phuketsub

I owe you a beer. Thanks.

I have accounts in the US, but none with an int'l CC/Debit card, nor have I ever used PayPal. I just don't know if my Bangkok Bank debit card qualifies as an international debit card or not, but I have used it while travelling abroad and at ATMs in the states. I have been over here 30+ years. I guess I am falling behind technology-wise...I don't even know how to use QR codes properly.

I am trying to apply for a new passport by mail to the US Embassy and I meet all of the criteria listed on their website, but I have a simple question that is holding up the process: How to pay them the required $USD 130 for the process. I would like to get a bank draft issued though my account with Bangkok Bank, but the website says it has to be paid in US dollars....I just need to confirm if such payment is acceptable and, if so, what exchange rate I should use. Unlike in the past, when you could simply call the US Embassy's Citizens Services Desk and get a straight answer from a real human being, such services are no longer available. I did write them an email explaining the situation, but I simply no longer have any trust that it will be read and answered by a real human being. I am very frustrated that they can neither make it crystal clear what to do on their website, nor can they provide any real human assistance. hence, any help anyone can provide will be much appreciated.

I started out in Thai at AUA as well, mostly with the natural (listening-based) approach but some of the structural as well. I did it for about six months, but to be honest I was hung over most mornings and didn't get as much out of it as I could have...then I started to run out of money and I got a chance to work teaching kids English. It was everything the 'natural approach' focused on, but with way more context and energy. It was like the natural approach on steroids. Not only that, but you got paid to do it....Learning Thai isn't easy, but in my opinion it's really fun and there's no end to it. It helped me out a lot professionally. So to the OP, I would say the best way to learn Thai is from Thai kids.

Totally agree with Stocky. November is statistically the rainiest month along the Gulf Coast. You have been warned.

the amount of rubbish that ends up in that bin will be many, many orders of magnitude less than the amount strewn across the strand.

You can't apply for a visa at Immigration. You have to apply at an embassy or consulate. Once you get it, Immigration can extend it for you if you meet their criteria. FYI I think the old Immigration office in Songkhla Town closed over a decade ago.

It's definitely brewing....

I have six or seven trees here in Songkhla (Ranot district). The core group were grafts gifted to me. Then I grew a few from seed. All of the plants are healthy and doing well, but at about 6 years so far they have yet to produce any fruit....

https://weather.tmd.go.th/stpLoop.php I just noticed that the wind is off the sea now...wonder how long it'll be before the torrential rains arrive.

From the management, who is an old friend: Yep, Hemingways Hotels group are still here. We are undergoing developement in the form of upgrades, and some structural changes that will cover us for the next 10 years hopefully. We plan to have Silk reopened by mid Oct, and Patong Hemingways by December. It looks like we will be bringing in a hospitality management group named, Swiss-Bel hotels International to run and manage the hotels for us. New branding will have Hemingway Silk be branded 'Hemingways Silk by Swiss-Belhotels'. We want to raise our game, and we believe this is the best way to achieve just that.

Totally agree, though 150 baht is about 3 times what I pay at the local pharmacy....My inlaws used to just buy checks of potassium alum and use that....much better than all the chemical crap.

Anyway, let us know how it works out...

The only ones I am aware of are out near the airport, but they do a very good job and you can get in and out of town easily from there on the light-blue songthew (10 baht, I think).

He helped me too... I wish I could have met him in person. A real loss.

I was stranded in Hat Yai a few days ago while my car was getting fixed and, just walking around, I tried to find the old roti place I used to go to near the roundabout on Petchkasem Road. It was gone. Any ideas on where to get the best roti in HY these days?

When I wrote that there wasn't a sign, I meant to convey that there were no signs in English informing potential work permit renewers of the change in location.

Just a heads up to those needing to renew a work permit. The Songkhla Labor Office has moved yet again, this time into a small shophouse near the Greenworld Hotel. For a long time it was located at Samila Beach, right near the roundabout near the Mermaid Statue. Then about two years ago they pulled up stakes and moved further up the beach, into a largely windowless venue also near the beach -- just across from the OrBorJor Ferry port, on the Songkhla Town side. Well we went there today in a hurry, but it had moved again into a temporary office near the Greenworld Hotel. (see photo, if I can get it to load). It is a small place and the ground floor is packed with bureaucrats, who usually get more breathing room. There isn't even a sign in either location, at least not one that I could spot. Once elderly and entrepreneurial motorbike taxi drive has stationed himself in front offering to guide confused foreigners to the new location, but we didn't need it since Greenway is relatively easy to find. The staff there told us it is just a temporary office while the office near the ferry gets another makeover. They expect to move back in September, she said. To be fair, the staff there are always helpful and friendly...once you track them down. For me, the delay and all the traffic meant I couldn't get back in time to teach my evening classes.

I am sort of torn on this: should I just sleep through it or not. Maybe I'll crash at 9pm as usual then hit then go over at around 3pm to see what it is like...or just to pull my daughter out of there.

Well, tomorrow is the Full Moon Party. I am only here because my teenage daughter said it was on her 'bucket list'. Any advice for a grumpy old man who had avoided this for 30+ years, but is now being encouraged to attend?

Yeah, understood. Still, it is really frustrating. Where I live in Songkhla they built a huge seawall, making an otherwise nice beach unswimmable...it really drives me crazy. I would trade all the wifi, roadwork and 7-Elevens to go back to what these places were like 30+ years ago.

Thanks for all the help. I did go to Thong Nai Pan Noi and it was very nice. The road over there was a bit of a challenge, but it was worth it. I can't believe how bad this southern beach is for swimming given the number of resorts on it.

We are staying at the south end of Phangnan, but the beach here is pretty much unswimmable -- very shallow and can't make it out to the breakers without walking over coral. Is there a good beach for swimming on the island?

We are on a family vacation on Phangan and I'd like to play darts and get a nice, traditional massage. We are staying in the south of the island. Any advice much appreciated. thanks