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Niwpix, thanks for your feedback,. Yes that is standard practice over here.

KhunBenq, yes I agree with you. I like to trust people until they prove they cannot be trusted. That is with everyone, not just my Thai relations.

Like you say, the licence could easily have been dated based on the computer test on January 13th. That is why rather than jump to conclusions, I posted on the Issan forum, to better understand how the system works up there.

In Pattaya, they have just switched to 100 computer questions, whereas I believe in Buengkan it is still the 'older' system with 50 questions.

This is totally a question of trust. She spoke to me on the phone for several minutes about how tired she was after taking the computer test, how she was fed she could not borrow her friends bike again and how helpful it would be to hire a decent bike for the test.

So if that was a 'fake' conversation we had I am feeling pretty let down to be honest.

I guess I need to find someone who has taken the test on the computer based system in the last few months - is there anyone out there?

The great thing about Thaivisa, is that I can come on here and find out the facts before I make a fool of myself by suggesting she is telling 'porkies'. If I cannot prove she is being dishonest, then I will say nothing at all. I may even pay for a new bike as I will feel so guilty for doubting her word

KhunBenq, thanks very much for that information. I am afraid it proves she lied.

For her story to be true, then her licence should have been dated after the 13th January.

Gerry, as I said in the post, I am not bothered about 1000 baht. Unlike you though, I do not like people lying to me. The amount is irrelevant. By the way, what has a 'Ponchon' got to do with this topic?

Thanks again KhunBenq for your help.

My family lives in Pattaya, but I have helped a family member over the last period get back on her feet. She has no money and now has a kid, a familiar story. We said we would buy her a second hand motorbike, but she had to pass he motorbike test first.

So she went to Bueng Kan Testing Centre and first had to pass the computer test. She failed that 3 times, but on the 4th time she passed. We had given her enough money to get to the centre by public transport up until this point. She also borrowed a friends motorbike.

She passed her written test on the 13th January.

She then asked for more money so that she could hire a motorbike for a day (maybe 2) to take the practical driving test. Her friend was using her bike the next few days, so she could not borrow that bike, so wanted to hire one for 2 days.

The cost of the test and hiring a bike and having her kid looked after for 2 days would be 1000 baht.

We sent this on the 14th and she took her test and passed it.

When we saw her driving licence, it was dated 13th January.

I am interested to know what date the licence is dated from. Is it when she passed the computer test or both the driving test and the computer test.

This for me is an important point. If she had to pass the driving test before she got the licence, then why is it dated the 13th?

If she actually passed both parts of the test on the 13th, then why did she need another 1000 baht?

I am not bothered about the 1000 baht as such, but if this girl has lied to us about needing an additional 1000 baht, then naturally I will be less than amused.

Any advice you could give me on this would be very much appreciated.

I also use Magna Carta. I have done so for 13 years now, which is actually just before they became Magna Carta.

I initially used them to set up the Thai company to buy the house, get my UK driving licenses converted, setting up a pre-nuptial agreement, writing my Thai Will, certifying documents for use in the UK.

I have my annual accounts prepared there.

I used them a lot for advice before I discovered Thai Visa!

Most (all?) off the advice was free and I was only charged when I asked them to actually do something. Mind you, the advice may have been free as I was using and paying for their services in other areas.

They are not particularly cheap, nor are they all that expensive. For example the annual accounts cost 15000 baht, whereas I know I could get it done for 12000 baht elsewhere.

However, I know they will do the accounts properly.

I have no idea who the 'farang bouncer' is mentioned by one poster above, when I go to their office, I go to the reception that has 1 or 2 Thai girls sitting there, who ask me if I want tea or coffee or water whilst I wait.

They then escort me to the accountant.

I am sorry to hear that your dog is missing. He certainly won't be harmed whether he just wandered off or was stolen.

We have a pom the same as this. He is a major part of the family and if he were snatched we would be gutted.

I would do all of the following if it were my dog.

- go to the police

- put adverts in local Thai and Farang papers

- contact Pattaya People and see if they will run a story on it. Niels Colov may be a good guy to contact directly. He is the owner and takes on some issues personally.

- offer a reward - I would offer 3000 baht initially

- take this picture you have posted, add some words mentioning the reward, laminate about 40 copies and then tie them to trees/concrete posts in the local area and post them on the notice boards in Tesco/BigC etc... I would do this in every store, but the ones nearby would be a good start.

Good luck, I hope you get him back.

edit

I don't know if this is any use, but it is Niels Colov's Facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/NielsColov

Reading this thread has convinced me to keep my old mower. It is a Black And Decker electric mower that cost about 5000 baht 12 years ago and still works great.

The trouble is, the power/cut out switch has a problem. I have decided to replace it. I would like to replace the whole unit, you know the part I mean, the plastic handle we pull to make it run - it has the safety button you have to push before you can pull the plastic handle to start the motor.

I am going to try to buy this part at the 'mom and pop' store in Central Pattaya - opposite Foodland - they seem to have everything. If they don't have it, do you know of any store that sells this kind of part. It does not need to be Black and Decker, this type of switch is used on most electric mowers and I can easily fit an extra bracket if the attachment is a different size.

Thanks for your help.

Edit: I found this thread - is this place in North Pattaya still here do you know - I think I know the shop they mean - I will try anyway later today.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/777653-black-decker-service-centre-in-pattaya/

Sheryl, thanks for telling me that. I was not that hopeful, but I will certainly still look into what can be done, but without getting her hopes up too much.

I think a trip to Queen Sirikit to have her checked out and diagnosed would be well worth it, so at least I can understand the situation as well.

Thanks again

oncearugge, thanks for the reply. Yes, I am not that hopeful. I discussed this with the doctor back in 2003, I am sure he was an eye expert and we had lots of tests carried out. Still medical advances are happening all the time. I have had a bad experience with Bangkok Pattaya hospital in the past so tend to avoid them nowadays. I thought the Queen Sirikit just as a first point of contact to discuss what could be done. I do not necesarily think they would take on a difficult operation, but they would at least know just what the state of play in the medical field for this sort of eye problem currently is.

Jingthing, did you go down there? If not where did you go?

My wife has been blind in one eye since she was 4 years old. She was playing with a friend and got hit on the head with a garden hoe. I believe the nerve was cut in her head that helped her eye grow and function. I don't really know to be honest - she did not want to talk about it too much.

She is 43 years old now and would suddenly like to do something about it. I have been married to her for 13 years and this is only the second time she has mentioned trying to have it operated on. The first time was when we first met and at that time she went to the hospital on her own and was told there was nothing that could be done. I was new to Pattaya at the time and did not realise just how different the quality of care was between different hospitals, so it may have been the hospital did not really have anyone with the right expertise. I think it was Pattaya Memorial.

To be honest, I don't want to get her hopes up, I am not at all hopeful that this can be operated on, as I was told the nerve was cut in the head. Still maybe science has moved on in the last 13 years or so.

I know about Rutnin Eye hospital in Bangkok, a friend of mine went there recently. However, it got quite difficult going there each time and if there is a place near Pattaya that we could go for an initial check/diagnosis then that would be a great help.

Thanks

Oh right, I didn't know it was illegal for a learner driver to drive on the road even with an instructor. Getting involved with the Thai learner industry for the first time has been a real experience!

Can anyone answer these questions please?

1. I believe when taking the test for a car and a motorcycle at the same time, then the written test is taken in the morning and the driving tests (both of them) taken in the afternoon - is that correct?

2. If the person fails one of the driving tests, do they have to take the written test again?

3. I assume the written test is used for both vehicles,

I think I will go down to the Test Centre next week anyway, I intend to understand this whole 'interesting' system before the end of the year!

Here is some feedback for anyone who reads this thread to get some insight into driving lessons in Pattaya.

Well that was a bit of an eye opener. We switched the driving lesson to today and I followed them down on the bike. The instructor arrived 10 minutes late at the office in Naklua, so after the drive to NongPreu she started the lessons about 25 minutes past the hour. She then stopped about 15 minutes early. So she drove for about 1 hour 20 minutes of a 2 hour lesson.

That is not the part that bemused me. He started her off around the track. She drove in a circle and reversed and drove off again. After about 10 minutes he got out of the car and sat with me and the other spectators( I think they were mostly instructors) in the shade and chatted to his mates - like I say I think they were the other instructors.

She continued to do the same exercise around the track for the next hour and 10 minutes. I don't think he was even watching.

Nothing surprises me about Thailand, so I have not decided what I think about this at the moment.

I asked how much it would cost if she took another 10 hours of lessons and then took her test and failed and then we wanted her to take another 10 hours (so a total of 30 hours) and I wanted to guarantee that she passed. I was told the additional amount was now 6500 baht on top of the cost of the lessons.

I asked for a copy of the 'highway code' - the driving school has run out so she said I needed to go to the Licensing / Driving Test centre Near The Regents school to get one.

I have lived in Thailand for 11 years now so am never surprised about anything really - I am not even complaining about this driving school.

It just makes me wonder - if this is a good driving school in Pattaya - I shudder to think what a bad one is like.

Thanks again for all the feedback - it was much appreciated.

ripstanley, I guess that will have to do then. Like I say, I intend hiring a car with lots of insurance after she passes the test and she will pick it all up as she goes along like the rest of them over here. A trip down to Hua Hin should help her hone her skills I hope!

wombat, well that's what we do in the UK. Well we did when I had my driving lessons all those years ago (1972). It may all have changed now. I lived in London, so it was not some country village.

The driving instructor came to my house, I got in the driving seat - he told me about the controls - mirror/signal/manoeuvre and we were off into the traffic.

My road was pretty quiet, but when we joined the main road there was a lot of traffic. I recall gripping the steering wheel too tightly, crunching a gear (not an automatic which they all seem to learn on nowadays), forgetting to look in the mirror enough and arriving back home and stalling the car when I forgot to put it in neutral when I stopped. I didn't hit anything.

Where the office is in Naklua, there is not much traffic at 2pm and I could certainly have handled it on my first driving lesson. In the UK though the vehicles are fully insured and we have an L plate on the vehicle so other vehicles know to avoid us.

Thailan49, thanks for the information. She said she went to Nongprue. I will pop up there and have a look around just out of interest. I think we will pay for 20-30 hours of lessons and then see if she passes without any 'tip'. If she fails then I will think what to do next. I am going that way tomorrow, could you tell me roughly where you are please.

Topt and AsianTravel - That parking area looks very good for learning to drive - but like you say, that hardly prepares them for driving on the road does it. I am planning to hire a car with full insurance as soon as she passes the test and then get her to drive the family to Hua Hin. That way she can begin to get her road sense in a car that is not owned by us!

Properperson - that is what we are planning to do. Two licenses in one day. She has a 2 hour lesson this Saturday and has told me she can drive the car from the office if she wants to. I think she is getting it all wrong, so I am going down there as well and will see just what does go on.

robblok, yes I suppose it seems normal to me really, I had just never read that to be the case and I read a lot of posts before I signed up to the lessons.

So as I understand it, it is legal (but sometimes a bad idea with new drivers) for a learner driver to drive on the road with a proper driving school instructor, but if I were to teach someone to drive then I would not be allowed on the road - I would have to find a large car park or somewhere similar?

I have no intention of teaching anyone to drive by the way.

Kittenkong, robblok, Properperson, Dlang (and Rimmer for removing the troll post).

Thanks to all of you for the feedback. I had never read anywhere that an hour of lessons was only 40 minutes, so now I know it is the norm then fair enough. We intended to pay for another 10 (probably 20) hours anyway, but maybe next time we will take the package that has 2 hour (1 hour 40 minute) lessons instead.

Properperson, did your wife take the 1 hour or 2 hour lessons? Did she drive the car from the office in Naklua when she got to be a better driver, or always from the 'safe' area a 10 minute drive away ? I am just curious that's all as to what is your experience, as I have no knowledge at all (apart from some googling) of the driving lesson format over here.

This driving school also offers to provide a bike for a motorbike test as well, so it seems to be very flexible in its approach.

Thanks again for you help

I found what is considered to be a decent driving school in Naklua, opposite Numchai on the traffic lights. It is 3500 baht for 10 lesson of 1 hour each. I made sure before I booked the lessons, that the learner (a Thai) would drive the car for an hour. It seems though that the instructor drives for 10 minutes to an area where they do the actual teaching and then 10 minutes back. So the learner only drives for 40 minutes.

I suppose this is reasonable (is it?).

Is it just the case that the learner is not yet good enough to drive in Naklua and after a few lessons and becoming a better driver will be allowed to drive the full 1 hour starting from the driving school, or is it that this is just normal here in Thailand as the learner does not have 'L' Plates so has to be taken somewhere 'safe' for all the lessons?

Yes I know I can ask the driving school what is going on, but before I start moaning about it being a con etc... I thought it best to find out what happens elsewhere.

So any feedback would be appreciated.

I am helping a friend find a place where a couple and the child can visit in person in Pattaya to have a DNA test to prove paternity of the child. My searches to date have found a few places in Bangkok and plenty of places where samples can be emailed, but no places (yet) in Pattaya.

I was hoping Bangkok/ Pattaya hospital would provide this service, but no luck sadly.

If you know of somewhere reputable, it would be most appreciated.

Thanks for your help.

andre47, thanks for the info.

I am obviously just getting paranoid in my old age and some things really are as easy as they seem.

Thanks again.

Thanks theoldgit for this post.

Yes I read that is the case and assuming the Russian Embassy website is up to date, then I should have no problem applying through the Russian Embassy in Bangkok. I can send them an email and ask to be sure, but the last time I sent an email to an embassy I had to wait a couple of weeks for a reply.

I think the other websites that say I cannot do this are simply out of date.

On the second part, do you know if a Thai really can just arrive in Russia and have no hassle?

OK it seems like a stupid question, but I am too old and traveled to just believe things are this simple.

I am British and live in Thailand on a 1 year visa (non-imm-o extension based on marriage).

I am planning to visit Russia in the New Year and need to apply for a tourist visa. I seem to be getting conflicting information about how and where to apply.

I have read that I can apply in Bangkok, but only if I have a one year visa extension (ie not just 30 days or tourist visa).

I have also read that I cannot apply in Bangkok and I have to return to the UK and apply there.

Could anyone who knows about this please point me in the direction of a decent website that has up-to date current information on this. I think the conflicting information I am getting from websites is due to the age of the posts.

Also, I know my Thai wife does not need a visa to visit Thailand, but is it that simple>

Can she just turn up there and get in without any problems at all? I know people who have visited Singapore and have had problems entering despite not needing a visa!

Thanks very much for your help.

A quick thank you for your replies and also to those who pm'd me. It has helped me focus on what to do next.

I will let you know how it goes when I have some progress - or lack of it.

Thanks a lot

David

maprao, thanks for the feedback. Without getting too involved in an off-topic debate with you, I can only think that you must lead a very lonely isolated existence if you really live your life like that. I would hardly think me helping out one Thai girl makes me a 'moral crusader' and the feedback from Toknarok suggests that in certain circumstances my 'crusade' could actually be successful.

Maprao, here is an idea. Get up now from your keyboard, go to your local orphanage, take a few gifts and make a donation as well. You may be surprised just how good it makes you feel to help someone less fortunate than yourself.