The hunt for cash & Kevins last night
It's Sunday morning. Oh what a night. Who's this? Oh yeah the smiling one from the Cherry Bar. (At this point in time I really did not know her name, I was only able to assume it started with the letter R because of the necklace that she was wearing. How rude of me considering what I've done and am about to do again)
As she dresses, I let her know that I'll be along to the Bar later to pay last nights checkbin and barfine and check that she is okay to be BF'd again tonight. "Yes, is okay".
She leaves around 11:15 and I phone Kevins room. He asks if I had a good night, as I had looked pretty out of it when he'd seen me the night before. "Oh yes! I had a great night. I got totally shitfaced, I barfined the bird that does the arm wrestling and Thai boxing and she is coming back tonight as well. Any idea what her name is? No? Oh well. Went to a club where she danced for me and I have had a great morning so far. Oh yeah and I had my wallet stolen along with my phone and your camera"
After SSS, it's down to reception to meet Kevin & Joy. We go off for breakfast and I'm asked for more detail about the previous night. I explain that Riam told me this morning that some of the girls actually saw the gay guy put the telephone and camera into his pockets, but I guess that they are not my guardian angels and he is a Thai bloke, so they didn't say anything. (Guys, beware! - The only person that will keep an eye out for your stuff is you!) (I shall let Hammer know of course, but I guess everything has been pawned by now and the chances of getting anything back is remote) Anyhow, I've had an evenings drinking, a Barfine and a bird all on tick (What a city!)
Kevin says that the money shouldn't be a big problem; he'll get some out of the bank or draw some on his Barclaycard so that I'll have enough to last the next few days. We check the telephone number for Barclaycard on the back of his card and I use his mobile to get in touch and report my card as stolen. (Why is the number on the card? If it's stolen, you can't look up the number!) I eventually get through after the "Your call is important to us .... Please hold the line". If I am that bloody important, why do you leave me hanging on the line for 15 minutes phoning from Thailand on someone else's mobile phone? (What a bunch of wankers!)
Anyhow, I get the card cancelled and then ask how I go about getting some money transferred out to me urgently. I have 30 baht to my name. I owe about 3500 checkbin to the Cherry Bar, 200 baht for barfine to the Cherry Bar, Between 1500 - 2000 to Riam for tip, I have to pay for my second night accommodation at LK Metropole of 2500 baht, I need to get a taxi to the airport which will be 1200 - 1500 baht and I need the exit fee of 500 baht. In addition, I need to eat, drink and play for the next three nights. So that is 7700 baht plus money for three days that will be another 20000 baht or so if I take things it a bit steadier than I have so far. So I need to get around 30000 baht in total. Barclays tell me that the Customer Services department would not be open until 07:00 GMT which is 14:00 Pattaya time.
We travel up to Big C to find a Bank where Kevin can draw some money to lend to me, but they are a just some sort of regional bank and do not offer this service. Apparently you just go to one of the change places that shows the Visa sign and they can do it. When he tries to do this, he is refused because the bank has declined the transaction. He gets on the phone to Abbey and they are shut until 07:00 GMT . Same same!
We go and sit in a bar on Beach Road (Big Ben) and have a couple of soft drinks until 14:00 comes around. I phone Barclays and get put through to some guy in a call centre in India. As it takes him three attempts to get my name spelt correctly, I have a horrible feeling that this is not going to provide any solution. He asks where I am and when I tell him Pattaya, Thailand he tells me to hold. He asks if I am in the Pattaya hotel in Bangkok. I explain that I am in a resort called Pattaya which is a one and a half hour drive from Bangkok. He puts me on hold again and when he returns he tells me that Barclays have no branches in Thailand. I tell him that I do not care about that, I just want to get some money transferred from my account so that I can live for the next few days. "We cannot help" he says. He advises me to contact a friend in the UK and get them to send money over by Western Union. The only person that I can think of that has money and that I know the number of is my ex wife. You can just picture the conversation…
"Hi, I'm in a bit of fix, my wallet has been stolen and I need someone to send me some money in order that I can pay for my mongering holiday in Pattaya. Can you help? No? Okay; not to worry; I'm sorry to have troubled you early on a Sunday morning. By the way, how are the kids?" I don't think so.
Kevin then contacts Abbey and his card has been put on hold by the fraud team as he had told them he was returning on the 6th. They lift the block and this allows him to draw 20000 baht. He does the same on Barclaycard and checks how much he needs for his last night. A top up of 5000 will do him, so he lends me a total of 35000 baht (I already owe him 20000 baht as well for my half of the hotel bill at the RG). I am solvent again and can afford to pay for Riam tonight as well now
We go back to the hotel and I telephone the dental clinic to apologise for missing my appointment. Based on what I paid on my last visit, I estimate the fillings are going to cost another 6500 baht, so I decide to reschedule and if necessary have a couple of really quiet nights (Yeah right - What a stupid fucking plan that one is).
Kevin rings my room and says that I'd better come down to his room and copy all the pictures from his laptop onto my MP4 player otherwise it will be months before I can get access to them all. Now that IS important, so I go down to his room and get this extremely important task done.
It has gone 4 by now and we both wonder what time the laundry gets delivered back. Kev telephones reception to ask. He then puts the phone down and starts laughing out loud. "When do you reckon?" he asks me. "Soon?" I respond. "Yep!" This place can be so predictable at times.
I go back to my room to SSS and by 5:30 we are ready to hit the town one last time. As we get to reception, the laundry arrives. So we both pay our bills for that and take it back to our rooms. I have a quick change, so that I am 'hansum man' again tonight. It's off on the baht bus to Walking Street and after the usual Kilkenny's meal it's into the FLB Bar for the last time this trip for Kevin.
When Martin arrives, he asks about our day and he seems to be surprised that I appear to have gone completely 'off the rails', but I just laugh it off and tell him that it was 'one of those things' After it had happened, there was nothing I could do and it was my own fault in the first place. He reminds me that he is still holding 12000 baht for the party on January 5 and if I need any additional money, there is no problem with returning that to me. I thank him for the offer and let him know that I'll be in touch if it's required.
We move over to a table and start our last communal checkbin, but hey what is going on? We are already at 7000 baht and we've only had two drinks each. Kevin has paid BF for Joy for the next 17 nights which takes her to the end of the month. She is stopping working and is to return to her home until January when Kevin is going to rent himself a condo for 6 months and she will be able to live there rent free. (This from the guy that had been giving me constant grief about getting too attached.) I let him know that I may be a mate, but I am not springing for half that checkbin! He just laughs and says "It's okay George, this one is all mine" (Does he mean the checkbin?; Joy?; or both?)
I leave the love birds in FLB and head off to Cherry Bar to pay for last nights entertainment. The checkbin is just over 3000 baht, so I settle up and start tonights bin. In goes the BF slip for two nights, so it's another session with Riam tonight. Kev & Joy turned up at some point, but I was too engrossed with Riam to pay much attention. I told Hammer what I had been told about the barman and left it with him to see if anything could be salvaged. I explained that the wallet wasn't important, except for the UK sim card that was in it. The camera did not really matter either, but the telephone had a load of numbers stored on it that I didn't have backed up anywhere (This included Noks number). He said that he'd see what he could do.
Kevin then announces that he's off to the hotel for an early night and he'll see me in January. I tell him to give me a call and I'll see him away from the hotel in the morning. He says he will do that (He doesn't of course; the departure was a tad emotional I believe and it was private between him and Joy.)
If you see the guy on the right of this picture, give him a kiss from me, but if you see the guy on the left of this picture, be very careful and keep an eye on all your property. I cannot prove that it was him that stole my stuff, but why would two BGs from Cherry Bar both say that they saw him put my phone and camera in his pocket if it wasn't true.
Anyhow onto more pleasant matters. I had a great drinking and snogging session with Riam and she walked me back to my hotel. I know that I'm too drunk, but do manage a ‘quickie’ when I awake in the middle of the night. She really is good fun!
Another emotional night in the adults playground city of Pattaya - Aren't they all?
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