Ulic

A great human interest story. I would be surprised if it did not make many newspapers around the world.

Not so good the stories that are coming out of Thailand. Whether it involves tourism, business or politics.

After reading the first couple of lines you know the guy is an idiot. Of course he forgot the simplest way to

avoid theft from your account is don't open an account. Not having a card will of course stop people from

cloning it. But the banks and there employees are thieves as well so I recommend not having an account.

If everyone did this Thai banks would quickly solve the problems. Of course my suggestion is hyperbole

unfortunately his is not.

From Australian submitted to Oscar nominated. You have to create a BUZZ somehow. Just like the movie Argo.

Never let the truth stand in the way of a good story.

No mystery here, whale.

Apples and Oranges as far as weddings/ honeymoons to the Caribbean. One basically the same time zone direct flights low cost.

Easy and relatively inexpensive for spread out families and friends from all over North America to get to. Kind of like bachelor/bachelorette

parties in Vegas. As for romantic honeymoons most would pick Tahiti/Bora Bora. Expensive yes but as a one off and much cleaner and

absolutely beautiful. That would be my choice. Never married and a permanent bachelor but I have been all over French Polynesia and

in is far better choice.

I enjoy a nice glass of red wine with a meal.Not a stickler for convention so red with chicken and fish as well.

However Thailand is not a place I drink wine. No wine culture so it is buyer beware. I am not a wine snob and

have no issues with wine in a box or screw tops. No chance of the wine being corked. The biggest issue is how

the wine has been kept/stored. With the heat and humidity and no understanding of the care needed by the

average Thai distributor/retailer so you are rolling the dice. Plenty of good wines available from around the world.

Australia, Chile, Argentina, as well as Europe. I suggest bringing your own wine and paying a corkage fee to

the restaurant.

Here in Jomtien the power was off about 40 minutes. First time in the 4 months that I have been here.

I may be wrong, but my initial reaction to this is that it is probably very GOOD news for Americans living in Thailand. Not saying these new regulations are popular (FAR FROM IT! ) but they ARE U.S.A. law, and with strong signs the Thai government is going to fully cooperate, doesn't this suggest that the legitimate fears that many Thai BANKS may dump American customers will now be LESS LIKELY to actually occur?

You are possibly correct but I have the opposite view. The Thai government will make deals that cost them nothing. The costs will be born by the

banks. However if the Thai banks have no US customers they have nothing to report. Now there may be a threshold amount, 1 million baht, who

knows. But this law may be philosophically good.(To catch tax evaders) I think it will be a huge pain in the ass for 99.99 percent of Americans

who have nothing to hide, earn less than 50k US a year in pensions or foreign income pay taxes to foreign governments and will face big

penalties for small mistakes in the filing. We shall see.

A lovely vacation junket. It i s this type of BS spending that makes people cynical of government department budgets.

Hundreds of rental places most know they cannot hold your passport. Any that insist should be

viewed suspiciously. Go to the next rental place.

By all means write your will with the proper legal advice but also prepare your documents for a quick transfer to your

child's name in the event your health starts to fail in the future. I would rather transfer the bulk of my assets while

I was alive and not leave it to probate lawyers/ government officials etc...

A friend gave me some advice years ago, "avoid the white death" salt, sugar, cocaine.

Everything else is OK. Never worried about MSG

I would buy from a farmers market, that is a regular fixture and where Thais buy from but probably not of a street vendor.

Big operations have big gains to be made buy adding sugar and may be 80% sugar 20% honey but may be better when it

comes to hygiene. The local farmers market may not have as high a hygiene standard. Also the farmers market honey flavor

will change depending on the plants pollinated by the bees. Make sure you taste before buying a large supply.

As the case becomes more focused and the noose begins to tighten the defendants

will deny, deny, deny till the last minute in front of the judge then the admissions to

escape the death penalty.

They may have been amateurs but they were successful.

I used to give regularly in Canada but unfortunately I am type A and also now on blood pressure medication.

Best of luck, it is unfortunate that it is so difficult to find.

Not sure I understand the negative comments about the age difference. As I understand this is part of the Utopian ideal.

30-35 year old woman date 18-21 year old men as she is at the height of here sexual needs he at the height of his post coital recovery.

50-60 year old men date 20-25 year old women to teach them the finer points of giving and receiving pleasure.

Well that is what I have read anyway.

King burger (Burger King)

He go monkey house (he is going to, or is in, jail)

Khun taxi (Mr. taxi driver)

On that topic, anyone know where that expression (Monkey House) comes from? I assumed for years it was a direct translation from a Thai slang word for jail, but one day, after laughing about it for the millionth time, I asked some Thais, and they all said it came from English and that they didn't have an expression like that in Thai. Maybe it's a translation into English from another European language? Any help on this one?

When you went to the Zoo long ago when they were not nearly as progressive they kept all the primates behind bars is a single building.

Looked much like a jail. All the monkeys, baboons, gorillas, behind bars in the monkey house like prisoners. When I was kid (54 now)

we referred to jail as the monkey house.

Driving in thailand is a ckusterfrack.

Roads are terrible. Drivers are generally uneducated and self absorbed. Another huge problem is the lack of a quality extensive rail shipping network in Thailand whose lack forces far too high a number of heavy vehicles onto poorly built and maintained Thai roads.

What the heck does ckusterfrack mean???

Google = answer is something to do with Star Wars so no idea

ckusterfrack = clusterf *ck

I have said it before and I am saying it again. I have driven a car or scooter in more than 60 countries world wide and while I am sure there are

worse drivers I have not seen them yet. My brother assures me they are worse in Vietnam but I have not been there yet so I will defer to him.

He tells me he has spent many an afternoon having a few beers at a bar at a light controlled intersection and enjoyed the show.

Driving is dangerous in Thailand, make no mistake. Signals may mean the person is turning, maybe not. No signal may mean the person is going

straight but he may turn or change lanes as well. Baht busses will stop in the lane to discharge or pick up passengers even when there is a lane

available for them to pull over to. They will pull out without signalling or into scooter traffic as you will pay the bigger penalty if you don't brake hard.

You will see scooters driving the wrong way on one way streets and against traffic on the wrong side of the street on two way streets.

Do not be quick as a pedestrian to walk on a green light as motor vehicle ofter continue for 4-5 seconds through the red light. Pedestrians ofter

look the wrong way when crossing the street as they are from the Americas or mainland Europe. Many don't look at all as they are drunk or assume

they have the right of way on the roads. Similarly when driving when the light turns green check to see if it is clear. Thais are the worst red light

runners in the world I am sure if their were red light cameras and Thais paid their tickets the amount would triple the amount the government looses

in the rice pledging scam. All this said I drive a scooter here. I try to drive with aggressive confidence but I am careful not to stop on the yellow

lights so as not to be hit from behind by cars or other scooters going through on the red light.

Kathu is basically in the middle of nowhere. Not close to anything but not far either. 15-20 minutes to the beach.

Quiet and peaceful, you will need a scooter/car. The basic difference in why I think some people prefer it to other

places is it is not as transient as the more popular beach areas. A little more community. In the beach areas most people

are transient tourists there for a few weeks . So it is hard to meet and get to know people. Cheaper condos are available because

the land was cheap I guess. Expensive by Thai standards lots of availability because they are far from the beach and not

good for tourists,even 6 month tourists as it is the middle of the island. I would definitely negotiate the asking price.

Up to you, some people love it, some would hate it. As you are staying for a year, work is nearby, are young, I think you

would like it.

The facilities in Thailand as far as the private hospitals are second to none. I have been many times but only

for blood tests or minor things. Clean, efficient, cheap. no issues with English for the front line staff.

Not sure on the competence of doctors. For plastic surgery I see the results on stage in many bars and

as far as breast augmentation is concerned Thai doctors look very competent to me. In conservation

with the ladies I am told the cost is 45-60 thousand baht. My mother (79 years old) is coming for a couple

of months in January would like to get a mini face lift. When looking at various web sites on her behalf

I see breast augmentation prices quoted at 100-150 thousand baht. So I see what appears quite an extreme

level of two tiered pricing here. For things like colonoscopies and relatively simple procedures for ex-pats

I think Thailand is very good. For serious procedures heart surgery etc.. I would take Singapore and

possibly Malaysia hands down. Especially if the article is correct in saying there is only a 10-15% difference in price.

As far as Dental work is concerned I think Thailand is excellent. I get my teeth cleaned every 3 months, I have

had crowns, and am currently having a root canal done by a specialist. All excellent work and very low cost

compared to Canada. Free compared to the USA.

Dude, chill. I have a smart phone, No greeting set up or voice mail. I am regularly out of the service area when in Canada.

Here no problems. When people can't get a hold of me instantly or almost instantly I explain to them my cell is for my

convenience not theres. Send an e-mail. I try to check daily and if I have service I usually am quick to respond. All good.

Most people remember life before, cell phones, e-mail, fax machines even. I prefer now. But to each his own.

Blue skies, lots of smiling faces. Everyone has been through it before and knows it will drain away

by the next morning.

Must be saving #1 reason, like an ace card up the sleeve.

Words, words, words,words,words.