matt888

joordy, you may find what you're looking for in this pinned topic:

There are many options in all regions of Thailand.

I am looking for a meditation course but in bangkok, so i can come back to my apartment at night etc, do you know of any like this? or are they all outside of bangkok?

UOB now officially charge 150 baht and they tell you on the atm machine when you are withdrawing, i have been using UOB for the last few months with my nationwide flex account debit card and not been getting charged, but today i tried 3 UOB atm's (khaosan road, phonyothin soi 19 , and phonyothin 30) and all 3 warned me before i made the withdrawal that i would be charged (just like kasikorn, bangkok bank etc), so i clicked 'cancel', i am not happy that UOB have got on this scandalous band wagon and am seriously hoping AEON and GSB are not doing the same. I dont know of many AEON/GSB atms they only seem to be in malls, big C's etc, so this will be a bit more awkward for me as i already had a few UOB's on my daily routes. so not a happy chappy, I think they may have all decided (AEON and GSB) to join in with the charges now, so it may be time to start just transfering lump sums to my kasikorn thai bank account. Does anyone do this and have any views on it negative or positive? the only negative thing i can think of is that the £ seems to be getting stronger against the baht at the moment so if i transfer say 4 months worth of money tomorrow, i will get todays exchange rate where as if i was using my atm card i would be getting an up to date exchange rate (hopefully better than todays).

if anyones get any bright ideas/info, please let me know!

best regards,

Matt

so would you all agree that a smirnof ice (5%) which is the same size bottle as a small singha (also 5%) has the same damaging effects to the liver and kindneys?, because in my opinion the smirnof ice tastes much better.

I normally drink 2-3 times a week, and usually spirits (johnny walker mixed with soda) but recently i have been getting slight pains in my sides/lower back the day after drinking, which is concerning me a bit, i am a bit of a hypercondriac! so think i could be telling myself the pains are worse than they are, but i definately have felt slight aches in that region. So now i have decided that the whiskey is burning my liver and kidneys away, and have started drinking beer more, but i really dont enjoy beer, and also am developing a nice little beer belly. But i am telling myself i can either have a little beer belly or burn/rot my organs!!.

I know the best solution is to stop drinking altoghter, which is something i intend to do in the future, but at this stage of my life i'm not ready for that.

I have done a bit of research on google but to no avail, so i was wondering if anyone out there knows any info?

basically my question is -does one small beer of heineken (5%) do exactly the same amount of damage to the liver/kidneys as a whiskey/soda if measured at 5% alcohol content, and the same amount drunk (330ml)?

any info would be appreciated.

thanks, Matt.

Thanks everyone - it's just so expensive! (import I know)

Imagine taking two a day at around 20 Baht a capsule? I might try the Fah-Talai-Jone suggested. I will also bring back a supply from UK where it's very cheap. I just want to give myself that added protection - I noticed when I had my liver checked with no protection it was on the 'cusp' of a problem but after taking regularly it went back to 'normal' reading - and I enjoy a drink!

its 95 baht for a strip of 10 (Legalon 70) in my local pharmacy, so at 9.5 baht a capsule i would say its money well spent!

take some milk thistle (silymarin)-

studies on the effect of silymarin on toxic liver damage (mostly induced by alcohol), chronic liver disease and disease caused by certain drugs have been reviewed by medical experts. They concluded that basic lab and clinical data suggests silymarin is a therapeutically useful medicinal plant product that stabilizes the cell membrane and stimulates protein synthesis, while accelerating the process of regeneration in damaged liver tissue, and that these effects are important in the therapeutic efficacy of silymarin.

buy it over the counter in almost any pharmacy in bangkok, its pharmaceutical name is Legalon 70. A strip of 10 capsules costs 95 baht in my local pharmacy.

Legalon 70 is a medicine acting on the liver - Reinforces the regenerative capacity and functional efficiency of the liver Legalon is the outcome of several decades of intensive research by Madaus. It is entirely of plant origin and is manufactured in the form of a dry extract from the fruits of the milk thistle. The active ingredient is silymarin, with its principal active component silibinin. Extensive research into this extract over the last 20 years has conclusively proved that this extract is beneficial in protecting and detoxifying the liver. Medicines of plant origin are in general well tolerated, and this is certainly true of Legalon.

I recommend anyone who feels they drink to much to try using this medicine.

take some milk thistle (silymarin)-

studies on the effect of silymarin on toxic liver damage (mostly induced by alcohol), chronic liver disease and disease caused by certain drugs have been reviewed by medical experts. They concluded that basic lab and clinical data suggests silymarin is a therapeutically useful medicinal plant product that stabilizes the cell membrane and stimulates protein synthesis, while accelerating the process of regeneration in damaged liver tissue, and that these effects are important in the therapeutic efficacy of silymarin.

buy it over the counter in almost any pharmacy in bangkok, its pharmaceutical name is Legalon 70. A strip of 10 capsules costs 95 baht in my local pharmacy.

Legalon 70 is a medicine acting on the liver - Reinforces the regenerative capacity and functional efficiency of the liver Legalon is the outcome of several decades of intensive research by Madaus. It is entirely of plant origin and is manufactured in the form of a dry extract from the fruits of the milk thistle. The active ingredient is silymarin, with its principal active component silibinin. Extensive research into this extract over the last 20 years has conclusively proved that this extract is beneficial in protecting and detoxifying the liver. Medicines of plant origin are in general well tolerated, and this is certainly true of Legalon.

I recommend anyone who feels they drink to much to try using this medicine.

<snip>

May anyone here in the forum tell me whether I drink too much ?

Hi Lucky,

I am glad to see you ask this question. The answer lies within the question itself. "Social drinkers", those who drink moderately do not raise this question, it is a non-issue for them. They never think about stopping or even cutting down. The question you want to think about and ask yourself is why you are asking the question in the first place? What is going on in your life and your drinking that prompts you to ask?

Finally, I want to comment on your distinction between beer and spirits. There isn't a distinction. They are exactly the same. 1 beer or 1 glass of wine = approximately one shot of spirits. 6 beers = six shots of whiskey, more or less. There is nothing in any way safer or milder or superior about drinking beer but not spirits. Beer just makes you pee more!

Alcohol is a drug; a powerful, destructive, addictive drug. The only difference between booze and other drugs is legality.

Hope this helps you to get some perspective on your drinking behavior.

Aloha,

Rex

spirits damage your insides more than beer

I hope people continue this discussion as things are finally becoming a bit clearer to me! I have friends in Manchester UK who practice under the guidence of Lama Jampa Thaye who is trained in the Sakya and Karma Kagyu traditions of Buddhism. The reason why i created this topic was because a few of them dont speak to highly of Thai Buddhism, I never really challenged this to much as i know very little on the subject, so dont (hopefully soon didn't!) have a foot to stand on, the general feeling I got from them is that Thai Buddhism is quite conservative/strict/rigid. I live in Thailand so obviously it would be easier for me to start learning/practicing here, but didn't want to go down the wrong path!

again big thanks to everyone who has made an imput to the discussion.........

thanks alot for that mizzi39, thats exactly what i was looking for. Very helpful.

Matt

hello,

I am new to Buddhism and want to learn more, I am interested in hearing all of your views about the differences between the two main branches of Buddhism - Theravada and Mahayana.

thanks,

Matt

Right on kid! Those people are sh!ts to force that on him. You only have one life. Live it the way you want to live it; not the way someone else wants you to live it. The Dalai's a fraud. The dude never gets to the point when he's speaking. Just speaks around in circles like a fukcin politician.

LOL

1. You're criticizing the Dalai Lama, who -- right or wrong -- can have extremely intelligent and philosophical discussions. Your retort is "Right on kid". "those people are sh!ts". "The dude never gets to the point...". "...like a fukcin politician".

2. "You only have one life." Well, not if you're Buddhist.

3. They are forcing it on him? Let's see. He walked away from it. Exactly what kind of force is that?

4. The Dalai Lama is part politician and part spiritual leader. Do you know anything about his role in the world?

Dude, you're really shallow.

I tend to find that the Dalai Lama is not that innovative of a teacher- he indeed usually just regurgitates tired phrases and lines of logic one can find in the texts. Maybe that's the kind of teacher you want, but it's not what I'd call extremely intelligent or philosophical. Not all Buddhists believe in reincarnation. The Dalai Lamas and their government of ancient Tibet used to routinely burn and torture even the most petty criminals. It was by no means a Buddhist fantasy-land Westerners invision. Tibetan Buddhism is a parochial, quasi-political dogma... why so many defend it i don't know.

please tell me where you read this 'The Dalai Lamas and their government of ancient Tibet used to routinely burn and torture even the most petty criminals' any weblink or book reference would be appreciated.

thanks

I have a Honda 150cc RR motorcycle for sale, it is fully taxed and insured and has the green book, i bought it about 8 months ago for 15,000 baht and have spent over 7000 baht on it since then at an authorized honda dealer (sapan kwai) i have all the receipts available. The engine is in mint condition and super reliable,

asking price is 16,500 baht.

any questions or queries please let me know via a PM or call me on 0894983484

hi

does anyone have a number for piammitr?,, i have been calling the number on their website for the last couple of days, with no answer (026617767). i have also emailed them with no reply !

any contact details would be most appreciated.

i have read alot of these threads and have decided that piammitr seems like a good choice, does anyone else have anything else they'd like to add (positive or negative !!)

any comments/advise would be most appreciated.

kind regards,

Matt

Can one study beyond Book 5 at Piammitr? Someone here said they studied Books 7 and 8 but these are not advertised on their website. Are Books 7 and 8 run as one-to-one classes?

What about the advanced modules in Thai culture, history and newspaper reading that are offered at Piammitr, UTL and AAA? Are these group or one-to-one classes?

When does the Prathom 6 intensive prep class usually start? Early or mid September?

Thanks.

please can someone help us out on this !!!! i really want to know if the ricky hatton fight will be on!!! (dont care about leeds !!)

please someone post

thanks

hi all,

i am a big boxing fan and tonight david haye and enzo macarinelli are fighting (it will be on at about 8-9am sunday morning thai time). i have checked my UBC mag and it isn't listed there, but they often get things wrong in that magazine!! i was wondering if anyone knows if it will be on here, if so what time/channel. Also if its not on UBC, possibly some pubs in sukumvit/silom may be playing it (using some sneaky method!!) any info on that would also be appreciated. i am now running out of time!!!

again any hep would be most appreciated.

kind regards

Matt

pizza is one of the most unhealthy kinds of food known to man, the bread/cheese combination is naughty. i would strongly recommend thai food as a healthier option

thanks for that info everyone

hi,

the sound on my laptops playing up, and they dont seem to be able to fix it, so i cant use skype at the mo. I have to call the UK alot and am currently using my thai D-TAC mobile phone. I dial the 009 prefix which makes it slightly cheaper but am still spending a bomb on calls.

when i am in the UK and call Thailand i use this website - niftylist.com on this site they have connecting numbers which makes calls around 1-2 pence a minute, which is great.

i was just wondering if anyone knows the thai equivalent, or any other cheap way to call abroad other than skype.

any help would be most appreciated

thanks

from what i understand i need to apply to become a non-resident in the UK, is that possible when i am on tourist visa's or do they only take the amount of time your in the UK consideration ?

again any help/advice would be mpst appreciated.

thanks

i am having trouble getting the facts on how to become/or if i am eligable for an offshore account, i am a british citizen but have been living here and around asia on a tourist visa for 3 years now.

i have a quite a large amount of money in a UK bank getting crap (and taxed) interest, and something has to be done ASAP !!!!

please can someone explain to me the steps (if its possible) for me to aquire an offshore saving account such as A&L-

hello,

do u still have this place available ?

email me -

[email protected]

thanks

hi,

did you take the bike to a garage to get the enigine checked etc. before you bought it ?

i am interested in buying a similar kind of bike (probably a CB400) but am a bit dubious about buying second hand, as i fear there could be a few dodgy parts installed in the bike!

where did you see that one advertised ?

thanks

matt

that bike seems over-priced, you dont want that, trust me. dont pay more than 30k for it

copy and paste this into your browser -

http://www.thaisecondhand.com/_board/ca/data/CA5548170.html

that looks like a better deal to me.

hello,

i live close to Soi Ari (phonyotin soi 7) and am looking for a gym aroud there (or towards victory monument/siam), thats good value etc. i am reluctant to join something like 'California Wow', dont know why, but just doesn't look like my kind of place! , but i could be wrong, anyone have any recommendations on that kind of 'chain' gym or any others.

all thoughts/suggestions would be mostly appreciated.

kind regards

Howzit!

Used to live in the area so I know there's a nice gym about 3 blocks down the street from you. Its in the same building where McDonald's isand where the old Villa Market used to be. The building has two entrances. Use the first entrance(closest to soi Ari, not the McDonald's side).The gym is on the 31st floor or thereabouts. Used to be called Olympic or something like that but think the name has changed. If you get lost, keep your eyes open as there are signs posted around.(Very few English speakers in the area altho' I remember bookstore personnel can speak some English). Its a bit expensive but has a great pool, ping pong, yoga and good equipment. You can pay as you go, by the month or by the year.

There is also a gym in the tallest building by the BTS Ari on the 9th floor, however, the gym is very basic. (Used to be a bookstore on the bottom floor but now its a health food store.) There is a nice pool there which costs a bit more to use. You can also sign up for a very good yoga program at the same location (not part of the gym) for about 1500 baht a month. I recommend the yoga program but not the gym. Good luck!

thanx for this help, i'll be checkin them out soon

cheers