General Reports

[QUOTE=Retired Army]Same thing happened to me when I tried to withdraw an amount other than the Fast Cash amounts listed on the screen. I called my credit card and they told me to call the bank. It took a while to find someone who spoke English but I was successful and eventually got my money back. The banks are basically honest and they know when the ATMs are out of balance and will work to correct the problem. Try calling the number on the receipt and see what happens.[/QUOTE]When I try calling the number on the receipt {3 101 024777}, with 1-66 preceding it, I get a message that this number is not assigned or cannot be completed as dialed. So I checked out the internet address on the slip, [url]www.bangkokbank.com[/url], and found an email address to contact them re this matter. Infoatbbl. Co. Th. Very early on August 8 they replied as follows:

"For your case , we strongly recommend you contact our phone banking center at +66-2645-5555 (from the overseas) or 1333 (from within Thailand), a 24/7 service to submit your request and we will investigate further. Thank you."

My response to this around 11 p.m. PST on August 10 said:

"Whenever i call this number {1+66-2645-5555 } it tells me this cellular customer is either
{1} out of my service area or {2} unavailable & to try later. Hopefully this matter can be resolved
before i return to your city in 2-3 weeks. Until then i will not be able to trust ATM machines
there, at least not those that are associated with bangkokbank.com, use traveller's checks,
and recommend the same to others i know personally & on internet forums."

Sorry to have to ask such a basic question, but are Western-branded condoms (eg Durex) in Thailand the same size as those in the West? I have to buy some more, and having seen those on display in Cabbages & Condoms, I am concerned there might be a size difference. I am large by Western standards (not bragging - arguably more problems than pleasure) and would hate to have to forego to more nights of fun over this issue.

Thanks

[QUOTE=PinkPearl] ... "Whenever i call this number {1+66-2645-5555 } it tells me this cellular customer is either {1} out of my service area or {2} unavailable & to try later. [/QUOTE]

Pink,

Next time try either 1-011, or just 011-66-2645-5555, and it should work. It works for me and I use 10-10-987-011-66-2645-5555.

Good luck,
Daddy

[QUOTE=Mouse1]Sorry to have to ask such a basic question, but are Western-branded condoms (eg Durex) in Thailand the same size as those in the West? I have to buy some more, and having seen those on display in Cabbages & Condoms, I am concerned there might be a size difference. I am large by Western standards (not bragging - arguably more problems than pleasure) and would hate to have to forego to more nights of fun over this issue.

Thanks[/QUOTE]
They are usually a little bit smaller. You would be better off and happier bringing in your supply.

[QUOTE=Daddy07]Pink,

Next time try either 1-011, or just 011-66-2645-5555, and it should work. It works for me and I use 10-10-987-011-66-2645-5555.

Good luck,
Daddy[/QUOTE]Yes, thank you, the 011 prefix did work for me on my landline phone,
though not on my cell.

I spoke to the ATM disputes department of Bangkok Bank and they said they cannot do anything since the card i used with their ATM that stole my money was not of their bank. The lady i spoke to said that my bank in Canada would have to contact Bangkok Bank on my behalf in order to try to resolve this.

Previously my bank had informed me that they could not do anything since the thieving ATM machine was not theirs. So i am getting the bank run- around here, & it's back to my bank again tomorrow.

[QUOTE=PinkPearl]When I try calling the number on the receipt {3 101 024777}, with 1-66 preceding it, I get a message that this number is not assigned or cannot be completed as dialed. So I checked out the internet address on the slip, [url]www.bangkokbank.com[/url], and found an email address to contact them re this matter. Infoatbbl. Co. Th. Very early on August 8 they replied as follows:

"For your case , we strongly recommend you contact our phone banking center at +66-2645-5555 (from the overseas) or 1333 (from within Thailand), a 24/7 service to submit your request and we will investigate further. Thank you."

My response to this around 11 p.m. PST on August 10 said:

"Whenever i call this number {1+66-2645-5555 } it tells me this cellular customer is either
{1} out of my service area or {2} unavailable & to try later. Hopefully this matter can be resolved
before i return to your city in 2-3 weeks. Until then i will not be able to trust ATM machines
there, at least not those that are associated with bangkokbank.com, use traveller's checks,
and recommend the same to others i know personally & on internet forums."[/QUOTE]


Are you trying to call from Thailand or from outside the country?

If dialing in Thailand you would dial 02 645-5555 for a regular phone and 08 645-5555 if it's a cell phone. What I don't understand is why the bank would give you a cell number to call.

[QUOTE=Mouse1]Sorry to have to ask such a basic question, but are Western-branded condoms (eg Durex) in Thailand the same size as those in the West? I have to buy some more, and having seen those on display in Cabbages & Condoms, I am concerned there might be a size difference. I am large by Western standards (not bragging - arguably more problems than pleasure) and would hate to have to forego to more nights of fun over this issue.

Thanks[/QUOTE]We briefly touched upon this topic in the Bkk forum. Condoms are measured in mm DIAMETER, so check what size you usually use first, it should tell you on the box somewhere. Size is not really everything with condoms, it also has a lot to do with personal preference and your ability to mainitain hardness in the presence of a piece of rubber trying to strangle your member :) If you are "large" as you say then perhaps you use a larger size than usual in which case I would say bring your own. Most Durex varieties here are in the 52mm size range, and most girls carry that size (the most popular being the Durex strawberry ones which are 52mm). Another warning, if you ever have to get condoms brought to your room by the establishment then they are likely to me smaller and thicker local ones which are terrible! The largest size commonly available is the Durex Comfort which is 54mm. Having said that, the other day I bought a box of Comforts and was surprised to find they were 56mm in size. I found them in a 7-11 down Soi 5 near Gullivers, and have never seen them for sale anywhere else before.

[quote=mick licker]the thai king is one of the most revered regents in history. not because he is king but because of the great man he is. he is far superior to your president.

if you can't show some respect for the thai ways, stay home.
i am sure you have lost much respect from your gf.

to enjoy thailand we must try to fit in. this is not always easy but worth striving for. i must strive to be polite even when people annoy me, because its thai to maintain good manners.[/quote]


i actually enjoy it more when i don't like them because i take enjoyment in stiffing them, and kicking girls out when they start with the ultimatums or not performing good service. you can loath them and enjoy the place at the same time. i have blown my stack and caused deadbeats to lose face and have physically thrown unruly hoze out my door. i have refused to eat totally cooked meals because the mixed veg's w/the 200bht live snapper are 500bht ask to see your bill before you dig in. it may have gone up 100% at some bkk places. i've ridden cabs from nana to kao san road and if the fare ain't right and the meter ain't running, i just jump out. i haven't had an ass kicking yet. you need to totally avoid any interaction with thai males. keep them at arms length and have them maintain no higher than their station in life. if a dude tries to chat you up, pretend you are brazilian or czech, and don't bother tipping. always change drivers. they declared war on the us and built the bkk road called jap friendship fly over as a nice runway for the jap planes that wouldn't look like a runway to recon. the thai diplomat carried the declaration in his pocket and never delivered it. when the us dropped the bombs they declared war on the japs and seized their assets. they have a chip on their shoulder because the limeys and frogs took their territory and the frog's sank the entirethai navy with a little rag tag squadron of vichy boats out of saigon right by koh chang. the thais wanted the japs to punish the vichy frogs in saigon (a nice ww2 job) but they found out who the japs had more respect for. i have a great time because i sah-peek the language and i am totally hip to their scams. it is hard to keep a straight face while watching others get scammed and hearing people babbling at what a magical marvelous place it is. i am a new yorker and i sez thais are the rudest, pushiest people on earth.

[QUOTE=Retired Army]Do you blame them? Look at the way we act in their country, e.g., refusing to stand at the National Anthem in a theatre; getting drunk and making fools of ourselves on Sukhumvit, Patpong, Soi Cowboy, etc.

Would we accept this kind of behaivor from foreigners in our own country? I think not.[/QUOTE]

It reminds me of the monkey park in Ubud, Bali. They DO get drunk, and they do act crazy. Some smoke Yah-bah while watching porn and drinking and do ting-tong things. There are some scary caucasian lady backpacker stories. A drunk ex-cop-bar-owner made a pass at a pretty British backpacker down by the River Kwai tour stuff and her Scouse Boyfriend beat the guy to a pulp. The ex-cop got his gun and shot them in the back then ran them over with his car while they begged for mercy This was a couple of years back and the dude is probably free now. Don't worry, in about 20-30 years the Asian sex tourists will be in the US far surpassing any of our antics that you are so ashamed of. They are like injunz when they get drunk.

[QUOTE=BuleDaddy] ... Don't worry, in about 20-30 years the Asian sex tourists will be in the US far surpassing any of our antics that you are so ashamed of.... [/QUOTE]
Good! They can have our good for nothing bitches to put up with while I'm enjoying Thai women. (On second thought, I'll most likely be dead in 30 years anyway)

[QUOTE=BuleDaddy]It reminds me of the monkey park in Ubud, Bali. [/QUOTE]I recognize the similarities, but I will say that no drunken Thai has ever tried to steal my clothes, as happened to me once upon a time 21 years ago in the monkey forest in Ubud.

This notion that Thais despise foreigners may be as rule true enough to work as an operating principle. I've also made the following observations:

- Thais hate and despise Indians, a lot more than they do white people. Except for the Buddha.

-They also despise Laos, and even more so Khmens, and they REALLY hate Burmese.

They are none-too-fond of Malaysians, either. That pretty much covers the neighbors.

-Thais think Africans are sub-human.

-Thai women despise and sometimes hate Thai men.

-Chinese Thais despise anyone darker than a member of the royal family.

-Thais want to be Japanese, but it doesn't mean that they love or respect Ai Yun, necessarily, although they envy his money and the way he doesn't act all obsequious around white people.

I think the main thing to keep in mind is (and this is by no means an original observation) that envy and fear are the main driving forces in Thai social interaction. Thais have envied Europeans/Americans for a very long time; envied their spending power, their military might, their skin color- you name it. I'm afraid that whitey may have slipped off his pedestal a bit in recent decades, at least insofar as they (especially the Yanks) are perceived by people whose superficial thought processes cause them to deal mainly in stereotypes. As one might expect in Thailand, the loss of the perceived basis for envy can only inspire contempt.

[QUOTE=BuleDaddy]
You need to TOTALLY avoid any interaction with Thai males. Keep them at arms length and have them maintain no higher than their station in life. If a dude tries to chat you up, pretend you are Brazilian or Czech, and don't bother tipping. Always change drivers. <cut>.[/QUOTE]
Its hard to imagine what sort of Thai girls would go with you, only the unsuspecting ones.

As for Thai guys, I found some of them real good to talk to, and got some good incite into puzzling things. Don't need to be thinking with your dick 100% of the time.

The way tourists behave and interact with locals in all parts of the world has been studied in great detail. That a certain amount of friction results during the course of these interactions is inevitable. In a study I did on beaches in my country I found that Russian tourists were the most critical but at the same time partook in activities which degraded the environment.

This apparant contradiction is plain to locals. I can assure you that the locals in Thailand discuss tourists' bevaiour in the same way that we discuss and try to understand them. I am also equally sure that there are times when farangs should know better. One can have a good time punting and at the same time behave in the right way. Every country has its customs. As guests we should respect these customs as we expect tourists who visit us to respect ours. That's the least we can do. I am also sure that there are a number of Farangs amongst you who help where help is needed. And please remember, people are individuals. Some are ok and some are just bastards.

Anyway will be in LOS on Tuesday and sincerely hope to meet some of you there for a chat and a beer.

Take care,

Taka

[QUOTE=Sammon]
Yes, Thai people really love their country. I was in the movie theater with my GF. As usual everybody stands up when they show the king thing.
I am an american and will not stand for any king real or imagined.
My gf argued with me all the way home.[/QUOTE]
Sammon,

don't forget, you are only a guest in that country and have to respect their rules and traditions.
I guess everything else that should be said about you was already said by others.

[QUOTE=Sammon]I am an american and will not stand for any king real or imagined. My gf argued with me all the way home.[/QUOTE]

Being an American has nothing to do with it. Standing during a country's national anthem is customary throughout the world. Not to do so is an insult. You'll be in a world of pain if a Thai cop sees you disrespecting the king or Thai national anthem. It's also a very quick way to get yourself kicked to death by a group of Thais. More than one foreigner has gone home as ashes in an urn because, in the eyes of Thais, he insulted Buddha or the king.

Evil