Deaw

Assuming you live here, why haven't you got a Thai license or an International Drivers Permit?

Is it legal to drive here on a NY License?? Not having the correct driving permit will affect your insurance!

Why put yourself in that situation...

Yes, I live here 1/2 of every year, sometimes more, but again I live on Koh Phangan and we never have police pullovers for no reason. Once in a very blue moon they will set up road blocks and ticket people with no helmets, usually when they need to raise some cash. Pay the 200 and on your way, never once have I or anyone I know been asked for a license.

If today's incident did nothing else it reminded me that I need to get one eventually, at least for the times I leave KPG.

So you are quite happy to pay 200 Baht for not having a helmet (a legal requirement) but get uppity with the cops when they ask you for a licence as they are entitled to ask for???

Again, it's all about getting credit for paying.....the 2 times I was stopped in Phangan [not bad for living there for 6 high seasons, really] and the one time I was stopped last month in Pattaya for no license, there were a handful of cops around or even more; the roadblock in Pattaya was near the Central Festival and there were about 20 of them there, and they made a ton. So because there were bosses around, the guys who stopped you couldn't get "tea money"; you paid at a desk and got a RECEIPT to show you paid. 200 each time on Phangan and 200 in Pattaya for no license.

Today the guy asked for 500.....sounded a bit high, but OK, here you go.....now where the heck is my receipt? Was I really so out of line to ask the guy for proof that I paid him? What if I got stopped down the road a mile or 2 and someone else asked me for 500 more?

the whatwasit 130b? local license would pay off in half a day.

Please tell me where to get this; I will buy one tomorrow, no joke.

Keep in mind I don't live here full-time, only during high seasons.

I am in Pattaya south - Thank you!

The department of Land Transport for Chonburi is located near the Regents school on highway 26 to Rayong. You'll need (the last I checked, a few years ago) a non immigrant visa and a proof of residence from immigration. Search this forum for more details.

Problem......I don't have any proof of residence, I only stay in Thailand about 6 or 7 months per year.

I do have a non-immigrant Type O visa.....and next year I will look into this a lot better and get myself either a local license or an IDL. Truth be told I didn't even know a falang could get one of those since, ummmmm, most of us can't speak the language? Again, with the NY state analogy; imagine a Thai guy living in Albany and they go to the local DMV and try to get a license but they can't speak English? Not happening.

Need an MRI for my lower back, was quoted 20K by BPH, all in.

Anyone know anywhere else who may do it for less? seems kinda pricey for Thailand, I had a full shoulder MRI done in Montreal last summer at a private clinic for 600 bucks.

Used the search feature and I found an old thread regarding this, but was wondering if anyone had any updated thoughts or suggestions.

Thank you.

It's so easy to live here just obey the rules. I can just imagine what would happen if a foreigner is stopped in NY without the the correct permit.....and it would cost a dam_n site more as well.

Yes, very valid point....some NY state trooper would look at the Thai license, have a good laugh and throw the guy in the back of his squad car! So by comparison I got off very lightly.

Please understand that where I usually live it's pretty lawless; Phangan has a very small police force, only about 10 of them actually wear uniforms, so everyone including myself ends up getting careless; driving with no helmet, no license, no paperwork, no shirts, etc.....because there is no fear of ever being pulled over. I am in Pattaya now and the laws are much more strict.

I think some readers may be misunderstanding the whole point of my thread, also. I get the system here in Thailand, I really do! I even offered the guy 200 baht in 'tea money' but he said no. So when he went to 500, I simply wanted a receipt! He showed me a legal book with the prices in it for the fines, and it said 500 for no license....OK, so then I happily handed him that, I totally admit I was in the wrong....now why can't I just get a simple receipt like I got in Pattaya last time? It's all I wanted!

Another Don Quixote fighting corruption in Thailand! And in your naivity actually believing that the receipt is a guarentee for the money going to the local muncipality. Dream on and keep your NY-license as you will not last long here.

LOL, going on 14 years............first visit was 1998....been doing 1/2 years since 2002; I think I will be here a while more too, thanks.

the whatwasit 130b? local license would pay off in half a day.

Please tell me where to get this; I will buy one tomorrow, no joke.

Keep in mind I don't live here full-time, only during high seasons.

I am in Pattaya south - Thank you!

Driving without a license is stupid - you deserve a lot more sever punishment.

OK, i get it.....although I disagree that no one else loss face today - you weren't there and you didn't see how angry that cop was that he lost out on the 500 baht.

But let me ask you something; for the people who don't live here and come over on just a 2 week holiday from Yemen or Russia or the UK; each and every one of them should be getting an international drivers permit?

I would guess that based on the tourists I see around Pattaya renting 'cycles, and on the lineup of 30 guilty farangs at the Pattaya road block I hit last month- just a guess here of course, but I would say maybe 10% actually have one. So I am thinking I am far from the only one and as I say no one I know has one.

Assuming you live here, why haven't you got a Thai license or an International Drivers Permit?

Is it legal to drive here on a NY License?? Not having the correct driving permit will affect your insurance!

Why put yourself in that situation...

Yes, I live here 1/2 of every year, sometimes more, but again I live on Koh Phangan and we never have police pullovers for no reason. Once in a very blue moon they will set up road blocks and ticket people with no helmets, usually when they need to raise some cash. Pay the 200 and on your way, never once have I or anyone I know been asked for a license.

If today's incident did nothing else it reminded me that I need to get one eventually, at least for the times I leave KPG.

Oooops, my apologies.....thought you were saying *I* am somehow paranoid for starting the whole thread.

In any case the copper has no way to find me [save for the license plate on the rented bike, now turned in] and I am staying about 10 miles from there, I will never see that guy again; thank God.

Has any parnoid person told you he is gonna get you yet ?

not sure what parnoid means, has anyone ever told you to learn English?

Either that or you're just some wise guy wrongly thinking you are making a witty comment which actually makes no sense in relation to this post.

Short version; a corrupt cop tried to steal from me today and I complained to his superiors - does that make it easier for your brain to process?

I didn't realize you couldn't ride a rented motorbike with a NY license.

I was pulled over a month ago in Pattaya proper; same deal, they want to see a helmet, a registration, and a drivers license. For falangs, it must be an international license; truthfully, I don't know even one person who has this and I know a lot of expats.

I got a 200B fine that day, with a receipt, and there were cops everywhere, it was a road block for ALL motorcycles.....they do it whenever they need to raise some funds for the policeman's benevolent society

you are wrong....lost face isn't that important to low lifes in Thailand. Only lost money is....And you gave him that.....

No I didn't, read again...... the town got it, not him

Just saw this thread, sorry 2 days late on my take.....

I like Thailand - I don't LOVE Thailand, but of the 25 countries I have been to, this is the best place for many reasons.

Climate, beaches, food, mod cons, few language hassles in the places tourists congregate - yes, the girls too - all make it a very liveable place and the best place I have been to yet. And I have tried all the neighboring places as well as the Philippines and several close to the USA.

So basically, I live here by default; because I am self-employed I.T. same as you I can live anywhere I choose, and this is the best of the bunch! Not perfect, probably never will be, but better than all the other places I have been to so this place wins.

*One more thing. I find that after I am here for 5, 6 or 8 months I begin to miss 'home' a lot, in the northeast USA. Then, I go there and after a week or 2 I am just dying to get back here! After living in Asia it's dam_n near impossible to live back in the west, trust me. So people may bitch and moan up here and sometimes I do as well or I may think to myself "man, am I bored"; but the alternative, IE; spending twice as much to live in a country {mine} half as appealing, or in some 3rd world craphole where things just aren't as nice as here, is just not appealing at all.

One of the boys in brown pulls me over, at the police box just before the southern Beach Road ends, in front of the Sigma Hotel.

Not my bike, it was rented, but I had the paperwork and also had a helmet on; when he asked for my license I handed him my New York one as I don't have an international drivers license. I live on Phangan and they never ask for that, they rarely even stop people for helmet violations, so I have never gotten one.

The guy starts telling me 500 baht for not having a license. I tell him "song loi" to make him go away but he says no and shows me some half-ass list in his small police box office which has the rates for various offenses. OK, it does say 500, so I hand him the 500B; which he promptly stuffs in his pocket and hands me my license back.

Now I say "receipt?" and he looks all flustered and points to my license and waves his hand - as if, you've gotten that back, now go - and I say again; "receipt"? Once again - "receipt", now making the sign of a pen across paper. Nope, he can't produce one.

Now he's pissed off.....and his equally-shady partner, who has pulled over another falang and is worried they might lose another bribe with me bitching and moaning about receipts, wants me out of there asap; he has stopped talking to his pullover by now and both of them are motioning for me to get lost, but I'm going nowhere without my receipt.

Now he takes out a ticket book, fills it out and essentially throws it at me, grabs back my license and gives me my 500 baht back. Now his english, which was a total of NONE before that, suddenly gets a little better; "You go police station, pay fine, come back you get this back" and he gives me some convoluted half-ass directions to the station. Figuring I would now just surely pay the 500 and let it all drop, he figured wrong; I went to the police station, which was not easy to find and took me about 20 minutes.

Nice people there, and they have a sign right out front which says "We take complaints 24 hours a day". Cool. So I get my ticket processed and pay the 300, not 500, baht fine, and I get what I wanted in the first place; a signed RECEIPT. And, at least some minor satisfaction knowing the money is now going to the town of Jomtien and not to some little creep robbing people on Beach road.

I ask for their Boss, telling them I have a complaint. Some detective-looking guy now comes around, and 2 other cops, all of whom speak decent English. I describe exactly what happened, motioning again and again that the corrupt little nobody on beach road took my 500B and put in in his pocket and I got no receipt for it - that, basically, he was robbing tourists on Beach road and the money was going to him and not to the town. The detective guy and his 2 buddies seemed to take me at least a little bit seriously and he took out his phone and made a couple calls, and I thanked them all and left. Went back to the police box, retrieved my license, and showed that guy the receipt; I pointed right at the 300, said "Sam loi" and drove off. Man, was he ever agitated. Good.

Now, I figure 3 possible outcomes can come from this waste of 30 minutes of my life;

1} Nothing. But at the very least that little man lost some massive face to me, and we all know how important that is to Thai people.

2} The 3 coppers all chatting about my complaint; at least one told the corrupt midget, maybe even all 3, and he has now lost face with them as well, and maybe word even got around the station and some people had a laugh at his expense. Awesome!

3} Most unlikely, of course, since surely someone up the line is getting part of these thefts from the beach road police box; his superiors let him know someone complained, and that he had better watch his arse in the future when stealing from tourists because some may complain. And he then lost face with someone up the food chain; which would make the 10 dollar/30 minute loss totally worth it.

Just another day in the Kingdom!

What a freaking joke.....I've been to about 25 countries and this is the only one which allows it, imagine that...... Thailand and North Korea on the same page, who would ever guess?

Australia does it (well I know they do in Sydney anyway)...

Police raid on nightclubs where there are known drug issues, sniffer dogs, all patrons and staff drug tested using field test kits, and if a positive result are taken to the police station for a proper test...

See, for all of our faults {like Texas and Kim Kardashian, to name but 2}, America would not allow something like that - hopefully ever.

Probable cause is in our constitution, same as being read your rights to have an attorney after being arrested. There is no way a cop could ever ask you to pee into a cup for no reason, even if you are walking out of a reggae festival! Or a rave, or a Grateful Dead concert.....you have to break a law FIRST, even something minor like disturbing the peace or pissing on a tree, etc....to get pee-tested.

But even then it would be highly unlikely. Unless it was something really serious you'd get processed and let out on bail, with no drug test ever being done.

People can give the states all the crap they want, and we get a lot of it, but at least in this instance we are indeed 'free'.

If they really can then Thailand truly is a police state.

No doubt about it.

I remember thinking that years ago when this all started {It may have been under Thaksin, but much more common in the past 3 or 4 years}.

What a freaking joke.....I've been to about 25 countries and this is the only one which allows it, imagine that...... Thailand and North Korea on the same page, who would ever guess?

And again, I agree with the posters above decrying the use of alcohol in this country......drunk people are a nuisance and cause accidents and fights and they are plain annoying to be around or near; ever seen a person drink 2 buckets filled with alcohol and then get on a motorbike to drive home? I have! But they never seem to get pulled over and tested.......

I was on Khoa San road one night and saw a troop of coppers in riot gear head into the Lava club, there must have been 30 of 'em with clubs and helmets on, etc...... 5 minutes later all farangs came out, and I pulled over one Dutch guy who looked like he just escaped the electric chair. I asked him what happened and he says " The cops came in, told all the falangs to leave, and then started making every THAI person pee into a cup to check for drugs!"

so sometimes it happens in reverse, so as to not make a dent in the tourism numbers....... Thailand, the only country I know which discriminates against their own people and lets the westerners walk!

WHY DONT THEY DO THIS IN KO PANGNANG ????

I live on Phangan.....they DO have random drug testing, usually leading away from the "Jungle" parties at 4 or 5am, when they are guaranteed to have a high hit ratio, but oddly enough only for the Thai tattoo boys. Ice is becoming a problem here and they love catching the kids on Ice.....how they can pay the huge fines is beyond me, those guys are pretty poor.

The reason they don't randomly test falangs? Simple, the cops are all paid off here and they like tourism to line their pockets and know if they randomly tested the westerners word would get back to the UK, Israel and Canada, etc, and the place wouldn't be as popular.

You can rule out magic mushrooms unless whoever picked them was really stupid and didn't know what they were doing. The mushrooms that are hallucinogenic and often used/found in Thailand are psiolcybe cubsensis, subcubensis or sumibensis. These are not at all lethal and they do not have any real deadly look-a-likes either.

Agreed. I live on Koh Phangan and they are quite popular, I would say about 1000 shakes or more are downed every full moon week and not once has anyone ever died like this. As Tom says, even "bad" or look-a-like mushrooms wouldn't have the effect that these 2 girls had, not even close......maybe an upset stomach and a headache but not the other symptoms and certainly not death.

Authorities are reaching for anything at all now.....'Oh, lots of young people use magic mushrooms here, it could have been that' ......B.S..... they also sound frustrated that the family won't let them autopsy the bodies with their own hack doctors......good for the family, hold your ground!

"We planned to send the bodies for post mortem at Surat Thani Hospital because Krabi Hospital has no forensic doctor. However, so far, we have been unable to move them because their relatives and the Canadian Embassy representative who came to Krabi did not allow us to do so," the director said.""

Big Thumbs Up for the family, yaayyyyyy!!

......and just when I was considering opening a bar in Pattaya like all the other retired brain surgeons do....

great tips, guys......I have heard many nightmares about crossing there, but as long as I am expecting [and willing] to pay a small bribe it should be OK.

too late for an e-visa.....I am going to stay in Had Lek for a night, go to the border in the morning, and pay my 20US plus be prepared with an extra 300B.

then get a moto taxi to the bus stop in Koh Kong.....from what I understand there is a big bus at noon to Snooky, I much prefer that to a minivan.

sound about right? Thanks all!

Symptoms generally appear between 20 minutes and three hours after eating the poisonous pufferfish. The following are the most common symptoms of pufferfish poisoning. However, each individual may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:

I used this site for my quote. "There is a rapid onset of symptoms (5-30 minutes)."

http://yyy.rsmas.mia...cience/fugu.htm

In addition you will note that they say the more rapid the onset of symptoms the more serious the outcome which makes sense in all other types of poisoning too. This would mean your quote from wiki, of 20 mins to 3 hours would indicate milder poisoning and therefor less chance of two healthy young women dying from it and being somehow able to make it out of the restaurant and get home but then suddenly unable to press the "maid" button on the telephone or open the door from floor level. If they had fugu poisoning and it was severe enough to kill them they would have got symptoms quickly as this how poisons work, strong effect quickly and vice versa.

This was all in passing, I totally don't think it was fugu or another food poisoning. If it were botulism etc. there would be outbreak at the restaurant with more fatalities and hospital admissions.

This seems to be the best explanation yet.......Lord knows we have all eaten fish while in the south, I know I have ........they may have just been unfortunate enough to have eaten the wrong fish at the wrong time of the year??

I don't think anyone believes they were murdered......suspicions of having some GHB or similar drug slipped to them in a bar seems pretty unlikely also, but you never know; and in any case people rarely die from that.

We are all casting suspicion on the police, and they do have a shady way of covering things up over here......but could it have been something so simple as eating some bad fish out of season? But if so, why not more deaths? Surely more people [including some locals] would have eaten the same batch.

The mystery deepens, with the only real witnesses unable to speak for themselves.....so sad