The FARANG Speaks 2 Much

A bit of a slow week for me. I stopped smoking…again…and have just recovered from a lung clearing joyfest over the past few days. So, a little light on the bar updates but I promise to make up for it this week :). Last week in Bangkok was dominated by the celebration of the King’s 60th year on the throne. Almost every Thai person I saw wore yellow every day during this 4-5 day event. Many dignitaries from around the globe were visiting and the city was jumping. The festivities and ceremonies were attended by millions and were quite spectacular.

An editorial note, we are working on an index page of sorts that will have all the bar reviews and updates rolled up into an organized fashion. Should have it done in the next week or so.

This week:
World Cup 2006
Bangkok Bar/Go-Go Update
After Hours Update
pmmp’s Less Than Profound View On Marriage
Tales From The Street
Big Mango Bar Update

World Cup 2006
World Cup 2006 is alive and kicking in Thailand. Although, there have been a few glitches in the program. For starters, broadcasting of the games is done over free TV channels but only with commentary in Thai or no commentary at all. Another glitch, and I mean no disrespect to the King believe me, the free TV channels have been delaying the broadcast of the 8pm games from 30 to 90 minutes to show replays of the celebrations and ceremonies from earlier in the day. It’s certainly time for celebration and in fact the 60th anniversary of the King on the throne is WAY more important than a mere football game. However, there are many visitors to Thailand that were not happy about not having just one of the many free channels devoted to World Cup.

There is luckily another option. Many bars have installed Satellite TV and can bypass the local broadcast by beaming in sports channels from South Africa. This also comes with English commentary. The Big Mango was a little late to the game because we thought it was too expensive. However, we found a reasonably priced provider and just had the big dish installed today. We are just waiting on the sim card and should have the broadcasts sometime this week. Better late than never I guess This will also give us a broader range of sports to show in the bar. Hey, I might even get to watch my Philadelphia Flyers play again.

Another bizarre story related to World Cup broadcasts in Thailand is the sponsorship by Beer Chang. When we first investigated viewing options for the World Cup games we were quickly diverted from our UBC cable company to a Beer Chang representative. What a slime ball this guy was and a bit of a shuckster. He told me that Beer Chang invested 2.5 million US to bring World Cup to Thailand, like he was doing me a favor. Then he went on to say that bars cannot legally broadcast the games to customers unless they splatter the bar with Beer Chang propaganda and freebies. Such a load of crap. These are free TV broadcasts and I’m surprised he gave me this line of BS. It really left a bad taste in my mouth similar to the one after drinking a Beer Chang. Even with all that BS I asked him to come down and we would display the Chang stuff and giveaway the Chang freebies. After missing one appointment and not returning two phone calls I gave up on the guy. What a dick. Granted, it’s not as bizarre as Budweiser being the only beer you can drink in German stadiums during the World Cup but still bizarre. Go Beerlao!

Bangkok Bar/Go-Go Update
NEP:
The plaza has been closing around 1:00am due to the King’s 60th but should be back to 2:00 this week.
- Erotica VIP had a bit of a shakeup in ownership but Aussie John is keeping the ship stable and plans to make some very positive changes. He tells me that a fresh group of talented young countryside girls will be joining the staff this week. The new editions should liven up the crew and keep the 3rd and 4th floor occupied. Also, I hear that the ladyboy’s may be on the way out which may clear up some confusion. Will definitely keep you posted…especially on the new additions
- Rainbows are exactly the same
- Voodoo got worse if you can believe it
- Hollywood Rock was also lame
- Playskool added even more hotties and continues to be tops in Nana
- Soi Zero beer bars have been closed. I wasn’t a big fan so no loss to me but some guys liked the place
Other:
A quick one to pass along on Pattaya, been hearing some very positive things about Club Boesche and Classroom (http://www.classroom1.com/) so if you’re down there they may be worth checking out

After Hours Update
A few nights were shut down due to King’s week but are back and operational. Soi Tunnel still leads the pack.

pmmp’s Less Than Profound View On Marriage
Being married is like having to stay in the same country for the rest of your life. Your country may be vast and beautiful or it could be Siberia. Many people are content with staying in their country. For instance, only 18 percent of Americans hold Passports. On the other hand, not being married is like traveling the world. Visiting new and exciting places every couple of weeks. Yes, it’s tiring and dangerous at times but definitely seems more appealing to me. (this is just a weird analogy that came to me while I was on the toilet, thought it would be more profound, sorry)

Tales From The Street
This week comes a tale from an enlightened punter (EP) or so he thinks. You decide or learn or ignore…up to you. This is with respect to dating his ex-bargirl girlfriend. They had been dating for a few months and EP being mortal and being bombarded daily by the endless stream of beautiful Thai girls around the city decided he wanted to see other women. He was happy with his girlfriend and wanted to remain together but couldn’t resist pursuing fresh puss. He asked his girlfriend if he could discreetly see other ladies:

She cried and got mad, etc. He put it simply to her "No problem, we break up then"

All of a sudden she changed her tune and agreed that he could pursue but needed to tell her when and with you. The man agreed but it became a pain after a few times as she always gave him a guilt trip and bad attitude. So, he told her that he no longer wanted to tell her about the affairs:

She cried and got mad, etc. He put it simply to her "No problem, we break up then"

All of a sudden she changed her tune and agreed that he could pursue. After a bit he decided he wanted to involve his girl and pursue threesome’s. He asked his girlfriend if this would be okay:

She cried and got mad, etc. He put it simply to her "No problem, we break up then"

All of a sudden she changed her tune and agreed…Starting to see the pattern here? Again, learn or ignore…up to you.

Big Mango Bar Update
- Kitchen Special of the Week: Matsaman Curry w/Steamed Rice, Boiled Egg and Chicken/Pork/Beef
- World Cup in English coming this week…
- We will be closing at 2:00am in June and see how it goes from there

-pmmp