noise

thanks

Matt

We are planning to rent for a year, and during that time, find a permanent place to stay.

Last time we shipped a lot of household goods from Australia to BKK, we had to pay "coffee money" (on top of tax) to get our stuffs out from customs.

So even if we contract someone reputable like Land & House (lh.co.th), do you think it's also going to be risky to build?

thanks

Matt

There are just too many factors involved to make good decisions from the US and all of us here have our opinions to give you to confuse you. But I think all of us would agree a long term rental is the best way to start. It will allow you to:

(a) study the local construction methods and available materials. Incidentally the only wood I ever see in construction in town is bamboo scaffolding. Out in villages, some homes are still built of wood, but mostly concrete, brick, tile.

( evaluate cost vs sq ft & amenities (3M = 1000-1200 sq ft? or less depending upon quality). And part of the quality would be, for example, electrical wiring on the outside of the wall, installed after construction.

© decide on location (your 3M for that much land, house, and furnishings means quite a ways out of the city)

(d) Consider what you want in the way of security, e.g., gated community vs house in the middle of rice paddies (cost trade off)

(e) if you are "remote" telephone is probably OK but ADSL may be unavailable and you will have to rely on dial up

RE house hold goods shipping: many of us with Thai wives have successfully shipped used household goods duty free by showing a Thai passport for a returning Thai after long time abroad. But for goods other than used household goods, yes, pay a lot.

I live in a L&H park San Sai and am really impressed with their quality and after sales service. PM me if you want specifics

EDIT NOTE: I made a simple a, b, c, d, e list but during preview I see b and c replace with characters; don't know why.

Microwave just died--well, lights are on, table goes round but food stone cold. Electrolux--bought about 2 years but, not in CM-warranty probably up-probably need a muli-purpose repair facility. Anyone know of one?

I had problems with mine back in the US and took it apart before calling a repairman because I could (and it was built in). Had no idea what I would find and was delightful surprised when I found I had just blown a fuse. Didn't even know there was a fuse in there. Replaced it and worked for years after that. So you might open it up and look for something obvious to help guide your search for repair facility.

Just did a search and someone went to CM Ram which I might do later today. Are there any specialized clinics? Cheers

A while back I stepped off a curb, heard a crack, and was convinced I crack the 5th and went to RAM ortho. Original diagnosis, after Xray, was plantar facitiis. Because of continuing pain I went back and ultimately got MRI and ultrasound, all of which confirmed the diagnosis. Slow healing, probably age related, but now back "normal". And, wearing flip flops so much probably slowed down the healing.

I can't run or play tennis because of my knees, but am back to full time on the eliptical trainer and walking all day when I want to; no problems when I wear shoes.

Bottom line: recommend CM Ram ortho

there were quite a few puppies and kittens playing around in the road when we arrived although after we'd been round a couple of times they seemed to ...lie quietly on the grass verge without moving ...

Hmmm, interesting wording.... what did you do on your revolutions around the track that the kittens and puppies are no longer moving?

How do you get your drinking water in Chiangmai?

We put in the reverse osmosis filtering system 2.5 years ago and ran a line off to the ice maker and chilled water dispenser in the refrigerator. Great tasting drinking water and clean ice, what more can you want? I can not recommend it highly enough compared to any other method.

It may not be as cheap as some other method when you replace all the filters, but it is sure worth the convenience.

Now it is probably pertinent to say that we are using city tap water 3 km south of Mae Jo and not well water. I can not comment on the effectiveness of such a system on well water, specially with the different quality of water you get from wells in different parts of the area.

So the reference to blond jokes is because .........

Boy, do I feel dumb now that I have had my coffee and my brain is working a little..... selling joke in the market

Oh well, what can I say? I got so wrapped up considering how the OP could find a handymen I didn't think (not a too uncommon problem for me).

I am looking for a carpenter or a handyman for something very simple. I guess they are hard to find in Chiang Mai ?

Not hard to find, ..... use your Thai contacts to find one. . . . .

Does the guy sell any blond jokes?

If he does, I would be curious

And the differences between

So the reference to blond jokes is because I suggested using Thai contacts; you think the OP has none or he would already have asked? If not, the reason for mentioning jokes is so subtle it slipped by me since the work I described was just completed earlier this year.

If he doesn't have Thai friends and does not speak Thai, he could go to a Farang friend who lives in a big development and search out handyman/contractors who have done work in there. Just walk around and look for the same type of task (if it is an outside one he can see like adding an awning or patio cover) and ask the homeowner for a name. Or go to the development's sales/after-sales service office and ask them for names and phone numbers. But be prepared for a higher price for the same work.

If he speaks Thai, he can go in front of the local market (e.g., Kad Gom) and ask some of the store owners if they know of someone who can do kitchen counter installations, or whatever. Look for stores that seem to have been recently remodeled and he/you will probably get a name in one stop.

Compete with vacuum cleaners?

I am looking for a carpenter or a handyman for something very simple. I guess they are hard to find in Chiang Mai ?

Not hard to find, there are lots of them that are quite good in a variety of areas. I use one guy that sells joke from a push cart in front of a market in the mornings but does good cement and carpentry work.

I used a group of others that ripped out a concrete pad, covered a well, poured a larger pad, welded a steel frame work for a roofed carport, put on the roof and a false ceiling with recessed lights, tore down part of a wall and made the gate bigger, welded on an extension to the gate, painted the carport, wall, and the house.

Now these people work only with Thais so their prices are Thai prices. Someone who frequently works Farang housing areas will have an entirely different pricing schedule, so..... use your Thai contacts to find one. I would think any Thai that has lived somewhere very long will know some.

I see that the photo was taken at 1/4 of a second at f/3.5.

Jukapot

How did you determine that? I tried the simple way of saving the .jpg file and opening properties, but that said there were no details. I didn't go to the effort of trying Elements or CS3.

That's pretty much in line with my work flow.....

I've been experimenting with Canons DPP sharpener which I must say is impressive. .....

Jukapot and Vulcan

Can't thank you two enough for this. I have not been working with RAW very long and have no work flow. I am basically happy with the final results, but it would all fall in the "exerimenting" category even though I do some of what you both recommended, e.g., using Bridge and occassionally making some adjustments there. I am going to try what you two suggest and see what works for me. Being a retired rocket engineer, I have to have a ISO certified standarized process!

What is a NEF file? I have a Pentax K10D and it only offers DNG and PEF for format. Guess I should google that?

You also convinced me to go get that external drive I have been looking at as I am building up such a large mass of files that it is affecting my 6 year OLD computer processing time, regardless of what I am doing even with all photo programs shut down.

I have lived in Chiang Mai in a serviced apartment for a year. On July 1 I will be moving into a rental house in Mae Jo. I am planning on hiring a lady to clean and do light cooking, etc. My expectation is that this will be a 2-3 day a week job, although I have an extra bedroom and for the right person it may become a live in position. We are a middle aged couple without children so there will be no child related chores. What is a fair wage to pay a maid in Chiang Mai for an 8 hour day? Any advice will be appreciated.

For Mae Jo, I would suggest moving in and making do for a while by yourselves. During that time find out if your neighbors have a good maid that can recommend someone. This way that maid has some of her personal reputation invested in the recommendation. And if you live in a real gated/guarded community, get friendly with the guards and ask them after a while.

Sure, you don't need a maid 6 days a week, but, boy oh boy, is that easy to get used to. Offer a starting salary of maybe 4,000 baht/month for, say, 3 months and, if you like her work, give an automatic raise to 4,500 (this is in line with Bill97's suggested 200/day for full time). You may or may not want to add that there will be yearly adjustments.

The work day would be 6 days a week, 8 hr/day. If house work is done in less, you either can let her go home or get her to do work outside. My neighbor's maid cleans the fish pond, washes the car, power washes the driveway, washes the outside of all windows, etc. Mine would too, but I need the exercise and do all that myself except for the windows; I don't do windows.

I have to repeat, once you get used to the daily housekeeping, you will wonder how you managed to live without it. Just think, you can have a dinner party 6 nights a week and leave the mess. Sleep in the next morning and it will all be clean when you get up!

I personally prefer having the maid just come during the day vice living here. I like the privacy at night and can bang around at 5:30 in the morning getting coffee without having to worry about bothering her.

Everyone I have talked to who has taken the train to/from BKK says there are no private sleeping compartments anymore. But I found the info below on the web. Can anyone comment.

1. seat61.com/Thailand.htm#Bangkok%20to%20Chiang%20Mai shows a private 2 person 1st class air conditioned sleeping compartment and describes it as also having a sink. Pictures included as you scroll down the page. If you keep scrolling you find schedules. Up near the top is the following: Page last updated: 26 May 2008

2. The State Railway of Thailand web site http://www.railway.co.th/English/Car_ANF.asp states the following compartments are available (maybe one car per train if only 12 compartments???):

AIR CONDITIONED FIRST CLASS DAY AND NIGHT COACH

Type of Car: Air Conditioned First Class Day and Night Coach

Abbreviation: A.N.F

Number of rooms: 12 Rooms/2 persons each

Number of Sleeping Berths: 12 upper, 12 lower

NOTE: can not tell the date this site was last updated

It looks like a Hoopoe to me

It is, indeed a Hoopoe, นกกะรางหัวขวาน in Thai. A fairly common bird throughout Thailand.

Thanks everyone

Does anyone know what kind of this bird this is? My wife is a CNX native and has never seen one like before.

It was looking for insects but accepted rice when we threw it to him, which made us think he might be an escaped pet. So is he or is he not a native to the area?

Talking to our financial people yesterday to find out why this year's tax rebate check is taking so long, they told me that they'd had problems with my tax ID number this year. They weren't able to submit using the online system, and were told that my tax number (127*******) should be for a Thai. A foreigner's number should start with 9.

This is the same number I've had for about 15 years, they've used the online system in previous years, and we've never heard this before. Now our office are saying maybe I should cancel this number and get a new one, but I don't really want to do this unless really necessary.

So, I'm interested to know about others. Does your tax number begin with 9, or is this just a total red herring?

I no longer have the URL, but.....

I have a widow friend (deceased farang husband) living in BKK, never lived in the US, so she only has a TIN starting with a 9 and no SSN. Her daughter, US citizen, was at college applying for scholarship funds and the application kept bouncing because the college system thought it was an invalid number. I did some on line research and finally found the SS admin website that explained in detail all the SSNs and what numbers in what position are use/not used. As I remember, the site said all TINs start with a 9.

I have been helping her with her taxes for the last 5 years and saw their records for joint filing for years before that, and her TIN 9XX-XX-XXXX was always there and accepted without question.

Her husband always filed by mail and I have her do so, also. I haven't even looked at e-filing so I must admit I know nothing about e-filing with only a TIN.

SUMMARY: I recommend you google/search the SSN admin site starting at http://www.ssa.gov/ and I think you can find your answer.

I think that it is just in Chiang Mai and cable is only in certain areas..........

A flyer was just passed out in Land & Houses Mae Jo for WETV cable saying it was a special offer (of course! ) for L&H. They had been stringing cable for a couple of weeks now. So...even though I have not contacted them I would surmise they have extended cable service north at least to within 3 km of Mae Jo. The flyer had a price of 700 baht/month for basic service.

I think you will find the promotion was 700baht for 3 months subscription and then 350 every month after that.

We had it installed earlier in the year for that price.

Also I heard the only reason they put the cable all the way out to L&H Maejo was because one of the WeTV bosses lives there.

You are right. I didn't read it carefully. It say pay 700 baht and get the first 3 months free and elsewhere says 60 channels 350 baht/month.

I think that it is just in Chiang Mai and cable is only in certain areas..........

A flyer was just passed out in Land & Houses Mae Jo for WETV cable saying it was a special offer (of course! ) for L&H. They had been stringing cable for a couple of weeks now. So...even though I have not contacted them I would surmise they have extended cable service north at least to within 3 km of Mae Jo. The flyer had a price of 700 baht/month for basic service.

General Yamashita & Col Saito advised us to be "happy in our work". This is happy in your walk. Do you suffer from: "throbbing and tenderness------" ? Well, there could be an explanation. Check out the attached article re: an issue likely effecting many in Thailand and in other warm places.

Great article; confirmed what I thought was the problem.

a long time ago i smoked in a one-way street.

Couldn't help it, laughed out loud!

Seems everywhere i turn I need a residence certificate which ...... immigration .....stopping issuing there .......

About a month ago someone reported immigration started issuing the certificates again at the right hand window (same as your 90 day address verification). And, if I remember correctly, another poster verified it. You might want to check.

USAF Retired, was at Phang Rang and Cam rahn Bay 1968-1971 Not in Thailand right now. Check with the Bangkok VFW Post http://www.vfwbkk.org/ Iam sure will find a few Viet Nam Vets There.

And the Chiangmai Post http://www.vfw-chiangmai.org/ . It has quite a few members who were stationed in Thailand during Vietnam.

He seemed happy and healthy but should an 11 year old be left alone all weekend?

I was surprised no one commented upon the emotional impact on the child. Of couse, the problems mentioned are the ones that make the international news, not the subtle effects on the children even when nothing happens.

Regardless of the maturity of the child and his apparent happiness, an 11 year old child staying home alone all night is very different than being a latchkey kid. They have active imaginations and fears of some kind, and the fears are magnified tenfold during the night (even adults wake up with thumping hearts at 3 am to strange noises) [don't even think of that as being a pun!] You might consider having the child stay with you until his mother/aunt returns.

If this is a regular occurrence, then I don't know what to suggest

Thanks for that insight into the customs routine Chickenslegs. I too am planning to ship over a container from Europe. I have a few cu. M. of personal sentimental stuff but it seems almost as cheap to ship a whole 20ft container and put all my other crap in it too. The only issue is the unknown amount of duty that I'll get charged for importing my crap. (Toolbox, kitchenware, sideboard, desk, Xmas decorations etc.)

I'd love to hear anyone else's stories of their dealings with customs at the container ports.

My experience was shipping from the US with a shipper dedicated to shipping in and out of Thailand. I had a reputable moving company pack absolutely everything for overseas shipping as if they were doing the shipping. And I had them load the container. The mover (to/from Thailand dedicated) provided the 40ft container and had a BKK incountry mover agent sheppard the container through customs and on to CNX. It arrived locked and sealed. Came through customs duty free on my wife's passport as a Thai returning after years of living in the US. Everything arrived in perfect condition, including our good china and full set of glassware.

I think the key to customs is having experienced in country moving agents who know the customs agents and know the language, i.e., the customs jargon. And not having any "special interest items" or high value.

I am so glad I used the 40 footer as I brought everything I could, including old clothes we had not worn for years. I couldn't have afforded to replace everything with like items here, and whatever we didn't want the many relatives were very pleased to get. However, having my wife's "returning Thai" passport probably is what made it worthwhile. I have absolutely no experience with or knowledge of anyone taking household goods through customs without it.

Haven't seen Lysol disinfectant spray in any of the markets (C4, Lotus, Rimping) or any similar Thai product. Maybe I'm not looking hard enough or can't read the Thai labels correctly. Anyone know if it's available around here?

I use a mixture of Heiter (Thailand's bleach brand) and water in a spray bottle on hard surfaces. And I use it on ants in food prep/eating areas; not long lasting but effective for a while.