Jomtienwow

wp, I had a similar experience in the US at a Kinkos making color copies of my passport. I asked the clerk about using the color machine and he saw my passport and he basically went postal. Backed off from me and said it is illegal to make a copy of my passport. Not sure about color vs. regular. So he was saying he couldn't help me do this illegal thing and that he didn't want to know of such horrors. I was amused but not intimidated, made my copies, and paid at the cashier, based on the meter device. TIA?

The trouble it seems to me is not enough buses and too high a price for locals. By trying this as a limited half assessed experiment, it does not test the real thing, which would mean enough buses at popular prices, so that there is one every five minutes.

So people who say this will be a bust are probably correct. And thats a shame.

The predictability part of the routes is wonderful, especially when going to places like Naklua and Bangkok Pattaya hospital. Taking baht buses often involves lots of unwelcome surprises, and multiple transfers.

How about make the baht buses illegal, run as many big buses as needed, and run them full at popular Thai prices, and fill in the blanks with clean taxicabs. For clean taxicabs, the government could promote the clean golf cart style tuk tuks of Mazatlan Mexico called pulmenerias. In Pattaya, they could be called a go go carts.

Actually a totally fair two priced system could be used by selling monthly bus passes. Short timers wouldn't bother buying them and pay for retail rides, but residents could get a great discount.

Pattaya is supposedly looking for ways to class up the joint. The baht buses need to go.

A friend of mine is interested in sourcing these, both the small cheap brass ones and the larger ones made with better materials, such as wood. I have never seen these sold in bulk, only randomly at small trinket stalls. Does anyone know a wholesale source? Anyone know where the brass ones are made (Thailand or China?)

Expecting to hear the jokes, too ...

Ouch.

Everyone knows the tap water in Thailand is not potable, but I am curious, just how bad is it?

I don't even use Thai tap water for tooth brushing. I also know Thai locals use bottled water also.

However, I am assuming there are lots of Thais too poor to even buy the cheapest bulk bottled water.

So, what diseases might a person get by drinking this water?

Any farangs on this board who swear by Thai tap water and are alive to tell the story?

How much tap water would you need to make you sick, a couple of glasses, or drinking it for a week?

Regarding the US social security system, yes it is going to be under strain and yes, adjustments are going to be made, but I haven't seen any evidence whatsoever that the system is going away. The age to get full retirement benefits will surely go higher though, and benefits will probably be reduced, at the very least they will play games with colas, but again, I disagree that the program is going away.

Good news for early retirees from the US.

You CAN take withdrawals from your IRAs without penalties.

To do so, you must follow very specific rules about how much is taken, and once you start, you must keep withdrawing or then face huge penalties. All it takes is a consultation with a good tax accountant.

Bottom line, I believe you COULD withdraw a yearly percentage of the 200K in your retirement accounts starting NOW.

More info at:

http://www.retireearlyhomepage.com/wdraw59.html

About your question, if it was me, I would be outta there, especially if I hated my job. It is not the "sensible" or "mature" choice, but who cares? You have your life to live.

Would buying them suitcases help?

This driver looks and sounds like a psychopath.

What would he have to do to lose his job?

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Set the vehicle on fire.

Lose it in a poker game.

Take off from the scene like a mad man next time and crack the engine block.

Drive from Pattaya to Phuket in a straight line.

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How about ...

Give change back for a 100 to a farang

Accept 5 baht from a farang

Allow time for passengers to sit down before speeding off

TH:

Thailand much better food, Puying sleazier, more scams. BKK safer than Manila. More expate in LOS as PI does not need as many english teachers.

PI:

Pinoy better Asses, tits and cuter, less kiniving, are faithful, want to marry. PI cheaper. People much nicer. Cleaner beaches.

A toss up between two shitholes.  Pick your poison.

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Pinoy better asses?

Sounds like the germ of a new growth industry.

I don't know whether to be offended or buy a ticket.

This driver looks and sounds like a psychopath.

What would he have to do to lose his job?

That's interesting and the first I ever heard of it.

Forgive my cynicism, but do you think such coverage is for real?

I assume if it does exist that it would be for the value of the condo new, not a later possibly higher market value?

I wasn't aware that "jumbo hot dog" was a Mexican food, but what with globalization these days ...

After seeing all the newly homeless people in America, and considering that so many expats buy their condos for cash, I was wondering is there anything expats can do to protect their investments from total losses, like fires, floods, explosions, plagues, and locusts?

I know you can buy theft and water damage for inside your unit, but what if your building burns down, or is condemned and torn down?

Is there coverage available to buy against this? I have never heard of it being available in Thailand, so that's why I'm asking.

If it really isn't available, I suppose its another reason to rent rather than buy, given that some people are spending 10 million baht on condos. Losing that much might be very painful even for wealthier expats.

I go there for a few days every 3-4 months (next trip next week) and love it, but I've only been to Manila.  Later this year, I plan a trip to the south for some R&R. 

Never got into any trouble and always feel safe and welcome.  I think the people are genuinely more welcoming of foreigners than here and there is less a culture of 'what can we rip the farang off for next.'  than here.

But whoever said the food is awful is spot on.  How do they stay so slim by eating pig fat all day?

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Yeah, the food is markedly inferior to Thai food. If you dig a little, there are some interesting dishes (not that I am expert) like Sinigang soup, fresh seafood, and vegetable dishes with salty thingies.

Good idea to check out other areas. I was in Cebu City,Cebu and then went up to Bantyan Island, and then Negros. Bantayan Island was amazing, talk about primitive conditions for the natives though! I met some locals and ate their local food. Not fit for animals, grade D course rice (disgusting, the most atrotious rice I ever had) served with dried small fish. That was dinner. A cab driver in Cebu said something really funny to me: "the people in Bantayan are really backwards, they love all white people."

The tsunami is more of an earthquake related event, versus a hurricane event which science now can predict quite accurately, with plenty of warning. If you live in an earthquake zone, you know it can happen any second, but you never have warning, so all you can do is be prepared for it, you can't hope to leave the zone if it hits you. (Unless, you have a good tsunami warning system which Thailand unfortunately lacked at the time.)

This great hurricane was tracking for New Orleans and people had two days warning. There was a major failure of government not to get more people out before the event. The New Orleans newspaper the Times Picayune had predicted this exact event, with the levees breaking and with many thousands of people left in the city, most of these people were not capable of getting out and government was not there to offer them a way.

If you look at a map, you have to conclude the location makes sense commercially, being that the great Mississippi river runs to the sea there. Red beans and rice will live again, rational or not, it might take a decade, but New Orleans will rise again.

My general impression of the place is that it is an economic and political basket case with zero hope of any improvement in the forseeable future. Beyond that, the people are friendly,English is widely spoken and there is less culture shock for Westerners because of the colonial period and the religion. For me, the Bhuddist aspect of Thailand is a big feature though.

There is no country like Thailand, so I would probably choose the nation of New York City (with LOTS of money).

Ooops, now I see it can't be your home country, so OK then Miami.

Pattaya has a lot of retired farangs. Older folks die in Florida all the time too. The odd part for Pattaya might be the clutching bible, a bit of a change from a bottle of whiskey.

With all due respect, an oldish man dying of a disease isn't really news; it is more of an obituary item. Granted, jumpers are news.

How about the Nose Garden Restaurant and Plastic Surgery Clinic?

I also don't like any of the choices very much, but must admit they are better than the name that popped into my head, Giardia Gardens.

I found the dim sum at the Lok Wah Hin Chinese Restaurant at the Novotel Hotel Siam Square to be among the best I have ever had anywhere. A bit pricey but not too bad.

I am wondering if people are using Turbotax products to file from Thailand. You can get them online. Do their products support any expat tax issues, and if not, what kinds of situations have people found that would make it impossible to use Turbotax from Thailand?

I have a friend who had a basic eye lid job a while back and I came along to provide support. By all appearances the place is top notch and lower cost than Bumrungrad. The customer service, support in perfect English, overall care, technical skill of the surgeon were all excellent. Unfortunately, I don't have the name. The hospital is rather a long taxi ride from where most farang stay in Bangkok. There weren't any other farangs in evidence during my visit.

I'll be landing in BKK at 11:00 am on the 29th of September, and my return flight is on the 29th of October at 20:00. Will my stay be counted as 30 days or 31??

These are "admitted until..." dates stamped into my passport on the last few arrival at Bangkok airport without a visa:

Arrival Admitted

date until

18.11.2002 17.12.2002

14.12.2002 12.01.2003

21.02.2003 22.03.2003

09.12.2003 07.01.2004

11.04.2004 09.01.2005

04.06.2004 06.07.2004

The "admitted until" date is always exactly 29 days after the arrival date. No mistake ever.

You still have plenty of time until you leave to get that 60-day tourist visa to adorn your passport.

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OK, this sounds obvious, but just to make sure.

If it says admitted until a certain date, does that mean you are OK leaving on that date, or do you have to leave the day before?

It would be more clear if the word used was admitted through, instead of admitted until.