however at last the bangkok chronicles now this complete
series is all coming out of here ad-lib adding some stuff behind me on
the green screen to try and get you through this story
now what is the bangkok chronicles back in the end of 2002
I left my bar job as a manager in Pattaya in Thailand and I decided I was
going to go to Bangkok and stay in Bangkok for a while as it turned out it
was going to be for two years dating my wife getting married and then the move
to the UK but it's gonna be a story and information for you about this two-year
period when I left as hair I add in the bank in Thailand $3,000 American dollars
equivalent at another forty thirty five thousand bars in cash in my pocket so
right at the beginning I'd said my goodbyes to everyone in the bar the boss
and everyone and it was a Sunday evening I said goodbye we had a bit of a party
but I didn't get drunk on the Monday morning early I arranged a
taxi that I just home the guy in SOI 7 couple days before that taxi driver was
cool P and I still use him to this day some 15 years on and he similar age to
me so he's in his 50s name good sensible driver when you can find taxi driver
that doesn't drive fast and can speak a bit of English or your native tongue get
their number so I'd arranged please pick me up on the Monday morning about 9:00
in the morning secondly boys night before but handed
the keys over boss Gaming said I go boys and I jumped in the taxi and to
rucksacks all I had after two years in the bar scene to rucksacks full of
clothes cutting other bits and pieces and I had a laptop that was probably two
and a half years old but it's still ok it was adequate back then I think it was
got my boys version of Windows but it was adequate you could get on the
internet with it tempting the taxi instructions Bangkok where I had no idea
my plan was to find a condo apartment I been to Bangkok a few times in the
previous two years and I wanted to be somewhere near platinum markets the
clothing wholesale market was pretty central not far from anywhere and there
were lots of back streets in the preston Ameria and i'd seen lots of condos on
line but hard to work out prices in these sweet taxi up to Bangkok Erin half
whatever it was there and I'd instructed P that I wanted to try and find the
condo now I didn't want to spend the exchange rate back then was seventy five
bar to the payment so I was looking at ten thousand baht a month is what I
wanted to pay in today's rates you can pretty much double that I would suggest
for the same as I got back there maybe maybe not so much as double but almost
double we arrived in Bangkok and I said Preston
an area he took me to a few streets back the main road in Pratt sanam area was
Pecha berry Road and panted Plaza was a computer center but we'll get on to that
in another episode I want to be somewhere near there anyway he took me
about four or five roads back from every road to a condo and it was one of the
centerpoint group I got out the car popped in and in though back then they
wanted eighteen a half thousand bars I think it was 450 square meters of
conduct had pulled Jim all sorts secured but it was just too much money I didn't
want to pay that I was coming out and explaining to P that I wanted something
half that price and I wanted to be nearer to counted it was
very lucky because he he was a bangkok taxi driver he rented his taxi everyday
and he knew Bangkok inside-out and as soon as I said I wanted half the price
lucky for me he took me to saw a sit gag which was so 19 and so he sipped Jet Li
17 petchaburi Road right in the heart of the Platinum market area he took me in
17 and at the end a little alleyway underneath a bit of a complex was tight
little alleyway and there's a lot of tight alleyways for cars inside Brandon
Allen took me through that alleyway and came up next to a doorway was a bit lost
at this point and parks car that's it it's coming in
with me so we went in through downstairs was reserved shops but actually shots
and packing areas there were lots of companies there export companies who had
a shop and they were shipping goods all over the world we've walked through a
few of these shops and there was an office at the back and we went in those
pointed me into this girl I asked about the condos and
the complex was called the Judas Towers I think it was Ju D is you know CLE
upwards man up here boy the Judas Towers there was something
like 10 floors well above us the first few floors were carpark for the above
these shops and then condos and she looked after the first three floors and
the price you came back was 10 days above there's a swimming pool there
above the car box which was you had to pay for and her room was a 35 square
metre room 10 days and by the month she took me up so the second floor I think
it was and it was okay it was it was fine I came back down compete driver
pulled me to one side said don't fix now take you somewhere else anyway so again
having the taxi driver knew the areas and he drops off and picked off a
picture but these places all the time he then took me background by the car
through another door and into a lift up to the 8th floor and these condos
certain floors were rented out to certain companies and different
companies had a few of these floors that they rented out the rooms and the eighth
floor he took me into this room office and because guy there I think is called
song shy he explained what I wanted and then he spoke English as well he said he
had some again 35 square metre room and it was exactly the same as the ones
downstairs
popped in showed me a couple all the same now they came with a double bed a
dressing table desk with a mirror coffee table a couple of seats Ettie bathroom
bar and his head bath and shower once downstairs only her shell a bit of a
kitchenette area but there was a balcony with a plastic table and chairs on that
and there's a reasonable sized balcony looking down it was the side that was
looking straight down to the swimming pool
big heart bought half Olympic sized swimming pool below me and in front was
the Platinum market beautiful views his prices he asked me what I wanted it had
air conditioning it had internet basic a plug on the wall socket and we did a
deal he says for how long three months six months or a year now at this point I
didn't know how long as I was going to stay so I said to him three months but
possibly a year possibly more didn't have the plans so he give me a deal and
eight and a half thousand parts or ten thousand bars including all the bills
the aircon water electric the Internet lined would be registered to him and it
would give me the basic internet package all included ten days environment if I
decided to stay for a year he'd drop it to nine thousand eggs perfect fell lucky
so I agreed ten thousand vitamin which then at seventy five bytes of the pound
was my calculations that was below was it 25 pounds a month
yes it was pennies I was very happy and peered sorted me out he'd got me just
where I wanted to go paid him off he went and I had my condo to rucksacks
clothes there were no plates cups kettles and I chatted to this Somchai
guy people had been there and gone and left stuff he gave me everything
lovely guy fell on my feet kettle cutlery plates even gave me a microwave
Barry everything I think he gave me towels as well thinking back but there
was an arrived in Bangkok and in the Judas Tower it was coming up for
Christmas I was single little bit of money in the bank with a grand plan of
trying to survive in Bangkok for as long as I could without having to face that
journey going back to the UK to reality now these Bangkok chronicles are going
to be from here on how I survived in Bangkok as I said and how over the two
years I managed to legally stay with visas how I made some money and made a
living in Bangkok he who he this different ways of looking at it but yeah
you can do it there are ways but it all goes down to where the money is coming
from and going to of staying on the right side of the law and in future
videos of this a lot of the time I was buying and selling and exporting a bit
of importing huge counterfeit market with copy items black 15 years ago
nowadays a lot less you would have to search around for some of the items
nowadays but again it was still frowned upon many chains fit goods and I didn't
want to get into that market so that's the introduction
that's me landed in Bangkok in a condo episode 1 bangkok chronicles done let's
see how this goes I don't know how many episode this is going to big but I'll
try and give you with the use of this green screen information of where I was
finding stuff where I was buying it Maps the areas how I got around Bangkok tips
and tricks and all the things I saw hopefully some of the information on
this series will maybe inspire you maybe help you maybe help you save a few
pennies maybe help you get around Bangkok in the rush hours so tuning in
to the next one hit the subscribe button if you're not subscribed and if you are
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any questions or comments below see you on the next episode bye