Month: January 2006

Taxis at Bangkok Airport

My mom asked me how to catch a cab at Bangkok International Airport and I am reprinting my advice here.
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The best way to catch a taxi from BKK airport is to go up to the Departures level (second floor) and catch one that’s dropping off somebody or is driving by.
The second best way is to go to the taxi stand out on the curb on the Arrivals level (first floor) and get a slip of paper that ensures you will get a metered taxi (although I haven’t seen an unmetered taxi for years). It will automatically cost 50 baht more to do this, and even though that’s not very much money, the taxis on the Arrival level are notoriously old and dirty (this makes a huge impact when the A/C is cranked and the windows are rolled up the whole time).
The absolute worst thing to do is to agree on a fare inside the airport. Some cabbies will try to help you with your bags to try and get you in their cabs, especially if you look like a noob, but refuse them. They charge up to ten times the normal fare, which is still under twenty bucks, but still….
There is a map of the airport here: Bangkok International Airport

Details: Boat charter

Just got an e-mail back from Barry, who I’ve been talking to about the boat charter:

Our normal trip leaves our pontoon at 9 a.m. and returns around 5 – 5.30
p.m. – however, as you will be chartering the boat for your group only, we
can be flexible on this at either end.
We normally catch snapper, seabass, catfish, sweetlip. The fish are not all
that big because we won’t be that far off the coast and the water is still
fairly shallow. The boat was out last Sunday and they caught over 80 fish
with the biggest (a snapper) just over 12 inches long.
There’s plenty of discovering to do – we take out semirigid with us to ferry
passengers to beaches. There’s one small island, for example, that is
inhabited only by (timid) monkeys, and passengers enjoy feeding them
bananas.
The area of Kao Sam Roi Yod is a protected marine national park, so it’t
pristine in Thai terms.
There’t no great snorkelling around here, though around Monkey Island is ok
if the sea is very calm.
We have a very well stocked bar on the boat, including all the popular
beers, spirits and some cocktails. Our prices are the same as normal bar
prices in Hua Hin, i.e. not the normal over-inflated prices you normally
find on boats, etc.
We can provide whatever catering you want, e.g. a mixed Thai buffet, a
top-range buffet of western food or just about anything else. If you could
give an idea of what you want, I’ll price and send you the details and you
can then decide.
Our marina for boarding the boat is in Pak Nam Pran, just over 20 km south
of Hua Hin.
It only takes 20 minutes from Hua Hin and is a pleasant drive, the last half
through hilly pineapple plantations.
We have a pick-up taxi that can transport 10 and can organise an additional
similar vehicle.
The return trip for both vehicles together would be B 1200, i.e. B 60 per
head for 20 people.
There is accommodation near us but tends to be more expensive than in Hua
Hin and there is no nightlife in Pak Nam Pran.
If you want us to check out accommodation for you in Hua Hin, again just
give me the details, how many double/single rooms, price range etc. and
we’ll ask around for you.

So now let’s examine some of what he has written. First off, I believe he said the magic word: MONKEYS! And MONKEY ISLAND! No explanation necessary, the addition of monkeys is just a lovely bonus… I may have just found the first volunteers for my future simian army (recruiting line: “Travel to exotic places, meet wonderful people, and FLING POO AT THEM!”).

This is a sweetlip. According to other sites, they are prime for eating.
“semirigid” = Zodiac w/outboard
I’m going to ask for the catering. What kind of spread do we want? Maybe they can prepare some of the fish we catch on board to supplement whatever we order. Decisions, decisions.
Regarding the 60 Baht per person (assuming 20 pax) we were quoted for the taxi ride, 2 taxis, 40 km/40 mins. both ways: That’s a DOLLAR AND FIFTY CENTS. How you like them apples? I love Thailand.
For some reason, Hua Hin is reminding me of Lanai, although I might not have ever even been there. Must be the pineapple plantations.
Need I mention that I’m REALLY REALLY EXCITED about this?
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You know what? I might not be able to tip these guys well enough!

Chuck Norris is the Sound of One Hand Clapping

An announcement on his site (LINK):

IN RESPONSE TO THE “RANDOM FACTS” THAT ARE BEING GENERATED ON THE INTERNET
I’m aware of the made up declarations about me that have recently begun to appear on the Internet and in emails as “Chuck Norris facts.” I’ve seen some of them. Some are funny. Some are pretty far out. Being more a student of the Wild West than the wild world of the Internet, I’m not quite sure what to make of it. It’s quite surprising. I do know that boys will be boys, and I neither take offense nor take these things too seriously. Who knows, maybe these made up one-liners will prompt young people to seek out the real facts as found in my recent autobiographical book, “Against All Odds?” They may even be interested enough to check out my novels set in the Old West, “The Justice Riders,” released this month. I’m very proud of these literary efforts.
– Chuck Norris

In case you haven’t seen the list of random facts in question, Tom has a comprehensive one up on his blog.
“The chief export of Chuck Norris is pain.” Heh. The second is porn moustaches.

How many things can we rent?

On my very first trip to Thailand, I rented a Jeep, a speedboat, a dirtbike, and a SPAS-12, so it only follows that we must try and do one better this time around.
Well, with a real live elephant who apparently likes to dance to drums reserved and ready to carry my fat ass into holy matrimony, it is time to turn my attention to another area: The big blue. And no, this is not to say I am investing in a ChinkPad.
I am thinking of chartering a 70-foot boat for a day-long fishing/diving cruise: Check it out!
The naked mermaid graphic on that page shows some real class, I tell you. It looks like for the amount of people that will be coming along, the breakdown will be about 3,000 to 4,000 yen per person ($30 – $40). Sound cool?
UPDATE: I’ve been asked to provide more details. I have sent an e-mail to the company requesting a private charter of the Peacock on 2/21 for a full day of fishing/diving for 15 to 20 people. Have not yet received a reply, but will update here and on the AirSet site when I do.

Admitting Change

I backed down from a fight in the parking lot this morning.
The funny thing is, I would have been completely morally justified in beating the shit out of this guy. He almost caused two school kids to get run over, and took displeasure in me calling him on it – and so he waited for me at the entrance of the parking lot, where he knew I had to walk to get to work.
He was talking tough and really trying to provoke a response. When that didn’t work and I walked right by him, he grabbed my jacket sleeve and tugged me back. And on top of it all, he was making a big show of half-pulling some kind of weapon from his jacket pocket – the classic mark of someone who is definitely not serious about using it. So yes, I was justified. I came pretty goddamn close to throwing an elbow at his throat; he was right up in my face with both hands occupied – one holding my lapel and the other in his pocket.
And yet, I let it slide. I backed down. We exchanged some harsh words, but the fact is, I consciously backed down. This is the second time I’ve been in a situation like this in two years, and the second time I’ve backed down.
It is not easy for me to back down. It really rubs me the wrong way; if this time is anything like last time, I won’t be able to sleep tonight because there was no release. Those feelings are like a poison inside me. They gnaw at my guts and make me tremble. And I knew it would end up like this, and I still chose to back down.
The thing is, Never Backing Down was a way of life for me for the longest time. It was an ideal way of life when I felt I had nothing to lose – so simple, so samurai. The thing is, though, even samurai realized they were fucked if they ever tried to live the warrior life only part of the time. In the book of Hidden Leaves, it states that a warrior must accept death on a daily basis. He must be ready to die at any time, and only then can he overcone his enemies. It basically said, you can be either a warrior, or be something else, but not both at the same time. Because deluding yourself into thinking you can do both is what will get you killed for sure.
And so I guess what I’m trying to say is, I have too much to lose now to indulge in unnecessary fighting. Which for someone, who for some reason runs into as many confrontations as I do, basically means that I will have to back down from fights if at all possible, even if it is hard to swallow afterwards.
Having too much to lose is a good thing, and I know I did the right thing, but it sure doesn’t help with this incredible frustration I feel right now…
Hurry, someone call me a pussy so I can kick your ass.

In the red corner, the 600lb. gorilla known as Digital

So much for all the camera snobs saying digital cameras would never catch up to film. Nikon is throwing in the cellulose towel.
The title “Nikon prepares to strengthen digital line-up for 2006” is almost ironic. This is somehow sad news, even though I was the earliest convert to digital I knew. Even before then, my idea of a fun camera was a thirty year old Asahi Pentax. Spending money on developing black and white film in Japan has always sucked major balls. None of the preceding sentences were really linked, and yet this is a paragraph.
Goodbye, film.
Interesting fact: My company owns the term, “dejicame.” Pretty cool.
(via Jim O’Connell on the Japan Photography Mailing List)

War Wagons

There’s a couple of automobile-related posts worth your time today.
M1114 Humvees are a thing of beauty to U.S. troops in Iraq
A Car and Driver correspondent runs missions with the 3rd Infantry Division in Baghdad, dodging IEDs and illustrating a different aspect of everyday life over there, as well as timing 0-60 and quarter mile runs in fully-armored military Humvees. Bonus: Story about a 105mm suppository. That donkey story has to be an urban myth, what kind of shithead wires his own cellphone to a bomb?
And transportation advice on a different kind of battlefield:
Traveling In Bangkok….By Bus!
I love traveling by bus in foreign countries, and Thailand is no exception. You can ride round and round the city for pennies a day, and it’s been my experience that local respect you for having the nads to ride the bus. One old lady was so impressed the first time T and I rode the bus, she gave us a bag full of deep fried grubs she was selling… We MUNCHED on those things, and POW, even though they were fairly disgusting, we are talking INSTANT MEMORABLE DINING EXPERIENCE IN FARAWAY LAND.