THE WEEK THAT WAS Stick up for yourself in Thailand - remember the customer is sometimes right!

[BostonRob2]

3 hours ago, fredscats said:

Now Now Rooster,this is known,all of it in greater detail than even you could realise,its when some newly arrived nutter arrives just off the banana boat and puts his own spin on events that upsets the apple cart

 

anyway  "up noorf"  UK you sound like,from my immediate neighbourhood too

Rooster hails from Kent.

[spidermike007]

44 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

Amazed their is a French restaurant there. When I was there in 1993, one restaurant gave me a 'special' mushroom omelette  that was rather expensive.  It wasn't very nice, but I never complained as the owner had little horns which made him look like Lucifer. 

Actually there are two French restaurants on Phangan now, as well as some good Italian food too. It has become a very nice place, with alot of good food. Avoid the French restaurant on the north coast. Food is ok, nothing more than that. And the owner is surly and arrogant. And if you order a bad bottle of wine, you are stuck with it!

[BostonRob2]

1 hour ago, George Aylesham said:

 

Me too. Sunday is a relaxed day and you have to the time to absorb more than just a soundbite (or wordbite).

That's comforting.....with all these complaints about Rooster's length I was beginning to worry that my ex girlfriends were right after all. 

[rumak]

ouch........so many upset readers.    seems like times are changing,  and many here are ready to grab the cock by it's head and pull

Edited October 3, 2021 by rumak

[Neeranam]

14 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

And if you order a bad bottle of wine, you are stuck with it!

Personally, when I travel to a new country, I respect the culture. Complaining about a bottle of wine is not a Thai thing; if you buy one, it is at your own risk. 

[Neeranam]

16 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Actually there are two French restaurants on Phangan now, as well as some good Italian food too. It has become a very nice place, with alot of good food. Avoid the French restaurant on the north coast. Food is ok, nothing more than that. And the owner is surly and arrogant. And if you order a bad bottle of wine, you are stuck with it!

Is the owner French or Thai?

[473geo]

Good read Rooster, I fall into the let the wife sort it category.

 

Small bank letter issue at my first immigration year extension application, so a quick trip back to the Bank to rectify. A few minutes of discussion then my wife calls the immigration officer. Hands the phone to the bank manager. Discussion as to what would be acceptable all sorted.

 

Edited October 3, 2021 by 473geo

[Almer]

2 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

 

 

Ditto. if you married a Thai with a backbone there is rarely need to bother with this sort of nonsense, just let her lose to sort it out, mine will not stand for any <deleted>, daft excuses, poor service or wrong prices etc ????

Ditto, when my Mrs launch’s  into a complaint i cower in the corner as I know she is bound to win, comes with living in the UK for X years

[ThLT]

2 hours ago, Neeranam said:

Integrity has no monetary value. 

If you want to fight teeth and nails get back 20฿, that's not "having integrity."

That's having no self-respect, for yourself and for your own time.

 

 

 

Edited October 3, 2021 by ThLT

[sambum]

"Hilariously, band members have to wear masks though the vocalist can abstain while singing."

 

Almost as funny as the fact that the number of musicians is limited to 5! (FIVE!) As if a quintet is less likely to spread Covid than a sextet, or octet!

 

Also, what if the music requires "Vocing backalists"? (As I once drunkenly/(stonedly?) described my self to a journalist who asked me if I could sing as well as play guitar!)

 

 

Edited October 3, 2021 by sambum

[Doctor Tom]

3 hours ago, Flying Saucage said:

Great piece Rooster, thanks!

 

Could be twice the length for me. ????

You need to get out more mate 

[spidermike007]

1 hour ago, Neeranam said:

Is the owner French or Thai?

French. Very much so! 

[spidermike007]

1 hour ago, Neeranam said:

Personally, when I travel to a new country, I respect the culture. Complaining about a bottle of wine is not a Thai thing; if you buy one, it is at your own risk. 

I think what you are saying is, don't expect good customer service here, so just surrender if there is an issue. Sorry, it is a concept I will never embrace. 

[spidermike007]

1 hour ago, Neeranam said:

Is the owner French or Thai?

And being French, and running a high end restaurant, he knows better. So, I put the refusal to take the bottle back, the refusal to offer us another comparably priced bottle and the general attitude, to equate to a scam operation, on his part. 

[BaiLao]

2 hours ago, BostonRob2 said:

A salary.

Paid per word...

[elcaro]

Great intro with great advice, one of your best imho 

[Mark mark]

"In such situations I have always relied on my two serious advantages - firstly I am NOT Thai and secondly I can speak Thai quite well.

 

I’ve read all the guidebooks about keeping your cool. But I always disagree in part because I am not Thai and never will be.

 

The trick is to realise this is in your favor not detrimental to your righteous cause. Play up to it. 

 

I’m expected to lose my rag. When I do - in a controlled manner - and when I use language that is appropriate for the situation (okay a little fruity) I invariably get my own way. 

 

One of my favorites is to intimate that I am Thai (while obviously looking and sounding anything but) and claiming that "rao pen khon Thai duay gan" (we're all in this together).

 

Thais in the vicinity are often on the verge of applause rather than critical. They won't actually clap by me! How they'd love to!

 

They wish they could be me!! But they can’t, they have to be Thai. Poor old downtrodden them! Not my problem.

 

Displaying a bit of controlled anger is a wonderful tactic and one that people expect of a foreigner. Don’t slip into the “it’s better where I come from” argument, however. Compare Thai with Thai. Like with like. 

 

No “Barclays is better than Bangkok Bank” or “Sainsbury’s is better than Lotus” - compare Thai banks with rivals and stores in Thailand with their competitors. Compare yesteryear's service with today's fiasco.

 

Stick up for yourself. Even if your Thai language capability is not the best, that can actually be a side issue to insistence and good body language. "

 

Yes ! Right on Rooster !!! ... Good Boots on the ground Common Sense here !!! and I will give Thanks from all those that might need a bit of advice like this !!! ... And have the humility to read and understand it.  ....  (Hopefully I will be able to get back in to the country a bit Easier pretty soon !!! ??? ...  So that I then will be able to continue to use this approach my self.) ...

[EVENKEEL]

[Naamblar2014]

6 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Yes, I want to speak to the owner of Central right now about this, yes I need to immediately talk with the chairman of SCB, or whatever.

Pure gold... ????

[geisha]

6 hours ago, Maha Sarakham said:

Way too long of a post.  Try breaking it up into more readable sections.

Really! Rooster works for the News Team and it’s a Weekly update . What the hell do you expect, 3 lines ?

[terryofcrete]

6 hours ago, Gandtee said:

The durian ice cream sounds tasty. 99 Baht is not to be sniffed at.????

Well it's 40/45 baht for a Magnum choc-ice.... that yummy Svensons one sounds a better deal for 100baht... 

[Old Croc]

I had trouble getting past the headline on the newsletter.

 

American man arrested for rape of massage worker in Khon Kaen; Stick up for yourself in Thailand - the customer can be right!

[Speedhump]

7 hours ago, ezzra said:

What is it that compel people to write a mile long post? too long and winded for Sunday morning...

It's 'long-winded', not 'long and winded'. ????

[Speedhump]

6 hours ago, HAPPYNUFF said:

My wife     had bought  a pair of reading glasses from a well kn own Optometrists shop previously, so I went along to get  new frames  fitted to an old   pair of my glasses.      paid over 2000 baht,    couldnt get a set with  side hinges.

Within 3 months    end of one arm  fell off, snapped   in half    Back to the shop, which  had assured me    my purchase had a 12 month warranty.    "Oh yes"   said the manager,   "warranty covered, I give you address of manufacturer in Bangkok, you take  them there, they fix"      As I live in Nakhon nowhere, my reply was   "You see my face  now, because you will never see it again.:"     and walked out...  Wife later went to local provincial hospital that has  optometrist, b ought    better   pair, with hinges, for 800 baht.  Dont get  angry, just    deprive them of any future  sales/profit.

But they still have your money ????????????

[clivebaxter]

4 hours ago, Pravda said:

I miss danaboutthailand tidbits. They were much shorter and would always provoke reaction.

Two  most amusing writers here were Bangkok Phil and Andrew Biggs IMO, oh and Andrew Drummond for the gutter stuff.

[paulikens]

7 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Much of this pie-in-the-sky will depend on Russians. Yutthasak needs to stop plucking figures from the ether and make sure there is plenty of vodka on tap. He could even try and get restaurants and bars open to serve it.

that's why they're aiming for the Russian market because they don't go in bars, the tight gits.

[Speedhump]

4 hours ago, BostonRob2 said:

Rooster hails from Kent.

It's just his attitude to money that seems to come from Yorkshire? 

[Speedhump]

54 minutes ago, terryofcrete said:

Well it's 40/45 baht for a Magnum choc-ice.... that yummy Svensons one sounds a better deal for 100baht... 

Did you miss the inferred joke about the smell of durian?... Whoosh! ????

Edited October 3, 2021 by Speedhump
Speeling

[BostonRob2]

3 hours ago, rumak said:

ouch........so many upset readers.    seems like times are changing,  and many here are ready to grab the cock by it's head and pull

Nonsense! The 'likes' are a clear indication that Rooster's "adoring public" remains loyal. ????

[rumak]

Just now, BostonRob2 said:

Nonsense! The 'likes' are a clear indication that Rooster's "adoring public" remains loyal. ????

Well, yes BR ...... the cock certainly does have some adoring hens as well.    coooo cooooooo