Nyte wrote:
jord wrote:
im going in june, south east asia in particular. indonesia, thailand, camboda, vietnam. just travelling.
In Thailand, be wary of many scams. I did tons of research before going so it was easy to spot them.
A small list of stuff to take note of. This applies to Thailand, and possibly Vietnam. Cambodia is in a much poorer state so not sure if these will apply there:
- Tuk-tuk drivers, learn to haggle and negotiate. I'd say an average trip of like... 5-10 minutes should cost no more than 100 Baht (which is about $3 USD/CAD). You can definitely negotiate it lower. If they say no, go to another tuk-tuk driver or swallow your pride and pay the extra dollar or two.
- The Grand Palace is open everyday until 4 PM. Don't listen to random folks coming up to you telling you it's closed and they'll take you to another temple for a small fee. Some even wear a shirt that says "Tourist Police". Surprisingly tons of people fall for this shit.
- Always get the taxi driver to start the meter when you get in. Do NOT negotiate fees with them. If they don't start the meter, just hail another one.
- Don't rent out jet-skis or motorbikes. They may scam you by checking the equipment after and claiming "damages" you incurred. They may even call the cops (real cops) to assess the situation. What will happen is that the cop will tell you he "negotiated" the fee down for you. Afterwards, he'll get a small cut and you think you've won (but you actually lost).
- Sukhimvit line is the best place for Thai hookers if you're into that. They are really damn cheap. Use protection. I personally didn't use these services as I am in a committed relationship.
- You will see old fat white American/European men walking around with really young hot Thai women. Just ignore them. I personally saw some get accosted by the locals and even tourists calling them perverts, capitalist pigs, etc. It's their personal life and what they want to do with it is up to them as long as it doesn't affect you.
- It's ridiculously hot whereas public transportation and malls are ridiculously air-conditioned. It's a huge sigh of relief every time you walk into a mall after a long day.
- Don't go elephant riding, you will be promoting animal cruelty (I'm one of those nature-lovers so you may not agree).
- Don't rent cars. Driving in Bangkok will get most people killed. I rented one in Koh Samui (which is an island in Thailand) and even then, it was tough.
- The Full Moon Party is a white persons party (there is also a decent sized population of Asians checking out the scene because they are into EDM and FMP is VERY EDM). You can get buckets of alcohol for dirt cheap. I had 2 buckets of something I can't remember and I was on full tilt for the night. It lasts from 10 PM to 7 AM. I bowed out early personally because we had scuba diving the next morning (being hungover and scuba diving is a death sentence). It's actually pretty safe from my experience. Don't let those news reports scare you. Just don't take random pills and you'll be fine.
- Street food is fucking amazing. Local pad thai is awesome. Sweet sticky rice with mango is awesome. Prepare to pay almost $3 for a full night's meal if eating from the street. Sure it looks a bit dirty... but you gotta man up. It'll boost your immune system too.
- Thai's are very friendly folk... overtly friendly sometimes. They don't take tips normally unless you go to a westernized restaurant.
That's about all I can think of.