ernieK24

I'll almost guarantee you'll be disappointed at the Red Lion. We live just around the corner, walking distance, 3 minutes. It's owned by a Brit., or an Aussie. Have eaten the Thai offerings.....nothing special,, but what I was looking forward to was English fish & chips, which is advertised on the menu outside the place.

What I got was two fairly good sized pieces of cod.....very little fish and loads of light soggy batter.....and a handful of fries. Very uninteresting and blah ! What ruined it was all the batter. The owner, who is ALWAYS there, like a mother hen looking over her chicks, saw me eyeballing the second piece of fish, came over to the table and asked if something was wrong. I didn't complain, I just asked for a "to go" bag, we paid our bill, and left. We won't return, that was our fourth visit. Take your wallet, you'll need it.

I'm really surprised he's still open, they seem to NEVER have any customers. We drive by there every day and never see anybody in the place nor cars in the lot.

I was in there about 3 weeks ago. A young damsel there was quoting Walking Street prices for her company so I declined. Anyway I bought a stubby cooler for a Kiwi mate and I have it here. It says it is on Soi Watboonsumpun. Underneath in brackets is (Kao Noi)

It starts out at Sukumvhit as Soi Boonsumpun, goes up the hill into east Pattaya, (the "dark" side), continues until it gets to Wat Boonsumpun, makes a right and changes names to Soi Kao Noi, than around and back down the hill to the red light at Sukumvhit, where it ends. Dead end on both ends. We live on soi 11 Boonsumpun, right around the corner from the "Black Sheep Bar".....have never entered, and never will now.

The Aeon machine in Carrefour is always out of service when I'm in there.

Be careful using the Aeon at Carrefour. It ate my card and kept the money about six weeks ago. After four emails to my US bank, and a couple phone calls to Aeon, it looks like I'm going to get my money back. My bank in the US has already re-deposited the funds in my account.

Aeon has a LIVE bank at Tesco / Lotus on North Ptya Road. They were a lot of help settling things. We go out of our way now and go to the bank in N. Pattaya. They have two ATM's at the bank, and if something goes wrong, maybe.....just maybe, someone can open up the machine and correct the problem.

What amazes me is how ANYONE can include in a restaurant revue with some classy and delicious offerings, a pig pen like Apex Hotel for a "delicious buffet breakfast". The ONLY good thing about it is the price, 105 baht, and open till 1 pm. Every dish I've ever sampled there was cold. Cold fried eggs, cold "french" toast, cold pancakes.....cold everything. Don't take my word for it, put your hand on the stainless steel pan that holds the eggs, french toast, and the pancakes. The only thing warm is the toast, if you can find a toaster that works, to put the frozen butter patties and putrid marmalade on. The only place I've eaten breakfast that serves imitation orange and pineapple juice. Go once, you'll never go again. Even the Lek Hotel is better, and that's pretty bad. The Danna Inn was a better choice for breakfast buffet, at the same price, but they start closing at ten oclock, and they moved the buffet from the air conditi0oned dining room in the Dianna In to the Green Bottle next door, which is not A/C'd. I'm assumiong they own both properties.

If you like cold food and dirty silverware, dishes, and glasses with lipstick on them.....be my guest. Never again for me.

Every year I give my wife an electrical appliance for Christmas. This year I gave her an electric chair.........(Henny Youngman)

Thanks much...SurfRider. Nice to encounter a sane response among the gibberish

Unless things have changed you will ALSO need a photocopy of your passport, the main page, and the page with your visa stamped on it, and a photocopy of the entry card you received on the plane when you last entered Thailand. It should be stapled in your passport. You will also need a passport photo, stapled in the square provided, on the back of your extension application. You will need to take your bankbook as well as the copies with you for their comparison. Any copies you don't have can be made right outside, to the right of the entrance, as well as passport photos, at reasonable prices, and good quality.

And DON'T FORGET the 1900 baht.....they ask for THAT first.

Application forms are available just to the left as you enter the office, with samples. DON'T GO ON MONDAY.......!

Well I'm still paranoid and I won't go in it, regardless of what anyone calls me.

When you've been around in third world countries as long as I have, you develop a third sense about these things, otherwise you don't survive.

How many building collapses has your third sense (?) saved you from in Thailand?

How about the hotel collapse in Korat. Has everyone forgotten about that ?

Well, I guess I can join the crowd. I lost, (temporarily at least), 7000 baht, ($210.84 in U.S. funds) at the AEON ATM in Carrefour, downstairs near the toilet entrance. Called them immediately, was told to stand by the machine for at least fifteen minutes, that sometimes their machines were a little slow. After a half hour, and no money, OR CARD, called again. This time the wife was given the "runaround" so she hung up and called again and asked for the supervisor. Was told AEON could do nothing about it, that I would have to contact my home bank in America. (I don't quite understand, it's their machine, and they have the money from my bank, but they can't do anything about it, like send someone out to open the machine and give me my card back, and if the machine is out of funds, which is the case quite frequently, make some kind of arrangement for me to get the amount removed from the debited account. They don't seem to have too much trouble getting the money out, why do they have such a problem putting it back, or haven't they worked that out yet.

Anyway, we went home immediately and I brought up my account on my computer, and there it was, $210.84 debited from my account, as expected. I used their closed website and informed them, giving them all the details, along with my account number and SS no.. They answered almost immediately telling me that they had sent my email to my branch office and they would check to see if the amount was actually debited from my account. They said it would take a few days, and this being the holiday season, I expect even longer, but at least someone is doing something about it............I assume.........!

Greetings of the season to everyone, ErnieK

no wonder that the economy is in shatters..

BUT DON'T CALL ME JOHNSON.....!

In my country you are heavily fined for littering. This seems to do the trick. And each supermarket provides a place to deposit your used plastic bags, and the supermarket, I'm assuming, sells them back to the company that manufactures them.

I hate to admit it, but the very first thing I thought of when I read this article was, "Ah, another scheme to up their already obscene profit margin, and rip off the very people that keep them in business".Picture, if you will, a customer buying a couple kilos of loose tomatoes, onions, carrots, potatoes, or a bunch of broccoli or a head of cabbage. Shall we just gently lay them all, loosely into the shopping cart and place them gently on the checkout belt and let the checkout lady decide what to do with them, because you absolutely refuse to pay an extra one or two baht for a receptacle to transport them to your car. Or do you just pile all of them in the same plastic bag, and let management decide how to figure it out, to save the one or two baht for each bag? Where I came from, the checkout employee ALWAYS asks, "paper or plastic", and MOST people, I have noticed, prefer paper. And I'll guarantee it does not take THIRTY YEARS, for a brown paper bag to disintegrate, and become fertilizer for the soil. Whoever said that is an "air-head".

Something has to be done, there's no question about that, but making the customer pay for it isn't the answer

One way to partially relieve, but not completely, the waste of plastic bags would be for the store managers, and owners and franchisees of the various 7/11's, family markets, and mom & pop stores to take an employee break occasionally and instruct their help to cooperate in saving money for the company that pays their wages. The employer could certainly appoint someone to patrol the checkout counters, and make sure the checkout employees are following new guidelines concerning conserving plastic bags. I know it's expecting a lot to expect the owners, managers, and employers to actually THINK, and do something on their own to conserve. It's too easy to pass legislation forcing the consumer to take ALL the responsibility.

Wake up.....and join the human race.

I hate to admit it, but the very first thing I thought of when I read this article was, "Ah, another scheme to up their already obscene profit margin, and rip off the very people that keep them in business".Picture, if you will, a customer buying a couple kilos of loose tomatoes, onions, carrots, potatoes, or a bunch of broccoli or a head of cabbage. Shall we just gently lay them all, loosely into the shopping cart and place them gently on the checkout belt and let the checkout lady decide what to do with them, because you absolutely refuse to pay an extra one or two baht for a receptacle to transport them to your car. Or do you just pile all of them in the same plastic bag, and let management decide how to figure it out, to save the one or two baht for each bag? Where I came from, the checkout employee ALWAYS asks, "paper or plastic", and MOST people, I have noticed, prefer paper. And I'll guarantee it does not take THIRTY YEARS, for a brown paper bag to disintegrate, and become fertilizer for the soil. Whoever said that is an "air-head".

Something has to be done, there's no question about that, but making the customer pay for it isn't the answer

Yes, I know it's just the way it is, but when a person has a one year visa, this 90 day report stuff is simply rediculous and smacks of big boss Thai man lording it over those untrustworthy aliens. At best the policy is overbearing, and at worst it's xenophobic.

There's lots of reasonable reasons for that, on of them being. If they had to get in touch with you in case of an emergency, how would they find you ? Or if you lost your passport, and it was turned in to the embassy, or the police.....how would they locate you ? Maybe you don't worry about that, but THEY do.

I don't find it too inconvenient, even though it's a fifteen minute drive to Immigration, but there's no charge, and they have treated me really nice on every visit. I've renewed my yearly visa three times now, and I don't even mind that. They're very polite, and accommodating, and it only cost 1900 baht, or about $60 American, just about what it cost me to fill my gas tank at home.

I admit, there are a few strange customs over here that are very different than I'm used to at "home", but the GOOD outweighs the BAD by so much that I just ignore the "bad" and enjoy the "good". And there's plenty of "GOOD" to enjoy.

Cheers, and I hope you stay here a long time, and enjoy every minute of it. ErnieK

dumb question, but can't you just make up an address that suits your nearest office?

Not that easy anymore. Now when you report, you have to have with you, and present to them, a paid receipt, ("bin") from either the electric co., the phone co., the cable co., or the water co., or a receipt for your rent from your landlord, or SOMETHING to prove your residence. If you're legitimate, that should be no problem, and a hotel won't work, unless you have a long term lease, and can prove it.

My three last reports, in Jomtien, I took the latest paid phone bill and the filled out form, and my passport, and was out in less than five minutes.

It's so easy, even Farangs can do it......!

I just can't help but wonder what the city terminal end will look like with all the taxis blocking city traffic, and the taxi drivers rubbing their hands together anticipating the fat rip-off they are about to impose on the innocent, first timer with two checkin bags and a carry on, trying to navigate the escalater down to the street, with all the drivers blocking the way. Sure sounds like fun to me.

My next door neighbor just returned from Sweden, where he has been all summer. He does this every year, at least for the past three years we have been living here, but THIS year he says he wants to stay one year, maybe two. He can't handle the trip back and forth and conditions in Sweden anymore.

He's a pretty nice guy, and we like him a lot, and he finally got a nice lady. I tried to explain to him the trials and foibles of going to Immigration in Jomtien, and the fact that I have to have 800,000 in the bank, or the qualifying amount of income, or a combination of the two, which he DOESN'T have. It's kinda hard getting through to him due to the language barrier, but as far as I could figure, according to him, he went to the Thai Embassy in Sweden, showed them a bankbook with the equivilant of one million baht in his SWEDISH bank, and his Bangkok Bank bankbook showing over two hundred thousand baht, and they gave him a one year visa. He went to Jomtien Immigration yesterday, and everything seems to be OK. They told him he had to report every ninety days, which he already knew, and in one year come back and get another year visa.. He's not a newbie, he's been coming here for a few years, owns the house next door, intends to become engaged to his current lady, but not marry her, and put the house and his bank acct. in her name. amd have a will written by a Thai attorney, giving her everything. She takes excellent care of him, and this summer he took her to Sweden with him, but she had to return after her three months were up. He just returned three days ago.

My question is, from someone who knows, why is HIS visa requirement, from Sweden, so different from OUR requirement if we come from the UK, USA. OZ, etc.....? Why does he not have to have 800K in the bank, for 3 months, like everyone else does, or does Sweden have different rules ? Or does anyone know ? Thanks

Massive fee hikes for work permits mooted

New work permit fees will be announced on September 13

PHUKET: -- The Phuket Gazette has learned that recent rumors of substantial increases in work permit fees may be well-founded. Discussions are underway in the Department of Employment that could once again lead to massive hikes in these annual fees.

The current fee for a new work permit, or renewal of a one-year permit, is 3,000 baht.

The office of Thanawan Tongsukchote, head of the Phuket Provincial Employment Office, confirmed to the Gazette this morning that an increase in the fees is indeed "under consideration". And a hike of some magnitude is a foregone conclusion as the office says it will be advising permit holders to renew their permits before September 13 when the new fees will be announced.

“We cannot yet confirm by how much the fees will be 'adjusted' as discussions are ongoing and a number of factors at play in the decision are still being considered," the Office says.

The last hike in work permit fees occurred in September 2002, delivering an impressive 200% hike, an event that triggered lively and colorful comments on ThaiVisa.Com, host to Thailand’s largest English-language Web forum. Some recent comments in that forum, albeit from sources undisclosed and/or unofficial, foreshadow this month's hike as likely to be something well over 100%.

-- Phuket Gazette 2009-09-01

That's probably a good thing. Now there will be more and more people working with less and less work permits, which will erode the Thai economy even farther.....in addition, no permit, no taxes. If they keep shooting themselves in the foot, they "won't have a leg to stand on".....!

Congratulations to all the "anti-American" posters on this board. You should all be diplomats from your respective home countries.

Do you REALLY think all the facts have been disclosed in this case ? Since you don't know what the hel_l you're talking about why don't you keep your phuckin mouth shut till you DO know the facts, and can make a fair judgement. They ought to call you "robin", you're all mouth and ass.

For all you people who hate the U.S. so much. you probably aren't old enough to remember, but if the U.S. hadn't entered World War 2 when they did, you'd all be speaking German. I'm old enough to remember, I was there.

Is all this anti-American bullshit you're spreading in any way related to the original post.....I don't think so,

My wife tells me that she buys all my meds, and I take a lot, at "Facino" on North Ptya Rd.. If you ask, they will give you a "discount" card, 10% off, good for some products and not good for others. The card is free but if you lose it they charge you fifty baht for a new one. The cards have a serial number, and the number is in their computer. As you buy products the mumber is entered in the computer and you are awarded "points". They have a selection of "gifts" that are available for points. My wife got a set of towels.....not exciting but bettern' nuthin'. The "gifts" and their point value are on display in the store.

Over all, it's probably the best place in town to buy medications, and they have pretty much everything, including "stuff" for the handicapped.

In theory - yes, the lane with flashing amber has priority over the lane with flashing red, but try explaining that to the locals!!

I have noticed an increase in the number of people driving the wrog way in the last couple of weeks unfortunately.

I don't drive, but my wife does, (I ride shotgun and lookout). We've been driving that route, from atop Pattaya Hill, to Carrefour and other destinations, for 3 1/2 years now, on an average of three days a week. If you thik it's bad now, you should have been driving it while they were building the new roads. I'm really surprised that our car, (a fairly new Toyota, purchased new), is still in one piece. I have never in my life seen such a Rube Goldberg construction project, and I'm 86 and during my working years I worked on highways in California. We've only been rear ended once, by a motor bike driven by a student and his girl friend. Traffic stopped.....but he didn't.

Those traffic lights were installed a year and a half ago, and just stood there and stared back at you. I prayed for the day when they would hook them up and make them operational. That's what I did in my previous life when I was a worker, installed traffic signals.

WOW.....was I wrong. First they made the signals flashing red East and West on Soi Khow Noi, and flashing yellow on the one way roads. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE simply ignored them, like they weren't even there. The universal rule is, you stop on a flashing RED light.....drive with caution on a YELLOW flashing light. Means absolutely nothing over here. I had many arguments with my wife over that. Her comeback was, "Everbody else do it so I do it too".

After a few days they reversed the flashers.....made no difference whatsoever. Everybody STILL ignored them.

Finally my prayers were answered.....they made the lights operational. COMPLETE CHAOS. What took five minutes or less to get through the intersection, by simply forging ahead and following the car in front of you. NOW took twenty minutes or more, and a wait for three or four light changes when you finally got to Sukumvhit Road, and traffic was backed up almost all the way back to the RR track intersection. It never entered their mind to increase the green light time at the light entering Sukimvhit Road, to clear out Soi Khao Noi, ready for the next onslaught. It also never occured to the eight or ten police officers with their white masks on to get out there and try and solve some of this mess. They were too busy standing around in groups of two and three, bullshiting with each other, and ignoring the whole thing. And this wasn't just once in awhile, this was every dam_n

day. The lights didn't last long. They've turned them back off and it's again, "every man foir himself". The only answer is a "flyover" bridge, but that would mean sacrificing several businesses on all four corners, and that ain't gonna' happen ! There's no money. Just "grin & bare it".......It ain't gonna' get no better.

Hello Thai Visa Forum,

I attended your get together the other night at the Pattaya Beer Garden and had a great time and met some of you. I thought I would take this opportunity to let you know more about what I do in Pattaya, partially because of what I see, or don't see in your form about sandwich shops, and partially from the interest shown at the get together.

My name is Peter and I operate the Subs-N-Suds Sandwich Shop on Soi Yamato. We serve American style subs and sandwiches of about 70 varieties or so. We have been in business about 5 years, selling food about 3.5 years now. We are open 24 hours and have free delivery in the pattaya area and we are also listed in the WOW and Door-2-Door delivery services menus.

Here is our current menu for your review:

Thanks from myself and the entire staff of Subs-N-Suds.

I checked your menu. Pretty large selection. I also checked your PRICES, they're pretty large also. Convert those prices to

U.S. dollars..........You've gotta be out of your mind. I'll bet you do a land-office business with the Thais, rushing in to buy your product. The Que of Thais alone would keep me away. I do hope your wages to your help are reflected by your prices.....but I doubt it. Lotsa' luck, you're gonna' need it.

Doesn't ANYONE on this forum remember the hotel collapse in Korat, where hundreds of people were killed when the top floors collapsed, one on top of the other, all the way to the ground.?

And has everyone forgotten the hotel in Jomtien just a few years agp that caught fire, and hundreds suffocated, or had to rescued by helicopter from the roof because the EXIT doors were chained and padlocked because the owner/operator ? was afraid customers wuld sneak out the exit doors without paying their bill.?

And I'm thrilled to death to hear that the exit doors at Central open INWARD, instead of OUTWARD, as required all over the world, in a public building.

I'm also curious as to what they used as anchors for the bolts that hold up the brackets, that support the floors.

""SHOP WITH CONFIDENCE" will be their slogan.

ErnieK24 + 1

Please post in this thread to sign up for our July Pattaya piss-Up

Official Thai Visa Meet Up

Saturday 11th July

Pattaya Beer Garden 7 Pm till 9 Pm

Blues Factory 9.30Pm - Late.

To kick the party off, the first 5000 Baht worth of drinks will be on Thai Visa, twice! Once in Pattaya Beer Garden and again later on in the Blues factory.

As such, this event is partly meant as a thank you from Thai Visa towards their existing members, and as such, from this update on (Wed, 24/6/2009, 10 am) only members registered before this date and with 10 posts or more can sign up.

Everybody else is of course free to attend as well, but will not receive a name badge entitling them to the Thai Visa free booze!

Confirmed sign-ups:

Aussiechick +1

Raro +1

Humphrey Bear +1

KDF + SWRWS

Phil Connors +1

Pattaya_Girl

Meg_2003

Andy2463

PoolHustler

EyeBee

Threelegcowboy +1

George

PTYstefan +1

canopus1969 +1

soundman

flamingtodd

amanda76

screws +1

thaifan2 +1

meelousee +1

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JeepHolt +1

Thaddeus

Demps1 +1

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Melmark

Dieter1 +1

Dinom

SurfTrader + 1

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Krading + 1

NewGuy + 1

BugJackBaron

AsiaCheese +1

RMicheald +1

ccarbaugh

oMega69

skippy_nl + 1

Gwynt +1

monspencer +1

MisterAngry

Foxxx

Falcon +1

dvdman +1

tlcwaterfall

jm49er1 +1

dhali +1

connel707

Peter Bysouth + 1

clivem

AEON ATM situated in Carrefour central Pattaya has been offline

Its been offline for quite some time...the one in Tesco/Lotus works

There's also one at the entrance to "Home Works" bldg. supply store, similar to "Home Pro" next door to Carrefour.

The Home Works is located right next door to Big "C", south, at Sukumvhit Rd. & South Pattaya Road, The ATM is just to the right of the front entrance of Home Works. You can park in Big C's parking lot, and walk up the short steps to the ATM.

There is NO free ATM at Big C, south store. They all charge.

There is a GSB ATM upstairs in Carrefour, right there with the rest of 'em. But on week-ends it usually runs out of money because the AEON downstaris isn't working. There's also a GSB bank branch, as mentioned before, on North Pattaya road, across the street and up from Tesco, and you can park in the pharmacy's parking lot next door, If you're coming from 2nd road, (traffic circle), you'll have to go by it, make a U-turn and come back, but not too big a deal.

The AEON at Tesco south is just as you get off he escalator to the food court upstairs. The only problem with thqt one is it will only give you a max. of 7,000 baht at a crack, but since my daily limit is only 10,000 at my home bank, I just re-insert my card and get another 3000.

There is also a free ATM just inside "TUK-COM" front entrance, but I'm not sure which one. I've used it. I think it's GSB, but not sure.

There's another one just inside the front, (parking lot) entrance to TOP's Supermarket, on the corner of 2nd road and Central road, (Pattaya Klang)