Would you go to Pattaya?

[PenhMan]

You mention 7-11, I once left my ATM card in the machine at the 7-11 beside my hotel

The only country I know where the cash comes out first. There must be thousands of cards forgotten every year.

yeah ! happened to me too in Hua Hin, the day before i was flying to Australia + Newzealand for a holiday

I think it's a deliberate Thai banking industry policy. I've known many expats who have left their cards behind (me too), which means another income stream from replacements. Customer Service reps then get to try to up-sell on the replacement pitch to as much as 800 baht for Kbank premium cards. In Canada, you don't get the cash until you take your card.

[Petrol Head]

You mention 7-11, I once left my ATM card in the machine at the 7-11 beside my hotel

The only country I know where the cash comes out first. There must be thousands of cards forgotten every year.

yeah ! happened to me too in Hua Hin, the day before i was flying to Australia + Newzealand for a holiday

I think it's a deliberate Thai banking industry policy. I've known many expats who have left their cards behind (me too), which means another income stream from replacements. Customer Service reps then get to try to up-sell on the replacement pitch to as much as 800 baht for Kbank premium cards. In Canada, you don't get the cash until you take your card.

Me three. You wan't a definition of SEA clusterfuck ? Try and get a Royal Anz card delivered to ANZ in Bangkok.

@ Richard, not in my experience. In Yangon, all the ATMs I used went:

1. Card in
2. PIN in
3. Card out
4. Cash out

[PenhMan]

And I was surprised PR said it's the same in the States as in Thailand. Really?

[Lucky Lucan]

I'm pretty sure a lot of machines in Europe used to do the same in the 80s /90s? I remember shouting/ chasing after a few people who had left their cards in a machine.

[Edwardo]

And I was surprised PR said it's the same in the States as in Thailand. Really?

Maybe not all ATMs in the US are the same, but my bank ATMs have a screen that says "Please take your card" with a beeping noise and flashing light. If you don't remove your card, the cash doesn't get dispensed.

[Jamie_Lambo]

( beach road often gets college girls on the weekends looking for some $$ to supplement what the families give them)

Who told you that? is Jamie back in Fun City?

2 months, counting down the days!

Hook me up mate.

when you planning on going?

[Jamie_Lambo]

And I was surprised PR said it's the same in the States as in Thailand. Really?

Maybe not all ATMs in the US are the same, but my bank ATMs have a screen that says "Please take your card" with a beeping noise and flashing light. If you don't remove your card, the cash doesn't get dispensed.

exactly the same in the UK too

[Loogan]

Better that than card first and forget the cash.

Losing my Amex Centurion would cause more headaches than losing whatever pocket change ATMs dispense here. I wouldn't be able to sleep in a hotel and instead be troubled by constant waves on my luxurious yacht.

Bless

When getting a replacement card is easy I'd rather loose the card, but yes you have a point. If my card is compromised in any way and canceled by the bank I MUST go into a branch in Canada. This hit home years ago when I was relying solely on my bank card and prepaid credit cards for an extended trip through Asia. I naively only added small amounts of money to my credit cards through internet banking which requires that your bank account is not compromised through any perceived irregularities by the bank. In China I was low on actual cash and low amounts on the credit cards when both my computer wasn't connecting and the local banks were refusing to accept my card to the point that I thought it would get flagged. My phone was on its last minutes for that area and phoning the support line for the bank in Canada was eating my minutes on hold.

I thought I was Fucked.

Got through to the bank everything was fine but learned a valuable lesson: stay home and hide under the bed. Lol

[rl66]

This is said from my perch in southeastern Vietnam, where I've been for 2 months, which is making me appreciate and miss Pattaya all the more. So much so I renewed my Thai retirement extension a few weeks ago and will very likely return to the Pattaya area this fall because it's just so easy to live there. I won't appreciate the heavy weekend and holiday traffic or tattooed muscle heads all over town. But I can usually avoid most of the unsightliness.

Wow, I'm surprised PenhMan. You've been gearing up for that move for a long time and seemed to pretty much have had your fill of Pattaya judging by your less than complimentary posts over the recent past about the place. I was sort of expecting you to be singing the praises of Vietnam ( Vung Tao ? ) in comparison and was interested as I fancied a trip over there myself never having been. What has made you last only 2 months, what are the downsides out of interest.

[yselmike]

Depends what you're looking for really. Bars, clubs, shows, and loads of women all eager to polish your nob, then, sure, go for it.
Looking for relaxation, then check out Koh Chang or any of the other small islands. Can still hit bangkok in a day to get your flight.

Or go down to hua hin it's only a few hours on the bus and you get it the airport.
Pattaya is fun lots of bars, shopping and restaurants and hotels for every budget, the beach is rubbish and stay out of the water.
Thai girls are more fun than Cambodians and better at being whores.put away any preconceptions and prejudices you may have and just have fun.

[Loogan]

Keep your nose clean and.... I mean careful where you put your nose among other things and don't piss off any ladyboys.

[PenhMan]

This is said from my perch in southeastern Vietnam, where I've been for 2 months, which is making me appreciate and miss Pattaya all the more. So much so I renewed my Thai retirement extension a few weeks ago and will very likely return to the Pattaya area this fall because it's just so easy to live there. I won't appreciate the heavy weekend and holiday traffic or tattooed muscle heads all over town. But I can usually avoid most of the unsightliness.

Wow, I'm surprised PenhMan. You've been gearing up for that move for a long time and seemed to pretty much have had your fill of Pattaya judging by your less than complimentary posts over the recent past about the place. I was sort of expecting you to be singing the praises of Vietnam ( Vung Tao ? ) in comparison and was interested as I fancied a trip over there myself never having been. What has made you last only 2 months, what are the downsides out of interest.

Pattaya had its horrible traffic blockages. Was sick of it on the Dark Side. After 2 years, I left. Even worse now. But if you look at an earlier post above, you will see how Pattaya has a lot of good services. As I said, it's just easy to live there. I tentatively plan to stay on the beach side, once the Electricity Authority digs up and fills in Central Road in a 3-month project.

There are Tier 1 and Tier 2 reasons for leaving VT and moving back.

Tier 1: I need to disappear to work on a project. I have two great friends in VT but the temptations are too much. I need to isolate myself. They understand.

Tier 2: Vietnam's raw food quality is very low, confirmed by government food inspectors. Wander into a Lotte Mart or Co-op Mart. You will be appalled by the meat and vegetable sections, especially if you are used to Big C Extra or Villa or Friendship. Shocking difference. Forget about the local markets. Inspectors have found disgusting practices. Then in Pattaya, you have foreigner-owned places such as London Pies and Prime Meats. Very good quality. This is important to me.

Also, the humidity levels are very high in VT. Pattaya's temps and humidity are a bit lower than Bangkok's, and definitely lower than VT's.

To each his own, but Pattaya works on an objective level. I don't love it but, to repeat myself, it's just easy to live there. Expats are spoiled for choice in just about everything. This ease of daily life gives me the time to work.

[Loogan]

I avoided it like the plague when I traveled to Thailand because it just seemed to be debauchery to the extreme. Ya lol. This coming from me.
My wife traveled there years later and gave a tentative thumbs up. Although she enjoyed fishing bungee jumping and a boat cruise.

Guess it does have it all.

[Hanno]