happyaussie

All you poor jealous people who no doubt can't afford a car.

WHo cares what the title of a message says. Havn't you got better things to complain about.

Fortuners are a great vehicle for the money.

Stick to your motor scooters, scratch your pennies together for your next beer and stop complaining about those who are better off than you.

Teds comment about Farang food restaurant is only one persons opinion.

I think it's one of the best eateries on Phuket and well priced. Thai and Farang food. And no I have no afiliation. I've just eaten there a few times.

I hope they lock em up and throw away the keys. People who lure unsuspecting girls in under the pretence of making a better life for themselves and their family, when their true motive is prostutution are scum. And anyone who thinks this is okay are also scum.

I've heard that once the girls arrive their passports are taken from them, then they are put to work in brothels. When they want to come home they are forced to repay some exorbident amount of money before their passport is returned.

Just imagine how terrified these poor girls must be. Most have never been on a plane before, not to mention a foreign country.

Sounds great. Don what's the name of your restaurant and where wre you? I'll definitely come and try.

People should understand that they are playing with many peoples livliehoods when they slander someones business. If I had experienced a poor meal or average service I might give the place a second chance allowing for a the fact they may have had bad night. 2nd time I simply don't go back. Or if I think the owner is interested I would tell them. I certainly wouldn't crucify them on forums like this. Far too much to loose.

For those businesses that are obviosuly out of their depth and have no idea what to do. They will naturally go away.

What would you do if she is working somewhere where they give happy endings? If she is, I'd be pretty sure she's not doing it because she wants to. Perhaps you should send her more money.

Or face the reality. "In Thailand you don't loose your girlfriend, you only loose your turn"

Samui is hanging onto what it was by it's fingernails. Even 10 years ago the island would still have been considered ideallic, but uncontrollable development has just about ruined it. Infastructure hasn't kept up with growth so there is rubbish everywhere, and the roads are horrendous, slightest drop of rain and the roads are flooded. Locals have been faranged out and generally tend to have bad attitudes. Crime is on the increase and the local mafia have a firm hold on what goes on.

On the flip side. Samui still has some good pockets. The Choengmon beach area is nice. Fishermans village is the pick for restaurants with atmosphere. Nice to explore the back side of the island and up the hills. Chaeweng is still worth a visit and can be good for a night out.

It's small, very much a shorts and t.shirt destination and can be fun. Just avoid the wet season.

What a load of rubbish some contributors say about price increases between Samui and Phuket. Just like airlines and hotels in every country on this planet they have seasonal pricing, and so should they. Most properties in Samui and Thaialnd run losses during low season. High and peak season is the only time to make some of the losses back. Perhaps they should all close over the low season and put all their staff out of work.

The 2 years proceeding the Tsunami it was the Samui hotels that got greedy and over inflated increases, not Phuket. It's called supply and demand. After 3 years of downturn Phuket is now catching up.

I don't hear these guys talking about the increase in petrol, cigs, beer, food, airfares etc.

Guess what, all these increases have a flow on effect which increases the cost of doing business, and that flow on has to go somewhere, the end user.

Sorry for this long winded message. It just get's a little tiring hearing the same whinging.

Check www.tripadvisor.com a good site for getting "real" peoples reviews and opinions of hotels.

Happy holidays.

You're right, he's not holding his breath. In fact I was surprized that they even bothered to call.

Hmmm. Nobody hurt. Suppose farangs don't count. My mate was one of the bikes he ran into and his leg is now in a plaster cast, he is badly bruised and bed ridden.

Apparently noone offered assistance, police weren't interested and he had to make his own way to hospital on a motor bike taxi.

It's wonderful how much farangs are respected in the land of smiles, or should I say barely tolerated.

On a positive note. He got a call from the police and the taxi company will pay for the damage to his bike and hospital bills.

Totally unacceptable behaviour. How dare they cause such humiliation. The poor girl must have been petrified.

I know us Aussies have a bit of a reputation as do the English and everyone else for that matter. But it seems the Israelis tend to have one of the worst reputations when it comes to violence to our wonderful bar workers.

HappyAussie, check your messages, i sent you a PM.

Thanks. We'll definitely be in touch.

fiddlehead we've been trying to contact you but no answer. Can you call me please Garry 0810036338

Diet, bet you wouldn't say that to a big guys face.

I heard Central Chitlom has a custom service. They can source shoes, clothes etc. They also have a great shoe dept. Sometimes they have big sizes, sometimes not. Timberland stores also seem to have slightly larger sizes.

When will the world unify shoe sizes. In our modern world I cannot understand why a Euopean 47 is different to an Asian 47 or an American equivilant 11. Gets really annoying.

HappyAussie, check your messages, i sent you a PM.

Thanks. We'll definitely be in touch.

also here: http://www.phuketgazette.net/digitalgazett...6259&Cat=34

(scroll to page 13)

Thanks very much everybody. This is a great help.

Have a great day.

Well, katoy dancers and employees seem to be very popular amongst tourist, bar owners and alikes. Why not?

Not!

I really hope that you and other new entrepreneurs not follow that trend, it will lead Phuket nowhere at all.

Use real thai ladies, natural beauty as they are.

Post ad in the Thai Rath newspaper.

Good luck

Agree. Our intention is to make the show as authentic as possible. No electronics but traditional music and dancing.

Thanks for the tip.

Work permit supplied ??

Possibly. Depends on other parties status.

Does anyone know a great traditional Thai dance troope on Phuket? Our 5 star resort will be holding a Thai night once a week (night flexible). I'd love to find a great group with accompanying traditional music (not electrified).

I saw a show previously where the band dressed in Hawaiian shirts and played guitar. It was totally out of place.

Looking for duo or three piece live band to play one, two or three nights weekly at 5 star resort on Phuket. Ideally acoustic, jazz, blues and or pop. It could be a long term gig and only professionals need apply. Look forward to hearing from you.

Why do we tolerate the inefficencies of airports. I'm sure a large % of stress attributed to travel is the ridiculous processes we have to go through to get on and off planes.

In the last 30+ years little has changed. If we could go back 30 years just about everything would be the same.

Same checkin procedure, same boarding procedure, same crappy seating, same crappy food (In fairness some have raised the bar here), same off load where everyone rushes, and same luggage delivery. Actually it was probably better and more efficent way back then.

With all the advancements we've experienced there must be a better way.

I suppose big brother keeps telling us how much things have imporved. Which most tend to agree. But when we look beneath the skin little has changed.

When will planes have decent sized windows and when will they stop treating 90% of the passengers like cattle? I like budget carriers but I have no objection paying more for better leg room and service.

There appears to be an unwritten code that immigration officers must be p***ks (Thailand isn't too bad). In fact, why do we still have passports? Surely a credit card type system is more efficent. They could have a hand held scanner and process everyone before landing. Last week I went on a 1 hour flight only to wait another hour for my luggage. Queues, I hate them and queue jumpers should not be tolerated.

Can anyone advise of a reputable hospitality training course in Phuket for someone without formal education. Unfortunately it seems the only way someone can get a start in the hotel/resort industry is with at least school credentials. I think this is a shame because I meet so many great English speaking girls working bar who could run rings around a lot of resort workers.

patsfangr you put your point across well and I agree. But I still stand by the fact that 99% of men living here in Pattaya originally came here with one thing on mind. Thai women (or for others Thai men). Yes, a lot have met women (or men) and settled down, and yes some have reloacted with their farang wives (or husbands). Why anyone would do this baffles me. And to make comparisons to other countries also doesn't work. Everyone knows what made Pattaya great. Just because some people have found their love and settled into a quieter life doesn't mean others should be denied their chance to achieve the same.

So please stop pretending to be so pious. You enjoy your journey and let others enjoy theirs.

patsfangr my comment about being pious was not directed to you it was for the author of this thread.

patsfangr you put your point across well and I agree. But I still stand by the fact that 99% of men living here in Pattaya originally came here with one thing on mind. Thai women (or for others Thai men). Yes, a lot have met women (or men) and settled down, and yes some have reloacted with their farang wives (or husbands). Why anyone would do this baffles me. And to make comparisons to other countries also doesn't work. Everyone knows what made Pattaya great. Just because some people have found their love and settled into a quieter life doesn't mean others should be denied their chance to achieve the same.

So please stop pretending to be so pious. You enjoy your journey and let others enjoy theirs.

Some of you guys amaze me. Close the bars and get rid of the girls. How stupid is that. What are you going to tell me you moved to Pattaya for the palm fringed idylic beaches, stunning architecture or it's natural beauty. NO, I would pretty well guarantee that 99% of men who live in Pattaya came here for one reason only, SEX. Pattaya has it's faults, but where doesn't. I for one think it is moving in a positive direction. And the bars and girls are fantastic. Yes, I'd prefer not to have the loud mouthed holligans. But unfortunately they come with the territory.

I have spent long stints in Pattaya on several occassions. I found staying in Pattaya itself gets a little over the top after a while. I prefer Jomtien area and View Talay villas are great (good quality construction and well maintained). I'm also not sure paying a premium for a view is all it's cracked up to be. Most have Westerly aspects, therefore strong afternoon sun. Save some bucks and get something better a couple of blocks back.

A mate of mine bought an apartment in one of those large blocks. He sold it after 6 months. Main reasons - constant renovation works in other apartments (everyone just loves those bloody electric tile cutters) & lack of maintinance of public areas, pools etc.

There are some nice areas just North of Pattaya. Not sure what the area is called but it's right next door. As others have said, be careful of what future developments are planned in the vicinity. Even if down the road you'd have trucks coming and going all day.

Good luck and have a ball.

I drove past a new or refurbished hotel the other day. I think it was called "Gracelands". Really weird name, but the hotel looked very nice.

Personally I think you're better off staying around the Kata Beach or Kata Noi area.