WinnieTheKhwai

I used to go to Number One quite a bit until I found out they served 25cl not the usual 33cl measures AND they have recently even stopped the free peanuts they always served - changed for the worst in my view - but they have got the decor right and the girls are friendly.

Ha, I STARTED going to Number 1 for those reasons... Better if you're on a diet. I like that they give you the can or bottle with the mixed drinks, so you take in a lot less alcohol, which is good. (If I just wanted a lot of alcohol then 7-eleven has a great selection.). And for the beer drinkers there's absolutley no arguing with the beer selection.

Well I been speaking to my wife and she don't want to move from Pattaya, but would like to live on the "dark side" on Sukhumvit Road where houses/land are cheaper than the "inside side" where we live now. The scenery over there is quite nice, green, lush, small mountains and so on, and I don't want to argue with a pregnant woman too much, he-he. Well we will see what happens in the future, never say never.

That reminded me of another consideration.... When your significant other is not from Chiang Mai or the North then some seem to have trouble adapting and fitting in. In Pattaya when you're either from the East (Chonburi, Rayong etc) or from Isaan then there's a natural support network of people from the same region. I've seen it a couple times where non-Northerners have some trouble finding a circle of friends or even just fitting in. Obviously for some people this is no issue at all and they just fit in, others find that they grow into it especially after learning to speak Muang.. But often some effort is required to fit in. It's just something to be aware of, so before moving permanently I would spend considerable time in a particular region to make sure the whole family fits in.

Of course the Red movement will be back, but any kind of armed struggle is just silly and stupid and counterproductive.

Well, why didn't he just go to Australia, serve out any remaining time, and THEN just apply for a passport.

LOL.

It would be nice if more of you acknowledged that many people hold an opinion different from you and that, while different, these are valid and genuine opinions and people have the right to voice them.

2 posts have been edited by me because not the proper name of the politician is given. Further postings like that will be deleted in whole.

Can I ask who is the politician in question here? And why is it that the mods are coming down on this so hard?

Yes, you can, but in a private message to a moderator.

Thankfully it seems to now be enforced for ALL politicians.

> think as the latest incident in Bangkok has shown - the red movement has

> become unpopular and the more they try to stir up trouble - the more they

> will see a citizens resistance!

You and Jingthing should take a long hard look at a column in the Bangkok Post (never thought I'd say this) but it's excellent:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion...-reconciliation

Read it, please.

Talking about "Red Terrorists" and the like just makes you look silly.

I'm getting a bit tired of Jingthing always wanting to spin things in a political way and stirring shit. Don't you get tired of it yourself?

Thirded.

Other than that, the real answer is : IT DOESN'T MATTER. It's been made blatantly obvious that neither is/was in complete control of running Thailand.

All the beaches in the area? The ones inside the naval bases for example, some of those are really nice. Or hire a speed boat to explore some of those beaches and islands, do some fishing, etc.

If you put them in a nice hotel/resort with nice pool and everything then there's not THAT much more you need to do to entertain them.

And also take them to SOME bars, or perhaps a cabaret because they will have heard about or read about what a sleazy pit it is, so if you bring them to some fairly decent bars then you cover a bit of that which they expect to see, without scaring them to death.

> If you think about the many "blood sports" there are in the world "Boxing" and "fox hunting"

> for example And the thrill of watching two opponents beating the S### out of each other, while

> the crowd roars with delight, cheering their fighter on.

Though arguably the fighters are there by choice, the bull most likely would prefer to be some place else. You're right about the fox hunt of course, but that's equally controversial.

For cock fights though I'm not sure it's on a similar level of controversy.. You just put two cocks together and let them do what cocks do. (Obviously when you start putting blades on their feet then that's not okay.. Though I haven't seen this in Thailand so far). Usually what happens is that one cock is the obvious winner (other trying to run away) and at that point the fight is stopped.

Cock fighting is illegal in Thailand

Isn't it mostly related to the betting which is illegal? (Arguably there is no such thing as cockfighting without betting so that may make the argument moot.)

> .who then provide the work permits.

No, NOBODY provides work permits unless they're paying a salary of at least 65,000 baht a month and do all the paperwork. There simply is no 'volunteer' work permit.

This is also very interesting, a VERY up-close report of the recent protests and crackdown:

http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/20...the-red-shirts/

> I suspect that the sister in law simply fessed up to what she was doing, not suspecting that what she was

> doing was wrong, and got deported. Blame the hubby and his wife for organising things incorrectly.

I hate to say it but I agree. Anyone who's ever trafficked some people knows that you need to solidly coach the people passing immigration, they're the weakest link because at that moment they're out of your control. They key-word is "h-o-l-i-d-a-y", no more, no less.

Credit where credit is due, that article is excellent. Thanks for posting.

That is hard to determine because everyone wants something different from a bar experience. Some people just like to drink in a quiet atmosphere and be able to talk with friends. Some like to play pool. Some just like places with "hot" girls. Some people like noise and others like quiet. Some want to watch sports on TV. And, some of us like places where we know the staff and owners.

I think Number 1 bar checks just about all of those in a single place, though. It's a bit too quiet and sedate for me later at night, and there are far too many people looking like typical Thaivisa members, but other than that it's perfect.

Other than that you're right of course. What makes a good bar is often more related to having 1 or 2 staff that you like and 1 or 2 regulars that you like.

But anyway, those are the 'new' 'boutique' hotel crowd.. Another way you can go is go for the previous top-end glory of years gone by... For years and years, the Amari Rincome was THE top hotel in Chiang Mai. Obviously it isn't anymore, but it's still a decent choice, and frankly a complete steal, I just checked the rates and it's incredible... Would you believe 1300 baht for the Amari Rincome..

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/chiang_...come_hotel.html

Others in that group include the Orchid Hotel (1200 baht!) and possibly the Holiday Inn (1,359 baht!). Another big tourist class hotel is the Amora Thapae .. 1,228 baht.. no arguing with that. They're not chique or trendy or 'boutique' anymore, but very solid hotels for highly competative prices.

Rincome hotel is on Nimmanhaemin Road, which is a trendy and booming area. A bit out of town (10 minute drive though)

Another option (generally speaking now) that's highly interesting if you have a car is the Chiang Mai Best Western.. Which has very solid rooms, in a completely weird location as you can't walk to absolutely anything, but if you have a car then again in 10 minutes you're in town).. No pool, but would you believe you can get it for 690 baht.. Again an awesome budget choice for people with cars.. It's a buyers market in Chiang Mai..

hmmm... what kind of a loser lets his girlfriend sell her ass blink.gif

its hard to know weather to laugh at you after reading your story or feel pity for you for living such an existance...and do you feel proud for going to sit at a bar and buy nothing and wait for free drinks from go go dancers.come on ...i cant believe your being serious..

Look it's easy to criticize such a post.. Some people just aren't rich or have bad luck in life for a while and end up in strange relationships. It happens, and I think it's VERY interesting to read. By and large these folks really connect with the good, the bad and the ugly of that part of society. I think the story is both beautiful and sad and funny at the same time. Did you guys miss the part of his girlfriend's daughter actually missing having him around? Beautiful and sad at the same time.

So let's agree that it's at least much more interesting than a wealthy retiree coming over and marrying a girl from a bar who's younger than his youngest daughter and building a house in Nakhon Nowhere. Whoa, yeah that would be a lot less loser-ish.

I know a couple cases like Chiangmaikelly's.. by and large things just 'happened' and at least there's is a genuine attraction between a guy and the girl he ends up in a relationship with. (usually a rollercoaster type of relationship.. him better than me! ) But anyway, the point is that someone just plonking down 30K baht a month is not really guaranteed any genuine feelings of any kind, is he?

3000 baht is a very nice budget. Most hotels cost far less, indeed the Chiang Mai Gate hotel is a great budget option with a pool and in an interesting and less touristy area. Rooms start around 800 baht.

But if you want to spend the 3000 then I would suggest a nice place inside the old town, which is a quiet and interesting area. Many boutique hotels have opened there, most are really very nice.

For example:

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/chiang_...naga_hotel.html (2,500 baht)

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/chiang_...rene_hotel.html (2,500 baht)

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/chiang_...lage_hotel.html (2,300 baht)

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/chiang_...ouse_hotel.html (2,200 baht)

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/chiang_..._mai_hotel.html (3,800 baht)

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/chiang_...lage_hotel.html (3,900 baht) (bit overpriced at this rate, though the grounds and architecture are beautiful. Small rooms though)

> If you think about the many "blood sports" there are in the world "Boxing" and "fox hunting"

> for example And the thrill of watching two opponents beating the S### out of each other, while

> the crowd roars with delight, cheering their fighter on.

Though arguably the fighters are there by choice, the bull most likely would prefer to be some place else. You're right about the fox hunt of course, but that's equally controversial.

For cock fights though I'm not sure it's on a similar level of controversy.. You just put two cocks together and let them do what cocks do. (Obviously when you start putting blades on their feet then that's not okay.. Though I haven't seen this in Thailand so far). Usually what happens is that one cock is the obvious winner (other trying to run away) and at that point the fight is stopped.

100s, probably. Enough, anyway.

I think thats the point,generally speaking thai kaoroke bars are for thais only unless you are invited by a thai then its ok,i would love to go to them.

It's not an issue at all. Honestly all are welcome.

I think the "segregation" has more to do with preference. Preference in the format of the establishment, preference for the type of girls and interaction and so on. But that doesn't mean that on occasion it's very fun for both a Thai guy to visit a Western-aimed gogo bar (especially if its a good one) or for a Farang guy to visit a Thai place. I personally enjoy that a lot on occasion.

Also, note that in other places in Thailand you do find gogo bars where predominantly Thai people go. Still the atmosphere is a bit different; darker, mostly, and just less casual and fun. That said I also once visited a kind of hybrid form of a typical Thai singalong restaurant that included several stages with very wilde gogo style dancing. (So, actually, much wilder than the typical gogo shuffle to be more correct). Place served great food too, and that really was a lot of fun. And then of course there's the Coyote dancing type bars; not sure if those qualify as gogos but in format they're pretty close.

Note: All of this discussion is on *entertainment* places and the types that different groups of people like to visit for a night out, such as singalongs, karaokes, a-gogo's.. Really quite separate from a prostitution discussion which is not the focus or topic of this discussion.

Chiangmaikelly : THANK YOU for writing that!! Most interesting thing I read on this forum in .. . ... in a long time.

Excellent.. call the post 'Cold Beer' instead of 'Which gogo sells cheap beer' so stay under the radar of the head mistress....

Like trying to get fur off a rat.. Honestly it's much cheaper and faster to get a better builder to finish the wall.

Oh and in general when you deal with a new builder/contractor that you don't have experience with: BE THERE.

Let's wait and see if the farang poo ying are still alive in the morning. Cause that most certainly seems to be a function of some of the tourist police..