LivingNThailand

Most of the time pretty easy. Tourists dress like, well, tourists. And act like tourists. Short shorts, tank tops, no shirts for men, driving like they have never been on a motorbike, weaving in and out of dangerous situations. Local expats dress more conservative and treat Thais with respect, for the most part. At least in the area of Phuket that I live in.

I think they are doing it on purpose. Let the other countries deal with the trials and jail sentences . Imagine how crowded the jails/prisons would be if Thai police arrested all these people? In my humble opinion.

I read Despite admitting to the charges, Mahon will have her three-year sentence reduced by 92 days, already served. Meaning 2 years and 273 days. ??

I will get it started next week as soon as I get a new passport photo. 6-8 weeks is just about the time I need to get my new Drivers License. Thanks for the info.

super thanks for the website links. I took a quick peek at the websites and will check it out tomorrow, I'm a bit under the weather today with sinus problems. The only question I have right now is whether the return postage envelope comes to me, and I mail it with my passport to the American Embassy, or if they send the prepaid envelope directly to the Embassy. I think I'm borderline elderly 😅. Thanks for the help.

You hit the nail on the head. I was just talking to friends about why Thai people don't understand marketing. In our local small shopping center there are three luggage stores, four places to buy coffee, three fast food shops, only one restaurant, if you call MK a restaurant, a store that sells bras and a few other odds and ends plus two "anchor" tenants. They shift the kiosk items around every month trying to fool us. haha. There is what is called a good tenant mix to keep the regular customers coming back. Marketing.

I have a friend that is a taxi driver here in Phuket. She told me yesterday that Phuket People, born & raised in Phuket, don't understand what the government is doing to Phuket. A lot of her family customers don't want to see all those weed shops and expose their children to them. They don't want to come back. Only weed smokers enjoy all the shops. I think everyone should have a choice, but it needs to be regulated more. The last time I was in Rawai, I counted 40 shops just in a short drive. Does Phuket really need all those weed shops that cater to a lower end tourist?

I need to renew my USA passport before my next visa extension in March. I also need to renew my driver's license in September. My plan is to renew my passport early so I can have the new passport number on my new driver's license, thus avoiding several unnecessary trips to immigration and the Department of Land Transport. A couple of questions for anyone who has renewed their USA passport recently. 1. The embassy website states that it takes 6-8 weeks to process a new passport. The last time my wife did it about 4-5 years ago it was only 18 days from the post office to my door. Has anyone experienced this long time frame or a shorter time frame? 2. The fee of $130. The application form says I can pay in the form of a personal check or money order. I have some old checks for my USA bank account. They are still good. Do you think I can use one of those checks, or should I get a money order? 3. On the checklist list it says application fees: A printout of the electronic payment confirmation. Is this in lieu of the check or money order? How do you pay electronically? This part is confusing. Electronically or by check / money order for payment of $130. 4. Insured return envelope fees. The checklist says pay Courier Pass Back electronically via Thailand Post Mart website. I found the website and signed up for an account but can't find anywhere to order and pay for the return envelope. Thanks for any assistance you may give me. The last time I renewed my passport I went to the Embassy Outreach program in Patong and they took care of most of the items for me. Things have gotten a bit more electronically sophisticated since then.

I didn't say I was cheap. I live quite well here in Phuket. Not going without and plenty of money in the bank. I just asked if you had been to PI. I have, and it is not my cup of tea, so to speak. thailand much nicer, in my humble opinion.

great idea. But not going to happen, unfortunately.

Have you ever been there? Going from Samui to PI is a HUGE difference in a lot of things, including safety, cleanliness, food quality, etc. Wish you luck my friend.

I wonder why the news was different from my friend that owns a shop in a popular Phuket tourist area. Business is real real slow in the whole area. Only a few are making it right now.

Yep, I need to move some money over here soon but keep waiting for the baht rate to get better. I'm thinking of just sending a little over now and "hope" the rate gets better in a month or two.

I was at Lotus Samkong yesterday. Not a tourist hot spot, but there are usually some tourists and I didn't see any. Even the locals were thinned out. I didn't have to wait to pay, and when I left, there were still plenty of parking spots available. What is weird, too, lots of Thais are wearing masks. More than the normal "I have a cold" maskers. Hum?

Not very PM looking is it? Looks like she works at Children's Fairy Land.