Goinghomesoon

My guy did very well with AUA (he was in the lowest class upon joining). They have many mixes of classes, from 5 lessons a week down to 1 or 2 lessons a week. A good variety among the student group too, at least at my hubby's level - there was everything from uni students through to Japanese housewives and quite a few women with farang husbands or boyfriends. It was only a few thousand baht for the 3-day-a-week course from memory.

I have a Bumrungrad card and it was very useful when I required surgery and an unanticipated overnight stay last year.

Oh, so glad that this process hurt others (well, no, not really *glad* but it's helpful to hear). I've just had my pits done for the first time and it hurt, even with the numbing cream on for 45 mins beforehand. The good news is that 1 month after the first treatment and I have no sign of regrowth yet. But has anyone come across a better numbing cream that I could buy commercially, cos I"m not as enterprising as Jack and probably wouldn't be bothered making my own. I was thinking of having other areas done, but not if I can't reduce the pain level.

*Edited to add the process REALLY REALLY HURT

M&S have an outlet sale on at the moment, both mens and womens clothes in the Silom Complex mall housing Central Silom. I got a shirt today for 299 baht that was nearly 2,000 baht previouslly. The outlet shop is in the main mall, outside the 2nd floor entrance to Central. Most of their stuff on sale today was larger sizes (ie in the women's section mostly size 18 and over, bras from about a size 32 and up). Not sure about the mens as I didn't stop to look.

Cuki it would be great if you could post updated information, we will be moving our cat too in a few months (she's off to Singapore for a l-o-n-g quarantine before going to Australia). Friends that recently left Thailand with their cat found out at the last minute that some of the Thai export paperwork at the airport can only be done 1-2 days before your cat travels. So don't plan to leave your cat with friends to be shipped after you depart. You need to be here to sign the documents, unless you formally appoint an agent (expensive).

We often use Furr Purr which is in Sukhumvit Soi 33 in Bangkok (the small side soi that runs beside the Robin Hood pub). They have cat rooms as well as cages. If you're a cat lover and the owner is there, ask to see the pictures of her pure-bred Korat cats, they are really beautiful.

Yes SBK I think it's the big one. Maybe a moving Chinese feast, you could do duck at one place then toddle off for some dumplings at the next!

The thing that strikes me is the lack of vegies in your diet. My husband doesn't eat vegies unless forced So for him I slice up an onion, some mushrooms, tomatoes and any green Asian veg. Slice them thiy and stir-fry quickly in a pan (either a non-stick, or use a tiny bit of good oil), then we have a container full to keep in the fridge for a day or two. Ready made vegie omelette filling, pasta topping, toasted sandwich centre. Or something to put on the plate beside a grilled chicken breast or bit of fish. I like it on top of a plain baked potato with some natural yogurt, sometime I just eat the vegies and yogurt if I can't be bothered cooking a spud

There are a bunch of double-taxation issues to consider (ie: if you pay tax in one place, whether/when you can get credit for these in your Aust tax return). I'd imagine you really need an tax specialist used to dealing with this minefield, not your everyday H&R Block guy doing your taxes in these cases.

Oh Rue - did you see that the residency requirement from 1 July 2010 has now gone up to 4 years living in Oz before our men can apply for citizenship...

Okay I think we're definately talking about different doses then, or maybe a different form - my 1000mg shots come in one small ampule only about an inch tall. The ampules cost around $30 each in Australia for the medication alone, plus the doctor's consultation fee to get the prescription plus the nurse's fee for the actual shot. So the Thai cost is much cheaper for me.Bear in mind I'm using an expensive hospital because I have health insurance. I'm sure you could go to a local hospital or clinic and get it for a fraction of the cost.

I like Helping Hands for fresh fruit and veg delivery.

Going back one step...does the 3 month initial visa need to be issued in the home country of the wife? I will be finishing my contract in a few months and I currently have a visa through my employer. After I finish my contract we will be staying in Thailand for a further 6 months to tinker around with our house and travel a bit. Will I need to go back to Australia to get a visa based on marriage to Thai hubby? Or do you think I can do it at another regional country (we take frequent holidays in Cambodia so I thought maybe I could apply there)? The info above on the 3-monthly reporting is great, one more bit of research I can tick off the list, :whistling:as we all know Thai hubby won't actually go and ask any "officials" about the process...

Sunspun - just returned from my B12 shot at BNH in Bangkok, the medicine was 410 baht for 1000mg plus the nursing fee etc of another 400 baht. 810 baht - might be expensive for some but my insurance covers it, plus it's WAAAY cheaper than when I used to get it in Australia and the medication cost more than that on it's own.

Krading - there are a number of medical reasons why people take B12 as an injection. Personally I, and many of my female relatives, have Pernicious Anaemia which is not a disease that can be resolved through diet. People with PA do not absorb B12 from food because they are missing the "intrinsic factor" in their stomach. Intrinsic factor converts the B12 so it can be absorbed/used by your body. In people with PA there is no intrinsic factor so the vitamin just passes right through the body. Thus the injections...trust me, i'd much rather just get the vitamins from mushrooms!

Not sure whether this is better here or in the Thai visa/citizenship section, but here goes...

I am Australian and have an adopted child born overseas. I am listed as the sole parent on this child's court orders and have full custody in two places (her birth country and my country - Australia). The child has citizenship of both countries. I married my Thai husband some years after I adopted my daughter. He considers her to be *his* child, in every way. Except of course he is not legally her parent on paper.

Hubby is very keen for daughter to become a Thai national, among the reasons are that he has property here that he would like her to inherit (he has no other children). And if something happened to me, he would not legally be her parent. While my family would be very happy to include him in parenting decisions, he would prefer to have a solid legal ground on which to stand.

It is not possible for him to adopt my daughter in Australia as we don't reside there. We have received advice from Dept of Social Development and Welfare (DSDW) that the Thais will not process/approve the adoption of a foreign national. They say this should be dealt with in their *home* country, even though we don't currently live there.

It might be possible for husband to complete a step-parent adoption of daughter in her birthcountry. But we'd like to be absolutely certain that this is 100% required before proceeding down this painful, slow and expensive path.

My questions are:

- What steps would we need to take to register her as his child, and to get Thai citizenship?

- What court would we be dealing with in Thailand - if any?

- If not a court, where would we find out about a citizenship application for a foreign child?

If we need local legal representation, grateful if anyone could PM me with the details of any company that they have personally dealt with and achieved positive results.

Hey Rue, sadly no good ideas here! Seems like you are going through the same thing I suffer every time I visit my favourite country. Have just come back from holidays yesterday and right now I would happily chuck my job in Bangkok and nice life here to go back if I could find a job that would fund international school fees for the little one plus pay a decent wage. Like you though, we need to go back to Oz so hubby can get his citizenship and learn how to function independently in Australia. If something happens to me, he will need to look after kidlet in Australia until she finishes high school, so he needs to practice those skills. Plus of course my permanent work is there, I have no possibility of extending my contract in Thailand. I know in your case Mr Rue would probably get a job if you came back, but would it be enough to support you both? In my husband's case he wouldn't earn enough to support a western family.

Last time I went through one of these periods I seriously considered retraining as a teacher, with the aim of working in the international school system (decent salaries, free or discounted school fees for your kids, long holidays). I also looked at doing a full-time course in hotel management, which I had briefly considered when I was younger. Friends in those industries talked me out of both on the grounds that by the time I got some decent experience and had the chance to start looking for a job in my preferred country, I'd be close to 45 years old and be competing against kids 20 years my junior who have far more energy and enthusiasm. I'm not brave enough, or financial enough, to open or run my own business.

So for now I kind of just plod along at my regular job, although I am lucky that I really enjoy my work and it's not too tiresome. And it's building up the superannuation for a time when we can afford to take off travelling whenever we want.... let us know if you have any better ideas though!?

My 0.02 as someone who visits Udon regularly but doesn't live there. Personally I don't think Udon needs another pub or bar-food place.

As well as variety with food we are always looking for somewhere that can deal with kids. Our daughter is a pre-teen, quiet and well behaved but she does get bored sitting around the Mum and Dad waiting for us to finish our coffee or eat our meal after she bolts down her chips. Most pub-type places full of old farang guys don't cope with kids very well (sorry guys, woman's point of view here). Something with a play area or entertainment area for kids would be great, especially somewhere that could offer some space for older kids - doesn't have to be large or elaborate, maybe some toys, kids tables, drawing pencils/paper, TV/DVD and a few beanbags.

Also all the expat families that come down from Vientiane for shopping seem to have plenty of money to splash around. If you could get some of that market, you might be onto something - maybe by advertising in the Vientiane newspaper. I know the Italian place next to the Centara Hotel and Central does excellent business with the Vientiane folk on weekends, not sure about other times. I'm guessing because it's convenient to the mall it's in a good place to capture walk-ins.

Do you know what airline she flew? I would go to their office in Bangkok, complete with all the Singapore Police information and try to get the details from them. If they won't give it to you, you may be able to at least get the name and contact details of a manager that can talk with the Singaporean Police. Luckily if it's Sing Air then the Police could probably liaise with their HQ in Singapore.

Alternatively if you know where she bought her ticket, maybe the agent has passport details.

Well after many false starts we finally got the yellow book this past week. Ultimately after much consultation they decided to issue it once they saw:

- my passport & Thai visa: certified copies from Embassy plus Thai translation of both the photo page and current visa.

- my birth certificate: certified copy plus Thai translation.

- our marriage certificate: (our overseas marriage was already registered with the Amphur so only their original registration document plus one copy required.

- hubby's tabiaan baan & ID card.

- two witnesses from the village that know us as a married couple.

According to their registration book I was the 3rd farang in our Amphur to get a book this year and the only woman.

They had a lot of trouble with my "status" because I am not on a spouse visa, I have my own visa for employment purposes and this really stumped them. Once they got over that hurdle all went fine.

Our next battle is to try and get the child (who is not related to hubby) on one of our books as well...the lady at the Amphur looked like she might faint when we asked her about THAT. So we will leave that challenge for another day

On the website they have reduced to 1 daily flight Bkk-Udon Thani forseveral days this coming week (I checked every day Mon-Thurs).

I'm not sure when this change was made, we booked months ago on the Wednesday morning flight for June 16th. Then I got an SMS a few days ago that morning flights have been cancelled and we were changed to afternoon flight. When I checked the website for a morning flight on another day 14/15/17th it is listing only afternoon flights. Looks like we need to fly another airline if we want to go up and back in one day to do some business.

Villa at Sukhumvit 33 in Bangkok def has them, I saw them last night. We've had them before but warning, they are not nearly as good once they have been frozen, they lose their fluffiness and the butter doesn't soak us as nicely. I once heard they are pretty easy to make from scratch, but I've never tried.

Has she been charged? Which part of the Criminal Code she's being investigated under - the maximum sentences and fines are laid out there.

My MIL puts everything straight in the meat-safe after meals, and is adament nothing should be touched by flies or bugs. The meat-safe is in the coolest part of the house too, which I understand is how meat was always stored in Oz in the colonial days (nowadays meat safes are "antiques" even tho my grandma still used hers when I was a kid in the 70s). And the meat is always either v.salty or covered in chili, so that might help. Never had a problem and neither have my two children (who came along before the Thai partner and are not Thai themselves). Thai partner has great trouble with stomach vs western food, so maybe it's often a combination of new foods, rather than actual dirty food?

Definitive info is available by email, they will send price list and document requirements. Search for "Australian Embassy Bangkok" then choose their opening hours & contact details, the email address for Consular Services is clearly listed. Sorry I tried to post before the address that I got information from, but it was edited as we can't give emails here.

He has limited services but you can do a passport renewal.