Travel Tips - Cambodia - Thailand - February 2004

Wednesday February 25, 2004 - Update Wednesday March 3, 2004

Sihanoukville Beaches Attract Tourists & Hotel Building Boom - Bangkok's Midnight Curfew - Pattaya's Blues Factory Club - 'The Beat Goes On' - Chiang Mai Hotel Growth - Chiang Mai's Downtown Inn - Cambodian Border Health Scam? - Art Gallery - Travelers Friend - Khmer Architecture Tours - Pattaya Expats Clubs

PATTAYA, THAILAND'S BLUES FACTORY - 'The Beat Goes On'

The Blues Factory club in Pattaya has as the song says gone through them changes this past year and it seems as though it's for the good.

The really good news is the establishments co-owner David Withers married his girlfriend Tao December 6th. Lam Morrison continues to play six nights s a week with his band.

The Blues Factory house band has made several changes. Former Robert Palmer Band harpist and Blues Factory bandleader Gregg Carroll left the group last spring. Singer Angie and her husband Ramon recently departed, as did other band members.

American guitarist Snowman and Thai drummer Bruno are the only musicians left from the group that manned the stage in November 2002. Snowman is now the band's leader.

A drastic move was made after Carroll left the group. Go Go girls were dropped from the clubs entertainment menu. At that point the clientele began to change.

The crowds were getting larger and spending more money. Parents were coming to the club with their children. The family business was a new revenue stream.

Withers didn't know why but the crowd was responding more to the music. The most pleasing thing of all was….. his bottom line was increasing. Business more than doubled.

As the wheels keep turning with new musicians Withers is pleased with the way things are going.

If you talk about go with the flow, David Withers is an example of... just that.

Currently Monday night is Ladies Night. Ladies receive a FREE drink and a chance to win a prize. The club has a weekly raffle and ladies can win a first prize of Thai gold in addition to cuddly toys etc.

Two bands play every night except Wednesday when only Lam Morrison's group plays. The Blues Factory House Band is the only band playing on Monday night, Ladies Night.

The Blues Factory is on Pattaya's Walking Street.

BANGKOK'S MIDNIGHT ENTERTAINMENT CLOSING REGULATION

Bangkok's bar, restaurant and massage parlor owners have been given a reprieve by the government that is holding off enforcing a midnight closing hour outside the three designated entertainment areas, Patpong, RCA and Rachadaphisek.

The early closing regulation was to have gone into effect March 1st.

According to news reports it's the government's way of trying to improve its image by cutting down on sex tourists and curb juvenile crime.

The irony is the designated RCA entertainment zone is a magnet for teen drug users many of whom are underage. Begs the question why is RCA a designated zone? The law does not affect the Walking Street in Pattaya but will adversely affect Nana Plaza and Soi Cowboy. Clinton Plaza has been demolished.

SAY WHAT? - GO FIGURE

Think about it. It's interesting to hear how many punters coming to Thailand and Cambodia are having sex with prostitutes without wearing a condom. Many of them won't eat chicken for fear of catching BIRD FLU.

CHIANG MAI BUSTING OUT - DOWNTOWN INN

Chiang Mai Thailand is busting out all over with physical growth but struggling for customers.

The Downtown Inn's manager Vinai Junsiri said that five major hotel chains have hotels scheduled for completion in Chiang Mai this summer. He noted the Oriental; Shangri-La and Bayon Tree hotel chains are included.

Junsiri has been in the hotel business 24 years in Chiang Mai. He spent 10-years as a tour coordinator at the Suriwong hotel followed by five years as a front office manager for Novotel and that last nine years as the manager of the Downtown Inn.

During that time he's watched the growth of hotel rooms multiplying in Thailand's second most populated city. In 1993 he said only 2,000 rooms were available. The figure grew to 5,000 rooms in 2000 and leaped to 8,000 by the last quarter of 2003.

Junsiri said the Downtown Inn's business was OK during this past year a season hit hard by the SARS outbreak. The hotel experienced a good walk in business.

The establishment's location is a plus being only a block away from the heart of the Night Market area. Though in the heat of it all shopping action the hotels location is quiet and peaceful.

The Downtown Inn's rates are moderately priced. 172/1-11 Loy-Kroh Road - Tel: (053) 270-662 - Fax: (053) 272-406

SIHANOUKVILLE BEACHES

A great way to break up a tiring holiday is take a few days to rest in Sihanoukville, Cambodia and spend some time on one of its numerous beaches.

You have a choice of being with the maddening crowd of Ochheuteal Beach a moderate pace at Serendipity Beach, the quiet relaxing atmosphere of Hawaii Beach or with the locals at Sokha Beach.

Ochheuteal, Serendipity and Sokha are the beaches of choice for tourists. The water is said to be cleaner. There are plenty of accommodations on or near the beach including bungalows situated on the cliff overlooking Serendipity Beach.

SIHANOUKVILLE HOTELS

The increased popularity of the attraction to Sihanoukville beaches is being enhanced by the development or refurbishing of numerous hotels in the area.

The new 194-room hotel on Sokha Beach is near completion. The famed Independence Hotel is undergoing renovations after decades of desertion. Numerous new or refurbished hotels and guesthouses are up and running at Ochheuteal Beach.

On the cliff above Victory Beach on Weather Station Hill new and old guesthouses report they are doing well after suffering a disappointing tourist season last year due to the SARS scare.

NR MAIL

CLAUDE'S - SIHANOUKVILLE

A NR reader wrote asking if Claude's in Sihanoukville was still in business.

Answer:

Claude's is now located on the hill above Sokha Beach. We are told the old location was at Ochheuteal Beach.

We will give you a more detailed report after our next trip to Sihanoukville.

ART GALLERY - COFFEE HOUSE

If you're looking for a place to get away from the hustle and bustle of Chiang Mai's Night Market shopping experience and seek peace and quite a place to think and chill or read a book there is the Art Gallery.

The Art Gallery is located off Loi Kroh Road at 119 Kampaengdin Road opposite the Mae Ping Hotel beer garden. From the Mae Ping go half way down the block and the Art Gallery sign and entrance walkway is on the left. The building sits back off the road.

Owner. Artist, designer, builder Mr. Sun fashioned his place to have a coffee house feeling.

His art is also on display. There's an outside area with ponds. Other quiet spots can be found on the roof top indoor/outdoor seating area, plus there is additional seating on the entrance walkway.

Sun said the Art Gallery design is a composite of 20% European, 60% Chiang Mai and 20% Asian architecture.

NOTE:

When we visited Chiang Mai in November 2003 the Mae Ping Hotel's Beer Garden was an annoyance of noise. Fortunately the Art Gallery so tucked away off the road its not distraction at that location. It is an a noise pollution problem for anyone living or walking in the area and possible hotel guests. The band plays very loud rock music with or without an audience.

MOO - TRAVELERS FRIEND

In our search for an Internet shop near Chiang Mai's Night Market we came upon a shop with a 15 baht per hour rate. While there we met the manager Moo (Treechada Jansawat) who also runs a small travel agent business Travelers Friend. She's very friendly and helpful. Check her out.

Located on 139 Sridonchai Road opposite Suriwong Book Center. It's also near the Art Gallery. Tel: (053) 209-118 - Email: travelersfriend@thai.com:

VOLKSWAGEN BUS REINCARNATED

Just up the street from Chiang Mai's Night Market on Loy Kroi Road a new idea is becoming fashionable. Tourists are drinking at Volkswagen busses converted into mobile bars that park on the street with a setup of stools, chairs and tables. The same was noted in Bangkok outside the Beer Garden on Soi 7.

SARS CERTIFICATE SCAM?

A rebirth of the old health certificate scam is upon us.

A few years ago foreigners crossing into Cambodia were asked for health certificates. If they didn't have one they were asked to pay a 50-100 baht fee before entering the country. That was then but this is now…. a new deal.

A foreigner residing in Phnom Penh reported that when crossing the Had Lek, Thailand to Koh Kong, Cambodia border crossing this month (February) he was asked to pay 50 baht for a certificate that signified he didn't have SARS.

The foreigner was asked questions such as have you coughed in the last two weeks. The foreigner informed the Cambodian immigration officials that he was a resident of Cambodia and was permitted to go through without paying the fee.

ARCHITECTURE TOURS IN PHNOM PENH

We have written in the past that after seeing the Royal Palace and the monuments to death the Toul Sleng Museum and the Killing Fields there is not much to do in Phnom Penh. Now there is a new alternative.

An architecture tour company Khmer Architecture Tours has been organized to show tourists modern buildings that are usually not accessible to the public.

Two tours are planned for the last two weekends of every month. For more information and reservations contact: www.ka-tours.org

PATTAYA EXPATS CLUBS

The Pattaya City Expats Club meets every Sunday at HENRY J BEANS Bar & Grill, at the AMARI ORCHID RESORT, at the north end of Beach Road. A Buffet is available from 9:30 AM. Meetings start at 10:30 AM, and try to finish by 12:00 noon.

American Drew Noyes is the clubs president and MC. The club usually has a guest speaker. In many cases a Thai that has some expertise regarding Thai Laws and business practices.

The Pattaya Expats Club meets a the Green Tree Restaurant, Beach Road next to Soi 1 on Saturdays at 11:30 am. Pete Mills is the clubs founder and president. They feature guest speakers as well.

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