Thailand Unfiltered: Karl's Candid Stories of 36 Years and Counting

[@ThairishTimes]

Subscribe to Karl's channel: www.youtube.com/@karlsthailand First interview I did with Karl: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y4qqqJ2giKyEpsU

[@Steventravels485]

Karl is a great guy and I love his channel

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks

[@scottjohnson921]

Karl is a legend. I love his channel

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks so much

[@santorini8423]

Karls a legend, why he doesnt get more hits is a mystery, proper old classic pics and insight

[@gerardringa5665]

Luv Carl's reminiscing. No hair and all.And the stories about 1980s Thailand. Bet Dublin must have some stories to tell.Remember it before the glitz.The dirty old town.

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers, yeah I heard a few things about Dublin back then lol

[@ThairishTimes]

I would love to get an old school Dubliner on the channel

[@poorlybuffalo555]

Love Karl's channel.

[@karlsthailand]

Thank you

[@anthonydavies5006]

Just been on a road trip with Karl and my mate. He took us to some great places and told us some great tales. Top bloke is Karl

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers. I’ll get around to editing the video from the trip one of these days Ant 😂

[@donjordan8174]

Enjoy watching Karl’s adventures…. Thanks Pete

[@karlsthailand]

Thank you

[@lyntonemerson2165]

I love this guy!! Thanks for the retrospective!!

[@karlsthailand]

Thank you

[@daveduffy2292]

Great interview Pete. Karl is a true gentleman.

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers Dave

[@ptroy72blue]

Thanks Pete & Karl

[@karlsthailand]

Thank you

[@andrewhyland9212]

Love Karl’s channel. Fantastic places he gets to. Off track, fitness and a head for heights required.

[@karlsthailand]

Got some more coming up but will have to get back on top of the mountain of editing I have to catch up on. Cheers

[@andrewhyland9212]

Look forward to seeing them.

[@huahin6149]

I love this guy ! Great interview!

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks so much

[@mickvallantine2523]

Enjoyed that Pete, thanks for sharing that and have a lovely Christmas

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks, Pete does a great job with his interviews doesn’t he?

[@ThairishTimes]

Happy Christmas Mick and best of luck for 2024

[@cj5273]

One of your best interviews, this guy is really likeable

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks very much

[@MrPushpuller]

Great content again Pete, thanks

[@ThailandThomas]

I love Karl. Great guy with some great stories.

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks so much Thomas

[@bryanflowers3563]

Hes definitely a great guy. Ive travelled alot with karl

[@paulfarrant8097]

Top vlog,love listening to karl talk about the old days in Thailand. My first trip was in1997 koh samui, lovevtge place✌🙏

[@gum6y1]

Great stories really good viewing.

[@ThairishTimes]

Thank you 🙏🙏🙏

[@benmanila]

Love Karl's channel.. Totally unique and has been a great source of info for exploring the wider country. Saw Karl in soi 7 Pattaya last nite and he was on great form. Was nice to see you to Pete briefly in Bangkok last month. Merry Christmas everyone.

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers Ben. Happy New Year!

[@ManicMindTrick]

Can you tell more what you mean by great form? 😄

[@nicholas-j8t]

Legend. Love his vlogs. The old photos. I have some from 90's lol So different. Good and not so good. x

[@karlsthailand]

Yes, it wasn’t all great but it was certainly different back then. Thank you

[@Freethecommons]

Wonderful stories.

[@gregoryfrancisjames5071]

Two of my very FAVORITES YOU TUBERS.

[@ThairishTimes]

Thanks buddy🙏🙏🙏🙏

[@marksymark1]

Fantastic video, I’ve known Karl since the mid 80s, great to see he still has so much passion both nostalgia for the past as well as optimism for the future. Hopefully he will come back to Pha-ngan at some point to com-let’s a hike that we were meant to do but stupid me took us on the wrong trail, happy days regardless always good to see him.

[@karlsthailand]

Happy Christmas Mark. I’ll try to get down there again sometime and we can complete that hike lol

[@CuriousCyclist]

Love the photo. They really bring his story to life.

[@reoun1654]

Following Karl a great story teller like Karl I was in Thailand for a short time in 87. It was crazy wild like he said and soooooo much fun!

[@karlsthailand]

It’s hard to describe what it was like back then isn’t it. Wilder, yet simpler with such a feeling of discovery. Cheers

[@reoun1654]

Yeah ....very hard we were lucky! Great story about your late mate who passed on as well karl I have a similar story with my mate in Vietnam where i resided for a decade. Cambodia is another place that was wild as well Karl specially the Southern part 'Victory Hill' was a goody near Snookiville!

[@karlsthailand]

@@reoun1654Unfortunately the lifestyle had/has casualties. I visited Cambodia a few times back in the 90’s and it was indeed a dangerous place. On my first couple of visits Pol Pot was still alive and the Khmer Rouge still existed as a guerrilla group and kidnapped and murdered foreigners. People still call it ‘Wild’ now lol

[@ERN1489]

What a cool guy 🙏🏻 Great interview

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks so much

[@Nebula37]

Good stories from the old days.

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks

[@EddieManning]

Great to see and hear from Karl again. Nice guy. Love his jungle and mountain walks. So much so have done 2 of the hikes shown in his films. Love Karl's old stories and memories of Thailand. Cheers to you Pete and Karl!

[@ThairishTimes]

cheers Eddie

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks Eddie

[@ericmowrey6872]

I can relate to the elephant sighting. I was sitting at Cheap Charlie's bar one evening, just down the road from the Federal Hotel, off Sukhuvit rd. It was May, 1988. I was into my fourth or fifth Mekong & coke when I felt a gentle but heavy tap on my shoulder and heard laughter. I turned around to see who it was. It was an elephant. A small - as elephants go - and, thankfully, friendly elephant, but it wasn't some paper maché replica. The elephant owner was a skinny old man with about four teeth. Someone gave the elephant some bananas. We took some pictures, tipped the elephant man a few Baht. He politely wayed the crowd, smiled and sauntered off towards Sukhumvit. I think in the early nineties Bangkok outlawed elephants in most of the city. I was glad to find Thailand in the late eighties. I was 35. What memories! Patong Beach, Bangkok etc. I'm a codger now but it was the trip of my life.

[@senianns9522]

I walked a similar path! Went full time in Phuket in '86. Regrets? Only getting old!

[@karlsthailand]

Glad to hear that it hasn’t lost its magic for you either. Cheers

[@senianns9522]

I have enjoyed it here! Worked for some 25 years here and Thailand has been good to me! Now retired and living the life! Cheers! @@karlsthailand

[@jamestaylor8808]

Great storyteller

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks James

[@leehughes2666]

I love listening Karls stories, would love a pint and a chat with him.

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers. Give me a shout next time you’re in Pattaya

[@leehughes2666]

@@karlsthailand im back in Feb, see you then.

[@kwokweng76]

Great story Pete

[@ThairishTimes]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@itsOnMARS2023]

He looked a lot like Garfunkel when he was younger, Karl is a very interesting character, really enjoyed his stories.

[@isaacsworld9269]

Cool. I’m from the UK. I started going to Thailand in April 1982 aged 19 and as green as grass! Many stories from then. Went in 83, 84 and then 92 93, 2004, 2005, 2010. It was so different in 1982 Alan Whicker did a BBC documentary on pattaya from The QE2 ship. Needed up in Philippines and now on 2nd Filipina wife.

[@baldybrian]

Great stories, Karl. I would have loved to see Thailand back in the day, especially the 40 Baht-a-night rooms on the beach. :) - Fantastic content, Pete.

[@ThairishTimes]

Cheers Brian, hope you're well mate

[@ManicMindTrick]

You can find something similar in certain places in Philippines when counting for inflation. Ocam Ocam beach in Busuanga island I paid 4 pound per night in 2017. In Thailand also in much less exploited islands.

[@richardevans3801]

Another great interview. That brought back some good memories of my first visit to Thailand in 1988 . Probably the best trip ever and on a tight budget just the same as Karl was.

[@karlsthailand]

You can’t beat your first visit can you Richard? And as much as I love it now it was much more of an adventure back then. Cheers

[@jonhobson3592]

Very interesting stories 😊

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks, glad you enjoyed them

[@jonhobson3592]

@@karlsthailand yes I going to watch some of your videos especially the ✈️ 🥹one

[@robheb1355]

I stayed at east west hotel and nana hotel 1968. Still staying at nana 2x a year from US I’m 75 still loving it.

[@TrippyandDa]

Love Karl’s channel and his stories from his life. Didn’t realise his wife went to UK with him, I wonder how that affected her/them? I’m interested as my wife has lived in UK with me for nearly 20 years and isn’t sure about retirement back to Thailand 🇹🇭 Great content as always Pete👌🏼

[@karlsthailand]

Yes, we lived there for 24 years. Thanks.

[@gertdrok]

What a Very Nice Story’s, from a very sympathetic man. 🙏

[@ThairishTimes]

sure is Gert, glad you liked it

[@mariettathornton5924]

Love the video Pete! Karl seems like he is such a cool guy! Love his channel and thanks for interviewing him again 😊

[@ThairishTimes]

thanks for watching marietta

[@mikeyboy3054]

The thing with the Lauda Air Crash was it was a Boeing 767 and during the initial testing of the 767 prior to it being available for commercial service one of the tests was a reverse thruster deployment during flight and the aircraft was found to be controllable. The problem was Boeing tested the flight configuration at low altitude in more dense air and not at cruise altitude of 35,000 ft plus where the air is less dense. Unfortunately this created unrecoverable flight conditions at that altitude. Mayday/ Aircraft Investigations did an episode on it. Final note is Nikki Lauda was a certified 767 pilot himself.

[@donaldcroom1483]

brilliant. nothing better than stories of days and years gone by. reflection on how we thought then and reexamining now. thairish times is the right format to take all this in. thank you.

[@mike-js1jj]

I love Karl’s stories. Cool interview I also will never forget my first trip to Thailand

[@karlsthailand]

I don't think many ever do, cheers

[@YuChiGongG]

I consider this guy's Thailand story.... a.....DEFINITE Success Story!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@karlsthailand]

In some ways but not all. I am happy here though. Cheers

[@ThairishTimes]

me too mate

[@michaelblack2334]

Spent some good times in Thailand in 1979. Straight out of the UK, some some exciting times

[@Mranfunnee]

Yes! Karl is a grand grand Man. Up there with Bangkok Pat!! 🎉

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks so much, glad you think so

[@ThairishTimes]

he's a grand fella

[@andrewmiles8852]

Karl is so easy to listen to. Great interview 👍🏻 , well done.

[@karlsthailand]

Thank you Andrew

[@durian2193]

Fantastic interview, owed in part to the outstanding guest- probably my favourite yet on your channel.

[@ThairishTimes]

brilliant, love hearing that cheers

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks so much Durian

[@NickyDunn]

Great interview. Love Karl and his channel. His trips back to places. With before and after pictures. I love his memories. And how times have changed. The Air disaster is so sad. Great interview. Pete.

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks Nicky

[@ThairishTimes]

Thank you Nicky

[@ariefraiser140]

Young Karl looks almost like Heath Ledger.

[@karlsthailand]

Someone else said that lol. I guess I did a bit. Cheers

[@kavishinde2970]

I ❤ your Chanel!

[@bargainwallart653]

The good old days❤

[@_Alfa.Bravo_]

Karl is cool !!! Kudos to how many of Thailands mountains he has climbened !!! Thank you for this great interview !!!

[@karlsthailand]

Thanks so much. Still plenty of places I want to vlog here.

[@ianmanning8684]

The mans a Legend who shows the real Thailand

[@rickmccann4016]

Karl has a way with words.

[@karlsthailand]

Thank you Rick

[@mikeyboy3054]

I could listen to you two all day. Amazing interviewer and interviewee. So enjoyable 😉

[@ThairishTimes]

Thanks so much

[@Wilko11]

Great chat. Would love to know how old Karl is. And his age first time in Thailand in 1987 ? I stayed 3 months on Samui in 89, first time there. Everything was so cheap. Hard place to leave back then. 👍

[@ThairishTimes]

I think he was 23 in 1987 so I'm guessing Karl is about 60 now

[@karlsthailand]

Nothing wrong with Pete’s mathematics. I’m 60 years old. Cheers

[@Wilko11]

​​@@karlsthailandCheers happy 60th. I'm 63. Went to Britain, Ireland, Europe & Middle East for 2 years in the late 1980s. On the way flying from Sydney to London had to change planes in Bangkok. Seeing Bangkok from the air and even the airport really intrigued me. So after near 2 years I decided to take the cheapest flight from London to Bangkok on the way home. Aeroflot with a stopover in Russia. Ended up falling in love in Chiang Mai with a Uni student I met on the train. All up stayed in Thailand for 6 months the first time. It was a revelation after the expense of Europe & Britain. Found it very difficult to go home, only the visa situation and lack of funds convinced me to leave. Have been back near 40 times since, including 6 months earlier this year, along with 4 months in Laos.👍

[@karlsthailand]

@@Wilko11I find that story very relatable. Thailand was and still can be a life changing experience . Only the visa situation and lack of funds made you go home lol. Still many people feel that way today. Those cheap Aeroflot flights were legendary, nobody seemed to know where they would stopover and when they would eventually arrive in Bangkok lol. Cheers

[@Wilko11]

@@karlsthailand Yes Aeroflot also included a stopover in Moscow with 2 nights accommodation and a tour. Stayed at the flight crew compound, which felt like a prison camp along with nearly inedible food. It was surrounded by barbed wire fences and guards in checkpoints in mid Winter knee deep snow. The flight was on a very old plane which landed 5 times between London and Bangkok, each time with a bang. Even though it was by far the cheapest, I swore I wouldn't fly with them again. 👍

[@mangostickyrice555]

Thumbs up 👍 Pete & Karl…….. What a great life Karl is having 😎

[@nickeyfynn3270]

Cool you asked about Wong.

[@mrdoodle8748]

Love Karl's channel, particularly his stories about his early days in Thailand. I went there in the early 90's armed with the latest copy of Lonely Planet, it was like arriving on another planet. Good times.

[@karlsthailand]

That's a pretty good description and where would we have been without LP? Cheers

[@heleng9940]

Love that he went to Ko Samui, just following the directions from his Aussie boarder in London.

[@karlsthailand]

That’s how it worked back then. Cheers

[@seanmcgoldrick1702]

Karl is a top guy! Met him in November at Le Pub in Pattaya and had a beer with him. Such a genuine nice guy. We had a chat about Siem Reap and he was showing me photos on his phone from the 80’s. Brilliant guy! Love his channel

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers Sean. Le Pub is definitely one of my haunts and it doesn’t take much to get me to show my old pictures lol

[@jimmyboysmovies1972]

What interesting and gripping stories Karl has. The high and lows of experiences in Thailand . Funny enough Pete I did the same when I got in to my wife brother car 😂😂. The photos with date stamps are great and show Thailand in a different time. Nice one Pete great vlog

[@ThairishTimes]

Cheers Jimmy, love the old photos here. I was just born when they were taken lol

[@1morchang]

I was one of the first at the scene of the plane crash in Koh Samui.

[@taterrhead]

man I would love to live life pre internet ... there's almost 0 sense of adventure left on Earth thanks to social media

[@karlsthailand]

The Internet has brought so much convenience to our lives but yes, it was definitely more of an adventure back then. Thanks

[@soldiermick]

I remember Karl from Pattaya Addicts forum days.

[@karlsthailand]

I remember you too Mick, do you still get out here?

[@soldiermick]

@@karlsthailand yeh. Couple of times last year. Not sure about 2024 but I do have retirement plans.

[@bendyloco]

Great interview, Pete! Wish I was in Thailand but hopefully one day soon I’ll be able to make a trip to check it out. Your channel is one of the reasons I want to go and probably never come back to the Snowy North US ❄️ Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to you and yours!

[@ThairishTimes]

Happy Christmas buddy, thanks so much for supporting the channel

[@ManicMindTrick]

Those crows feet tell a story of a life well lived.

[@steverosse]

Heh heh. Well, the local Thais may not steal a couple of forks from a shrine, but somebody local did loot the bodies, to the point that the embassies were complaining they couldn't identify the dead because all of their documents were gone. Just like everybody else, Thai people are deep and complex.

[@billybob7522]

My sentiments exactly.

[@karlsthailand]

Yes they did Steve, I have clear memories of it all from as I was living here at the time. I couldn’t see any point in dwelling upon it in my video though. A long time has passed. Cheers

[@billybob7522]

@@karlsthailand Yes I agree Karl. Whilst it was very regrettable to the friends and relatives of the victims, and ultimately the investigation, the vlog was about YOU and not this terrible accident. Good luck in your future travels Karl.

[@jonhenson5450]

Stuck in N. America for now(circumstances) these Thai vids are PAINFUL! Coz technically Im free and financed to leave tonight

[@jimcraiggeezer]

Karl comes across as a very genuine fella as you do too.. he's had an interesting life in Thailand..great vlogs too.. thanks... Ps I remember my first time on Asia/Thailand.. sensory overload is all I can remember.. late 80s.. loved it ever since.

[@ThairishTimes]

Thanks Jim

[@johnnysukhumvit9242]

What Thai League football team is that jersey and where did you get it?

[@ThairishTimes]

Muang Thong Thani and I bought it in the large sports department store in Central Rama 9

[@johnnysukhumvit9242]

@@ThairishTimes It is a cool jersey. How much?

[@russwright]

Started following Karl's channel after your first video with him. Unique side of Thailand and love the old stories as well.

[@karlsthailand]

I do try to follow my own path when it comes to content. Cheers

[@YuChiGongG]

Karl has an extremely POSITIVE channel. He might do more videos relating to how Old Farang can get into shape, after coming to Thailand. Very motivational, obviously, his videos..... (Any Old Farang coming to Thailand should put exercise near the top of their activities. This is the best way to enjoy your stay here.....much more!)

[@karlsthailand]

I try to keep fit these days but it hasn't always been that way lol. Cheers

[@issadiawara38]

Miami hotel is at petchaburi soi 35 i live few minutes walk from it I hit the street of Bangkok in 1999 ever since I’m here traveling in and out back forth traveling the world but Thailand 🇹🇭 is my base 🤣🤗🙏🏾❤️🇹🇭✌🏾🎩

[@speksone]

the air crash from Lauder Air crashed about 15 min from my farm in Supunburi. There is still the cockpit there still today. Everything else got looted by the Thais! You can still go up there in the national park! Very creepy!

[@SidewinderUKG]

Can you link the video for part 1 with Karl please.

[@ThairishTimes]

I did mate, i've pinned it at the top of the comment section

[@YuChiGongG]

He looks like a bodybuilder. he is in great physical shape. How old is he, anyway? He looks about 60, maybe....

[@ThairishTimes]

that's what trekking through jungles and hiking up mountains does to ya. Yeah I think Karl is about that age

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers. I do go to the gym but it’s just for fitness purposes, definitely not a body builder as such. Yes, I’m 60 years old. Cheers

[@YuChiGongG]

@@karlsthailand I am pretty good at guessing ages of people, both Farang and Asian, after my 50 years in Asia. (I look forward to Interview 3)

[@pepelemoko01]

I boarded the overnight blue coconut boat from Sarat Thani to Koh Samui for the first time, sleeping on mats on the floor. Lonely Planet used to warn of the threat of Thai pirates No one talks about the Thai Pirates these days, who inflicted unspeakable atrocities on Vietnamese boat people in the 80s, there was a tragic episode known as the Koh Kra massacre, but there were many others.

[@karlsthailand]

Yes, it was so different back then and I can remember stories of the night boats to Samui sinking NS the like. And as I alluded to there was a lot of criminality back then too. Thanks for your own memories

[@pepelemoko01]

@@karlsthailand I was on a crowded tourist boat from Koh Samui to Koh Phangan,I had just opened a fresh packet of smokes,I offered a cigarette to this Thai guy standing opposite me, he had fishing pants with a big sash around the waist, and .357 magnum near the knot holding it all together. You could tell he had the clap from smell and discharge down the front of his trousers. At a young age,I thought now that's death. The other tourists many Europeans were oblivious.

[@ThairishTimes]

bloody hell!!@@pepelemoko01

[@glenloader639]

Malaysia Hotel also had a 24 hr coffee shop so you could drink there after hrs. I knew Wong well first met him in 1980 before he opened his bar, we use to hang out in the Blue Fox and drink beer together. The area around the Malaysia hotel was the area for Hippies and back packer to go before Khaw san road became the place to go.

[@karlsthailand]

Wow, your knowledge and memories of that place and time go back even further than mine. Respect

[@ma3stro681]

Wasn’t that where The Serpent, Charles Sobraj, went hunting …

[@karlsthailand]

@@ma3stro681Yes, I do believe it was one of his haunts back in the 70’s

[@glenloader639]

Yes it was but that was in the 70's@@ma3stro681

[@julianshalders6047]

I met karl and his mates in 87 on a Thailand island called Koh Samui , we all met at sun flower bungalow, top pommy blokes living on white rice😂, the owners sue and yung would get pissed because all they would eat was rice😂, but all was good 😂, i had a foot race on the beach with adam, Australia 👌 won😂. Karl great story teller, nice guy 👍. Koh Samui was paradise in 87, but now absolutely ruined by greed and corruption, like karl says very sad😢.

[@karlsthailand]

In case anyone doesn’t believe him it’s 100% true. We did meet on Koh Samui in 1987 and never realised until I did a video about Samui in the past earlier this year! And yes , they never made much out of us lol. Cheers

[@kennymcalpine8970]

Listening to Karl puts me to sleep , i think i've found the cure to my decades long insomnia

[@karlsthailand]

You can watch it again every night now you’ve found the cure lol. Cheers

[@kennymcalpine8970]

@@karlsthailand I think i might do just that Karl , cheers

[@MGTOWgamer]

1987 Karl!

[@karlsthailand]

Cheers

[@MGTOWgamer]

👋@@karlsthailand

[@1morchang]

Did you ever meet Wong`s Japanese wife Karl.

[@karlsthailand]

Do you know it’s so long ago now I can’t remember. I do remember his sister though. Cheers

[@keithmuckchucker6468]

Karl has some great stories and is a good story teller, but he doesn't say anything about his wife? or his wife's story?

[@luceinbattaglia9425]

Me too I’ve been following Karl🔝In my opinion he does some of the best hikes in the most gorgeous places of Thailand available on YT! Big up to both of you guys! Tnx for the great content!!!🔝👏🙏💙🇹🇭

[@ThairishTimes]

cheers mate glad you enjoyed it

[@karlsthailand]

Thank you. Glad that you enjoy my little adventures

[@luceinbattaglia9425]

Thank you guys! All the best, I’ll be there in a couple of weeks, can’t wait to be back!!! Enjoy Thailand as usual!🙏💙🇹🇭

[@andrewharris8439]

Plenty of stories to share from 1985 onwards😅

[@schrodingerscat3912]

Thailand blew me away my first few days. I decided to not research or learn anything about the country and just dive into it lol

[@karlsthailand]

Pre-Internet there wasn’t that much choice lol. Cheers

[@bargainwallart653]

Naughty Nigel etc....

[@nickeyfynn3270]

Is Nig talked about here?