CLASBYCLAN

HI

I have just moved into a house in Chiang MaI, and need all kinds of furniture. Can you tell me what your kingsize bed is made of? Also do you have any sofas, paintings? Also I need a huge fridge!

Eve x

Just wondering if anyone knew of anywhere to buy a pack of playing cards for a reasonable price? I went to 7/11 and they were 395B a pack! Call me a skinflint but that price is daylight robbery. I was thinking of heading down to Tesco Lotus, but I thought I'd check with the good folk of Thaivisa before making a potentially wasted journey.

I've bought playing cards in many countries and have never paid anything close to that sort of price. Is it an imposed tax to potentially deter gambling?

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Hi,

I have some you can have, I got them on the Thai Airways flight here. I'm at the airport plaza today if you want to pick them up?

Hi, I'm moving to Chiang Mai in a few months time with my two babies, aged 2 and 4 months, and would like to know if anyone could recommend the safest area, and most suitible for children, to live. I am hoping that my eldest son will attend the Prem Center International Scholl in Mae Rim next year, so I will need to be within school bus ride of that area.

I do want to have the full Thai experience, however, just as in the UK, I need to be sure that me and the babies are safe. Should I look for a gated community?

Would love any advice, also would love to make friends with any moms who have also moved to the area! or parents who have children at the Prem Center, we could be neighbours soon!

Thanks

xxx

Another option are the compounds near the Rimping Maejo. There are three right behind it and the Rimping market is an excellent foreign supermarket plus there is a great Thai fresh food market as well. Duing the week they have local produce night bazaars which are good and the area has a goodly number of foreign expats. The necessary things like doctors, dentist, banks, farung size clothes, dry cleaner! are available. The Tai staff are farung friendly and quite a few speak some Engish.

My advice is to wait until you get here, settle into CM at a monthly rate hotel, check out the area with a map and driver, take a condo for a couple of months, and look for a house to rent.

A side note is that you mentioned that you wanted the full Thai experience, you won't really get that here because there are so many farung living in CM but it is a great place to live and if you really want it then learn Thai and move out to a village or small town where EVERYONE knows your name

CM and Thailand is kid friendly and generally safe. I hope you enjoy your stay here and that the experience is everything you hope for.

PHEW! cool, for a minute there I was wondering if I was about to make a mistake in coming to Chaing Mai with the babies! Good, am feeling more positive now, thank you Crow Boy! Chiang Mai here I come! Will go and do some reasearch on the Maejo area!

xxx

> If you can afford to send your young lad to Prem then you should not be

> speaking of school buses. This is Thailand, so get with the program, and

> make sure to hire a car and driver for young lad.

Hehehehehehehe... But that's very true yes. Then again perhaps Prem offers a proper school bus service that's not of the 'converted pick-up with tightly packed kids in the back' type? Like something like an actual bus with seat belts and all?

Cheers,

Chanchao

Prem runs about 20 vans around Chiang Mai to transport students to and from school. That is how most of the students get there and back. The vans do have seat belts and ac but whether they are used is another question. There is of course an additional charge for the transport services

Hi Chanchao, Mongoose

The Prem Centre has good quality safe School buses with seatbelts, the children are dropped off at the Prem Centre and escorted by security personnel to School, whicih I am prepared to pay for. I would still appreciate any advice you have on the best place to live on my own with the babies, which area are you in Mongoose? Is there an area close to a Kindergarten? Is the City the best place to live? Condo or House? So many questions!

Thanks!

Gated compounds are a very convenient and 'available' place to rent. Especially when you just arrive, i think it's indeed the best option. There's MANY of them, so you'd get one in the Mae Rim area. Don't pay ridiculous rents.

Thank you Chanchao

Do you think I should wait untill I arrive to find a house or could I start looking now? What price do you think is right for 3 bedrooms with modern kichen/bathroom in a gated compound?

Once again, thank you so much, this is so helpful!

I actually rather enjoy the attention my son is getting. At least people do still look out for kids.

Last week we were at Siam Paragon, and i let him run around the elevated outside area while having a cigarette. Straight away some poeple held on to the squirt until we signed them that he is not lost and with us.

A not so nice experience recently was on a train where i walked him around the aisle. He stopped at the seat of two western female backpackers, expecting the usual smiles and attention. The only thing he got was a disgusted look and i got a not very friendly request to remove him as he was disturbing their conversation.

Hi ColPyat,

That is exactly the reason that I am moving to Thialand in a few months, I have two baby sons, the eldest is two, he has a loud excitable personality which I encourage. I'm sick of the lack of response he gets here in the UK when he waves or smiles at people. We were singing the other day in a cafe and an older women told me to tell my son to be quiet as she wanted some peace! It is just NOT child friendly in the UK and that is such a shame. I hope that I enjoy my babies getting lots of attention too!

xxx

Hi, I'm moving to Chiang Mai in a few months time with my two babies, aged 2 and 4 months, and would like to know if anyone could recommend the safest area, and most suitible for children, to live. I am hoping that my eldest son will attend the Prem Center International Scholl in Mae Rim next year, so I will need to be within school bus ride of that area.

I do want to have the full Thai experience, however, just as in the UK, I need to be sure that me and the babies are safe. Should I look for a gated community?

Would love any advice, also would love to make friends with any moms who have also moved to the area! or parents who have children at the Prem Center, we could be neighbours soon!

Thanks

xxx