newnative

The money would be much better spent targeted at improving tourist spots all over Thailand that are in need of upgrading in some places and maintenance in others that has been neglected.

Yes, that's what my spouse and I have.

Well, that succinctly sums up the state of things.

As others have said, who???

I'm not a fan but I think she's welcome to run in 2028 and compete with other Dem candidates during the primary season. Let the voters decide if they want her to be the candidate again, once they get a second look. I hope by 2028 some better candidates will emerge.

That's one of the reasons my spouse and I don't like to rent--the horrible furniture lots of rentals come with, not to mention a too small tv, small refrigerator, likely non-induction cooktop, uncomfortable mattress, bad art work, if there is any at all, etc. And, the worse part, having to tiptoe around all the lousy stuff hoping you don't, god forbid, break or damage something. Life is short and we much prefer creating our own spaces, with all our own stuff. But, we do realize that many prefer renting and it's whatever works best for them.

Good--in that criminals, of any nationality, are being caught. Good also that the Belgium running amok was deported.

Apparently he is not getting enough publicity already as President so out comes wacky proposal after wacky proposal on a daily basis to keep people talking. Utterly ridiculous idea and will never fly, right in line with all the rest.

Good.

Poor Belgium! But at least he's gone from Thailand--which should have been the case after the FRST incident. Zero tolerance--and the word will soon get out.

The best rental we had--when we were still renting condos--was a corporate rental from a Japanese company. The rent was always paid right on time by the corporate office and the tenant, though a bit messy, respected the property and did not damage anything--likely because he wanted to stay in good graces with his company. We are pondering doing a house rental down the road and we would love another corporate rental. I think with rentals you need a very strong and specific rental contract, a big deposit, and the right to inspect the property at periodic intervals, with prior notice.

Yes, they are using glass railings everywhere these days, inside and out. I certainly wouldn't trust leaning on any of them.

Yes, I know. I would get implants rather than dentures because I would not like dentures in my mouth--or having to fool with them. I like fix it and it's done--which is why I got lasik in 2013 and Supersight last year, so I could ditch glasses and contact lenses.

I'm 73 and I would do it if I needed it--teeth are in good shape so far. I don't like the idea of dentures in my mouth. I had Supersight done on my eyes at age 72.

Umm. Jail is suppose to be 'difficult'. That's why its jail.

53% done is nowhere near completion. It's barely over half done--and after all those years. Laughable--also funny, no money for seats. Oh, well.

My post had nothing to do with accepting, or not accepting, election results, and there was no 'complaining' about Trump. To refresh, the point I was making was if you win by such a small margin, whether Dem or Rep, and you don't even reach 50% of the vote, you can't crow that you have a 'mandate'.

I understand it quite well. It remains that Trump lost the popular vote not once but twice. Actual American voters, not a relic like the EC, rejected him twice. Did not want him--the majority of the actual voters wanted the other candidate. He did win the popular vote in 2024, but still did not reach 50% of the vote. Not a mandate and way you slice it.

'Mandate'? You've got to be kidding. You could theoretically win every state plus DC by one vote and take all the EC votes. The entire map would be blue or red. Would that be a 'mandate'--winning by a handful of votes? Of course not. Same with Trump's win. The truth is he's run 3 times and never even got 50% of the vote. He's never had a mandate, and he's lost the popular vote twice.

When I moved to Thailand in 2010 I shipped two antique Korean chests, two large Japanese art folding wall screens, four other paintings, photographs, and art objects that had meaning to me and which I had had for years. I also filled two very large suitcases with mostly clothes and they went with me on the plane. 15 years later, I still have all the stuff I shipped--and it has all moved with me thru at least a dozen moves--from Rayong to Pattaya and many moves around Pattaya. The clothes? Not a stitch left--and none of it lasted long here to begin with. If I could do it over I would bring the absolute bare necessities with clothes and fill the two large suitcases with some of the stuff that didn't make the cut and I left behind in 2010. Don't bring anything with you that you can get here--bring the irreplaceable.

Spouse and I like to watch Youtube videos of new housing projects, mostly in Pattaya but also some in other areas, as well. We are constantly amazed at the number and design of the new projects being built--and the high prices of a lot of them. Obviously, there is a growing market for high-end housing in Pattaya, and elsewhere. There are so many we can pretty much watch a new one every morning when we do our exercising. Fun to keep up with what's being built these days.

Should have rescued the car.

All your arguments regarding western dual pricing being fair, while Thailand's in many cases are not, are based on someone establishing local residency to avoid the dual pricing. A foreign college student could become a local resident. Yes, they could. In Pennsylvania, though, for example, that takes a full year. So, the first year the foreign student is studying, he or she is paying the foreign nationality rate--dual pricing by nationality. A foreign national in this country and a foreign national in that country could become a local resident, you say. Of course they could--and, as I keep saying, that's a whole separate issue. The fact that some countries offer eventual local residency to get around dual pricing does not erase the fact that they have dual pricing in the first place. The subject of the thread is dual pricing and tourist backlash, not local resident backlash. I fully-understand that local foreign residents in Thailand, and thereby not tourists, in many cases must pay foreign tourist prices, without the opportunity to become local residents, which is unlike many western countries where they have the opportunity to eventually become local residents and secure local resident pricing. What Thailand does with its local residency laws and with its dual pricing, though, is also a separate issue from dual pricing elsewhere. I've given plenty of examples of western dual pricing initially by nationality alone but you asked for another one in your above post, so here is one below. You'll note that Switzerland, Norway, and some other non-Euro nationalities are singled out to get the reduced entrance fees, while other nationalities, such as the USA and Thailand, are left out. So, Swiss national, reduced rate, USA national, not reduced rate. That's dual pricing based on nationality alone, and with the added distinction of some non-EU nationalities being favored over other non-EU nationalities. The reason Swiss nationals and the selected other countries are given the reduced fee makes sense to me, by the way. I'm just pointing it out as an example of western dual pricing solely by nationality. The example: Many Italian museums offer reduced entrance fees to citizens of Switzerland, often along with other non-EU countries. Specifically, the Uffizi Gallery in Florence and the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan are examples of museums that provide reduced rates for Swiss nationals, along with other non-EU countries like Norway and Liechtenstein.

That's strange there is no field for province. I've found the post office is pretty good--I've had some mangled addressed mail arrive. If Jomtien worked in the past it likely will again, with the street address and the postal code. Good luck.

I never use Pattaya, Jomtien, etc., in the address. With my current address, it's house number, Moo number, street name, Nongprue, Banglamung, Chonburi 20150. Mail and packages have been arriving fine. Sometimes you need to get a little creative with where you put N, B, C--I might put Nongprue and Banglamung both in 'city', for example, to get all 3 in.