Orac

I look at it from the point of view that it will be someone elses problem and, since this will probably end up being my wife, I am sure she will find a cheaper way of getting rid of my body.

Limos can be arranged in the baggage reclaim hall - you can't miss them though they are fairly expensive (several times the cost of a taxi).

Public taxis are available immediately outside the terminal - clearly signposted as you come out of the baggage hall.

Edit: Sorry Sam, just reread your post - the 'limos' as Thais know them are just normal cars - I have had a BMW 7 series before but paid a bit more for it.

The story does not make a great deal of sense unless the OP did endorse his neighbour in some way. The OP suggests that he was there specifically to recommend his neighbour or provide some sort of reference however he is also implying that he didn't pass judgement one way or the other - even a refusal to give an endorsement should have been enough to deter anyone. Also, if the neighbour did a poor job previously, why on earth would he invite you to meet a potential new customer of his unless you had implied to him you were happy with his work.

If the OP was not asked for his advice or and did not endorse his neighbours work (not entirely clear from the OP since it must have come up in the conversation) then why should he get involved giving advice to what is a total stranger, bearing in mind that he has to live with his neighbour close by and I would assume classes him as some sort of friend as he was invited to a meal with him, albeit with a purpose in mind.

Not your place to say anything.

If they had specifically asked for your advice and you had lied to them that would be a different matter.

When does the war with Vietnam start ??

It's like saying Austrian men are bastards, just look at Josef Fritzl...

Dave,

I was just about to post something similar using Hitler as an example but, since he was Austrian as well, maybe we are on to something here

Odd - I thought I was the only one!

When did Pakistan, Somalia and Nigeria become part of the EU?

Try moving to Slough or Brixton and come back with the same opinion, but maybe you want to live in a area that is polluted with 3rd world immigrants where its unsafe to walk home during the day or at night.

If i had the money an area in England where predominantly English live isnt too much to ask for, or are you lefts fascist globalists going to deny me this right.

Wow - and some here think that Thais are xenophobic

Are there any updates on this story - has he been caught yet ?

Brian,

It is worth thinking ahead regarding proving a genuine relationship exists - I had hardly any pictures of the two of us together as one or the other of us usually took the photo. I was lucky in that I had phone records going back a few years to the same number which my wife still had when she applied for a visa.

It is worth taking pictures when you get the opportunity showing the two of you together in different places and at different times and also with her family.

Cheers

Orac

OP,

You are admitting to being racist and also having some sort of problem with 'short' people - I am not sure Thailand is the right place for you.

ok thanks

not sure if i can walk though

If it is that bad it could well be man flu as opposed to the much weaker swine flu.

I mightn't be able to get a DL due to being on a Tourist Visa and not having one from my home country (expired).

I had a bike in BKK before and it wsn't a hassle, that was on a small bike though.

What's the worst that can happen when driving a bike big (taxed and insured and registered in a Thai's name) without a licence?

I've also never driven intercity but have seen alot of road blocks etc. when on buses. I think it's the highway police or transport police or something... the guy's in the navy and orange.

Do they stop traffic a lot? especially bikes, and do they normally ask for a DL?

If I don't qualify for one I don't not want to get a bike because of it.

Thanks for any experiences.

Would the insurance be valid if you didn't have a licence ??

What do you want them to talk about? Thailand's thriving hi-tech industry ? its sizzling cultural life ? Honestly, when people talk about the "magical kingdom" it's not Thailand they have in mind.

Indonesia has Bali; Cambodia, Angkor Wat; Vietnam, Halong Bay; Thailand has Pattaya !

I think one of the problems here is that there is not enough information out there about sex tourism in Thailand.

Thailand has it all! Samui, Krabi, Ayuthaya, Chiang Mai, Phang Nga Bay and Pattaya, Bangkok and Phuket.

That's the reason Thailand has more than the combined visitors of those other countries.

If you've never heard of Pattaya's sex tourism, there's probably something wrong...

To be honest, when I first came here I hadn't heard of Pattaya and I thought that Bangkok was the centre of the sex industry here - a lot of my friends in the UK still think this.

It seems like half of the stories about Thailand that make the international news are about its sex tourism image and industry.

Do you think the David Carradine death will contribute to this bad image or do you think most people will assume he would have done it anywhere and not equate it with Thailand alone?

The Western media will lap this up.

When my Thai wife and I first married 22 years ago in England, she used to sieve in anger at the way Thailand was portrayed on UK TV and I doubt if things have changed much.

Most of the documentaries about Thailand shown in Britain either depicted dirt poor peasants, bar girls or sex tourist bar crawlers.

Very rarely was anything showing Thailand in a positive light ever broadcast.

What do you want them to talk about? Thailand's thriving hi-tech industry ? its sizzling cultural life ? Honestly, when people talk about the "magical kingdom" it's not Thailand they have in mind.

Indonesia has Bali; Cambodia, Angkor Wat; Vietnam, Halong Bay; Thailand has Pattaya !

The only advantage Thailand has among the above mentioned countries is Thailand is a relatively safe, modern, developed place. But it won't last, they're catching fast.

A lot of high earning expat are looking for a base in Asia, Thailand has many advantage but if it doesn't evolved fast as an international business friendly place ... well ... Thailand will still have Pattaya.

Totally agree with you -- the countries you have mentionsd are all foreigner friendly , where as here in LOS the current feeling is not so - visa restrictions and regulations are forever changing,( getting to the point its hard to keep up) expats cannot buy land or business (with only 49% share) - double pricing standards - etc etc - these other SE Asian countries are welcoming foreign investment with open arms -- take Malaysia, Vietnam etc - they are developing at a rapid rate and leaving LOS behind -

Thailand will always be happy to take the yearly handouts worth billions of dollars in aid from countries like Australia, US and the EU but afford nothing to ease the existance here of expats seeking to work and live here and happy to pay the taxes on money earnt in this country --

sex tourism is only part of it but a big part - when i first came here on holildays years ago i was both shocked and amazed how open sex tourism was - try telling your two teenage daughter what the handsome farang was doing with the nice sweet young thai BOYs down by the pool - or why men like to dress like hookers in the shopping mall in pattaya - 555- i had to really used some creative thinking - and i must admit i was also shocked = just a bit

I think one of the problems here is that there is not enough information out there about sex tourism in Thailand. I would be very surprised if it can be stopped or significantly changed now as it is just too big IN CERTAIN AREAS, however, as Mike states above, he brought his two teenage daughters to Pattaya on his first holiday - I would have assumed from his statements that, had he known what Pattaya was like, he would have gone elsewhere. Pattaya is not really a family friendly resort for a lot of people and should not be advertised as such without some sort of warning. I have heard Pattaya described before as Disneyland for adults which is a pretty accurate description - if it were advertised as such it might enable Thailand to differentiate a very small part of Thailand from the rest of it.

For Bangkok, the sex trade is pretty much confined to three small areas as far as tourists are concerned, yet the impression outside Thailand is it is everywhere.

Maybe the problem here is that the image that Thailand is all about sex tourism comes about because it isn't talked about and everyone here tries to brush it under the carpet rather than acknowledging what it is and accepting that it would be pretty much impossible to get rid of.

This from the isaanlawonline web site.

Sor. Por. Gor. 4-01 (S.P.G.. 4-01), is an allotment of land from the Land Reformative Committee, and under no circumstance may this land be bought or sold. It confers the right to occupy only and be transferred only by inheritance. It seems that the land may be used for agriculture only.

This is an inheritance transaction from grandma to grand-daughter. The aunt who controls the land wants to get paid for passing it on to my wife. This is a normal way of handling it in Isaan. The post is about whether we will have secured our interest in the land until such time that we have paid in full. At which time the Amphur will record the land as being in my wife's (grand-daughter) name.

Note that the land is still in grandma's name, not Auntie.

Are you saying here that your wifes grandmother has left this land to your wife in a will? If so why should your Aunt get a payment for it, if not, surely she has no legal right to it, even with a payment, as it cannot be bought or sold.

If you are not Thai you cannot buy a house whatever currency you use

Technically a house can be bought but not the Land it is built on.

OP

Can you clarify the linkage between your sister in laws suitor and the scam e-mail - is he mentioned somewhere in the scam e-mail. The reason I ask is I am sure I have seen a similar scam e-mail myself - the courier name rings a bell.

Orac

James,

Do you mind if I bump this as I am also interested, specifically for Pattaya.

I was hoping that, if I visit in August when it is quiter and make the request before hand, that a hotel/resort would let us have a room without having guests next-door. I can imagine few worse things than having a screaming baby in the next room.

Orac

We bought our land a long time ago, so I guess worst case is, I'd have to sign that paper? Or am I missing something here?

I mean the story where the land office checks the source of the funds sounds scary, except that all you need to do is sign away your rights to the money (never knew I had any, to be honest) and it's all good.

I didn't sign anything when my wife bought some land (I was out of the country at the time). When I checked with her why she said it was not a problem as she had been able to sign it for me!

A truelly death-defying tale that will be handed down through the generations. If only my own life were not so dull and boring.

Have I missed something - what new law????

MJo,

If I were you I would get to Isaan quickly before it cedes from the Chinese/Thai Empire. Our 'agents', who have managed to infiltrate every bar in Pat-Tai-Yuh, tell us that things are going to start happenning pretty soon as some of the expats have now noticed that the Thais cannot really stand them and the pretend 'smiles' aren't working anymore. Apparently they intend to use the labour force currently in Pat-Tai-Yuh to build a 'railway' to Bangkok (Codename Operation BTS) utilising western bridge building skills - word has it the Japanese are funding most of it!

From what I have learnt over the last few months from the Financial Apocalypse/Doom and Gloom Thread, the 'East' will be built by economic migrants fleeing the ruins of Europe and North America, coupled with expats who are already in place. Thailand is at the forefront of this cunning plan and already has a labour camp set up on the Eastern Seaboard called Pat-Tai-Yuh and have completely fooled the expat community throughout Thailand into thinking they are trying to get rid of them whereas they are just waiting for the moment to close the borders and seal them in (note trial run at only major airport last year).

There again, I could be wrong!