The bar situation in Chiang Mai

It's the hot season now, and many Northern Thai farmers plant little or nothing -- so the sons have to head into the city and find work. The result is a very large number of young guys working as bar hosts.

At the same time, all of the farang tourists have gone home, and so now the customers are almost entirely Thai -- and they come mostly to watch the show.

The result? A really nice guy, probably the major star at one Chiang Mai bar, showed up two days ago, desperate to borrow the rent money. As he left, he said sincerely: "Thanks a million. I won't have to sleep in the temple tonight!" He had not gone off even once in three weeks! Another boy from a major bar reported that the previous night NOBODY had gone off. And one other guy ("Service With a Smile") was seriously concerned that he had NO customers.

This is a seasonal thing. Every year, the same old problems!

Is it different in other parts of Thailand? In central Thailand, for example, I have often heard that the farmers grow three crops a year and are prosperous as a result.

[Bob]

In Thailand, excepting only a handful of corporate-type farmers, the words "farmer" and "prosperous" (at least if you mean "monetarily") probably aren't often in the same sentence.

There are many rice farmers in Chiangmai province who grow two rice crops a year (I know, I've asked and seen them do so) but I wouldn't call any of them prosperous (monetarily). Some, however, have very prosperous lives - close relationships with family and fellow villagers, good relations with the local monks, and enjoy and value the day-to-day happenings without the need for atm's, cellphones, dvd's, and other absolute necessities of life. Sometimes I'm not sure who's really better off, us "wealthy" falang or them.

Sometimes I'm not sure who's really better off, us "wealthy" falang or them.

Bob, I have sat in the village at the end of the day, friends and family all around, joking, talking, fooling around, a bottle of lao kao being passed around, everyone laughing and the same thought has passed my mind. I think they are much richer than me.

[Smiles]

" ... Is it different in other parts of Thailand? In central Thailand, for example, I have often heard that the farmers grow three crops a year and are prosperous as a result ... "
Rice farms in the Chao Phraya River valley can get 2 or 3 rice crops a season, and those who own them would probably be considered 'prosperous' by the rice farmers of north east Thailand who can only get one crop per season, mainly due to the general lack of an extensive irrigation system.

One of the reasons that Mr Samak gets great support from Isaan is that he has just recently (and once again) floated the concept of diverting water from the Mekong and irrigating all of Isaan.
For various reasons this idea has been shot down over the years, but Mr Samak just keeps on sweet-mouthing the desperate rice farmers from the dry and dusty north east.

Cheers ...

All of the bars in Chiang Mai are at best terrible, yes the boys are toiling for money there are no customers, whilst I'm sure the place is FULL for that dreadful water festival thing tourism to Chiang Mai is drastically down this year that's according to government statistics recently published in the Bangkok Post.

...Is it different in other parts of Thailand? In central Thailand, for example, I have often heard that the farmers grow three crops a year and are prosperous as a result.

The "3 crops" depends entirely on the available water resources. And the "available water resources" depends on the investment in the canal infrastructure in the area. As one flies into Bangkok I'm sure everyone has noticed the vast checkerboard of canals and rectangular farms that streach for miles in every direction. Much of that infrastructure was built by Chulalongkorn and the lands passed out to the elite of Thai society. Farther away from Bangkok the infrastructure is less developed and the farms smaller. Look at Isaan in Google-Maps and you'll hardly see any canals at all and most of the farms small and irregular shaped.

Boyfriend's family lives in Chainat province which is the northern part of the Central Plains. The nearest canal is about 2 miles away so don't have irrigated land. They are on the "one crop a year" plan and are as dirt poor as any Isaan farmer.