richard_smith237

Principled enough to know when and when not to be a hypocrite... You are pinning your example on a scenario that never came to fruition... “I would have...” ... but you didn’t, so it doesn’t mean anything... the comment is just ‘pie in the sky’... You had the luxury of being in the US... Russia is still very different. Would YOU stand by your principles in Russia ?? protest ?? how would you avoid conscription into a war you completely disagree with in Russia ???? Me ???... I’m not ashamed to say I’d get out of dodge... I don’t blame the Russians who are coming to Thailand for doing so.

Most likely they would. I always travel with my Passport (to keep it accessible within a decent time frame) - but I use my Pink ID for airline (domestic) and hotel check-in... this always works (but really shouldn’t outside of province of issue, nevertheless, it works).... so, I assume that hotels would be perfectly fine accepting a PhotoCopy of your passport upon check-in. As for Banks.. I think mileage may vary... some will, but some Bank Managers are utter jobs-worths and can make things awkward (in the past (pre-pink ID days) a photo on the phone or a Driving Licence was not accepted (in the situations I’ve experienced. Note: others say their Thai DL has worked in Banks).

Extension stamp. Not really.... Only commissioned officers can ask for your ID - a Passport (or copy of usually suffices). Only Immigration Offices can ask for your Visa Status and they hardly roam the streets. Thus: A copy of your Passport, or a ‘shrunk to credit card size’ laminated copy of your Passport should more than suffice for ‘most’ situations. A photo of your lasted stamp / visa on your phone should also be more than adequate. The caveat being: Unless you come across an extremely difficult and awkward Policeman (non-commissioned) who wants to see your passport and only your passport will do - then arguing with them that as they are not commissioned its not legal for them to ask, is going to be somewhat tricky !!!... but lets face it, that last scenario is extremely unlikely.

Perfect comments from behind the safety of a computer-screen. What would you do if you were facing prison for being drafted into a war you disagreed with ??? You’d stand by your moralistic principles, refuse and publicly protest, right ???? You wouldn’t try and get out of the country to avoid jail and spending your ‘blood money’ elsewhere making a hypocrite of yourself, would you ???

How many stats have you made up in this thread alone ???......

The thread is about health benefits of quitting coffee... not whether 7-11 has good coffee... ???? see what I did there ??????

Why are you getting angry with everyone on these ‘visa’ threads ?

I guess he means ‘proper visa’ as opposed to some form of exemption... i.e. an Visa exemption stamp is not really a proper visa in the same way a Tourist Visa is... And yes, after the initial hiccups with potential overstay risk etc in 2020 the Thai government came up with a sensible and consideration option.... But, this has also allowed people to ‘game the system’.... ... as they say, don’t hate the player, hate the game... In this case the Op was nearly caught short Immigration have also done him another favour by offering him sound advice.... Further sound advice is to get a ‘real visa’ / 'proper visa’.... and actual visa... because after staying so long on the exemptions eye-brows are going to be raised if he tries to enter without one.

Looks like a goid idea ... NOT Same Name and date of birth. You must be from Clownland where this trick work ???? He simply didn’t read the Op...

Another oversimplification of something you don’t understand... things like texture, depth, complexity... milk changes that... An espresso is already a very strong in flavour, so yes, its diluted somewhat but not to the extent that milk makes one coffee unrecognisable from another.... and most certainly not to the extent that milk makes a latte made with instant unrecognisable from that made with fresh ground coffee. ... unless of course you can’t tell the difference anyway and think ‘its just coffee - its all the same’... in which case, go ahead.. make instant and dilute it with milk or do whatever you are going to do with it, its doesn’t matter to you at all because you can’t tell the difference....

Ok... now you are bringing ‘latte’ into it... ... Are you now arguing that a Latte made with instant is 90% as good as a Latte made with decent fresh-ground coffee because of the milk the difference can’t be tasted ???? I can tell you it most definitely can be tasted... I can taste the difference between a Latte I make and a Latte my Wife make’s from the same beans, same amount, same grind setting, same espresso machine.. Why ??.... because my Wife tamps too hard, the flow though the coffee is slow, its over-extracted and is slightly bitter.... Espresso - 19gms of coffee... (tamped by myself) 38-40gms of ‘drink’ extracted over 30 seconds - with pre-infusion.... ... then of course is achieving the correct texture of milk.... If you’re not sure about any of that - 7-11 instant will be fine...

Agreed.... Price / quality increase is not linear, neither is price an accurate indicator of quality.

Yet in blind taste tests people will often choose cheaper stuff. This has been proven with wine, beer and whisky too. So that means a lot of it is marketing. It proves that a lot of people don’t have taste.... many people will become familiar with cheap stuff and its that familiarity they choose - they don’t ‘know’ what quality is because its alien to them. Many wouldn’t know a Macallan from a Red-label or a fruit wine from a Barolo... that doesn’t speak of the whiskey or the wine but of simple ignorance. And its the same with coffee.... IF someone can’t tell the difference between an instant coffee and a good fresh coffee that highlights ignorance rather than quality - there’s nothing wrong with that unless throwing forward ridiculous statements such as instant is 90% as good as fresh-ground coffee...

Its clear you don’t know what you are talking about - its pointless having a discussion on taste with you... we’ll just go round in circles with your dumbed down oversimplification which highlights that you don’t know what you don’t know.... IF someone is the type of person who’d argue... why get a BWM in Bangkok when a taxi can take you anywhere you want?... they are perhaps the same type of person who is happy with fruit wine and instant coffee..... That may not be you, but there are parallels... While quality is subjective - the difference between instant and a coffee properly made from freshly ground beans is night and day... ... And when I mean properly made, I mean correct grind size, amounts, brew-ratios and timing, extraction times, pre-infusion... etc etc... all different with different brewing techniques from French-Press to Filter, to Moka Pot, to Espresso to Turkish..... Different origins, different roast.. Its complex... a poor cup of coffee can be made when getting some of the above wrong... If you don’t want to understand and prefer to argue any of the above - its better to stick to instant... life is blissful for the ignorant.

Take is easy... she hasn’t argued with the ‘experts’... . She’s asked for advice and provided as much information as she knows...

I don’t know much about the coffee at 7-11.... I agree.... Is it made from instant or fresh-ground beans ??? Coffee is like wine - there’s a huge amount to know and what I know I’ve hardly scratched the surface of... But if you’re saying instant is 90% as good as freshly ground beans, the conversation is already a non-starter....

Its better to be prepared and have a copy.... Some people worry too much... others tell others they worry too much based on their individual experience. Here’s more anecdote: I have been stopped a couple of times and asked for my Passport. Held up DL... not accepted... had to rely on my ‘phone a friend’ option to get the corrupt BiB off my back... That said - getting stopped is rare, but it has happened to the vast majority of my friends and I. I guess it depends where you are, where you are walking / travelling around and at what time etc. There’s a higher probability at night, especially in the Asoke to Thonglor area (which used to be notorious for this). It doesn’t hurt to carry a copy of your passport if it makes you feel better... Its certainly better than the ‘implication’ presented by comments such as ‘I’ve never been stopped’...

I think your comment below nullifies the validity of any comments you may have regarding the taste and quality of instant vs freshly ground roast beans...

And 96.57% of stats are made up on the spot !! I do agree to a point though, there’s some pretentious and over marketed stuff out there... but excellent coffee doesn’t need to be pretentious at all. Taste is subjective, some people have decent taste, some do - if you are saying instant is a good as fresh (even 90%) then you’re way off... I’ve tried lots of instant coffees, some rated highly.... but they are still not comparable to good coffee made from fresh-ground beans... The closest I get to instant.... is to grind a medium-dark roast Arabica extremely fine (finer than espresso), boil that and drink without filtering (the sludge sinks to the bottom) - Turkish style.

Agreed... the probability of losing a passport if carrying it around daily compared to the probability of being stopped by the BiB is higher... Taking that idea a step further, the probability of being stopped by the BiB who don’t accept a driving licence or photo copy of your passport is extremely low... Risk of passport loss is much higher and simply not worth the risk to carry your passport at all given the time and difficult involved with renewal of a passport here.

Many will carry a copy on their phone (Photo of ID page and entry stamp / visa etc). Thus will appease most Police if you are stopped (if acting politely etc)... But, there may always be the awkward officer who wants something more physical. A Driving Licence will commonly suffice as Photo ID in most circumstances with the BiB, unless the request is made by a a particularly difficult Policeman. Pink ID (within Province) takes this a step further and may work where the DL may not, but that would be a rare situation. There are plenty of ‘print shops’ around where you could get a Laminated copy made and then just have the entry stamps on your phone etc.

I’ve also pretty much given up on Bolt... Or rather, I attempt to use them about 4 times per month, but never secure a ride...

I’m a coffee addict - I travel with my own coffee. Only ever in the morning though (before noon on regular day). I can’t ever imagine giving it up - I’m not aware of any health benefits of giving up coffee. I’m aware of potential health risks of ’too much caffeine’... but that is a different conversation from the moderate two strong cups of coffee before lunch-time. I’ve had the discussion on Coffee vs Booze... I love my booze - I love craft beer, I love wine and I love whisky... I even love a nice G&T late afternoon on the beach when on holiday.... But... I’d if forced into a choice I’d happily give up booze over ‘good’ coffee.... I’d also rather have no coffee at all than instant.

In Thailand ??..... Do any of the clubs, restaurants, bars or even major shopping malls, or any public places have any of this ? He, or us (foreign readers)... He (owner) seems to know everything he needs to to circumnavigate laws and get illegal business running again... Its us who haven’t learned anything if we expect anything else. This will be an exercise of wash and repeat.... Raid... pay off the BiB, re-open... stay open for a few months, raid, pay off the BiB... and so-on... If its profitable, then it works - its only about the bottom line.

I'm not so sure about that... as Enoon posted...