billrose

45 minutes ago, toofarnorth said:

The police often report that the driver may not have been familiar with the road , could this have been the reason ? 

Absolutely not! He was on the Mittraphap (Friendship) highway in Sikiu. It's a dead straight main dual carriageway. The only "bends" are long sweeping curves with good visibility that can be taken at fairly high speed.

I don't want to speculate on the cause, I'll leave that to the police, but it was nothing to do with familiarity with the road.

On ‎4‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 6:11 AM, questionsreplies said:

How much do you pay avocados in Thailand ? why so expensive ?

Thank you.

Probably for the same reason that Papayas and Mangos are ridiculously expensive in UK!

I thought April fool's day was last week!

Pattaya is dying, and this will only make it's demise come sooner.

The real reason they turned them off was that most vehicles ignored them and drove straight through on red, which made it even more dangerous for pedestrians trying to cross the road and thinking they could walk safely on green, but of course they won't admit to that.

They even tried putting marshals with red flags on some of the crossings, but it had virtually no effect, so they gave up and switched the lights off.

Law enforcement on the roads in Thailand = zero!

In this part of Korat it hasn't rained since last October, until yesterday, when we had one hour of heavy rain, which for me signifies the start of the WET season

Sent from my ASUS_Z00LD using Thaivisa Connect mobile app

The simple answer to the OP is that most of Thailand does not yet have "Chip and Pin" technology, so even though your card may have an embodied "chip", (most Thai banks are starting to issue them now), even the big stores like Tesco Lotus, Big C etc. do not have the capability to read a "chipped" Debit Card. Until they do you will just have to sign the slip.

11 hours ago, catman20 said:

in the news video it stated that this is the first increase on the baht bus fares in 2 decades, not true i came here 17 years ago and the fare was 5 baht then went to 10 baht a few years ago, now going to 20 baht. why do thais only ever increase by 100% ?

I first came here 16 years ago (Aug.2000) and they were 10 baht then (for Farangs - 5 baht for Thais), hardly a few years ago!

I was amazed at how cheap they were then, and I'm amazed that they haven't gone up before now. In that time the cost of living in Thailand has gone up by about 25% and the cost of diesel is about double what it was then.

Where else in the world can you get a ride so cheap, albeit not very comfortable!

If you think 20 baht is expensive, try using a taxi!

Given Thais can, unbelievably, drive in the U.K. on a Thai licence, you can. And since, so far as the U.K. is concerned, you can only have one domicile at a time, then, unless you have given up your British one - not easy - then you are not domiciled in Thailand; merely resident.

Depends what you are driving. This is from the Avis/Budget website.

Drivers license and ID requirements

Each driver must show photographic proof of identity and their passport at the start of the rental. All drivers must present a full and current driving licence which has been held for at least 2 years. The licence must be valid for use in the renting country.

If your licence was issued outside the European Community you must provide an International Driving Licence.

If you have a corporate or contracted agreement with us the requirements may be different. Please check your contracted terms and conditions.

As Jonmarleesco says, you do not need an IDP to drive in UK on a Thai licence, as your Thai licence is in English. An IDP is purely a translation of your Thai licence which is already in English.

https://www.gov.uk/driving-nongb-licence/y/a-visitor-to-great-britain/any-other-country

The above requirement from Avis/Budget is just their requirement. Other hire companies do not make the same stipulation! I have hired cars in UK using my Thai Licence many times.

https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-allowance

https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-payment

https://www.gov.uk/widowed-parents-allowance

You will need to provide original documents such as his Birth Certificate, Death Certificate, Marriage Certificate, plus details and certificates of any previous marriage. The forms available in the above links give details.

You will also need to supply the widow's Birth Certificate. If she doesn't have one, as is the case with many Thai ladies, she can get a certified document from the local Amphur giving details of her birth, which The Pension Service will accept.

Any Thai language documents do NOT need to be translated as The Pension Service have their own translators.

If in doubt about anything, call the International Pension Centre on 0044 - 2183847. They are very helpful.

Try Amorn IT plaza

I agree, try Amorn on 1st floor of IT Plaza.

To the OP, it depends very much on what you need it for. Only you can decide if it's worth the hoops you may have to jump though to get it.

It seems pretty obvious from the replies here that each Amphur has it's own criteria, so you can only ask your local Amphur, and it depends how well in you are with the local Pu Yai Ban as to how much his/her reference is going to cost you.

Personally I've lived here nearly 10 years and never needed one. I don't own my car and motorbike, they're both in my wife's name. Not a problem for me!

I got a 1 year and subsequent 5 year driving licence with "residence letters" from Immigration. The first one was free, the second one was 500 baht! I'm pretty sure my local LTD won't accept a yellow book as proof of residence for a licence, only the immigration letter.

I have accounts with 4 different Thai banks and never needed a Yellow book to open an account with any of them.

I'm not intending to apply for permanent residence so I won't need it for that.

So I'm quite happy spending the rest of my days here without a Yellow Tabien Ban.

So you need to go and talk to your local Amphur to check their requirements, and have a word with your Pu Yai Ban, then make your own decision as to whether it's worth it or not.

Officially it's free, and it always used to be free at Korat immigration, but they've been charging 500 baht with no receipt for about 5 or 6 years now. If you complain you won't get one!

You can get one from your Embassy, but if you're British they'll charge you 2565 baht for it! I think other Embassies charge less, but still a lot more than 500 baht.

I've never tried getting one from the local police or tourist police, as I consider 500 baht once in 5 years is not a problem.

Where do his living expenses/pocket money come from? If its from you, tell him to go and find his own source of cash by doing some work and earning his own money, legally of course!

Has the guy never thought about employing Traffic Wardens, not policemen, whose sole job is to monitor illegal parking and issue tickets to offenders? They are some of the most hated people in UK but certainly effective.

However, the biggest problem with traffic in Pattaya has nothing to do with illegal parking. It's badly thought out traffic light phasing. All he has to do is employ someone with a brain to go round all the major snarl-ups and re-adjust the timing of the lights to suit traffic flow. Instant success!

Shower units in Thailand are different to most of the ones available in UK.

Most UK showers control the temperature by adjusting the water flow. To increase the water temperature they reduce the water flow.

Shower units in Thailand are usually electronically controlled so the water flow is determined by the incoming pressure, and will be fairly constant irrespective of the temperature setting. The pressure can vary depending on other users connected to the same supply. The drawback to this is that the incoming water temperature can vary depending on the outside temperature, as the water is usually direct from an underground pipe or from an outside storage tank.

I have one Steibel Eltron 4.5 KW unit, plus one Steibel Eltron 3.5 KW unit, both 9 years old and still perfectly OK. I've never needed to set either of them on the highest setting, even in the middle of winter, and at this time of year I turn the temperature setting to "OFF"!

Water temperature from any shower will always vary with water pressure. Water pressure in a condo should be fairly constant, but may not be in an older condo.

I have long been a Van Morrison fan.I spent many a night listening to Hard Nose The Highway after a big night our on the town.. He is a great musician. He well deserves the knighthood.

He might be deserving because of his music, but his personality doesn't do him any favours. A more grumpy, bad tempered bugger would be hard to find. Don't know where he found the lyrics to his songs, hard to believe they came from him.

I was once conned into going to watch him in concert in the Isle Of Man. Never again!

He never spoke to the audience during the whole concert, from walking on stage to walking off it. Not even a "hello" or "goodbye". It was as if he didn't want to be there.

I believe that's normal for him, but it certainly didn't endear him to me and most of the audience, who expected him to at least acknowledge their attendance.

On the night, some of his music was good, but most of it was very ordinary.

Not sure what he's done to deserve this. It couldn't have been for his music or his personality, but they seem to give them away like confetti these days, which debases it for those who really deserve it.

My friend got done by one of these "gangs" (1 katoey and 1 tom) They watched him withdraw from an ATM, then they followed him on to the baht bus and the katoey sat next to him. The accomplice sat opposite, next to me to distract my attention while the katoey stole his cash from the side pocket of his cargo style pants under cover of a large bag over his knee. He felt the contact, but didn't think anything of it. He only realized when he got off, by which time the baht bus and thieves had gone.

I'm not sure what anyone can do to stop that, except keep your hand on your money when you're on a baht bus.

The whole system is totally antiquated and should be scrapped and replaced with a system similar to the UK and other European countries, where people choose their own numbers and get a printed ticket from an on-line machine at a Supermarket, Newsagent or Convenience store.

It's been suggested in Thailand before and rejected by previous governments, as 1) Too many "influential" (I hate that term!) people are making massive profits from the current system, and 2) It's giving employment to the sellers.

Lets hope this government can solve the issue without hurting the many thousands of disabled people who use the current system as a way to earn a living.

They should give every passenger a life jacket as they board these old decrepit boats.

I was on a ferry to and from Koh Lan yesterday. It was old but certainly not decrepit, but the main thing is that there were more than enough life jackets available for every passenger on board, and it was full.

I'm can speculate that the boat that sank also had sufficient life jackets, that's probably why all the passengers were saved! No-one died, no-one drowned, so what's your point?

Speculation as to the reason the boat sank is superfluous, so you can criticize as much as you like, but until the actual reason is known, you're wasting your time.

So it seems like it may be not just Korat then.

Personally I don't need one for another 4 years when I renew my driving licence, but there are others who need one more often for other reasons..

I've just heard from a Swiss friend who went today in Korat for a residence letter to support continuance of his Swiss pension which has to be done annually. Initially he was refused but after a long discussion they reluctantly agreed to do it, but stated that there would be no more!

In the last few days I've heard of 2 people being told by Korat Immigration that they no longer provide Certificates of Residence. They say it's a new "regulation".

That suggest that it also applies to other Immigration offices!

This has only happened in the last couple of days. One week ago they were still available.

Has anyone else had this experience at Korat or other immigration offices?

I agree with Skatewash, Embassies and Consulates often give out incorrect or mis-leading information, and the paragraph you have quoted above is certainly mis-leading.

I'm totally confused about all this. Why do you need to leave the country? If you already have an "extension of stay" based on a work permit, then when you next go for an extension just apply for an extension based on marriage instead. No need to leave the country or get another visa. I know people who have done that, but not in Bangkok. I suspect that the advice you were given is because your wife may have been asking about a "change of Visa", not a change to an "extension of stay based on marriage".

If that is not acceptable to your local immigration, just make a trip to Vientiane or some other nearby Embassy or Consulate and get a single entry Non Imm O based on marriage. As many have said before, if you get a Tourist Visa you will need to get it changed to a Non Imm O in Bangkok before it can be extended, which is a waste of time and money.

How would Thailand know you were married in a diffrent country....The World Marrage Computer?......

By showing them a certified and translated copy of the marriage certificate! That's all the OP has to do.

I just drove along about 12 Km of the Korat by-pass, not far from that accident.

In that 12 Km I counted 23 sets of white paint on the road put there by the police to indicate the vehicle positions after an accident. That means 23 accidents in a 12 KM stretch of dual carriageway over 3 days. Admittedly many of them were probably minor shunts, but it gives you an idea of how bad the driving standards are.

Part of the problem, and maybe the biggest part, is that most small bikes these days have "daylight running' headlights, i. e. the headlight is on all the time when the ignition is on, but the rear light is off.

The rider starts the bike in the dark and the headlight comes on, so without thinking they set off without switching the lights on.

I know, I've done it myself, and I've watched my wife and daughter do it many times!