Jen65

Even if proper Lifejackets are supplied (as on aircraft ) which I doubt due to the expense and required maintenance , if no instruction is given or even diagrams/posters showing how to don a Lifejacket ( and passengers requested to read prior setting off ) then there will just be panic in an emergency .     Also if crotch straps are not fitted and used even Lifejackets can "ride up " and come off .  Lifejackets can also be fitted with "spray hoods " so the wearer can float facing downwind and the hoods help protect the head from spray .   So much that the innocent public are not aware of one they set foot on a boat !!!  

Lots of talk about "Lifejackets' and "Lifevests" .    BIG difference between a "Lifejacket"  and a "Buoyancy Aid "   !!!!!

Now , lets hear exactly what these tourist boats are equipped with !!!    

If it does not show the government approved Logo then it's probably NOT approved !  I would check inside first.

I had same problem when builder replaced the roof and failed to either tell me about the plastic strips to fit at the edges so eventually after trying spray foam ( which the birds just pecked away and returned ) I bought and fitted these . Also because I have pvc guttering I bought large roll of plastic garden netting ( about 15mm diam holes) and then cut strips of about 80/90 cm and rolled them up and placed them in the gutters - keeps the birds and the leaves out ) 

Hardly surprising as Pattaya just does not seem to have proper waste disposal or recycling facilities .  No one seems to know where to dispose of items that the "bin men" do not take ie gardening/household/building /oils etc waste !!  So it's all "fly tipped"  and there is no policing / cameras / big fines to make offenders think twice .  Na Jomtien is a classic example where just a few hundred metres from the Police Station , fly tipping is rife (as the photographs by johng show)There are luxury Condo's being built nearby - why can't Pattaya get a grip on the environment ( pollution both of land and sea, fly tipping  , plastic bags , noise , sewage , air /water quality included )

this reminds me of the back roads to Na Jomtien   (via B2 hotel ) and how it floods out all the time with continuous standing water and they installed the drains in the MIDDLE" of the road instead of the sides !!!   what a disaster !!!  

anything that gets these idiots off the road is just fine !!

14 hours ago, Just Weird said:

Garbage.  Swifts have either a 3 or 4 star NCAP safety rating, depending on the specification, that's as good as, and better than, many others.

 

From https://uk.motor1.com/news/147092/suzuki-swift-ncap-safety-rating/...

Suzuki’s new Swift supermini has been awarded a three-star safety rating by Euro NCAP - unless you pay for extra kit, which earns it an extra star...

...If you opt for the radar brake support pack (price to be confirmed), this increases to 44%, giving the Swift an overall four out of five stars for safety. 

...the Swift generally performs well, achieving 83% in the adult occupancy test as standard and 75% for child occupants. NCAP has awarded the Swift 69% in pedestrian safety tests.

 

  From http://www.carbuyer.co.uk/tips-and-advice/112490/euro-ncap-how-safe-my-car...

"...5 stars - Overall good performance in crash protection. Well equipped with robust crash protection.

4 stars - Overall good performance in crash protection. Additional crash avoidance technology may be present.
3 stars - Average to good occupant protection. Lacking crash avoidance technology.
2 stars - Nominal crash protection, but lacking crash avoidance technology.
1 star - Marginal crash protection.

Eek – my car only scored three out of five!

There's no need to panic. Modern cars are generally very safe, and a three-star car built in the past few years could be much better at protecting its occupants than a five-star car from the nineties.

In addition, a car can be marked down for design aspects other than simple crash protection and body strength. For example, a new model might lose points if it lacks a seatbelt warning alarm.

Realistically, the difference between a three-star and a five-star car won't necessarily protect you in an accident...".

 

each to their own - wouldn't touch one with a barge pole !!  depends on your budget but you're at the bottom end of the market so you get what you pay for !!

It's a disgrace and any government and local authority should hang their heads in shame !!   protection of the marine environment just does not seem to be on the agenda . Maybe it will when the tourists disappear along with their bucks!  Living here adjacent to the Canal/Klong in Na Jomtien , it seems everyone dumps their rubbish including vessels which have just been abandoned ( right behind the Police Station) and their is a steady stream of black effluent flowing into the Canal .    This was once a high class developed marina environment - now reduced to a dump and no authority takes any interest to protect or prosecute offenders .   The marine department is supposed overlook the responsibility for wrecks and the marine environment ???    As dedicated  yachtsman and ex master mariner I can only reel in shock at the lack of policing the marine environment .  

no chance of surviving an accident in a Suzuki - made of papier mache!!  I expect speeding and alcohol  to be the cause .

More "Quality" tourists for Pattaya !!!

I have pheripheral glaucoma in one eye and when I needed to do an eye test I went to PIH !!!  Although the opthamologist seemed informative and thorough it was definitely over the top when it came to the bill  !!   Result of that test was that my present medication (latanoprost ) was not containing the pressure so medication was changed to Cosopt with advise to check if this was effective after one month .

Next time round I decided to investigate where it was possible to get either field test or pressure test (tonometry ) done locally and costs !   None of the opticians can do any of these tests and most didn't even know what I was talking about !! Avoid all opticians for these tests .  Next I searched online for clinics and found that Pattaya Memorial Hospital does the pressure test ( at half the cost if PIH !!!)  . Nowhere else local except BHP and PIH  so I gave it go. The opthamologist was very informative and they have latest equipment for this test which is more accurate than the "puff test " !!  Cost for this was 1700 Bht but unfortunately they do not have the equipment to do the field test -  other than that I was well impressed .

Seems like opticians here are behind the times as in UK one makes an appointment at Boots or Specsavers and they do all the tests for about 25pds .

Now I need to find a reasonably priced clinic or other that does the field test otherwise its back to PhyaThai in Sri Racha ! 

LGBT "Q"  ?????? where on earth did the "Q" come from ????  Never seen a "Q" on the end before !!!   must be a Quirk of someones imagination !

Despicable !   Lock up and throw away the key !  Hope he gets the boot in from other inmates at the "hotel"  

so next time I am at our "other" home in Chaing Rai I will use that address ???    I never did get any reply from Bangkok Immigration department inspite of forwarding all the documents there by registered mail - waste of time !    Chonburi Immigration says I must do 90 day report at the same place I obtained my residence visa !    Unbelievable that one must drive all the 1000 km back to Jomtien just to a 90 day report and then drive the 1000km back again !!!     

Try Standard Bank IOM  !!!!   

yes , it is still quite surprising that Thailand , with one of the largest percentage of population being LGBT has no equality laws like europe . Trans people like myself can not legally get married and have no rights .  I thought the new constitution would address these issues but seems like Thailand remains lagging behind rest of world in human rights / LGBT issues .  However , have to say I have found Thailand and its people very accepting toward myself - much more so say than France !   Am hopeful for all LGBT Thais that the future will be different .  

Government website says you can report at "any immigration office"   !!!!!!    However it seems some immigration offices either don't know that or don't follow it as I tried to mine from Chaing Rai and was told to do it where I first applied for residence visa.

Since then , if away from home in another province , I do it by registered mail - full info on the government website .   Doing by email / online ? not tried this yet as have heard conflicting reports . 

Oh and also he forgot to work out if the boat would have a positive GM ( taking into account the free surface effects )

mmmm a real professional Captain ???  He forgot about the free surface effect of filling more ballast !!  

from a professional ex Captain !!!! 

could ruin your sex life ! imagine if that was venemous !!

I wonder how many Chinese could you get in a 10 person lift if you throw in ten baht!  

its very true - the poor exchange rate for euro and sterling (ie the high value of the baht) has contributed to a significant reduction in europeans and we are left with Chinese (who desecrate monuments and shit in the street ) the Indians and Arabs (not al but the majority)who are just plain rude and with dirty habits .Most of them are sex tourists because they can't get what they want in their own country . The Chinese are a joke - they wander round in groups with a flag and selfie sticks gawking at everything , look for the "eat all you can chinese buffet's" and certainly don't come to buy property . They don't spend anything .  What benefit is that to Pattaya and Thailand ??     

I wrote about this "coach" problems some time ago - the roads in Pattaya and around the backroads in Na Jomtien were never designed for this influx of coaches and are giving way in some places .  I also suggested "out of town" coach parks !!  Its the only solution .

why doesn't Pattaya and the authorities arrange that one particular street / soi ( maybe soi 6 ? ) be regarded as an adult venue/street where prostitutes can legally carry out their business and be monitored - just like the "winkelstrauser" in Hamburg  which has a boarded entry with notices to advise public .  This way the business of prostitution / selling sex can be made in an organised ,  legally approved safe area which can be monitored .  The sex trade can never go away but it can be arranged to be  safe and  organised  .  Also , all prostitutes in this "street" would have to be registered AND have regular medical check ups with proof of same for customers .