Old Croc

Read the OP, he has been owner/resident in Phuket for 20 years. He has stated his part of the island is being overcrowded, particularly by a certain nationality who don't necessarily make good neighbors (!). I would suggest he is much more aware of his home surroundings than someone who once visited the province. He is looking for input from others with knowledge of some of the quieter areas of the island not from one of the haters.

Wouldn't be the first time a passenger with a ticket/boarding pass for another flight with the same airline wandered unto the wrong plane. However, a bad lapse by ground and on-board staff to not pick up on it.

Certainly, a mystery how a disabled, unable to care for herself, elder citizen became abandoned in a hotel in Thailand. How bad/recent are the burns and what was their source? Pressure sores usually take time to develop and are difficult to overcome. Given the scant, known circumstances I suspect she is not a tourist, but has been here for some time. Immigration should be able to assist. Who and where is the man who left her? A spouse who no longer wants the burden and chose a cruel way to separate? The whole debate here about Australian pensions, with a raft of weird assumptions and a few knowledgeable replies have nothing to do with the case. Embassies are not an arm of a country's social services in place to babysit their citizens travelling/living overseas. CentreLink is a toxic department that seems to have the attitude of making things as difficult as possible for their client base. However, they don't pass the legislation which dictates who is eligible for payments. That's the politicians who like to use the majority of their budget to make life easier for the important people - the rich and powerful, who will return the favour.

I researched this years ago, but ruled it out for some of the reasons listed above and the cost. There were no Phuket based companies doing it then, from memory someone in Hua Hin was the only available one.

I fail to understand what your post has to do with my question. I guess you were answering an earlier post. There I stated that 125 million Indians speak English. Obviously, that is only something like 10% of the population so your reasoning has some truth, but still makes my statement that they have more English speakers than all countries other than the US, correct. If you still believe they don't really speak English there I suggest you research the 100+ years of British colonialism in India to understand why it is so, or perhaps just ring a help line with a computer problem.

Do they have phones there?

Forget the mindless idiots on Tik Tok, with their shuffling and bottle flips, also the believers of ludicrous theories. There is a very real threat of a world war starting next year. It has already partially commenced through the actions of an ex-KGB dwarf with visions of restoring ancient soviet kingdoms and achieving personal czardom. He believes the enemy to be Europe, or more specifically NATO, and has convinced many in Russia that their very existence is under threat. Even if the little man himself doesn't survive for much longer, powerful, secretive Russian intelligence agencies are behind this desire to conquer neighboring countries to create a buffer from their enemy. It's been proven Russia can't win a conventional war with its outdated and run-down military capability, but there are people there who will go nuclear. when all else fails.

Electric disability scooters up to 500kw can be legally driven on the roads. No registration required.

With my last extension I had a very officious, albeit friendly, officer who spent over an hour fussing around with my paperwork. (A story in itself) He wasn't happy with my black and white photos from my cheap single purpose printer, but eventually accepted them with the rider that I produce colour pics next year. He wants three photos of us inside the house, and three outside, one of which must include the house number. These should include the roofline of the house! Incidentally our house is a stand-alone farming property outside the village. Nobody has house numbers displayed. I had to purchase the stick-on numbers for this single purpose. Edit: A NE Province , applics processed through Udon.

Just the meme, or the pointless discussion you instigated because of you're (!) obsession?

The cranium is designed to protect the most important organ in the body. It can be like hitting a brick wall. (I saw that same YT!)

Which country produces the most pedants?

By numbers, 125 million English speakers. But, to correct myself it is second to the US. Apologies for that error.

India is the biggest English-speaking country in the world.

My mother ended her days in one of those facilities in Australia. After they all went private (profit making), conditions and staffing greatly deteriorated. Once, when visiting my mother, she told me she hadn't showered for several days because the lady tasked with helping her had been replaced with a male north African migrant. Right or wrong in today's world, she was horrified and refused, what to her, was an indignity. She later had a fall in the bathroom, was unable to reach one of the emergency bells, her cries went unheard, and she lay on a cold floor for 5-6 hours. She was hospitalized, but never fully recovered and didn't return to the facility again. Long story short, a major factor in my choosing to live out my days here.

It's possible to pay instantly by waving a card in front of a reader, your receipt is in your bank statement. It's much quicker than using dirty old banknotes (read about contaminates on currency and your chances of being labelled a cocaine user if swabbed). These days you can even start your car without removing your key from your pocket. The technology exists, and is in use now, for instant payments without time wasting by first collecting, then passing on currency and collecting change.

Most of human history was cashless, the barter system prevailed. With current and future technology, society seems to be heading that way again albeit using electronic means. Several countries in Europe, and Singapore, currently have a higher than 50% electronic payments rate. Thailand is about 2%. Many things now can only be accessed using credit cards, it will inevitably become the norm. For those worried about privacy issues, that boat has long sailed. Your phone, your computer, your favorite store, your utility provider, your salary or pension provider, your friendly local police, Immigration, etc., etc, all collect and store data about you. If you want to be completely anonymous become a hermit in the jungle eating berries and insects. Security issues are concerning, with technology also inventing ways and means to steal your electronic money. Consequently, more and more security checks seem to pop up in my daily activities. There will always be thieves, but countermeasures will keep apace. Not everyone in a community will have bank accounts for many reasons, access for all will need to be a priority. I accept the inevitable.

At what weight does it constitute an excuse?

This is a bit like the case a few years back of a tourist being arrested for collecting shells and bits of dry coral on the beach. I did a quick scan of the wildlife act mentioned. It has a very broad definition of "wildlife carcass" and what is allowed if you find a bone or two of a native animal and decide to take them home. It seems to be more about the size of the wildlife bones, publicity seeking authorities and a nasty neighbor wanting to get a falang in trouble. As the bones were cemented in as an arch in front of his home, I would suggest there was no trafficking of wildlife involved.

Similar to the Huntsman common in Australia. Seen many in Thailand. No web, Runs very fast on walls when inside,

He grew an extra leg.

First time I saw it on the door of a clinic at a Bangkok Hospital I did a double take and had to check what it was. It's a bit like my kidney doctors calling themselves Nephrologists which is apparently derived from a Greek word for the organ.

We had a similar situation on an unsupervised property where the wife had stocked a pond with abut 2000 fingerlings and fed them until they were edible size. It became apparent someone was plundering them on a large scale and eventually a friend who lived nearby caught them at it. He was reluctant to tell her because the thieves were the village druggies and known for violence. It seems they were processing and selling our fish in local markets. We fenced the pond off at great cost (to me), but the thefts continued. Eventually we drained it, caught most of the stock that were left (600+) and transferred them to the pond near our house (as I suggested in the beginning). The S/heads have to steal from elsewhere.

(Recognised by who? vastly over prescribing medicines, including antibiotics for almost anything, dismal paliative care at end of life and generally poor communicating skills with patients are not world class at all. While I have found dentists here to be mostly world class a lot of the hospital services are not, at least in my experience.) @ Proton Thailand's healthcare system ranked among best in the world - Thailand News - Thailand News, Travel & Forum - ASEAN NOW I won't argue about private hospitals here over-prescribing meds and services to the unwary. I have found almost all Thai doctors speak English and I have no problems discussing my medical issues with them. Most locals and some foreigners treat doctors with awe, I don't, and will agree or disagree with them if I feel they are going against my best interests.