josephbloggs

7 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

The alcohol ban is so that all the local mom and pop stores can sell at double-price because they are doing you a favour, therefore boosting the local economy. 

Really.

Never paid a single baht over the normal price.

7 hours ago, Happyman567 said:

Dogs have right of way in Thailand  They bite you and get rewarded 

Interesting.  How do they reward dogs that bite people?

On 4/15/2021 at 9:53 AM, LosLobo said:

All MSG is the same, Ajinomoto in Thailand makes MSG from the natural fermentation  of natural sugar cane and natural cassava.

 

I generally serve all my food with lashings of MSG for that unique umami flavour.

 

Here is an interesting article about MSG!

 

If MSG is so bad for you, why doesn't everyone in Asia have a headache? | Food | The Guardian

Interesting article, thanks.

27 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Like pretty much everything else here! No political will, no backbone! (And who owns PTT???)

What has PTT got to do with this?  Or you just felt like a little rant?

It is Bangchak Refinery, it is a publicly listed company and is not state owned.  But yeah, I am sure moving a privately owned facility of that size and complexity is as simple as pie.

Do I wish it would be moved?  Yes, I don't think something like that should be where it is.  But I also understand you can't just click your fingers and make it happen.

8 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Oil refined right in the capital--<deleted>! What does this add to BK's pollution index???

The refinery was built 60-65 years ago when that location was way outside the city and pretty much uninhabited.  I don't think anyone back then could have seen what Bangkok would become today, and now the city has enveloped it.

There has been talk of moving it out of the city for years and years but I guess it is easier said than done.

8 hours ago, John Drake said:

 

I don't know where you've been staying. But the bigger production houses for film and TV are in Singapore. You want to make a deal, you go to Singapore. Beach House alone does more than Living Films and A Grand Elephant combined. People  bring work into Thailand, yes, but a lot of it is piece work. Workpoint has a lot outsourced to it. And a lot of the foreigners doing work here are sleazeballs. Not talking about you, of course. They're all penny pinchers and cut every corner they can. There is only one reputable middle company level guy I know who even has a nurse on set. 

Not necessarily disagreeing with you but I think we are looking at different angles.  Beach House make a lot of great content internationally, yes, but my point was Thailand is a regional hub (there, that word) in that productions from overseas choose to come here to shoot.  90% of the regional TVC work that's handed out by the regional agencies in Singapore is shot here, never in Singapore (unless unavoidable).  If it can be done in Bangkok they will come to Bangkok - even as I said to the extent they will let celebrity talent go through the torture of 14 day quarantine.  

We had a big Toyota shoot (5 day shoot) from Australia coming here last year (got pulled when Covid hit when cast and crew were already here).   No-one would choose to go and shoot in Singapore unless they needed footage of Singapore or is was a Singapore production.  But agree there are definitely big professional outfits there just as there are here.  Personally I have never shot in Singapore so I can't testify to how the crews compare but I think Thai crews are pretty hard to beat.

Anyway, yeah, lots of sleazeballs at the lower end of the market, especially on the programatic/episodic side.  However there are tons of extremely professional, extremely well run foreign owned (and local) production companies here.    I have been on 6 TVC shoots recently - two for car brands, four for beauty brands - and all of them had nurses on set.   Four of those shoots with foreign owned houses, two with local, all superb.

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For at least three days now there has been a giant gas flare burning over Klong Toey port. We live miles away and it's clearly visible day and night. We don't remember seeing it before and it is quite noticeable. Does anyone know what it is?

That's the Bangchak oil refinery.  Quite common to see the flare.

19 minutes ago, eeworldwide said:

 You dont know what you're talking about. I've been in the film industry for 25 years and here in Thailand for 12. Marvel studios with Netflix currently filming here. There's a rack of films slated up for filming here over the next year.  Thai film crews are brilliant and serve very well as first or second units. One area that Thailand HAS got right is the film industry and accommodating it. Long may it continue.

 

You beat me to it - I was just about to reply to the same poster in much the same way.  I have also been working in the TV and film industry here for 25+ years and Thailand is easily the regional leader and is an easy place for foreign productions to come and shoot.  I've worked on everything from local, regional, and global TVCs to Thai movies, regional movies and Hollywood movies.

We had a regional TVC shoot here last month where they flew the celebrity here rather than shoot in one of that poster's "better off" countries, complete with the talent doing 14 day quarantine as that is how much they value the quality of Thai production.  We have another shoot this week with foreign celebrity talent having travelled to Thailand and done quarantine rather than shoot in their own country.

The industry here is world class.

21 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

Not in the private hospitals of Phuket, you're paying

Well yeah, duh, what a silly comment - it's a private hospital so of course you are going to pay there..  Go to a government hospital and you're not.  Your choice.

3 hours ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Un-<deleted>-believable! Making the public pay for tests! This is a new low.

 

Are hospitals, even private hospitals, not in the business of ensuring public health? And is it not govt's responsibility to provide tests for free?

 

And you wonder why people are spreading Covid around!

Calm down.  The test is free for anyone who has come in to possible contact with the virus.

4 minutes ago, Golden Triangle said:

I read it, for what purpose ? There is no more on there than on here ????

It's because in that article there is a line - right at the end  - that casually mentions food and drink will be available, where in reality due to Covid restrictions there will initially only be vending machines.  He thinks this is worthy of highlighting and that he is a detective genius for spotting it and he wants the world to know.

And seriously, who doesn't know how to copy and paste a URL?

6 minutes ago, DividendGuy said:

Do they have VAT taxes in the Philippines? If so, how much is it?

Are you kidding?  It's right there in the OP in a massive picture that shows you in graphical form the VAT levels in different Asian countries.  Is it really so hard for people to read (or even look at) articles before posting?

13 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

That plane looks a bit big to land at Hat Yai.

It's a stock photo.  No LCCs here fly 747s.

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

So possibly people view it and learn lessons... building mistakes costs lives...

If one life in the future is saved then it's worth watching what/why/when it happened.

Yeah, so he was posting it for all the Thai structural engineers on the forum, got it.

18 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

He was just seeing if he could make it work out for him. That's all.  We don't stay wealthy if we don't try a few side hustles now and then and try and recoup what we can now do we.  

I read your post as you thinking the Thais were wrong to question him about it.  If you agree he was wrong but was just trying it on, fair enough.

10 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

A friend of mine built out the shell of his condo and spent over 2 million baht doing it.  He also lives in the Philippines and the US. He tried to claim the VAT refund at the airport upon leaving after buying the aircons, stove, refrigerator and washer and dryer.  They wanted to see the units in his luggage.

Yes, and exactly right.  If I order an item in the UK for export I would not pay 20% VAT.  Doesn't matter where I live if I buy an item in the UK for use in the UK it is subject to UK VAT.  Just the same as Thailand.

Why would your friend be so stupid as to expect to get a VAT refund at the airport for items that are in use in Thailand and that remain in Thailand?

On 3/31/2021 at 9:32 AM, colinneil said:

Laughable init, the magic smart car, absolute nonsense, they are just trying to justify the expensive of those cars by coming up with this BS.

The computer system tracked him down, only used 1 of the cars to go and get him.

You fall for it every single time Colin.  Clickbait TVF headlines to get you all frothing.  They are so obvious it is laughable but not as laughable as you guys who get all in a tizz each and every time.

Read the actual Immigration bureau release that they are referring to and link to.  They detail the arrest of three people (including a Thai murder suspect).  Not once do they "praise the capabilities of their now famous fleet of (BMW) smart cars.".   Not once, not at all, they are not even mentioned in the article.  That is a TVF headline to get you lot posting your nonsense replies without doing a single click of research, then to get people posting replies to replies so TVF get more traffic and more advertising revenue.  And hey, it works, here I am! 

No doubt this story will go on to generate many more replies with similar predictable comments denigrating Thais and Thailand, all thanks to a headline writer who knows exactly how to get you lot clicking.  You can see the clickbait headlines a mile away; normally I skip them but sometimes I pop my head in just to see everyone falling for it - it never disappoints.

Laughable innit.

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Does anyone here knows available parking space near in MRT Sam Yan?

How long do you want to park for?

Samyan Mitr Town is directly connected to the MRT station.  Two hours free, 20 baht per hour for the next four hours, 50 baht per hour after that.  Not sure if you need to get a stamp validation or not but you can get a coffee in Starbucks if necessary.

Can also park in Chamchuri Square but can't remember how much it costs.  Similar price I think.

4 minutes ago, Lakegeneve said:

Yes, it has an interchange level between the concourse and platform levels as it was always planned as an interchange station. Of course built before the Orange line was extended from Ram to Miniburi (absorbing the previous MRT Brown line) and before the western alignment was changed from Victory and Ratchatewi rd to Pratunam and Phetchaburi rd. 

 

Some advanced design and planning there which is unusual in the BKK mass transit context

 

"Life size model" might be a stretch but I do have a picture somewhere of the outline of the tunnel rings with train façade that were on the eastern wall of that level. See if I can track it down.

Here you go.

14 hours ago, Cake Monster said:

No need to panic

Pythons have no teeth, but can give a nasty suck.

They do have teeth.

7 hours ago, FarangryBirds said:

There’s still a lot of work going inside Thailand Cultural Centre station on the blue line, if memory serves, this is where the Orange line will interchange. Previous to the works inside the station, there was always a placeholder showing where the orange line would meet.

I used to get off at this station for work a couple of years ago.  The station is much bigger than others and always had a (I assume) life size model of two trains coming out of tunnels - presumably orange line trains.  This was just in an otherwise oversized hall. So definitely well planned for many years.

3 hours ago, Crossy said:

You know what they say about many a true word ^^^

Oh my God!!  Bang Sue?