Patong - The Wake

[KarenBravo]

17 hours ago, Mysterion said:

 

Would have been helpful for you to backup your intial outrageous statement on Kamala being “brutally raped”. That was probably one of the most ridiculous over-the -top statements ever seen on this thread.

 

Anyhow, yes i have seen Kamala.

 

Kamala(and all the other beach towns) may not look like what it did 30 years ago, but it still probably offers the best overall beach town experience on Phuket. 

 

Indeed, there are several 5 star resorts currenty being built in Kamala for a number of reasons.

 

Try turning off the main road next time you are driving  through Kamala.

 

 

 

I'll rephrase my comment.

The coast approach from Surin, the whole of Kamala beach (including the southern headland) and the coast road leading out at the south end have been raped.

[Destiny1990]

2 minutes ago, KarenBravo said:

I'll rephrase my comment.

The coast approach from Surin, the whole of Kamala beach (including the southern headland) and the coast road leading out at the south end have been raped.

Who raped it?

[xylophone]

2 hours ago, simon43 said:

For me, Kamala changed after the tsunami when they built the 'airport runway' main street.

That main street gives it a "hick town" look............and one which the hoons use to test the speed of their bikes and utes. 

 

 

[Mysterion]

6 hours ago, simon43 said:

 

 

If Kamala is the gem, then I'd hate to see the 50 baht trinkets.... :)

For me, Kamala changed after the tsunami when they built the 'airport runway' main street.
 

 

I agree that Kamala’s main artery road is not so charming, but it is very functional and keeps the traffic flowing very well during peak periods.

 

The charm of Kamala is the narrow relatively quiet streets with shops & restaurants and the beach & boardwalk to the west of the main artery road, and the relatively quiet residential village to the east of the main artery road.

[phuketrichard]

MY god ,u think thats  raped? what the F@$K do u think they did to Patong, Kata, Karon, Rawai, Chalong?? A full on anal insertion......

the Poo Ya baan asked me when they did the double road if it was good and i told him it was crazy as all u get is the bus's, trucks, taxi's racing from the bottom of one hill 2 kms to the bottom of the next hill   :-)

 

Most of kamala beach ( all in front of the cemetery) doesn't even have chairs or umbrellas on it..how much nicer can that be?

 

Kamala still retains a thai feel to it which is not felt at any of the others beach areas.You have nice side walk next to the beach with small local restaurants, a nice walking street with shopping and food and the man road

The northern end (where the Novotel is) is where their building high price condos,villas, shopping mall and retirement home

Its called progress....

 

Anyway, thank god many disagree with me, as thats what keeps us happy here

[xylophone]

On the subject of Kamala, a few years ago a couple of friends of mine moved from Patong to Kamala because they didn't like the way that Patong was heading, however now they are not that over enamoured with Kamala because of the changes that have taken place and the fact that the main road has become a death trap, according to them. Having said that they won't be moving back to Patong any time soon!

 

As far as Patong goes, well there are more people around than since my last post, so I suppose that proves we are moving into what is usually termed "the high season" – – but therein lies the puzzle!

 

It's plain for all to see that there are more people around and I have read about traffic jams where the majority of the vehicles stuck in those jams have been coaches and minivans, suggesting that tourists are abundant, and perhaps they are, but are they spending?

 

I was out and about in Patong yesterday and then last night in Bangla Road, and like it or not Bangla road forms part of the heart of Patong and always has done, but things are not as they seem. Sure there are venues/bars which have bands playing and they usually do well, although a friend of mine has a particularly well-placed bar and band, and that has been very slow over the past three or four weeks, as has another friend's bar with exactly the same setup.

 

Perhaps the largest bar in Bangla Road seems to have had the lowest turnover this previous month since 10 years prior to this date! Other bars are also struggling, and moving away from the bar scene, restaurants also seem to be struggling and the Wine Connection has been extremely slow, as have other restaurants visited by friends. In addition Big C is nowhere near its target, despite trying to tempt the Chinese into buying more, but there again you have to sell a lot of packets of dried seaweed and fruit to be able to make up for the type of things which really do boost turnover.

 

Feedback is telling me that this coming "high season" is going to be a big disappointment and to be honest I can see it everywhere I look.

 

From the sparsely populated restaurants in the restaurant alley of Jungceylon (although this does pick up at night), to the bars and other venues, to some guesthouses and even down to the little covey of recently opened bars on Nanai, where the musical duo play away for hours on end........... to no one.

 

Perhaps there is more truth to the rumour about zero baht tourists than I ever imagined and perhaps most of this money is being spent overseas and at the huge "duty-free" outlet stores owned by the elite/rich..........so it won't fund Patong or many of the small business owners here.

[KarenBravo]

1 hour ago, phuketrichard said:

MY god ,u think thats  raped? what the F@$K do u think they did to Patong, Kata, Karon, Rawai, Chalong?? A full on anal insertion......

the Poo Ya baan asked me when they did the double road if it was good and i told him it was crazy as all u get is the bus's, trucks, taxi's racing from the bottom of one hill 2 kms to the bottom of the next hill   :-)

 

Most of kamala beach ( all in front of the cemetery) doesn't even have chairs or umbrellas on it..how much nicer can that be?

 

Kamala still retains a thai feel to it which is not felt at any of the others beach areas.You have nice side walk next to the beach with small local restaurants, a nice walking street with shopping and food and the man road

The northern end (where the Novotel is) is where their building high price condos,villas, shopping mall and retirement home

Its called progress....

 

Anyway, thank god many disagree with me, as thats what keeps us happy here

Patong has been gang-raped and then beaten to within an inch of it's life.

[LivinginKata]

6 minutes ago, KarenBravo said:

Patong has been gang-raped and then beaten to within an inch of it's life.

 

Yet the 'powers' still expect to extract the maximum baht from the new crop of punters.  Talk about killing the goose that lays the golden egg.  That Goose was killed many many years ago ...

[xylophone]

32 minutes ago, LivinginKata said:

 

Yet the 'powers' still expect to extract the maximum baht from the new crop of punters.  Talk about killing the goose that lays the golden egg.  That Goose was killed many many years ago ...

So very true..........yet the plonkers that "run" this place are too stupid to see the irony in it.

[Psimbo]

18 hours ago, phuketrichard said:

MY god ,u think thats  raped? what the F@$K do u think they did to Patong, Kata, Karon, Rawai, Chalong?? A full on anal insertion......

the Poo Ya baan asked me when they did the double road if it was good and i told him it was crazy as all u get is the bus's, trucks, taxi's racing from the bottom of one hill 2 kms to the bottom of the next hill   :-)

 

Most of kamala beach ( all in front of the cemetery ) doesn't even have chairs or umbrellas on it..how much nicer can that be?

 

Kamala still retains a thai feel to it which is not felt at any of the others beach areas.You have nice side walk next to the beach with small local restaurants, a nice walking street with shopping and food and the man road

The northern end (where the Novotel is) is where their building high price condos,villas, shopping mall and retirement home

Its called progress....

 

Anyway, thank god many disagree with me, as thats what keeps us happy here

At least a third of the beach in front of the cemetery is beach chairs, umbrellas and massage/restaurants now. Sidewalks in front of the school are in sh1t state, as are those along the main road. Wall/fence across from of the school has collapsed in at least one place.

 

Northern end is not progress- sh1t from the projects is pumped into the Khlong on a daily basis.

 

Kamala as it was is slowly being destroyed. 

[phuketrichard]

wow, u see a different beach than i see everyday , the side walk am referring to goes from Sunwing hotel,  past the police station to the northern end of the cemetery, There are beach chairs at the northern and southern end of the cemetery ONLY<the whole middle is empty!! the other area for beach chairs is south of the Sunwing hotel.
NOT the sidewalk across from the school---which has NO restaurants on it..

[Coconut Kidd]

On ‎12‎/‎13‎/‎2017 at 9:30 AM, phuketrichard said:

building high price condos,villas, shopping mall

"shopping mall". I assume that is the large area on the left side if traveling south, and if so do you know what type of services they are planning? I have heard the old Wednesday/Saturday market (south end of town) is going to be shops with McDs or KFC? Can't imagine this little town could support that, but who knows? I heard the same thing about the coconut/Friday market a few years ago.

 

 

 

 

Edited December 14, 2017 by Coconut Kidd

[Coconut Kidd]

The main drag, in Kamala has turned into a drag strip, and it has got to be one of the most dangerous roads in Phuket.

Edited December 14, 2017 by Coconut Kidd

[simon43]

Feedback is telling me that this coming "high season" is going to be a big disappointment...

You posted that comment on 13th December ==> almost halfway through this month. Is it not high season yet?

Seems to me that the high season is getting shorter and shorter each year, starting later and finishing earlier each year.

[Mysterion]

5 hours ago, Coconut Kidd said:

The main drag, in Kamala has turned into a drag strip, and it has got to be one of the most dangerous roads in Phuket.

Disagree.

 

There are actually two functioning traffic lights within a short distance of each other.

 

Traffic flow and speeds are probably better and safer than most places on west coast.

[Coconut Kidd]

^^^Correct, there are two functioning traffic lights.

[xylophone]

Last foray out before I head off to the green pastures and clean air of the South Island of New Zealand (Nelson to be exact) to spend two weeks holidaying with my recently found relatives from Canada who are also heading there, and then two weeks with friends in Auckland, which will also include a little trout fishing in Lake Taupo.

 

Bangla was busy as it always is and all of the bars that I have mentioned before were also fairly busy. Interesting to note that the bars on the southside of Bangla which don't have "working girls" in them were absolutely packed, whereas the likes of soi Freedom, which is full of girly bars, was sparsely populated – – go figure?

 

The fact that the evening was a bit chilly is probably preparing me for night times in Nelson, where at the moment the temperature has been dropping to about 15 to 17°C – – taking what longsleeve shirts I have here with me, but it didn't help that I gave them all away not too long ago!

 

It's pretty obvious that some sort of "high season" has kicked in because there are many more people around the place, but as for spend?? Well that's another question although Big C is just slightly up on this time last year, but way below target. I suppose the folks that set the targets had been looking at the TAT forecast/statistics of a huge increase in holidaymakers coming to Phuket and set the targets accordingly. Fatal mistake relying on TAT forecasts and statistics, or the spend of cheap Chinese.

 

The dangerous black Frenchies are here and riding the high-powered scooters with careless abandon and I have nearly been wiped out twice by them. They seem to have no road sense or fear whatsoever and seem to think that they own the road whichever side they are driving on. Bloody idiots.

 

I remember chuckling at something my old friend used to say years ago when we were younger, "if things don't change they'll stay as they are". And in a way I think that's what's happening to Patong, because despite so-called changes, everything remains the same – – bars open and close, small businesses open and close, guesthouses change hands, new businesses open up where ones failed previously and they in turn fail, and so on. 

 

New buildings are going up whilst others remain fairly empty or derelict, promises of a 7% return for 15 years and a buyback on apartments are still around, and have probably taken the place of the similar types of spiel uttered by the timeshare folks in days gone by.

 

Promises of new and wonderful things like flood prevention and control still emanate from the anuses of the powers that be and just to prove that they really do have their vocal chords in their backsides, the excavator was back yet again in Nanai road digging up the drains and removing the mud from those very drains which it has only just laid, and which were supposed to have been finished and "smoothed" a while ago……with of course the problem solved!

 

Perhaps all this has been an ongoing scenario which I have failed to recognise and is nothing new and will not/should not/may not result in Patong dying!

 

So, "if things don't change, they'll stay as they are" which has probably always been the case here.

 

[LivinginKata]

I enjoyed reading your post xyl - thought these new drains were supposed to magically deal with the sand and debris run off problem. Ha Ha.

 

From our business point of view we have seen a large influx of Russians looking for one month rental deal, all are good looking younger ladies turning up in black cocktail dresses in the middle of the day. I ask about boyfriends, they just laugh. We don't take one month deals. They say - oh maybe we stay longer, see if we like it here - read maybe we can make money. I say no thanks.

 

Aside from that we have picked up quite a few 4 month deals from Russian guys with Russia ladies in tow, and a lot of younger Finland couples. We are having a good high  season.  

[sebastion]

I enjoyed reading your post xyl - thought these new drains were supposed to magically deal with the sand and debris run off problem. Ha Ha.
 
From our business point of view we have seen a large influx of Russians looking for one month rental deal, all are good looking younger ladies turning up in black cocktail dresses in the middle of the day. I ask about boyfriends, they just laugh. We don't take one month deals. They say - oh maybe we stay longer, see if we like it here - read maybe we can make money. I say no thanks.
 
Aside from that we have picked up quite a few 4 month deals from Russian guys with Russia ladies in tow, and a lot of younger Finland couples. We are having a good high  season.  

Its certainly a good season. Sales of condominiums are through the roof.
I make nearly 2 million baht commissions in last 3 months and December might beat that by itself.
Chinese love condominiums right now. They dont buy one. They buy 5.

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

[xylophone]

3 hours ago, LivinginKata said:

I enjoyed reading your post xyl - thought these new drains were supposed to magically deal with the sand and debris run off problem.

Thanks LiK, enjoy your posts also, and pleased that you are having a good high season......and long may it continue!

 

Have also noticed more Russians than ever before, plus various other nationalities who were fairly rare in the past, however as Sebastion has said, the Chinese are here en-masse and some of the wealthier ones are buying condos (this also from my other real estate friends although Patong Bay Hill Resort and his newer one are doing the most business).

 

They are keen on getting money out of China, but obviously don't know "the ropes" with regard to 30+30+30 year leases, the Thailand property vagaries and the fact that the build quality is so poor, the buy back clause won't be worth much in 15 yrs time (if they are still habitable).

 

And just today saw that some tarmac has been laid near the drains, so could be finished tomorrow!!! Had a thought about that whole set up..........perhaps the extra large drain covers/grates are to enable them to be lifted by an excavator so that it can reach down and clear the mud/sand/debris below???

 

Smart? Perhaps smarter would have been to find the cause of the problem and plant shrubs, grass and trees, as well as building retaining walls, culverts and run-off gullies to stop the whole mess cascading onto the road and filling the drains........but then TIT!!

[NamKangMan]

On 12/21/2017 at 7:19 PM, sebastion said:

Its certainly a good season. Sales of condominiums are through the roof.
I make nearly 2 million baht commissions in last 3 months and December might beat that by itself.
Chinese love condominiums right now. They dont buy one. They buy 5.

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk
 

 

They will do anything to get their money out of China, even buying a condo on Phuket. 

[AJBangkok]

1 hour ago, NamKangMan said:

 

They will do anything to get their money out of China, even buying a condo on Phuket. 

I guess there may be some truth to that as my wife was contacted by a real estate agent last week asking if we were interested in selling our condo as they had a Chinese buyer looking for a 4 bedroom unit.

[xylophone]

15 hours ago, NamKangMan said:

 

They will do anything to get their money out of China, even buying a condo on Phuket. 

That and the promise of a 7% pa return for 15 yrs..........with a "guaranteed" buyback!

[NamKangMan]

On 12/24/2017 at 5:07 AM, xylophone said:

That and the promise of a 7% pa return for 15 yrs..........with a "guaranteed" buyback!

 

I guess I'll be renting a very nice condo from a Chinese owner, for 5000 baht a month, in the future. 

 

It's all good news for renters. 

 

 

Edited December 28, 2017 by NamKangMan

[LivinginKata]

24 minutes ago, NamKangMan said:

 

I guess I'll be renting a very nice condo from a Chinese owner, for 5000 baht a month, in the future. 

 

It's all good news for renters. 

 

 

 

You wish .... these Chinese will have  a back up plan .... believe me ....

 

As it happens we see rental income picking up bigly ...

[NamKangMan]

8 minutes ago, LivinginKata said:

 

You wish .... these Chinese will have  a back up plan .... believe me ....

 

As it happens we see rental income picking up bigly ...

 

Read again, I said, "in the future." 

 

That means, I'll be cashing in on the next wave of fools coming here to "invest."  

 

I would be interested to know what you think is "a back up plan" for buying an overpriced condo on Phuket, when it is not held 100% in the owners name, and during a period when there is a rapid decline in the western tourist market, with property attracting rising fees, taxes, and control.

 

 

 

 

Edited December 28, 2017 by NamKangMan

[LivinginKata]

13 minutes ago, NamKangMan said:

<snip>

I would be interested to know what you think is "a back up plan" for buying an overpriced condo on Phuket, when it is not held 100% in the owners name, and during a period when there is a rapid decline in the western tourist market, with property attracting rising fees, taxes, and control.

 

 

You know these very clever Chinese always have a long term plan ... I have no idea at all about how they think ...   They are well on track to take over Asia and then the world.

[NamKangMan]

3 minutes ago, LivinginKata said:

 

You know these very clever Chinese always have a long term plan ... I have no idea at all about how they think ...   They are well on track to take over Asia and then the world.

 

Well, they are astute in business, and only time will tell. 

 

It's a well known fact that many western investors try to plan for 10 years ahead, for example, where as the Chinese plan for a generation ahead. 

 

We have all seen the big changes to Phuket in the last 2 to 3 years.  One can only imagine what will become of Phuket 10 years from now, let alone, a generation from now. 

 

In my opinion, one thing is for sure, if the Chinese are going to "invest" in Phuket / Thailand - they must know they will be getting casinos here in the future, which is particularly relevant for Phuket. 

[LivinginKata]

3 minutes ago, NamKangMan said:

 

Well, they are astute in business, and only time will tell. 

 

It's a well known fact that many western investors try to plan for 10 years ahead, for example, where as the Chinese plan for a generation ahead. 

 

We have all seen the big changes to Phuket in the last 2 to 3 years.  One can only imagine what will become of Phuket 10 years from now, let alone, a generation from now. 

 

In my opinion, one thing is for sure, if the Chinese are going to "invest" in Phuket / Thailand - they must know they will be getting casinos here in the future, which is particularly relevant for Phuket. 

 

Well ... they are welcome to offer us a good price for our many properties .... oh I dream on ... and count our chickens in banks outside Thailand. We have done well over the years .... very well.

 

NKM you say rent only, in our case buy, build, rent has made us a load of money. I arrived here 22 years ago with 5 million baht in the bank,. That 5 million has been multiplied 3 fold in cash in bank as of today and 20 fold in 'theoretical' property value. Yes I know property values are in the tank and it comes down to what the buyer will pay.  As I personally own nothing here in Thailand then I don't care what our property would sell for as my Thai wife will never be 'poor'. Rental income stream is OK, better this year. I am now an old dude and I don't care one whit about property value.  

[NamKangMan]

18 minutes ago, LivinginKata said:

 

Well ... they are welcome to offer us a good price for our many properties .... oh I dream on ... and count our chickens in banks outside Thailand. We have done well over the years .... very well.

 

NKM you say rent only, in our case buy, build, rent has made us a load of money. I arrived here 22 years ago with 5 million baht in the bank,. That 5 million has been multiplied 3 fold in cash in bank as of today and 20 fold in 'theoretical' property value. Yes I know property values are in the tank and it comes down to what the buyer will pay.  As I personally own nothing here in Thailand then I don't care what our property would sell for as my Thai wife will never be 'poor'. Rental income stream is OK, better this year. I am now an old dude and I don't care one whit about property value.  

 

Nothing in my post was personally directed towards you LIK, but I thank you for volunteering some personal information.

 

Yes, those who bought in cheap in the 80's / 90's have done well, although, those days are well and truly gone, as are many of those expats from that era.

 

I agree with you when you say, "theoretical property value" because it's not cash in the bank until it's sold, and there are thousands, yes, thousands, of properties on the market on Phuket, and they still continue to build more.

 

If asked, would you do the same, with the same Thai wife, in 2018 - I am sure your answer would be a resounding "no." 

 

So, on that basis, who would "invest" in Phuket now????

 

Interesting you have moved your money to "banks outside Thailand."  If you haven't got confidence in the local, or National economy, once again, why would anybody else????  

 

 

 

 

Edited December 28, 2017 by NamKangMan