2 hours ago, thedemon said:

 

Yes. It was on Petchaburi Rd, down a short drive way on the northern side. I think it was on the stretch between Asoke and Thonglor, not too far from the Siam Hotel.

 

Funny, I haven't given that place a thought for probably 20 years. I assume it is long gone.

Same owner as Miami Hotel 'Mad Dog'/'Sia Tang' to the Thais. Also Miami Villa and Miami Apartment. at same location. Stilll going strong and they built a new one a few years ago.

7 hours ago, Denim said:

Another GI hotel still open is the Reno opposite MBK. Can't think of any others.

There's a few more listed here. Rajah is mostly gone now, though Nana Hotel up the soi is another one that should be on the list.

 

http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/2017/11/24/bangkoks-1960s-retro-cool-hotels-live-photos/

25 minutes ago, lamyai3 said:

There's a few more listed here. Rajah is mostly gone now, though Nana Hotel up the soi is another one that should be on the list.

 

http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/2017/11/24/bangkoks-1960s-retro-cool-hotels-live-photos/

At the back of the Florida hotel shown , there used to be a well know Isaan restaurant / entertainment venue. Got dragged in there a few times.

Not many GI hotels left.
 
I was sad to see the Rex go fairly recently. Used to stay there a lot. But I was pleasantly surprised to bump into the former receptionist at the VS hotel up on Rattanathibet hotel. We remembered each other despite not meeting for 10 years.
 
Another GI hotel still open is the Reno opposite MBK. Can't think of any others.
 
Even the Liberty up at Sapan Kwai is now gone along with its huge beds. Like to know who got the statue of liberty out front. Would look pretty neat in the back garden.
 
Did anybody ever stay at the Dorchester near Khao Sahn?

Have used the Reno for many years, great location.

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On 3/10/2018 at 10:36 AM, johng said:

Does anyone remember
"Miami Mansions" and its location ?

Petchaburi Road, I lived there for a while.

Still there much the same, well up to last time I had a look in 2015.

Miami was 1st hotel I stayed in about 1984, and a friend stayed there last week.

 

8 hours ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

Petchaburi Road, I lived there for a while.

does this look familiar ?  is that the Mansions next door to the residence ?

https://www.google.co.th/maps/place/Miami+Apartment,+Khwaeng+Makkasan,+Khet+Ratchathewi,+Krung+Thep+Maha+Nakhon+10400/@13.7511233,100.558821,3a,71.8y,174.13h,103.77t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sBTTh_inEGNPS_poLlxA6Jg!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x30e29eeea6743751:0xa53b330123ba709a?gl=th

 

From memory that (the beige one on the left) is Miami Villa, Miami Mansion is behind that

 

 

This looks familiar to me !  I remember the TV for rent shop they also had  VCR's and a small selection of films.

 

 

https://www.google.co.th/maps/uv?gl=th&authuser=0&pb=!1s0x30e29eeea5dc79bd%3A0x1d1f3a90d3b96901&hl=en&imagekey=!1e10!2sAF1QipMudws9dTCwvOeYz1aPtwXM2SJAjjQGuTXJNcNi

1 minute ago, johng said:

 

 

This looks familiar to me !  I remember the TV for rent shop they also had  VCR's and a small selection of films.

 

 

https://www.google.co.th/maps/uv?gl=th&authuser=0&pb=!1s0x30e29eeea5dc79bd%3A0x1d1f3a90d3b96901&hl=en&imagekey=!1e10!2sAF1QipMudws9dTCwvOeYz1aPtwXM2SJAjjQGuTXJNcNi

That is Miami Mansion.

On 10/3/2561 at 10:31 AM, smotherb said:

The THB to USD rates were in the 20 to 1 range in the 1970's, do some research

Yup, a nickel a tical (tcs).  Guess that dates me too.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tical is an archaic unit of mass and currency which may refer to:

• The Thai baht, formerly known to foreigners as the tical
• The baht as a unit of mass; see Thai units of measurement

Stayed there in the mid 90's. What a dump. You get what you pay for!!

Old Chinese dragon lady at reception was a <deleted> rude bitch.  I'm normally very polite to service staff but in her case I made an exception. 

Elvis Presley impersonator from the States checked in at the same time as me. Well known by staff as he stayed there every year.

On 3/11/2018 at 10:36 AM, thedemon said:

 

Yes. It was on Petchaburi Rd, down a short drive way on the northern side. I think it was on the stretch between Asoke and Thonglor, not too far from the Siam Hotel.

 

Funny, I haven't given that place a thought for probably 20 years. I assume it is long gone.

Not so far up sorry. It was and still is about 300m from Nana Nua (soi 3) towards Asoke on the north side. It's down a small alleyway.

 

On 3/12/2018 at 10:04 PM, OneZero said:

Yup, a nickel a tical (tcs).  Guess that dates me too.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tical is an archaic unit of mass and currency which may refer to:

• The Thai baht, formerly known to foreigners as the tical
• The baht as a unit of mass; see Thai units of measurement

Must date you quite a bit. If I'm not mistaken the name of Thailand (from Siam) and its money's name changed in 1932 or thereabouts, after the Monarchy changed to constitutional and "democracy" was introduced....

I expect people still called it the Tical for a while though, and books from or about that time call it that.

Of course "Tickle" is a euphemism for a bribe in English slang, so maybe they still use it?

 

 

On 3/12/2018 at 8:44 AM, johng said:

does this look familiar ?  is that the Mansions next door to the residence ?

https://www.google.co.th/maps/place/Miami+Apartment,+Khwaeng+Makkasan,+Khet+Ratchathewi,+Krung+Thep+Maha+Nakhon+10400/@13.7511233,100.558821,3a,71.8y,174.13h,103.77t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sBTTh_inEGNPS_poLlxA6Jg!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x30e29eeea6743751:0xa53b330123ba709a?gl=th

 

This picture is either an odd angle or not of the same place. Miami Apartments is at the front at the end of a little alleyway. The newer buildings (Mansions and Villa) are behind with a few other (old) apartment buildings.

The next pictures are the front of Miami Mansions see below.

On 3/12/2018 at 8:56 AM, johng said:

 

 

This looks familiar to me !  I remember the TV for rent shop they also had  VCR's and a small selection of films.

 

 

https://www.google.co.th/maps/uv?gl=th&authuser=0&pb=!1s0x30e29eeea5dc79bd%3A0x1d1f3a90d3b96901&hl=en&imagekey=!1e10!2sAF1QipMudws9dTCwvOeYz1aPtwXM2SJAjjQGuTXJNcNi

This looks like the front of Mansions and you walk through to Villa.

I can read the sign on the other picture, but it is a strange angle unless they knocked something down recently.

On 3/12/2018 at 10:04 PM, OneZero said:

Yup, a nickel a tical (tcs).  Guess that dates me too.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tical is an archaic unit of mass and currency which may refer to:

• The Thai baht, formerly known to foreigners as the tical
• The baht as a unit of mass; see Thai units of measurement

Update:

Very confusing. Depends what you read.

Some say it was slang for Asian money, others say it was changed to satang in 1928.

If you find some thing definitive please let me know.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Thai_money

 

 

Stayed there about 6 years ago with some mates. Very odd place. Some absolute weirdos in there. 

 

Great location though. 

On 3/15/2018 at 5:10 AM, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

Update:

Very confusing. Depends what you read.

Some say it was slang for Asian money, others say it was changed to satang in 1928.

If you find some thing definitive please let me know.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Thai_money

 

 

The Asian money slang might relate to the origin Malay word tikal, but it was the Thai currency prior to 1928. This is the definition of tical from the Collins dictionary:

 

"The former standard monetary unit of Thailand, replaced by the baht in 1928. a unit of weight, formerly used in Thailand, equal to about half an ounce or 14 grams. Word origin of 'tical' C17: via Siamese and Portuguese from Malay 'tikal' - monetary unit." 

In the book A Woman Of Bangkok, written and set in the 1950's, all reference to money is Tics or Ticals so it was still well in common usage then.

21 hours ago, Shaksey said:

In the book A Woman Of Bangkok, written and set in the 1950's, all reference to money is Tics or Ticals so it was still well in common usage then.

Thanks, I was wondering in what context I'd read it, must have been here. Classic novel, a Thai answer to The World of Suzie Wong, and in fact published a year earlier. 

On 3/11/2018 at 7:50 PM, andy said:

Miami Hotel!  Used to stay here off and on the first few trips I had in BKK, as it was the only cheap-ish hotel near the Skytrain with a pool.  Skytrain was around a year old my first time there I think.  It was fairly run down then, I can't imagine it is still around now unless it has been re-furbed? I remember crashing there for about a week after a 4 month trip through Southeast Asia and it seemed downright luxurious compared to some of the places I stayed in in Laos, Cambodia, and rural Thailand.

 

On 3/15/2018 at 10:04 AM, BobbyL said:

Stayed there about 6 years ago with some mates. Very odd place. Some absolute weirdos in there. 

 

Great location though. 

I've stayed there when in Bangkok for the last 15 years or so. In fact, I was there for a couple of nights last week. It has been undergoing a (slow) rolling programme of refurbishment for the last couple of years, it is clean and comfortable if somewhat dated - but then so am I!

 

It has (top floor and towards the front) rooms which are available for permanent let - around ThB 8000 a month plus utilities; and yes, they do seem to have some weirdos living in them!

 

According to one member of staff I chatted to, people regularly drop by, offering to buy the place. The owner won't sell though - although given its location and potential for redevelopment I should imagine it is worth a fortune.

 

I like it.

 

Stayed there a few nights in early 90s. Thermae lol.

Do they still have the vinyl mattresses? 

Nice post. Back in the day it was an 'interesting ' hotel.  Now just tourist junk not junkies!