Had a quick run through the plaza last night. Bars were pretty full which was a good sign. I think the most empty bar I happened to visit was - yup - Angelwitch. More on the rest of the bar crawl in a moment. I think the best news for today is that Chalerm is actually listening to people and realizing that in the wake of a tousism slowdown and the WWFF trying to put forth a booze ban is pretty dumb but any stretch of the imagination.
Public Health Minister Chalerm Yubamrung has abruptly scrapped his much-publicised idea of banning the sale and drinking of alcohol over the New Year holidays, saying it could hurt the tourism industry.
The minister yesterday said he did not want to ban alcoholic drinks during the festive season for fear it would face fierce opposition, especially from tourism entrepreneurs and foreign tourists.
….
Health activists have pressed the health minister and government to come up with concrete initiatives to curb the drinking of alcohol among Thais. Although the Alcohol Control Act came into effect on Feb 14, it has not been enforced.
None of the related laws had been approved yet by Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, as chairman of the national committee on alcohol policy, to regulate alcohol sales and consumption.
Let’s see. So he realizes that he should not regulate the drinking of tourists. Wow. Imagine that. Looks like others are realizing that the real problem is the Thais drinking too much and there are enough laws on the books to deal with that but no one is doing anything about it. Buy a lotto ticket folks. Chalerm actually doing something sensible is nothing short of stunning.
Maybe this PAD stuff is going to come to a head? Seems on the 27th the police are going to seal off Government House and force the group out. In theory it should happen since what the PAD doing is illegal and they should leave the Government House. Problem is no one is going to back down so I sense a conflict brewing. Will the military step in? Will team yellow decide to intervene. Could be a not so happy Halloween.
PAD coordinator Suriyasai Katasila said Pol Gen Salang will soon start mobilising government supporters, who plan to surround the Government House compound on Oct 27 and start a siege that is expected to be “completed” on Nov 1 — the day former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra addresses his supporters at Rajamangala Stadium by phone.
Nutty times.
Seems Thailand is fairing pretty well during the WWFF but the political stuff is starting to have an effect. As I have always said Thailand could come out ahead during all this if they decided to move forwad during this period rather than get mired down in a useless round of toppling the government. Oh well.
Analysts say Thailand looks the best placed financially, as Thai banks had limited exposure to the offshore instruments that bundled now troubled US subprime mortgage loans. Nearly three years of domestic political problems have weighed against consumer and investor confidence and restrained the fast credit extension seen in places like South Korea.
Having lived in HK for 4+ years I have a soft spot for Wan Chai but just like Soi 10, Asoke corner and possibly Washington Square in Bangkok - seems nothing can stop the onslaught of development. Seems Wan Chai is no longer immune as well. Maybe someone in HK can chime in and give us some updates.
Hong Kong’s Wan Chai district, the raucous home away from home for tens of thousands of Jack Tars, GIs and US sailors for generations, is beginning to gentrify, squeezing the famed bar area into ever smaller bits under the relentless wrecking ball of the Urban Renewal Agency.
Cruised through Nana last night with the gang.
First stop was r1. Still my fav out of the Rainbow group. Great tunes, great lineup and not too many hassles. In my opinion, although smaller, the girls on average are better looking in r1 than r4.
Then we popped up to G-Spot. Have to admit this place, the small stage in particular, has a great lineup. The small bikinis and decent tunes help to ensure a good time. If they could lose the cut LBs, get rid of the scary mamasans and fire a few of the waitresses - then I would say this place is pretty good!
After g we headed over to AW. Same tired lineup, same tired shows and lots of empty seats. What more can one say.
However when it comes to nudity - it is tough to beat Caurosel. The drink prices are over the top - just insane but the they have some real lookers and the shows are mostly naked and from time to time the main dancer lineup is naked. There are a few hotties and one of the showgirls must have the best tits in NEP. Tough to avoid this place given the shows.
I am sure most of you caught the JTB post? Seems the premise is somewhat off given the Democratic moves in San Francisco to de-criminalize prostitution:
Proposition K isn’t the first attempt to decriminalize prostitution in the Bay Area. A similar effort by San Francisco sex workers two years ago failed to get enough signatures to be placed on the ballot. In 2004, Berkeley residents voted down a similar measure.
Okay. Back to your regularly scheduled programming…
Great news on the alcohol thing. Hard to beleive, given the survey results.
While you boyz were trolling Nana, I did some Cowboy.
Tilac, Long Gun and Raw Hide were rammed around 11. Baccarra (downstairs) & Shark (around the stage) had some seats open, but all the benches were full.
Baccara’s A squad upstairs looked better than it has in a month. Shark, on the other hand, was missing the big-boob superstars I’d been accustomed to seeing.
RH’s B squad is very lumpy. And it was too crowded to get any fun in LG, so I just walked back out.
Tilac is still a fave. Great tunes. And what’s with the coyotes? A couple are very hot.
By the way, as The Ghost is laying off the booze as much as possible, I found an amazing thngs about being a non-drinker on Cowboy.
Water (7-baht size Singha bottle) in Tilac is just 30 BAHT. I was so stunned I couldn’t beleive my bill. Until I went into Toy Bar.
Water in Toy Bar is, get this 20 BAHT. I’ve neve had a 20-baht bar drink — any bar — in my life.
Of course, there’s a flip side to that story. In Sheba’s, the same bottle of water Tilac serves for 30 baht is an amazing 120 BAHT. I was so offended I handed the still-sealed bottle back to them and tried to walk out. Until the bouncer got snotty with me. But it all got settled without any fight and without me having to pay that stupid price.
OJ, by the way, in Raw Hide is 105 baht. ANd it’s the same size as the mixed drinks, which is kind of unusual.
View all comments by Pattaya Ghost
And its raining cats and dogs again here in Pattaya.
View all comments by Pattaya Ghost
pg - wherever u arrive and whatever day it would seem the rain begins. Kind of like an announcement of your triumphant arrival?
Interesting on the water. Shebas - makes sense knowing who the owner is.
Tilac coyotes are hot but I don’t know what the barfine story is. They seem to only work on the weekends.
Juice is not all that cheap in Thailand so surprisingly a big glass of juice in most places is a good 70 baht on up.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
u mean there’re bars on the 3rd floor?
who knew?
View all comments by jack dawson
Charging more for water in a GoGo that does shows seems reasonable to me. Maybe not 120 but 50-100 depending on the GoGo.
View all comments by pmmp
I would like to clarify one important thing: it was NOT the police who announced they will try to get the PAD out of Government house, but a group led by a retired policeman.
They had planned to start today, but have now postponed to Monday.
Whatever your thoughts on the PAD, at least they try to remain peaceful, which cannot be said about most of the pro-gov groups.
View all comments by rick
pmmp - I think 120 baht water is just taking the piss…
rick - u r correct. my bad and thanks for pointing that out.
peaceful or not. If only we knew what they actually wanted but its okay. They can peacefully run the country into the ground, shave some points of off the GDP and ruin the tourism industry all in the name of not hurting anyone. Brilliant!
View all comments by sideshowBOB
At Shark bar if you stop outside and order a bottle of beer there before heading inside, the beer is 95 baht. I forget how much beer is on the inside but that must be a savings of 35-45 baht. I was surprised that they had cheaper prices outside, since I always thought most places cost the same inside/outside. You can then take your beer inside since you bought it there (for example after a smoke…).
Same story at the bar just on the left as you enter R1, 95 baht I think. (not sure about taking it inside at R1, since I only noticed this on a “one more for the road” kind of thing).
View all comments by Powers
Dudes,
I am looking forward to eating burgers (NOT the KK nonsense) DD RULES!
at the new BM. Love the site. Is Beerlao a traded company? If so, depending
on production schedule, you may make money from the middle of Feb to the middle
of March.
Anyway, thanks for not being like MangoSauce. The Brits are human. Treat them as such. Loveya
matt
View all comments by flushingmatt
fm - DD?
beer laos not a traded company.
whats mangosauce?
View all comments by sideshowBOB
Dunkin Donuts.
Well, they will have a spike
please
View all comments by flushingmatt
fm - ahhhhh dunkin. they are good but could never be compare to a KK or used in a KK Mango Burger.
please?
View all comments by sideshowBOB
I’m not a fan of the PAD, but a plan for a retired deputy police chief (the name Bunnag is huge in Thailand — think Privy Council) to lead a bunch of retired policemen against the group stinks of vigilantism.
The PAD should vacate Government House on their own, in compliance with orders from the courts. Absent this, they should be removed using appropriate means by the appropriate authorities (the police or — if necessary — the army).
Understood that the police may not have the skill, and the army doesn’t necessarily support the government, but to have private groups like the UDD and, now, the Bunnag group attacking the PAD only does more to damage and rip apart the country, providing more incentive for the Army to take things in hand.
The Prime Minister should, at the very least, speak out quickly, firmly and publicly against this announced action from a private group against the PAD.
Interestingly, I was working with a group of Thais on Thursday and Friday to prepare them for an international conference they will be attending next week. We did a variety of activities designed to raise their awareness of other Asian countries, and the view that foreigners have of Thailand as part of preparing for their role in the conference.
In one exercise I asked them to develop an explanation of the actions of the PAD to foreigners who may be only vaguely aware of the details of the Thai political situation. Their answer was sort of “don’t worry, it’s a small inconsequential group occupying a single building in Bangkok. They’re not very important.” I asked them what they would say if questioned about the recent deaths, they shrugged it off as unusual and unlikely to be repeated.
IN the same exercise they were asked to explain the possibility of a coup d’etat. The answer? “It won’t happen because the army has explained why they don’t want to have a coup.”
In a separate exercise, I broke them into small groups and asked them to address the question: “What is the biggest problem facing Thailand at the moment, and how what should we do about it?” EVERY group said that the biggest problem was the economy. They offered a variety of (fairly sophisticated) solutions, but none of the groups identified the political situation as a priority problem or solution. When I asked about it, they all replied that, aside from distracting the government from dealing with the economy, the political situation is not very significant.
Really amazing to me, frankly.
I love Carousel too!
View all comments by Werewolf
My opinion is that DD is SUPERIOR to KK. Try using a DD as opposed to a KK,
the girls may lie, but mass matters.
View all comments by flushingmatt
To each his own…
I’m buying when I’m there.
My wife’s attitude re Thai politics is: “No ploblem.”
My attitude re American politics is: “If you’re NOT
American, shut the fuck up.” Yeah, yeah. “The butterfly wings
in China will cause a hurricane in Fla……”
I do, however, like your reporting vis a vis the current Thai situation. Funny. Us humans appreciate it. Thanks.
View all comments by flushingmatt
Water….
pmmp — I agree. I have no problem whatsoever with paying 40-60 baht in ANY go-go bar for water. I know the score and what they gotta do. I’m cool with that. To get 30 — and 20! — baht water was just an incredible miracle (but one I’m going to rmemeber in Tilac for sure. More money for lady drinks…)
I think I wouldn’t even blink that hard at 75 baht for a 7 baht bottle of water, but 120 was completely out of order. I’d have bought three if I could have stuck each one up The Arab’s ass.
View all comments by Pattaya Ghost
uh, thinking I goofed now… It is The Arab’s bar, right? If not, then the bottles go up whosever’s bum.
View all comments by Pattaya Ghost
At Mandarin Club water = 140 baht. Same at 5 Star and a few other places. (I often drink water instead of beer when I go out).
View all comments by Werewolf
::::::::::ROFL!:::::::::
View all comments by Pattaya Ghost
flushingmatt - “My attitude re American politics is: “If you’re NOT
American, shut the fuck up.” Yeah, yeah. “The butterfly wings
in China will cause a hurricane in Fla……”
What a great statement. This should be applied to Thai politics as well. Meaning if you’re not Thai then shut the f*ck up.
After all, nobody would give a sh*t what a Thai person thought about US politics.
View all comments by Great Gatsby
They well might if that Thai person lived in the U.S.
View all comments by Werewolf
Gatsby,
Thanks….The BBC is doing your namesake every day about 1100.
i will buy the book. matt
PS The book is sooo much better.
View all comments by flushingmatt
WW - thanks for this report, amazing indeed!
flushingmatt - ““My attitude re American politics is: “If you’re NOT
American, shut the fuck up.” Yeah, yeah. “The butterfly wings
in China will cause a hurricane in Fla……””
You’re not talking about butterfly wings here but about a country which has had a clearly interventionist foreign policy financed with considerable, yet unseen amounts of cash for more than 50 years. I, for myself, lack enough understanding of US politics to dare have a point of view, let alone express it. But why should someone with enough understanding and, say Canadian, European or even Malagasy citizenship shut the f*ck up? You must be kidding and I’m not getting the irony in your statement…
View all comments by mart
Very briefly: Wan Chai is prime real estate and the HK govt is extending the HK Convention/Exhibition Centre (the building out in the water built for the handover ceremony was an extension of that, and is now popular for conferences etc). The overpriced girlie bars are still there, but the Wanch is going upscale. Problem is that there are some “heritage” buildings there, and the govt is under fire for knocking down anything and everything and sticking up huge glass hotels/offic buildings. So they’re trying to keep the citizens and the property developers happy…while keeping the drinking/freelancer places low-key. Like in any Asian culture, visibility is what counts, not what actually goes on.
Wan Chai used to be vital gangster turf as well but most of that has moved to more lucrative regions. I know it sounds strange relative to Bangkok/Pattaya, but HK actually has a functioning police force who maintain a reasonable balance with the various illegal market-sectors and their managers.
Recently, Macau has been attracting MICE business and this has Hong Kong working to host regional events. They built a massive conf center out near the airport a couple of years back, but it hasn’t done as well as anticipated, seems guests want to be in a central locale (and there are many more hotels in Wan Chai). Thus, gentrification.
JtB
View all comments by Jack B
(BangkokPost.com) – Pol Gen Salang Bunnag claimed that he has never spoken about the plan to seal off the Government House to cut off food supplies of People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) supporters.
He insisted that he has never talked about anything like that.
Pol Gen Salang then blamed it on reporters, saying they made the news up themselves to cause rifts in the country.
He said earlier that he would lead a group of officers to surround the Government House on Saturday. But on Friday evening, reports said he had to attend business in the northern province of Chiang Mai so the plan had to be postponed.
View all comments by Werewolf
Even if the talk about prices in this thread is about water, I just wanted to clarify my comment earlier after rechecking tonight. At Shark bar, buy a beer outside and pay for it, and you can take it inside, it is 95 baht vs. 125 baht. At R1, buy a beer outside, and you can take it inside, it is 75 baht vs. ?? 125? (I didn’t make it inside tonight).
Anyway, for smokers heading to a bar, have a cig and buy a beer outside, and THEN go inside. Cheap charlie maybe, but if you think so then leave the remainder as a tip for the staff. I’m sure they would appreciate it and the gesture could buy you some goodwill and smiles from the staff.
View all comments by Powers
MART- interesting that you conveniently limited US interventionism to just 50 years taking and not nearly 70 years to recognize the largst American intervention in the 1940’s which in all honesty saved the European way of life and restored freedom and paid for rebuilding it to its prosperous state.
View all comments by 8 Ball
gg - what a croc
if u have businesses here, pay taxes, social security, licenses and so on then I think thai politics is fair game since it effects my life. No different than any expat living in any country. U think a guy who owns a restaurant chain in HK does not follow Thai politics. I am sure he does.
deal. As I say.
WW - I did not realize it was not a real police action against the PAD. But I think the PAD is way out of line for not following court orders and vacating. could get ugly.
powers - interesting. I think the place outside r1 is not actually part of r1 so seems even funnier.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
May I recommend a different venue for those seeking to pass the evening oogling hot ladies while drinking cheap water: BNH on Thanon Covenant in Silom. The water is free, the nurses are hot, speak great English and there’s no barfine if you catch one’s interest.
Now, I know what some of you are saying, “Bubba, no way does hanging out at a hospital come close to any of the P4P venues.”
Well, if you ain’t got the southern charm and game I got then you got a point. But given that I’ve been reading some of you guys are getting shot down at the P4P venues and going home alone, I don’t see any difference anyways. Besides, the nurses are way softer on the eyes than vast majority of BGs and there’s some good emergency room action if you get bored. If worse comes to worse and your game really sucks, well, you can always fake some testicular problem and get your nuts juggled.
View all comments by Bubba
Powers: Don’t leave a tip for the “staff”. Put it in the hand of one of the girls. This works better for you everywhere in BKK.
View all comments by 3amigos
Damn Bubba, can’t you keep a secret? Do you have to blab to everyone about one of my places to score a hit. I have been using BNH twice a year for about 4 years. It was a gold mine and now there will be a line around the block of guys expecting to find miss right or a dude looking for a cheap and easy score because you let the cat out of the bag. Look, just once, keep your cards a little closer to your chest or belly which ever applies. I’ll have to start using a hospital in the outback if you keep this up.
Mart, by your own admission you know nothing about American politics. Keep it that way! There’s enough ate up folks in America, we don’t need more.
View all comments by The Man
I’m a bit confused. You go INTO the hospital and sit around? Outside in the ambulance bay? In a tower overlooking the hospital with a high-powered rifle scope?
View all comments by The Ghost
8 ball - I did not “conveniently” limit it to “just” 50 years but wrote “for MORE than 50 years”. In all honesty this intervention (for which I am thankful of course) has brought pretty much profit to the US too!
“The” Man - you want us to believe that u’ve scored twice a year with BNH-nurses? as a tourist?? There’s no way I am going to believe this! By the way, ever tried the library at Ramkamhaeng Uni?
View all comments by mart
I was getting some serious vibes from a slutty nurse with braces and an ass lke a 10year boy at Bumungrand Soi3 earlier this year in the treatment room. Unsuprisingly her mood soured when she checked on my form that the medication she was about to administer was indeed to cure my snotty prick.
Her face went from ‘I want you so bad Penfold’ to ‘your not hitting this in a million years you dirtbag’ in record time
View all comments by Young Penfold
flushingmatt - ““My attitude re American politics is: “If you’re NOT
American, shut the fuck up.” Yeah, yeah. “The butterfly wings
in China will cause a hurricane in Fla……””
Not sure if this is what Matt was getting at but I tend to agree. As a frequent traveler and as someone who lives overseas you sort of get tired of people shouting their views of your country at you for doing nothing more than having ordered a pint with an American accent. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you hate George Bush, the US is destroying the world, global warming, blah, blah, blah.
There’s no attempt at intelligent conversation. There’s never a pause to hear what your view on the topic might be. It’s just a constant stream of half-witted blabber from some pissed up Brit (it could be just about any farang nationality but Brits seem to be the least shy) who gets most of his information about the US from watching CSI and Law and Order or the one trip he made to Orlando to go visit Disney World.
So for those people, yes, shut the fuck up.
On the other hand, if someone is actually interested in an intelligent exchange then let me buy the first round of drinks.
View all comments by Billy Bangkok
“an ass lke a 10year boy” - this is a truly horrible image, Penfold. Who wants to fuck a woman with a ten year-old boy where her bottom should be?
(except you, obviously.)
View all comments by Pants Elk
Pants, Dude, your another friggin genious!!!
View all comments by mart
Another article (this one from the Washington Post)talking about the relative lack of damage to Thailand from the financial flu.
There is an article in today’s Bangkok Post about setting up an Asian Fund similar to the IMF, and it is discussed in this Washington Post article as well.
The political difficulties are mentioned briefly.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/23/AR2008102303801.html?nav=rss_world/asia
View all comments by Werewolf
Mart, who said I was a tourist? No library miss for me, they for the most part don’t know what their bodies are for, where as a nurse knows damn near everything.
View all comments by The Man
Actually, mine was somewhat of a serious question reqarding the hospital. Seriously? You sit outside, hang in the lobby or what?
View all comments by Pattaya Ghost
powers - seems we are providing content for stick…
http://www.stickmanweekly.com/StickMarkII/BangkokMoreThanJustADrinkingBuddy.htm
View all comments by sideshowBOB
Hmmm. I had a great time with an Angelwitch girl last week. BF’d, then took her out to the pool bar in the Soi 5 tunnel, and then Spice Soi 11 the next night with her and a couple of her co-workers (they met us later). Bought a few rounds of drinks, did a little dancing. Got on real good with her and her pals. Sweet attitude all around. I’m a Thailand veteran (former Phuket resident) so I know the score, but I’ve been stuck in the US for 11 months (longest I’ve ever been away in 6 years of going to LOS), so maybe a case of “prison release” on my part, but no matter. It was a fricking blast. Good times had by all. I noticed the “for sale” signs in the toilets at AW. She seemed to have no idea about that. Funny. Chubby mamasan was a bit odd, but friendly enough. About 2 years ago I pulled a stunning, but very strange bird outta AW and it wasn’t the best of experiences, but I have to say I’m glad I gave it another chance on this trip.
Went to the Mango a few times (one time late morning, another time early evening) for a beer and wasn’t busy. I’ve been enjoying reading the blog for months so I’ve really been looking forward to finally patronizing your venue. Back in BKK on Nov. 7th. When’s the best time of day for a hang at the Mango?
View all comments by cranialgalactic
I am in Hong Kong now. Just checked the fabled Wan Chai. First off, this city is a hell all unto itself. A very expensive hell. To each their own I suppose, but I wont be returning anytime soon.
OK, onto the good bits: What I saw in Wan Chai was one street with some pretty obvious lady bars. Girls standing out front, sexy sounding bar names. I was tugged into one by a cutie that had about 5 filipinas working in it. It was still early, about 7:30 PM. The girls were putting thier makeup on, some were already with customers. It all seemed very Thailand, same dynamic. Lady drinks, barfine, the whole bit but you just paid all the money to the bar and she gets a commission.
I spent some time with this cutie, and it eventually got down to business. First off: WARNING! The lady drinks are the fucking JACK. $242KH! Which translates to $31US/1090Baht!!
WTF is an understatement. 2 of those bad boys gouged me for 60 fucking bucks. Fuck you! I didnt realize this until i left. And get these prices on the ladies: short time mamasan started out at $2500HK / $322 US / 11200B!! For 2 hours. Overnight would run you $4500KH / $580US / 20,000B!! —->> WTF!! <<—-
I eventually got her down to $1500HK / $193US / 6700B for a “1.5 hour” short time as she put it, but I am sorry, that is just still a fucking fortune. Its fucking cheaper in the US for fuck’s sake. But Hong Kong is pretty fucking expensive overall, and more so than the US. I told mamasan that I could call a girl off the net or at a brothel for HK400 / US$51 / 1800B, and she gave me the song and dance of “those girls cant be trusted, will steal from you, are not clean,” etc. I offered her 1000HK and she refused. Said the cheapest you could go was 1200HK and i would have to fuck the girl in the bar. She would close of the section we were in with a curtain. WTF? Does anyone actually do that? I asked the girl and she said not very often but “sometimes.”
So there ya have it. ALL HAIL THAILAND!! Land of smiles indeed
View all comments by Walter Ego
@WE: That’s about the size of it, yeah.
http://www.tfs2m.com/trip-report/2007/08/03/wan-chai/
Research
View all comments by Bangkok Bad Boy