though. in a humiliating loss.

That leads to the week after and West Coast. Should Sydney lose to West Coast they could be in the poo-poo come top 4 finals time.

West Coast of course are looking like a lock for a top 2, maybe even leapfrogging Freo?

Actually, if Sydney were awful at least they managed to make Brizzie look good for much of the game.

When I saw the Sydney players run out on to the field I thought Brobdingnag had come to the Gabba. the Brisbane guys were Lilliputian by comparison. I expected a walloping and, although that didn't happen, it was the billionaire Brobdingnagians who saved the day for South.

That was the last of my three day-games membership for this season. Not sure if I'll sign up again next year. My seat at the Gabba is magic, but AFL games just go on for too long. If rugby league and rugby union games can be completed in 80 minutes, and soccer for 90, why does AFL need around 120 minutes plus drawn out quarter and half time breaks? It's too long an afternoon for an old codger like me. Also, the Gabba food is crap and grossly over-priced.

One thing that pleased me, having been in the US for a few weeks and out of touch, was to see that the Lions now have some men in the team to replace the lost boys we've been blooding all season. Tom Rockliff's back and so is Daniel Merritt and Pearce Handley. Even Brent Staker has re-emerged and would have made a difference if he'd kicked straight.

There seems to be general agreement that the Lions are improving. They should be very good in the off-season.

Lions went into the GWS game with 17 on the injured list. Is this a record?

Their reserves included only 6 listed players and were beaten by 192 points.

This video was posted 26 hours ago and has been viewed 76 times.

I hope the viewers have enjoyed it, but doesn't anyone have any feedback at all?