DLock

I would be concerned if it was me.

You could own a motorbike, new car, condo and have 5 new credit cards as well as Premium UBC and a new AIS International phone number.

She can also sign up for a lot of stuff using your passport copy, copy of your lease, utility bill, work permit and a forged signature.

...or she was just making sure she had a bargaining chip or her insurance policy for when you kick her to the curb.

The smashed iPhone thing was awesome. Wish I'd seen it.

"In a nutshell, the rough patch in Thai politics is persisting because

Thaksin wants the game to bend to him instead of playing the game like

everyone else."

Nothing else to say it is all there.

There seems to be some similarity between Lance Armstrong and Thaksin in their lying and cheating ways. Is there a possibility that they are BOTH sociopaths?

But clearly, only one of them is on performance enhancing drugs...

I don't blame him.

That candidate is a really creepy looking dude.

Walking home drunk and seeing "crazy eyes" every 5 meters, I think he is fully justified in what he did.

I guess the kind of have you over a barrel, so to speak.

They know it will be expensive and prohibitive to send it all back just to remove the motorcycle and try again. They figure you won't do that.

It is now a Poker game. They think they are holding Aces...and in reality, they are. They don't want the bike. They have plenty. They want the cash.

They will come back with a new number, probably 100k, and you will counter at 40k, and you will agree at around 70k.

You are hold and 8,2 off suite...not a time to bluff.

Negotiate....and congratulations. You just paid for your MBA in the intricacies of Thai customs.

Good luck.

if i can get it for 70k,i will bite their arm off!

You may have to be patient, or at least appear that way. Don't appear overly agitated and desperate. Look like you may send it all back and they get nothing.

Not sure how the motorcycle thing will play out though as they really have you here.

Might be a hybrid solution that they keep the bike and you pay 50k.

Good Luck...and remember your table image. Cool and stable.

I guess the kind of have you over a barrel, so to speak.

They know it will be expensive and prohibitive to send it all back just to remove the motorcycle and try again. They figure you won't do that.

It is now a Poker game. They think they are holding Aces...and in reality, they are. They don't want the bike. They have plenty. They want the cash.

They will come back with a new number, probably 100k, and you will counter at 40k, and you will agree at around 70k.

You are hold and 8,2 off suite...not a time to bluff.

Negotiate....and congratulations. You just paid for your MBA in the intricacies of Thai customs.

Good luck.

Thanks for this Winnie. Really interesting photos.

Interesting timing on this statement given the elections this weekend...dumbasses.

Will this be before or after Thailand is taken of the IP Watch list?

A heart attack at 43.

I saw Ramon fight a few times at Lumpini and I met him a couple of times. Did not know him well, but thought he was a decent guy.

Sorry to hear this.

Wow, I guess this didn't go exactly as the OP expected. ThaiVisa can be a tough crowd.

Just as a matter of interest, what were you expecting the work required when you purchased a hotel in a major tourist destination in Thailand? Do you or your Husband have experience with a Hotel in this kind of market?

Thailand is a tough place to make money. The rules, officials and locals stack the deck in their favor. It's hard to win here and I can imagine that a small hotel in Sukhumvit would be very price sensitive and attracts questionable Guests. Not a criticism. Just a fact. Some win. Many don't.

If you have only recently purchased it, I think your frustrations have only just begun.

Regardless, I wish you success and that your Hotel becomes the business you hope it to be.

Thaksin's got a whole pile of passports anyway, some of them very expensive, so he doesn't need his Thai one to travel the world running the country and avoiding assassination attempts.

You missed the point completely.

Really?

If you believe that Yingluck is the real PM and everything PT does is held to account by checks and balances then fine.

If you believe the BB is the de facto boss running the country then his Thai PP is a side issue.

What is a BB?

Apart from that your post has no context to the article.

Do they really have king cobras? Maybe it's a silly question, but it wouldn't surprise me that much if they did.

As for petting the puppies, I know it's nice, but the animals there must be pretty stressed already.

Yes, they have King Cobras and many other snakes and reptiles. Try taking a photo and they get really pissed....not the snakes, but the shop Owner guy.

I was going to buy 2 small Crocodiles for my lake because I'm stupid like that. It would have been wicked cool.

But small Crocodiles will eventually become big Crocodiles so in a moment of clarity I passed. Probably a smart decision.

I cringe when I think of Yingluck discussing anything with senior Government officials from other countries.

She is so inexperienced in these matters and a poor communicator. What must they think of her?

I always imagine it would be like a low level admin suddenly being thrust into the CEO position of a major corporation.

Sorry to dis-agree, but even a low level administrator would have some idea of what their corporation actually does..

Really?

Either you are a Yingluck supporter trying to rationalize her position...or you have never worked in a major corporation at a high level.

"We grow rice and stuff...want to buy some?".

Comical.

Thaksin's got a whole pile of passports anyway, some of them very expensive, so he doesn't need his Thai one to travel the world running the country and avoiding assassination attempts.

You missed the point completely.

I cringe when I think of Yingluck discussing anything with senior Government officials from other countries.

She is so inexperienced in these matters and a poor communicator. What must they think of her?

I always imagine it would be like a low level admin suddenly being thrust into the CEO position of a major corporation.

On one occasion in Chiang Mai it was after Midnight and we had seen this 10/11 year old a few times that evening. i said to my missus "time she was in bed" and promptly gave the girl 300 Baht for all the flowers she had left.

My missus was touched by my display of humanitarianism and gave me a warm smile.

It may have been a 'knowing' smile because an hour later we moved to another bar and the girl was there with a new bunch of flowers !!

Fell for that trick myself a few years ago.

You so much want to do the right thing, but there is no easy answer.

Now, when i see beggars I just walk by. If I thought my money would help, I'd be dropping money into plastic cups everywhere.

6 days?

Really?

You were stupid. He was opportunistic.

I pity if the boyfriend ever wants to leave you.

Be seen to do the right thing.

Be heard to say the right thing.

Make an example of a few Patsy's.

...but keep doing what you are doing.

The Thai Way.

Gerd, really sorry to hear about Max.

I lost my dog over Xmas. I was at the Veterinary Hospital every day for 5 days. I would have slept there if they let me, but they wouldn't. My dog eventually lost the fight to kidney disease after a heroic fight. I took him home and buried him where i would past him every day.

I still talk to the mound of dirt as if he could hear me.

It's been a while, so I hope it's getting easier.