richard_smith237

Somewhat irrelevant if all he [Thaksin] wishes to do is to return to his homeland... and it seems thats exactly what he wants. His reasons could be numerous from simply wanting to be in his home nation to a megalomanic insistence on winning... or a combination of facets at any point between that.

@ ewelve... and incredible frustrating situation which I hope you get through... Regarding Uk Mobile Banking Apps, something you have been told may have been lost in explanation... I have a UK NatWest and can download statements directly to my phone, forward it as an attachment to an e-mail address etc.. What may not be acceptable is to use 'screen shots' or 'photos of a screen'... I guess the Embassy wont accept this either. Thus: Try and get past that hurdle - there must be a way to 'download' your statement as a PDF on your Mobile Banking App. Once downloaded - Try and apply for the Visa again - as it is likely to be this which is the stumbling block and the £10,000 in a UK account issue just a ridiculous number someone made up - Definitely apply again with proper PDF statements this time. Regarding the name change etc.. Your wife was bullied, sadly, officials in Thailand get away with forcing their incompetence. It's difficult when the one doing the bullying is at the top of their local pyramid.

But the westerner with the massive moobs looks drenched from the belly down.

Make that "chump" instead of "champ". ‘Champ’ is an Aussie slur, origination from the prisons of Victoria… A few etymological reasons, not sure which is correct: 1) Rhyming with ‘tamp’ (tamper ; to tamper with) & is basically calling someone a kiddie fiddler. 2) Someone who performs in return oral for ‘champion ruby tobacco’.. it’s basically more offensive than the ‘c-bomb’ to Australians… So, in this context ‘only if you feel like a champ’ is perhaps apt…

Yes, but the question wasn’t asked ‘if it was ok to walk around without a shirt 100 years ago?’ As another poster mentioned… ‘lo-so maak’… particularly in the city. also an indication of socio economic disparity… poorer people & foreigners who’d get labelled ‘kee-nok-farang’…. Particularly in towns & cities… At beach resorts it’s somewhat more relaxed… But ultimately the answer ‘no… it’s not ok to walk around without a top, particularly for a foreigner’…

Why not?... you prefer the bedroom ? We have two kitchens.... the larger of the two is somewhat more 'utility based' and houses the drier, washing machine oven etc... Some Condo's don't have the 'space' luxury having a utility room, which is what I think you mean. OMF is renovating his condo, thus I doubt it has the 'extra' room you would consider.

Indeed.... which is why I use it very sparingly... (i.e. suffering with a Sporting injury and needing a decent nights sleep) and never to rely on it two nights in a row etc... ... I understand why these are 'prescription drugs' because of the issues they could cause if one is incapable of being disciplined with themselves. As far as melatonin is concerned - its has a similar effect to Hot Chocolate (on me) which isn't much as far as aiding sleep is concerned. The issue of course with the prescription medication is that it aids sleep so well, one can sleep for 12 hours which doesn't really help much the following evening. Hence care needs to be taken by not becoming reliant on it. I also use such medication on long lights if I want to sleep which helps with travel, but again, care has to be taken not to be come habitually dependent. Once usual patterns are in place, I have little issue with sleeping so have no further requirement for such medication, but find a use for them while also quite aware of the possible risk.

We have washing machine & separate drier… about 1cm around does trick, the machines these days are generally well balanced & don’t jig around ver much at all… just the high frequency vibration on fast spin - 1cm seems to cover that.

I’ve got some Clonazapam, Lorazapam & a something ‘ine’…. Had a sorting injury last year & founded sleeping difficult… MiL (now AKA my dealer !) hooked me with the above mentioned stash… it helped. I’ve never suffered decency issued before but can see how attractive popping a pill for good nights sleep is and can see how that could be habit forming. The Dr’s seem to throw this stuff at patients… so, perhaps worth a visit to a clinic if you can’t find anything decent…. But, as I’m sure the reactions to this post will mention, be very careful.

I’ve just done exactly that… & stuffed up the process. Took a sleeping tablet at about 11pm… slept through to 11am !!!! That pushed my ‘time re-assimilation’ in the opposite direction. Travelling Eastwards It takes a week IMO ( from UK ) and going to the UK it takes 3-4 days to kick jet-lag. I didn’t want to hit the sleeping pills for a load of consecutive days so I gave up & just dealt with it… then a week in took a ‘gummie’ (cannabis) which helped me nod off & get a solid nights sleep. So, I’ll try the gummies next time.

From a sporting perspective very much so.

@ Kwilco... personal observation makes it clear to me that the that the 'eyes not believing the ears' thing is very real... ... not just my personal examples, because, as you point out, my Thai is often flawed, although I believe in such encounters I can recognise so, thus when I identify this issue I am confident I am not the source of of the 'failure to comprehend'.... its could be me but I don't think so.. why... ??? .... because, my Thai friends, dual nationals, native Thai speakers etc of international appearance, Wife and her friends of a somewhat non-stereotypical Thai appearance.. When the conversational recipient fails to recognise that conversation is initiated in the their native language the explanation is quite simple... ... the person being spoken when the conversation is initiated is trying so hard to pick out a key 'English' word that they don't recognise the Thai... Or.. they panic into an 'I don't speak English frenzy' and go into 'cannot cannot mode'...

Can you block purchases after they have been made when you don't even know about them ? Or, do you activate and de-activate your card when you use it multiple times per day ? Most of the hacks I've had in the past are from what I believe to be data leaks from online payments. Before that, use an old fashioned 'paper transaction' in Malaysia and it was a sure fire way to get your card used in HK within 24 hours !! We (wife and I have Thai CC's)... Wife gets hacked a couple of times per year usually... I think its from online transactions (I suspect a particular online 'shop' ee as my Wife's card gets hacked more than mine, I hardly use that online retailer)... no issues though.. We get messages to our phones when a transaction is made... so can tell as soon as a transaction thats not ours is made.... Wife calls up and the transaction is cancelled and new card arrives in a day or two... Seems to be a relatively regular process, irritating. Now with overseas (UK) accounts / cards I we have to authenticate on the an app... PayPal too. Bit annoying if we loose our phone then ! BUT.. when overseas we need our Thai Sim card to receive Wifi calling (sms over wifi) so we won't know if our card has been hacked after using it at a point of sale because we wont get the message. Removing the CCV stops someone copying it and using our CC account online - So, good advice. Personally, I believe we shouldn't even have our name on our cards... we know who we are right. Pick up a 'lost card' and us it online, we're asked to 'in put our name as it appears on the card'.... If there's no name.... Thats just internet banking... a bit of a faff to change limits all the time. Erm... er... ok.... just a risk for anyone else who doesn't hang around their hotel room in the day time to make friends with the cleaning crew then...

You may have misunderstood seat pitch for leg room... Seat pitch is the distance between your seat and the seat in front... this stat is distorted by the 'staggered' layout of modern cabins.... Also note, 3 of the 777 layouts are 'angle-lie-flat'... something you don't want to be on unless its a free upgrade from Eco !!!.. I've not seen the 'angle-lie-flat' for a while... the seat-guru info is dated. I had this issue (seat guru info dated) when choosing an Eco Seat for Qatar... (business upgrade was 39,000 baht and I didn't want to pay that)..... I chose a '*2nd row exit seat' but wanted to be sure... (I wanted to stretch out)... seat Guru had no info on this... The seat Map on the QR website was accurate. (*I'm not sure how to word that better, usually an exit row A380 has 3 seats, in this configuration because of the bulky door the exit row had 2 seats and the window seat in the row behind had no seat in front of it... and thus... the no one tripping over my stretched out feet while I'm sleeping - PJ71 is going to we in his panties a little at the specifics here !!! ) (Image below - not QR - but it explains the missing front row seat and the leg room in the row behind - IMO a quieter and better seat if not going business).

... don't you understand that the vast majority of people learning a language can understand more of it than they speak ?... Particularly when there are tonal complexities one may not yet have verbally mastered, context, key words and body language... How daft can you get, indeed, Kwilco !... haven't you had trained in linguistics for decades ?

Interesting.... how many multiple decade careers have you had - props to you, particularly if you were successful at them all. I do agree... I certainly am limited... just the one career so far. You do make a lot of valid points in the road safety and communication discussion, but you mask them when you object and refute singular factors mentioned individually and not explained with an encompassing multifaceted understanding when in reality there perfectly valid opinions that don't require interlinked, complex understanding.... you miss the 'occams razor' principle in such discussions... ... sometimes 'it just is what it is'... and that is so in this discussion regarding Neeranams initial observation that seems to have been targeted and objected to because his initial statement was somewhat uncomplimentary to the subject of the Op... ... 'it is what it is'.... a perfectly valid observation... sometimes Thai people don't recognise we are speaking Thai and thus don't understand because the 'eyes don't believe the ears'.... With your decades of linguistics, when 'race' is also brought into the mix its an understandable and perhaps recognisable mistake we witness - there's nothing more complex and nothing further to shoe horn into the melee... the expectation is that we can't speak Thai, so when we do, for some Thai's it simply does not compute...

Fair enough... You've been and made an informed decision - no criticism there. That said, I'm only interested in going watch a game a few times per year... it would the same in the UK or for any regularly held mid-season sporting event... similar here... still fun though. Again, no detraction from female football.... I'm definately making sure I watch the final. In fact after Martinez' outburst after winning the golden glove in the mens WC, I wonder what the reaction will be of the female WC golden glove winner !!!!

Sorry, but that just isn't true. I agree with most of your comment but, Thai football is not enjoyable. Have you ever been to a Thai stadium and watched it ??? - give it a try, its fun. I do agree, the quality is of questionable standard when compared to international leagues of a more elevated status, yet it's still very enjoyable. Going back to Women's football... Sam Kerr's goal was quite exceptional, I defy anyone questions that level of talent in a male or female - to do that under the pressure of a WC Semi final at home... what a stage to showcase the potential of football.

As both a father and a son, this one caught me out... l Lyrics and raw hurt expressed in the performance - he'd just lost his father. Yes... I know its a cover, I know its a competition etc... yet still... give it a listen and if you are not moved, you're made of cardboard !

Yes, Emirates is often a 777 from Dubai on. Although Swiss air has single seats in 777/300 , which I had , wonderful. Great as the Zurich Bangkok flight is direct so you really get the full meals , great drinks , rest on nearly flat beds , etc. Have definitely abandoned Emirates unless no other choice. Emirates last week into Bangkok was an A380. The departing flight a few weeks earlier also was. In fact... of the 5 flights per day (BKK-DXB and DXB-BKK) 4 of them are an A380. Onwards - that depends solely on the destination... and also what the airport is set up for. Heathrow - All flights are A380 Manchester - 2 of 3 flights are an A380 Birmingham - 1 of 2 flights are an A380 All can be checked when looking at the website... Agree with you both - A380 is definitely better than the 777... but we can easily find out. (*last min tech difficulties and switches aside of course).

Flawed logic... The women's Olympic final 100m, 4x100m or 4x400m relay is still an incredible spectacle... yet before 1900 they could not compete. The men are faster and considered the pinnacle because they are ultimately faster, fastest, that doesn't detract from the prowess of the female athletes... Similar with football, I know its a bit of oranges to apples as a comparison, however, women are not competing with men, they are competing with other women and there is some enjoyable football to be watched.... .... just as there is some enjoyable football to be watched when going to a Thai stadium, and watching Thai teams play, the standard is not has high as the premier league etc, but neither is it horrific... its enjoyable. I think those who use the above argument as JonnyF fail to get the point. Men will always be stronger, faster, more agile etc... but that doesn't mean the female game cannot be enjoyed.

I fully understand why I suggested/asked it to be closed! As you have just said; "the direction it has taken. " away from the topic! I suggest you go and start a new topic about who has perfect Thai etc and let the petrol pump attendant get the kudos he deserves for his efforts! Interesting how you think you decide the how manner in which a thread meanders and evolves is acceptable or not.... pompous perhaps ! ... The thread is about speaking a foreign language, it still is - if you want the thread to remain about British tik-tokers complimenting a petrol attendant English language efforts then it becomes quite limited... - Kudos to the pump attendant for learning some English and practicing it. - Kudos to all Thai's who are learning or have learnt to speak English or another foreign language. - Kudos to all non-Thai's who are learning or have learnt to speak Thai. Is reading and writing too far off topic or, kudos there too ??? Are you deserving of any Kudos in your efforts to learn Thai ??? have you made any effort at all ? Not with some of the posters on here who will say the Google translation is not as good as their perfect Thai which nobody seems to understand!! Thank you... you have highlighted what little idea you have. Google translate is excellent at translating signs, menus etc... and can definitely help, it serves an excellent purpose and definitely a 'better to have than not to have'... its serves as extremely rudimentary translation... a pretty basic level of Thai is going to get you further and could be complimented with google translate when further vocab is needed, but most definitely speaking basic Thai cannot be replaced. And thats for basic translation now consider humour, idioms, metaphors etc

Exactly.... this is also not uncommon at all... Someone who trained in languages for several decades will now highlight some form of prejudice, or that your imperfect Thai was understood by one but not the other because it was imperfect and nothing to do with you looking non-Thai and them not simply struggling to reconcile that their eyes are seeing a foreigner but the ears are not hearing foreign speak !!...

Not $HL or £edEx..... those are notorious for getting hit with import / customs tax... Obviously it depends on the value of the items getting posted... But usually, I would get something sent to my parents address, have them de-label it and repackage it into something innocuous (brown packaging back) handwritten label... and post normally. I've sent numerous items this way - medication... (decent football boots etc)... Never an issue... I ordered some Pyjama's from Next Thailand (for my Son)... they were about 1100 baht... We got hit with an 700 or 800 baht customs charge, never quite understood it as it was below the taxable threshold... Ultimately, these guys (customs) are an utter law unto themselves, but when they flag something that it, the only option is to play their game or loose it. The $HL or £edEx are ultimately the biggest flags for them, as is a professionally looking package !

I hope you miss posted the above in this forum and that it was meant for the "bad taste joke section" where it belongs! I wonder if we need a 'PG for threads and posts... so that some snowflakes don't get too upset with a harmless attempt at adding a little ebullience.