Thailand: Anyone ever been?

Chairman Wood · #1 02-22-2005, 02:43 PM

On Friday I'm going to Thailand for Ten Days. I'll be spending time in Bangkok and Phuket. 5 days of the trip will be partying, having fun, playing rugby and the other 5 days will be spent rebuilding a school in Phuket that was damaged by the Tsunami. I was wondering if anyone on here has ever been there? Recommendations, stories, pitfalls to avoid? I am not sure if there is much poker to be played there. I think I would rather be doing other things though as I can play a lot here. If you would also like to tell any other sort of crazy travel story please do.

partygirluk · #2 02-22-2005, 02:46 PM

Nolanfan34 made a very similar thread 2 months back.

Chairman Wood · #3 02-22-2005, 03:29 PM

Thanks do you know if him and his wife ever went?

partygirluk · #4 02-22-2005, 03:31 PM

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Thanks do you know if him and his wife ever went?

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They didn't.

MikeNaked · #5 02-22-2005, 03:55 PM

Had a great time in 2001- there's definitely partying to be had. You are going to have a blast.

My recommendations:
1) Insist on looking at the rooms in your guesthouse before you put down a deposit. Rooms range from very comfortable to rat-infested.
2) Bring copies of all important documents! I got my wallet stolen in Koh Lanta and had to trek back up to Bangkok because they told me it would be a week to process. Well, with all my copies, it only took a day...meanwhile my GF was snorkelling in the Turatao Islands. [img]/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]
3) The alcohol - Singha, Beer Chang, SamSong "whisky" - is rumored to have amphetemines in it, cause boy, you will rock all nite long, but crash painfully the next day. Beware.
4) Pickpockets - check out the massive Bangkok market (forgot the name) but hang on to your stuff. A stealthy thief got our camera out of my GF's bag.
5) I recommend Thai kickboxing (Muy Thai) every week at the stadium!
6) Take the boat nearly everywhere in Bangkok. Forget sitting in the back of a tuktuk during rush hour (which lasts 18 hours a day). Took us 1.5 hours to travel about 10 miles from the bus station to the train station. My fave activity while alone in Bangkok...take the boat to the other end of the city, and meander back to your guesthouse!

Man, I'm all jealous now! You're gonna have a blast!

Chairman Wood · #6 02-22-2005, 04:44 PM

Thanks for the advice, Muy Thai is on the itinerary! I'll be sure myself and my companions are all aware of the precautions you gave me.

pokerjo22 · #7 02-22-2005, 03:56 PM

Bangkok is the armpit of the world. It is also a lot of fun. I believe that most forms of gambling are illegal in Thailand, and the penalties are quite severe. One exception is the kickboxing. It definitely has to be seen to be believed. The only thing comparable I can think of are the old stockmarket floors before everything was made electronic. Have fun. The Thai people are some of the nicest people in the world.

One piece of advice: getting around can be a pain in the ass. They'll tell you a hotel is closed, a bus station is closed or whatever, so that they can redirect you to their friends hotel or their friends taxi or whatever. The solution is just to wave a 100 baht note at them and insist they take you where you want to go.

Chairman Wood · #8 02-22-2005, 04:48 PM

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Bangkok is the armpit of the world.

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Never heard it described like this before. I live near Detroit which a lot of people describe as the armpit of the US. I guess it will make me feel at home [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

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only thing comparable I can think of are the old stockmarket floors before everything was made electronic.

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I'm confused. Are you comparing this to Muy Thai? Do you mean the chaos and activity is like the old stockmarket?
[ QUOTE ]
One piece of advice: getting around can be a pain in the ass. They'll tell you a hotel is closed, a bus station is closed or whatever, so that they can redirect you to their friends hotel or their friends taxi or whatever. The solution is just to wave a 100 baht note at them and insist they take you where you want to go.

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Well noted thanks!

pokerjo22 · #9 02-22-2005, 05:26 PM

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Bangkok is the armpit of the world.

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Its polluted, chaotic and depraved. There's a lot of sex tourism there, and fairly open pedophilia.

[ QUOTE ]
I'm confused. Are you comparing this to Muy Thai? Do you mean the chaos and activity is like the old stockmarket?

[/ QUOTE ]

You place bets with other spectators. This can be someone stood some ways away. There's a complicated system of hand signals (tic tac) you use to indicate the odds you either want to bet or are willing to lay and the amount of money. Multiply that by tens of thousands of people and you get some idea of what it is like. It's not small sums of money either. The guy we were with was betting 10000 baht a bet, and he was making bets every few minutes. He was an accountant, and that was about a months wages for him.

BeerMoney · #10 02-22-2005, 04:05 PM

Thailand is crazy. I spent the summer there 2 years ago, and will be moving there permanently. The people are gracious and generous in a lot of cases and they love Americans.

the market that was mentioned in another post is Jat-tu - Jak.. (sp?)

there is a poster on here who has userid Faith who can give you a lot info as he lives in Bangkok. He also offers a buy a beer.

You may want to get a thai phrase book so you can communicate somewhat better with the people. Most know very little english. ( I was fortunate in that I had a pretty good tour guide, My wife [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img] ..) I never went to phuket, so I can't really tell you much about that. If you have an oppourtunity to go out to eat in Bangkok definitely try Bussaracham.