Parking Motobikes and the Sunee Persian Bar

[Guest Astrrro]

Last night a friend parked his motobike in front of the Persian bar in Sunee Plaza. A Middle Easterner connected with the bar told him to move the bike.

 

Now if the guy had said, "Would you do me a favor and park down the soi because I need these spots for my customers" I'm sure my friend would have moved.

 

And if it were a Thai business my friend would have said mai bpen rai and moved.

 

But my friend wouldn't move and the Persian called two friends over and tried to intimidate my buddy. My friend said, "if i'm not supposed to park here then call the cops".

 

Eventually the Persians backed down and my mate's bike wasn't vandalized.

 

What are the rules for parking motobikes on Sunee Sois?

 

Btw-I think Sunee will be a straight Middle Eastern area in 5-10 years.

[Gaybutton]

What are the rules for parking motobikes on Sunee Sois?

Rules? In Pattaya? Surely you jest. I don't blame your friend for refusing to tolerate an arrogant attitude, but he was risking coming out of wherever he was going and finding his bike vandalized. He was lucky.

 

For whatever reasons, many businesses don't want people parking unless they are going to patronize their own business. Unless parking somehow blocks access, I've never understood what the problem is, but that's the way it is.

 

As far as rules go, it is probably best to park where you see other motorbikes parked. If there is a curb, then parking is fair game provided the curb has no striped markings, especially the red and white stripes. The police will leave a ticket and lock up the motorbike and then you have to go to the police station to pay the fine. A major pain-in-the-ass.

 

I am so accustomed to the parking objections that I don't pay attention anymore. To me, arrogant or not, if someone comes out to object to my parking I just move on and find somewhere else to park. To me it's not a battle worth fighting because then I have to spend my time worrying about coming back later and finding my car vandalized, my tires slashed, or even the possibility of being attacked. Those kinds of things do happen, so I don't make an issue of it. I just park somewhere else and then I don't have to worry.

[Guest gay_grampa]

Maybe the Persian should have said please but I consider that your friend is in the wrong.

 

It is a simple matter of consideration for others and common courtesy not to park in front of someone else's business premises especially if you do not intend to patronize that bar.

[Guest mauRICE]

It is a simple matter of consideration for others and common courtesy not to park in front of someone else's business premises especially if you do not intend to patronize that bar.

 

Exactly.

 

Now if the guy had said, "Would you do me a favor and park down the soi because I need these spots for my customers" I'm sure my friend would have moved.

 

Assuming that the guy had the English skills to do it, then perhaps he could have put it like that. But that would have required a fairly sophisticated linguistic ability and awareness of the target's cultural sensitivities which may not apply in the speaker's own culture. This is Pattaya, and Sunee Plaza of all places, not Buckingham Palace. "You go, go, go" is probably the norm.

 

 

And if it were a Thai business my friend would have said mai bpen rai and moved.

 

I don't see any reason for the double standards. If he's a running a business there, then I would assume that he has paid his dues to be there, regardless of his nationality.

 

Btw-I think Sunee will be a straight Middle Eastern area in 5-10 years.

 

So be it. No foreigner can exist in Thailand without the graces of the Thai authorities. The fact that there is a high number of South Asians, Russians, Africans and Middle Easterners in Thailand means that they are wanted there by somebody and are welcome at some level. And they seem to be thriving. One thing I have noticed about non-western migrants is that they take and accept Thailand for what it is and work the parasitic system from the inside out. The western migrant, on the other hand, wants to change Thailand with his idealistic notions and hollow etiquette from the outside in, leaving himself disillusioned and often ending up on the Pattaya balcony.

 

Sunee Plaza taking on a more Middle Eastern flavour is simply an effect of capitalism, which the Thais understand very well. The last time I was there, I thought the Mid East and Russian boys were a salve to the eyes after running into all those pasty beached whales.

[Guest Astrrro]

Why the double standards?

 

From a practical standpoint it's not a good idea to get into a big altercation with Thais over a parking space. I also told my frend it's not a good idea to get into an altercation with Persians over a parking space.

 

We are in Thailand and I think it's best not to get bent out of shape about the aspects of Thai culture that annoy us. I'm not about to shake an Indian tailor's hand in Pattaya but would do so in Mumbai.

[Gaybutton]

I agree with what has been said above, but the part that's on my "I Don't Get It" list is why any of these businesses object to people parking there in the first place. How is that hurting their business?

 

If it's a public street, they are violating the law when they put up those barriers. And I would not patronize a business that prevents me from being able to park there. What am I supposed to do, park several blocks away and walk back? Not me. Some people say just tell them you want to shop in their store or go into their bar, or whatever it is, and they'll remove the barriers. Fine? Now, unless they have someone stationed outside, how does one go about getting them to remove the barriers?

 

My favorites are the Indian tailors that place barriers in the street in front of their shops. Nobody is shopping there anyway.

[Guest]

I have been told by MANY business owners that the street parking is for anyone and does not belong to the business.

 

However, Astrro, your friend was lucky he did not have his bike vandalized. I agree to better avoid these situations.

[Guest gay_grampa]

I agree with what has been said above, but the part that's on my "I Don't Get It" list is why any of these businesses object to people parking there in the first place. How is that hurting their business?

 

.....

I don't know this Persian bar, the size of its frontage, whether there are sidewalks or not, or what the layout of the street is around the immediate area of the bar but if a bar entrance is obscured or obstructed by a car or motorcycle then it's possible that a potential patron will pass by and go to another bar that has easier access.

You will probably reply that it is no big problem for a potential customer to walk around that obstruction to enter the bar but the parked vehicle does create an obstacle; hinders easy access and may lose the bar a customer.

 

However, on re-reading the original post there seems to be an element of racism in the attitude of the bike owner:

 

Now if the guy had said, "Would you do me a favor and park down the soi because I need these spots for my customers" I'm sure my friend would have moved.

 

And if it were a Thai business my friend would have said mai bpen rai and moved.

So if the Persian had spoken politely to the bike rider in the rider's native language that would have been OK?

 

Or if the bar owner had been a cute Thai that the bike rider would have wanted to joke with and touch up then that would have been OK?

 

But NO ... the bar owner was from the Middle East and as Everyone knows ... those guys are ALL terrorists; against the good ol' USofA; shooting at 'Our Boys' in Somewhereistan and sending their bar profits to fund the war.

 

No.

 

I repeat, it's a simple matter of consideration for fellow humans and common courtesy not to obstruct someone elses' business entrance.

[Guest Astrrro]

I'll try to explain better what my friend told me. This doesn't mean I agree with him.

 

There are many reasons not to get into a dispute with anyone. There's also two other reasons not to get into a dispute with Thias.

 

1) It's their country and we are guests

 

2) It's their home turf and there could be unwelcome consequences.

 

As far as the farang-Mid East racism goes, communication is more than just words. There are ways to communicate nicely even if you're not speaking the same language. So from my fiend's perspective the MidEasterner was both being rude and on the wrong side of the law.

 

Having said that there probably was a bit of racism on both sides.

 

Personally, there's two things Arabs do that annoy me. They stand too close to me at ATMs but every culture has a different sense of personal space. And they ride their bikes dangerously fast on Soi VC.

 

However, if my friend did not park infront of an establishment that he did not intend to patronize this would all ahve been avoided. I think it's best to avoid conflict but others don't want to take crap from people. Up to them.

 

As far as the establishemnt, it's thriving, it was packed last night and it seemed like one big party. I'm sure folk from that part of teh world will take over other bars on that part of the soi. Perhaps one bar will be renamed Memories of 9/11? Just JOKING. I don't like to always be politically correct. And at some point maybe I'll go in for a beer.

 

From what I understand Sunee became gay almost overnight. Could be deja vu all over again.

[Guest Patexpat]

I repeat, it's a simple matter of consideration for fellow humans and common courtesy not to obstruct someone elses' business entrance.

 

based on this there would be no on street parking in Pattaya .... I have seen businesses placing chairs etc in the roadway to stop parking outside their premises.

 

Simply rude and arrogant.

 

And yes, I do let people park outside my office whether they are my client or not - simply because I recognize is is not 'my' road!

[Gaybutton]

based on this there would be no on street parking in Pattaya

That is a good point. I keep bringing this up, but nobody seems to come up with an answer and neither can I: Whether it is right or wrong, polite or impolite, legal or illegal, my question is why do they put up these barriers in the first place? That's definitely on my "I Don't Get It" list. If a car parks in front of their business, how is that stopping anyone from patronizing their business? If I park in front of their business, if I want to shop there I can do so easily. If someone else is already parked there, I don't think I would mind trying to find somewhere else to park. But if I had intended to shop at their business and found a barrier obstructing my ability to park there, then I wouldn't shop there at all.

 

What is so terrible about a car or motorcycle parking in front of their business, especially if there is a sidewalk between the curb and the entrance to their shop?

 

Astrrro brings up another point. If I park in front of a business that doesn't want me parking there, almost invariably they come charging out of their shop angrily telling me to park somewhere else. Persian or anything else, almost all of them seem to do that. Why? What's wrong with politely asking someone to please park elsewhere? They don't even ask if I intended to patronize their establishment.

[Guest Patexpat]

That's definitely on my "I Don't Get It" list.

hear hear - agree 100%. I just don't get it.

[Guest gay_grampa]

based on this there would be no on street parking in Pattaya .... I have seen businesses placing chairs etc in the roadway to stop parking outside their premises.

 

Simply rude and arrogant.

 

And yes, I do let people park outside my office whether they are my client or not - simply because I recognize is is not 'my' road!

 

 

OK ... next time you are in Jomtien complex at night park in front of the entrance steps of The Venue and then go to drink at Dicks Cafe.

 

Or ... next time you are in Boyztown at night park outside the entrance of Boyz Boyz Boyz and go for a drink in Panorama.

 

I'm sure it won't take the owners or staff of any of those places too long to explain what you are doing to their business prospects.

[Gaybutton]

OK ... next time you are in Jomtien complex at night park in front of the entrance steps of The Venue and then go to drink at Dicks Cafe.

Oh, come on. Nobody is talking about intentionally blocking access to a business. I, at least, am talking about businesses trying to prevent people from parking where parking is legitimate. Second Road, for example. Several of the foot massage places and Indian tailor shops place barriers in the street so that people can't park in front of their businesses. In the street, where parking is perfectly legal and legitimate.

 

That's what I'm talking about and I still don't see how parking in those kinds of spots could possibly be hurting their businesses. Even if it was hurting their businesses, my attitude would be 'tough luck.' Preventing cars and motorbikes from parking where parking is legal is not something I would consider acceptable. On the other hand, intentionally parking such that the vehicle is preventing access to a business is also something I would consider unacceptable.

[Guest gay_grampa]

Oh, come on. Nobody is talking about intentionally blocking access to a business. I, at least, am talking about businesses trying to prevent people from parking where parking is legitimate. Second Road, for example. Several of the foot massage places and Indian tailor shops place barriers in the street so that people can't park in front of their businesses. In the street, where parking is perfectly legal and legitimate.

 

......

What the subject is about is parking in front of the Persian Bar.

 

So it's not right to park in front of businesses of people that you know but perfectly OK to park in front of some scruffy Arab place?

[Guest globalwanderer]

If it is a public street then you have the right to park where you want, and the business owners have no rights over the public highway. If it is a private soi then if the business owns rights to their share of the soi they have every right to protect their rights.

[PattayaMale]

If it is a public street then you have the right to park where you want, and the business owners have no rights over the public highway. If it is a private soi then if the business owns rights to their share of the soi they have every right to protect their rights.

 

I am not sure about this. I believe even in private sois, you can not block "the right of way". If you could, a business could build up to "their half" of the street.

 

Oud's bar which is directly across from the Persian, prohibits parking by putting tables in the road. At first it was for smokers since smoking was prohibited in a premise. Now smoking is allowed everywhere inside Oud's bar so the tables could be removed and people could park directly in front of the bar.

 

I think people became use to parking in front of the Persian bar (before it opened as their bar).

[Gaybutton]

So it's not right to park in front of businesses of people that you know but perfectly OK to park in front of some scruffy Arab place?

Where is this coming from? Where did I say or even intimate any such thing? The ethnicity of the bar ownership has nothing to do with my personal stance about where it is and is not ok to park. What do you think I do, double park, get out of the car, check who owns the place, and base the ethnicity of the ownership as the decision maker as to where to park?

 

I thought I made my opinion clear. Why are you twisting it around to make it appear as if I include bigotry as a basis for parking decisions?

 

By the way, how do you know the 'Arab place' is scruffy?

[Guest globalwanderer]

 

 

By the way, how do you know the 'Arab place' is scruffy?

 

If it is the Arab bar I think it is, it is far from scruffy

[Guest Oogleman]

If it is the Arab bar I think it is, it is far from scruffy

 

 

yes. Its quite attractive looking.

 

Wonder do they rush out to tell the local Thai "mafia" who frequently park their cars/pick ups in this soi to go away.

[Guest gay_grampa]

Where is this coming from? Where did I say or even intimate any such thing? The ethnicity of the bar ownership has nothing to do with my personal stance about where it is and is not ok to park.

 

I am so pleased to hear that there isn't a xenophobic or bigoted bone in your body. The problem with using message boards rather than speaking face to face can be that one can misinterpret intent due to the strength of language used.

 

Also, thanks to PattayaMale for his description of where the bar is and to the map on www.suneeplaza.info for showing its exact location. I now can say that I have walked past this bar a few times and it's definitely not scruffy and a welcome 'bright spot' in an otherwise drab end of Sunee Plaza.

 

With that in mind could I therefore urge everyone not to park in front of the Apadana Persian Club but rather to use the other side of this public street and park in front of (in my very humble opinion) the much drabber and scruffier Ouds, El Dorado, Up2U or Memories. If those areas are already full of parked vehicles then maybe you can find a spot in front of Balkan Express or the Corner Bar?

 

However, look at the map on www.suneeplaza.info (or better still walk there) and you will see a large parking area available between the back of Treetz Bar and the Po Pot Restaurant. Why can't you lazy drivers park there instead of in front of a bar (Persian or not) and obstruct its entrance? Is it just because its your right to do so on a public road?

[Gaybutton]

I am so pleased to hear that there isn't a xenophobic or bigoted bone in your body.

 

Why can't you lazy drivers park there instead of in front of a bar (Persian or not) and obstruct its entrance? Is it just because its your right to do so on a public road?

I never said that either, but my personal brand of xenophobia and bigotry has nothing to do with deciding where to park.

 

That parking place in the rear is where I normally park when I go to Sunee Plaza, if there is a space. Often there isn't. If there isn't a parking space I park elsewhere and yes, it is everyone's right to park on a public road, although I don't park anywhere that is going to obstruct an entrance to a business and I don't see anyone else posting that they would do so either. So, what's the problem?

 

As far as being a lazy driver, if that comment includes me, I live nearly 6 miles from Sunee Plaza. Very sorry, but I'm definitely too lazy to walk 6 miles when I have a perfectly good car.

 

I don't understand your belligerent tone on this thread. You're not usually like that and it's coming as a surprise. I fail to see what point you're trying to make. You're accusing people of intentionally parking so as to obstruct business entrances and nobody has said they do that. Public streets are just that, public. When some of these places put out barriers to prevent people from parking, they are breaking the law and they are doing something they have no right to do.

[Guest gay_grampa]

 

I don't understand your belligerent tone on this thread. You're not usually like that and it's coming as a surprise. I fail to see what point you're trying to make. You're accusing people of intentionally parking so as to obstruct business entrances and nobody has said they do that. Public streets are just that, public. When some of these places put out barriers to prevent people from parking, they are breaking the law and they are doing something they have no right to do.

 

And I don't understand your logic.

 

If it is OK, someone's right, and totally legal to park in front of the Persian Bar because it is a public road ... then why is it wrong to suggest parking anywhere else in Sunee Plaza?

 

These bars that put tables and chairs on the street are blocking the highway.

 

I suggest that people get to Sunee Plaza early and get the parking spaces near to (but not in front of) their favorite bar before all those pesky staff take up the spaces with their tables and chairs, motorcycles etc.

 

Personally I like the Uniform Bar but would regret upsetting the nice owner ... so I'll park in front of Villa Rouge. Is that OK?

[Gaybutton]

And I don't understand your logic.

 

If it is OK, someone's right, and totally legal to park in front of the Persian Bar because it is a public road

Are we talking about the same thing? I'll amend what I said and try to make it clear that I would not advocate parking where your vehicle where it would obstruct the entrance to a business and also would not obstruct people's ability to walk.

 

Give me a break, willya? You don't really think I am suggesting that people park a car in front of Uniform bar or Villa Rouge, do you? Even I am not that crazy. I think you know exactly what I'm talking about when it comes to parking cars and motorcycles.