General Reports

[Phordphan]

Absent an active conflict, if a farang wears red all the Thai's see is green.

And purple. And white. 5555555.

[Rjsss212]

A farang wearing red is considered different than a Thai wearing red.

SunLover.

Absent an active conflict, if a farang wears red all the Thai's see is green.

[Phordphan]

P. P.

I never thought about it? Discretion? The only time I wear long pants is when I go home to the States meantime it is short everywhere including Temples, and I've been to lots of them. Maybe that is why I'm having such bad luck here and got kicked out of one and it was not for wearing shorts. Good idea. Going to get me a pair in case Thanks. See, even in a topic where we are beating it to death one can learn something from it.

You got me to thinking. I know you can't get into the Royal Palace with shorts. But I seem to recall the GF insisting I wear shorts on some particularly hot days, and we did get into some temples. So, that may not be a hard and fast rule in Thailand.

However, I have been actively refused entry into temples in Myanmar while wearing shorts. They take things a bit more seriously there. You even have to remove your socks.

What did you do to get yourself thrown out of a temple? That must have taken some effort!

[Phordphan]

Wow I didn't think Red / Yellow shirts political conflict would effect what the tourists wear. I would be more careful about choosing my shirts for next trip LOL. Thanks for the heads up.

As Sunlover said, it doesn't affect farang as much. But, IMHO, it's best to simply avoid it. I don't own any red shirts because I don't like the color. But I used to wear my yellow shirt with the royal crest. After 2009/2010 I noticed rater odd looks, especially from cabbies and others from the Isaan region. I began to feel slightly uncomfortable so I stopped wearing it. The GF recommends not to wear either color. Pink is the "other" royal color, so that appears to be safe. It's always good form in Thailand to show support for the king.

[Sunlover2]

Wow I didn't think Red / Yellow shirts political conflict would effect what the tourists wear.

Unless there are active protests by one of the color parties I think you are fine. A farang wearing red is considered different than a Thai wearing red. If people altogether stopped wearing colors that were at one time or another co-opted by a political party there would be few options remaining.

I was in Bangkok May 2010 during the week leading up to and the day of the final battle that ended the Red protests. Experienced Marshall Law, heavily armed troops in the streets, and the shoot-to-kill curfew. There was no way on God's green earth I would have worn red at that time, and have by habit kept it to a minimum ever since. But yes I do bring and wear some red with me.

When in doubt look around and see what others (locals / tourists) are wearing. This concept cuts across the entire clothing debate. And if you are getting stares or strange looks while you are out and about it might be time to re-evaluate your choices.

SunLover.

[Mer Zues]

I would avoid wearing a red shirt. Yes, farangs have special dispensation in a lot of areas, but it's best to avoid that. I have a yellow polo shirt with the royal crest on the pocket. I no longer feel comfortable wearing that, either. However, you can wear a pink shirt and get respect from both sides of the political spectrum.

Wow I didn't think Red / Yellow shirts political conflict would effect what the tourists wear. I would be more careful about choosing my shirts for next trip LOL. Thanks for the heads up.

[LittleBigMan]

P. P.

I never thought about it? Discretion? The only time I wear long pants is when I go home to the States meantime it is short everywhere including Temples, and I've been to lots of them. Maybe that is why I'm having such bad luck here and got kicked out of one and it was not for wearing shorts. Good idea. Going to get me a pair in case Thanks. See, even in a topic where we are beating it to death one can learn something from it.

[Phordphan]

I cannot believe that wearing shorts is an issue for some on here and the argument rages on.

In the USA, shorts are normal. OK, so its not so normal in Thailand, I get it. When I see youtube videos of Thailand, I see many many people with shorts and all the ladies have a skirt or shorts for sure.

So I ask myself a question or two. Do I want to be sweaty in pants or comfortable in shorts? Shorts win. I know some establishments won't let you in with shorts, just like in the States, so that's the deal.

I plan to use shorts daytime and maybe pants nighttime. For those of you that want to be little-Hitlers and insist people wear certain clothing, I ask you, what colors should one wear or avoid? Should I walk on the right side of the street or the left side?

Dayum, Ted. A noob, who's never been, jumping in here and throwing around the "H" word?

Wear whatever the hell you want. As RJ said, wear a Speedo and boots if it makes you feel better. But don't be so proud as to be incapable of taking advice from those who have more experience.

If you're hanging out all day in the hooker bars of Lower Suk, nobody will care, although you WILL be treated nicer if you dress neatly and smell good. If you plan to go to other parts of town, and interact with other people, a bit of discretion may be in order. Obviously you can't get into a temple wearing shorts. I think you still can't get into 5-star hotels after 5:00 with shorts. Years ago I went into the Mandarin, wearing shorts, in the afternoon. When the clock struck 5 I was suddenly Persona Non Grata.

(At this point I'd launch into an anecdote about me, a Thai lady in nice shorts, and the Skybar at State Tower, but I don't want to belabor the point).

Wear what you like, but bear in mind that no Thai adult male wears shorts away from the beach, and act accordingly.

Oh, and as far as snarky comments concerning colors, yes, here, too, some advice. I would avoid wearing a red shirt. Yes, farangs have special dispensation in a lot of areas, but it's best to avoid that. I have a yellow polo shirt with the royal crest on the pocket. I no longer feel comfortable wearing that, either. However, you can wear a pink shirt and get respect from both sides of the political spectrum.

As far as which side of the street to walk on, it doesn't matter. But never forget to look RIGHT and then left, unless you wish to become one with the front of a bus.

[Phordphan]

What's up with the new law that started today that says entertainment venues can only sell alcohol from 9 pm-midnight?

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/..._campaign=news

That was really poorly written and confusing to follow. I did a little research and found the following two pieces that make a lot more sense to me (first one has a 2015 update.

http://faranginbangkok.com/2013/01/2...you-can-drink/

http://faranginbangkok.com/2010/09/0...n-prohibition/

Seems to me the issue is more about them enforcing the many laws around alcoholic sales (and other matters) that they already have on the books.

The original article was poorly written, probably by a native Thai speaker. But the meaning appears to be clear. No (legal) alcohol sales after midnight.

The afternoon ban remains in place. I've run into that on occasion, heading back to the condo in the afternoon. I stopped at the nearby 7-Inches to pick up some beers for the fridge. Nope. Huh? WTF?

But now it appears they want to limit alcohol sales everywhere to 10 hours. Bars would presumable have to institute a sort of split shift arrangement. Tourists will need to start getting a buzz by 11:00 am, take a siesta in the afternoon, then hit the bottle with a vengeance until midnight.

Now in true Thai fashion, I'm sure there will be (more than) a few greased palms, and the bars will continue to sell until 2:00, or whenever. So, not to worry.

[Omigawd]

Yes, I was just in 7/11 to load more credits / time and they still sell prepaid sim cards.

JR

Thanks for the info, I better get mine quickly.

Go to Coffeeworld at Suvarnabhumi, they have free WiFi. No registration required.
And maybe there are more restaurants with free WiFi but I always sit at Coffeeworld so I don't know that.

Nice, thanks for the tip.

[JusRide]

Thailand is not the only country to do it, more and more countries have done it. But it creates a big issue for tourists who jet around for brief periods as buying a sim to stay in touch becomes a hassle. They have already removed free WiFi from Suvarnabhumi airport so this next step is going to create a lot more problems. Hopefully we can still buy pre paid sims from 7/11. Anyone?

Yes, I was just in 7/11 to load more credits / time and they still sell prepaid sim cards.

JR

[Rjsss212]

I cannot believe that wearing shorts is an issue for some on here and the argument rages on.

I plan to use shorts daytime and maybe pants nighttime. For those of you that want to be little-Hitlers and insist people wear certain clothing, I ask you, what colors should one wear or avoid? Should I walk on the right side of the street or the left side?

Ted, Ted, Ted, what are you missing?

By now it should be patently obvious that many of the posters here just have insufficient social skills, or looks or a combination thereof, to convince the women in their daily lives to have sex with them. We all know them from school, work, etc. Not a crime and doesn't make them bad people. In fact your post supports this.

So for that contingent, many recommendations are made in these threads. Clearly one rationale is, if they have difficulty in their home arena then how could they possibly navigate the complex, often inscrutable world of Asian P4P sex?

No one is suggesting that one needs to wear his Sunday best, or polish his shoes or even shave. If you've spent even 5 minutes in lower suk you will have seen some of the weirdest creatures on the planet. And that's not even considering the Thai's.

Its just some basic common sense to make oneself as appealing as conveniently possible to enjoy as much of what they came to the LOS for.

Ted, if pants make you sweat in BKK then by all means wear shorts. If you are comfortable with it then you could probably wear only cowboy boots and a Speedo if you like and absolutely no one will bother you.

No one's a "Hitler" here.

The advice is simply about maximizing your success rate and like all advice you either take it, some of it or none of it. It's simply there for you to consider.

[Mogwai]

They have already removed free WiFi from Suvarnabhumi airport SNIP

Go to Coffeeworld at Suvarnabhumi, they have free WiFi. No registration required.
And maybe there are more restaurants with free WiFi but I always sit at Coffeeworld so I don't know that.

[Mr Enternational]

We will see how it goes. In Argentina, shorty after the cellphones boomed in sales about 10 years ago, the then president mandated that unregistered SIMs would not have been tolerated anymore (in reality regulations never allowed unregistered SIMs to be sold). Big meeting, etc. Then nothing came out of it.

Well in the Dominican Republic last June it came to pass. If you didn't go to your respective company to register your #/ SIM with your I'd then your SIM was deactivated. I just so happened to be in the country at the time and was able to save mine.

[Omigawd]

Thailand is not the only country to do it, more and more countries have done it. But it creates a big issue for tourists who jet around for brief periods as buying a sim to stay in touch becomes a hassle. They have already removed free WiFi from Suvarnabhumi airport so this next step is going to create a lot more problems. Hopefully we can still buy pre paid sims from 7/11. Anyone?

SOURCE:

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/nbt...ecurity-reason

TEXT:

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) now orders all mobile phone operators to require mandatory registration of all owners of prepaid SIM cards by end of July, otherwise their phone use will be cut off.

The mandatory registration of prepaid SIM cards by the NBTC was decided for security reason as many unregistered SIM cards had been used by southern insurgents in igniting bomb explosions, and some were used to deceive the people.

The NBTC held a meeting with five state and private mobile phone operators today and reached an agreement that the service providers will notify their prepaid customers to produce identification documents for registration of their SIM cards from February 1 to July 31..