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Jeza posted:And hopefully not stepping on any Ruski comrades in this thread, but Russian tourists are maybe the most abhorrent people around. There's two sides to every national tourist stereotype but I've sadly never had the pleasure of meeting the other side of Russian tourist culture. I had a lot of fun times with the Russians I met on my trip, but all of them said, "I'm not like other Russians.". The trick with Russians is to let them know you have an interest in Russian language, literature, or music, name drop something you like, and you can start talking to them. Theyll be impressed you know something of their culture. Then go drinking, drinking with Russians is an experience. It's rare to become real friends with a Russian quickly, but they will be great friends if you do. Of course I'm talking about people my age, not the old men who look like walruses with rubber bands on their balls at the beach.
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Dec 12, 2014 07:21
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Moral of the story, don't discriminate.
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Dec 12, 2014 07:25
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And south east Asia is what you make of it. Don't be a sad sack. If you want to have fun, be fun to be around, then fun people will collect around you. Even Russians. If you want Russian friends, the listen to this song http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lKqnqas8NmQ and a few others by Viktor Tsoi, then the next time you meet a Russian say "oh hey cool you're Russian, I love Viktor Tsoi" and I can pretty much promise you have the start of a night to remember right there. I can't say the moral is don't discriminate though, after a year in SEA I learned never to drink in a place where I could hear two people speaking with British accents. Every time I was ready to trust the English around alcohol again, they always started a fight...
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Dec 12, 2014 07:42
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Russian generalities based on my cadre of Russian friends in New York: They're good people, often quite well read, never whiners, generally technologically savvy and nihilistic/passionate in appropriate proportions. They don't tend to have an appetite for things outside of their culture to the same degree that I (or most of the people in this thread) do but I can work with that. They can be fairly racist and/or homophobic but that gives you a chance to pretend it's the 2000s on the internet once again when you're telling jokes. HOWEVER most of the Russians you meet in Pattaya or Phuket are just there to be Russian, eat Russian, and whore. These are not my people. It's similar with the Israelies you meet in Thailand. Or the Brits you meet in Thailand. And probably the Americans (but how often do you find one of those unless you're in Chiang Mai?). If you're talking party hard travelers or sex tourists you're going to have to filter through an awful volume of sewage to find anyone who isn't a horrible and eventually boring monster. Which brings me to this: Horatius Bonar posted:I had a lot of fun times with the Russians I met on my trip, but all of them said, "I'm not like other Russians." I heard other acquaintances introduce me this way to people in Thailand. "He's American but he's not like other Americans." Not like other Americans in Thailand is what they meant. There's a subset of people who take going to another country as a chance to (metaphorically, mostly) stop wiping after they're done taking a poo poo. They just want to thrash their way down the banana pancake trail with a busted off bottle of Chang and eventually plunge crotch first into Pattaya. But SE Asia is full of other sorts of people to meet from all nations -- lots of them with the wherewithal to decide they wanted to live there long term who figured out a way to do that, others who just work at home and spend their vacation time there. The place is rife with retired journalists, academics, various e-commerce people, motorcyclists, old soldiers and an occasional writer. And one of the great things about SE Asia is that by-and-large these people remain open to meeting, helping and hanging out with casual travelers from wherever -- they don't self segregate like they do in Morocco or France. So long as they can see a bit of themselves in the people they meet (and not just some bleary eyed bogan with a permanent erection) they're available to you. Horatius Bonar posted:If you want Russian friends, the listen to this song http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lKqnqas8NmQ and a few others by Viktor Tsoi, then the next time you meet a Russian say "oh hey cool you're Russian, I love Viktor Tsoi" and I can pretty much promise you have the start of a night to remember right there. http://lyricstranslate.com/en/pachka-sigaret-pachka-sigaret-pack-cigarettes.html Also read this: http://www.amazon.com/The-Master-Margarita-Mikhail-Bulgakov/dp/0679760806 It's top flight literature but it's cool to like it if you're a young Russian -- liking Dostoyevsky or whatever is a little too obvious / old fashioned. Also it's an amazing book that I recommend anyway. raton fucked around with this message at 07:53 on Dec 12, 2014 |
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Dec 12, 2014 07:48
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What's the stereotype about Israelis in Thailand? Never heard of that one. I have a friend who swore this Israeli dude she met in Bangkok was "so deep" and "so different", but as far as I know she met him in an alley near Soi Cowboy (or at least one of those places where the female performers use very specific muscles for their acts) and I'm not entirely sure she was of her right mind? Ultimately her friend took her away from the deep Israeli dude though so maybe it was for thebest?
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Dec 12, 2014 08:44
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Horatius Bonar posted:I can't say the moral is don't discriminate though, after a year in SEA I learned never to drink in a place where I could hear two people speaking with British accents. Every time I was ready to trust the English around alcohol again, they always started a fight... WHAT!? *downs beer and rips shirt off* Seriously though, I've met awesome people from all over the world here, and I've also met terrible people from all over the world here. I absolutely agree with the don't discriminate attitude. I mean, until you've spoken to the person for at least like 5 minutes... sometimes that's all it needs.
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Dec 12, 2014 08:47
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Israeli backpackers in Thailand are categorically the worst people on earth. Rude, clannish, dirty, cheap, loud, aggressive, totally uninterested in anything other than beaches and booze. They're the only ones you see these kinds of things for at hostels:  People who want to be nice blame the fact that many of them just got out of the Army and are like 20 years old. Tytan posted:I absolutely agree with the don't discriminate attitude. Despite my occasional shitposting in here I do try to give people a chance and do recognize that my generally lopsided chance-giving is probably not a good idea. I rag on the British and Australians a lot in here but most of my farang friends in Bangkok were one of the two and the Americans I knew were either so antisocial or deranged even I couldn't bother with them, and I generally like antisocial and/or deranged people. Because I am American. Let's buy guns and use nuclear weapons!  Aren't you some kinda northman though? Maybe I'm confused. raton fucked around with this message at 09:02 on Dec 12, 2014 |
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Dec 12, 2014 08:50
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Honestly I totally understand the British stereotype - I mean, we basically ruined a fairly large portion of Spain. I think the worst of us are pretty easy to spot and avoid though (despite what I just said about discriminating!) I've actually found most of the Americans I've met in PP to be pretty decent. They definitely make some of the best bar owners at least. And no, I'm from London. Not sure if that's better or worse. Probably much worse.
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Dec 12, 2014 09:33
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Less likely to punch me, more likely to sneer. I've gotten along with Londoners fairly well. raton fucked around with this message at 11:27 on Dec 12, 2014 |
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Dec 12, 2014 09:44
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"Whites only"
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Dec 12, 2014 10:17
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http://www.watoday.com.au/world/bangkok-tourists-caught-up-in-shakedown-20141212-125voa.htmlquote:Foreign tourists are calling it the shakedown. this poo poo's still going on in Bangkok?
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Dec 12, 2014 10:31
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The absolute worst customers (scuba divers) I've had were Israelis. By far. Three different groups of them... and they were all terrible for different reasons.
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Dec 12, 2014 10:46
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Israelis are also still banned from Goa, India, I'm pretty sure. So they go to the Andaman Islands instead. The ones I met there seemed alright though, I was staying at the same beach guest house thing as a group of them in 2010.
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Dec 12, 2014 10:58
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I met some Israelis on Koh Tao years ago and they just wanted me to punch them in their faces to show how tough they were. Really not any different than the guys I went to college with.
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Dec 12, 2014 11:09
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uNPpFZLelE
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Dec 12, 2014 11:12
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I like Lebanese / Middle Eastern food a lot so I went into the big Iraeli nexus at that one end of Khao San one time and got falafels and some hummus. I sitting there eating it and a girl sitting nearby looked at me and said  HAKKAMA XARECLIECH NAKMA HRRRECHEMA HECH? and I said  Sorry, I only really speak English. HHHHHrrrwhere are you fhrrum? America. Hrrwat hhare you doing in this place then, The Israeli Connection?!She looked pretty pissed off. And that's how I learned that place was called The Israeli Connection.
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Dec 12, 2014 11:24
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Negligent posted:http://www.watoday.com.au/world/bangkok-tourists-caught-up-in-shakedown-20141212-125voa.html This has always gone on to some generally almost negligible degree. I won't really believe its on the upswing until someone in this thread confirms it though -- it's exactly the kind of hysterical nonsense that the Thaivisa crowd would cry from every rooftop where it were real or not. Not saying it isn't happening, just saying I need better confirmation than the drama queens and broken humps I suspect are currently taking about this so much. Reindeer said he was going to go check it out but he never filed his report.
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Dec 12, 2014 11:32
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Anecdotal, but I took a taxi from Thong Lo to Udomsuk a week ago and there were blockades every block pulling foreign driven cars and scooters over while waiving the taxis through.
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Dec 12, 2014 11:37
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caberham posted:So is Russian cuisine actually legit now? That's one of the fewer pro's I guess? Russian tourists are just like mainland Chinese tourist groups, but white If I had an infinite amount of money id probably spend quite a bit of it in some of the Russian restaurants in Helsinki and this is coming from someone who almost burst his belly in Penang. I also had some Russian tourists as customers back when I drove a cab and can't ever remember them being a problem, they even tipped unlike the locals (or most euros for that matter). To be fair though they usually were the richer ones since taking a cab in Helsinki isn't too cheap.
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Dec 12, 2014 12:45
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In public situations, Russians are primarily a problem anytime lines are involved - and they are a loving menace in any queue for airport stuff, banks, food, etc. Otherwise they're just sort of insular and don't smile, like the French, which doesn't win you a lot of admirers. But that's negligible. Living in Thailand, you really notice who doesn't smile.
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Dec 12, 2014 12:55
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Moscow Sheremetyevo is the airport from hell. The staff aren't just rude, they bully you.
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Dec 12, 2014 12:58
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I flew into Domodedovo and the immigration guy smirked and said, "Good luck!" as he handed me my passport, which was actually funny. My recollections include every Russian smoking like it was their last cigarette under the airport no smoking signs and taxiways lined with defunct large jets that were missing engines, tail fins, nose cones, landing gear and other parts. I've flown into a number of developing countries abd never seen that, heh. I saw probably 25+ derelict airframes in all.
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Dec 12, 2014 13:15
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Russia : mainlanders but white. No wonder they can easily adapt to China
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Dec 12, 2014 13:26
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kgRY66-s2g
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Dec 12, 2014 16:23
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Meanwhile in Murder Island: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkOSUPpNaC4 I wonder if Finnair has some good flight deals to bangkok....
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Dec 12, 2014 16:32
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loving hell. This comforts me in my plan of never going there.
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Dec 12, 2014 17:38
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Senso posted:loving hell. This comforts me in my plan of never going there.
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Dec 12, 2014 17:51
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British Man Dies After Fall From Hostel Balcony In Phạm Ngũ Lão (Saigon) Hopefully not a goon?
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Dec 12, 2014 17:53
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Sounds like Saigon is trying to get some of that sweet, sweet Pattaya magic. https://www.google.com/search?q=pattaya+%22falls+from+hotel%22 No stealing our gimmicks, Viets!
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Dec 12, 2014 23:50
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Barfolemew posted:Meanwhile in Murder Island: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkOSUPpNaC4 They said they would never publish any of the footage 
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Dec 13, 2014 00:49
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I wouldn't be surprised to find out it was "hacked" - by which I mean they have no concept of security and someone under 25 just took the files easily, heh. EDIT: Oops, just saw the account name. I'm assuming it's official.
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Dec 13, 2014 01:09
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ReindeerF posted:I wouldn't be surprised to find out it was "hacked" - by which I mean they have no concept of security and someone under 25 just took the files easily, heh. Yeah. I mean, to be fair, they didn't actually say they wouldn't publish anything - they just said they wouldn't name names. In all honesty, the antics in that video are actually kinda tame and without audio most of it's an "in" joke that just looks like a bunch of drunks being idiots... which I guess isn't that far from reality, anyway. Finch! fucked around with this message at 02:54 on Dec 13, 2014 |
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Dec 13, 2014 02:28
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Yeah, after watching it, my thought was, "That's exactly what I would expect."
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Dec 13, 2014 03:06
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ReindeerF posted:Yeah, after watching it, my thought was, "That's exactly what I would expect." There's a certain kind of person who treats SEA like it's a consequence-free place to be wild and whacky and do crazy poo poo they wouldn't do at home. Hazard of being a former regional Burning Man player who is over 30 was that I looked at the kiddies being "wild" and got bored just thinking about even putting on makeup to go break curfew. They really have no idea how unoriginal and repetitive their "crazy" is. I figure for a bunch of them, it's the last hurrah before they go work for their father's company, get married, and have kids, and talk about "that time at the moon festival" for the next thirty years.
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Dec 13, 2014 03:52
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Someday soon we'll need one SE Asia thread for all the bitter old killjoys and one for the drug tweens. Kinda like all the popular games have a PC thread and a console thread.
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Dec 13, 2014 04:34
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What's the deal with the Thai obsession over nutritional supplements? The last few time my fiancee has gone back to see her family, her bag has been half-filled with multivitamins, Gatorade powder, and the like. I almost forgot about it until she asked me today to bring a few bottles of Centrum chewables for her dad, and when her brother was living with us he'd spend way too money on dietary and workout supplements. Do I just have weird, hyper health-conscious in-laws?
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Dec 13, 2014 04:35
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They worry that the stuff they can get there is fake and won't work. They have valid reasons to be worried about this by the way. Still, I think overall the number of people who eat a multivitamin every day is probably lower than the number of people who regularly ingest Madame Tsungs Fire Rice Dragon Oil or whatever. Finch! posted:Yeah. I mean, to be fair, they didn't actually say they wouldn't publish anything - they just said they wouldn't name names. In all honesty, the antics in that video are actually kinda tame and without audio most of it's an "in" joke that just looks like a bunch of drunks being idiots... which I guess isn't that far from reality, anyway. I didn't even realize it was connected to the murder -- I thought it was just Barfo being nostalgic. By the way I don't get the whole beer spitting thing that Northern Europe seems to be so in tune with. raton fucked around with this message at 04:41 on Dec 13, 2014 |
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Dec 13, 2014 04:37
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Vitamins are much cheaper in north America and overseas
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Dec 13, 2014 04:53
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Vitamin D is also illegal in Thailand for some reason. I was a little worried the lady at the pharmacy was going to call the cops on me after I asked for it. Melatonin is illegal in Taiwan too. Probably lots of weird stuff like that around Asia. Horatius Bonar fucked around with this message at 05:35 on Dec 13, 2014 |
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Dec 13, 2014 05:33
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| # ? Jun 9, 2024 08:39 |
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caberham posted:Vitamins are much cheaper in north America and overseas
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Dec 13, 2014 06:25
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