thaigold

Actually, this whole kerfuffle is a secret joint Thai / US training exercise. So you Euro aliens and British - do not repeat this eyes-only dispatch.

The reason is; the US is soon to deploy a Navy Task Force to the Middle East, where they expect a REAL BLOCKADE. These taxi drivers are all going to receive the US National Extinguished Service Award, with "V" for valor.

Remember, you heard in here first, confidentially, on the QT, and very hush hush. Whoops (National Secrets Act) that's a British crime. Pass the word folks ... the cat's out of the bag.

Actually, the wheels falling off an aircraft in SE Asia is quite normal. One of the certified aircraft mechanics simply forgot to put a cotter key and lock nut on the axle shaft after hanger inspection. This is the same type of accident as when a wing on a 737 (Thai Air Narathiwat) at Don Muang blew up because the plane had a "faulty" air-conditioner installed. The fact that the Prime Minister was do to board had absolutely nothing to do with it.

As I understand the law, you need to prove a usable and stable income of Baht 65,000 per month. This amount can be in a seasoned Thai bank account, or as a provable combination of an overseas income flow, supplemented by a Thai bank account.

Obviously, the Thai officials are going to look more favorably on a seasoned Thai account. In fact, the retirement laws are quite explicit ... just go by the rules (no shortcuts) and you should be fine. And for heaven's sake, don't be taken in by some of the whiny Farang posters in this regard. Thailand is more than fair ... they just don't want the bottom feeders, anymore than Great Britain, Australia, or Canada.

Good luck.

There are a few hidden jewels in the city ... good neighborhoods, near good restaurants, and near the BTS. My wife and I have lived almost ten years in a comfortable apartment near stores, restaurants, shopping, and all of the major hamburger franchises and pizza parlors.

Like any city, talk to your friends ... get tips and recommendations, and hit the bricks. Your villa is waiting.

P.S. Try Aree; Saphan Kwai; Soi Rangnam. Once you get out of the Farang Corridor (Sukhumvit) things brighten considerably.

You might be well advised to consult with your senior Thai associate in regard to this "job." Much as a job in Farang-land you are not going to find a concierge; personal assistant; and a scullery maid all wrapped in one. Additionally, all and any ideas about efficiency and productivity that you acquired overseas means absolutely nothing in the Kingdom.

You've got a whole new skill-set to learn. The cultural differences are just too great.

Case in point; I was a senior projects director in Honolulu Hawaii for years. But as Hawaii is as different from California as California is from New York, 80% of mainland management hires failed in their assigned duties - simply because they couldn't make the cultural shift.

So ... bear this in mind; You will learn to work with the Thais, not the other way around. If you can't accept this simple reality; you will fail.

Well, why not dogs, cats, chickens, and feeble minded schizoids? In fact, how about no standards at all?

Right now, tonight, my wife called my attention to a Thai lacorn about a farang killed by his Thai wife for the money from his resort. How fitting.

My wife, who is Thai, relishes these stories of "stupid farang" who romances and marries village girl. Would these Austrians marry a dumb and uneducated and low class Austrian girl - 30-years his junior? Not a chance. These pitiful old guys simply check their brains at the visa counter.

Sad.

Again, it would appear, that foreigners leave their brains at the border. How, in any universe, can any sane man bring one million dollars into a country where he can't read, write, or speak the language? This gentleman is a businessman? - Not on this planet.

I've a good friend who brought a $100,000.00 container shipment into the Kingdom in 1994. Guess what? Within 2-years that 100K circled the drain, which is the miasma of the Thai business model, and was never seen again.

Some say, a fool in his folly, is duly rewarded.

Good luck ... American ... good luck.

As question earlier, why would anybody try to retire with no money in any county? I can add only one thing; it's this kind of shady talk that tends to paint Farangs with the same brush. If I run into any Farang living here illegally, I'd rat him him out in a heartbeat.

Good riddance to this type of person.

If you are a sales manager at a new car dealership, then you obviously earn a good living. Why don't you marry your Thai lady friend and take her to your own country? There you can care for her and give your children a good life. As a foreigner in Thailand, you have zero opportunities and absolutely will have nothing in your senior years.

I know that the desire to live full time in the Kingdom is seductive, but a Farang in LOS with no money is nothing. Take her home ...

Get a handle on this folks. My country, the USA has laws controlling just about everything. A century ago American do gooders banned booze; and we got the mafia. We banned cocaine; and got Columbian drug lords. We banned Ganja; and got the Mexican drug cartels.

No, banning booze is a fool's errand. The US is the world's biggest jailer ... and guess what? It's getting worse every day.

Bride price? No problemo senors. But most of these "girls" as everybody calls them are women with babies. Just because the dumb Farang is 45 and his "girlfriend" is 22 doesn't make her the prom queen. Easy: innocent virgin, pay; non-virgin with brats, no sin sod.

Read my lips: Non-virgin / no baht. Brat(s), double negative.

Google Nexus 7 has all the bells and whistles that an iPad nini has. No camera; but who really want's to walk around taking pictures with a tablet? Thousands of apps and Skype. $100 less than a mini ...

3BB is by far the most efficient general public ISP in the Kingdom. The only site I find to be blocked in Thailand is Rolling Stone, probably one of the best non-mainstream sources out there. I know it's easy to get to by proxy, but it shouldn't be necessary. What will they block next; Thai newspapers in California?

I used to get drunk, carouse at night, and generally became a wastrel= then I found 3BB. Now life is good.

Thai visa laws and the requirements for them are quite straightforward and to the point. Every foreigner whom I have met, that followed the law, received the needed visa quite easily. Almost every Farang I've met who has had visa problems is always been of their own making. Wrong entry visa; trying to get an extension on a tourist visa; under fifty years old with no verifiable source of funds ... the list is long.

For all those who complain about Thai visas, try New Zealand; Australia; The US, or that king of problems, the UK. Unbelievable. For a legally married British Subject (don't you love that one?) a subject, his wife has to pass an English test before they let her in. Now I ask the Foreign Office: what about all the East Asians you're letting in that don't speak English; don't subscribe to your culture, and want you to adopt there native laws?

Glad I'm a Yank.

This is Thailand. The people speak Thai, not English. You live in France, they speak French, not English. Good luck ...

Santa Fe New Mexico is a center of the New Age phenomenon in the US. It no more represents Buddhism in America than the Hare Krishna's in LAX. Santa Fe is better known for quaint art galleries, New Age ashrams, and some of the best Tex-Mex restaurants in the US.

Let's keep it that way.

It never ceases to amaze me. Foreigners complaining about the Thai's inability to speak English - especially the ones who live here. Has anyone of these complainers ever tried to do business in France, outside of metro Paris? Of course not.

The French are uniquely proud of their lack of English speaking abilities ... and make it a point to let the evil English speakers know it, in spades.

i love Thailand ... an island of sanity in an insane world. Problems communicating? Learn Thai, you dorks.

Yo ... I'm from Hawaii. We've got beaches that would make the Euros kill for. You know what? We don't provide chairs, ya lay on the sand you dummies. That's why God created sand.

Actually, it was the Swede's fault. If they hadn't been in Thailand, they wouldn't be dead. T.I.T.

A girl, not a woman?

Do the bridge. Just make sure you are licensed and have insurance. Heck, I used to drive in Mexico ... enjoy the thrill.

The problem with 3G is the complete saturation of the bandwidth by smartphones. Everywhere you go in the Kingdom, be it the BTS, MBK, or the campus at Chula, teenage girls are glued to their phones. It's an all day thing.

Unless you need email service only, 3G is a waste of resources. A direct line is the only answer. Good luck.

Try Bourbon Street, soi Ekamai ...Great American food and atmosphere.