Goinghomesoon

On 4/5/2018 at 11:52 AM, CLW said:

Another example, basic soil tests are free for farmers. But hardly anyone uses this service. Instead they apply fertiliser like they always did or even more stupid, the salesman tells them.
What a waste of money, resources etc...

Hi CLW could you expand on the soil testing? When my hubby went to pay our land tax a few weeks ago he was asked to account for usage of a government-funded dam in our land. At the same time he was listing how the resource is used, he asked at the office about any classes or help available to farmers on land quality. His sister and husband recently moved onto land next door and have trouble establishing anything more than a kitchen garden.  Hubs was told there is nothing available in our area. So I’m hopeful there might be another office, maybe he asked in the wrong place. If it’s relevant, when in-country we are Isaan-based between Nong Khai and Bueng Kan.

On 12/23/2015 at 0:49 AM, CMKiwi said:

Prem is also one of the more expensive schools outside of CM proper. It is not free! There are also a lot of teacher vacancies, and although I cannot say why due to the possible legal implications. I new director/Principal has resulted in a lot of long term/time teachers resigning.

It appears not is all healthy within the teaching fraternity. I am led to believe that those whom oppose giving credit to children that dont make the grade are under undue pressure to reverse their decisions. Money and hierarchy (Perhaps the Thai way) dont always sit well with western teachers.

But that said, there are more schooling avenues to explore in the area.

FWIW as a Prem parent with a child in 12th grade there hasn't been any noticeable change in teaching quality nor any effect on the kids. Mine is an average student and gets excellent support. It's a lovely learning environment. 

Thanks Sheryl. Feels funny that I'm having trouble getting a Thai cat back to Thailand

Can anyone recommend (a) an import agent in Thailand, and ( a cattery that we can send kitty to on arrival? We want to ship our cat to Bangkok next month but won't be able to collect her at the airport or be in a position to take her home for a few weeks. A large international agency has quoted several thousand dollars for the service which feels quite expensive to me.

I wrote a post back in March 2012 about our rather fraught experience shipping her from Bangkok to Australia in 2011/2012. I just re-read that thread. I must be crazy!

There are also quite a few of us that come and go from Thailand.... I was much more active on the forum when we lived in-country but since moving to Oz a lot of my info is dated and I admit I don't feel that day-to-day connection to my old Thai life. I read but don't contribute as much. I've made some great real-life friends through TV including one that I see regularly in Oz, so the forum is still a presence in my life!

We'll soon be back living in the region though girls, so in the words of Arnie "I'll be ba-aaack".

And if all else fails and you don't have a book, do what we did and get a letter from your hospital or Doctor confirming what vaccines have been administered. We are in the ACT (which issues a blue book) but since we didn't have one that the local govt vaccination nurse (at the child health centre) transferred everything onto a form which I then sent into the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register.

And if the OP actually read any of our previous posts he would know a significant number of us are happily married to Thai men.

Brilliant, thanks

Bina,    to Anon from Mr & Mrs GoingHomeSoon!  Brilliant news indeed, I know it's been a long haul for you both.  Sorry for not posting ealier but I know you'll understand - since baby arrived 6 months ago I have been wearing my Mummy-brain rather more than expected   

As we may be moving to Yangon I am interested in hearing feedback on any of the international schools, particularly at the high school level. Any Yangon-based parents on this forum?

I don't want to see more nudity out there 'just because'. But I do think that there are many movies and TV shows where there could be more balance. Like a well-written passage can enhance a novel, maybe the same would be true for TV (although yes, I know, there are plenty of horribly written nude scenes in novels that turn it to drivel).

To my mates at the TV ladies forum, Merry Ho Ho Ho Ho!

May you all have a brilliant Christmas & New Years no matter if you are in Thailand or back in your home country!

Having done both (sponsored work visa for 4 years, then a non-O) I would say it doesn't really matter unless you want to stay in Thailand long-term, and then the marriage option is probably easier - as others have pointed out, it gives you options down the track for citizenship etc.

And ignore the naysayers. There are plenty of us with brilliant Thai hubbies

Oh Boo that's a classic!

I was never able to work it out Crumpled you could try taking her to Central to try on on bras in the Marks and Spencer section - then you'll have an idea of her UK sizing.

The main difference I have found shopping for my Asian daughter's bras is that the Thai/Asian brands are usually quite small across the back, compared to the western sizes.

OP David congrats on expecting twins. What a learning curve.

Until now I never really took much notice of my pregnant sisters-in-law and any special cultural beliefs. I know most of them only because I lived in Cambodia for a few years and several of my Khmer girlfriends had babies and went through the herbs/special food/fire under the bed routine. And I was warned very early on to never-never-never say that a newborn was cute.

Actually I suspect my Thai hubby never took much notice either, because I'm currently expecting and he hasn't really expressed an interest in doing anything the Thai way. Except the need to massage the baby's nose to ensure it looks more farang, of course!

Wonk, try the Bangkok Young Professionals group. You can find them on Facebook or LinkedIn. They organise regular networking events & social meet-ups and the community is very diverse.

Hubby is from Phon Phisai but if you don't know anyone in the area that can accommodate you the night before I would recommend taking the Mutmee's boat cruise. The traffic is really horrendous all day on the main 'fireball day' (as others have pointed out). You will be scratching to find any shade if you are there all day and you do need to get down to the riverside fairly early to stake out a spot or you won't get a place to sit. If you need a 'farang break" there is a pub near the bus station but not sure if it will be open at lunch. Have fun!

If you are interested for future years, there is a really pretty guesthouse/set of bungalows called Baan Waas run by a mother/daughter just as you drive into Phon Phisai - they have a deck right on the river, it's perfect because you can have food and drinks in your bungalow and set yourself up for a picnic without the stress of the traffic.

1DaySoon would love to hear what you ultimately decided. If I could be invasive and ask whether you and your wife had extensive testing before doctors led you down the AI path? When we were first investigating, we went to a couple of the 'top' hospitals in Bangkok - both suggested testing hub's swimmers plus a bunch of tests to determine open tubes, hormonal levels and possible immunology issues that can prevent implantation. Whereas the specialist fertility clinic that has been recommended numerous places on here didn't suggest anything except lots of medication and straight to AI. Which would have been useless if there was ultimately a physical problem with either of us.

We were also on the Thai adoption waiting list (and presumably still are, since we haven't formally withdrawn) but the wait is currently a number of years. There is a Facebook group for families living in Thailand & wanting to adopt if you are interested.

Thanet is right - I know a couple with a young child that applied. They knew the rules and specifically asked in their cover letter to be assessed for PR straight up (bypassing the 2 year rule) and got it with no problem. That said, they had a long-standing relationship and lots of supporting documents and statements to support their application.

Contrary to what Thanet says though, we don't know anyone that has used a migration agent and hubby and I have a wide group of friends with spouses from Thailand both male and female. I know in our case, as soon as things got serious I started keeping every scrap of paper that related to our relationship, made sure we kept our phone records, bank statements etc to show calls and transfers between us. When we went to hotels we got them to put both names on the account, that type of thing. I didn't find it too difficulty - most of the evident they ask for is common-sense stuff really.

Hi, can you elaborate a bit more on the bypassing the 2 year bit? What was their reason for wanting this? Hope I'm not asking to personal of a question! I see the 2 year temporary part as just a cooling off period so to speak, which still gives all the benefits of the permanent visa anyhow, correct? I'm curious as it's the first time I've heard of this being done, hadn't even crossed my mind you could.

Kris don't worry about predictive....my initial post was appallingly constructed. Must have just woken up after a few night shifts

Bypassing the temp residence period means your spouse qualifies for citizenship faster. My friend's husband is not Thai but from a country where he experienced difficulty getting visas to various places they travelled for work & holidays. The quicker they could get citizenship (and an Aust passport) the better. As a permanent resident he would also be eligible for consular assistance from Australia if something horrid happened while travelling, but not as a temp resident.

Also spouse permanent residents are eligible for HECS whereas temp visa holders get charged international student fees. (The exception being the gratis AMEP English classes for those that don't read/speak good English).

The text on the Immigration website says "While it is not common for permanent visas to be granted less than two years from the date of application, in certain circumstances it is possible for a visa to be granted in this time. An example of when a visa may be granted within two years is when the relationship is long-term at the time of application (long-term is defined as three years, or two years if there is a dependent child, excluding a stepchild, of the relationship)."

Would be nice to hear back from the OP and see what they decided to do.

Thanet is right - I know a couple with a young child that applied. They knew the rules and specifically asked in their cover letter to be assessed for PR straight up (bypassing the 2 year rule) and got it with no problem. That said, they had a long-standing relationship and lots of supporting documents and statements to support their application.

Contrary to what Thanet says though, we don't know anyone that has used a migration agent and hubby and I have a wide group of friends with spouses from Thailand both male and female. I know in our case, as soon as things got serious I started keeping every scrap of paper that related to our relationship, made sure we kept our phone records, bank statements etc to show calls and transfers between us. When we went to hotels we got them to put both names on the account, that type of thing. I didn't find it too difficulty - most of the evident they ask for is common-sense stuff really.

Murray if you are in Australia and intend staying here, you and your wife can also look at a step-parent adoption under Australian law, or a Family Court order (which is not an adoption but can give you some parental-type rights). Each state has different requirements and step-parent adoptions are administered by your state welfare department. I don't know where you are, but for the ACT information is here http://www.dhcs.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/11708/DHC1628_stepchildrenandadopt2.pdf

Spa 1930 is a day spa in a restored house near Lumpini park http://spa1930.com/html/contact.html it's very good and different to the run-of-the-mill spas you see around town. Very classy, easy to get to if you are staying centrally. The prices are expensive for Bangkok but still cheap by western standards.

All of the major hotels have nice day spas - I've been to the one at the Royal Orchid Sheraton by the river (Mandara spa) it was outstanding. And on par with prices here in Australia.

Aust.girl feel free to join us down in the Ladies forum too, if you have time. Lots of us with Thai hubbies/partners including a few Aussies.

Sorry I can't really comment on your visa situation since my hub got his spouse visa issued before we left Thailand.

The Kingpin of the Falang meetings in Tesco is old John ( aussie ) He makes a big effort to get falangs talking to each other. He is there most Friday afternoons. Be ready for a fair bit of sarcasm from him, all in very good humour and if you have car...well, he might ask for a lift home ( 10km )................Draught lager sold in Tesco at the food court.

Talking about how far reputations reach...I'm in AUSTRALIA and I know who you're referring to John also holds court in Nong Khai once a month or so when he goes up there to clear his mailbox