Mig15

Not looking too promising is it Anders?

If your bf is Dutch he probably has very good English because the Dutch often learn French, German and English and so have an aptitude for languages. The native speaker thing that is often asked for by language schools is not a legal requirement. There are Dutch, Danish, Filipino, Indian etc. English teachers in Thailand. Some of them do a very good job. The most discriminated against are Indian and Filipino teachers as their accents are sometimes very strong and people want to learn English with an American or British accent.

At the moment anyone can get a job but the law is changing next year. It depends on what your bf wants to teach as to what he needs. Teach English – any degree and TEFL / CELTA etc. is OK because TEFL / CELTA are qualifications in teaching English. A B.A. Education / B.Ed may be specifically about teaching Early Years, Maths, Geography etc. but the teaching practice is much longer than the above short courses and a B.A. / B.Ed can take 2 – 3 years to complete. Teachers who have a B.A. / B.Ed like to say that if you can teach you can teach anything. But TEFL / CELTA holders think that the specific English training is better for teaching English. That is a matter for debate.

As far as question 4 is concerned I don’t know. The law is, I think, that foreigners are not allowed to do a job that a Thai could do. So that limits us to teaching English and some other subjects. Working in international schools where Thai nationals are not required. Or other areas of expertise. Thai law is not always enforced or interpreted by individual officials in the same way. It may be more important that the school someone works for has a good person dealing with immigration than the actual qualifications someone has.

I apologies if anything I have said is incorrect.

If you have a B.A. Education / B.Ed you are better qualified than 90% of the people who say they are teachers here. The changes in the law are, I think, being introduces to get rid of all the unqualified teachers who may or may not be doing a good job, to push up the standards. And if you are a native English speaker you will easily get a job here legally! You don’t say what you are going to teach but I assume it’s English. Why don’t you try and get a job with an international school and teach whatever it is you are qualified to teach. Better money, conditions, student (!) You need a job offer before you can get a teachers license – I think. www.ajarn.com

Go to Chiang Mai for Songkran if you like getting wet and having fun. It’s crazy up there for about a week!

Paid one, won’t pay another.

The problem appears to be the affect of young Thai – children. Girls of 14 should not be in nightclubs. So why not stop that happening rather than punish everyone ( adults) who want to go out at night. Makes no sense to me.

Personally I don’t like to stay out late anyway but people should have the right to if they are adults. Bars are already feeling the pinch. People come on holiday to have a good time.

The government should get the police to police rather than extort.

You could try this http://www.links.nectec.or.th/services/parsit/index2.html However when I showed the translation it did for me to someone in the office they said it just translated the words. Maybe if you try writing English words with Thai sentence construction it may give an understandable translation.

i.e. “I am going to the market.” Would be “Go market.”

P.S. If you are writing to a bar girl she will be able to get someone to read or translate English for her.

I am living and working in Thailand and because of the resent problems have started carrying my passport with me more than I did. Is it possible to get a Thai ID card so that I don’t have to carry it with me? I was a volunteer worker here some years ago and at that time I had a Thai volunteer ID card. I think most people would be prepared to pay a small fee if they could get an ID card to save carrying their valuable passport with them. I have seen posts where people say they carry a certified copy – certified where and by whom – my visa is up for renewal soon. Do I take my copy to the immigration with me and get them to stamp it?

You don’t win money on pinball machines! How can that be gambling? - TIT

Candyflip’s advice is good. I would add, that you need to think about what you want your children to do after school. If you want them to go to Thai university then a good Thai school may be the best option.

However, if you want them to end up speaking good English and then to go to university in US, UK etc. a good international school may be better. Or if they are going to enter an English program at Thai university. Entrance to Thai university should not be a problem for both Thai or international schools – if they are good students.

In my experience Thai schools don’t turn out good English speakers. That may be important to your child if they are going into the world of business as well as if they are going to live and work in countries other than Thailand.

The backpacker of today, the gap year student, is the “high end tourist” of tomorrow.

Sex tourists come here because there is a sex industry. The industry did not start when the tourists arrived. Tourist break the law because the laws are not enforced consistently if at all. They offend Thai cultural sensibilities because those sensibilities are not easily defined – sex industry against Thai culture but Thailand has a big sex industry.

If the government wants to clean up the image they need to go to the root of the problem – poverty, attitudes, respect, fair play and human rights.

Just like Christianity, Buddhism in Thailand has taken on older religious practices or these practices still exist side by side with true Buddhist practice. Ancestor worship is very common here and you can see the spirit houses outside almost every ones homes. Shamanism, Animism, the belief in ghosts are all religious beliefs and practice that still exist and in the minds of many ordinary Thai are all part of one religious set of beliefs. There are also the outside influences of other cultures such as Indian and Chinese people who have migrated to Thailand over the centuries and I suspect that the vegetarian festivals and areas of more predominant vegetarianism – such as in Chiang Mai - are a result of those people’s beliefs and customs. Buddhists, of course, maintain that Buddhism is not a religion but a philosophy.

I have been present at some of these spiritualist ceremonies in a village in the North East. Where spirits take possession of people in the room. My ex-wife said that she had taken part in these rituals and been possessed herself when she was younger. She said that the experience was quite therapeutic and after would sleep for a long time and then feel good the next day.

People who are involved in a religion or in this case a philosophy will, it seems, always assert that there set of beliefs and practices are the correct and true form. However, I can see no reason to say that one set of beliefs are better or worse than another. Culture is dynamic and ever changing and religious practice is part of a culture and therefore forever being altered. Indeed, I would suggest that religion is different for each individual who experiences it. This may be easier to say as a non-committed observer.

Syd, congratulations on a sensible post. Gender confusion is more common in Thailand for men and women, the women are called “Toms.” Maybe it is more common because it is more socially acceptable. It’s that old nature / nurture debate. So if you feel the need to try on a skirt, slip on some high heels – Syd, go for it!

If it looks like cheese and smells like cheese then it probably is an excellent map for people here on a short visit who want to find tourist attractions. Bus maps are good for people staying longer and who have a sense of adventure.

Many blind people are trained in institutions as buskers. They are the ones who have some small musical ability. Some beggars think that they will get more money if they pretend to be buskers.

Did anyone ever notice that that lad that begs near the World Trade Center and apparently has no arms – has got arms up the back of his shirt?

Just over four years - three years they one year. Education (not ESL).

Modern industrial society is unsustainable and therefore doomed to eventual failure. Subsistence farming is sustainable. Who is more intelligent?

6. Let Sting02 take responsibility for it. It would make a change form “farangs” looking after deserted Thai women and children.

I don’t understand the question. Is it that he could stay in Thailand for 2 ½ years? Or is it that he could do that and resist getting married? People can stay in Thailand legally as ###### points out. Why do you assume that he is staying here illegally? Maybe you believe the propaganda that seems to be inferring that all foreigners living in Thailand are criminals. Therefore making the government that gets rid of them look good.

PS. My ex-wife (Thai) who could be insanely jealous was violent toward me often during our marriage. However, my TGF now is a completely different person and personality so we must be careful not to stereotype the people of an entire country.

I was going to start a thread like this the other week. I live in a building where other people have UBC including the man in the next room. I’m not going to pay 10000 plus just for them to run a cable 10 feet along the wall. I asked the guy next door how much he paid for instillation and he would not tell me. He thought I was suggesting that I connect up the cable to his line for free ( I think he’s Belgian.) I have seen UBC before and it is better than Thai TV. But if anyone form UBC read this – ITS JUST NOT WORTH THE MONEY!

I feel that we should support bars that give us a good deal so here are a few that I have found:

Best Bar:

Doll House – Soi Cowboy – 30 baht drinks 19.30 – 20.30

Fannys

Moonshine – Soi Cowboy - All 60 baht draft

Jungle Jim

Det 5 – Soi Zero – Long happy hour till 20.00 – 50 baht beer

Lolitas ( Pool bar) – Near Soi Cowboy 18.00 – 19.00 (?) – 60 baht beer

Cheep Charlies – 50 baht till 00.00

Beer Garden – Soi 5 – 60 baht draft

Shibas

Suziwong – Soi Cowboy - 19.30 – 20.30– 2 for 1

Nana is a dead loss at the moment but there is a bar 2nd floor on the right that does a 2 for 1 deal.