OldAsiaHand

Thank you.

I particularly love the use of the word 'whinging' to characterize any observation about anything connected in any way with Thailand that doesn't amount to the sort of mindless, half-witted cheerleading that is the usual grist for this forum.

I thought we were talking about newspapers here, but apparently not.

The refugees from reality are, yet again, trying to hijack a perfectly reasonable conversation to pee on anyone who doesn't show everything about Thailand the unconditional love that is about the only focus most of them seem to have left in their wretched little lives.

Good Lord.

....And yes, I am one of those insufferable self-righteous posters you dislike so much......

I couldn't have summed it up any better than that. Isn't confession good for the soul?

......My wife seems to think that we will not get the same exchange rate if we wire money as opposed to changing good ole green backs from a few different times when she wired money back home.

What is the deal on that?

My bank has the option to send Baht or Dollars, is there a benefit either way on that?

Your wife is right, but not in the way she thinks. The cash rate is always less favorable than the wire rate, sometimes by quite a lot.

I agree with the prior poster that you should instruct your bank to wire dollars to whatever account in Thailand you are using and allow the exchange transaction to be done here. In my experience, that will get you the most favorable possible rate at the time of the transfer. The FX spreads made available to consumers by Thai banks are remarkably tight.

Yeah, baby, AWESOME!

[.....what a nitwit.]

....Has anybody an idea for a replacement, they say?....

Not a bad question either, me thinks.

It looks to me like we're going to have another election, so maybe we'll find out. Thais seem to have elections like they have holidays: often, and more or less at random.

Why are all these prior posters raising blood heck about Big Tak running as head of TRT whenever this new election is eventually mandated? He is after all the head of TRT. He started the party in the first place. Who declared the man ineligible for public office (other than a bunch of insufferably self-righteous posters on this forum)?

If he does run, it seems to me that the people who actually matter here (not most of us) will have the final say. Big Tak and TRT will either be returned to government or kicked out. And that will settle the matter. Or at least it ought to, because that's why we have elections for in the first place.

.....Will the fact that I don't have a visa cause us excessive grief?

Where I think some posters are misleading you here is this: customs has no way of knowing what kind of a visa you hold (or don't hold) unless they ask to see your passport. You do not collect your luggage and reach customs until after you have already been processed into the country by an immigration officer and your status is not reappraised by customs when you pass them (if indeed they wake up at all).

I have NEVER seen a foreigner asked to show his passport again going through customs, and I've gone through customs in Bangkok several hundred times. I suppose they could ask, and maybe you will draw the black bean and you will be the one they will stop and ask, but the odds have to be overwhelmingly against it.

I stand behind my earlier advice and respectfully disagree with those who are telling you that a foreigner is more likely to be questioned about luggage than a Thai. That's just not my experience.

And, oh yes, and there is no duty on 'reasonable' accompanied personal effects, just on 'imported goods.'. Naturally, that's a pretty meaningless distinction and the customs guy can read it any way he likes. You do seem to be traveling pretty heavy, but I have seen couples coming through with piles of stuff and nobody seemed to care.

You asked for other people's experience. For what it's worth, that's mine.

Gee, I hate to interupt you guys swapping recipes, but to get back to the original question....

The answer is yes. Bangkok's new version of Woodstock, oddly relocated from Nana Plaza to little Japan just off Soi Thonglor, has biscuits and gravy on their menu. Apparently it's real sausage gravy, too, according to the manager, but better hurry. He also says the dish isn't very popular and they may drop it.

... what will REALLY happen when we arrive?

Almost certainly, absolutely nothing. In nearly twenty years, I cannot recall ever seeing anyone passing through the green channel being stopped by customs.

My suggestion, however, would be for you to go first and then, where you make the turn past the (usually sleeping) customs guys, shepherd your wife ahead of you and make it apparent that the stuff going through is yours. If you are very heavily laden, my guess is that a Thai would be stopped faster than a foreigner.

Why not take your whine to the Post? Or maybe your intention is only to slam them?

Of course his intention is to slam them. What's wrong with that? If you're defending your paycheck, pal, just say so.

In Hong Kong they have the South China Morning Post, a world class newspaper, and in Bangkok we have...uh, the Bangkok Post, a fish-wrapper put out by half-literate Thais and uneducated Brits who couldn't get jobs in the UK.

Ain't life unfair?

...it IS thieving ..... so what?

OldHandLuke just had to jump in on the other side because ... well .... he's unhappy here!

What an idiotic thing to say...

I personally regret that I have to live in Bangkok, so my thoughts on your thievery should be entirely dismissed as not mattering.

It's people like you who make this place what it really is.

Exactly, Brit.

Sorry, but no.

Every seller of a product has the right to determine his own price point. He does so, presumably, in order to maximize his revenue. If the price point is too high, you don't buy the product and he doesn't sell the product. But don't justify buying a stolen product with this nonsense about 'price too high.'

We're not talking necessities of life here, kiddies. These disks don't have anything on them but movies, music, games, and other software. You don't need this stuff to sustain your life and you have no moral right to it. It belong to someone else who has the right to sell it however and at whatever price he likes.

You don't like the price, don't buy. If enough people agree with you, the vendor won't sell much product and will eventually reduce his prices or stop selling. It's called the free market and that's the way it works.

All your lame rationalizations are ridiculous and, yes, sad.

Jeex, I love the aerial. Without that little fin tucked away under my thumb, I'd drop the bloody phone a half dozen times a day.

It seems to me that what this thread adds up to is a terribly sad commentary on the state of the world.

The majority here clearly falls into the screw-the-bastards-they've-got-more-money-than-me-so-I'll-take-whatever-I-can-off-'em camp. I gather what I thought were rather basic concepts of right and wrong are subject to adjustment these days, depending on one's determination as to whether whoever you are stealing from has enough money already.

Does anyone here have any expereince using a PDA Phone with gprs internet?

Im looking to get another device that will allow me to have internet anywhere (almost) for checking emails and such when I am away from my other systems.

Can I just throw a thai sim in there and connect to the GPRS?

Which devices are better then others?

Yes, you can just stick your SIM in there and it will work fine, although I have a vague recollection that you have to notify AIS to give your account access to GPRS and are charged some fairly modest monthy fee depending on you transfer volumes.

GPRS sometimes runs slowly here and not infrequently hangs up altogehter and gives you a time-out, but does work after a fashion. At the very least it works well enough for you to see what email you have waiting (just don't expect any large attachments to come through very well).

I've used a Treo 650 for nearly two years here. One SIM card for Thailand, a separate SIM card for France, and a third SIM card for the US. I have no doubt that its the finest combination phone and PDA available today. The Bluetooth sync works faultlessly with my PowerBook and that is quite a bit of inexpensive software around that will really make the whole package sing.

What happened after the baht was floated in '97 and the Thai economy hit the wall, the OP asked? As a practical matter, absolutely nothing. As a number of other posters above have all observed in different ways, just look around you.

Yes, there was short-term exchange rate instability. Yes, the baht is weaker now than when it was being artificially supported by the BOT. Yes, the SET went into a downtrend for several years. All of those things are true, but it is also true that the economy here has continued growing significantly every year, the equity and fx markets have continued to work as they always have, and tons of money have been made over the last ten years by people who have made accurate judgments with respect to both.

The real lesson here is that short term financial goals will almost always burn you, but that meeting long term goals is easier than most people think.

The people who rave about its 'accuracy' are, by and large, people who spend every night in a bar and know no one here other than bar girls and of course other farangs who spend every night in a bar.

RIP to Dennis Segaller.

I have noticed that book before but never had the pleasure. Perhaps many of us will pick it up in his memory.

(Gentle suggestion, perhaps it would be good for people to mention their enjoyment of other expat authors while they are still alive, they might appreciate the royalties.)

May I second that?

... And since Thailand Elite gives you a Royal Orchid PLus gold card you won't be too annoyed to switch to Thai from Cathay.

Actually, I think you will be, and a plastic card isn't going to help. The two air carriers aren't even remotely in the same class. On the whole, Cathay is one of the world's best and most professional airlines. Thai is...well, a third world toy for local politicians that is unimpressive and unreliable.

And as for the Thai non-stop BKK-LAX, I tried it once and have gone back to using Cathay or Singapore. It's just not worth stepping back so far in class to save a couple of hours on a sixteen hour trip.

....Sad that I get the impression so many other people on TV would be gleeful if it folded though!

Congratulations. You have just attained Thai Visa wisdom.

All of the above is good advice. I've worn perscription sunglasses made in Thailand through various opticians here for years and never had the slightest problem either getting them or with their quality. The cost is much lower than out in the real world as well, BUT do bring your perscription with you.

My experience with examinations here, even in the hospitals recommended above, is that they are very poor. They are generally loose and casual, anything but rigorous. I would simply never rely on on examination by a Thai doctor unless I had absolutely no choice.

In nearly twenty years here, I've never heard of one. There is really no social safety net at all in Thailand other than one's own family. Government plays no role here and private charties are very thin on the ground. I would be very happy for someone to prove me wrong on this, but the odds are that you are on your own here.

To OldAsiaHand, having just been issued with a Central Mastercard (I have a work permit) and currently going through the process to get a home loan, I can tell you there is a central registry of consumer debt in Thailand. It has existed for several years now and most financial institutions and lenders are members. An individual's credit record in Thailand is easily available to member institutions. Applications for credit are accompanied by a form authorising the credit check. No signed form - no loan.

You are indeed correct, although only technically.

There was an announced effort several years ago to establish a central clearing house in Thailand for consumer credit information but -- like most annouced undertakings in Thailand -- it has turned into something of a fiasco. Reporting is spotty at best and, unless they want to get rid of you anyway, the reports really don't have much weight if indeed they request them at all. I have seen my own 'file' and, after living here for nearly twenty years and holding a large number of credit cards and engaging in all sorts of other consumer credit transactions, there is essentially nothing there. Nothing good, nothing bad, just nothing.

Thailand isn't like the US or UK where your credit file is the first and last word. Here it's barely a whisper, if that.

I actually feel sorry for you OAH, cos you are obviously very unhappy....

Oh dear, another yokel who defines happiness as loving this backwards litttle hole unconditionally and unhappiness as wishing you were living somewhere else.

Look, man, in my experience half (or three-quarters or seven-eights?) of the people on the whole darn planet wish they were living somewhere other than where they are. That should not earn them a patronizing pat on the head and a floor of crocodile tears over their 'unhappiness.' Hey, I'm glad you figure you've found your paradise. There are days I almost wish I were simple enough to think the same thing.

I'd be right here mate in LOS, why would I have moved here if I don't really wanna live here?

This is a theme that seems to be played out over and over in threads on this board.

Why is it that so many people assume that every foreigner in Thailand is here because we have chosen it over every other place on earth as the place we want to be. In my experience, most people live where they do because of their obligations, not their desires. Sometimes they are family-related obligations, sometimes they are work-related obligations, sometimes they are something else entirely; but nevertheless, they are obligations of some kind. Good God, do you think all those folks are living in Cleveland and Manchester because they think they're the greatest places on earth?

Is it because the people who can't get it through their heads that everyone isn't here because they love it are a little divorced from reality? Uh....maybe. Is it because this place attracts so many sex-tourist foreigners who are on the lamb from the real world and just assume everyone else must be here for the same reason? Uh...probably.

The OP asked about desires. My answer to his question would be that, instead of living in a very limited third world city like Bangkok, I would prefer to live in a real city with sophisticated people and a genuine cultural life. Nana Plaza is good for a laugh every now and then, but a little theater, some music, even a few decent book stores would be very welcome.

New York, London, maybe Paris. The amount of money the OP set as his standard wouldn't do that, of course, but in the abstract, that's still my answer. Alas, however, I have obligations here. So that's not going to happen for a few years. Darn.

Samitivej opens visa office

BANGKOK: -- Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital yesterday opened its new immigration centre, set up to provide visa assistance to both foreign patients and the general public.

"Patients from overseas constitute more than one-third of our patients," said John Lee Koh Shun, the hospital's managing director.

With the rising number of international patients, Lee saw the need to provide an immigration service for patients who might not be able to go through the visa extension procedure themselves.

Lee said the centre would also benefit foreign patients' relatives, as well as non-Thai residents who live nearby the hospital.

Currently, thousands of foreigners residing in Thailand visit the Immigration Bureau at Soi Suanplu in Sathorn to extend their visas. The new service will reduce overcrowding at the main office and also take care of overseas visitors' problems, said Pol Lt-General Suwat Tumrongsiskul, the Thai Immigration Bureau commissioner.

The centre will open every Thursday from 9am to midday.

--The Nation 2006-04-28

Three hours a week, except for the never-ending holidays that government employees get here, of course. Gee, how very useful that's going to be.