KayT

Thai's are just soo ignorant at times! No manners, whatsoever!

Excuse me? Did you say Thais are so ignorant and no manners? I'm not Thai but I call your comment foul, uncalled-for. For all I know Thais relatively polite people, wherever you go, inside the train, in the bus, everywhere, with few exceptions like this train incident where you based your inappropriate comment.

As a person who rides the trains and buses everyday I am subjected to the rudeness of all sorts on people who travel with me.I have been loudly abused on the bus in Thai language about why a foreigner is on "their" free bus or even why I am sitting whilst young strong fit healthy people have to stand.Obviously I couldnt possibly understand what they are saying because I am not Thai so it is considered acceptable to be rude.What a shame.I have seem young men and women push old people out of the way as they are about to sit so they can get a seat.I have watched as pregnant women are made to stand whilst young men and women sit.They will pretend to sleep,stare intently at their train ticket or gaze at the ceiling.Anything to avoid seeing the pregnant belly that is very visible at their face height.I cannot offer my seat as I dont have one to offer.I have been over charged for trips by a few baht because I apparently can afford to pay more.And the best one was when I was told to get off a bus because I was a foreigner and I wasnt welcome on their bus.

So my friend please make sure you have had plenty of time to observe facts before you mouth off about how polite these someones are.

Thank you

What school do you attend KayT.

Unfortunately due to certain restrictions within this forum I am not able to answer this question as much as I would like to.I do know I wont be spending any more of my hard earnt money at this particular school no matter what they offer unless the text material changes dramatically.

Thanks for asking anyway

They have been systematically closing all loopholes that allow foreigners to live here other than on a non-imm visa with WP, retirement visa, marriage visa or PR. So this is not a surprise. They are no doubt capable of using google to find all the ads offering ED visas for those who enroll in Thai language schools. The government view seems, rightly or wrongly, that long term residents below retirement age must be working without WPs and evading tax, so they don't want them here. Western countries would also not allow mature students to stay on ED visas for many years without getting degrees or diplomas from recognized institutions other than language schools. Perhaps they will limit ED visas for study at Thai language schools to, say, two years. Two years' full time study should be enough to achieve fluency in spoken and written Thai and enable serious students to go on to do a degree in Thai.

Yes two years full time study is possibly enough to gain fluency and be able to live here quite easily with Thai language skills.I guess it also depends upon the school and the method that is being taught.Currently the school I am attending has a questionable level of language.My Thai friends who have read my text have stated they do not use such grammar nor sentence structure and if you were to talk like that in regular conversation you would have people lying in the street laughing.I guess it depends on the school.As a conscientious student I attend my lessons and can now read and speak easily as well as write some but that was only because I studied outside and not from what I learnt in my classroom.Maybe if the departments who control this visa were serious about making it a legitimate thing they would make sure the school was offering a program that would allow a student to gain proficiency?

Remember when you were at school and they'd be one kid who'd always be taking. The teacher would say something like "Children, if the whole class behaves then you can all go to break five minutes early. If anyone speaks then it's detention for all of you." Thus putting the onus on other members of the class to tell the annoying child to shut it and get in line.

The Dems are showing it is possible to run a country the same way as you treat a class of 8 year olds. Next step will be a ban on staying up after 8pm and not allowing anyone out to play with their friends if they are caught protesting.

Absolutely right.

Do the Democrats regard this as an example as good government ? - its nothing short of emotional blackmail.

What will they do next - cancel Songkran if the Red Shirts hold a rally in April?

Pathetic.

I seem to recall something earlier this year where Songkran was cancelled in part due to a Red shirt rally.It was one of the saddest Songkrans I have been in Thailand for.

To all the guys out there who think that for a women bigger is better,think again.Even Western girls tend to prefer an average size.

Condoms can be fun and they can be worn safely and correctly.

Take the time to buy a few different ones and play with them.We were taught in school how to use them as so that they stayed put and how to withdraw safely so you dont lose it.You are meant to hold onto it as you pull out because most men lose their erection after ejaculation.

Apart from that.Monogamy doesnt have to be boring.

Having been a teacher in several so called International Schools in Thailand I would like to say my piece.

My own children went back to their country of origin to study as the level of education that was on offer was less than adequate.They were in the schools I was teaching in and yet they still were not being educated in a manner that was good enough to give them the skills they would require for being further educated in a Western school system.

I have done what I was allowed to do to help the students I taught so that they could be prepared for whatever life dished out.The same as I provide for my own children.

The students I taught not only gained knowledge but also the skills in how to learn.These are two very different concepts.Until this is standard and Thai students have an idea How to learn, then it will not change.Regurgitating facts that are for set style questions is not what life is all about.

Light,Love and Learning to all

And so the readership of BP will decline even further.

When you are hurting your biggest marketplace by your restrictions it stands to reason that you will suffer the consequences.

Thailand in general is experiencing this right now as backlash for some of the major incidents that have made international headlines in the last 2-3 years.

I guess BP wanted to experience that sort of thing for itself.

Good work and keep it all up. TIT and nothing surprises me here anymore.

KeyT, thanks for your opinion. I will not argue as the readers might say again that I am contradicting our student. This is how you feel about our school and that is OK. This forum helps to keep us accountable as no other school. If you have any specifics about mistakes in the book please point it out and we will analyze it and if this is indeed the case we will make corrections.

What was your main objective in coming to our school? Learning Thai or getting ED visa? I understand you do not have any problems with the way we handled your ED visa paperwork and extensions so at least this point is satisfying to you. Am I correct saying that?

I would be happy to see you in the classrom and what kind of student you are, we would be happy to offer extra assistance for your specific needs as we give guarantee on our lessons. If a lesson is in your opinion not worth your money tell us this and we will replace it with another. Of course Walen would like to know the reason.

Some people are taking their Thai course in a relaxed manner and this is their business. If they want to do book 1 for a year it is up to them, if you are not happy with their progress talk to them. We are not forcing students to move to the next book if they did not learn book 1 to their satisfaction. You did not hear of any students who made excellent progress or students who are saying good things about our school?

What about you? Can you mention any good points about our school or in your opinion Walen is a 100% failure?

I will talk about other points like not following the book with my teachers to make sure they do it. I am not able to be in every class all the time however when I have time I sit in lessons and observe. Comments like yours help us to provide better service because we strive to achieve 100% satisfaction although in practice it is not possible.

Now we have about 1,200 students using our ED visa assistance. You mentioned space, regarding space Walen is the biggest Thai school in the world. In Times square we have 16 classrooms, on the 3rd and 24th floor (did you know we have a school on the 24th floor?) And in the Elephant building we have 7 classrooms, in Pattaya we have 8 classrooms and in Chiang Mai we have 8. So total of 39 classrooms. They can sit 12 students each so at any given hour we can have 468 students learning. 1,200 students is far below our capacity.

Please talk to me at school in person, I am sure we can provide additional help with your studies so you can improve faster. No feelings hurt by your post. Glad you made your opinion known to the world.

Walen School - Our aim 100% satisfaction

www.thaiwalen.com

My main objective in coming to Walen is to learn Thai.I want to do my PhD next year and can only do it if I have my Thai language up to speed as I will be dealing with Thai Nationals in the course of my study.

Good points...

1. Its clean and tidy.

2.The reception staff are very helpful and efficient.

3. The reception staff are very tolerant.

4.I get to meet other Expats.

As far as serious language study goes....sorry there are not any points I can list.

Serious progress by students? I have spoken to a few people who say that they have progressed but only because they do a LOT of extra study outside the classroom.

I am also curious why your method insists on teaching in a style that is so unlike what a native Thai speaker talks.I have used some of your sentences in the street,in fact I have had Thai friends read your book and they nearly fell over laughing because Thai people dont speak like that. Mistakes have been pointed out to you and you have chosen to over look these.

And as a matter of point....all the things I listed in my previous post were facts not opinions.

Thank you for addressing my points.

Kindest Regards

Am I just imagining it, or does it seem that often when prices or feels are raised in Thailand--either commercial or government--it tends to be a very large increase, which often represents a burden and feels punitive?

It is true that fees here go up at a high rate, but we mustn't forget that they also remain stable for many years sometimes more than a decade! This is the way the bureaucracy works here.

In other countries rates go up on an annual basis to match the Cost of living index (or whatever it's called).

How much does a foreign embassy charge here now for a new passport compared to ten years ago?

I recall the huge outcry when IMM raised extension fees from 500B to 1,900B after having left it stable for about a decade.

Many posts were about "Thailand doesn't want us" and "I'm leaving" etc., well most of those people are still here.

We all have to accept the fact that prices have to up, but yes a gradual increase would go down better with everybody affected.

opalhort

p.s. English language question: in the above post what is correct "those" or "these" people?

Those is correct.

I hope that helps.

Heres the situation :

Thai national living in the UK, already a British Citizen with a valid,British passport. Thai Passport has expired or been damaged,so needs to be renewed.

The person concerned is going back to live and work in Thailand and will, occasionally, be travelling to different regions of asia, therefore,it would be much more convenient to use a British Passport(no hassle concerning visas).

The person wants to go back to Thailand on her British passport and apply for a new Thai passport when in Thailand. This i think would have to be done within a month as her 30 day stamp on arrival would expire. Her idea was to then go to Poipet and cross the border ,leaving Thailand on her British passport and then leaving Cambodia on her British passport and entering Thailand on her Thai passport.

The problem is, then ,when she leaves Thailand again on her British passport,(which she needs to do to travel to certain countries) there wont be any record of her being stamped in on her British passport , as she entered Thailand from Cambodia on her Thai passport.

Am i missing something? Is there an easier way around this, other than her renewing her Thai passport in the uk? As said previously she would rather do that in Thailand.

Thanks for any advice in advance

As far as dual nationality is concerned.It is frowned upon and it is usual that you cannot hold a Thai and other nationality passport after the age of 18.If it is found to be so then the person in question may be stripped of Thai citizenship.

I would suggest getting a new Thai passport in Britain and then using it to enter Thailand and keeping the British passport for out of the country journeys to make it so you dont have to get a visa in those countries that accept British citizens without a visa.

They would be better served having a clampdown on substandard teaching and changing of classes to suit lecturers other money making ventures.

Figures in establishment or with power telling the young to not do something usually has the opposite effect.

Maybe if the uniforms were less revealing the teaching standard would improve.Must be very distracting all those pairs of panties flashing at you while you are trying to teach.

I have a brain tumor and it needs to be removed. I'm facing the difficult decision whether to do it here in Thailand where it would be much more affordable, or returning to the United States where the quality of care MIGHT be higher.

This decision is complicated by the fact that I need to have the surgery done while AWAKE. Yes, I will be conscious for part of the surgery so that the neurosurgeon can map my brain. This will allow him to remove as much of the tumor as possible without inflicting any brain damage.

Not only will the neurosurgeon need to be highly skilled for the surgery, but the entire team will have to be top notch. The anesthesiologist will be very important as will the neuropathologist(person looking through the microscope to diagnose the grade of cancer) and the neuroncologist(brain cancer doctor).

Money is of course important, but to me, quality of care is of GREATER importance. My question is: if someone was cutting open your skull to slice out a tumor while you were awake, would you feel more comfortable having the operation here in Thailand, or in the United States?

I've spoken with some docs here who seem incompetent and one who seemed quite good. Does anyone know anything about the quality of NEUROSURGERY here in Thailand? Is it comparable to the care in western countries? I understand that many of the doctors here were trained in the west, but I'm looking at OVERALL care from the entire team.

Thanks for any input.

Hi

after doing the rounds of many Drs and hospitals here in Bangkok to get a diagnosis for my own head problem I found Dr Ketchai at the BNH hospital in Silom.He was the only one who took the time to look at my films and my previous results from other places and to help me with treatment even though my medical picture is not textbook diagnosable.He is trained in the US and is part of a very very competant neurology team at the BNH hospital.Fees are reasonable and your insurance will help more than at Bumrumgrad.

As a result of the care and attention I have been able to maintain a very god level of brain health.

At no stage did he just want to just give me drugs and send me off and he has gone out of his way to care for me even when I had to go to another hospital when my insurance would no longer cover my costs.He set up appointments and assisted the new treating Drs as well.

BNH has a great lab and operating facilities and the level of care is second to none.

I hope this helps.

I wish you speedy healing and a long healthy future.

Light and Love to you

From what I understood about this whole issue it was not so much the bar mat as the fact that she apparently abused the police when they asked her to open her bag.Now I dont know about anyone else but when in a foreign country and you are approached by police people for whatever reason,you keep your cool and comply within the bounds of the law and common courtesy.Even if she was drunk,as has been reported, she was still capable of maintaining decent behaviour one would hope.If not then the owner of the bar would then be held liable for serving alcohol to a drunk person.

This story has many sides and I feel that the way it has been reported is not fair to the LOS.

Thailand has a lot to offer but the drunk farang element causes a lot of problems here for many parts of the community.

Once this lovely lady stops crying victim and accepts her part in it all then the issue will go away.

I went to the ATM the other day and put my visa card in the machine for a cash advance.

Previously I had been charged 20 baht max for a fee.This time the machine says this transaction will have a 150 baht surcharge.Do you wish to proceed?

Well I didnt know if it was just the one bank or not so I took my card out and tried another bank.SAME THING.

Now this kind of bites REALLY big time as we already pay a visa surcharge of $5 (or more) to get a cash advance and the exchange rate fees and now another 150 baht as well.If it is a debit card you are using it bites even more because it is your money they are charging you for and not credit.

Does anyone have any further information about this? Stuff like are all the banks now doing this? And when did it begin? And will it continue or get worse?

Looking forward to hearing.

Went back to Australia 2 Christmases ago.I was supposed to stay 3 weeks.I ended up lasting only 10 days.

The people were so so rude and I had problems with the money and I was constantly trying to work out what they were really saying because the Aussie accent can be really bad.Everything was SO expensive and so crappy.At least here when you pay cheap you know you get cheap and it is easily replaced.There everything is expensive and still crap.

The family wasnt really interested either so the only reason I was there so long was that I couldnt get a flight back sooner.

Dont miss it at all and wont go back unless I am forced to.

I am expat Aussie here in Thailand and I DON'T EVER want to go back for reasons of my own.I respect that guy for standing up for what he felt was right.And if he was happy in the space he was in then there is no reason for any one to belittle his choice.It was his and the laws allowed him to live that way.

Rest in Peace Lad.

OMG no more Pepsi in a bag.Now how will I drink my drink if I cant have the bottle?????

1.You will need a new visa ASAP and you cannot get an extension because the MOE wont process a new work permit unless your current visa has 3 weeks at least left before it expires.

2.Tourist visas are free until 6th June so will save you 2000 baht on getting one.

3.A new non-B can then be processed without having to go out of the country again as you will have 60 days plus possible 30 day extension by going to the immigration dept and paying 1900baht but that is sort of a safety net as the MOE should have finalised your paper work within the 60 days.

4.Your new schhol has to have documents from your old school to make new papers for you.You have to have copies of your teaching licence,cancellation of this paper and cancellation of you current work permit before new paperwork can be processed and so you will have to collect that yourself if you dont want one HR to contact the other.Having a copy of your work permit is really helpful as it has all the numbers on it and so processing a new one is faster.They have records of all your previous documents and you may not have to provide some again.

5.No rush on the visa timing and they dont check but a visa is technically supposed to be cancelled on the same day as your WP and you then have 7 days to leave the country.If you want your paperwork to match up and have no hassles getting new documents its best to comply because they can refuse to make a new Non-B if you havent.

I hope that helps.I have just dont this myself and so I know it is not fun but the easiest way to go is to follow what the law asks so you ensure no snags with your next Work Permit.