MC_Ldop

It's closer to Second Road than Third Road. I actually like the location. It's a little secluded, but close enough to Soi Buakhao and Second Road.

It looks easy enough to catch a baht bus from Soi Buakhao. That'll take you to Walking. For Jomtien, you can transfer at Pattaya Tai and catch another baht bus. I'm seriously considering staying here next trip. It looks great and is a bit secluded, but still convenient enough to do everything I want to do.

LK Royal Suites fits the bill too. There's not jacuzzi by the pool, though the rooms have jacuzzi-style tubs. There are two saunas and a steam room by the pool area.

Here are the latest stories from Kevin Meacher, owner of the Jasmine Mansion. Driving in the Fast Lane, Part I Driving in the Fast Lane, Part II My Kingdom for a Pencil I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass My Daughter's University Adventure Leave some comments on the blog if you like any of the stories! No lewd comments about Kevin's daughter please.

Thanks for that Lex. I know where it is now.

Still unsure of the exact location. Anyone have any specifics, landmarks, etc.? I looked on the site and my Pattaya map, still not sure.

Aren't fares generally higher across the board in the US at this time? It's low season in Thailand, but it's prime vacation time in the US. It was the same last year too.

It's much closer to Pattaya Klang that Pattaya Tai.

I wonder if Thai doctors give out medical marijuana for glaucoma.

Looks fantastic!

Yeah, it's on Soi 1 for sure. I've walked past it lots, as it's near one of my favorite restaurants. I've never been inside. Looks like an office from outside though.

Here's a link to the cover of Riff-Raffles, a book by the owner of the Jasmine Mansion. Riff-Raffles cover art! Please check it out and leave a comment on the page with your thoughts!

That's because they don't have the natural ability to walk in heels.

Hang out on Third Road after 2AM as the biker boys get out of karaoke. Tell them how awesome they are. More seriously, if you stick to safe areas and don't do stupid sh*te then all you have to worry about are drunken football hooligans.

Kevin, proprietor of the Jasmine Mansion has updated his site with five new blog posts. This time around, he reports on a vacation that didn't work out as planned. Here are links to all five installments. Please check it out if you get a chance! The Failed Vacation!!! Part I: Finding a Hotel Part II: Still Finding a Hotel Part III: Singing for Sex Part IV: Massage or Relief Part V: Underwater Vomiting

Do they have ADSL?

It's pretty hard to miss. If you're at Leng Kee restaurant, looking across the street (Pattaya Klang), then it should be staring you right in the face.

The old wing at the Lek isn't exactly cheerful. Honestly, there are better values in the price range, but if you only want to consider those two, I guess I'd say Lek.

Pffftt. \/\/hatever barebaker! I grew up in NY. The pizza there rules over anything you'll find in Thailand.

I like the Majestic Grande. http://www.majesticgrande.com/

Kevin, owner of Jasmine Mansion has three updates this week on the Riff-Raffles site for your reading pleasure. Check it out when you get a chance! On Thai People and Lying I have often been heard to say to the Thai staff at the Jasmine Mansion, in my usual exasperated tones, ‘If you are going to lie then do so properly. Lie to the level where you are unlikely to be found out or, at least, make the story believable.’ Lying in Thailand is at a level where you have to be a complete muppet not to see through it. Initially you consider that the person lying to you is treating you with total contempt — so pathetic and lame is the story they are spinning you. However, I have come to realise that the lack of credibility is not due to me being perceived as stupid. It is that the person telling the lie just does not know how to properly think things through before providing you with a fabricated yarn. As a race, telling lies does not come naturally to Thai people. Of course, there is a problem associated with them not wanting to ‘lose face’ and this is a situation where lying would actually be rather beneficial to them. However, they usually circumvent this by not responding to any direct questions which they either do not know the answer to or that the answer would show them to be in the wrong. This therefore obviates the need to lie. They will, instead, simply stare at the floor in the manner of a shamed puppy that has just urinated on your brand new Persian rug or alternatively smile tentatively like a young child begging forgiveness. Both of these actions are assured to induce you to rage. When you have gone red faced and shouted they become terribly upset, they cannot understand why you are behaving in such a barbaric fashion — you are now in the wrong! Full Story On Kevin Meacher and Lying In the West lying has been perfected, and I consider that I mastered the art from a relatively young age. I will recount, by way of example, one of my favourite lies. Many years ago I was employed by W.H. Smiths, a bookstore and stationary chain with numerous branches throughout the UK. I worked at their Windsor branch on Saturdays and during my school holidays. It helped put some money in my pocket and left me some fond memories — several storeroom assignations that I will not bore you with. Anyway, being the part-timer, I was given the tasks the full-time staff wanted to most avoid. Included in this was opening the shop and taking in the morning newspaper and magazine deliveries. I would arrive at around 06:00 AM, take in the papers, count them and add everything to the stock records. I would then put the periodicals out on the shelves having removed the remaining previous issues, marking up the ‘returns’ on the stock records. I would open the shop at seven thirty and deal with the early morning businessmen buying their preferred daily paper before continuing to the station to catch their train to London. The regular staff would arrive at nine and I would then have a thirty minute breakfast break. I still have not quite worked out how three hours extra work only entitles one to a thirty minute break but it is a little too late to see my union representative now! As a young man it was not always easy for me to wake at 05:00 AM in order to get washed, dressed and make the twenty-minute journey into the centre of town to arrive at the appointed hour. Late nights at pubs and clubs accompanied by far too much alcohol would often see me still fast asleep several hours after I should have been at work — the alarm clock safely tucked away at the bottom of my sock drawer. After several late arrivals I was given a formal warning and advised, in no uncertain terms, that any future tardiness would result in the loss of my job. Although this was never going to be a threat to my future career prospects it would rather cramp my style, I had become accustomed to having money in my pocket and I enjoyed some aspects of the job. I vowed never to be late again and kept this up until, well, the day immediately following the official warning…. Full Story The Tale of the Dishonest Receptionist Today I have to tell you of another pointless and transparent fabrication. This is made even worse by the fact as it was spun by a receptionist here at the Jasmine Mansion, Pon, who has spent the last five years living in England. With Tony Blair as the country’s Prime Minister how on earth could she not have learned how to lie properly? Pon was working her last few days, she being a rare exception in having given us notice of her intention to leave her job. She had to return to England so she would be quitting at the end of this month. Around midday two customers who had checked in for one night and stayed for two weeks were eventually departing, off to Bangkok for a couple of nights prior to returning home to the UK. Pon had become rather friendly with these guests, but she was a naturally outgoing person so nothing much was made of this initially. I then noticed that one of these guests would arrive back at the hotel at eight in the morning claiming to have been out drinking all night. He would sit down, have breakfast and read the newspaper and then his book. He would also appear rather less disheveled than one would expect of a person who had been on the booze for twelve hours. I do not know about you, but for me focusing on a newspaper after that level of alcoholic intake would be more than impossible. It was also strange that he always arrived here within ten minutes of Pon having started her shift! As is usually the case at this time of year, we are very short staffed at the hotel. The Songkran festival sees many Thai people living in Pattaya return to their families for the New Year festivities, leaving Mrs. Boss and I to do most of the work ourselves. Although we were both sure that Pon was having a relationship with this particular guest, which is a sackable offence, she was not conducting it at the hotel. Besides, she was leaving us shortly and we needed every pair of hands we could get. We therefore decided to play dumb and overlook the indiscretion whilst keeping a close eye on the account for this particular guest. The Tale of the Dishonest Receptionist

Bumrungrad Hospital

UAL business is much better than Thai premium economy. It's not even close.

It really depends on where you're flying from, but I'm going to estimate between 40 to 60 percent of the actual cost of a business class ticket.

There are sporadic DNS problems between Thai ISPs and the Internet. They usually don't last too long though.