Stickman

Went for a nosey to Soi Cowboy this evening. Doubt if I have ever seen it so quiet. The large neon signs above bar awnings are off. About 1/4 of bars were not open. Those bars which were open didn't have many staff and there weren't that many customers. Some bars had music at a low volume, others had no music. This photo was taken after 9:00 PM.

Soi Nana was closed down by the Army at 12:30 last night, that is Nana Plaza, bars on the soi and EQ.

Everything open, mood very subdued, less lights and in many bars no music.

Last night Nana Plaza was closed while Patpong and Soi Cowboy open. From Cowboy, there was drinking but not much dancing. Friday morning and there is little clarity - bar bosses aren't sure what will happen. There's talk of closure between 3 and 7 days for some and subdued operations for 30 days.

Margarita Storm at the start of Sukhumvit soi 13 has Aussie steaks at decent prices. I think the striploin is around 499 and the fillet 599, from memory. It's one of the better deals about town for imported steak.

I noticed the Thais seem to have become much more coarse with their language particularly females (outside the bar industry). The number of times I heard "e-dock" made me cringe!

Yep, I am in agreement with the general premise about the lack of manners in Thailand. In certain situations, especially in the workplace, dealing with people of influence or with respected family members or government officials, Thais can be impeccably mannered. But out and about in general public they can lack manners and it can be every man for himself. What used to always irk me was when you're in a restaurant and the staff would shout across at each other from one side of the room to the other, destroying any semblance of ambience, when it would have taken almost zero effort to walk across and talk quietly with their colleague.

Oh, I quite like the Vietnamese streetside beer culture too. I know Hooters in Bangkok seems to have polarised a lot of folk and it seems to be a price thing as much as anything. 400 baht for a burger isn't cheap, but then it's still cheaper than a decent place in Auckland where you're looking at $NZ20 (500 baht) for a burger and needless to say, the serving staff don't look anything the staff in Hooters!

Honey Bee? Not sure I have ever been there. I know I am in a minority but I quite liked Hooters.

Completely demolished.

The MO with iPhone spyware is to install the software on a new phone and give it to the person who is the intended recipient of the surveillance as a gift with the software already set up. Did that happen in this instance? Who knows. There could be another explanation in this instance, of course...

Yes, on Suriwong Road, not far from Patpong.

Pricey, but good. Must admit though, I have only been once and it was some years ago.

But how much longer will the common market remain? Holland looks like it will go and probably all it needs is for one other largish country to pull out and the dominos will tumble....

Parties seems like rather not strong enough word.... I have a lengthy video I shot at one of them, runs almost an hour and a half. I showed it to a friend here in NZ not so long ago and he commented that it was better than any porn movie he'd seen!

Here you: http://www.stickmanbangkok.com/StickmanWeeklyColumn2013/Nanapong.htm

I haven't stepped foot in the UK since 1994, but I hear a lot from English friends about how the UK has changed since it became part of the EU and I can only say that if it was my country I would want for us to be the masters of our own destiny and not have our hands tied by being part of a union with a number of other countries. I cannot imagine what it is like for a country that has to allow outsiders in and cannot do anything about it. That makes zero sense to me. It's not like the UK is a tinpot place with few people or few resources. I'm of the strong opinion that the UK should leave. Sure, there might be some pain in the short-term but the Brits are resilient and will get through it and, I think, ultimately be better off. Give Europe the bird, I say!

Actually, the weather in soi 10 was very nice this morning, clear skies and not as hot as it has been.

You're a Beachhaven boy, right? We're darn near neighbours....

Oh, I enjoyed my time in Bangkok, no doubt about that.....but just wanted a change. All good in soi 10 this morning?

A million miles? Probably more like a couple....

For rent / housing, Auckland is more expensive than Bangkok. For cars, Auckland is much cheaper than Bangkok. For eating out, Auckland is generally more expensive than Bangkok (at the low and mid-range places) BUT go upper mid-range or high-end and Auckland is both much cheaper and, I truly believe, much better. In Bangkok, if you don't have a lot of money you can still lead a sembance of a life *if* you're prepared to go Thai-style when it comes to accommodation and meals. If you wanted a high-end lifestyle in Bangkok where everything was Western quality, Auckland is definitely cheaper. In comparing New Zealand's biggest city with Thailand's with regards to the cost of living, it really all comes down to the lifestyle you wish to lead. It might be cheaper in Bangkok, or it might not. But for sure, the days when you could categorically say Bangkok was cheaper are over.

The big hospitals like Bumrungrad (Sukhmvit soi 3) have top notch laboratories and you should have the result within about an hour.

A friend drives a taxi in Wellington and makes very good money - around $NZ100,000 per year. He seems to enjoy it.

....maybe because some of the staff at Hooters are hotter than most of the girls dancing in the plaza?