DavidMavec

I have spent significant time in Latin America, Europe, and the U.S. before coming to Thailand. In my opinion, Thailand is the most xenophobic and discriminatory countries where I have lived. And I speak and read Thai to a fairly decent level.

ubonjoe or anyone else: do you know what time the border crossing closes tomorrow? I am guessing 5 PM but was wondering if anyone knew.

Thanks.

I am sure it is open 7 days a week like other crossings are.

Ah, OK. I wasn't sure if most crossing were open seven days a week. I'll go tomorrow then. Thanks!

Does anyone know if this border is open on Sundays? I was thinking of going tomorrow. Any ideas? Thanks.

I know of an excellent Thai teacher who has experience with very advanced students as well as beginners. I worked with her for almost a year myself. She has taught at the U.S., UK, and other embassies and has helped students become very fluent in the language in speaking and reading.

Unfortunately, she is totally booked right now and working full time but I believe this will change in the coming months. She may be available to teach over Skype, I am not 100% sure. If you're interested in studying with her, send me a PM and I will pass it along.

Could be the battery is old too. Did it work better before?

The power bank/external battery works very well for me.

If you lived in a really cheap room with no aircon and only ate in the 20 baht vegetarian restaurants all over town, you could do it, but it would not be fun.

perhaps you could mark all these 20 baht veg restaurants on a map because i have never seen any of them. rest is BS too.

Then you are blind. Look for the yellow sign next time. Oh wait, you can't... because you're blind.

it is true your self will come along, you cannot escape your self through this means. but why not try it for a few months and see if it suits you well? no need to commit to many years. it just might be good for you.

Get a new passport. With the laughable state of Thai immigration's "computer records," it will be like you're entering the country for the first time.

 
Aside from a wonderful excuse to do a little childish Thai bashing, your comment may create a false sense of security for the serial visa abusers and others who seek to circumvent the rules.

 
But have there actually been incidents where people entering Thailand on tourist visas who obtained new passports after being red stamped on their old ones were then red stamped on the new ones?

 
 
Obtaining a new passport is not that easy if a passport is current and has adequate blank pages. 
 
To secure a new passport in such circumstances involves at  least  the  telling of  lies and at the worst criminality !

I don't need to be reimbursed for mailing, it's not that much money, but I would like you to fix the new case so it does not block the seat from being lifted up when I need to refill gas and fix the light. Maybe this is an issue with the railing since this started to happen with the previous case as well... I don't know. Now that I have your cell phone number I will call you directly on your cell phone next time I am in Chiang Mai (probably in a couple months) so it can get handled correctly. Thanks for dealing with this; as I noted, it was my intention to come to you directly instead of go through your staff because I could tell you provide excellent customer service but I was unable to meet with you.

It's indisputable your staff was quite rude and disrespectful to me but I understand he does not want to take responsibility for it. This was not only my opinion but also that of my friend who was with me at the time and not involved with the issue. I never showed any anger or disrespect to him during the interaction. I just wanted the problem solved. Several things he wrote in his email you posted are not accurate but let's just drop the issue. His behavior was what prompted me to write a review in a public forum instead of giving the benefit of the doubt that it was just one faulty case but I let it go now.

Anyway, apology accepted.

Thanks.

 

Get a new passport. With the laughable state of Thai immigration's "computer records," it will be like you're entering the country for the first time.

 

Aside from a wonderful excuse to do a little childish Thai bashing, your comment may create a false sense of security for the serial visa abusers and others who seek to circumvent the rules.

 

But have there actually been incidents where people entering Thailand on tourist visas who obtained new passports after being red stamped on their old ones were then red stamped on the new ones? 

Don't go with CooCase, I have one and am very disappointed with the quality.

Thanks for that. I've had two different brands of rear boxes now and neither were of the quality of a Givi or similar European brands. That's why this time I'm specifically shopping brand names... I'm just as happy to learn which ones NOT to buy as to learn where to get the better ones! Thanks again!

I bought a CooCase 40 liter box with the light on the back in the beginning of September, 2013 from the shop in Chiang Mai. I spoke with the Singaporean owner at length as he promoted his boxes to me and he seemed like a nice guy. Also in the shop were either his brother in law or son in law, I can't remember the relationship, who is Thai and another male staff member.

I moved to Bangkok soon after buying it.

By the end of September, the lock was totally jammed. I took it to a professional locksmith who fixed it for me for 100 baht. The box components needed to be taken apart to fix the lock and neither the locksmith nor the Honda shop in BKK could put it back together so I sent the box back to the brother/son-in law at CooCase in Chiang Mai, another 300 baht.

They put the box back together and sent it back to me. The CooCase workers left the key in the lock when sending it back to me and it was bent 90 degrees in the keyhole. I was able to pull it out after some effort fortunately and to my luck it did not damage the lock.

Still, no reason to have a hissy fit, sometimes parts are defective; to their credit they fixed it quickly and sent it back to me.

I put the box on the bike again and the light does not come on. I call the brother/son-in law and he tells me he will send me a new light and I can take it to the repair shop and have it installed. I waited over a week, nothing arrives in the mail for me, and so I call CooCase again. He tells me "Oh sorry, we have been too busy with work. We'll send it tomorrow" OK, no big deal, this is Thailand. (The light never arrived by the way, they claim to have sent it to me but the post office returned it to them. If this is true, I wonder why this happened because I already received something from them at my address... could it be they carelessly wrote my address wrong on the package?)

During the time I was waiting, the internal screw connected to the plastic strip which stabilizes the two parts of the box falls off. I screw it back on several times but it keeps falling off. It does not hold more than a few days.

Next problem: somehow after a month or so of riding my bike with it on the box shifts forward when it is mounted so it is over the seat, meaning I have to remove the box every time I fill up for gas... rather annoying.

All of these things to me were actually no big deal to me at this time, the box is just low quality... I wasn't upset, I just wanted these problems to get fixed.

A week or so later I ride my bike up to Chiang Mai to visit a friend and also to go to the CooCase shop. I called three different days and asked to speak to the Singaporean owner and to meet him at the shop but they refused to let me talk to him and said he would not be coming in.

Finally, the day before I was to return to Bangkok, I went in to the shop and only the son/brother-in-law and his co-worker were there. The incident I then had with the son/brother in law and the other staff member is why I am writing this in a public forum and airing my grievances. They were about as rude and disrespectful as one could be to another person, especially a customer. They blamed me for the problems with the box, telling me I used it wrong and it was my fault (this doesn't make any sense, I used it exactly the way I was supposed to, never dropped it, never abused it in any fashion). It was clear they were very angry with me and wanted me to go away quickly. I told them that really I wanted to deal with this situation with the owner but since he was not there and I was returning to Bangkok the next day, if they could give me a new box. They agreed and I returned them the old one... hope they didn't sell it again!

This new box has less problems than the first one so far... after two months, the light has stopped working and the box mount has shifted forward, requiring me to take the box off when I fill up for gas. Minor inconveniences and safety issues, at least I can still lock it!

Hello...

If I buy a condo to rent in BKK but am sometimes outside the country or simply do not have time to manage it, are there reputable companies/people who do this for you? Meaning advertising for rent, responding to tenant issues, managing repairs, etc. What do they typically charge? Anyone know of any?

Thanks.

Thanks, Villa had it. 61 baht for a small bottle.

I'm looking to buy natural peanut butter, no salt, no sugar added, just peanuts. I looked in several Tops supermarkets but they don't have it. I live near Huay Kwaang if anyone knows a place that stocks it?

Thanks!

I am not sure why you are not going mail order as it arrives within 24 hours from fitwhey.com and the prices are MUCH MUCH cheaper than the stores. They have Dymatize and many other brands/flavors. Sorry if this has already been posted, I don't have time to read the whole thread.

Don't go with CooCase, I have one and am very disappointed with the quality.

I mean, you claim to be an English teacher but lack a basic knowledge of English grammar, spelling, syntax and the proper use of punctuation. As an English teacher, you, sir, are a fraud.

I mean, I am also a trained kick boxer, trained by a Olympic sensei, so I hope we cross paths here in Thailand, I will remember your face, as you stupidly uploaded your photo

Of course you are an Olympic-level trained kick boxer. I'm quivering in my flip-flops. A man who cannot win an argument with his wits, so must resort to his fists, has still lost the argument. And did not your arjarn (อาจารย์) - you used the Japanese word 'sensei' for some arcane reason - teach you the moral dimension of the skills he was imparting to you? That they were only to be used in the ring or in self-defence or the defence of others? If you are tired of teaching 'English', perhaps you might explore the big baht country of professional Muay Thai. Alas, I fear your hot-headed and impetuous nature would serve you as ill in that milieu as it does this.

Climb back into your hole bitter old man. I mean really, get a life and stop spewing so much negativity.

I just new from adsense working,but i know someone can get more 1,000$ per month,they from Thai. We have forum to talk about this for only Thaipeople.

Why is it only for Thai people? Afraid we are going to colonize you or some such nonsense?

You never taught where I did. That's what I said.

And why should I try any other schools? I earn 4 times what they offer, just being seated by my pool.

What's your new career? If you don't mind my asking.

If you can read I said I'm retired as a former high school teacher.

Ah so you were just teaching "for fun" anyway.

You never taught where I did. That's what I said.

And why should I try any other schools? I earn 4 times what they offer, just being seated by my pool.

What's your new career? If you don't mind my asking.

Singing and dancing help to engage younger students by having fun and is particularly crucial when teaching Thai kids. I would suggest holding onto your job for now and exploring other opportunities. I teach adults online on a part time basis.Its interesting.It pays ok too especially if your in Thailand. I work on a website called www.italki.com Check it out.There's hundreds of teachers. When you start off it hard to find students but be patient and it will be a success...

how would one go about getting this on line work put on your work permit if one is resident in Thailand ?

YOU DON'T

if thats the case dont your think the poster was being very silly advertising the name of the web site on an open Thai forum ?, further if someone is legitimately employed during the day by a school with a work permit and the school find out they are moon lighting, they could lose their jobs ?

I always thought the advice was if your working on line in Thailand without a WP, best you keep your mouth shut and dont tell anyone what your up to, but here we have someone advertising the fact and tell people exactly were he "works"

I aways supposed teachers had a degree of intelligence and common sense ?

To the best of collective knowledge, no foreigner has ever gotten in trouble for working online. I have spoken with Immigration about this issue as well and they have basically said they don't care.

You are beating a dead horse anyway as someone makes a similar comment every time this sort of discussion comes up on ThaiVisa.

It's about him of course. I was an Englsh teacher for 13 years and probably 5 of those years was as a 'dancing white monkey', where the students have absolutely no respect for the monkey. Try working in the Thai educational system and you'll experience that one has to look after oneself.

Does it seem that the students respect farang teachers less than their Thai counterparts? Why do you think this is, xenophobia?

I thought it was very crowded, beaches not too nice, really not too great overall. I would go with Koh Chang as a nice beach to visit near BKK.