webworldly

Thank you very much for your replies....and as a side note, thank you to Sheryl, Lopburi3, and all whose moderation of the "Health, Body, and Medicine" subforum helps to maintain its high quality.

CHEERS!

D

Hey Mark.....as of a year or so ago, you could raw, unprocessed beef suet (also beef marrow "in bone", and pork lard) at Villa Market on Sukhumvit Soi 11 or at Foodland on Sukhumvit Soi 5. I don't recall exact prices other than to say it was all priced closer to remnant cuts as opposed to premium cuts.

I hope that helps you.

CHEERS!

D

Hey there . I have a friend who was was prescribed the following from a local BKK clinic two years ago:

• 5 mg prednisolone per day
• 60 mg thyroid extract per day
• 20 mg Lasix per day

Her health is much better since she has been on this regimen, so no worries there.

Rather, the issue is that the clinic is no longer in business (it's now a coffee shop under different ownership) and she doesn't have any written record of her prescriptions. While that is not a problem for her while she is in Bangkok, since she has never had trouble purchasing her medications at a pharmacy in BKK, she will be traveling to the US next week. She plans to bring a month's supply of her medications with her, but she has no written evidence of her prescription.

She will not need to purchase any refills while she is there, but to be clear, she is a US citizen and she plans to bring a month's supply of her 3 medications (listed above) with her back to the US. Is her lack of a written prescription from the now defunct BKK medical clinic a problem?

I really appreciate any information you can offer, as she is worried now that I mentioned the potential for problems to her....meaning it's all my fault.

CHEERS!

D

Hey Balo, you can find potato starch on offer in Bangkok at Foodland Supermarket, Soi 5. You will find it in the same area as the wheat flour, baking soda, and other baking needs. For the sake of clarity....this area of the store is not the same area where sugar or salt are sold, but rather the potato starch is located near the frozen food case.

I hope that helps......and I hope you make and enjoy a delicious Norwegian rhubarb soup!

CHEERS!

D

Hey jaideeguy.....in Bangkok, the Vital Life Clinic is part of Bumrungrad Hospital. One of their specialities is diagnosing and treating male hormone level deficiencies, including TRT with Nebido.

http://www.e-vitallife.com/

You might consider a consultation there to learn about cost, side effects, etc.

CHEERS!

D

In Bangkok (or anywhere in Thailand), I have been a very happy customer of "TA-TO", whose specialty is "mail order" contact lenses. They stock all the major brands:

http://www.ta-to.com/index.php?lang=en&id=&inv=

Hope that helps you. :-)

CHEERS!

D

In Bangkok, available on offer at all major supermarkets......least expensive at Foodland, Soi #16.

I suspect that most Thai people do consume a lot of coconut oil indirectly (or you could say, most directly) by way of the coconut flesh they eat, and thus derive its nutritional benefit...but that few would even consider purchasing pure coconut oil except for cosmetic purposes.

CHEERS!

D

OK, Green.....the best I can offer you is some optimistic, though non-conclusive follow up. Today I went to the shop that I mentioned in an earlier post in this thread, and while they had no sweets on offer when I was there (2pm).....to the best of my understanding, the Thai speaking cashier said that they start selling their sweets (baklava, halva, etc.) at 5pm each day. I wish I could promise more.

To make matters worse, I may have screwed up when I said the shop was west of Sukhumvit. It is indeed on Soi #3...between Sukhumvit and Bumrungrad, next to the Bamboo bar / restaurant, and almost directly across from the Grace Hotel. As for whether that is "west" or not, dunno'.

In case it helps, here's a (bad) picture of the storefront:

And here is the Grace Hotel.....if you are standing in front of it, on Sukhumvit, and you look across the street....you will see the shop.

....as for whether the shop will have sweets on offer after 5pm, uggggh, I'm optimistic but less sure than I was before.

CHEERS!

D

Hey Green......thank you for the followup. I will be walking past that area later today and will report back. My apologies in advance if it turns out that the shop has vanished.

CHEERS!

D

Hey Green....if you are looking for more of a Middle Eastern culinary styled product, there is a heavenly smelling, deliciously tasting street-side (but part of a full retail shop behind it) glass display case with attendant cashier full of fresh made treats (halwa, baklava, etc.) that is located across about 20 meters west of the Sukhumvit (on Sukhumvit Soi #3), between Sukhumvit and Bumrungrad Hospital.

Enjoy!

CHEERS!

D

Hey Green.....I have seen those for sale at Villa Market, Soi #11, Bangkok. They are located in the same aisle where you find rice crackers.

Bon apetit!

CHEERS!

D

Hey utalkin2me...Villa Market, Sukhumvit Soi #11, Bangkok, has "aluminum water bottles" with a variety of lid configurations. I believe they were 900 baht. Here's a (pretty bad) pic of what I saw there:

I hope that helps you!

CHEERS!

D

Finlaco......the repairs they did for me were on an iMac 24 inch. First time was for a broken "heat sink", second time was for broken internal hard drive. I know they repair iPods because I saw customers bring in broken ones while I was there with my iMac.

Good luck!

CHEERS!

D

Hey Finlaco....if you decide that repairing it is a better option for you than replacing it, I've had several very good experiences with Khun Houk at his Apple hardware repair shop in Pantip Plaza

https://www.facebook.com/houkandbank

If you go there....tell him that the crazy farang who always insists on repairing (instead of replacing) his old iMac 24 inch....says "hi!".

I hope this referral....or others you receive in this thread.....helps you.

CHEERS!

D

Hi bubba & Thereisnoif.....regarding your Novotel recommendations:

No problem, webwordly. You probably already know, but the Novotel is directly opposit the main terminal, and there is a walkway connecting them with perhaps a five minute walk to the restaurant. That should give you plenty of time.

Go to the Novotel , they have a chinese, japanese and a dinner restaurant

....I just got back from the airport, and feel compelled to give you a little feedback, and a lot of gratitude.

First, the facts. My brother had no problem with whatever process there was between departing his inbound flight from Melbourne (with a 3 hour stopover here in Bangkok) and then exiting the restricted area in order to meet me. To be specific, the best place for anyone else whose circumstance is similar to tell the person arriving to go to in order to meet is on level 2 by the exit marked #5 ("exit"...as in exit to go outside the airport).

So...that's where I was when I saw him coming through the exit of the restricted area. We saw each other, decided to go eat, took the escalator down to the first floor (I think...but it may have been one level lower than that)....walked for about 5 minute, following the signs "to Novotel" all the way, arrived at the hotel, and 60 seconds after walking in the entrance we were already seated and eating at the buffet restaurant.

The food was ok, but this ThaiVisa thread is much more about confirming to anyone else who wants to greet, meet, and eat with someone who is only at Suvarnabhumi for a 3 hour layover.....that YES, YOU CAN DO IT! WOOHOO!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this thread, especially bubba & Thereisnoif for being persistent in their Novotel recommendations! Well done!

CHEERS!

D

Hi :-)

Is there anybody who was studying Thai language at a school in Bangkok who can share their experience with switching to a different school after one year? How did it go regarding:

1. Your ability to adapt to a new learning / teaching process at the new school?
2. The ease with which you and the school decided what "level" (e.g. beginner, advanced, etc.) to place you in at the new school?
3. Education visa renewal (after the first year at the first school)?
4. Which school did you leave...which new school did you choose?

I will be very grateful to hear any experiences or advice you have. :-)

CHEERS!

I appreciate the suggestion, bubba....and if time permits (depends on how long my brother's post-arrival immigration process takes) we might go there. Thank you!

CHEERS!

D

Thank you, lomatopo......for putting up with my unintentional prior omission of facts (brother's USA passport, etc.). I will take your bigger questions under consideration....and will also heed your advice to simply arrive early enough to scout out some dining options.

Thank you to all who contributed to this thread.

CHEERS!

D

Hi webworldly (haha!)...I received an email from my brother today that provides some pertinent information. He wrote:

Just called Thai Airways and they said they didn't know but I could call the consulate, which I did, and they said it should be no problem to leave the airport without a visa (with US passport) as long as I have proof that I am leaving the country again (my ticket on to Frankfurt). The Thai Consulate website confirms this. So I think it's pretty likely to be OK.

That's great news, though none of us here on ThaiVisa will be surprised if what he is told by airport authorities when he lands in Bangkok ends up being, "same same, but different". That said, I am optimistic and will plan for the best.

So.......final question......which restaurant would you recommend in the international terminal at Suvarnabhumi for an upscale, sitdown, quiet, 60-minute, dining experience? Type of food is unimportant....but the ability to have a nice, quiet meal is paramount.

CHEERS!

D

Hi Malthus101...you can buy unrefined sea salt, finely ground or in "rock" form, with or without added iodine, for under 90 baht, at any of the Foodland or Villa Market locations in Bangkok.

I hope that helps!

CHEERS!

D

Got it! Thank you again, lomatopo!

Hey lomatopo...thank you for the detailed information. Am I understanding correctly that even though the process was expensive, time consuming, and an all around hassle...you have spoken to people who managed to arrive in BKK only for the purpose of a stopover between two international flights, leave the "air-side", meet their friend, then return to the "air-side" in order to catch their departing flight? I realize that my question will come across about the same as this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX5jNnDMfxA

...but I haven't seen my brother for a long time and would love to make this opportunity work for us.

To fredob43, thank you for sharing your experience, and I am sorry to hear that the circumstances made it impossible to meet your friend. Do you recall if your friend would have at least had the option to complete the process and meet you in person if the stopover had been long enough? If so, do you think that a 3.5 hour stopover is long enough?

CHEERS!

D

Thanks to my brother's relatively short layover at Suvarnabhumi in a few weeks, I have the opportunity to see him after quite some time apart. I'm really hoping for some information and/or advice here regarding how I can best prepare in order to maximize our time together.

He arrives at Suvarnabhumi via Thai Airways from Melbourne.....and leaves just three and a half hours later via Thai Airways to Frankfurt.

Two questions:

1. Can I....and if so, what is the best way to....meet him as close to the gate where his plane arrives as possible?
2. Since he is coming in on an international flight and then departing on an international flight.....what and where is the best restaurant in the airport that he will have easy access to and that I will be allowed to meet him at?

Thank you for any advice you have.

CHEERS!

D

Hi ricku....the other suggestions in this thread show much greater knowledge of metal work here in Bangkok than I can offer, but just in case you've not found what you needed, perhaps this store will have it or have someone who can help you find it elsewhere.

www.homepro.co.th/

Whatever, wherever, or however.....I hope you find what you need!

CHEERS!

D

Not that it changes the conclusion that Bangkok is becoming a pricier place for expats, but there are two other considerations that I would like to see similar research on. First, to what extent infrastructure, government services, and private business have kept pace and contributed to an overall increased quality of life for the same expats whose data / opinion was collected as basis for the original study. More of a "cost / benefit" perspective. Second, and this one certainly relies on a different data set and would require a different discussion thread, would be to extend either study (original one or the cost / benefit one) to include Thai people.

On my first point, I think that the overall pace is at least reasonably close to equal. On the second point, I am amazed at how adaptive the Thai people (especially the non-white collar worker supported families) have been to cost of living increases.

CHEERS!

D