THEY COLLECTED THE KEYS and worked. At least Nick did. Before long, Kev had to nip out. He needed to meet a man interested in spending money in their direction. Someone who he'd heard wanted a shop front. They had told Kev that the Dutchman was looking to start a new venture. He needed space for a wholesale food and beverage project. He planned to sell cheese and go up against the colossal brewery, Boon Rawd. The brewers produce Singha beer, amongst other things, and he aimed to sell an imported beer! Well, you had to hope. Thais do not eat cheese and prefer Mae Kong whisky to beer; next to whisky would come local beer. Now, we enjoy Singha, and there was a newcomer, Kloster. Upmarket from Singha, you could forget a falang brew, which would come a long way down the list of alcoholic drinks available. The chances of success looked slim, which did not worry Kev. He should have been concerned.
Anyway, Mr Jan was confident he was on to a winner.
'Soon, hundreds of thousands of tourists will flock to Hua Hin.'
The Dutchman did not have the perfect business plan. But he was not the only person to think Hua Hin would soon become a tourist Mecca.
Jan was a stout man, not like his beer. His beer and some of his cheese were mild, and he was far from mild. He was moody and aggressive. He had something about him that said he was the only person you should listen to, as he was always correct!
About the building, he liked the position. In that he was, as always, correct, it was a perfect spot for what he was planning. He wanted the space, and the monthly rent was affordable. So he handed over a month's rent as a deposit and a month's rent in advance. They gave him a moving-in date, which would pressure Nick to finish the renovations on time.
Kev spent his lunch break at the beach before telling Nick the news of the deal. Kevʼs favourite restaurant was in front of the Railway Hotel. The actual railway was away from the hotel. However, they thought it better for a hotel to be close to the sea rather than near the clattering of the tracks. So they positioned the railway hotel at the beach. The railway station was about half a mile away, towards the hills. It was placed right next to the country's first golf course. A Scotsman employed by the state railway designed and built it. Kev had fancied himself as a golfer but had yet braved the scorn of the caddies. The caddies were often better golfers than their 'boss', who had paid for the round.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Kevʼs choice of beach restaurant was busy. It was one of the 20 restaurants spaced along the seafront. The restaurants are not part of the hotel. Surprisingly, they could operate on a prime site between the hotel garden and the sea. Not being a weekend, there were few Thai customers. Westerners, or 'falangs' as they knew the tourists, had taken all the best seats. There was a table, two deck chairs and an umbrella nearer to the sea. So they served a fresh lemonade and a fried egg sandwich at the seafront as a well-deserved lunch.
When the tide was out, it revealed several large rocks. The accompanying pools with resident crabs, performing. Further south along the beach was a headland. It boasted a monkey-clad hill with an attractive temple nestled at the summit. Palm trees swayed in unison behind the restaurants. All are adding up to Kev's feel-good mood.
Two German regulars, one grossly fat and one so skinny you could post him, were getting stuck into cold beers. Another German with an ill-fitting wig disturbed his train of thought.
'Hi, my name is Charlie. I have seen you here a few times, and I thought it was time I introduced myself. I hope you donʼt mind.'
'No, I'm always pleased to meet new people. My name is Kev.'
The last thing Kev wanted was to be disturbed. But, on the other hand, maybe it was just what he needed.
It turned out that Charlie was a twice-divorced teacher, which in Germany was not good, financially at least. Being divorced once was bad enough, but twice was economic suicide. So Charlie came to Thailand, where he could follow his dream and become a professional singer.
He left, saying his father was a dentist for the Nazis during the war! A strange man, thought Kev, but harmless enough.
Not only that, he wants a long-term rental.