gobbledonk Posted June 24, 2012 Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 1. Take a map of Isaan showing the provincial boundaries 2. Draw a straight line from the bottom of Buriram up to the top of Udon Thani - Nong Khai, or thereabouts 3. Now draw a second line from your 'Nong Khai' point down to Udon Ratchathani 4. Finally, connect that point to your original start point in Buriram. That's great, Gobble, I hear you cry - you've just taken out the vast majority of Isaan. My point is this - of all the people you have met in BKK/Patts etc who come from Isaan, how many originate from the following provinces ? Loei, Sakhon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Mukdahan, Amnat Charoen, Nong Bua Lamphu, Chalyaphum I dont know what their respective populations are compared to my triangle, but compare whatever rough numbers you have for the above with these provinces: Buriram, Surin, Sri Saket, Udon (pick one ..), Roi Et, Kalasin, Khon Kaen At one stage I thought those provinces WERE 'Isaan' - 'Bulilam' and Surin seemed to exist for little other than breeding girls for the bar industry down south .... (they can pronounce 'Surin' with a hard 'r' but not 'Buriram' - wtf ?) Of course, I dont have the breadth of experience that many here have, and I'm sure someone will tell me that they have met thousands of girls/taxi drivers and street vendors (!) from the other provinces. The other gaping hole in my pathetic excuse for a theory is the province sitting right in the middle of my 'golden triangle' - Maha Sarakham - but I've already added it to my itinerary. I just have to see what goes on in a part of Thailand I didnt even know existed. In any case, I know I'm onto something here. Stay tuned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radioman Posted June 24, 2012 Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 An ex GF from Maha Sarakham, been there, seen it, ate breakfast in that province, don't waste your time. Oh, and I think they pronounce it uBon Ratchathani. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radioman Posted June 24, 2012 Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 Also had (semi) regulars in the past from Loei, Sakhon Nakhon and Mukdahan. Memories I've travelled those roads a lot over the years, grubby little one horse/buffalo towns scattered across a wasteland of nothing. You're not missing anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baa99 Posted June 24, 2012 Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 GD, What is your hypothesis? A) This is where airplanes disappear. This is where buses disappear. C) This is where buffalo disappear. D) This is where farang disappear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waerth Posted June 24, 2012 Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 I actually know quite a few people from: Loei, Sakhon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Mukdahan And virtually no one from Sisaket, Kalasin and Roi Et ..... Am I jinxed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gobbledonk Posted June 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 Sigh - I suspect that radioman has unravelled the 'mystery', and its not so mysterious when I think about the wasteland between, for example, Hua Hin and Chumphon at the other end of the country. Bit naive of me to assume that every province has a Udon Thani sized city lurking within its borders. I cant say that I found Udon Thani particularly fascinating, but that was before I went to Vientiane. Khon Kaen sounds a little more attractive - university town etc - but that's pure speculation. It may well be that younger people from neighbouring provinces are drawn to the provincial capitals before they consider BKK - it certainly happens in my corner of Redneck Hell. (and I dont know the answer to the Udon/Ubon thing - isnt 'Ubon' the southernmost 'Udon' ?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gobbledonk Posted June 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 I actually know quite a few people from: Loei, Sakhon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Mukdahan And virtually no one from Sisaket, Kalasin and Roi Et ..... Am I jinxed? I guess we just travel in different circles. Hard to believe you have never met anyone from Roi Et, though .... just take a wander down Soi 4 sometime. They could run a minibus charter straight out of the Soi - Buriram, Surin, Roi Et and back to Soi 4 - and I reckon it would turn a profit. Throw in an orientation tour of the bars (nudge-nudge) for the new arrivals and a free English lesson - damn, I might just have stumbled on a business opportunity ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted June 24, 2012 Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 And virtually no one from Sisaket, Kalasin and Roi Et ..... Am I jinxed? No, you need to meet some taxi drivers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gobbledonk Posted June 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 No, you need to meet some taxi drivers. Ok, its not standard conversation fare, but on the BKK-Patts drives I often ask them where they are from - its usually one of the provinces I highlighted above. Even the ladyboys seem to come from the same provinces - just go to the Robinson's in Udon Thani for confirmation ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horneytorney Posted June 24, 2012 Report Share Posted June 24, 2012 well, I have been in almost all provinces in Isaan and I always found it fascinating...maybe a bit less than Northern- and Southern Thailand and the Central provinces. I have probably also done BG from all provinces, some I can remember where they were from (one from Nong Bua Lamphu comes to mind, which was 15 years ago), legions I forgot from where they are. Sometimes the majority of the BG in a certain bar come from the same province (where the owner comes from). I recall one in WS where over a period of over 10 years, most BG came from Roi Et and there is one bar (or actually more than one) in SC, where the majority comes from Kalasin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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