Pattaya This Week

I’ve never been a huge fan of Pattaya and have tended to head to Sin City when I had a specific reason for being there. As such, I seldom stayed in Pattaya for more than a couple of days. This week I popped down to Pattaya and enjoyed it so much that I extended my stay. And when the time came to return to Bangkok, I didn’t want to leave!

 

 

I was in Pattaya for a change of scenery, to catch up with friends and to have a nosey at what had changed, and what was new since I was last in town a year ago.

As expected, the Beach Road promenade was awfully quiet and at times, the next person could be more than 100 metres away. Before lunch time, it almost felt like you had the beach walk all to yourself.

 

 

If ever there was any doubt how about quiet Pattaya was this week, I was told about a foreign-run hotel which for the first time since it opened has been empty. Some nights there was not a single guest.

It wasn’t all that different at the hotel I was staying. When I checked in, the receptionist asked, “Are you Mr. Stick?” I was the only person checking in that day.

 

 

Fewer visitors in town means hungry ladies. What a time it is to be a naughty boy in Pattaya. Just like I said last week about how the ladies of Cowboy were more welcoming than they had been in a long time, it’s very much the same in Pattaya. And just like Soi Cowboy, it’s not desperation, but eagerness. The girls aren’t broke. They still have money to send to family and to support their children. But they’re keen to make more!

There are many vacant spots along Walking Street, even at the prime Beach Road end. We know it’s been a lousy low season, but which came first – the lack or visitors of the vacant spaces?

 

 

On Monday night, Walking Street was like the scene of the apocalypse. As the hours rolled by, I waited and waited for the crowds to come. They never did. There were few people around. I don’t think I have ever seen Walking Street as quiet as it was earlier this week. Even on my first visit to Pattaya way back in mid-1998, I don’t remember it being this quiet.

The vibe on Walking Street is very different today. There are far fewer beer bars. Perhaps with the current rents they’re not economically viable? Whatever the case, they appear to have been squeezed out.

The Frog’s Land beer complex remains. Night after night it was quiet – even on Friday night – and nothing like the old days. I was never a big fan of the beer bars, but they added to the friendly vibe, and they are missed.

 

 

What’s with these shooting ranges on Walking Street? A half-dozen or so such attractions are scattered along the street. You can choose from rifles and pistols. I’m in no way anti-gun – I’d love to own a gun but the New Zealand government makes that near impossible – but I question the wisdom of such an attraction on Walking Street. What happens when some clown who has had a few too many turns around and points the gun at the crowd. People are going to freak. They may just be BB guns but at a distance, at night, with a few drinks, do most people know that? Seems like a recipe for trouble to me.

And what is it with the touts with laminated cards promoting live sex shows, ping-pong shows and the like along the full length of Walking Street. They’re so aggressive that I guess they’re on a commission. You can cal me a prude, and I know it’s Sin City, but I find the idea of sex shows so incredibly distasteful. Topless dancers is one thing but live sex shows? No, thanks.

One positive on Walking Street is the absence of freelancing ladyboys. I didn’t see any. There are plenty along Beach Road though.

 

 

Not low season, but “India season”, they told me. I saw little evidence of it from Monday to Thursday, but that all changed on Friday night when Walking Street came to life and it felt like half of Mumbai had descended on Walking Street. More on that in the news section below.

If you had any doubt about the dominance of the giant Indian nightclubs on Walking Street, watch where the crowds are going later in the evening. And take a look at the advertising on the side of the baht buses. Many (most?) feature an advertisement for one of the giant Indian nightclubs.

 

 

There are far fewer gogo bars on Walking Street today, and the side sois. Their number peaked at around 80 back in the noughties, I believe, but today their count is probably closer to 30. Many of the smaller gogo bars have gone by the wayside and those that remain are large, impressive venues.

As Walking Street starts to look more like the Las Vegas Strip and bigger is definitely better, do small gogo bars have a long-term future? Said smaller bars are being drowned out by the likes of Chick, XS, Shark and Pin Up. It’s like a big retailer buying up and crowding out all the ma and pa stores.

 

 

The image above encapsulates Walking Street today. Two gun ranges flank the entrance to a bar with Russian girls, as an Indian couple walks past and a Russian family takes a closer look at the guns available, with not a single Westerner in sight.

I feel totally disconnected from Walking Street today. It’s like it’s a completely different place to that which I once knew. There are still remnants of the Walking Street of old, but while some parts of the area might feel much as they did, the crowd is nothing like the old days. It’s neither better nor worse, but it is very different.

Could Walking Street become analogous with Patpong? Bangkok’s premier bar area went from a nightlife area known only by naughty boys to a mainstream tourist attraction with something for everyone. Trying to be something for everyone didn’t work and its popularity waned. Could the same happen to Walking Street?

 

 

Once-thriving Soi Pattayaland 2 is these days just another soi. Around a third of the properties on the soi are vacant and when the sun goes down, the soi which was once full of beautiful neon is largely in darkness. There’s little atmosphere and it’s all rather depressing. Even the classic old Shamrock was closed.

 

 

Turn the clock back 25+ years and all around Pattaya you saw signs with Tony, a local businessman who had his fingers in all sorts of pies. Today, it feels like there are almost as many Risa Massage shops in Pattaya with the distinctive pink signs and uniforms as there are 7 Eleven branches. What’s Risa’s backstory?

 

 

With it being so quiet, now is a great time for naughty boys to visit. Many bars are crammed with ladies, and there’s not a customer to be seen. If you’ve been thinking about visiting, it’s hard to imagine there will be a better time than now!

 

 

While I write about the nightlife, I just observe and don’t partake. So what do I like to do in Pattaya?

Away from the main city area, Pattaya has some fantastic seafood. The best place? In my mind, that’s So Tai Seafood at Naklua, a few km from Pattaya Beach. It’s a small place with only six tables and doesn’t take reservations. The food is so good that the venue is full for much of the day. That means you usually have to wait for a table. If you’re willing to brave it and wait, this is some of the best Thai-style seafood you can imagine. There’s not much of a view and the service isn’t great, but oh my word, the food is on another level. And it’s not expensive. 9 dishes shared by 3 of us (which was way too much food) was just 2,500 baht.

 

 

More than anything, I like to wander around Pattaya, explore sub-sois, engage with the locals and see how it has changed. With the magnificent weather this week, it was perfect. With the sea front, the breeze and much less traffic, it’s even better for walking than Bangkok.

 

 

Pattaya really got under my skin and I finally came to see the appeal of living there. That’s not to say I’d like to live there because I wouldn’t, but I totally understand those who do.

I always thought the nightlife was the major reason expats moved to Pattaya. It’s not that at all. It’s a combination of the setting next to the beach, and the convenience. Everything is concentrated into a small area. Dining, drinking, shopping, nightlife, the beach, it’s all within a short walk. And it’s all so laid-back, compared to Bangkok.

This was the longest I had stayed in Pattaya, and I loved every minute. Pattaya is quiet at the moment and the weather is fantastic. Hotels are cheap and the girls are hungry. You don’t have to be a player to have a good time. Pattaya really has so much more going for it than just the nightlife. What a great place for a few days away.

 

 

 

Mystery Photo

Last week’s photo was taken of The Park Silom, on the corner of Silom Road and Soi Convent.

I have a funny feeling I might have included the location of this week’s photo previously a few years back, but cannot be sure. This photo is recent, however, taken earlier this week. I’ve written so many columns over the years that it’s hard to remember everything!

 

 

Stick’s Inbox – The Best Emails From The Past Week

Pricey cocktails.

Pricey cocktails are becoming a trend here. Wealth disparity has always been a concern in Thailand but it’s often overlooked that it isn’t limited to Thais. I remember when clubs between Ploenchit and Ekamai had a healthy mix of Thais and foreigners. Since COVID, more and more venues have priced out Thais. This is especially the case closer to Yaowarat where tourists are happy to spend crazy amounts of money. One venue comes to mind and I rarely see Thais there simply because it’s so expensive. The entry fee is 600 baht which includes one free drink. Back in ประเทศฝรั่ง, I’d be hard pressed to find a bar charging these prices. When I first moved to Bangkok I would see a mix of customers in these bars; now it’s entirely young wealthy Westerners and a handful of freelancers. It is what it is.

Explaining the low season.

Just a thought on low season. When I came home 2 weeks ago on EVA to London, the flight was packed. I did not see a single empty seat. This got me thinking. Is it really a terrible, wet, low season, or have things simply changed? Possibly a combination of financial pressures and aging HOBITS (Happy old boys in Thailand) have shifted the demographic. Maybe, just maybe, people are coming to holiday, and not throw a week’s wages at a bar or a pretty face?

It looks busy to some.

Busy or not busy? Every night of the year must look busy for some. Imagine what it looks like to someone from some boring town in the West. Anyone with money will travel.

Soi Cowboy on a Friday night.

Last Friday night I was on Soi Cowboy. Had a few beers at Penny Black, where the happy hour price is 80 baht. There was not much foot traffic so I wandered up to Tilac. No happy hour, beer 180 baht. Sat outside for a couple. By then it was 9:00 PM. There were no other customers. I went inside for a leak. There was nobody inside either, except for a handful of girls playing with their phones. There were no dancers on stage. Not one of the girls even looked up as I walked through. I popped my head in Long Gun, and there was not a single customer in there either. I didn’t stay. I thought about trying one more bar, maybe Dollhouse or Shark, but I was actually beginning to feel a bit bored with the whole scene. I decided to head off home around 10:00 PM. Are we seeing the gradual end of this type of entertainment in Bangkok or has low season always had this kind of low?

Cashless.

Speaking of cashless, last month I was wandering around the Emporium and failed miserably to buy a coffee at two places. They didn’t take cash and I don’t carry a card. I’ve defeated a couple of pick-pocketing attempts on Soi Nana over the years and I just don’t bring anything I’m not planning on using. McDonald’s and cinemas are all trying to push you to use self-service screens, though someone will usually help you out at these places. Apart from anything else, I get foreign currency transaction charges if I do use a card.

Rescue mission to the border.

My wife and daughter were visiting the family in Surin, this week. When I read the news I started to worry. My wife’s parents live not that far from the border and they could hear explosions from time to time. My wife told me that in a village not far away, a school got hit by a rocket. What we are seeing in the media right now is just the tip of the iceberg. I decided to drive to Surin and get them out of there. We are now all safe back in Bangkok. On the way the tension was real. Many more drivers than usual were speeding, me included. Around Buriram I started to pass big military convoys. Several that were transporting heavy artillery. Also, many convoys of ambulances going that way. As I drove back to Bangkok the convoys were getting bigger and bigger. I worry about my in-laws. They are old and stubborn and didn’t want to join us in Bangkok. I think this isn’t just about temples anymore and I don’t think it will stop after one day. The Thais are furious. At least my wife and little girl are safe now. I really wonder what Cambodia’s end game is here? What are they hoping to get out of this? It does feel awfully similar to the Hamas playbook: provoke, attack and then cry victim. I hope it ends quickly, but I was shocked with the scale of the mobilization I saw while driving back to Bangkok.

Beware the Michelin man!

A few weeks ago there was an email about Michelin Guide eateries – possibly bogus guide awards. On my last trip to The Big Mango I stumbled upon a top-notch noodle shophouse restaurant on Thanon Si Praya in the Silom district; it was by far and away the best noodles that I have had in all my visits to Thailand. Just a marble’s throw from my serendipitous culinary delight there happened to be a Michelin Guide noodle shop. Walking past, I find it difficult to see how that Michelin Guide shop could trump the noodles I had just eaten. So, I popped into the Michelin Guide shop a couple of days later to compare. It was six times the price and a load of ***t!  What a load of bollocks!

 

 

 

This Week’s News, Views & Gossip

The big news from Thailand this week was the escalation in the conflict with Cambodia. This is the last thing the bar industry or the wider tourism industry needs. With that said, when doing the rounds of the bars in Pattaya on Thursday and Friday and Bangkok on Saturday, not one person mentioned it. Should I be surprised? Most foreigners in the bar industry are clueless about what’s happening in the country outside the bars.

With much speculation about bar trade being down, just how bad are things out there? From one medium-sized Nana Plaza bar, trade is down just 20% on high season. And in the top floor bars, you wouldn’t think trade was down at all.

Last night in Nana Plaza, Billboard and Butterflies were rocking despite the heavy early evening downpours. Shortly after 9:00 PM, it was hard to find a free seat in Billboard.

The current crop of Indians peddling counterfeit watches on Soi Cowboy are real pests. Once upon a time these guys were an amusement. I can’t say that about the current crop. I get it that they’re trying to make money but I think getting abusive at people who aren’t interested isn’t a good approach – and might backfire with those who have been drinking. This problem is specific to Soi Cowboy. This is one of the big benefits of security at the entrance to Nana Plaza – these pests can’t get in.

 

 

Velvet on the sub-soi off of Soi 8 is no more. It is now an all-night Isaan joint. Take your lady du jour there and I imagine she’ll be impressed.

The SW1 Market is open again. It’s very much for tourists with food, drinks and knick-knacks that visitors might like. The area is partially covered, but with that said, last night’s rain hurt trade. More on this market next week.

A reader tells me that Shadow Ladyboy Bar in Soi Cowboy is about as good as such bars tend to get. The ladyboys there are uncut (apparently this is the strong preference for those who dig ladyboys) and middle of the road in terms of femininity and attractiveness. Said reader says it’s on par with Obsession in Nana Plaza. Check it out if the third sex rocks your boat.

African men on Sukhumvit? I didn’t see any who were not clearly a bona fide tourist. Sure, plenty of African ladies are hanging around after dark, but African men? Not anywhere I went. As far as the African ladies go, none struck me as easy on the eye.

Last week I effused about Soi Cowboy. I felt it was better than it has been in a long time and naughty boys should seize the moment. This week I have a warning about a bar in Soi Cowboy, Venus, which has a policy whereby you must sign for each of your drinks throughout the night. One fellow was happy to do that and the bill ran up to 1,400 baht. When it was time to leave, he went to pay – but the bar wanted 20,000 baht. He disputed this. Things got physical. His glasses flew off his head. The cops were called. Both parties held their ground. In the end he paid 1,400 baht and left, vowing to never return again and to tell all and sundry about what happened. So if you find yourself in Venus, keep this reader’s experience in the back of your mind. Or you might like to stick with the big-name bars like Baccara, Shark, Dollhouse, Suzie Wong, Tilac, Bad Beach and Long Gun.

 

 

I spent more time in Pattaya this week, so this week’s edition features far more bar news and observations from Sin City than from Bangkok. Bar trade in Pattaya wasn’t great at the start of the week, although it improved hugely on Friday night.

Soi LK Metro struck me as quiet all week long. Even Friday night seemed quiet.

Soi 6 was awful. Wandering through after dark, most bars had ladies lined up outside. There was no shortage of ladies and many were attractive. The problem on soi 6 is the noise. It’s like the days of old in the beer bar complexes where every bar had its own sound system playing different songs with the volume permanently set at max. The music on soi 6 is so loud, and the sound systems distorting that it feels like an assault on your hearing, is seriously unpleasant and borderline painful. Wandering up the soi with a friend, we got to the halfway point and that was enough. We turned around, left and, for me at least, won’t return for a look for another year. Since all the bar frontages were opened up, soi 6 has become a party zone rather than the sneak-away area it used to be. One positive for naughty boys is the ratio of ladies to men which my best guess would be about 10 : 1.

Sois 7 and 8 were extremely quiet. A stroll through late afternoon when the sun was still up might tell part of the story. Neither looks nor age are a barrier to employment on soi 7, particularly the lower half of the soi. The top of the soi near Second Road was better. The bottom end of Soi 7 is a horror show. That said, like everywhere in Pattaya this week, the girls are friendly and welcoming.

 

 

It had been a quiet night on Walking Street from Monday through to Thursday. And then on Friday it burst into life. There were people everywhere with one group dominating. It felt like downtown Mumbai. Why was Friday genuinely busy while the previous 4 nights had been so quiet? I wonder if a lot of Indians flew in late the night before and were staying for a long weekend?

What’s the first gogo bar on Walking Street? It’s actually a tough question because it just opened on Friday night. Identi. Opening night in Walking Street’s newest gogo bar started with some drama as promotional material outside the bar was taken away by police. Identi is a new, single-shophouse gogo bar and they’d love your support.

Post-Covid, many regarded Pin Up A Gogo as Walking Street’s best gogo bar. It’s a beautifully done out bar with a fantastic sound system. And it still has well in excess of 100 ladies on stage – there might have been as many as 150+ when I stopped by on Friday night. But the bar lacks something. The girls don’t come across as happy and there is a mismatch between the energy from the sound system and the ladies’ robotic shuffling. Pin Up this week just didn’t feel like much fun.

Walking Street’s gogo bars are today dominated by two big French-owned groups. There’s the Pin Up / XS Group (not their official name, but the way I refer to them) and the Shark Group – again, not the group’s official name. The former have acquired long-running Walking Street gogo bar Glasshouse and will redevelop it. Some say it could be open within a week or two. That’s not the impression I got from sticking my head inside, but let’s see.

 

 

Pin Up’s sister bar XS is better with many of the best looking ladies in the group dancing there. The stages were packed with attractive ladies but just like Pin Up, I thought there was something missing. A great bar, beautiful interior and extremely popular, it was the sort of bar you’d take a first-timer to and watch them drool. But for pure fun as opposed to a great view, I think there are better choices.

So that begs the question: which is the best gogo bar on Walking Street? For me, one bar stands out. It’s the big sister of a bar of the same name in Bangkok. On Friday night there were in excess of 120 dancers and there were some real beauties. This bar has been around a long time but underwent a major overhaul with a huge, beautiful new frontage built several months ago. The bar is upbeat and, critically, the ladies are much more engaging than in any of the other big Walking Street gogos. Which bar am I talking about? Shark Gogo Club! Early evening when other bars were quiet, Shark was bouncing. From 8:00 until 9:00 PM, Shark has a happy hour with various drinks priced between 65 and 105 baht. After 9:00, the regular prices are reasonable with 105 baht draft beer all night long, Non-alcoholic drinks will set you back 130 baht, bottled beers 170 baht and better top-shelf spirits are around 180 baht. Fair prices and cheaper than the best bars in Bangkok. Shark Gogo Club has an odd layout with three dance stages and 3 VIP areas. These can be booked, or a large group might be invited to use one. The music, the ladies, the service, the cleanliness of the men’s room, the impressive frontage, the reasonable drinks prices and the vibe make Shark, for me, the best bar of its type in either Pattaya or Bangkok. I really believe that Shark on Walking Street is the new benchmark for gogo bars. Not just in Pattaya, but nationwide. I honestly don’t know if there is anything better. Sorry, Billboard, for me, your time at the top is over. Shark was amazing on Friday night, the best gogo bar I have stepped inside in a very long time. Perhaps the one negative is that barfines and the lady’s asking prices might cause you to make some mental calculations to see if you can afford it. That aside, Shark Gogo Club in Pattaya is as good as it gets.

 

 

Also from the same French group which runs Shark, is Fahrenheit. At the risk of being accused of favouring this group (I have no association with them whatsoever), the long-running Fahrenheit was probably the next best pick. As a side note, long-term readers might remember some years ago I commented that the French often run the best bars. I stand by that.

Getting back to Shark, the layout of the Pattaya bar is coming to Shark Soi Cowboy. The Bangkok bar is smaller but it will feature the same layout with lower stages, so essentially the same bar on a smaller scale.

But perhaps giant gogo bars aren’t your thing? Perhaps you prefer a smaller, more intimate affair where the music is more familiar? You might like to stop by Rum Runner on Soi Buakhao, the newest bar from well-known bar manager / bar owner / YouTuber and Pattaya personality, Mister Egg. His plan was to bring back the day-time vibe that was so popular in the likes of Champagne. Today in Pattaya, there are just 4 gogo bars open during daylight hours. There’s Rum Runner on Soi Buakhao, and Dirty Money which is located directly opposite Rum Runner. Of course, there’s also TQ on the Beach Road and then there’s Top Gun in LK Metro. Mister Egg is not looking at the gentleman‘s club market which also operates throughout the afternoon. That style of bar where there is usually action on the premises is just not his cup of tea. He believes there’s a market for gogo bars open in the afternoon with a nice lineup of ladies but isn’t a naughty / hands-on sort of place. Mister Egg – real name Phil – has succeeded in creating his vision. The staff are fantastic, with a very friendly and attractive crew. Think day-time bar and you often think of older ladies who couldn’t get employment in a better bar. Unlike the music which is old and familiar, the team at Rum Runner are young and fun. Of all the bars I visited in Pattaya this week, Rum Runner was the one bar I stopped by twice. I enjoyed it that much. Cool air-con, a fun crew, low drinks prices and good music played at a sensible volume. What more could you want?! Rum Runner is located on Soi Buakhao, perhaps 150 metres or so from the market at the South Pattaya Road end.

 

 

There’s a young (30-something, at a guess), balding farang beggar doing his thing near the start of Sukhumvit soi 27 / the Phrom Pong BTS station. He doesn’t look to be in bad shape physically and didn’t look to me like he was living on the street. He was sat, cross-legged, his eyes focused on the cup with coins placed in front of him on the ground. I’ve seen plenty of farang beggars in Bangkok over the years and this guy looked clean and well-kept. Some have been in a truly desperate state. Not this guy. Once upon a time I would have photographed him, but those days are over (Note my comments on this at the end of the column).

Last week I commented about the queues as Immigration arrivals at the airport. Some of you disbelieved me that there were so many people piling into the country. On Wednesday of this week, a friend sent photos of similarly long queues (which I’ve not included as, strictly speaking, it’s not an area where photography is allowed). Some may claim otherwise, but Thailand remains very popular and while, yes, the number of people visiting might be down on the same time last year, the reality is that it’s down by just 2% or 3%. It’s the Chinese market which is down significantly. Others, like the nationalities who read this column, are still flooding in. If you read some of the clickbait headlines you’d think visitor numbers to Thailand had fallen off a cliff. They most certainly have not!

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that there were bollards at the corner of Sukhumvit 22 and how they could be a nuisance to pass. Apparently, these are part of a new initiative by the BMA to return the pavement to pedestrians and prevent motorbikes and other contraptions from riding on the footpath. Signs state that there are AI cameras which presumably record and scan any offending motorbike’s license plate, and the rider will get a fine through the post. So it all starts to make sense. That said, I wonder if there is perhaps a better way to do this? Are the bollards necessary? Why not just put a large sign up and issue infringement notices to everyone who breaks the law, without any bollards in place? Why not just enforce existing laws? I imagine the offenders are locals who live in the immediate area. Once word gets out that infringement notices are being issued, behaviour will change. There are bollards at the start of soi 20 also, as per the photo below, and I also note bollards and similar signage at sois 30 and 30/1.

 

 

I bought some cherries in Bangkok this week. 200 baht / kg. Cheap. I find cherries hard to resist. At home, I buy them at a local orchard when they’re in season – so I am used to cherries being super fresh. I quite understand that cherries start deteriorating as soon as they have been picked and they will never be as good half a world away from where they were grown. Anyway, I am rambling so I should make my point. The sign said that they were from Chile. It wasn’t until later that a friend pointed out that it’s winter in Chile – and it’s many months until cherry harvest season. Did Somchai pull the wool over my eyes? Where were the cherries really from?! My best guess is that they were second-grade American cherries. No need to tell fibs about where they’re from, Somchai!

There we were at a noodle soup stand out in the suburbs of Bangkok and the vendor is talking to me but I don’t have a clue what he’s on about. I mean I almost can’t understand a single word. I’m looking at the guy and I’m clueless about what he’s saying. Only then do I realise he’s not Thai, but from Myanmar. Thais aren’t always big fans of Myanmar, but “Better than a Cambodian”, the other half commented.

Is it me or is khao soi much easier to find in Bangkok these days? If you don’t know khao soi, it’s a Northern Thai curry noodle dish that is particularly popular with foreigners. Once upon a time you couldn’t find it in downtown Bangkok and you had to wait until you travelled to Chiang Mai to enjoy it. Today, khao soi is widely available in Bangkok, which is great. I’ve had it 3 times already this trip, and hope to have it a few more before I leave.

 

 

Many Thais put much more emphasis on their health these days. You see it at Benjakitti Park where far more people exercise daily than in the past when it felt like on weekdays I just about had the whole park to myself. And there are more vendors selling organic produce as well as more vegan and vegetarian restaurants –  although I question whether those are healthy diets but let’s not go there. Traditionally, Thais had a healthy lifestyle, but a few decades back that changed as fast food and processed food became more popular as Thais had less time to prepare food and more money to buy snacks on the go. A renewed emphasis on their health and well-being is great to see.

One of the best things I did in Bangkok this past week was go for a therapeutic Thai massage. I’m not talking one of the massage joints on Sukhumvit, but a proper, registered, therapeutic massage centre – nothing like the massage shops you find in the tourist areas. You need to make an appointment and upon arrival, you fill out a form with a brief medical history including any conditions, past surgeries, how you’re feeling at that time etc. You then have a short chat with a doctor who makes recommendations about the massage based on your medical history and any aches and pains you’re feeling. I happened to be feeling just fine so the recommendation was wellness and relaxation Thai massage. Even though I felt fine beforehand, I felt so much better afterwards. The massage itself was borderline painful, but the end result was well worth it. These sorts of massage centres can be found all over Bangkok. I’m not going to name the place I went to as it’s out by the airport and there are much more convenient locations. It’s not cheap, but not outrageously expensive either. The total cost was 650 baht which included a brief consultation with a doctor, a 90-minute therapeutic massage and herbal drinks. The centre felt like a medical clinic and scrupulously clean – which is not a description that applies to many of the massage shops in tourist areas. This mightn’t sound like a sexy way to spend part of an afternoon, but it was a great experience and highly recommended!

 

 

Thailand-Related Links & News Articles

Quote of the week comes from a friend, “It often seems to me that people here only run their business if they’ve nothing better to do.”

YouTube video of the week looks at bank accounts and banking in Thailand and is a reality check for how things are today.

A 29-year-old Welshman stuck in a Thai hospital for several weeks finally makes it back to Wales.

The number of Russians visiting Thailand is on the rise.

Two separate incidents in Pattaya have left local residents injured after intervening in disputes involving foreigners.

A young mother is the latest Brit to be caught smuggling large amounts of cannabis out of the country.

Confidence in Thailand’s tourism sector has taken a nosedive.

Here’s a primer on what the Thailand / Cambodia border dispute is all about.

A Frenchman dies on a sofa at the Phi Phi police station after being taken there severely intoxicated.

A Romanian is caught trying to smuggle 3.5 kg of heroin at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

 

 

Closing Comments

Rather than a single closing comment, I’ve got a bunch of things to close with today.

First of all, while my email management is usually very good, this week it has been anything but. I have been slow to respond to emails because I have been really busy. I have read all of your emails and to those of you who have not received a reply, I will get back to you. My apologies for the slow response.

This week’s edition doesn’t feature all that much from Bangkok because I spent most of the week in Pattaya. Expect the opposite next week. There’s also no link to the Stickman archives as I just didn’t have the time to select a past column, reformat it and correct the text alignment.

While this week’s column is the longest in a while at 6,500 words, I didn’t spend as much time editing it as usual. It might not flow as well as I’d like. Again, it’s a time thing. I’ve been juggling spending time with the other half, catching up with friends, venturing around the old traps, exploring new areas, and having a bit of quiet time. The column may have been neglected a little. Hopefully it reads ok.

I haven’t included any photos of people like I used to in the past. These days, people don’t like a camera pointed at them. Where once I had the attitude that if you’re in a public place, you’re fair game, today I am much more respectful. It’s a shame not to include photos of people around Pattaya, but like I say, this is not something most people are ok with.

It has been great to meet up with friends, but there are many of you who I am just not going to be able to find the time to catch up with on this trip. I hope you understand.

Of course, the big news from Thailand this week is the fighting at the border with Cambodia. The expectation is that there will be some fallout for the tourism industry. I feel that Thailand needs to send a strong message to Cambodia and give them a spanking for their disgraceful bombing of civilian targets – which I can’t imagine were actually targeted and were more likely due to utter incompetence on the part of the Cambodian military. I hope the fighting comes to a quick end. Don’t let what is happening at the Cambodian border put you off visiting Thailand. It’s a long way from all of the major tourist areas. As I have been saying in recent weeks, *right now* is a great time to visit!

Your Bangkok commentator,

Stick

 

Stick can be contacted at : stickmanbangkok@gmail.com