buck99

It is almost always a 500 baht fine when a thai assaults a foreigner. The severity of the assault does not seem to matter. This also explains why some thais now seem to assault tourists just for fun, they know there is no risk to them, even if they get caught.

Two weeks ago my GF and I were walking into Kiss Restuarant on 2nd Road Pattaya to eat lunch and I was approched by a watch seller. I smiled and told him "My Kapun" (no thank you) and he promptly punched me in the chest. I instantly and instinktivly grabbed him by his shirt and pushed him away. Within seconds a motorcycle taxi driver was standing alongside the watch seller ready to do battle. My GF jumped into the fracas and defused the situation. I couldnt believe the agessiveness of the watch seller in full view of the restuarant patrons and staff especially when I did not disrespect him in any way. Im sure he assaulted me just because he could and knew there would be no repercussions even when there were BIB 50 meters away.

I live in Jomtien and had 2 packages from the US Post Office returned "undeliverable" 3 months ago. The sender sent me a photo of the packages and they indeed had the correct address. A month ago I was tracking another package from the US and it said "delivery attempted". No notice of the delivery was left and I have a sign on my front door in Thai saying "take packages to the office". I went to the Post Office on the Sukumvit with the tracking number but they denied having it or any knowledge of it. I waited for a week and when the package didn't show up I returned to the Sukumvit post office. They again said they didn't have the package. I asked if I could look for the package as I knew it was long and narrow. To my surprise they said "ok" have a look. Within 5 minutes of searching I had my package in hand. When I asked why it wasn't delivered, the guy just shrugged his shoulders. It's my opinion that packages addressed in English are easier for the workers to return than to get a translation into Thai.

I had a condo in Cebu Philippines on the 19th floor and always kept the balcony doors open. Never a mosquito! I am now renting a condo in Jomtien the 5th floor. We must close our windows by 5pm or deal with swarms of the little bastards. I think the higher you go, the farther you get from them.

I'm going to come down on the side of your wife this time. My gf says we have ghosts living in our condo with us, so it seems logical ghosts could be standing in the middle of the road. I'm willing to believe in ghosts if she's willing to believe I'm a hansum man.

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Go to a school to get the basics and then learn phrases that you use often, like buying something, ordering food etc. Watch TV with a Thai person and listen to them talk, the TV Thai is the correct lingo. By listening you get used to the sound of Thai. There is also a great app for learning Thai but cost about B900. It shows the English to transliteration and Thai but also pronounce the word. I love the app and use it when waiting for someone being late or when I have time on hand.

Can you give us the name of that app?

Try wearing trousers with zips sewn into your pockets!

It works a treat in most cases!.

I agree!! I had all the pockets in all my pants "zippered" here in Pattaya for 80 baht each. A bargain!

Try and find a Thai family that is NOT disfunctional - good luck!

As mentioned no one bats an eyelid at how f***** up they ALL are.

I think op is jsut as screwed up too. Why is he thinking about sending gf daughter to college? If thats the case marry the tgf.

Father not expected to help but farang bf is...............lol.

Methinks another case where atm got his head up the cammels butthole.

I appreciate your concern the OP is screwed up because I send my GF daughter to college. I'm sure doing something kind for someone else without getting something in return is a difficult concept for you to understand. I have been inordinately blessed in my life and understand it is not because I am talented or so wise. It's because other people have opened doors for me and allowed me to succeed. If I can do the same for others, I enjoy doing so. My GF daughter is getting straight A's in a quality school in BKK, I am sending another deserving student through Dental School in Cebu Philippines and my niece to Stanford in the USA. The agreement is they maintain their GPA at a B average or above. So far they are all holding up their end of the bargain. The student in Cebu will graduate with her Doctorate in June. I don't believe in giving money as "free" money is never appreciated by the recipient. It takes very little to give an good education and completely change the lives of an individual in Thai and Philippines. The difficult task is finding those few people who really want to help themselves.

Look at it this way. If you buy the washing machine at Big C, the salesman will have to write up the order, check the inventory, fill out the warranty card, do the credit card voucher and arrange for delivery. That's to much like work! However, if you leave and buy it at Home Pro, he can go back to playing some nonsense game on his smart phone.

From the replies to my OP it appears I left the some readers with the impression that I am angry, upset or somehow bothered by my GF/family's wanting to be at the deathbed of father who abandoned them in childhood. I have no personal feelings on the subject other than being surprised at their loyalty to a man who felt no obligation to them during his lifetime. He has money so that is not a consideration. From what was said by my GF and sisters, they have had no personal contact for 30 years and only a few phone calls during that time.

My TGF's father ran off with another woman leaving a wife, 4 daughters and a son. My TGF was 8 years old at the time (she's 41 now). From what I understand, the father provided no support for the family and would call every few years with no personal contact. My TGF tells of hunger and privation for her and her family during her childhood. Now here is the part I don't understand. He is now in the hospital in serious condition and the entire family including the mother is now holding vigil at his bedside. When I ask my TGF if she has any resentment that her father abandoned them, she says "no its his life and he can do what he wants with it". A very different philosophy than the West where fathers are expected to have responsiblity fo their children.

On another occasion we were discussing the cost of sending my TGF daughter off to college. I suggested that the estranged father be given the opertunity to help in the support of his daughter's education. I was met with an shocked look by TGF and daughter and was told "he has his own family to support". It seems there is little or no expectation of responsiblity from the Thai fathers. Is this the normal mindset in Thai families or just my GF's family?

I live in Jomtien and had 2 packages from the US Post Office returned "undeliverable" 3 months ago. The sender sent me a photo of the packages and they indeed had the correct address. A month ago I was tracking another package from the US and it said "delivery attempted". No notice of the delivery was left and I have a sign on my front door in Thai saying "take packages to the office". I went to the Post Office on the Sukumvit with the tracking number but they denied having it or any knowledge of it. I waited for a week and when the package didn't show up I returned to the Sukumvit post office. They again said they didn't have the package. I asked if I could look for the package as I knew it was long and narrow. To my surprise they said "ok" have a look. Within 5 minutes of searching I had my package in hand. When I asked why it wasn't delivered, the guy just shrugged his shoulders. It's my opinion that packages addressed in English are easier for the workers to return than to get a translation into Thai.

My TGF family's history is very different than most Thais. The father ran off when she was 6 yrs old and left the mother with 4 little girls. The mother sold fish to keep the family alive. Does this qualify my TGF for Hi So???

"BANGKOK, Sept 21 - Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra today the Thai public not to worry about renewed flooding as the government is well-prepared for flood prevention measures."

Did I misread this article??? I thought the flood was already handled.

Most young Thai men are equally as equally hard working and keen to do a good job, its just a matter opening our eyes to see the truth and have a possitive view of young people.

ie give them the chance to prove themselves and their own worth - like the chance most of us where given by older people when we where young.

I have not witnessed the Thai work ethic here in Pattaya. I'm buying a high rise condo and waiting for completion that's 6 months late. There are 2 average sized bathrooms in my new condo and it took 5 men working 7 days a week 4 weeks to complete the job. That same job in the USA would have been 2 days for 2 men. The female house keepers at the condo I live in now work several hours in the morning then sit on the stairs and comb each other's hair and play games on their cell phone until quitting time.

I am delighted to hear there are hard working Thais as I have great respect for anyone that does their best in life. But I think a hard working Thai is an anomaly not the norm,

I say "BRAVO" to all that participated in getting these guys off the streets and into prison (hopefully)........

That said, I would like to bring up a subject, which many are against, "INVASION OF PERSONAL PRIVACY". Can you imagine this job being done without the invasion of somebody's privacy - maybe a few of us that didn't have anything to hide, and they probably didn't waste much time on us, BUT they DID get these guys. And what do you want to bet that there was 'phone surveilance and email interception done to get them. I am all for what they do and how they do it.

Only criminals need to worry about 'invasion of prvacy' -- not me!!!!!

Im glad you are comfortable with your government knowing what you think, what you do, where you live and your financial activities. I am from the US and do not feel comfortable about it. I ran businesses all my life and have seen how the bureaucrats want to control every aspect of your life and business. They could care less if their meddling might bankrupt a company and effect the lives of 100's of people. I have seen how the government gets involved in unnecessary wars all over the world and buys the favor of other Nations with "Foreign Aid". My government cant run a post office, railroad, health care or welfare entitlements. I certainly don't think they can be trusted to keep my information confidential.

Through out history people have trusted their governments to do the right thing only to find out that they have been lead to death and disaster. The founding fathers in the US didn't trust the government. That's why they added the 2nd amendment to the Constitution. The right of the citizens to bear arms.

"I hope one day the human race realizes how stupid the war on drugs is."

Of course the war on drugs is stupid. It war is long over and the side who wanted to stop drugs lost. Now the only ones who want the war to continue are those that benefit from it. There is huge amounts of money dependent on the "war". Such as: drug lords, big government, polititions, law inforcement, court systems and the correctional institutions just to name a few.

I've never used drugs but feel those who want to ruin their lives have the right to do so. There is no way to stop it. I'm sure where ever you are in the world, you within 15 minutes of scoring some sort of illegal drug.

I'd like you to stop and think for a minute...... You say you think they have a right to do drugs and fry their brains if they want to. If you will just take a minute and look a little farther than the end of your nose, you might see that 'their right' to fry their mind is coming our of your pocket (and mine) a bit farther down the road. I'm sure that you 'bitch' about the cost of government and health care, as we all do cry about. Just think about it. We will pay all their bills when the become a 'drag' on society'. Taxes, man - taxes...... Yours and mine will take of them.

I don't want to deny any body any "Rights" they may have -- BUT -- I also don't want them to enjoy any of their rights that cost ME and not THEM them alone.

And that is what most dopers are doing today....................

Edit - misspelling

Thank you for suggesting I look beyond my nose. I will try to do that. You argue that drugs should be controlled because of economic reasons. Lets look at that. The drug enforcement cost world wide is approximately 100 BILLION. The US federal government alone spends 15 Billion a year on drug enforcement and with State and local expenditures the amount is 25.7 Billion. The staggering cost is mind boggling but has all this cost and effort done anything to curtail the availability of drugs?? The answer is no. Drug prices have dropped dramatically over the past years. From 1990 to 2005 the wholesale prices of heroin have dropped 77%. Drugs become cheaper and more available with each passing year.

Over the past 4 decades 500,000 people have been imprisoned in the US for drug enforcement. The lost productivity of this population is estimated at an additional 40 Billion annually.

Since you are the one with the far sighted vision, please tell me how much more money we must spend to eradicate drugs?

"I hope one day the human race realizes how stupid the war on drugs is."

Of course the war on drugs is stupid. It war is long over and the side who wanted to stop drugs lost. Now the only ones who want the war to continue are those that benefit from it. There is huge amounts of money dependent on the "war". Such as: drug lords, big government, polititions, law inforcement, court systems and the correctional institutions just to name a few.

I've never used drugs but feel those who want to ruin their lives have the right to do so. There is no way to stop it. I'm sure where ever you are in the world, you within 15 minutes of scoring some sort of illegal drug.

"All these people were trained to kill," Pol Lt Gen Somyot told reporters at a police airport in Bangkok, where the suspects were flown Thursday from Phuket.

Mr Hunter was officer in the US Special Forces??? I doubt it. The article also says he was a US Navy Seaman (E3) which is a low ranking enlisted.

Maybe our BIB are playing loose with the facts to make this story more entertaining.

I just returned home from a big builders supply store in Pattaya. As I checked out, every one of the many employees had their heads down busy on their cell phones. They seemed "put out" having to stop their texting/game playing and ring up my purchases. In the USA I had 3 manufacturing companies. I would allow my office employees to take quick important personal calls but would have never allowed what goes on in here in Thailand. Don't the managers care or are they busy on their cell phones too? Somebody must pay their wages. Does anyone care what goes on in their company??

Thank you Langsuan and Stoffel! Those are great leads and I will check them out today.

Today I went to a drapery shop on Theprisit and picked out some fabric for Draperys at my condo. We agreed to meet at my condo in one hour to measure the windows. After an hour, I called her and she told me "so solly I be there in 30 min." After 45 min I called again and she said "so solly but I not come". I hung up and now looking for someone dependable. Any suggestions for a good drapery shop? Thanks

A few weeks ago I got nabbed for making a left turn from Pattaya Klang to Pattaya 3rd Road (Toney's Gym) and received a 400 B ticket. I was surprised when told by the BIB that it was illegal to turn on a red light. I asked my TGF if she knew it was illegal. She replied "it's only against the law when a BIB is there".

My tgf got them a year ago in BKK for 60,000 B. She's very pleased with them and so am I. They look spectacular! She loves to dress up when we go out. Not something she would do prior to the procedure.

It seemed like such a well thought out plan. I'm surprised it didn't work out better for the two.