Cyberpub, Bangkok, Thailand, Earth

Nice Pub, Shame About The Internet

by Mark Grant (mark@unicorn.com)
written 20 Jun 1996

This article is classified "Real"


The Cyberpub is the oldest Internet Eatery in Bangkok.  It is situated in
the Dusit Thani Building on Rama IV Road, next to the Dusit Thani hotel.
As you enter the hotel car park, head over to the left of the hotel entrance
and you'll see the Cyberpub hidden away in a corner.  Descend some steps and
you're there.  

Down below you'll find a bar, tables, a stage for music and a number of
PCs running Windows 95.  As a pub it's quite good, there's plenty of live
music, good but slightly expensive food, moderately expensive beer (100
baht, about $4, for Thai Singha beer) and at least in the evening, lots 
of very cute Thai girls.  If you want Net access, it's not so good.

The first problem is that unlike the other Net Eateries I've been to they
won't let you ftp files to and from a floppy disk.  This means that those
of us who travel with laptops cannot simply download our incoming mail
and upload our outgoing mail with the minimum connect time.  So the only
option is to log in remotely to your account and try to send email when
you have a two or three second delay between typing a key and seeing it
on the screen.  Privacy is also a problem if you are receiving or sending
confidential mail.  The screens are high up and face into the pub, so
anyone nearby can read your display.

This wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for the fact that, in order to use the
PCs, you have to get a smart card.  This costs 150 baht (about $6) before
you actually get any Net time.  The computer gives no indication of when
your card is running out and it can only be refilled in units of 100 baht
(about $4), so if your card runs out in the middle of an email session the
PC will just lock up and you have to pay another $4 simply to disconnect.
There is an indicator on the smart card reader, but it seems to be carefully
positioned so that it's impossible to read while typing.  Connect time at 5
baht per minute (about $12 per hour) is about average.

So if you want a nice pub with live music where you can occasionally log 
on to check your email, or you can afford a long session at $12 per hour, 
then it's a good choice -- it's certainly the smartest Net Eatery I've 
visited so far.  If you want a cheap way to send and receive email, I'm
afraid you'll have to go elsewhere.

The full address is:  Cyberpub, Basement Floor, The Dusit Thani Building,
Rama IV Rd, Bangkok, 10500, Thailand, and telephone number Bangkok
233-0313.  I'm not sure when they open, but they seem to stay open until
around 2am when they have live music.  They also have a contact email
address at dusit@comnet2.ksc.net.th.  Prices correct at time of writing
(June 1996).

See also:
  • Bangkok, Urban Survival Techniques
  • Future Cafe, Hong Kong, China, Earth

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