Simon's thoughts and movements

Reached Pattaya yesterday, the widely disparaged region of Thailand where the tourism & sex industries are supposed to be at their most shameless. It's true that white folk seem to outnumber Thais in the downtown area (mostly Russians for some reason), but the locals seem more friendly and less blatantly after your money than in Bangkok. Prices are noticably lower than Bangkok for many things, but bargaining down to at least 1/2 the asking price is still considered normal behaviour - and taxi drivers will still attempt to overcharge if you don't agree a price up-front.

Our hotel, the RS Seaside Hotel, is right on the beach at Jomtien (literally a stone's throw) - but it's about the furthest South hotel in the area, and though it's fairly nice (for the price) it's a little too far from everything *except* the beach, so we might move up to Pattaya proper in a day or two.