Disappointed

Dear Pattaya Mail,

I am a regular reader of your website, but this week I felt very disappointed. As my parents were recent Pattaya residents, I like to keep up with news and happenings in the area. However, it was disconcerting to feel insulted and slighted twice about the same issue! Hillary’s insult of PILC, of which my mother was a member, was uncalled for. I agree that the writer of the letter seemed off-based, but it was a cheap slam for Hillary to chastise members of this organization. It was a blessing for my mother and PILC to come together since it gave her an opportunity to make friends and contribute philanthropically to Pattaya. I never felt that any of the ladies I met from this club were anything but kind, compassionate people who were both classy and friendly. I’m sorry to hear that some people have made such rash judgements of these wonderful women.

On the second point, it was again a cheap shot to place your list of "women’s classes" in the grapevine, particularly since some of your American readers may note the coincidence of the list and our celebration of women month. While we are trying to praise women’s contributions to society and humanity, you are making the same tired, old jokes about the same tired, old stereotypes. No, I’m not a "man-hating feminist" from the States, just a young lady interested in seeing something other than Old Boys Club banter in the news.

Try again.

Sincerely,
Michele Bultman
USA

Missing person and Hillary

Dear Editor,

What happened to Pierre-Andre of the Amari Orchid Hotel? I am getting worried as I have not seen his picture in the Pattaya Mail the last few weeks! I am starting to miss his ear to ear grin that used to be featured at least once or twice in each and every issue of the Mail. Has he left? Is he on holidays? Maybe his personal P.R. campaign has gone sloppy now that he has received the best young hotelier award or perhaps he had an overdose of his own publicity! Or did the Pattaya Mail realise at last that there should be a limit to the amount of coverage a newspaper gives to one single person and/or hotel? Please note that I am not doubting Pierre-Andre’s capacities.

Also I do not understand the Dear Hillary’s reply to "worried". How many times have we not heard Thai people with a limited knowledge of the English language saying "my friend you" instead of "your friend". So the driver was just meaning to say "look Madame, there’s your friend" when he exclaimed "My friend Madame". Correct?

With best regards,

Mr. Jan Abbink
Naklua,

Pattaya: “Tie” or “Tea” ?

Editor;

Could you please tell me what the pronunciation of the word "Pattaya" is? I have always thought of it as Pa-ti-ya (a as in father, i as in tie, and a as in father — assuming that the consonants are somewhat close to English equivalents). Recently I heard from a tourist who returned from Thailand, claiming that it should be pronounced as Pa-ty-a (a as in father, ty as in "tea" and a as in father). Sorry, but for some reason, I have begun to obsess on this subject; furthermore, I am not sure that I have adequately stated my question. Perhaps you are much too busy to answer such a trivial question; I apologize and thank you for your website.

Lee Fitzpatrick

Editor’s reply: There may be as many pronunciations of the name of our fair city as there are spellings of our name on highways signs. Asking native speakers of Thai has produced no definitive answer, either, as even native speakers pronounce it differently. I shall leave it up to the academics to write in and present their side of the debate, and commit only to: if the person you are speaking to understands what you are saying, than that’s what counts.

“Car nut” relates to Automania

Dear Sir,

I have read your stories 3 times [new to area] and really enjoy them. I live and work in Bang Saen, but I’m from the US so I like reading about the old US cars you talk about. I’m what you would call a car nut. I have owned over 100 cars and about 25 motorcycles, I made my living driving and buying and selling cars and bikes for years in the states. So I have an eye for old "Rods" as I call them. So when I read about the Old Galaxy you mentioned I thought I would tell you where you can see that car. It belongs to some guys right south of Sriracha on the eastern side of Highway 3. It is a ’64, 4-door sedan that has been nosed, decked, and lowered with a floor shift and pretty custom red and black interior put in. I don’t know of any other modifications being I cant speak Thai, but I did stop in there one day to see if I could buy a H-D Sportster they have, but with out success. They also have a ’57 Pontiac, disassembled, hanging on the wall, and a few old m/cs around in not so good shape. Also there is a real nice old Opal in Sriracha, Salmon colored with a white top, and a ’59 Ford Galaxy in Rayong that looked pretty bad but was running down the road, a ’63 Ford in Chonburi that is very sharp, and a few more around but I am taking too much of your time. Would you like to be updated on the cars or bikes I see around, like the very old USSR made bike with side car I saw in Rayong last week?

Nice talking to you and would love to here from you.

Terry Hawkins

Automania replies: Thanks for the letter, Terry. It is always nice to meet another "car nut" because that’s what the Automania column is all about. Yes, I’m interested in any "different" vehicles you come across. Swap you your Galaxie for an Edsel I know of in town, too. By the way, I think your USSR bike will be an EMW from Vietnam (used as Police bikes there). Regards, Dr. Iain.

Amazed expat

Dear Editor,

I don’t own a bar (nor any kind of business), I don’t work in Thailand and I try to live within the law, as I would in my home country. I respect the Thai people’s rights to determine who they allow to stay in Thailand and to impose whatever restrictions on them that they choose.

So when it is suggested that foreign bar owners should be expelled for "working" without a permit, I have to agree. The bars should be closed down and their Thai employees sent back to Isaan where, rather than helping to support their families, they can claim a share in the meagre family income from agricultural labour. Of course, with fewer places of entertainment in Pattaya, there may be fewer tourists but "mai pen rai"; with fewer tourists you wouldn’t need so many hotels, baht-buses, travel agencies, restaurants and shops. Send their workers home too. At a time when Thailand’s unemployment level is at a record high, a few thousand more jobless would hardly be noticed - except by the jobless themselves.

But wait a minute! Isn’t tourism Thailand’s number one foreign currency earner? Something’s wrong!

Well, if that doesn’t work, how about the pensioners? Before the baht’s devaluation, 200,000 baht in a Thai bank bought you a one-year visa. That was raised to 500,000 baht when the baht fell from 25 to 60 to the dollar. Now that the exchange rate has risen to 37 the bank deposit requirement should have fallen to around 300,000 baht. Instead it’s been raised to 800,000 baht. Amazing! And if you do deposit 800,000 baht in a Thai bank, you still have to get Treasury permission to take it out of the country again. At present that isn’t a problem but who’s to say that those regulations won’t also change in the future? There is now an alternative monthly income of 65,000 baht (formerly 20,000) but as a recent letter to the Bangkok Post pointed out, 65,000 baht per month is higher than the retirement pension of a general in the Thai army and of the head of the government department responsible for drafting the new regulation. Truly amazing! Perhaps all western governments should retaliate by imposing a similar bank deposit requirement on Thai students attending school, colleges and universities abroad. (Write to your embassy today!)

The number of foreign pensioners living in Thailand is small as compared to tourists and they probably spend half the amount of money per head per day. On the other hand, year on year, they stay 26 times as long and contribute 13 times as much per head to the Thai economy (even without a bank deposit). And they certainly have less cultural impact. For every "lost" pensioner, Thailand has to attract 13 new tourists to make up the loss in foreign currency earnings. As for attracting a "better (sic. richer) class of pensioner", aren’t they all cruising the Bahamas, the French Riviera and the Caribbean? I doubt that even the Pattaya Festival will persuade them to retire in Pattaya instead. (If anyone knows a retired Thai army general living in Pattaya, let me know).

Yes, I DO support Thailand’s right to determine who should be allowed to stay here (as much as any other nation), though I must confess that I don’t always understand their reasoning.

Yours,
"Amazed" expat

Slow POP

Dear Sirs,

I was shocked to read in Pattaya Mail 26th February that my dear mini motorbike here called POP now is illegal.

I have had this motorbike for 5 years, using it on my holidays in Pattaya, for shopping and getting around the town. I just spend 2000 baht for repair to avoid pollution and noise.

My motorbike is like an old dog, I know this motorbike. You cannot press it higher then 45 km per hour, but that speed is in my opinion not dangerous here in Pattaya. I wonder why a motorbike that only can go slowly is dangerous? Is it because it is in higher risk of being hit from behind? In that case I expect bicycles and pedestrians to be illegal too.

Also I am surprised as a frequent reader of Pattaya Mail not to be informed that my motorbike is illegal until it is to late. According to you I have been a criminal since the 5th of February.

By the way, what will happen if I am caught in the act of driving slow in Pattaya? Is it me or my motorbike that will be arrested?

Yours,
Lasse Thomsen, Denmark

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Created by Andy Gombaz, assisted by Chinnaporn Sangwanlek.