ponder

I want to thank everyone for their helpful responses.

I stopped using this website about 5 years ago because every post ended up being a nasty and nonsensical off-topic argument. I have been lucky enough to meet somebody who is a lawyer, and if I find any information from him which I think is useful, I will share it here.

Thanks.

A Thai friend of mine has been imprisoned at Lat Yao for possession of drugs. I would like to get some information about the procedure for visiting prisoners and taking supplies to them.

Does anyone know where this information is available in English?

I would also be pleased to hear from anybody who has had experience of visiting the prison.

Thank you.

Good luck and may they have many children.

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I do not think they will have any children, but they will have a good time trying.

I am getting out of here. I wish they would have designated areas for this activity; some people have to get on with their everyday lives.

I went to Khon Khaen a few years ago and throwing water after 6pm there was not allowed. I think there should be some kind of controls on what people can do in Bangkok during this festive period.

Does anybody know what exactly is the fuction of a zebra crossing in Bangkok? Are motorists supposed to stop to allow pedestrians to cross, or is it just a place where people can cross the road without committing jay-walking?

I am not being facetious; I really would like to know.

While I understand the problem I do not like the solution. Universities should be open. THe libraries should be a resource for all. CMU ever since its disgusting treatment of the students at CMU Language Institute seems a more and more xenaphobic place ( and I do not use that word in relation to anywhere or anyone else in Thailand).

I went back to visit my old university (Cambridge) last March. I had arranged to meet one of my Thai former students (who is doing a Masters degree in Nottingham) there, and he was looking forward to having me show him around. I was amazed to find the colleges on the river are charging fifteen to twenty-five pounds to tourists wishing to enter their grounds. I used to wander through Kings College three or four times a week to go my lectures, and in the three years that I was there it did not once occur to me to go and have a look around the chapel or listen the choir.

When I saw the price, I took my student to a pub instead.

rip another highway minivan disaster , sad for the families , i never will set foot in those tins of death ever again

Nothing wrong with the vehicles!

It is the imbeciles who drive them.

I do not agree; there is something wrong with the vehicles. I got on one a few weeks ago, and I was beginning to feel ill, so I decided to get off. It was impossible. Once you are in and the van sets off, you are locked in. There is no room to move, and it is impossible to get out. I started to panic, and luckily, the van had to stop just outside Pattaya so that everybody could get off and pay before proceeding to Bangkok. I paid, and then I called a taxi. I can imagine the horrible panic that must have taken over the people in the van.

RIP

It officially will end the 15th....but there may still be areas to avoid...

Wait until the 17th if possible, things will be back to the usual (ab) normal routine then.

It looks as though I will be waiting until the 17th or even later. I left Bangkok to avoid the festival, and went to Khon Kaen (really nice place); however, I did not give any thought to getting back to Bangkok and all flights trains and buses seem to booked up until Thursday. It is lucky that I am on holiday.

I wish they would restrict the water-throwing to designated areas, then (maybe) everybody would be happy, even grumpy old spoilsports like me.

I went to my local Thai bar last Saturday when there was an alcohol ban. There were only two other customers there, and the owner, who speaks excellent English, told me that they had requested two beers when they arrived. She apologised and said that she could not serve alcohol because she was afraid that the "******* police" would raid the bar and fine her. At this point, the customer said,flashing his ID, "Don't worry, we are the ******* police. Just put it in a paper cup and it will be alright."

And we all lived happily ever after.

Does anybody remember the ban on the advertising of alcohol imposed by the late Prime Minister Samak? He justified it saying that it was to combat the problem of too many people drinking too much. Two weeks after the announcement, he overturned the ban and told us that the reason that he had reversed the ban was that alcohol sales had dropped dramatically. Well .......

The mean streets of Phetchabun are fairly dry after dark at Songkran so you should be safe.

Not qualified to answer your other question I am afraid, but I am not aware of any.

Thanks for that. I hope to stay (externally) dry for a few hours a day at least without locking myself into my hotel.

Hi.

I will be in Phetchabun during Songkran. Are there any gay bars there? Are there rules about water-throwing after dark (such as some provinces)?

A few weeks ago, I was at Siam station. The train arrived and there was not enough room for me to get on, so I found myself at the front of the queue waiting for the next train. After a very short time, I felt that I was in danger of being pushed accidentally onto the tracks, so I stepped out of line and joined another queue. I rremeber telling some friends about it later that evening.

This incident was bound to happen sooner or later, and I hope that something will be done to stop it from happening again; the way things are at the moment during rush hours, it will happen again and next time it may be fatal.

Thanks for your help.

I have a three-piece suite which is extremely comfortable but a little grubby. I would like to have it recovered. Does anybody know of anyone who provides this service?

I live near Naratiwat Road and I notice that Unique Engineering have signs up saying that the BRT will be finished by early 2551 (I hope that's Thai 2551, not Western!).

There is an official BRT website but it's nearly all in Thai and it would take me about six months to try to get through it. Does anyone know anything about the plans for the BRT and is there any website in English?

Yes, your partner will require a visa for the Republic of Ireland. You could try pleading your case to the Irish embassy in London, but under normal circumstances, the visa should be sought in the usual country of residence.

Scouse.

Thanks for that.

I'll see if I can get an accelerated visa from the Consulate in Bangkok. I have almost two weeks to do it.

I think it's ridiculous that we have a UK and Schenhen Visa and that they entitle us to travel almost everywhere in Europe except the twenty-six counties of my home country! However, rules are rules, so I suppose I'll just have to try to get around them!

Three visa applications and three visa application fees to travel in such a small area!

Thanks for all your help.

Thanks for all your help.

We have now applied for a Schengen VISA and we should have it next week (with a bit of luck).

One final complication : we will be travelling to the Republic of Ireland also. If we have both a UK and a Schengen visa, do we also need an Irish visa? The Irish Consulate says yes but that seems crazy to me. We do not have time to obtain a visa to Ireland here in Bangkok anyway because it takes a month, apparently and we leave on 23rd March. Do we really need one and, if so, will it be possible to get one in the Irish Embassy in Britain? My partner has been to Ireland before, about two years ago.

The main problem is that we have booked a flight from England to Ireland on 4th April and a flight form Ireland to Spain on 5th April, so if we can't go to Ireland, we lose our airfares and our hotel charges in Madrid.

Any advice?

I'd be grateful for a little advice as follows :

My Thai partner is travelling with me to Britain in a couple of weeks on a tourist visa. We are hoping to travel to France and Spain as well.

Will my partner need a visa for every country that we visit? And is it better to obtain a visa here in Thailand or to apply from the UK?

Thanks for your help.

Just as a matter of interest, why do people breed crocodiles illegally? Is there a market for their skin, meat or something?

I invited a male friend to Ireland last year and he had no problem getting a visa, even though he just worked in a bar in Bangkok.

If you know any local politician, you could ask him to assist you with your application - i.e. talk to somebody who may be dealing with the application. I did this but it turned out to be unnecessary, so I don't know if it would have worked or not. If the politician knows you personally, I think it should be a help.

It may depend on her age also. If she's very young, they may not be keen to grant the visa.

A Thai friend of mine will be visiting me in Ireland next March. As he has been there before (2 years ago), I do not think he will have any problem getting another visa.

However, I am hoping that we can go to Cheltenham races together and I assume that he will need a separate visa in order to enter the UK.

Are there any special arrangements for people who already have a tourist visa to Ireland or will he have to go through the standard application procedure?

I am not a British citizen (I am Irish), so I presume that I cannot invite him to the UK.

Does anyone know anything about this?

Thanks.

Has anyone recently reported within the "seven days after" period? I've just noticed that I am a day over and may go today but not if I'm going to be fined. I'll take a chance and not bother reporting.

Thanks for that information.