craigt3365

Paying at 7/11 is what I usually do but I am concerned if I never receive any bill. The main Pattaya office is far away.

That's a valid concern. We didn't get one after we just bought the house. They came and took the meter. Luckily, we were renovating, so it wasn't a big deal. But we've had this happen at least twice in the past 5 years.

The only problem I've heard is it's hard to stop the auto payments. Even after you've notified them, left the property, etc. Your account still gets dinged.

I pay at 7/11 or somewhere like that. Easy. Actually have the maid do it...

English speaking???? Or not?

I don't know of one in Jomtien, other than some garden shops on Sukhumvit. The one mentioned above is pretty much the best in town. I would assume the twice a week market near Tukcom would be good also???

Thailand ranked #35 overall....but is ranked behind several other Asian destinations (Singapore, Japan, China, Malaysia, Taiwan....)

Edit: Regarding safety, Thailand ranked last in Asia behind even Myanmar and the Philippines.

when I read "beat Switzerland for the top position" I knew the ranking was 100% bullshit.

It's not BS, just the way the scores came out. One thing Switzerland got nailed for was cost. And as a tourist, that can be very important. I know it is for me.

I saw one person smoking last night. Right near the stage. The music was great by the way. Really together group.

Well put! Also, easy to get a scooter taxi. Probably 70B or so to Jomtien? It will save you a bunch of time....and perhaps a bit of time standing on Suk waiting for the next baht bus. Last time I had to wait about 20 minutes.

Does the ATM card in question have a chip? If so, it may be problematic as the U.S. is far behind everyone else in implementing that system. If no chip (and you say it's worked before so I'm guessing not) then it shouldn't be a problem.

My bank in the US is replacing all ATM cards with chipped cards. Maybe they are finally catching up there?

FYI...I've had problems with my chipped card here. If you are remote areas, it can be hard to find an ATM that will accept it.

Let's be mindful of our forum rules when posting here:

6) You will not post comments that could be reasonably construed as defamation or libel.

Defamation is the issuance of a statement about another person or business which causes that person to suffer harm. It does not have to be false to be defamatory. Libel is when the defamatory statement is published either in a drawing, painting, cinematography, film, picture or letters made visible by any means, or any other recording instruments, recording picture or letters, or by broadcasting or spreading picture, or by propagation by any other means. Defamation is both a civil and criminal charge in Thailand.

I've not gotten a nasty virus in years. And I browse all sorts of crazy websites. Yes, some are racy as I've got to click on the links posted in this forum to see what they are (that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it! LOL).

I travel a lot, and so browse lots of websites in places like Kenya, Egypt, Ukraine, etc. Because of this, I've got BitDefender setup. It's a paid for service, but not that much if you shop around and find some deals. It covers my 3 computers, my tablet and my 2 android phones.

It blocks websites on a fairly regular basis. Even ones here in Thailand. I won't mention the name, but one of the convention places here has something nasty attached to their website. Anyway, you might want to consider this. Again, in 3 years, I've not gotten hit with anything. Other than lots of these silly trackers, which BitDefender catches during the routine scans. Which happen automatically.

Something to consider????

Laem Sing Beach is very bad. We drove by and the water looked like mud. Started just after you drive over the bridge coming from Chao Lao....over the big hill. Same for the Southern section of Chao Lao, where the seafood restaurants are. It's very shallow there, basically a mud flat. But if you drive towards the northern part of Chao Lao Beach, the water is really nice. Especially the very northern section. We swam every day, from morning to night, and never saw trash nor dirty water. Well...there's always trash on beaches here, but it wasn't bad. It wasn't like a beach on Hawaii, but it was OK. Or perhaps, you hit one of those days that does happen around here. Trash comes in from who knows where. Happens a lot in and around Bang Saray where I live. Unfortunately....

Been to both Chang and Samet many times. Chang has some very nice beaches and you can drive your car there. Samet, you have to take a ferry and if your resort isn't near where they drop you off, you've got a walk down the beach. We've had to walk over 1/2km at times to get to our resort. No fun with luggage. But few go to Samet for more than a few nights. One reason we like Chang a bit better even though it's quite a bit further. At least you've still got your car to drive around and explore.

Even Chang has been having water quality issues. As has Phuket, Samui, etc. Protection of the environment isn't high on the priority list here.

Here's a pic of the beach we saw, the northern part:

https://yogiiiii.wordpress.com/2011/04/28/hanging-by-the-beach/

Doesn't Bell also go to Don Muang now?

Please stay on topic and be respectful of other members.

For the first time, Spain made it to the top of the charts in a world ranking of tourism and travel released on Wednesday, beating Switzerland to the top spot.

The World Economic Forum published the biennial rankings on Wednesday, saying that Spain's move to the top position was "a positive sign for the country's nascent recovery".

"With beautiful heritage sites throughout the country, it boasts top marks for its cultural resources, and also scores highly for business travelers with a significant number of international conferences," the report said.

The country was rated first globally for cultural resources, fourth for supporting tourists' online searches for entertainment and fourth for infrastructure.

Continued:

http://www.thelocal.es/20150507/spain-rated-most-tourist-friendly-country

Thailand's safety ranking slipped to 132 out of 140. Last among countries in Asia and only above Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Egypt, Venezuela, Pakistan, Yemen, Colombia and Nigeria.

Thailand is discussed in detail on page 334 of the report.

I've only been there one time. As you say, there were ash trays on tables. But when the someone next to us tried to light up, they were asked to go outside. Our friends with us also had to go outside to smoke. Maybe it's just during the evenings? It's a big deal to me and I won't stay if they allow smoking. Just my preference.

One reason I like Mood. That and the great music! LOL

Human trafficking. Thais don't consider those in the mass graves as human

I have just returned to Thailand after a few months in the UK and was upset and horrified when the news about the camp (now the second one) was published.

Do you really believe that all Thais have no feelings or empathy for the victims and believe they are not humans?

Well put. As with any nation, you need to separate the government from the people. I can only think of a few countries out of the 87 I've visited where I wasn't happy with the locals. Actually, probably only 1.

Most citizens just want to have a good life and take care of the families.

If you like live music, Helmut and the Jam are performing Friday night at The Lion Pub. They play a wide variety of music and I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself there. The venue is very nice also and has very good food. We went there for the first time a few weeks ago and loved it. Air con and no smoking!

I've got no vested interest in this other than being a lover of live music. And good guitar players.

http://www.lionpubpattaya.com/index.php/component/k2/item/334-fridaymusic

Sorry do not recall hospital name, but private one in Siracha, starts with P

They actually have dedicated department to female health.(like research center etc)

Suppose to be one of the best in the country

I'm pretty sure you are referring to Phyathai Hospital in Sri Racha. Yes, they have a very large department dedicated to this. It's on the same floor as the dental department, which I have been to a number of times.

The best thing about this hospital is Gavin. He'll take care of you for sure! Great guy. Prices are pretty good also.

Forget it in Pattaya. No metered taxis here anyway. I've never seen one in Bangkok either, though did hear of a new service that will be offering them. Only 40 cars to start with.

If it's for expenses, receipts are normally not required for things under a certain amount.

Please, no discussion of moderation. Private PMs are welcomed.

The guy who runs that international travel meeting introduced me to it. He's at one right now in Spain, and has attended several in the past. He knows this area fairly well and is relatively well connected. He says they are great.

If you go to TBEX, let me know and I'll introduce you to him. Or, if you are in Bangkok, stop by one of his meetups!

I think you might get better replies over in the insurance forum. Let's move this topic over there. If we don't get some good replies, maybe we can move it over to the motoring forum.

Good question and I'll be following this to see how it goes.

Topic Moved.

Not sure about Armani, but the Export Shop in Big C South Pattaya (on 2nd road, 2nd floor) has a pretty good selection.

There's a few big stores on Suk just south of Chaiyaphuek. Can't miss them. They also sell the big bamboo poles. I'd bet they'd split them for you?