Altalake

Catman20 - good post. What is the OP on about? Thailand is not the US of A.

There are indeed some smart and sensible people on this site - like Donnacha.

Albert Einstein said: "The difference between the Universe and stupidity is that the Universe is finite".

If the cap fits wear it - GHWorker!

Expat Oil Worker has it in One.

Malaysia not for us, the Thais are very nice folks.

You'll be dinged 500 thb in Phuket, but they are very nice and polite about it!

CNX355 has it in one.

Good luck!  But be prepared for a long haul, and some disappointment(s).

Good stuff Mate! The biking-exercise is a Key I think. Keep it up - they say 2 beers is the daily "limit" but what the heck. You enjoy it - so go for it!

We have found over 20 years or so the Thai medical services to be pretty good. Often more caring and meticulous than the West. Where it often seems to be a business.......

Yet some haughty folks still decry it!

Not us!

Ubon Joe Knows All.

Listen to what he says! Come on Joe, tell the Yankees what they need to know!

Scouse 123 is spot on.

Yes you will be charged 500 thb for a day's overstay - in Phuket that is.

Just pay up - they do not care.

Quite a few e.g. airline pilots/oil workers etc. etc. commute to work here and there.

It is really no issue at all - just as long as you are not working in the LoS.

Kiwibatch and Minnehaha are right in their posts - Maca Root is very good - but it costs about 20% more in Thailand than it does in North America. I have used it for 20+ years, and it is better than the Crabtree and Evelyn product, as well Taylor's of Bond street  - both being a lot more costly than the Maca.

If you use a brush rather than e.g. scoop out a dob of the Maca root and put it on your face, you will only get 4-5 months out of it.

I use Fusion Gillette - silly price (a Gillette guy told me it is 'cos with beards being in fashion, they have had to up their prices thro' diminishing sales - tanx a laht Gillette)! A blade can last me 6 weeks - Gillette try get you to use one a week with their misleading "blue stripe" on it, that goes white when the blade is "kaput". But it is not! But I shall try

Maca root does not smell at all, the Crabtree and Taylor's have a scent. I will try the Tesco blades etc. just for fun.

It is nice to be a "kept man" - is it not?

Stay where your wife is happy, it is not all about Me Me Me.

Some very "insightful and thoughtful" posts here Guys!

There are a lot of pretty savvy (and amusing) folks out there. I learnt a lot to be frank - and had a laff or two as well.

Ambassadors? The Canadian ones are as hopeless as the Brit ones (we have dual citizenship).

In the 2004 Tsunami who was conspicuous by their absence at Don Muang. The Canucks.....The ambassador was on hols, and, as it was Boxing Day, the Embassy was not manned. It created a slight fuss in Canada, but - as always - it was swept under the carpet.

Good luck Bwana jgold - hope you do not need it, as you are on your own here.

Ny dad and g'dad were both judges. When I was a kid I asked them both What if an innocent man/woman was executed. Their answer was that the police (in the UK I stress) very seldom prosecute an "innocent" person. So tho' he or she might not be guilty of that particular crime, he or she was guilty of something else.

I am not sure of that nowadays. But with DNA......????

I am sure you all know that to execute someone in e.g. the USA costs much more than a life sentence in gaol when all is said and done. 

IMPULSE has it right.

Listen to him.

Depends on what you want out of life. Helluva lot better for many than suffering the cold of a northern European winter for example. Lots of golf, bike-riding, hash-house harriers etc etc - food is pretty good too. Lots of nice people, both locals and expats. Why not give it a try for 6 months or so? You  are not short of a bob, and I fear you will find bureaucracy and paper work/ rules and regs everywheere. There is a stack of it in Singers!

Ubon Joe has it all, as usual. Listen to what he says People!

Good on yer - nowhere is perfect but T'land is our fave place in SE Asia by far. Nice food, nice people, nice weather and easy travel.

If you don't like it, go elsewhere! No one forces you to stay here!

UbonJoe is - IMHO - the Guru and Oracle of visas and so on, but ImaFarang also has sensible and practical advice.