Positive Stories About Thailand

[tombkk]

And I just feel a LOT safer in LOS than i do in my own country :-)

And that's the truth! Even in the Big Mango.

I'm a lot more careful in Frankfurt, Paris, New York...

[theblether]

For me, the best story I heard was on my first full day, on my first trip to Thailand. I arrived in a bar of an afternoon just as an English gentleman was singing with the band. When he finished, he made his way towards me and it turned out I had taken his seat. Anyway we got talking and he told me this story.............

" I was living in London at 59 years of age when I lost my wife, I couldn't get over it, and I spent the next 18 months just going to work and going home like a robot. Working all day and drinking my nights away alone. My daughter pleaded with me to try to move on, and my best friend was at his wits end too.

One day they announced that they had got together and bought me a holiday in Thailand, I fought and fought the idea of it. How could I go on holiday when my wife was not with me? Seeing the state my daughter was getting into I eventually agreed to go. There was no more reluctant tourist to Thailand than me, I landed in Pattaya and hated every minute of my first day, less of the second day, and by the third day I was starting to enjoy myself.

I went home, and my daughter was over the moon to see the change in me, and straight away I was making plans to go back to Thailand as soon as I could. On the next trip I got a Thai girlfriend, but she wasn't right for me, and it took me a while to get rid of her, I took on one more girlfriend and that didn't work out either.

I retired and moved over here, my best friend did the same, and I met this lovely lady, ( he was sitting with his Thai wife ) and we married 4 years ago. She looks after me fantastically well, and I'm lucky to have met her. I now live in a villa with my best pal, and two other friends from the UK. Our day begins with a dip in the pool while our wives get on with making brunch. We eat together and then we head our separate ways, today I fancied a sing-song so I came here. Tonight I'll go home, we'll all eat together again, and we'll go where the breeze takes us."

The gentleman was approx 68 when I was talking to him, and I guess his new wife was in her 50's. They seemed very comfortable and gentle with each other and it was a pleasure to see. He finished off by saying...............

" I've got a good life here, I was looking at spending the rest of my life sad and lonely in a London flat. Thailand has given me a second chance at life..............I would give all of this up right now if I could get my wife back, but I can't get her back. She was and still is the love of my life ".

I can't remember the gentleman's name, it's possible that he will read this posting, or a friend of his will and will recognize the story.

To me, there is an assumption made far too easily about people who visit Thailand. People seem to think it is one massive brothel / bar where detecting the Katoey is the national sport. I keep protesting that Chiang Mai is full of Farang female tourists and couples, and not every guy here is a whorist. There especially seems to be an assumption against the older gentlemen here. many of these gentleman have worked hard all their lives and would be looking at living limited lives on limited incomes in their own countries. I think this gentleman spoke for many when he said................

............. "Thailand has given me a second chance at life"..............

Edited September 12, 2011 by theblether

[Patron]

left my $200 sunglasses in a restaurant, good brandname.

was chased down the street 5 minutes later by a staff member with the glasses in her hand.

she had been searching for me for a while.

very honest.

Same same...During Songkran last april I was riding around on the back of a scooter with my wife's BIL.

I had already put the hurt on a bottle of JWR. I had on $200 sunglasses and after getting hit with water right

and left I could not see thru all the water drops. I pushed the sunglasses up on the top of my head.

We got hit with water many more times before we made home. ( it was so hot,it felt great) Back at home I find

out my sunglasses are gone. Who knows where?

2 hours later the JWR is gone, so it's back to mainstreet. We are walking into the store when i hear FARANG, FARANG.

A kid about 16 is running towards me with a big smile on his face, holding my sunglasses. He refused too take a

200bt tip. My wifes BIL told me he spent 2 hrs. looking for me.

[nocturn]

In my early days in Thailand I was living off Ratchada in Huay Kwang near Wat Kunnathee. It was a great place to live and, as it was essentially a small village in the middle of the metropolis, I was forced to to learn the majority of the Thai that I speak to this day.

In late 1997 early 1998, traffic on Ratchada and Asoke was horrendous, so my daily commute to work on Soi 23 at Sri Nakharin University was problematic. I had countless scares on the bike with someone else at the controls, and, it seemed to me, all of my near misses I saw coming well before the motorcycle taxi driver did. I decided I would be much better off as master of my own fate, and purchased an NSR 150 RR Pro Arm.

The bike was all I hoped it would be, though, unfortunately while the commute to work was indeed less eventful, I did not take into account the drive home. All too frequently I ended up pissed as a fart and afraid to abandon the bike for the night for fear it would not be there the next morning.

One Friday evening, myself and the lads hit the Thermae. The evening turned into what can only be called a heavy session, and sometime around 5 am I hopped on the bike for the ride home.

At the time Asoke was being widened, and due to the road works was essentially a one way into the Sukhumvit area. Traffic towards my home in Huay Kwang was limited to one single lane reserved for buses and the odd driver who could not be bothered to heed the signs.

So, in the early morning I headed up Asoke in the bus lane simply because I could not be bothered to take the long detour via Chidlom and Petburi back to Ratchada. All was going well with completely non-existent bus traffic until i spotted a motorcycle coming towards me in my lane.

As I continued on my path , I kept moving towards the kerb to let the oncoming motorcycle pass. Unfortunately the motorcycle did not see me and kept moving me closer to the kerb, until finally he struck me head on, bouncing my bike off the kerb, into the centre of the lane. I landed on the sidewalk, somehow managing to drive my knee into the kerb as I went down.

My knee was shattered, though at the time, I did not even know it. The other motorcyclist turned out to be a policeman who was far drunker than I was. He had not even seen me as he wobbled down the road. Unhurt, he checked to make sure I was alive, hopped back on to his bike, and fled the scene leaving me hopping on one leg at the kerb with my bike on its side in the middle of the road.

Under the influence of both alcohol and adrenalin, I was trying to lift the bike with one functional leg when a taxi moving in the other direction stopped to help. The driver got out, moved the bike to safety and shuttled me into his cab. He then proceeded to drive me to emergency at Samitvej where he sat with me until I was admitted and under a doctors care. He then left.

I underwent surgery to pin the leg, and when I awoke about 48 hours later he had come to visit, again. He had taken my bike to his home and arranged with other friends who were visiting me in the hospital to safely deliver my bike back to my apartment. I spoke to him once more and tried to give him a couple thousand baht for his trouble, he refused it, said goodbye, and I have never seen him since.

As if that were not enough of random acts of kindness, upon returning to my apartment after surgery with a leg full of pins, a pocket full of codeine and almost zero mobility, the security guard in my building took it upon himself to make sure I did not starve. While i was off my tits on pain killers, he would venture out twice daily to the dalat Huay Kwang and come back with food, fruit, water and any thing else I wanted or needed. While i had friends in the building willing to help me, they were working or out for most of the day.

In the first week, the Yam paid out of his own pocket for my food, because I was either on the nod or had no money in the house. He helped me for 3 weeks, and beyond taking compensation for the items he purchased on my behalf, he accepted no money for his trouble beyond a bottle of whiskey at New Years. My attempts to sweeten his New Years gift with a couple thousand baht, were quietly rebuffed in a manner that let me know that to push it further would be insulting.

Say what you want about Thailand and Thais in general, over my 15 years here I have been on the receiving end of countless acts of random kindness. From the local motorcycle taxi guys who stop and give me a ride home for free because they are going that way anyways, to the noodle/khao man gai seller outside my house who feeds my daughter for free most mornings just because she likes her, and the taxi driver who takes me wakeboarding on weekends for a pittance because he likes the day out and sometimes gets to ride in the boat, people here have good hearts if you treat them with the respect they deserve and return the favour where possible. You get what you give here, don't let anyone tell you different.

that said, i am still a prick, but i pick my battles.

Edited September 12, 2011 by nocturn

[theblether]

In my early days in Thailand I was living off Ratchada in Huay Kwang near Wat Kunnathee. It was a great place to live and, as it was essentially a small village in the middle of the metropolis, I was forced to to learn the majority of the Thai that I speak to this day.

In late 1997 early 1998, traffic on Ratchada and Asoke was horrendous, so my daily commute to work on Soi 23 at Sri Nakharin University was problematic. I had countless scares on the bike with someone else at the controls, and, it seemed to me, all of my near misses I saw coming well before the motorcycle taxi driver did. I decided I would be much better off as master of my own fate, and purchased an NSR 150 RR Pro Arm.

The bike was all I hoped it would be, though, unfortunately while the commute to work was indeed less eventful, I did not take into account the drive home. All too frequently I ended up pissed as a fart and afraid to abandon the bike for the night for fear it would not be there the next morning.

One Friday evening, myself and the lads hit the Thermae. The evening turned into what can only be called a heavy session, and sometime around 5 am I hopped on the bike for the ride home.

At the time Asoke was being widened, and due to the road works was essentially a one way into the Sukhumvit area. Traffic towards my home in Huay Kwang was limited to one single lane reserved for buses and the odd driver who could not be bothered to heed the signs.

So, in the early morning I headed up Asoke in the bus lane simply because I could not be bothered to take the long detour via Chidlom and Petburi back to Ratchada. All was going well with completely non-existent bus traffic until i spotted a motorcycle coming towards me in my lane.

As I continued on my path , I kept moving towards the kerb to let the oncoming motorcycle pass. Unfortunately the motorcycle did not see me and kept moving me closer to the kerb, until finally he struck me head on, bouncing my bike off the kerb, into the centre of the lane. I landed on the sidewalk, somehow managing to drive my knee into the kerb as I went down.

My knee was shattered, though at the time, I did not even know it. The other motorcyclist turned out to be a policeman who was far drunker than I was. He had not even seen me as he wobbled down the road. Unhurt, he checked to make sure I was alive, hopped back on to his bike, and fled the scene leaving me hopping on one leg at the kerb with my bike on its side in the middle of the road.

Under the influence of both alcohol and adrenalin, I was trying to lift the bike with one functional leg when a taxi moving in the other direction stopped to help. The driver got out, moved the bike to safety and shuttled me into his cab. He then proceeded to drive me to emergency at Samitvej where he sat with me until I was admitted and under a doctors care. He then left.

I underwent surgery to pin the leg, and when I awoke about 48 hours later he had come to visit, again. He had taken my bike to his home and arranged with other friends who were visiting me in the hospital to safely deliver my bike back to my apartment. I spoke to him once more and tried to give him a couple thousand baht for his trouble, he refused it, said goodbye, and I have never seen him since.

As if that were not enough of random acts of kindness, upon returning to my apartment after surgery with a leg full of pins, a pocket full of codeine and almost zero mobility, the security guard in my building took it upon himself to make sure I did not starve. While i was off my tits on pain killers, he would venture out twice daily to the dalat Huay Kwang and come back with food, fruit, water and any thing else I wanted or needed. While i had friends in the building willing to help me, they were working or out for most of the day.

In the first week, the Yam paid out of his own pocket for my food, because I was either on the nod or had no money in the house. He helped me for 3 weeks, and beyond taking compensation for the items he purchased on my behalf, he accepted no money for his trouble beyond a bottle of whiskey at New Years. My attempts to sweeten his New Years gift with a couple thousand baht, were quietly rebuffed in a manner that let me know that to push it further would be insulting.

Say what you want about Thailand and Thais in general, over my 15 years here I have been on the receiving end of countless acts of random kindness. From the local motorcycle taxi guys who stop and give me a ride home for free because they are going that way anyways, to the noodle/khao man gai seller outside my house who feeds my daughter for free most mornings just because she likes her, and the taxi driver who takes me wakeboarding on weekends for a pittance because he likes the day out and sometimes gets to ride in the boat, people here have good hearts if you treat them with the respect they deserve and return the favour where possible. You get what you give here, don't let anyone tell you different.

that said, i am still a prick, but i pick my battles.

Superb !!

[JAFO]

I have a lot of nice things happen to me here. Far more then I ever had in the US. Just the basic things. A smile, a laugh, Help me say things properly in Thai. Tell me where best place to buy something is. There are too many to list quite honestly.

Most recent was the moto cabbies guys I hang out with in front of my Condo are good guys. They show me the short cuts through side streets so when I ride my moto I can avoid certain areas frequented by BIB. Last week I took off on my Moto(Big Bike). Not sure what I did but hung a wrong turn and got a bit turned around. I called "Chat" one of the Moto cabby guys I talk to a lot and he drove 20 minutes to guide me out. He knew where I was exactly and said it is a mess to try and get out. When we got back, we hung for a bit. we all laughed about it. Later that night when he was done, we met at his place. My GF and I and him and his wife, I bought dinner and the Leo's and we laughed some more.

[lovetotravel]

In my early days in Thailand I was living off Ratchada in Huay Kwang near Wat Kunnathee. It was a great place to live and, as it was essentially a small village in the middle of the metropolis, I was forced to to learn the majority of the Thai that I speak to this day.

In late 1997 early 1998, traffic on Ratchada and Asoke was horrendous, so my daily commute to work on Soi 23 at Sri Nakharin University was problematic. I had countless scares on the bike with someone else at the controls, and, it seemed to me, all of my near misses I saw coming well before the motorcycle taxi driver did. I decided I would be much better off as master of my own fate, and purchased an NSR 150 RR Pro Arm.

The bike was all I hoped it would be, though, unfortunately while the commute to work was indeed less eventful, I did not take into account the drive home. All too frequently I ended up pissed as a fart and afraid to abandon the bike for the night for fear it would not be there the next morning.

One Friday evening, myself and the lads hit the Thermae. The evening turned into what can only be called a heavy session, and sometime around 5 am I hopped on the bike for the ride home.

At the time Asoke was being widened, and due to the road works was essentially a one way into the Sukhumvit area. Traffic towards my home in Huay Kwang was limited to one single lane reserved for buses and the odd driver who could not be bothered to heed the signs.

So, in the early morning I headed up Asoke in the bus lane simply because I could not be bothered to take the long detour via Chidlom and Petburi back to Ratchada. All was going well with completely non-existent bus traffic until i spotted a motorcycle coming towards me in my lane.

As I continued on my path , I kept moving towards the kerb to let the oncoming motorcycle pass. Unfortunately the motorcycle did not see me and kept moving me closer to the kerb, until finally he struck me head on, bouncing my bike off the kerb, into the centre of the lane. I landed on the sidewalk, somehow managing to drive my knee into the kerb as I went down.

My knee was shattered, though at the time, I did not even know it. The other motorcyclist turned out to be a policeman who was far drunker than I was. He had not even seen me as he wobbled down the road. Unhurt, he checked to make sure I was alive, hopped back on to his bike, and fled the scene leaving me hopping on one leg at the kerb with my bike on its side in the middle of the road.

Under the influence of both alcohol and adrenalin, I was trying to lift the bike with one functional leg when a taxi moving in the other direction stopped to help. The driver got out, moved the bike to safety and shuttled me into his cab. He then proceeded to drive me to emergency at Samitvej where he sat with me until I was admitted and under a doctors care. He then left.

I underwent surgery to pin the leg, and when I awoke about 48 hours later he had come to visit, again. He had taken my bike to his home and arranged with other friends who were visiting me in the hospital to safely deliver my bike back to my apartment. I spoke to him once more and tried to give him a couple thousand baht for his trouble, he refused it, said goodbye, and I have never seen him since.

As if that were not enough of random acts of kindness, upon returning to my apartment after surgery with a leg full of pins, a pocket full of codeine and almost zero mobility, the security guard in my building took it upon himself to make sure I did not starve. While i was off my tits on pain killers, he would venture out twice daily to the dalat Huay Kwang and come back with food, fruit, water and any thing else I wanted or needed. While i had friends in the building willing to help me, they were working or out for most of the day.

In the first week, the Yam paid out of his own pocket for my food, because I was either on the nod or had no money in the house. He helped me for 3 weeks, and beyond taking compensation for the items he purchased on my behalf, he accepted no money for his trouble beyond a bottle of whiskey at New Years. My attempts to sweeten his New Years gift with a couple thousand baht, were quietly rebuffed in a manner that let me know that to push it further would be insulting.

Say what you want about Thailand and Thais in general, over my 15 years here I have been on the receiving end of countless acts of random kindness. From the local motorcycle taxi guys who stop and give me a ride home for free because they are going that way anyways, to the noodle/khao man gai seller outside my house who feeds my daughter for free most mornings just because she likes her, and the taxi driver who takes me wakeboarding on weekends for a pittance because he likes the day out and sometimes gets to ride in the boat, people here have good hearts if you treat them with the respect they deserve and return the favour where possible. You get what you give here, don't let anyone tell you different.

that said, i am still a prick, but i pick my battles.

Superb !!

I would not say superb. A very bad decision that had an effect on many other people. You're lucky you weren't killed...or seriously hurt another driver.

[Mirth]

.......positive, happy outcome stories happen everyday. Most of our encounters are pleasant, the one thing most of these incidents have in common is they make very BORING reading ...... (see above). Give me the drama, conflict,, pathos and dark humour.

What could be more boring than a stupid, senseless remark like that.

Maybe you're in the wrong forum. Try the Nothing Better To Say forum.

You sound like you lead a very satisfying, fulfilled life.

Actually, that's the same thing the 14th Dalai Lama said, something about the world is full of love and compassion for each other which is why it's not news. Most of us have pleasant times here, occasionally, some of us will meet a bad situation, come back and gripes about it in TV and others who have similiar experience will post and it becomes Thailand. For me, good things happen on a daily basis, from misplaced iphone in a restaurant to traffic giving way without blaring their car horn at a last minute turn. Bad things that happens to me also happens to me when am back in my home country. As for the rest, i will just leave it as culture shock and don't really blame anyone cos they would be culturally shocked as well when they visit my home country. Case in point, on one of my family trips back, i brought the kid's nanny along to help out with the kids, the nanny on passing a 7-11 screams, they have 7-11!!!!

[F1fanatic]

I have a lot of nice things happen to me here. Far more then I ever had in the US. Just the basic things. A smile, a laugh, Help me say things properly in Thai. Tell me where best place to buy something is. There are too many to list quite honestly.

Most recent was the moto cabbies guys I hang out with in front of my Condo are good guys. They show me the short cuts through side streets so when I ride my moto I can avoid certain areas frequented by BIB. Last week I took off on my Moto(Big Bike). Not sure what I did but hung a wrong turn and got a bit turned around. I called "Chat" one of the Moto cabby guys I talk to a lot and he drove 20 minutes to guide me out. He knew where I was exactly and said it is a mess to try and get out. When we got back, we hung for a bit. we all laughed about it. Later that night when he was done, we met at his place. My GF and I and him and his wife, I bought dinner and the Leo's and we laughed some more.

Sounds about right... As long as you continue to buy food and drinks they will love you. Mind you, many Westerners are as bad.

Another good story though, shortly after I arrived here (before I had any transport) I walked to my local 'mom and pop' store to try to buy a 'phone card. They didn't sell them but the girl behind the counter insisted on taking me on her motorbike to a place that did!

[IanForbes]

Not any great story, but an interesting co-incidence. I was playing pool with one of my Thai lady friends when a group of back packers came into the bar. They were looking to play some pool and Leigh and I had the only table occupied. I said to join us in a game of partners, which they did. As we got to talking I realized they were Canadian, and as we talked further they were from my old home town and going to my old alma matter, UBC. We started comparing notes and I told them I had a young friend also attending UBC at that time. As it turned out they were good friends with my friend, Spencer. I took a few photos and we had a great evening together. The next day I got an e-mail from Spencer telling me he had 3 friends traveling in Thailand and would I give him some information that he wanted to pass on to them. I really had to laugh as I sent him a message that I had already done so... in person... the night before.

[nocturn]

Superb !!

I would not say superb. A very bad decision that had an effect on many other people. You're lucky you weren't killed...or seriously hurt another driver.

Lovetotravel, I would like to congratulate you for entirely missing the point of the story and for having a very firm grasp of the obvious.

I am well aware that my actions the time were unwise and ill-conceived as well as outright dangerous. In fact the danger part was driven home quite effectively by the pain, the surgeries and the large amount of metal that remains in my leg to this very day. there was also a small matter of the medical bills.

You however lack the ability to take away from an anecdote an appreciation the spirit in which it as offered.

I truly pity your glass half empty mentality.

[theblether]

In my early days in Thailand I was living off Ratchada in Huay Kwang near Wat Kunnathee. It was a great place to live and, as it was essentially a small village in the middle of the metropolis, I was forced to to learn the majority of the Thai that I speak to this day.

In late 1997 early 1998, traffic on Ratchada and Asoke was horrendous, so my daily commute to work on Soi 23 at Sri Nakharin University was problematic. I had countless scares on the bike with someone else at the controls, and, it seemed to me, all of my near misses I saw coming well before the motorcycle taxi driver did. I decided I would be much better off as master of my own fate, and purchased an NSR 150 RR Pro Arm.

The bike was all I hoped it would be, though, unfortunately while the commute to work was indeed less eventful, I did not take into account the drive home. All too frequently I ended up pissed as a fart and afraid to abandon the bike for the night for fear it would not be there the next morning.

One Friday evening, myself and the lads hit the Thermae. The evening turned into what can only be called a heavy session, and sometime around 5 am I hopped on the bike for the ride home.

At the time Asoke was being widened, and due to the road works was essentially a one way into the Sukhumvit area. Traffic towards my home in Huay Kwang was limited to one single lane reserved for buses and the odd driver who could not be bothered to heed the signs.

So, in the early morning I headed up Asoke in the bus lane simply because I could not be bothered to take the long detour via Chidlom and Petburi back to Ratchada. All was going well with completely non-existent bus traffic until i spotted a motorcycle coming towards me in my lane.

As I continued on my path , I kept moving towards the kerb to let the oncoming motorcycle pass. Unfortunately the motorcycle did not see me and kept moving me closer to the kerb, until finally he struck me head on, bouncing my bike off the kerb, into the centre of the lane. I landed on the sidewalk, somehow managing to drive my knee into the kerb as I went down.

My knee was shattered, though at the time, I did not even know it. The other motorcyclist turned out to be a policeman who was far drunker than I was. He had not even seen me as he wobbled down the road. Unhurt, he checked to make sure I was alive, hopped back on to his bike, and fled the scene leaving me hopping on one leg at the kerb with my bike on its side in the middle of the road.

Under the influence of both alcohol and adrenalin, I was trying to lift the bike with one functional leg when a taxi moving in the other direction stopped to help. The driver got out, moved the bike to safety and shuttled me into his cab. He then proceeded to drive me to emergency at Samitvej where he sat with me until I was admitted and under a doctors care. He then left.

I underwent surgery to pin the leg, and when I awoke about 48 hours later he had come to visit, again. He had taken my bike to his home and arranged with other friends who were visiting me in the hospital to safely deliver my bike back to my apartment. I spoke to him once more and tried to give him a couple thousand baht for his trouble, he refused it, said goodbye, and I have never seen him since.

As if that were not enough of random acts of kindness, upon returning to my apartment after surgery with a leg full of pins, a pocket full of codeine and almost zero mobility, the security guard in my building took it upon himself to make sure I did not starve. While i was off my tits on pain killers, he would venture out twice daily to the dalat Huay Kwang and come back with food, fruit, water and any thing else I wanted or needed. While i had friends in the building willing to help me, they were working or out for most of the day.

In the first week, the Yam paid out of his own pocket for my food, because I was either on the nod or had no money in the house. He helped me for 3 weeks, and beyond taking compensation for the items he purchased on my behalf, he accepted no money for his trouble beyond a bottle of whiskey at New Years. My attempts to sweeten his New Years gift with a couple thousand baht, were quietly rebuffed in a manner that let me know that to push it further would be insulting.

Say what you want about Thailand and Thais in general, over my 15 years here I have been on the receiving end of countless acts of random kindness. From the local motorcycle taxi guys who stop and give me a ride home for free because they are going that way anyways, to the noodle/khao man gai seller outside my house who feeds my daughter for free most mornings just because she likes her, and the taxi driver who takes me wakeboarding on weekends for a pittance because he likes the day out and sometimes gets to ride in the boat, people here have good hearts if you treat them with the respect they deserve and return the favour where possible. You get what you give here, don't let anyone tell you different.

that said, i am still a prick, but i pick my battles.

Superb !!

I would not say superb. A very bad decision that had an effect on many other people. You're lucky you weren't killed...or seriously hurt another driver.

Aha, your concentrating on the negative, this topic is to recognize the positive. I don't think anyone is condoning the drink driving related accident, however the actions of the Thais in firstly ensuring the safety of the poster, and subsequently looking after his material possessions and his health has to be applauded. On top of that the security guard refused financial reward for constantly looking after the errant motorcyclist, and that in itself undoes a lot of the stereotypes about money grabbing Thais.

In my experience the Thais are generous with what they have, which as a rule of thumb is not money, but its companionship, friendship, and help.

I particularly enjoyed the line ......... "that said, i am still a prick, but i pick my battles." Very amusing, and a good dose of self effacing, self awareness at the same time.

So now it's over to you to add your positive story about Thailand

Edited September 13, 2011 by theblether

[nocturn]

Superb !!

I would not say superb. A very bad decision that had an effect on many other people. You're lucky you weren't killed...or seriously hurt another driver.

Lovetotravel, I would like to congratulate you for entirely missing the point of the story and for having a very firm grasp of the obvious.

I am well aware that my actions the time were unwise and ill-conceived as well as outright dangerous. In fact the danger part was driven home quite effectively by the pain, the surgeries and the large amount of metal that remains in my leg to this very day. there was also a small matter of the medical bills.

You however lack the ability to take away from an anecdote an appreciation the spirit in which it as offered.

I truly pity your glass half empty mentality.

[IanForbes]

Lovetotravel, I would like to congratulate you for entirely missing the point of the story and for having a very firm grasp of the obvious.

I am well aware that my actions the time were unwise and ill-conceived as well as outright dangerous. In fact the danger part was driven home quite effectively by the pain, the surgeries and the large amount of metal that remains in my leg to this very day. there was also a small matter of the medical bills.

You however lack the ability to take away from an anecdote an appreciation the spirit in which it as offered.

I truly pity your glass half empty mentality.

:jap:

On the other hand, my glass never empties.

[welsh1]

.......positive, happy outcome stories happen everyday. Most of our encounters are pleasant, the one thing most of these incidents have in common is they make very BORING reading ...... (see above). Give me the drama, conflict,, pathos and dark humour.

What could be more boring than a stupid, senseless remark like that.

Maybe you're in the wrong forum. Try the Nothing Better To Say forum.

You sound like you lead a very satisfying, fulfilled life.

+1... couldn't have put it any better myself

[lovetotravel]

Superb !!

I would not say superb. A very bad decision that had an effect on many other people. You're lucky you weren't killed...or seriously hurt another driver.

Lovetotravel, I would like to congratulate you for entirely missing the point of the story and for having a very firm grasp of the obvious.

I am well aware that my actions the time were unwise and ill-conceived as well as outright dangerous. In fact the danger part was driven home quite effectively by the pain, the surgeries and the large amount of metal that remains in my leg to this very day. there was also a small matter of the medical bills.

You however lack the ability to take away from an anecdote an appreciation the spirit in which it as offered.

I truly pity your glass half empty mentality.

Having lost a relative and a close friend to drunk drivers, I am a bit sensitive to this. And for sure didn't miss the point of the story. Of which there were a few.

As for me, I have positive experiences all the time here in Thailand. Wonder smiles, great help and a great attitude. Makes Thailand a good place to be. Most of the time anyway. My glass is always half full or more. And I treat locals with great respect. Rich or poor.

[lovetotravel]

OK, I've got a really interesting and positive story. One of many. Years ago, when we were living in Bangkok, my wife was applied for a criminal report which was required for a visa application. It was found out there was a problem with a bill of some sorts a few years ago with her. She had moved, never got the bill, eventually did, paid it and forgot about it. But, it was never cleared from vendors system. So, it showed up in her criminal report. We contacted the business, but they said there was nothing they could do. We had to go to the police station to get it cleared up.

We went to the police station to file a report as we were told to do. Wrong station. The correct one was a long way away. So, one of the officers offered to drive us there and then take us back to the BTS when we were done.

Obviouslly, he really didn't have to do this. But it was great. He stayed with us while we filed the report, and then took us to the nearest BTS before heading back to work. Fantastic. And interesting as it shows a positive experience with the local police.

[welsh1]

Happiest has to be discovering the linguistic treasures.

Knew one farang whose wife constantly called him dakling in front of everyone, you handsome dakling, you good man dakling, love you many many dakling.

I finally said to him, your wife is so kind to call you darling all the time.

He puffed out his chest, looked at the small circle of admiring farang around and boastfully said that we all needed to play our cards right if we wanted to be like him.

Wanting to help the wife out, I secretly tried to help her pronounce darling correctly.say it slowly darrrrr-lingggg

Over and over the pronounciation came back from her as dak-ling.

Finally exasperated, I asked her why can't you say dar-ling, but always say dak-ling.

She told me, I can say darling no problem, but I say dak-ling because it means "monkey –as*" which is what I call my husband..

Had to love it didn't have the heart to tell the guy.

Not sure if positive, but it sure made me laugh.

[Benayahu]

Not any great story, but an interesting co-incidence. I was playing pool with one of my Thai lady friends when a group of back packers came into the bar. They were looking to play some pool and Leigh and I had the only table occupied. I said to join us in a game of partners, which they did. As we got to talking I realized they were Canadian, and as we talked further they were from my old home town and going to my old alma matter, UBC. We started comparing notes and I told them I had a young friend also attending UBC at that time. As it turned out they were good friends with my friend, Spencer. I took a few photos and we had a great evening together. The next day I got an e-mail from Spencer telling me he had 3 friends traveling in Thailand and would I give him some information that he wanted to pass on to them. I really had to laugh as I sent him a message that I had already done so... in person... the night before.

Hello all and particular IanForbes

This is a very heart warming (in a kinda way) topic and am glad to have come acropss it in General threads (I usually stick with Chiang Mai only heh). It is good to know there is still some good people out there wouldnt you say ,and Thailand is like anywhere else I guess, the good and the bad ,right?

IanForbes just out of interest ,could you please tell me if the western lady in the photograph is a friend /acquaintance of yours. She is very lovely looking and I am coming to Chiang Mai soon and hope to find nice companies to enjoy occasions with. This is the kinda western lady I like to look at. I know this is asking a lot, but would you please be ok to pass on my interests to her for friendships? Whata lovely smile she has and very happy face!

Much appreciation and have lovely evening all.

Maven (Ben)

[rudythemonster]

The whole trip was amazing. Half a dozen times I was returned extra money that I gave. (I had problems recognizing the denominations on Thai bills)

I have heard the Taxi drivers are unscrupulous in Thailand (I think in general taxi drivers are unscrupulous) but NEVER had a problem with ANY taxi driver in 2 weeks in Thailand. In fact this one time on the way to Pattaya from the airport in the taxi when we thought we'd been relieved of our baggage, it turned out the guy had neatly transferred all the baggage to another taxi as he was taking a different route or something and we didn't have to pay extra.

People smiled at us for no reason and any reason.

This one Taxi guy wanted me to buy him something in a 7/11 on a really long night-time drive and I was expecting it's gonna be a bottle of JD but it turned out he wanted a 10 baht bottle of some vile liquid which he called 'boom boom'. (It had the two red bull bulls on it and tasted like shit!) We had a good laugh at the way he tried to explain its effects to us! It was hilarious.

The guides were friendly. On this one particular tour package I got a little sick from eating too much Thai food and we couldn't get on the chartered taxi for the tour from the hotel room and so we told them we'd skip it but at lunch they came back for us driving 30 or so miles to check if I had gotten better and if we wanted to join in for the afternoon session. Needless to say, even though I was sick we still went ahead with the tour and the guide wouldn't take money for having come back for us and I had to literally shove it into her hands!

It was a great trip! We're returning in November and we are looking forward to savoring more of the wonderful Thai hospitality!

[IanForbes]

Hello all and particular IanForbes

This is a very heart warming (in a kinda way) topic and am glad to have come acropss it in General threads (I usually stick with Chiang Mai only heh). It is good to know there is still some good people out there wouldnt you say ,and Thailand is like anywhere else I guess, the good and the bad ,right?

IanForbes just out of interest ,could you please tell me if the western lady in the photograph is a friend /acquaintance of yours. She is very lovely looking and I am coming to Chiang Mai soon and hope to find nice companies to enjoy occasions with. This is the kinda western lady I like to look at. I know this is asking a lot, but would you please be ok to pass on my interests to her for friendships? Whata lovely smile she has and very happy face!

Much appreciation and have lovely evening all.

Maven (Ben)

Sorry I can't help you, Ben, She was just a friend of a friend and I haven't heard from them since. Besides, I believe they are all back in Canada now.

[flying]

Too many to list but then again I have had positive stories most places I have been in the world.

One that stands out for Thailand......

Once we had our car hit from behind when stopped to let someone cross

in Carrefour's parking lot.

The young man who hit us got out of his truck looked at our damage &

said no need to call the insurance I will be responsible & take care of your car.

I thought to myself...Oh boy here we go.

But he got on his cell made some calls on the spot.

Soon two guys showed up & said yes we can fix the damage.Asked us to follow them to their shop.

Again I was leery but we went with it.The guy who hit us followed us in his truck.

We arrived at the shop which was a bit out of town. We arrive & they say the car will be ready at 5pm

it is only 11am. At this point I wonder if

1)they expect us to stand there till 5pm &

2)also how can they fix this in six hours....In the US I would guess a few days/weeks

The original guy who hits us tells us he will drive us to our condo & pick us up at 4:45 to come back. He even offers us a scooter if we need to do anything before then.

Anyway we let him take us back to our condo pass on the scooter & sure enough 4:45 there he is. Takes us to our car which has been repaired perfectly....much to my surprise as I thought it could not be done as I am use to USA service which takes much longer.

So......I thanked them for being honorable folks & off we went. Yes a bit of inconvenience for the day

but overall handled beautifully.

To tell you the truth though even the one time I was stopped by a cop & told I did something wrong....

(passing on a bridge that had an ox cart & no other cars coming ) I considered a positive story.

I mean pay 200 baht/ $6 & on my way? Compared to a ticket in the USA where I would have to go to court or pay a high fine anyway. Then have my insurance jacked up for the next 14 months.

[lovelomsak]

Too many to list but then again I have had positive stories most places I have been in the world.

One that stands out for Thailand......

Once we had our car hit from behind when stopped to let someone cross

in Carrefour's parking lot.

The young man who hit us got out of his truck looked at our damage &

said no need to call the insurance I will be responsible & take care of your car.

I thought to myself...Oh boy here we go.

But he got on his cell made some calls on the spot.

Soon two guys showed up & said yes we can fix the damage.Asked us to follow them to their shop.

Again I was leery but we went with it.The guy who hit us followed us in his truck.

We arrived at the shop which was a bit out of town. We arrive & they say the car will be ready at 5pm

it is only 11am. At this point I wonder if

1)they expect us to stand there till 5pm &

2)also how can they fix this in six hours....In the US I would guess a few days/weeks

The original guy who hits us tells us he will drive us to our condo & pick us up at 4:45 to come back. He even offers us a scooter if we need to do anything before then.

Anyway we let him take us back to our condo pass on the scooter & sure enough 4:45 there he is. Takes us to our car which has been repaired perfectly....much to my surprise as I thought it could not be done as I am use to USA service which takes much longer.

So......I thanked them for being honorable folks & off we went. Yes a bit of inconvenience for the day

but overall handled beautifully.

To tell you the truth though even the one time I was stopped by a cop & told I did something wrong....

(passing on a bridge that had an ox cart & no other cars coming ) I considered a positive story.

I mean pay 200 baht/ $6 & on my way? Compared to a ticket in the USA where I would have to go to court or pay a high fine anyway. Then have my insurance jacked up for the next 14 months.

Your story reminded me of one.

I parked my truck in the parking at Topland in Pitsanulok one day and went shopping for a couple of hours. I came back to my truck to see it had been damaged well I was shopping. As soon as I got to my truck a woman approached me and told me she had hit my truck and we needed to call the insurance to get it fixed.She had sat there in the carpark for over an hour waiting for me to come back with her few months old child in her truck. She stayed until everything was cleared up. I got my truck fixed no problem. In the end I kept feeling I should do something to show my appreciation, for her she was such a good person.

In most countries I think it would have been a hit an run situation.

[tombkk]

The whole trip was amazing. Half a dozen times I was returned extra money that I gave. (I had problems recognizing the denominations on Thai bills)

I have heard the Taxi drivers are unscrupulous in Thailand (I think in general taxi drivers are unscrupulous) but NEVER had a problem with ANY taxi driver in 2 weeks in Thailand. In fact this one time on the way to Pattaya from the airport in the taxi when we thought we'd been relieved of our baggage, it turned out the guy had neatly transferred all the baggage to another taxi as he was taking a different route or something and we didn't have to pay extra.

People smiled at us for no reason and any reason.

This one Taxi guy wanted me to buy him something in a 7/11 on a really long night-time drive and I was expecting it's gonna be a bottle of JD but it turned out he wanted a 10 baht bottle of some vile liquid which he called 'boom boom'. (It had the two red bull bulls on it and tasted like shit!) We had a good laugh at the way he tried to explain its effects to us! It was hilarious.

The guides were friendly. On this one particular tour package I got a little sick from eating too much Thai food and we couldn't get on the chartered taxi for the tour from the hotel room and so we told them we'd skip it but at lunch they came back for us driving 30 or so miles to check if I had gotten better and if we wanted to join in for the afternoon session. Needless to say, even though I was sick we still went ahead with the tour and the guide wouldn't take money for having come back for us and I had to literally shove it into her hands!

It was a great trip! We're returning in November and we are looking forward to savoring more of the wonderful Thai hospitality!

I told my friend that he should take a taxi from his downtown hotel to the airport, because the hotel limousine is too expensive.

Later, he proudly told me that he had bargained the taxi driver down from THB 4,000 to THB 2,000. What a nice taxi driver to take him for this pittance! By the way, the hotel hotel limousine would have cost him THB 600, and a metered taxi just over THB 200.

Reading your story, I wonder how much you paid for that tour. But of course that is irrelevant if you are happy and you feel you received more value for your money than you had expected.

[IanForbes]

I told my friend that he should take a taxi from his downtown hotel to the airport, because the hotel limousine is too expensive.

Later, he proudly told me that he had bargained the taxi driver down from THB 4,000 to THB 2,000. What a nice taxi driver to take him for this pittance! By the way, the hotel hotel limousine would have cost him THB 600, and a metered taxi just over THB 200.

Reading your story, I wonder how much you paid for that tour. But of course that is irrelevant if you are happy and you feel you received more value for your money than you had expected.

Good story. Like I've said many times... It's all in one's perspective of things. The same length trip in London, Hamburg, New York, or Vancouver BC would have cost double that in what ever currency you want, so in your friend's perspective it WAS a good deal. Local knowledge is always valuable. I don't mind people trying to scam me. If I am gullible enough to fall for it then that is MY problem, not theirs.

However, I am always amazed at how much time a Thai will spend trying to save an extra 20 baht. I remember taking my first trip with a Thai lady friend to a place she called Gangindinopoly. I had no idea where we were going and I just followed her lead. We wound up in Kanchanaburi 8 hours later. Had I known where we were going I would have taken the express bus and been there in 4 hours. But to save an extra 20 baht on each ticket I spent an extra 4 hours on local busses. It was a good lesson learned, but a bit of an adventure.

[longstebe]

The people who always help at bus stations.

[robblok]

I told my friend that he should take a taxi from his downtown hotel to the airport, because the hotel limousine is too expensive.

Later, he proudly told me that he had bargained the taxi driver down from THB 4,000 to THB 2,000. What a nice taxi driver to take him for this pittance! By the way, the hotel hotel limousine would have cost him THB 600, and a metered taxi just over THB 200.

Reading your story, I wonder how much you paid for that tour. But of course that is irrelevant if you are happy and you feel you received more value for your money than you had expected.

Good story. Like I've said many times... It's all in one's perspective of things. The same length trip in London, Hamburg, New York, or Vancouver BC would have cost double that in what ever currency you want, so in your friend's perspective it WAS a good deal. Local knowledge is always valuable. I don't mind people trying to scam me. If I am gullible enough to fall for it then that is MY problem, not theirs.

However, I am always amazed at how much time a Thai will spend trying to save an extra 20 baht. I remember taking my first trip with a Thai lady friend to a place she called Gangindinopoly. I had no idea where we were going and I just followed her lead. We wound up in Kanchanaburi 8 hours later. Had I known where we were going I would have taken the express bus and been there in 4 hours. But to save an extra 20 baht on each ticket I spent an extra 4 hours on local busses. It was a good lesson learned, but a bit of an adventure.

Totally agree the guy would not even know if he was taken for a ride or not.

I also agree with Ian sometimes its better to spend a bit more and be somewhere faster.

[rudythemonster]

The whole trip was amazing. Half a dozen times I was returned extra money that I gave. (I had problems recognizing the denominations on Thai bills)

I have heard the Taxi drivers are unscrupulous in Thailand (I think in general taxi drivers are unscrupulous) but NEVER had a problem with ANY taxi driver in 2 weeks in Thailand. In fact this one time on the way to Pattaya from the airport in the taxi when we thought we'd been relieved of our baggage, it turned out the guy had neatly transferred all the baggage to another taxi as he was taking a different route or something and we didn't have to pay extra.

People smiled at us for no reason and any reason.

This one Taxi guy wanted me to buy him something in a 7/11 on a really long night-time drive and I was expecting it's gonna be a bottle of JD but it turned out he wanted a 10 baht bottle of some vile liquid which he called 'boom boom'. (It had the two red bull bulls on it and tasted like shit!) We had a good laugh at the way he tried to explain its effects to us! It was hilarious.

The guides were friendly. On this one particular tour package I got a little sick from eating too much Thai food and we couldn't get on the chartered taxi for the tour from the hotel room and so we told them we'd skip it but at lunch they came back for us driving 30 or so miles to check if I had gotten better and if we wanted to join in for the afternoon session. Needless to say, even though I was sick we still went ahead with the tour and the guide wouldn't take money for having come back for us and I had to literally shove it into her hands!

It was a great trip! We're returning in November and we are looking forward to savoring more of the wonderful Thai hospitality!

I told my friend that he should take a taxi from his downtown hotel to the airport, because the hotel limousine is too expensive.

Later, he proudly told me that he had bargained the taxi driver down from THB 4,000 to THB 2,000. What a nice taxi driver to take him for this pittance! By the way, the hotel hotel limousine would have cost him THB 600, and a metered taxi just over THB 200.

Reading your story, I wonder how much you paid for that tour. But of course that is irrelevant if you are happy and you feel you received more value for your money than you had expected.

It doesn't matter how much the tour cost me. The money went to the tour company. The guide is only a salaried employee and she needn't have to drive back 30 miles to pick us up. It's 60 miles worth of fuel worth maybe 300 bahts that she lost by coming back when she absolutely didn't have to.

[IanForbes]

I'm glad that sbk closed the other thread about what do Thais think of us foreigners. Who gives a shit. This simple graph explains it perfectly

It is really too bad that there are so many sad, bitter expats living in Thailand. People say I am wearing rose coloured glasses and I guess I do, but they must have been surgically implanted because I've been wearing them for the 15 years I've been coming to Thailand. I take the good with the bad and every day is an adventure. Very often the scary days are the most exciting and most memorable. They certainly give me my best stories. I can usually stay out of trouble with a little prior planning, and if I take risks I expect to pay the piper occasionally. I often wonder why people come to live in a country they obviously are so bitter about. Why expect to recreate the country they came from? This is Thailand. It ain't the UK, Australia, Germany or North America. It is different. Accept it... or go back to where you came from. We do have choices in life and if you've made the wrong ones then just look in the mirror and get on with life. Don't blame others. Personally, I believe my part of Canada is the best place in the world to live, but it's not without its own problems. That is why I spend half my time in Thailand. I could take my camera around to the dreary parts of Canada and show many things that are not nice and not fair... but why dwell on the bad stuff.

But, enough of the negative shit. Here is another simple but a bit unusual story.

I was taking a mini-van from a small Thai village to Bangkok. I wanted to get to Suvarnabhumi airport but the van wasn't going there. I expected it to stop at the south west bus terminal where I would take a taxi to the airport, but instead the van went into the heart of the city to deliver the only other two passengers to somewhere in that huge metropolis. The driver knew I needed to hire a taxi but he wasn't going near any regular taxi depots. So, during a stop at a traffic light he jumped out and ran back to the empty taxi behind us and asked the taxi driver if he could take me to the airport. I had to grab my bag quickly, exit the van and jump into the taxi just before the light turned green. I had insisted on a meter taxi and that was understood. I got to the airport in plenty of time for my flight and the taxi fare was reasonable (300 baht) and what I expected. What amazed me about the trip was the cost. I paid 90 baht for the 2 hour van trip from Luk Kai to Bangkok and there were only 3 passengers who paid the same amount. I have no idea how the van driver could make any money that day. The fuel cost would have been more than the fares.

[theblether]

I agree with your thoughts about that other thread being closed down, it was a seriously nasty thread. Your graph is good but it would be better if you re-named it " Rising To The Bait ". There seem to be certain individuals on Thaivisa who are setting out to destroy any notion of community spirit or fun within the forum. The moderators are very sharp, it may have to fall to them to start yellow carding some individuals. However, this is the positive story thread so here goes: Just a simple little one.........

I booked a beautiful hotel in Bangkok and I was surprised how cheap it was, when I got to it the hotel was as beautiful as I expected but relatively remote, ( In Bangkok terms ). I realized that I was needing some toiletries so I called a a taxi, which took me to the local 7/11, about 2 kms away. I duly went shopping, got to the counter, and realized I had left my wallet in my room.

Blushing, I asked the girl to put the goods behind her counter while I went back to the hotel for my money. I jumped in the taxi, and asked to head back. The driver asked me where my shopping was, and I told him I had left my wallet and would need to come back. Without a word, he jumped out the car, went in the shop, paid for the goods, came back and dropped them in my lap.

That is what you call thoughtfulness and generosity of spirit.