As mentioned in the prelude, I'm breaking up Pattaya into two different segments. This first part will cover the resort tourism aspect of Thailand's second most-visited city with a solidly eastern perspective.
After getting off the minibus, we took in from Bangkok, Nathalie and I started off towards the hotel. We were looking to take a taxi as it was 4 p.m., and the heat and humidity were at their highest.
Already something felt a bit off about this town as every driver we approached wanted 100-150 THB (3-4 EUR/3.50-4.50 USD) to go 2 Km/1.6 mi down the road. Considering we had paid 130 THB to go from Bangkok to Pattaya, and that none of the drivers wanted to negotiate the rate downwards, we looked up the location of the hotel on our phones and set out on foot as it was only a 20-minute walk from the bus station.
As we approached the hotel, we noticed a distinct change in the signage and shop fronts. Slowly, they changed from the humdrum repetition of hole-in-the-wall restaurants, mini-markets, and textile stores, to a never-ending chain of laundry shops, moped rental stands and travel agencies, along with open-air restaurants boasting best Western and Thai food in town. This wouldn't have been anything worth mentioning except that all of the signs were in Russian. That's right; we had inadvertently booked a hotel room in the heart of Russia's number one winter vacation spot.
Before going any further, I should make it clear that I don't hold anything against the Russian people. I was lucky enough to visit Moscow in 2010, and it was an invaluable experience. Getting to spend a few days on what used to be the other side of the iron curtain taught me a lot of about the world, and I enjoyed my time there thoroughly.
With international politics being what they are, most ordinary Russians don't make it to western Europe in the numbers that Europeans do for sun holidays. Therefore, this was my first time seeing how Russians spend their free time and escape the Arctic freeze that encapsulates most of their country at this time of the year.
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| Russian flag hanging from a window on the top floor |
From when we entered the hotel, we felt just a tiny bit out of place. Not to say that this is the first time we've felt that way; we're two gringos (well one gringo and a Belgian) in Thailand; we stick out most places we go to here. But this was a little bit different. It was as if we've entered into a Russian encampment on the Gulf of Thailand. Case in point; a guest of the hotel decided to fly a Russian flag from the window of their hotel room. I've never seen that before outside of World Cup/Euro Cup season and it made me wonder what type of traveler would pack a flag to take with them on a beach.
After settling into the room, Nathalie and I decided to walk around the town for a bit to see what the rest of the neighborhood looked like and how the main drag shaped out.
As we meandered down a twisting side road too narrow for both cars and pedestrians, we noticed how the large resort hotels were surrounded by homes made out of corrugated steel with open living spaces. I couldn't help but think that these were the dwellings of the housekeepers and servicemen who keep the facilities for the holiday-makers up and running around the clock.
After ten minutes or so on foot, we reached the main boulevard. With a direct shot to the beach and the "largest shore-front shopping mall in Asia," this thoroughfare was packed with people returning from a day out in the sun getting ready for the evening.
As we walked down the street, the Russian impact on the area came into full light with travel agencies run by Russians advertising in Russian abounded. We walked into a market to grab a fresh smoothie (the fruits in this part of the world are incredible, but more on that later), and were promptly handed a menu in Russian. Again, this isn't a problem; my Russian and my Thai are about on the same level, so we just pointed at what we wanted and the kind woman running the stand filled our order.
After spending a quarter hour enjoying our drinks, we started back up the road working our way to the coast. On our route, we passed numerous shops that traded in gold and other precious stones; most of them dressed in the same decor.
I noticed that Russian women were working in local shops and handing out promotional flyers to the pedestrians passing by. Through my first ten days here, I've seen people from all over the world who have moved here to work. Their story is a common one, mainly that they liked Thailand so much that they never left. The appeal seems to work on Russians too.
Upon reaching the beachfront, we headed down the crowded boardwalk. The beach itself was packed as the distance from the waterfront to the boardwalk was only around 50 meters/150 feet. Packed with umbrellas and sun chairs, it reminded me a bit of the Costa del Sol in Spain around the Torremolinos area next to Malaga.
In search of more surprises, we decided to take a look at the shopping mall. The commercial center itself occupies the first eight floors of the imposing Hilton Hotel skyscraper, with fountains inviting you into its multi-level entrances.
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Inside, we were greeted with everything you'd expect in a shopping mall in Thailand: overpriced brand-name stores, a smattering of local outlets and a two-story food court. This one is a bit different as there was a third food court in the basement that catered specifically to the Russian population selling food more popular in Moscow and St. Petersburg than in Southeast Asia.
While we passed on the blinis and borscht, we did take in the atmosphere. Nathalie was immediately reminded of the four months she spent in Moscow, and I was entertained just seeing this faux-Russian culinary slice in southeastern Thailand..
Pattaya is actively working to improve its image (more on that in part two) and attract tourists who will not only travel half-way around the world to see the beach, but will also spend time (and money) outside of the resorts. To that end, the town is in a construction boom and is adding holiday apartment units by the thousands. As most of these appear to be built on speculation, sales offices abound throughout the city with multiple kiosks on each floor of the shopping mall. In the spirit of what we had witnessed so far, they had dedicated stands manned by Russian women targeting an audience that seems to have a great affinity towards this city.
But perhaps equally important, it is a way for them to convert their Rubles into a stable investment and hopefully get a decent return out of it in the long run. To that end, I'm curious to see how developers and city officials are reacting to the Russian currency's recent fall in value.
When we completed our tour, we were thoroughly pumped up on Russia. We decided that it would only be fitting to have a little vodka close out the evening. We went to the grocery store to try and find a small bottle of everyone's favorite potato-based spirit, but to our dismay, the supermarket was entirely out of vodka. It was already after 7 p.m., and most families had gone home for the day. We're guessing the Russians beat us to it and bought out the stock.
In the end, we had a great time and were able to once again learn something that we weren't expecting: how Europe's giant neighbor to the east goes on vacation. Thanks to sanctions, cultural differences and a lack of visa requirement for Russian passport holders, we were able to see yet another part of Thailand that's not mentioned in the guidebooks.
Next up will be part two of Pattaya looking at the more sinister side of the city.
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| Smoothie Menu; in Russian |
After spending a quarter hour enjoying our drinks, we started back up the road working our way to the coast. On our route, we passed numerous shops that traded in gold and other precious stones; most of them dressed in the same decor.
I noticed that Russian women were working in local shops and handing out promotional flyers to the pedestrians passing by. Through my first ten days here, I've seen people from all over the world who have moved here to work. Their story is a common one, mainly that they liked Thailand so much that they never left. The appeal seems to work on Russians too.
Upon reaching the beachfront, we headed down the crowded boardwalk. The beach itself was packed as the distance from the waterfront to the boardwalk was only around 50 meters/150 feet. Packed with umbrellas and sun chairs, it reminded me a bit of the Costa del Sol in Spain around the Torremolinos area next to Malaga.
 |
| A Russian Foodcourt |
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Inside, we were greeted with everything you'd expect in a shopping mall in Thailand: overpriced brand-name stores, a smattering of local outlets and a two-story food court. This one is a bit different as there was a third food court in the basement that catered specifically to the Russian population selling food more popular in Moscow and St. Petersburg than in Southeast Asia.
While we passed on the blinis and borscht, we did take in the atmosphere. Nathalie was immediately reminded of the four months she spent in Moscow, and I was entertained just seeing this faux-Russian culinary slice in southeastern Thailand..
 |
| Real estate kiosk in the shopping mall |
But perhaps equally important, it is a way for them to convert their Rubles into a stable investment and hopefully get a decent return out of it in the long run. To that end, I'm curious to see how developers and city officials are reacting to the Russian currency's recent fall in value.
When we completed our tour, we were thoroughly pumped up on Russia. We decided that it would only be fitting to have a little vodka close out the evening. We went to the grocery store to try and find a small bottle of everyone's favorite potato-based spirit, but to our dismay, the supermarket was entirely out of vodka. It was already after 7 p.m., and most families had gone home for the day. We're guessing the Russians beat us to it and bought out the stock.
In the end, we had a great time and were able to once again learn something that we weren't expecting: how Europe's giant neighbor to the east goes on vacation. Thanks to sanctions, cultural differences and a lack of visa requirement for Russian passport holders, we were able to see yet another part of Thailand that's not mentioned in the guidebooks.
Next up will be part two of Pattaya looking at the more sinister side of the city.
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