Ashman Posted July 22, 2001 Report Share Posted July 22, 2001 I just wondered what the people on this board thought about Kao San Road and the surrounding area, Phra Atit and Thewet mainly. I've lived in Thailand a while and I started there.I always quite enjoy a visit over there for a drink with a few mates.It's quite a laugh to see all the backpackers and everyone else and it's situated in a nice part of Bangkok(near the river)There are also some good restaurants around there.The Israel restaurant just off Samson road is great and there's a good italian on Phra Atit road that plays smooth Jazz and serves pretty good pasta dishes. Just curious... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAYBLOOM Posted July 22, 2001 Report Share Posted July 22, 2001 I went to Khao San Rd. for the first time last April and it was definitely a refreshing change. I liked the whole bohemian scene and it kind of reminded me of Greenwich Village in New York. There is also a good self service laundry there: http://www.khao-san-road.com/laundry.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackey144 Posted July 22, 2001 Report Share Posted July 22, 2001 I went to the KSR for the first time 2 years ago. I had been to BKK many times previous but it took a friend of mine to introduce to me the famous road and now I make it a regular visit when I come to LOS. As you mentioned, there a quite a few good restraunts there that offer excellent prices and there is a GREAT massage school there that will give you an awesome 2 hour thai massage for a little under 300 baht. Also they have many internet cafes for 1 baht a minute. Overall the experiance is quite delightfull and I will encourage everyone to try to at least visit once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 22, 2001 Report Share Posted July 22, 2001 I agree. It is worth seeing once. It is very interesting. But, it is way out of the way of most things I like in BKK, and traffic over there can be a bitch, especially since Skytrain goes nowhere near there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 22, 2001 Report Share Posted July 22, 2001 Well... The only time I find myself in that neck of the woods these days is to buy a CD or two (or three)....... It is one of the very few areas in Bangkok where you can get a big selection of pirate CD's... (180baht is the price, but you'll get 'em for a 150 baht. Huge selection. KSR is always intereseting, I've tried on the odd occasion to have a beer and enjoy myself in Gullivers. Atmosphere nearly always seems to be lacking. Admittedly you can get a good feed from some of the restaurant there. I've taken many a thai girl out there to have a look at the spectacle of KSR and enjoyed a few good feeds. Thai vendors are generally rude there (might have something to do with the fact that backpackers actually don't buy much). If you speak Thai out there you will definately get a serious expression of 'DOK JAI' - shock. Overall, For people watching it's ok. For bra-less big-boned farang woman it's ok. For dreadlocked lanky western males with an air about them of 'i know about things that you don't know' it's ok. For sexy little hippy Japanese women it's great! Actually, what amazes me is that this is a common hunting ground for female Thai uni students to try and spot the farang of their dreams. I've known quite a few girls who say they like to go out there and look. I guess, it's a whole lot less intimidating than looking in Nana or Sukhumvit Can't speak for any of the surrounding areas of Khao San Road. Never really explored. ===================================== cheers Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 22, 2001 Report Share Posted July 22, 2001 This is just my take. Don't take it personally. KSR...If you like being smack dab in the middle of a western society where deodorant is unheard of, where a tuna sandwich is not a tuna sandwich (no mayonnaise), and where hippies and dreadlocks are abundant, then KSR is for you. There are cheaper places to buy pirated music and software such as Pantip Plaza. If you are into sterling silver jewelry, then KSR is a good place to shop as there are a few wholesellers who will sell to the public. Generally speaking, if you are into that scene, then that's a good place to hang, but there has got to be a place like that back home somewhere. Why travel to LOS and then spend all your time in KSR. Is it worth a visit...YES. Would I pay a return visit to KSR...unlikely. But that's just me. If I want to go to a hippie town, I'll visit Makawao on Maui...plenty of hippies there... Once again, ain't nothing wrong with hippies or KSR. It just isn't my scene, and these are just my thoughts on the subject of KSR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 22, 2001 Report Share Posted July 22, 2001 Just to add to Dan's comment. I went to KSR a couple of weeks ago with a local Thai lady (non-BG). She has recently graduated from a university located nearby. We sat in Swenson's ice-cream parlor and watched the traffic go by. I think this brought back school-day memories of my friend - she started telling me stories of when she and her school-mates would come to KSR after classes to have a coffee, do a bit of shopping, and generally watch the farang. She was too shy to say this directly, but I think it was a case of young ladies checking out the (somewhat exotic variety of) boys. No different from the extensive babe-watching that I do when in Asia. JG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 23, 2001 Report Share Posted July 23, 2001 I stayed there about 1988 for a couple of days. Stayed again in '91 and the place was crawling with Israelis complaining about 5 baht. Not been back for 3/4 years. I knew a couple of girls who liked to go there, sort of a human zoo for them seeing heaps of farang dressed the same, smelling the same, going to the same places, doing the same places... not really my cup of rosie... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 25, 2001 Report Share Posted July 25, 2001 Well Well Well.... I must say I am pleased to witness such a seachange in attitude to this topic as compared to that on the old board. I feel qualified to speak at length on the area as I spent alot of time in and around KS road. Yep, I was one of those dreaded scumbag, hippie dope-smoking backpackers that infest the street. No seriously, as a lover of cities and in particular the numerous ghettos they are made up of I confess a special fondness for the area. I am aware of the faults, the poor hygiene of some, the cultural insensitivity of others, but this place is a curious collision of east and west. It speaks volumes for intersubjectivity ie the perceptions of one group by another. Did demand for banana pancakes, silver jewellry and the other wonders of the strip create the KS road of today, or was it, as I suspect, the perception by Thais of what young thrifty farang wanted? Similarly, is the permissiveness of the strip an indicator of western degeneracy or of Thai permissiveness? My bet is that a sociologist could have a field day sitting in 7 holder, Hello or Khao Sahn centre and watching the interplay of peoples and cultures. Although I no longer stay in KS or the Banglampoo area I always set aside half a day to visit when I am in the big mango. I have had some brilliant nightlife experiences there, be it with the bgs who go there to unwind or find a client out of the ordinary or with Universtiy girls who flock there to socialize or top up their income. All in all the place is ok for short durations, although I see parrallels with Sukhumvit as a perpose built tourist ghetto. I sadly lament the demise of the old Hello restraunt, which in my day (mid to early 90s) was similar to the Thermae, a non-stop orgy of sex, drugs and rock and roll. I had my first ever Sanuk experience there and a tear wells in my eye every time I pass the now derelict frontage. Best left to the young on a long term basis, I still feel that there is something worth going for on this famous street. Cheers Jaga Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 25, 2001 Report Share Posted July 25, 2001 quote: Originally posted by Rama Thai: There are cheaper places to buy pirated music and software such as Pantip Plaza Pantip doesn't have a bigger or better or cheaper range of pirated music cd's.. In fact you'd be lucky to find more than a handful of pirated music cd's at Panthip. Software sure, MP3 cd's sure, but regular cd's, no! KSR is the place for them. It has something to do with the policing district that KSR operates in. In fact Samui is also on a par as far as selection goes I've discovered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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