HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

An enjoyable time in Pattaya? No...

Not what couples and families are looking for as a holiday destination

Will Thailand come to be known as the Thai-tannic?

Local government only left with two jobs

Unions, that would be truly amazing

Beware of people with cell phones in checkout lines

An enjoyable time in Pattaya? No...

Dear Editor;
We are coming to the end of our second holiday in Pattaya, the first being in 1995 when we stayed for 3 weeks. This time we have had 3 months. I thought I would put pen to paper as it were, giving another tourists’ impression of so-called ‘’fun city’’. Although being in our late fifties we didn’t come for the ‘’evening entertainment’’ side of Pattaya, but mainly relaxing in the sun, and a little golf.

We arrived late at night, so thought a taxi a good idea from airport, from booking to paying (15 mins) it went up a 1000 baht to 3900 baht; ok it was late. Later, we got to our hotel (I use that word loosely) and the driver demanded a tip not less than 500 baht, demanded. Ok, it was late!

Next day we rented a car for 3 months, for some reason that price went up 2000 baht from price quoted, ok were on holiday! We parked outside the hotel on a parking area, the next morning the tyre was flat, but a ‘friendly’ motorcycle taxi driver was on hand to help! The required tip: 300 baht. This happened 4 times in our 10-day stay, strange...

We rented a condo - nice room at 27000 p.m. with telephone line to keep in touch with family. But the line was ‘off’ more than it was ‘on’. The reason, we were told, was the bigger the tip, the faster the condo maintenance-man would see to it.

The golf courses: not bad, but not the best either. It is wrong to compare the prices with others throughout the world, as they should be compared to the Thai standard of living, and when you do that they are very expensive.

Pattaya itself? We walked once at night on Beach Road, we were not approached at all, may I say, but the sight of many, many others being propositioned was too much for us. It was like walking a gauntlet we could do without.

Everybody we talked to had been or knew someone who had been ‘mugged’ day or night, on foot or bike. The streets are dirty, they smell, work you can see has been done in plenty of areas, but ‘badly’ and needs now repairing, parking is almost impossible, but not for ‘rented’ cars/bikes.

The Thai people are not as friendly as back in ’95, and why would they be? It is a circle, if tourists are not made to feel welcome they will not come back, and they, as we will do, tell others, a tourist town needs ‘tourists’ and like it or not its true.

Give the police some incentive (money), make them respect victims of crimes, don’t report everybody that falls from a condo as a suicide, report what happens when or if someone goes to court, the ‘normal’ things. If the powers that be don’t give their heads a shake and wake up, then ‘fun city’ my friends will be a thing of the past. This I can see is what will happen, tourists are the lucky ones, they can go somewhere else.

So ‘enjoyable time in Pattaya’? No, not enough to ever come back. I’m not sorry were going, I am sorry we came. A lot of money ill spent!
Signed,
Golf Ball

Not what couples and families are looking for as a holiday destination

To Whom It May Concern:
Until Pattaya’s mayor and staff understand that quality tourists will not come to their city, in great numbers, until the town takes on the appearance of something other than “a brothel city”, it will be known as nothing more than the city of sex tourism. This is not what couples and families are looking for as a holiday destination. Close the bars at midnight and get the whores out of town and spend on good advertising that speaks of the “turn around” of your city and you will see people with lots more to spend begin to arrive. Otherwise, Pattaya will be stuck with the coarse older men who are looking for a lot of sexual fun on the cheap.

At the moment, we are expecting our children and extended family and friends to come for a visit to Thailand. Thankfully, we do not live in Pattaya. In the meantime, we are considering how to avoid this city all together, as we have no intention of allowing our family and friends to go home with stories of how we live in one giant brothel.

Name withheld by request

Will Thailand come to be known as the Thai-tannic?

Editor:
I read the Drudge Report regularly. The Drudge Report is a popular website frequented by the type of people PM Thaksin would like to sell his 1 million baht “tea money” cards to. One of the recent prominent headlines read, “China Urged to Act on Bird Flu, Thais Defiant...” In the Reuters story, which was written in a rather unique style which might not be fully comprehended by readers not used to reading between the lines, PM Thaksin was not cast in a favourable light and by extension neither was Thailand. The story intertwined China and Thailand in such a way as to indicate that there was no difference between the two countries and that Thailand has handled its chicken flu problem in the same manner as China handled the SARS problem - lying about it!

How much longer will the Thai government and the Thai People put up with the PM and his shenanigans? His smoke and mirrors and shortsighted economic sleight of hand will create long-term social and economic problems for the country. That is assuming that his cover-ups and “lack of tact” don’t cause another loss of foreigner investor confidence resulting in another melt down of the baht. How many times will PM Thaksin kick Thai people in the derriere, before they scream “Jep!”? He really should do the honourable thing now and return to running his communications monopoly. Mr. Thaksin needs to leave the running of government to politicians, preferably ones who work for the good of the Thai people.

The reality is that in the information age, Thailand must compete with other countries on substance, not smiles, polite conversation, and promises. In places like Mexico, Costa Rica, Belize, etc., foreigners may own land, foreigners may own 100% of their businesses, foreigners are welcomed. Since PM Thaksin took office foreigners feel unwelcome since early on his government seemed to blame much of Thailand’s problems on foreigners. So unwelcome, many expats have left Thailand. This is creating a self-fulfilling prophecy since foreigners slowly but surely will stop vacationing in Thailand, investing in Thailand, and without exposure to Thailand will stop buying Thai goods.

What Central and South American countries have learned, that Thais have not, is that when you allow foreigners to own their homes and businesses in your country they will make long term investments. They will even invite their friends over for a holiday and when these friends return back home they will spread the word to others about how wonderful the country is. This is not happening in Thailand.

The Titanic hit an iceberg and sank because its captain gave in to visions of greatness when caution should have been the course of action in dangerous waters. With lots of talk and little of substance, Thailand is in dangerous social, economic, and political waters rushing at full speed to nowhere. Will Thailand come to be known in the future as the Thai-tannic?
Pattaya “Beach” Bum

Local government only left with two jobs

Editor;
The combined Metropolitan area of Pattaya, Jomtien and the areas to the East have, in the past few years, undergone a tremendous building boom. New residential and commercial buildings have been added by the hundreds if not the thousands. In the Western world, such a building boom places great strain on the local government. In Thailand, government is relieved of many of the usual responsibilities to its citizens and residents because private companies provide the services otherwise demanded of local government.

The citizens and residents of these newly developed areas generally purchase their drinking water from private companies. The private real estate developers generally provide water for sanitation and other uses via local wells and distribution systems. Sewerage is handled at the level of the individual property such that the local government does not need to build and operate large and expensive water delivery, drainage and treatment plants.

Likewise, private and religious schools (at the local Wats) relieve the local government of its responsibility of planning to place new schools in these areas. For a variety of reasons, the citizens and residents of these newly developed areas do not seemingly demand that the local government provide police substations in close proximity to new housing developments. Again, they choose to provide “security” by hiring private companies. To a large extent, entrepreneurs provide for the installation of telephone service, again in lieu of the government operated system. Similarly, no demands are made for public transportation systems operated or regulated by the government since entrepreneurs provide this service as well.

The local government is seemingly left to provide just three basic services that are generally ascribed to government entities: fire protection, electrical service, and access via a roadway. Even the latter, I understand, is often a cooperative effort between the private real estate developers and the local government in that the developer often subsidizes the building of the main access roadway and is solely responsible for providing the streets within their developments. Drainage systems for rainwater are also included in this arrangement.

The local government then, seems to have only two remaining responsibilities: electricity and fire protection. As to the former, the job is done very well. Compared to Thailand just a few years age and many other countries in the world today, electricity is both universally available and highly reliable.

That leaves us with fire protection. Might it be too much to ask for the local governments responsible for such to publish their plans in both the local Thai and English language media for the establishment of new fire stations; the purchase of new equipment; and the minimum water flow demands that are placed on private real estate developers to ensure that adequate water is available to enable the fire fighters to perform their job to adequately protect the public interest?

Surely, having been relieved of all of the other responsibilities generally ascribed to them, the local governments have formulated detailed plans to provide this one remaining public service.

Oh yes, there is just one more function that local government generally performs. That is maintenance of the main access roadways. Is there any plan by the combined local governments of Jomtien and the areas to the East to provide this new service in the near future?
Signed:
Grandpa in Chonburi

Unions, that would be truly amazing

Editor;
Thai Business Operators & Employees (TBOE), Songtaew Baht Bus Cooperative (SBBC), Thai Poultry Farmers Association (TPFA) - what next? Unions, that would be truly amazing.

I think the bar ladies should start their own PEU (Professional Entertainment Union) ... a lot off voting power there, and would get the support of all the farangs! Give Thaksin something to think about, other than which EPL team he is going to buy.
Choke dee krap!
Matty

Beware of people with cell phones in checkout lines

Editor;
Keep a watch out for people standing near you in the checkout line at retail stores, restaurants, grocery stores, etc., who have a cell phone in hand. With the new camera cell phones, they can take a picture of your credit card, which gives them your name, number, and expiration date. Identification theft is one of the fastest growing scams today, and this is just another example of the means that are being used.

So ... be aware of your surroundings.
Sheri

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