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I dunno. I agree with some of what you said, but not all of it. First of all, I read that the law was 2am in designated areas. Now you're saying it's 12 or 1. Were the other people wrong who posted the later times? Me confused...
Jet Ski operators - of course you're right, and the operators probably charge far more than they should for repairs, but if the people renting them would stop crashing into each other, there wouldn't be any repairs. I've watched the end result of some crashes, and if the goal is to repair the jet ski to like new, the prices might even be reasonable. If you ignore the no insurance signs, and have a wreck, you're in trouble. I don't know if you're right or not, that they're charging way too much. The answer of course is to not rent one, or if you have to do so, be prepared for huge bills if you mess up.
Touts - you walk down Bangla and every so often there's a group trying to hand out flyers, or get you to come into some place for a show or a drink. If you're not interested, they move on to the next person. They might be annoying, but no more so than the annoying people trying to sell you new shirts or suits, or anything else. They're just trying to earn some money, the same as everyone else around them. Maybe the ones you're referring to I just haven't seen, or maybe they ignore me because I just ignore them. There are a few that I got to talk with, and after a few minutes, it seems like they're just people, the same as anyone else. If they're selling tickets, or shows, or suits, or cigarettes, or a ride in a tuk-tuk, is that any different than walking down Soi Erik only to have people at several bars pull you into their bar? (The difference might be something that you want more or less, and someone pulling you into a situation you enjoy might seem better, but they're really doing the same thing.)
Tuk-tuks. Never had that experience. If the agreed on price was a certain amount, and they got to the hill and asked for more, I'd be stubborn enough, or stupid enough, to tell them that they either go the full distance for what was agreed upon, or they get nothing - I'd get out and start walking. On the other hand, if they're asking for too much to begin with, just move on to another one. Paying the inflated rate just justifies it for everyone else who wants to charge more.
By the way, if Patong were to grow up and become more or less just like other places in the developed world, would all of you still be going there? Nothing in life is perfect, but isn't Patong still far better than just about any other place you could be going to?
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