Phuketboy

Nothing beats the key money scam that we see here. One prime example that happens everyday here is key money 5m baht for 3 years plus 50,000 per month rent, however on contract it states key money 80,000 and 12,000 rent. These people even commit fraud and tax evasion to rip off their own. Now if someone took this information to the revenue department, that would surely open a can of worms as they are the ones missing out on a great deal of money.

Im going to add an extra zero (0) onto all my receipts and bills because I don't want repeat customers, I want money right now.

It's not just Pattaya, it is Phuket as well and it's not just Russians it's all tourists. Sure, there is a definite decline, but the quality of tourist has changed as well. Tourists from all countries are not spending money like they use to 2, 3, 5 or even 10 years ago. We are seeing more families on a budget and the single cheap charlies who just can't or don't want to spend even when you do offer good service with a smile. So when you focus on quality of tourist and not on quantity, you still need those tourists to spend money. TAT really need to learn about business and what is happening before giving bullshit advice to people who are actually involved in business.

A nice little setup will stop this scum. Get a few girls to pretend their shopping with open handbags. The only thing is the bags are filled with razor blades and mouse traps. When the mouse trap goes off on their fingers they will quickly move their hand and slice it open on the blades…. then simply turn around beat the shit of them and hold them until the police arrive. They will need stitches, so even if they run, they will be found at the nearest hospital.

Was a life guard/saver on the Gold Coast in Australia for 15 years, started about 15 and finished when I was 30. Yes it can be frustrating when you are trying to get people to swim within the flags and not where it's dangerous. This can be even more frustrating when there is a language barrier and people can't understand what you are trying to explain to them.

However, I was at the beach in Patong on the weekend with my daughter and I was trying to explain to her what the flags were and where it's safe to swim. These flags were everywhere and even as a trained life guard/saver, it was hard for me to see where they wanted us to swim. There would have been close to 100 flags on the beach. What is needed is a couple of flagged safe areas and one red flag between each area to indicate rips/currents etc. As for heavy waves, that is no reason to mark a danger area unless there is a strong rip or current running. I have never seen large heavy waves in Thailand and certainly nothing to be alarmed about. The life guards duty to remain calm at all times and ensure the safety of people on the beach, firstly to those in the flagged area and secondly to those outside. No matter what safety precautions you put in place, you can't cater for everyone's stupidity and they will swim where they want regardless. I can understand the guards frustration but the first thing to remember is to remain calm to go attacking people for not listening to your instructions. More training is obviously needed for the guards as well as some signs near the beach in multiple languages to educate tourists.

What a great generation for the future of Phuket.

Their parents must be proud.

So would Buddha. Such beautiful Buddhist here….. LOL BS. These people go on and on about Buddha and how they are good and go to the temple etc etc, but certainly don't live like one or even follow the teachings. 90% are full of shit

Time to set up a couple of farang friendly jet ski hire places. Service with a smile and no rip offs guaranteed. Just need to hire a couple of thai's to run the show on the beach and stay well in the background. Do the maths on how many customers you would have per day at 3000 baht per hour per ski. You would certainly pay the skis off in no time and make a very nice little profit. Much better than hiring motorbikes/cars.

Ahhhhh.....a fellow Ferrari driver............

Bad luck, mate, unfortunately that Yaris had to be there, otherwise you could have shown this Porche driver that his car is just a lot of garbage.

That depends on what Porsche it was, notice there a a few 'RUF' Porsche here......... that would then show the Ferrari driver that his car is just a lot of garbage..

Not sure where this comes into it ?? paper say's totaled his 10-million baht Ferrari ? maybe is a copy ? or a heap of junk that is why he could not stop in time ?

cheapest Ferrari here is 23 million up to 39 million !!

​Edit: looks like the F430 spider, costing 24 million, maybe 10 million is the value the Insurance will give ?

Not true, who said it bought it brand new? Considering the 430 is a few years old already, I doubt it very much.

Just a bunch of photos of Mike Tyson with pigeons (PHOTOS)

By Coconuts Bangkok

BANGKOK: -- When Mike Tyson threw his first fist in anger, it wasn’t because someone teased him for his lisp or funny voice. It was over something much dearer to him – one of his prized pigeons.

Before learning the former heavyweight champ-turned-bizarro bad boy-turned-reformed charmer would come to Thailand to participate in an international pigeon race next year, we had no idea nothing captivates Mike Tyson like a beautiful pigeon.

Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2015/01/13/just-bunch-photos-mike-tyson-pigeons-photos

-- Coconuts Bangkok 2015-01-13

Had no idea he likes pigeons? He has been looking after pigeons since he was a boy. Obviously, people either don't research or don't know anything about him.

There's a number of points from these comments:

• Thai teachers attend school premises for long hours, but if they worked professionally during all of those hours they would complete their workloads within working hours
• International and private schools offer the same product - some schools have renamed themselves 'International' to obtain perceived prestige
• Many deductions are taken from Thai teachers in the form of loans, loan repayments (cars being the usual example)
• International schools are no better in the quality of education they offer than many government or other fee-paying schools
• The name 'International' appeals to those Thais and foreigners (for whom their company pays the fees) who consider themselves above the government system

Are there any International schools which command a huge bribe, for their quality? I think not.

I write from long experience.

"International and private schools offer the same product - some schools have renamed themselves 'International' to obtain perceived prestige"

I have to disagree with this point that you made. Private schools use a Thai Curriculum and usually run an English program using mainly Thai Teachers with a few foreign teachers (many from the Philippines)to teach English . International Schools use an international curriculum such as the IB, Singapore, English,or Australian Curriculum. They use mainly foreign teachers (from western countries)to teach all subjects with a few Thai Teachers to conduct the compulsory Thai Classes.

Also have to disagree. My daughter was in a Thai government school and the level of education was appalling. The teachers I had dealings with had no idea how to teach curriculum, they mostly taught life skills and Thai culture with a few math and Thai lessons thrown in. Now my daughter is in a private school which delivers the UK curriculum and linked with Cambridge University, with 65% english and 35% Thai classes. 65% of the time she is with her teacher from England and is doing unbelievably well in all areas. Each time she does her home work, I ask her why the Thai part is so hard. She said because the Thai teacher doesn't teach just writes on the board, where the English teacher actually teaches. I have been out to the school to observe and the Thai teachers have no idea. There is no way I would put my daughter back into a Thai government school. Money well spent and if the current private school needed more to stay open I would gladly pay.

15000 baht a month for a university educated teacher? Wow, no wonder so many university qualified girls still work in bars. I have 2 girls who after all bonuses, bar fines etc be on between 120000 - 140000 per month. A pole dancer starts at 20,000 base with one girl I know at another venue earning 60000 as a base, then you add everything else on top and these girls are making 5,6,7 times that of a teacher. My office manager for another business of mine is on between 18,000 with no formal tertiary education, but she is worth it.

Now before anyone starts, yes I know working in bars, clubs etc is not the most desirable career, but they can make their money when young and fall back on the studied career later on. I am also a qualified teacher with a bachelor of education. There is no way in hell, I would ever teach for less than 100000 per month when teachers in other places are on much much more than this.

Give the guy a break… he needed to raise some money because his buffalo died, he needed to repair the family house after the storm and his mum is sick.

Easy to say suicide as that would be the end of the investigation. How about the RTP pull their heads out of each other and actually do their job to investigate it properly. Maybe they don't know how because of their shit training? How can someone tie their hands behind their back and then hang themselves? Why would someone who wanted to commit suicide, go to these extreme measures? Way too many murders being passed off as suicides in this country.

There are definitely some stupid people who would offer her this. However, people are becoming the wiser and many will tell her to get stuffed. I have to sit back and laugh at the people who come here, fall in love with a bar girl during their 1 weeks holiday and start sending them money. You wouldn't send a whore money in your own country plus buy her a house, car, bike, look after her mum, dad, brother sister, uncle, aunty plus all her kids….. so why the hell would you be stupid enough to do it here.

Been with my partner for 4 years now. Never once has her family ever asked me for money. I am the one who suggested that the daughter live with us as a family unit. Together we pay for the clothes, food, daughters school etc. But every baht is accounted for and nothing ever goes missing. Yes, I have money and the family knows this, but they are just happy that I take care of my partner and the daughter as I would if I was with a partner and daughter in my own country. No different.

They have been saying all year that thailand will recover in the last quarter 2014. Well we are now at the end of the last quarter and it's still shit if not worse. These fools have no idea what the hell they are talking about. Might as well go to the farm and get the animals there to give you a prediction.

Study and solutions:

1. Speeding - enforce the speed limit by fining drivers for anything over 10% of the speed limit. Fines to start at 3000 baht plus loss of points.

2. Untrained drivers - teach people to actually drive instead of handing out licences. All drivers must pass a written test. Once passed they must only drive with another licensed driver and take a minimum of 3 months worth of driving lessons with a licensed school (all schools must have instructors who know how to drive majority would be Foreigner because Thai's just can't drive). After the 3 months training, they then must pass an extensive driving test which they would only be able to make 3 minor errors otherwise they would fail and need to come back again the next day. If they pass they get a provisional licence with only 3 points attached. Those 3 points need to last them 3 years. If they lose their points they lose their licence and have to start the process again. After 3 years they get a full licence with 12 points. The government need to educate people.

3. Lack of enforcement - Police need to start doing their job. If they see someone breaking a road rule, fine them and demerit points from licence. Again start the fines at 3000 baht. If it's a serious offence, take their licence and the car/bike for a period of 3 months first offence, 6 months second offence and for life third offence.

4. Drink driving - it's not to do with alcohol sales, but the lack of law enforcement and testing drivers for alcohol. Set up random tests in various locations which will be different each day. This way drivers will never know where they are. If over the limit, fine them, take their license and their car/bike.

5. Driving on the wrong side of the road, cutting corners, riding a bike without a helmet, not giving way, failure to stop at traffic lights, failure to stop at crossings, pulling out without looking etc etc…. the list can go on forever. See all mentioned above. Apply massive fines, take their cars/bikes, take their license and have law enforcement enforce the law and road rules.

6. Driving without a licence or on multiple disqualifications, simply send them to jail for a min 3 months.

7. No insurance - make sure everyone on the road has insurance. If not foe themselves at least a 3rd party insurance to cover the cost of the other person and their car or bike. No insurance should mean automatically at fault and full cost to be paid. If they can't afford it, then the government to pay and that person in debt to the government until paid back within a time frame. At least the other person with be covered for injury and damage to their property.

It's quite easily really. The problem is Thai's are lazy, don't care about the safety of themselves or that of others and unless they start listening to others, they will never learn and things will never change. This includes the government, they are clueless and have no idea at all. They don't listen or even look at other countries for ideas. All that needs to be done is to look at the countries with the safest roads and copy exactly what they are doing. It's like the blind leading the blind here.

Thailand should be blaming Thailand for the decline in tourist numbers. They shot themselves in the foot on more than one occasion, but they are always right and never listen to others. Secondly, stop talking about Russian and Chinese tourists, yes they may come here, but they spend very little (<deleted> all really) in local businesses, so they do not make a difference anyway other than make the place look busy. It's the other tourists from Europe, Australia, America etc that are the ones who generally spend up while visiting, therefore Thailand should be focusing on trying to get more of them here.

The caption says the police are cheerful.

The one in uniform facing the table isn't. He must have been told by the boss he cannot share in the loot on the table I imagine.

I hope all the criminals in the picture get time in jail.

Which of the criminals in the picture are you referring to, the foreigners or the Thai? LOL

This might be a question for ask the lawyer, but I wanted to get some feedback from other Thai Visa members to see if they have ever faced a similar problem when dealing with lawyers here.

A friend of mine had an issue this week which he can't seem to get help, even from his lawyer. About 3 weeks ago he signed the contract for a premises for his business. The contract was signed by both parties and his lawyer had a copy. At this time, he paid his key money for the full 3 years and everything was done according to the contract. A couple of days ago the owner calls him and tells him he needed to pay an extra because they had made a mistake. He tried to talk with the owner regarding the contract and with no luck he contact his lawyer. His lawyer originally said he was correct, but when the lawyer found out that a member of the owner's family was a high ranking police officer here on the island the lawyer said they couldn't help.

Now, my understanding is a contract is a contract and if you had a lawyer back home they would work for you and do the best they could regardless of who the other party was. Why is it that the lawyers here never seem to want to practice law and do their job? I thought it may be that because everyone knows everyone here, they might not want conflict, but then again, this is not practicing law and the lawyer should be fighting for him. My suggestion was to speak with a lawyer from Bangkok and get someone from there to represent him.

Has anyone else faced this or similar problems and if so how did you deal with it?

If the country didn't try and rip people off with massive over pricing of anything decent in the way of cars then people wouldn't have to smuggle them.

Viva La France......

Deserves all he gets,

Get a job and earn a living, like the rest of us....

He did have a job as manager of Pink Paradise on Bangla Rd.

I think if they are not born in the UK, married to someone born in UK or their parents were not born in the UK then they should send them all home. I guess if that doesn't sort out the issue of every man and his dog moving to the UK from other parts of the EU, then as a last resort the UK could adopt Thailand's laws on immigration, that would certainly sort out the freeloaders. Too many people claiming rights and UK citizenship and ripping an already struggling system off, because one of their great ancestors was British… woopty f$%king doo daaa.