Jump to content

Leaderboard

Popular Content

Showing content with the highest reputation on 11/14/2019 in all areas

  1. It was billed as 60 minutes of free beer to celebrate the 60th anniversary of London Pride.Fortunately the serving wenches were late to turn up to my local club so it went on for longer than the 60. The serving wenches were from Ecuador and very,very nice.
    4 points
  2. Through the years, I've witnessed a number of everyday disputes between farang and Thais in Pattaya. Most of them ended badly for the farang because he or she chose the wrong approach in handling the situation. I try to give some tips that may help inexperienced visitors to Thailand find the right way. I know some members don't like reading long posts, so I'll begin with the summary: Any time you are faced with a potential conflict, don't get angry, keep calm instead. Smile or at least have a neutral facial expression. Never make threatening gestures or start to yell. If you're not getting anywhere in resolving the situation with words, apologize and pay some small money if you must. Rack up minor losses to experience. I know it is irritating to pay for something for which you feel you're being unfairly charged, but a few hundred baht for a lady drink you don't recall ordering is still a better option than a trip to the Soi 9 cop shop, the hospital or the morgue. I'm not sure a tough stance and angry words are an effective way of resolving a dispute anywhere in the world, but it's the worst approach in Thailand. Adapt your strategy to your circumstances and you sure as hell aren't in Kansas anymore, ToTo. This isn't new or original advice. A lot of it has been passed on to tourists since the days of the Vietnam War. It seems, though, that a lot of visitors nowadays haven't heard, or at least taken stock, of this advice. By everyday disputes, I mean complaints and conflicts which arise in bars, restaurants, hotels, shops, on the baht bus, etc. over price or service. They involve casual encounters between Thais and tourists. I'm excluding disputes between business partners or couples in a committed relationship as well as arguments among foreigners in Thailand. Those aren't everyday disputes. Here's a perfect example of what not to do, taken from a thread on another board. Four farang passengers get very angry because the buzzer didn't work on a baht bus and it went 60 or 70 meters more than they wanted before stopping. Presumably, the outraged baht-bus riders acted that way because they thought they were right. You know, the whole, "It's not the money; it's the principle," spiel. That's absurd. Matters of principle center on freedom of expression, conscience or thought. Testifying for the prosecution at the trial of Mexican drug lord who's holding your only child hostage is a matter of principle; refusing to give a songthaew driver 10 baht, isn't. Far too often the justification for treating Thais with contempt is murkier and stems from ethnic discrimination or even raw racism. Quite simply, some tourists are convinced that not only are Thais their inferior but are also out to cheat non-Thais whenever they can. They believe they are standing up to Thais by acting in a rude or abusive manner. Nothing could be further from the truth, but there aren't any words which will dissuade visitors or long-term farang residents with that mindset. "Never try to teach a pig to sing" Robert Heinlein once wrote. "It wastes your time, and it annoys the pig." However, visitors who don't have such a swinish attitude but lack experience in Pattaya can find the standard advice on conflict resolution in Thailand to be very useful. The main points to keep in mind if you feel you're being charged too much or getting poor service: 1) Don't lose your temper. Whatever happens, don't start shouting or make aggressive gestures. It's not a matter of giving in to your Thai opponent; it's just a matter of using the most effective tactics to resolve the situation in the best possible way. 2) Be aware that many disputes are the result of poor communication caused by language and cultural differences rather than a deliberate attempt to cheat you. Keep your cool, even when your frustration mounts. Yelling won't help anything. Just keep saying, "I'm sorry, I don't understand," and try to explain your side of the matter in simple language. 3) Don't sweat the small stuff. Ten or 20 twenty baht isn't worth wasting time and energy over, much less raising your blood pressure. 4) Don't cause a Thai to lose face in any situation. It's futile to demand a solution that will result in a Thai opponent losing face. The best approach will be one that involves no loss of face for either party. Don't insist on an apology as this always involves a loss of face for a Thai. A Thai will apologize if he or she truly feels sorry. However, demanding an apology as a public act of contrition is a Western concept and it doesn't work in Asia. 5) Whenever possible, avoid arguments with Thai men. The risk of escalation due to a loss of face is too high. If you notice a Thai man is getting agitated, start thinking of an immediate exit strategy. Drop whatever demands you had and walk away ASAP. Farang virtually never win physical confrontations because Thai men can almost always count on help from other Thais. A U.S. Army vet who had served in Thailand in the late 1960s told me the following 45 years ago: Never fight a Thai male because "if one can't take you, two will; if two can't take you, five will; if five can't take you, they'll get guns and shoot you." 6) If you run into a dispute in a bar in Pattaya, ask immediately to speak with the farang manager if there is one. Thai service staff seldom have the authority to resolve a dispute to the customer's satisfaction. Should no manager be on site, either forget the whole thing or come back to the bar when the manager is there. However, never try to leave a bar without settling the bill or reaching agreement on how the bill will be settled. 7) As much as is humanly possible, avoid involving the Thai police in an everyday dispute. If you are the victim of a serious crime, that's a different thing. But it can become far more trouble than you expected if you try to summon the BiB for a dispute over a few hundred baht. Evil
    3 points
  3. Long Island fried black mushrooms with salt , garlic and chilli seabass fillets ( Pla Kapong Thod Suman Prai ) , was a little dry and probably wouldn't repeat
    3 points
  4. They're getting the land cleared and prepped for something new next to Nirun.
    3 points
  5. Thought you meant the poofs until I read the post 😄
    2 points
  6. Yes, that's true. It would say it's a pretty good approach to solving conflicts anywhere in the world, although there is a higher tolerance for gestures, angry facial expressions, loud voices, etc. in some countries than others. However, I don't think "the angry act" is particularly effective anywhere when it comes to trivial disputes. The above advice may not be specific to Thailand. but this board is about Thailand and a person who has never visited LOS may not have heard it. From what I've observed, many farang in Pattaya haven't. Evil
    2 points
  7. For me Thailand is home so yes looking forward to some cooler weather. The temperature of the pool has certainly dropped but its bearable.
    2 points
  8. Not a fan of winter in the UK, although I do enjoy a bit of Christmas, mainly a few seasonal activities/ events and get togethers plus the food. That said, it’s not sufficient in several years to come to prevent me from escaping the cold to warmer climes. in an ideal world I’d love to live overseas ( Asia/ sunny Europe) from mid October until mid March and the remaining months play it by ear and be flexible with my residence. I do like UK in the summer but would be happy to flit over those 4/5 months in Europe / Asia.
    2 points
  9. Even worse for me, I thought it was about beer being distributed for free during the Gay Pride parade.... Hence I didn't really understood the picture. Ok, after a 2nd lecture I got it !
    1 point
  10. I'm off from the 4th January so will hopefully catch up with you at some point.
    1 point
  11. You missed the humour and too be honest I have missed the forum I joined, time for a new forum I think.
    1 point
  12. Chicken baby carrot, sweet corn, baby corn, onion, green beans and pasta in a mushroom and cheese sauce.
    1 point
  13. I stayed at the Aonang Orchid Resort , great location and swimming pool , GF , hotel was a little old , but okay
    1 point
  14. With my English accent it was valid in Scotland if I wanted to avoid a Glasgow kiss. 🤣
    1 point
  15. I don't care about the cold, you can always dress appropriately and some of those crisp cloudless days are lovely. For me it is the bloody rain most of the year and then the dirty slush and ice that we can get during winter, it just doesn't make my life on the road at all interesting.
    1 point
  16. Just the players? Is this the McVay magic wearing off??
    1 point
  17. More Chinese cooking from the Wife. The amazing beef and tomato. I ate it very quick.
    1 point
  18. Thought that was how long your latest shag lasted till I quickly reread it. Yes can be ...other days goes on all weekend etc ...
    1 point
  19. As one who lives north of the 60th parallel, I have no desire to spend another whole winter in that part of the world and as long as I am financially and physically able to do so, I will be absent for at least the months of December and January, and Xmas be damned....it's not so much the cold, which in my part of the north is rather dry and not nearly as bone-chilling at moderate temperatures as that experienced by those living in more humid climates - such as the UK and our own coastal areas in Canada - but it's the dark AND the cold that really gets to me - it's having to commute in that dark and the cold with the nervous drivers amongst us holding up everyone else because they are scared shitless as soon as the first snowflake falls; it's having things break on your vehicle in the cold just when you least need to deal with something like that; it's going out every day for seemingly days on end to clear snow off your walks and driveways; and it's also having to live in a virtual police state in the "holiday" season when the local Gestapo have check stops all over the place to make sure we don't have too much fun...nah, you can have the "white winters", I am heartily sick of them and am happy to be back in Pattaya again for the duration of this one....
    1 point
  20. Field Marshall Lord Bramall KG GCB OBE MC has died aged 95 Was accused by fantasist 'Nick' of being a paedophile by an obsessed Met police force looking to believe any accusers without proof. Man was a war hero and no police have been disciplined over it, its a fucking disgrace. Rip to a great man.
    1 point
  21. Raymond Poulidor https://www.cyclingnews.com/amp/news/raymond-poulidor-dies-aged-83/ https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Poulidor
    1 point
  22. 4 minutes. From hitting the send button, logging on to my UK bank, agreeing the terms, to the money arriving in Kasikorn a/c 4 minutes!
    1 point
  23. Saw some classy Tshirts yesterday in Kuta... Really, who is gonna wear this ?
    1 point
  24. Liver bacon onions veg gravy food of the gods,especially with some nice Oz red....
    1 point
  25. Guess who had the kids meal.... ...and half of her burger....
    1 point
  26. Speedboat for Painter. Booked for 1300 Arrived 1357.
    1 point
  27. Actually, as I said, I did need treatment from time to time. I had major orthopedic surgery there, and a few months before that I had a mysterious blood infection that had me in hospital for nearly a week. Also had other minor treatments, including for illnesses and getting growths removed from my skin. Paid for it all out of pocket, no need to give the money to an intermediary who might or might not give it back when I needed it. I don't want to disparage your friend, but part of my calculus included having the money to cover fairly serious medical issues, and knowing I had family to fall back on in extreme conditions. Also, I demonstrably knew when it was time to come home, which was when that same calculus determined that my financial situation would not support me staying there, including because I couldn't afford to pay for health care if I needed it. It's not that I wasn't insured. I always had insurance. I just didn't buy it from a company. And, when I decided that I no longer had that self-insurance, I came back to the US.
    1 point
  28. Her night off from the restaurant and it's chicken chow mein in the house!
    1 point
  29. Bangers beans mushrooms & Bordeaux,multiculturism at its very best😀
    1 point
  30. Next night - The Huntsman Pub @ The Landmark Bangkok. So After the home run I was fortunate enough to hit at Spassos the previous evening I decided to follow up with another try with Eatigo. Bingo #2 ! Back to the Eatigo app. As I was cruising through the app. a pic of a rack of ribs caught my eye. I focused in and learned they were offering 50% off on their food menu in about an hour. Click click I was on it like a fly on..... anyway the ribs were huge and very tasty, perfect fries and the usual coleslaw. The icing on the cake was in addition to the Eatigo discount they were offering 2 for 1 drafts. So delicious ribs and a couple beers, walked out stuffed (ended up taking back a half rack with me). Highly recommended !
    1 point
  31. 1 point
  32. Sergio's Pizza at the Avenue ( 20% Eatigo discount )
    1 point
  33. Yet another light snack.... She will be putting on weight in proportion to my depleting bank balance...
    1 point
  34. 1 point
  35. I expect the big bar war veteran gave it large and then got sat on his ass.
    1 point
  36. Sorry but it is just your opinion and I think that opinion is bollocks.......what are you on about beer and food not same world, it's probably the same beer......talk to Thais and they will tell you a different story and they will probably not discriminate between venues. As for a foreigner then you will have favourites but you shouldn't belittle a place that brings in thousands of Thais having a good time. Of course Bangkok is good but when in Khon Kaen or any other town in Thailand these places rock especially for the locals. The OP is also in Isaan not Bangkok so just offer something positive about where the guy is located. You sound like another Isaan hater. Your comments don't give any reasons other than beer and food which I doubt is a very good reason especially as they probably are the same throughout. A reason that can offer a decent view might actually help the conversation. I doubt many Thais or foreigners won't go into a Tawandaeng in Khon Kaen because you have decided the Bangkok one is better, just seems a real weird debate you are trying to start. Every Tawangdaeng is a good place to have a great night, especially for the Thais.
    0 points
×
×
  • Create New...