sandyf

Spot on. There was a lack of collective responsibility a long time ago probably due to the US being so far away. The UN should have stepped up to the plate and tried to get nations to fund safe havens in north africa so sea crossings were not required. The movement of displaced people as result of war became a conduit for every other Tom, Dick and Harry. Had the war refugees been dealt with better the economic migrants would have been less of a challenge. A viable solution now has become that much more difficult.

Try and stay in context, or is that too much to expect.

Only the arrogant would be telling people to ignore law firms. One can only assume the phrase "If you don't ask, you don't get" is not in your vocabulary.

You shouldn't say things like that when you don't really know, I think somehow you were hacked. Despite what others have said new cards are not sent out "live" as you put it. The PIN would normally be provided separate. I have recently had a replacement card from HSBC which was sent to the branch and the PIN sent to my address. The card had to be activated on my account before it could be used.

I don't know if something has changed but when I got my card 2 years ago the first transaction on the card had to be chip and pin. I also had a zero value transaction, this required the PIN and it activated the card. I didn't provide a PIN got it from the website. Initially every transaction had a security check, normally asked to identify a recent transaction. That changed to an sms code or via the app, but not all transactions have to be verified, much the same as contactless where every so often that requires the PIN.

Time will tell, it always does.

Selective memory. The rhetoric was all about "open borders" as in Schengen and taking back control of UK borders. The UK has always had control of it's borders, even UK nationals have had to pass through immigration. Not something that those who have never left the country would know about. Farage, for his own ends, tried to convince the people brexit would solve an ongoing problem but it only made things worse. From 2007. "The plan has put the Home Office on a collision course with the Foreign Office, which is leading calls for the ban to be lifted. The impending row highlights deepening divisions in Whitehall over the best way to tackle economic migration, and comes at the end of a week in which three chief constables called for greater resources to cope with an influx of immigrants from eastern Europe." https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/sep/23/immigration.eu

There is no such thing as "correct" or "incorrect" information, it would be a question of the Amphur agreeing, or not. The term "usually" would be more appropriate, nothing is usually set in stone. There have been several reports over the years of people having been included in the blue book. Same with condo owners, some have had a blank blue book and some with their name in it. "If as a foreigner you have Thai family members such as a Thai wife then you can be included in the “Blue Book” of the Thai family which is also known as the Tabien Baan in local speak" https://www.lawfirm-bangkok.com/family/tabian-baan.html

This was one of the great misconceptions during the brexit campaign. The arch brexiteers like Farage made such an issue out of open borders that may who had never left the country came to believe that people from the EU could just enter the country without any check whatsoever. Schengen meant nothing to them.

Quite. Six years ago, Calais's infamous Jungle migrant camp was demolished by French police. Today, the camp itself has gone, but the migrants and the smugglers who profit from them remain. In fact, they are more numerous than ever before, with a record number of people attempting to cross the Channel in August 2022. The situation is putting a strain on relations between France and the United Kingdom. https://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/france-in-focus/20220916-calais-migrants-a-never-ending-crisis

You seem to be a bit confused. Thais do not have yellow books for you to be in, they have a blue book and you can be added to that. I lived with the in-laws initially but never bothered , just waited till the house was built and got a yellow book. A yellow book is for foreigners and can be issued in your name, you would need that before getting a pink card. As for the driving licence, not necessary and it can vary. Where I go they used to accept the yellow book as proof of address and then they suddenly stopped, insisted on the certificate from immigration.

It is not about democracy. The population were mislead into voting for potential gain, they were never advised about the potential pain. The whole fiasco has led the UK into advocating the breach of international conventions and the eventual breakup of the undemocratic "Union" known as the UK.

Maybe I am mistaken but wasn't there a new bill in the House this week, March 7th, and didn't the rules change in Oct 22 and Jan 21. Making things up as they go along.

Thanks, good to know. I get a 403 error message from the website.

It is the same old hypocritical rhetoric. Last year this forum was all for the rise in minimum wage and now complaining about the knock on effect. Larger hotels have always had to follow wage rises, does not affect the smaller ones to the same extent. A couple of years ago I went to my nephew's wedding in NE Scotland, an area that is highly dependent on tourism. I paid more for a B&B in Forres than I did in the Pattaya Holiday Inn a few weeks later, things should be kept in perspective. Scotland justifies the high rates on the basis they only get tourists for part of the year, maybe Thailand plans to follow suit.

That sounds like Bell Travel, not the Jomtien bus. https://www.suratthaniairporthotels.com/travel-from-pattaya-to-suvarnabhumi-airport/

Who said diagnostic patients have to wait a month. If you do not want to wait a month there is an obvious solution, pay more.

The government is not enforcing immigration rules, they are making up new ones on the hoof, they were incapable of enforcing the old. Only the delusional thought the French would go out of their way to help post brexit. People should have thought a bit more about what they wished for.

It is all about capacity. I have a bloodtest at Bang Saen every 6 months and that has been fairly consistant at about 2 hours, dropped a bit during the pandemic with a drop in numbers. The cancer hospital is a check-up, not intended as diagnostic.

The insurance requirementwas amended by a popup on the website some time ago which has since disappeared. I suspect there is a reluctance to change the website as it is the same for all countries involved and amendments are put out by notification, the last being in Jan. At the moment only China and India are subject to insurance. https://london.thaiembassy.org/en/publicservice/requirements-for-foreigners-travelling-to-thailand?page=5d6636cd15e39c3bd00072dd&menu=5d6636ce15e39c3bd000733c If you can use a computer at all, the e-visa is the best way to go.

As said Door 8. There are 2 services Jomtien and Bell Transport, a bit more expensive. You should try and verify the Jomtien service as the website appears to be unavailable. https://airportpattayabus.com/

You can buy individual sockets and reverse one, or as I did, get an adaptor so one plug is proud of the other.

the term "steak" comes from a word than meant meat on a stick. Over the years various interpretations have evolved with a tendency for some to think it means a particular cut of beef that has been grilled. I have seen many a horrified look when "steak tartare" or "steak a cheval" put in front of them.

Been a few of those.

Sharjah, just so you know is a few miles outside Dubai, a shanty town at the time, there were no oil facilities. I was lucky, we only worked to mid day due to the heat and lived in accommodation with fans. Some army units a few miles inland were in tents with only small generators for power. Temperature discomfort is a variable and related to availability of mod cons.