geisha

Bit late with that comment aren’t you ? It’s been ( not turning into !) a humanitarian crisis for many years. Also, it’s a crisis for all Burmese , not only the ethnic groups. Plain dictatorship and murder.

Very common the sub letting between Russians , phuket and Pattaya.

Do a rapid border hop. You do have 6 months left on passport ?? Use VFS official partner of His Majesty’s Passport Office to get a new passport. You would certainly have proof of passport renewal to do an extension 30 days , chill out somewhere cheap in Thailand , it’s low season , you’ll get decent rentals nearly everywhere. Call VFS first and ask advice .

Quite agree , but I think that Thailand , all countries, should have strict laws concerning the renting out of motor bikes/ scooters. The agencies should be insured for every bike they rent out, or a premium charged and copy of licence proof . Police should do their bit too and confiscate drivers without real helmets . Let’s face it, most tourist accidents are with bikes, or crossing roads , dugs and alcohol related. make it obligatory for tourists to enter with a valid travel insurance with inclusions such as with motor bikes / cars/ sports . It happened with Covid where you had to show your insurance with Covid costs included, why not now ?? That would cost the Thai governments nothing. Just abide by laws.

Maybe I missed something, why does he want to do this ?

It would be nice if those having any cold/flu symptoms stayed home or took respectful care and wear a mask, avoid public transport , put their mouths In their sleeves/ tissues when coughing !! I find it absolutely disgusting that people project their coughs and sneezing all over the place regardless who is sitting near them. I had to tell a waitress lately in a nice restaurant to disinfect a table , thankfully far from me , after the husband coughed and sneezed for at least 30 mins all over the sugar bowl/ salt and pepper pots etc. Covid or not, disgusting !!

I live in France and the food is good.,You know where to shop in your own country. In a Patisserie or bakershop, a freshly made on the spot Quiche will cost you about under 3€ = 100 Baht. Have it in a nice sit down coffee shop/ lunch , it will be accompanied by a side salad, will be enough for a light lunch and might cost you double or more .All depends on the ingredients, salmon, ham or veggie., how it’s served, decent napkin, cutlery, table service. If I’m abroad like Thailand for a good while, then I do splash out on a good from home speciality , or German meal, or Italian , usually once a week. If it’s a frozen / fridge type , then no, rather go without. I do not compare what I spend to a Thai wage , That’s ridiculous IMO.

Kata beach was popular with Russians for a good while. I met one massage parlor lady who said her boss was Russian. So obviously under the table work/ money. Now Kata is mainly Russian .

I think the reporter got off to a bad beginning and bad end mentioning that Phuket was still suffering from the tsunami , which was 20 years ago nearly !! I was there long before, and a good while after, and I can tell you that Phuket was rebuilt rather quickly and people flocked there to help. They also had a lot of government help with money etc. That’s when the island started to go downhill , when many locals sold up cheaply and moved in with family, rather like when the Covid crisis arrived. In came the investors with their multi story buildings and cheap bungalows, and also a lot of rather nice ones like you see in Surin / Kamala and other areas. Beautiful views and still totally unspoiled. One Thai friend I have bought two houses and a shop in Kata plus a nearly new posh suv. Another friend bought a whole row of townhouses, admittedly a bit run down, redone them all up nice and then rented them out to mostly small businesses. Spent three months there last year where Kata was a ghost town, not even roads lights were working ! Rented a nice condo, cheap, near club med. it was great to see my old friends but I was bored stiff. The few working restaurants were full of Russians !! Worried Russians, tho they always look grumpy. My friends called me in January to say not to come back this year , I’d hate it. Russians, pooling their cash to buy cheap condos , Rich ones paying any price asked. Lots of westerners moving out ! Loads of Russian kids and young families. So I went to Jomtien , it isn’t much better , tho at least my condo this year was anti Russian , so lucky. Bali was full of Russians too , same problem, disliked by everyone and creating hell on the roads. They are not welcome here in the south of France , or anywhere in EU , so they will stick to Asia . I do wonder how so many can stay so long/ spend ? Russia must have a lot of millionaires.

Not really expensive if you look at the price of a simple cookie or cheese cake in a coffee shop. I’d pay that for a real French fresh quiche Lorraine with a side salad , delicious,

I don’t usually cry after seeing emotional things, but Cambodia and the death railway museum in Kanchanaburi broke my heart. Not forgetting the two world wars. There you see how evil people can be, and how lucky we are not having to live through times like this. In my opinion , we should all have respect for the people who fought our wars, and the pity and empathy for the ones who died and suffered in these horrific places. The meaning of being « human ».

Well , which girl / lady wouldn’t prefer a guy with money ? Rather someone broke, yes, if you know he’s the love of your life. Ask yourself also, why do THai girls prefer Thai men ? Because same culture maybe. I have a few friends who married well, have great lives , nice homes/ cars/holidays and appreciate their husbands even if they are not madly in love with them. Trouble is, Rich men usually have the choice of the prettiest wives, not poor bargirls.

Borabadur is another fabulous temple. Loved it. Very different to all others I’ve seen. Not very well known.

No comparison !! Angkor is fabulous and fairy tale. Of course if these things don’t interest you , don’t go. If you do go anywhere, wear a hat and carry water. It’s very hot. I enjoyed having a private car driving me around, did the river Tonle Sap ( interesting facts) trip, visited Angkor at sunset, great photos , sunrise, and daytime. Didn’t spend all day there . Had great hotel with pool and good restaurants. Lovely people.

Well he’s been found and is fine. So no more worry for the family.

I have two friends who had successful businesses in SKV. I visited them every time I came to Thailand . They were eventually driven out by the the Chinese casino thugs who took over the town, who bulldozed all the well placed existing hotels / restaurants. Apparently , since over a year now, the Chinese authorities have made a deal with the Cambodian leaders to find/ stamp out these illegal money laundering casinos and call centers . Too much undeclared money is leaving China. Quite obvious, these thugs are not going to set up in Hong Kong or Malaysia or Singapore, so they’ve chosen Bangkok, Pattaya and where else. We’ve seen the beginnings with what happened with the Bangkok run casino where mainly Chinese were present. Call centers are seemingly popular in Chiang Mai . Doesn’t surprise me. Immigration needs to stamp this out before they take over.

I bought the Nexcare hot or cold compress in different sizes. Works wonders if you use as you need, ie 3 or 4 times a day. Bought in Boots or Watsonville. Light exercise and no alcohol too.

Just get your wife to check in the hotels etc, I asked in Jomtien about 5/6 yrs ago and the boss said no, ne need for domestic travel.

He could have made a lot of money over all those years. And maybe not only to bona fide students.,

Hé obviously tried to cut her up and depose but couldn’t. A madman, death penalty is too good for people who do such things.

I think a lot of the Russians buying in Phuket/ Thailand are doing so just in case the worse comes to the worse and they can relocate . I was recently in a 5/star Bali hotel. I spoke every breakfast time to a Russian lady with a very small baby, she hired a Balinese nanny to look after the little one. I asked the nanny if she was living in Russia with her boss, she said no, was hired in Bali and the family had been there nearly 4 months. Quite sure the Russians who have any sort of money are securing their future elsewhere. Phuket has been popular with Russians for a long time, they seem to like the beach. The ground floor apartments in Jomtien where I spent about 5/6 years were all Russian owned. But they cooked at home and the stench downstairs was awful. Whole families were there , grannies kids the lot.,

You don’t need to be skinny or overweight ! Eat normal well balanced diets and exercise. You’ll be healthy, unless a medical problem. Noticed the Thai ladies are getting bigger since a good while.,Rubbish food and eating all day, soda drinks , all unhealthy.,

Sorry to contradict you, but I have traveled twice this year to Thailand visa exempt, staying over the one month and have not been asked for a return / leave ticket., (I did have one to Singapore and Bali). On the other hand, each time I travel with Emirates they ask for a billet de sortie . This apparently depends on the airline, some stricter than others. I have never had any sort of’problem with immigration either , my stays usually corresponding tô EU winters.

I doubt that Indian travel insurance continues paying for stolen necklaces. So why are those people taking the chance ? Maybe it’s because certain people like to show off their jewelry, lots of people do. I personally take no jewelry with me when leaving Europe. And even in Europe do not wear it evenings.

Transgender has always been there. Maybe a few hundred years back they were burnt at the stake like witches, I don’t know. I do know that in Victorian society it was very common , lots of books referring to this, films etc. Some very influential people were known to be of doubtful gender. They weren’t nice times for the poor or people who were different. one would hope that today attitudes are different ! They’re not all hookers in Pattaya or the numerous back streets around the world. From what I’ve seen Thai airways employed many , compared to other airlines. Why would it bother anyone ? my brother who is 84 went to school with a « tomboy ». Poor girl was ignored in class and in life. A quiet nice person that I knew as she / he was a neighbour of my grandmother. I’ve seen an aged lady walking around our town in the south of France for nigh on 50 years. Obviously not a woman but not a man either. It’s a hard lonely life for most. Acceptance would be nice.