billythehat

Healthy scepticism for statistics is sensible but to dismiss them out of hand is a little foolish.

6% is as correct as can be and do you not understand that a share of GDP can remain the same even when numbers fall?

No where did I suggest 6% was not for the entire country and i stated Phuket's economy as it currently stands would not survive if (a very big if) all tourists stopped coming. So what?

Phuket has a very long history of contributing the most out of any province outside the capital, long predating tourism.

Phuket can more than support Phuket people whatever happens and has done more than its fair share in supporting others.

A farang does not represent all farangs so don't expect to be valued as if you are.

You are not as important as a farm girl tells you.

….mmmm…I don't think I mentioned your kind and informed self specifically, but seeing as you decided to put your head above the parapet, despite being hopelessly uniformed about how finacial systems work, I do thank you for your little gem of:

"6% is as correct as can be and do you not understand that a share of GDP can remain the same even when numbers fall?"

Best laugh I've had this afternoon…

A lotta you mutts keep wheeling out this '6% GDP' chestnut without a thought that this is some statistical number, plucked from, well, nobody's quite sure really. (And please don't insult everybody's intelligence by quoting Thai Government stats.) If and only if this percentile is correct, are you stating that 6% is a constant in the formula given the shrinking tourist numbers for the last 2 fiscal years? Probably some adjustment required here…

I've just got to visit the Cum On bar and also see what's happening with the "circle"!

You are going to be severely disappointed with the Come On bar.

…well, don’t keep us all in suspense, what’s the craic with this bar?

Is it a theme place, or a chutney ferret hang-out, or chocka with tasty lass’s that don’t look like Chairman Mao with chronic piles, or summut else?

This supports the claim that the world wide economy is to blame.

Piffle and balderdash old chap. It's the farangs fault….ask any Thai; I mean, they will tell you that they were told from those above and by jiminy, that's good enough for me.

Ping/Zpete,

This is turning into a 2 way dialogue between two obvious buddies, which is great, rather than some form of open discussion/debate. Maybe you guys can take this off line and email each other direct, rather than the rest of the TV audience starting to feel like spectators at a tennis match.

Leave ‘em alone, we don’t get ‘Neighbours’ on the telly any more…heh, heh….

Mind you, 450 posts and they didn’t get sent out of the classroom even once…I dunno, blinking favouritism if you ask me...

I'll always be a Farang lucky enough to live in someone elses country because it's much better than mine.

Ridiculous statement.

Thailand is better than England?..yeah, right, dream on...

It may have been mentioned already and so I’m prepared for another finger-wagging, but here goes:

If the Thais, showing their natural sense of good humour, allows such groups as the Tourist Police to exist, then how about a farang based group of trained Lifeguards (voluntary of course) made available on a few of the beaches? Many advantages here, like culture and language, to name but a few…….maybe not, though, as it could be perceived as taking ‘jobs’ from the locals or just die (sic) from apathy….sheesh, what’s a life worth, eh?

A few notes about Cholera which occasionally may be mis-diagnosed (by the sufferer) as food poisoning. As noted below, it is highly possible that the poor chap may have ingested the disease via contaminated water. Even brushing your teeth with the local tap water can have very serious consequences.

Cholera is a severe infection of the digestive system caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, which passes from person to person in contaminated drinking water. This gram-negative comma shaped bacterium causes excessive diarrhoea through the effects of a toxin.

Cholera toxin inserts itself into the membrane of the cells that line the small intestine and acts as a powerful molecular water pump that pumps water from inside the body into the lumen of the intestine. The massive efflux of water causes the very watery diarrhoea that literally explodes from the body.

The bacterial infection that causes cholera is not itself very dangerous – if the symptoms of cholera are managed, the infection is cleared by the body within a few days. However, as with many diarrhoeal diseases, the main problem is dehydration. Someone with cholera can become dehydrated within an hour of his or her diarrhoea starting, which gives some idea how severe it is. They can go into shock within three hours and be dead within 12 hours.

Adults can be this badly affected by cholera but the impact on the elderly, the very young and people who are already weak because of another illness, is devastating. In all cases of cholera, it is important to start replacing the lost fluids as soon as possible using oral dehydration therapy, either as drinks made up from the sachets or, in very severe cases, a drip. Oral rehydration therapy is now commonly used and has saved many lives in the developing world.

As for the chap who died, a number of factors may have sped up his demise, viz, his age, general health and just plain bad luck, and with any form of bad dehydration, the last thing you need is ‘go bar’ and booze. Believe me, it can really spoil ya holiday and clothes.

I might add that ‘severe vomiting’ does not appear to be the main symptom of this disease…..then again I'm an Engineer not a Doctor....mmmm…is there a Doctor in the house? (preferably not a ‘source at the hospital’)..

It's called Bangkok for goodness sake, not bangers. Nobody refers to London as londers, Manchester as manners or Liverpool as livers! What's so difficult about that?

Sir,

Thank you for your informed and concise explanation of complex analogies. By line 4, you will have noticed that I had regained my composure and substituted my use of the common vernacular.

Good day to you, Sir,

Billy in Bangers on the Phuket Forum.

Anxiety about the weekend PAD concert on Phuket intensified today with the shooting of yellow-shirt leader Sondhi Limthongkul, who was due to paly a key role.

A group of men in a pickup opened fire, spraying the vehicle with bullets, as Khun Sondhi, the best known leader of the yellow shirts, made his way to his newspaper and television office in Bangkok about 5am this morning.

Organiser's of Saturday's concert in Phuket City said security would be dramatically increased. Khun Sondhi's wounds put him in hospital, along with his driver.

Details at: http://phuketwan.com/tourism/timely-pad-ph...000-sell-10999/

All well and good for the report, Al, but what are your thoughts/comment on the matter?

So the party is making the 728km jump down from Bangers for the next meeting of great minds. The line about the event “boosting tourism” was, ahem, interesting, notwithstanding that many western folk go back home after the Easter break, except of course the folk from nearby SEA countries.

Unlikely that the world media will grab this one, like the recent Bangkok ‘Circus Maximus’, unless any tourists are involved should anything kick-off.

Well, I live on Phuket Island and I see no 'anarchy & gunfire' here on the Island or anywhere near the Island. Bangkok is 1,000 Km away from Phuket. I certain do not recommend taking the family to Bangkok right now.

What's with you guy's slagging off Phuket ??

...groan ….please point to the part in my post where I say “Phuket”….no gunfire on Phuket?....sheesh, like I ‘did’ say, inmates=”ships? I see no ships!”

Please read and understand the contexts of the posts before slagging the forum member’s off. As for Murky’s post, he was just stating his opinion, and the usual inmate rhetoric of ‘He doesn’t live/visit often, blah, blah..” wasn’t really an unexpected cliché reply.

By the way, thanks for the geography lesson.

Just my 1 Baht contribution.

We have a word for that kind of tv filming its called propaganda the germans were good at that in the second world war. When all around you is in deep trouble just film things that make it look as though there is nothing to worry about and all is well. Well i for 1 dont go with that and neither will most of the tourists planning on comeing to phuket soon or in the near future. We know your tourism leaders are in the s t because of the lack of tourists due to thailands decline into a power riddled country what has shown it self to the world media just how it is run the pictures of the Helicopter ferrying the asian summit ministers told us the thai gov't could not guarrentee there safety so what chance have we the unsuspecting holiday maker have.

With respect to the analogy to which you allude, you are almost 100% correct.

The anomalies obviously lie in the time period between the events stated. What the general population knew and had access to, as regards to communications, etc, were a very different matter during the decades of the 1930’s and 40’s. With the advent of Satellites and internet, instant news is available on ya lap, as it happens, warts and all. If ya living within the bubble of Lalaland and have a stake in it, it may be that it’s a case of, “ships? I see no ships!” If ya live in Outer Earth, ya may see things with a keener eye and any Buffalo shat thrown from the inmates simply misses the target.

I don’t think that from his hotel in Dubai, ‘old square head’ has shown his last hand in stirring the current pot of trouble, and I understand the ‘state of emergency’ has not been lifted by the present incumbents. (I stand corrected if this has changed.)

I would suggest to the inmates this; If you were considering taking your family to any country for the first time and the preamble to your visit was the images and sounds of anarchy and gunfire, would you really purport to the illusion that, “well, it’s gunfire and murder here but, hey, look at the fake smiles down the road, yeah, let’s all go there!”???

Couldn't be pirates - they didn't have peg legs...

You're one sick mutha, Khun Ping.

"Quay-haul that man Mr Christian."

Fortunately, the murdered chap's missus would appear to have the good support of her family and friends. There are no words when you lose somebody close like that, but I do wish her well. I live not too far from this family's home and there was some considerable cover in the local media as to what had transpired, nothing hysterical, just the facts and the tragedy of the sad loss of a good loving family man.

Just my 2 baht's worth...

Black Bhat.

Would it honestly be safe to construct a tunnel there?

Simple answer:

Perfectly feasible if undertaken by competent Engineers and Contractors.

Is it safe? No, because it would be galactically bungled. Should there be any doubt, refer to the Swampy airport fiasco.

Apart from the joke text on the poster, the one thing missing is the images of carnage that would surely result as a consequence of placing that u-turn facility just before entering/exiting the tunnels...sheesh, what the <deleted> is wrong with these people?

Last year i spent 40$ for a 'lobster' in patong. Could of given me plastic dropped into garlic sauce, i would not of seen the difference.

Ah yes, “plastic dropped into garlic sauce”….an absolute must for anybody missing the cuisine from their own country. I often chose this particularly tasty side dish when ordering my own favourite from the menu; “Guess which animal this steak is from”.

You don’t really mention the service, and this of course is an intrinsic part of the dining out experience on one’s holiday. I’m always disappointed if I haven’t had to wait at least ½ an hour before being acknowledged by the staff, should they even deign to shuffle to my table. Furthermore, if the waitress is not sporting a frown that might suggest that she hasn’t had a good pooh for at least a week, plus the indolent attitude of a 3 year old child, are factors which will determine the size of the tip. In addition, should I receive the dish I actually ordered, I express my displeasure at such impertinence by insisting that Egon Ronay take at least 1 Star away from the Restaurant’s rating.

In summary, I would strongly suggest you ignore any of the resident expat inmates’ assertions that such occurrences are the result of “misunderstandings”. This wholly incorrect, and I can personally assure you that all abuse, slack service, etc, are intentional and should be enjoyed and laughed-off as part of the ‘holiday experience’.

Me? I can’t wait to return as the chef has promised to give me his secret recipe for his signature dish: Malaria Soup au Cruton du Hot Patong Gravel….aye, I’m licking me lips already….heh, heh...

I think la boucherie should be removed from the restaurant list.

The list should only promote good restaurants, not scams. It says "best steak i have had here"

Well first off, its not hard to get a best steak since all steaks suck around here. But thats not what it is about.

I dont mind paying 5k for a meal if its good. i mind paying 300 baht if it taste like crap. La bouchderie is not only expensive but its ridiculously horrible.

charging 250baht for 6 snails (costs 30baht in my country for a can of 30 big ones) that are smaller than peas, put into a terrible persley and garlic sauce with 7/11 thai whiskey. WHAT?

I have had snails in more than 50 restaurants, it never tasted bad, so theres NO way this is because of my tastes. + Where the hel_l was the cheese for those micro snails?

Lasagna is 250-300baht, with very minimal meat, maybe 5noodles, cheapest cheese i have ever tasted. theres a 80 baht lasagna that taste terribly around here and it still tastes better.

The sauce they have used is the CHEAPEST one they use at tesco, the ones in the pastel cans. I remember because my friend made me pasta last year using that sauce and it almost made me cry. It's really painfull to eat crappy foods, i felt like a jew being fed rocks in a nazi camp.

Only acceptable thing was the overpriced steak with microwaved mashpotatoes(HORRIBLE)

There is many more things that are wrong with this restaurants but i think i made my point clear. they shouldnt be advertised. Any business sent to them is about the same as helping the tuktuk mafia.

Oh i forgot, they even gave me green tomatoes in the "salad with no sauce" can't even afford to give us tomatoes that are ready with a 500baht steak that probably is worth 150?

Sir,

In my 10 years of visiting Thailand, having eaten all manner of gizzards, unknown tubular visceral things and by far the worst, the pretensions of western grub, I can assure you that you eat like a king on that particular night. Mind you, a franchise masquerading as a Frog joint flogging Italian fayre would have been warning enough for me.

Bon Appetite.

A woman smashed a beer bottle over my mates head (while her and her balloon chaser boyfriend crashed a bar party I had put the food on for) and then went to stab my mate with the remains..

I am not ashamed to say I disarmed her and knocked her flat on her arse with a push and open hand.. her boyfriend was ejected from the bar and she was doing the usual 'I am Thai.. I kill you' <deleted> in the street having to be restrained.. Luckily we knew the MB taxis well enough who came over and meant we didnt need to do any more.. The boyfriend realised he would get a stomping if he wanted to have a ruck as an uninvited gueast when the rest of the bar were all close and was sensibly willing to leave, she was the one who stood in the road in a freaking rage..

Now with a crazy bar girl.. Smashing bottles on peoples heads.. Trying to stab people.. Doing the usual Thai 'I kill you' routine.. what would you suggest.. I wai her ?? Ask her nicely to leave ??

Thing is when a man swings a punch he knows he is going to fight, and the end result of most male fights is real damage and a trip to hospital for someone.. Women do it safe in the knowledge that even if they get restrained or pushed they are unlikely to have their nose or jaw broken as most of us are good guys hence many can and do play up to that.

Ya got right there, Guv.

To the ’comfortable shoe squad’; Sure walk away if you can, but in a fair few case’s it’s already too late for escape or the use of ‘reasonable force’ and the psycho has just gotta take what’s coming. At the end of the day, you were lucky you saw it coming and were able to do summat about it, probably saving your own life or somebody close to you.

“ Doing the usual Thai 'I kill you' routine..” …..usual?...tee, hee, that did make me titter.

Make Way For The chavs & Social Security Tourists In Phuket.

With job loses in the UK and even cheaper hotel prices in Phuket, I will predict that Phuket will be host to a different class of tourist soon.

European countries have been host to this sort of tourism for many years, and this class of tourists are fed up with over in flatted European beer & food prices, and are willing to go further a field in search of the golden stuff & sun.

Flights might be more expensive, but hotel costs are lower and so is the cost of food and lager.

So spending more money on a flight would save more on other holiday necessities.

So look out all you UK expats who fled to Phuket to get away from the Chavs & lager-louts . Because it looks like they will be following you very soon.

Syl.

Didn't know the definition of "Chav", I being a colonial. Here is what Wiktionary says: "

1. (UK, pejorative) A working-class youth, especially one associated with aggression, poor education, and a perceived "common" taste in clothing and lifestyle. I wouldn't go to that part of town if I were you; it's full of chavs."
   

Is this the word you are using?

Yes, he did, and I may add that the vernacular applies to both lads and lass’s.

Trends come and go and even this term is a bit old hat now.

When I was in a taxi in Bangkok last Kitmah, the taxi driver was wearing a Burberry Cap (as loved by Chav’s). I asked him where he had got it from and he said that; “Falung gib me, him no hab all taxi fare, I say him, okay no popem.”

Fair exchange is no robbery I suppose..

Just saw Air Asia X.. KL to London (think it was stanstead !!) for 870 MYR !! 8000 something baht one way !!

I know it will be uber cattle.. But 2 xanex and it could be a bed of nails.

Aye, as the world financial ruin continues, it should be interesting to see how the air-price war pans out, say mid 2009.

Very few of those advertised 'cheap' holiday packages are dated for when the main bread & butter of tourists (families) are able to go. Not stating that the bold fronted prices (on flights only) do not include the absurdly rated taxes, typically, say £200+ per ticket doesn't help the situation..

With regard to Eva xmas flights, these are always oversubscribed for the main reason that they only fly once a day from LHR, (but not Monday,) and more than a few of the folk flying are Chinese/Taiwanese heading back to the 'Peoples Republic of Summat or Other ' for the New Year Holiday. The flight Eva BR68 is actually bound for Taipei via Bangkok, and in 10 years I've never seen a spare seat available at Xmas time on this flight.

Just a quick heads oop and general info about the future cost of air fares LHR to Thailand.

Today, I was enquiring about the cost and availability of flights only for xmas/new year 2009-2010 with my usual carrier, Eva Air. From experience I had learnt that to get an upgrade seat, and more importantly the dates I could go, it was important to reserve as early as February because they would always sell out very quickly. For any other times of the year there is not usually a problem.

Xmas 2008 I flew with Eva from LHR>BKK for £900 return in Elite Class, (a sort of half-way house between Buffalo class and Business Class) which was pretty good value given high season. Again, I had booked this seat in February 2008 to get the good price and dates.

Even though I'm a member of Eva's 'frequent monger' air miles program, it has always been cheaper to get a ticket through an agent. This morning, I contacted several of the agents I normally use and for a moment thought that I had requested Business Class and not Elite class. No, I hadn't, and the cheapest fair after 'discount' was for £1455 for the Elite class seat……"But," I spluttered, "that's a 62% increase over the fair I've just come back from!"……..Eva were the cheapest too…BA & Thai were dearer still….

T'would appear the Buffalo class buckets were to be priced around the £1000 mark..

When I was in Chiang Mai at Xmas, I changed some sterling for baht as was well p**sed at only getting 49 Baht for 1 Pound. Back in April 2008 I could get 69-70. As a consequence, to do the same amount at Xmas time cost about 30% more….Ah well, everything has its season I suppose..

Yeah, I know there are other travel options, etc, but I'm just saying, ya know?

place for the Freemasons to act out their depraved Pagan rituals

Quite ironic really, considering the reputation of Phuket.

Should be quite a show if you can get a ticket.

T’is said that there is also ‘The Ancient Order of Mongers’ who have been holding their own dark rituals in and around Patong and its environs for many a long year now. More I cannot say for I’m bound by the supreme Mamasan to secrecy and my life. 500 Baht could sort that out though.

I'm not sure I warranted an indirect slagging from my original post.

What did ya expect? Chocolates and flowers?

If the crew get a whiff of Bullshite, it’s all guns blazing until ya put ya dodger on the table and show otherwise.

I’m just saying….

Can you buy aloe vera juice in Phuket for drinking purposes?

It is supposed to be good for gastric ulcers.

Dunno, but be very careful about the way the liquor has been prepared as the base 'ello Vera' juice is painfully bitter, aye, far bitter than most expats.

Excellent for sunburn too.....thinly sluice a fresh piece and place in the fridge for about 15 mins and then apply to groaning farang's red bits.

It's difficult to say to be honest and clearly varies from place to place. Mrs CM works for a boutique hotel that has 46 rooms and currently only has five guests but the charges are circa 4k Baht per night. A friend who owns a smaller hotel that sells rooms circa 1,500 baht per night is almost full but is seeing repeated requests for steep discounts from would be guests. Driving down Beach Road each day I sense that tourists are not in great supply currently, best bet is to come here on spec and try to negotiate a good rate in person rather than any other means.

What makes a 'boutique' hotel?

£80 a night?....crivvens, must be summat pretty special for that sort of lolly..