shdmn

On 5/9/2024 at 12:06 PM, richard_smith237 said:

 

...

 

Those riding 'bigger motorcycles' are most commonly those with the best safety kit... 

 

 

 

 

That's an odd way to describe a small penis.

19 hours ago, Hummin said:

You can get trapped with scooters, I have seen it several times. 

 

It is all about skills and luck and an food angel wouldnt hurt.

 

We live today, and die another day

5 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

You'll never know...  especially if on a the highway...   you can end up in the left lane between two trucks, thats not a position any rider likes to be in.... on a larger bike you can squeeze the throttle and exit that situation. 

 

Alternatively, on a scooter you are stuck on the non-road part of the frontage, that some people believe is the motorcycle lane and IMO thats even more hazardous... 

 

 

This whole big-bike, small bike debate depends a lot on where you are riding, what type of roads etc... 

 

 

 

There is also the visibility factor - I've ridden ADV bikes in Thailand and scooters...  

When on a scooter, no one sees you - you are ignored and just another poor pleb who doesn't matter.

If on a larger bike, you are noticed more - you are not ignored you are wealthier and not another pleb who doesn't matter.

 

This makes a difference in Thailand where peoples subconsciousness impacts how visible you are.

 

That said: Riding around a tight town, small roads with heavy traffic, lane filtering etc - its just a lot easier on a scooter. 

 

 

 

Sounds like the same justifications I've heard for making bikes loud and annoying sounding.  If you people are so concerned with safety why are you usually wearing salad bowls for a helmet, or sometimes no helmet at all?

I like the freedom that having a motorbike gives me. Sure, you can always take a grab point to point or take a baht bus along certain routes, but you are still somewhat limited doing that and still end up living in a local walkable bubble a lot of the time.  It changes how you live day to day and I prefer to just go wherever I want however far and out of the way it is, whenever I feel like it.  Also, it's often easier to ride a bike somewhere than to walk a short distance, because of how some sidewalks are such a pain in the ass to walk on.  Either because of obstacles or because they are narrow and you have to constantly dodge groups of east Indians or Russians with their baby stroller or whatever

Are there any updates on what is going on with this?  So far it still appears like nobody, not even the local accountants, know what is going on.  Do we have to wait until 2025 tax season before we definitively find out how this is all going to wash out for the 2024 tax year?

I hate the new sidebar on the left.  Please tell me there is some way to get rid of that.  I've looked around in the settings but haven't found anything.

3 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

The question is.

 

As the next generation say 10-20 years from now when some of you will not be posting..

 

YouTubers are saying DA NANG in Vietnam is the next Pattaya in terms of retirement without the Go Go bars I suspect 

 

Every where now in YouTube is retirees particularly American posting their retirement in DA NANG , in Vietnam 

I'm fascinated by this new fetish 

 

Apparently Vietnam is cheaper than Thailand 

Is DA NANG the next retirement for next generation 

I want to check this place out , apparently cheaper , better visas?

I don't think so ,?

 

Vietnam,is the next generation who are going to massively retire there?

Da Nang is only good for maybe 5 months of the year.  Hot season is pretty intense and rainy/winter season can be cold and miserable at times.  Also, with all the development they are well and truly on their way to ruining that place.  I give it another 10 years maybe.  It's a nice getaway right now so enjoy it while you can.

Are you sure nobody is stealing electricity from you?  Sounds like it happens a lot in Thailand.

The thing about the fans always running sounds like you are talking about inverter aircons, which are considered more efficient.

On 5/5/2024 at 8:54 PM, ryandb said:

I've been and don't see anything special about it but it has turned into a YT place to be and now it's growing their own eco system of YTers copycatting and going there to do the same thing, similar to Bali and Chiang Mai 6-7 years ago becoming a place to do "can you live on $1000 a month" videos

The biggest problem with Duma are the constant power outages.  Often lasting hours.  That is a deal breaker for me.  Staying somewhere that has a backup generator helps.

16 hours ago, Henryford said:

 

I will take your word for it as you have been to both places. I would find it hard to believe cheaper than Pattaya though. I get beer here 50-60 baht, farang meal 199 thai meal 70 baht, baht bus 10 baht, car insurance 6000 baht, visa 1900 a year etc. I don't use maids, laundry, guards etc so don't see where the savings might be. Groceries maybe? but then i don't spend much on those. Hookers might be the only reason if they are cheap.

AC may have been cheaper once upon a time but hasn't been for a long time now.  About the only thing that is still cheaper in the PI is booze.

On 4/30/2024 at 11:02 PM, Southsealad said:

Agree Wise card looks good and they are swamping me currently to buy a card.   Problem with them, if I understand correctly, it's meant for shopping.  I want to find a way to get my monthly pensions to Philippines.

Lots of people use Wise for that, but mostly by transferring it into their local bank account.  That avoids the fees you have to pay when using their ATM card to get cash.

Try sign up for a fully verified GCash account.  It's very similar to a real bank account but easier to get. That will allow you to transfer money into it from abroad like you would a regular Philippines bank account.  You can then get a card to take money out of ATMs or just pay for things directly using your smartphone.  I believe there are ways around some of the info they might ask for like local address and gov't ID.  Just need to be a little creative.  I've heard mixed things about people using their passport as the gov't id so not sure if that still works or if only the ACR card # works now.  You need a Philippines smartphone # to sign up so that means you pretty much need to be in the country before getting it.

https://help.gcash.com/hc/en-us/articles/360017722393-Get-Fully-Verified

Surprised Da Nang and Hoi Ann beaches are not mentioned.  I heard they were recently ranked #3 and #2 respectively by some other publication, and deservedly so imo.

Lol the guys here saying the PI sucks despite probably never having been there.  ThaiVisa comments never fail to entertain.

On 5/4/2024 at 3:38 AM, impulse said:

If you don't mind staying around the house all day, every day, with cash in hand, go for COD.

 

I did several hundred Lazada orders by debit card and never had a problem.  

 

 

Not up into the hundreds yet but never a problem.  COD is too much hassle so I don't bother with that anymore.  It would help if they gave more advance notice of delivery time but that doesn't seem to happen very often.  The last two times I did it the guy phoned me like 5 minutes before showing up.

7 hours ago, chingching said:

For me the air quality in Thailand is better.  Filipinos love to burn plastic rubbish everywhere

The AQI monitoring stations in both countries disagree with you.  As I type this, AQI in Chang Mai is an eye watering 151.  Currently 2nd worst in the world. Only slightly lower than Katmandu.  Bangkok is not much healthier at 102.  In Manila it's only 41.  Those are all fairly typical numbers for this time of year.

Here are some others.  Of course it can vary from day to day and even hour to hour depending on wind and other factors, but they are all fairly typical.

Pattaya 78
Cebu  26
Phuket 104

Davao City 45

On 4/26/2024 at 2:11 AM, connda said:

Source?  It's hearsay without a source that explains the big picture.

Then wake me up when the Biden's, Obama's (including all the properties on Martha's Vineyard), and the Gore's properties are condemned as uninsurable - or - when the sell them and find they can't obtain title insurance.  Ain't gonna happen.

Impressive self-control how you managed to get through that MAGA brain fart without mentioning Soros and the Clintons. 

13 hours ago, Phat Dawg said:

awful food, high crime, poor infrastructure, typhoons, heavy poverty, too much religious evangelism, naah pass.

So another never been is my guess.

26 minutes ago, Scouse123 said:

 

What about somewhere like Rayong or Koh Chang?

Air quality is bad all over Thailand during burning season.  It comes from Burma, Cambodia, and Vietnam.  Phuket is the furthest away from all of it and they still get lots of triple digit AQI days.  They are also closer to Indonesia and there is lots of burning going on there as well.

6 hours ago, Phat Dawg said:

awful food, high crime, poor infrastructure, typhoons, heavy poverty, too much religious evangelism, naah pass.

You can get good fresh food at the markets.  So if you like to cook for yourself it's not bad.  Those fresh ingredients don't translate to good inexpensive food in the restaurants like they do in Thailand for some reason.  Also, accommodations are more expensive in the PI for some reason.  Typhoons are not really a problem on the western side.  That includes Manila, Subic, AC.  Cebu is somewhat protected but they did get nailed by that last one pretty good.