CWMcMurray

Anyone know if there is plenty of parking available? Is it convenient to drive your own car or better to take a taxi?

I replied "Yes, I hope that they succeed", but I need to qualify...

Yes, I hope that they succeed in bringing the spot light on the issue of the class system in Thailand and how many have been left behind. I also hope they succeed in pushing the "elites" to stop taking the poor for granted and work on helping those outside of Bangkok.

No, I don't hope they succeed in getting Thaksin into power or getting Thaksin pardoned of his crimes or in getting any of Thaksin's money back.

So I am in favour of them succeeding in getting what they are"asking for", but not succeed in getting what everyone believes their true motivations are.

So in short.... I aplaud their peaceful protests and their rhetoric, but not their "leader".

Looking for outdoor Bamboo blinds in Bangkok.

I did a google search and found one place on Lad Prao and sent them and email tonight, but was hoping someone may be able to recommend some other places to check as well.

Also hoping some one may have some general idea about "fair price" as I am clueless.

Looking for about 1-1.5m wide and aprox 2-3m long...

Any info would be welcome...

I say just print out the story "old croc" linked to and slip it under their door.... that should solve the problem.

A couple more questions.....

Read the following passage and answer the questions:

Nok is a national junior tennis player, she's 17-year-old and comes from Chiangmai. She's very successful in her sport and won a champion trophy in women's single in Wimbledon, United Kingdom. This success of hers is the result of her hard work with a famous American coach, Chuck Chris. Nok put in all her heart into tennis and a series of training program had shaped her into a very good tennis player and a good sportsperson.

Question 1:

Which is the most appropriate position for Nok to hit a volley?

a. When the ball is highest in the air

b. Net-level

c. Below net-level

d. When the ball is in front of her

(Hmmm...I will need to consult my own famous American Tennis coach, ohhh wait a minute... I do not have a tennis coach, looks like am out of luck on this question)

Question 2:

Nok will be stressed out under which circumstance?

a. When the referee is unfair

b. When high expectations weigh on her

c. When her coach gives her aggressive heavy training program

d. When the match is of a very importance

(Good to know that three of the above will not cause stress...)

Here is another good one... but remember only one answer is correct, so that means that three of the below choices are attributes that should make you NOT want to be friends with someone ...

Which type of person students should want to be friends with?

A. Kind people

B. People who are considerate of others

C. Friendly people

D. Nice people

Me personally, I think that any of the above types of people sound like they could make a very good friend.... that being said, what on earth is this doing on a college entrance exam ???

Some more links....

From The Nation

The Nation - 2

What university supposedly asks students about washing their clothes etc., as part of the entrance test, and it's not part of an English language capability test?

I am an academic at one of Thailands prestigious universities, in the area which offers 'international' programs.

I can assure you that, at my institution, the assessment methodology is nothing whatever like what has been aired by other posters here.

The methodology is well focused on whether the student is ready to study, is ready to apply themselves, displays an appropriate level of maturity, can work in a team, appears to be mentally well balanced, and more. I like the methodology and I find it appropriate and valuable.

These are for the O-Net national exams .... these are not entrance exams for any particular university, but rather National tests that must be taken by all students in order to "assess their readiness to study at University" and are used to Rank schools based upon students success on the tests.

Please find some websites listed below:

Student's Protest

NIETS goes on the defensive

Scorecard.... in fact one of the reasons why your University as well as others need to have such comprehensive entrance exams is due to how lousy the Thai National Assessment exam is.....

Is that the "actual answer?"

If so, any explination???

This question is based on truth...it was discussed in class one day. Only a Thai or someone who understands 'illogical concepts' will answer the question correctly.

Q: When is the correct time in the morning, to brush your teeth?

A: As soon as you wake up.

B: After you shower.

C: Immediately before breakfast.

D: Immediately after breakfast.

The only answer that makes sense is A.

All the others would depend on if the person taking the test is male or female :-)

huh????

I don't have any idea about how any of the above choices have anything to do about being male or female???

If you ask a Dentist, I beliver the correct answer should be immediately after breakfast...

You are suposed to brush your teeth directly after every meal, correct?

Does Thai oral hygiene differ from western oral hygiene? If so, I would like to hear the answer and the reasoning behind it.

Many of the questions on these tests are REALLY BAD.... meaning no clear correct answer... only an arbitrary made up "correct answer".

Only lesson leared... why is it the correct answer "because we said so..." as opposed to asking question where there could only be one real correct answer...

A couple of examples that I have heard from some Thai friends.

This is from the 6 grade (elementary) exam in English...

1. The moon is like...

a. a rock

b. a ball

c. the sun

d. (I cant remeber the last choice)

hmm... when I looked at thei question, I am not sure how to answer...

The moon is like a rock in composition... the moon is like a ball in shape as viewed from the earth .... the moon is like the sun in terms of location (i.e. outerspace)...

correct answer.... b. like a ball

Another example from the highschool exam....

2. If you will be having a party where a foreigner will be invited what food should you serve for the meal?

a. Tom Yam Kung

b. Pad Thai

c. (an egg dish, I can't remember wich)

d. Green curry

hmmm....

Me personally , I am a fan of green curry, but the "correct" answer... Pad Thai - so make sure you all remember that...

Another from the High school exam....

3. A high school girl has become pregnant what should she do?

a. drop out of school and get a job to support her child

b. find the father and get him to help support the child

c. drop out of school for a short time to have the baby and then return

d. have an abortion

Hmmm... good to know that there is only one possible correct answer for every person world wide in this list...

correct answer... c. drop out of school for a short time to have the baby and then go back to school.

Frankly, I'm a bit taken aback to see that at least 30% of our responders (at this point) have been stopped over 10 times. Makes where I live sound like Utopia (never been stopped and asked for tea money in seven years).

If you look at the fact that over 30% of the responders have also been living in Thailand for more than 10 years then it may not be as bad as it sounds.... it could end up meaning "less than once per yr"

There is a photo/copy shop at the new immigration center at Chaeng Wattana.

It is down stairs on floor 'G'.

Go down the escalator by immigration and then "turn around to the right" once you get off the the escalator.

Then turn to the left and go to the end and it is along the back wall.

I go tmy picture taken there a few weeks ago, but can not remeber the price (maybe 100 thb or so???)

Everything in the modern day requires a "paper trail", so the fact that they are asking you to come in and fill out some papers is a good thing.

I would go in and take a look at the papers and if it appears to be a "claim form" or similar then there is a good chance that you should be ok and that it will just take some time to process the claim (admin time is required for anything like this anywhere in the world).

get a new thai wife, one with a lot of brothers...

Done It takes some efforts to restrain them...

I still say you should fight this in order to try and keep the land that you paid for, but the above may have a lot to do with why the Grandma is being so difficult...

If you have a "new girl", she is sure to be unhappy about some other women living on her daughter's / husband's land. She also may be getting pressure from other family members (or feeling herself) to find a way to keep the land "in the family". Since their daughter has passed away and you have a new GF, you are no longer "In the Family". I am not saying that this is a correct attitude for her to have, but it is likely the root cause of her bad attitude.

I think it is reasonable for the party still living to find a new partner at some point and they should not be forced to live alone for the rest of their life, but not all people feel the same way. In many cases, especially family members of the deceased party.

If this is the case, she is bound to be completely"emotional" about this issue and I do not think "reason" will ever enter into the process.

I would agree that many Thais see that change is urgently needed, and one valid example is a much better spread of wealth for all Thais, plus a society where a much larger percentage of the whole poulation has access to better education and better / broader opportunities, and equal and fair justice for all Thais regardless of personal background. I don't see any argument on this point.

And how can that be achieved? Two forces:

- A new brand of politician and I see Abhisit and Korn as the leaders of this movement.

- All Thais standing up to the poo yai (including large numbers of them in the rural areas) and demanding change, not voting for the old style politicians (read thugs and leeches), stop selling their votes, and stop being manipulated. However to gain any ground this needs to be organized, to be a credible and rational group.

I completely agree with your points above and I hope that you are correct asbout Abhisit and Korn.

The current government is technically a democratically elected government, but if looked at fairly, it does seem that the courts were packed with anti-taksin members by the Army after the coup. It is also felt by many that the courts would have continued to disbar/disband and kick out governments/politicians until the Democrats came into power.

In the end it is very likely that the other co-alition members could see the same and many may have switched their allegiance accordingly in order to make sure that they were on the winning side at the end, otherwise they may have been the next who where thrown out of their jobs at the next inevitable court case.

After all, if a PM can be thrown out of office for being on a cooking show, no one is safe...

So in this case while technically they were brought into power through a democratic process, many believe that they did not follow the "spirit" of democracy.

I think that the view above is what is felt by many in the foreign press and it is why they do tend to sympethize with the Reds.

I also think that this has gone well passed the issue of Taksin in the minds of many of the protesters and in order to move forward the present government will need to realize that it is less about Taksin and more about voters who feel that they have been marginalized.

The forst step is to realize that the Red protesters are not just backward/uneducated and stupid.... they are real people with real concerns . If the present government can convince them that they are interested in helping the rural poor, they could likely gain the support of many of the same people who are currently protesting.

There are some jobs available, but they are not easy to find. It may take you some time once on the ground in order to network and find a good one.

In terms of foreigners working in Thailand, it seems to me that the majority seem to have an engineering background. Given your background in working in a factory setting as a machinist and the fact that you seem to have 4 years to finish up a degree, I would recomend a degree in Mechanical or possibly Industrial /Manufacturing Engineering.

This would then also allow you to bring in your previous experience into the fold and then just do the leg work once you get here running your resume around. I would say print off about a hundred copies and then just go to many of the different Industrial Estates and visit Factories and trying to get an interview for job.

What type of industry were you working in ? Were you a machinist in an automotive plant? If so, then that is where I would start when looking for a job once you arrive here in Thailand.

Post audit by customs is in fact real and completely legal. Get your paperwork toether and see if you can provide proof to prove it was orginally declared correctly. If not, then you are liable for and additional duties owed.

If found that the goods were declared incorrectly, they may also ask you to draft a letter explaining why the goods were misdeclared and if they find that the goods were misdeclared with the intent of defrauding customs, then you could face customs penalties as well.

From my understnding the elimination of a job does not automatically mean that no severance is owed.

This clause comes from the test of whether or not your job can be considered a "temporary position" i.e. if the job position still exists after you are let go, then it can not be classed as a "temporary position".

This being said, I have never heard that the oposite is held to be true... i.e. if the job no longer exists then the job can be considered as "temporary".

I'm in... just tell me at least one day in advance, so I can go out and buy everything I was planning on buying one day earlier

Sure... I went to Mahidol University International College here in Thailand and your qualifications are on par with many of the professors coming into the Business department... although I believe that many with MBAs were persuing or planning to persue their PHDs.

I am having some work done right now... having an addition put on the House and having built in Kitchen done. Its all about half way done at this point and should be completed within the next three weeks.

So far the contractor seems very professional and everything is going well... if you can a wait a couple more weeks I will be able to advise if I can recomend or not.

If interested in getting an update once all the work is done drop me a PM.

From my understanding... if a house or townhouse you eill get the government rates, but if a condo or aprtment, then I believe they will not be governemnt rates (from my experience).

So if that is a dela breaker fo ryou, you may want to only focus on the Houses and Townhouses.