AndreasHG

I spent 10 days diving in Koh Tao with a friend in August 2023. The weather was perfect, and we had some wonderful dives (Southwest Pinnacle, Samran and Sail Rock were mind blowing). We tried a few diving centers before settling for the French managed "The Diver's Boat", which proved to be the most professional among the four tested (https://thediversboat.com/en/). They are affiliated to SSI. Koh Tao is the ideal location to get a Padi Open Water or SSI Basic Diver license. On the island there are tens, if not hundreds, of diving centers competing to get your money: this ensures prices are kept in check. The Island is very crowded, and it is a far cry from the peaceful, laid back, diving heaven it was twenty or so years ago. But if your only goal is to get a diving license, then this should not be an issue. The dry season (approximately December to February) is the best time to visit the Thai Islands located in the Andaman sea. The islands located in the gulf of Thailand, on the other end, are very welcoming also during the European summer holidays (June to September). There are many options with regards to the accommodation, with prices ranging from less than one thousand Baht per night to several thousands, and the same is true for food, transport and any other service you may need.

All of the best presidents in history plus a very dumb one were assassinated or attempted assassinated. Guess who's the very dumb one? Tip: the last to have suffered an attempted assassination.

I live in Bangkok, in the low Sukhumvit area, and I don't use an agency for the retirement VISA and for the 90 days reporting. I make an appointment with the Immigration Division 1 online (previous registration). This is the link to the Thai Immigration Division 1: Immigration Division1 | กองบังคับการตรวจคนเข้าเมือง 1 – กองบังคับการตรวจคนเข้าเมือง 1, Immigration Division1, บก.ตม.1, ตม1. I show up at the due time with the documents required, and everything is done in few minutes (a couple of hours for the multiple-entry retirement VISA). Using the link above it is also possible to do the 90 days report online (previous registration) without visiting the immigration office, but only if I have been in Thailand for more than 90 consecutive days. As a rule, the first 90 days report, after re-entering the Kingdom from any trip overseas, can only be done in person. An American friend living in my condo prefers to use the Business Center of the Bumrungrad Hospital which, for a very reasonable price (650 THB), ensures he complies with the 90 days report requirement. For more info on the Bumrungrad Hospital Business Center, this is the link: Business Center | Bumrungrad Hospital Bangkok Thailand.

If you apply for the first time while in Thailand, the financial requirement is to have 800,000 THB nestled in a Thai bank for 2 months (or proof of monthly income of min. 65,000 THB or a mix of savings and income totaling 800,000 THB / yr.). For the retirement VISA renewal, you will have to have 800,000 THB nestled in a Thai bank for at least 2 months, and a minimum of THB 400,000 deposited all the time into the Thai account in the previous 10 months. The 400,000 THB minimum requirement effectively replaces the health insurance, which is not mandatory, but only for those who initially applied for the VISA while already in Thailand. There are agencies which allegedly can get around these requirements. The Trendy Office Building in Sukhumvit soi 13 is full of agents, some of them Indian nationals, who claim to be able to secure a VISA even if the applicant does not meet any of these requirements, for a price of course (approximately 35,000 THB). I would advise you against making use of their services.

I am doing both my 90 days reports and VISA yearly renewal at the Thai Immigration Division 1, in the Government Complex in Chaeng Wattana, Bangkok. I only used a private agency when I applied for the retirement VISA for the first time. I handled everything else by myself after that. I often cannot do the 90 days report online but must do it in person at the Immigration office (as a rule, the first 90 days report, after re-entering the Kingdom from any trip overseas, cannot be done online but only in person). I can only praise the Thai Immigration personnel for their helpfulness, kindness and efficiency.

The Honda CRV is a unibody vehicle, and so are the Mazda CX-5 and CX-8, while most of the other SUVs mentioned here are body-on-frame, derived from pick-up trucks (Fortuner from the Hilux, Everest from the Ranger, Pajero Sport from the Triton, etc.) or commercial vehicles. This has an impact on road handling, comfort, safety and fuel economy, but also on the "robustness" of the vehicle. Another element I would take into account is the product lifecycle, especially if you care about the resale value. The Toyota Fortuner is at the end of its lifecycle and a new hybrid model is expected to be launched in 2025 or in 2026 the latest. The Pajero current design was launched in 2015, and Mitsubishi just launched an all-new Triton: It is very likely that an all-new Pajero Sport will follow soon. Also, the Mazda CX-5 and CX-8 are probably going to be phased-out in the next couple of years. Both the current Ford Everest and the Honda CR-V were launched in 2022 and are at the beginning of their lifecycle. Because of their poor resale value, I would not put my money in a Chinese vehicle. Not because they are poorly made, but because they are new to the Thai market, their prices have been falling due to ever more aggressive promotions, and their after-sales service still unproven. I hope this may help you in your choice.

I had a minor accident in a restaurant parking lot, caused by the parking keeper (he manually pushed a pick-up truck parked in the second raw against my car, while I was exiting from my spot). I called the insurance which arrived surprisingly quickly. The parking lot insurance showed up at the scene, and the police arrived too but didn't stay long. The parking keeper lied, but the evidence was such that that he was deemed responsible for the minor damage to the rear door. I never saw that guy again and I am afraid he may have lost his job as a consequence of that minor accident.

Given how much Thai women work and how little on average Thai men work, I think it's a no-brainer to conclude which sex is the smartest in Thailand 😉.

Why limit yourself to facts? You can live happily also when believing in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, especially when you have the brain of a seven-year-old child.

BS spread by competitors. Norway is the largest exporter of salmon, followed by Sweden, Chile, Denmark, Canada and the UK. Main export markets of Norwegian salmon are the EU and the USA, especially the first one of which enforces strict food safety regulations.

100% of the salmon sold in Thailand is imported, especially from Norway, which accounts for more than 90% of the fresh fish imported in the country. Occasionally salmon may be labelled "Product of Thailand" only because it is processed in the country. The raw fish is always imported. The healthiness of the Norwegian farmed salmon, when processed properly and away from contaminants, is out of question. The environmental sustainability of salmon consumption in Thailand may be questioned. With so many local alternatives available, consuming a fish which is shipped by plane from Europe may not be necessary after all. It's freshwater fish that requires particular attention, because of the health hazards it poses. There are many more parasites in freshwater fish that can make their homes in humans than there are in marine fish. Never consume freshwater fish unless it has been cooked properly.

BS

I think you understand that it depends on when he signed. If he signed 31 years ago, assuming that Russia was going to peacefully coexist with its neighbors during his lifetime, then he made a mistake and now he is screwed. Anyway, here in Bangkok I met more than one Russian who is terrified by the simple idea of returning to Russia, because of the mobilization. The issue is real.

Amazing how a race that seemed heading towards a foregone conclusion, is now open and competitive. This is true democracy in action. It is testament of the good health of the American institutions, after the unfortunate, shameful, January the 6th, 2020, events.

Actually, current Russian laws allow citizens who have completed their compulsory service, without any further commitment, to be mobilized up to the age of 40, 50 or 55, depending on their category and rank. Russia also maintains a "mobilized reserve" of men who have signed up to receive periodic military training: those from this reserve with the highest ranks can now be called back into service up to the age of 70, other senior ranks up to 65, junior officers up to 60. Depending on the category Dimitri belongs to and on how much he is eager to pay in bribes, at 56 years old, he may or may not still be mobilized. This is nowadays Russia, not any different from tzar Nicholas II, 20th century, Russia.

Anything but sending him back to Russia, where he might instantly become cannon fodder. Russians too have the right to live.

Never had a single issue. I use Wise to exchange my money (either USD or Euro) and I only transfer THB to my Bangkok Bank.

This is the very first thing I learned when I moved to Thailand: Without Thai women, this country would sink deep into the gulf of Thailand and disappear from the face of the Earth. What I learned thereafter was just as amazing.

Given that the crackdown happened in Phuket, it is really noteworthy the fact that the Thai authorities are not going to expel any Russian, whose destiny would be to go to Ukraine and die in Putin's war.

Last week I went to Bumrungrad Hospital because my psoriasis got much worse and, for the first time in my life, I am having a rush of atopic dermatitis. To address my symptoms, the dermatologist suggested a therapy with Scapho. The price charged by the hospital for the two prefilled 300mg pens (2 x 150mg) is 24,000 THB (12,000 THB each). The hospital charges approximately additional 2,200 THB for nursing and hospital charges. These additional charges are avoidable, if the patient self-injects the antibodies. The therapy consists of 5 weekly shots (week 0, 1, 2, 3, 4) followed by one shot every month (all shots with 300mg dosage). As an alternative to monoclonal antibodies, the hospital offers also the phototherapy with UVB-NB, but I did not investigate this option.

The new VISA policy is already having an impact: yesterday evening in Soi Cowboy, eight different Indian traffickers tried to sell me fake Rolex watches. Most of them were new to the business. Only two of them were thugs usually seen in Sukhumvit between soi 11 and soi 23. Thailand is a high-income country compared to India. Indian lowlifes will flock here attracted by the opportunities the land of Smiles grants.

How so? This new add offers job opportunities in Thailand for Laotian, Cambodian, Vietnamese and Myanmar nationals. Nothing to do with the add promoting passports commented in the past.

Below is the link to an interesting article, with the detailed description of the Thai tax schemes for alcoholic beverages, both the current ("new") and the superseded one ("previous"). The reasons which cause a bottle of wine sold for 10.00 euro in a European supermarket, to cost almost three times more to consumers in Thailand, are multiple. Assuring proper freight and storage conditions for wines is costly. Local supermarkets purchase imported goods from middlemen (the importers) and not directly from producers (as customary in many European countries). Retailers target margins on imported goods are higher than those applied to local staples (30-35% is the norm for "farang" goods). Taxes however are the single most impactful driver. My estimate is that the "new" tax scheme would allow for a price reduction of approximately 33% for a bottle now priced at around 1,200 THB. But let's try to answer your question: why have prices of wine not been reduced yet? The reasons are, in my opinion, two: 1. depreciating the current inventory by 33% is very costly. Supermarkets would immediately reflect the suppliers' reduced prices in their selling prices. But then they would revert back to the suppliers, demanding compensation. 2. And, as customary in Thailand, grand reform projects are often and purposedly executed poorly. This law is a textbook example of this malpractice. The devil is in the details: what the Thai government approved is a "temporary suspension of high import tariffs on wines, currently set at 54% and 60% of the declared value, for a duration of one year". No wonder market players are keeping their prices steady. Who in his/her right mind would depreciate by 33% the inventory in customers hands with the prospect of increasing the prices again after only few months? What has been presented to the Thai public as a grand move to support tourism and related small businesses, is actually a gift the government graciously granted to some well-connected, large, alcoholic beverages importer. https://mahanakornpartners.com/thailand-cuts-alcohol-taxes-to-spur-tourism-recovery/