strabel23

3 hours ago, hotchilli said:

If it's financial investment rewards that punters are looking for then Thailand is not high up the list.

Many other better countries to invest in property.

Also you can get your name on the deeds 100% and get a long term visa to sit in it.

Yes but does that other country offer the same other rewards of living here? Beaches, women, warm weather, cheap prices, safe travel anywhere day and night?

1 hour ago, Crok said:

Yes I had made Thailand my home but was overseas when Covid struck. Unable to return.  my visa i held cancelled by immigration, drivers licence expired and cannot be renewed,

tax file still valid. Had to sell two properties. Still cannot return. Welcome to Thailand.

Drivers license can either be renewed or you apply for a new one, same for visa. Not a big deal. Covid is a world wide problem and will come to an end sooner than you might think.

20 minutes ago, Javier said:

 

So what happened to me last week was my thai broker asking me for my password and transaction code. I am sure he is just trying to be helpful to assist me in solving the system error that I am suffering from. However, that is definitely inappropriate. Hence I sold all my Thai shares yesterday, waiting for T+2 and moving all my money back home. 

That sounds like an over reaction you may live to regret.

19 minutes ago, mikebell said:

Ditto.  If Thailand is serious about making itself a place to retire to, they should jettison the mediaeval house-owning laws.  This is unlikely to EVER happen as there are too many lawyers making money from setting up bogus companies; too many auditors coining it in annually by doing the 'books' on this scam.  None of them ever tell you shareholders can go to JAIL when the proverbial hits the fan.

If you have a Thai wife/partner then a usufruct usually mitigates this restriction and if you have Thai children as a result of your union (many do eventually) you can register the land in their name. I know of many that have this arrangement and live a life either equal or far more comfortable than back home. No need to set up bogus companies. 

3 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

There's not an easy answer to this.

In the UK it was cold and wet nearly all the time, so I lived inside my house (5 beds, 4 kids) nearly all the time.

In Thailand it's hot and dry nearly all the time, so I don't need so much inside space (3 beds, 2 kids).

 

If you include the age, weight, looks and compliance to sexual activity of the woman you live with in your 'comfortable' ratings, Thailand is stepping way up for most of us.

Lol. Yes sexual gratification may be the lure and fine for the first year but for many the ease of picking up a Thai woman or two after a while wears off especially when you have found someone you are happy to live with long term and then you are back to reality.

This link will not open. Can you post again?

6 hours ago, geriatrickid said:

Tough but understandable move by the government. The Thais knew what they were dealing with and responded appropriately.

Yes, some foreigners would have respected the  self isolation requirements and yes some have legitimate reasons to return,  Unfortunately, there are alsoforeigners up to no good without  the financial means or health insurance to  take care of themselves. Some would not have respected the self isolation. Thailand did not have the means or resources to manage that exposure. Because of a few duds, everyone will suffer.  And please, no lectures on how  this is unfair when  we see in the forums the stories of how some farangs  play the system  and cheat. Sorry to the many people who  are suffering, but this is the  cost of tolerating scum who are often excused away as poor hard done folk. All it takes is a few selfish gits landing from  Italy, Russia, USA. UK to spread death and disease.

Lol are you that nieve to think that all Thais are respecting the self isolation requirements and is okay to allow them to return to their homes and families but it is not okay to allow foreigners to return home to their Thais wives and families  because you think there are some duds that may not respect the rules? What kind of a double standard is that? 

Qatar Airways has closed their Chiang Mai office and aren't answering their phone calls in Bangkok. Online requests for a refund are not answered. They didn't even send me a notice telling me my flight has been canceled, I had to find out for myself online. Anyone else have any luck getting a refund from this airline after having your flight cancelled?

On 12/14/2006 at 2:49 PM, Rikker said:

Grover, the best I can do is I have a list of the 1000 most common words according to four sources of language corpora. I've attached a spreadsheet that I converted to HTML.

The best one is the Mary Haas list. Not sure about Haas, but the other three I know are all computed automatically, so the digits 0 to 9, among other things, count as "words" in their list, as well as some other things that aren't common Thai at all, but appear frequently in their corpora because of a large number of technical texts.

Hope this is helpful.

thai_word_frequencies.htm 745.68 kB · 95,892 downloads

Link doesn't work.

On 12/23/2006 at 10:22 PM, No beleeeeve! said:

Not sure if this would help, but there's a great vocabulary builder from a company called Unforgettable Languages that uses easy memory aids for commonly used words. This is a great addition to your language learning IMHO. It is an easy way to pick up, in this case, about 230 commonly used words. I used it for Thai and Mandarin.

It can be found at: www.unforgettablelanguages.com

I didn't see any Thai lessons being offered.

Copy of wife's name change? What if your wife chose to use her own surname? At least in some countries a marriage does not mean an automatic name change and even if the wife chooses to use the surname of her husband there is no requirement to obtain a separate document other than the marriage certificate.

Phuket has changed a lot since I first stayed here in 1995. We were going to move back in 2014 but after a few months found it to be too congested and beaches too inaccesable with no or very little parking available. What's the point of living here if you can't get to where you want to go without a lot of hassle. Frankly speaking I don't see the attraction anymore unless all you want to do is go to the bars to meet the ladies in waiting. Having said that if you want to buy a nice size building lot not far from a  quiet beach area just let me know.

Is it really that hard to understand currency conversion?

10 baht at the beginning of 2016 would get you 1 Malaysian ringgit.

Presently it takes only 8.05 baht to buy 1 Malaysian ringgit. This is a devaluation of the ringgit.

For those still confused if a Malaysian was to purchase a drink for 10 baht 1 year ago he would now have to  pay 1.2 Malaysian ringgit for that same 10 baht drink.

Despite this the Malaysians are still happy to come to Thailand for whatever reason.

9 hours ago, chiang mai said:

 

A professionally composed and written will, written by somebody such as Kuhn Sumalee in CM will cost about 7k Baht, assuming it is not overly complex and lots of assets are involved.

 

An alternate and far cheaper way to go is the Amphur will which costs under 100 baht and is a simple process involving Amphur staff.

 

Both achieve the same end result although unless the will involves minimal simple assets, probate is required. I have read reports of posters saying the Amphur will alone is sufficient to allow transfer of simple assets although the discretion of individual bank managers seems to be a major factor.

 

Finally, I've read reports that lawyers may charge up to 7% of the value of an estate to conduct probate through the courts for a farang will. I can't comment on the validity of those reports but it might be worth asking questions, if you have the chance.

 

Finally finally: some posters have set aside an amount of transition money in an account that is accessible by both parties, that's money to be used in the event of demise that will sustain the partner for x months, during which time probate can be enacted - I think that's a very good approach and I have done similar. Maybe something to consider.

 

How does one get a hold of Khun Sumalee ?

9 hours ago, brain150 said:

Nice ... taking the highest in August at 1,548 instead of the actual number of 1,436 as of now.

Makes numbers look much nicer and hides the fact that Set has lost just 100 points in the last 2 weeks ... that's just 7% loss in 2 weeks.

 

But it makes people happy even if it's all fake.

Did you even read the article? His comment follows the drop in the SET from 1548 to 1430 as he clearly and correctly stated  as being nothing out of the ordinary for traders to sell off their stocks and take profits. This is how the market moves and has done so many times in the past only to move higher once a bottom has been found. An astute investor would take this as an buying opportunity to buy following these sell offs. Take note of the recent movements in the DOW as an example. Are you sure your forum name is  displayed correctly as brain150 and should maybe have been displayed as braindead?

At full capacity the airport will be handling a flight every 2 minutes. Pity anyone who owns a house in Hangdong or Nimmanheman. Better get used to wearing ear plugs or move out of the city.

Do they actually have a decibel meter? And do they know what the legal limit is? Do they know what a decibel is?

I changed my Scrambler exhaust to a Termignoni. I keep the baffle inside and measured with the phone about 90 dB but phones have crappy mics and another guy with a proper meter measured 84dB from a 50 feet distance which I think is a bit far but well within the 95dB limit in Thailand. To go from 84 to 95 is actually a tenfold increase.

And my exhaust is pretty audible. I try to not ride it in the night in order to not upset any neighbours. But it's not as loud as some Thai scooters...

Anyone know of a shop here in Chiangmai where one could purchase an internal baffle and install it in the pipes of a customized exhaust system?

I know that there is no perfect place. I don't expect perfection but from what I have learned from my research and in country experience is that Thailand is less and less welcoming. I realize this a general statement and I have met some very nice Thai people over the years. But even the ones I have come really close to I find there is always an invisible barrier. I will never be Thai to them and thus never an equal. I know this exist in other cultures and it certainly exist in my own. Also I have traveled all over Thailand not just the sex tourist locations. There are parts of the country I truly love. But you should never confuse the words " I love you" with "I want to marry you". Thailand is a lot of fun. For me personally, it is best as a vacation destination and not a permanent home.

Oh by the way cost of living does play a role in my decision as well but it is not the deciding factor.

Yes I agree Thailand has changed since I first came here in 1993. The Thai fascination with foreigners is more normal now like a common event and not like before when many Thai would gather around to get a glimpse of the tallish white skinned strangers amongst their midst. What would one expect after so many years of being exposed to westerners? It is just as welcoming as before but Thai realize that it is also an opportunity to make money just as we do with tourism in our home countries. I have many Thai acquaintances and they treat me as a good friend equal to how they treat their Thai friends with hugs, handshakes and/or traditional Thai wai.

By the way this invisible barrier you speak of exists to a great extent possibly because you cannot speak the thai language effectively or maybe not at all? You will probably find the same wherever you go if they speak a different language other than your mother tongue.

I wonder if she was a natural blonde that dyed her hair a different color? hmmmmm..........

The sad truth is, that there are many like him running around in this country and thinking how invincible

they're, until they end up in a mess like this....

and beside, doing steroids and wowing women for what? for cooking together? coz that's all you

really can do with a woman when you do steroids, your sex life is pretty much in the crapper....

Just the opposite happens when you are on steroids. Since your testosterone level is many times higher than normal it's not too difficult to become aroused.

It's a very good question and I understand your dilemma. The first thing I would say to you is that your age is part of your problem. Thai women usually are looking for an older man if they are in the market for a falang. Over 50 means being able to stay in Thailand indefinitely as a retiree and is generally accepted that you have the funds to do so.

Being young most Thai would naturally assume you are here for a short vacation and then back home. If I were you I would look for a private thai tutor to begin with as they are usually university educated or at the very least a student. From there you can mention that you are interested in meeting a compatible Thai lady and perhaps they might have some interesting connections you can benefit from. One might want to seek out an attractive tutor as well as it seems that sometimes good looking ladies like to hang out with other good looking ladies increasing your odds.

Good luck.