kankaroo

I have a good idea for you LIX : PHOTOGRAPHY!

I spent a lot of time in LOS bored silly of the beer and women lifestyle, then I discovered photography which I love.

Living in Asia presents endless oppprtunities for a person armed with a (semi) decent camera. I am just getting into this in a big way and I would really reccommend the Nikon D50 to start of with. I like to plan my routes where I will go to take photo's and just go out and snap away hundreds of pics.

The journey back home is exciting also as you can't wait to see what the results will be like when you view them on your computer. You could even post a blog with your best pics and and add a wee story behind them etc.

I also find learning the language a rewarding challenge.

Excercise (how ever little) will help your motivation in every aspect.

I wish I found this hobby earlier but better late than never.

Just a suggestion !

Cheers mate, that is good news ! So once I get a couple of grand in savings together we will go ahead.

The reason I ask about the money is because I know that I have to show the last 6 months of bank statements.

Thanks !

Hi,

I have lived in Thailand on and off since I was 21, I am now 29. I have known my GF for over 5 years and we will get married in the UK ASAP. She owns her own property in Thailand and has rarely been unemployed. Last year she took an extended vacation to stay with me in the UK which lasted around 4-5 months.

She had no problem getting the visitor visa but I am worried about the marriage visa. I have been unemployed for a while but have been working steadily for the last 4 months.

Basically my question is this : will it be easier for her to visit the UK again and then we get married here while she applies to stay ? OR is it better to have the marriage visa approved beforehand ?

Also my job doesn't pay that well but is an average, steady salary. Is that more important (or as relevant) as having tons of cash in the bank ?

Hmmmm all very confusing I hope somebody can help. We have been apart for a long time

Thanks.

I hated it and it affected my pretty badly ! I never experienced culture shock, only the opposite.

It depends on the individual and / or situation though... I hate my country and immediately got used to life out East.

Good Luck !

Why travel that far, Poipet is lovely this time of year and has lots to see and do. It's a fascinating & charming gem of a town and I recommend a lengthy stay, if only to soak up the culture

I would not have signed.

I was stoned one time and had some ganja in my pocket (UK). I saw a cop car coming but I threw it onto the street. They found it and connected it with me, and then took me to the station.

They took me into a room and tried to act friendly, stating that I would be released as long as I signed their bit of paper saying it was my ganja. I refused and said I have no idea what they were talking about . They said if I sign, I walk, if not they will put me in a cell. I said 'go for it'.

5 hours later (I believe the maximum time they can hold you w/o charge) they opened the door of the cell and told me to piss off

When I was young (18 or so) I uncharacteristically stole a packet of sandwiches from a shop while drunk. I ran off but the cops caught up with me and again I threw them away before they caught me. The cops were laughing about how I was not going to able to enjoy my sandwiches in the cells, and were waving the packet in my face as I was cuffed in the car.

At the station they started the same "sign this" crap again. I refused all knowledge of any sandwiches and signed nothing. I spent a night in the cells and was released the next day without charge.

Nowadays I don't smoke dope (or nick chicken sandwiches while inebriated), but I also don't have a criminal record stating 'THIEF' & 'DRUG USER' all because I didn't sign anything.

It is hard enough getting a job nowadays with a clean record !

Good boys ! Walkies !

The problem with the British Government is that if you are out of the uk for a longtime you lose a lot of your benefits so why make it easy for them. They tax you on every pound you make in the uk on your pension or any other income but take away your rights to the benefits you pay for. It would be another crime if they change the tax system to the same as America and still enforce there unjust system of refusing you the benefits your tax pays for. I would tell the British Government as very little about myself as I can.

Regards

Scotsman

The only sensible (sane) course of action.

Ok, I just noticed it too Had a heavy night last night and that is my excuse !

Before this turns into a thread about making a fool of the technicalities of my post, could anybody address the point that I less than eloquently tried to make ?

I'm pretty sure Meadish Sweetball has come across this type of situation before. His aptitude for the Thai language seems to be excellent !

Could always test it on a particularly nasty soi dog ?

yep... any suggestions? i have been stuck in that 150-175k usd/year range forever now.

Poor bugger, I can feel your pain !

Right now I am unemployed in the UK and living on £3 ($6) PER DAY ! and that is in a western country. Granted it won't be for long, but still.

It's pretty real when you have to 'live' like this.

Wake up & stop whining

I just thought of this today. Normally when I am speaking Thai, people will generally understand but have a wee laugh & giggle at my pronunciation etc. I wondered what reaction you guys (who speak perfect Thai) get when dealing with a Thai who has a smaller vocabulary than yourself.

Maybe vocabulary is not the right word, perhaps intelligence. What I am trying to say is what is the reaction when you use a sophisticated word in Thai, to a Thai person that they don't understand the meaning of ? Has it happened ? What was the reaction ?

I am reading a book at the moment about the evolution of the species and am humbled that I will come across words that I don't know the meaning of. I will then have to look it up in the dictionary.

Interesting......

I've posted this one before, but it is good enough to be posted again.

Walking along Silom (not far from the Dusit Thani) a bedraggled looking, long haired farang steps off a bus. He was adorned in the Khao san road fisherman pants /long matted hair & beard style, PLUS he was not wearing any shoes ! Totally barefoot. He is already getting looks from many Thais dressed for the offices etc, and then he proceeds to pull out a full size Rambo knife and mango & begins peeling away at it in the street.

Maybe he thought he was deep in the jungles of Laos or somewhere, instead of the business district of a large city.

Amusing stuff though !

I think there is a lot of truth in what the op is saying. I believe there is a divide between the pretentious ex-pats who are trying to show off, and the rest of us that just want to distance ourself from the 'embarrassing' tourists.

Many times I have found myself in a shop / restaurant or whatever, and been totally shocked by the way some lagered up, loudmouthed, chang tank top wearer is making a fool of himself. I will usually smile to the abused member of staff, speak in a politer than normal way, and also in Thai.

I think it is just my little way of showing the Thai person - 'hey, we are not all like this !'

Does anybody agree ?

People slamming doors in your face (i.e 7-11), people looking at you like you are from another planet when you hold a door open for them.

One old lady even scowled at me when I did it. I pondered over stopping doing all that, but the British gentleman in me prevailed !

Also I totally agree with soundman regarding the more expensive tourist restaurants no being able to sell, what do the government care how much as farangs drink anyway ?

One time I took my Mum to Fuji to have a nice meal. We had been walking in the heat for a while and decided a nice chilled bottle of wine would go well with our meal, only to hear the 'no can sell'. Then to get asked if we wanted water, cola, fanta etc

For some people stocking your fridge up may be the answer, but not for me !

I am more likely to drink what is there when normally I wouldn't walk to the shop and buy it, no matter how close it is.

I am sure a lot of members here can relate

If I were really, really rich and could go to Thailand whenever I wanted, for as long as I wanted, I would live there part of the year and go to San Francisco, London, New York or Montreal for the hot season eating at all the best restaurants and seeing the best plays and concerts.

That way, Thailand would never stop being exciting and I could have the best of both worlds.

Amen

I don't know what to think about relationships really.

When in one I feel trapped, without one it gets lonely.

so whats the point that ur trying to prove in this thread? To generate humor? or to ridicule the Thais?

You clearly haven't spent a lot of time in Thailand..........

The Bangkok Post is still misspelling the surname of the Swedish victim. Great reporting, guys.

No mention anywhere in that report of Thailand's very high murder rate (not just tourists). I think that is what they need to get to grips with.

Finally the claim that Thailand does not have enough police is completely laughable. The police officer to population ratio is one of the highest in the world.

Agree, they need to spend less time chasing after minor drug dealers / users and more time on REAL crime.

Remind you of anything ?

Chairman MAO v Pigeons

Alex...

I know people in Bang Kwang, I also know people in lard yao, the same as I know people in HMP in the UK................

HMP in the UK is preferable to a Thai prison for sure, but hey, all my mates that are inside are all guilty of the crimes that put them there, they will readily admit that.

Do people deserve to die cos they import/export drugs..................... No Way.

Goverments tax people on whiskey and cigarettes without the death penalty, so what's the fawking difference ?

My sentiment exactly ! If they combined all the deaths attributed to EVERY illegal drug in the world per year, it is a mere fraction of the annual deaths related to alcohol & tobacco alone. But it's OK because the government say so.

Here in the UK they are trying like crazy to get cannon fodder to sign up for their illegal wars, but will jail you for years for growing a few cannabis plants in your home. I could go on, but I won't. You get the picture.

Check this link, it puts things into perspective : http://www.oralcancerfoundation.org/tobacco/problem_tobacco.htm

Worldwide, 47 percent of men and 12 percent of women smoke a total of 6 trillion cigarettes a year. In the U.S., 600 billion cigarettes are smoked every year." (World Health Organization, 1999).

About four million people die worldwide each year as a result of smoking. In the United States, tobacco use is responsible for nearly one in five deaths, killing more than 490,000 Americans each year. (Institute of Medicine 2007) This is more than the number of people who would die every year if three jumbo jets crashed each day with no survivors."

Don't be too hard on the guy as I think his comments are taken out of context. We've been predicting and warning that the epidemic was about to raise its ugly head again. The culprit was complacency. When the new infections decreased in large part due to the herculean education and prevention programs the government and public health workers had implemented years ago, people said ok, the problem is solved. When new treatments came out, those that had not been educated, figured, ok, no problem we'll just pop a pill and it will go away. So when it came time to cut budgets, HIV and STI prevention was slashed. All the benefits from the hard work was lost. I think the tip off was the jump in herpes and NSU infections in females 2 years ago.

The scariest part of these developments is the spike in adolescents and in the important reproductive population segment. This time around, it is hitting young women hardest. The impact will be felt in the economy soon enough once the workforce deteriorates and the sosts associated with care set in.

The current HIV rate has to be adjusted to reflect the decrease in screening. Years ago, there was a terrific screening effort. Now, it's just another victim of funding. There are a lot more cases out there that the general public is unaware of simply because the carriers have not been identified. Another big driver in the infection rate is the depressing increase in IV drug users. Unless something is done now and fast, Thailand will be back to where it was in 1992 and this time around the strains will be more resistant to medication. No subsidized drug program or theft of proprietary rights will solve that issue either.

Oh I think they are going to be very pro actively on the case of that matter, from today I believe !

Bring millions & millions of baht and set up your own property company.

Have you thought about TEFL ?