Slappz

How did you know Boyce?!

-heatherm- I wanted to ship about 100 of the same item of $10 value to my house via a wholesaler outside Thailand.

-Boyce- I would prefer to avoid doing anything through a Thai gf/friend, my concerns are lack of trust and lack of experience. If there were opportunities for growth in the niche then I would put more conisderation into this option, but I really just want to inexpensively see what the market is like for my product.

-jamescollister- Thanks for the idea, I am going to look into this option more thoroughly. However, I assume this would still force me to form a company based in the export country?

Hi,

Just a quick question that I couldn't find through the search. I have a rather small single good I wanted to import (valued at $10) but I would be looking to resell this good in Thailand as it seems like a decent niche here. I don't have a business, and the costs to set one up seem enormous and way above any profit I could make from this single good. Is there a way around this issue? Just to be clear, I am not looking to break any laws. Thanks.

Possibly in the future get a GPS tracking devise and put it on the bike? Obv. that can't help the problem at hand, but it's something that could give you piece of mind in the future.

Basically answering anything usually confirms you can atleast understand some Thai. I usually get this follow up question "You can speak Thai?" and I wanted to quip back, "Yes? You can't?" which is what I'd say in English to such a silly question, but I never found the right Thai words to make it sound like a natural quip.

Obv. I can just say ได้ คุณพูดไม่ได้หรอ but Thai's never seem to understand that I am being sarcastic

Wow I've never read so many excuses in a 2 page thread.

Learning Thai isn't gonna happen in a month, you need to do things everyday, immerse yourself in the language, over a long period of time. Stop watching English programs, switch to Thai. There's 100's on Thai programs on Youtube. Anytime your talking to a Thai in public always use Thai. Make Thai friends who will help correct your pronounciation. Get a tutor. Read Thai books, magazines, newspapers.

When you create an environment of Thai all around you the language will improve naturally and consistently.

The "no sharing" was put in place so that we would not have to argue with the 5% of customers, particularly the backpacker tourist, no member of Thaivisa

Are backpackers unwelcome patrons at your establishment?

This thread reminds me of the many macwalen threads that always come off looking like bad publicity.

Spam clearly works or else the market would have gotten rid of it a long time ago. Spam will hurt your image, but help your bottom line. Up to you.

Hey all,

I've recently become hooked on the Coconuts with Jelly inside, Thai's call them วุ้นมะพร้าวเย็น (Woon Maprao Yen). I used to buy them at a stand on the street in San Sai, but they have recently been closed and I'm looking for new locations that sell these delicious coconuts. Can anyone help?

Thanks!

You also forgot สำหรับ which is more common than most of your other words.

ขอบคุณสำหรับคำชม - Thanks for the compliment

I've learned virgin a few ways, but the most spoken seems to be สด (fresh)

Such as the phrase โสดแต่ไม่สด (Single but not a virgin)

Also, there is บริสุทธิ์ (pure) not sure how common that is, learned it in class.

Good breakfast menu, but I liked it better when it was 99b.

1) Learn Thai characters

2) Learn to read and write

3) Go to class

4) Girls in bars are a useful training resource at minimal cost.

I'm rubbish at languages but Thai is fairly easy, what makes it harder is that Thai language teachers generally have no idea how to teach, and the Thais you will speak with will have no idea of how to lower their vocabulary to your level or slow their speech to a speed you can follow.

Learn set sentences, applicable to dropping into conversations.

Learn the common Thai sayings, there are many.

Download Thai Karaoke songs from YouTube to practice with on your own so you can increase you listening/speaking/reading speed.

I'd be careful about point 4 above - if you spend too much time with bargirls, your spoken Thai that you have picked up from them will mark you out immediately, to any educated Thai, as a farang of "a certain kind".

I used to think that too, but most foreigners will never interact with 'real' respectable girls in the first place, so it really isn't a problem. Most Thais assume all white foreigners are 'that kind' anyway.

Maybe set your sights higher and break the stereotype

We took the bus from the train station yesterday. (It is located across the main street Chareon Mueang Rd.) Runs very often and very simple and FREE both ways.

This is rather disappointing, I was reading on wiki that San Sai district had over 100k people living in it too.

I'll throw in the 1 Western restaurant I have come across so far, on the Ring Rd. 1, Just past the Mae Kao intersection there's a steak place called Clint Steak House. They do all you can eat buffet for 140 baht pp. Good food, lots of meat, pasta, salad, bread, etc.

I've recently moved to San Sai after living near the moat for 2 years. I'm hoping to find some new regular restaurants in the area, I've checked out Meechok Plaza and Big C area a few times but besides that it's been few and far between. Western food is preferred but any recommended restaurants would be great from the people who know the area. My house is located by Saam Yaek market in San Sai Noi. Thanks!

What ever school you decide on make sure they are approved by the Education Department.

There is one individual teacher that advertises a lot called Ajahn Lah (I think). Avoid like the plague.

If your gonna make a claim as bold as that at least give us some explanation.

Location is smart, right near the Ratwiti road, full of tourists who won't know the prices are too high.

Update: It appears the agent was trying to up the price, but we chatted with the owner today and got it down 5k below the lowest listed online price. Obviously some research helped our cause.

Unfortunately they are asking for 3-month's security deposit Reason being that the house is brand new. I feel like it's a trap. We asked for 2 but they don't want to budge.

If it's just verbal agreement on what ever you have with him be prepare to walk away if nothing works out.

I think you should not pay anything higher than the cheaper listing and i am sure you are still able to get a further discount from it.

Thanks for the responses everyone. It gives me a lot to think about!

My intent from the beginning is to bargain the listing price.

If we assume the two listings are 40k and 55k - I want to offer 30k on the house.

Offering 30k on a 40k house the owner might settle around 35k and I'm happy.

But if the owner thinks I'm offering 30k on 55k that could result in my price becoming 40k, 42k, 45k etc. as a middle compromise.

I don't want to be put at a disadvantage because of the realtor, that seems unfair and I don't want to reward that kind of service either.

Hi everybody,

I have been put in an odd situation and I'm wondering what my options are.

Some background info - I am searching for a house to rent for 1 year in Northern Thailand. I am looking for a larger house 4-5 bedroom with private pool and decided to use the realtor websites and classifieds as a guide to see what's available in the higher end properties.

I view a property through a ad posted on Thaivisa and am very interested in making an offer. The person who wrote the ad claimed to be a freelance realtor when I asked if they had a website.

A few days later I find the exact same property listed on a major realtor's website, and this creates the problem. The house is listed at 2 different prices!

The freelance realtor has it listed 15k baht higher than the other realtor.

So, I want to talk with the owner and make an offer, but am I committed with using the first realtor (who I originally viewed the property with?). I don't want to bargain down a double inflated price just because I originally viewed the property with one realtor. I have a price ceiling already and the price starting point could cause an issue in our negotiating. Something I'd like to avoid obviously. Should i bring up this subject with the owner? With the realtor? With the competition / cheaper realtor?

Any help or guidance would be a huge help. Thank you for reading.

I'd recommend you visit both schools and do a trial class to compare. They will let you sit in on a class for free and you can ask the teacher/staff questions and talk to the other students.

If your goal is to speak useful Thai your approach outside the classroom will most likely have a larger impact than choice of school. PRO was suitable for me, but I realize that both schools will have their pros and cons.

I'm probably more qualified than most to answer your question. I study at Pro Language (Year 2) and my brother studies at Walen school (Year 1).

PRO - They start you with transliteration instead of learning the Thai alphabet from day 1. This is a huge burden, if you want to make any real progress you need to learn how to read. I believe they introduce the Thai alphabet around month 4.

Walen - They're methodology does not encourage critical thinking. Essentially you read from a book, and while their book has a ton of vocabulary, the spoken language is lost on many students. Much of the vocabulary I've seen from texts is "Written Thai," which means words you will never use. You will master the educational phrase "There are 3 black pens on the brown desk" before learning useful phrases like "How old are you" "What's up" "How's it going" "What's your phone number" etc.

If you are serious about learning Thai I would recommend Payap. I have heard nothing but good things from their program, and every student I've come in contact with that has taken their course had a solid grasp of the language. Note: Payap is more expensive and more intensive than other language programs.

Good luck in choosing.

This guy does a bunch of user-submitted pickup lines on Thai girls. It's a fun watch and he has like 10+ vids of him getting phone numbers etc. Some lines are more creative than others, but you can get an idea of what works and doesn't work on normal thai girls.