Our City is famous for its last minute announcements. The lastest incident: About a month ago City Hall informed the people of Pattaya that this year the popular Pattaya Countdown will happen during 5 days only, from December 27 to December 31. Last week the very same City Hall told its audience that Pattaya Countdown will starts December 25th 2009, the same procedure as all the years before. Pattaya Countdown happens at Bali Hai Pier and is a big party with free concerts and a nightly firework, if City Hall doesn't change its mind again...

Pattaya Countdown 2010 at Bali Hai Pier will be another success for its main sponsors, Beer Chang and TOT (Telecom of Thailand). Every evening from 20:20 - 20:30 there will be a great firework at the Pier, but on December 31st, the firework will happen from 23:45 until 00:15.

Concerts usually start at 22:00 and end at 24:00, but on December 31 concerts start at 21:15 and run until the early morning hours. The following artists will be on stage:

According to Pattaya's Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome, Modern Nine TV, in Thailand also known as Channel 9, is broadcasting the event into 17 countries.

Just when I heard that Delta Airlines landed in Detroit with an alleged terrorist on board I tipped in my computer ' How it is possible that a man packed with explosives can pass the security checks in Amsterdam'? A few days later, on December 27th, US President Barack Obama asked exactly the same question - my question. Who is the owner of this question? Mr. Obama or Nobody NightWalker? To whom the authorities from Amsterdam's airport have to answer - to Mr. Obama or Nobody NightWalker? Is the question in question the property of NightWalker or of Mr. Obama? You see - that is just the dilemma every single policeman in Pattaya face, when he gets the order to capture the distributer of an alleged copycat product! What was first on the market, the alleged copy or the so-called original, the Thai-shirt or the T-shirt, the watch or the (S)watch and who is the person behind the product in question? Who is helping the police to do their duties and spends the whisky for their parties, the faceless company in Paris speaking a gibberish language or the influent people here in Thailand that not only have good words, but understand the problems and the dreams of every single policeman? Therefore Pattaya's police arrests the small fishes only - the poor ones without any lawyer - and let the big ones do their business unmolested... Despite the announced crackdowns nothing will really happen. You can buy all that copycat products today as well as in the future. Thailand's Police is a lot more clever than America's stupid Intelligence and Amsterdam's inattentively security staff ...

After the failure of their Global Warming talks GreenPeace and the UnitedNations decided to change their strategy. 'The recent influx of severe cold all over the world shows that our prediction of a global warming was wrong. We know believe that a new glacial, as already announced worldwide by almost all powerful journalists during the 60's, will be the new threat to our world'. 'Global Warming or Global Glacial, it doesn't matter, the main thing is to be up there in the medias, keep our leaders traveling around the world and keep the money from our sponsors flowing into our pockets', spokesmen and -women from the organisations said. Our beloved Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome immediatly announced during a press conference 'Pattaya is ready for the latest challenge. If necessary, Pattaya will be the No. 1 destination for all skiers. A few years ago Royal Cliff Resort already proved during its New Year festivities the possibility to bring snow to Pattaya'. 'Instead of introducing Sky- and Cable-Trains to Pattaya, as announced earlier, I will bring real snow into the city. Snow on Pattaya's Beach Road will solve all our traffic problems and will stop all traffic jams caused by tourist busses. Snow in Pattaya will solve all our problems and will stop Pattaya's ladies wearing their sexy clothes on Beach Promenade. With snow we will be the perfect destination for all families of this world. Snow simply is beautiful!' our Mayor said. Pattaya is always on top of the pack, Amari Nova Suites already opened their -5º Bar on Soi Sukrudee (Soi A.R.), sometimes also called Soi Petchtrakool, we have down to -20º at the V2O Bar on Soi Happy, off Walking Street, Nok's Beer Bar Complex on Walking Street is already covered by (artificial) snow and - I was told - the SnowIce A-Go-Go at Nok's will reopen as soon as the real snow comes to Pattaya...

From December 28th 2009 until January 3rd 2010 Soho Square staged a Food & Fair Festival with a lot of dart games, but their advertisements used a new term...

Teazers, the new Coyote club in front of New Living Dolls One A-Go-Go, opened its door and presents Walking Street's most beautiful manikins in its windows.

Rolling Stone 2, the popular live music bar, enlarged its venue on Soi 16, off Walking Street. The bar always has a bunch of nice Thai ladies and good music.

The 3-day festival started with a parade on Pattaya 2nd Road to the fairground near the Tropicana Hotel, a few meters from Soi 6. The festival itself was announced by Pattaya City Hall on December 9th (!) 2009, but the people forget to mention the parade. E-Sarn 2009 happened from December 18th to December 20th and presented 'authentic' E-Sarn food (including Sushi, french fries & Döner Kebab), concerts, the making of Thai Silk as well as a lot of other goods (e.g. 'original' CK Perfume) and toys, mainly imported from neighbour China...

The small shop near Marine Disco, a popular beer selling and Walking Street onlookers place, apparently gets transformed into another Vodka outlet.

The Tiger/Shark Club and its ladies are 'in the mood for Christmas'.

On December 10th the announced HSPTL Club opened under its full name as Hospital Club. It's a discotheque with some Coyote dancers on the second floor of the King Café on Pattaya's Walking Street.

Dicey Reilly's at the Marriot Hotel on Second Road already opened and is advertising to have Pattaya's Best Beers, Best Music and Best Food. Check it out!

During the Great SeafoodFestival at CentralFestival some boothes sold chicken, pork and duck - probably raised in seawater... The SeafoodFestival happened from December 8th to December 13th 2009 and attracted a lot of people.

According to Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand's existing power development plan, Egat would build two nuclear power plants from China's Guangdong Nuclear Power Group with a total capacity of 1,000 megawatts to begin operating in 2021 and 2022. Five potential locations have been selected and a final decision will be made in the middle of next year. Solar Power is not suitable for Thailand because its power is available during daytimes only, Wind Power isn't an opportunity for Thailand, because wind is available in Thailand during night-times only, Egat's experts say. Climate change is a major factor that makes nuclear power attractive since a nuclear power plant has zero carbon emissions, Egat's outgoing governor Sombat Sarntijaree says. It seems he never did hear anything about nuclear waste and its disposal problems... To avoid any riks you should book your Thailand holidays before the year 2021...

Pattaya: World's best destination for all people searching the perfect sunburn.
At least until snow and 'Global Glacial' is reaching Pattaya...

TimeOut's popular Ice Cream outlet on Walking Street reopened after a successful renovation - and its lovely comic figures are back on the street too.
Timeout broadcasts Walking Street's life live on its website - right into your or your girlfriends home and on the computer displays of your wife, your employer, your co-workers and all your other enemies...

A few month ago Thailand announced nationwide crackdowns on pirated goods, nevertheless you can buy 'Original Copycat Products' of all major brands almost everywhere in Pattaya, at markets, street vendor boothes and in shopping malls: Ed Hardy, Lacoste, Gucci, Rolex, Rado, iPod, iPhone, Nokia, BlackBerry, Sony, Microsoft, Adobe, Ninetendo, Levi's, Wrangler etc. You only have to mention your favorite brand and the sellers present it on and - sometimes - under the table(s). Widely published crackdowns seems to be tokenism only - or actions against unwanted competitors.

Bali Hai Pier, now also known as 'Pattaya Port' already needs an expensive restoration. A few years ago Pattaya's taxpayers had to pay many millions of Baht for this stuporous work.

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Chonburi's Senator Surachai Chaitrakulthong is luring potential investors from Taiwan and other countries by promising 'Thailand's plus is the availability of a skilled workforce...'. The Senator gracefully forget to mention that the output by one Singaporean is equal to that of eight (!!!!!!!!) Thai workers. An European Investor told me: 'Thailand is the most preferable country for everybody interested in a lazy lifestyle - but if your company needs well educated people, a skilled and motivated workforce resulting in high productivity, then you have to invest your money elsewhere.'

Most western countries are replacing traffic signals by traffic circles. According to (western) police, traffic circles are improving traffic bottlenecks. Not so in Pattaya: Pattaya City Council will replace North Pattaya's Dolphin Roundabout by traffic signals. At certain hours the police already close parts of the circle. Drivers in Pattaya not only ignore all traffic rules in the circle, they will ignore red lights as well...

Hundreds - if not thousands - of rooms, apartments, condos and houses in and around Pattaya are empty and are waiting for buyers. They all have one thing in common: They are completely overcalculated! If you buy a condo in Bangkok, you can get a second, smaller one free of charge. Vendors in Pattaya give away motorcycles, kitchen or the complete interior decoration. Sometimes they even offers discounts up to 60%! Please keep in mind: If Thai people can buy a small 3- to 4-room town house for 800'000 to 900'000 Baht right here in Pattaya, then 3.2 million Baht for a 45sqm one bedroom apartment is usury and even 1.3 million Baht can't be called a bargain, but - probably - a scam.