jagfx

Maybe I'm missing something, but to me HH is no where near as busy as last year. Mind you, I live down Takiab way and the restaurants etc are no where as full as they were last year. Business owners also complaining to me that it is quiet. On speaking to one restaurant worker, she stated a lot of her Scandi regulars have headed to Vietnam this year. Cicada & Night Markets are very popular tourist spots, so they are always busy no matter what, especially at this time of year.

Nothing like Patts! In August it is very quiet here in HH. Plenty of bars, restaurants and no go go scene as such. There are bar girls but easily avoidable. The beaches are ok but not spectacular. For accommodation info and activities, best to join the dedicated HH Forum (Google it) and also there are quite a few Facebook groups that cover this stuff. You want the quiet life but still enjoy a quiet beer in a good spot, welcome to HH....

As most Aussies know, the tough new Aussie gun laws came about after the Port Arthur massacre back in 1996 where 35 people were killed by a lone gunman. The Australian Prime Minister at the time, John Howard, took a tough stance basically without little consultation and drastically changed Australian gun laws without too much complaining from the general public. That was Australia's wake up call.

Prior to that, different Australian states had different laws with regards to firearms. I was in the Police in the Northern Territory, and surprisingly they had the toughest laws prior to this massacre. Queensland probably had the most casual laws where anything went as was witnessed by the number of M16s etc I confiscated and had to mail back to Qld from visiting hunters to the NT.

But having said that, if you are a genuine hunter in Oz or a member of a gun club (rifle, pistol or clay), you still have access to the required firearms but you just have to jump through a few more hoops to get access to them. Basically there is no restrictions (other than ridiculous military style weapons) as long as you comply with the laws. You won't be permitted to have your 40 cal Glock under your pillow, but it may be locked in a double locked safe area within your house for example. At the end of the day, crooks will still get their grubby hands on firearms no matter what the current laws of the land are.

To state that Australians are less safe as a result of these laws is an absolutely ridiculous statement. But the Australian model may not be for the US, but they can certainly look at it and modify it to suit their needs. I probably feel more concerned regarding firearms here in Thailand than either the US or my home country. As an outsider, I can see that the US seems to have a gun problem that does need addressing, but that is up to US citizens and their government to sort out. The NRA does seem to be a powerful voice there, so good luck with all of this. No doubt we'll read about another mass shooting somewhere in the US in the not too distant future and this argument will continue....

I was under the impression that when this law was first introduced several months back, that it only referred to a certain type of school. Not every school. Which in turn would substantially reduce the number of businesses affected. First I've heard about the temples though, which does concern me because where I live, we are basically surrounded by them. Time will tell....

The 1% ers are grubs. They choose a certain lifestyle, but once they're in, it's hard to leave. An annual toy run doesn't make them good guys, nor does popular TV shows like Sons of Anarchy. They run prostitutes, drugs, extortion rackets, night clubs, security companies etc, These grubs forced pretty radical law changes in my home state of Qld in Oz when they took their grievances with each other into the public domain where innocent bystanders were put at risk. The new laws weren't popular as they did have a flow on affect against your legal bike enthusiasts, but they have worked. I'm not going to shed a tear for the victim here as his crim history clearly shows that he has more than likely harmed others in the past. Hopefully BIB will track down the killers and remove another grub or two from society. Win win! Maybe it's just the ex-copper in me.....

Well done mate. I wish the Thais would put more effort into this themselves. Education required either at school, or more importantly, their parents etc. But having said that, I try and help the local Trash Hero Hua Hin every week for a couple of hours. Good exercise as one poster already mentioned. There is one Thai girl dedicated to this cause and I think she get s a little frustrated as she does this every week, sometimes by herself, but whenever I go and help, she seems to get more attention because the farang is helping her. She knows it is a good thing but she is disappointed that more Thais don't get involved. Currently back in OZ for 10 days and yesterday whilst on one of the Gold Coast beaches had a quick look around to see how much rubbish was lying around, and I was struggling to find any. I guess a combination of people being a little more conscious of their actions and also a council that spends on money keeping the areas clean. Thailand would improve their tourism if they just made more of an effort to clean up all the crap, whether that be on the beaches or the vacant blocks of land around towns and cities...the place is a pig sty in parts.

Yes JAG,live and blanks were carried together. There is a huge difference between the two so you couldn't get it wrong. These rounds were not my go to rounds, just left overs from various shoots etc. I would still go to the ammo box for reloads. As far as the range rules went, we actually had our own range and kill house and the rules were somewhat relaxed as most of us were qualified Range Officers so we just took turns at running the shoot, and it was fairly loose. Granted your General Duties Police were a tad more stricter and everything was a lot more formal, but still ammunition was was not accountable. For the qualifying shoots every few months, they would just turn up on duty already fully armed, blast away for a couple of hours, and then resume duty fully armed, without anyone really caring how many rounds each individual shot or was responsible for. Completely different to Military shoots where you have the 'yes sir, no sir' stuff. Not sure if the OP is actually on active duty in the Norwegian Police as a Trainee or still in training, and without knowing their procedures, it is hard to make a call. All I'm saying it can be an oversight on his part. In this day and age, probably an oversight that you don't want to make. Cheers.

I can relate to the OP. A few years ago when I was a member of the TRG in the NT Police in Oz, I use to carry the same backpack everywhere, including several hundred trips to the shooting ranges. I always had a collection of live rounds and blanks in that bag. No more than about 15 or so at any one time. You don't have to account for every single round in most Australian Police Forces. I also use to carry CS gas and other smaller explosive devices in it, but they always found their way back to the armory or were used up on the range. But on a trip to Bali from Sydney, Security grabbed my backpack and wanted to know why I was carrying a metal fork, which they duly confiscated because it was considered a dangerous weapon. I wasn't going to argue as just as they were giving me a lecture, it dawned on me that I had my work backpack and there was ammunition in it. Cleared Security without any further hassle, and quickly found an AFP Officer and handed over all my ammo to him explaining my situation. No problem as he took it from me and all good. The idea of an Indonesian investigation didn't appeal to me. So it can happen. I was an idiot not to check my bag before leaving home. Lesson learnt as I then bought a new backpack for travel only. Cheers.

I would hardly call them concentration camps. The conditions aren't ideal mainly due to the heat and humidity and lack of aircons in parts of the centres. Plus there is the uncertainty of the clients' future, especially now that some had been held for over two years. They are technically called Processing Centres, but essentially are a prison. The clients are not permitted to leave unless accompanied by security etc, ie excursions or medical treatment in town etc. They all get three full meals a day and can generally eat as much as they like (the wastage is unbelievable), they have access to basic gyms and activities, including English & cultural classes. Some have access to the the internet via a computer room and also phones. There are basic canteen type services also. When I was there, there was no actual roll call or muster, basically just kept track of them when they produced their photo ID at meal times. If they didn't show up for 3x meals in a row, then Security had to find out why as there may be a problem ie hunger strike, sick or just missing. I always thought they were doing a Hogan's Heroes on us at times, slipping in and out of different compounds. Concentration camp? Definitely not. Some place I'd liked to be locked up? Definitely not.

I was with G4S, who have a pretty shoddy record the world over. Google it. They have a huge presence in PNG. There were a few issues at the Centre prior to the riots, and as Transfield and Wilson already had the contract at Nauru, they were always in the running to take over from G4S. Management on the ground for both companies is basically ex-Army. Being offshore, the guards employed don't need to have the formal qualifications of Australian based Security Guards (licences etc). G4S had a pretty good mix of ex-Military, ex-Police and ex-Corrections Officers, guards that knew how to deal with people as had plenty of experience in their past jobs. There was also a fair quantity of the guards that were a tad more mature at 40+. When Wilson came in, they did offer all G4S guards a chance to apply for a position with them, where basically none of the older guys were successful unless you had very specific skills they needed. On seeing the Wilson guards, they were all young, big ex-Army, with most of them just recently returned from the Middle East. Don't get me wrong, most of them are good guys, but it was obvious how they were loading up their staff. What probably peeved me more than anything was the number of Kiwis (actual living in NZ) that were employed over Aussies considering it is an Aussie run centre.

And regarding the issues where Expat staff are immediately sent home if there is a problem. That's always going to happen. To be honest, they are not going to let any expat face a PNG court unless it is an extremely serious matter, where is a person is formally extradited back to PNG. Same use to happen when I was a copper in the Northern Territory working on Aboriginal Communities, where if a copper or any white person did anything serious enough to upset the locals, then that person was shipped out immediately to avoid payback. This was common, especially for motor vehicle accidents and the like. What I saw during the Feb 2014 riots was enough to convince me that the locals can be very native and barbaric when they choose to be, giving me the distinct impression that we weren't even that safe there. Cheers.

Now whether you agree with the Australian governments policy on how they deal with refugees is neither here nor there. But we are talking about people that have fled their country for various reasons, so they should be treated with some respect until they have been processed and categorized. I worked at the Australian run Manus Island detention centre in PNG as a Security Guard. Was in the thick of it in the riots there in Feb 2014. I can fully understand why they rioted and I would have done the same if I was in their shoes. It is a prison and the conditions are filthy. The heat and humidity is constant and the locals hate them. The same applies to Nauru but they have just made some big changes there. I have spoken to plenty of these boys on Manus and some have real horror stories of why they fled. But having said that, I know that there a minority that aren't genuine and just looking for a better life. Sure, most of them (not all) have an option to return home, but that is just not possible for some. And these boys have been there for over two years now and still not getting processed. It is a cluster all round on the part of the Aus & PNG govts.

And this new crackdown by Australia, deporting non Aussie citizens back to their home country if they have committed serious crime/s, seems to have caught up a fair few Kiwis. Hundreds I believe. Some of these Kiwis have lived all their life in Oz and never even visited NZ. That would be an eye opener for them. I also worked in the Police Watchouse on the Gold Coast and every 2nd person that came through that place was born in NZ..

I'm on Takiab Beach (south of Hua Hin) now and when we arrived about 90 mins ago there were plenty of volunteers manually removing the sludge and rubbish from the beach. There were also quite a few hotel staff from hotels that are not actually beach front. And there were a couple of municipality dump trucks assisting. It was stinking hot and hard work, but looks much better than yesterday already. Also doesn't appear to be any badly affected marine life washed up on shore but that's not to say they haven't suffered offshore. Huge thunderstorm through Takiab last night so that may have helped also..

Went for a walk on Takiab beach about an hour ago and it is filthy. It is definitely an oil based substance. It is very thick in blobs where you can actually pick it up. But then it gets messy and hard to get off stuff like your feet or shoes. Had to use the clothes washing powder to remove it and it took some effort. The beach is looking terrible and it will greatly affect wildlife and being the start of the tourist season, there may be some very disappointed people if something isn't done soon.

The only reason I posted that picture was to show that there are jellyfish still active in Hua Hins waters at the moment. It was a big one for sure, but I appreciate that bigger is not necessarily deadlier. These suckers won't kill you but they can give you a nasty reaction if contact is made. The box jellyfish is a completely different beast. They are in Thai waters but don't appear to be this far north. They will grow up to about 15cm in width, weigh about 2kgs and have tentacles that can be as long as 3m. They also move through the water a lot faster than your average jellyfish. I have seen these suckers up close and personal many times, with the odd stings across hands and feet to confirm that they are very painful and best to be avoided.

I took this photo 2 days ago on Takiab beach. So they are well and truly around at the moment. Cheers.

On Takiab beach just south of Hua Hin (only a couple of kms) there are a few jellyfish washed up on shore. Probably one every few hundred metres or so. I walk along this beach just about every day. These ones a quite large and will give you a sting. They are not the same ones that killed the German tourist last week in Koh Samui. I lived in the NT in Australia and know what the box jellyfish look like.

Still plenty of locals swimming in the sea but having said that, they all swim fully clothed. If I was concerned about my child being stung, I'd probably stick to the hotel swimming pool or even go to the beach when the tide is such that small lagoons are formed between the sea and the beach wall. These can be big enough for kids to have some fun and you could do a walk through first to ensure no jellyfish have been trapped in there.

BKKdreaming,

Just to answer a few of your questions, HCMC is a huge city which is divided up into Districts, with District 1 being the most popular for tourists. This is basically in the centre of the city. There are plenty of cheap decent hotels in this area. If you are doing the tourist thing, then you can walk everywhere to see the main city sights. There is actually some good stuff around and can be done in a couple of days easily.

It is hot, so you may wish to taxi around. It was mentioned in a previous post above which taxi companies to stick with as they are very fair and also very cheap. The good thing about HCMC is that the footpaths are in pretty good condition and they are generally huge, so there is plenty of room. The traffic (bikes) can be a little daunting due to the sheer number, but they are all pretty well behaved with plenty of safe places to cross the road. They actually stop at red lights and are very aware of pedestrian traffic. Once you sus out how to cross the road, then it is pretty easy.

There are a few tourist sights out of the city like the famous war tunnels or the Mekong Delta. You can normally book a cheap tour through your hotel which will last a bout 4-6 hrs and cost you about US$25. Very cheap but just don't expect too much keeping in mind that these are well worn tourist areas that can look a bit like a production line at times. But it is a very fair price.

And there are plenty of 7-11s and the like. Just like Thailand, they are everywhere.

There is an issue with scams and petty theft. We were warned a few times by locals and hotel staff to watch our belongings, especially whilst on bikes or walking down the footpath close to the road. Just be sensible like anywhere else in the world. The touters can be a little annoying in downtown HCMC, as some can get right in your face at times. They will try to scam you but just smile and be polite and they are generally pretty good. They are nice people in the south so you shouldn't have any major issues. In the north of Vietnam, they are a little different and come across as a little unfriendly. There is still a bit of a perceived divide between the north and the south that probably goes way back.

With the currency, we mainly used the local Dong. We did have USD with us and did use it at the airport for our visa and also to buy drinks on the way out. But be warned that they can be a little picky when it comes to USD where some will inspect every note and may not accept them if there is any minor rip or damage to them. But if they do accept it and give you change back in Dong, then you will get notes that look like they have been in circulation since the 70s. There are plenty of ATMs around and obviously there is a cost on doing business with them, but also be aware that the max amount you can withdraw is pretty small compared to what you are normally use to. Don't be fooled by all the zeros.. cheers.

Very good post for those heading to Saigon. Great city and worth a visit at least once.

Also as a side note, If you have a smart phone, you can download an app called Maps.me which is a great map app that does not require data to use anywhere. All you have to do, is download the relevant country when you have got wifi and then you can use it whenever you choose. It is a great app and I have used it in Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and Australia without a problem.

Good story OP. I am new to the 90 reporting and hadn't done my first one yet and was a little confused with regards to what happened when you left the country before the reporting date. I returned from Bali on 6th Aug and assumed that my reporting date would be 90 days from then. But as we visited the Hua Hin Immigration office yesterday to obtain an extension for my wife's Tourist Visa, I thought I'd ask the office that served her. He took my passport, checked my stamps and asked if I was still living at the same place. He then attached a new reporting date slip to my passport for 30th Dec. All good. This date then goes into my smartphone calendar

And as a side note, we attended there at about 1.30pm where there was about 5 or so other couples waiting. Grabbed a number from the ticket machine, and we were the next number called. In and out in about 15 mins tops.

It is a dodgey system, no doubt about it. Recently I was pulled over at a checkpoint in HH on my bike. Traffic was going super slow and I was in the right lane.The Police Officer had to walk past two other bikes with locals riding them and no helmets to get to me and request I pull over. I'm use to it now and I am always legal, so no probs.

Then I speak to a couple of local Burmese barmen, both done for no licence and no helmet. Not only are they permitted to ride off, but their total fines each were 200 baht because they are poor. Gotta love it...

Been living in Hua Hin (Takiab area) since February. We enjoy it as nice and quiet for us (Aussie couple 52/50) Enough night life for us but you may struggle if you are more of a night owl. Enough of a red light area to keep you interested. Traffic can be a little crazy at times, especially on weekends. But generally pretty good. We only rent scooters here at about 2500 baht per month. Don't really need a car as we are close to the baht bus stop which do only cost 10 baht each trip during the day and then 15 baht after 7pm. That gets us right into the centre of town. There are at least 3x major hospitals here that I know of (Bangkok, San Paulo and Hua Hin). Plenty of markets here if you are into that. As stated, very quiet at the moment but the Scandinavians take over the place in the high season. Weather is great, the beaches so so, and if you are a kite surfer, then this is heaven. Immigration office here seems easy enough and friendly when attending. Been there a few times for various reasons and never longer than an hour. There are quite a few expats here, but probably not as many English speaking ones as in other major Thai cities. Up to you whether you seek them out or not. The vibe here isn't too bad and the crime rate seems low, with the Police keeping a very low profile. Checkpoints every now and then on the main roads but as long as you comply, all good. And as this is the Royal family's holiday palace, we have a permanent Navy presence just off shore and the town itself is kept pretty clean. And as stated, BKK is only about 240kms up the road, and there is flights direct to CM from our very underused airport. They are even building a ferry terminal at our end of town for the future Pattaya run. You could live in worst places, but visit first to see if it is for you. Welcome to sleepy hollow...

I'm not sure re-enactment is the right word to use. It is quite common in western countries to request a suspect to return to the scene of a crime and answer questions or clarify certain things. It may look like a re-enactment to some but it is just a part of the interview process. But having said that, it has to be done with the suspects consent, which normally means they are basically admitting to the offence or trying to justify it. And normally solicitors/lawyers are present etc, and it is conducted in a very controlled environment. Not sure Thailand's way of doing these quite complies with those type of conditions, but they are more common than you think. And this is the ex Police in me advising on this. Cheers.

I genuinely hope that the guy they apprehended is involved. The sub humans that target the innocent by cowardly bomb attacks need urgent removal from society, where they can't harm anyone. Now whether that be locked up forever or the death penalty, who cares. Just ensure they can't do it again.

If the photos in this post are the real deal, then security seems to be pretty casual around this suspect considering the nature of the crime and the world wide publicity it has received. All very casual looking. There also seems to be some confusion on where exactly he was apprehended. I'm not familiar with Thailand or Cambodia's laws, so maybe there isn't a jurisdiction/formal extradition type issue here, but I hope it was all done by the book.

Good job by the people responsible for the arrest. Hopefully they got their man this time...

The wife and are recently back from a trip to Bali. Been going there for years. That was probably our last trip though as it is certainly losing its charm. Granted the beaches are cleaner every year, but the infrastructure is being left behind and the traffic is crazy all the time.. It is a very busy place with plenty of tourists, and the locals are no where near as friendly when I first went there in the mid 80s. But that could be said of a lot of places though. It is cheap there, and some stuff is cheaper than Thailand, but not all. The hardest thing for me is the food, as I find it bland compared to Thai dishes.

With regards to the Consulate, the OP is correct stating the staff are super nice there. It can be tricky to find also, but just look out for the Thai flag when you get to the street. We went there to apply for a Non O visa for the wife as she is trying to become a defendant/follower on my Extension of Stay based on retirement. Had all the correct paperwork and fee, which was submitted and accepted after checking it with the boss out back. They also requested our contact details in case there was a problem. Advised to come back a couple of days later to collect her passport. Which was actually a Thai public holiday but they were open. I went back to pick up the passport only to be advised that Denpensar doesn't have the authority to issue those types of visas and that it would have to done through Jakarta. So I was a bit peeved that they couldn't ring us and tell us this so we could have organized a flight out Thailand so the wife could then just apply for a Tourist Visa then and there. They did refund her original fee and all the paperwork etc. Went back the following Monday and managed to get the Tourist Visa before we flew out on Thursday.

We were not sure whether we would get the Non O visa before we went there even after several attempts to contact the Denpensar Consulate before we left LOS. Just didn't reply or didn't answer the questions. So we had plan B and were prepared to go down the Tourist visa path if required. They have plenty of information about all the visas stuck on their outside wall. There were a couple of people there that were refused a Tourist visa as they didn't have proof of onward travel.

Also, big tip, if you are staying in the tourist area, then use Grab Taxi for transport to and from the Consulate. Super cheap, great cars and very reliable. Cheers.

Didn't even realize this thread existed! Being a forex trader living in LOS for just over 6 months now so I am keen to see what other traders are doing. I concentrate mainly on the 4hr and Daily charts, watching the majors and a few of the crosses. Thailand has a pretty good time zone for this type of trading due to the fact that I soon as my 4hr charts tick over at midnight, that's me done until 8am. Suits my lifestyle just fine. Looking forward to following along and participating in the discussion. Cheers.