HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

More moaning over baht bus fares

New mass transit and the “songtaew”

Too much Soi 8 noise

Clear out the scammers

Re: A tainted view of Pattaya immigrants

More moaning over baht bus fares

Editor;

Once again, another farang moaning he has to pay 10 baht on the baht bus, while the Thais pay 5 baht, dear oh dear, makes me embarrassed to be a farang here in Pattaya to listen to the same old thing all the time.

No doubt Dave (in California) will say it’s not the money it’s the principle, but hey 5 baht it’s not even worth worrying about. I would like to ask Dave how much a taxi costs back home in his dear old America, a lot more than 10 baht that’s for sure.

I really don’t mind paying 10 baht to travel from my house, RR Garden Home Village (just past Soi 13 Naklua Rd) all the way to Walking Street; seems a bargain to me & yes my Thai wife & half Thai kids only pay 5 baht. Am I upset about it? Nope!

As for the other attractions that poor old Dave is so upset about that he has to pay more to get into, again look at the cost of similar attractions in good old America, then you might see just how good Thailand really is & the prices here in Pattaya compare very well indeed.

Thailand is all about keeping face, it dose not matter if you are rich or poor, but as long as you keep face that will take you along way in Thailand.

Hey stop moaning & enjoy what Thailand has to offer and you will have a great time and if you don’t like paying 10 baht on the baht bus you can always walk, but guess you will not do that will you?

Paul (Brit) living in Naklua

New mass transit and the “songtaew”

Dear Editor:

Congratulations to the mayor and city government of Pattaya for soon initiating a new mass transit bus system for our growing city. Innovation is what is needed to keep our air cleaner, provide appropriate transport for our people and make it affordable enough so they will use it regularly.

Today I rode the Sriracha public bus for the first time. It was air con, quiet and clean for only six (6) baht per person which shows that a good system doesn’t have to be expensive for the passengers. We could learn from other mass transit systems in other cities.

Many cities have bicycle lanes to encourage citizens to leave their cars. Banning vehicles from certain streets is another alternative but must be enforced. Non-diesel engines rather than diesel would be a start to cut down on pollution.

The next step would be to replace the noisy, polluting, unhealthy “songtaew” with quiet, clean and low polluting systems.

Keep up the good work mayor and city and don’t forget to take the next step!

Sincerely,
Jonathan Hewitt

Too much Soi 8 noise

Editor;
Having been a visitor to Pattaya for 15 years and having stayed in Soi 8 several times, the noise this year has finally got to me. Next year I will look for another soi to stay in.
Yours,
Mr John Lavery
England

Clear out the scammers

Editor;

Every day, year after year, anyone and everybody can go and have a look at the bunch of about five men in their forties outside Royal Garden Shopping Mall at Beach Road entrance - working heavily to get in contact with westerners - only western tourists - by offering a handshake and then presenting themselves as collecting charity money and ask for donations.

If these scoundrels were to direct themselves against Thai people, would they really stand there for a long time? No! Then there must be forces in the Thai society and in this community in particular who facilitate this behaviour - I mean it is an outright crime in the face of tourists and immigrants and still it can go on openly day after day year after year - and nobody seems to care or be responsible or notice anything?

Is this a pure genuine sign of disrespect and discrimination? There simply must be certain people who benefit or profit from this behind the scenes? But who? Is Thailand really looking for “better tourists” or “quality tourists” (measured by money spent in a certain time span) - then at least there must be some basic order in their society and outright scoundrels on the street must be cleaned away.

Scandinavian Immigrant

Re: A tainted view of Pattaya immigrants

Dear Sir,

Before I attempt to reply to RW’s jaundiced view of the majority of Thai nationals (Pattaya Mail, 11th February), I make two assumptions: the first that he is English and the second that he has lived in the Pattaya/Jomtien area for some time. One can be forgiven for wondering why, after such a diatribe, he continues to do so.

If he is indeed English, how many UK beaches can he name that meet internationally accepted standards? Perhaps he has never been to Heathrow and witnessed foreign visitors being charged exorbitant fares for their taxi ride to the airport. Perhaps he has never visited tourist attractions in the capital and elsewhere and seen the vendors of ice cream and hot dogs making a fast buck at the expense of tourists. Neither can he have seen the many television programmes that have highlighted the scams operated by unscrupulous and unqualified tradesmen. Nor does he remember the odd hot, dry summer when areas of the country had to obtain water from stand pipes in the street.

Whom does RW class as the average Thai? Since he mentions ‘charm and sexual bait’ I can but assume he is referring, at least in part, to those that work in bars and clubs. I concede that stories abound of ‘farang’ who have been ripped off by opportunists, whether they be male or female, but does the blame lie with them or with the multitude of males whose brains migrate to several inches below the navel as soon as they set foot in Pattaya and whose subsequent actions fly in the face of the excellent advice given in Ms Hillary’s weekly column? Caveat emptor applies as much to the sex industry as to any other.

RW’s sweeping and unsubstantiated generalisations do a great disservice to the vast majority of Thais. During the years that I have lived here I have been treated, almost without exception, with unfailing courtesy. Tradesmen with whom I have done business have honoured their commitments to the letter and provided a standard of service far in excess of their UK counterparts.

Oh, I do have to admit that I was taken for a ride on one occasion - by a fellow Englishman!

Finally, brainstorm also means “a spontaneous group discussion to produce ideas and ways of solving problems”, a definition that RW chose to ignore.

Yours faithfully,
Robert Patnicroft

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