austen

Speaking of which...(oh where this thread could go...)

Is the "pink lady" still around? The one who was always wandering up and down the superhighway in the pink dress? She was sort of a legend--everyone seemed to have some story about what she was up to...

the house may have gas central heating

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That was a joke, right?

Have to agree with the above, but also a lot of points made by the OP as well. I'm also a California WOWer, not lured in by a sales pitch, but by the latest promotion of the hour which got me a 5-year membership for 26,000B...figured that was too good to refuse considering the equipment and facilities really are top-notch. Couldn't tell you how I got that deal--someone knew someone who knew someone...which is indeed the thing with California--it's like buying an airline ticket--you can bet no two people paid the same price! But part of that intense marketing does mean competitive pricing, especially as more and more flash fitness centers edge into the market. So like pedro says, take from it what you want and somehow try to ignore the giggly girls walking at 0.5 kph on the treadmill while applying lipstick. It all gets to me as well sometimes, but I know there are other more serious fitness centers out there if I wanted to seek them out (though like you, and like most people, location usually wins out). My biggest complaint about California these days is the insane overcrowding--at some point, I really think they need to set a cap on their membership.

Hi there--just sent you a PM regarding an ad I saw today in BK Magazine for a maid agency (wasn't sure if posting it would be against the rules or not). Have a look, and hopefully this will give you something to start with anyway. Good luck!

I just tried to search for Prakan Sangkhom as mentioned by Charles and Austen. Couldn't find anything to tell me about eligibility, costs and benefits. Any pointers?

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Prakan Sangkhom is the Thai government's health scheme ("social insurance") for all (legal) workers in the Kingdom (even expats). For a small monthly salary deduction (plus some contribution by the employer), it gives you essentially full coverage at your choice of hospital from their approved list, which includes government and some private hospitals (like Paolo). Because of this, I've never had to make the choice for private coverage, but if I did, I'd probably go for one of the lower BUPA plans, which seemed like the best value for those who don't make too many trips to the hospital.

I've never actually had a draft made out to myself, but one would assume that would be no different than asking for a cash exchange, so should be no problem. However, why not cut out the extra step and just have the check made out to your creditor and mail it directly to them? But either way should be fine.

These days, I just walk to the desk and the exchange guy knows exactly what I want (ask for an "international bank draft"), so it's quick & speedy--but no relationship is necessary as sending small amounts (I think anything below US$10,000 but not sure about that) of money out isn't an issue...they'll give you a form in which you have to state the reason, in which case you just indicate that you're paying a bill. They usually make a photocopy of my bill as well just for further recordkeeping, but if you don't have an actual paper copy of the bill, should still be fine. Also note that some smaller branches may need to send out to a main branch for the check, which might mean you have to come back the next day to pick it up.

Good luck! My original stay was for 1 year post-graduation--4 years later, I'm still here...funny how that happens...

You definitely won't be able to pay any bills internationally through the online banking system of Thai banks (however, as in the US, this is a great way to pay your domestic bills). Your creditors will (generally) require that any online direct debiting be done from a US account, so if you're not maintaining any funds in an American acct, you'll have to pursue some of these other options. See also the thread below Re: International Money Orders for other suggestions along a similar vein. For me, I find it easiest to just have a bank do a draft (check) in US$ every month for my remaining monthly payment back home. Most bank exchange counters will do this for you at the usual rate of exchange, with an added surcharge of 100-200B per item. You can then just drop this in the mail to your creditor (give it 2 weeks to get there) and you're done. Not as fast as electronic methods, but much cheaper and easier, in my mind anyway.

Getting a Thai-issued credit card would also be a good idea, if you're really here for the long haul...but you probably won't be eligible for most until you've had a work permit for at least a year--at the LEAST (and probably never from Citibank, at least in my experience!). Your best bet to try is AmEX and other international banks (HSBC, Standard Chartered, Citibank, etc) as Thai banks seem to be more selective (i.e. they want to be sure you're in for the long long long haul, for good reason).

Hope this keeps you from stealing bread and being sent to a Parisian jail there VALJEAN...

HIV is man made!

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Really...could you please tell me who invented it? Was it the same guy who invented cancer? Because if it was, we should really take him out back and beat the sh*t out of him...

The old "Russian Roulette" oft-cliched example can certainly apply here:

Stick a bullet in a 10-chamber gun and let it roll--fire it at your head.

Or...

Do the same with 10 guns, fire them at your head one after the other.

Either way, the bullet is inevitable...though I'd say chances are you'll get it much sooner in the 10-gun example.

Though-provoking post, btw...

hmmmph so the visa logo basically means nothing? that was why i opened the bangkok bank account

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The Visa logo does mean that you can use the card anywhere Visa is accepted in the world (in theory) rather than the older cards which only worked in Visa Electron-enabled machines. I was surprised that my Be 1st card worked on a recent trip to Macau (thankfully, since the restaurant tab was higher than expected and they didn't take AmEx!!) Still don't work online though, or anywhere else which just involves giving a card number (i.e. I couldn't use mine to pay a bill back in the States over the phone)...so in the meantime, I just drop a check in the mail. As long as you've got 2 weeks for mailing time, it's really the most hassle-free (and cost effective) way to go.

The above options are all feasible, though the most costly (Western Union & bank transfers, that is)...I pay my monthly student loan bills back to the States by going to any bank and asking for them to do a bank draft in USD for the amount I need...they'll do this in most major currencies, and the fee is only about 100B per item. You get a check drawn on a US bank (in this case) which is easily deposited/cashed by the payee just as though you wrote it from a checking acct in your home country. Note that international bank transfers will often cost on the receiving end as well, so if you do go this route, you should check that out.

I think many countries in the world could learn a few things from Thailand and their tolerance towards many things 

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Very true!

..and perhaps a good note on which to end this thread which was started with questionable intention and will most certainly lead nowhere... (unless we'd like to discuss the merits of the above statement which would actually be relevant)

Oh...gay men and women are so hard done by in the UK aren't they..... why don't you go to Pakistan and walk hand in hand with your gay partner and see what happens, then you will be thankful of where you live... 

Homosexuality is illegal in Pakistan and punishable by civil law with long prison terms (two years to life). Islamic Sharia laws were reintroduced in 1990 allowing for floggings with up to 100 lashes or death by stoning to take place. Which laws and punishments that are applied vary from district to district. The punishment of flogging has been abolished, except when imposed as a mandatory punishment under Islamic provisions of the penal code (including homosexuality). There are reports of homosexuals being raped by police while in custody

totster 

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Yes, and I believe back home in the US, they tie you to a fencepost in the middle of Montana after beating the shit out of you and leave you to die in the snow...among other things...

But hey, by all means, try it out for a day in England where I'm sure these kinds of things never happen.

listening to the Pet Shop Boys on my walkman.

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I'll have you know, no self-respecting gay man would ever still be using a walkman...it's iPod, thank you very much, preferably in a colour that complements my outfit...

As for itinerary, I'd start with heading off to the corner office where you'll spend the day making the big bucks to pay for those expensive cafes, expensive consumer electronics, expensive clothing, expensive toiletries, expensive boutique hotels, and generally taking back the world that scorns you bit by bit...

Doesn't the visa usually come before the WP?

Just saw some American-style breakfast sausage (i.e. the spicy ground pork kind not a hot dog or any other kind of link sausage) at Villa the other day in the freezer section near the meats (which means it could be 80 years old, but still)...wasn't Jimmy Dean, was a locally-produced brand (maybe bourbon street, actually), but looked like the real thing. Was never really a big breakfast person so I haven't tried it, but it looked okay to me...give it a try!

Biscuits would be the hard part, I'd imagine...unless you're making them from scratch, in which case I want your address!! I wasn't a big breakfast person, that is, except when my grandmother would whip out biscuits & gravy! Hmmm...might have to try those sausages out after all...good luck!

As long as I'm working here, I'm all about the good ole Pragan Sang Kom...but you must understand that as an American, any form of social health care system is a novelty. No way I actually use the 750B per month that gets taken out of my check for it, but since it's money I never see, I just tell myself it's free...I should mention though that I haven't hit 30 yet, so health insurance isn't yet high on my list of priorities (I'll be hit by a bus tomorrow for sure)...good advice from Steven though...should probably listen up and start saving something for that rainy day (or bus)...

If your teeth are even the slightest bit sensitive, it's none too pleasant! Really cold water or hot coffee give your teeth that little "zing"? Imagine having a LASER beamed onto them for about 30 seconds each...nothing too bad, and I think a lot of it was mental (like most pain I guess, I was probably telling myself it was worse than it really was). I'd squirm and the dentist would keep telling me "I can stop, but they won't be white!" so I trudged on...like the above post says, the next day or two will leave your teeth super-sensitive to temperatures, but it's really nothing too bad at all. I wasn't too impressed with the results though...my teeth were basically okay to begin with and I guess I expected them to be glow-in-the-dark white afterward...to be honest, couldn't tell a thing (nor could anyone else). They do tell you they get whiter the next day, which is indeed true...mine got a bit better...but wasn't worth my 13,000B.

Just my experience...pain and results will of course vary from person to person! Give it a go!

This would be a serious violation of their GNC franchise agreement and, I would suspect also, a violation of Thai law.

You should report them to the proper authorities.

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I'm sure the homemade label in question is just the Thai language translation which is usually (indeed, much to the inconvenience of those of us who'd prefer the English) covering the original. Annoying yes, but perfectly legal and indeed necessary when foreign products are sold abroad.

Don't totally disregard teaching--it can lead to other things. In my experience, I taught for 4 years (not that you would have to do it for this long--I just happened to really enjoy it), made contacts, got to know people and moved into other jobs, including a stint in a Thai government office (through an NGO). I'm now in a multinational advertising agency--none of this would have been possible if I hadn't been looking from within Thailand as interviews, and other face-to-face meetings are your best way in. Keep an eye out in the classifieds of the BKK Post & Nation...opportuntities for foreigners do often turn up there, dependent on your experience, of course (if you've got a Master's degree, you're a shoo-in for the tons of NGO and non-profit jobs around--and there are indeed other opportunities for those without). Persistence and making contact is key--all of which is best done from here. If you can get a job from the West that will send you here, all the better--but I figure you'd probably have to devote a few years to them in the home country before they'd ship you out to represent them overseas.

Just my spin on things...

Siamvisa?

Back when I taught in CM, the course at the university that every Thai teacher in the English department dreaded being assigned to teach was "English for Nursing Students"...in fact, it was always tossed around as a threat, as in "If you xyz they'll make you teach the NURSING STUDENTS..." =) Never had the opportunity myself, but there must be something behind all those looks of horror I used to see when class assignments were handed out!

However, in practice, I've found most nurses here to be quite up to speed, at least on the basic nurse/patient interactions..no complaints at all.

Tipco sells cartons of Aloe Vera/White Grape juice in their Squeeze product line (usually found near the milk)...don't know the percentage aloe included though, but you can find this just about anywhere.

Not an endorsement as I've never tried it, and I would doubt that this is the kind of health food quality we're talking about, but just passing it along...maybe better than nothing (and Tipco does some of the best juice I've had anywhere, IMHO).

And just to add another plug for accupuncture, I was also diagnosed with disc herniation-induced sciatica a while back and really do stress the benefits of accupuncture. It's something you have to commit to, but you can work up to having treatments fairly intermittently, depending on your pain (yours, admittedly, sounds much greater than mine).

McCormick Hospital was never my favorite by any means in CM, but they have a fantastic accupuncture therapist there that I can't recommend highly enough--cost is very affordable (actually, mine was covered under Thai Social Security as it was a referral from a GP) and she's excellent at explaining things in terms of Western science (she's actually an anesthesiologist at McCormick as well, which I'd say is a plus)...lots of Westerners go there and Thais alike, for minor aches and pains to a few elderly regulars who claim accupuncture has gotten them out of their wheelchairs (their claim, not mine). Anyway, just a recommendation from personal experience. Have to say that after moving to BKK, I miss having her there!

Best of luck...

Should be no problem at all--got a non-B in HK myself in January with no problems (and without the long lines you face in the more beaten-path border embassies). Time frame is the same as most places--hand in the visa before noon on one day, pick up after noon the next. Assuming you've got your paperwork in order, I wouldn't anticipate any delays, so book a flight out that evening and you should have no problem at all.

As you're coming the first day back after a long holiday though, you might run into a bit more of a crowd than HK would usually get, but even so, I can't imagine it would be that bad as there just aren't that many people who go to HK for visas.

Good luck!