And where can I watch the game?
I have 2 weeks in Thailand. Booked my first 6 nights accommodation in a hotel in the old town district, whatever that means.
I might head off somewhere else for the last week.
Confucius say, Man who walk through airport door sideways going to Bangkok.
Confucius say, Man who walk through airport door sideways going to Bangkok.
Unless plays for st kilda
If you're a hard man, being made humble is a highlight.
That and the world being your oyster,
Plenty of bars on Sukhumvit to watch AFL. The Bus Stop on Soi 4, or the more upmarket Australian Bar about 400 mts. down Soi 11, they have multiple screens, so no problem finding a telly to watch the game. There is another bar in Soi 8, but l forget the name, they tend to have more rugby fans there anyway.
The standard of table tennis is outstanding in Bangkok.
Mollys Irish Pub, good rang of sports
The Australian
all else fails - go go bars and stream from phone
footy, ■■■■ and ■■■
Down Under Bar, somewhere in Bangkok is a good place with good bar, live footy and reasonably priced entertainment, as long as you are not allergic to penicillin.
Twenty years ago the Nana Plaza was the place to go, think it was 1986 but could have been watched the World Cup at this multistory “entertainment” place.
Sadly it has not been cleaned since 1990.
Check out the markets. CJ what are they called again, the freaking massive ones? Chatachuk? You can get everything there from knock off watches to endangered marsupials. Weekends only. Ridiculous food on offer too. It's massive, and even just people watching is awesome, make sure you have a map or you will get lost. You can get the train/skybus to where it is.
Floating markets are worth a look too.
Suan Lam (sp?) night markets were pretty cool too. They had this massive semi-indoor bar/food hall as big as a footy field with live premier league playing on the scoreboard sized TV's. I think there was a big ferris wheel too which gave good views of the city.
MBK (?) shopping centre is great for electronics in particular but everything else too.
The Grand Palace is worth a look, and don't believe any tuk tuk driver that tells you it's closed for public holiday. Nothing is closed on public holidays, they just want to takle you to their cousin who makes suits or sells jewellry. And they will ask you if you have bene to Bankok before. Say yes, they are just sussing out how naive you are.
We got a taxi to take us to the Tiger Temple, very cool but took up a whole day, about 2-3 hours there and back, but you do see the outskirts of the city and some of the countryside which we wouldn't have otherwise.
Check out the markets. CJ what are they called again, the freaking massive ones? Chatachuk? You can get everything there from knock off watches to endangered marsupials. Weekends only. Ridiculous food on offer too. It's massive, and even just people watching is awesome, make sure you have a map or you will get lost. You can get the train/skybus to where it is.
Floating markets are worth a look too.
Suan Lam (sp?) night markets were pretty cool too. They had this massive semi-indoor bar/food hall as big as a footy field with live premier league playing on the scoreboard sized TV's. I think there was a big ferris wheel too which gave good views of the city.
MBK (?) shopping centre is great for electronics in particular but everything else too.
The Grand Palace is worth a look, and don't believe any tuk tuk driver that tells you it's closed for public holiday. Nothing is closed on public holidays, they just want to takle you to their cousin who makes suits or sells jewellry. And they will ask you if you have bene to Bankok before. Say yes, they are just sussing out how naive you are.
We got a taxi to take us to the Tiger Temple, very cool but took up a whole day, about 2-3 hours there and back, but you do see the outskirts of the city and some of the countryside which we wouldn't have otherwise.
Chatuchak or Jatujak (JJ) market is the world's biggest. The problem is there are so many people there under the tin rooves that it gets stinking hot. Easy to get to on the BTS (Skytrain). Agree with Wannabe about Tuk Tuk drivers, they are a bunch of thieves, steer clear of them. Taxis are cleaner, safer, quieter, cheaper and air conditioned. A visit to the Bridge On the River Kwai / Hell Fire Pass is possible in one day, but better over night. The tiger temple is also in the same vicinity. The Railway Inn in the side street next to Hua Lompong station is also good value, if you have a late or early train to catch. The staff are mostly Burmese, and very friendly and knowledgeable, l prefer it to anywhere on Khao San Rd. these days.
THanks for the advice. I'll head over to Sukhomvit tomorrow, watch the game then kill time exploring the area til the Everton v ManC game starts.
In a totally different topic.... In china there were a lot of people selling carved stone (I'd say jade, cause they do, but I am pretty certain it's just some glossy stained stone) figures.
Is it possible that there are people here that make those sort of things?
Any ideas on how I could find them?
I'd ask the people here at the hotel, but there's no way they will ever understand what I am saying....
TripAdvisor has some very good advice about Thailand and gemstones.
Many years ago, I got some rough sapphire and had them cut by a Mate in Sydney. Would not buy cut stones anywhere in Thailand or in fact the whole of Asia.
THanks for the advice. I'll head over to Sukhomvit tomorrow, watch the game then kill time exploring the area til the Everton v ManC game starts.
In a totally different topic.... In china there were a lot of people selling carved stone (I'd say jade, cause they do, but I am pretty certain it's just some glossy stained stone) figures.
Is it possible that there are people here that make those sort of things?
Any ideas on how I could find them?
I'd ask the people here at the hotel, but there's no way they will ever understand what I am saying....
No idea where you can get uncut jade in Bkk, but there must be somewhere. Like BF says avoid any / all gem shops unless you really know your stones, they will rip you off.
THanks for the advice. I'll head over to Sukhomvit tomorrow, watch the game then kill time exploring the area til the Everton v ManC game starts.
In a totally different topic.... In china there were a lot of people selling carved stone (I'd say jade, cause they do, but I am pretty certain it's just some glossy stained stone) figures.
Is it possible that there are people here that make those sort of things?
Any ideas on how I could find them?
I'd ask the people here at the hotel, but there's no way they will ever understand what I am saying....
No idea where you can get
uncutjadein Bkk, but there must be somewhere. Like BF says avoid any / allgemshopsmedical centres unless you really know your stones, they will ripyouthem off.
Lol.
THanks for the advice. I'll head over to Sukhomvit tomorrow, watch the game then kill time exploring the area til the Everton v ManC game starts.
In a totally different topic.... In china there were a lot of people selling carved stone (I'd say jade, cause they do, but I am pretty certain it's just some glossy stained stone) figures.
Is it possible that there are people here that make those sort of things?
Any ideas on how I could find them?
I'd ask the people here at the hotel, but there's no way they will ever understand what I am saying....
No idea where you can get
uncutjadein Bkk, but there must be somewhere. Like BF says avoid any / allgemshopsmedical centres unless you really know your stones, they will ripyouthem off.
l knew when l posted someone would pick up on a different type of stones in Bangkok. :lol:
Military coup is pretty awesome in bangkok
Military coup is pretty awesome in bangkok
The Thais have a long history of military coups, stretching back to the 1930s or so at least. ln the old days it was a case of which faction of the military wanted to protect their financial interests more. When l first visited Thailand in April 1977 there was martial law. en route to Koh Samui for the first time the bus had to go through a couple of road blocks, as they were concerned with communists coming over the border from Malaysia. The military of both countries had permission to pursue rebels over the border if in hot pursuit, and they often ran joint military exercises. The bus dropped me off at a pier for the ferry and l was told not to leave the pier area, until we sailed. Bangkok was under curfew, from 1 to 4 or 5 AM, l forget which. That meant if you went out on the town you either had to be back early or else stay out all night. l ended up staying in the lounge of the Grace hotel a couple of nights, not such a bad thing with upwards of a 1,000 Thai girls there on any given night.
Things changed for the better with the move towards democracy in the 1990's when Chuan Leekpai was elected PM. l had a friend who said that the days of military intervention were over, but l was not convinced. Things went backwards real fast under Thakson (aka Toxin) Shinawatra. He tried to subvert a lot of institutions, and largely succeeded. His getting elected was a farce. The constitutional court turned a blind eye to his business dealings once he won the popular vote. Those same business deals were then quoted by the same court as the reason why he was deposed by the military 10 or so years ago. The coup that threw him out was very well organized. Not a single shot was fired. Thaksin was tipped off in advance and allowed to depart in orderly fashion. There were reports that he showed up at the airport for his flight to Paris with 60 pieces of luggage. lf true then he packs light and fast. When l was down there in Feb the red shirts (pro Thaksin) occupied a section of Cheng Watthana Rd. forcing all traffic to drive around the huge govt. complex on that road. However that was about the extent of their protests. The military stepping in is not a new thing, nor is it necessarily a bad thing. Confidence in the country has been slipping for years as the stand off between the red and yellow shirts has degenerated into economic paralysis. Some local friends of mine just want an end to it all. Democracy in Thailand is still in its infancy, and no doubt will have many more teething troubles in the future, as even the military get tired of the political antics and won't want to face both the red shirts and yellow shirts.
If you want a hair cut get over to Dr BJ's Salon.
Military coup is pretty awesome in bangkok
The Thais have a long history of military coups, stretching back to the 1930s or so at least. ln the old days it was a case of which faction of the military wanted to protect their financial interests more. When l first visited Thailand in April 1977 there was martial law. en route to Koh Samui for the first time the bus had to go through a couple of road blocks, as they were concerned with communists coming over the border from Malaysia. The military of both countries had permission to pursue rebels over the border if in hot pursuit, and they often ran joint military exercises. The bus dropped me off at a pier for the ferry and l was told not to leave the pier area, until we sailed. Bangkok was under curfew, from 1 to 4 or 5 AM, l forget which. That meant if you went out on the town you either had to be back early or else stay out all night. l ended up staying in the lounge of the Grace hotel a couple of nights, not such a bad thing with upwards of a 1,000 Thai girls there on any given night.
Things changed for the better with the move towards democracy in the 1990's when Chuan Leekpai was elected PM. l had a friend who said that the days of military intervention were over, but l was not convinced. Things went backwards real fast under Thakson (aka Toxin) Shinawatra. He tried to subvert a lot of institutions, and largely succeeded. His getting elected was a farce. The constitutional court turned a blind eye to his business dealings once he won the popular vote. Those same business deals were then quoted by the same court as the reason why he was deposed by the military 10 or so years ago. The coup that threw him out was very well organized. Not a single shot was fired. Thaksin was tipped off in advance and allowed to depart in orderly fashion. There were reports that he showed up at the airport for his flight to Paris with 60 pieces of luggage. lf true then he packs light and fast. When l was down there in Feb the red shirts (pro Thaksin) occupied a section of Cheng Watthana Rd. forcing all traffic to drive around the huge govt. complex on that road. However that was about the extent of their protests. The military stepping in is not a new thing, nor is it necessarily a bad thing. Confidence in the country has been slipping for years as the stand off between the red and yellow shirts has degenerated into economic paralysis. Some local friends of mine just want an end to it all. Democracy in Thailand is still in its infancy, and no doubt will have many more teething troubles in the future, as even the military get tired of the political antics and won't want to face both the red shirts and yellow shirts.
I went to Bangkokthe week after Thaksin was deposed, and it was fine. I'd followed it closely as I thought it was going to ruin our holiday (the wife was a bit edgy already having never been to SE Asia at all, but we got some good advice off the Thorntree forum (Loney Planet) and it all went just as they predicted. Essentially the King appeared after a day or so and indicated he was happy with the coup and so everyone just got on with it.
I remember them saying there could be issues along the Malaysian border then too, but as you said no shot was fired.