JonnyF

Hmmm, exchanging liberty for convenience - no thanks.

One of a few reasons I left the UK.

I had the same thing at Chaleena Princess (Ladprao 122), but wasn't in the best of moods and decided to argue the point. After about 5 minutes of asking them for an explanation of why a "farang" (who is also working in Thailand) should have to pay more they started to look embarrassed and agreed to 479 but I am sure they put me in the worst room in the hotel. I decide to check out the next day and go elsewhere and they tried to rip me off again by over-charging for the things I'd had from the mini-bar in the room. Another 5 minutes of discussions and I got the correct amount of deposit back.

Horrible place - best avoided.

for the sake of the Thai economy I really hope that the extent of safety issues in Thailand does not become a major talking point within the international media. To be honest, I don't think that it will.

In hopes that another 89 or more people don't have to die, I certainly hope it will become a major talking point.

I am certainly not implying that safety should not be addressed as a number one priority, in fact as I fly this route at least every 4 weeks it is clearly in my interests for safety standards to be as high as possible.

I was simply saying that I hope that the international media do not latch onto this tragedy and start some sort of sensationalist campaign that implies that anyone foolhardy enough to enter the kingdom is taking their life in their hands. That would serve no-ones interests.

A lot of people are blaming the pilot and crappy One-Two-Go. But after reading the most recent reports, I think Phuket Airport has a fair share of the responsibility. I can think of three major strikes:

1. 3 out of 6 weather detection systems were not operating at the time of the crash. Pretty serious f***up.

2. The runway is not grooved.

3. The emergency response time was apparently terrible, with firecrews arriving well after the international standard of three minutes. And the victims waiting 45 minutes to be bussed to the terminal is absurd. There is absolutely NO conceivable excuse for that.

What I find really disturbing is that in all likelihood these issues will not be fully addressed, as the Thai government will do everything it can to protect Phuket's reputation as a safe tourist destination. A shoddy airport will not attract the wealthy tourists they so desire.

I agree, it is all to easy to blame the pilot now (for obvious reasons), we will have to wait for the official report but it already seems to be likely that there were other factors involved.

It will be really interesting to see how this is dealt with in the media but given the current climate I think that the tourist dollar is particularly valuable in Thailand at the moment so every effort will be made to ensure that the image of safety for tourists in Thailand does not become a major issue. The media in Thailand will be easily controlled, but for the sake of the Thai economy I really hope that the extent of safety issues in Thailand does not become a major talking point within the international media. To be honest, I don't think that it will.

The two guys in the film (white t-shirt and black t-shirt) are both British (this is obvious by listening to their accents and the phrases they use) and the one in the black t-shirt in particular matches the description of the guy who by all accounts kicked the door out before rescuing a number of fellow passengers. As he is clearly one of the first to get out, this lends weight to the theory.

Firstly, anyone who criticizes these people who have just been through such a traumatic experience and has the audacity to suggest that they would have been more heroic (from the safety of their keyboard) is in my opinion, an idiot.

Secondly, even if these guys had not kicked the door out, who can blame them for staying a safe distance away from a plane that could explode at any minute?

Thanks for the replies, it sounds pretty hopeful but I'll give them a call to make sure...

Just a quick one (hopefully).

I'm based in Phuket and use the CAT CDMA internet connection.

I'm coming to Samui for a week in November and need to access the internet for work etc. I've searched the forum and it seems to work in KPG - but will it work in Samui?

Thanks in advance...

Jon

Hi folks,

Thanks for the replies. Your giving me some real food for thought here. Just as a little background (and why LHD and U.S. cars) it's due to the regulations that I am talking about. For Thai nationals abroad, the regs go that if a car is over 10 years old and you've owned it for 5 years, then you "should" be able to bring it in without taxes. If the car is newer, and you have owned it for less than 5 years, you do get a reduced rate (for one car only). The reason "should" is in quotations marks is...well, when did Thai government officials ever give a ###### what the law says? (Hence "grease".)

The car MUST be registered in the country you reside prior to import, you must demonstrate proof that you owned it, and you must have a license to drive in that country. Hence, I am stuck with U.S. cars. A RHD from Japan or England, would be nice here, BUT I would have to get a license from that country, register it in that country, and then store it for a few years before I can ship w/reduced tax rate. So I'm stuck with U.S. cars. My uncle (BTW the air conditioner that you are using right now, there is a good chance he manufactured ;-) ) was toying with the idea of giving us (actually my mother, his sister) the money for a hummer, and having us drive it around for 3 years for the tax rate to go down before shipping over. Of course I would be more than happy to "keep it warm for him", but then again I doubt I would drive it much 'cuz I would be the one to have to pay for the gas.

I was toying with the idea of bringing in my old Alfa Romeo spider that got me through college, and law school. It's over 10 years old and I've owned it for over 5 years. Then I remembered the reason I am not driving it around is that I got sick of it breaking down in the states. I had a difficult enough time finding a repair shop over there, I don't even want to think about trying to find a mechanic here.

As for the Hummer, uncle states his "purported" reason for wanting the hummer is to tow heavy equipment (he has a couple of orchards in the South). I say "purported" reason is that I know he just likes the car and wants to scream "I am a rich bastard" to his also rich friends. (We all know how Thai society works....)

You Trolling ?

Owns a major air con company , orchids down south , ????

Reckon he could afford the 5/10 mill in the showrroms.

First off, do you know what 'trolling' is? That's when you make a post or comment just to incite people. Which is not what I did in my OP, but what you are doing now. This particular forum is not exactly such a 'hotbed' of activity that anyone who would really want to troll, would want to come here. Secondly, it never crossed your mind that there was quite a bit of background information here, including information on the Thai regulations in question which were confirmed as existing by other posters. Finally, your comments are just plain stupid. Yes, he could easily afford the '5/10 million' in showrooms. But, this post must be fake because no one in their right mind would want to save $200,000 when they don't need to. Yes, who would be stupid enough to try and save money, when they don't have to and can easily afford it. Like when I bought my Rolex, I decided against going to the dealer who offered to give me a 10% discount, 'because I could afford it'.

N47HAN, you are quite obnoxious. It is exactly the type of arrogant Farang like you which really irritates me and why alot of Thai people wouldn't mind seeing guys like you go back to wherever you came from. Obviously this post must be fake because there is no Thai that could possibly afford such an expensive vehicle, unlike the wealthy farang that you are. All Thai people are poor and stupid. It is not possible that any Thai could be wealthier than yourself. Air conditioning manufacturing. No. That would mean a stupid Thai has more money than you. Orchards in the South (Pattani)? Nope. Once again, that would mean some Thai has more assets than you. Yes, yes, I have read your posts about how you have such a fabulous company making 50 million baht a year just by yourself. A guy like you just has to tell the world how fabulously wealthy you are. I have seen you come and go so many times. A guy washed up in his own country. Couldn't make it in business, couldn't find a woman to spit on him. Come to Thailand, and you think you are the King. You probably rent a room and are scraping enough money to buy a used Honda wave so you can impress the whore you picked up at Nana Plaza. And everywhere you go you have to tell people what a big success you are.

Submaniac, when I read your opening post I thought it was a thinly vailed boast about a) your wealth and your social standing within the Thai community.

I had a little chuckle to myself and let it pass.

However, your vicous (and somewhat racist) tirade against someone who politely questioned your motives shows you for what you are. The "Rolex" comment was so transparent as to be laughable. If you wish to impress "farang" with your wealth, I'm sure you are intelligent enough to find somewhere more appropriate to do it. Try using fewer assumptions and generalisations in future, Good luck with your mucky import.

When I did it, I took the car to the transport office in Phuket with the seller, they took the car into a type of workshop and checked the car over for about 20 minutes - noting the engine number, chassis number etc etc. Then we filled in the forms, paid the transfer fee (under 1000 baht), paid the seller, drove the car home and the next day went back to pick up the new registration document in my name.

I then went to the insurance company offices and transferred the insurance into my name, there was no fee for this transfer but again I had to pick up the new documents with my name on them the following day.

Best to get to the transport office as early as possible (10 minutes before it opened in my case) to avoid the rush.

Unfortunately I think people have no choice but to accept that Non-Thais will never be treated with equality in Thailand.

The Burmese cannot drive or have phones, the same as "farang" cannot work in many occupations, have to earn around 5 times the average wage before they can get a work permit and regularly have to pay at least double the going rate for services (irrespective of how wealthy they are). There are so many things I love about Thailand but the institutionalized racism is not one of them.

This will do nothing to decrease consumption or stop people taking up the habit, it is too small a hike. It will only affect the amount of money that poor smokers/drinkers (and their families) will be able to spend on more essential goods. For most farang the increase is laughable.

The tax collected from smokers and drinkers FAR outweighs the cost to the government of treating the diseases that result from these habits, especially in Thailand where public healthcare is virtually non-existant.

It's a short term measurement by the "government" to raise cash to help bail themselves out of the mess that they have started to create. Anyone who thinks they have done this for the long term benefit of the nations health are kidding themselves.

I lived in North Bondi for 6 months in 1998 and recently moved out of Patong (last month). I have to say that Bondi beach and the surrounding area is (was) far superior in terms of natural beauty, cleanliness and atmosphere. They are both famous but that is where the comparison stops as far as I can tell. Not been since 98 so maybe Bondi has gone downhill as well? Has much changed since then?

My apologies I meant to say Kathu, the one on the left as you come down the mountain leaving Patong (sounds like the same one that you mean). PM me when you get back from the UK, I might even be interested in the 125.

I would be interested in getting back into the sport (haven't ridden since I came here 9 months ago) if I could find some good tracks. The only one I know of is the one in Kata but it is more Supercross than Motocross and I think I would get bored of just the one track quite soon. I saw what looked like an unused track on the way to the airport, on the right a few kms past the Phuket Town Tesco Lotus but I am not sure who owns the land.

No I don't own one (yet) but have ridden a thai friends and thought it was fantastic. Having said that I am 168cm and 67 kilos so the size isn't too much of a problem. Might be too small for someone your size Peter...

I test rode most of them before I bought and decided on a Yamaha Nouvo. It's seat is big enough for 2 comfortably, it's fast enough, it's stable at 90-100 kmh and it looks good (in my opinion). Not too worried about kilometres per litre as petrol is so cheap, and there are enough of them around to make getting spares cheap. Lots of room under the seat as well. Done 6000 kms so far (in 8 months) and no problems whatsoever. Second choice was the Honda Air Blade because I have always liked the Honda build quality but it felt slower so I got the Nouvo.

The only time I tried to do it with a company they didn't show up and left me standing outside Cristan (sp) massage parlour in Patong for 2 hours the day before my visa expired. I am sure there are some reliable firms offering this service, I was probably just unlucky but I think the best way by far is to hire a small car (Toyota Vois?) for around 1000 baht and do it yourself. Much quicker, safer and more convenient. It's quite a pleasant drive from Phuket - I take my girlfriend with me and stop for a nice lunch and make a day of it!

Thanks for your help

Could someone please let me know the name and address of a Kawasaki main dealer in Bangkok? I am looking to buy a KSR110 and so far my search on the internet has been unsuccessful.

Also, if anyone knows somewhere that sells them for a good price then please let me know.

Thanks in advance.... Jon

Does anyone know if there is still a problem getting the XBOX 360 at MBK. I'm in Bangkok next week and really want to get hold of one. If MBK are still sold out, does anyone know anywhere else I can get one for a reasonable price? Thanks...