jesimps

Not just a Pattaya problem.

They'd have to pay ME considerably more than 200 baht to stay in Jomtien during Songkran. I won't be going further than my front gate.

Watching TV and Youtube documentaries on the universe,, I'm always overawed by it's size and complexity. Everything (including us) is created by it and returns to it. Therefore to me, there is no supernatural being, the universe (whatever it is) is God. There are no churches etc and there is no worship required, it's just there. I'm willing to be put right, but there's no one living on this planet who can do that for sure.

Going from Jomien, I used to pay 10 baht to the traffic lights at the crossroads between 2nd Road and Pattaya Nua and 20 baht if I was going further along 2nd Road.

Some people just can't get by with their own company. All they have to do is go to the local bar and within minutes they'll have a walt giving them their life history. That's what I found anyway, before I met the missus.

To make a god-awful racket, chase motorcyclists and pedestrians and <deleted> all over my front lawn and drive. Also make a nuisance of themselves on my local golf course. Roll on the visit from the vermin control people with their blow pipes to carry out their periodic cull.

It was the same route in a minibus some 16 years back which made me swear never again to use one. I never have. If I can't travel by car or plane, I just won't make the journey.

It's just that here corruption is a way of life and mostly a blind eye is turned to it, whereas in the west, it's much better policed.

"I do not condone the shooting of the dog but i can understand the anger and frustration of the shooter.:" I do, maybe the shooter has young kids. I've read about a lot of UK dog attacks on kids and old people recently, some of them fatal. Dogs should never be allowed on other people's property, just like loud bass-heavy music. They're both a menace.

Not if the guy doing the shooting has young kids who could be attacked by the festering thing.

I've watched a lot of Youtube vids on the universe lately and never cease to be amazed at the immensity of it and what goes on out there. I'm told that I was created from stardust and stardust is what I'm going back to. God to me is the universe.

Cheap and earache free. Guaranteed.

????

Would have or would've. Not would of.

"This new requirement is from divisional head quarters in KK and he did point out it is only for new applications and not required for renewal next year." This is how the marriage visa home visits started, wasn't long before it was for every renewal, first or otherwise.

The insurance companies must be wise to this by now with the Indians, surely.

I should imagine that these foreigners are fellow Asians ie Myanmarese, Cambodian or Loatian. A westerner would find it difficult to pull it off.

After having several motorbikes in my lifetime and having a full UK bike license, I came off a moped on Koh Chang. I'd only been here a short while, had a lady passenger and was tackling a switchback on a steep hill. Suddenly a pickup coming down cut the corner and I had to drop the bike. Fortunately, because we were going uphill and therefore slowly, neither of us had any bad injuries, but the bike had a few bent and scraped bits, the repair of which I had to pay for. In my 16 years here, I've never ridden a bike on a road since, because it brought home to me that no matter how much riding experience you have, there are just too many idiots on the roads to risk it. If I travel, it's always by car with me driving.

You could be right there, this one's wife number three. We never learn, although we've been together for 16 years, so not doing too bad this time around.

I hope this also applies to marriage visas. Wouldn't want to keep 'er indoors waiting outdoors.

I personally wouldn't consider taking motorbike riding lessons from a Thai instructor, he'll only pass on his own bad habits of riding locally. I'd be looking for a British instructor. Seeing so many bike accidents here caused me to quit riding on main roads here years ago and although I still have the machine, I only use it for going to the local shop and emergencies if the car breaks down.

There's always one goody two shoes/teachers pet type on every forum. I think they actually get off on being holier than thou.

When I lived in France, I had a wonderful galvanised steel bucket with a mop wringing thingy across half of the top. I could press the mop really hard to get rid of most of the water. A plastic bucket just can't stand up to it and soon breaks. I've been looking for one here in Pattaya, but so far have been unsuccessful.

I've been in Thailand for 16 years and been stitched up by the traffic police three times. It was only 200 baht each time, but still a stitch up. Twice it was for "spending too much time in outside lane" whilst overtaking a line of cars and the other was when the BIB showed me a small wrinkled piece of paper with "120 KPH" written on it when I was actually well within the limit. I payed up each time rather than surrender my license and drive to find some obscure police to pay the fine and obtain a receipt. Yes, I know, it just encourages them.

"But there are a few who will take advantage of situations where they think they can get away with stitching you up for a few thousand baht." A few? I'd say about 99% of them.