JensenZ

It was a survey of non-English (as a first language) countries. South Africa shouldn't have been on the list either.

Don't worry about China. Their population is aging so fast, they will be in serious decline in 20 years. It has already started. They'll be one working-age person for every retired person.

I find most brands taste ok, with the noted exception of Dutch Mill. Chokchai has a slight edge IMO. Most brands have extra creamy formulations, which I like to use for coffee.

They were quite busy yesterday. People don't necessarily run to stores to buy milk, but buy while they are there. I have noticed they sell a lot as the shelves are sometimes quite bare and they don't have the milk I'm looking for - someone is buying it.

Yes, I'm absolutely sure it's the basic Meiji plain milk (blue cap), the low fat (light blue cap), and the zero fat (white cap). I buy a lot of milk so I'm quite familiar with regular milk products and the special creamy formulations. Meiji Barista is 101 baht at Big C and the "Ray" formulation is 99 baht, still well short of the 112 baht that Friendship is currently charging for regular Meiji milk. Sometimes I buy lactose-free milk for my wife, which is quite a bit more expensive.

I'd have to be quite desperate for something to go to Foodmart. I live quite close, but I haven't been there for over a year.

They are definitely a mixed bag. I do get good deals there on many products and they carry items I can't get at other places.

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't know that, but it does explain why price increases have been few and small over the years. Back when I arrived in 2005 it was 70 baht for 2L. Friendship always added 0.25 baht to the mainstream price, which didn't bother me and I purchased milk there, but this increase is insulting. I'll just get my milk at other outlets.

Milk and dairy lovers probably know the price of 2L of milk (Meiji and most other brands) was 91.75 baht for many years and that recently it increased to 95 baht. I expected an increase was imminent and was pleasantly surprised the price only increased by 2.25 baht about a month ago, and it didn't increase for a long time during this extreme inflationary period. The reason why I'm posting here is that I discovered yesterday, upon visiting Friendship Supermarket, that the price of 2L of plain milk was 112 baht, a 21% increase from the 91.75 base price. I hadn't visited Friendship for some weeks, so I don't know when they increased the price. I went online to see if this was a general increase for all stores but discovered the price is still 95 baht everywhere else (7Eleven, Big C, Tesco, Tops). So this leaves me to wonder if a huge increase is due, or if they are just having a go at their regular customers and/or trying to cash in on tourists who don't know any better.

Anyone with a gun will take your passport - that's why they should never be available to take.

It's not legal for anyone to retain your passport other than the immigration police in cases of detention. The court can retain it too to ensure you're not going to skip. It's better to tell any authorities (including immigration police) that your passport is at your lawyer's office. There's no need to give them a reason - just say you'll have to call your lawyer. This will prevent any funny business. If they are trying to scam you, they'll probably move on to the next easier victim. Never say your passport is at home or they may want to follow you there.

My lawyer told me that police have "lost" passports belonging to their clients. They suggested that I NEVER show my passport to a police officer and just tell them it's at my lawyer's office... and suggest to the police officer that I can call my lawyer. Consider this free legal advice.

Details? What happened? What was the raid really about and did they arrest you? I also never carry my passport unless it is needed for banking or whatever. I did update my copy after reading this report.

You can go back a lot further than that. Thailand's government has always served at the pleasure of the military. They installed the first government in 1932, and nothing has changed... and the way it is going, nothing will ever change.

Which makes the comment that they arrested no one quite strange. You would expect that a lot of the tourists (or most) were not carrying their passports, so many would have had to be detained to establish their ID and visa status. That would have been a very big undertaking, with the police hauling off hundreds or even thousands of tourists. Most tourists are smart enough to leave their passports in their hotel safes when going out to party.

"all with broken bumpers" - the understatement of the year.

I've been here for 17 years and have no male Thai friends. It most definitely IS me, because I don't want or need any. What surprises me is that people want friends so badly they make it an obsession. True friends are nearly impossible to find and you're kidding yourself if you think differently. Perhaps the OP just wants buddies to hang out with, but they will never be friends, only acquaintances, and the same goes for any foreign "friends" you think you might have.

$80k a year doesn't make one wealthy, but for a single pensioner, it's a LOT better than just getting by in most countries.