skatewash

Of those three routes the Kamala/Surin one would be most affected with higher traffic, followed by the one going between Patong and Chalong (through Kata), and least of all the one going between Patong and Rawai. Again, no detouring, just higher traffic levels and therefore potentially taking a little more time to get around.

Yes. The routes you mention (1-3) are all accessible from Patong without any detouring required at all. However, bear in mind that the Patong-Kathu road (the main road into Patong carrying about 80% of all traffic into and out of Patong) will almost certainly be closed or restricted, meaning that the routes you mention will all have correspondingly more traffic that would otherwise be using that closed/restricted route. Also, note that the Kata-Chalong road has construction on it (restricted to one lane in the Chalong to Kata direction) due to a road slip that occurred more than a year ago. That one, a smaller landslide than the recent one in Patong, has been under reconstruction for well over a year. Traffic between Kata and Chalong has been light, but that will probably increase due to detours from the closed Patong-Kathu road. So, basically, other than experiencing higher traffic (and therefore perhaps delays) on the routes you mention you should be otherwise unaffected by the current situation.

It's true that some Land Transport Offices will only accept Certificates of Residence as proof of address. Phuket was like that up until a few years ago. Now they accept yellow house registration (tabian bahn) books as well.

More or less the same requirements at my local office in Phuket. My office was pretty lenient in terms of translations. I was not required to get my passport translated into Thai (it was in English). They also used documentation that was used to register my ownership of the condo at the Land Office (which included things like my name and parent's names in Thai). So, in my case, the translation issues were relatively relaxed. I was surprised at how formal the interviews of my two witnesses were, felt like a legal proceeding in court. ????

My experience is that I receive by mail a property tax bill from my local tessaban office (I believe in other areas it may come from the amphoe office). Not surprisingly it is only in Thai, but Google Lens does a decent job of translating. I've been paying this tax for three years. I take my property tax bill and yellow tabian bahn to my local tessaban office (you may need to visit your amphoe office in your location). There is a property tax room in the tessiban building in my case. I go to that room and present my documents, am told what tax is due (also reflected on the documentation), and I pay that amount for which I receive a receipt. The property tax started out very small as a large portion of it was waived (I believe in recognition of covid). It was under 100 baht. I am now paying the full amount, but it is still well under 1,000 baht. I believe there is a nationwide framework for allowable property tax rates, but each locality is able to decide what the tax rates are for their locality so long as it is permitted under the national framework, that is, doesn't exceed the allowable national property tax rates. There is a penalty for late payment but is a very small fee based on the amount due. My experience getting my yellow tabian bahn: I obtained mine from my local tessaban office (but I understand that in most areas one would have to go to their local amphoe office). I was handed a printed booklet of requirements. One of the requirements was having the blue tabian bahn for the property, which I had. I did not have a lot of issues with translation because many things had been done previously by my developer on my behalf when I registered the ownership of my condo at the Land Office. I did not have to get anything translated (I understand this is usually not the case) but was able to re-use the information from my Land Office documentation. Some of what they were interested in is translation of your full name into Thai. This had been done by my developer when the original Sales & Purchase agreement was written. They also needed the names of my parents translated into Thai. I was able to do this myself (using Google search) as there were standard Thai translations for my parent's first names. Therefore I had no translation issues at my particular tessaban. I did have to obtain a Residence Certificate from immigration (a bit ironic since I was getting a yellow tabian bahn to be able to skip needing to get Residence Certificates ???? ). The most onerous requirements was the production of two Thai witnesses who knew me (and they needed to present their Thai National ID cards and blue tabian bahn books). They had to appear for a formal interview at the Tessaban. A written transcript was produced of the questions and answers which the witnesses had to sign. Questions included how long the witnesses had known me. How they knew where I lived. My witnesses were people who worked for the developer in the condominium office. It took several hours for them to appear as witnesses on my behalf. I was expecting it to be quicker, but they didn't complain (at least to me). There was no cost to getting the yellow tabian bahn, but I did give my witnesses small gifts in recompense for their time in appearing for me at the tessaban interview. The process of getting a yellow tabian bahn differs (wildly) depending on your locality. In some it is relatively easy (as it was in my case), and in some it is seemingly impossible. You will only find out if you ask your local tessaban/amphoe office.

Judging from the OP you purchased a freehold condominium unit. When you registered your ownership of the condo unit at the Land Office you should have been given a blue house registration book (tabian bahn). This blue tabian bahn should list the address but will not have your name entered into it as you are not a Thai citizen. Your name indicating you reside at your condo can only be entered into a yellow house registration book (tabian bahn for non-Thais). To obtain your yellow tabian bahn your amphoe is requiring you to present your blue tabian bahn. This is not a Catch-22 situation. You should have received a blue tabian bahn when you registered your condo unit with the Land Office. You need to show that blue tabian bahn (and any other requirements your amphoe may have) when you apply for your yellow tabian bahn. If you haven't received your blue tabian bahn you should first talk with your condo juristic person and then you may need to go to the Land Office and have it issued there. I have had a yellow tabian bahn for years. Even though I live in my condo unit (and that is the only place I live) I decided not to pursue the property tax exemption. For me the property tax was a very small amount of money. As a practical matter it did not seem worth my time to pursue the exemption. The yellow book has been useful when dealing with the Land Transport Office (in lieu of a Residence Certificate from immigration) and when opening bank accounts it demonstrates place of residence, and is a requirement for getting a pink ID card. So it has been a convenience, but not a necessity. If you are finding the process of getting a yellow tabian bahn onerous you might want to consider if it's worth the effort.

Getting an Australian issued IDP can be done online with delivery by mail to Thailand. The "International Driver's Licenses" are not backed by any convention or treaty as apposed to an International Driving Permit, which is. No one has to accept your "International Driver's Licence," they carry no authority. While signatories to the various IDP conventions (1968, 1949). of which Thailand is one, are obligated to accept actual IDPs. Drivers must obtain their IDP from the organization authorized by their home country. https://www.aaa.asn.au/international-motoring/international-driving-permits/

Two things that make the flash flooding in Phuket not as bad as it could be: The same areas (low-lying, poor drainage) are affected over and over again. If it's raining hard you know which areas are likely to flood. The waters do drain fairly quickly (usually). It's unusual for an area to still be flooded the next day after a flash flood. It's still bad if one has to travel during the flash flood, many people who don't live here don't know the flood prone areas, and sometimes there's no good alternative (the Airport-Phuket Town Road in Thalang, for example).

The first video in the OP is indeed Patong, but the second video is taken in Phuket Town at the intersection of Phuket and Phang Nga Roads.

Regarding #2, if you mean you cannot get a Thai license and skip the practical driving and written tests without an IDP, I would agree with that in general. There may be some Land Transport Offices that will let an applicant skip the practical driving and written tests without an IDP, but many require it. However, it is still possible for an applicant to apply for a Thai driving license without having any existing driving license by simply passing all the tests: practical driving, written, and the physical tests (reaction time, light color recognition, etc.). The advantage of having the IDP when applying for a Thai driving license at the LTO is that they will waive the requirements for the practical driving and written driving tests.

It is quite easy to determine whether the bearer is authorized in his home country to drive the vehicle he is driving in Thailand by using an IDP and looking at which vehicle classes are stamped. If the A vehicle class is stamped then the bearer can drive a motorcycle, if the B vehicle class is stamped then the bearer can drive a car. One can tell which vehicle class is stamped without understanding any language that appears in the IDP. For example, this driver is authorized to drive a car but not a motorcycle because vehicle class B is stamped but A is not. This determination could be made without understanding a word of either English or Chinese. By consulting the IDP it can be determined whether the bearer is authorized to drive a motorcycle or a car without deciphering the home country license, without knowing how a particular country's or state's driver's licenses decide to show which vehicle classes are authorized, or understanding any particular language. The automotive organization in each country which is authorized to issue the IDP in each country does know how to translate their country's authorizations to the standardized IDP vehicle classes. That is why a particular nationality can only obtain their IDP from the organization authorized for their particular home country.

The format of the IDP is standard, which is the purpose of having the IDP in the first place. Here are the license categories (which is the most useful part to police officers) in the standardized format specified by the 1968 convention: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Driving_Permit#1968_convention_(as_amended_in_2011) The police officer doesn't need to be trained on every country's license format, only the two convention formats that are in effect in Thailand 1968 and 1949 which are consistent in vehicle classification. They only need to understand that if A is stamped then the bearer is allowed to drive motorcycles, if B is stamped then the bearer is allowed to drive cars. No English is needed to look for these two stamps.

Interesting document, "Self-Drive Tourism in ASEAN Countries" (quotation from page 73 of the Thailand section of https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JzzZ3hKq9T1zPC1DEywP-6sphpbA1vwC/view):

Use the same passport to leave a country you used to enter the country. Always use the passport for the country you are entering if you have such a passport. In other words, in the UK you should only use your UK passport and in Australia only your Australian passport. In third countries it's up to you which one you prefer to use, pick one and use it to enter and to leave that country.

I believe all the hurdles to getting a Non-O visa in-country are overcome if and when they accept your application. The wait for final approval is because while the local office has approved your extension it gets forwarded to a higher level office and the wait is for approval on their end. I have to believe that final approval is not granted only in cases in which the local office has made a serious mistake. That must be extremely rare and would reflect poorly on your local office. I think you have nothing to worry about. The rejection rate of applications at the higher level office must be very small indeed.

Thirty days before your current permission to stay (or forty-five days before at some offices) you would be able to apply for another extension of stay. When approved you would receive additional permission to stay equal to the expiration of your mandatory health insurance or one year, whichever date comes first. Merely, renewing your health insurance would not cause your existing permission of stay to increase, but would have to be done in conjunction with a new application for an extension of stay.

When you enter Thailand on a valid Non-OA visa you receive permission to stay equal to the expiration of your mandatory health insurance or one year, whichever date comes first. It seems you were stamped in according to this rule.

Ask for a price quote at Medisafe online pharmacy in Bangkok. Can be shipped by EMS to where you are located. Even if you don't go with Medisafe, the price quote can be helpful. Mention if you will accept generic equivalents for the lowest price. Agree, with earlier comment that it can be helpful to mention the generic name in some pharmacies although all pharmacists should really be able to lookup the generic name for anything you ask for. https://www.facebook.com/Medisafe.Pharmacy.Rama4

Agree. As a practical matter there is no difference in this case. There is a minor technical difference in the English language explained here, but that doesn't really apply to the situation in Thailand. Ironically, Bangkok Bank calls what they offer a bank draft but in the English language it would most likely be called a cashier's check. https://bizfluent.com/info-8528031-escrow-account-payout.html

For a 30-day short term extension of a Tourist Visa or a Visa Exempt Entry, yes it is possible. It is not possible for any long term extension such as retirement or marriage. Basically, the satellite immigration offices were set up to service short-term foreigners (tourists). With the exception of 90-Day Reports and getting a Certificate of Residence, most things needed by long-term foreigners (expats) must be done at the main Phuket Immigration Office in Phuket Town.

He's apparently never been stopped at a checkpoint by police. That's certainly possible depending on where you live or travel in Thailand. Some places like Phuket for instance police check points are fairly common. He is not well-informed on this issue and doesn't appear to comprehend the purpose of the IDP.

Which is why you get an IDP issued in Australia where they do know what that means. Thai cop just has to check the IDP and the vehicle you are driving. If you have A on motorcycle, OK. If you have B in a car, OK. Doesn't need to understand what an Australian HR is. I haven't a clue what that is. If it entitles you to drive a motorcycle A will be stamped in your IDP, if it entitles you to drive a car B will be stamped in your IDP. Why in the world should a Thai cop know what an HR license is? That's the purpose of the IDP. Get stopped and show an IDP and home driver's license --> No problem. Takes 45 seconds on average, Get stopped and show just a home driver's license --> good enough sometimes if the officer wants to not insist on the IDP. Bet it takes more than 45 seconds if he does.

The purpose of the IDP is to make it crystal clear to the police officer that the bearer is qualified to drive a certain kind of vehicle (for example, motorcycle or car). It does this in a very easy to understand format. If class A is stamped in the IDP then bearer is ok for motorcycles, if B is stamped then bearer is ok for cars. This is much better than having the police officer decipher a driver's license which is likely not in his native language and in one of hundreds of different formats issued by countries/states around the world. It's to make the cop's job of accurately determining whether you are driving legally or not easier.

The purpose of the IDP is to put in a common format the precise vehicles the bearer is permitted by his home country to drive. A foreign police officer need only check the IDP page that shows what they are permitted to drive without deciphering the hundreds upon hundreds (US has at least 50 different ones) driver's licenses in the world to see what specific vehicles it covers. For example, a Thai cop stops you on a motorcycle. You hand him your driver's license and IDP. He consults the IDP, if A class is checked it means you have permission to drive a motorcycle in your home country. He doesn't have to decipher your home driver's license, just look for the A class endorsement in your IDP. This whole purpose is to make that accurate determination easier for the cop.

Almost all my meds are generics produced in Thailand. In my case I am able to verify their effectiveness through things like taking my blood pressure at home and taking blood tests at labs. I don't know how easy it is to test for osteoporosis but maybe there is a test that will give you peace of mind. The primary reason original drugs are so expensive is to compensate the pharmaceutical companies for the astronomical costs of creating new drugs. Generics don't have those costs and that accounts for the major difference in cost. Just my opinion, just what I do in my own situation.