|
Koh Tao is pretty awesome. Here's the view I got to see after an hour or so hike. http://imgur.com/3NRaVwq
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 05:56
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 8, 2024 12:58 |
|
|
When in Cambodia, do not stay in the Modern City Hotel.
|
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 14:15
|
|
|
Kommando posted:When in Cambodia, do not stay in the Modern City Hotel. When in Phnom Penh, stay at Velkommen Guesthouse for clean and affordable accommodations (get room 203). If you want something upscale, there's always the Le Royal Phnom Penh at the super-high end and places like The Plantation in between.
|
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 14:39
|
|
|
Kommando posted:When in Cambodia, do not stay in the Modern City Hotel. Just looked this up and realised what street it's on... yeah I'm guessing it's not the classiest of hotels. Let me know if you want to switch, plenty of decent places around. As ReindeerF said Velkommen is a good choice if you still want to be near the river.
|
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 15:01
|
|
|
Tytan posted:Just looked this up and realised what street it's on...
|
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 16:07
|
|
|
So any of you folks backpacking through SE Asia want to fly up to Nepal to do some trekking?  I will be in Nepal and India for like a month starting May 18th before heading back to Thailand to (probably) show a friend of mine around.
|
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 16:44
|
|
|
Sadly, most of this thread is under 65 years old.
|
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 16:52
|
|
|
ReindeerF posted:Haha, oops, missed this detail. Well, he probably had a front row seat to the fire that burned down one of the various houses of ill repute there (Pussycat Bar) today, at least in so far as my monitoring of expat forums and news sites has it. I've got photos of it burning. Was there amongst the crowd watching the fire crews spray everything. We're moving to the indochine(2) hotel for another night or two. We asked to see the rooms and they're better. gently caress this place. I feel dumb for not checking TripAdvisor. We've managed to find a place that does a two day boat ride down the river through Cha Doc to HCMC. Actually, we don't have accommodation planned for HCMC. Any goon able to point us at something like velcommen so we don't end up with a repeat of this tumble down poo poo hole. Negative Entropy fucked around with this message at 17:09 on Apr 29, 2013 |
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 17:03
|
|
|
Well I'm at the airport waiting to start my voyage back out to Thailand. In about 32 hours I'll be landing in Bangkok. I'll be there for a few days before going down to Surat. If anyone is up for some beers/food I'll be available Wed or Fri. Last time I was in Thailand was before smartphones took off. Since I'll be there for a while (Surat in particular), is there any particular company or service to recommend? I have a crappy little Nokia to hold me over at first, but I figure I'll head over to MBK to get some kind of smartphone. Will it even work down in Surat? I'm a bit out of the loop. Thanks.
|
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 20:23
|
|
|
True for 3G, AIS for widespread phone access. EDIT: The prepaid AIS stuff is referred to as "1-2-Call" by Thai folks, so if you go that route, when you go to 7-11 to buy credit just say "1-2-Call" and the amount. ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 06:47 on Apr 30, 2013 |
|
#
?
Apr 29, 2013 20:37
|
|
|
Kommando posted:Actually, we don't have accommodation planned for HCMC. Any goon able to point us at something like velcommen so we don't end up with a repeat of this tumble down poo poo hole. What is your hotel budget?
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 06:15
|
|
|
DeadMansSuspenders posted:Koh Tao is pretty awesome. Here's the view I got to see after an hour or so hike. Best of luck in the rest of your travels. I think I may kick around a bit longer on Koh Tao, and possibly do my advanced scuba course.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 06:28
|
|
|
Rated PG-34 posted:Best of luck in the rest of your travels. I think I may kick around a bit longer on Koh Tao, and possibly do my advanced scuba course. Before you know it it'll be the new year and you'll still be there. Happens to the best of us.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 06:58
|
|
|
Definitely my favorite island so far. laid back, but there is still plenty to do. I've moved on to ao nang, and then I'm planning on Koh phi phi. Have fun on the rest off your trip my friend!
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 07:42
|
|
|
Senso posted:What is your hotel budget? Under $20. We've spent too much on poo poo in Cambodia.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 08:04
|
|
|
Is Madam Cuc 64 still the popular place? I remember when I was there it was like the Lonely Planet favorite. I stayed there or at one of their sister guesthouses and I recall thinking it was clean and safe and so on. I also recall having to climb a gently caress ton of stairs, which I hate, but what can you do?
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 08:22
|
|
|
DeadMansSuspenders posted:Definitely my favorite island so far. laid back, but there is still plenty to do. I've moved on to ao nang, and then I'm planning on Koh phi phi. Have fun on the rest off your trip my friend! You should check out Railay bay while you're in Ao Nang if you can, I loved it there and not too many people seem to bother because it's a tiny bit awkward to get to due to not having a pier
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 10:21
|
|
|
Finch! posted:Before you know it it'll be the new year and you'll still be there. Happens to the best of us. If only work wasn't a thing. Eviljelly, trying to pm you but your mailbox is full. How much for the advanced course at New Way.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 11:27
|
|
|
ReindeerF posted:Gold Bay Leaves Smiley Face posted:You should check out Railay bay while you're in Ao Nang if you can, I loved it there and not too many people seem to bother because it's a tiny bit awkward to get to due to not having a pier
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 11:27
|
|
|
I've been working back in New Zealand for over two months now and reading this thread kind of depresses me. Especially Koh Tao chat. I miss that place.  Kommando posted:Actually, we don't have accommodation planned for HCMC. Any goon able to point us at something like velcommen so we don't end up with a repeat of this tumble down poo poo hole. My boyfriend and I stayed at Ngoc Thao guesthouse in January and it was really nice. Clean, quiet, friendly staff, nice hangout space on the ground floor. Our room was $19 a night for a private room with bathroom/fridge/TV. It's in an alleyway off the main tourist street but we didn't get any noise.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 11:42
|
|
|
Chocolate Milk posted:I've been working back in New Zealand for over two months now and reading this thread kind of depresses me. Especially Koh Tao chat. I miss that place. Excellent, I'll add that to the shortlist, I was thinking the Elegant Inn.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 12:06
|
|
|
Rated PG-34 posted:If only work wasn't a thing. You can get work on Koh Tao 
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 15:44
|
|
|
Finch! posted:You can get work on Koh Tao While we're on the subject, is this true and what kind of work? Diving?
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 16:33
|
|
|
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldP1Gvt8WS0
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 17:26
|
|
|
Let me say that as soon as I figured out what this was I saw the blackface coming, heh. I'm trying to figure out where this was filmed, I couldn't catch any background landmarks.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 18:05
|
|
|
duckmaster posted:While we're on the subject, is this true and what kind of work? Diving? Yeah, it happens all the time. A friend of mine works there as a dive instructor, bar wench, personal trainer, motorbike rentals guy, and rustles up business for a web development company based on the island. Most work is diving related, though.
|
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 22:59
|
|
|
Something that may have gone unsaid here, but is true, is that in particular, the three islands in the chain there are completely lawless and not subject to normal standards of conduct, but rather run by a loose local family-mafia-police network. There are places where foreigners work illegally in tourist locales, but never so openly as on Tao, Phangan and Samui - and that is mostly thanks to the laissez faire governance of Surat Thani province. In most of the country you need to either fake a legal framework or stay under the table. In Samui, there is an entire section of Lamai where the bars are illegally owned by Brits who named them after the banks they defrauded the money from before skipping town for good. EDIT: Oops, non-regional foreigners. If you're an Indian nut seller or a Nepalese tailor or a Khmer waiter no one's going to do dick since you're part of a payola deal. EDIT EDIT: The POW-MIA industry is rightly reviled in America these days, but this is a really interesting story - http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/soldier-vanished-vietnam-still-alive-194828732.html I have no idea of the accuracy, but God help us if it's true. ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 23:51 on Apr 30, 2013 |
|
#
?
Apr 30, 2013 23:27
|
|
|
Kommando posted:Excellent, I'll add that to the shortlist, I was thinking the Elegant Inn. Pretty sure we stayed there too, heh. Unless there's multiple Elegant Inns. Tall thin building, five storeys or so? They didn't have room for us after our second night so we moved to Ngoc Thao. Elegant Inn had great breakfasts and a lift but we had some cleaning issues in our room and way more street noise. Wasn't bad but on balance we preferred Ngoc Thao.
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 07:08
|
|
|
I'm heading to Bangkok on May 7th with 2 friends for 6 weeks. Are there any big events worth checking out? Travel is not a problem. Pretty recently after checking to make sure my passport hasnt expired, my mom spilt water all over it. Is it safe to travel without worries with a water damaged passport? Last but not least, will hotel/sleeping arrangements be bizarre? Is a 3 bedroom room ever common?
mister ginger fucked around with this message at 08:58 on May 1, 2013 |
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 08:36
|
|
|
Completely anecdotal but last time I was in the local passport office renewing my visa, the guy ahead of me was there getting a replacement because his had gone through the washing machine 7 years ago. He had traveled numerous times with a water-damaged passport without issue but for whatever reason the particular TSA employee decided that they wouldn't let him through passport control so he had to reschedule his flight after getting a replacement book. If you have time, you might as well get it replaced but you very well may be fine. Often times if you can show proof of travel within the next week (print out of your itinerary) they will make sure you get your new book before you go.
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 08:53
|
|
|
Saint Fu posted:Completely anecdotal but last time I was in the local passport office renewing my visa, the guy ahead of me was there getting a replacement because his had gone through the washing machine 7 years ago. He had traveled numerous times with a water-damaged passport without issue but for whatever reason the particular TSA employee decided that they wouldn't let him through passport control so he had to reschedule his flight after getting a replacement book. If you have time, you might as well get it replaced but you very well may be fine. Often times if you can show proof of travel within the next week (print out of your itinerary) they will make sure you get your new book before you go. Thanks for the advice! I'll get down to it tomorrow
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 08:59
|
|
|
Chocolate Milk posted:I've been working back in New Zealand for over two months now and reading this thread kind of depresses me. Especially Koh Tao chat. I miss that place. oh man im so much more experienced at insulting kiwis now, wish you guys were here for it. the island misses you too by the way
eviljelly fucked around with this message at 13:53 on May 1, 2013 |
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 13:42
|
|
|
Hey guys just wanted to get an idea about the website airbnb. I'm planning on travelling around S.E Asia/Asia for the better part of the year and looking to take up 1-3 month residence in all of the major cities of the area (trying to get a business idea started up). I was checking the prices of some apartments in Bangkok that were around $500-$700 a month for a decent sized apartment and I was wondering if I showed up in person would those prices be lower? I'm also applying this to all the other cities (except Hong Kong, that place is just expensive) with the "just showing up in person and talking out a deal".
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 17:20
|
|
|
Not lower-enough for the risk and hassle involved in you finding your own short term living in each city in SE Asia in turn.
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 17:59
|
|
|
Bangkok's got sort of a weird dynamic because of the really active foreign scammer/online marketer population and the size of the city and the lack of domestic international marketing when it comes to small things like condo rentals. While it's always easier to find a good deal on the ground (especially in Asia), it's really easier in Bangkok because the net is stocked chock full of jacked up prices for English language ads and listings, making it almost impossible to get a clear idea ahead of time. If you just need barebones, clean accommodation within 5-10 minutes of the skytrain or subway, you can probably get as low as about $300 a month without utilities or internet. $500 isn't too bad if it includes those. I'm pricing you at pretty basic, but Western-livable standards and not in local cell blocks. If you want to go local you can get down to $100 a month easily, before bills. If you want "nice" and in-town and convenient you're going to be starting closer to $900-$1,000 a month and up. For reference, I live north of town on the riverside next to a boat pier that takes me into town and I pay about $600 a month after rent and bills, so if you move away from the center of town you can even get riverside places quite cheap (assuming you like the river like I do - nice breeze, taking the boat is fun). My experience in Phnom Penh was that, because almost no one has in-home internet, I was better off renting a room for a month at a time at Velkommen Guesthouse. You can get a good discount renting for a month and when you have the internet and electric included it ends up being a lot easier than trying to find a place. I actually did find a couple of shared room deals for rent (I was planning on being there for business too), but they were no cheaper and shared rooms to boot. Tytan may have better advice here, but the problem is always trying to nail down a short-term stay at a good rate.
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 18:29
|
|
|
In either a clear sign that Chiang Mai has jumped the shark or that the expat gods have bestowed a cruel gift, there is now a food cart here called Taco Bells that serves "Mexican" food tasting almost exactly like Taco Bell -- down to the way the pico de gallo is cut.
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 19:20
|
|
|
MothraAttack posted:In either a clear sign that Chiang Mai has jumped the shark or that the expat gods have bestowed a cruel gift, there is now a food cart here called Taco Bells that serves "Mexican" food tasting almost exactly like Taco Bell -- down to the way the pico de gallo is cut.
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 19:30
|
|
|
There's a great knockoff Taco Bell somewhere I've been. I forget, but probably Siem Reap or something. Miguel's in Chiang Mai was, last I had it, still the best approximation of Cal-Mex in Thailand, though I'd say La Monita is probably on par now. Unfortunately they're all Cal-Mex, but you take what you can get, heh. Same guy does Mike's hamburgers which are among the best in Thailand, easily top 3 (many would argue the best).
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 19:54
|
|
|
There's a really good California Mexican place on Samui called Barrio Latino. The one in Siem Reap is pretty okay too but I forget what it's called. I bought enchiladas at a random guesthouse on Koh Lipe and they made me chow mein wrapped in pancakes with salsa on top.
|
|
#
?
May 1, 2013 23:56
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 8, 2024 12:58 |
|
|
duralict posted:I bought enchiladas at a random guesthouse on Koh Lipe and they made me chow mein wrapped in pancakes with salsa on top. In Thailand, ketchup isn't a condiment, it's an ingredient.
|
|
#
?
May 2, 2013 00:03
|
|