Four Things We Tell Everyone to Avoid in Bangkok (2.14)

Everyone loves Bangkok and it is indeed a great city. However,
that's not to say everything is worth seeing or doing. For this
show we each come up with two items, places, or pastimes that we
tell visiting friends and family or even expats new to the city of
Angels that they can go ahead and avoid without losing out on
everything that Bangkok has to offer.

(Direct download .mp3)


(Direct download .mp3) Evo's finally back from his three week
trip to America and mostly over his jet lag. At least to record
another episode. Today we're talking about some things we think
it's OK for you to to skip when you visit The Big Mango. Because
there's simply too many things in Bangkok to take in in a single
trip, so you won't have a lack of things to do. First up, Evo
smashes the myth about getting smashed on cheap Thai beer.
Because, shockingly, beer isn't inexpensive here in Thailand.
You'll spend at least a buck -- IN A GROCERY STORE OR 7-11 -- per
beer. That's a little more than you'll spend to buy crappy beer
back in most Western nations. Which isn't cheap! (Though it is
cheap in quality.) Second, Greg commits near sacrilege by
suggesting that there are other historic temples and places to
visit that are not The Grand Palace. Yes, it's a lovely place.
Yes, it's filled with history. Yes, it's akin to Mecca for many
Thais. But it's the giant mob of people -- tourists and Thais --
that sully the experience. If you don't mind standing in the heat
(without umbrellas) for a few hours with a few thousand of your
closest friends, go on with your bad self. Third, Evo suggests
skipping ping-pong shows. It's arguably the worst of the
publically available sexploitation offerings endemic to Bangkok.
They aren't sexy (like, at all). They aren't fun for more than a
handful of seconds. And they are a huge and expensive scam. And
you will be poorer -- in pocketbook and in humanity -- after the
experience. [shudder] Fourth, Bangkok is a hot-spot for
networking events, especially among the expat community. And Greg
hates them. The experience is always the same, which is less
about meeting cool people and more paying to have people shove
business cards in your hand for services you don't want or need.
Granted, some people excel at networking events. But Greg finds
something extra distasteful about the ones he's attended in
Bangkok. We do make special allowances for cool events, like the
Bangkok International Travel Group, Random Thainess, and Pecha
Kucha Bangkok. Hrm. Maybe we should get the people who run those
events on a future episode. Love, Loathe, or Leave?
Exiting Thailand is a chore. Especially at the BKK airport. Why,
oh why, is it so hard to get out of this country? Listen to the
show to find out how Greg and Evo feel about the process (if you
haven't guessed it already.) Want more? Drop us a line over at
bangkokpodcast.com, or leave a review for us on iTunes or Google
Play. You can even Tweet to the show @bangkok podcast or us
personally at @bkkgreg or @evoterra. We'll see you next week on
The Bangkok Podcast!