Pattaya Pride! Pattaya Has Arrived.

[JRinger]

:D

s (better than Bangkok). I would bet big money on Pattaya now, we have a nice ocean view and air you can breathe!

Unfortunately, the ocean is far too polluted to swim in. But if you want to pay inflated prices for the 'view only', ok.

There is so much traffic now that you have to get up before the sun to go to Villa to buy groceries.

The beach road is always backed up from North Pattaya to Jomtien and probably more accidents on the road then Bangkok. It is, and will always be a sh!t hole. More gay bars popping up all the time with little boys in tennis shoes and white socks standing or sitting in front waving and yelling at you, overpriced beer, rude and greedy shop owners, etc., etc.

Edited October 20, 2007 by JRinger

[intumult]

Yes, REAL art galleries. Have you spent any time in Pattaya outside the supeficial first impressions?

Find some other city to trash, Pattaya is on the up.

<a href="http://www.pattayapeople.com/default.asp?F...;IdArticle=7931" target="_blank">http://www.pattayapeople.com/default.asp?F...;IdArticle=7931</a>

Pattaya fashion shows are focused on nightlife and beach fashions, as apt for a COSMOPOLITAN beach and party time resort. With the Russians coming (they have already come) the crowd is becoming much younger.

I agree that the third definition, worldwide relevance, does not really apply as yet, but that is the third level definition of cosmopolitan. For the first and second levels, COSMOPOLITAN PATTAYA is spot on and exactly what Pattaya is. Surely, you know Bangkokians have been coming to Pattaya for years to enjoy moderately priced European food, very hard to find in Bangkok.

I live in Pattaya. I have met other people who like me live here who come from many of the great cities of the world. Yet, they chose Pattaya and they are glad they did. Perhaps, bashers, you might have a closer look?

The only 'UP' in Pattaya is the p*ssy you pay for - unles you are a ladyboy the the ass is the up you pay for

[kmart]

I quite like Pattaya for its lack of pretension. Its a "one stop shop" for shopping, cheap sex, and booze.

I'd hate to be stuck behind bus-loads of art aficianos when I'm trying to get to Soi Yodsak with a hard-on.

[Heng]

Most cosmopolitan? Great news to all the Bangkok folks who own most of Pattaya and Cholburi for that matter.

[PanzerJohn]

Not so much a boom town, more of a Boom Boom town!.

[kangeroo]

Yes Pattaya is going ahead it is aready near the prices of Phuket i know now thai are very much taking care of the family and trying to slowly block the single person coming to thai. In the next 5years there will be more families coming to pattaya, probably a good thing .

[taxexile]

promote itself in a way that reflects its new hyper-sophistication.

plain old "sophistication" not hyperbolic enough for pattaya , its got to be "hyper-sophistication" has it.

sophisticated it most certainly isnt.

kmart got it right.

I quite like Pattaya for its lack of pretension. Its a "one stop shop" for shopping, cheap sex, and booze.

pattaya should stick with what it does best which is low rent entertainment for unsophistcated tastes. and like any other group in society , the unsophisticated are entitled to have their needs served.

its a place for brits to come and blow their hard earned benefit cheques when the weather gets too chilly back home , its a place for russians to come and drink and be rude when they are let out of the salt mines for 2 weeks every year , and its a place for overweight northern europeans to come and show off their tattooed torsos and impress the prostitutes with big talk about expensive cheeses and pickled herrings.

..... and its also a place where some of the smarter and more enterprising foreigners and thais can come and easily fleece the unsophisticated arrivals for all they are worth.

with the right frame of mind , it can be a wonderful city to spend a few days in.

pattaya does that admirably.

[Neeranam]

It's hard to imagine something like sexual addiction could ever exist except as a male cliché. Men dream of moving in with a sexy nymphomaniac, while women laugh among themselves that all men are addicts, as evidenced by their inability to stop staring at the Dallas Cowgirls or this week's page 3 girl. The idea of "sex addiction" sounds exactly like something the Fundy Bible Belt pastors would come up with.

But a quick look at Yahoo! for the phrase turns up a staggering number of results, including an entire directory under "Health > Diseases and Conditions". There's a legitimate Sexaholics Anonymous group operating in the United States, along with a "National Council on Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity". Only a fraction of the Yahoo! listings are Christian-specific. It's astonishing, even if you've lived through addiction yourself, only until you realize that sex, both the orgasm and the emotional lift one gets from simple affection, is the most natural high that there is. It's not physically addictive, but the psychological addiction is easy to recognize. And all you need is a free hand and an x-rated magazine or novel to get your daily fix.

The idea of sexual addiction hadn't come to my mind for a long time until I read a news brief in the daily paper the other day, about a man who saw two children playing in their backyard and was so overcome with the desire to molest them that he went up to their house and demanded entry -- from the still-at-home parents. He was wrestled to the ground and subsequently arrested, but this is just one of the more newsworthy examples. This man wasn't just a pedophile; he was an addict. You'd think he'd at least wait until the parents were gone, or at least farther away, but he couldn't even do that. His impulses completely overrode his common sense.

It's bizarre, really -- not the behavior, but the reactions it brings. Most people don't even think of it as any kind of a problem unless they're staunchly religious or it's causing problems with their marriage. It's difficult, if not impossible, to admit to for two reasons: it's embarassing to say it ("I think I have a problem... I can't stop thinking about sex") and, unlike alcoholism or drug addiction, there's no popular recognition and acceptance of the addiction. It even sounds silly -- we think of alcohol or cocaine as addictive because they're chemical, so how can sex be addictive? (Answer: It's all about the dopamine, baby.)

Why bother with any of this, though? American society has become ridiculously tolerant of eccentric sexual behavior and habits ever since the Sexual Revolution of the 1960s, and Europe is far, far more tolerant than American culture is. The reason is because it is an addiction, a compulsion, and if it's controlling you then you need to take control back from it. Reasons such as religious directives and marital vows are important for certain individuals, of course, but the "control your own mind" (and eyes, and groin) argument is universal.

So when is sexual desire an addiction and when it is merely missed? When does a pornography or a romance novel habit go beyond being a habit? The standard definition of "addiction" requires that the behavior be compulsive, that it controls the person rather than vice versa. If you tell yourself you want to stop, you're going to stop, you will stop, and then can't, you have an addiction. One man will find himself logging on to his favorite Web sites during business hours even though he's been caught doing it eight times already. Another woman might be compelled to go to a local pub or singles bar and spend Friday night with a different man every week. It's essentially the same thing. "Sexual addiction" doesn't mean you're a compulsive rapist, addicted just to the act of intercourse. Any marriage therapist will assure you that sex can and does encompass a lot more than that.

A sex addict confronting or confronted with the idea of addiction will find him or herself going through the five stages just like any other addict: denial, anger, fear, bargaining, and acceptance. Overcoming it is not done by getting married or joining the priesthood, despite the fact that far too many people make these life-changing decisions for exactly this reason. One has to expect and prepare for a good dose of counseling, either a twelve-step program or (preferably) one-on-one, and an even bigger dose of will power and self-control. Then come the major changes. An alcoholic may need to make sure they never enter a pub again, and a "sexaholic" will need to cut off the source of their own habit in the same way.

[Neeranam]

Love addicts are characteristically familiar with desperate hopes and seemingly unending fears. Fearing rejection, pain, unfamiliar experiences, and having little faith in their ability or right to inspire love, they wait, wish, and hope for love, perhaps their least familiar experience.

Addictive sexuality is like most other compulsive behaviors: a potentially destructive twist on a normal life-enhancing activity. Defining sex addiction depends less on the behavior itself than on the person's motivation.

Sex addicts display a lack of the ability to control or postpone sexual feelings and actions. The need for arousal often replaces the need for intimacy. Eventually, thrill seeking becomes more important than family, career, even personal health and safety.

As sexual preoccupation increases in terms of energy and time, the sex addict follows a routine or ritual leading to acting out on desires which is then followed by feelings of denial then shame, despair and confusion.

It may be helpful to examine the definition of addiction more closely. Addiction is characterized by the repeated, compulsive seeking or use of a substance or activity despite adverse social, psychologic and/or physical consequences. Addiction is often (but not always) accompanied by physical dependence, a withdrawal syndrome and tolerance. Physical dependence is defined as a physiologic state of adaptation to a substance, the absence of which produces symptoms and signs of withdrawal.

Withdrawal syndrome consists of a predictable group of signs and symptoms resulting from abrupt removal of, or a rapid decrease in the regular dosage of, a psychoactive substance or activity; the syndrome is often characterized by overactivity of the physiologic functions that were suppressed by the drug and/or depression of the functions that were stimulated by the object of addiction.

Tolerance is a state in which a drug or activity produces a diminishing biologic or behavioral response; in other words, higher doses or in the case of sex addicts, riskier behavior is needed to produce the same effect that the user experienced initially.

Symptoms

For love addicts, love:

Is all consuming and obsessive

Is inhibited

Avoids risk or change

Lacks true intimacy

Is manipulative, strikes deals

Is dependent and parasitic

Demands the loved one's devotion

Sexual addictions usually are revealed in stages:

Preoccupation: continual fantasies about sexual prospects or situations. This can trigger an episode of sexual "acting-out"

Ritualization: a preferred sexual activity or situation is often stereotyped and repetitive

Compulsion: continual engagement in sexual activity despite negative consequences and desire to stop

Despair: guilt or shame over their inability to control behavior or feel remorse

Other behavioral problems, particularly chemical dependency and eating disorders

Causes

In the case of love addicts, often their own growth and development were thwarted earlier in life. Similarly, many sex addicts report some form of abuse or neglect as children and frequently see themselves as diminished or damaged in the process. Their parents are often sex addicts themselves.

Stress also plays a part in fueling compulsive sexual behavior by feeding the addict's need for withdrawal and fantasy.

Levels of phenylethylamine (PEA)—a chemical in the brain involved in the euphoria that comes with falling in love—rise with feelings of infatuation, boosting euphoria and excitement.

Love and sex addicts, may simply be dependent upon the physical and psychological arousal triggered by PEA and stress-related neurotransmitters.

Treatment

If you discover you are in an addictive relationship, you may want to seek professional assistance. Specialized counseling is available for those dealing directly or indirectly with this form of addiction.

[Neeranam]

pattaya should stick with what it does best which is low rent entertainment for unsophistcated tastes. and like any other group in society , the unsophisticated are entitled to have their needs served.

its a place for brits to come and blow their hard earned benefit cheques when the weather gets too chilly back home , its a place for russians to come and drink and be rude when they are let out of the salt mines for 2 weeks every year , and its a place for overweight northern europeans to come and show off their tattooed torsos and impress the prostitutes with big talk about expensive cheeses and pickled herrings.

..... and its also a place where some of the smarter and more enterprising foreigners and thais can come and easily fleece the unsophisticated arrivals for all they are worth.

Well put!

Treatment

If you discover you are in an addictive relationship, you may want to seek professional assistance. Specialized counseling is available for those dealing directly or indirectly with this form of addiction.

You've given me a great idea - sex counseller in Pattaya!

Edited October 20, 2007 by Neeranam

[JimmyTheMook]

Yes, REAL art galleries. Have you spent any time in Pattaya outside the supeficial first impressions?

Find some other city to trash, Pattaya is on the up.

<a href="http://www.pattayapeople.com/default.asp?F...;IdArticle=7931" target="_blank">http://www.pattayapeople.com/default.asp?F...;IdArticle=7931</a>

Pattaya fashion shows are focused on nightlife and beach fashions, as apt for a COSMOPOLITAN beach and party time resort. With the Russians coming (they have already come) the crowd is becoming much younger.

I agree that the third definition, worldwide relevance, does not really apply as yet, but that is the third level definition of cosmopolitan. For the first and second levels, COSMOPOLITAN PATTAYA is spot on and exactly what Pattaya is. Surely, you know Bangkokians have been coming to Pattaya for years to enjoy moderately priced European food, very hard to find in Bangkok.

I live in Pattaya. I have met other people who like me live here who come from many of the great cities of the world. Yet, they chose Pattaya and they are glad they did. Perhaps, bashers, you might have a closer look?

The only 'UP' in Pattaya is the p*ssy you pay for - unles you are a ladyboy the the ass is the up you pay for

The roads leading into Pattaya are jammed packed EVERY weekend with Bangkok folks just waiting for a gander at this sleazy little seaside town.

The town has some serious cash backing it.

[esbobes]

Decided to post this in general, rather than the Pattaya forum.

Pattaya was mentioned in the latest Bangkok-based Big Chili Magazine as ...

"the most cosmopolitan city in Thailand"

God yes, soon there will be the Pattaya Opera house, the Pattaya center of experimental art, and the Pattaya fashion week...

Doubtful on the opera house, but there are art galleries here and when the super big Bangkok style mall opens in 2009, I am sure there will be fashion shows.

I know Bangkok pretty well, and believe it or not, there are things in Pattaya that really give Bangkok a run for the money. Some new things happening here, really good Persian restaurants (better than Bangkok's by far), really good Korean restaurants equal and better than Bangkok, really good Russian restaurants (better than Bangkok). I would bet big money on Pattaya now, we have a nice ocean view and air you can breathe!

The cosmopolitan aspect is reflected by the fact that Pattaya is now a truly INTERNATIONAL city. A much greater percentage of residents and tourists are not Thai. They come from all over the world. That pretty much defines cosmopolitan.

cos·mo·pol·i·tan

adjective

Definition:

1. made up of diverse peoples: composed of or containing people from different countries and cultures

2. showing cultural diversity: showing the influence of many countries and cultures

the city's cosmopolitan atmosphere

3. international in scope: having worldwide relevance or scope

events of national and cosmopolitan importance

BTW, lots of cosmopolitan people like a good shag now and again too! The Big Sleazy is growing on me ...

Of course, these are the early days of the emergence of Pattaya as a great world city. When we finally get Bangkok style TAXI METERS, then it will be official.

Yes Pattaya is become the number ones world city Tony Blair in buying a 25.000.000 house wife his English wife My wife brother who is a lawyer has put a company together for them they are buy not one but 10 Go Go Bars. Welcome aboard the Blairs

[lazeeboy]

The big sleaze?

Well, New Orleans is known as The Big Easy, so why not The Big Sleazy? I know I asked for a non-sexual idea, but that one is kind of playful and ironic.

[keemapoot]

How about this: "The city that never sleeps...alone."

[Jingthing]

How about this: "The city that never sleeps...alone."

Cute, A bit long. Also has the sex only weakness.

Its hard (and totally pointless) to deny the sexual aspect of Pattaya, but increasingly that does not tell the entire story.

So what do people think about The Big Sleazy?

Yes, it sounds sexual, but as it plays on the famous New Orleans The Big Easy (which also suggests both sexual and ethical libertine values with a sort of positive spin), that perhaps gives it a certain edge.

And need I remind you, many great world cities were born on the backs of brothels, San Francisco and Buenos Aires being excellent examples.

Edited October 20, 2007 by Jingthing

[Acquiesce]

CNN's description of Pattaya to the world is 'seedy Thai coastal town'

At a police station in Pattaya, CNN was shown a file of 50 suspected foreign sex offenders believed to be in the Pattaya area. The officer in charge of the district said Neil was their highest priority because of the international attention surrounding him.

But he wasn't really a big fish, this officer said. He said there are many other foreign pedophiles in Pattaya who do much worse.

Yeh cosmopolitan

[stevemiddie]

promote itself in a way that reflects its new hyper-sophistication.

plain old "sophistication" not hyperbolic enough for pattaya , its got to be "hyper-sophistication" has it.

sophisticated it most certainly isnt.

kmart got it right.

I quite like Pattaya for its lack of pretension. Its a "one stop shop" for shopping, cheap sex, and booze.

pattaya should stick with what it does best which is low rent entertainment for unsophistcated tastes. and like any other group in society , the unsophisticated are entitled to have their needs served.

its a place for brits to come and blow their hard earned benefit cheques when the weather gets too chilly back home , its a place for russians to come and drink and be rude when they are let out of the salt mines for 2 weeks every year , and its a place for overweight northern europeans to come and show off their tattooed torsos and impress the prostitutes with big talk about expensive cheeses and pickled herrings.

..... and its also a place where some of the smarter and more enterprising foreigners and thais can come and easily fleece the unsophisticated arrivals for all they are worth.

with the right frame of mind , it can be a wonderful city to spend a few days in.

pattaya does that admirably.

You,re such a class act aren,t you?

[stevemiddie]

CNN's description of Pattaya to the world is 'seedy Thai coastal town'

At a police station in Pattaya, CNN was shown a file of 50 suspected foreign sex offenders believed to be in the Pattaya area. The officer in charge of the district said Neil was their highest priority because of the international attention surrounding him.

But he wasn't really a big fish, this officer said. He said there are many other foreign pedophiles in Pattaya who do much worse.

Yeh cosmopolitan

Yes.............CNN and Usatoday.....................upright and outstanding reporters of everything to be true and unquestionable.

Just like all the cr@p they reported about WMD in Iraq. Spot on .

[stevemiddie]

Love addicts are characteristically familiar with desperate hopes and seemingly unending fears. Fearing rejection, pain, unfamiliar experiences, and having little faith in their ability or right to inspire love, they wait, wish, and hope for love, perhaps their least familiar experience.

Addictive sexuality is like most other compulsive behaviors: a potentially destructive twist on a normal life-enhancing activity. Defining sex addiction depends less on the behavior itself than on the person's motivation.

Sex addicts display a lack of the ability to control or postpone sexual feelings and actions. The need for arousal often replaces the need for intimacy. Eventually, thrill seeking becomes more important than family, career, even personal health and safety.

As sexual preoccupation increases in terms of energy and time, the sex addict follows a routine or ritual leading to acting out on desires which is then followed by feelings of denial then shame, despair and confusion.

It may be helpful to examine the definition of addiction more closely. Addiction is characterized by the repeated, compulsive seeking or use of a substance or activity despite adverse social, psychologic and/or physical consequences. Addiction is often (but not always) accompanied by physical dependence, a withdrawal syndrome and tolerance. Physical dependence is defined as a physiologic state of adaptation to a substance, the absence of which produces symptoms and signs of withdrawal.

Withdrawal syndrome consists of a predictable group of signs and symptoms resulting from abrupt removal of, or a rapid decrease in the regular dosage of, a psychoactive substance or activity; the syndrome is often characterized by overactivity of the physiologic functions that were suppressed by the drug and/or depression of the functions that were stimulated by the object of addiction.

Tolerance is a state in which a drug or activity produces a diminishing biologic or behavioral response; in other words, higher doses or in the case of sex addicts, riskier behavior is needed to produce the same effect that the user experienced initially.

Symptoms

For love addicts, love:

Is all consuming and obsessive

Is inhibited

Avoids risk or change

Lacks true intimacy

Is manipulative, strikes deals

Is dependent and parasitic

Demands the loved one's devotion

Sexual addictions usually are revealed in stages:

Preoccupation: continual fantasies about sexual prospects or situations. This can trigger an episode of sexual "acting-out"

Ritualization: a preferred sexual activity or situation is often stereotyped and repetitive

Compulsion: continual engagement in sexual activity despite negative consequences and desire to stop

Despair: guilt or shame over their inability to control behavior or feel remorse

Other behavioral problems, particularly chemical dependency and eating disorders

Causes

In the case of love addicts, often their own growth and development were thwarted earlier in life. Similarly, many sex addicts report some form of abuse or neglect as children and frequently see themselves as diminished or damaged in the process. Their parents are often sex addicts themselves.

Stress also plays a part in fueling compulsive sexual behavior by feeding the addict's need for withdrawal and fantasy.

Levels of phenylethylamine (PEA)—a chemical in the brain involved in the euphoria that comes with falling in love—rise with feelings of infatuation, boosting euphoria and excitement.

Love and sex addicts, may simply be dependent upon the physical and psychological arousal triggered by PEA and stress-related neurotransmitters.

Treatment

If you discover you are in an addictive relationship, you may want to seek professional assistance. Specialized counseling is available for those dealing directly or indirectly with this form of addiction.

Plagarism??

[keemapoot]

How about this: "The city that never sleeps...alone."

Cute, A bit long. Also has the sex only weakness.

Its hard (and totally pointless) to deny the sexual aspect of Pattaya, but increasingly that does not tell the entire story.

So what do people think about The Big Sleazy?

Yes, it sounds sexual, but as it plays on the famous New Orleans The Big Easy (which also suggests both sexual and ethical libertine values with a sort of positive spin), that perhaps gives it a certain edge.

And need I remind you, many great world cities were born on the backs of brothels, San Francisco and Buenos Aires being excellent examples.

You've got a winner. Bingo! (to coin a police phrase). The Big Sleazy is impossible to top.

[Jingthing]

You've got a winner. Bingo! (to coin a police phrase). The Big Sleazy is impossible to top.

Why ... er ... ummm ... thank you??? ... I think?

I wonder if the Tourism Authority will go for it?

Edited October 20, 2007 by Jingthing

[siam-i-am]

Decided to post this in general, rather than the Pattaya forum.

Pattaya was mentioned in the latest Bangkok-based Big Chili Magazine as ...

"the most cosmopolitan city in Thailand"

This is based on the incredibly diverse demographic of vistors and residents, yes even compared to Bangkok.

Pattaya is growing up. Many of us are sick and tired of the slanderous tripe gererated by the international media focusing only on illicit sex. There is so much more.

Now it is time for Pattaya to promote itself in a way that reflects its new hyper-sophistication. No more "Good Guys Go the Heaven, Bad Guys Go to Pattaya" t-shirts.

Pattaya needs new t-shirts, new slogans.

One idea I had was a t-shirt with a picture of a taxi meter car saying PATTAYA TAXI METER.

Also, how about a slogan? Bangkok has the Big Chili, the Big Mango, etc.

What shall the newly emerging New Pattaya slogan be?

Some ideas for starters:

The Big Stomach

The Big Prik

Not so good, but please pipe in with your Pattaya promoting PR ideas.

Mods asleep or one rule for one?

[Jingthing]

Mods asleep or one rule for one?

Prik is Thai for pepper; otherwise I don't get your objection. Please explain.

Or, does pointing out there are many good things about Pattaya and that many cosmopolitan people love cosmopolitan Pattaya offend your sensibilities?

So solly.

Edited October 20, 2007 by Jingthing

[PanzerJohn]

The sanctimonious holier than thou brigade awake.

[keemapoot]

Pattaya reminds me of Upper East Side New York; The West End in London; the Left Bank in Paris; San Francisco, LA, and all the other sophisticated cosmopolitan places...about as much as Thai stray doggie doo reminds me of chocoate....

[Jingthing]

Pattaya reminds me of Upper East Side New York; The West End in London; the Left Bank in Paris; San Francisco, LA, and all the other sophisticated cosmopolitan places...about as much as Thai stray doggie doo reminds me of chocoate....

Kind of a Eurocentric perspective there, don't you think?

BTW, I am arguing more on the cosmopolitan basis which is actually a indisputable fact based on the demographics of Pattaya as opposed to sophisticated, but based on this defintion, hmmm, perhaps somewhat ...

Maybe weak on refinement, but stronger on worldly knowledge and lack of naiveté.

sophisticated

Having acquired worldly knowledge or refinement; lacking natural simplicity or naiveté.

Edited October 20, 2007 by Jingthing

[keemapoot]

Pattaya reminds me of Upper East Side New York; The West End in London; the Left Bank in Paris; San Francisco, LA, and all the other sophisticated cosmopolitan places...about as much as Thai stray doggie doo reminds me of chocoate....

Kind of a Eurocentric perspective there, don't you think?

Ok, substitute Hong Kong Lan Kwai Fong, Singapore Clarke Quay...you get the idea...

[PanzerJohn]

You don't have to go there, Thailands a big place, plenty of places for you visit or hang your hat.

[Jingthing]

You don't have to go there, Thailands a big place, plenty of places for you visit or hang your hat.

I agree. Some people just don't like cosmopolitan places.

[keemapoot]

You don't have to go there, Thailands a big place, plenty of places for you visit or hang your hat.

Actually, I do go there a couple times per year to play golf etc., but would never admit this to my associates abroad as they think this is the cesspit of the world.