seaeagle

“Tourists come to Thailand for the beautiful scenery. Nightlife is not their priority,” he said.

A truly amazing ignorance of the desires of so many tourists to his country.

We've stayed at Khao Sok quite a few times, but I admit we just go to be lazy - no hiking or rafting! Have stayed several times at the Cliff and River resort which is outside the park, about 10km past the park entrance, closer to Surat Thani. Makes a very nice relaxing break from Phuket. The restaurant in the hotel does good food too. Have been out on the lake before, great place, and we're planning to stay at one of thefloating bungalows end of next month.

Sri Phang Nga national park is north of Takua Pa on ther way to Kuraburi, we went one time last year and walked a couple of km to Tamnang waterfall which was impressive, you can swim there and there are fish all around as you swim. We saw they have some simple and very cheap bungalows there, I think it was 400B per night, we might just stop there next month too.

I'd endorse "The Cliff and River", too. Google it - nice website. May be a bit pricey, but, hey, my days of slumming it in national parks in this climate with only a fan are over. C&R has air-con, fridge, TV, access to canoe and elephant rides, good restaurant, swimming pool, etc etc. Lovely place.

If your other half is Thai, then one of the part-owners is a guy from the 'more serious' Thai soaps. He's usually away filming, but his Mrs runs the coffee shop at C&R.

A day on a long boat at the dam is spectacular - well recommended. Have to say, though, I didn't like the look of the raft houses - exepct them to be pretty hot and uncomfortable, I'd suggest.

C&R is only 1/2 hour from dam, so just drive over there for the day. Lots of Thais stay at C&R, so do book up well in advance.

Lots of meetings with various people and bodies regarding tourism - however, none of which seem to be with representatives of the tourists / tourism-providing countries!

Would be useful, don't you think, to seek the input of those coming here for holidays, rather than just Thai interested parties?

It's called 'customer focus group', or something like that - you should try it!!

The Nation enlisted Chaleo as one of 40 individual Thais who have made themselves known internationally.

Who are the other 39?

http://www.nationmul...om/top40/news/5

Well, I'll accept golfer Jaidee, tennis guy Paradorn, most definitely the scrumptious Tata Young, and, of course, Khun Thaksin of Man City, but the rest???????????

It's a bit like, "name three famous Belgians". I think the rest of the world may struggle with this one.

Mind you, I did once bump into Anand Panyarachun (former PM) at Paknam Seafood restaurant once, in his capacity as a senior director of Siam Commercial Bank.

The Nation enlisted Chaleo as one of 40 individual Thais who have made themselves known internationally.

Who are the other 39?

179 baht at Tiffany's.

Unlimited buffet, newspapers - could spend hours there!

Only drawback is busy Viset Road frontage.

Seem to be getting stuck on future opportunities if kids remain here, so I've started a new thread to try and find out from parents what their late teens / early 20's are doing.

Should be interesting to see any responses.

Another thread is getting bogged down with this question, so let's start a new one.............

Assuming you're a parent who is living now on Phuket, and probably intends to continue to live here:

• you have 50/50, or 100% foreign, children
  
• they've had education at a local International School, OR
  
• they've had education at a Thai school
  

What is it that your children, in their late teens, or early 20's, are doing, and where, in terms of jobs and salary?

Don't forget the other tag-line, "Miracle Thailand"!

I have been following this thread with interest as I am also exploring the possibility of living in Thailand, although not Phuket. As HKP has stated such a move has to put the kids future first and foremost.

I have done a fair bit of research into schools and areas to live and I feel that given the right school my children could get a very good education right up until the IB qualifications, which would potentially allow them to go on to University. My biggest concern is what would they do having finished school at 18 or so.

As I understand it ( and I stand to be corrected ) in order to qualify as a UK student at a UK university you have to be ordinarily resident in the UK for three years prior to beginning the course. Otherwise you would have to pay much higher overseas student fees. That is of course if the children have the ability or desire to go on to university. So in reality if this was the course they wanted then you would really have to return to the UK to live when they are around 15yrs old, probably not worth the disruption of uprooting them from school and resettling all over again.

Are there any other options ? I can't think of any but would be interested to hear what others think.

This is what I referred to in my first post in this thread - you MUST look beyond the teenage years.

I repeat that there's nothing here for a person with a decent education. Even if you put them through an International School here, then what? Nothing!

Look at it this way - we're here because we've got a good education and career and income from our home countries. What you don't see is kids being brought up here through school, working here, then retiring to Gold Coast or Florida in their 40's / 50's. What you do see is people in that age bracket who've studied and worked hard for rewards in the 'west', then coming here.

Me thinks a nice little junket for some school owners and department heads.

Thee are so many opportunities for different sports and outdoor activities to get into and enjoy year round. Swimming, surfing, running, cycling, tennis, triathlon, thai boxing, sailing, diving, snorkeling, target shooting, paintball, music, climbing, horse riding, art classes ... If it is too hot at noon, no problem to do outdoor activities in the afternoons.

Okay, but maybe we have a different 'take' on what I'd call organised activities and the infrastructure for such sports and activities. To each of your activites, I'd respond as follows:

Swimming : in the sea? pool at home? Apart from 'Funstart', I don't know of any pool where it is easily accessible to the public and is marked with lanes for competitive swimming.

Surfing : I'm not from a surfing country, but I do know people who surf here in the low season, so I'll give you that one - almost. Most of the surfing done here, though, is internet surfing.

Running : if you call dodging the traffic, dogs and noddle stalls 'running', then I'll give you that, too! However, I'd be thinking more about running / athletic clubs, and there's not much of that here, unless you wish to count that drinking club formed in Malaysia known as HHH.

Cycling : ditto to above. Again, you take your life in your hands when biking here, and you may see a few guys around with pretty colured crash helmets on, but where is the competition and races?

Triathlon : no, you don't get any points for this, as it is made up of sports above. While phuket is a 'venue' for a triathlon, just take a look at the results. That will show you where the strong competitors come from, and it's not from here.

Tennis : yes, I'll give you this one. The ones in Phuket Town and on Chao Fa West are pretty good.

Thai boxing : hmmm - yes, it's available, but I see very few locals (other than Thais) doing this, They all seem like bulked up yanks and aussies on a 'camp' from their club back home. And that's the rub - "from a club back home" : you have clubs back in the west, but here it's all on a commercial basis.

Sailing : know nothing about this, but I do know friends who take their kids on little sail boats at Ao Yon, so I'll kind of give you this one, too.

Diving : where are the diving clubs? where are the places you can train and go diving with club volunteers? No - training and ongoing diving is just on a commercial basis.

Snorkelling : done at the seaside when you get bored with swimming. Again, no snorkelling clubs, or education around what you can see when you go snorkelling.

Target shooting : what's this? Bows and arrows, or rifle? Know nothing of this, but if you can name me a club you can join (rather than a commercial enterprise) then I'd love to know.

Paintball : oh, pleeeeze! Reminds me of a corporate day-out, rather than a regular hobby!

Music : totally agree, but it's indoor so I don't count it. Can be done anywhere : Thailand or Greenland.

Climbing : presume you don;t mean indoor walls, as we don't have these here. Do you mean the karsts of Phang Nga? If so, then, again, I'd ask for a local climbing club.

Horse riding : just maybe I'll give you that. The place in Rawai does riding, but that's all - no jumping or cross-country like you'd get elsewhere.

Art classes : as in 'after school activities'? Almost in the 'oh, pleeeze' category!

Think carefully, and ask yourself, "what is there to do here?" We have the beach, the beach and the beach. Nothing else.

If that is what you tell your children then I wouldn't be surprised if they get off the right track as teenagers and start to waste their time ...

Okay, tell us. What is there to do here for teenagers? Emphasis on the do - not just socialising around malls etc.

And, as for HKPhooey, the weather is the drawback here for sports and activities. People don't go out the house after 10am, then venture out again after 4.30pm - it's too hot for outdoor activities and pursuits. Unless you can show me a list of Thai gold medal winners and sporting achievements, compared to those in the normal expat countries, then you're talking rhubarb.

Thais unable to work in Asean, but also many Asean nationalities unable to work here because of Thai language requirements on a day to day basis in these professions.

Result? No change : Thais stay here, and not many foreigners come to take the jobs. Just what those who run this country want.

You don't know anybody in Thailand that would prefer an English speaking medical practitioners, dental practitioners, nursing services, engineering services, architectural services, surveying qualifications, and accountancy services?

I think the medical dictors and nurses will have the greatest oppurtunity.

You haven't quite got the point of this and my post. In ALL of the above professions, in order to function and perform, the job-holder must be able to read, write and speak Thai. We're not talking about expats on temporary assignments here, we're talking about ASEAN people who want to come and work in Thailand without barriers.

Imagine if a non-English reader, writer and speaker wished to work in USA as a dentist, surveyor or accountant. Just how would that work? They may pick up a little business from 'their own' who perhaps lived in the local area, but they couldn't interact with the business world outside their language capabilities.

With the AEC, English is the defining language to make this work. And, both ways, that is a virtual non-starter for Thais and Thailand.

Often, you hear about a "threat to National Security" from Thais. Having qualified and intelligent foreigners come here, and take important jobs like you list would be exactly that, in their eyes. They won't tolerate it, and the Thai language is the best form of security.

And don't forget, we have all the different mafia and protection here. Do you think for one minute that local engineers, surveyors et al are going to sit back quietly while 'clever foreigners' come in to take their jobs? There'll be blood, man!

One of the better countries around here with English speakers is, surprisingly, Burma. It makes me giggle when I think of some Burmese coming here to work in the hotel industry and, probably, getting a reasonable position due to their superior English skills. Then, one day, we'll see a Thai employee wai-ing his Burmese line manager : they'll just love that!!

Thais unable to work in Asean, but also many Asean nationalities unable to work here because of Thai language requirements on a day to day basis in these professions.

Result? No change : Thais stay here, and not many foreigners come to take the jobs. Just what those who run this country want.

Think carefully, and ask yourself, "what is there to do here?" We have the beach, the beach and the beach. Nothing else.

Someone replied saying that their kids eat together, cruise the mall, take in a movie - that's hardly 'doing', it is just socialising.

Now, look a little beyond those teenage years. Exactly what kind of jobs / careers do you see them doing in Phuket, and at what salary? Then, consider the varied opportunities and choices you have in the 'west', the social benefits and salaries that could be earned.

This is a great place to bring up young kids, but when their education, awareness and development becomes more important than splashing around in the pool or beach, then you need to take them away from here.

But she is pretty!

......and also in the 'Top 150' most powerful women in the world.

Not wishing to overlook the 'sexual harrassment' aspect to all of this, but I'm always curious (amused?) by the ranking of the educational establishment in question. So here we are:

Suan Sunanda Rajabhat University:

Country rank : 49th

Continental rank : 762nd

World rank : 2812th

Wow! We are looking at some serious brains here - not!

To me 2000 baht a night, just for accomodation, is expensive. I'd be wanting my room cleaned and a brekkie thrown in for that, but, there again, I would go for hotels, rather than this self-catering mularkey.

In my opinion, you can do better once you get here.

I transfer from Nationwide to Kasikorn online, it has never taken longer than 24 hrs unless a weekend or Bank Holiday is involved. An exceptional good service considering how long it takes to transfer cash within the UK....as you say long may it continue!!

In this age of electronic transfers you have to ask why in the UK it takes 2-3 days to shift cash from your UK Bank to the UK based Bangkok Bank, while they can do International transfers within 24 hrs and within Thailand it takes minutes to transfer cash to or from other banks?

Just another bankers scam!!

Sorry, but what is the 'scam'?

it can take a long time getting through malaysia immigration,

i recommend trying to sit near to the exit on the plane and getting to the immigration hall as quicky as poss. as to avoid any queues.

Not any longer. No arrival cards, no fingerprints, just an e-swipe of the passport and a few seconds, and you're in.

If a child is of mixed nationality, it would be useful to give the child the choice of working in either country, yes?

No chance of a good job, never mind an actual career in the developed world if all they have is a Thai secondary education.

Critical thinking is not part of the curriculum.

Who has said anything about only having a thai secondary education.

The thai universities and thai persons studying overseas are not all students from international schools.

Note that:

• the input and output from Thai universities (barring two or three) is laughable
  
• Thai people studying overseas, obviously, are pretty wealthy in the first place to be able to do so. So, that family money would bring them rewards, but likely back home in Thailand.
  
• At most International Schools (certainly at HeadStart) the majority of students are Thai. That's a very harsh judgement on their own education system by those well-off Thais who can afford to give their children a better start in life.
  

Thais just can't, and don't, perform well outside of their own confines. (In fact, they don't perform particularly well inside their own confines, but that's down to few checks, balances, and no-blame culture). Look around at the world organisations and bodies - how many Thais have made it on the world stage

I might be wrong but I think you now have to watch the 'How to drive in Thailand' video which is only shown at certain times.

You're right.

And, when I watched it, I was amazed that flashing your headlights to the car in front when you're overtaking is the correct way to do it!! In Thailand, that is.