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Sauron
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1. There are no cigar lounges. Some restaurants were selling Cubans or alleged Cubans at absurd prices by the cugar but the antismoking ban has nixxed that option (any enclosed, public, air conditioned space in Thailand is now smoke free.)
2. As a Cuban cigar smoker myself, I can tell you that (a) the prices in Thailand are horrible, a dry old Cohiba Esplendido which could well be a knockoff, is 1700 baht at the humidor in JW Marriot for example, and the condition of the cigars, not to mention their provenance, at the places at the Dusit Thai, are well below what I would care to buy at any price much less the bullshit extortionate prices prevailing here.
3. What the solution?
Don't buy in Bangkok
Don't buy on the Net
Buy preferab;y in Havana, or at a Duty Free where you can inspect and examine the cigars and the boxes etc. That box of Esplendidos goes for $400 in Havana, or about 16,000 baht for 25 cugars or about $15 each. The duty free price at any decent airport worldwide -- which is NOT all airports -- is about the same. I am told that the best airport for Cuban cigars at the DF is Beirut of all places but I bet Dubai is right up there.
The important thing is that you need to educate yourselves to be able to spot knockoffs and old stock because let's face it, at these prices you don't want phonies or dry wrappers.
Had a sub come here from Geneva two weeks ago with several packs of Davidoff #2's. Not my fave but, these were ALL crappy Dominincans that were so hard and dry the wrappers were peeling off as soon as touched. Davidoff when fresh is overpriced overhyped but smokable. Davidoffs that are stale and crumbly and unsmokable are a crime.
I used to have a Havana based diplomat connection who brought me 3 boxes of bona fide fresh Cohibas every time he visited, for $100-$125 a box (Esplendidos.) His source was at the factory and bootleg, hence the low price (beating Fidel out of tax.) Alas he has been transferred to elsewhere. Sigh. He still has a couple boxes (of Monte Cristo #1s) for me but has not had a chance to visit Bkk for a while. So I am smoking my pipe (Balkan Sobranie mixture, no longer imported into USA but still available from London.)
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Thai Girls : Meet Sexy Thai Girls
Posted on: 4:02 pm on Jan. 22, 2003
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humblestudent
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Great info Sauron!
Christ I made this original post before my maiden voyage to LOS in early 2002...
Thanks for keeping the thread alive...
BTW. I never made it to any of the cigar shops in bkk and I am glad I didn't!
Just brought some of my own!
It was quite an experience smoking cigars in that July heat!
thaiinjuly
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Bangkok Girls : Meet Sexy Bangkok Girls
Posted on: 11:01 pm on Jan. 22, 2003
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Smegma
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Best place to buy Cuban cigars in terms of prices, even cheaper than in Cuba, is in Spain (airport duty free even better). Spain buys more than half of Cuba's cigar production.
BTW, I continue to see all bars (enclosed, public, air conditioned space) full of smokers -so far I haven't had to refrain from lighting a cigar in the places where I already used to.
As for prices, not only in Thailand prices are absurdly high, same goes for Singapore and Hong Kong. I think the only place in Asia where I was not horrified by the high prices was in Kuala Lumpur (not cheap either, but more reasonable).
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Thai Women : Meet Matured Thai Women
Posted on: 12:14 am on Jan. 23, 2003
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One Eyed Jack
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humble...
Try hitting Goldfingers in Pat Pong and ask for Randy. He's a cigar man and offers some great ones for reasonable prices. I often kick back there with a cigar and enjoy some drinks.....
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Bangkok Women : Meet Beautiful Thai Girls
Posted on: 12:57 pm on Jan. 24, 2003
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Oaktoad
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Why don't you cigar smokers just get yourself a pre op ladyboy and spare the air ;-)
I get so tired of all the smoke in the bars in Thailand and the cigar smoke is the worst.. esp in restaurants when you are just about to enjoy a meal.. along comes some smoke from a nearby table..
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Bangkok Girls : Meet Attractive Thai Girls
Posted on: 1:10 pm on Jan. 24, 2003
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One Eyed Jack
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Oaktoad.... I hate it too..... but I love a good cigar and chain smoke in LOS... go figure. Love my own smoke but hate second hand smoke. 
You should move to California.... no smoking in restaurants there. 
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Thai Girls : Meet Active Thai Girls
Posted on: 1:59 pm on Jan. 24, 2003
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Sauron
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BARS AND PUBS were exempted from the no smoking ban.
Now what's the diff between a pub that serves food and a restaurant that serves liquor?
A major loophole in the STUPID law.
BTW most local restaurants have private rooms, and the Thais who use those private rooms are ignoring the ban while in those rooms.
It's the hotels who are most in a bind.
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Thai Women : Meet Matured Thai Women
Posted on: 3:51 pm on Jan. 24, 2003
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Oaktoad
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One eye, I live in CA and do like the no smoking, tho I do sympathize a little bit with those people standing out in the cold to satisfy their addiction.
Once be fore the smoking ban.. I took a group of my employees out for a nice lunch.. just as our food came, the guy at the next table lit up a big stogie .. the smoke was coming directly at us. I got up and asked him if he could either move to another table or perhaps put it out (wasn't just me, one of my employees was starting to sneeze).. he told me to f_ck off .. I took the cigar out of his mouth and dropped it in his coffee cup .. and said "enjoy your coffee" .. he got pissed, but just got up and left ..
My employees loved me
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Bangkok Girls : Meet Attractive Thai Girls
Posted on: 4:49 pm on Jan. 24, 2003
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If you plan to go to Patpong after you get your cigards, then the Dusit branch is a better bet. If you plan to go back to your hotel then, the Hilton branch.