pauleddy

Old THaimer's Trick--Don't get bogged down in the DM taxi queue.  Go upstairs to departures and exit the very last door near Taurus coffee shop. You will find a taxi who has dropped off--sometimes 3-4 of them. Also you escape the 50b line fee.  You will see police and guards hanging about, but, despite many threats, the same wheeze has been going on for years. Someone pays someone, I guess. It is not illegal to post this, as it is not an arrestable offence.

Swampy used to be the same, but they put big turnstiles up top. BUT--it can still be done by the agile.

Eddy

I heard that there is a bus from Swampy to Patts. There is allegedly a bus from DM to Swampy. Go figure... 

Thailand has some of the best cut-and-shut mechanics in the world, because of the sheer numbers of ladyboys here (or those who head here).

Penile re-attachment is not unheard of. Isaan wives will cut it off and throw it to the ducks following infidelity.

EDDY

I know that this has been done to death on 115 pages.

My 90 day is due in 3 weeks.I have a mac. CANNOT get in past "under construction". I don't want to do the postal thing.

Can i get into this on 1st April?

The big C along Lad prao road is a bit nearer than CW. is it mobbed?

Unsure what to do.....

Check out the visa thing. In 2015, 15 day entry permits (free and walk thru, no papers except PP) started on 1st July for Brits and some others. They were promising that the same would start for Yanks, Aussies and Canadians on July 1 2016. I keep getting mixed stories about this. The Viet Embassy in BKK are hopeless--nobody picks up the phone. If you cannot get a visa, the agents who charge 80usd to collect visa at Hanoi=good and bad stories. Some people get delayed in a queue, and some are just fine.

Hanoi is cooler, and there is a large lake in the middle of it. It is like a large old French town (not built up much, but starting to be). The French jail has a real guillotine! Red wine and french bread are easy to get. Vietnam is famous for its beef soup. In some restaurants or diners you can even order the grade of beef you want in your soup. I have never been to HCM, but I hear it's more built up and modern. I'm an admirer of the guts of the Vietnamese, who kicked the French out and then the Yanks (with help from China, OK). The language is nothing like any other. It sounds like geese honking!

There are ATMs before and there is a cash exchange booth (a Thai bank or maybe 2)--as far as I remember.

The rates are not much different than a bank, unlike Holiday Towns in Europe which may ask 10% more for the cash.

I have never been asked to show money in 13 years and 30 arrivals. Nobody I know has been asked. Maybe you need to look like a druggy or look dirty?

Eddy

53 minutes ago, joepattaya1961 said:

Slightly off topic, but serving food in the correct order is a common issue in Thai restaurants.

Orders are being prepared and first cooked is first served. 

Pretty usual that dessert comes first and soup last and yes....a deep fried seabrass will arrive after you're about to 'check bill'. 

 

And this can happen in upscale Thai resaurants as well.....once I ordered springrolls as an appetizer (I found them in the appetizer section of the menu).....guess what?

 

It sucks. My pizza and salad arrived AFTER the meat and noodles, the chocolate cake and coffee last week. I sent them backWhere is the logic? Can anyone explain? Come on you armchair pundits!

18 hours ago, Pib said:

It will take a while to roundup the 50 cops as most are at traffic checkpoints around the country collecting donations.   Plus they will want to ensure all the media is available for this high profile, dangerous arrest.

and in the rainy season (a cab driver told me), most are pi***d by 4pm in "safe" bars--which is why nobody controls the ugly traffic jams after 3.30pm and it's bedlam.

I don't think you can be on a retirement or leisure visa in VN (unlike Thailand where your yearly extension costs 1900b).

As I remember, staying more than 3 months needs a business visa or teacher visa (same thing??). If you had a real or fake letterhead it was never a problem to extend. The whole thing runs on money.

I'm not sure, but I don't think VN has an elite 10,000US permanent visa or a MM2H-type thing.

Eddy

No idea about multis but if you are going to teach, the school will arrange. In VN these things can be done rapidly if the right palms are greased. Presume multis for business are ditto.

I went to Hanoi July 2015 when they were starting hassle-free entry (UK guys like me 15 days allowed) and it was just a walk thru after someone checked my passport. The allowed countries were as per table above.

I thought they were rolling out for Oz and USA in July 2016 (15 days free stay).

Before, they wanted you to use agents. Maybe that was why the phone was never answered! (in BKK)

The system of "get visa from agent waiting you at Saigon airport" (after you paid 80 dollars) had both very good and very bad reports.

Eddy

The 15-day -free- VOA for Brits and 4-5 other nationalities started July 2015. I know because I went on July 3rd 15. No problems, no fees, 2 minutes.

The same for USA and Oz and others was due 1st July 16.

Check google. The viet embassy in BKK don't pick up the phones!

The "firms" who "arrange" for your visa to be collected at HCM and Hanoi are expensive and mixed reviews.

Thx, that looks very useful, and the link explains it well.

I have just worked out that the NEW 15" MBP in BKK costs...2521GBP (512 version) and 2140 GBP (256) with the exchange rate today. In malaysia it's 2222GBP and 1888GBP. I should put up or shut up, but 2500 pounds is taking the pee. 

As mentioned, I like "normal" ports for my 120 thumb drives and my Ext HDD but I could change easily enough. I know that there are good Windows machines, but I must have Mac.

As I recall, the 12" which comes in pink (too) had some poor reviews. Any other suggestions? The 2015? Did that weigh 3kg?

Has anybody read any really good reviews of the new models 13 and 15 inch with gimmick bar? Please send a link if poss...

Eddy

Sorry what is a Virtual Disk?

Does it matter that 2 machines have the same Suite ID (crack)?

How do people get a crack into a machine with no disk? The shop will load it but expensive.

Eddy

I still use Office 2011 in my Mac. I have a pantip CD which is fine and even delivers/allows updates without cutting me. It was 180b.

If I get a new MBP without disk drive (obviously), the shop will load Office Suite for 200 USD in malaysia or about the same in Apple here.

How can I get a pantip suite into the MBP?

Can I just transfer the complete suite from my Imac by dragging?

I am thinking of the new model with TB ports here but the same would be true of anything without CD drive.

Eddy

I almost bought the new Pro 15inch in Malaysia last week (the prices are 5% less and you get a duty free if you holiday visa etc and want to do the papers). I've never had any 13 inch models, so I don't know if they are too small for me.

Then , I read the major reviews which all trash it. Why?

1. No USB port except the new one they give you. Who needs to have adaptors? I have all my stuff on older Thumb drives. I don't use cloud but it has all my stuff, so I may have set it some time.

2. The price, even in KL. Almost 3000 USD. Should be made of gold!

3. battery life no where near 10 hours claimed.

4. The touch bar is very fancy and nice but do we need it? Can anyone explain why? Yes, I know the screen is fabulous and retina. The touch pad is good and big but I like a mouse anyway.

5. ships with 256 is probably enough but 512 is better, but 20,000b more. I like the idea of 16 Ram so I dont lag and clutter, but...

I am a fairly casual user but I love Macs. I don't play games etc. Windows has a new OS and the new machine but I still think I will never go back. Sorry, I don't want the viruses and the drivers.

I like the Mac air but it is a bit weak and tinny. I only need any machine for fun, holidays and airports as I already have Imac 27 inch desktop and Ipad. I like old USBs but I might change if convinced.

Should I get a 2015 or 2016 Pro with USBs? They are heavy. Or should I pay out? I'm more confused by every review I have!

I don't want a Thai keyboard, which was why I looked at malaysia. Must I get a Thai KB in Thailand?? 

Eddy

As for the Russians, I have been told that they have started to return to Patts and to the other nasty place known as Phuket, where a gang of them had a violent fight with some taxi drivers last week. 

IMHO there are fewer farangs about generally. Friends of 20 years are leaving. There are now more condos asking for tenants in Asoke and Sukh for 14,000b instead of 20,000.

Eddy

Geriatrickid is 100% spot on.

Gigantism and Acromegaly (they are slightly different depending on whether bones and joints fuse abnormally as a child or as an adult) are usually the result of problems stemming from tumours of the pituitary gland, which affects the production of growth hormones (HGH is the most well-known , and is sometimes called i-HGH because it is similar to insulin, if I remember...).

Sufferers often die well before 70. They have an uncomfortable life anyway (try buying size 58 shoes in Thailand or anywhere, or finding a 10-foot bed, or getting a partner), and suffer terrible joint problems which lead to using wheelchairs, braces and crutches. They also have a high incidence of gullet cancer (and other cancers), not to mention heart problems, breathing problems, skin diseases, gappy teeth and about 30 other things which are too numerous to list here. The tallest person ever was 8' 11'' and died at 22

Being very tall is not very funny.

Eddy

Doctors get incentives and discounts from Pharma reps all over the world. This used to be quite substantial things, e.g. vouchers for a holiday, cases of wine, etc but everything has got much tighter now. Bribery is not as common as it was, but it still goes on. In the US, Doctors who have been received benefits for trialling new drugs must declare such, and that they have an interest in the drug company.

Thailand is very "crooked". When I taught student doctors at Thailand's Number One university, I did a snap poll (raise your hand if you are becoming a doctor for money rather than healing the sick). About 20% of the class raised hands.

When I see my "foot doctor" he charges me 2000b. When I last saw my Urinary specialist, he wanted 1000. Yet when my bad ear plays up, the doctor (ENT) in the same hospital asks only 400b.

Yes, always try to get the drugs from a pharmacy if you know what they are. Bumrungrad and BNH charge about 3-4 times more.

Don't forget that the famous Tylenol (about 200baht for 20) is exactly the same as Paracetamol (40 tablets for 40 baht in your soi).

Eddy

Hawker nails it for me.

I read a long thesis/thesis-length academic essay from the 1990s (written by a Thai): it was excellent, although I cannot remember the name of the academic author. It contained about eight major points of cultural difference, including the "acceptance" thing.

In addition: Partners and lovers here rarely even touch in public, yet alone kiss (but friends often lean on shoulders etc). I lived in France and Spain for many years, and I am very familiar with people cheek-pecking/embracing even with acquaintances. A close male friend of mine aged 40 (not gay, by the way)--in Madrid--will often kiss his father when he goes home every few weeks, which is normal in Mediterranean culture. I always cheek-peck my gay friends and hug my straight friends much as footballers do.

After twelve years here, the thing that really bothers me is the money-grabbing thing. Whilst I know that professional sex workers ask for money, and need to have a wage in order to eat, I cannot get used to being perceived as an ATM even with suitors/lovers/friends with benefits who are playing the "long game" (not wanting money today, but will ask for a new bathroom for Mother-in-Law next year...). It's almost as if we are paying a "tax". The only people who are not interested in farang money appear to be the 1% of the populace who are already loaded. I don't trust 70% of the "normal" people...maybe I am paranoid or just a sad case? But, in this land of fake smiles, money always lurks as an issue. Some armchair psychologists may see this as a facet of "human nature", although I spend time in Malaysia every few months without getting the same sonar ping that I get here ("take care me..."). Even in Hanoi or HCM you get the obvious vibe from sex workers and some "regular" people, but here in LOS it's always lurking. Some theorists say that it is the need for security stemming from rural poverty, although I can't accept that as the whole story. Maybe it's avarice arising from too many Hollywood movies, which give the mistaken impression that all farangs drive Jaguars and Lambos?

Any useful insights?

Eddy

Yeah thanks. Ive been using SG for years.

It's mainly very good, but I also wanted to hear from real folk on here.

SG is fantastic but the airlines, when booking, dont know the fleet model (sometimes!). So they say it's a 747 with flatbeds, but it's not! If it's a 747 mark 1 (200?), it don't have flatties. I've been tricked before!

thanks people

Any more info much appreciated.

I didn't expect IST to AGP to be flatties. I guess it's only 4 hours.

Anything else about the food, wine, service or other LHaul Biz on TK would be appreciated--oh, and how do the prices compare with, say, qatar??

I often fly from BKK to Malaga (AGP) in Biz. There is no Direct flight.

I've done it with TG to Madrid (then Iberia for an hour), with Qatar (Doha stop 2 hours sometimes, then Madrid) and even LH to FFurt then more LH directly on smaller aircraft to AGP.

I know now that Turkish does BKK-ISTANBUL-AGP with minimum stopover in Istanbul about 4 hrs.

As we are always seeing T.A. on tv with fancy footballers strutting, I was wondering whether anyone has the lowdown on TA? Flatbeds? Wines? Cabin? Lounges? Quality? VFM? Is Biz Class same as Econ (almost)?

Thx

(I will be going in 3 weeks!)

Eddy

Qatar or Emirates are both good going the other direction--miles better than TG crap and Doha has a new lounge------ but I never heard about their LAX. My last Qatar in Biz was such a new plane that the plastic was still on some fittings.

How could someone hang themself without a "drop"? Just by sitting near a door with a pair of socks. Even the great Albert Pierrepoint, whose tally was 400, including Lord Haw-Haw and Ruth Ellis--could not have managed this hanging.