Trip 4 - Day 25

3rd September

Any ideas of a morning lie in are disturbed by first the meter reader and secondly the ladies of #2 & #11, so it's time to 'go shower'.

This week I need to get my 'exit date' resolved as if I don't, I'll need to do a 'visa run' at the end of the week.

We journey out to the immigration office on Soi 5 in Jomtein and after making enquiries at the information desk, I'm directed to speak with a lady at a nearby desk. She looks at my passport and asks me how long I want to stay. I say that I am planning to leave in November and then return for a longer stay. She pulls over a poiece of paper with columns of dates written on it and she writes the date 07 Nov in pencil under my exit date stamp, but then says that it is not possible for the office here to change the date and it will be necessary to visit "Head Office" in Bangkok.

I see little benefit in arguing and simply tell A that tomorrow I will be going to Bangkok to get the matter resolved.

As I needed to be 'out' with my passport today, I've also brought some Traveller's Cheques to exchange so that I can repay the rest of my debt to Kevin (The funding of Trip 3), but after stopping at a couple of places and finding them closed, I realise that it's because they don't open until 10:00 and it's still only 09:20.

As we head back towards Pattaya, A takes a detour and we go to the 'Big Buddha' on the hill. I'm asked if I've been here before and when I say that I haven't, A is quite surprised. We say prayers in the covered area on the right hand side after going up the steps, then prayers at the Big Buddha itself, followed by prayers at the statue that represents the day of your birth. (In my case Saturday and in A's case Monday), then prayers and offering of flowers at the shrine next to the stage where a priest is 'in residence'. We sit in front of him and A offers up a 'monk' bucket with an envelope containing her 'offering'. She repeats his mantra and then as she collects a flask of water and small bowl, she says that I have to be touching her when she pours the water. Once this is done, the priest offers what I think is a blessing and sprinkles the two of us with water shaken from a bunch of twigs.

It's now past 10 o'clock, so we head down to the exchange bureaus next to Mountain Beach Hotel as it's near to Kev's condo and I can simply drop the money into him, but this place is closed, so we head into town and I change my money at a bank on Pattaya Tai.

As A isn't working again today, I am not going to be going out with him for the postponed lunchtime assignation from yesterday, but he needs to have the rest of the two months advance rent sorted out before he moves in the next day, so we head up to the offices of Alan Bolton, where I leave the money for him and send him a text saying what's been done.

Back to the room where we eat a late breakfast that A has bought from a stall in Soi Khao Noi and then she heads off to see #2 where it appears that another 'big cook' is underway and I'm summoned to eat at around 15:00.

There's prawns, squid, 'pig', chicken and 'unidentified' seafood (so small it looked initially as though it was pea gravel being cooked in the pan). Along with stir fried vegetables, it's a veritable feast. After eating I remind A that we have been invited to joing Kevin and Joy at the opening of a place on Soi 73 Sukhumvit that is owned by a guy that Kevin knows from just down the Soi from his current condo. She's not that keen to go, but agrees and I remind her that we are expected at 19:00.

At 18:45, she comes up to get ready. She has to wash her hair (as she has managed to get the ends dunked in the cauldron of green curry that was cooked earlier) and then as we are going out, there's the 'warpaint' application to be done as well.

We join a 'fleet' of scooters leaving at the same time as Tai is heading off to Cherry Bar and Ryan and his lady are heading off to town as well. We arrive 'fashionably late' at Jessie's Place at around 20:15 and find that it's a Thai style buffet sat at a long table in the Soi adjoining the place.

There's a bit of chat, but neither A nor myself are particularly hungry as we've already eaten, but I join in the chat with Kevin and a few of the other ex-pats in attendance. Kev and Joy are planning to leave at 21:00 and A and myself are wondering whether to stay on for another drink when there's a 'domestic' between the owner and his Thai wife and our decision is very quickly made.

We are leaving as well!

But where to go? A says that she doesn't want to go to Cherry Bar or FLB Bar, so I say that it is 'up to her', but she's not letting me get away with it that simply. "Is not up to me, is up to you where we go. Is money you" I then suggest Goanna Bar on Soi Dianna as this would be her first visit back there since my return. She agrees and Kev says that himself and Joy will also join us for a couple there, so we all make a hasty escape from the scene of domestic 'non-bliss'

At Goanna Bar, A is made welcome by the few girls there. In fact, the whole complex is pretty quiet and there are very few customers anywhere and the four of us at Goanna actually make it one of the busier places. We play the dice game and Connect 4 with myself and Kevin both getting beat and having to pay our respective girls a few 20 baht notes.

Kevin & Joy leave for Joy to go off to a disco and Kevin to accompany MM on a visit to a couple of GoGo's. He asks if I want to join him, but I decline as I have said that when A is about, I intend to spend time with her. I hadn't realised that it would be a commodity that would be rationed to such a degree, but at least it stops us getting bored with each other I guess.

A then plays dominoes with one of her friends and she's laughing and smiling which is great to see. She 'pushes the boat out' and even has a couple of Malibu's. The pile of 10 baht coins rises and falls as luck favours first A then her friend. By 00:15, A decides that she has had enough to drink and asks if I am ready to go. When I say that I am, we call for checkbin which is 600 baht including a tip.

Expenditure :

Rent for September : 2500 baht
Utils for August : 538 baht (4 water @ 20; 64 electric @ 7; TV (?) @ 10)
Goanna Bar : 600 baht