CaptainSplod

Agreed - it'd be nice for a lot of retirees, if they could volunteer to help out in the village, without all the fuss about work permits and whatnot - but "rules is rules" and I try to abide by the ones that I'm aware of.

Perhaps the government has plans to include retirees and/or married farangs into the new program in an easy way, that doesn't involve having to change visa status, leave the country or risk being "nabbed" by another government office. Let's face it, if things are made too difficult, then many farangs (myself included) just won't bother to jump through all the hoops - and will prefer to stay at home and let the schools "get on with it".

Actually, I'm rather concerned that a lot of farangs will unwittingly end up doing something completely illegal, as a result of being given incomplete or wrong information from the people that ought to know the correct procedure - and that would be nothing less than a catastrophe.

As far as our little group goes, the Thais are still unsure of how the new program is supposed to work - and no farangs really know anything at all, apart from signing up for the program. Hopefully things will become clearer in the coming days - but don't hold yer breath, eh!

Just recently I turned down an offer of working at a school, when the head language teacher suggested that I "volunteered" to teach to "avoid" having to get a work permit. She was completely nonplussed when I told her that even volunteers (paid or unpaid) needed to have a work permit. Still, it's not the first time I've been asked to circumvent the rules, either. In the end it's yourself that has to ensure having the correct documentation - if the proverbial hits the fan then only you will be held responsible - not the school or anyone else.

Yes, one way would be to call Immigration and ask about teaching while on a retirement visa. However, I'm finicky and prefer to see things from a legal document, government notice or the like. A verbal OK - or not OK - from some bod at an Immigration Office is not my idea of having a legal leg to stand on, should things go wrong - sorry.

Saying that, I'd have no hesitation in contacting Immigration once I had what I thought was the necessary documentation - just to try and check whether anything else was needed. But then again, I'd probably contact other people, as well, just to double-check.

Thanks - and cheers

Splod

Thanks for the input, Kwasaki! Always welcome, even the "unsure" things, as it helps us to get a clearer picture of what might be required - and (especially) what legal pitfalls could occur along the way. I have a mental picture of schools hiring willing farangs - and Immigration closely following behind and just as quickly deporting the same farangs for "illegally working"....

Knowing how government departments seldom work together, I'm quite sure Immigration would issue you with the normal yearly extension without batting an eyelid - presuming you have no new stamps or work papers in your passport, at the time.

And in June there ought not to be too much hassle about any work permit/retirement/marriage visa problems - though I don't doubt the hassle will turn up at some point if there aren't any clear written rules forthcoming along the way. You could, of course, ask Immigration while renewing your visa - but they just might not take kindly to knowing that you're actually working at the same time......

Ummm...I'd rather had the assumption that the Non-Immi Type O visa would have to be changed to a Type B visa if/when any work permit is involved - but what do I know - I've never before had any interest in "working" in Thailand.

Also, there's the case of (maybe) having to be issued with a Tax Number......which I'm totally unclear about.

The 4 month contract period seems to be a normal thing, after all - as apparently the Financial Year ends in September and the budget for the next 12 month period has to be officially approved by the government.

Do remember to let us know how your "extension of stay" renewal goes!

Thanks

Splod

Well, I can't say that I was really expecting anyone to suddenly jump up and tell us that we could find all the relevant info on such-and-such a webpage or document...... .......but you never know.......

Hmmm...I'm getting news that there won't be any confirmation of employment sent out until 15th of May, at the earliest. BUT, please don't rely too much on my utterings, as I'm only passing on what I'm being told - and as I'm being told it, so things can probably change from day to day. I expect much of the info is really just hearsay or the usual 'misinformation'...

I'm also informed that absolutely no-one is allowed to start work until all their official documents are properly in place, which could mean actually starting to work well after the new school term begins - at least for some people!

And, yes, it seems to be the thing to persuade people to sign up for the program - and then just leave them totally in the dark after that, without any feedback whatsoever. Still, that could just be the "normal" procedure of things in this country - and perhaps nothing to worry about, but who knows?

In our area, the teaching contract is said to be only for 4 months! As yet there's no answer to the question of what happens after the 4 months are up. The government subsidy apparently stops in/after September.

Lastly, I'm slightly "confused" as to whether signing up for this program will have any effect on my current visa status. I'm on a retirement visa and I currently don't feel at all sure as to whether a work permit will be needed/supplied - or if my retirement visa status just continues as it always has - and that the visa renewal process will be the same as it is every year... Unfortunately, there seems to be little or no proper information to be gathered (that I know of, at least) - and I'd dread the thought of getting on the wrong side of Immigration, just because somebody in another government office neglected to give the correct information.

As far as I'm aware, you cannot have a retirement/marriage visa and do any form of work!

Thanks

Splod

PS Been kept busy with other things, so haven't yet had time to look at the other vid links!!

Thanks, I'll take a look!

We (in our group) seem to be having difficulties ascertaining the amount of working hours for this new 10,000B program.

We have seen on this thread that various people have signed up for 6 hours a week, but we can't find any place that states EXACTLY how many hours are required (or a minimum, maximum). Even the Thai MoE website appears not to have any info (at all!).

Can anyone point us to a site, webpage, document or anything at all, that actually specifies the amount of hours?

Cheers - and thanks

Splod

Ha ha! A very good vid, there - and plenty of good ideas about how to get the message across and how to lessen the chances of the kids getting bored - excellent! I'll certainly look for any other vids iike this one.

Mind you, I'm not too sure a t-shirt on a teacher would go down too well at many schools in Thailand.......

Thanks

Splod

Good luck, Silentnine (and anyone else in the same position!).

I reckon it'll all go off very nicely (though maybe after the first few confusing moments). If you get any spare time along the way, then please do supply us with updates as to how you're getting on with the teaching thingy - we've been following this thread with great interest!

Cheers - and good luck!

Splod

Yes - went for the usual 90 day report at CM Immigration - and no probs at all. An amazing amount of people, there - although that's a pretty normal thing, these days...

Only thing unsusual was that after handing over the usual form and photocopies, some of my passport info was then apparently registered onto their computer system. A small printer then produced a barcode slip which was stuck onto the last page of my passport. I gather it's another new thing that they're starting on.

I suppose it's for future control of - well, whatever - but I was wondering if anybody actually KNOWS what this is all about? Just curious - that's all.

Thanks

I just received a question from a family member about Don Muang Airport. As most know, the place was flooded for a relatively long time and there have been countless photos of swamped buildings, runways, planes and everything.

Seeing as the floods, I guess, have completely receded from the airport grounds - I wonder what is happening with all the waterlogged planes, runway electronics and whatever else was ruined. Anybody know?

The last I read (which was well before the waters were gone again) was that the Military guys reckoned that to get the airport functional again was going to cost an astronomical amount of baht - and there were plenty of discussions as to whether it was worth repairing some things and maybe better to buy new. Maybe the discussions aren't yet finalised....but it seems that any real news about DM has quietly disappeared into the background.

However, I may certainly have missed out on some news along the way...

Still, I'm at the same time left wondering how it is that regular updates of the airport status don't seem to exist - or am I looking in the wrong places?

What work (if any) is scheduled to be done - and how are the once-wet metal "birds" getting along ?

Is the airport scheduled to re-open at some time - if so, when?

I TOTALLY agree with the OP!

Being a big-time user of printing facilities, I'm happy to say that I'd never consider visiting a shop (more than once) that offers printing services, only to be told that the cost was "different" than what was stated on the sign.

Also, I'm happy to say that in the places I get my own printing done have internet (and other) services - the owner/manager accepts my disk and prints what I need printing - WITHOUT adding any extra costs for this, that or the other.

As has been pointed out - it's not a case of a "measly" 5 baht. Who, in their right mind, would accept that paying extra costs for signed services was "normal", whatever the amount was?!

Good on you, OP, for your thread!

I'm off to the print shop................

'Scuse my "butting in"......

Just to say that how nice it was to read this thread - good questions (although they were pretty much lost on me ), but more so - the amazingly straightforward and understandable answers and directions.

A vastly pleasant change from the perhaps more normal bickering and often snide answers and remarks to questions on other sub-forums. I could almost feel slightly jealous that a couple of my own questions (not here!) weren't treated with such a positive reponse, instead of ridiculous things like "why do you want to know?.." or "why don't you go back home?...".

Well done, guys! :jap:

Cheers

Never COULD understand there often not being any (much) tap water in many places in Pattaya - even slam bang in the middle of the rainy season.

More strange, perhaps, is that the guys with water trucks have absolutely NO problems filling their trucks up.

As a side note - in the moo bahn I lived in, 3 years ago, the unit price for the brown and smelly stuff they claimed was "clean" water, suddenly rose to 38 Baht. I dread to think what the price must be, today.

Where I am, now, the tap water is a lot cleaner - and 5 baht a unit........

Good luck

Well - best of luck with that, my friend!

Sounds like a real good idea - and I hope you get some positive replies. Pity you're not up north, in my area - we could do with a guy like you.

Ain't no western musicians in this area - and come to think of it there ain't hardly no farangs, either!

Good luck

Brilliant!

Firstly, no - I don't use a hotspot shield. (Though I'll take a look to see what it does.....!)

Supernova -

I followed your instructions to the letter - easy, as you'd laid them out very well - and after I'd finished changing the HOSTS file, I closed FF and then started it again.

I was then able to access Google.com again (hello, old buddy!) - although any searches from the main page diverted me to Google.co.th.

No real problem, there - but I used the Google.com/ncr facility to remain on Google.com The country-specific Google sites I mainly use for other languages when searching for specific things from that particular country.

I presume now that things are back to normal. Many thanks for everybody's good advice - and especially to Supernova, who cracked the nut!

I can only imagine that the HOST file got changed by a trojan or a power failure (of which we've had quite a few these last few days).

Thanks, guys!

Cheers

The Happy Splod :jap:

PING google.com -- what address does it resolve to?

Here's mine:

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.1.7601]
Copyright (c) 2009 Microsoft Corporation.  All rights reserved.

C:\>ping google.com

Pinging google.com [209.85.175.147] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 209.85.175.147: bytes=32 time=50ms TTL=48
Reply from 209.85.175.147: bytes=32 time=52ms TTL=48
Reply from 209.85.175.147: bytes=32 time=52ms TTL=48
Reply from 209.85.175.147: bytes=32 time=53ms TTL=48

Ping statistics for 209.85.175.147:
   Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
   Minimum = 50ms, Maximum = 53ms, Average = 51ms

Hmmm...Some interesting replies.

Still no proper access to Google.com, by the way!

Yes, I do agree - sometimes the best solution is the easiest one - i.e. turning off the router for a while. I did - and even turned it on again - surprise, surprise...no change at all.

Yes, and I did delete the Google.com cookie - to try and get a new cookie in place.

As for trying Google.com/ncr...well.....it IS "Google.com", you know...and as I've already stated, I CAN'T access Google.com!

However, I DID try - and much as expected I just got the "Problem loading page" error from FF. And no, I DON'T have any problems accessing Google.co.th or any other country-specified Google search engines - however, I'd like to again be able to use Google.com! Also - and very important - some of the websites I use, have links to Google.com!

Aah! See - now we just maybe getting somewhere! According to Supernova's ping result, Google.com uses a completely different IP address than the one shown from a ping test on my own computer.

Indeed - after setting Supernova's IP address directly into the address bar - - I actually got Google.com!

However, I can't actually make any searches, as I thereafter still get the "Problem loading page" error from FF - as the IP address reverts back to the one on my computer.

To me, it rather looks like the Google.com IP address has been/is being changed on my computer. Now - how do I get it back to the correct IP address ? And what's more - who on earth is 127.0.0.1 , I wonder?

Anybody offering any more help?

Thanks

Splod

C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.

C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator> ping google.com

Pinging google.com [127.0.0.1] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 127.0.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128

Reply from 127.0.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128

Reply from 127.0.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128

Reply from 127.0.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128

Ping statistics for 127.0.0.1:

Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:

Minimum = 0ms, Maximum = 0ms, Average = 0ms

C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator>

Hi!

Weird things happening - I use Google.com a lot and have done for many years. Until a couple of days ago, that is - all I now get is "The connection to the server was reset while the page was loading." and can never get through to Google.com.

I can use Google.co.th or even Google UK without any problem - but Google.com remains unavailable - which is rather annoying. I've tried re-installing FireFox and running Virus scans - even tried running different rootkit scans, but nothing shows. The "problem" even seems to extend to Google Earth and various other "Google" sites - none of which I use at all, fortunately.

I even installed Opera - same same - Google.com not accessible. IE gives "Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage", which I guess is much the same error text as for Opera & FF.

I'm left with the feeling that either I have a well-hidden Trojan/Virus - or (perhaps more likely) some setting that I don't know about, has been changed.

I use Windows XP and FF - and have TOT.

Any good ideas as to how to get Google.com back and working again?

Thanks for your time and patience

Hmmm...The Billy Cotton Band Show, hotly followed by The Goons - and hoping that Mum was still very busy making the Sunday "roast", so that we could sit around the bakelite radio and listen to the whole half-hour. "Round The Horne", "Ray's A Laugh" (Ted Ray), "Hancock's half Hour", "The Black & White Minstrel Show" and "Two-Way-Family-Favourites" where at Xmas they'd send from all around the world, moving from country to country every few minutes. "The Archers" - an everyday story of countryfolk.....

Woman's Hour - and later on, Radio London and all the pirate radio stations. Listening to the very young DJ Kenny Everett and his (even then) zany humour.

In the fast-diminishing cinemas there'd often be an "intermission" in the longer movies, where the ice-cream ladies would stand at the bottom of the (usually 2) aisles with their trays of ice cream, ciggies, peanuts, sweets and popcorn. You'd have to hurry to be sure to get what you wanted - if you had any money for that sort of thing, of course. They'd gradually make their way back up the aisles, using a torch to accept/give change after the lights had dimmed again. A couple of cinemas in our town had emergency exits which weren't controlled - that meant being able to sneak up the outside alley and get into the cinema without paying - at least until everybody started doing it and the doors were changed so that they could only be opened from the inside.

A kettle with an aluminium whistle to tell you when the water boiled - the whistle always burned your fingers when you took it off the spout!

Banana sandwiches, chocolate spread, golliwog jam, 6d pocket money, putting bottles of milk outside on the window ledge to keep cool.

Frozen (outside) water pipes and having to collect water in saucepans, buckets - anything! - from the water truck that came once a day. Electricity coin meters - and the meter clicking loudly as the lights suddenly went out. Mum often had to run to the neighbours to borrow "a bob" (one shilling) until the next day. The meter man coming to emptying the gas/elecricity meter and Mum standing expectantly as he totted up the coins and gave Mum the remaining coins from the bill.

Going "bottling" along the beach, after the day-trippers had gone home. That was picking up the empty pop bottles (sometimes beer bottles, too!) that they left behind. There was 3d deposit on each on those bottles - and you could often come home with 5 or 10 shillings from returning all the bottles to the shops, an amazing amount of money!

Memories, smells and sounds of yesteryear - amazing!

Bluddy 'ell - wot a loada wanke_rs!

Used to be proud to be English British, nowadays it's more a pain in the arse. No wonder people tend to guffaw when they learn where I'm from...

Is this yet ANOTHER remains of the New Labour fiasco, I wonder, or are the Tories going just as bleedin' bonkers as Gordon B. and his mob were?

Time to and , methinks......

You mean embassies actually REPLY to emails?

- And Thanks for the info, AndersSN - but I'm not sure if the Swedish Embassy would do the validation or even if it would be accepted at the other end.

Splod

Hi!

Does anyone know if there is a Danish Embassy/Consulate in or around CM?

Or perhaps some occasional "outreach" facility or periodical visit by embassy staff?

Or ANYTHING to avoid a trip to Bangers!

I have a friend that needs his (non Danish) passport validated, verified and approved by the Danish Embassy - (it's got something to do with some papers he has at the Danish government, I believe) and the friend refuses point blank to make a round-trip of over 2000km to Bangers to get the necessary document, signed and approved by an individual there, that has never before in his life set eyes on my friend - and probably never will, again. (Which, theoretically, I rather agree with!)

Anyway, how do the Danes in/near CM (I presume there ARE some) get along? Do you all have to go to Bangkok to do any embassy business?

And - yes, I'm aware that people from certain other countries have no other choice but to visit their embassy in BKK, or wherever, but I'm asking about info specifically for the Danish Embassy.

Thanks for any help, advice or whatever

Splod

Four medium sized boiled (in their jackets) potatoes, plus 2 fried eggs - lovely jubbly, mate!

The potatoes are put onto the plate along with the fried eggs - cut lengthwise and covered with Heinz tomato sauce (Thai product), salt and pepper.

Might sound rather awful, but tastes like bluddy heaven.

Actually, it's gotten to be a weekly (sometimes bi-weekly!) "treat", originally started by the wife buying a kilo of potatoes at the local market - just for me!

I prepared the potatoes and the wife fried the eggs - yellow runny but white firm - she knows how I like 'em.

She tried a small amount of the "strange food" and immediately announced that she'd try a larger portion the next time - which was the following week (seeing as the market is a weekly one). This kind of food was sometimes (often?!) eaten "back home", when cash was very low.

She now buys a couple of kilos of potatoes when she can - they can keep for ages - and we enjoy our farang grub when we fancy it!

Simple food, but very enjoyable........

Thanks, David, for your reply - and no, they ain't cheap !

However, I have finally got what I wanted through a private person, so won't be needing any other shops.

The next step will be to get a foot-pedal - though I presume they're not terribly difficult to find - even in Chiang Mai

Otherwise - I'LL BE BACK!!......

Cheers

Oh, dear!

My very good Thai friend Lipraloof has just married a European lady. He's now worried that their marriage will be annulled again. What can he do if this is the case?

Aaah, yes - that reminds me, have to turn the page on the calendar..........

Hi Guys!

Anyone know of a shop that sells USED (2nd-hand) Keyboard/Workstation/Arrangers, like Yamaha, Korg, Roland or Technics - and that's not going to cost me the earth?

I'm looking for such a shop in or around CM or the Lamphun/Lampang area.

Normally, I suppose I'd be more interested in buying a new keyboard, but with the economy these days being what it is, a USED keyboard is my only option at the moment.

I presume that some people have perhaps bought a keyboard a few years back, wanting to learn/play music - but for one reason or another, it ends up not being used in the end.

At some time or other it no doubt gets sold on to a 2nd-hand shop - but just where are these 2nd-hand shops, I haven't seen any, myself.

Thanks for any help :jap:

Splod

Well, good on ya, 111tingtong for reporting a "scammer"

Makes life more easy for everybody if they ain't around (here) - and as one poster already commented. not everybody is capable of distinguishing real posts from scam-posts.

Ignore the comments from the wise-guy suckers - I'm sure none of them have ever been ripped off in any way, they're obviously far too clever for that sort of thing.

Cheers M8