dddave

Thanks..so relieved to know that. 10 to 14 days has always been the norm for me.

I bought a TCL 8000btu unit at Thai Watsadu on Sukhumvit, Jomtien for a friends 29 s/m condo in Pattaya. Installation was included, B500 extra to remove the old unit. Installers showed-up on time and all was finished in an afternoon. This was 5 years ago and it's still operating without any issue. I don't recall the exact amount but less than B10,000 all-in

I have been getting progressive lenses with frames from Zenni for more than 6 years and have been very satisfied. I just had a friend measure the PD using their instructions and it was fine. Last time, just for a spare pair I ordered cheaper lenses and frames...total of $65 for progressives. I've been wearing them full time for the last year, they are amazingly comfortable and very sturdy. I have bought more than 20 pair of glasses from Zenni including sunglasses and reading glasses, one pair specifically for TV viewing distance. I only had one pair arrive that were incorrect. They immediately sent a new pair and told me not to bother returning the bad pair. I had read on this forum several months ago that Zenni was no longer shipping to Thailand. I hope this is untrue.

Isn't LAZADA now owned by Alibaba? I think purchased about 4 years ago.

It wasn't until after I had posted that I realized that the topic was 3 years old so my info was indeed a bit dated. I'll let it stand as it does at least reinforce the reality that you get what you pay for.

Four years ago, I bought a cheap (B12,000) Thai E-Bike. It was kind of a parts-bin special, all generic Chinese components assembled by a short-lived Thai distributor: Empire E-Bike. It had 16" wheels and looked more like a kids bicycle. It folded for transport and storage but it folded awkwardly, was 35kg and was very difficult to move around. The battery was removable for charging. Wheel rims were garbage and tires were constantly flat. It rode ok, went up hills without effort but I could not go more than 1km without a flat tire. It was stored outside and the weather got to the control unit pretty quickly. I was unable to find a matching replacement and I ended-up giving it away to my condo security guard. A couple of take-aways: -Lot's of places selling E-Bikes, very few places skilled at fixing them. Sourcing specific parts very difficult. -My E-Bike looked like a bicycle and I never drew any notice from police even though no registration. A neighbor in my condo had one that looked like a motorbike and he did draw the attention of police several times who noted the lack of registration plate. Always cost him to get out of it. -I originally rode mine in Bangkok traffic and found it very scary and dangerous. It was too slow when I had to turn right out of my soi, across 2 lanes of traffic and it was difficult to keep up with traffic flow. It was not as bad when I moved to Jomtien but I was never comfortable with it's slow response.

The largest reseller of electronics, cameras and a lot of other stuff, mostly originating from Japan is LUCKY HOME, Samrong. It's a huge, 3 warehouse 2nd hand store about 1km from Samrong BTS. All the moto drivers know it. They are the most likely place to find what you want. Their premium warehouse, selling top grade items is only open on Sundays. Don't expect dirt cheap prices..they know what things are worth but for the persistent, there are deals to be had, BTW, the warehouses can get really hot. Best to go early in the day. Also, They have a testing area and allow you to test items before you buy because there are no returns accepted. https://lucky-home-samrong.business.site/

Thanks Sheryl for the specific answers. I will pass it all along. Tough choices all around.

Two, similar, one pricier than the other. "Khin Lom Chom Saphan" Beautiful location near the Rama VIII bridge, on the river. Decent and reasonably priced Thai food, very good seafood. Book ahead and ask for a waterfront table. Very crowded weekends. Most taxis know it. https://www.facebook.com/Khinlomchomsaphan "Baan Klang Nam-1" On the riverside also, beautiful views from riverside tables. More upscale and expensive Thai menu, seafood a specialty. Booking ahead a good idea for a nice table, especially weekends. https://www.wongnai.com/restaurants/2431EL-บ้านกลางน้ำ-สาขา-1

Hello Sheryl. I believe my friend is in stage 4. He has been receiving treatment in both Bangkok (Bangkok Christian Hosp.) and the US for the last 3 years. He was able to renew his Thai Insurance last year but doubts that he will be successful this year. I believe he is only looking for maintenance care: periodic fluid drainage from lungs and appropriate medication and not aggressive procedures such as radiation or chemo. He has funds but not unlimited.

As I clearly wrote, the office that issues the Re-Entry permits at Don Muang is the same office that processes overstays. When I entered one time, they assumed I was there for an overstay. Only after I spoke up, was I directed to the Re-Entry permit desk. I also have never waited more than 20 minutes at either DMK or BKK and never suggested that I had. As to my 5 year old post that you term "nonsense", at that time, Immigration had introduced a system that filled out the TM7 by their own system and printed it with photos that they took for which they charged B200. One could opt out and provide photos if one wished. If you are going to amuse yourself by pointing out what you perceive to be inaccuracies by others, at least be accurate in doing so.

A friend has lung cancer. He hopes to finish out his days in Thailand. I understand Government hospitals often concentrate treatment for different conditions in different hospitals. A friend who recently had a stroke was taken to Lerdsin Hospital, near Sephan Taksin. I had never heard of this hospital but it turns out, it has a specific department for the treatment of strokes and his treatment there has been excellent. Is there a specific Bangkok Government hospital that concentrates on Lung Cancer or Cancers in General?

The Re-Entry permit office at Don Muang shares space with the "Overstay Payment" office. Important to let the staff know when you enter that you are there for a re-entry permit, otherwise they may direct you to wait with the overstayers, which could be a much longer wait.

Looks like "LUCKY HOME" in Samrong, about 1km from the Samrong BTS. Three huge warehouses crammed with pretty much everything brought by container load from Japan. Some asking prices stupidly high, some very low...really not a lot of sense to it but smart resellers prowl the place all the time. They often have promotions with big markdowns on everything. There is one warehouse open Sundays only that sells higher quality, the really good stuff. One could find a pretty good stereo system for pretty cheap money. They do have testing tables so you can check things out before you buy.

This is a very sticky issue and don't trust Bangkok Bangkok bank employees to give accurate information. My deceased friends brother who is handling the estate has found it to be very complex and time consuming to have any access to his brother's BKB account. The moment you die, your bank accounts become part of the estate and legally a deceased person's wife can not access the account, even if it is a joint account. My friends brother has to have power of attorney in Thailand which can only be approved by a Thai court. he had to get notarized and legally translated statements from his other siblings renouncing any claim to the estate and he's still not done. There was no will in Thailand and that has created huge issues.

The batteries (2) are pretty cheesy but so far they have worked well. I've never used them for more than 15 minutes at a stretch so I don't know how long they actually last from a full charge. Lazada has quite a few models at a variety of prices so worth checking for one with better reviews.

It's surprisingly strong. It wont cut steel but dried pigeon poop comes off quickly. Mine came with 3 different nozzles for different uses. It can be set to continuous stream or machine gun type. I've had mine for about 4 months and have used it about 10 times on two balconies. No problems yet. It comes in a carrying case. It does have a cheap feel and probably wont last a long time but at my age, product longevity is less an issue.

It uses pretty narrow feed tubing. You'd have to figure out some form of adaptor to interface the garden Hose and the tubing. I didn't look but I'm sure there are models available that are designed to work with garden hoses.

No advance purchase for the Ekkamai bus, I think same for Mo Chit bus but not sure. You can exit the bus at Udom Suk (as long as no bag under) and take the BTS to Sala Daeng or Choen Nonsi, whichever is closer. You can advance purchase the Jomtien bus, either online or at the station.

I used to try to buy the 2 rearmost seats during the Covid years. Very bouncy but nobody else close to you or reclining in your face.

No question they do generally use older buses on the Ekkamai-Pattaya route. I frequently see the much newer buses from Ekkamai going to other destinations like Changchonsao and Rayong. They know they are going to fill those Pattaya buses 90% of the time so no incentive to try to attract passengers with new buses.

Not for deterrent but for easy clean-up I bought one of these inexpensive power washers on Lazada, Works great blasting away dried bird poop. 5 minutes and I'm done. https://www.lazada.co.th/products/2-stdb-i4079374843-s19077142458.html? I tried netting but hated how it interfered with my view. Old CD disks, aluminum foil on coat hangers, plastic cat...nothing worked for long.

There are also several Van/Bus/taxi stations on S. Pattaya Rd near the temple, same side. I often see see a small bus stopped at the stand nearest the temple, but I don't know if it has a regular schedule. There is also the option of taking the bus from Jomtien (Foodmart on Trapaya Rd) which goes to Suvarnabhumi Airport. Easy there to get the Airport Rail Link into the city, exit at Makkasan and take nearby MRT to Silom.

Both the British and US Embassy have detailed instructions and FAQs on their websites. Not that hard really. A friend was hit by a car in Pattaya and later died from his injuries. Hospitals can make the issuing of the Death Certificate difficult by demanding full payment before issuing it while insurance companies demand the Death Certificate before they will pay a penny. There is actually a great deal of paperwork involved in the custody of and the handling the body, and ultimately the cremation of the remains. My friends family elected to use a service that specializes in such arrangements. They took care of all the paperwork, arranged the custody and transfer of the body and also arranged the temple funeral with both Buddhist monks and a Christian Priest in attendance. All in, it was about B45,000 which under the circumstances was money well spent.

I live on Jomtien beach Rd. There are eight Family Marts on Beach Rd. within 1km of my building, 2 within 100 meters. Makes it impossible to direct guests by saying: "Look for the Family Mart." 7-11 has been aggressively building much larger stores around Jomtien & Pattaya. Going to be a LOT of vacant storefronts.