Stevemercer

The least hassle option might be to pay an agent to complete your extension.

So did the OP get his phone back?

Our hospital recently introduced machines to get your ticket queue number for appointments. There is always a long queue. Of course, you need to enter your Thai ID number which I do not have. So I have to bypass the queue and go directly to the counter for my appointment. It's good for me, becasue it saves time waiting, but must be a pain for the waiting Thai people who maybe perceive a farang getting preferential treatment. To answer the OP, yes it is the way of the future, but there will always be a way around it.

China claims the whole of the sea and treats it as its own territorial waters (despite the claim being rejected by International Tribunes). The Chinese position is that anyone else is trespassing illegally on its territorial seas. China wants to bilaterally negotiate with each of the other claimant countries so it can screw each of them them for the best deal. The only way that these other nations can hope to face off China is by banding together to present a united front. China's diplomacy has always been to 'divide and conquer'.

Professional job or business, family-orientated, looking for self-improvement, willing to work hard. You are right, it's hard to define 'decent', but I guess it's someone whe can bring something to a relationship and whom you feel will respect you, support you, speak up for you (protect your face) and be your equal.

I tell Thai women who are after a farang to find some way to travel to a western country. It is much easier to find a decent man overseas. I also say do not hook up with a man who is a regular visitor to Thailand. Find someone who has never been.

If having a Thai massage, I always select the oldest and weakest looking lady.

As usual, the article begs more questions than answers. Does TV have a new translator?

Sorry, I should have clarified I was talking about country Thailand - the non-tourist parts.

Thai people like Thai music played loud, but have no tolerance whatsoever for loud westen music. Nobody will say anything when Thai music is too loud, but the complaints will come thick and fast if it is loud western music.

We still have plenty of geckoes around, but the insect population is still down. Normally, we get swarms of flying ants/termites attracted to the lights after the first few wet season storms, but nothing so far this year. So, yes, I think it is the hot and dry weather we have been having. Cats will certainly keep the lizard population down, together with native birds and any other wildlife.

Siem Reap, in parts, still has a bit of a frontier feel. If you are free to wander around there are some interesting nooks. I would agree with other posters that it is certainly worthwhile visiting Ankor Wat at least once in your life. I have been a couple of times and found it worthwhile.

I think there is something in that. I tell my wife I have been with many Thai ladies, but it is only her I fell in love with. Most ladies are forgotten when they are out of sight. But I knew I was in love with this one when she went back to Thailand and I really, really missed her and couldn't stop thinking about her. So why her, and not the many other ladies? I really don't know. I must admit I have some sympathy with the often desperate blokes who fall in love in what everyone else can see is a hopeless relationship. I'm not sure we choose who we fall in love with, it just happens if we are open to the possibility. Why are Thai ladies over-represented in the sex industry wherever you go in the world? It must have something to do with the Thai trait of living for the moment and not obsessing about the past or worrying about the future. Having said that, some Thai ladies will think too much and never adapt to the trade. I remember one lady who had a client die on her. She went crazy after that, and who can blame her.

If you are really interested in the land you should make an offer. If the seller/broker is interested in selling they will come back to you with a counter offer. If they are just testing the market they will get all huffy. Their reasoning is that the land is worth every baht of the asking price and you are trying to cheat them out of a fair price. Worse, if they accept such an 'insulting' offer they will lose face. It's like a landlord being forced to accept a rent of 7,500 Baht per month during hard times (e.g. Covid) when before he got 10,000 Baht. Instead of being grateful to get any rent at all, the landlord may be resentful believing the tenant is cheating them out of 2,500 Baht per month that is rightfully theirs.

I started riding electric assist bicycles some 20 years ago, using lithium batteries. Lead-acid would be far too heavy for anything you might have to pedal yourself. I bought a KingSong (Chinese) electric wheel 6 or 7 years ago, powered by lithium batteries. When I first got it, it would go up to 50 km/hr with a range of about 75 km. Now, it'll still top out at about 50 km/hr, but the range is probably about 50 km. It cost about 25,000 Baht and most of that was for the quality lithium battery pack. Spend the money for good quality batteries, and look after them with a proper balancing charger, and you might get close to 10 years. You can NEVER allow lithium batteries to run empty (most machines will have automatic cut-offs) and it is best to keep them fully charged when not in use (they will last much longer). Most lithium batteries die because of a cheap charger that overcharges them, doesn't balance the cells or is prone to overheating and irregular charge cycles. The second cause is people running them down below 25% and neglecting to recharge them for a week or so. In my view a 40,000 - 60,000 Baht petrol scooter will outperform and outlast an equivalent priced electric scooter. It will also be street legal. In my opinion, electric scooters are not quite there yet in terms of price, performance and life. While manufacturers try to make things simple, you cannot expect a battery to last long without attention to charging (e.g you can't just hop on it and forget about it - expecting someone else to charge it). Leave it lying around (without topping it up) for two or three weeks and you've permanently lost 5% of your battery capacity. Any electric vehicle <10,000 Baht will last less than a year. Up to 20,000 Baht and you might get a year or two out of it before the battery needs replacing. A decent lipo battery is going to start at 20,000 Baht (just for the battery).

Yes, Joe will be sadly missed. There are a few others who have been pretty quiet recently, including Colin (who was in a wheelchair and a lively contributer) and even Rooster seems to come and go a bit.

I'm with the SCB which has some sort of 'compulsory' accident insurance, but it only costs 600 Baht per annum. Last year, I fell through the roof and my wife took me to the Bangkok Hospital in Khon Kaen. They asked for my SCB ATM card which paid for 18,000 Baht of the overall 28,000 Bahtt bill. At the time, I wasn't aware of the insurance so it was a nice surprise.

Of course Thailand needs submarines, the same as any maritime nation dependent upon the ocean for its oil/gas and trade. Not so much as an offensive/defensive weapon, but to train officers and crew and allow rapid force expansion if the worst should ever happen. The most important strategic reason is to allow Thailand to develop a credible anti-submarine deterrent force. To do this, it needs real subs to practice on (and to fight back).

It is the same system in Australia. If the government files show you are married to a non-citizen, you will get the married pension divided by half. The government makes the assumptiom that your wife has no entitlement to any Dutch benefits, but that she will contribute her own Thai salary/benefits/assets/pensions to the marriage. If you subsequently separate (and/or divorce) you will revert to the single pension.

I think it is a little tricky. You never registered your marriage in Thailand so you are not recognised under Thai law as being married. However, you successfully applied for a marriage extension, and renewed this many times, based on your overseas marriage. Usually your marriage has to be registered in Thailand before Immigration will do this. I guess many of us responding to your OP are a bit confused by this and wonder if you or your wife registered the marriage many years ago and simply forgot about the paper work. Probably not, because it is a somewhat complicated process organising transalations, consulate certifications, notarisations etc. etc. The bottom line is you are not registered as married in Thailand and the divorce will be uncontested. A other posters have stated, you will have to get the divorce in the relevant American jurisdiction. If you are living with another Thai lady then you can tell her and sundry that you are separated from your wife and will be getting a divorce soon. If she is worried about gossip, and you are sure she is the one, just go through the Buddhist ceremony to satisfy her friends and family that you are not 'living in sin'.

If it is not a large area, you can lay down some chilli/pepper powder (or other irritant) to move the dogs along. Similarly you can get various dog repellant sprays from larger stores that might work. The sonic alarms are not permantly on, but they usually seem to work (e.g. point and click at the dog within about 10 meters). If you do this often enough the dogs will move on. The above will not work if somebody is feeding or watering the dogs at that location. But if there is no rubbish and waste food scraps lying around that would seem unlikely.

I reckon an average 60,000 Baht a month (excluding rent and any capital costs) would allow you to live at a decent standard and to entertain yourself. If you are not married/no girlfriend, you could find and marry an ex-government retiree and benefit from her free medical coverage (which extends to her husband). But you would need an extra 20,000 Baht a month (e.g. 80,000 per month) to support a wife or live-in girlfriend.

When I first came to Thailand I did all the social things: weddings; funerals; birthdays; karaoke bars; holiday trips etc. etc. Now I don't so much unless it's someone I know. Everyone is always excited to meet 'the farang' and take photos, but then it's all about the drinking and eating. Not so much for me these days. I still enjoy dancing and that has been, and remains, a good way to get to know Thai people. The blokes want to buy you a drink and the ladies all want to dance with you. But I am happy enough with my own company for the most part. Loud music, heavy drinking not so much these days. But I think it would be the same whatever country I lived in.

It's odd how many farang won't acknowledge a friendy hello. But their Thai wives/girlfriends will always respond with a smile and often stop for a chat. Sometimes it seems like they are apologising, or over-compensating, for their husband's/boyfriend's indifferent manners. Thai people will always respond positively to a smile and friendly hello.