tonititan

Personally, I am really enjoying living in Thailand. The last few years have been great, and I do enjoy returning after visits at home. But, I am very much looking forward to moving back home someday.

I do know of several people who returned home after living in Thailand for varying lengths of time. The majority of these people are unhappy, but the common denominator appears to be money. Getting a job at home right now is tough, so they are living with relatives/friends and trying to scrape by. I think that you really have to plan ahead if you plan on going home. I am doing that now - already starting to save up so that I have plenty of money to get started when I go home eventually.

In a short space of time the weight loss is likely to be water and stored 'energy' from your liver. If you return to normal eating the weight will return. You need to change eating habits, less fat etc etc. develop muscle (muscle burns fat - but weighs more than the fate you have lost) - so don't rely on weight as a measure of your success but the BMI (although a crude measure it's a start until you get fitter) and the improved fit of you clothes. If the weight stays off for a year then the diet is working.

Best of luck.

I agree that there are other things to pay attention to, such as the fit of your clothes, because scales do show frequent fluctuations. However, I don't understand your suggestion to measure success based on BMI instead of weight. BMI is calculated using your height and weight, correct? Height is most likely not going to change, so the only thing that changes a person's BMI is in fact, their weight. BMI therefore fluctuates as much as weight. Am I missing something? Can you explain your reasoning in a different way?

Well, fore one thing, I doubt that Thailand has the variety that other countries have. There are many different types of vibrators out there. I want a specific kind.

No need to bring one as they are sold here

I don't think I'd trust the quality of vibrators sold in Chinatown. I'd rather buy from home.

You're kidding right??? Whether you bought it at home or not it was probably made in China anyway... Besides never known any battery powered vibrator to do serious harm to the owner...

Nope, actually I just looked at the package that my current one came in. Made in the USA.

From Thai custom website: http://www.customs.go.th/Customs-Eng/Trave...?menuNme=Travel

2. Prohibited items

They are goods for which either the import into or export out of the Kingdom is prohibited, e.g.,

Narcotics

Obscene items, and publications

Counterfeit goods and pirated items

Counterfeit notes and coins

Protected wild lives

Violators of laws related to illicit drugs, .e.g., having and holding for use, or being a producer, seller, or transporter are subject to the death sentence.

Is a vibrator an "obscene item"?

Good question. I wonder if there is an actual definition of "obscene items" anywhere, or if it's just up the judgment of individual police/customs officers. Anyone have more info?

Also, I know that there probably isn't an answer for this question, but I'm still wondering - would it make a difference if it's a man or a woman bringing the item into the country for personal use? I don't mean it would affect whether it's an "obscene" and therefore illegal item, but perhaps it may affect what is done about it. I can't imagine the customs guys looking a woman in the eye and telling her she can't bring her vibrator into the country. Who knows, maybe it would be opposite though.

My understanding is such things are technically illegal in Thailand, hence their absence from the mainstream stores... And their presence in some shops in Chinatown and elsewhere usually is on the sly....like any number of other things around these parts...

Any idea if it's "technically illegal" only to purchase them here, or to possess them here as well?

No need to bring one as they are sold here

I don't think I'd trust the quality of vibrators sold in Chinatown. I'd rather buy from home.

Are they illegal here? I knew they aren't easy to get here, but I had no idea that they might be illegal!

Oops. I brought multiple sex toys (including a vibrator) into Thailand last year. I had it in my checked baggage, and no one mentioned it. And yes, no batteries is a great recommendation!

I'm curious to hear if anyone else has had any experiences with this, as I was planning to bring another one or two back this year. Don't know if I want to do it if it's illegal, though.

No, but neither is sitting in a bar. Do you think before you type? Try it sometime.

Actually, I was thinking. I wanted to know the facts before I said anything else, so I asked the question. Thanks for the suggestion though.

I'd say that for those of you who frequent the bar scene & have no problem doing so, then her report nor her investigation shouldn't cause you any concern.

Well said. No reason to be upset about the report unless you're ashamed or embarrassed of what you're doing.

Unless ocourse you are misquoted and taken out of context or the filming is cut in such a way as to make someone look bad....nonothing to concern yourself with. I mean, it's not as if they are trying to sell a story is it?

Wise up please

I agree. Can you imagine if they wanted to film people walking in and out of a sex change clinic. Would these principles the previous two posters proclaim still stand up?

Are sex changes illegal in Thailand?

I think that a lot of people don't realise that prostitution is actually illegal here.

am sure you are right.Thats my point really,that it is endemic throughout thai society in one way or another and the fact that it is illegal by law is plain silly.

So because "everybody's doing it," they should just make it legal? How about if everyone starts using or tolerating heroin? How about if everyone starts physically assaulting each other when they're angry? Would it be "silly" that those things are illegal? Would you propose to make those things legal just to make life easier for the people that are already doing them?

Maybe what's "plain silly" is that things that ARE illegal are not actually enforced.

I'd say that for those of you who frequent the bar scene & have no problem doing so, then her report nor her investigation shouldn't cause you any concern.

Well said. No reason to be upset about the report unless you're ashamed or embarrassed of what you're doing.

Huh, I'd actually kind of like to see that story if it ever makes it to production.

They ought to send Som the short timer from Kalasin to NZ to interview Sarah as to how much chocolate and cake she stuffs down her gullet on a daily basis to compensate for her own self loathing.

Why the anger?

I ask my physiotherapist what he made about 3 years ago. He was a recent graduate first year working and his salary was 500,000 a year.

That's pretty shocking to me. I know that doctor's salaries are more reasonable here, but I still didn't think it would be that low. Here's my question...if even the doctors don't make an outrageous amount of money, what do all the filthy rich Thais do for work?

"It doesn't matter whether you're fat, you're ugly, you've got spew hanging out of your mouth or whatever else, there's some lady here who will want to take care of you," Justin says with a grin.

My favorite line

Friend of mine had a girl overnight say she wanted money to buy shampoo and a few other toiletries. He instantly ran out of the room to the maid's cart, grabbed a handful of shampoo and soap, and then proclaimed "You don't have to go shopping. There's plenty of free stuff here."

Haha, nice one.

------> always takes home a stash of toiletries from hotels

When I read your subject line, I thought "What? The best 10 airports in Thailand and Suvarnabhumi ranked 10th?"

I don't hate Suvarnabhumi THAT much, but I'm still shocked that it made the list. Do you have a link to the rankings? Perhaps it explains the criteria.

I had a look at agoda but I noticed they had a few sneaky add-ons when confirming final cost - that's a big, big thumbs down in my book.

saying that, by the looks of the previous posts on this thread, plenty of people must be falling for their sly tricks.

The sly trick that I always fall for is that they are consistently the cheapest price to be had.

....until the tax is added on.

I'm not having a dig at you mate but I just don't like the way agoda operate. eg you may see a price of 1360THB per night which you think is good but when you go through to the confirmation part of the booking they've added the extras and suddenly your 1360THB bargain has become 1500THB. purely an example.

if others can give you the full cost then why don't agoda? I'll tell you why - to get you hooked into the idea that you're getting a bargain, and by the time you've realised it's not as good as it first looked, you're likely just to go ahead with the booking anyway.

each to their own but I'll take my business elsewhere.

I don't think that I'm falling for any "sly tricks" when I use Agoda. I know that Agoda adds on tax AFTER you select the hotel, so I look at the final price when comparing websites. If someone gets "hooked" and books without looking at the final price, then they're not a very savvy traveler. I think it's common sense to look at the final price before booking. Agoda almost always gives me the cheapest price (AFTER taxes are added on), so I'm happy to complete one extra step and not choose laziness over price.

If your train has 1st class private compartments....sure, go for it. If it's only 2nd class cars with fold-down beds....eww, please don't. Wait til you get there.

Its aII in fun. Doesnt mean that a woman wearing shoes Iike that = hooker. Iots of confident Iadies wear amazing shoes for going out.

My friend has a reaIIy tight short dress that is gorgeous but its caIIed her "hooker dress", just for fun...because its so short and tight. I think many women wiII have funny terminoIogy for their cIothes and accessories. ProbabIy in a way guys cant fathom. ie: this is my "fat" dress (days when you feeI bIoated), or this is my "get Iucky" knickers. ....

Exactly! When I talk about someone's "hooker heels," VERY rarely do I think that the woman is actually a prostitute. It's just slang for a certain type of shoe. Another one is the "F*** me boots"....most of my friends back home have those and are proud to joke about wearing them.

BIimey...first pic in a pretty traditionaI dress, but with hooker shoes!

(didnt mean that to sound disrespectfuI about her, just thought it Iooked funny )

Haha, good eye! And yes, it's true and looks funny. I get a kick out of the places where I see "hooker heels" around here.

I've probably used Agoda at least 25 times, and haven't had a single problem. I like that you (usually) get instant confirmation, and that you can accrue reward points. I've gotten several free nights thanks to sticking with Agoda. I find the reviews on the bottom of the page for a hotel listing to be helpful in choosing a hotel. None of the hotels have had any problems with my Agoda vouchers. When I have needed to cancel/change reservations, the Agoda customer service has always been extremely helpful. And finally, I usually choose a hotel on Agoda and then search every other possible site I can find to look for a cheaper price. Agoda is consistently cheaper, even cheaper than latestays.com, which supposedly has great last-minute deals. I haven't needed to use it yet, but I noticed on Agoda's website that they now have a low price guarantee, and that if you book with them and then find the room for cheaper, they will refund the difference, I believe.

I think that yeah, it would be fine to wear leggings under a skirt. But, I don't think it's necessary. Ladies here seem to show MUCH more leg than at home. It's common to see mini skirts anywhere you go. Even a lot of the uniforms (students, nurses, store workers) are very short skirts.

An old roommate was dating a bar girl and warned her not to go to her former bar on her night off when she was going out with her sisters and friends. He later found her at the bar that night and dumped a full beer on her head in front of her friends and family before leaving. She brought the police back to our place and tried to have him arrested - after questioning my friend they turned to her and said (in Thai) 'He told you not go to to the bar tonight, right?' Case closed. She disobeyed him therefore he had an excuse to assault here. TiT.

That's funny? I think it's sad and represents one of the things that's wrong with Thailand.

As for your child being too young to start a grade early it is up to the child.

Actually, it's not up to the child. It's up the parent to make a responsible decision, isn't it?

Some children can do well with advanced subjects and eventually graduate from high school a year or two early with a big advantage.

Personally, I don't think it's an advantage to graduate from high school a year or two early. Some of those students who are younger than their peers have some serious social/emotional difficulties due to varying levels of maturity. If it was my child, the benefit of starting a career sooner in life wouldn't be worth the risk. But, like you said, it's a personal decision.

It is now over a month later, and I still have not received my deposit back.

Sorry if you already answered this and I missed it, but did your lease specify when the deposit would be returned? I know that a month feels like plenty of time, but all of the leases I've had in Thailand stated that the manager/owner had up to 60 days to return the deposit. I think that the presence/absence of a specific timeframe on your lease may affect what you can/should do right now.

As for the other discussion about people's experiences with deposits....I have had a little trouble getting my money back, but I always got it in the end. The first landlord kept stalling for time because she had spent the deposit money and didn't have enough to return to me. After lots of phone calls and waiting, she finally paid it back (in installments). At my second condo, the 60 days passed and the office staff kept giving me different answers. I finally got my agent (who had found the place for me) involved, and she went on the offensive, making repeated phone calls and emailing the office staff's boss and reporting their incompetence to the corporate office. I had my money back within a couple days. My current landlord has already stated that when it's time for me to leave, she will estimate the final electric/water bill costs, deduct it from the deposit, and give me the remainder when I move out. Hopefully that is what will actually happen!