JensenZ

Why Cambodia? Because it's the nearest border post to Pattaya. I figured that most members here would appreciate Pattaya-centric info. Bangkok is about the same distance. It's false economy to DYI and a 500 km round trip from Pattaya (7 hours). You didn't factor in the wear and tear on your car, and it's going to cost more than 1000 baht on fuel. The most fuel-efficient small cars will cost about 1200 baht on fuel, and that's a small sh*tbox and not very comfortable for a long trip. Fuel: 1200 baht (minimum) up to 2000 baht and more for bigger cars and SUVs. Cambodia visa: 1000 baht. Wear & tear on car: unknown. I'd be saving maybe 1000 baht to DYI (if I had a car, which I don't, and I won't be riding my scooter 500km), then there's the problem of not being able to bounce in and out if you're doing it yourself. You might have to spend a night in Cambodia. You'll probably have to pay an additional fee to bounce in and out as they don't appreciate the DYI visa runners. You'll fill your passport with stickers more quickly too if you do 6 border runs per year. If you're SE Asian, you don't need a Cambodia visa, so you only pay 2500 baht for a visa run to Banpuggard and you won't get a 1-page sticker in your passport. All things considered, a comfortable minivan looks pretty good at 3500 baht, or 2500. I suppose if you enjoy driving or riding 500km through the most boring of landscapes, and that's your idea of fun, then why not?

Why would "skint expats" be happy about this change? 4 x visa runs are (at cheapest) 14,000 baht (if a Cambodia Visa is required on a border run), plus the 4 extensions for 7,900, for a total of 21,600 and many fun hours in a minivan. Most "skint expats" can get a yearly retirement extension for around 12,500. Sure, it will be good news for people under 50.

I've received the NZ powdered milk and will give my opinion on its taste once I've opened it. When I first arrived in Thailand nearly 20 years ago, there weren't many brands of whole milk available, but it seems new brands are now popping up quite often. They all have distinct flavours. There are several designer formulations available now too, such as extra creamy, barista, organic and more. Also, there's quite a big choice of lactose-free formulations.

Milk is very close to 1 ml per gram. Actual: 1.04 grams per 1 ml, so 620 grams = 596 ml

You don't know what you're talking about. Let's take the Hilton Hotel in Pattaya - without even shopping around and looking for discounts, I can get a room for 2 and a child, with breakfast, for 4000 a night. Between 4000 - 5000 baht, you can have your pick from many 5-star hotels, but there are many brand new 4-star hotels in Pattaya which are as good as 5-star and around 3000 a night. There are also a lot of excellent 3-star Hotels for around 1000 a night. One of the major attractions of Pattaya is the cheap accommodation. I have a friend coming from the US who just booked a great 4-star resort hotel for $75 US a night, all taxes and breakfast for 2 included.

They couldn't afford to be fat back in the 1970s, but now they can as high-calorie food with lots of sugar is cheaper than nutritious food (per calorie). Men will have to find poorer countries to visit if they like their women skinny. There are a lot of skinny under-nourished Filipinos still getting around in the provinces, but the only problem is when they get to Western countries they fatten up quickly. There are still a lot of skinny Thai women around though, you just have to search a bit harder LOL.

That's good to know. I'll experiment, but I do like my milk thick and creamy. My price was 274 baht shipped. Are you getting it at the shop you mentioned?

Thank you! I ordered 1kg - will be interested to taste it. Shipped that works out to 39 baht/L assuming 7L per 1kg powder.

Having spent 5 years in the Philippines before I arrived here, Thailand was like a milk paradise by comparison. The prices of dairy products there are at least double, and pasteurized fresh milk, is probably 3 or 4 times as much (haven't been there for a while). Most of what is sold is UHT milk.

LOL. Yes, you'd have to leave home to see the shelves full of milk, and all sorts of other dairy products in every convenience store and supermarket. Looking at the shelves you couldn't help thinking Thais drink a lot of milk and milk products. Sometimes they are almost sold out.

I don't know what to say, but I've drunk a lot of powdered milk in the past, and it was distinct in its flavour. I don't mind it, but it was different. Can you please link to where I can buy it, so I can try it? If it tastes as good as the pasteurized whole milk I buy, I might change to it if it's cheaper. I have nothing against powdered milk as it is very convenient. I'm a heavy milk consumer.

This is nonsense. The pasteurized milk you buy in Thailand is produced from raw cow's milk. Do you think they would be pasteurizing powdered milk? You probably haven't tasted powdered milk. It is a completely different taste. You can go on the Meiji website, where they explain how they get their raw milk. I suppose you'll come back here and say they are lying? You need to provide the evidence to back up your wild claims.

It was an Absolute Monarchy before 1932, after which it became a Constituational Monarchy. NOTE: it has a constitution. Many countries, including Australia and the UK, are Constitutional Monarchies.

You're probably talking about yourself as it's not something that most people would openly discuss, let alone several people.

If your woman gave you herpes, you would promptly walk out and pass it on to another? It's not the clap that you can quickly cure. If you've both got it, that's more reason to stay together LOL.

I can give you a simple answer. Ultra-leftist Jingthing, by far the most prolific poster on this forum, has been fueling the debate since 2015 when Trump first became a candidate. He had been quiet after Biden won in 2020 but since Trump reemerged last year, he has redoubled his efforts to energize his left-wing compatriates. Every Trump thread is another Trump-bashing extravaganza and an uncomfortable place for any Trump supporters to post, as they too will be attacked. I don't think there are more leftists on this forum, just that more of them post in US political threads.

It's just politics. All politicians will push any advantage they might have. I think her bigger advantage is being female.

Kamala and her party is pushing her black heritage and using it to get black votes. She has genes from all of the world. Black, Indian, White, Asian - a thorough mix.

I figured you might reply like that...LOLOL I answered your question "Did you just make up the term Afro-Jamaican?". I did not make up the term. The article is well-referenced and probably much more enlightening than anything you can come up with.

You didn't even search before asking your question. It's an equivalent term to "African American" and is used to establish the citizen's ethnicity. Afro-Jamaicans "Afro-Jamaicans are Jamaicans of predominantly African descent. They represent the largest ethnic group in the country. The ethnogenesis of the Black Jamaican people stemmed from the Atlantic slave trade of the 16th century when enslaved Africans were transported as slaves to Jamaica and other parts of the Americas." Donald Jasper Harris (Kamala's father) "Donald Jasper Harris was born in Brown's Town, St. Ann Parish, Jamaica, the son of Oscar Joseph Harris and Beryl Christie Harris (née Finegan),[7][8] who were Afro-Jamaicans.[9] As a child, Harris learned the catechism, was baptized and confirmed in the Anglican Church, and served as an acolyte. His paternal grandfather, Joseph Alexander Harris, owned land and slaves."

Her mother is a light-skinned Indian, and her father is a light-skinned Afro-Jamaican, but she has a solid claim to being black.

These Russian tourists are not "draft dodgers". The Russians being drafted are marginalized Russians from poorer communities who don't have the financial capability to travel internationally on long vacations. Calling Russians "draft dodgers" is the height of ignorance when you're hiding behind your keyboard. The latest figures I got from a Russian tourist a few days ago was 400,000 Russian soldiers dead since February 2022.

I did not say they are giving out warning stamps at Banpuggard. I suggested that they may do it in the future if or when they decide to limit entries, as they have in the past. We can revisit this discussion in 6 months after a lot of people will be trying to get a 3rd 60-day stamp.

Feeling like another argument today? It does happen. A bike comes off a slow idol, then hits the accelerator hard. If it didn't happen to me, I wouldn't have tried to explain it.

You're a bit vague. If I had to do it all again, I would not marry a lady young enough to be my daughter, and it has nothing to do with discussing philosophy. You might have considered that she will, sooner or later, be waking up to a man who resembles a grandfather.