1BADDAT

11 hours ago, Dipterocarp said:

Should be banned.

 

I notice most of the people driving without lights at night have dark tint. It obscures visibility so much they can't tell their 

headlights are on or off. Doubt they can see pedestrians either. And as a frequent one of those, unable to make eye contact. There

are situations when crossing such vehicles, I can't tell if they see me, or sometimes if the vehicle is even running and is just parked.

 

Dealer offered me tint, don't want it Factory glazing on HR-V good enough.  AC strong enough for a small home, run 5 minutes, Icebox.

 

 If their visibility is so bad, wouldn't they think to check to see if their lights are on?  Or are you suggesting they turn the lights on and off and they cant tell any difference so they leave them off?  More likely the operator of the vehicle is drunk.  Almost every car pulled over at night without the lights on is driven by a drunk driver.

Why would you care if they made eye contact with you?  Making eye contact would not make their actions any more predictable. 

How many of these  topics need to be posted?  Every week there is a new version of someone getting scammed for 100 baht or something similar. 

On 3/15/2017 at 1:45 PM, IsaanUSA said:

 

If you've never been to Thailand, you should DEFINITELY visit before committing to a move.  It seems crazy to randomly move to any country in the world without having ever visited.

 

Is it really that cheap?  It can be...as long as you're outside Bangkok.  Thailand can be done as cheap or as expensive as you want or don't want.  You need to have good self control, seriously.

 

Keep in mind that typically when people say SE Asia is cheap, they are referring to living like a local.  No imported beers, no imported foods, living with family, etc.

 

Also, as a 20-something, it's pretty difficult to actually live in Thailand.  You can read up on the Elite card though, http://www.thai-elite.com/

It's the easiest way for a young person to live in Thailand, visa-wise.

Agree with everything you said except for the elite visa info.  It is factually correct but anyone in their 20's asking if Thailand is cheap and is willing to work as a bartender probably is not the type of person who would purchase an elite visa.

4 hours ago, henryhughes96 said:

My other idea was to come over for 1 month just to explore the area and see what it has to offer.

This would seems like the best option. 

On 3/10/2017 at 6:46 PM, Ulysses G. said:

I miss Thailand too. I am living in Southern California and the only thing that is better here is the weather. Even on the hottest days, I am comfortable and I don't mind the mild winters either.

I guess if I was rich, the food would be better, but eating out is mostly too expensive. I never cooked for myself in LOS and I ate better than in the USA for a lot less money. However, if you like cooking for yourself, the USA is cheaper for Western food - but restaurants no way!

I definitely prefer the weather here in Cali.  I do miss Thai food but enjoy the variety and cheap prices of food here.  I actually started cooking a lot more in Thailand because I missed the food from here.  It was actually a good thing for me because now I eat a lot less junk here.

That being said, there are a lot of other things that you simply cant recreate here.  I find my life back here so boring.  I used to go on vacation and travel in Thailand and SEA all the time.  Now that I am back home I rarely go anywhere or go out much.  Thailand has so much to offer in the travel department.

5 hours ago, JAFO said:

Same sentiments here.  I am in the states with wife for some business and R&R.  I miss being home in Thailand versus here in California.  I am way to disconnected now.  Plus I am sick of the relentless Trump talk. People are obsessed. I also caught up some US TV. Lord every commercial is some pharmaceutical company pushing a new drug  and the side effects are worse then the ailment it's supposed to fix.  It's crazy.

 

8 days and counting.  My wife can't wait to go.......

+1

But I am not moving back to Thailand anytime soon and now I am just waiting for the Fiance visa to get approved.

@JN45

I am here at my desk at work in USA and actually work for Racor and used to work at the Racor plant not to far from where your truck was made.  Before that I used to work for a diesel engine manufacturer that supplies to Ford in the states as well. 

Modern diesel engines are highly sensitive to both water and dirt.  Most systems have a sensor to tell you when the water needs to be drained and if the filter is too clogged it will indicate low fuel pressure.  I do not know the exact configuration of the 3.2 Ranger engine but it should be very similar or will tell you the change interval for each.  If you have followed the proper maintenance and used approved OEM filters, you should have no issues.  Therefore the blame should be on Ford or ultimately the filter manufacturer. 

It sounds to me that your filter had a bypass which would indicate a faulty filter.  It could have loaded with enough dirt that the pressure caused it to rupture.  It could have also had a bypass from the day it was manufactured for whatever reason.  Ford would have to send the entire fuel filter module back to the manufacturer to verify this.  There is no way a technician at the dealer would be able to make that determination.

Having said that, if the filter did bypass it could easily damage the fuel pump and then damage the injectors.  If you are going to replace the injectors then replace all 4.  The other ones are probably just going to need replacing in the near future.

I used to fill an entire suitcase full of things like soup and other sealed package goods.  I never declared them and never was questioned in the 4 or 5 times I did this.  I don't know the official rules but I highly doubt you would be fined or get into any trouble.  If you are bringing in high end watches or liquor or cigarettes over the limit it might be a different story.

Its called Grab now and they have Grab Taxi, Grab Bike, and Grab Car.  You don't have to be a taxi driver to drive for them, much like Uber.

@villagefarang

I remember the first time I posted it was a topic like "what is a typical day in Thailand like".  I got some of the most juvenile and trollish comments right off the bat and was really turned off to this forum.  I didn't really participate much in forums anyway before TV.

You replied to my post with some info and a link to your blog.  It was nice to see that there was at least one normal person on this forum that was helpful.  Thanks for that.

Now I hardly ever post any thing since my 2.5 years in Thailand are up and I am back home in the US.  I had a job assignment there during that time and I really loved it.  I mostly posted while I was there because I had free time at work.  Now that I am at home I have more important things to do than argue about things on a forum.  I also don't think the political climate will help the situation on the forum so I just prefer to stay out of it for the most part as well.

I did this ride on a CBR500R from Pattaya to Koh Chang.  The island is super fun to ride on but it is super slick.  I easily got the back tire to slide or spin out with all of 47 hp.  I rode the  whole west side of the island one day.  There is not much on the East side but there is one Pier not that far from the Ferry pier worth checking out. 

I don't think most of the wine sold in Thailand is fruit wine, but almost all of the cheap wine is.  If you are going to buy something like this then you might as well buy it in a big box and pay a lot less than 299 per bottle.  The more sensible option is to buy decent wine or don't buy it at all in Thailand.

I just got a case (12) of wine in California (where i currently live) for 1,000 baht from my friend that works at a winery.  Hard to justify spending 1,000 baht per bottle for the same thing in Thailand.

I just moved back to the US last week after 2 and a half years in Thailand. I went shopping for asian sauces today. I found that the Thai oyster sauce I used in Thailand was cheaper at an Asian grocery here. Would have never guessed that. Most annoying thing that has changed in the last 2 years is they ask you so many questions at the cash register at supermarkets etc. They try to get you to donate your change (round up to the nearest dollar). I find this highly irritating already.

I am loving the roads and finally driving a real car with power and features again. Gasoline is so cheap here now.

Yesterday I bought 8 bottles of wine that in thailand would have cost me $20 each. I got that and a bottle of jack daniels, a bottle of captain morgans, a 1.75 liter of kettle one, 1,400 grams of USDA choice ribeye steaks, 2-24 packs of soda, 4 pork chops, BBQ sauce, and a big bottle of ketchup. All of that cost me $160 so I bought the wine and everything else was free.

Having said all that I still miss Thailand very much. I hope your transition is a good one as I am finding mine difficult at least at first.

They sure dont smile for official photographs like passports or ID cards or emplyoee badges......I told my ex that if she smiled for her passport I would give her 20k.....

Engineering manager

Staying single for a year. Best year ever!

Just as an aside, why not use the freaking Airport Rail Link? Why does anyone even use a taxi anymore from Suvarnabhumi airport when the ARL is much faster and more practical, not to mention cheaper and less likely to be in an accident? I thought most taxi drivers at Suvarnabhumi would go out of business once the ARL opened (especially for trips downtown), I guess I was wrong.

Seriously, if I was a tourist coming to Thailand I'd either catch the train or rent a car. No taxis for me. Way too stressful to start a vacation on.

The only young people I see in Pattaya that might be called ex-pat are Russians, Indians selling suits and Burmese / Cambodian construction workers.

All the other ex-pats are older

The extension to stay visa based on retirement has a criteria of being over 50, that might be a clue.

Yes work started a few weeks ago at least. It appears the they might be moving the drainage back to widen the road. I really hope they do that because otherwise it is going to be a traffic disaster.

Pulled over a couple of weeks ago, asked for my license (current 5 yr Thai), a smile and sent on my way.

Son pulled over, showed his Kentucky license was told he is required to have international license. Hmm, then Officer said he would just write the ticket for no helmet as the fine was lower (son had a helmet on). The

License was kept pending payment of fine at the station. Next day he is stopped again...what? No license, so

another ticket. Son showed he had already had a ticket from previous day...sorry, no license, no drive. What really sent my son over the edge was Thais without helmets not being stopped. What do you figure his report will be after returning to the States?

[...]

Edit; BTW the fare from Mapbrachan to Central was 395 Baht (and you can have up to 4 passengers in the car for that).

Are you trying to make it sound like it's cheap? This fare in Bangkok would be about 100 Baht and why should the taxi be entitled to 65% of the average Thai wage for one 30 minute trip? Sure you wouldn't pay $123 (65% of the average US daily wage of 189$) in the US for the same service?

But I'm not really complaining about the prices, I realize that's just the way it is. But why try to squeeze more out of it? These guys are already making a fortune.

While the OP clearly needs to take a chill pill, go with the flow, and enjoy the moment, yadda yadda yadda, I too have experienced Thais recklessly over-ordering food in a restaurant when I was paying, and I can empathize with him for feeling his hospitality is being abused.

Thai culture does seem to treat an abundance of food as a reflection of prosperity, hospitality, and well-being; a way to create a festive atmosphere and mark an occasion. Just look, for example, at the excesses of food brought to temple on holy days. My wife has a tendency to make excessive amounts of food as a way of showing love and taking care of her family. When neighbors give garden surpluses away it more often is a bag of 20-30 mangoes rather than 2-3 mangoes. That sort of largesse seems to be valued in Thai culture. So it could all be totally innocent.

On the other hand, some Thais may be so unaccustomed to someone else picking up the tab that when the opportunity does present itself, they go buck-wild and exploit the opportunity to the hilt.

I suppose it's also conceivable that people could be maliciously over-ordering and then scarcely taking a bite just to send the message they aren't interested in one's company. If that's the case, the only solution is to pick one's dining companions more carefully.

The only practical suggestions I have would be to discuss beforehand what will be ordered, perhaps channel the orders through one person in order to avoid a free-for-all when the waiter shows up, and consider ordering the food in stages instead of all at once, so people can better judge how much room they have left in their stomachs.

Happy dining to one and all.

Not a day goes by without the police having to deal with foreigners causing trouble in Thailand. The Thais certainly are effective at taking care of foreigners who get out of line. They unite in a heartbeat and are swift, brutal and effective.

I love this instant street justice here and how the police allow it. In a nanny state the rescuers are often charged and legally can be sued.

None of that nonsense in Thailand.

The cops often let victims get a few in at finger pointing press conferences and don't make a fuss. Love it.

Too bad you weren't in Hua Hin to receive some street justice from accidentally bumping into someone.

I use the 7-11 card which avoids these satang issues but inevitably I end up with them from other outlets. When I empty my pockets at night they go into a tub. After a year that tub is given to my maid as an extra bonus.

There are bad drivers all over the world but the Thais sure have a unique driving style I have never seen anywhere else. They seem to lack spatial awareness. I don't know if they have bad depth perception or what but they will go into oncoming traffic to avoid a parked car by 1-2 meters. They seem to be trained to drive race cars as they Clip every apex.

Really funny that the apologists think farangs who have been trained properly how to drive are somehow less able to drive safely here.