BangkokHank

The AMOUNT that I spent this year didn't change as a result of the new tax situation. What DID change, though, is WHERE I spent it. This year, I spent half of my time and money outside of Thailand - despite having lived in Thailand for decades. It was an easy calculation for me: The amount of taxes I would have had to pay as a tax resident far exceeded the cost of traveling outside of Thailand for six months. So Vietnam and Cambodia are the beneficiaries of Thailand's ridiculous attempt to tax inward remittances without providing any benefits in exchange.

I suppose they do that to force you to buy their bedsheets. It's the same with their pots and pans: They are also odd sizes so that you have to buy your lids from them.

Somehow I knew not to commit drug crimes even before this guy mentioned it.

First of all, anyone reading your response, myself included, would conclude that you have serious mental issues. Help is available for people with your condition. You can ask about it on the health forum of this website. I didn't say that Thais THINK it's wrong to overcharge people based on their race. I said that they KNOW that what they're doing is wrong - which I conclude from the fact that in this situation (and pretty much ONLY in this situation), they use Thai numerals for themselves and Arabic numerals for us - on the same sign. Why do you suppose that is? And do you really think that there is person in Thailand who can't read Arabic numerals? Tell me that you're here for the first time without telling me you're here for the first time. And are you saying that ALL foreigners earn more than ALL Thais? There are a LOT of Thais who earn more than farangs earn. But the price people are charged at national parks is based on race rather than income. Of course Thais have the right to discriminate against foreigners with their policy of dual pricing. But we don't have to like it - and we don't have to go to places that discriminate based on race. Also, the decision to charge foreigners more than Thais is made by the Thai government, and not by the Thai fellow who is trying to feed his family. And how do you know that I don't pay taxes in Thailand? Finally, I have lived in Thailand for 23 years, but right now I happen to be in Vietnam on vacation. But I don't drink alcohol. Anyway, how do you know that I'm White trash? I could be another color trash.

Even Thais know that it's wrong to charge us more. That's why they disguise the Thai prices by using Thai numerals, knowing that most foreigners can't read them.

While I do trust this particular gold dealer (and only THIS gold dealer) completely, I will nonetheless heed your advice and wait until I get back to Thailand to buy the gold and take possession of it immediately upon purchase. And who knows? Maybe I'll be lucky and the price will even be lower in early January.

As I mentioned, I am out of Thailand now - and will be for the rest of the year.

I often buy physical gold bars at the Hua Seng Heng shop near my home. But I will be out of Thailand for the rest of this year, and I want to buy gold in Thailand while I'm out of the country. Hua Seng Heng has an app called "Gold Now". It is my understanding that I can use the app to buy gold at the current price by transferring money from my bank account to Hua Seng Heng. What I would like to do is to buy the gold now that the price has pulled back a bit, and pick up the physical gold bars when I get back to Thailand at the end of this year. Unfortunately, the app is completely in Thai, so I can't figure out how to use it. First of all, does anybody know, from personal experience, if it is possible to do what I want to do - i.e. buy the gold now at the current price using the app, and then pick up the physical gold bars when I get back to Thailand? And secondly, if it IS possible, what is the exact procedure for doing so? Since my Thai reading is very limited, perhaps someone could demonstrate this using screenshots? If it's not possible, my Plan B is to buy it when I get back to Thailand, although who knows what the price will be at that time? Thanks very much in advance.

I'm thinking about writing a book, "Twenty-Five Years in Thailand Outside of Bangkok Prison". It would be about how I had a good life in Thailand - by having various interesting jobs, saving my money along the way, and recently retiring - oh, and NOT smuggling drugs (or doing anything else illegal.) Sound like a best-seller?

Thanks. And they provided the wheels for you?

Thanks very much. Here is a picture of the wheel in question. Any thoughts?

Yes, but once you get the replacement wheels, how difficult is it to install them? When I looked closely at the wheels of my bag, I don't see any way to change them - although I suppose there must be a way. Maybe I'll ask AI for advice about this.

Maybe there's business idea there - for some enterprising Thai craftsman.

Can I buy a SIM-card at the Phnom Penh Airport? And if it is possible, should I? Or is it better to do it in the city? And are all the service providers pretty much the same (assuming there is more than one)? Or is there a particular one I should go for? Thanks.

Just over a year ago, I bought a relatively expensive Eagle Creek roller suitcase. I loved it - until my last trip - after which a sizeable chunk of one of the wheels broke off. And a wheelie suitcase without a wheel is next to useless. So my questions: Are the wheels on suitcases replaceable? And if they are, does anybody know of a place in Bangkok where I might have this done - if possible in my neighborhood (around the Seacon Square area)?