CrunchWrapSupreme

You know, when I was in Spain... ????

Aren't these the QUALITY, big spending tourists they want? On MDMA, of which "Molly" is some variety, if pure and unadulterated it's shown promise in clinical trials to treat PTSD in the US, and may soon become prescription medication. It's a positive, happy, social drug. It's biggest issues are being cut with other, harmful substances, and dehydration from too much dancing. It's hardly most of the stuff found in the LOS that sends people into violent rages. If controlled and regulated, more of it could definitely be used here. About 20 years ago I was shy, lonely, and depressed, and along with friends I made in the electronic music scene, it got me through some difficult times.

BKK is where everyone arrives, everyone tries, and everyone wants to be near the action. You'll have the most difficult time there. If you have high level degrees, certs, references, you could try a private or international school for a higher salary, but also be prepared to deal with insufferable, arrogant attitudes, which I wouldn't do again. People are probably tired of me saying this here, but your best luck is out in the Issan provinces to the Northeast. Korat, Khon Kaen, Sisaket, Ubon. Show up at some schools, ask to see the head of the English or Foreign Language Dept. You'll be surprised how easy it might be. Many teachers are likely to have gone home due to Covid and haven't been back. These schools have had a hard time filling these positions as everyone wants to be in BKK. My boss just said the other day she won't know what to do once I go. Heh. You could go through an agency who'll arrange everything for you, visa and work permit, but for this they do take a cut of your salary. If you go through the school directly, this is yours. You should be able to negotiate a salary of around 40k baht. Sell yourself, talk up your experiences, about how you've connected with students and their interests, and how you want to get them involved in activities that immediately have them making use of the language, this is what they most want to see. Most importantly, ignore all the negativity you're likely to hear from other foreigners. Haha. Good luck.

This mostly applies to Americans, but could for other countries as well. Some of you have probably realized you can't stay and teach in the LOS forever. There's the waiver thing, but even without it, there's the stagnant wages and no retirement plans here. For the rest of your teaching career, your best option would be to go home. Getting your home country license has two advantages: 1. A teaching career when you return home, 2. An online teaching career you could start on the side, with an online public school teaching company as you stay in the LOS. The latter is what I was interested in, at least initially. It's a booming industry in the US now, with much talk of virtual or remote K-12 due to their continued, massive teacher shortage, and most American schools continuing to be battlefields. Look up Elevate K-12, Stride, Fusion, Proximity. So, I got the ball rolling on my state teaching license. I found they'll accept a license from another country. I then had to take the Praxis exam for my subject, ESL, which I registered for and took at Kasem Bundit University in Romklao, BKK. I studied my rear end off and got a high score. The final hurdle is the background check. Most states should be able to mail you the standard FBI fingerprint card. They then give you the option of taking it to any police station to have done. I first took it to the big police station here in my Issan changwat capital. They were pretty helpful, but then got on the phone to the big boss who then said no, all foreign police stuff must go through police HQ in BKK. Bah. So I finally waited until the October holiday now to do it. Wife and I took BTS to Siam station and the police HQ. We went back to the criminal records division where I've had fingerprints done before for Thai schools. They then sent us to another office for the foreign card. Here a cop took one look at it and went "Ah, FBI". Good, we're getting somewhere. He had his pad all inked up. He knew just how to roll em. Then he signed the top and gave it the RTP stamp. Then, a brick wall. My state has an additional form for him to sign. A stupid checklist to go down and initial, "Did you verify their ID? Did they fill out the card correctly?" He absolutely refused. He said all he'll do is the fingerprint card. But my state says they won't take the card without the form. So I guess that's that. Now back to looking for other online jobs that don't need the license, or a license from another state that'll just take the FBI card. Or, wait for a trip back home to do it. But like all the Chinese I teach online who keep asking me "How often do you visit home?", hah, I tell them I haven't done so in 10 years, as I'm certainly not one of those tools at Robin Hood or Buddy's Bar who JUST CAN'T SPEAK LOUDLY ENOUGH about their cushy finance or O&G gigs, and taking their Patana or Harrow kids back home every Christmas. Nah, just another lowly Issan govt school teacher here. Heh. Cheers all.

Sad to see this terrible "advice". I got the same from many past coworkers. Come on guys. There no measuring tape here. He/she also isn't a threat to your job, as post-Covid there's still plenty of jobs to go around. Don't teach in or around BKK. There you'll get worse attitudes, from coworkers such as this, or the Thai admins. They know everyone wants to teach where the action is, so this is where everyone tries, and it's just a revolving door. Here you're also more likely to deal with the nonsense as mentioned, embassy document verification and fingerprinting. There's also the higher cost of BKK living, such as higher rent and daily transportion, that'll eat into your salary. Teach up in Issan, the Northeastern provinces. Here there's the most demand and appreciation for your work. Try to deal with a school directly and avoid agencies, who will only give you more hassles. Play up your experience, what good experiences they were, how you love working with kids. Having some photos printed off of some activities you've done would be excellent. See if you can get a reference letter or two. Tell them about how you want to get the kids active with projects, making posters, roleplays, skits, actually using practical English. This is what they love to see. 30k is old news. Again, there's still a teacher shortage, and schools know well they haven't been coming off the planes as they were. 40k is definitely doable even out here in Issan, especially if you avoid an agency who takes a cut. Then you'll enjoy a lower cost of living, friendlier people, and less of that BKK daily commute and attitude that absolutely killed me. Cheers.

I concur with most of the figures here. A vast number of Thais make the minimum 7-11 salary of 9k baht a month. A secretary at one of my former schools made this. A primary school teacher in my village makes this. Members of my extended fam in the BKK service industry make this. A vast number of Thais make even less, as said, by selling food in the markets or around the villages. It's why you see many shops selling in bulk, bags of snacks, packs of sausages and meatballs, cases of sodas, and stacks of the cups and lids to serve them in ice with. It's a huge part of their employment base, though shouldn't be, as they ought to be doing more meaningful work, yet it isn't there. Indeed, most teachers make around 15k, then could move up to 40-50k with seniority. And as discussed in another thread, much of this is subject to corruption. Upon hiring they're informed that the privilege of this sought after govt position comes with a monthly salary cut for the school director. Or it could come upfront, as the 9k teacher in my village wasn't able to find a position, until her dad finally coughed up 100k baht for it to appear. But, why pay 100k to only get 9k back a month? And why are the teachers often seen with new cars, big houses, and latest iPhones? Ah, that's because the esteemed govt position also comes with an unofficial extra salary, the special govt loans they're allowed to keep taking out, and get into massive debt with.

How about making things easier on us teachers? Arguably we're some of the best "tourists" they got now. We've been long term, obedient guests, most of us got here before Covid, then decided to stay with all the extensions, with what I've heard online and from colleagues. During this time our salaries have been pumped back into the economy, those of us now married with families moreso. In addition to the often measly sums we're paid we also work online to supplement this, and this too goes back into the economy, when father-in-law's saleng needs fixing, and it's time for fertilizer for planting time. But if you've noticed from recent posts, they have yet to do anything about the teaching license debacle, with many teachers now on their last "waiver" having taught for about 6 years, which usually is the limit. The teaching council has been incredibly vague about what to do after that point, maybe you need a Master's degree, but it has to be some some specific uni, and you need to take an exam that's sometimes offered, sometimes not, and is poorly translated from Thai into English and practically unpassable. Heh. We're some quality "tourists". Just give us the licenses.

Yup, I'm not one of the nuts either, and refused to believe that Covid was a hoax from the start. But now that it's over in most countries, with China's current mortgage and loan crisis, and banks teetering on collapse, it appears to be an awfully convenient tool to prevent runs on the banks and rioting in the streets.

1. Take photos of the injuries right away. 2. Visit the local hospital for medical care. Get a receipt for this. 3. Make a police report. 4. The cops probably won't pursue criminal charges, but you can at least demand compensation for the hospital bill. This is what the Thais do and show off on the news every time.

Indeed. I'm in a neighboring province. It's night and day from when I was in BKK. Neighbors, coworkers, even the govt officials I've dealt with. Always helpful, understanding, no arrogant or pretentious attitudes. Such people are the least deserving of such a thing.

Constitution says there's an 8 year limit to the premiership. Then the court goes, "Well, his premiership didn't really start until..." <deleted>. What was he doing before 2017? Not really being PM?

I used to live in Ubon, The Tops in the Central Plaza was like that, a complete madhouse especially on Sundays. Then I moved to a, uh, certain other Issan changwat with a nice Tops inside a Robinson Lifestyle, where there's usually only 1-2 in front of us in line, and we blow through like a breeze. There's few hi-sos here and fewer farangs, so I'm not letting the secret out... Heh, heh...

Here in my village, a bunch of M1, first year of high school, 13 yr old girls come over to visit the boys. They were going to school occasionally, now hardly ever. Laying around all day on the phones, sometimes kicking a ball around. Then the boys and girls go down by the rivers or ponds to do...something. They stay with the grandparents who are usually out on the farms. Parents are down in BKK working in factories. About the only thing raising them are their phones, dogs, and chickens.

The yaba is rampant out here in the moo bans. More are reporting young boys out all night up to mischief, stealing things from shops and front yards, then they sleep all day and don't go to school. It's become dirt cheap as it's been pouring across the borders, with certain people paid to look the other way. The yaba incidents on the news, with shirtless or naked guys trashing a shop then having to be dragged into the back of a pickup, have become a nightly routine. Would be far preferable for them to just smoke a little ganja, after which they'll peaceful and docile. But then certain people don't like that it can be grown on one's own or obtained locally, and they'd no longer get a cut from it coming in from somewhere.

รวยรุ่ง = GET RICH ????

Especially with those aftermarket rims and skinny racing tires. Those failing under the weight of many melons or chickens has been a frequent news item. Gotta look fast and cool is their train of thought, still needing the truck for work is not.

Cost of living throughout the West is a killer. You wouldn't be able to live in a city center without a high income. Perhaps a suburb, or in the countryside, or if you could arrange a living situation with family. My wife and I plan on returning to my mom in the Midwestern US. That's the only way it'll work for me. I otherwise aren't going to pay $2k a month in rent, half a teacher's salary. My wife's also anxious to work, $20/hr versus the 10 bucks a day she's getting here.

Oh my Lord. Shortly after first arriving in the LOS, I was of course guided by the smaller head at the bars. I then soon became tired of all the high, shrill voices, and whining and nagging of those kids. I then made my way out to Issan, and decided to see what was on offer in the local scene on DateInAsia. I soon found a 35 yr old, so she said, with a cute face. We met up for coffee, then dinner, clicked together well, and things were moving right along. I then of course found the pics were old, and she was now closer to 50. But as they say, like a fine wine... So then the eventual trip out to the romantic resort. My goodness. Petite, works out, runs marathons, does yoga. I'll let you imagine how it went down. Go older, highly recommended. Get the body, but with more maturity, less drama, and much more of an "appetite". Cheers.

This used to be at least 100 bucks. Now it's $69. An incredible drop. Over the past two months the Japanese I teach online have gradually disappeared.

Way too much sugar in the bottled teas, I'd say about 100% too much. You could water them down with a bottled water of the same size, and the resulting mixture would then have about the proper sweetness. Hah. Years ago, on my out from school, I ran into one of the parents who happened to speak English, wanting to meet the new farang. We chatted a bit and I ran the above sentiment by them, with which he strongly concurred. He was convinced that the massive sugar in the drinks was a govt plot to dumb down the nation's kids, as studies have shown that it lowers IQ levels, and thus they're banned from his house. I saw no reason to disagree.

The wife's humble roadside meatball and drinks shop. Was a 500 baht weekday, 1000 baht Sat/Sun take about a year ago. Has gone down to about 300 weekday, 500 baht Sat/Sun now. Costs have gone up on everything. The natural gas for cooking, the cooking oil, the food. Used to include vegetables like lettuce and cucumbers, now can't as they double the meal price. Busy road, though fewer are stopping. They've got less money to spend, and more competition to stop at further up and down the road, as more have been opening up shops, sometimes right in front of their house, to make ends meet. But we press on. Even if just breaking even, it gives the wife something to do, and she has her regular customers and friends in the market. It is a far cry from the 150k she made in 3 months in her somtam shop, in the BKK market near my condo. But now being with her family, the kindly, humble Issan country folk, and the wonderful people at my school, is more than worth it, given it's far from the utter scum of the Earth I dealt with at that BKK private school.

My first GF in BKK was a loud ladyboy, especially when drunk. After the Skytrain had stopped running and we were too wasted to go for a long walk down Suk, she tried hailing a few cabs. As per the custom, you first lean in and give your destination for permission. They refused as apparently the distance wasn't enough to be worth their while. Often several times in a row, she then gave them a few choice words before slamming the door. Hah! Was a sight to see, especially shortly after having arrived. Knowing what I do now about those cabbies, she was damn lucky nothing came of it.

My wife tells me, about 10-20 years ago, when this lady in our village was a young uni grad with a teaching degree, she had a tough time landing a job. Can't do, no positions, at all the schools in the area she was told. Finally her dad had a talk with the regional office and asked, OK how much? 100k baht was the price. Lo and behold, an opening appeared at a primary school, where she's been ever since. Indeed, she also happens to get a 9k monthly salary, all of which goes to her car payment. For the rest she often takes off for "other jobs". She is rather attractive. They get more from us farang teachers. The standard 30k farang teacher salary has been known to start as around 60k further up the chain. Director takes some, then the head of the English department, then an employment agency, if the teacher went through one. Though in recent years they've now been letting 35-40k go to us, as they've been getting fewer takers.

Don't I know it. While not intl school level, I couldn't take more than a year of teaching at a certain snooty BKK private school. Definitely for profit, as after the attitudes, fancy facilities, and cars admins drove, I couldn't see what room was left for education. They all pass with high marks anyway. After this I couldn't have been happier to see my humble Issan country bumpkin students again. Much the same education, but without the pretentions. I won't be staying in Thailand to put any kids through intl school. Wife and I are only 45, no fat pensions are coming, I'm a teacher and she's been in hospitality. We gotta go back to the States. Looking to take advantage of the dire teaching shortage there that's been raising salaries and benefits, and she's got her pick of service roles to fill. After 20 or so years of that we'll then be ready for a modest retirement. No kids yet, through we're considering adopting a lovely and diligent family member. Issan govt school grad, just started a low end university, and has been working on her English. As her future would likely involve joining my wife in the US service industry, then possibly a small business we'll start later, this should be enough education.

Americans on your last waiver, it's time to come home. Your country needs you. Score a cool five grand to teach in Vegas, enjoy a thick, juicy steak and martini, and try some of it on the slots. Cheers. ????