Mekong Posted July 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 Come on RM, If this poll was in Thai Rath the reply would be "Fuck the Farang, They all have lots of money" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radioman Posted July 22, 2012 Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 Come on RM, If this poll was in Thai Rath the reply would be "Fuck the Farang, They all have lots of money" My point precisely m8 But then again I know educated working class Thais who disagree and say its not right, yet they are under the misapprehension that it DOES occur in other countries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wallenda Posted July 22, 2012 Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 For some reason, we expect traditional Thai hospitality to extend to the kind of human being (!) who will work for peanuts if it means they get to wear a uniform and enforce their will on others. People with, possibly, 10 years of basic education and no experience of anything beyond Thailand's borders. When I ask myself what the Russian equivalent of such a person would be, the image of a guard in a Gulag springs into my head. From 2014, I will have to grin and bear it - hypocrisy or no hypocrisy - or move to another country. I'm not sure why you are asking yourself that question, it's not the underpaid uniform people setting the pricing policies. To me, most of these foreigner-only prices aren't enough to get bothered about. Entry to a national park is still a great bargain even at the higher price. And an argument can be made for certain prices, like some have mentioned here. If the discount offered to locals is for some attraction that's owned by the country, that does seem more acceptable. The times it jumps out at me as taking the piss is something like the amazingly high prices they charge foreigners to watch Muay Thai for example, where the price foreigners pay is 5 times what Thais pay, and for no good reason at all other than to gouge the foreigners. Another thing is that the double-pricing is so pervasive in Thailand, more than anywhere else that I've been. (and vastly more prevalent than in our own countries, where instances of it are pretty hard to find) I remember China and Vietnam used to do dual-pricing on trains and flights for example, but did away with it when they figured out how negatively it was viewed by tourists. They took the hint that this was something that was making tourists see them as 3rd world and backward, and changed it. Thailand has definitely heard the grumbling, but whatever the driving force for it is, it's stronger than any shame they might feel over it. And the ones who set the prices are ones who probably have been to other countries, and should know better. I also wonder if the reason for its sticking around this long is simpler: Thailand is a country that's fundamentally corrupt. A good % of the money taken in at any of these places likely ends up in someone's unofficial pocket. Maybe that's a key driving force for the resistance to change, just the fact that it would mean less cash for someone. That said, I do think xenophobia also plays a role. Not sure thats the right word, but this feeling that of course non-Thais shouldn't be treated as fairly as Thais. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayRay Posted August 5, 2012 Report Share Posted August 5, 2012 This happens in the states as well. Orly???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panadolsandwich Posted August 5, 2012 Report Share Posted August 5, 2012 I don't understand Mekong - I hadn't troubled to read your post until you polluted mine. As far as I can see you've been refuted many times over (absolutely no point in adding my views) - I would contend embarrissingly so - what to me would be insufferable. If you have any dignity left then just apologise and be done with it man - nobody likes some shilly-shallying ummm guy that refuses to be realistic (please note KS I was very careful not to insult him). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YimSiam Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 I'm all for two-tier pricing. Fuck foreigners, let 'em pay, and if they're not ready to throw down a few bucks to see a national treasure - waterfall, temple, ruins, go-go dancer - then kick 'em out! Where two-tier pricing pays a dividend - ie, where the attraction is significant enough to draw people despite the price (Angkor Wat, Taj Mahal, Kenyan game parks, etc) then the country should milk what they can, while facilitating their own populations' access to their national sites at a low cost. When it doesn't pay anymore - when no foreigner will come, because the attraction sucks (Lolita's excluded) - then scrap the two-tier system. Visiting a country's treasures is a privilege, and nothing wrong with charging for it! Thais give us breaks non-stop in Thailand, treating foreigners like special guests even though a massive percentage are ill-bred sweaty rude cows who wouldn't lift a finger to welcome a visitor in their own country. Charge 'em! YimSiam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coss Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 High charges would be made more acceptable, if the tourist was given the impression, that they were being looked after, by a smiling and friendly, service oriented guide/staff member. As it seems to be, to me anyway, the tourist is confronted with a beady eyed, cheating little shit, who doesn't care who knows, what little esteem, he has for a foreigner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamui Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 High charges would be made more acceptable, if the tourist was given the impression, that they were being looked after, by a smiling and friendly, service oriented guide/staff member. As it seems to be, to me anyway, the tourist is confronted with a beady eyed, cheating little shit, who doesn't care who knows, what little esteem, he has for a foreigner. If it's a religous site or a place of major importance for the identity of the local people I think double pricing is OK. Like Angkor, without double pricing for a Khmer family a visit would cost several months of wages, while for a tourist it's just a part of the daily expenses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YimSiam Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 High charges would be made more acceptable, if the tourist was given the impression, that they were being looked after, by a smiling and friendly, service oriented guide/staff member. As it seems to be, to me anyway, the tourist is confronted with a beady eyed, cheating little shit, who doesn't care who knows, what little esteem, he has for a foreigner. But then it would be paying for service, or something like that - you'd be getting something the Thais don't get when they visit. And this should be about milking the farang, and the more beady-eyed, the better! Makes it clear. The world is full of all kinds of bullshit that gets covered up, or that people prefer not to confront directly because it's kind of unsavory. Like Indian tourist guys at the go-gos, and the way the doormen say "Sorry, this is a private club..." Instead, better they say: "Look dude, dozens of guys looking and acting just like you come in here all the time, you don't pay jackshit for drinks, you ogle and handle the goods but never buy, and you're not good for our business, all things considered. I may be wrong, you may be the exception, but I'm conservative in my assessments and I don't feel like taking a chance." Honesty is the best policy, unless it's against the Constitution... Same for the double-charge: "you're a rich world-travelling shmuck in shorts coming to see our Buddha temples, fork over the cash!" YimSiam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khunsanuk Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Hi, And how would you justify double pricing at privately owned themeparks? Sanuk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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