Swiss1960

True, but it's still massively overvalued as anyone but a Swiss person will tell you. Just ask an Eastern European mortgage payor.

Bullshit... every Swiss knows that the CHF is massively too strong. One year ago Euro was sold for 1.40 and I got 31 TBH. Two months ago, Euro was almost equal and I got 42 TBH for the Franc...

And our economy almost broke down... we heavily rely on tourist, finance and export (mainly machine) industry... no tourist coming, no exports possible, our Eastern European debtors going broke... the f*** we did not care, we are dam_n happy that those interventions by the SNB happened!

Yes, my December holiday will be 20-30% more expensive than my August holiday (i expect the THB to go down to 30 Baht per Franc), but my job security, the security of our industry and behind that the security of our pension funds and all social security systems is worth much more...

Yes, we might like the thinking to be independant of the EU... but we are NOT... but having listened to Mr. Cameron, he also thinks that less of EU is better for the Great Kingdom...

You are comparing apples and mango's, the CHF is being artifically stopped from strengthening whereas the Pound is being purposely weakened, not quite the same thing even in banking terms. Also, just how you see yourself as suffering on the exchange rate escapes me, perhaps what you meant to say was that you are not making as much out of the exchange as you otherwise could, that's hardly suffering!

Maybe you should learn a bit of economics before complaining

They keep the swiss frank tied to the euro.

So if the euro drops (and it did) he suffers. Every time the Euro drops he suffers.

And perhaps you should read my post again and comprehend what was written, I'm merely stating that CHF and GBP are currently subject to different pressures that cause them to move in opposite directions, there's no complaint involved.

No the CHF is moving down too in relation to the baht. Because the Euro drops then the CHF drops too. And the euro has been dropping from 43 to 41.

Its not stopped from strengthening its dropping because the euro drops.

Absolutely correct. CHF is stopped from strenthening agains the Euro which means it is suffering against Thai Baht alongside the Euro... But as this was absolutely necessary for the country, I do accept that situation without complaining. Few Swiss tourists / ex-pats suffering in Thailand is not an issue when otherwise the whole country could go bust...

Yes there are some scum bags but don't tar all British with the same brush, don't forget if it wasn't for the British most of civilized world would be speaking German……..People have short memories…………..I am British and PROUD of it.

Hmmm.... some history lessons.... if it was'nt for the Germans (Saxons => Anglosaxons) throwing out the Romans, British might today speak Italien, be part of the Roman Empire and have Berlusconi as president

You raise some interesting points. Let me expand on them. First of all, there are no viable dependency studies on self administered THC. If that is a soft drug you are referring to. Gateway drugs however, Tobacco and alcohol, both readily available and legal if in the age of majority. Youth also have a relatively easy time obtaining them. And both are known to have the potential of creating addiction. Peer group pressure for adolescents comes in the form of smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol first. So where I would disagree with your statement, is in regards to cannabis. It is not a gateway drug, at best it is a distant third after tobacco and alcohol. Also it remains unproven in clinical studies as to the potential of it becoming physiologically addictive.

Agree with you. Smoking and Alcohol causes many more and much more serious problems to the health systems as well as broken families caused by alcohol addict parents beating up their partners and kids... I've smoked my weed when I was young, never got addict to it, never even thought about taking anything stronger...

And the "war" that can never be won continues. How sad.....

I agree with you jam.... legalization / regulation / treatment / taxing are the only the logical, sensible routes.

It doesn't actually work in Holland, of all places, so you can bet your bottom dollar it won't work here. Extermination of manufacturers and pushers is only way.

You can't use Holland as an example, cause they only legalized SOFT drugs... but since their police does not any more have to hunt down kiddies with a gran of THC in their pockets, they have more ressourced for the "extermination" of manufacturers and pushers... THAT IS what works...

What is the cause of this harrasement? Surely it can't be that she still loves you so much that makes her take these actions. I think there is more to this thing than you have posted.

Most likely he hasnt paid her "salary"...

Guess you're right.

As the old song goes...money make the world go round...

Diamonds are a girls best friends.... may stop her harassing him

Swiss National Bank is investing Billions every month to make sure the Swiss Franc does not get too strong (which of course hurts me for my Thai exchange rate); Swiss National Bank has decided to not let the Swiss Franc drop below 1.20 towards 1 Euro which of course brings my Thai exchange rate down along the Euro: Swiss Government is investing Billions into the Economy to help our export and tourism industry which of course will be through taxes.

Shall I cry or shall I congratulate the government and the SNB for those interventions? I better congratulate them, cause they keep the unemployment down, the industry up and in the long term ensure the safety of all of us Swiss and our pension and social security system.

I am just one in 6.5 Million Swiss citizens... yes, I suffer on my Thai exchange rate now but do profit for my future...

so stop whining about exchange rates and look at the greater picture

Only one question: If you NEED something chemical (heard that their still exist some farang who don't drink.... poor lads...), why not just go see a doctor, get a prescription, buy the meds and travel safely through all borders??? 300B for consultancy and 150B for the meds should be worth preventing any possible issues during checkpoints...

I am not sure why people think utopia can be achieved by this. Somehow it feels like a feeble appeasement to the Thai populace. Has this method worked anywhere in the world?

"More developed" countries like Holland even gave free heroin to addicts on houseboats in Amsterdam.. What about the alcoholics then? Forgive them cause they don't know what they're doing. Guess they need dutch coffee shops here sooner or later.......:jap:

I am from Holland, and the main reason to supply free methadon (not heroin however!!!) is to give the junkie his/her daily fix, so they don't need to steal/rob/scam to get the money. It is not really the junkie who causes the problems, but their actions (petty crime in general) to get the money for their fix (i.e. stealing car radio's and such, breaking into houses, etc). Collateral damage is far greater than what they get...

Dutch Proverb: "A happy smoker is not a trouble-maker! (een tevreden roker is geen onruststoker)" :jap:

I'm not from Holland, but I've seen the pilot project with my own eyes on a houseboat in Amsterdam. They gave heroin addicts their daily dose.

This was just an example what other countries are/were doing to find a way to solve problems regarding drug abuse.

Thais could learn a lot from 'more developed' countries as their policy is more than questionable.....

First, I repeat what you already have been told: It is Methadon and not heroin they get! Same here in Switzerland. Methadon is different from heroin as it does not give a short kick but helps the addict over several hours.

Second, whether it was on a housboat or not, definitely their was a doctor present and the addict had his prescription from a doctor.

Third, by giving them the Methadon, you can take care about other sicknesses the addicts normally have (ulcers etc.), give them clean needles and get them in a much better shape. You not only take them off the streets and prevent petty thefts and other crimes, many of them here in Switzerland (around 70%) even make it back to working normal jobs.

I don't say that we shall legalize drugs, not at all, but some ideas are not too bad:

- Legalizing drugs means that you take the users out of the underground and give them safe places to take the drugs.

- Legalizing drugs means having clear stuff and less people will die or get sick, more people will stay off social security money and cause less health costs

- Legalizing drugs means the country makes money from the sales and can control to whom it gives what and how much

And most of all: Legalizing drugs means that the black market will dry out almost immediately, becaus ALL addicts can buy at "reasonable" prices from the state. All thos criminal organisations will loose their business case, as they can only sell the first shot to non-users, but none more in the future...

Gin & Tonic

You'll have a good time before you fall asleep, and it taste good as well!!

For me, bottle of Red Wine followed by 2-3 Single Malts and drop dead for 8 hours in business class seat on Swiss

The only other sensible and civilised suggestion so far...

Why taking chems, if there are such fantastic all natural products

Gin & Tonic

You'll have a good time before you fall asleep, and it taste good as well!!

For me, bottle of Red Wine followed by 2-3 Single Malts and drop dead for 8 hours in business class seat on Swiss

Police again received a tip off. These stories almost always seem to be based on receiving a tip off. I cannot recall these drug arrests being made via police investigative work. Anyone else wonder what is going on? Is it just a matter of eliminating the competition? Who is doing all this tipping off?

Well, I see two options:

1) Somebody tips off the police to eliminate his competition, as you mentioned..

2) Policy might have infiltrated the smuggling ring and now receives inside tips but certainly will not tell the media...

BUT based on what I read about how highly most guys here think of the Thai police... I would assume that most of you guys will tend to reject option 2...

Start of another killing spree?

Seems so......

Killing a smuggler that first tries to shoot the police can hardly be called a killing spree.... but rather well deserved fate for the smuggler...

If there is a Greek default and that would be no surprise, Europe and maybe others are going to have to get into the pockets again. Should the very worst happen then the GBP and the Dollar would be negatively affected as well, as has been mentioned they are intertwined whether we like it or not.

Absolutely true... and if that would happen, unemployment would go up through the roof, their would be a worldwide financial crisis... and no Europeans / Americans would anymore be able to satisfy their investments in Thailand and those would go broke also... and no tourists would anymore be coming (we have seen the decline in tourists in 2008/9)... so the Thai Baht exchange rate would follow the Euro and $ almost immediately...

We better hope that none of the European countries goes broke... even as Swiss, the impact would be a catastrophe to our country as well...

I have changed my holiday location from central Pattaya to Jomtien also two years ago. I normally stay in the Jomtien Beach Penthouse (Soi 9) where it is quiet and the beach mostly sees families.

And I agree that the Jomtien area has developped pretty well with shops, restauants etc... even have to say that the best restaurant I found in all Pattaya so far is Bruno's (Swiss chef... high quality of food and service... fantastic wines.... very high prices...) and down Thapphraya towards the beach, they have some nice bars like the country bars (just like the music there...)

My ex-GF opened two Thai massage shops there this year (no, NO sex, NO rebates for you guys... ;-) ) and tells me she has pretty much regulars who live in that area, therefore even in low tourist season, she's making good money with them, better than her shops in Central Pattaya

When time comes, my plan is definitely to find me a place around Jomtien... given it does'nt get worse in the next 2-3 years..

I find these lines interesting:

The consular after receiving this petitions invited Kudos and Uche Ijere to his Office and showed them the cases against them. All the petitions were attached with evidences including pictures and video clips of their crimes. The consular therefore ordered them to cancel the election but GILBERT AKUDO NDIGWE Alias Kudos and UCHE IJERE ignored the consular,

So my question is only... their is proof of their crimes... but the consul does not send the proofs to the Thai authorities... only asks for cancellation of an internal election?????

Yes, I'd say you are asking too much...

I like Walking Street, as they really have nice music bars to sit without hassle from staff and watching people walk by... but Walking Street it shall not be for you...

There are some nice bars on beach road, personally I like to sit in Mulligan (Irish Pub in front of Central Festival), definitely no hassle from staff, but prices are high for food and beer and you have the "fumes" from beach road traffic, but can watch people walking by...

You have all the bars on Soi X where you don't have the fumes from traffic... but definitely have the hassle from "staff"...

So... you'll have to decide which is your biggest problem and accept the others coming with your decision, if you want to be in Central Pattaya...

I have never in the slightest felt threathened in Thailand and I've drunken many beers and whiskies and staggered home at nigth. Random violence is so rare in Thailand. Most people who get into problems in Thailand do so because they seem to think they can behave any way they like without consequence.

Agree with your feeling of safety... stay away from the coconut girls, stay away from soi bars at 4 morning... and you should not get into troubles.

I felt more unsafe in Kiev during daytime than in Pattaya during night time... and same can be said about parts of Zurich, Hamburg, Berlin, New Orleans, New York, Cancun...

Now, as I understand matters, most banks (but not all) use mainframes running UNIX and, therefore, if a "merger" takes place it is easy to create one database.

You don't know much about transaction systems, do you...?

He does not.... but I guess that is the least of his worries right now

There is no such thing as "free withdrawals" in foreign countries...

This is definetely wrong.

As already said AEON does not charge the 150 THB.

Secondly, depending on your bank (and country of origin) there are e.g. VISAPlus Debitcards which do not charge a fee at the originating bank. It will not the help the poster to name the examples for Germany (DKB Visa, Postbank Sparcard).

The DKB even refunds the 150 THB.

Well... just shows this bank hides their fees very well... either in the exchange rate (which they can set themselves) or not giving you interest on the money in your debitcard account... or in any other way...

There is no such thing as free withdrawals... because your bank will be charged a fee by the local bank who owns the ATM... this is called the Interchange fee and must be paid by the cardholder bank to the ATM owning bank... worldwide system... for normal purchases, it's just the other way round... the local bank of the merchant shop (called acquiring bank) has to pay the interchange fee to the cardholder bank...

You think DKB or Postbank are giving anything away for free? They make good money with cards... somebody pays for it... and most likely it is you, the cardholder...

P.S.: I'm working in this industry since many years... trust me, I know they charge you withdrawal fees to cover their expenses on cash withdrawals...

Let me see,9 months ago the OP didn't have a lady yet and they were all air headed,then 3 months later his girlfriend was pregnant already and another 3 months later some tourist wanted to shorttime her however she din't provocate and for sure she wasn't available for that kind of exercise.

However only another 3 months later she want to go work in a 7/11 Gogo bar.

Think he OP made the wrong choice when he decided to move to Thailand

??? let me see if I understand this right... 9 months ago he was single... 3 months later she was pregnant... which would be 6 months ago... so she would be highly pregnant now and want to work in a GOGO now ???

never seen pregnant gogo girls...

There is no such thing as "free withdrawals" in foreign countries... first it is your bank that might charge you (look at the general conditions of your bank) and then the "standard" 150 Baht withdrawal fee that I have seen with almost every Thai bank...

For AEON, be careful, there have been other threads about problems using their atms... see

sorry to say, but the story does not sound very plausible / credible.... manual transfer of customer records with all acocunts, statements, transactions etc. etc... could'nt be done in a lifetime... would'nt be accepted by any credible bank control unit, neither internally nor externally...

btw: it is SCIB, not SCB if you shorten the bank name...

It is, totally, up to you what you want to believe.

What I can say, with confidence, is that what I wrote is exactly what I have been told.

My apologies for upsetting your sensibilities with my missing "I"!

I did not say that YOU made up the story... but I DO say that you should question the story of your "other half".... I am an IT professional working for a bank... and I tell you it is impossible to do such a manual merger... I have been in two such projects and it is not possible to do this manually! The amount of data is just too big, as I said it is not only the customer record, but all transactions of the last years, all the statements, all the memo's typed about the customer's calls, problems, all the documents that you can NOT retype but most transfer automatically...

That story... other half has not been home for days... smells... very bad smell...

sorry to say, but the story does not sound very plausible / credible.... manual transfer of customer records with all acocunts, statements, transactions etc. etc... could'nt be done in a lifetime... would'nt be accepted by any credible bank control unit, neither internally nor externally...

btw: it is SCIB, not SCB if you shorten the bank name...

You should really consider very well already retiring:

- your $2'500 of the current rental are pretty much gone at end of the month.

- your $300K won't last too long, once you buy a house, car etc... or need money for your semi-retirement consulting business to travel, hotels etc.

And even if you're not womanizing... I can't believe that you want to stay alone for the rest of your life, given you're now in the mid 40's. Thus, your $2'500 might suddenly not be enough for each month for the two of you... and you will need to eat up the $300K...

How sure are you about generating income from your consulting business? What happens if you don't succeed in that business?

Of course, you did see people say "do it now" and people say "wait till your 50"... and given that you could save another $500K and THEN retire, I definitely would go for option "wait"...

But at the end of the day, the question is, how much risk are you willing to take...