Playing tricks on Thai guys

[bucknaway]

Seems some people are playing some nasty tricks on the Thai guys. First it was Pattaya. After hanging out with a guy for a while, he pulled out a South Korean note with a value of 5000 asking what it was worth in Thai baht. I fired up my iPhone and looked it up and found it was valued at about 150 baht. Immediately you could see the guys face show sadness, embarrassment and sorrow. He told me he was given the money as a tip. He asked me to check again and wanted to know if I was sure. I assured him I did everything right and suggested he go to an exchange booth and ask advice. We went to the Exchange booth and he came away even more down depressed then when he first learned the low value of the note.

At another time in Pattaya a guy showed me a US note valued at $10,000. He wanted to know if it was valuable. I looked at it and told him it was fake. The same thing happened in Bangkok. A guy showed me another $10,000 USD note and I had to tell him it was fake. He didn't want to take my word for it even when I showed him the word non-negotiable on it and then use my English to Thai translation app to translate it for him. He just carefully folded it back up and put it in a secure area back in his wallet.

I don't know what people are thinking when they give the guys fake money but it is only hurting feeling and making them feel hurt and silly.

[scottish-guy]

Some guys treat the boys even worse than that Bucky - I heard a story from one boy (whom I know and whom I believe) to the effect that he had spent almost 2 weeks in the company of a farang he already knew, accepting just small daily tips for food, motorbike taxi, etc with the promise that he'd be paid the remainder plus a handsome bonus at the end of the guy's trip.

Well, you know what's coming don't you? Two days before the farang was due to return home, the boy went to the hotel as normal - only to discover that the guy had checked out early that morning. He asked at reception if the guy had checked out unexpectedly for any reason but was told that had been the check- out date from the start.

[Shuee]

its a 2way street after all like when you off a boy who promises you he takes it only to found out later he never has & never would

[scottish-guy]

That's a valid complaint but not a valid comparison with the situation I described (IMHO)

In the scenario you put forward the worst possible outcome is that you lose what - 2000B - which to most of us is a trifling amount we can well afford to write off, however annoyed we might be.

A boy bring duped out of almost 2 weeks "earnings" is a much bigger deal altogether

[bucknaway]

I think it is a dirty, rotten trick to play on someone. I can't even imagine the type of personality a person has to have to become so underhanded.

[arsenal]

It's not a trick Bucknaway. It's fraud, clear and simple.

[Oliver]

There have been plenty of posts on this board encouraging the notion that "getting away with paying Thais as little as possible" is great fun....even sexually stimulating.

[githailand]

There's a big difference here, however. While I do not condone 'paying Thai boys as little as possible', I understand what you are saying about some members who boast about being able to do so. Up to them. The big difference - however - is that they claim to always tell the boy ahead of time how much they will get paid. It is a 'take it or leave it offer'. If the boy takes the offer - then again, that is up to them. What is being talked about on this thread, however, is outright lying to a boy - what's worse, playing with their emotions. To promise them one thing, and then fail to deliver payment is just plain wrong. It is not equated, however, to being 'cheap charlie', however, because at least the cheap Charlie admits up front he is stingy and cheap.

Cheers


There have been plenty of posts on this board encouraging the notion that "getting away with paying Thais as little as possible" is great fun....even sexually stimulating.

[Bobett]

The Cunts who do this are dispicable and should be careful if they plan on ever coming back to Pattaya. Pattaya is quite a small city and Thais have long memories and will take their revenge.

How some tourists can even think of doing things like this is beyond me. Im an athiest but if Im wrong they will sufer the Karma of their acts. I belive what goes round comes round. The boys may be hookers but they still deserve respect. If the boys performance is not as promised just pay them with a smile and dont take them again. I first came here in 1983 and in all that time Iv never had any boy (there must have been 100s Iv lost count) that I had want to beat me up or bad mouth me to his friends. We should treat everyone how we want to be treated ourselves.Even if we get ripped off now and again.

Fuck me Im starting to sound like a preacher and me an athiest. ill shut up now. :)

[scottish-guy]

I'm an athiest too, Bobbett - but that's the kind of preaching I'd listen to.

:ymparty:

[lego]

I don't know what people are thinking when they give the guys fake money but it is only hurting feeling and making them feel hurt and silly.
You don't seriously believe that any Thai boy who gets a 10,000 USD bill and assumes it's genuine would keep it in his wallet, do you? You don't often see poor people carrying around the equivalent of 300,000 baht in cash, and it's also very likely that they'd have many ideas what to spend it for in case such a windfall ever occurred. So maybe you were the one being plaid there.

The other story with the Korean money sounds much more credible. I could see that happen, accepting that in good faith assuming it's worth more than a lousy 150 baht.

[LoveThailand]

When an off does not/will not perform what was agreed - one has an option to pay less than the agreed amount. This is not a nice situation, but even under such circumstances I'd not do it, probably.
To cheat a boy out of his fee is despicable. I hope it does not happen often - but then even scum that does such acts will be highly unlikely to brag about them.
Will try to find out more from boys during my next visit.

[TravellerDave]

Last year I helped a boy who thought he had been scammed, but in fact this was not the case. He had been given 60 UK Pounds as a leaving tip, but when he tried to convert into baht the notes were not accepted as they were the Scottish variety. Even in England these sometimes cause difficulties, despite them being legal, and outside the UK they can be hard to change.
I was going back back to England so gave him 60 standard English notes in exchange, which he converted.

[egel]

Bucky
Are you sure these guys (and there was more than one) were not trying to scam you? Looking for some sympathy and money?
After all the Thais are of Olmypic standards with regard to scams.
Just wondering...

[bucknaway]

Bucky
Are you sure these guys (and there was more than one) were not trying to scam you? Looking for some sympathy and money?
After all the Thais are of Olmypic standards with regard to scams.
Just wondering...


I'm not sure... None of the guys were being paid or tipped by me. I think they felt comfortable enough to take a chance and ask me for advice. I think they were hoping with all their heart that they held something of value and that is why they kept it in their wallet. Just because a foreign guy says its no good... Would I trust a thai guy looking at a 1000 baht thai note in my wallet and telling me it is no good, would I throw it out?

I may be a soft touch but I am not an easy touch :)

[christianpfc]

On the other hand, some years ago a Thai friend proudly showed me a 100 Euro note (worth 4000 Baht at that time), and checked the exchange rate on every booth we walked past.

I say this is Thailand, pay in Thai Baht!

[a447]

I was going back back to England so gave him 60 standard English notes in exchange, which he converted.

Nice one, Travellerdave.

That reminds me, I was at the end of one if my trips a few years ago. I'd come from Jaoan and had just about run out of baht and didn't want to withdraw more from the ATM. So I took some Japanese yen and changed it into baht and handed it to the guy. But it did cross my mind just to hand over the yen, but I'm glad I didn't.

I agree with Christian,; when in Thailand give the guys baht, not foreign currency.

[githailand]

If I might add something here. As a 'special tip', consider giving foreign currency on top of the normal baht payment - even the currency amounts to nothing. My boyfriend has informed me on more than one occasion that Thai's love to just have foreign currency as a souvenir. So few are fortunate enough to be able to travel outside of the country, so this gives them a bit of that 'status' they all seem to craze. Just a thought -




I was going back back to England so gave him 60 standard English notes in exchange, which he converted.

Nice one, Travellerdave.

That reminds me, I was at the end of one if my trips a few years ago. I'd come from Jaoan and had just about run out of baht and didn't want to withdraw more from the ATM. So I took some Japanese yen and changed it into baht and handed it to the guy. But it did cross my mind just to hand over the yen, but I'm glad I didn't.

I agree with Christian,; when in Thailand give the guys baht, not foreign currency.

[Butterball_Bruce]

You don't seriously believe that any Thai boy who gets a 10,000 USD bill and assumes it's genuine would keep it in his wallet, do you? You don't often see poor people carrying around the equivalent of 300,000 baht in cash, and it's also very likely that they'd have many ideas what to spend it for in case such a windfall ever occurred. So maybe you were the one being plaid there.

You don't see rich people carrying that amount on themselves! The Thai guy probably thought bucknaway was a sucker and would give him 1,000Bht out of sympathy.

[Mancs]

a newish US dollar bill is appreciated by men from the surrounding countries, if they are doing visa runs every 30 days

[scottish-guy]

Githailand is correct - I'm sure many of us have, in the past, experienced the desire of a boy to exchange a nominal amount of currency as a keepsake. I thought it was one of those endearing things that had died out - like packing/unpacking your bags and tidying up the room. Nowadays it's more like the Alisha Dixon song "The Boy Does Nothing" :ymparty: