a1falang

I recently (1 or 2 month ago) received a total of 6 Books (valued 120€ or 6000 Bt) from Amazon Germany.

No customs chrged, and it took about 10 Days from the date Amazon confirmed the shipment until arrival at my house in Pattaya.

Sunny

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Interesting, Sunny Valentine. Danke schon. Tell me, were the books in German or in English, as I'm wondering whether maybe duties are charged on English-language books only, whereas there might be very little demand in Thailand for books in German, and hence duties don't apply? Also, was the package actually valued at 6000 baht, or was it purposely undervalued, maybe classified as a gift?

Thank you to everyone for input.

Yes, Crushdepth, after browsing all the Amazon reviews, I decided if there was ONE book to get, it would be Adobe Photoshop Bible by Deke McClelland. I have a friend in Singapore who's coming up in a week or so, so I'm going to ask him to buy some books including this title locally and bring them up. I should be able to avoid shipping, customs and VAT that way.

Regarding duties, yes, I had a run-in with DHL about the ludicrous duties they said I had to pay for a gift my mother sent me. I explained the items were *presents* for *Christmas*, as clearly indicated on the form, and if they wanted me to pay the ridiculous amount I was asked, I'd just return the gifts and DHL would lose, since it would cost me less to buy at local Thai prices what my mother sent than they wanted in duties!

Sorry to hear about your credit card fraud, Storekeeper, although, like LadyinRed, I'd like to know more. It might not have been Amazon's fault. If you bought online at an internet cafe in Bangkok, or some other unsecured computer, then maybe there was a "keylogger" installed on the PC you used which recorded your credit card number when you completed Amazon's order form online.

Sunny Valentine, um, thanks for trying to help.

Hello, I'm looking to order some English-language books about Photoshop CS and Illustrator CS from Amazon for personal use, which are either not available in Thailand or horrifically priced at the local bookstore. If I buy from Amazon, are Customs going to slap on such a high duty that I'll be paying more or less "retail" price? Anyone ever had books shipped here before and would be able to tell me what extra charges are applicable? Alternatively, where's the best place in Bangkok to buy English-language software tutorials that has a wide selection to browse?

I just found this - http://www.thaiwhey.com/buy.html#

Anyone else brought some - I'd better check it out tomorrow....

Pedro

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Good find, perdro01 I'll be sure to check it out.

Thanks, astral. Very handy to know.

having been cruising the edges of this forum for the last year or so, I finally decided to join so I could say how sad it is now.

No depth. No feeling at all.

Just like a str8 forum for alternative lifestylers, as Steven once put it.

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What would be something with depth and feeling?

They PROBABLY blocked it for the nud_e pictures ... but since it is not on the "official" list of bad sites unblocked it when they got complaints.

Try using a proxy-server based outside of Thailand if you have problems accessing sites in the future.

There are at least 4 that you can access via the web w/o changing any of your settings.

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Um, how do I access a "proxy server"?

For protein powder, I suggest ordering from www.proteinfactory.com and having it shiiped to you in Thailand.  This is the best source I know of.  You can choose their cheapest variety or design your own protein powder with exactly the ingredients you want.  They can ship to you in lightweight containers saving you a lot on shipping cost.  You may be able to get a better price from them, including shipping, than you get at GNC.

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From what I understand, the sale of protein powder is heavily restricted in Thailand and subject to high import duties, hence GNC's ludicrously overpriced product. (Easier and cheaper to buy steroids. ) ermooney, have you yourself imported protein powder into Thailand from www.proteinfactory.com ? I imagine anything ordered overseas will be subject to the same import duties and restrictions as GNC's brand, so I'd be interested to know your experience. Myself, I gave up buying GNC's expensive brand and just combine non-fat milk with egg whites, adding some chocolate soy milk to give a little flavour.

Perhaps heart surgeons or other plastic surgery specialists would be useful.

Yes, I would be interested in the best cosmetic surgeon for rhinoplasty (nose job) and other facial surgery. As for laser and non-laser skincare treatments, Dr. Setthawat Atthakorn has a nice website http://www.bangkoklaser.com/ I've visited his clinic at All Seaons Place and have seen photos of well-known actors and celebrities who have benefitted for Botox injections etc. I don't know if he's the best of the best - he may just be good at being famous.

Hmmm, I can access it again now, like it never happened. Interesting. Some of my friends weren't blocked in the first place. I have True DSL, so maybe it was a a True initiative?

It's 1.15 p.m. and have just tried visiting www.gaydar.com only to find:

เว็บไซต์นี้ถูกปิดกั้นโดย Cyber Inspector กระทรวงเทคโนโลยีสารสนเทศและการสื่อสาร

ถ้ามีข้อสงสัยหรือต้องการร้องเรียนให้ส่งเมล์มาที่ [email protected]

สนับสนุนโดย บริษัท กสท โทรคมนาคม จำกัด (มหาชน)

Is it just me or....?

Thank you, DavidUK21. For personal use, it would be quite adequate, but I need something a little more comprehensive, something equivalent to Oxford, complete with sample sentences. Hopefully, there is something that is a commercail release and standard.

Hello. I'm looking for a comprehensive and advanced Thai-English English-Thai software dictionary/program. I don't mean something for tourists, beginners etc. or some sort of language course, but a proper dictionary. So Sethaputra 4.0 does not work with Windows 2000, even though it is supposedly compatible, and even though it works on Windows 98, sometimes it doesn't seem very accurate. I'm happy to pay full retail if it works properly.

Try http://www.thai-english-translation.com Easy to remember.

Have there been any statistics kept or studies conducted about the nature of Thai prostitution in general? I have heard that if you average it out across the nation, about 98% of the typical prostitute's clientele is Thai, not falang kee-nok or other foreigners. Is there any truth in this?

Yes, I'd like to know about mail order if anyone's had the experience already. I'm tempted just to order what I want in the way of supplements from overseas, since the prices here are insane.

Hi all, any bodybuilders or gym regulars here? Looking for a better deal on whey protein, creatine and other non-steroid bodybuilding supplements than GNC. Their prices are outrageous, easily twice that of the U.S.! Aren't these kind of products also produced locally or regionally, instead of being imported from the U.S. and Europe? Amazing that steroids here are cheaper and more readily available than legit supplements! Any advice greatly appreciated.