Stevemercer

Most years it doesn't get cool until after Christmas.

Yes. I think the future model will be 'buy the car, but lease the battery' because no one will want to exchange a new battery they have just brought. In theory, leasing the battery would mean a much lower upfront cost for a new car and no worries about the battery becasue you don't own it and can conveniently exchange it in 5 minutes. The leasing costs would probably equate to the price of a new battery over its average life (10 years). The 'battery exchange' companies will obviously need the infrastructure to fast recharge the batteries and to certify them to an acceptable standard for range purposes. The companies will also be able to feed back into the electricity grid using their stores of EV batteries. They will obviously sell power back into the grid during peak times, when prices are high, and recharge batteries off-peak.

Yesh, no immigration arrival hall seems to like people fiddling with their phones while waiting in line. I was recently in Australia (waiting to use an arrival's kiosk) and got singled out for special treatment (I didn't notice the signs saying 'No mobile reception').

Well, there are bigger problems on the horizon as the uptake of EVs increases. Imagine living in a Condo with 50% EV uptake. The Condo will need a massive upgrade in electricity infrastructure to accomodate peak loads if everyone wants to charge at the same time. This assumes the Condo allows residents to install charges at their parking bays. Imagine the driving population of Bangok trying to recharge their cars in the evening when they get home. The current grid could not cope, that's for sure. After every power outage the recharger would need to be manually reset (using current generation chargers). Back to the Condo, sooner or later someone will overcharge and the car battery will catch fire, maybe damaging nearby vehicles. Condo management's response will be to prohibit owner charging. Where will everyone recharge: out in the street? As EV ownership rises, what about people with no off street parking? Where will they park and recharge. Buy shares in companies researching 5 minute battery exchanges. China already has automated battery exchanges for standardised bicycle and motorbike batteries. Cars will have to follow suit eventually. Alternatively, buy shares in companies looking to establish commercial car parks with charging, for overnight parking, including insurance and security checks.

All the toll roads currently have cash booths. You just have to read the signs to work out which bank of booths. A tip I would pass on is NEVER use the left most toll booth lines. Sometimes there are police when you exit the booth who will pull you up and scam you out of 500 - 1000 Baht by pretending they have a photo of you speeding from a previous speed camera. If you use the middle/right hand banks there is usually nowhere for the police to lurk. Always use the toll roads to get through Bangkok. Never descend to the local roads unless you are familar with them and know exactly where to go. Otherwise you will get lost, stuck in traffic jams, get frustrated and loose an hour or more.

I was recently in Australia visiting my Mum (92 year old living alone) and she received a scam call on her landline at least once a day. Some were very realistic (e.g, pretending to be from her energy or electricity provider - quoting the right address/account number - saying there had been a mistaken double charge to her bank account and seeking credit card details to refund the payment).

I'm from Australia and moved to Thailand aged 55. My Dad in Australia lived to 98 and my Mum is still alive and healthy at 93. While I hope I've inherited good genetics, I think moving to Thailand will take a few years off my life. Thailand is tropical with all sorts of molds, insects and infections attacking the body. I guess I average half a dozen bites a day which must take a toll and add to disease risks over time. The air is probably dirtier than Australia which, again, adds health risks over time. Living conditions are probably less hygenic. The risk of accident (traffic etc) is also higher. So often I will pick up a fungus, a cut will get infected, or I have a cough, and it can take an age to cure in Thailand. Go back to Australia and the complaint will clear up in a few days. I'm not complaining. I think it is just a cost of living in Thailand. I doubt that the average farang will have a longer life by moving to Thailand, but they may have a happier life.

I've successfully applied a couple of times this year, but have also had a few knocked back. The test is whether the applicant has good enough reasons to come back to Thailand (job, children, family, property, responsibilities etc), plus 100,000 - 200,000 maintained in a bank account for at least 3 months. It is also important she has a good reason to visit Australia (e.g. visit boyfriend for holiday travel etc) If she is married/close girlfriend, this will help. I normally prepare a 'letter of support' as to how the applicant will stay at my house etc. etc. There is also an element of luck depending upon who the assessing officer is. One lady knocks almost everyone back, the other seems to approve most applications.

Thailand will struggle on. Pundits have been foreseeing an econimic crash for years, but the Baht just keeps going higher (against everything except the US dollar).

Plenty of expats have a yellow book, similar to a pink ID Card, but it is not essential or even very useful. It saves getting a residency certificate from immigration for some things. Getting/renewing a drivers licence, for example. I often use the pink ID when checking in at hotels, rather than a passport (I know it doesn't meet the immigration requirements). I guess the yellow book and pink ID card (you need the yellow book before you can get the pink ID card) are just items to demonstrate you have some sort of commitment to living in Thailand. Maybe it will mean something at some future date as they keep fiddling with immigration laws.

I've been in Australia for the last 4 weeks. While everything is clean, and the people are friendly, it's no country for old people who are technologically illiterate. Cashless pay only in many places, everything is automated, credit card and mobile phones are essential. We stayed at a hotel in Sydney where you had to check in/out electronically and had to download an app to use the TV (the hotel was actually very nice and reasonably priced). Red light. speed and mobile phone cameras everywhere. You'd certainly be foolhardy to speed. I've always said that western countries like Australia are for the young, while Thailand caters for us oldies - you don't have to feel left out in Thailand..

Oh yes, I agree it is possible to exceed the rating. But I'm talking about the average driver. I can get 20 km per litre highway driving in our 2003 Hyundai Tucson diesel in Thailand (range of 1000 km on our 50 litre tank), but my wife is not a smooth driver and averages 12 - 14 km per litre. Most people will not get anwhere the WLTP rating. Sure, the vehicle is capable of it, but the average driver is not.

The real world range is always much less. Figure about half the range stated by the manufacturer for real world driving conditions and the average lead foot driver. I think I'll be interested in electric cars once the average battery size hits 100 KWh. This should be good for about 500 km in eco-driving mode. A 100 KWh battery will also make a good supplement to a household solar network. The economics of an electric car really makes sense if you can recharge it via solar generation. But you would really need a similar sized storage battery at home, to take full advantage, and quite a large solar array. Somebody has probably calculated how many solar cells you would need.

As you no doubt know, under Thai law your spouse is entitled to 50% of income and assets gained during the period of the marriage. However, unlike Western countries, you don't need a formal financial agreement to be registered detailed the agreed split before a divorce is granted. So the key question is whether your spouse understands and has agreed to your proposed financial settlement? If she is 100% with you, then you can go and get the Thai divorce. If she is waivering, or doesn't understand the financial implications, you might need to consult a lawyer to avoid problems. Most westerners end up keeping their key assets by waiting until the wife is desparate for a divorce (e.g. she wants to marry somebody else or is worried about her own assets (e.g. family land/house) being at risk). They might offer a modest cash settlement which the wife will grab because she wants money now, and doesn't think about the future. Once you have the divorce papers, that is generally it. However, if really aggrieved, your wife could engage a lawyer to seek a just financial setlement. This would be a civil case (e.g. she is 'suing' you) and the case would drag on and on with the most likely outcome being a negotiated settlement where you would give her more money. You could avoid this scenario by leaving Thailand. However, I assume yo want to stay in the country. So the best course is to offer up a reasonable cash settlement to your wife and go down to the local office to finalise the divorce. I don't know how you would complete the divorce in the USA, but the first step is to divorce in Thailand. I'm assuming your wife doesn't have the knowledge, contacts or ability to try and pursue a financial settlement in the States. In any case, this would be confounded (e.g. would not go anywhere) if you are already legally divorced in Thailand.

I have always had a preference for the Kymer look, so generally find those from Isan more attractive. Not so much those with Chinese heritage.

The original post is easy enough to understand. No wonder so many Thai students seem shy and reluctant to try and talk English with a farang. They are worried they will get it all wrong and the farang will just laugh at them or ignore them. From the number of replies attacking the original poster's English they have good reason to be shy! I think it is a common problem with your Thai-in-laws. They don't really know how to interact with you. So it is easiest to just ignore you. Your wife is torn between supporting you or her Thai family. Don't push it, or force her to choose, because it will end badly. Just get on with your life and accept the way it is.

Are you going to build your own house on your girlfriends land? In that case you will have a contract with the builder and pay them in installments as building milestones are met

People who say they don't get bored tend to have little or no imagination. They certainly aren't very good company for us types that suffer from occasional boredom, particularly when we are actually in a bored state.

Retirement is a huge step. Whether you retire in your home country, Thailand or elsewhere, it's a big physical and mental adjustment, particularly living on a fixed income. For many people it's a challenging time and being in a foreign country might make the adjustment harder.

Best wishes and safe travels. I'm sure you'll find plenty to amuse yourself in Japan,

Sure, some bald men look good, but they started off exceptionally handsome when they had hair. If you are just starting to go bald, finasteride will stop any more loss.

I often use the handicapped toilet at service centres and malls, particularly for dumps. They are usually in better repair becasue they get less use. I always put on a limp for the benefit of anyone watching.

Living in the tropics certainly ages a person quicker. All that extra sun, insect bites, humidity and associated fungi/bacteria etc. etc. take their toll.

We never got the 'construction' meter replaced once our house was built and paid the construction tariff (double the normal domestic rate) for nearly 5 years before finally querying it. PEA helpfully worked out that we had paid an extra 75,000 Baht over the 5 year period. I think we had to pay a 'bribe' of 5000 Baht to get the new meter installed in a timely way (they said it would take 6 months).