Is Stickmans outlook correct?

[Stickman]

I'm sorry to hear that you have trouble ordering your pizza without ham, but I would have thought your Thai was more than adequate to easily overcome that minor issue. I order from the Pizza Company regularly, and often order something a little different - and have yet to have a problem! (Have had problems with pizza arriving late, but that is altogether different.) Again, I have to wonder what is going wrong. They do have English operators so perhaps next time you could try speaking with one of them....although their English really is not that good.

 

 

 

Some people consistently have certain problems in life while others don't. Why is this?

 

 

 

Registering a car. How often does this happen? I have never had to do this, and odds are, I NEVER will have to. That particular piece in the column about getting things done included this passage "Admittedly, there are certain things in Thailand where all sorts of red tape can obstruct and frustrate, but for so many every day issues, getting them done is very easy, and in my opinion, far easier than in the West." Quite clearly, I was talking about every day things....and NOT issues like this which happen perhaps once every two or three years, if at all!

 

 

 

As a final note, I think it is outrageous that someone suggests that "Stickman has got it wrong" when Stickman VERY CLEARLY preceded the piece in his weekly column with the following sentence. "Having thought about it, I have isolated perhaps the five main reasons why I choose to live in Thailand." I = Stickman.

 

 

 

Yes, I fully realise that for some people, their list of five reasons would be:

 

 

 

1. Nana Plaza

 

2. Soi Cowboy

 

3. Patpong

 

4. Clinton Plaza

 

5. The Thermae

 

 

 

And these five reasons would be fine for that person. We are all different. I was talking about what *I* enjoy about living here. *I*! So again, please do NOT tell me why I choose to live here, because my reasons, your reasons and that guy over there's reasons are all very different! No right and no wrong.

 

 

 

Stick

[Stickman]

I'm sorry to hear that you have trouble ordering your pizza without ham, but I would have thought your Thai was more than adequate to easily overcome that minor issue. I order from the Pizza Company regularly, and often order something a little different and have yet to have a problem. Again, I have to wonder what is going wrong. They do have English operators so perhaps next time you could try speaking with one of them....although their English really is not that good.

 

 

 

Some people consistently have certain problems in life while others don't. Why is this?

 

 

 

Registering a car. How often does this happen? I have never had to do this, and odds are, I NEVER will have to. That particular piece in the column about getting things done included this passage "Admittedly, there are certain things in Thailand where all sorts of red tape can obstruct and frustrate, but for so many every day issues, getting them done is very easy, and in my opinion, far easier than in the West." Quite clearly, I was talking about every day things....and NOT issues like this which happen perhaps once every two or three years, if at all!

 

 

 

As a final note, I think it is outrageous that someone suggests that "Stickman has got it wrong" when Stickman VERY CLEARLY preceded the piece in his weekly column with the following sentence. "Having thought about it, I have isolated perhaps the five main reasons why I choose to live in Thailand." I = Stickman.

 

 

 

Yes, I fully realise that for some people, their list of five reasons would be:

 

 

 

1. Nana Plaza

 

2. Soi Cowboy

 

3. Patpong

 

4. Clinton Plaza

 

5. The Thermae

 

 

 

And these five reasons would be fine for that person. We are all different. I was talking about what *I* enjoy about living here. *I*! So again, please do NOT tell me why I choose to live here, because my reasons, your reasons and that guy over there's reasons are all very different! No right and no wrong.

 

 

 

Stick

[BaronTT]

I for one, understood that your opinions were just that, opinions and were based on your experiences. Not applicable to everyone.

 

 

 

Keep on writing. I enjoy your articles immensely, even if I've had somewhat different experiences and views.

 

 

 

 

[Zaad]

"Is Stickmans outlook correct?"

 

Well, for me it is.

 

 

 

"1) The people. Stickman loves their smiling, happy, fun-loving, carefree approach to life. "

 

I have experienced the same. As a non-native speaker I help out at a school sometimes and it surprised me how motivated and happy those students are.

 

 

 

"2)The variety and freshness of the food "

 

No doubt. Just look around.

 

 

 

"3) The ease of buying medicine, seeing a doctor, getting a car fixed etc."

 

A lot easier than in Holland, but the only problem could be if you don't speak the language. But that of course counts for every issue anywhere.

 

 

 

"4) Streets full of attractive, approachable girls. "

 

If you like Asian girls, absolutely. Everybody is approachable, but that's another story.

 

 

 

"5) Cheap transport, food, and accommodation."

 

For most farangs this must be true. Even if you don't have that lot of money, by comparing it with your own country you'll notice the difference.

 

 

 

What the hell, maybe I'm brainwashed too!!

[trotsky2]

Just a few comments as well. I think getting things done in Thailand could be a living hell if your Thai is crap. Lets face it if you went to the US and couldn't speak English just how much could you get done. For example, you want three individual krong thip cigarettes. If you speak English you will either get that, "I just feel out of a tree Thai look" or they will give you three packs of cigarettes. Or they will pull some other Thai maneuver that will get your blood boiling and your mind saying , "God how stupid can these people be?" However if you say the 4 magic words you will get your 3 smokes pronto. With a decent grasp of the language everyday things are generally no problemo. Personally I can see the difference in efficiency based on how much language you know. There still are some things I can't say in Thai and when I try to get it done it becomes a total fucking nightmare but the things I do know how to say makes getting it done very easy. But those things are easy too in the West.

 

 

 

Bureaucracy is Bureaucracy anywhere you go. In Thailand it easy to pay a traffic ticket but probably more difficult to get a license of some sort. In the US it is a freakin pain to pay a traffic ticket but quite easy to role into Vegas and get married.

 

 

 

The one problem which has been blown off is traffic. This seems to be the biggest obstacle to getting anything done if your destination is not along the skytrain.

 

 

 

Apartments. I think the cost is very expensive if you are an English teacher. 25,000 baht is about the entire monthly salary of an English teacher. If you are a wealthy expat it is reasonably cheap if you shop around and probably on par with the West if you don't look for bargains.

 

 

 

Food. Cheap indeed if you are wearing the glasses of a well paid expat but that 30 baht padgrapao is actually much more if you are an English teacher. It would be cheaper to buy in the West because your wages would be much better.

 

 

 

My view is that if you are getting a Western salary and living in Thailand that is the dog's bollocks (hope I have used the phrase correctly) but if you are on a local salary Thailand would be a miserable place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest]

I tend to agree that your outlook on things here is a little askew of reality at times. Please don't be outraged, I = ME. Though, I still read your column but am finding it increasingly hard to pinpoint what and who really is your target audience.. It seems to me that a real conservative view is starting to surface ... anyway, I could be wrong. I often am.

 

 

 

But that aside...about Sanuk and his pizza. I think you seemed to have missed his point here. It's not a language thing (yes, and I'm sure you are competent enough to order pizza without ham) but it's a service thing. The question is are they competent enough to take enough care to get an order right??? I've often had wrong things delivered, and it's not due to a language misunderstanding.

 

 

 

The service industry and PR in Thailand is pretty bad at the best of times. I'm sure that many Thais would also agree with me. They are in general apathetic and uncaring, possibly due to the fact that they have no vested interest in the businesses and that they are getting paid a small salary for their services. blah blah blah.... They are the same with their own country folk too I'm sure.

 

 

 

Anyway, I disagree totally that things are easily done here. Well, I should rephrase that.. Many day-to-day things can be easily and quickly done here (but I don't think marginally more than the West), but they are definately done with a great deal more frustration. And although your article excluded tasks outside of the day-to-day variety, I think it's fair to mention the hell involved in trying to get around the beauracracy of certain other tasks. eg, car rego, work permits, tax returns just to name a few. These things are accomplished with much more ease in the West. And I stress, it's not a language thing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[thai3]

Stick,

 

I think there are heaps of situations where dress and language skills have nothing to do with frustrating experiences.

 

In Udon last week I wanted to buy a walkman in the mall, I asked at information as I could not find a shop which sold them, rather than admit there was no such shop the woman on the desk sent me twice to dead ends, then she said no have try big C. Today I have been trying to find a VCD of a new Job and Joy album which is advertised on the telly everytime a switch it on, mission impossible, it's not in the shops. Spent two hours in MBK asking for it then found out nobody has it, why the adverts? who knows, but nothing to do with what I am wearing or limited thai skills. These little things happen all the time, but maybe you get used to them if you live here and cease to find them annoying-peter

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

 

 

"probably the real test on an expat being truly happy to live there, ie. taking all of this in good grace, as part of the territory, more than simply negatives about life in LOS."

 

Please don't take my statements as indications that I don't enjoy my life here, I do. Very much so.

 

 

 

I just don't agree with Stickman's view of life here, I think it is too rose-colored. On the flipside, I also don't fully agree with Smeg's view.

 

 

 

Sanuk!

 

 

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

 

 

Actually don't order pizza that often, and never have any problems, just giving an example of how ordering something that isn't on the list exactly as you ordered it can be a right pain in the ass.

 

 

 

"As a final note, I think it is outrageous that someone suggests that "Stickman has got it wrong" "

 

I do hope that this was not meant for me, since I seriously doubt I said, or even implied, this.

 

 

 

Sanuk!

 

 

[ALHOLK]

Hi!

 

 

 

I have noticed that whenever anyone makes a negative remark about Thailand there is a group of people that overreact, P127 is one of them. They will seldom answer with structured arguments but rather cloud the issue by accusing the poster of various things like e.g. accusing the poster of being a troll. I suspect that these people have created their own dream world in Thailand and lack the abillity to deal with references to the real world.

 

 

 

Obviously Thailand has both good and bad sides just like any other country. A lot of us that don't live there, and I don't regradless of what a lowlife from another board posted a while ago, go there very frequently. We would probably not do this if we didn't se anything good about Thailand. I for one go there at least once a year and I go with open eyes, I se both the god and the bad sides.

 

 

 

I willl briefly coment the original issus as I agree with you that the truth lies somewhere inbetween.

 

 

 

The people: I do find most Thai people very friendly but I am also awre of that the smiles are a part of their culture. One should remember that sometimes the smile is only on the surface.

 

 

 

The food: All kinds of food is available in BKK just like in most major cities in the world. In BKK however it is probably cheaper than in most places in the west.

 

 

 

Ease of getting things done: As I don't live there I can't really comment on this but I think that one should also consider the quality of what is done. You should hear a friend of mine who is an electrician comment on the work done by his Thai collegues.

 

 

 

Ordinary Thai girls: I can't comment on this as I have no interest in them. I can say that I have a rather low opinion of Thai upper middle class. You know the kind that need to take protection when it rains so it doesn't rain into thir noses.

 

 

 

Cost of food, transport, and accommodation: For a tourist it is mostly cheap but not for a Thai on local salary. There are other posts about the cost of accomodation in the west. Fortunately I don't live in SF but in Stockholm where I pay about 10 0000 baht for an appartment in the central city. Grantedly a small one in an old appartment building but I doubt if I could get the same standard in downtown BKK for that kind of money.

 

 

 

Finally I must say that I'm appaled by a moderator that want's to delete posts because he doesn't agree with the content therein. If that happens this board will rapidly become a waste of space as has another board.

 

 

 

regards

 

 

 

ALHOLK