Tom's father is flying out to Thailand to look for him, but we're worried that he may be totally overwhelmed by Bangkok - it is a confusing, congested, crowded city and for a desperate father looking for his missing son, well, it may be a bit too much. Where does he even begin? I am hoping that the British embassy in Bangkok would give him all the support he needs, but they are saying that it is really the Thai police to help find the guy rather than the embassy per se.
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It's been a while since I've been in Bangkok (2011 to be precise) and I am hoping for suggestions from my readers who know Bangkok and Thailand well, so I can feed this back to my friend who is involved in local efforts in Tom Armstrong's hometown in Suffolk to find him. It is a long shot - but have you any idea about contact points or strategies? Do you know where one should focus on when it comes to English speaking foreigners/farangs in Thailand? Where do they hang out (and don't say Khao San Road, everyone knows that, let's move beyond that please)? What kind of trouble do white people in Thailand normally get into? Are there for example, some common scams that target white people and/or foreigners in Thailand who don't speak Thai?
We don't know what kind of trouble Tom may have gotten into in Bangkok as he has missed his flight back to London on the 9th January, but my hunch is that for expatriates/travellers like him, he would pretty much stay within the English-speaking expatriate community rather than get involved in any kind of dispute with locals - but who knows? Please, if you have any useful information about the patterns of the English-speaking travellers/backpackers community in Thailand that may be useful to this case, kindly share this below as a comment. Even if it is relating a story from your own visit to Thailand, let us know please and you never know, it may turn out to be a useful piece of information to help us track down Tom. Also, please share this story on social media so as we may spread the word and help this effort to find Tom - you may not be able to help, but in sharing this story, one of your friends may provide the missing piece of this puzzle. Many thanks, kob khun mak krap.
oh no one has given a comment? only just saw this entry hope its not too late
ReplyDeletei dont hang out with expats or ang mos nut the expats tend to congregate around the sukhumvit area i.e asoke, nana, phom phrong area. there is a soi cowboy near awoke which is like patpong and definitely more crowded than patpong
do note that most thai people actually dont speak much english at all so best to have a trusted interpreter. also the concept of face is very important so try hard to keep cool even if u r super angry
not sure if the above helps, good luck
Hi there - I've had an update from Tom's father who's now in BKK: "just quick up date from Bangkok
DeleteThe bar staff at the Hub bar in Koasan road recognised his picture and I had missed him by 24hrs getting close now hope to make contact soon
He was with another westerner probable british."
Apparently the two were headed for Ramkhamhaeng.
Thanks so much for your comment Lumos.
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