Episodes - Page 3 | The Bangkok Podcast

Aug. 6, 2024

Phra Pandit Lends His Insight: What Buddhism Says About the Seven Deadly Sins - Part 2 [S7.E31]

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...

July 30, 2024

Phra Pandit Lends his Insight: What Buddhism Says About the Seven Deadly Sins - Part 1 [S7.E30]

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...

July 23, 2024

Bangkok in Your 20s vs Your 50s: We Discuss the Pros and Cons [S7.E29]

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...

July 16, 2024

Lawyer Dave Lawrence Gives a Legal Perspective on Divorce in Thailand [S7.E28]

Greg and Ed interview Dave Lawrence of 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....

July 9, 2024

AI vs The Big Mango: What ChatGPT 4o and Gemini Know (and don’t know) about Bangkok [S7.E27]

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...

July 2, 2024

Blending Fact & Fiction: Paul & Yuangrat Wedel Return to Discuss Their Novels Set in 1900s Siam Part 2 [S7.E26]

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,...

June 25, 2024

Blending Fact & Fiction: Paul & Yuangrat Wedel Return to Discuss Their Novels Set in 1900s Siam [S7.E25]

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...

June 18, 2024

Ed’s City Review: Bangkok vs Hong Kong - Which One Comes Out on Top? [S7.E24]

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...

June 11, 2024

Regional Podcast Pals: Joah McGee on Covering Tragedy & Hope on Insight Myanmar [S7.E23]

Wrapping up our short series on our regional podcast peers, Greg interviews Joah McGee from the . 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...

June 4, 2024

Bangkok Devaluation: A Few Things That Used to Matter…But Don’t Anymore [S7.E22]

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...

May 28, 2024

Regional Podcast Pals: Mike Tatarski on Producing the Vietnam Weekly from Ho Chi Minh City [S7.E21]

Greg interviews Mike Tatarski of the . Mike begins by explaining the podcast originated out of his 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...

May 21, 2024

Looking Back on the 2006 Coup and Why We’re Still Feeling it Today [S7.E20]

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...

May 14, 2024

Checking in on Bangkok’s Craft Beer Scene with BangkokBeerGuide.com [S7.E19]

Greg interviews Clif from 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,...

May 7, 2024

Bangkok Superlatives: Stories From Decades in a Crazy City [S7.E18]

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...

April 30, 2024

Philosopher Dr. Soraj Hongladarom on Buddhism, Ethics and AI [S7.E17]

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...

April 23, 2024

Bangkok for Nerds! Understanding the Chaos With Some Sweet Math [S7.E16]

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...

April 16, 2024

Stuart McDonald from Travelfish on Tourism Recovery in Thailand Through Visas, Backpackers...and Weed? [S7.E15]

This is Part 2 of our interview with Stuart MacDonald, Asian tourism expert and founder of , 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...

April 9, 2024

Stuart from Travelfish Talks How (and how not) to Help Tourism Recover Sustainably [S7.E14]

Greg and Ed interview their old friend Stuart of , 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...

April 2, 2024

Bangkok History Highlight: 20 Years Later - Looking Back at the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami [S7.E13]

In a twist on our history episodes, Greg and Ed revisit the devastating tsunami of 2004. Greg begins with a thorough summary of the event, which begins with an absolutely massive earthquake off the coast of Sumatra that caused a rift and shift on the...

March 26, 2024

AmericanThaiGuy Ron Weaver on the Complicated Issue of Racism in Thailand [S7.E12]

This is Part 2 of Greg and Ed’s interview with Ron Weaver, otherwise known as on social media. Ron begins Part 2 by directly addressing his experience as a black man in Thailand. He carefully explains his preference for living in Thailand over...

March 19, 2024

AmericanThaiGuy Ron Weaver on Mastering Thai…and Social Media [S7.E11]

Greg and Ed interview Ron Weaver, aka ,’ on his life as an expat in Thailand as well as his excellent Thai language skills. Ron begins by waxing rhapsodically about his first visits to Thailand, when he fell in love with the weather, the food, the...

March 12, 2024

Foreigners Acting Badly: What Does it Take to Push Thais Over the Edge? [S7.E10]

Greg and Ed discuss the Thai temperament and what exactly causes Thais to occasionally blow their collective lids. Greg uses the recent example of a Swiss expat who kicked a Thai woman in the back, allegedly because she was inappropriately sitting on...

March 5, 2024

Our Friend Mookie Could Raise Her Kids Anywhere. So Why Thailand? [S7.E9]

Ed interviews his former student Mookie about her experience studying in the U.K. and her later choice to move her family back from the U.K. to Thailand. The two old friends begin reminiscing about Ed’s university program and how Mookie really was...

Feb. 27, 2024

Ahh, Memories... Greg and Ed Discuss Those Vivid Early Bangkok Days [S7.E8]

Getting a bit nostalgic after listening to Tay-Tay’s latest album, Greg and Ed reminisce about their respective first year’s in Bangkok by recounting their most vivid early memories, something that’s unique for everyone but plays a big role in...