Pdaz

Funny. Although a Brit by birth I grew up in the USA. Many of our neighbors professed to disliking lamb... Until they had a decent roast lamb dinner. 

Same as my wife and other Thai friends. All expressed disdain and a fear of a bad smell. But after a taste.... "aroi" So much so that lamb roast or lamb chops is the most common request now from visiting Thai friends.

As the phrase goes. " Used to hate it, till I ate it" 

but sure enough , it takes all types to make the world revolve.

Et voila :D

Two four bone racks all ready for a quick sear in the pan followed 8mins in the oven.

Well seasoned with a nice light herb crust. Bottle of red already opened to breathe. Beans on toast anyone ? 

Usually have lamb at least once a week. I buy a fresh vac packed Aussie or NZ leg. Cut it in half. Have the knuckle end as a roast and bone out the fillet end for a curry of cut into lamb steaks. Whole leg is around 600-800 baht so works out pretty good value for 4 or more meals. 

Chops have come down in price and the fresh NZ loin and cutlets from Big C extra eat well. I bought a whole fresh NZ best end all ready to roast whole tomorrow.  Again about 700 baht and easily enough for 2 with roast potatoes, veg and gravy. You only live once. 

On the bright side his todger will be a few mm's larger than what she's used to.

These "part time owners" are exactly what exacerbates the problem.

"Good hearted" enough to feed these animals ( Just disposing of their household scraps usually ) But too 8loody lazy to really take care of them and take responsibility for them. My neighbor has five dogs that live inside his fenced and gated 1.5 rai. They are well cared for and never let out into the street. The only issue is when the gang of neighbourhood dogs come to visit. They sit outside his gate and bark at the captive dogs. This causing more barking and fighting. Luckily my neighbors isn't deaf to this and soon quietens them down. 

However even after he  has repeatly asked our other neighbors to control their part time pets nothing is done. Considering he is Thai, weathly and well connected it shows that it's not just farang "guests" that struggle with this. The "neighbors from hell" is not just a Western concept. The less fortunate mass that live around a few decent well cared for homes are the majority here. I regularly see the neighborhood grannies empty rice/leftovers into the middle of the road and wander off. They think they are being kind and see no connection with the flies, rats and torn open refuse bags in the road. 

I like dogs, have two cats and don't like to see animals mistreated but unless you can educate the Thai population to be more responsible ( ) a nationwide mass cull of these "part time pets" and feral soi dogs is the only answer. Then all cats/dogs should be chipped and dogs licenced. That way the population could be controlled and there would be no arguement as to who's dog it is.

As with the road carnage, refuse dumping, teen pregnancy, drug abuse etc etc the only answer is education from a young age and strict law enforcement to back it up. This will never happen in my or even my great grand childrens lifetime.

Almost none at all if they are from Scotland..No soap usage either.. 

1 hour ago, giddyup said:

You don't really seem to understand the system. I came here 8 years ago applied for an OA visa (retirement) and have been here ever since, never returned home.

Same for me. I arrived in Asia as a backpacker in 1987. Was 10 years before I made a short trip back to UK. I bounced around between Singapore, Indo, Malaysia and Thailand. Apart from 3 years with an employment pass in Singapore I never had anything but a tourist visa. Once I moved to Thailand full time in 2000 I either got a non O by post ( I have two passports ) or entered on visa exempt. Many people I know have done something similar. As another poster said, "think of it as moving to Asia"

Now that I'm finally over 50 I use the retirement extension route.

14 minutes ago, bleble said:

 

Yes, not dark enough on side...

 

 

Can use the CR40 if you want darker. Like others have said, it's all down to personal preference.

21 hours ago, bleble said:

 

So you put 3M on your car ? Also on windshield ? CR70 or darker ? Thanks.

 

 

Yes I have 3M crystaline on my car. CR70 all round and CR40 on the sunroof.

It may not be dark enough for some people. But I'm more concerned about being able to see at night than ultimate privacy. It does a good job at keeping the heat out.

8 hours ago, bleble said:

 

I agree, but wondering why some famous shops propose only Legend as film.

 

 

A larger profit margin ? A marketing agreement ? Could be lots of reasons. But one thing I'm sure of is, many businesses here are more concerned with their margin than customer satisfaction. I prefer to do my own research rather than listen to a salesperson. 

I also prefer to use brands that are marketed in the West. That way I know that any advertised claims have to be substantiated by law.  Also if the product has failed to perform there will be a lot of feedback online. It's much easier to check specs and read customer reviews. 

Pop Auto Glass on Sukhumvit ( North Pattaya ) can install 3M Crystaline. They do a decent job.

Pop Auto Glass

178/2 Sukhumvit Rd, Muang Pattaya, Amphoe Bang Lamung, Chang Wat Chon Buri 20150

Just get the 3M. Market leading product, high quality, known manufacturer with good reputation. Why bother with an unknown brand if the price is so similar ?

18 hours ago, champers said:

Part of Woodlands Hotel; guests take breakfast there. The menu for La Ferme seems quite imaginative and is relatively expensive. I am not yet tempted to give it a try. 

Been there a few times. meant to be a French Bistro type resto. Menu looks a bit fast food like. Shiny laminated with pictures. But it's not bad and they have draught and bottled Belgium beer. If price isn't too much of an issue it's fine.

Local to my house with plenty of parking so convenient if can't decide where to eat and hungry.

33 minutes ago, BaanOz said:

Don't have to turn your engine off at the bowser :)

Don't even have to pump your own gas !

No rates to pay

No income tax

No nanny state PC 8ull8h1t

Almost no petty bureaucracy

Idiot lefty politicians aren't wasting my money on bludgers and breeders.

Parking is mostly free, No parking tickets

Nobody cares if I'm doing 50 kph in a 40 kph zone

I can have a soapy massage or some female company anytime

Nobody cares about my politics

Nobody cares I have a young wife

Eating out is cheap

It doesn't sleet, hail or snow

Very few out of control, loud obnoxious kids ( can't say the same about dogs )

No gas bill

No water bill

Fuel isn't taxed to death - Shame can't say the same about wine

I don't have to segregate my trash into 5 separate bins - Some fella in the street is happy to do that

I don't have to pay to dump old appliances or garden rubbish - Some fella is happy to take it away

There aren't dozens of parking spaces reserved for the disabled or women with kids

No travellers, migrants or asylum seekers

What I meant was after being legally married to a Brit for a number of years it would be nice if she could get a passport or travel document that made it easier to travel when accompanied by her Brit partner.  Pie in the sky ? Yes. But I can dream. For me the only disadvantage to being married to a Thai partner is the pain of travelling with her Thai passport. If we are in the UK and on a whim decide to go to Italy she can't unless we've sorted a Shengen visa in BKK first.

Same for a raft of other countries, visa free or visa on arrival for Brit but none for Thai..

Yes I know she can gain a UK passport if we go live in the UK but that's unrealistic as I haven't lived there for 30 years and my career is based in Asia.  Oh well. Rant over :)

27 minutes ago, theoldgit said:

It is true, the VFS website makes it very clear that the new scanning procedure doesn't apply to visit visas.



Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

Thanks my wife must have missed it.. She had a big flap on yesterday to get it all printed ready for her appointment. 

5 minutes ago, Jip99 said:

 

 

I would say say that a paltry 40,000 Baht p.m. financial requirement is a pretty decent concession.

 

Wife and 2 kids in Thailand.... £930 p.m.

 

Wife and 2 kids in UK... more than double that.

No kids, Wife pays our bills. I prefer the retirement extension. Less paperwork.

40k a month isn't a concession it's their estimate of the bare minimum required for a foreigner and family to exist in Thailand.

They are trying to prevent the country being swamped with the Worlds poor and the Thai Govt receiving a big medical bill sometime in the future. Hardly altruistic. Lucky for many the requirement continues to be "grandfathered"

In the UK you could be out of work and recieve up to 28K GBP a year in benefits. A tad more generous I think.

1 hour ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Thanks for the clarification.

Sent from my SM-A500F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

Oh. If that's true my missus will be having fun tommorow then :)

Yes, I have no intention of every living there. My wife enjoys a holiday there but has no aspirations to become 'A Brit'

However she is married to one so some sort of concession would be encouraging.. But no.

Guess we have to look at it from the other way around. What concessions do the Thai Govt give us for being married to a Thai ? Basically none. You can apply for an extension to stay every year. But beyond that, no status or guarantees.

We're being treated shi77ily by both Govt's in reality but I guess at least she could gain UK residency eventually if I was willing to live in the UK for a few years... More than I will ever get from the Thai govt I suppose.

Funny how the UK govt seems to bend over backwards to assist migrants, the stateless and the potless. But doesn't make an easier path for the self supporting, qualified and solvent professional.

5 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Wow, that's new.  I didn't have to do that with the Marriage Visitor visa last year.  What a pain.

 

Yeah me either.. Glad I spotted it. Introduced earlier this year.

Yes, silly as it seems even though she is your legal spouse you have to get a "standard visit visa " along with the rest of the Worlds tourists. No concessions for being a Brit's wife.  From memory its about 4500 baht for 6 Months and 15K for 2 years and 30k for 5 years.

I'm applying for another 2 year one as sometimes I make a trip on short notice.

Be aware that you now have to download and print a barcoded cover sheet for each section of the evidence you provide.

All the evidence has to be on an A4 sheet for easy scanning by the visa staff. So anything smaller than A4 ( like a bankbook) has to be photocopied onto an A4 sheet.

Check it out at http://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/Thailand/pdf/scanning-process-docs.pdf   if you haven't done so.

My wife is going up to Bangers on Tuesday arvo. Was going to be Monday but that was a "premium" timing and they wanted to charge an extra 3000 baht..... F F S !

Good luck.

26 minutes ago, tutsiwarrior said:

 

very interesting...looks like malaysian food has got a lot of indian influence...I useta think of it as simply malay food like what ye get in Indonesia (satay, rendang, ikan bakar, etc) but that appears not to be the case...looks delicious...

 

never spent much time in Malaysia except to get a visa in Penang but then I ate either indian food from the restaurants on Chulia St (tandoori, curries. etc) or chinese (noodles, stir fries, etc) from the food hall in the shopping center...misconceptions abound...

 

 

Yes it is really an Indian dish in origin. I was using "Malaysian" in the sense that this comes under the umbrella of coming from Malaysia. Malaysian food covers the three main ethnic groups. Malay, Indian and Chinese. Some of the popular dishes have been adopted and modified by other groups. Chinese Hainan Chicken rice also has a halal Malay version and even Malay Satay can sometimes be found being cooked by the Chinese but using pork.  Intermarriage between the groups has led to some wonderful food.  Peranakan  and Nonya styles ( From marriages between Malays and Chinese ) and also the Portuguese influenced food in Malacca.  

Away from home at the moment. But luckily the cook here isn't so bad. Great Malaysian roti canai, with chicken curry for lunch.