by FishHead Phil » Wed Sep 21, 2022 12:45 pm
Tim’s from Australia but you can’t pin down his accent. He’s mid fifties, chain smokes, been roaming the region for the last ten years, and has reinforced to me the importance of having interests, hobbies, or a purpose if you’re an expat or long term traveler. Tim’s not sure what his plans are - he might go to Cambodia, he might go back to Australia to visit his daughter, he might rent a beach hut on Samui or Phangan, he’s also thinking about going to Portugal… But for now he’s off to a bar and could be there a while.
I wanted to extend my stay where I am to be told no rooms were available. I found a couple of other places on booking.com I thought might be suitable and walked there this morning thinking perhaps I might enjoy a 10-15% discount subtracting b.com’s commission. The first owner didn’t want to entertain any discounts, she actually jacked up b.com’s advertised price by $50 (it’s a three week stay) - I guess I hadn’t had coffee yet so I must have looked a bit desperate. I’m not sure I understand the owners thinking, but the second place I visited not only reduced b.com’s asking price by 25%, she threw in free laundry once a week, daily coffee, and she’s got a great cat.
I’m around Soi Rambutri and compared to my last visit a number of years ago, the place is still pretty quiet. I thought the price of street food might’ve increased since I was last here as well, but I’m pleasantly surprised to find plenty of roadside fare around the streets for between thirty and fifty baht. Of course everyone’s lifestyle is uniquely their own, but so far I have to say Thailand (for me at least) is still very cheap - a vastly different experience to when birds, booze and a bit of crazy was the order of the day.
[img]https://i.imgur.com/uETjwJnl.jpg[/img]
Tim’s from Australia but you can’t pin down his accent. He’s mid fifties, chain smokes, been roaming the region for the last ten years, and has reinforced to me the importance of having interests, hobbies, or a purpose if you’re an expat or long term traveler. Tim’s not sure what his plans are - he might go to Cambodia, he might go back to Australia to visit his daughter, he might rent a beach hut on Samui or Phangan, he’s also thinking about going to Portugal… But for now he’s off to a bar and could be there a while.
[img]https://i.imgur.com/7UWX2v0l.jpg[/img]
I wanted to extend my stay where I am to be told no rooms were available. I found a couple of other places on booking.com I thought might be suitable and walked there this morning thinking perhaps I might enjoy a 10-15% discount subtracting b.com’s commission. The first owner didn’t want to entertain any discounts, she actually jacked up b.com’s advertised price by $50 (it’s a three week stay) - I guess I hadn’t had coffee yet so I must have looked a bit desperate. I’m not sure I understand the owners thinking, but the second place I visited not only reduced b.com’s asking price by 25%, she threw in free laundry once a week, daily coffee, and she’s got a great cat.
[img]https://i.imgur.com/NwRWb7dl.jpg[/img]
I’m around Soi Rambutri and compared to my last visit a number of years ago, the place is still pretty quiet. I thought the price of street food might’ve increased since I was last here as well, but I’m pleasantly surprised to find plenty of roadside fare around the streets for between thirty and fifty baht. Of course everyone’s lifestyle is uniquely their own, but so far I have to say Thailand (for me at least) is still very cheap - a vastly different experience to when birds, booze and a bit of crazy was the order of the day.