Enzian

Someone I know just spent a weekend (only 2 nights I think) in Phyathai 2 Hospital in Bangkok with a serious case of colitis, various meds and procedures required: bill was approximately 47,500 baht. 

58 minutes ago, Skallywag said:

The old adage, "if you have to ask, you cannot afford it" comes to mind

No real "treatment" other than the ventilator to help you breathe.

If you get to that stage and are older or have pre-existing conditions, best to be asking "what is the cost of a funeral"

Stay inside, stay away from people, clean your hands everytime you touch something

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure

 

Warren Buffett in his recent interview with CNBC related a great quip from his right-hand man Charlie Munger: "An ounce of prevention is not worth a pound of cure, it's worth a ton of cure." That would apply here in spades.

I saw a couple of massage places before Thong Lor with a creative solution to the loss of income. A woman sits out front with a little folding table stacked with bananas and other food items. If you stop to inspect them it will be obvious that there is a light on inside and the door is not locked. But they are selling food! Of course everything is a trade-off: a massage... your life... hmmm... let me think...

5 hours ago, Youlike said:

There were super long queue's in Tops...so we didn't shop anything....all the usual bs which slows down the process of paying...mee the one card mai? Then the showing of cellphones for discount offers, more waiting for credit card bs, the no have bag thing and so on.....

 

They should open cashiers for cash only and without bs so paying can go faster.

This is what data phones are for. On a day I'm going to shop I try to avoid looking at "news" sites till  I get in such a line. A few days ago in Tops a cashier couldn't find the price for a sport water bottle and I swear we all stood there for a solid 10 minutes till someone came up with it.

9 minutes ago, Forza2002 said:

The HiSo Thais and loan sharks will be gleefully rubbing their hands. They have the funds to ride out the storm and take advantage as many Thais don't have funds for a rainy day...

 

But how will the loan sharks deal with the vast numbers who can't or won't pay their loans? Will they even find enough "enforcers"? I've never understood this about the Thai credit culture. Banks at least try to have security for loans while knowing a high percentage will never perform. Will Somchai the debtor just do a runner for the outback of Issan?

Hummm, this is going to get very interesting, in ways it would be better not to enumerate.

I hd a case of some common flu back in January and though I'm 80 I got over it with only moderate discomfort. I wonder if that will give me some immunization against similar viruses, but I guess probably not. What pisses me off is that I like to get a massage here in Bangkok every other day when possible, and that activity is starting to look problematic.

I came from Hanoi to BKK on Wed. 11th and had no issues (except I put my non O visa number on the entry form where it asked for visa number, but the IO wanted the number on my re-entry permit there instead). Was not checked in any way, but I agree with the post above that anything can happen in two weeks.

I was just in Vietnam for two weeks and though online guides talk about how bad driving is there, it is very different and better than Thai driving. Two things: Vietnamese don't really drive too fast, and second, they do leave room for error, neither of which things are typical in Thailand. 

I came from Hanoi this morning March 11 on TJAI Airways, no questions where I had been, no health check I noticed.

I'm on a retirement visa and flying into Swampy from Hanoi tomorrow the 11th, and have no idea what to expect. I think I'm healthy, but at 80 yrs old who knows what the temperature scanners might indicate.

Will the third quarter be the time to buy that Sukhumvit condo I've always wanted?

I'm glad to see the bank where I have the 800K+ for retirement is being proactive. And as an aside, I'm also glad that it is as much or more a Japanese as Thai bank, which I have known for a while.

It's weird, I still like THAI. I don't want to deal with those super cheap budget outfits with all the tack-on extras that make the actual cost about the same. I and the gf especially go BKK-CNX all the time and find it reliable. Part of the attraction is that their web site works smoothly compared to the competition. I'm in Hanoi now in the middle of a RT from BKK that cost US$245 on THAI; I could have saved a lousy $50, but why?

Seemed to me Bangkok had only one relatively "cool" spell in Dec.-Jan, that came around mid-Dec. I had a plan to go to Italy in April to avoid the heat, but god knows how that all will turn out.

I am in Hanoi now as of March 1. I flew here on Feb. 25 on a Thai Airways flight arriving about 7:30 in the evening. Neither my temperature nor my general condition was checked in any way as I came through Immigration with a standard evisa (which involves one extra step in order to get the actual stamp in one's passport to enter the country-took less than 15 minutes). However, on the 29th I received a text message which I will type out: "Vietnam Ministry of Health: welcome to Vietnam! If you've travelled from an area affected by COVID-19, you are requested to complete a medical declaration form at the designated booths before the immigration counters. For COVID-19-related advice while in Viet Nam, please call the hotline..."  etc. etc. "or visit"...etc.  "You may also download the..." etc.etc. "app for more information. Stay healthy ad do your part in preventing and controlling the spread of COVID-19. Wishing you an enjoyable time in Vietnam." End of message, leaving out things I perhaps should not put here. I never saw the declaration form this is talking about, and the IO who stamped my passport said nothing about it. My Thai Airways flight back to BKK is scheduled for March 11. In the meantime, Vietnam claims to be currently clear of all active cases of the virus. I doubt I should  be worried about getting stuck in Vietnam, but 10 more days is enough time for anything to happen. I want to add that the old quarter is just full of western looking tourists; but as for Chinese, I probably can't tell them from locals so I don't know.

I just booked a flight from SFO to Rome on April 11. I'll stay a few weeks in Italy and then fly on to BKK, completing a round-the-world. UNLESS of course I'm ill or they ban people coming from Italy. I plan to spend the time in the central and south, and all the cases in Italy so far I believe are in the north.

First rule in Thailand: Always make sure you are worth more to people being alive than being dead. Otherwise, someone will find a way to make you dead.

What's the age cut-off for language teachers in Thai higher education? I'm 80 now. I have a PhD in English literature from the University of California at Berkeley with specialization in the English Renaissance and Shakespeare. I sometimes think about teaching a little here for the stimulation. But 40K baht? 

What would happen if Thailand would follow the example of Costa Rica, and have no standing army, just a nominal security force and national police force for those things which are absolutely necessary? Just think how that would attract the tourists.

I've had major ups and downs, but even when I was under the influence for years at a stretch I always lived within my means, and when I think why it was because of the influence of my father who was a penny-pincher who at the same time made a lot in business. I'm saying it is passed on generation to generation in most cases. Here in LOS it's the generation to generation culture, and if anything will ever change or modify it, it is experienced misery, not forgiveness. 

So was it a robbery or a burglary? If it was a bag snatch, then the former is the correct term after all. But carrying $6K equivalent on her person in a tourist destination?

23 hours ago, MJKT2014 said:

I have a yellow book and over 60yo. Is there a list of items to take along with me to get a pink card or does it depend by district office?

I can testify that offices vary a lot in the number of requirements to get the card. My ex-pat lunch group is mad at me because I got my pink card with the minimum of possible requirements, while others in the group were faced with longer lists of requirements.

That bit about "only species specified" could be a real catch. Of course it is hard for most people to tell types apart before they flower, but certain kinds of big juicy buds are impossible to disguise.