|
kru posted:Check out this guy! riot, you mean! for about an hour. Say what you will but man, the cops crack down *hard*. thanks for all the advice, i relayed that to them. It's their first time "backpacking" (wtf, bangkok?) and they had a little freak out when their hotel was .. booked.
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2013 16:56
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 12, 2024 15:17 |
|
|
Yeah I'm not sure you can actually legitimately backpack Bangkok anymore, heh. There's a skytrain, a subway, an airport rail link, two airports and you can buy a Lamborghini at the mall.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2013 17:03
|
|
|
kru posted:Check out this guy! Watching some English news channel to see if anything interesting had happened in Bangkok, but it was all about the Singapore riots. Which is to say Racism: Bigoted Opinions on Immigrants.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2013 17:03
|
|
|
Thailand: There's No Time For Democracy!
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2013 21:42
|
|
|
So correct me if I am wrong, but the Yellow shirts want to remove the government and enact an unelected "people's council" of some sort because they know they will lose again in the election?
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 01:58
|
|
|
If your friends are either good looking or sociable they can try couch surfing. or air bnb. Room roulette is the cheapest I suppose but it can't be such a drag. Coming from the developed world, Thailand should still be very affordable.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 02:56
|
|
|
Cheesemaster200 posted:So correct me if I am wrong, but the Yellow shirts want to remove the government and enact an unelected "people's council" of some sort because they know they will lose again in the election? Basically yes. Their position is that the Reds are defying the constitution (because Thaksin isn't in jail) and so in order to save the rule of law they must suspend the rule of law and should be appointed as a ruling oligarchy for the duration of the emergency. There's pretty much no way they can win the election and they probably know it. It also doesn't look the military is willing to step in again to give them what they want (at least not yet) so it's a question of whether they cave now and do their best to at least increase their representation or double down and try to delegitimise these elections by refusing to take part.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 03:55
|
|
|
All of that is accompanied by a lot of infuriating posts by your Yellow friends on Facebook.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 04:51
|
|
|
"That may not stop Mr. Suthep and the Democrats. Most remarkable about the current situation is their capacity for self-delusion. They dismiss anyone who supports the government as either ignorant or in the pay of Ms. Yingluck and her brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Mr. Suthep said on Monday that there is no room for compromise with his enemies, no middle ground between good and evil." I feel this is like a large scale D&D thread.....
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 05:57
|
|
|
That's a pretty accurate description. The opinion piece someone posted by that Nation guy summed it up pretty well. We do have a D&D thread on the topic where Nemo and I, and occasionally CronoGamer, MothraAttack and a few others, pop in between Philippines and Singapore discussions to post something about Thailand: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3490581&pagenumber=30#lastpost
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 06:06
|
|
|
I like politics, unfortunately politics for most people in Malaysia doesn't seem to go beyond, 'we are a great multicultural society with no problems. Although if I was going to change something it would be to remove all these laws that give other races great advantages over us. Also don't trust Indians.' At least my coworkers are all pretty reasonable.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 13:23
|
|
|
That's the line I got from Malays I've talked to down there, but the Chinese are pretty acidic in my insanely limited experience. They're always like one good provocation away from a thirty minute rant about Malays. I've not yet successfully gotten an ethnic Indian Malaysian person living there to talk politics, though I have a friend here who will talk about it sometimes if I ask her. I assume they have similar feelings to the Chinese, but I really don't know.
ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 13:35 on Dec 10, 2013 |
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 13:33
|
|
|
Anecdote: None of my Malay friends are practicing Muslims outside Malaysia. They only do it there because it's kinda mandatory for them. One guy spends six months there, six months here in Australia. The first thing he does when he gets back here is invite us all over for a pig on a spit, washed down with plenty of booze. I guess it's his way to get the cravings out of his system.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 14:18
|
|
|
One of my Chinese Malaysian friends went to Siem Reap and she was so excited about how easy it was to get bacon there. Kept texting me about it  "oh my god bacon is everywhere" "it's so cheap too" "but the ice cream here is so expensive"
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 14:42
|
|
|
Yeah, that's true. When Malaysian Chinese businesspeople come on trips to Thailand they go bonkers on the pork. It's pretty entertaining. Bangkok really doesn't do it as well as the Chinese in Southern Thailand do it either, so it's a shame that they have it here, but it can still be pretty good. Moo yang, not so much, but real moo daeng is available if you know where to look - and BACON. You should tell her about bacon soap and bacon flavored condoms and things. Probably flip her lid heh.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 15:08
|
|
|
I'm so wary of bacon, now. Usually it looks right from a distance, seems a bit rubbery close up, then tastes like... nothing recognizable as bacon. It's a bit like the the bread, actually. It passes a casual inspection then tastes like nothing. Or the chocolate, where it looks right and then tastes all weird. Happy to be back in Bangkok. I probably just wasn't persistent enough exploring Chiang Mai, but what I saw utterly failed to impress me. The night market is the same night market everywhere else in SE Asia has, and the Sunday Walking Street was too crowded to breathe much less shop... and half the stuff was clearly sweatshop garbage anyway.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 16:43
|
|
|
Hello chaps. I'm finally leaving on my trip in January, and after stopping off in India to visit a relative for a week or two I'm going to head east again to start seeing SEA. I guess I have a couple of questions: 1. Will anyone be in Bangkok in February? 2. How common is the "head north through Thailand, then East across Laos, then south down the Vietnamese coast, then west through Cambodia, then south along the gulf coast of Thailand towards Malaysia/Indonesia/Singapore" route? I mean, will I be encountering people along the way who are going in this general direction? Or am I going against the more common backpacking routes?
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 16:53
|
|
|
Pixelante posted:I'm so wary of bacon, now. Usually it looks right from a distance, seems a bit rubbery close up, then tastes like... nothing recognizable as bacon. It's a bit like the the bread, actually. It passes a casual inspection then tastes like nothing. Or the chocolate, where it looks right and then tastes all weird.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 16:56
|
|
|
cadenza posted:2. How common is the "head north through Thailand, then East across Laos, then south down the Vietnamese coast, then west through Cambodia, then south along the gulf coast of Thailand towards Malaysia/Indonesia/Singapore" route? I mean, will I be encountering people along the way who are going in this general direction? Or am I going against the more common backpacking routes? That's a pretty popular route. I went the opposite way and there were a lot of people going in the other direction (the one you listed) but I did run into a guy I met in Nha Trang in Vientiane a month later then I ran into a girl I met in Chiang Mai in Koh Tao later and I just met up with someone I met in Miri for a dinner in Siem Reap. So basically if you travel long enough you'll run into people you've met before. And gently caress, I'm still sick 
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 17:16
|
|
|
Pixelante posted:I'm so wary of bacon, now. Usually it looks right from a distance, seems a bit rubbery close up, then tastes like... nothing recognizable as bacon. It's a bit like the the bread, actually. It passes a casual inspection then tastes like nothing. Or the chocolate, where it looks right and then tastes all weird. For real bread, get down to Saigon, where it's also cheap as hell
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 18:28
|
|
|
pfft there's a guesthouse up north in a little town near Chiang Rai that has rooms for 50 baht/day 
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 19:10
|
|
|
LUXURY.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 19:19
|
|
|
xcdude24 posted:For real bread, get down to Saigon, where it's also cheap as hell oops you were talking about actual bread and I just instantly interpreted it as poorer-than-thou backpackerspeak. sorry!
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 19:21
|
|
|
I almost forgot that bread had a flavor until I returned to Saigon. Vietnam really needs to teach the rest of SEA how to make proper bread. I have a doctor's appointment booked 5 hours after I land in the states. Should be fun. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 19:44
|
|
|
Phnom Penh, capital of another former French colony, can make it. I've had some okay bread in Vientiane as well, but haven't spent as much time there.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 19:47
|
|
|
Actually the bread in Vietnam is poo poo, but that's because I'm used to the real  baguettes. It's still better than any bread elsewhere in Asia though.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 20:33
|
|
|
I'm pretty sure the flavour comes from all the exhausts  It was pretty good tho, hanoi had street vendors with grilled "something" with bread.edit: 90% sure it was chicken.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 21:07
|
|
|
My respect for the culinary tastes and eating behaviors of our Vietnam supporters are somewhat suspect due to the continuing revelations that no one actually knows what is in whatever they're eating, heh.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 21:34
|
|
|
It's goat tits, always.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 21:46
|
|
|
dog, duh
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 21:47
|
|
|
Either/or.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 22:10
|
|
|
I came to Vietnam for the bread and coffee. I missed that poo poo. Dog doesn't even taste good. I don't get the deal with it. Is it just chihuahua that's tasteless or all of it?
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 22:25
|
|
|
Horatius Bonar posted:I came to Vietnam for the bread and coffee. I missed that poo poo. I had dog in Korea, back when they still ate dog - even then, it was really rare and only eaten by old people (I went with my grandma). It was suuuuuuuuper succulent and tender, kinda like slow roasted pork but more succulent/tender and more flavorful, although less fatty. I heard later that they beat the dogs to death because the meat is more tender that way. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 22:28
|
|
|
Generally speaking, you want to kill an animal instantly to prevent it from releasing all the stuff that makes it tighten up and go bitter. Then you want to age it a bit. Part of the reason beef sucks around these parts is that they slaughter and take it straight to market. Maybe dogs are different, I dunno. Anyway, good beef needs to be aged a while for various things to happen. Fortunately the only secret ingredient to bread is French colonial history (i.e. not being Thai).
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 22:44
|
|
|
Horatius Bonar posted:I came to Vietnam for the bread and coffee. I missed that poo poo. According to wild rumor (and possibly the Korea thread) the old school Koreans would beat the poo poo out of food dogs before killing them because it tastes different. The degree of tenderness of all meats really depends more on how it's cut and cooked than the sourcing. The only times I've had someone try to get me to eat dog I caught them at it and didn't. Not that I have strong opinions about dog eating. Maybe I'm like 1/10th British or something because I'm pretty sure I started getting hard when I detected that A Foreigner was possibly trying to trick me. An angry semi. raton fucked around with this message at 23:11 on Dec 10, 2013 |
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2013 23:08
|
|
|
eviljelly posted:I had dog in Korea, back when they still ate dog - even then, it was really rare and only eaten by old people (I went with my grandma). It was suuuuuuuuper succulent and tender, kinda like slow roasted pork but more succulent/tender and more flavorful, although less fatty. I heard later that they beat the dogs to death because the meat is more tender that way. The stuff I had was dry like overcooked pork, and yeah not fatty. I guess that means at least my little guy wasn't beaten to death because I wouldn't describe it as succulent.
|
|
#
?
Dec 11, 2013 09:14
|
|
|
edit: scratch that. Who lives in PP again? How much are santa hats selling for down there? I was there the other day and saw some but didn't check prices. I need more. duckmaster fucked around with this message at 11:32 on Dec 11, 2013 |
|
#
?
Dec 11, 2013 11:21
|
|
|
Hahaha. You're the Jim Thompson of santa hats in Cambodia. EDIT: Don't go hiking alone in the jungle. ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 12:27 on Dec 11, 2013 |
|
#
?
Dec 11, 2013 12:17
|
|
|
So, what's the worthwhile tourist stuff to see/do in Bangkok? I've got two nights left in a dingy hotel across from Silom Centre. Anyone wanna grab a beer with a Canadian? (Roughly same offer applies in Saigon from the 14th to 17th, and Siem Reap 17th-21st.)
|
|
#
?
Dec 11, 2013 13:27
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 12, 2024 15:17 |
|
|
duckmaster posted:edit: scratch that. And where was the beer invite?  Yeah there's tonnes of shops and roadside stalls selling them. If I happen to wander by one tomorrow I'll do a price check.
|
|
#
?
Dec 11, 2013 13:42
|
|
