GoldenTriangle

We've ordered 6 times from Lazada. 5 of the products were wrong or defective. Talking to agents on their live chat is hopeless. Beyond very very basic questions they don't understand and have about 6 stock replies used in all situations. They claim you can return products to 711 to be sent to Lazada for refund. Both local 711 stores had no clue what I was talking about. Too bad. Great idea but lousy service and wrong or defective products have made Lazada pretty useless for us.

On 10/29/2017 at 8:28 PM, MaeJoMTB said:

Drop off at any 7-11, no charge.

Wish that was true. Local 711 had no clue about returns to Lazada. The kid just starred at the return form and his screen like a fool for a good ten minutes, not want to lose face etc etc. I finally took it back.

On 3/6/2018 at 6:23 PM, pistachios said:

I remember that story. The same armchair warriors were already boasting about single handedly beating a group of 5 fit men armed with knives. 

 

The fact is that there was 4 tourists, 2 men and 2 women. The men had already tried to defend themselves and the women, resulting in one guy incapacitated, bleeding to death due to his injuries. The other man, injured too, did the only sensible thing he could and managed to escape and get help thus saving the others from a probable death. The 5 savages would have likely finished their job, or let them bleed in the jungle. At the end 3 of the 4 tourists had to stay in the ICU for a while.

 Yeah, okay pops. You and your nice people French tourists can do it the hard way. Take your useless women to remote places while unarmed and clueless. Good plan. Even a couple cans of pepper spray would have tilted the odds. Telescoping steel batons cheap to buy here and very effective. It's amazing people leave their country and go on holiday and expect everyone to love them.

So what were the "male companions" of these French women doing, aside from running away to "raise the alarm"?

Well, it's February 2018/2561 and they distorted megaphone is still blasting away. Too bad I don't speak Gibberish or I'd translate. Sappy songs about farm boy warrior leaving his sweetie to go down south and fight the evil clods who want to steal Thailand. Usually it's at 6pm for half an hour but today music and stern announcements about drinking while driving having been going on all day in Pa Tan, CM. The megaphones are all over the neighborhood. Nobody notices. One is right above a barber shop where I went for a haircut. The barber and I were yelling at the top of our voices to converse. At least it drowns out the dog packs and roosters and low flying airliners for a while.

So why do we live here again? Oh right. It's cheap, hot, and cheap. Hey, I haven't seen the latest standings on the Farang Balcony Diving League. The fishwife's relations throw a "Diving Party". One... Two... THREE and Whoaaaaa! Wow, look at that form! 9 out of 10. He doesn't get perfect score cuz he hit an overhang on the way down. Ah yes, life in the sweet folds of the Old Lanna Empire...

I've lived in Thailand a long time and if you employ manners and respect, people are very pleasant and kind and will go out of their way. ie: I got a flat in the middle of nowhere on my motorcycle and half a mile or so down the road I found some Thai men drinking in a roadside shack with fairy lights. They examined the bike, talked about it, argued, we drank a few drinks and they decided to all take me home with my bike in the back of their pickup truck. I tried to offer money but was refused, took a last swing of their bottle and off they went back to where that was out there in the night time countryside.

It's a way that works anywhere in the world. People are easily angered by an "attitude" and easily relax when one smiles and speaks to them politely and with respect. In fact, I too hate people giving me an "attitude", something tourists seem to do without realizing. Somewhere in their heads they have the idea that they've paid for this trip and "deserve" a certain level of service and are easily angered and critical.

All that does is make others dislike you and not want to serve you at all. I see it with Chinese tourists in Thailand, the latest mob to "discover" the place. They're the latest "Ugly American" tourist, nouveau riche and finally get to lord it over someone. They try to haggle everything, including food prices in restaurants. Thais refuse to haggle from what I've seen and end up throwing the Chinese out. Hence, the Chinese now have a bad rep in Thailand. Few scooter rentals places will serve them anymore after their infamous crashing antics, or getting hit by cars as they wander into the road for a selfie, somehow believing the world will stop for them.

They'll learn in time as they get out in the world, much as any other economically lifted culture has.

On 11/23/2015 at 12:39 PM, simple1 said:

Where do you buy these magical ear plugs that cut out loud noise, I find them fairly useless.

Silicone ear plugs. Or "Ear Putty" as it says on the light blue box. Big drug stores have them, main Tescos often. Shape them into a golf tee shape and insert into ear canal then press tightly and they work. Not absolutely perfect but pretty close.

22 minutes ago, Andaman Al said:

 Not as naive as you it appears:

 

 Are you a Fox News viewer? The only conflict of interest Mueller has is he is a true patriot and despite everything he is finding out he must tell all. It would protect the superficial interests of the USA far more if Mueller just buried all this, that is his conflict of interest - he cannot, he must ensure the truth comes out.

Just now, bendejo said:

 

Several years before the 2015-2016 campaign I saw Bernie on a talk show.  When asked about who is "bought" in Congress he said "ALL Republicans take money, the Dems about 40% of them do." 

In 2013, during an interview on TV, Ms. Pelosi said she would like to retire but she has a commitment to her "sponsors" -- what the ____ ?

 

I think that both parties are in for some major changes.  The Dems need effective leadership, time to chop off some heads of the Old Guard and allow in a new generation.  Too often the Dems interest seems to be the same as the right-wing.  Let's see what kind of shape the GOP will be in when the Orange One is gone.  They are both very authoritarian organizations, lord over their representatives with an iron fist.

 

 

That would be great but the tentacles of power will be difficult to unhook from both of these deeply corrupt parties. For example, before the Democrats nomination campaign, Hillary's organization worked with Goldman Sachs chairman Lloyd Blankfein, a long time Clinton supporter, to buy up 80% of the Democratic Party's massive debt. That was meant to guarantee the nomination would go to Hillary. Considering how Bernie Sanders caved at the end, saying little about the backroom conniving to sabotage his run, the decision on a nominee appears to have been made before the campaign began.

As for the Republicans, those rotten old GOP whores in DC did everything in their power to stop Trump, which ironically sewed the seeds of their chosen candidate's failures. The Republicans had pretty much decided Jeb Bush was their boy before the campaign even began and that Chris Christie, Marco Rubio and the rest of those clowns would put up a good fight then be appointed to plum cabinet posts once Jeb was crowned.

Funny how the plans of both parties backfired in their faces. Hillary and Jeb both came off as establishment puppets that had no clue what was going on in the country. Too bad it had to be a mercurial weirdo like Trump that got the job but the Democrats and the Republicans only have themselves to blame. In a further irony, Trump was a big Bill and Hillary backer when Bubba ran for President. Plenty of pics of Donnie and whatever wife he had then and the Clintons dining in luxury on some expense account or other.

1 minute ago, Andaman Al said:

More like giving people like you a free ticket to state whatever inaccuracies or falsehoods you like without any consequence. Sorry, life is not that simple, and neither I nor the Americans i fought with give two craps about wolf tickets. That is normally a claim reserved for those that have a deep routed embarrassment that they never did anything for their country in terms of military service.

Your flag waving is pretty embarrassing. I'm not going to compare histories. That's the terrain of the wannabes.

2 minutes ago, Andaman Al said:

 Not as naive as you it appears:

 

 Are you a Fox News viewer? The only conflict of interest Mueller has is he is a true patriot and despite everything he is finding out he must tell all. It would protect the superficial interests of the USA far more if Mueller just buried all this, that is his conflict of interest - he cannot, he must ensure the truth comes out.

You seem to be missing the point. I'm just saying both sides are wildly biased. You're being sold a bill of goods by either party. And painting a career DC lawyer and political insider as some sort of super patriot is pretty naive.

4 minutes ago, Andaman Al said:

It is not 'balls', it is stupidity and it is his out of control ego. Do you seriously think he is walking away 'unscathed'? Every time he does this he shaves off another point or two from his supporter/approval base.

If you believe approval ratings sold by the NYT any more than those put out by Alex Jones and his nut cases, I don't know what to tell you. The media on all sides serve as PR hacks for vested interests that couldn't care less about "America" or "the people."

2 minutes ago, Andaman Al said:

Well as the US keeps sticking it's oar into global foreign policy which has a direct effect on the lives of those 'non-Americans' then they have every right to stick their 'oar' in. I have lived there, I have flown side by side with them in a war and I am entitled to my view or opinion on any subject matter I choose. 

 

You cancelled your subscription to the NYT,  maybe that's what DJT means by the failing NYT. I wonder how many people took out subscriptions though? Funny if the NYT is failing and if POTUS thinks they are so biased how he simply cannot resist giving them private, unrehearsed interviews.

Let me play Battle Hymn of the Republic for you. If you do know Americans who are serving or that have served, you'd know boasting about one's own military service is what's called "Sellin' wolf tickets."

1 minute ago, Andaman Al said:

"Fake News, Fake Media and Deep State". President Bannon's legacy is going to live on for years.

 

I am all for further investigations, but that is no excuse for a "but but but Hilary" cry. Trump and his enablers must face whatever crimes they have committed. Those crimes will not be made up or fabricated, they will either be real or there will be no charges. If they are real then you do the crime, do the time - no excuses. As regards Clinton, go ahead have an investigation, if she is guilty then she must face up to that as well. But the Republicans did have 4 investigations into the emails and Benghazi and despite wanting to nail her they could not find anything. Is that because she did nothing or because of the utter incompetence of the Republican committee's?  A bit like tossing a coin for a million dollars saying 'best of 3 wins', and then 'no, best of 5 wins', 'no best of 7 wins'.

You're a bit naive about how things work inside the Beltway. Both Democrats and Republicans, and I'm neither, will cut deals as it suits them. Reps from both parties may have more in common with each other on a local or regional level than with members of their own party. US politics is about money and influence. The main goal of all congressmen and congresswomen and senators is to stay in power and get re-elected. Sadly, there is no term limit in either house. How they manage to stay in office often crosses party lines and is usually influenced by well funded lobbyists. What you see on TV of the two chambers is pure theatrics. The real deal making goes on behind closed doors. Investigations into allegations made against Hillary were soft-pedaled by Obama ally and FBI director at the time, Bill Comey. That was pretty clear. And current investigator Robert Mueller's past record must bring into question whether he has conflicting interests. So yes, let's have investigations all round and who knows, one of them may actually get somewhere. But cutting deals are pretty much SOP in DC, as various investigations into Bill "Bubba" Clinton and other commanders in chief have shown.

I love all these non-Americans sticking their oar in, most likely people who've never been there and have spoken to few actual Americans. They see the country through the distorted lens of the ludicrously one-sided corporate media and/or alt-right lunatics and believe that's what Americans think. They believe ridiculous polls that can be skewed in any direction and lists of "facts" that are made up out of thin air.

When Obama was President there was constant wailing about how he should be impeached or resign or arrested and hung from his heels. In the US, the media of all stripes sells politics in the country as a blood sport, exaggerating and/or just making stuff up to drive up viewership numbers. The likes of WaPo and the NYT issued apologies for their blatant biases during the election yet continue to be openly hostile toward the Trump administration, that he and his people can do nothing right or good ever. It's childish and will backfire as their readership plummets. I canceled my subscription to the NYT after their coverage of the election was so tilted it came off as a hysterical high school rag. And I wasn't alone by a long shot.

So why no investigation of the DRC and their corrupt practices? Their own stand-in chairwoman wrote a book about how rotten the situation was. Billary Clinton conspired with Goldman Sachs boss Lloyd Blankfein to buy up 80% of the Democrat's massive debt, with the guarantee the nomination would go to Billary. Never a word about any of this in the media. I'm no fan of Trump, but if one case of corruption is investigated, the other should be as well.

Of course the Justice Dept remains a bastion of Obama appointees and Trump has only replaced a few.

The real weakness of the Trump administration is their lack of preparation in having appointees ready to replace all the deep state moles.

Why do any of these people sticking their oars in give any kind of shit what goes on in Pattaya? What's it to you, unless you're a member of the Pattaya civic boosters club. All this moralizing about the behavior of others is laughable.

On 6/17/2016 at 3:03 AM, Hedghog said:

What size feet are best for comfortable riding.

Check out the distance front peg to rear break.

Looks like your foot will get melted with the exhaust pipe running right under the peg. Same when you mash on the rear brake. You'll be getting a footful of hot pipe. Pretty bad design.

On 11/3/2016 at 1:11 PM, mamborobert said:

There is a dealer on the superhighway just down from Tesco Lotus....more or less opposite teh Lanna Hospital.  Bought one there no problems.

https://www.facebook.com/theskymoterchiangmai/

 

Prices are on FB page...There are also a few shops that mod them.

Which model did you get and how are you finding it? I'm thinking of the CT400 in traditional standard trim. The price is definitely right at 110k baht or so. But wondering about build quality and reliability.

thanks for any input.

On 11/3/2016 at 1:11 PM, mamborobert said:

 

7 hours ago, catman20 said:

cant believe how these people get away with it, if both of them were a ordinary criminals they get them in no time with the help of Interpol. or come to that being such high profile people did they not get recognized at any of the boarders when leaving the country? and we all knew she would be on her toes, it runs in the family.

"These people"? Just happen to be the last 2 leaders that were actually elected by a majority and would be elected again.

Barefoot drunken moron fights with car and then with car's cabbie. Loses. Drunk tank for a night and 20k baht will settle matter.

A petty crime non-event becomes an event because a farang is involved.

Just now, Briggsy said:

Yeah, I have the GP edition.

 

The colours are now onto the next edition. Yellow/black and white/red are no longer sold. There are 4 colours now, black-red, black-green. blue-silver and then blue-silver with the Yamaha Movistar racing colours. The last one has stickers rather than a respray and costs 500 Baht extra.

 

I will keep an eye on the tyres.

 

Another thing I like is the indicators. Very visible.

Ah, right. New model year. Thanks for the update. 500 baht for stickers. I guess it's worth it to some people. And yes, the indicators are well done on these bikes. I just wish they'd include a bit of storage space. Rear box is the only option and i'm not crazy about them.

On 6/13/2017 at 7:54 AM, Briggsy said:

Yes, I read that on here. Owners complaining about the tyres. I haven't experienced anything yet like that but I am alert to it. Sometimes tyres deteriorate quite considerably after 2000 kms. Perhaps I will reconsider then.

 

If you go back earlier in the thread, there are recommendations. Is there a Michelin Sporty in this size? Very probably.

There are a number of 150 Exciters on the road now and checking tires, I've seen a fairly wide variety. That could mean owners are getting rid of the factory issued rubber. I bought my Exciter with 7700kms and it had the original tires. They were pretty well finished but the previous owner said they weren't very good from the beginning. I bought a set of Michelin Pilot Street tires. Big improvement, esp in the rain. Btw, the Blue/Silver edition is the Exciter 150 GP and the other color combos, black/red, yellow/black, white/red etc are all known as the Exciter 150 RC. I've noticed that several online tire sites list tires for the RC but not the GP model, while they are the exact same bikes, other than the paint job.

I just had the 10,000km service on my Exciter 150. They replaced the chain and the automatic choke, changed oil/filter, plug, balanced the wheels/tires, lubed all pivoting/moving levers etc, adjusted clutch lever, washed the bike thoroughly. Charged me just under 1000 baht.

The only problems with this bike is the quality of tires out of the factory. I changed them to Michelins. Much better.

The other problem is the front forks. I had a friend who was a suspension specialist in Irish Road Racing circuit and he found there was too much oil and air pressure in the forks. They were hammering at even small potholes. After he corrected the oil and air, much much better.

The 150 Exciter has a five speed transmission and with the clutch properly adjusted, shifts very smoothly. Fit and finish is very high quality and I really like they're built with an analog tach beside a digital speedo & odometer. I've always preferred analog tachos over digital version, which is difficult to see in daylight.

Oh, and there is absolutely ZERO storage space. They could have included a couple of cubby holes under the handlebars within all that plastic. But there is a plate you can get that fits into the same bolt holes as the grab bar and then install a box.

Overall, great little bike with ample power for pulling away at lights and handles much better than other smaller machines Ive tried, like the 125 Click and 150 PCX.

I think they retail for about 62,000 baht. I got mine considerably cheaper when it had 7700kms on it.

If you want a scooter sized machine to zip around town but want something with gears and handles more like a motorcycles, I'd seriously consider the Exciter 150. Mine's blue and silver but they also come in black/red and white/red, I believe.

A general improvement to forks is thicker oil. I'm doing it soon and will report. Can't find any fork kits online.