Lacessit

6 hours ago, davidstipek said:

How many Deaths on Motorcycles? If majority of Accidents are from Motorcycles (72 - 84%) Why is every picture shown involving Car or Truck!! I have yet to see even just one picture of a Motorcycle!!  How many were cause by Motorcycle...? How many were caused by other Vehicles but involved Motorcycle??? Article saying that Motorcycles "HAD" 72-84% of the Accidents this New Years is wrong! Biased! Or just plain False!!

 

 

Which has more visual impact in a photograph - a multiple vehicle collision, or a scooter that has hit a tree?

Of course scooters/motorbikes are more dangerous. They don't have seatbelts or airbags.

On 12/28/2017 at 9:41 AM, canuckamuck said:

They don't need a second airport, what they need is a  bigger parking lot.

A taxi to and from the airport from most of Chiang Mai city is 200 baht. I don't understand the compulsion to park there.

5 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

There is NO grey area. Has to be done by the owner of the property, but obviously it would be done by condo or hotel management in that case. In NO situation is it the tenant's responsibility.

The only "grey" area is who pays the fine. Should be the owner or management, but often becomes the farang's problem.

" There is NO grey area". " The only "grey" area is who pays the fine".  I must have been asleep during the logic class where the reconciliation of diametrically opposed statements was explained.

11 minutes ago, dotpoom said:

Would it not be a good idea to leave it to the contractor to figure these things out. He would have a lot of experience to say the least....just suggesting?

Contractors in Thailand can vary considerably in quality. A guy in my condo had a "plumber" in to change a water outlet in the unit he was renovating. After puncturing a main pipe somehow, the entire third floor was flooded. Damage bill from condo management 40,000 baht. The Thai contractor disappeared sometime during the flooding process.

A grey area. I have not seen a clear definition of who is responsible for lodging a TM30 - it seems to be ping-ponged between tenants, landlords and condo management.

Owning condos in Thailand is like marriage - very easy to get into, a lot harder to get out of.

From memory, a luggage shop on Changkhlan Road just about opposite Le Meridien - if not, 200 m either way on the other side of the road.

CM airport has luggage wrapping facilities.

The key to driving successfully in Thailand is defensive driving. I don't drive my scooter much above 40 km/Hr in CM. When driving my car, I assume everyone around me is an unpredictable, homicidal idiot. Has worked for me for 9 years now, fingers crossed.

The main reason for bad Thai driving is their driving instructors. They should go back to the rice fields. The Thai Government could make an enormous difference to the road toll by employing falangs like me on a voluntary basis to teach basic driving skills; however, that's a matter of face, so it won't happen.

I can still remember the politically incorrect comment a Scottish mining engineer made to me after my Egyptian peer had rolled a long base Land Rover - a considerable feat in itself, given the low centre of gravity. He said " I think it's a mistake to give them car keys, when we've only just finished teaching them how to ride bicycles".

Happy New Year ( Bee Dee Mai ) to everyone.

3 hours ago, canuckamuck said:

I imagine it happens all the time considering:

That the vast majority of the men here were born here.

That many of these women have had some pretty bad experiences with foreigners

That they probably want to be with someone from their own culture and speaks the language

Not everybody is as awesome as me

 

You are too modest.

3 hours ago, Digitalnomadthailand said:

I would have thought most expatriates would have their own cars and drivers anyway, thus why would one need to drink and drive anyway ?

Where did you get the idea most expats employ drivers? All the expats I know or have seen drive their own cars and motorbikes. Dare I suggest most are safer drivers than the average Thai.

I won't drink and drive, period. I'll drink at home and have a comfortable bed to sleep in.

Looking at the scorecard of Thai road deaths and injuries, I'd say it's sensible just to stay put and listen to the ambulance music.

42 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

I took a look at Ratesetter and could not find 5% on offer, 4.3% for 5 year market was best. Thanks for the pointer though. Personally I don't accept risk at this time in my life and as it is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, having the 800k in Thailand, and avoiding dealing with income verification seems easier. I believe having accessible money in Thailand makes sense anyhow, unexpected medical expenses might be an example. Of course the money is there to be used between extension renewals for 9 months.

Sadly my bank also makes me tie up some more capital to have their so called credit card.

 

 

I was referring to Ratesetter in Australia, which does offer much better rates than the UK parent. Ratesetter.com.au. About 7.5% pa on the 3-year lending market. I run a mixture of 1 month, 1 year and 3 year loans which average out at about 5%.

Once we are over 70, medical insurance is either ruinously expensive or simply unavailable for someone with pre-existing conditions. So your point is valid re having funds to meet unexpected medical expenses.

Risk is part and parcel of investing. It has to be spread, just like manure.

I had a credit card once, about 30 years ago. Since then, have only had debit cards.

Did my retirement visa extension in November in Chiang Mai, statutory declaration of income witnessed by consular official ( outreach visit ) for a cost of 1950 baht. Interest on 800,000 baht with a Thai bank at 1.5% pa. = 12,000 baht. Interest on 800,000 baht with a peer to peer lender such as Ratesetter at 5% pa = 40,000 baht. Opportunity cost 40,000 - 12,000 = 28,000 baht.

Shelling out 1950 baht so I can make an extra 28,000 baht by not having my capital locked up in a Thai bank seems to be a good deal to me. Even at the OP's cost of 6000 baht, still worth thinking about.

Money talks. I have twice opened savings accounts in Chiang Mai ( Bangkok Bank and Kasikorn ), using nothing but my passport and a 50,000 baht cash deposit. After transferring another 450,000 baht to the Kasikorn account, I was immediately offered a Visa debit card - yearly fee about 200 baht from memory. First time on a tourist visa, second time on a retirement visa.

5 hours ago, worgeordie said:

I mean no tears ,no writing on them,in clean good condition.

 

regards worgeordie

Understand. I cry when I have to part with money too.

On 11/26/2016 at 1:55 PM, TGIR said:

I'm confused about this situation.  Keeping interest rates low takes away what has always been a conservative investment option.  Bonds and other interest bearing choices were always a portion of my portfolio both in business and personally.  Essentially, governments across the world have done away with the ability to put funds in a safe place for current needs, or as a safe haven for investors who don't want all their money tied up in property or subject to the whims of the stock market.

 

How does eliminating interest rate arbitrage help the economy?  It seems to me that it would depress economies in the long term, but at my age (72)  I don't have enough brain cells or education to see a way out of this conundrum.  

 

Some discussion technically of how interest fits into the big picture would be appreciated.

 

 

There are official interest rates, and there are real interest rates. Official low interest rates are designed to stimulate economies.

Real interest rates are what one sees on credit cards, business loans, personal loans, car and home loans. Some of these are the exclusive preserve of the banks. Others are funded by the growing industry of peer-to-peer lending. Some come from loans by or for governments to fund infrastructure projects.

Real interest rates are priced according to the level of risk attached to the loan. Official interest rates are arbitrarily priced by reserve banks around the world, with the USA as the main trendsetter as the world reserve currency. That position is currently under attack by the Chinese.

Sharemarkets boom when interest rates are low, and bust when interest rates are high, OR a crisis in confidence occurs, as witness the 2008 GFC.

I would suggest starting with a reasonably-priced studio unit at 8000 - 12000 baht per month, then work your way up or down from there. Bear in mind prices come down with the longer-term rentals; however, you don't want to get stuck with somewhere noisy or inaccessible, so you need to assess carefully. Further out in San Kamphaeng, plenty of rooms for 4000 baht a month.

There was a guy running a guide service some years ago. He was mainly interested in hooking me up with someone from his stable of Thai girls.

Songtaews and tuk-tuks should be used initially. Never get into one until the price is agreed.

 Try to learn as much Thai as you can. It makes life a lot easier. The most effective way to do it is to acquire a Thai girlfriend; however, bear in mind it's like marriage - a lot easier to get into than get out of. Women working in coffee shops, legitimate Thai massage shops and nurses from hospitals are sometimes interested in falangs.

I'd suggest getting a Thai driving licence for a scooter or car before taking the step to your own transport. Scooters are more useful in the congested areas, but also more risky. You can hire a scooter for about 2500 baht a month, car for 800 baht a day.

Good luck, and be careful.

21 hours ago, David Walden said:

Perhaps going into the details of why it is almost?  impossible for a man to get aids whilst in a  loving relationship with a female  positive sufferer of Aids maybe too much for the moderators of this site to permit... I rest my case. No further comment from me...thank you.

Resting your case is not the same as proving it - more than somewhat difficult to prove a negative. No further comment from me either.

Noise is a fact of life in Thailand. The best way to deal with it is to develop counter-strategies, such as Bluetooth-enabled headphones for the TV, or earplugs.

Most village noise is usually finished by midnight, apart from roosters and geckos. In the city, noise can be going until 4 am.

50 minutes ago, marioc said:

 

S.K. Sakol Money Exchange

Agree. Good rates and lowest spread I have seen. Other side of the Iron Bridge from Rimping,  Charoen Prathet Road nearly opposite the end of Loi Kroh Road.

The probability of the police or immigration visiting a Thai village is quite low. As long as the poo yai is onside with it, there should not be a problem. And once it is done, who is going to say who did it?

3 hours ago, David Walden said:

It is almost impossible for a male to contact HIV when having sex with a loving, fully committed passionate gentle HIV positive female partner.  HIV is mostly transmitted by rough sex which is often the case with homosexual men who sometimes experience damage to their bodies and cause fluid exchange etc. etc.

You need to research more thoroughly. The risk for males is about 0.07% per sexual intercourse with a female HIV positive partner. Of course, if she is loving, fully committed, passionate and gentle one would expect sexual intercourse to occur more than once, thus multiplying the risk.  Or she may accede to intercourse while menstruating, which increases the risk again.

Almost impossible? Permit me to doubt.

The Green Bus from CM or CR to Mae Sai is a safer option. From the bus station in Mae Sai, a songtaew to the border is about 20 baht from memory.

Khunnam Rimtarn is not far from Mae Sai on the Thailand side. Comfortable beds, not Thai hard. About 600 baht again from memory.

Try Agoda if you are determined to stay in Tatchilek. If that website doesn't have it, it's probably not worth staying there.

3 hours ago, JLCrab said:

Yes. Colin rides in a wheelchair for sure. Your singing ain't for sure.

I understand people have been moved to tears when Trans sings.