Moonlover

Thanks for that Rooster. I was beginning to think that I was the only one that felt that way about a fellow biker.

I've stopped offering advise now. All it does is generate yet more versions of how Wise works best.

Yes of course you can buy OTC topical antibiotic in any pharmacy, just as you can in just about every country. There are pharmacies in the government hospitals, but why bother, there are plenty on the high streets.

Here's a useful and quite recent article for you to read on these matters. https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/30365251 Information on living wills can be found here https://isaanlawyers.com/living-will-thailand/ There plenty of other Thailand specific references on the internet. It saves all that typing. ????

If one has to return to the stage and explain that 'actually it was humour folks', then clearly it wasn't.

So, are you one of those who is always taken in by the political narrative? Imagine that you are a Politian, during the 1970s (or whatever) in Thailand, where there is a serious drink problem and what you want to do is stop people from indulging in all this daytime drinking and get on with doing some productive work. So close the pubs and bars during the afternoon, that should help. (something they did in the UK during WW1 by the way) But what are we going to tell the public? The real reason isn't much of a vote catcher is it. in fact it could make you downright unpopular. So you sell them a nice warm fuzzy narrative instead. 'It's for the good of all our children's future who are our country's future'. Now that should catch a few more votes, or at least not be as politically damaging. That, to me is a far more likely reason.

The real problem is not the vendors at all. It's middle men buying job-lots from the primary selling agents and them selling them on to the vendors at profit. Vendors have no choice but but to put their prices up if they want to make a living. The government and the police know about this and have tried to close down these intermediaries several times, but the keep spring up again.

There is an allocation of lottery tickets set aside by the GLO specially for disabled vendors and when there were street demonstrations against the on line sales idea , most of the protestors were disabled folk. Also some of them have non visible handicaps. Just because YOU haven't seen one, it doesn't mean they are not there.

How can that be so? School kids are in class during the periods in which the ban is imposed. And BTW it is already illegal to sell alcohol to anyone under 20 years. So try again. ????

As Bangkok Bank is one of Wise's partner banks, I you'll have no problem sending them 9,000 GBP. But I do not understand why you're obsessing about using your debit card. As Smile is an on line bank, you should be able to make a direct bank to bank transfer into Wise's account or into a Wise Borderless account (Now called a Multi Currency Account I believe) if you have one. That's how most of us do and it's easy, really really easy.

Can you do on line transfers? That would not involve your debit card at all.

That's a tall order in Thailand. Do you allow spiders and geckos to remain so that they can gobble up trespassers?

That REALLY gets up my nose when we dine out and the staff don't come and clear the table! Like you it's no problem at home, I just get up and start to do it, which usually shames the rest of the diners to get up and help.

I don't agree with your last sentence, but non the less you make some valid points. NHS waiting lists

That's nonsense. Ones Thai wife is not in control your permission to stay. She's there to confirm that you're married and living together. Nothing more. Like @DrJoy above we've only had one visit from immigration at our home and that was little more than a courtesy visit.

This is not true. A British passport holder is entitled to NHS treat from the moment that take up residence in the country. They can be asked to provide proof of that of course. https://www.aesinternational.com/blog/repatriating-to-the-uk-part-2 and scroll down to 'accessing the NHS'.

No, it's not a new requirement at all. It's always been a requirement, but most offices and IOs waive that requirement, no doubt because they too can see its irrelevance.

That's very good to know. I've lived here for 8 years and so far have had no need of medical care beyond the very minor. But I've always suspected that a doctor would not 'leave you to die' if you don't have sufficient money as many people seem to think. Indeed a doctor is compelled to treat you by the Hippocratic oath (or at least its modern equivalent) that they all swear. I live here on an adequate pension, but it would be totally unrealistic for me to return to the UK in order to receive 'free' medical care. I have no home or family there and my pension would not even cover the basics. And in the mean time, what does my wife live on? So I'm here for the duration and the fact that there is no way that I could ever afford. or even be offered insurance, doesn't bother me in the slightest. Just keep as fit and as healthy as one can and don't worry about it. I'm not a religious person at all, but I do like this little ditty from Jesus. ''Can any of you, by worrying, add a single hour to your life?'' My own little ditty goes like this: ''He worried himself sick because he couldn't get medical insurance''.