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PODCAST

The Bangkok Podcast

Greg Jorgensen & Ed Knuth

Online since 2010! Greg Jorgensen and Ed Knuth have been knocking around Bangkok since the turn of the century. Exploring dark corners, eating amazing food, and interacting with fascinating people, the two have gotten to know and love Thailand"s capital in all its confusing, mysterious glory. Every week they chat about topics near and dear to those living here, those visiting here, or those who are just curious about what it"s like to live in Asia"s craziest city. Want to explore Bangkok on your

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All Episodes

54:03

Journalist Dominic Faulder on the Complex History...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/08/27

Greg interviews Dominic Faulder, associate editor at Nikkei Asia, long-time journalist in Southeast Asia and observer of the political and diplomatic machinations of Myanmar, and Thailand and Vietnam over the past 40 years. The main thesis of the episode is this: How should a country such as Thailand respond when its neighbor Myanmar is in the midst of a destabilizing civil war? Dominic begins by pointing out what’s different about the current situation compared with events in its turbulent past

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33:42

Don't be That Guy: Expat Stereotypes You Should Avoid...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/08/13

Greg and Ed discuss some negative expat stereotypes - roughly the person you (probably) don’t want to become while living in Thailand...at least forever. We all fall prey to stereotypes sometimes - they have to come from somewhere - but if you’re not careful, you can become comfortable with some of these lifestyles and before you know it, they come to define your new identity in your new home, and suddenly you’re known as The Whiner, or The Apologist. And that’s just the beginning! Heaven forbid

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30:43

Phra Pandit Lends His Insight: What Buddhism Says...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/08/06

On part 2 of 2 Greg continues his interview with returning show favorite, Phra Pandit on the Buddhist interpretation of the Seven Deadly Sins of western religion. Without wasting any time they pick up where they left off last week and dive right into it with sloth, one of Greg’s favorites. Defined in Buddhism as ‘torpor’ or ‘indolence’ Phra Pandit explains that in Buddhism this trait tends to hinder meditation, and can lead to someone being withdrawn and apathetic, which of course is not something

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33:23

Phra Pandit Lends his Insight: What Buddhism Says...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/07/30

Greg interviews returning show favorite, Phra Pandit on the Buddhist interpretation of the Seven Deadly Sins of western religion. After a brief introduction explaining Phra Pandit’s current (temporary) abode in Toronto, Canada, the guys get down to business. First, Phra Pandit notes that in his work with highly varied groups of people, there is often agreement on ‘good’ and ‘bad’ qualities in people. That being said, he notes that not every religion would necessarily value each quality equally. Greg

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31:34

Bangkok in Your 20s vs Your 50s: We Discuss the Pros...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/07/23

Having had the somewhat unenviable (?) POV of living in Bangkok both in their 20s AND in their late 40s (and more), Greg and Ed pro/con Bangkok for different age groups. Is Bangkok really a city for twenty-somethings or fifty-somethings? Greg begins by focusing on the older crowd. On the plus side, Bangkok offers many social opportunities that have a cultural bent, such as the Siam Society, museum groups, and even gourmet restaurants that tend to appeal to a more mature crowd with disposable time

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48:32

Lawyer Dave Lawrence Gives a Legal Perspective on...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/07/16

Greg and Ed interview Dave Lawrence of Pegleg Legal about the technicalities of divorce in Thailand. Although Ed previously discussed his big ‘D’ on an earlier show, his situation was so simple that it’s probably not representative of the typical divorce. Dave begins with his process for new clients. First, he asks if the marriage was registered in Thailand. Many ‘couples’ actually never get legally married in Thailand, which of course changes your legal rights. Second, he asks if the couple has any

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32:53

AI vs The Big Mango: What ChatGPT 4o and Gemini Know...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/07/09

Greg and Ed perform an interesting test of the current state of AI: can you actually trust what different AI’s have to say about Bangkok and Thailand? Greg uses ChatGPT, while Ed is a Google guy through and through, so Gemini it is. The first question involves a bit of Thai history: exactly when and for how long did Thailand use a red flag with a white elephant? Proper research reveals the correct answer is 1855-1917, but ChatGPT misses by a wide mark, with an answer of 1917 to 2017 (!). Gemini does

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43:26

Blending Fact & Fiction: Paul & Yuangrat Wedel Return...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/07/02

This is Part Two of Greg and Ed’s interview with Paul and Yuangrat Wedel, returning guests to the show who previously talked about their book “Radical Thought, Thai Mind.” This time around the fascinating couple discuss their two novels, “Beads On A String” and “Dark Karma,” each historical fiction based in Southern Thailand. In this part of the interview, the couple focus on the historical characters and events that are interwoven into the fictional narrative. Greg asks about the sensitivity of

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38:40

Blending Fact & Fiction: Paul & Yuangrat Wedel Return...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/06/25

Greg and Ed interview Paul and Yuangrat Wedel, returning guests to the show who previously talked about their book “Radical Thought, Thai Mind.” This time around the fascinating couple discuss their two novels, “Beads On A String” and “Dark Karma,” each historical fiction based in Southern Thailand. The two begin with a discussion of the origin of the novels. In short, Yuangrat grew up in the deep South of Thailand with a family of mixed ethnicity, including Thai, Malay, Mon, and Chinese ancestry

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39:56

Ed’s City Review: Bangkok vs Hong Kong - Which One...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/06/18

Continuing our regional focus of late, Greg and Ed discuss Ed’s recent trip to Hong Kong and how it compares to big, bad Bangkok. Ed begins with a big caveat: he’s not really much of a traveler, and he spent only 2 ½ days in Hong Kong, so his take is that of a true noob. That being said, Ed begins on the positive side, noting how geographically beautiful the city is, being situated on mountainous islands that present incredible photo opportunities. However, when compared to Bangkok, Ed found a lot

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36:50

Regional Podcast Pals: Joah McGee on Covering Tragedy...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/06/11

Wrapping up our short series on our regional podcast peers, Greg interviews Joah McGee from the Insight Myanmar Podcast. Joah begins by explaining his early life in Myanmar and how he initially went to the country to study meditation and later secured a proper job doing training for an American Embassy-related organization. He managed to juggle professional life dealing with politics, with a personal life in monasteries practicing meditation. This eventually led Joah to making a documentary about a

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31:04

Bangkok Devaluation: A Few Things That Used to...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/06/04

In a possible new series, Greg and Ed discuss things that have become less important or meaningful since they began living in Thailand. In short, stuff that we used to value a lot that just seems not to matter as much anymore. Ed begins with the somewhat obvious: clothes in general just matter a lot less. Never a fashion guy, Bangkok’s ‘uni-season’ is perfect for him since he can basically wear the same thing all year round. Greg - famous for his consistent shorts/t-shirt/vans outfit, concurs that

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46:20

Regional Podcast Pals: Mike Tatarski on Producing the...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/05/28

Greg interviews Mike Tatarski of the Vietnam Weekly podcast. Mike begins by explaining the podcast originated out of his Substack newsletter of the same name. After taking a course in ‘entrepreneurial journalism,’ he got motivated to fire up the podcast, and the rest is history. He manages to produce a show per week as a one man band operation but has reached a substantial audience. Greg and Mike then go on to talk about similarities and differences between his show and the Bangkok Podcast. On the

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36:36

Looking Back on the 2006 Coup and Why We’re Still...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/05/21

Greg and Ed revisit the 2006 coup in Thailand and reminisce about the oddness but also impactfulness of the experience. Ed begins with a quick recap of the career of Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire business tycoon who swept to power (democratically) in 2000 on a promise to fix the Thai economy which was still reeling from the 1997 financial crisis. He did in fact manage to stabilize the economy and easily won re-election in 2004. Although controversies did mar his terms, his ability to repay

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47:10

Checking in on Bangkok’s Craft Beer Scene with...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/05/14

Greg interviews Clif from BangkokBeerGuide.com about the ever evolving craft beer scene in Thailand. Cliff begins with the basic premise for the website and related social media: to act as a guide for locals and visitors to all the beer drinking opportunities in Bangkok, especially craft beers made by locals. The guys then review the famously restrictive Thai laws governing beer and alcohol in general, such as the prohibition on purchasing alcohol from 2 pm to 5 pm in the afternoon, and high minimum

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46:12

Bangkok Superlatives: Stories From Decades in a Crazy...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/05/07

Greg and Ed try a new type of show in which they troll their memories for extreme experiences, something that expats in Thailand seem to have a lot of. Greg begins with his scariest experience in Thailand. As a relative noobie, he engaged the services of a shady visa firm and was later called out on it by the Canadian Embassy. At the time, he didn’t know if a heavy fine, deportation, or even jail was in order, but luckily he got away with a much smaller punishment. Ed follows with a different type

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39:25

Philosopher Dr. Soraj Hongladarom on Buddhism, Ethics...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/04/30

Greg interviews Dr. Soraj Hongladarom on the intersection of AI, ethics, and Buddhism. Dr. Soraj begins by discussing his background in the study of philosophy in the U.S., in particular early modern Western philosophy. After returning to Thailand, he transitioned to the study of the philosophy of technology and science, which today of course, means AI. Dr. Soraj explains that different cultures certainly have different approaches to some ethical issues, and he is currently interested in how

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31:36

Bangkok for Nerds! Understanding the Chaos With Some...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/04/23

If math can be used to solve everything from the orbits of galaxies to the swirl in a snail’s shell, then surely it can be applied to Bangkok to shed some light on the chaos? In a fun show, Greg presents certain semi-mathematical ‘equations’ to help us all understand Bangkok a bit better. While not scientific in the strictest, these rules of thumb may help you navigate the chaos of the Big Mango with a little more confidence. First, the guys discuss all the variables that affect traffic travel

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40:05

Stuart McDonald from Travelfish on Tourism Recovery...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/04/16

This is Part 2 of our interview with Stuart MacDonald, Asian tourism expert and founder of TravelFish.org, arguably the best single resource for traveling in Southeast Asia. In this half of the interview, Greg, Ed and Stu revisit the tricky topic of ‘overtourism,’ an issue which attempts to find a balance between economic revenue from tourism, which in theory is good for local economies, and damage to the environment, which of course can in the long run make things worse for local people. Stu gives

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42:47

Stuart from Travelfish Talks How (and how not) to...

The Bangkok Podcast ·

2024/04/09

Greg and Ed interview their old friend Stuart of Travelfish, master of all things travel and tourism in Southeast Asia. Greg begins by reading a quote from an article on the weird duality of tourism: by sacralizing a location, tourism results in its ‘desecration by footprints.’ Stuart gives his take and undoubtedly agrees that this is generally true, hence his take on ‘environmental tourism,’ or tourism that is very conscious of its effect on the locations it promotes. He explains that the cons of

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85 results

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