modafinil

Google Kayak, it's a nice easy-to-use flight comparison site which often has the lowest prices going. It's a good site to start looking.

I was trying to figure out the fastest way from Phuket Airport to Kata. I reckon for Karon (and Patong, Kamala etc) the fastest way is to turn right in Thalang and head down through Cherngtalay and Surin.

But Kata might just be far enough down the coast that the faster road of Thep Krassatri (402) might end up being quicker, especially by car.

What surprised me was that I assumed the quickest route would be to turn off down the bypass road and keep motoring on past Wat Chalong and Big Buddha to Chalong Circle. But Google Maps reckons that it's faster to avoid the bypass road and head straight through Phuket Town to Chalong Circle.

So which way is quickest - any ideas?

My impression has been that these foreigners becoming monks are not all there to begin with and usually suffer from various psychological disorders of varying degrees. I do not doubt that there are some sincere folks that genuinely want to commit themselves to a path of enlightenment. However, I find it odd that so many of these foreigners that will criticize the west for its conspicuous consumption and lack of morality get wrapped up in wats which are money making enterprises or that prostrate themselves before golden idols. I suppose for some foreigners with their history of self abuse and addiction, becoming a monk might provide a detour off the highway of early death. Of course, no one has ever stopped to consider the fact that one can become just as good a monk in the EU or NA as in Thaialnd if one is sincere. And therein lies the reason why I am so leery. These farang monks are doing a runner: Running away from their problems. The sad reality is that those little clouds of gloom that made them run always follow them to Thailand.

That's pretty cynical. The "running away" remark carries some insight, but could just as easily apply to a decent percentage of the expats in Thailand, not just wannabe monks.

Practising Buddhism in a country where you are in an extreme minority (like the EU, NA) can hardly be compared to doing the same in Thailand. Even in the UK, a geographically tiny country, my nearest Buddhist temple is more than an hour's drive away. Monks are part of the fabric of Thai society - they are treated with great respect by normal Thai people, and hopefully most farang monks do their best to make themselves worthy of that respect. If I wandered around my hometown in orange robes early in the morning, I would expect a rather different reaction .......

The whole point of Buddhism is that you absorb its teachings into your everyday life - in Thailand, you can immerse yourself in Buddhism by becoming a full-time monk. I can't see how being a "weekend monk" back in the West would even come close to this.

As usual, good advice from Sheryl.

I asked the forum to recommend me a good Bangkok pharmacy a while ago, and posters gave me the names of two Sukhumvit pharmacies - both were excellent. They may well have the grugs you need.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/366218-good-pharmacy-in-bangkok/

Thank you very much, that is exactly what I needed to know!

The taxation in Thailand seems very reasonable compared to Western countries - if I end up getting a higher paying job, I will certainly look into the available tax breaks.

Of course, I may end up getting neither of the hypothetical jobs

first 150k free

150-500k = 10%

500K - 1 MIL = 20%

+1 MIL = 30%

* No need to go to the next tax bracket...

if single... 60k deduction + 30 Allowance

Teaching: 50k*12 = 600,000

taxable: 510k

tax: 35k+2k = 37k

IT: 100k*12 = 1,200,000

taxable: 1,110,000

tax: 35k+100k+33k = 168k

f course if you take the IT job, you would likely be able to have a provident fund offered by your employer which is not taxable. You could also have enough income to invest up to 15% of your income in long term equity funds tax free or up to 100k in insurance premiums tax free...

Let's assume I've been offered 2 different jobs. One is teaching English at 50,000B a month, the other is a specialist IT job that pays 100,000 baht a month.

Both companies are based in Thailand, and I'm a UK national. Both jobs offer a work permit.

How much tax would I pay to the Thai government for each job?

Thank you!

Yes but it is your second visa entry rather than an extension and you must exit/return to Thailand.

Excellent, thank you!

I went to Laos two months ago where I was issued with a 2X Tourist Visa. Apparently the usual procedure after 2 months is to get another 30 days on your passport at the local immigration office (Phuket in my case), but I've managed to cock it up - my stamp expires tomorrow and the local office isn't open.

If I go to Ranong tomorrow for a visa run, will I get an extension for another 2 months (which I can then extend by another 30 days)?

Thank you.

I would love to visit the sarcasm recalibration office

Getting boring now please stop raining!!

Amen to that!

I think your sarcasm detectors need recalibrating, gentlemen .....

Bricks are cheaper than wire mesh! All of the Thai management know what the place looks like...what's the problem? Are you another whining falang?

Get a life mate!! the OP is making a simple comment on something that he feels is now an ugly addition to a once very nice scenic drive, it's you that has a problem here, bloody key board hero's!!

I second this, who is this TPI (?) first I ever seen a post here and hopefully the last !

Thanks for your replies, very helpful! I might leave it until tomorrow now, don't fancy driving in this weather .....

I've got a 2X tourist visa from Laos - the first stamp apparently gives me two months, and then I can go to the "local immigration office" to extend the visa for another month (and give them a 1900 baht fee).

I was planning on going early tomorrow morning - is there anything I should know before I set off? An idea of where the office is would be very helpful (I'm assuming Phuket Town, unless Patong has some kind of similar office), any other info (opening hours, time I can expect to wait etc) would also be much appreciated.

Thanks!

Is B3 the one that is reputed to stave off Alzheimers? Not an idle enquiry as my old man and both his brothers contracted that dam_n illness in their 80s.

I was hoping it was one of the other Bs, many of which are in beer as listed above (and present big time in real ale). I might already be mega-protected if that is the case!

It would not surprise me - smoking cigarettes is obviously stupid and will on average take several years off your life, but one of its few redeeming features is that it contains nicotine, which is a dopamine reuptake inhibitor. What's that? Basically it increases the amount of dopamine available to your brain at any given time. Dopamine helps you to focus and concentrate.

Altzheimers is essentially a chronic lack of dopamine, and the body naturally decreases dopamine production at around 10% a decade. Since niacin is nicotinic acid, there is every possibilty that it helps stave off altzheimers.

From my experience of being around old people, almost invariably the smokers had the best mental functions - laughing, joking and showing a degree of sharpness unusual for their age. Of course, lung cancer kills a substantial percentage of smokers before they have a chance to get old!

Out of curiosity, why would you like B3 in form of tablets?

B3 is a bit more powerful than most vitamins, try googling "Niacin Flush". It has some interesting positive effects on the human body, but only when taken at a fairly high dosage.

out of interest how much did it cost and how much (tablets/powders) was in the bottle? Also what was the brand name?

500 baht for 100 tablets containing 250mg of niacin (nicotinic acid). The tablets were GNC's own brand, manufactured in the US and imported over here, and no doubt heavily taxed by Thai customs.

The niacin is the normal (fast release, causes a flush) variety. Apparently the slow-release formulations are more likely to cause liver damage - my liver has taken enough of a beating over the years

Sure enough, the GMC stand in Tesco Lotus was selling Niacin - seems to be the real stuff

The bottle I bought will last me for the next 3 months - hopefully I'll get the chance to buy you a couple of beers in the not too distant future though snamos!

Thanks for your help everyone!

Thank you for your suggestions regarding the vitamin stall in Tesco Lotus - I will go and have a look later today!

That's a very generous offer snamos - I'm pretty sure that vitamins are WAY more expensive in Thailand than in other countries, so if I could PM you in a few days that would be great - thanks

I'm looking for somewhere that sells vitamin B3, but I'm not having much luck. There are plenty of pharmacies selling a "Vitamin B complex" that includes B3, but I can't find one that sells just B3 on its own.

I've tried Watsons and both branches of Boots in Jungceylon Patong, but no luck there.

Sorry, bit of an esoteric question, but somebody out there might know

"Chai - but I look many room. What was the name of your building, room, apartment?"

"Yes. You want room?"

"Mai khap kun. Thanks anyway, bye bye."

I really need to learn how to speak Thai better...

Handing my mobile phone to my Thai GF is my "easy" solution! I could do with more Thai as well.

My current landlord made a last-ditch effort to keep me, and dropped the rent from 13K to 8K a month, so I'm staying put for now. There are definitely lots of low-season bargains to be had around the island, though.

So it turns out the deceased is Russian, not Swedish. And the assailants were two Swedes, not 12 Thais.

What a useless article.

My apologies to any Thai people reading this forum.

Summer breeze? I must have missed that article.

6k for Kamala sounds great though.

There's a lot of empty houses and hotels in Kamala during low season (and probably many other places in Phuket). There are some Thais that would rather have their property empty 12 months a year than lower their prices, but others are more pragmatic and would rather get something than nothing.

When I made my enquiries, I was initially getting "farang" prices (10K plus), but after I had been to see a few places, word seemed to get around that I was not going to pay over the odds - one of my potential landlords even called me back as she had "suddenly" been able to make a big discount on her original price.

It's a bit like buying shirts from the tailors - go into several shops on one street, walk out of the first few no matter what price you are quoted, once the guys further down the street see what you are up to you will magically start getting offered the rock-bottom prices.

Homocide stats from wikipedia:

USA - 5 murders per 100,000 people per year

Thailand - 5.9 murders per 100,000 people per year

Considering Thailand is a third-world country, with living costs to match, things really aren't as bad as they are portrayed - thaivisa reports every single farang murder (as it should).

Why do so many farang killings happen in Phuket and Pattaya? Because that is where a large percentage of Thailand's expats live. There is also more money in these areas, which inevitably leads to crime and corruption.

Have been offered a newly-decorated house in Kamala for 6K a month - 1 bedroom with aircon, sitting room and kitchen, fully furnished. 600 baht a month for 3BB (a much better connection than any shared wifi that you will be offered). When you including electric (at government rates) and cable TV (360 baht/month) it will work out at 8K a month in total if I don't run the aircon day and night.

There's some good deals out there especially in low season, just ask all your Thai friends to look for a place for you,

Another potential waste of internet space coming up .

Well, I'm sorry I ruined your evening with my post ......

Having looked into it a little further, it turns out that Malaysia has even higher car prices than Thailand.

So, thread closed. Have a little glow of self-satisfaction at my expense, kartman. And thank you to those who took the time to make some constructive points in the thread.

So would buying a car in Malaysia instead (right-hand drive cars) be an option? Are there punitive taxes on Malaysian cars too?

I live in Phuket so Kuala Lumpur to Phuket is only a 12 hour drive, which would be fairly doable.