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The usual anti Thailand comments, that's why I dont bother to read or comment on this site most of the time. The power at our place in Nong Khai is more reliable than it is In Western Australia and rarely goes out. Getting a fibre Internet connection in WA will take years as they get around to connecting us to the National Broadband Network. In Nong Khai it took 3 days. The cables look a horrible mess but strangely the system seems to work. I don't know of anybody bypassing meters but I guess its possible.

Anyway, for all its chaos, in my experience of living here on and off for 12 years is that the main roads are well engineered, the power is reliable and so is the Internet. All this with a greater degree of individual freedom than the sheep mentality of Australia

For over a decade Pantip has been the main reason I stop over in Bangkok on my way from Australia to our arts guest house in Nong Khai. Mainly for inexpensive software but also upgrades to Windows computers.

Now I hardly use Windows, we have 3 Chromebooks, 2 Android phones, several (unused) tablets and everything we do is in the Cloud.

So we have stopped stopping over in Bangkok, we just fly on to Udon Thani

I shall miss the hubbub and cacophony of Pantip with its speakers blaring, trying to get past the porn merchants, eating cheap food, negotiating a price for cds, going through the catalogues of cd covers, writing down the numbers and waiting for the copies to come hot off the press. A lot of fun.

Without going into boring politics.

How these fireballs are produced?

In 2002, a TV program for iTV did some investigative journalism and caught people on Laos side faking the phenomenon using tracing rounds and fireworks.

The TV channel got immediately threatened and boycotted for being disrespectful of sacred beliefs.

Its a multi-million dollars business with several hundred thousands of people now attending the event every year. Unsurprisingly, the variety and intensity of the phenomenon has increased over the past few years as it started to attract international visitors rather than only locals.

A good analysis of the phenomenon can be found here: http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4183

We certainly had huge crowds here in Phon Phisai for the Naga Festival, between our guest house and the town a distance of a couple of kms you couldn't move for people. We are on the bank of the Mekong with a fantastic view but we only saw 3 fireballs (I only saw one). It can't possibly be a natural phenomenon as the fireballs go 30+ metres into the air. However, I have never seen any sign of a boat launching them and they appear to come out of the river. Whoever stages it does a brilliant job as thousands of people sit and wait to see one or two fireballs, with great gasps of ooh and ahh when they appear. What Western theatrical organisation could hold huge crowds for 6 hours and only perform a couple of times and each one for less than a minute?

It always amuses me when we are in the village my wife will talk very loudly to another Thai lady and it turns our she is several houses away. I don't know how they manage to have a conversation over that distance. I suspect that, like some forest birds, their voices are adapted to WAG (Wide Area Gossip).

Dear all of you who complain about THAI service level. I only said I would never fly THAI due to the fact that they're introducing an aircraft (Boeing 787) which is not safe on the routes I fly. I will always have THAI as one of my 4-5 preferred airlines due to their nice and effective in-flight staffs - if only the aircraft they use on the route I'm about to fly isn't a Boeing 787!

Why do you think the 787 is dangerous? Can you give me a link to your source. I am flying from PER to BKK on one on the 17th September (on that very profitable route) so I have a keen interest lol

 

 

Pretending to be a bhuddist and actually following all the rules / principles is two very very very different things. 

Besides, not even monks are perfect.

 

*edit* Face (saving face) is something that is in complete conflict with Buddhist teachings. 

Face = EGO EGO EGO

Buddhism = FREEDOM FROM EGO - DEATH OF EGO - etc .. 

COMPLETE CONFLICT .

 

 

*edit2* My home country is Christian,, and there's many Christian traditions and holidays. But very few people try to follow Christian principles.. I think it could be the same here in Thailand... The people are Buddhist, so they honor buddhist holidays and traditions and go to the temple etc. But they don't try to live by the teachings and/or they just pick and choose among the teachings that fit their own agenda. Sort of like italian mafiosos would ask for forgivness and stuff.. but then go out and kill again, and come back and ask for forgiveness again..

 

*edit3* I would go as far as saying that because of the whole "saving face"-thing, Thai people in general are missing the most important point of buddhism.

What point would that be? How would you know?

 

One of the most important teachings of Buddhism which makes it different to every other religion is the belief in Not-self... annatta.

Ego based things such as 'face' are opposite to this principle.

 

Its an interesting discussion but 'face' seems to be consistently defined as an egotistical characteristic, but my understanding of 'face' is that it goes beyond that.

Perhaps some Thai person can enlighten me but I thought that 'saving face' was not just your 'face' but the other person's face.  In that case 'face' is not self centred but from a concern about others.

For example,if somebody makes a mistake you don't draw attention to it as they would lose 'face'

My children have Thai Passports, UK Passports, Thai ID cards, Thai +UK Birth Certificates
What is difficult?

Its not really a problem.  The only concern is that he may become liable for conscription into the army in Thailand when he grows up.  If you have a boy I expect you have the same problem?

Lying to "save face" isn't a Buddhist thing, it's an attempt to support ones Ego.

 

I've heard that "loss of face" is a strong cultural stance by many Thais.

 

 

Naturally lying, in the long term is negative and can lead to suffering and harm.

 

As Camerata has indicated the Buddha taught against lying in the precepts.

 

• I undertake the training rule to abstain from false speech.

 

There is the case where a certain person, abandoning false speech, abstains from false speech. When he has been called to a town meeting, a group meeting, a gathering of his relatives, his guild, or of the royalty, if he is asked as a witness, "Come & tell, good man, what you know": If he doesn't know, he says, "I don't know." If he does know, he says, "I know." If he hasn't seen, he says, "I haven't seen." If he has seen, he says, "I have seen." Thus he doesn't consciously tell a lie for his own sake, for the sake of another, or for the sake of any reward. Abandoning false speech, he abstains from false speech.

 

 

By the way, the Buddha did not refer to lying as sinful, rather he indicated it was unwise conduct, to be avoided.

 

In the West we call it ethical conduct.

 

In terms of your second question, when one lies to save face, at the very least one is cheating oneself.

 

 

Isn't "saving face" often about saving the face of the other person?  That is not to embarrass them?

In English we would call this a "white lie".  If a lady says to you "Do you like my new dress"  your reply "It's lovely"  not revealing your true thoughts that it is hideous.

So lying is not always bad, egotistical or harmful and Thai people habitually lie to protect the other person.

He already is Thai, but as the Thai government is not aware of his birth they have no record of him. Wiht the Thai birth certificate they will have a record of him and he can get a Thai passport. Overstay has no bearing on him getting a Thai passport.

 

The process can aslso be started in Bangkok, but will take longer than.

 

If need be he can get 1 year extensions of stay on show of his birth certificate and the mothers Thai ID-card or passport.

 

 

Thanks.  I think we will:

• apply for a Thai birth certificate for him here in Australia as that seems quite straight forward
• enter thailand with a visitor visa on entry
• add him to the House Book when we get back to our place
• apply for a Thai passport for him.

Hopefully that will all work out:)

The big question will be even though they are not fined, will they be subjected to the new blacklisting rules?

Sure, that could be disastrous, although I guess he could still become a Thai citizen and get a Thai passport as his mother is Thai, or would blacklisting prevent him getting a Thai passport?

The easiest is of course to apply for a Thai passport, in the end he will need it anyway and it only costs 1,000 baht.

That's true and we will probably do this although we have to start the process here in Australia.

The other issue is that it will make him liable for the conscription lottery when he grows up.

My wife is Thai and one of our children has dual Thai/Australian citizenship but the other only has an Australian passport.

They are both under 14 and we normally do not get a visa for the one who does not have a Thai passport relying on the 30 day visitor visa on entry.

As we stay for 4 months each year technically he overstays for 3 months, however there has never been any problem as the rule has been that children less than 14 years old who are travelling with a parent are not required to pay any fines for overstays.

I am worried that this might have changed with the current tightening of the rules.

Does anybody know whether a child under 14 is still exempt from the overstay rules?

Just be aware that things are very different in Essan, Keep your eyes open and dont take to many risks .

That's a strange thing to say. I quite certain that you are much safer in Isaan than any of the major tourist centres. The people have not been corrupted by tourism yet, the only problem is that few speak English.

Without wishing to upset anybody who lives in Udon Thani, its not a place that I would like to live. Nong Khai is a much nicer city. If you want to get a feel for rural Issan visit our guesthouse website ** Commercial link removed ** If you are interested in Issan girls go to Phuket or Pattaya as that's where they live.

Thanks for removing the "commercial" the fact is that the website I was referring to does have a lot of useful information about the Nong Khai area. If you link to any website with information about Isaan it will contain commercials. If you search for Thailand Painting Holidays you will probably find some useful information about ISAAN.

Now take that one down as well!!!

Without wishing to upset anybody who lives in Udon Thani, its not a place that I would like to live. Nong Khai is a much nicer city. If you want to get a feel for rural Issan visit our guesthouse website** link to commercial link remvoed ** If you are interested in Issan girls go to Phuket or Pattaya as that's where they live.

"If you are interested in Issan girls go to Phuket or Pattaya as that's where they live"

Well, that's a pretty cynical and even offensive statement coming from someone who is promoting a guesthouse in Isaan. Not everyone seeks romance from a bar stool ...

I am sorry. It was intended as a joke and I hadn't anticipated that anybody might be offended by it. I was just making the point that she sort Isaan of girls a young man might be interested in are probably working in the bars whereas the girls in Isaan are generally much more conservative. All Isaan girls are lovely in any case. I apologise unreservedly for my crass attempt at humour.

Without wishing to upset anybody who lives in Udon Thani, its not a place that I would like to live. Nong Khai is a much nicer city. If you want to get a feel for rural Issan visit our guesthouse website ** Commercial link removed ** If you are interested in Issan girls go to Phuket or Pattaya as that's where they live.

My travel insurance cover with a Westpac black credit card says the following

I think the average farmer never considers the running cost when buying a vehicle. In my experience Thai village people just don't think that way. They need a pickup which will carry, rice, fertiliser, building materials and most importantly 20 people when required. A car is fine for somebody in a city but useless for Thai farmers.

Sinsod is paid all the time. The important thing is for it to be shown at the wedding. Often arrangements are made to show it at the wedding, and then given back to the groom afterwards. Sometimes if the groom does not have the money, the brides parents put up their own money to show at the wedding, and then of course keep it after the wedding. Everyone saves face. Don't let anyone tell you that this does not happen. Believe it or not, just like the rest of the world, some marriages do last forever. Especially when you start in your 60's.

Absolutely correct. In the villages of Isaan its all about face and honour. If you fail to pay enough, your bride and her family lose face. As a farang you can obviously afford to pay more and should pay more. The amount is negotiated between you and your wife's family. If she is in good condition you pay more if she has been married many times and worked in a bar for decades you pay less. You can do a deal where the money is displayed and returned but that would be poor form for a rich farang. 10 years ago when I paid for my wife she wanted a four door pickup. I said I could only afford a two door so the deal was that part of the money was returned to me to pay for the more expensive pickup. All very civilised.

I use http://www.ozforex.com.au/ as I get a much better exchange rate than the banks and once it is set up its very easy to use. Their people also have given me good advice on currency exchange restrictions with Thailand.

This may not help you but for the past decade I have been living on and off in Thailand and Australia. My Australian bank provides free travel insurance if you have a Platinum credit card. It only lasts for 3 months for each trip but I have always returned to Australia within that time so it hasn't mattered.

We recently started staying in Thailand for over 4 months which would have been a problem, however fortuitously my bank issued me with a Black credit card which has 6 months free travel insurance. The card costs me about $50 per annum. I looked at taking out travel insurance as an alternative and it would have cost me over $400 per month!

The insurance cover is provided by a major insurance company and I have used it several times for health issues in Thailand and the service has been excellent.

In Australia, if your bank doesn't upgrade your credit card automatically you can still apply for an upgraded card but with a higher annual fee ($150 from memory) but you have to have a good credit rating. I have paid off my outstanding card balance on the last day it is due for years and its not difficult to maintain a good rating.

So it might be worth talking to your bank.

I think its very unlikely that either your bank or Paypal would report any of your banking details without a court order. Especially not Paypal as they would go out of business if people found out they were doing that. Reverse it, do you think an EU bank would report your your banking details to the Thai authorities without a court order?

I have fond memories of Pantip as I have been going there several times each year for over a decade, mainly for Windows software.

Nearly all my computing is in The Cloud now and I don't require any new Windows programs. My Chromebook is brilliant and I shall never buy another Windows computer, so goodbye Pantip.

It also means I dont need to stopover in BKK anymore and just fly straight on to Udon Thani so I don't spend money on hotels either.

I wish the International Airport at Udon Thani was an international airport so I could avoid BKK altogether.

i live under a rock and haven't been watching the news recently. is bangkok becoming rather dangerous for tourists at this point? we have our trip planned for 30th may, and will be staying at sukhumvit 20, which im guessing is close to the hotel which was shot at. As a first time traveller (of any country) im oviously uneducated in regards to what areas to avoid etc. Are their some places more dangerous than others? Any particular places best to avoid? Also after reading that dog meat article, im an extremely against eating "mans best friend". which places are known to use this type of meat as i would like to avoid them - do street venders use dog meat for their dishes?

I ate dog in Manila at one time. It was quite tasty but a dog bit me the next day. The Filipinos all said there was a connection but I couldn't see it myself:)