A German Begger in Pattaya Beggar's Belief. A German national found begging on the streets of Bangkok has left police and good Samaritans with a healthy spread of scrambled eggs on their collective faces.
The young German Mr. Benjamin Holst aged 29 initially touched the hearts of Thais when pictures of him begging for money went viral on the Internet. Mr. Holst has a medical condition that results in swolen legs akin to Elephantitus. His condition meant that he had a problem walking that is walking past bars.
Bankok police enlisted the help of a Khun Sirirat from a German Travel Association based in Bangkok, agreed to help Mr. Holst in conjunction with the Tourist Police in Bangkok.
She arranged for food, hotel accommodation and a whip round resulted in a 40,000 Baht fund that was given to him to survive whilst a new German Passport was issued. To pass the time Mr. Holst jumped on a bus. OK jumped is not the right word and head down to Pattaya for a little R&R.
Media frenzy accompanied him down to the land of bigger smiles. He spent the day posing for photographers and the nights getting big legless and procuring ladies of the night from motorcycle taxi drivers at the entrance to Walking Street.
Pattaya Tourist Police are not as gullible as their Bangkok brothers and Mr. Holst was soon answering questions as to his activities and also how he had managed to spend 33,000 Baht, he had 7,000 Baht left in his pocket.
Mr. Holst now faces an end to his shenanigans. Such a shame that farangs down on their luck in the future in the land of smiles will probably end up more and more in the land of frowns.
