The forum rumour mill has calmed down a little this week as the keyboard cops returned to their corners and the shooting story got brushed under the virtual carpet. This doesn’t mean that anyone of the moderators and staff at HHAD has forgotten about the suffering that Don and Dolly are still enduring. The hope is that the real mastermind behind this attempted murder in Hua Hin is apprehended without further delay. Since the arrests it has all gone quiet and many are still left wondering and, of course, blaming and accusing.
More rants were aired about the lack of English soundtrack movies at the Hua Hin Market Village Cineplex. It seems like the MV management have no interest or inclination in catering to non-Thai customers, the marketing department has already been contacted by several people from the forum and, without surprise, has refused to reply to any of them. It does seem rather perplexing that a cinema in a tourist town doesn’t even have one theatre showing soundtrack movies when Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket and Samui have no problems with them or farang customers.
The plight of the Rohingya refugees has received a lot of attention on the forum as well as elsewhere around the globe. Naturally the Thai army are playing the denial game, the press are in a frenzy, and Angelina Jolie is doing the Mother Theresa bit. It remains a hot topic and another on the ever growing list of stories that are putting Thailand in a bad light in the eyes of the world, the government will soon need a dedicated PR ministry.
A large tourism budget has been approved by the government this week but it looks like instead of the sensible option, spending it on encouraging foreigners to come here or those here to stay, it will probably go on a bunch of flashy commercials to “re-educate” the western media about how great Thailand is!
Exchange rates are always a hot topic and this week has been no different with Sterling hovering around 50 and the European currencies not a lot better. The cost of living in Hua Hin has been discussed with a few different budgets to play with. It was concluded that if you don’t go out drinking, don’t dabble with the local maidens, don’t play golf, don’t eat in tourist restaurants and don’t rent a nice house downtown you can survive quite comfortably here on a modest budget … but you can also do the same in the Bahamas so what’s the point!
With costs creeping up many are seeking to move on from the expense of Hua Hin to more wallet-friendly destinations in Thailand. Issan topped the list as many have ties (or should we say Thais) up there and are seeking a relocation to stretch those satangs. In line with the above if you don’t actually indulge in anything and quite fancy lying in a hammock all day watching rice grow you can pretty much settle anywhere on a budget, we heard the exchange rate in Zimbabwe is quite good at the moment!