Foreign stewardess assaulted by cab driver on way home from Bangkok's Bed Supperclub

Cabs in Bangkok are for chancers, especially at night when many cab drivers have been drinking, doing drugs, and are generally wound up and resentful after spending 8 or more hours driving in circles in Bangkok's notorious traffic.

These are not guys who own their own cabs, or even belong to a routine service; most cabbies are just failed farmers who rent the cab for a day from the local mafia at usurious rates in a desperate bid to turn some profit before the rental period expires. These are guys with nowhere to go and nothing to lose.

Like most Thais, they are inherently cowardly and superficially appeasing, but if they spot weakness they will zero in on it and are indeed capable of classic 3rd world savagry.

The way they drive is also reckless in the extreme. You will quickly understand that they 'just don't care'. It is common to come upon the remains of spectacular wrecks in the middle of a downtown street. You can tell from the condition of the vehicles that they had been moving at a totally unreasonably rate of speed for surface streets in a crowded and chaotic city.

Bangkok is not safe for tourism, not is Thailand generally. Remember that, and don't be dissuaded by the delusional musings of drunken sexpats or the greedy self-interested phoniness of the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

from the Nation:

A British Airways flight attendant alleged she was molested by a taxi driver while he was driving her to a hotel early yesterday.

Flight attendant Catherine Norman, 34, called police for help after fleeing the taxi on Phetchaburi Road in Huai Khwang district at 1.30am.

Police took her to Din Daeng station where she said she had hailed the taxi from a pub on Sukhumvit Soi 11 seeking to go to the Amari Watergate Hotel.

The driver attempted to touch and kiss her, she said.

Police were informed about a distressed woman by passers-by.

No charges have been filed and police are yet to arrest the driver.