Crash999

fukc beer...drink vodka and make revolution...

Is that what's happening in the south???

I am thinking of settting up weeekend war games camp, in the forest with paint guns. two teams fight it out

Would the police be happy you think? would any of you be interested to do it? I think some of the profesional Bangkok Thais would go for it? What do you think?

thanks

replys on a 1000 baht note please

Too hot!!!

Take over a warehouse, aircon it, pipe in some good music, and have a lounging area with Johnny Walker Black available.

That's more like it!

Found out today that there are approx. 15,000 Americans here. More than I would have thought.

Cheers!

Dr. Pat, I was also under the impression that the Gold card guarantees a seat, but obviously not. .

I also have a gold card and have had difficulties getting a seat in the past- not often, but it does happen from time to time. Last time I was flying to the UK when I checked in the clerk at the desk informed me that the flight was very full and asked if I could move to a different airline. When she told me that I couldn't accrue miles on that airline (it wasn't Star Alliance) I asked her to see what she could do- she got me into an available seat.

This was 2 hours before the flight was due to depart so I imagine they were anticipating difficulty with a very full flight and were trying to divert any willing passengers to other flights before all ###### broke loose.

Gold doesn't guarantee a seat- if only that in some cases the flight might be completely full so there's nothing that can be done. It does guarantee first priority on standby and waitlists (above silver, and in turn above the teeming masses) and a higher level of groveling.

That said, having three business class gold members overbooked on the same flight when checking in 90 min early speaks of a serious snafu and they should throw some compensation you way.

Good luck!

PROSITUTION IS A PROBLEM EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD

...

These girls would then be brought up morally correct and working in decent legal professions.

Why exactly is prositution (sic) a problem? A massage is ok, but if someone's pink torpedo is massaged then they should be arrested and thrown in jail? Hmm....

Unless one is a member of the God Squad, it becomes hard to think of reasons why prostitution shouldn't be legalized. Lots of the problems currently associated with prostitution (STDs, underage girls, 'recruitment', indentured servitude, violent crime, etc) would be greatly reduced if the industry was regulated.

Cheers!

anyone enlighten me on this attitude........... My girlfriend is 24 not a bar girl, very well educated and has excellent english skills

It's just a different attitude regarding behavior. ######, my dad used to tell me some stories about when he was young living in Europe- didn't seem to be much 'awareness' about drinking and driving back then either.

My Thai friends that I drink with all drive drunk that, even can-barely-walk drunk. Not much you can tell them about not driving.

######, even I've become more lax- back home I wouldn't drink more than one beer before driving. I can't say I'm doing the same here.

Course now things are changing- in the past few weeks the police have been cracking down, even going so far as setting up checkpoints on Ploenchit road.

Probably the only thing that'll disuade her behavior is fear of getting caught. She can't always use her connections to escape either- one of my employees (whose husband is very wealthy) was caught last week. She didn't get nailed for DUI but was given a fine for an illegal lane change instead.

Cheers!

- to open a company i would need a businnes partner to make it legal, and the partner has to own 51 % of the business. american have some special rights. would it be possible to form a company with an american, without any thai in it? or would it even be possible to form a company with a thai without the danger to loose the company to him?

(the thing is: i don't know any trustfully and business minded thai / american to share the company with)

Hi Ramramshivaram,

Yes it's possible to form a company with an American that wouldn't have a Thai in it, but it really isn't necessary. Using a good legal firm you can create a corporate structure whereby the shares held by the Thai majority are essentially worthless. A good law firm will even provide the Thais for you, so you don't have to lean on your girlfriend, maid, and whoever.

My company exports Indian products directly to the US and Europe- good items are home textile products, metal decorative items (candleholders, xmas ornaments, photo frames, etc), and some handicrafts.

Not sure if the Thai free trade agreement with India is fully bilateral and/or what restrictions are in place.

Good luck!

Crash999

Very simple.

During his one to two weeks vacation time in Thailand, he dreams meeting a TG doing with him everything a TBG would do without having to pay a barfine.

Must be on a tight budget,...

Whoah!

Are you the resident cynic?

Looks like he just wants a non-BG to hang out with... like perhaps someone he can actually have a conversation with, besides "What movie you like?", "You hungry? I hungry", and "I go now, brother sick"

Cheers!

I did. Thank you very much. I actually had no idea that the online dating sites like Match.com also carried international ads. Duh! I guess you learn something new every day.

I'm actually trying to do that. I have a few Thai friends here in the US so next time I come back I'm going to take them up on their offers to look up thier brothers/sisters/friends/etc. who still live in BKK. Heck, I may even take you up on your offer

The faceparty and facepic sites can be quite fun... Don't expect to meet the daughter of an industrial tycoon there, but you can meet some middle-class gals who are fairly laid-back and can take you to the nicer places in town.

I checked match.com since I wrote the post here and it seems to have gone downhill somewhat- looks like you have to pay to be able to contact anyone. Fortunately, the other sites provide a level of free contact.

Definitely check out places like Q-Bar, Mystique, and then Thai hangouts like 2 Saleung, Booze, and The Room. Quite different from the 'touristy' scene.

Cheers!

IMHO a much better option. It seems fairly anitquated to still have to pay the tax as you depart, too visible.

What you don't know won't hurt you.

I agree - it'd be the source of less complaints, and it can be an inconvenience to the business traveler as many of them who are here for short stays don't change any money into Baht- so they get caught out when trying to leave.

Sure, they can change some money into baht at a local counter but it's really an unnecessary inconvenience.

Course... I'm sure there must be *some* advantages to having all that cash floating around.

It is quite common practice in Thailand, for companies, especially large ones, Big C, Lotus Tesco etc to require a guarantor, and sometimes the deposit of money from new employees. Must be an indication of how they regard their workers, or maybe it is actually necessary from their experience!!

I never knew that such a thing existed here. If the guarantor is guaranteeing the required time for notice then perhaps the simple answer to this situation is finding out the amount of the penalty and giving the guarantor the penalty amount to pay to the employer.

I can understand leaving a deposit for a low-level job where theft may be an issue or a job that requires significant up-front capital investment (in training or whatnot) by the company, but if a company asked me to give them a deposit and have a guarantor, I'd tell them to ###### off!

Not sure if asking for a guarantor is a reflection of the poor level of candidates or the crap job being done by the HR department in hiring appropriate personnel.

Cheers!

Just curious, what might the chances be of a "westerner" arriving in Thailand on a tourist visa, looking around for a decent job, (hopefully with a foreign company), and actually getting hired? This would be for someone with a good appearance, college education, bright/quick learner. Ideally, looking for something paying a livable wage, I'm guessing 40,000 to 80,000 Baht per month.

It certainly is possible- but you need to set up an agenda for yourself and work like a madman. Plan on finding work using your current experience and skills and *not* something new- even though you may be willing to work for such a small salary, companies may be unwilling to hire you if you don't seem serious about working in the industry- or seem to just want to hang around and party.

Attend chamber of commerce meetings, Rotary Club meetings, FTTC meetings, and talk to all expats you can- especially with your legal background you should look into industry associations. Contact regional and industry headhunters to give them your resume.

Be open and forthright about your goals to the people you talk to. Offer to buy people a quick lunch in exchange for their ideas about how to get a foot in the door here.

Don't lock yourself into a salary range- it's good to see you're willing to be flexible, but with a legal background you could most likely earn more. If you have a graduate degree you could work as a university lecturer for the salary range you mentioned.

Lastly, think it over. I've known guys who have come over here and been successful in finding work... only to be bored as ###### a year or so later. Once you're living here life isn't a constant party- during the week I rarely go out and on the weekends I wind up doing errands and getting things done. As such, I wind up reading more about the various nightlife antics online from tourists than I actually manage to participate in myself.

Drop me a PM and send me you're resume- I'll keep my eyes open for anything that seems appropriate.

Cheers!

In short, I'm looking to meet someone who would be a friend first and anything more than that later.

Check out the links I gave you earlier... All four of them are used quite heavily by Thais.

Alternatively, try ICQ and Yahoo Messenger and randomly chat with Thais living here.

The best way, really, to meet the sorts of people you're talking about it to go out and network. Even if you're only here for a short time you can still meet up with friends and friends of friends, and whatnot.

######, next time you're in town drop me a PM and I'll invite you out for a night to non-BG type places. Maybe one of my GFs friends would meet your requirements.

Cheers!

Get a lawyer and file for a countersuit- would be far cheaper than 1.7m baht and you'd stand a chance of getting your kid back through legal means.

Cheers!

I can't get over the prices though 2.2m = about $52,000 here

1.4 = allost $36,000.  I keep wondering if it is worth it to bring a car over.

By sallon car you mean like a 7 series or some thing like that.?

If your up to it you can remove the pads caliper and roter.  Sand down the roter well on both sides, I used an orbital hand sander with medium emry cloth,  and rough up the brake pad as well.  If that doesn't do it it sounds like the caliper piston is not engaging correctly.  That is unless something else in the assembly may be loose.

Hi Pepe,

Worry... I don't read this forum often enough as I'm so far behind on the auto threat!

Unfortunately, importing cars won't get you around the high costs of running a car here as you'll be hit with import duty, excise tax, municipal tax, and VAT! Here's a great site that lets you calculate on your own how much tax you'd be paying on a car you'd bring in: http://www.thai-la.net/legalize/car-impt.htm

It's amazing that a car like a Mazda RX-8, that may cost 1.4m baht fully loaded in the US will fetch 3.6m Baht here!

By saloon car I meant a car with four doors, not a coupe or sports car. If I had around 1.4m to spend again I'd probably go for another used BMW 318 as I think it's the best value right now in terms of a cheaper car with a bit of luxury. Only negative is that there are a lot of them around.

Already replaced the rotors and pads, but the noise/vibration is still there- though not all the time. Might be a problem with the caliper assembly... dunno! When I took it to the dealer he said it's common to all BMWs and showed me another one with the exact same vibration. But it's too much- and now the vibration has a noise- metal to metal contact, so something is obviously amiss.

Cheers!

Are there English based websites for penpals or meeting Thais? I would like to get a sense of what life is like for normal Thai's but one a one or two week vacation it seems rather difficult to meet people when traveling alone.

Try... www.match.com, www.face-pic.com, www.faceparty.com, www.kiss.com...

Cheers!

Which 3 series are you driving?

How is it for parts and maintanance?

How is it holding up to Bangkok traffic and roads? Fine I would guess?

Would you get another one there?

Hi Pepe,

I'm driving a 2001 318... a bit on the slow side but certainly adequate for driving around the city and can cruise comfortably at 130-140kph on the highway without much effort. Looked at a 323 but the difference wound up being something like US$250 per extra horse, so I took a pass.

I've been servicing the car at Millennium on Rama IV and so far have had no major issues- only one problem with the brakes in that there's a vibration just before coming to a stop, so I need to take the car back in.

Heard some warnings about electrical issues with the 3-series but I've had no problems whatsoever.

Car has aftermarket 18in wheels, springs and shocks- looks good and actually rides surprisingly well. One learns where the big holes and rough spots are- like turning left from Rama IV onto Asoke one has to slalom through a couple of sunken storm grates.

Overall I'm very happy with it... Bought it for not much more than a new Accord but gets far respect from the Thais. New it was 2.2m, bought it for 1.4m, and could probably sell it for 1.3m or more now.

If I had cash in my hand and was looking to buy another saloon car I'd probably buy another BMW. The only other temptation for me would be a used Alfa, but the depreciation is very steep, even after the initial 2 or 3 years.

Cheers!

Agreed very nice Supra there! The Mitsubishi Evo's and Impreza's (uk spec) are similar to supras in performance, but the supra is a beauty in looks.

In the UK the supra and 300zx are popular for image in a Nightrider sense , the Evos and Imprezas are more common , also they are more versatile ( 4 doors , more space etc). A friend has a Supra that produces 500bhp, and an Evo with similar output. His everday car is a 911........I hate him

Thanks Chingy and Chonabot! I do miss it sometimes... as do my friends, who had the benefit of riding in it but not the headache of taking care of it!!!

There are 300ZXs available here in Thailand for not much more than a million baht. Not sure about their reliability, though their engines probably are a bit more intact as I don't think they are usually modified as much as that in a Supra. That's one thing I looked for when I was shopping for a car- making sure that the engine hasn't been touched. Wasn't easy to find one as most had been toyed around with. My Supra had aftermarket exhaust, intake, intercooler, waste-gate, ECU, but all other mechanicals were original- even so, was putting out around 400hp one night even gave a Ferrari 348 a run for its money. Fat Chinese guy in the front seat wasn't amused.

The Evos and Scoobies are a lot more practical- I used to race at Bira with one of the sons of the Singha beer family and they were all Evo crazy. Almost bought an Evo VI at that point but am glad I didn't as the depreciation is pretty bad (at the time a good one was worth about 1.5m, now I see good ones advertised for around 800-900k only 3 years later... yikes!). Went over to his house one day and saw his dad's 993, 456, and all sorts of assorted cars... *drool*

Cheers!

But they do get free paid memberships to all the golf and country clubs, free trips home and a new car imported every 2 years that they can sell at an inflated price because the import duty as well as the trips home and the club memberships are paid for by the American tax payer.as well as the very nice living accommodations they require.

Fortunately (knock on wood), I haven't had to ask for the assistance of the American embassy during my time in Thailand.

However, from the sounds of it I shouldn't expect too much in the way of help should I be even unfairly detained by police or immigration officials. This is particularly disgusting as part of the justification for taxing US citizens who live and work overseas is our use of foreign services such as embassies and consulates.

I suspect the reason for this is similar to that at the British embassy- the staff assigned to handling such cases are completely overwhelmed. As such, it'll take external pressure to change the situation- so any publicity we could drum up would be very helpful.

This would make a good 60 Minutes episode in the US- with the obvious disconnect of US embassy officials not willing or capable of helping US citizens unfairly detained in foreign jails, despite being paid to do so.

Cheers!

i would'nt use them,

shoot me down but i will rarely use companies set up by farangs for legal/money matters, only if personally recommended by friends. (good friends) especially in pattaya.

A number of years ago I met a fellow alum who was traveling through SE Asia after a messy divorce looking for work. He couldn't find anything here so moved on.

A year went by and he contacted me again- he had been working for an 'offshore investment' firm in the Caribbean, but had problems being paid commission so he and a few others left. He then set up his own office with some former co-workers and began recruiting more and more folks.

He returned to Thailand and asked me about opening up a legit business here- he figured most of the offshore investment firms wouldn't be registered here so he could set himself apart by forming a company, giving an impression of stability, etc.

He used one of the larger law firms in Thailand to set up a company, and wound up opening offices here in Bangkok and down in Phuket- three years on and he's still going.

Along the way I learned that the MO for the offshore investment guys is quite simple at a basic level. They sell offshore mutual funds on behalf of outfits like Royal Skandia that are front-loaded, that is if one pulls out of the mutual fund before a set time frame (usually 2-3 years) one will get less than the money put in.

The broker is paid a commission based on the size and term of the investment, usually set up as a monthly payment. If the investor bails within the first couple of years then the commission doesn't get paid, hence it's in the broker's best interest to keep in frequent contact for the first couple of years.

Overall, can be relatively harmless as these guys can represent large reliable institutions. There's virtually no regulation in Thailand, though- so it's difficult to tell if you're being scammed, especially with all of the boiler room folks running around who can spit out a few financial terms to impress the punters.

The bottom line is the value these guys are adding- if they're simply trying to hawk their wares to get commission then there's no reason why one should invest in their front-loaded funds.

Cheers!

Upon seeing this the first time, and not wanting to wait in a line that wasn't moving, I merely walked about 100 meters to the rear of the line, nodded at an empty taxi, the driver acknowleged my nod and away we went.

Explanations anyone?????

The taxis that pick up passengers from the airport arrival area are supposed to wait in the queue- they pay (I think it's) 50 Baht to the airport folks, and in turn customers are supposed to pay 50 Baht to the taxi driver to compensate him.

The benefit to the taxi is a sure-thing as far as a customer- they just have to wait long enough. The benefit to the passenger is added security in case there are any problems with the taxi.

The drivers who work the airport rent the old crappy taxis as the rates are cheaper- so they lose less while waiting. Also the passengers don't get a choice as to which taxi they will ride in, so it doesn't matter what condition the taxi is in.

If you took a taxi from the back of the line then he jumped the queue- if he's a regular he'll probably have to pay an additional 50 baht next time, but if he rarely goes to the airport then it probably doesn't matter.

It's definitely still possible to get a taxi at the departures level as I did so just the other day. One change is that they're now recording the names of drivers who pick up passengers on the third floor, though I don't know if this is just for security or if they'll try to charge him 50 baht later.

Cheers!

i would love to have a supra turbo, but as in los its outta my reach, way to expensive. i don't see to much of the old supra 86-90, those arew pretty good too.

Buying a newer Supra isn't a bad deal... It's about the cheapest horsepower you'll be able to find here in Thailand (280 to 320hp stock but easily modified to +50%), tons of street cred, available servicing at TRD, and they've stopped depreciating at around the 1.8 to 2m mark so you'll be able to sell the car for not much below what you bought it for.

Negatives are the time it can take to wait for available parts, the roads here beat the ###### out of the car so it's uncomfortable even to take short trips to Pattaya, and the cars can be prone to overheating issues- not good with the bad Bangkok traffic.

Owning the car was a love/hate relationship- I would get nervous every time I turned the key to start the car as it was a pain to get any issues dealt with. There wasn't much of a 'pulling factor' with the car as no one knows what you drive when you're in a bar, but driving around was great especially late at night when lots of guys in (real or fake) Mitsubishi Evos would try to race.

Some pics of my old Supra here.

The folks at the TRD garage were pretty good guys- the owner told me about one farang who put over a million baht into his Supra several years ago. He also had overheating issues and experienced a minor blowup one day when stuck in traffic on Ratchada. Found some pics of his car here.

Now am driving a basic BMW 3-series... Would love to find a good NSX, though servicing it I'm sure would be a real pain in the ass.

I've never heard of a company requiring someone to sign as a 'guarantor'- certainly my company (250 staff in Thailand) doesn't. What exactly is this person guaranteeing? Sounds like the new position is at rather a high level- so it's not as if they want to ensure that she doesn't walk off with a computer or whatever....

If she leaves before the full month's notice, the only ramification I can see is her not being paid for the full month. Then again... I'm not a lawyer....

maybe Singapore doesn't have attractive woman

Just returned from an 'Escape Songkran' trip to Singapore. Overall a nice place- very clean, well organized, and well run. My Thai GF was amazed at how nice everything looked in comparison to Bangkok.

Only negative was not many cute girls! Only saw a couple of cuties in one department store, one 'luk-kreung' type in McDonalds, and a couple of 'ok' girls walking around on Orchard Street. Also saw some dodgy Thai bargirl types.

Overall, Thailand definitely ranks higher on the beautiful women scale.

I read in another thread that US auto rental companies need US citizens to show a domestic license in order to rent a car.

This puts me in a bit of a conundrum. My US (Pennsylvania) license expired a couple of years ago- the last time I was visiting my family I decided to go and renew my license. No dice! In addition to a passport and the old license, the issuing office wanted my social security card (which I didn't have with me) and proof of residency such as bills in my name addressed to a PA destination, which I also don't have. These rules are a lot more strict than the last time I got my driver's license because I suppose security has been stepped-up post 9/11.

So I couldn't renew my PA license and now only carry a current Thai license. I'm thus a US citizen without a US license and I can't get one as I don't live there anymore.

So does this mean I'll never be able to rent a car in the US as long as I don't live there??? This is going to be real fun on my upcoming business trip....

Cheers!