RikDao

So  basically, here in Thailand there are plenty of immigration rules, but they are interpreted differently depending on the immigration officer and where he/she is located. Seems kind of crazy to a lot of us, right? 

Well, I think I at least somewhat understand this system now. Let's say Rule "A" is interpreted differently by officers in Phuket and Chiang Mai. Why are they not interpreted the same? Because the rules themselves are vague and it would be an insult (resulting in loss of face) to the officer in Chiang Mai if an officer from Phuket called him and claimed he was interpreting the rule incorrectly. Therefore, no phone call and nothing changes! 

The REAL leaders of the country, whoever they are, can't be operating in this way. For instance, let's say a military matter of life and death came up. The matter would need to be resolved professionally or somebody might get killed, right? 

I have a joke fantasy where all Thais are compelled to hand in their driver's licences, then the British or Americans, or beter yet, the Germans! are called in to administer the reissuing process.

Seems like a lot of anger and envy in the comments. Thais look at the world and their lives differently than we Westerners do. Food is obviously very important to them. It's not all great and they don't need nearly as much, but it's definitely one of the reasons people feel generally good here. Hey, go ahead and say it: they don't really feel so great! But they do, based on how they see things. 

Hey, sorry! I put this in the wrong category! I thought it said Driving in Thailand! My mistake! 

I don't know how to change it to the correct category! 

If somebody else (like the moderator) knows how, feel free to do so!

Thanks!

Hey, no more Number One in road deaths!

Anybody agree? 

Sometimes, the answer's staring you right in the face, right?

On 8/23/2013 at 6:07 PM, Sticky Rice Balls said:

Yep drive by it almost daily and have yet to see 1 person in there..guess its more in the evening i drive past..

My concerns with this, having been a cook for 25 yrs, is just how fresh is the food...as opposed to a high

turnover place ur assured of food being used daily and fresh food brought in..im not big on frozen and microwaves

Hence my passing by and not stopping in as in my exps working in kitchens food waste is money lost, or all frozen.....

Just cant see this place making it as it seems large, right on canal, and add all the other mex places in Cm already..

Hahahahah! You've been a cook for 25 years?!? Okeh!

You completely trash the place without even trying the food first. 

Great hack job! But why?

I actually stopped in tried the food. Pork fajitas, tortilla soup, fresh and very tasty. People who run the place are very nice, speak good English. Can't wait to go back!

2 hours ago, robblok said:

As long as he is clean they can't kick him out the last guy who tried it was a corrupt criminal. If your clean and working for the country they can't kick you out. 

Beaver Cleaver hath spoken. 

Wonder what Eddie Haskell thinks.

Guy's on his knees right now praying:

"Oh God! Please don't let them send me back to Thailand!"

Can you imagine this guy in a Thai jail? He'd be some serious jailbait in there.

Oh wait! That doesn't work, they're already in jail!

Expat Auto all the way. 

They have some sort of warranty/guarantee program.

I'm on a retirement extension Non-O Immigrant visa. I have a one- or two-year license, can't remember which, and when I renew I want to get a 5-year.

Anybody know the latest rules about whether I need a doctor's note again?

Thanks!

Of course, it's not just Australians, it's farangs from anywhere and everywhere. 

The Americans are starting a serious anti-trafficking push, which is of necessity worldwide in scope.

SE Asia is up to its neck catering to pedos. Let's hope the crackdown is successful.

Crank.

Yab bah.

Lol! 

The old ones, male and female, who got those ugly tattoos back in the day, when their bodies were somewhat intact. They should be compelled to wear long sleeved shirts everywhere. 

Aside from SK, NK borders Russia (a little bit) and China (a lot). 

There will be no US attack on NK. 

54 minutes ago, BangkokReady said:

Are you sure it wasn't an amulet that saved them?

You may live to regret that remark...

26 minutes ago, Tchooptip said:

As you said they "could"

but they could also  be from the following countries  :Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, and last United Kingdom (too yes)

but to be honest, I am not sure 100%, I have still 2/3 others in mind but less likely

Hey! What about the US? We want to be on the list! 

But actually, there are four of them, right? I say they're from Moldonegro, Crobaijan, Montezakhstan, and...

Take a leak (not to mention a crap!) in public in the States and you could end up on the Sex Offenders list for the rest of your life. 

18 hours ago, Muggi1968 said:

Does it matter...  Thailand do not care about sanitation anyway. Here is dog poo and garbage anywhere....

No, there isn't.

30 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

Men crying is considered by me to be unmanly wherever.

Tears of laughter!

Not if you're a woman! :-)

We own a very nice Toyota Avanza which seats 7. It's a small SUV, but not too small. 1.5 engine, automatic transmission. 

Hey! It just hit me today!

Thai traffic fatalities are all coming back as dogs! 

Not only will they be settling some karmic debts, but they'll be real sure to be careful out on the roads! 

4 hours ago, malibukid said:

i have looked at fMRI studies. and Asian minds are literally   wired differently.  there is empirical proof that when test subject when given scenarios that predicted future outcomes the Asian population scored poorly.  areas in the brain that are used to predict consequences and make judgements  of future outcomes where not highlighted in the fMRI studies i looked at.  

the relevance to driving means that judgments like speed/stopping distance require the driver to think ahead.  passing another vehicle safely is another area that requires complex calculations. 

culture has a big impact on the developing brain. 

Hmm, this is fascinating, and completely plausible to me.

It's not like I haven't suspected something like this with regard to Thailand, and have always thought it's a result of the Thai education system. Maybe it's more to do the Asian mind, as the above post says. 

Luckily, I'm rarely in a hurry to get someplace in this country. Quite the contrary, in fact.

(Note: I started driving in Thailand less than a year ago, with a Nissan March, which is a tiny hatchback. Good car, I suppose, but WAY too small after I realized how it is to be driving in this country, something I swore I'd never do anyway. Now I have a small SUV-type vehicle, a Toyota Avànza, and I feel much, much safer). 

On just a practical level, Thais rarely seem to want to slow down on the highway. They try to change lanes no matter what, even if it means the car right behind them will run into the car making a right turn right in front of them. 

They don't seem to care. Well, not all of them are this way, but plenty are. 

My wife's brother drives like he has the brains and decision-making skills of a 9 year old, but there's a big hush in the car if I tell him to slow the f*** down, like I've questioned the King or something. I'll say, "His wife, sister, mother and son are in the car! Not to mention me!" Answer: "Brother know how to drive."

Feel I should mention the happy news that India's getting younger because they're keeping more babies alive than they used to...

China, on the other hand, is facing a crisis because they don't have enough young people to take care of all their old people.