tamsin

It's too bad Thailand doesn't have a Crime Stoppers program in place. This problem would never have come up. Crime Stoppers is the world's largest reward program and now operates in 22 countries around the world. It has a civilian board of directors that oversees the operation of the program, while specially-trained law enforcement officers man a toll-free number round-the-clock. Callers to Crime Stoppers can remain anonymous and all rewards are paid in cash to protect the identities of the informants. It has operated with great success in the U.K., Australia, the Netherlands, Canada and the United States. A new program recently began operation in India. Collectively, Crime Stoppers has helped solve more than 1.2 million crimes, recover more than $8 billion USD in stolen property and narcotics and has paid out more than $100 million USD in rewards. Thailand has been approached about setting up a country-wide Crime Stoppers program but has yet to act on the proposal.

Um, the flaw in this suggestion is that the UK, Australia, the Netherlands, Canada and the United States, have a relatively adept and incorruptable police force, unlike almost all of Asia. Let's see how it goes in India first shall we? Although I think that there are plenty there to grass up their neighbours/friends for a few rupee.

Excellent. Just what Thailand needs. Yet another carpet bagger coming in, gouging out plots of once beautiful verdant land, to sling up their godawful little boxes and condominiums.

Why are all these farang allowed to come here and set up business furthering the deterioration of the natural beauty of this country anyway? Is there some clause in the 'jobs restricted to Thais' I've missed? Along with all the bloody Nepalese tailors?

Go and do something useful with your life or go home.

I remember this particular exercise in timewasting being enforced (yes, for the benefit of the pedants out there, this 'law' had always been on the statute books, but no one had bothered to enforce it, probably for the very obvious reason that it was/is a complete waste of time, (crooks don't usually bother themselves/can bribe some official to not to have to put themselves out), until Toxin came to power (the last time) and decided to stir up a bit of xenophobia, following the age old and very effective strategy of 'divide and rule', the excuse being that it was in the interests of 'national security'.

Just as a matter of interest; is Thailand more, or less, secure from any perceived threat from Johnny Foreigner, than before this ridiculous law was vigorously implemented? Anyone have any stats?

Such a tragic murder of a young woman....only 27

She must have been surprised, encountering her murderer(s), or not having sensed danger at all because Swedish people are very, very good swimmers and sensing danger she would probably have ran away, into the sea, escaping her 'dressed' attacker(s).

Once in the water it would have been more easy, staying in the water rather than being on land...

But, sorry, yes I know, it's just speculating.

LaoPo

She was Swedish, not a bloody seal.

What are the legal options open to a Thai landlord if a tenant wishes to default on the 12 month contract that they signed--tenant has already paid 3 months rent up front, as a deposit--is keeping this deposit this the maximum penalty available to the landlord, or, if they wished, could they take tenant to court, or similar? Are landlords within their rights to keep this deposit, which I understood to be held as a safeguard in the case of damage to property?

Unless your contract is pretty rare the Landlord has the right to claim that you fulfil the contract. This means you have to pay for those 12 months. Whether he does claim this or not is entirely up to him/her.

Are you insane, what landlord, Thai or otherwise, in their right mind is going to be willing to pay a lawyer to drag a tenant, Thai or otherwise, through a protracted court case to claim recompense for reneging on a 12 month lease? That's why many landlords insist on a big deposit upfront, depending on where you are of course. Duh.

Kiss your deposit adios and move on.

What kind of internet business? They come in shapes varying from those where a guy makes 10 million baht a month merely by making a few keystrokes on his laptop 3 times a month (quite many owners of that kind of business on online-forums like this) to those where the internet business needs storage facilities, offices, and workspace for their many employees (not so many owners of the latter kind on online-forums).

What kind of person, making 10 mil THB per month, bothers to engage in the sheer idiocy of internet forums like this? What bloody planet are you on?

dam_n!! Some of you guys sure go for the throat

OK ... so not everyone is hard-bitten. No need to be so ******* smug about it.

I'm sorry it happened to the guy. There but for the grace ...

Having said that ... praparation is number ONE when moving to 'foreign parts'. Get to know and UNDERSTAND the culture BEFORE commiting. And ... biggest mistake of all, don't transfer control of your life to the Bratwurst between your legs. It isn't known for its planning abilities.

I hope you come out of it with SOME satisfaction.

Best wishes

DIG

And the 'culture' here is .... dahdah dah DAHHHH! 'Thailand - Miles and Miles of Vertical Smiles!'

Where.Else.In.The.World.Would.You.Buy.A.Prostitute.A House? tosser

Seems to me that many of you are confusing, being a "social Chatty Cathy" with intellect. A true intellect is not limited or defined by who it can talk to. Introspection is often more enlightening than verbosity and pontification.

Which you seem to be very good at vf. Bet you're BaF up there aren't you.

OK, I'll bite and show my stupidity. What does BaF mean? I have come up with several possibilities on my own but can't decide which one you meant. I am also having difficulty with what you think I'm good at. The introspection or the pontification stuff? One answer would imply that you have read my blog while the other, I'm not sure.

Just an attempt at some intellectual stimulation .

I'm asuminging you are er, American. BoredAsFck. And, yes, I did have the opportunity, nay 'happenstance' of viewing a segment of your blog, and found the bit about the 'model' particularly enlightening as to your character. Hmmmm, let me see, 'and at least the new Thai boyfriend of this beautiful 'model'[/i] showed respect by waiing me. (sic)

By the way. Only the local buffalo think you are 'intellectually stimulating'. Or maybe not.

The answer to the topic title is all a little too obvious isn't it? I mean, we constantly hear about farang couples coming to make a new life in Thailand, and the husband leaving farang wife for some thai prostitute. Now. Do we ever hear of the reverse? What are the statistics of Farang Man obeying dictates of his dick, to Farang Woman, ditching aging flabby husband for younger Thai man? Anyone?

Seems to me that many of you are confusing, being a "social Chatty Cathy" with intellect. A true intellect is not limited or defined by who it can talk to. Introspection is often more enlightening than verbosity and pontification.

Which you seem to be very good at vf. Bet you're BaF up there aren't you.

Visa and Extension of stay are not the same. lopburi is giving you the correct advise and straightforward answers. Up to you if you do not want to take the good and correct advise.

Okay Lite Beer. Lets keep it simple. Please explain to us the difference in outcome between a Visa and an Extension to Stay.

Thankyou Lopburi3. I therefore assume that there's no need to apply for an EXTENSION OF STAY (read; one is permitted to stay in this heaven on earth without fear of being brought to book by the bib if such stamp is absent from one's passport (unlikely), or leaving country (more likely)), based on marriage to a Thai National until at most three weeks have elapsed before the expiration of a former, let's say, for argument's sake, an EXTENSION OF STAY based on retirement.

We all appreciate the time and effort you put into replying to our varied and various requests for information regarding visa/extensions, OR Visas and Extensions of Stay on this forum. However, your replies occasionally smack of pedantry. The terms 'Visa' and 'Extension of Stay') leading to yet more confusion, both terms being the same same as far as your average farang is concerned; when all that is required is a straightforward answer, to queries regarding the current rules set by the Immigration Department(s) for staying in this particular country, for whatever length of time and for whatever reason.

We are not all idiots you know. Thankyou again for your time.

PS I wholeheartedly admire and agree with your stance on the issue of 'tea money' - aka bribes, on another thread.

I believe you are talking about a retirement extension of stay from Immigration? Or were you here on a one year permitted to stay visa entry stamp? In any case the time is the date on your permitted to stay until stamp and it should not more than 30 days before but can be done with a day remaining if need be. It is best to arrive with several weeks remaining from most account to allow any missing documents to be obtained without having to obtain a short extension of stay. Wife will have to be with you and the normal family documents (photos, marriage certificate, home register, her ID card and the income proof).

I have had an extension to stay 'O' Retirement class for the past two years.

This current visa expires on the 4th April. How long before such expiration would it be prudent to apply for a further extension to stay, but this time based upon Marriage to a Thai National? Tomorrow, next week, fortnight before? Thankyou

This is for Lopburi please. I have a Retirement Visa which expires next month. I want to apply on the basis of being married to a Thai National next time. How long (days weeks) before expiration of the Retirement Visa must I go to Immigration to apply for a Marriage one please? Thanks

Vitalgirl, it shouldn't take 6 months anymore, nowadays its one month I believe.

What if you're applying for a different kind of visa? ie Retirement to Marriage? How long must you present yourselves at Immigration before expiration of the Retirement one to application for the new Marriage one?

Then there are the guys who are old, fat and bald, without any prospects of attracting the attention of a smart, young, attractive Western woman, but discover that they can be attractive because of their affluence or visa status to a whole range of [Asian] women, and strike up a relationship with one of them, not realizing that in the eyes of their friends and other Asians, they look at best [like] fools and at worst predators," he adds.

So true (not of all obviously but alot)

To me, they look like fellows who are too clever to be lonely and desperate when they don't really have to be.

How come old, fat and bald rich guys in the West are not thought of as "fools and at worst predators" when they take advantage of their financial status to strike up a relationship with smart, young, attractive Western woman? How come the Western women are not thought of as whores?

Can you say hypocrites?

Fully agree but we forget one key factor about the relationship between 2 people with a big age gap:POWER image

In my forties in europ I was already fat and (relatively ) rich.Not yet bald .Remember relationship with girls 15 to 20 years younger than me.Were from very good family with very good income , really beautifull and clever

What was the secret?I was the boss of subsidiary of a well known software cy.They searched the POWER image.(and some of my friends in the same kind of position had the same experiences).

An other factor should be that certain girls search the image of their father in a relationship (or the contrary of this image depending how they see their father)

Now i am living in LOS,old, fat , bald and rich (at least for poor people ) and...same same

GF has 35 years less than me

The power image here is much more a money power image for sure but the father comparison is still valid

So much more complex that the feminazi article...isn't it????

The Thai girls aren't interested in your perceived status as some highflyer, they don't even understand what that is! All they see is that you are white and therefore probably have money.

By the by, I was told by my female Thai language tutor that many of her farang male students tell her that they wouldn't be able to get a girl half their age in their home countries. She asked me why that was

We had to take the Puyai Ban with us to our interview at immigration and we were all interviewed seperately. The papers were then sent to BKK and I had my visa within a couple of weeks.

You had to take your Puyai Baan with you! Where was that? It was difficult enough trying to track him down to get the number for the house!

Anyone know what Phuket : Imm want to see now? Need to change from O retirement to married to Thai Man O next month. thankyou.

thanks bambina. he gets hurt very easily but he bites back (he can be very mean). i feel like his mother (and who wants that in a relationship?). i don't think he will leave unless i withdraw all support but i wonder if it possible to keep a friendship? honestly, thus far it hasn't worked, he always comes back pleading.

NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. Cut him loose and ignore him, anything else WILL get his hopes up. Guaranteed. Save yourself a lot of time and aggravation.

These mammals could easily have originated from zoo,s in Europe, there are still legal Trading zoo,s where you can purchase any animal your heart desires endangered or not, alive or dead if you have enough Money.At the end of every year all zoo,s advertise their surplus stock for sale, and some times not a lot of questions are asked of the customers that buy them. I have been retired for 5 years and still get offered surplus animals now and then, Nignoy

Wow, that's disturbing! I had no idea that zoos did this sort of thing, still, these animals likely came from the wild (maybe the Sri Racha Tiger farm?) and that's a huge problem.

Still no story in the BKK Post or The Nation. I guess this isn't as important news as the Monitor lizards caught in inside the Government House's compound

No, but it was all over the Thai news channels. This isn't a predominantly English speaking country after all, and the citizens of this country are at least, then, being made aware that this is a problem which is attempting to be dealt with.

And as strongly as I too feel regarding this issue, ranting and denigrating the entire Chinese race is neither helpful nor practical. EDUCATION, is the key. What happened to that NGO 'Grassroots' whose aim was to educate the children against these practices. The future lies with them after all.

The. Reason. They. Keep. Tightening. The Rules. On Tourist Visas. Is that they are very well aware that those who have been using the visa run system for months/years, are, in their view, those who are, in their eyes, doing nothing productive here except continuing to sully Thailand's deserved and brought upon themselves reputation as the PREMIER sex tourist destination In The Worl' (sic), and they want you to either (a) marry, and show you can support a Thai family and discontinue taking advantage of aforementioned reputation, OR, set up a bona fide business showing you can support Thai employees, OR, in light of the not so long ago requirement that all non Thai retirees are able to fund themselves independently, the proof of 800k for each said retiree couple, subsequently dropped in light of said retiree couple finding difficulties in coming up with twice the amount (1,600,000), to be deposited and held for three months in a Thai baht bank account, earning no interest; take your rancid old dicks elsewhere.

YES, the Thais care about your money, BUT, they are embarrassed about their reputation, and in their Thai Way are doing their level best to, alas, belatedly, reinvent it

Now. All you sad old farts, for indeed you are old, if any young guys here come here on the jolly, it's only for a week or so these days. And then they get bored and get a life.

As we live now more than seven years now in Nai Harn, I would say that there is a shortage of good restaurants here for a descent price. The bakery Flin(t)stone is a ripoff compared with the bakery in Carrefour and we never shop at Don's mall but visit that supermarket opposite of Nikita.

The one that never gives you a till receipt? I go there if I need just one or two items as tired of standing watching the till. Although never got overcharged, short changed after they saw I was watching it.

And to the other posters: Yes but this isn't 'upcountry' upcountry, and No, I'm not a sex tourist so why would I want to live in the cess pit that is Patong?

HI

She look nice with that beard.

OOOh, I do apologise, I'd been told that his wife, the one with the blonde behive, who bears his full title was the one visiting.

As for Southern insurgents, it's far more likely to have been a 'business dispute', such are the way they're dealt with here.

I'll be waiting for the rest of you to show up.

Philippines? I might show up there the day the filipinos and the filipinas learn the last 6 commandments. Or rather, the day they add the missing word "NOT" to the last 6 commandments.

Cambodia is rapidly becoming a country so corrupt and lawless that it threatens the very stability of the nation. And the prices there are also rising at an alarming level.

Why not go to Malaysia? It has the fantastic MM2H (Malaysia My Second Home) scheme, that will give you a 10 year visa for requirements many of us can meet.

And if not, they give most of us 90 days on entry. No questions asked.

They will also arrest you if you are found queing in the same line as the ladies if you are a man in your local supermarket.

Just out of curiousity - why is the Thai Gouvernment so "Anti Long Stay Tourist" ...... I know alot of guys that work in the UK / Europe for 6 months during srping / summer, save up alot of cash, then go to Thailand for the autumn / winter (6 months) and spend all that cash...... I'm talking like 10 grand...... as in half a million Baht..... surely that is a good thing for the country? I can understand why they would want to stop foriegners buying up land & houses, pushing up prices etc., but what is wrong with people hanging around spending what is locally a hel_l of alot of money..... this money is filtering back up the entire country one way or another..... the typical long stay tourist is not exaclt a burden on the state?

Just seems pointless to me........... could some one fill me in?

They want to get rid of all the sex tourists.