Lorry

Yes

It was designed for people who come here often, many times a year. That's why all these funny airport perks. It wasn't designed for people to live here. And that's why it's just a kind of tourist visa. 20 or 30 years ago, when it was designed, there were not so many Westerners (except retirees) keen on saving a pound or two by living i a third-world country. Especially, as you couldn't work remotely and get a Western income. And Russians or Chinese, now the best buyers, were unheard of.

Yes, you can. Tramadol is not a "restricted agent" whatever that may be. It is also available over the counter. But: Pharmacies selling Tramadol should have a book to document each single sale and the customer should show his ID card, preferably the ID card number should be noted in the book. Most pharmacies are too lazy to do this, and just don't sell Tramadol at all. Some do it this way. Some just sell it without any documentation. Ultracet is much easier to get (much more expensive). Most pharmacies will only sell you one strip or two strips. Some even remember you if you come back the next day and refuse to sell you another strip. For acute pain situations like OP described one strip is enough.

I cannot figure out this story. Can someone please explain what's going on? I understand poor Thais get scammed by rich Thais (normal) who sell them a visa. Is that a real visa? Why do the poor Thais get arrested, what did they do wrong? I understand that the scammers don't get arrested, they are rich (normal)

They are blocked As long as you live in Pattaya or lower Sukhumvit

The answer seems to be in the post above yours.

So, they didn't care his vlogging is a hobby, not making money? Then it's really a METV for 5 years, not bad.

That's a bit of an over-generalisation. OP resides at lower Sukhumvit IIRC. Private hospitals there correctly assume that most farang there are tourists with travel insurance aka cash cows. AN carries almost daily stories of tourists treated for several hundred thousand baht without any guarantee for the hospital that they can recoup the money (the gofundme cases). Sometimes Bangkok Hospital loses millions, but overall, its very profitable to treat foreigners. You should not rely on this. Best would be to have the mobile number of a friend promjnently displayed in your wallet who can be reached 24/7 and whose credit card is good for 10,000 USD for a deposit.

1st: try to adjust your seating position. Sit on a cushion in order to sit higher, seats in cars and public transport are too low (exception: cabb (sic! = "London taxi") in Bangkok, some of the new buses in Bangkok have high seats near the driver. BTS is a disaster for your back). In long distance buses, choose a company like Chan Tours or 999 VIP with wide, reclining seats. Not Nakhornchai Air. Recline and put a pillow under your back as a lumbar support. International flights, choose business class. No low cost carriers. Do back stretches before, during and after travels. 2nd: travel with a heating pad, available at 7/11. Or a heat cushion from the pharmacy. 3rd: as Sheryl said, Ultracet and/or Ibuprofen or Celecoxib (brand name Celebrex and others, cheaper ones). Tramadol is stronger and still available OTC, but you will have to shop around. Most pharmacies don't sell it anymore, too much bureaucracy. 4th: Said tablets might be acting too slow. It would be faster to have drops (preferably on an empty stomach), like Tramadol drops or Metamizol drops (not recommended for Brits). Not available in every country. May be prescription only. Not available in Thailand. 5th: I used to have the same problem for years. After exercising for about 3 months (real exercise, not just jumping around stupidly) the problem was gone completely. Then, after not exercising for 3 weeks (really doing nothing) the problem was back again. Exercises for back pain: YouTube "Bob and Brad", they have a whole series for back pain. And ask a good physical therapist who stresses activity to teach you, you cannot only teach yourself (unfortunately, I don't know any in Thailand who stresses active exercises. Not BPC, not the hospitals)

That is why I wrote "hopefully" it's a good thing.

But Wall Street IS a financial hub.

You don't know any Thais who are employed?

60 (retirement age in Thailand) I got it when I was 57, didn't ask for it. The girl at the counter looked at me, said "you are over 60" and issued the old-age card. I know how Biden must feel.

I do exactly the same.

Cialis 5mg daily is prescribed in cases of benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH), as an alternative or additionally to alpha-blockers like Tamsulosin. Like Tamsulosin, daily Cialis will lower the blood pressure. So any blood pressure medication that you are taking may have to be adjusted if you start Cialis. Cialis is not by itself prescribed as a blood pressure medication.

Macrogol is sold under the brand name Forlax. Most pharmacies have it. A box has 20 or 30 sachets, price is about 13 B/sachet. Very effective (high doses can even be used to clean the colon for a colonoscopy). Works within 1 day. Depending on how constipated you are, take 1, 2 or 3 sachets per day. The limitation to 2 weeks is very, very cautious. If it's clinically relevant constipation (i.e. no stool or winds for 4 or 5 days, bloated, painful abdomen, diminished bowel sounds), 6 or more sachets may help, (if there is no other reason for the constipation than a "slow digestion" - if in doubt, see a doctor) OP's stuff is more natural (which, hopefully, is a good thing)

The number of cockroaches in my place correlates with the cleanliness of my kitchen. I once used OP's gel, I was not impressed. I always put cockroach traps from BigC in kitchen and bathroom, mostly the round ones. If the kitchen is very clean for weeks on end, the cockroaches disappear. Some are in the traps.

It's their experience of 50 years. 1990s: AIDS? Not me. 2004: Tsunami, thousands of dead tourists and the government openly stating they can't tell the truth because they might get sued by the farang? Tourists loved Thailand more than ever. 2010: Riots, 100 people shot dead in a temple? Thai temples are so beautiful! 2024: Smog? I have yet to meet a single person outside of Thailand who believes me that Thailand has bad air. Some of my friends were here during smog season, they still don't believe it. "The tourists will always come" (Bernard Trink)

I am not sure about all the other Bangkok Hospitals. Bangkok Hospital in Bangkok, for instance, has different prices for residents and tourists. Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, too. Maybe you didn't notice it. BTW I don't think you can find a not ISO certified hospital in Thailand. And there is no Mario Hospital, I guess you mean the former Mayo Hospital (now bought by another chain, it is Paolo Hospital Kaset now)

Let's say, 20km is an exaggeration. 5km, many ambulances will do it, for the commission

It's a legitimate question. The "protocol" is as said above. And pay and leave asap, go into a government hospital. If the private hospital realizes that they will never get money from this patient, they will kick him out anyway, and have him brought into a government hospital. They will still try to get their bill paid later.

Wrong. Not all hospitals do this, many do, especially in tourist places. If you live here, you should always get at least the resident price (if they have one). They may want to see some supporting documentation, like your visa, a yellow book, it depends. Of course, private hospitals usually have a much cheaper price for Thais. If you don't know this, you probably don't live in Thailand. Wrong again. Not that the hospital would encourage this, though. It usually happens with much higher prices, like 4MB, not 400,000. Insurances routinely negotiate the price after treatment, there a companies who make a living doing this. You should not give blatantly wrong information. People from countries with "socialized" medicine are not used to bargain in a hospital, one has to teach them. The results can be amazing (amazing as in "50% off"). Mostly, it doesn't work. But one should try.

Impossible. That would mean, you can get killed by stuff delivered to your 5☆☆☆☆☆Hotel in Bangkok. In a Thai Hotel, this is not possible.

In your opinion. He doesn't say that

You probably have no experience. It is absolutely normal to negotiate payment in installments. It is also absolutely normal that staff put you in the wrong category. If you arrived as an accident, a farang will prima facie be considered a tourist. A resident may pay less (especially in the tourist areas, private hospitals may have many prices: e.g. foreign insurance 100,000 - tourist 70,000 - resident foreigner 60,000 - Thai 30,000 and many more) So he should check that they didn't consider him a tourist. Last but not least, it's a free market and, of course, you can bargain. You cannot bargain with the girl at the cashier counter. And you cannot bargain about the price of an aspirin. 5MB, you can bargain with the hospital director. 400,000 is not that much, you might talk to the director of the financial department, or the medical director, or the boss of the international office if there is one - it depends.