Here is the new Australian embassy in Bangkok

[Jonathan Fairfield]

 

[SABloke]

Wow. What a beautiful building and so welcoming in it's subtle curves 

[Barney R]

I bet if there was half the staff they might become efficient, another waste of tax payers money with most of the staff more interested in the good life in thailand than actually helping their fellow countrymen. 

[revwatch]

Reminds me of the cover to Pink Floyd's Animals for some reason. Must be the color.

[ellathai]

l spoke to them about paying there exorbitant fees in Australian cash, there answer was "  The Australian Embassy does not except Australian currency" what the <deleted>. Go figure 

[lordblackader]

I hope there's such a thing as the world's ugliest building awards - because this will win hands down. 

[ezzra]

Some how i feel, and rightly so, that i own few of the bricks in this building

owing to the silly and outlandish fees the embassy is charging for what

should really be a free service or a small fees......

[Will27]

7 minutes ago, ellathai said:

l spoke to them about paying there exorbitant fees in Australian cash, there answer was "  The Australian Embassy does not except Australian currency" what the <deleted>. Go figure 

They're based in Thailand so of course they accept the local currency or credit card.

 

I don't know why you would think they would accept Australia dollars just because they're the Oz embassy.

 

You can't pay for a Thai visa at a Thai consulate in Australia with Baht.

It's local currency.

 

 

[ellathai]

5 minutes ago, Will27 said:

They're based in Thailand so of course they accept the local currency or credit card.

 

I don't know why you would think they would accept Australia dollars just because they're the Oz embassy.

 

You can't pay for a Thai visa at a Thai consulate in Australia with Baht.

It's local currency.

 

 

Silly me.Expecting something that would make life a little easier for your own kind.Your standards must be lower than mine, glad you were not working for me when l had my business. It's called service.

[midasthailand]

I worked at the previous embassy on South Sathorn Road which was a lovely building that seemed to fit into the environment very well. This new monstrosity looks more like Stalag 13 than an Embassy! 

 

BTW when I worked there it was Australia's 4th largest Embassy world wide, mainly due to the AUSAID, DEETYA and AFP pesrsonnel.

[Will27]

Just now, ellathai said:

Silly me.Expecting something that would make life a little easier for your own kind.Your standards must be lower than mine, glad you were not working for me when l had my business. It's called service.

Service?

 

How would it be easier for Aussies in Thailand?

Most if not all would have Baht and if you have Oz dollars,

it ain't hard to change it.

 

Yes, I think it is silly of you to expect an Embassy to accept foreign dollars.

[DGS1244]

20 minutes ago, lordblackader said:

I hope there's such a thing as the world's ugliest building awards - because this will win hands down. 

Definitely. Where do they get the architects from? 

[Maejo Man]

39 minutes ago, Will27 said:

They're based in Thailand so of course they accept the local currency or credit card.

 

I don't know why you would think they would accept Australia dollars just because they're the Oz embassy.

 

You can't pay for a Thai visa at a Thai consulate in Australia with Baht.

It's local currency.

 

 

I always pay for my one year business visa in Thai baht at a major consulate in Australia. The welcomed it 

[Will27]

Just now, Maejo Man said:

I always pay for my one year business visa in Thai baht at a major consulate in Australia. The welcomed it 

Which one would that be?

[iang]

From the looks of it, I think it's simply designed to be a fortress! Not a bad thing is these days of terrorism, shootings & bombings!

[Suradit69]

1 hour ago, ellathai said:

Silly me.Expecting something that would make life a little easier for your own kind.Your standards must be lower than mine, glad you were not working for me when l had my business. It's called service.

Well to be fair, what would they do with the Aussie currency? Send some staff member down  to a currency exchange? Sell it to staff who happen to be traveling back to Oz? Money collected for services is meant to be used for local expenses. 

 

Really the primary services an embassy provides are facilitating government to government communications, trade promotions and relationships, etc.  Providing nanny state catering to nationals is seldom high on the list of duties regardless of which embassy is involved.

[mfd101]

28 minutes ago, iang said:

From the looks of it, I think it's simply designed to be a fortress! Not a bad thing is these days of terrorism, shootings & bombings!

Undoubtedly that was a major part of the design brief. You'ld look pretty silly these days with an all-glass lovely light & beautiful building for an embassy.

[mfd101]

2 hours ago, Barney R said:

I bet if there was half the staff they might become efficient, another waste of tax payers money with most of the staff more interested in the good life in thailand than actually helping their fellow countrymen. 

If you took the trouble to enlarge the photo you would notice that over half the staff are Thais. Why employ expensive Aussies to do the admin jobs when local employees will do it at 1/4 the price? All in YOUR interest as a tax payer!

[riceyummm]

3 hours ago, SABloke said:

Wow. What a beautiful building and so welcoming in it's subtle curves 

555! It's ugly as sin but like many govt buildings these days it adheres to the Brick Sh*thouse School of Architecture which came into vogue when certain people decided that blowing up embassies was a way to get their message across.

[Ace of Pop]

Wow. What a beautiful building and so welcoming in it's subtle curves 

Looks like Rusty Tins of Corned Beef with Windows to me.?[emoji247]


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[outlaw11wa]

1 hour ago, midasthailand said:

I worked at the previous embassy on South Sathorn Road which was a lovely building that seemed to fit into the environment very well. This new monstrosity looks more like Stalag 13 than an Embassy! 

 

BTW when I worked there it was Australia's 4th largest Embassy world wide, mainly due to the AUSAID, DEETYA and AFP pesrsonnel.

I agree this is a butt ass ugly piece of architecture that should be hidden wedged between other structures. In this open setting its like a boil on a back side. The Sth Sthorn premises was actually very impressive. Often thought "so that's where my tax dollars go"

Thanks for explaining the enormous number of people in the photo. In all the times I went to the Sth Sathorn Building it was strange almost deserted in the public areas. Seemed to be more people as security outside the building than staff anywhere in sight. In the times I went there, once thought the gates and up to the main building, I think I saw one security guy screening us into the secure (fish tank) and one lady screening you on to the foyer. Then not a soul in sight all the way up the stairs to the second floor. Once there it was just as empty. You walked past the ticket machine coz you knew you were number one, haha. So then you stand and look around - no one to be seen. You wander over to the chairs near the booths and sit down to wait.  A few minutes pass and you hear a noise. Out the corner of your eye, something moves. You walk over and peer into the booths along the opposite wall. They appear empty. Then the last one - there below counter height is an attendant shuffling papers. "Did you take a number?"

[anon789561]

who the hell designed that! will be interesting to see what happens with the uk embassy. why would they even sell the land there. it's a great spot and to get such a small amount of money back. suppose they'll be stuck in some office block like the Canadians. hardly an embassy renting a bloody office. but I guess it beats being in that horrible excuse for a building the ozzies have called home 555

[tonray]

46 minutes ago, iang said:

From the looks of it, I think it's simply designed to be a fortress! Not a bad thing is these days of terrorism, shootings & bombings!

I think they might be planning to move refugees there.. The only catch is they need to make them diplomats to get them thru Thai immigration. 

[johnarth]

god they must hire half of Bangkok, you can not tell me they all work when I been there I only seen 6 people in total

[tonray]

12 minutes ago, johnarth said:

god they must hire half of Bangkok, you can not tell me they all work when I been there I only seen 6 people in total

They are the spies all governments keep at the embassy.. They only look Thai. Work in the skunkworks monitoring your every move to see whose pension can be cut. 

[Lucky mike]

Looks like a fortress...

[QuantumMech]

1 hour ago, Will27 said:

Which one would that be?

A major one.

[docshock13]

Yikes! Looks like a dystopian re-education center. 

[KamnanT]

3 hours ago, ezzra said:

Some how i feel, and rightly so, that i own few of the bricks in this building

owing to the silly and outlandish fees the embassy is charging for what

should really be a free service or a small fees......

A frequent traveller (64 page) adult passport issued in Bangkok now costs A$510 (including the A$103 "overseas surcharge").  But the staff get a nice new workplace, albeit not that attractive.

[janclaes47]

I understand that the UK sent it's convicted criminals to Australia, but does that mean they have to build a prison in Thailand to remind them?