Evil Penevil

What's he outlook for tonight? I'm beginning to get cabin fever but I sure the hell don't want to face trying to get back to Jomtien after rain and flooding like on Sept. 11 last year. Took me four hours just to get from WS to Tuk.com. Evil

Flights will apparently start between U Tapao and Siem Reap in October. You can read about it here. Evil

I saw this announcement, but not too much info on the Web site about the actual Air Hanuman flights that begin in October. Evil Pattaya Airport announces regular Cambodia flights By Staff Reporter | September 30, 2012 Pattaya: Airport announces new flights to Cambodia from Utapao Cambodian airline, Air Hanuman, has negotiated a regular route between Siam Reap Cambodia and Pattaya’s own Utapao Airport. The service, which will initially be a weekly series of three return flights, will mean that tourists can leave Pattaya and be in Cambodia in just about an hour. This new route is great news for travelers who want to visit Pattaya from Siem Reap and explore the mysterious Siem Reap-Angkor Wat Temples, from Pattaya. To date, the only options have been either the long drive to Bangkok’s airport or the day long drudge over Thailand to the border and the less comfortable roads of Cambodia. Utapao was built by the US Military during the Vietnam conflict and was used as the main hub for Thailand a few years back when Bangkok Airport was closed. At the time, Pilots and airlines were not only impressed with the runways but also the facilities and ease for passenger to get through the usual queues quickly to board and leave the planes. Flights start this month and are planned for 2PM departures from Siam Reap and 4.PM departures from Pattaya, using B737-300 aircraft in a joint venture with Tonle Sap regional airlines. In a meeting today, Sunday, the Company executives explained that this just the tip of the iceberg as far as new routes are concerned for the company. Many more are planned, affording passengers easier access to numerous destinations via their hub. As a bonus to travellers who are new to Cambodia, everything is accessible through the company website, from ticket and Hotel accommodation through to tours and travel, all using experienced staff and hotels which are recommended by the airline. In addition to Pattaya residents travelling to Cambodia, the airline is working on a joint promotion of Pattaya City to Cambodian residents and plans to share the many great reasons why visitors should come to Pattaya city from Siem Reap. http://airhanuman.com/book.php Read more: http://www.pattaya10.../#ixzz27xuFOPqz

I don't think the Thai Mr Dream ever had much to do with that Web site, other than take some referrals from the Canadian behind it. I have no idea if that Web site is still functional as I never had any contact with the Canadian "Mr Dream." Evil

Sorry, a typo. From inside Thailand - 086 666 8393. From outside +66 86 666 8393. Corrected in the original post. Evil :

The real Mr Dream, a Thai guy, is still operating his transport services. I use him or one of his drivers all the time for trips in Pattaya as well to/from Swampy. He has never disappointed me yet. The farang guy who back in 2009 (or whenever it was) tried to use the punter boards to drum up business for Mr Dream (and also used the name Mr Dream) hasn't been associated with Mr D's service for several years. As far as I know, that particular farang guy hasn't been in LOS for two or three years. If you want to get in touch with the Thai Mr. Dream, you can call him at 086 666 8393. (Edited to correct phone number) Say hello from Evil. Evil

The rates you see on the XE.com Web site are not transactional rates (buy and sell rates), but indicative mid-point rates gleaned from interbank trading of lots equivalent to at least US$100,000 (minor currencies) or US$1,000,000 (major currencies). The rate you will be quoted for retail transactions will be worse. From the XE.com site: "The rates in our free information services are neither "buy" nor "sell" rates. Instead, they are mid-market rates derived from the mid-point between the "buy" and "sell" rates from global currency markets. Our free information services always list the mid-market rate because it indicates the value of a currency that is not weighted towards buying or selling. "Buy" and "sell" rates include overheads and profit margins that are independently set by foreign exchange providers; their rates can vary a lot and will differ from the mid-market rate, so we recommend you shop around." Evil

She managed BadaBing for a short time. It was owned by the same Swiss guy who owned Toxic and TL. But that was like four years ago. J's involvement with BadaBing was short-lived. Evil

It's been a couple of years since I stayed at the Town Lodge, but it was a very good budget hotel back then. Guest friendly to the max. The only real downside for me was the lack of an elevator. Cookie - Is Miss J still tending the bar at Toxic? Evil

I knew it was Apple, but I didn't notice the nipple. I'll have to look more closely at my own pics! She was a customer. Evil

As usual, top-notch pics. Thanks for posting them! Evil

I have gotten six multi-entry 60 tourist visas (most recent was at the beginning of August) at the Thai consulate in New York City and have never filled in the section on a reference in Thailand. The consulate officials have never said a word about it. The visa form you print out is used for several types of visas and a reference or guarantor may be needed in some cases, but I have never been asked to provide any such info. Nor have I been asked to prove I had a return flight or a place to stay. However, there was a hippie-looking guy - not a U.S. citizen - who the consular officials were giving a hard time when I was there in August. They demanded all sorts of documentation from him just for a tourist visa - flight, proof he had at least 20,000 baht, hotel info, etc. He got pissed when I walked up to the window next to his, handed over my passport, application and $80 and was told my visa would be ready the next afternoon. He started yelling about why they hadn't asked me for the same documentation as him. Not a good move on his part. Evil

A few more pics of her, since she proved so popular. Evil

More pics ...

Great party! The new location was packed with customers and well-wishers. The girls - both the ones working at Cherry Bar and guests - were in fine form. I'll be posting more pics later. Evil

I'll be at the party Sept. 15. Your new location is far more convenient than the old Cherry Bar. A visit to your bar was the only reason I'd venture down Soi 8, but I walk up/down Soi Diana to/from the LK Metro area, so much more opportunity to call in at Cherry Bar. See you Saturday! Evil

There's the HIP Hotel. I haven't stayed there, but a friend has and he recommended it. Evil

It's not so much that Tiger Air flights are bad; it's that if anything goes wrong, you get can't get any help in re-booking on another airline. Flight delays of three or more days are highly inconvenient for everyone and could be disastrous for some people.

I'll be there, and in costume! Evil

Is it true the Dogs Bollocks used to have a prominent sign which read: "No Arabs or Japs allowed. Lager louts welcome."? Or is that just an urban myth? Evil

I don't have anything encouraging to say about Tiger Air. Bottom line: Tiger has a terrible record regarding flight cancellations and an even worse policy for assisting stranded passengers. It's typical for discount airlines. If things go well, you've saved quite a bit of money. But if a flight is cancel, you may be in for a lot of extra expense and hassle. I was booked on the July 1 flight to AC. Just before I departed for Swampy, I checked the Tiger Web site and it said the flight was on time. However, when I got to the airport, it turned out the flight was canceled, just like the flight to AC the day before. The staff assured us the flight would leave the following afternoon, so I wasn't too worried. I just called my hotel in AC and they said no problem to push forward my reservation a day. Tiger provided the stranded passengers with rooms at a decent hotel near the airport, plus dinner that night and breakfast and lunch the next day. In the morning, I called Tiger's Bangkok office to make sure I was booked on the afternoon flight. The woman I spoke with said I was and the flight would depart on schedule at 3.45 p.m. I don't know if she deliberately lied or was just confused, but when we got to the airport (by bus) at 1.30 p.m., the check-in staff said there were only 17 seats available on the flight and 70 passengers from the two cancelled flights. A guy in a wheelchair and a group of Filipino school children got those seats, which was understandable. The rest of us had the option of staying another night at the same hotel and hoping for a seat on a Cebu flight to Clarke or having our tickets refunded. Since there was no guarantee of seats on the next day's Cebu flight, I asked if they could book me on a flight the same day with another airline to Manila. They said no, so I took the refund (didn't get the credit card charges reversed until four weeks later) and bought a ticket myself on the Cebu flight that night to Manila. It ended up costing me about US$300 extra with the cost difference of Cebu ticket and taxi to/from AC. Some of the guys who didn't want to fork out extra money for their tickets were absolutely livid. A lot of shouting at the check-in counter - not a pleasant scene at all. Two major gripes - 1) it was impossible for them to transfer us to another airline; and 2) very poor information. If I had known on July 1 about the cancellation, I would have immediately made plans to fly with another airline. But because Tiger misinformed me about the cancellations, I ended up arriving in AC two days behind schedule. Luckily the Pacific Breeze didn't charge me for altering the arrival date, but I could have run into hassles if they had given my room to someone else. I'll never fly Tiger again. Evil

I'll be flying elsewhere on Sept 7, but congrats on the anniversary and best wishes for many more. I'm sure the party will be great. Evil

Some guys come to the board with the intention of provoking an argument. The more notorious keyboard warriors tend to lack enpowerment in real life. They often don't have voices that are heard outside the punter boards. On the boards, however, it's easy to grab everyone's attention. The non-keyboard warriors do this through informative or entertaining posts; a small number choose a more destructive route, bigging themselves up by trying to drag others down. Since there's a lot of anonymity and little accountability on the boards, the destructive route doesn't often carry any downside risk, other than negative rep votes. Fear of the future is another factor. Some BMs can't understand why changes are taking place in Pattaya, changes that threaten to make Sin City too expensive for them. When combined with a lack of empowerment and a generous sprinkling of jealousy, this fear causes some to lash out very aggressively at those those they (mistakenly) believe are causing the changes, whether it be new groups of tourists (Russians, Indians, Chinese, etc.); barowners they claim are greedy and girls they feel are spoiled; or even other BMs who pay more than they deem appropriate. Rather than understanding or accepting what's really happening in Pattaya - the Thai economy and tourist industry are developing, which will always mean higher prices - they blame individuals or groups which have little or no role in the process. That can lead to some very ugly board scraps. Finally, some BMs are simply unaccustomed to taking part in civilized debate. Any topic can be debated vigorously from diametrically opposed positions without resorting to name-calling, flames and insults. However, the notorious keyboard warriors seldom have the skill to do this. To cloak their inability to defend their positions, they attack their opponents, not the opponents' positions. Again, this is nothing new. It goes as far back as far as the ancient Greek rhetoricians and even has a fancy name: the ad hominem fallacy. I realize it is easy for some to get carried away on the boards. I always ask myself, "Would I say this to the person if I met them face-to-face?" I find it impossible to accept "It's only the Internet" as an excuse for mean-spirited posting. Evil

Old Chinese Proverb: "Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." New Chinese Proverb: "Give a man a welfare check, a cell phone, cash for his clunker, food stamps, section 8 housing, Medicaid, 100 weeks of unemployment checks, a 40-ounce malt liquor, needles, drugs, contraceptives, and designer Air Jordan shoes and he will vote the Democratic ticket for a lifetime. Evil

Opey de Place on Soi Lengkee is also a good choice. Nice pool, free wi-fi, rooms cost 750B to 1,000B per night, depending on the room's size. Web site: http://www.opeydeplacepattaya.com/Hotel-overview.html Evil