Thailand looks to India for new wave of high spending senior citizen tourists

[micmichd]

14 minutes ago, Spidey said:

Indians wander around everywhere, constantly pointing their phones at everything, so I guess he was behaving like a native. Sahib just means "man" or "Mister". Not specifically used for tourists.

 

The vlog is part of a series Harald Badar did on his trip to India. Very informative.

I have been in India (without a camera), I know what Sahib means. 

Harald Badar could at least have asked for permission to make a movie. Anyway, he obviously made his movie in the overcrowded bazaar.

[Spidey]

1 minute ago, micmichd said:

I have been in India (without a camera), I know what Sahib means. 

Harald Badar could at least have asked for permission to make a movie. Anyway, he obviously made his movie in the overcrowded bazaar.

If you watch the vlog you will see that he did ask. Also, asked a couple of guys to hold his camera, which they did enthusiastically.

[micmichd]

21 minutes ago, Spidey said:

If you watch the vlog you will see that he did ask. Also, asked a couple of guys to hold his camera, which they did enthusiastically.

Then everything is oK. A little bit of hassle is normal in a foreign country. Please forgive me, I didn't have time to watch the whole vlog.

[Spidey]

5 minutes ago, micmichd said:

Then everything is oK. A little bit of hassle is normal in a foreign country. Please forgive me, I didn't have time to watch the whole vlog.

I watched the whole blog, title was click bait really, he didn't get that much hassle. He has done a lot of good vlogs on Thailand too. My experience of India was that you get more hassle than, say Thailand, but I've been to countries where you get more hassle.

 

A very different experience for women travelling in India.

[micmichd]

14 minutes ago, Father Fintan Stack said:

Same here.

 

My factual observations about Thais not liking Indians or Indian food are apparently racist though, 

Maybe the "nose factor" (the smell of Indian curries) 

There are open air restaurants in Thailand, though, with mixed menus. 

[Spidey]

Just now, Father Fintan Stack said:

Same here.

 

My factual observations about Thais not liking Indians or Indian food are apparently racist though, 

Thais are unequivocally racist. Others call it "xenophobic". Like many things in Thailand, you learn to live with it. When I first came to Thailand, I did pull my wife up when she made racist comments. Her comments on Cambodians, a people I love, are foul. I soon learned that I was banging my head on a brick wall. It just passes over me now.

 

Our observations on their racism, doesn't make us racists. I think? 555

[fforest1]

54 minutes ago, Father Fintan Stack said:

Strange.

 

There were posters on here very vehement that Thais loved Indians and Indian food especially.

 

????

Pattaya is over run with Indian restaurants.....I have NEVER seen one Thai eating in a Indian restaurant ever NOT ONE except for when a Thai girl was dragged in by a farang......Also the Indian restaurants are all pretty expensive,I guess thats why they are mostly empty...

[tlandtday]

19 hours ago, Nyezhov said:

I dont know about that, our Marines (arguably the best "regular" infantrymen in the world) speak very highly of the Thai Marines. Back in the old days, Charlie was petrified of the Thai and Koreans, just like the Germans were petrified by the Senegalese in WWI and just like everyone is a skeered of the Ghurkas.

 

I was nailing this Hmong girl in AK and ended up at a Hmong-fest. Ill never forget the old Hmong guy still wearing his old junglies (well worn and patched up ones anyway) proudly showing me his CIA ID card and a picture of him holding two severed heads with a smile, Me Kill VC, Me good soldier. Met another Hmong or Mien guy like that too.

 

I have said time and time again that Americans are special in  Thailand. Those who pull the strings here are deeply tied to the USA. They know how much the USA paid to make them a real country. The regular folks just know that Americans are rich and friendly and like to spend money and that we basically made their nation what is is today. 

Where are your facts from?  Charlie scared of thais?  germans scared of sengalese?  And I can tell you America was special at one time but that has quickly been forgotten as the Junta has jumped in bed with the Chinese. 

[Number 6]

Thailand's attempt to lure Indian money here is a fail. Indians are super cheap, need to bargain for everything, need their own food as they are generally strict vegetarians. They often drag their cookware all over the subcontinent while traveling. The rupee is in the toilet and may never recover. That's middle class Indian families.

 

Having said that traveling in India even for locals must be nasty and unpleasant. My hunch is even somewhat confrontational Thais are still more pleasant than Indian hotel and restaurant, transport and tour guides. So Indians imo will travel here just for the cleanliness and the chill factor despite us seeing neither anymore. It's relative. Travel in India is a nightmare. I mean... Pattaya draws them in drives. Think about that.

 

Then they 20-60 males. Many single and cannot afford a wife or middle class and just waiting for parents to hook them up more properly than in past. Some are cool, educated, decent jobs. At the same time, they are drawn to the charms of lighter skin, shapely Thai women. There's no shortage of hookers in India!

 

So, with 1++ billion people, there will be interest.

 

The question is can you get many of them to return? I think this will be the greatest mistake of all. It's not easy to find work in India. Many middle class families will be ok with sending 15k a month to their sons here just to hang out. They do some internet monkey business and make another 8-10k. Notice this lot favors urban areas like Bangkok and Pattaya. Bangkok is not a long stay tourist destination. It's a few temples and this and that and done. They also integrate into local Indian business and work menial jobs and are involved in the peripheries of mafia.

[MisterPenguin]

34 minutes ago, Father Fintan Stack said:

Same here.

 

My factual observations about Thais not liking Indians or Indian food are apparently racist though, 

Yes. well, 'racist' is one of those convenient labels which help a particular class of observer to feel all enlightened and superior without actually being either, or indeed (in most cases) particularly smart. Forums (including TVF) occasionally use 'racism' to delete posts when it doesn't like the posts but has no real legitimate reason to disallow them; it's a failing of management. This and other behavioural oddities account for it's currently parlous position. When the boat starts to sink, it takes quite a lot to reverse the process, or so I've found, and deciding to sail in a different pond or changing boathouse never quite seem to help very much.

 

Go figure.

[tlandtday]

Let's get real with TAT and their spending claims.  My personal observations after being in Thailand a number of years is the average Chinese, Russian and Indian spend from 1-2000 baht per day and this is inclusive of hotels, meals and prebooked excursions.  As an example I was at a local market the other day frequented by Russians and saw many a table with Chang bottles purchased from 711.  Now these tourists are preferred to Westerners who I estimate spend around 3-5000 per day if not more.  Does this surprise anyone that TAT could be so stupid as to prefer a 3:1 ratio to achieve the same result with increased pressure on an already inadequate infrastructure.

[MisterPenguin]

15 minutes ago, Number 6 said:

The question is can you get many of them to return?

Spot on.That is the only important question, perhaps with the word 'regularly' appended.

[MisterPenguin]

23 minutes ago, tlandtday said:

Where are your facts from?  Charlie scared of thais?  germans scared of sengalese?  And I can tell you America was special at one time but that has quickly been forgotten as the Junta has jumped in bed with the Chinese. 

America stopped being usefully 'special' some time ago but the myth lives on... the lights are flickering out one by one in the shining city on the hill. Everyone in the world can see it except the residents.

[marcusarelus]

36 minutes ago, fforest1 said:

Pattaya is over run with Indian restaurants.....I have NEVER seen one Thai eating in a Indian restaurant ever NOT ONE except for when a Thai girl was dragged in by a farang......Also the Indian restaurants are all pretty expensive,I guess thats why they are mostly empty...

Gaggan is a restaurant run by chef Gaggan Anand (Indian guy) in Bangkok, Thailand. In 2018, it comes top of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants for the fourth consecutive year in the list of The World's 50 Best Restaurants edited by Restaurant, ranking 7th overall worldwide serving ‘progressive Indian cuisine.  He has run for 10 years and opened other restaurants in Bangkok and is now moving to Japan.  I think the point is if one serves good Indian food it will work in Thailand.  I've seen Thai people in Indian restaurants all over Thailand. 

[tlandtday]

18 minutes ago, MisterPenguin said:

America stopped being usefully 'special' some time ago but the myth lives on... the lights are flickering out one by one in the shining city on the hill. Everyone in the world can see it except the residents.

I think anyone who tries to colonize the world will eventually be exposed whether it is the British Empire, the USA or currently China.

[RJRS1301]

19 hours ago, Nyezhov said:

I dont know about that, our Marines (arguably the best "regular" infantrymen in the world) speak very highly of the Thai Marines. Back in the old days, Charlie was petrified of the Thai and Koreans, just like the Germans were petrified by the Senegalese in WWI and just like everyone is a skeered of the Ghurkas.

 

I was nailing this Hmong girl in AK and ended up at a Hmong-fest. Ill never forget the old Hmong guy still wearing his old junglies (well worn and patched up ones anyway) proudly showing me his CIA ID card and a picture of him holding two severed heads with a smile, Me Kill VC, Me good soldier. Met another Hmong or Mien guy like that too.

 

I have said time and time again that Americans are special in  Thailand. Those who pull the strings here are deeply tied to the USA. They know how much the USA paid to make them a real country. The regular folks just know that Americans are rich and friendly and like to spend money and that we basically made their nation what is is today. 

The Thai nationals assisted so many Australian and British troops on the building of the Thai Burma railway, risked their own lives to assist allied soldiers.

[RJRS1301]

14 hours ago, ravip said:

Absolutely correct!

Certainly correct, but most countries who colonised other nations did the same thing.

Indian civil servants perfected the "@corruption @" and continue to exploit not only foreigners   but also their own,no biases where gold is concerned

[fforest1]

11 minutes ago, marcusarelus said:

Gaggan is a restaurant run by chef Gaggan Anand (Indian guy) in Bangkok, Thailand. In 2018, it comes top of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants for the fourth consecutive year in the list of The World's 50 Best Restaurants edited by Restaurant, ranking 7th overall worldwide serving ‘progressive Indian cuisine.  He has run for 10 years and opened other restaurants in Bangkok and is now moving to Japan.  I think the point is if one serves good Indian food it will work in Thailand.  I've seen Thai people in Indian restaurants all over Thailand. 

LOL......Ok if there are any Thai Visa members who have ever seen any Thai people in a Indian restaurant in Thailand in your entire life please speak up.....crickets chirping...lol......Also the oddball Thai woman dragged in by a farang does not count....

[RJRS1301]

Looks like the farang have really got their knickers in a twist over this one:)

[Kasane]

On ‎3‎/‎18‎/‎2019 at 7:46 AM, fforest1 said:

Thailand had loads of high spending westerners for decades until they decided to trade them in for millions of zero dollar Chinese tourist.. 

High spending westerners go to Zurich. Many westerners who cannot afford to live in their own country show up here for cheap meds, super easy life, and an  escape from being monitored in their own countries.   

[Nyezhov]

58 minutes ago, tlandtday said:

American soldiers scared of thais?  germans scared of sengalese?

A little history lesson for you and your Liker.

 

1. Who said American soldiers were scared of Thais? I said Charlie. Don't you know what Charlie means? Once you figure that out, get back to me on that issue.

 

2. May I direct you to Memoirs of the Maelstrom: A Senegalese Oral History of the First World War (Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1999). Or google Senegalese in WW1 if you dont care to deeply read.

 

Au revoir

[marcusarelus]

44 minutes ago, MisterPenguin said:

America stopped being usefully 'special' some time ago but the myth lives on... the lights are flickering out one by one in the shining city on the hill. Everyone in the world can see it except the residents.

Thailand kicked the Americans out in 1975.  PS why do you think so many Americans leave America?  6 million living outside of America. 

[Kasane]

1 hour ago, Spidey said:

Thais are unequivocally racist. Others call it "xenophobic". Like many things in Thailand, you learn to live with it. When I first came to Thailand, I did pull my wife up when she made racist comments. Her comments on Cambodians, a people I love, are foul. I soon learned that I was banging my head on a brick wall. It just passes over me now.

 

Our observations on their racism, doesn't make us racists. I think? 555

My experience too. Racism is rampant here. 

[tlandtday]

8 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

A little history lesson for you and your Liker.

 

1. Who said American soldiers were scared of Thais? I said Charlie. Don't you know what Charlie means? Once you figure that out, get back to me on that issue.

 

2. May I direct you to Memoirs of the Maelstrom: A Senegalese Oral History of the First World War (Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1999). Or google Senegalese in WW1 if you dont care to deeply read.

 

Au revoir

Nothing like oral histories for proof especially from a country making claims. And if you look at my post it should read Charlie scared of Thais... where is this from another "oral history"?

[mokwit]

Just now, marcusarelus said:

Thailand kicked the Americans out in 1975.  PS why do you think so many Americans leave America?  6 million living outside of America. 

Interestingly the 1979 Immigration act with retirement extension dates from shortly after - US had 50,000 people in Thailand and a lot of apartments were built for rental ( swimming pool and named xxx Court). Standing empty with the the 5 year hold off on foreclosure coming closer. Seemed they somehow wanted retirees then - now they don't so out we go.

[Kasane]

2 hours ago, Spidey said:

Until they get knocked off their feet and gang banged by a gang of Indian men, who are then not prosecuted because "she asked for it". Welcome to the real world of India.

Or be praying peacefully in a temple and be massacred by a racist white supremacist.

[mokwit]

Just now, Kasane said:

Or be praying peacefully in a temple and be massacred by a racist white supremacist.

Or be enjoying yourself in a nightclub or concert and be gunned down/blown up by a religious fanatic.

 

 

[Nyezhov]

20 minutes ago, tlandtday said:

Nothing like oral histories for proof 

Whatever dude, with that silliness, I hereby disengage, I dont engage in intellectual wars with unarmed opponents.

 

Peace out, Ja Irie

[tlandtday]

6 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

Whatever dude, with that silliness, I hereby disengage, I dont engage in intellectual wars with unarmed opponents.

 

Peace out, Ja Irie

If this were a think tank you would most definitely be in the shallow end.  Oral history roflmao.

[marcusarelus]

42 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

A little history lesson for you and your Liker.

 

1. Who said American soldiers were scared of Thais? I said Charlie. Don't you know what Charlie means? Once you figure that out, get back to me on that issue.

 

Give him a little help.  victor charlie.