QED

Costs vary, the only advice I can give from experience is hire an old ugly one, remove temptation

ABU has rights for terrestrial and ESPN STAR Sports (ESS) for cable/satellite?

http://www.sportbusi...2-olympic-games

Under the deals, the ABU has acquired the free-to-air television and radio rights within the region and ESS has acquired non-standard television rights including cable and satellite television platforms. In addition, both organisations will have certain simultaneous unaltered retransmission rights on other media platforms.

Agree, this article makes no sense at all. I read it three times and still cannot fathom it out - headache now

True magazine had the olympics on the front cover and said it would be on about 5 channels I think, Truesports 3,4,5, ESPN, TS Extra2 etc, etc. - <deleted>?

After the Euro's I am sure they will not let this happen again

So I finally got to try the autogates coming into Thailand a couple days ago.

All I can say is..."wow"! It took literally 20 seconds.

First you put your (Thai) passport, open to the information page, in the slot. The first set of doors open, and you go inside. There, you stand on the footprint outlines for your photo to be taken, and put your finger on the sensor.

Then the second set of doors open...and you're in!

The instructions are very clear -- in both Thai AND English -- though they did have a couple ladies on hand to help. One of the ladies also took the arrival form from my passport.

I asked her about this, and she said that use of the card for Thai passports would not be required in the future (though it still is for time being, while they are changing the protocols).

Extremely impressive!

Hi NMT, did you have to register for this? (We do in the UK). I realize it is for Thai's only, just asking as I often fly with Thai staff and I have a fast track card, but end up waiting for them on the other side...

Ummm, the refinery has been there nearly 50 years, when there was no housing nearby. If dipshits choose to move there because it is cheap rent then that is their problem, IMHO.

Why move it? Cheaper to knock down the nearby slums and create an exclusion zone.

Many thanks for all the replies

Just a quick last one, if you do go the whole distance and get your barrel and cooler, you will find that there will be a lot of wastage on the first draw of the day. It has something to do with the ambient temperature dropping just that one degree overnight. Best to finish the barrel before turning in!

Also be careful when cleaning the pipes that you have the correct cleaner and that it is diluted correctly. Apart from that, enjoy.....

Thanks for the tips. Have actually sent emails to thai bev and boonrawd to see if i can get one from them. I do a lot of entertaining at home so it will definately get used.

Love it, where do you live?

Gotta get me one of these

You will receive lots of PM's from 'financial advisors' now, hehe.

Seriously, following the old endowment shambles in the UK, the first thing any financial advisor worth his salt should tell you is to keep your life insurance and savings separate. ie you have a term life assurance, which only provides a return in the event of death - bit like car insurance, you don't get a rebate if you don't claim. Then what you would have put in the savings element goes into a separate savings plan. More effeicient (potentially more tax efficient), more transparent, less hidden charges.

However the schemes that give you a lump sum at the end if you don't claim, a la endowment, pay huge comissions which come from huge charges on your savings, so expect every 'financial advisor' in this country to recommend this option over what I outlined above.

Also agree with above poster - don't tell your wife about the policy

Did you just use the word "elite"?

Yeah, was getting a bit carried away with my rant . But certainly elite compared to the Somchais most members come across during their daily business.

I guess I should have said comparatively elite.....or something like that

I wonder how many of the self declared experts on here have even been inside a refinery, plant, or rig in Thailand? I would guess the vast minority. I have been in dozens, including Bangchak, I had staff there performing integrity checks just a few weeks ago (on the other side of the plant I am happy to say). I have also been in dozens around the world. Thai safety standards in the oil industry are, IMO, as good as the 'developed' world, and far better than a lot of places I have been.

I have seen people marched off sites and instantly dismissed for safety breaches in Thailand, their training, maintenance and integrity planning are up there with anywhere else I have been.

You want scary, try the government run refinery in Kingston, Jamaica. They really are in their own little world and will not allow any Western influence, that really is an accident waiting to happen. I actually reported a guy for smoking a joint whilst wearing flip-flops and no helmet in a hazardous area, and just got a 'relax mon' from the site manager....

Seems all the naysayers here are relating their experiences with local traders/vendors, and have not seen the elite class of overseas educated Thais who are now the top and middle management in the oil industry here.

Talking about offshore, as said the majority is Chevron, and the PTTEP fields are 40% owned by TOTAL and something like 30% British Gas, they are just operated by PTTEP. And guess who the overall manager of the Bongkot Field is? A French guy from TOTAL.

As said accidents happen all over the world, UK, USA, Aus etc., so please stop with all the unwarranted Thai bashing, when the majority of you don't even know what you are talking about.

I'm more interested in who dumped millions of Lego bricks on the beach....

The first 20k per month or so is tax free, after that it is on a sliding scale up to 37%. My tax bill here is not far off what I used to pay in the UK. I have a lot of Thai staff who are contributing quite a lot in taxes

Don't know about the collar bone, but sounds like just bruised ribs for the OP. I did this playing rugby a few years ago and it was a good few weeks before I was back to normal, just need to take it easy for a while. Might be a good idea to lay off the gym for a few weeks too....

A little off topic, but I know a lot of rugby fans also enjoy a bit of Aussie Rules. Thailand play Laos at the Thai Polo Club near Maprachan Lake, Pattaya, this Saturday at 1-30pm ko. Might be an interesting afternoon for anyone local.

Perfumes are considered as dangerous goods, most likely, the ground handling companies have the rights to remove it without consent.

Errr, no they are not.....

You can also use ground pork or ground chicken which I find is available more often than beef in my local Tescos

Memorial hospital? Just a few meters from the junction of Klang and 2nd road, inexpensive as it is a government hospital.

Sorry, wrong, it is a private hospital, but the cheapest of the three private ones in Pattaya.

The public (government) hospital is Banglamung.

Has this changed recently? Last time I went there for a minor injury (about 2 years ago), they would not accept my insurance as they said they were a government hospital? Might have been something lost in translation I guess...

Memorial hospital? Just a few meters from the junction of Klang and 2nd road, inexpensive as it is a government hospital.

Condos. All the restrictions of apartment living, coupled with the risks of home ownership.

No obvious risks if you rent. And the "restrictions" generally seem to be no dogs, no loud music, no burglars. All of which sounds pretty good to me, especially when combined with other "inconveniences" like a huge free guarded car-park, close proximity to the beach, restaurants, shops and public transport, and a cracking view. Not forgetting that I can shut the door and go away for an hour or a day or a month or a year without even having to think about what's happening whilst I'm away.

I keep trying to work out what I could possibly gain by living in a house in Thailand, and I still haven't got beyond "termites".

If you tell yourself enough times you will begin to believe it. Good luck with your rabbit hutch, I'll take my large house with private garden and 24/7 security any day of the week. Free car parking in my drive, 200m from the beach and close to the shops and restaurants. Maybe a cost issue?

It's on True Sport Extra 1, channel 107 on sattelite. Just checked the programme guide, coverage starts at 2pm on Saturday, followed by Australia Wales at 4.30pm, and SA England at 9.30pm.

What a great Saturday it's going to be!

The simple point that I was making is that from what I saw they were ONLY targetting foreigners and taking their stuff, the flight both ways was 90% Thai people NONE of whom got stopped. Secondly this is pure theft, its not their stuff to take, I believe that the Thai security staff are either using or reselling this stuff hence their zeal.

I hope the rule is revoked especially for domestic flights.

I have since been told by a friend from the USA who is Bangkok based and travels all over Asia regularly on business that IF you are coming back to the same airport you can insist they bag and keep your stuff and you can then retrieve it on your way back in. He tells me he has done this a few times but the authorities hate doing it (as its extra work etc..) but if one insists strongly enough they apparently have to.

They target the people with liquids in their bags, which they can see quite clearly when they x-ray it. Seems the 90% Thai travellers were more savvy than you and actually followed the rules...

and yet they still allow butane lighters in the plane?

Not from Bali airport they dont... strange how others dont follow!

When was this? I have been through Denpasar about 2 dozen times and never had my lighter confiscated. Beijing, Shanghai, and Kingston Jamaica all took them though

How do you behead people these days? Do they have a proper Guillatine? Or use a blunt rusty knife and do it slowly, as per the many videos on Youtube during the Iraq conflict? Big sword?

Seems like there are many easier ways to do it, is there some religous significance?

Not commenting on the rights or wrongs of this, just a morbid interest in how they execute the executions......

"Geezer in England means man."

So 40 million or so out of 6 BILLION know what Geezer means in England. Would work well on an all england bulletin board.

It is a colloquialism which I was not aware was restricted to England. There are plenty of Yank words on here that I don't understand, but rather than complain I use google, try it sometime.

If you are an American and you open a business investing a minimum of 2 million baht and employ 4 people you can get a work permit.

Rather simplistic, there is a very long list of occupations which you cannot get a work permit for.

The OP was looking for employment not starting a business, and as such has very limited (if any) options. I know a few farang 'bar managers' but you would have to have experience in this field for someone to hire you. You will also get paid peanuts.

Can't seem to edit the last post - I meant geezer means a man of any age in England, often heard in pubs between 20 something year olds 'alright geezer?'

Haha, he knew it was a geezer, but still happy to have his mugshot pasted all over the internet. What is the Jewish view on this kind of thing?

A 20 year old is a geezer? Are we speaking the same language? What's the Jewish view on transgender issues? Depends on the Jew you're asking!

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Hi Jing,

Geezer in England means man.

Totally forgot about Dana, thanks for that. I thought she/he was quite hot at the time until the truth came out (that was in my younger days before I moved over here).