loofa

I just encountered the option of Logispost for the first time.  The cost is about the same as regular parcel post sea shipping and I'm wondering what it is, and how it's different.  

I'm curious about how all over Thailand I hear the terms "taxi mafia" and "tuk tuk mafia". I can see from recent articles how the drivers being arrested in Phuket do seem to fit the definitition of "mafia" (organized crime mostly dealing with protection rackeering and product trafficking), but is this really the case with drivers all over Thailand? I've had friendly taxi drivers call themselves taxi mafia laughingly while pulling a blatant illegal driving move (yes, even more blatent than most here), but from my nieve foreigner view of course the only ongoing crime I see them commit is overcharging - which if that's the reasoning for the term then we need to start calling much of the country mafia (as in, damn papaya seller mafia!).

Okay, thanks for any illumination. Oh, and I know rules are being more strictly adhered to here these days, so if mentioning mafias isn't allowed for any reason, then feel free to delete my post- I was just curious.

Hi there,

Our family is moving back to the U.S. in a few weeks, and we are bringing our adopted temple stray cat with us. He has his vaccinations and micro chip, so my question is just about the animal quarantine office in Chiang Mai. We are flying out of C.M., but we don't live there, so we are hoping to minimize how many days we have to stay there, with a cat in a hotel/guesthouse room. Do any of you by any chance know how many days it usually takes to get your paperwork from animal quarantine? Other threads I've found say 3 to 5 days, but they are old, and I'm wondering if people have recent experience with the timing. If we have a late night flight out on a wednesday, could we conceivably go to Animal Quarantine on Monday and be finished in time? Otherwise we have to go on Thursday or Friday and stay through the weekend, all the while suffering through having a cat in a hotel.

Also, if anyone happens to know of pet friendly guesthouses and hotels....

Huge thanks for input!

This is the e-mail I just sent my husband. We are moving home in a couple of months, which I am not sad about - I love both countries - but I am having those acute moments of feeling the little things.

"For some reason I clicked on this thaivisa forum and started reading this thread - guess I’m just really interested in rain
scrolling through the comments, watching a whole country talking about rain and drought, and oh, now it’s raining in this part of the country, oh lucky you, wish it was raining here, oh hey, we just had a 90 minute monsoon, oh all we got was thunder and lightening, no rain, but oh, now it is drizzling here…

for some reason I found tears in my eyes. I suddenly realized that as much as I think that the expat forums are confusingly full of a**holes, they are also full of people from all over the world, connecting on this one little thing, that we all are here in this weird country that is not our origin. This rain conversation just made me teary, because I will miss being a part of this."

P.S. in the northcountry, we had a lovely downpour last night that has left us with the coolest morning we've had in ages

Has anyone here flown Korean Air with a cat or dog that they are bringing in the cabin? I'm specifically trying to figure out how strict they are going to be about weighing the carrier (with pet inside). My cat plus the weight of the carrier is about 1 kilo over the limit. Normally carry on isn't weighed, but they seem strict about it when you look at the website. It's a 25 hour journey, so I'd really like to avoid putting him in cargo - that's just too long in cargo I think.

Thanks so much for any input.

(and yes, the carrier is about the lightest I can find, and no, I'm not going to put him on a diet - he is a healthy weight, so that would be cruel)

Okay, I have found the answer to my question - not here though, so I'll share in case anyone else goes looking for this. From Chiang Mai, there is an animal quarantine station near the zoo. You have to go there within 10 days of leaving the country, but don't cut it too close as I have read that they sometimes take your info. and then tell you to return in a few days for the certificate that you have to get from them in order to export and animal from the country. Bring all the paper work your country will need, vaccination records, vet health certificate, your travel itinerary, and your passport. It is unclear if you have to bring the animal or not - one person's account said they were told to bring their pet, but when they did the folks just looked at them funny. Oh, and bring extra copies of everything as they may keep some, and you'll need all those records when you arrive in your destnation country.

We are going to be moving back to the states in a handful of months, and wish to take our adopted cat with us. I've researched all the airline and country policies, and came across this on the Korean Air website "customs documents are given at the departure city with vaccination certification. Bring the customs documents to the check in counter and fill in declaration form"

Has anyone done this? I've never encountered a customs area upon exiting the country, and certainly nothing like that prior to check in. I'll be leaving from Chiang Mai.

Thanks so much for input.

Thanks for input everyone. Hadn't thought that Vietnam would be different than here - might follow up on that idea! I also really like the Doi Inthanon idea for a quick getaway that is more local. Not sure how high up there is loding, as I'm sure the lower parts are still smoggy. Also, just for the record, not everyone on this forum is male. The assumptions here made me laugh a bit.

Yes, beaches for sure, and good to hear confirmation that they are a go. I just wondered if we really have to go that far south? Talk is always about the burning in the north, but what is central Thailand like? This is only our second year of living here, so my apologies if there is some obvious thing I'm missing here. We may end up going to an island, I was just curious as to if that is the only choice.

I live up north, and it's that time of year again when you can't see the mountains through the smoke (and the mountains are really close to me). I'd like to head south for a little holiday for my lungs, but I'm wondering how far south I have to go. Would love to hear from people living further down the country who have better air so that I can get an idea of where things start to improve. Thanks in advance for any kind input

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Traditional Thai medicine is based on element theory, which is found in traditional medicine the world over. It's found in ancient Mayan medicine, ancient Greek medicine, ancient Indian medicine, ancient Chinese medicine, Tibetan, and Thai. Each system is somewhat differernt, but they are all based on the same concepts. When used by someone who has put serious study into learning the medicine, all of these systems can work quite well. They are complicated and detailed medical systems, just as western biomedicine is. Trying to understand western biomedicine in a forum post, if it was completely new to you, would be impossilbe. Same goes for the traditional medical systems, although I appreciate that you asked.

If you want to understand the specific area of Thai medicine that your question relates to, I suggest you get the book Thai Herbal Medicine, coming out in April http://www.amazon.com/Thai-Herbal-Medicine-Traditional-Recipes/dp/1844096270/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1392256132&sr=8-1&keywords=thai+herbal+medicine

There isn't a lot written about Thai medicine in English, and of that that has been written much is inaccruate, however there is a huge volumne of English language books about Ayurvedic medicine, which employs many of the same concepts. So if you want further reading you might look in that direction.

I'm here in Thailand researching traditional medicine, and can say that like ALL medcal systems, it has areas that it shines in, and areas where it doesn't. That perscrpition for what to avoid when you have the flu isn't a cure - those saying that there is no cure for the flu once it has lodged itself in the body, are correct - but it is sound advice for helping your body to stay strong while dealing with the flu. However, the advice about cold and sweet are blanket statements, which isn't how traditional Thai medicine really works. It's the kind of thing that people who are not doctors (traditional or otherwise) say. A true traditional medicine practitioner works with the individual. So how the flu is manifesting in YOUR body, will change the perscription. If you are suffering from fever for example, you will be given different advice than if you are suffering from upper respiratory mucous. Layman's medicine is quite different than working with a true traditional medicine doctor.

thanks, look forward to hearing back

Does anyone know of any Indian food cooking classes in Chiang Mai? Years ago there was that veg. place on Moon Muang Soi 9, but I haven't spotted anything since they left.

Hey all,

I've been doing lots of googling, trying to find information about shipping books from Thailand to the U.S., but not finding much. I'm interested in Thai postal system, if they have a "book rate" - I'm thinking not, but want to be sure. Also if anyone has advice on a better way such as partial shipping containers etc. I'm up north, and thinking I would have to ship from Chiang Mai if doing the container thing yes? Apologies, I know very little about this despite lots of time trying to educate myself online. I'm probably looking at about 5 or 6 medium to largish boxes.

Thanks so much for any guidance.

yay for this man! To all the naysayers out there, even if he only gets a low number of people to wear helmets, if just ONE person's life is saved by his efforts, then he has spent his time well. Think of the old story about the little boy tossing the dying starfish found on the beach, back into the water. He is told that what he is doing doesn't matter as most will die anyhow. The little boy replies that it matters to the few who live.

Hoping to wake up this thread. Has anyone found a source for Vibram's five finger shoes in Thailand, or another brand that makes barefoot style shoes?

It's easy to make your own almond milk, but one of the great things about Thailand is all the dairly milk alterntaives. You can get sesame milk, jobs tears milk (so good), corn milk, hazelnut milk, oat milk - go to Tops if you can, they have the best selection.

Pib, I just want to send you an extra thank you for your extra effort responses khup khun maak khaa

Thanks for the idea ichingguy, but wouldn't this just be the U.S. bank's exchange rate?

Thanks so much!

As for the question about how much you can bring into the states, it says here that you can bring any amount, but over $10,000 you have to declare and fill out a specific form.

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/195/kw/carrying%20cash%20in%20excess%20$10,000/related/1/suggested/1

Hey all,

we have been living and working in Thailand and are thinking about what we will do with money when we go back to the U.S. Is it best to carry cash baht back to the U.S. and exchange it there or is it better to do the exchanging in Thailand? Or is there something I'm not thinking of?

Many thanks for any kind input

I don't ignore people back home and I don't ignore people here. Where I'm from in the U.S. people are friendly, and kind for the most part, and I find the same here with locals and tourists. Expats well, there are exceptions, but they are often folks who didn't like where they were before, spend a lot of time critiquing where they are now, and just don't tend to shine the positive, so I wouldn't judge all farang by that bunch, it's a unique demographic.

Look for people who are here because they fell in love with a place and WENT there, as opposed to folks who disliked a place and LEFT. There is a big difference, and I think that with the former, you'll find eye contact and smiles.