Often on this journey we befriend some of the coolest people in unexpected places. Ammy’s Coffee House is one of those place. It is about 1/2 mile from our headquarters for the month and they have iced coffee, air conditioning, and WIFI–my three favorite things!
I have spent many hours at Ammy’s already and have become friendly with the girl who works there, Nat. She is precious and happy for the company each day. We chat about her boyfriend, what I am doing in Thailand, etc…The shop is open 10 AM-10PM every day and she works every day, her work ethic amazes me!
Last night we drove by the shop on the way home from church and I noticed that the lights were out in the shop. I even remarked to Esther “How awesome that Nat gets a night off tonight!” I was so excited and hoped she was doing something fun.
I walked in this afternoon to settle into my couch and work on some emails, blogs, etc…I casually asked if she had a good weekend and she was immediately downcast. Apparently the Police came yesterday afternoon to the shop to monitor the cafe computers. This is a common practice in Thailand I learned. They check all the public machines for downloaded music and porn.
Unbeknownst to Nat, a customer had downloaded some porn and some music and the shop was looking at a 50,000 baht fine. They took her away to the station and threatened to “mess up” her paperwork (i.e…vias, passport, etc…) so that she wouldn’t be able to leave Thailand, ever. Eventually they were able to bargain with the Chief of Police and only ended up paying about 15,000 baht for the fine.
Of course I was sad for Nat and that she had had a rough weekend, but mostly my surprise was in the fact that the police
monitor this kind of activity. I find it extremely ironic that literally 1/2 a block from the Coffee Shop you can walk in and watch live porn all night long. For free. With no fines. Is there any logic or justice to this?
