dundas

Not all recruits are dullards with family connections. I've both met and heard of very high quality staff in the Thai civil service. 

No, I don't know how those individuals navigate the system, either, but I also know that not all are corrupt. 

At my local noodle shop in Chiang Mai, two of us will normally order three plates of food for around 120-140 (typically two rice dishes and a soup).The place is pleasant, the meal ins't huge but it's tasty and it's enough. Pretty cheap -- only issue is I hope it's not forming a diet rich in pesticide and cheap oil ... 

Breakfast I always eat at home -- it's pretty simple, egg, toast, maybe fruit and cooked vegetables. Easy to hit 100 or more per person because fruit can be relatively expensive. Dinner (bought back home) tends to be around 150-250 for two, and outside the starting price is around 250 to 600 or more for two, depending on where we eat, what we eat and whether we have beer with the meal. 

I think 300 per person per day is getting fairly close to a reasonable minimum. I wouldn't like to live on much less. 

Wetting solution for hard contact lenses. Haven't looked lately, in fairness, I always bring ample supplies with me.

I know someone who is reliable, and who I have make shirts and pants for me when in Thailand. PM me for details 

I think modern medications can work very well, but from what I've seen they're not for everyone. In the case of one person I'm thinking of, they complained about the effects of the drugs and how that impacted on their work. In the end they solved the problem themselves -- they moved to a new work location and that changed everything, not that I am suggesting that as a solution for the OP! 

At the time I couldn't help but wonder if a sympathetic ear in addition to the prescription of drugs might have resulted in way better outcomes. 

Yes. Only proviso ... if you have a Paypal merchant account and are using a business name, e.g., XYZ Exports, then Paypal expect the name of the Bangkok Bank account to match the business name (XYZ Exports in this case) exactly.

My most memorable upgrade was on CX on a HKG - Amsterdam flight. At check-in, I went from Y to J, and then, once I was on the plane and while everyone was still settling in, the senior flight attendant came up to me. I thought she was about to put me back to my rightful place in deepest darkest economy but no, a pax in first was scared of being sucked out the window ... he was an Australian, I'm an Australian in an aisle seat, could we swap? 

I've had other occasional upgrades, but this, a long time ago, was once in a  lifetime. 

I stayed there several times in the last few years, and really enjoyed the place. The building might have become a bit tired, but the service was terrific. 

It's pretty simple: they don't have to sell me an entry to a national park, and I don't have to buy. 

Especially if I don't perceive any value. 

1 hour ago, lungnorm said:

Sorry but you do qualify for an Australian age pension irrigardless of weather you live in Australia or overseas.

You must be a resident of Australia at the time you become eligible to apply for the OAP, and (from memory) you must also be in Australia on the day that you apply (normally the same day that you become eligible).  That means you have to have spent more than (from memory) 180 days in Australia in each of the two years before you become eligible to apply. I'm not sure what the rules are for the two years AFTER the pension starts (i.e., if you live overseas and cease to be an Australia "resident" for Centrelink purposes).  If you are out of Australia for more than six weeks,  the pension itself remains the same, but the overall payment goes down slightly because allowances are cut. 

52 minutes ago, Ken Khomdee said:

Smart man. he probably wants to eat with these people as much as I would want to eat with many of the people on here. Press on Mr. President, there are far better ways to spend your time!

I agree. It's really just a ritual. There are better ways of spending his time.  Like answering questions from the press about the Russian connection, maybe ...

On 11/02/2017 at 11:08 PM, MMan said:

I've experienced this sending my Tax Return to the IRS, using Thai Post Express Mail.   Normally it would arrive within a few days, but one time it took about 5 - 6 weeks.  In the meantime the tracking site had the last known location at Suvarnabhumi outgoing mail.

 

About one in five of the small packets we've sent would end up taking this long, or longer. 

Probably during some troubled times in 2010 -- I was in the gym, when I noticed several people on treadmills as they in turn watched footage of dead bodies  in Bangkok, as if what was happening on the screens in front of them was perfectly normal. That night I had dinner in a local (Chiang Mai) restaurant close to my house and after I'd paid the bill, the owner told me to go home and stay there until the unpleasantness was over. Fortunately for me, the reality wasn't that bad, but it as a fairly bleak evening. 

I actually ordered a 6 speed auto Fiesta, pre all the horror stories that have since emerged. I'm glad I backed out and bought a Jazz instead ...

I've been a bit slow as the OP responding to this, but I want to say thank you to everyone. What's been said here fits with our experience -- it's the US and Canada that mostly are the problem. Of the items we airmailed (small packet service) on 23 November, one has already returned to Thailand because the customer refused to accept late delivery. The other arrived a few days ago. I hope delivery gets better now the Christmas rush is (presumably) over. No, I don't think we can blame Donald for it. I'd describe it as government agencies externalising their costs -- not hiring extra sorters for Christmas is treating customers with contempt. 

3 hours ago, 2008bangkok said:

Use skype(without using skype)

 

Get a skype worldwide subscription which is about 10 dollars a month and includes unlimited free aus landlines and thai mobiles, then get a skype number (australian)

 

Forward all your calls from your current aus number to the skype aus number then configure skype to forward all calls from the skype aus to thai mobile.

 

Total setup copst abotu $30 then $10 a month after

Agree. I've used Skype to forward my calls (although I only use a Skype number in Australia -- that's my 'landline') and it works brilliantly, well, except when someone calls me at 9am Melbourne time, and it's 5 am in Thailand ... but apart from that it's a much better value than any deal from any Aussie Telco. 

Well for whatever reason, the video is no longer available because the youtube's user account has been terminated. 

11 hours ago, louse1953 said:

You should come to Issan mate and see what these bikes can handle.

Agree totally. I weight 90kg, mainly because I'm tall, rather than overweight, and the Honda Wave I ride in Thailand doesn't seem affected by the additional load, and when I ride the bike (as opposed to the regular rider who's around 55kg) it doesn't seem to affect fuel economy that much. Going up Doi Suthep with two people & 145kg on board can be a trifle slow, though, but it's slow anyway. The same two people going to or from the airport with another 30kg baggage ... no problem.

I've written about this in the dim distant past, but the problem seems to have got worse. Two small packets we airmailed to the US on 23 November still have this status message in the usps.com tracking: Origin Post is Preparing Shipment. The same kind of lengthy delay is also happening for several items sent around the same time to Canada.

If I track the the same tracking numbers in the Thailand Post site, it's clear the item has left Suvarnabhumi, and is, presumably, waiting for US Customs to look at it, and so it's temporarily out of the tracking system.  

We've got any number of items sent to the US and Canada where progress isn't happening, and I'm expecting a heap of demands for refunds for non-delivery. 

Not all -- some items are getting through in normal time -- around 14 days. 

Wonder what other people have experienced.

30 minutes ago, RakJungTorlae said:

scoot.

I've flown Scoot between Bangkok and Melbourne, but the big issue with LCCs using a hub (Singapore in Scoot's case) is that if your incoming flight is late and you miss your connection, the best you'll often do (and only if you've paid extra, still talking Scoot here) is to be offered a seat on "the next available flight." That could be days away, and it's not a great deal if you have commitments in your final destination, or if you don't have money for hotel accommodation in Singapore. And if you haven't paid the extra for the "Scoot-thru" connection and your flight is delayed through Scoot's fault even though it has nothing to do with you, Scoot won't honour your ticket for the connecting flight and will expect you to buy a new ticket to your final destination. There's not a lot of compassion in the minds of the LCC accountants who run the show. 

I rather like the idea of Thai Smile flying longer distances. My limited experience of them on A320 domestic flights in Thailand is that they're OK. They don't have as many extras to pay for as Scoot or Jetstar and if they were to fly non-stop to Australia, I think they'd be terrific.  

Maybe it's a function of the design of the place? A cheap place I go to in CM is open: rows of mats where there are people being massaged on either side of you and no partition or wall. Just one open air room (OK, there's a roof to stop the rain and walls around the outside).  In six years of going there, I've never been offered a special massage. The massages  I've had have been OK, too, not the absolute high end by any stretch of the imagination, but OK. 

I can't help but wonder if a lack of proper safety equipment might have been a factor. I've noticed when I've driven rental cars in Thailand that low end mainstream cars (e.g., Honda Jazz) have no airbags. I don't want to be in a crash of any kind, but I feel a lot more vulnerable in a car without airbags. 

A friend has a Honda Wave 100 with around 83,000km, that's with regular servicing, and it's still going strong, although I can smell a bit of oil in the exhaust ... It's been used almost exclusively around town and has suffered from too many fourth gear standing starts at traffic lights (why would you bother changing into neutral and then into first?), and probably also from its owner not knowing how to make things easier for the gearbox when changing down from 4 to 3 or 3 to 2.

It's regularly carried 150kg around, and maybe not surprisingly the most recent maintenance work was to change the rear shocks. That cost a bit over B2000 at the local Honda shop -- a non-franchise mechanic would probably have done it cheaper. So maintenance isn't that expensive and in fact repairs from roadside mechanics (e.g. repairing a puncture) are always amazingly cheap. 

At least do what other people here have said and take this bike for a run, make sure the frame isn't twisted -- that the bike doesn't dive off when left to its own devices -- and maybe also check the oil when it's on the center-stand, plus the condition of some key consumables -- battery, tyres, brakes, chain. None of those cost much to fix, but might give you some negotiating clout. Little things like the lights, too .. .

5 hours ago, worgeordie said:

Well it wont be about how to manage your finances,thats for sure.

regards worgeordie

Not sure about that! Why not, for goodness sake? 

Personally, I have no complaints about Thai pricing. I paid $A1210 for Mel-BKK (stopover)- KIX  and reverse, with a second stop over in Bangkok. Inclusions:  bags (40kg allowance), food, frequent flyer points at the full rate, choice of seats, and a one night stay at the Dusit Thani in Bangkok.  The ticket has a reasonable amount of flexibility, too, I can change it if I need to. Try getting a deal like that from your average LCC. 

I didn't find the new 787 at all comfortable, but then Thai, like just about all airlines, ordered these 9 across, which means that shoulder room is too tight. I blame that on accountants and others who never fly in economy controlling the aviation industry, not on Thai. At least Thai still have a 32" seat pitch, which is about as good as it gets in economy these days.  I do yearn for the days of their roomy Y class cabins, though.