dddave

His wife certainly does; she's a niece of Queen Sirikit.

Surakiart is my neighbor in Phra Khanong. His fairly modest, 4 level mansion is on Pridi14, directly under my 10th floor balcony on Pridi 16. When I first moved into my unit, almost 20 years ago, there was an open field next to his home and in that field were parked 30+ Mercedes-Benz limousines, mostly from the 60's 70's & 80's along with a couple of Rolls-Royces and various other cars, many from the Royal Family. (His wife is a niece of Queen Sirikit). Later, he built a warehouse sized shed on that lot which holds the collection, sadly now out of sight. I never could figure out such an obviously "Hi-So" couple living in the decidedly "Lo-So" neighborhood of Phra Khanong.

One of the best forums exclusively for FUJI X series cameras is on REDDIT. 16,000+ members. https://www.reddit.com/r/FujifilmX/

I have a Celeron Intel NUC with added SSD and 8gb ram. I run Windows 10 and use it for TV streaming and light internet browsing on my big screen TV using HDMI. Like Stocky, I control with a wireless mouse/ Keyboard combo (Logitec) It's pretty much the perfect set-up.

Note that "Visa Exempt" is currently 45 days. No way to know how long that will stay in place.

This looked really promising but it appears you need 1000 subs before you can live stream from a mobile device. I have 5. Great suggestion, though. Thanks

Thanks for mentioning the time limitation. I presume the service will be fairly short but delays could happen. Thanks

A friend recently died. A cremation service at a local Thai temple will be this Sunday. His brothers and sister in the US can not attend but they asked if I could live stream the service to them. I have WhatsAp, LINE and FB Messenger. While I have done direct video calls to other phones, I have never done it to multiple phones at the same time. The family is spread over 3 different states, some I-Phones, some Android. I don't know what messaging apps they have. I know 2 have LINE. Obviously, we would need to settle on a single app to use. Is it possible using LINE to send live video to multiple phones at the same time? How is that done? Is there another app that would make it simpler for everybody that both I-Phones & Android can download? Only 2 days to organize this with a 12 hour time differential.

I live at JBC also. Probably one of the better managed condos I've lived in. Not heavy handed but they keep the place in great condition and enforce sensible rules. Actually, more than 30 years old, built in the early 90's

I would never buy a Samsung AC unit again. I bought a 21K BTU inverter unit, purchased from major retailer. Problems were always referred to Samsung Service Center. Usually several hours of hold/call back to even get a CS agent. Usually one to two weeks for appointment, then normally 2 plus weeks for parts to arrive then another week for those to be installed. No part I needed was ever covered by "warranty" . Finally started using an independent repair shop, not great but better than Samsung. Probably B3000 to B5000 per year maintenance over the 6 years I owned it. Finally replaced it with a Mitsubishi consumer unit 3 years ago and so far, not a single repair.

Just like a lot of home improvement stores in the west, retailers in Thailand often use independent contractors to do installations and it's not unusual for their work to be shoddy: untrained installers, no supervision and very difficult to get problems resolved. They usually just send the same incompetent person back.

I don't want to sound like a nanny but the sad fact is that many people have died for the simple mistake of mixing ordinary household cleaners. A restaurant manager near my home town died from toxic fumes when he mixed 2 different floor cleaning products. There was only a small amount in each bottle so he decided to mix them. Fortunately, other workers were in a different part of the restaurant but he collapsed and died from the fumes. A lot of strong cleansers do not play well together. The best known is mixing household bleach with household ammonia. The result can be CHLORINE gas which is deadly and many have died as a result of this mixture. Drain cleaners can be deadly as well. Hardware stores sell bottles of sulfuric or hydrochloric acid to unblock drains. They also sell cans of DRAINO and other lye based products for the same task. Mix the two and deadly fumes can result. There have been instances in apartment buildings where a tenant on an upper floor puts a lye based cleaner in a common drain, then a tenant on a lower floor pours in acid. The two mix in the main drain and deadly gas results. People on lower floors, especially young children and elderly have died in this situation. In Thailand, they sell bottles of very strong floor and bathroom cleaning products. I would be very careful of ever mixing any of these because the ingredients are written in Thai and no way to know which chemicals you are putting together.

I have a B600 helmet purchased at Big-C. Feels tight and solid, has EU and Thai certifications. Comfortable and well vented. Haven't tested it against a curbstone yet. Be sure to try any helmet on before you buy. Snug fit is essential. I found that even with the same model, marked the same size, there were significant variations in the fit.

Baking soda on it's own usually works, liberally sprinkle it around the stinky areas. DO NOT mix it with vinegar as another poster suggested. Vinegar is acid, Baking soda is a base. Mix them and get a big, foamy mess

I know it's a hassle but if you live in the Pattaya area, having your account opened at the Bangkok Bank Jomtien branch will be to your advantage in the long run. These banks operate on very old systems and when it comes time to get bank documents, having home branch handy really helps. I live in Jomtien now but my account was opened in Bangkok which is a different province. That means I have to pay a surcharge with every deposit and every time I need a full account print out it takes a week because it has to go through Bangkok. Just go to Immigration about 3pm. The lines are short by then and things get done more quickly.

I usually have a clear view of Koh Larn from my Jomtien Beach balcony. Little bit hazy at 8am this morning, by 3pm totally obscured. This is the worst air I've seen in the past year.

Not to mention many flood bikes on the market. An acquaintance buys used bikes at auctions for rentals and he said that flood bikes are very common and difficult to spot. Electrical issues the biggest problem.

Reminds me of a situation that occurred in my home town. A man with a sizeable McMansion discovered his neighbor was seeking permission to build a 2nd story addition onto his garage. He went to the zoning hearing and vigorously opposed the addition, arguing it would give the neighbors a clear view of his swimming pool. "What pool?" Asked the zoning commissioner. Turned out, it had been built without a permit and was not built within local regulations, including being too close to the property boundary. The pool was eventually ordered to be removed. Opening his mouth, cost him dearly.

There have been multiple court cases of condo owners trying to block construction of a newer condo that will obstruct their view. They are rarely successful unless they can find some irregularity in the property deed or a violation local density regulations. Pretty tough to stop a person from building whatever they want on their property as long as it's within local codes.

Before you get your hair cut in any shop, watch for a bit and see if they change or even wipe down tools between customers. Many do not, especially among the B100-150 Soi Buakhao shops. There are some nasty things one can catch from uncleaned equipment, including lice.

What nation?

The sad truth is, most countries charge tourist more than locals. If you travel in the USA, even if a citizen, cross a state line and visit a state park, you will pay higher entrance and usage fees than locals will. Go to any public beach and locals will have parking stickers allowing them to park for far less. Go to almost any museum or public attraction in the US or Europe, locals pay less than outsiders. Even US National Parks charge Non-citizens higher fees.

Not mentioned in the local news at all but of much greater potential impact on Jomtien is that serious groundwork has begun on the Jomtien Monorail project slated to be finished and in operation in 5 years time. You can see a lot of land clearing, digging and rebar now set for pillars if you go to the area where the "Bungee Jump" park is, extending down the now closed Soi next to RIMHAD Condo on Jomtien 2nd Road, then across 2nd road to what will be a terminal on Beach Rd . between Soi's 9 & 10. https://futuresoutheastasia.com/pattaya-monorail/

If your "home branch", the bank where you opened your account is outside of Chonburi, then the letter can take a week or more . It takes some planning because there is a limit on how many days old the letter can be. I think 15 days but I may be wrong. Maybe somebody else can verify

Not as extensive a food selection as other night markets but the quality seems pretty good; more selections aimed at Thais rather than tourists. The fried chicken from the vendor in the 7/11 parking lot is consistently good. Lots of seating and a decent parking area. Prices are not as marked-up as Jomtien Night Market.