Chris Blunt wrote:
> On 27 Nov 2005 21:17:22 -0800, "Tchiowa" wrote:
>
> >Chris Blunt wrote:
> >> Tchiowa wrote:
> >> > Chris Blunt wrote:
> >
> >> >>Something I do like about Khao San Road is that its one of the few
> >> >>places that have both ordinary Thais and foreigners mixing and
> >> >>enjoying themselves.
> >> >
> >> > You can't be serious, Chris.
> >>
> >> I'm absolutely serious.
> >>
> >> > I hope you're not getting into the
> >> > backpacker "you have to live poor to see the *real* Thailand" mantra.
> >>
> >> You mean you wish I had.
> >
> >No, I mean exactly what I said. I hope you're not trying to say that.
> >It's a pathetic attitude and it's beneath most people.
>
> I said absolutely nothing about needing to be poor to see the *real*
> Thailand. You know that, now quit trying to suggest I did.
You said, and I quote: " its one of the few places that have both
ordinary Thais and foreigners mixing and enjoying themselves". By doing
so you are saying that a) those are ordinary Thais, and b) either Thais
don't associate with foreigners elsewhere or those that do aren't
ordinary Thais.
The fact is, as you have acknowledged (and I left the comment in just
so you don't forget), "you can mix with Thai people in most places all
around Thailand". Now, if you take those 2 sentences you are saying
that you can socialize with Thai people anywhere in Thailand but in
most cases they aren't "ordinary Thai". Except, of course, in Khao San
Road.
Khao San Road's primary drawing card is that it is cheap. It is for
those people who can't afford a more conventional place. It is loaded
with $2 and $3 per night guest houses.
So what you said was that unless you go to the poor part of Bangkok the
Thai you associate with won't be "ordinary Thai".
Now there is a good possibility that you just misstated something. I
was hoping that was the case. And that is what I said to you.
Is there any part of this you'd care to change or is that, in fact,
what you were implying?
> >> Of course you can do that. You can mix with Thai people in most places
> >> all around Thailand.
> >
> >Then why did you say that it is "one of the few places"?
>
> It was said in the context of entertainment venues, as would have been
> obvious from the sentence that followed had you not snipped it out.
No it wasn't. It was said in the context of Khao San Road which is
largely a tourist spot full of guesthouses and bars. It's a lot more
than just an entertainment place.
> >> What I'm saying is that in Bangkok there is
> >> generally a polarisation of entertainment venues. Foreigners tend to
> >> go to certain places and Thai people go to others and there's not that
> >> much mixing of the two groups. What I liked about some of the places
> >> in Khao San Road was the "melting pot" atmosphere where everyone
> >> enjoyed themselves together.
> >
> >But the melting pot atmosphere is a very deliberate fraud. The only pot
> >involved is the pot that a huge percentage of the farang are smoking.
>
> How can it be any kind of fraud? At weekends there are literally
> hundreds of perfectly normal Thai people in some of the bars in KSR.
No there aren't. And that's the point. There are hundreds of Thai, yes.
But it is an insult to the vast majority of Thai who think that Khao
San Road is a sewer to claim that they have anything in common with
most of the Thai that frequent Khao San Road.
> They go there to listen to live bands and have a few drinks with
> friends just like ordinary people do anywhere. They are neither
> drug-takers nor prostitutes as you seem so keen to portray them as.
I didn't say they were drug takers. It is the farang who are taking the
drugs. The Thai that are there are either supplying it or scamming the
stoners.
> >And that is a total insult and a rather dishonest reply. I was very
> >clear that the normal, average, ordinary Thai weren't who I was talking
> >about. I was talking about the very tiny percentage of Thai who go near
> >Khao San Road. For you to say that that comment insults "Thai people,
> >the overwhelming majority of which are not 'on the game' implies that I
> >was saying that they were. And they're not and my statement was quite
> >clear.
>
> Yes, your statement was clear. You said, QUOTE The only Thai you'll
> see on Khao San Road are those who are "on the game" UNQUOTE.
That's right. And it's true.
> That is a disgusting insult to the majority of Thai people who are not
> prostitutes and simply go there to enjoy themselves at weekends.
Except that is simply not the case.
> You
> are just following the perception that many westerners have about most
> Thais being prostitutes. You admit you haven't been to Khao San Road
> for several years now, so how can you speak with any authority on what
> goes on there these days?
It hasn't changed. I live in Bangkok. I have dozens of Thai friends and
they all hold the same opinion of Khao San Road. Yes, ordinary Thai,
who would be insulted to see that you are saying that they are pretty
much the same as the Thai who hang out there. The local papers still
report on the drug sweeps, drug busts, fights, etc. that go on there.
Who do you think you're kidding?
Let me ask one question. If you answer it honestly then the argument is
settled.
Is it or is it not true that Khao San Road is "the place to go" for
foreigners to score drugs?
We both know that it is. And why does this settle the argument?
Think about this for a bit. Some people like to do drugs. That doesn't
necessarily make them bad (but it's certainly a hint). Some people like
to have a few drinks. Again, doesn't necessarily make them bad. But
what would you say about someone who goes to Saudi Arabia and finds a
place to have a few drinks? Given the laws and penalties for doing
that, either the person has a serious problem (i.e. addiction) or he's
just plain a moron. No one in his right mind would take that kind of
chance in Saudi Arabia.
Now change that to drugs and Thailand. Given the severity of the
penalties for getting caught with drugs in Thailand then anyone who
goes to Thailand as a tourist and takes drugs has a serious problem.
Either with drugs or with common sense. Or both. (They seem to go
hand-in-hand.)
So why would anyone want to go to Khao San Road to associate with
farangs who have serious drug problems or to associate with the locals
who are supplying them?
If you choose to do so, be my guest. But don't get on a forum like this
and start pretending that a place like Khao San Road is someone an
idyllic paradise of diversity and enlightened social interaction. It's
a cesspool loaded with drunks, addicts, scammers. And it's a great
disservice to people reading these forums who might be considering a
trip to Thailand.
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