Happy Sunday, Bangkok! Here we are again.
It’s been yet another busy week in Thailand, what with a crazed, nude Russian terrorizing Pattaya with a knife and still no sign of the suspects in last week’s Pattaya murder case, thought to have escaped to Cambodia.
Yikes. Foreigners in Thailand — never doing things by halves.
Of course, that’s not all that’s been ticking Thailand’s pickle this week. Let’s have a look at the best news, views, social media updates and videos from around the country in the past 7 days.
News
Naked Russian terrorizes Pattaya with a knife and screwdriver
An only slightly out of character dispatch from Pattaya this week: a nude Russian was arrested early on Thursday morning after he was found terrorizing businesses and members of the public in Pattaya Klang, armed with a knife and a screwdriver. He did not immediately surrender to police and had to be eventually overpowered with the help of some passersby.
Ladyboy steals 170K from British tourist and gets immediate nose job
While brazen theft certainly isn’t funny, another news story from Pattaya this week is really tickling our pickle. This is the story of Brit Marc Pearson, holidaying in Pattaya, who invited a lady back to his room one fine evening only to find that she had stolen 170,000 baht from him and fled when he awoke the next morning. Same old, same old.
The plot thickens as it later turns out the lady in question is legally a man. Again, not too surprising in old Pattz.
When caught by the police, the ladyboy was found without a large portion of the stolen cash as she had spent it on a nose job, almost immediately after fleeing the tourist’s hotel.
Asian efficiency at work.
US expat arrested for sex with minors and pornography charges in Udon
Unsettling news this week from Udon Thani as a 57-year old American expat was arrested after a concerned member of the public had suspicions of him sleeping with underage girls. He was found with a 17-year old girl in his bed, and homemade pornographic images and videos were found on his computer, which the police believe he intended to sell online.
Blogs
The difference between Thai men and Farang men
This is an interesting post that is just the translation of a particular forum thread from popular Thai site Pantip. Users are discussing the differences between Thai men and foreign men — a hot button topic for many Bangkokians, regardless of nationality.
While foreigners often tout their opinions on the differences between Thais and themselves, it’s intriguing to hear the Thai perspective. Certain themes that crop up range from foreigners being more gentlemanly and allowing women to develop their own identity to the idea that some foreign men are, well, bigger than their Thai counterparts.
Meet the people behind Thailand’s incredible food scene
We all wax lyrical about the wonders of Thai food and the incredible restaurant scene in Bangkok, and this article seeks to shine a light on those people that help to make it happen. Short interviews with people ranging from fishermen and fruit sellers to luxury restaurant owners and ice delivery men — fascinating stuff.
Do all men who come to Thailand cheat on their girlfriends?
This controversial post was actually published just over a week ago, but we thought it was juicy enough to include anyway.
In it, the author contends that any man visiting Bangkok who is exposed to the sleazy nightlife scene will cheat on his girlfriend or wife back home. He backs this up with a few examples which, while fictional, don’t seem too far from real life.
But while there are probably a decent handful of male foreigners who come and cheat on their partners while they’re visiting Bangkok, it seems ridiculous to paint everyone with this brush. And while the author laughs at the notion that some men don’t like the idea of paying for sex, it comes across more that he’s simply trying to justify his own behavior in this arena.
Forum Threads
Where do you pay the ‘Farang’ price instead of the local one?
A long and interesting forum thread here on that subject that so captures expats in Thailand — dual pricing. Redditors discuss when, where and how often they’re subjected to higher prices than their Thai friends and family. As you might imagine, national parks, Muay Thai fights and a few local businesses are the major culprits.
There’s also some discussion about the entire concept of charging certain people extra for goods and services just because of the colour of their skin.
Meeting Thai girls online
This is a faintly hilarious Thaivisa thread all stemming from a poster asking other users if they have any amusing stories from using online dating services in Thailand. What follows is a stream of unsolicited advice about the preponderance of ‘freelance’ prostitutes using these services, petulant responses from the original poster, and a few actual stories about their experiences with online dating over here.
YouTube
The towering cliffs that surround Railay West make up some of the most stunning scenery on earth. Paradise. #Krabi #Thailand #Travel 🇹🇭 pic.twitter.com/Y9ITofctSF
— Tieland to Thailand (@TielandThailand) January 31, 2017
Walking by a barber shop in Pridee 25 there was a late night shave in progress. pic.twitter.com/Zg04w6JsJb
— Eric Nelson (@Oogabooga) February 2, 2017
Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil – so who’s the little guy, think no evil? Wat Umong, Chiang mai pic.twitter.com/qhx7vyIs7A
— Cat (@WomenLearnThai) February 3, 2017
For the true romantics.. pic.twitter.com/b79OOjoZFC
— Somchai the Dog (@bkksomchai) February 2, 2017
And that’s been The Week On Sukhumvit — see you next time!
