Two Weird Happenings in Thailand.

[NoshowJones]

This is not meant to be a Thai bashing post, but it just has to be mentioned. AT the bus station near Mochit, I bought a ticket on the VIP

bus to go to Nakhon Sawan. The bus was due to leave at 9.30am, bus about half full, 9.50am, bus still waiting. I asked an official on the bus

why it was still waiting, I was told "bus not full yet". the bus was eventually full at 10.00am and left.

The time obviously did not mean anything. Suppose it took another hour to get full, do Thai people really accept this?

After leaving the bus at Nakhon Sawan, I went in to the big C Shopping Mall, I asked for a glass of lemonade, but no ice.

the assistant gave me the glass half full, I said "fill it up", she said something about the ice. I said " fill up or money back", she gave

me my money back. Anyone ever experience anything like these?

[zeichen]

Yes. No shop will give you a full glass of anything if you ask for no ice. It is a cheap charley move that they know.

As for the bus leaving, I have never had that problem with a VIP bus, but normal buses yes. If people already bought tickets and called and told them to wait, that would make more sense but companies want to make as much money as they can and a full bus makes more money.

Sounds like you are homesick and need to be in your own environment.

I am not saying that things have never bothered me or that I have never got irked over minor things, but nothing makes me write a complete whinge on a forum over minor issues.

[TP1]

I do travel a lot on buses and I usually use Chan Tours or Nakhon Chai Air.

Never encountered this problem.

Buses are usually on time with a 5 or 10 minute the most delay.

As about the lemonade and I presume you mean Sprite, your best bet is 7/11 where you can fill your own cup to the top with any ice or not.

Edited May 9, 2015 by TP1

[tifino]

Thai Airways is no different.

At Melbourne, they've waited waited up to almost a half hour for some thai bird who was slowed by traffic.

The aircraft still made it to BKK, ahead of schedule. But still heard a passeger complaining why it took so long to leave? (as he was disembarking) - idiot

I guess the cost of fuel isn't the issue???

[pgrahmm]

Don't like the drink shorted....we're not buying ice we are buying coke/pepsi/lemonade.....

Not bad in the countries with free refills but here the glasses should not be half emptied....

Edited May 9, 2015 by pgrahmm

[KhaoNiaw]

I've experienced the wait for the bus to leave several times, even on the VIP buses, up to about 30 minutes. They make the time up of course!

[Qman]

I like drinks with little or no ice as sodas are usually cold enough coming from the machines and they tend to fill with so much ice there is little beverage to drink. I have seen signs in food courts where you pay more for a drink with no ice which I guess compensates for more drink. Don't really understand this logic unless ice costs less than soda. KFC will give you a drink with little or no ice if requested without surcharge.

[ldnguy]

Just chill. Why are you in such a hurry to leave? In Thailand you need to learn to relax a little bit and go with the flow. They aren't going to change just because some farang wants to leave on time.

[Happy Grumpy]

I guess the OP is a glass half empty kinda guy.

[CharlieH]

A number of posts removed.

7) You will respect fellow members and post in a civil manner. No personal attacks, hateful or insulting towards other members, (flaming) Stalking of members on either the forum or via PM will not be allowed.

[LindaLovelace]

I guess the OP is a glass half empty kinda guy.

Who wants to pay full price for half empty glass? Or a half full one? Thais love to sell ice for the price of an expensive drink. The excessive ice is a form of cheating; why call somebody who doesn't want it a "cheap Charlie." And the fact is, if you take out all the shaved ice (shaved to pack more in), you are NOT left with a glass that is half full or empty. You are left with less than a quarter glass of the product -- very expensive.

I went round and round on this several years ago. And I NEVER won a round. I finally gave up and simply stopped buying the drinks. No iced coffee, no juice (its sugared, too), none of it. Solved the problem, and healthier, too!

As for the bus, you've probably been here long enough, Possum, to know that time means nothing here. It's why I ALWAYS carry a book to read.

Now South Korea, wow! I visited there a few years ago and was <deleted> amazed at the trains and buses. If a bus or train was scheduled to leave at 2:00 p.m., you could look at your watch as the second hand moved toward the scheduled time of departure. At the very moment the second hand crossed the 2:00 point the bus or train began to move -- EVERY TIME! If ever there was a discrepancy, I could rest assured that it was my timepiece and NOT the bus/train.

And they are quiet, too. If you raise your voice above a mere whisper, somebody was sure to turn around and give you a "shhhhhhhh!"

[NoshowJones]

Yes. No shop will give you a full glass of anything if you ask for no ice. It is a cheap charley move that they know.

As for the bus leaving, I have never had that problem with a VIP bus, but normal buses yes. If people already bought tickets and called and told them to wait, that would make more sense but companies want to make as much money as they can and a full bus makes more money.

Sounds like you are homesick and need to be in your own environment.

I am not saying that things have never bothered me or that I have never got irked over minor things, but nothing makes me write a complete whinge on a forum over minor issues.

My post was not meant to be a complaint, I have asked for no ice for years regularly all the time and never had a problem.

Your second paragraph, yes it's true about making money, but what about customer service? Someone could need to catch transport at the other end, yes

I know money is king in any country, and even worse in the UK.

Sounds like you are one of the "go home brigade". you obviously don't know me.

This is only a post about two weird happenings.

[NoshowJones]

I do travel a lot on buses and I usually use Chan Tours or Nakhon Chai Air.

Never encountered this problem.

Buses are usually on time with a 5 or 10 minute the most delay.

As about the lemonade and I presume you mean Sprite, your best bet is 7/11 where you can fill your own cup to the top with any ice or not.

No I don't mean sprite, this was a shop that deals mostly with drinks and ice cream. The drinks are already cold so why

fill your glass with ice when you are only left with two or three mouthfulls? Yes I know, screw the customer. Money is king.

[NoshowJones]

Don't like the drink shorted....we're not buying ice we are buying coke/pepsi/lemonade.....

Not bad in the countries with free refills but here the glasses should not be half emptied....

Good post mate, thanks.

[NoshowJones]

I've experienced the wait for the bus to leave several times, even on the VIP buses, up to about 30 minutes. They make the time up of course!

Yes, your right, this bus did make up the time, but my question is, what if the bus took an hour or more to fill up?

It would not have made up the time then.

[samsensam]

i could sit here all day and complain about the things here that are not quite up to scratch, that are different, that dont work well or at all... but life's too short, but i prefer to go with the flow, not such things get to me, accept that they are part of the vast tapestry of life here... life is about experience after all; both good and bad.

if such small things bother you so much perhaps it's time to go home.

[NoshowJones]

A number of posts removed.

7) You will respect fellow members and post in a civil manner. No personal attacks, hateful or insulting towards other members, (flaming) Stalking of members on either the forum or via PM will not be allowed.

Thanks Charlie, I know the posts you removed, I was going to answer them this morning and use the report button.

You may just have saved me from a suspension. If there is any more flaming like that, please close this thread down.

[Crazy chef 1]

I guess the OP is a glass half empty kinda guy.

Who wants to pay full price for half empty glass? Or a half full one? Thais love to sell ice for the price of an expensive drink. The excessive ice is a form of cheating; why call somebody who doesn't want it a "cheap Charlie." And the fact is, if you take out all the shaved ice (shaved to pack more in), you are NOT left with a glass that is half full or empty. You are left with less than a quarter glass of the product -- very expensive.

I went round and round on this several years ago. And I NEVER won a round. I finally gave up and simply stopped buying the drinks. No iced coffee, no juice (its sugared, too), none of it. Solved the problem, and healthier, too!

As for the bus, you've probably been here long enough, Possum, to know that time means nothing here. It's why I ALWAYS carry a book to read.

Now South Korea, wow! I visited there a few years ago and was <deleted> amazed at the trains and buses. If a bus or train was scheduled to leave at 2:00 p.m., you could look at your watch as the second hand moved toward the scheduled time of departure. At the very moment the second hand crossed the 2:00 point the bus or train began to move -- EVERY TIME! If ever there was a discrepancy, I could rest assured that it was my timepiece and NOT the bus/train.

And they are quiet, too. If you raise your voice above a mere whisper, somebody was sure to turn around and give you a "shhhhhhhh!"

Though and now you are living there???

[Crazy chef 1]

And to possum...yes it is annoying but when in Rome....you know the rest

Btw you should change the OP title in two common happenings in Thailand..

Edited May 10, 2015 by Crazy chef 1

[chiang mai]

Such things are part and parcel of life in Thailand, they make life here interesting and keep you on your toes.

I returned from the UK last week and spent one night in Bangkok at a 5 star hotel before traveling home to Chiang Mai. At dinner in the hotel restaurant, the waiter took my wife's order and then walked away without taking mine - we called him back and he looked at us as though nothing could possibly be wrong. Soon the tea arrived, the waitress poured it and all seemed fine, except the water was cold - again, we called her back and she acted like everything was just fine!

After a fairly decent dinner we were about to call for the bill when the waiter placed a basket of breads/rolls on our table, a kind of an after thought that was forgotten earlier.

We simply laughed, left no tip and headed up to our room, nothing really to get excited about, all part of life here. As an earlier poster said, it you let such things get to you it's time to go home.

[LindaLovelace]

i could sit here all day and complain about the things here that are not quite up to scratch, that are different, that dont work well or at all... but life's too short, but i prefer to go with the flow, not such things get to me, accept that they are part of the vast tapestry of life here... life is about experience after all; both good and bad.

if such small things bother you so much perhaps it's time to go home.

Well that's odd. This certainly looks like a complaint to me. Maybe YOU should go home.

Life is about experience, goods and bad, but it is complaints that eventually bring change for the positive. Because complaining is quashed by Thai culture, things often do not change for the better here; they just stay the same.

Like with plumbing parts. You can only buy valves with straight threads here and they always leak until you put on more and more telflon tape with the risk of breaking or deforming the female side, and sometimes they STILL leak. Not only the west has tapered threads on all its plumbing parts, but also Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam. So why is Thailand in the dark ages on this? Because nobody complains. I could go on, but as you say, life is too short and I have other fish to fry.

Possum is seeking better customer service instead of just accepting the shoddy level he's been getting. More like him will bring positive change.

[marko kok prong]

Solution to the bus problem,buy a car.

[NoshowJones]

I guess the OP is a glass half empty kinda guy.

Who wants to pay full price for half empty glass? Or a half full one? Thais love to sell ice for the price of an expensive drink. The excessive ice is a form of cheating; why call somebody who doesn't want it a "cheap Charlie." And the fact is, if you take out all the shaved ice (shaved to pack more in), you are NOT left with a glass that is half full or empty. You are left with less than a quarter glass of the product -- very expensive.

I went round and round on this several years ago. And I NEVER won a round. I finally gave up and simply stopped buying the drinks. No iced coffee, no juice (its sugared, too), none of it. Solved the problem, and healthier, too!

As for the bus, you've probably been here long enough, Possum, to know that time means nothing here. It's why I ALWAYS carry a book to read.

Now South Korea, wow! I visited there a few years ago and was <deleted> amazed at the trains and buses. If a bus or train was scheduled to leave at 2:00 p.m., you could look at your watch as the second hand moved toward the scheduled time of departure. At the very moment the second hand crossed the 2:00 point the bus or train began to move -- EVERY TIME! If ever there was a discrepancy, I could rest assured that it was my timepiece and NOT the bus/train.

And they are quiet, too. If you raise your voice above a mere whisper, somebody was sure to turn around and give you a "shhhhhhhh!"

You are right about what you are saying Linda, I know very well that time, and customer service does not matter here, like I said, people traveling could be depending

on getting to their destination for some appointment, we would all allow some time in case the bus is late, I just thought this was very weird, the main point being

I was told that the bus is waiting until it was full, what if it took another hour, or even more?

As for the half full drink, what about the very many expats here who love their beer. what would they say if they were given half a pint instead of a full pint?

I rest my case.

[NoshowJones]

Solution to the bus problem,buy a car.

I had a car for six years, but last week it went on fire, so I went to Bangkok to upgrade my motorbike. You may ask why I went 250 Ks to do that.

The answer is simple, the dreaded customer service here.

I went to Bangkok to arrange for a new bike to be delivered to me from a Farang run Honda shop recommended by TV posters.

[NoshowJones]

i could sit here all day and complain about the things here that are not quite up to scratch, that are different, that dont work well or at all... but life's too short, but i prefer to go with the flow, not such things get to me, accept that they are part of the vast tapestry of life here... life is about experience after all; both good and bad.

if such small things bother you so much perhaps it's time to go home.

Here we go again, another of the "if you don't like it go home brigade". Take another look at my OP.

[NoshowJones]

i could sit here all day and complain about the things here that are not quite up to scratch, that are different, that dont work well or at all... but life's too short, but i prefer to go with the flow, not such things get to me, accept that they are part of the vast tapestry of life here... life is about experience after all; both good and bad.

if such small things bother you so much perhaps it's time to go home.

Well that's odd. This certainly looks like a complaint to me. Maybe YOU should go home.

Life is about experience, goods and bad, but it is complaints that eventually bring change for the positive. Because complaining is quashed by Thai culture, things often do not change for the better here; they just stay the same.

Like with plumbing parts. You can only buy valves with straight threads here and they always leak until you put on more and more telflon tape with the risk of breaking or deforming the female side, and sometimes they STILL leak. Not only the west has tapered threads on all its plumbing parts, but also Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam. So why is Thailand in the dark ages on this? Because nobody complains. I could go on, but as you say, life is too short and I have other fish to fry.

Possum is seeking better customer service instead of just accepting the shoddy level he's been getting. More like him will bring positive change.

Thanks Linda, very much appreciated.

[NoshowJones]

And to possum...yes it is annoying but when in Rome....you know the rest

Btw you should change the OP title in two common happenings in Thailand..

I did not know they are common, I have done a lot of bus traveling and bought many cold drinks, with only the odd complaint about the buses,

as would happen in any country.

[NoshowJones]

Yes. No shop will give you a full glass of anything if you ask for no ice. It is a cheap charley move that they know.

As for the bus leaving, I have never had that problem with a VIP bus, but normal buses yes. If people already bought tickets and called and told them to wait, that would make more sense but companies want to make as much money as they can and a full bus makes more money.

Sounds like you are homesick and need to be in your own environment.

I am not saying that things have never bothered me or that I have never got irked over minor things, but nothing makes me write a complete whinge on a forum over minor issues.

Just thinking, any normal bus I have got has always left the bus station on time, or near enough.

[LindaLovelace]

You are right about what you are saying Linda, I know very well that time, and customer service does not matter here, like I said, people traveling could be depending

on getting to their destination for some appointment, we would all allow some time in case the bus is late, I just thought this was very weird, the main point being

I was told that the bus is waiting until it was full, what if it took another hour, or even more?

As for the half full drink, what about the very many expats here who love their beer. what would they say if they were given half a pint instead of a full pint?

I rest my case.

I stopped drinking Singha when they cut the "big" bottle to 500ml a few years ago!

Edited May 10, 2015 by LindaLovelace

[oneday]

Thais are very anal about the fact that filling a glass up with ice saves them money and they refuse to budge on this point...so if they happen to be out of ice I can easily see them doing this. Many places charge more if you ask them to put little or no ice. They don't do this in the US so it was hard to get use to, but that's just how they think here. In the US when you get a slurpee at 7/11 the dome lid is by the machine so you can use it to fill the cup up to past the lip, but in Thailand they keep the lip at the register so you cannot fill the glass up like in the US. Yep, that's Thailand for you.

As far as buses go, I suppose the route and schedule a bus has dictates whether or not they feel they can sit around until the bus fills up. I regularly take a bus from Pattaya to Kalasin and for the most part it is on time and leaves mostly on-time, but the tickets are sold up to 24 hours in advance so they don't count on a flood of people coming at the last minute. Buses that leave to a single destination hourly or bi-hourly would probably be different. Vans that go from BKK to Pattaya often never leave until they are full.