Portlandstone

I'm not at all from England but wanted to say a quick thanks for sharing your story.

Have just come back to Thailand and was hoping to restock some of my favorite stuff -- Moccona Trio three in one instant. Not at all to be seen at Tesco. Business fallout? Also noticed that 7-11 has very little of it as well.

Yah, I was thinking at first Camshin means Cambodia + Shin (of AIS "shin" corp), but I am not sure.

Anyhow it doesn't seem to be working wonderfully well. When I get a call on DTAC it only shows the phone number as +001, just like that. On the AIS sim, an incoming phone number also looks to be mixed up (started with 07....) nothing I recognize from Thailand. I didn't bother to pick up the calls as I am not going to pay that rate -- I can get SMS no problem if anyone really wants to contact me. Anyhow I don't think all calls are going through to me either with dtac or ais -- when I called them it just rings and rings sometimes, or I get a Thai msg recording I can't understand, all while my phone is currently on here in Cam. A few calls did go through, though.

Yes, this particular one says "Pipo" on the lids, but I also bought a bag called Euro, incidentally which both look to be the same company but different packaging. I bought them where I am now, in Phnom Penh, obviously imported from Thailand, which I left last month. I used to eat them there too.

I would have thought they would have fat because just looking at it, it looks "fatty", however when I read the side of a jar of Jam, it said 0g fat, so perhaps these do too.

The package says 15% fruit juice, the only English I can make out. Any extra information any one is able to make out (that which is in Thai) please let us know. Anyhow, I wonder if the lady who told me that is misinformed herself (local beliefs that don't always add up). Thanks.

Just as an update, I am in Phnom Penh and finally turned on my Thailand phone (two sims inside, dual sim phone). I haven't been charged anything just for keeping it on (balance is same as when I left) however got a message from DTAC quoting very high prices for usage -- 48B a minute to receive a call, 85B a minute to make a call and 12 baht per sms.

Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be working really well, on the phone is says "Camshin" not DTAC or AIS, etc. Also, I don't think all calls are going through. I tested it out and some calls never got to me when I called from another phone.

Jelly snack.

Local woman, actually from Burma, told me these jelly treats have vitamins, much truth to it? Warranted?

Also, is there much fat content in it as well? I can't read Thai so thought I would ask. Thanks.

Thanks for the replies. Spoilomania, not to sound silly but I am assuming you mean 15b per minute of phone calls you make while in Cambodia, not 15b per minute if your phone is simply turned on? Just wanted to clarify, and also if that's the case, is it per minute for calls to Thailand, or inside Cambodia, or?

Anyhow I am in Cambodia now but don't want to bother using my Thai sims, I only had like 80 baht loaded in for each sim card and won't use them unless I'm expecting someone.

The last time I went to Laos (Vientiane) for a day I got pegged 30 or 40 baht by AIS just for turning on my handphone and getting a signal, which was strange because I did the same thing in 2006 and not only did I get a signal but no charge.

I have two sims now, DTAC prepaid Happy and AIS 1-2 Call also prepaid. If I turn on my phone in Phnom Penh will either company charge me? Is the charge by day, by week, month or? I will stay there longer term so I need to know how much money I should load up prepaid. Thanks.

That's a very good point and one that happens across a range of things, not just when going to the airport. Happened to me the other day on the skytrain when I was going somewhere in a hurry.

When I posted that question I actually was scheduled to depart the next day, but canceled out. Am leaving Thailand in a few days from now, will head out to the streets and see if I can spot any special taxi companies around to get a phone #.

When I arrived to Suvarnabhumi a year ago with all my luggage they insisted I take a 700 baht sort of caravan thing (really just a large car with extra seats). The size of the car looked sort of like this or this, or just type "caravan" into google and hit images.

I knew at the time I could just squeeze the bike in the back seat of a regular taxi (did it once in Vietnam and once again later in Bangkok - a real squeeze but doors shut well) but from the airport they insisted I take a bigger one for more than double the cost (a regular taxi is about 215 b from my place).

I might try my luck to see if normal taxis will pick me up off the street with all my stuff, but if they don't where can I find one of the bigger taxis? I don't even know where to find larger taxis in Bankok if I need one. I'll be going from On Nut area to airport. Any companies, phone numbers that speak English?

Thanks.

Wow if this happened to me I would be super pissed and nearly emotional about it or else fighting it back somehow. My apologies but I don't have any legal comments but would like to say, take it a day at a time, take steps that lead to your search for your bike but don't get pessimistic (like I might).

I lost a mobile phone (I actually left it on a counter at a Carrefour) and couldn't sleep all night and just about got into it with staff when they blew me off the next morning at the store, had to go through all kinds of hoops just to view the security footage to see if I could spot my phone. The fact is that Thailand is all laid back when things are going smoothly but when not, it can get super frustrating.

Man hope it goes well, hopefully others post some solid advice or experience.

Turns out it must be my phone, not the sim cards. I took out both sims and put in an old sim from Vietnam (long invalid) and I still get the same icon. Put both Thai sims back in and not only do I get the global announcement but also a new one that says "RM2" or something.

Phone brand is Cube, which I believe is actually a Thai company. The model # is e30. Here is the official link on their webpage, used to be cubemobilephone.com but is now welovecube.com.

Any suggestions based on finding it isn't the sim card? On their website I don't see any support for the E30.

Lol.

Well, after putting a few more days thought into it, in all likelihood the guy's background is likely legit. The website for one of his businesses came up and he's listed right there on the president page. It's probably so that here in Thailand as a big man, no one ever questions or hesitates in his presence and therefore he has gotten used to doing things at whatever pace and however he wants, even though he was educated in England for over a decade. This probably explains the inconsistencies that leave question marks or seem otherwise somewhat unimpressive for a top man with a major undertaking. Maybe also that since this is a charity rather than a corporation he feels he doesn't have to be as fervent in his presentation, but really who knows.

In any event, for now it's totally on hold for me. Unless he comes at me a second time, this time much more prepared and looking like he really wants to deal with the world rather than "local style", I won't be considering his current offer much. That's it for the moment.

Got some service message indicator on my handphone along with a totally blank SMS. Deleted the SMS but the global annoucement icon stays on the screen. Won't bother to call cust service as they didn't understand my question last time I called and transfered me countless times. Anyone know how to get it to turn off? My apologies if this isn't the right forum.

Thanks for the replies so far, deke and others. A due diligence report sounds like a good idea but I imagine plenty of time and investment. I also considered finding if there is a Better Business Bureau around here, but I am with the understaning they only track their own members or retailers with a lot of customer comments.

Steppenwolf, that is a very good point and was exactly what I was feeling. I would imagine the guy would be of the intention to really impress people be being more prepared and on top of things and to show his best face. Too many question marks are still left, even if there is no need to assume he's scamming at this point.

His proposal is that I work for and with him, to answer some questions above, not to give him money, but the salary he's mentioned is not attractive and even the 'incentives' he described are still very vague. He put nothing on paper which again, doesn't impress anyone.

At this point my interest is near empty, and unless he performs a miracle over the next week or two and lays everything out with promises in writing I won't feel any surge of commitment. It is interesting however that charities are able to be formed and go looking abroad for money, with no guarantee of where that money goes. I just thought there would be a central office or committee that would be in charge of overseeing these things.

Chiang Mai is probably a pretty nice place -- my comment was in reference to the source of the top 10 poll, not the city.

Hmmm, looks like instincts are thoroughly challenged in a place like Bangkok, marathon style.

Have been introduced to someone who is described as a prominent person in the business community both in Bangkok and all throughout Thailand, lots of credentials and so on, but the only thing I really know about him is his handshake and 30 minutes of chit chat, a few printouts for his proposed foundation, with nothing else to show for. Even his office is a bit on the outskirts and looks like a temp place. While I don't think that's the best way to impress someone, I'd like to look more into this man before participating any further.

I've done some google searching on his name and the only things that have come up are 'articles', if you could call them that, back from 2004 and the like. Those articles are mainly from free publishing news sites like "allbusinessnews.com" or "businesstopicstoday" and the like where anyone can submit stuff. A few websites have also come up but it's all in Thai language, and I've seen nothing solid yet.

In this land where anything can be one thing today and gone or changed tomorrow, is there any way to check up on people first? A government office that provides business histories or such? Any documentation I can ask for from him that shows authenticity for his cause(s)?

Lonely Planet isn't exactly the kind of source I go to for honest, unbiased, straight forward information.

In Thailand, there are only 2 type of people.

Bankokian (Kon Khrung Thep) and Rural People (Kon Ban Nork).

So which are you; or let me re-phase, which one will be like to be?

This user Chantorn, I don't know whether it is a thai male, female, or ladyboy, but always posts on threads trying to show how much wit he / she has, only to prove they have none.

This is almost hilarious, if it weren't all so frustrating. First Thailand and Cambodia were at each others throats with Cam supporting Thaksin. Then for the last many weeks it's announced "all is patched up" and the future is bright and rosy between THAI-CAM. Now this.

Truth is the only thing each country even cares about is power and rightousness(sp) over the other. When a Thai in power doesn't get everything their way, they let all hel_l loose and make a big fuss. Gone are the old days when Thais just smiled.

Saw a package and cover for the latest Wall Street II movie at the DVD/VCD stalls on Sukhumvit. Guy said 80baht a disc.

Anyone tried it? Actual thing or total scam?

I see some truth in this story.

Thailand is just the kind of place that your fellow foreign colleague, who himself engages in illegal activity, will turn around and report you to police to score points, cash, to evade his own arrest, or just to get rid of you. There are plenty of psycho farangs here in Thailand, in part as can be evidenced by all the "hang him high" and "hope he rots in hel_l" responses that fill this Thai Visa forum -- the kind of foreigners that always side with a very corrupt police and judicial system just because they have the power.

Would like to sincerely thank all the moderators who cleaned up this thread. Hardly anything worse than the "hang em high" comments and the posts that are there to promote PC, the latter of which this thread unnecessarily had. Thank you!

Hmmm, Pattaya "City" News... My memory has gotten foggy and I don't recall that title, but thanks for that. It looks like a pattayacitynews is no where to be found on the net, now, at least not in a google search. Looks like whoever screwed him also screwed themself.