Kalboz

From Richard Barrow

Maybe it has something to do with this: https://www.thesun.co.uk/travel/4053...rn-begpackers/

CJKatl

Gazoinks. This thread caused me concern. Thank you to the posters who talked me down from the ledge. But @Kalboz, this post is scaring me again. I often look worse than that when I enter the country, usually having endured 30 hours of travel, and I've got a half dozen or so Thai stamps in my passport, which is only six months old!

And now I'm wondering why these people have never begged from me? Do I look too tough or too poor? The closest I've come is letting two British 22 yo backpackers I met on the plane stop by my room to take showers. They had been and were going to stay in hostels and just wanted a private, nice bath. They are still FB friends. Now that I think about it, this may have been KL and not even BKK.

CrazyInteg

Goodness, wow!

ft101

That's two that you know of. There may be more.

YVR Cockroach

Here's more of the same re: begpackers

When we were in Thailand early last year, my wife and I were surprised to see an older white man begging on a Bangkok sidewalk. We surmised that hi Thai wife must have taken all his money.

bwiadca

You really did not see any of the British or Australian (don't know which ones, but they had accent from one of those places) begging for cash at BKK airport or at Bangkok downtown?
Most of them are crackheads.

YVR Cockroach

Is this becoming common? I honestly can't say I did last time. I will look harder this time.

EmailKid

There are a couple of regulars who compete with poor Thais and dumpster (OK, rubbish bin) dive for plastic bottles and aluminum cans. But these aren't young guys, probably 50 or 60

CJKatl

I go to Bangkok three or four times a year, stay a week or two and haven't seen them either, although I haven't really looked. I was even around Khoasan Rd several times recently and didn't see them.

I just realized it was KL. They sat in my row on the plane from BKK. They rode into town with me in my cab. (Too late to deal with the train, which I ordinarily love.) When we pulled up to the Ren they couldn't believe there were two towers. The guard asked for my name, gushed over me because I was still PP and they thought they were in the presence of a rock star. Knowing I had been UGd to a suite (app showed this) with a view of the Tower, they asked if they could see the room. The one kid's mom actually thanked me on FB for giving them a ride. The next morning, they asked if they could come by to shower, so I hid everything in the safe and let them in. Housekeeping came and cleaned once they left, and, honestly, the entertainment I get from their FB posts made it worth it. Plus they told me about some Websites young people know that people my age don't, most of which I use now.

transpac

I'm not sure any crack-down is related to the "beg-packer" phenomenon?

Beg-packer brood? Photos of foreign woman begging with baby in Bangkok park go viral

Pictures of a farang mother selling photos and asking for donations at Bangkok’s Chatuchak Park went viral online, starting yet another round of debate about foreigners begging in Asia.

https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/beg...park-go-viral/


As these sorts of items have been making the news here forever, probably because these incidents are rare. I can't honestly say I've ever seen such a thing, but have heard about it. Most street beggars are Asian and organized by criminal gangs.



If anything, the "My Mate Nate" coin kerfuffle might be more of an indication that the "authorities" want to cut down on foreign workers without the proper papers. And while he had a Non Imm B visa (evidently), he did not have a work permit, nor was he paying any taxes on his Youtube earnings.



My Mate Nate fined B5,000 in coin case

Police on Wednesday fined online prankster Nathan Bartling, 24, and his friend 5,000 baht each for their stunt of placing coins on rail tracks for trains to run over - and a much higher fine for alleged cruelty to animals may follow.

He has 3.3 million followers on the Google-owned service, and his videos attract up to 10 million viewers each. Viewing a video one time triggers up to 17 adverts - each resulting in a small payment to Mr Bartling. If a viewer clicks on an advertisement, it's a much bigger payoff.

Thai law requires internet-based workers to have a work permit, which he has never had. He said he is seeking a work permit to work at My Mate Nate Studio and expects to get it soon.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/gene...0-in-coin-case

dsquared37

I've seen farang selling photos twice - at Mo Chit BTS and the other, more recently, just north of Big C on Ratchadamri. I've never seen any directly begging nor anything of the sort at BKK.

MSPeconomist

I would guess that the guy was an expat who lost his job, perhaps an English teacher who might or might not have had proper working papers originally. No job and no savings mean no plane ticket home.

Depending on the age, it could also be someone who came to Thailand seeking a cheap and pleasant place with good medical care to live in retirement, but then something didn't work out as planned.

Does anyone know whether credit cards would count for at least part of the required money? I would think that a reservation in a major hotel that takes credit cards would be acceptable as people not staying in really cheap places would tend to pay by credit card and not spend to much cash, nor would it be necessary to carry so much cash on the plane.

Oldtiger

Unfortunately not. Immigration officers on the arrivals desks don’t have access to CC machines so they are unable to tell if the card that is being presented is over its limit.

dsquared37

From what little I've read no, cash on hand.

My guess is these actions are targeting those who've had multiple visas and coming, either overland or by flight, from nearby countries known to be used for visa running.

goodeats21

Richard Barrow's tweet about 8 hours ago. I doubt legitimate tourists have any reason for concern. Visa runners - maybe.