joe552

Can I use my Visa Debitcard to withdraw cash in the branch, so as to avoid the fee?

surely the driver just needs a placard with your name on it - not the destination, so why put the hotel name on it? I always just check the driver knows exactly where I'm staying before we leave the airport, although this scam had never occurred to me - once I see my name, I'm ok.

Pattaya Beer Garden - great location and views of the bay, friendly staff, good food and reasonable prices. What more is there?

If I'm buying duty free it's usually just booze and cigarettes, so I know how much the total will be. Add in a bottle of perfume or whatever, I will still know roughly how much I'm spending. Why did the OP sign for something he didn't buy? To my mind, this ain't the fault of the duty free staff. The OP should have picked it up at the till at the airport.

Oh I give up - life's too short

NOW I understand, ijustwannateach - thanks for that. I actually agree with you. I also dislike men referring to others (partners or not) as 'she'.

sorry, I don't understand your point.maybe you can forget you're a teacher (an assumption on my part) and just say what you mean?

Thanks, I still don't know what it means. But I'm not losing sleep over it.

As to what word i would use to describe my "other half" - I'd go for partner also. Boyfriend sounds temporary, and as others have pointed out, husband/wife just doesn't work for me.

not as an epistemological decision.

Am I the only native English speaker who had to look up that word - epistemological? If language is primarily about communication, I think this time you've failed.

OP's bound to feel bad when the drugs wear off.

I wouldn't name the hotel here - but it was not the Arlington.

Obviously I can't get into the specifics of the price to rent a bar, so I'll return to my original point - it was a bad idea to book and pay for a month in a hotel without knowing what the immediate area was like. I wouldn't do it - I would never book more that a few days in a place, so I can walk away at any time without feeling I've lost a big sum of money.

I worked as a manager at a hotel here in Dublin which had a nightclub in the basement. There were constant complaints from hotel guests about the noise from the club. Since the profit from the club far outweighed that from the hotel, there was no inclination to do anything. I suspect the same might be true of the place you describe.

The point is you booked one month without having tried it out. I have little sympathy, sorry.

I think anyone who books a place for month without trying it out for a couple of nights is just crazy. Especially in that area of Pattaya.

Lesson learned, methinks.

I apologise, mrdublin - I was out of order. I hope your bar does well (p.s. have I blown my chance of a free Guinness?

I'm sure it seemed funny at the time, but hope the OP has sobered up now.

Oh, just what the world needs - another 'fake' Irish bar! The only proper Irish bars are in Ireland. So where will your Guinness come from? Malaysia?

Being banged up anywhere would be a nightmare for me and I'm not sure I wouldn't be tempted to top myself, but especially in a foreign jail where there's no way to understand the 'rules'. Keeps me on the straight and narrow.

Nice avatar - didn't he find time in prison to do something creative with his time ?

Indeed he did - The Ballad of Reading Gaol. Pity he couldn't get to Pattaya as often as I can.

Being banged up anywhere would be a nightmare for me and I'm not sure I wouldn't be tempted to top myself, but especially in a foreign jail where there's no way to understand the 'rules'. Keeps me on the straight and narrow.

Thanks, Ian, I think you've just nailed it. Thailand as a holiday destination is no more dangerous than anywhere else, and with sensible precautions (which should be taken anywhere) can be a beautiful country to spend time in.

When I go to my travel agent to book a flight, or to the Etihad website, I don't/can't choose which fare class I'm buying. So how would I be able to buy a fare which attracts 100%? Is it based on price or what? I'd been hoping that my next trip to BKK in June would give me enough miles for an upgrade to Business on the following trip. Now it seems not.

sorry, but I just don't understand that last one