Bangkok (Lonely Planet) - Andrew Burke [218]
An international telecommunications service (including telephone, fax and internet) is located in a separate building in the northeast corner of the block; services are paid for with prepaid cards that can also be used at Bangkok airports. The easiest way to reach the main post office is via a Chao Phraya Express Boat to Si Phraya (N3) or Wat Muang Khae (N2), both a short walk away.
Elsewhere, branch post offices are found throughout the city; ask your hotel for the nearest one.
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RADIO
Bangkok has around 100 FM and AM stations broadcasting a huge range of music, talk and news. The place you’re most likely to hear Thai radio is in a taxi. Given that most Bangkok cabbies are from the northeast Isaan region, expect them to be listening to lôok tûng (Thai country music) on Luk Thung 95.0 FM. For Thai Top 40 try Hotwave 91.5 FM; for more alternative Thai tunes try Fat Radio 104.5 FM.
For a taste of what’s on offer, listen to live radio online by clicking through to Thailand on www.surfmusic.de.
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SAFETY
Bangkok is a safe city and incidents of violence against tourists are rare. Assuming you don’t join a political protest on the day they take on the army (an action that is very easy to avoid), it's unlikely you'll experience any physical harm.
On the other hand, scams aimed at separating you and your hard-earned are prevalent. There are numerous methods, with the infamous gem scam being the most common.
The Gem Scam
Bangkok has become synonymous with the term ‘gem scam’ to the extent that there are several websites dedicated to combatting the scammers. Con artists tend to haunt first-time tourist spots, such as the Grand Palace area, Wat Pho, the Golden Mount and shopping mall forecourts around Siam Sq and Ratchaprasong, and when they strike the average scam is worth more than US$2000.
Most scams begin the same way: a friendly Thai approaches and strikes up a seemingly innocuous conversation. Sometimes the con man says he’s a university student or teacher; at other times he might claim to work for the World Bank or a similarly distinguished organisation. If you’re on the way to Wat Pho or Jim Thompson’s House, for example, he may tell you it’s closed for a holiday or repairs. Eventually the conversation works its way around to the subject of the scam – the best fraudsters can actually make it seem as though you initiated the topic. The scammer might spend hours inveigling you into his trust, taking you to an alternative ‘special’ temple, for example, and linking with other seemingly random people, often túk-túk drivers and foreigners posing as tourists, who seem to independently verify what the scammer is telling you.
The scam itself almost always incorporates gems. The victim is persuaded that they can turn a hefty profit by arranging a gem purchase and reselling the merchandise at home. The jewellery shop can offer these bargains because, they say, the government is running a ‘gem sale’ that allows students to sell the family jewels tax free to pay for their education. Of course, the government doesn’t do gem sales and the whole tale is a load of old bollocks. In reality, the victim buys low-quality sapphires and has them posted home – so they can’t change their mind – where they prove to be worth a fraction of the ‘bargain’ price you paid. The Thai police are usually of no help, believing merchants are entitled to whatever price they can get and that tourists are victims of their own greed, which is at least partly true.
Suits & Card Games
At tailor shops the objective is to get you to pay exorbitant prices for poorly made clothes. The tailor shops that do this are adept at delaying delivery until just before you leave Thailand, so you don’t have time to object to poor workmanship. For the lowdown on having clothes made in Bangkok, see