Thaicoon

Wife and i now have quite a bit of land, also if the price is right we are still buying, we are buying mainly for the interest of our children, and we are carefull where we buy, location, it has to be on a concrete road etc, most of the land we have bought was 6 to 7 years ago, boy has the prices gone up, i was looking for property in Buriram town centre last year, as most of these shophouses etc are only to lease, mainly off chinese - thais, i went to view a property near speed, this was for sale at 27 million baht, i asked the vendor if he thought i had come to Buriram on a banana boat, i told him been coming to buriram for 14 years, so please do not try to rip ferrang off, bet you this property will still be for sale in 5 years time, was interested in the old bank next to the bamboo bar, 6 years ago the property was not in bad nick, the price then was 5 million baht, the property is still for sale and to my astonishment, the price they want now is 10 million baht, the place is now delapitated and you would have to spend a couple of mil getting it up to scratch, the prices of property in town have almost doubled in the last 2 to 3 years. the same with land in certain areas, sometimes i wondor if these sellers have brains as when one puts an offer in, they stick the price up, when buying land we leave it to my wife or sister in law. ferrang out of site.

If getting them made, make them the spanish style, come out about 12 inches at bottom curved , then get the blacksmith to fit a secret hinge at the bottom, security bolt at either side lockable via an allen key, at top, which you can undo by opening the window, then the shutter should fold down for cleaning, with a jet of water, hose or power washer, this is what i am going to get made for my house, only downstairs rooms.

You should not have a problem getting these, any blacksmith that makes railings will come and measure up and show you designs.

Hi Ade, nice to see you on the forum, guess who

Daughter had a new Thai Passport last november, after her 2nd extension in the old one, she filled in all forms and had to go to the Thai Embassy in Queens Gate, to have pics taken etc. she received it in 2 weeks, superb.

Got to go through this process again next month, with the other daughter.

Wife has two thai passports, her first which is now invalid, but all visa stamps are valid (indefinate stay), you have just got to carry the old and new passport with you when travelling.

Three years ago i took 20k to Thailand in my hand luggage, changed 5 gran in the Airport, and paid 15 gran into my SCB Account, no questions asked.

Wife's just off phone to all relatives all over Isarn. In course of conversation many of them have asked for assistance in finding husbands for their daughters. We have had this hinted to us many times over the years. MY sister in law, a very eligible beautiful young woman, has subscribed to internet dating sites and corresponds with about 20 guys, some of whom she has met when they fly over. Her experience to date, she says, is that these guys are really only looking for a partner while they are in Thailand and may be seeing several girls while in Thailand.

I have other in laws who are delightful beautiful educated working young women who have also started suggesting to my wife that they would like to marry - a Farang preferred. I have asked my wife why the preference for foreign men and have heard the usual descriptions of Thai men as drunks, lazy, butterflys etc.

THE QUESTION is how can I help and indeed should I. I could contact Farangs via web sites (or translate girls messages). But would I be setting them up with weirdos who sound great online. I have suggested to my wife that we have a few live in 'Mia Nois' but she is not too keen and mumbled something about my future surgical needs should I pursue this notion (penis re-attachment).

I genuinely would love to introduce these and indeed other suitable women to foreigners with a view to creating Joy and happiness in the world . Having new in-laws with money might be nice too .

Any opinions??

Leave well alone, it will lead to disaster, as said in previous post, let them do there own dirty work, i have been asked to do this 1000s of times, did it once, never again, i got blamed for the introduction, as it all went tits up, also i would never bring another mate to Thailand, any problems it comes back to you.

I send packages to Buriram, get there in 5 days from the UK, send INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR, costs a bit more, but worth it, also try http://www.parcel2go.com/contact.aspx this company has taken a lot of royal mail customers and are superb, sent a 10 kilo box to the states for 35.00 GBP, there in 3 days, click on the testamonials box for positive comments, and what makes it even better no queing at the post office, parcel2go will collect from your premises.

Wipe some vinegar about, and maybe put a small bowl where they are most active, you can even spray some, they will be gone. the white vinagar if poss.

Send the boys around to sort him out, put the frighteners on him. he sounds like a pussy

Hi I need some info for a friend,

He has been offered 7 Rai of rice land for 300,000 is that the going rate in Buiram.

i know it depends on location, but a standard figure(ish)

We bought 20 rai of which 13 rai was rice paddies...We leased it out one year and when I got our share of the rice and sold it, I immediately figured out that there would never be a return on my investment by taking half the rice each year....I bulldozed the rice paddies(much to the chagrin of the village elders - never said anything to me, but gave my wife a lot of grief) We completely turned the soil over to a depth of almost 3 feet and built elevated rows and planted rubber trees. Now all the villagers are talking about how smart we are and how in 2 more years, those 1,500 rubber trees and 51 avocado trees will be giving us a MUCH better return on our investment...

This turning over of the old rice paddy soil has made a really big difference in the trees...Our trees are much bigger and stronger than the rubber trees on the adjoining property and they were planted within a week of our trees..

I am the same, got lot of land in rice paddys, as you say return not big money, i go a 60 - 40 share with the family, 40% for myself, for not doing nothing and it keeps them busy, so cannot complain, going to plant 10 rai of euca trees next year, and maybe rubber, i try to plant Eucas every year, this way we have a rotation in crop, year to year, where we are in Buriram, Rubber does not seem to do so well, but other areas it thrives, we have 23 rai not far from Prackonchi, so may try to grow in this area.

About the investment issue in land, we have invested in our land not for ourselves but our two daughters, they will be the two that will benefit long term.

GOOD MORNING BURIRAMIANS...

And a very good morning to you too. Buriramians sounds good but how about shortening it to just Buries. Or Boories. Or Boers!

How you doing lourens, are you back home or still in the middle east,

Location, Location, Location, we have over 100 rai around Buriram, some of our land is 4 clicks out in the village, just off main road to Surin, 1 rai is going for 300k+ in the village, there is a plot for sale next to some land we own, 2 rai, the bank are selling, 510,000 baht, and as everyone knows the bank sometimes does a good deal on repossesed land etc, my wife has put in an offer for this.

5 Years ago we gave 750,000 baht for 6 Rai, with 2 small bungalows, landscaped with fruit trees and all sorts of tropical plants, it was owned by a horticuture teacher in Buriram, this property is in our village,the prices todays market, that was a good buy, at the time i was playing hel_l with the wife.

The further you are out the cheaper the land is, also think about services on site, if building, this will save money in the long run.

Would the fact that she has a National Insurance Number not be enough for the employer?

I don't know, i'm just asking

No, the have to have to see a valid visa. NI doesn't prove you're allowed to live and work here... it also can't be used to buy fags when you're 15.

If you have a National insurance number, you are entitled to work, by rights you can only get an NI number from the visa you have in your passport, so if your wife has a NI number how did she get it ?,

Regulations may of changed, when my wife applied for her NI Number she had to have the correct visa in her Passport, this was checked, an indefinate stay, they would not give her a NI number before this, on a fiancee visa.

can someone confirm this.

I wish you both all the luck in the world and hope everything works out for both of you soon.

The legal age to buy Cigs now is 18, but you are allowed to smoke from 16, law changed October 1st, so all these 16 year olds who have been smoking. cannot make a purchase, i have newsagent shops, it is fine for an 18 year old to come into the shop with a 16 year old, buy the cigs and just pass them to him, another stupid crazy law by this stupid brainless government, bet someone is on 100k per year who thought this one up.

Well guys, anyone for the job ?, now poor old Mac has gone from Buriram, who is going to run this Buriram forum any takers.

The British Immigration and Nationality Group are in a state of absoulute dissaray. During a recent application to have my wife and sons residents visas transfered from their old Thai passports to their new ones i got <deleted>--ed about for over a year. First they sent back the passports because the machine that printed the visas was broke. They told me to apply after april this year - on doing so they wrote back saying i hadnt enclosed the fee (approx £400). I told them when i first applied there was no fee for this simple transfer - they said it was introduced in december last year - my original application was in november. They told me to appeal. Oh, and on the first return of my application they sent me back the photos of some african guy.

After succesfully appealing my case and after the 3rd time of sending back my passporsts they lost them between departments. I had to personally phone 6 departments to find them. Eventually after i found them and i informed the department that i had won my appeal i thought well thats it sorted - but i was wrong, i then receive a letter asking for the fee!

My wife has two Thai passports, one expired, she was entitled to a British passport after 3 years here in the UK, like an idiot i forgot to apply for British citizenship for her, now she has to do the test, after her been here 11 years, she ain't happy. same with the oldest daughter of 17. when they travel back and forth to Thailand they show the two passports, i was not going to send this new thai passport to immigration, as i knew the conserquences and the hassle to expect.

Should I mention it to my MP that they are being <deleted> about it this time? I'm not even sure what the status of the visa is; while they have been sitting around 'deciding', the date stamped in her passport has past us by already. I had to send them more evidence that we lived together LAST year, despite the fact that we gave them evidence of co-habitance since January this year.

If it was me i would get my MP involved and tell him the trauma and the stress and all the hassle you have had and having with visa issues, he will get onto them, beleive me, he is after your vote in the future, also it will do you some good in the future, as he will be on record on your file at immigration. all the best.

Forget the Monkeys go to the top, things will then be done.

Hi Mac, very sorry to hear your problems, i have never met your wife, but met you and you are a down to earth nice guy, if there is anything Sa and i can do, please do not hesitate to contact us, there is an empty house not far from you, my place, if you want somewhere to stay in Buriram you are most welcome, we are all thinking of you, best of luck.

The government does give each village money every so often based on population and the village will decide how to spend the money. This year they fixed up old tires to make vegatable planters so each house could have fresh herb and/or vegetables. I have noticed them in several villages some company made a few bucks selling them to the villages.

We have the planters too (as of 3-4 months ago). They seems to be a sort of fad that is spreading from village to village. Word is in my village that they were constructed rather cheaply and someone pocketed some money. I have yet to see anything growing in any of them!

In our village there are a few, they seem to be used as bins, always full of rubbish

In our village only 4 Kms from Buriram, no mains water, only well water, We are having Mains water sometime in 2008 and a new concrete road, the village opposite and the one next to us had Mains water this year, but most of the time does not work, my mate still has his well for flushing the loo. in case of problems, not with his bouls, but the water.our house has its own well and a big water tower in the grounds which gives us good presure, the water feeds through a water filter, i cannot wait to have proper mains water as the trouble with well water is that leaves terrible staining to tiles taps etc,

Some of the village still use the old hand pump well.

first time i visited buriram, 13 years ago, a lot of villages had no power, we had our electric in the village installed about 11 years ago, there are still houses with no power, but now few and far between, one elder in our village has no power, she still likes the old way of lighting the candle at night. her house is also a bit out of the way.

Britain is the best place in the world, top government, best health service, top schools, no crime, got to work for your money, what a place.................and what a lot of bullsh................., please do not start me off, i feel depressed now looking out of the window, pi.......g down and dreary, cannot wait to leave to join you guys.

Got pulled just outside Buriram about 2 years ago for no Helmet, i was riding a dragstar, the police were more interested in the bike, they asked me for to go and get them a beer, so got back on the bike went down the road and got 3 Beer chaings, came back, the Two coppers and myself drank the beers and had a chat, they then just told me to go, i felt sorry for all the thais they were pulling up, compounding there bikes and making them walk to the cop shop to pay the fine, which was about a mile down the road, couple of days later the two coppers arrived at the house, they were ok, gave them another few beers and the mrs cooked them some thai food, we all had a good sat afternoon.

As long as you are ok with them, and have a bit of a joke, i find em fine.

My recent experience with the british embassy in bangkok has left me baffled, and a bit angry to say the least, bare with me.

I recently sent my long term gf to apply for a visa to visit my mum for xmas, thought it cant be that difficult, everything about us is legit and above board, not that it matters but i didnt buy her in a bar and she has an education, i have a job and proof of salary and money in bank, how difficult can it be? I have sponsorship letters with bank accounts, proof of relationship, all the things they ask for.

So i studied the form carefully, i got together the following

1 letter of invitation from my my mother, her bank statement (15k gbp), her passports copies

2 letter of invitation from me including detailed description of my life here and our relationship, my bank statements (10kgbp) including my salary details paid in each month, my passport copies, my tabien rot(included anything that showed had a life here nad not just a scam), pics of ourselves together from over the last couple of years in different places at different times (real ones)

We clearly filled in the form stating my gf was unemployed at this moment, unfortunately we have been unfortunate enough to suffer 2 misscariages this year and its been pretty devastating. So i have been looking after her, although she is well educated with a BA from a decent school and has worked in the past before all this. I am trying to write all this without getting confused or angry again

Anyway, she goes for the interview for the first time, they wont allow me to go with her, so she goes alone.

Then she is refused the visa on lots of MESSED UP terms clear cases of incompetence.

In the previous June when she was first pregnant, i was meant to go over to a show for work in spain, however, i didnt go due to she was refused the visa and she was at that time pregnant, i didnt wanna leave her, so i rearranged it with work, no problem. However on the visa rejection they had clearly stated that something was obviously wrong as i didnt go to spain and it was for business.

Someone at the embassy is being paid to build a picture of yourselves based on the evidence you give them, however they obviously have not done that at all, if they looked at the hospital evidence we had submitted about the pregnancy and misscarriage they would realise that she was pregnant at that time, and why would i leave her that way.

Also the biggest joke of the rejection was that they had clearly stated we didnt have enough funds, and that i hadnt submitted any bank statements, when cleary, i had sent 6 with my name on them and sufficient money, this in itself was enough to really wind me up.

The list of other reasons were utterly stupid and i felt totally discriminated against, but those were the main 2, they also said she was lying in the interview about her work, lol, now i know thai people are known to lie, but we clearly told the truth and submitted seriously sensitive info about the past year and there was no way we would do all that and then my gf sit in the interview and say she had a job lol so god know about that

So i asked for an email address to complain in the UK, however they lied about that and gave me an email in Bangkok. I wrote a VERY VERY long email, copying their rejection letter and answering it point for point, i still have this. Some snotty nose guy that i had spoke to on the phone replied not noting any of the points basically saying your not having it cos we say so and thats it. So I then wrote back to him asking for some clarification of my points, someone else called me and while going through it, he couldnt answer about the bank statements, and kept avoiding the point, however he convinced me off the phone by saying if i apply again, it should be ok. So another 4600b, which i felt ripped off about but thought it maybe be the easiest way.

So we applied again and were simply rejected with a load of nonsense this time, obviously we had the experience of the first application and covered everything they had asked for this time, made notes of what was sent and filled in the forms carefully, and gave more in depth details of any points that they had suggested in the previous rejection. In the rejection letter the first paragraph clearly states each appication is taken on its own merits, however they are saying further on in the letter that they are still rejecting her due to she said she had a job in the first interview!

At this point, i am lost what to do, everything is genuine and would not even bother writing this email if it wasnt, i feel it was totally out of order and is just becoming a rip off. i cant beleive they outsourced the application to people who cant even put full details of what you need to apply (draft to pay instead of cash) on their website, and is it just a coincidence that there is a company right outside VFS offering guaranteed visas to UK to girls for 30k?

I would like to make a complaint just out of principle at this moment, i dont give up easy if i feel something is wrong, i now have to cancel my plans for xmas due to this, i am not going to pay again

anyone any suggestions who to contact??

thanks for reading

If it was me i would contact your Member of Parliment, i have had to do this once and it worked, regarding my wifes indefinate stay visa, i also had a snotty nose woman on the phone at croydon, so took her name and reported her, got me wild, then got hold of my MP, Mr Richard Livsey, he sorted it all out, i also always take a name when speaking to these people, for future ref, good luck.

I think it is just how these people work, screwing more money of the applicants, typical British Government.

It took me 3 attempts to get my wife over to the UK, own Business, Business acounts, bank statements, property in Thailand, Business Premises, two houses in UK, they even wanted photos of the Houses and rooms, i gave them everything they asked for, and went through it with a toothcombe, as far as i am concerned they are jumped up civil servants in there Primark Suits, all having a ball in Bangers, paid by the taxpayer which is us guys, they should have more respect for us as we are the ones who are paying there wages.

(My wife has now been in the UK for 11 Years.)

I know two guys that have brought there G/friends over to the UK, these Two guys are on Benefits and handouts from the Government, the One met his girl in Nana Plaza, knew her two weeks, he went back to Thailand a month later, got married at the Embassy, Visa and plane home, now they are both claiming in the UK, it stinks.

It seems to me if you are straight you do not get anywhere.

Clearing some land in Buriram to plant some Euca Trees last sept came across this Beauty, this is a trap door spider, amazing creature.

here is a video i took,

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=spider+buriram

Also a couple of years back had a bird Eating spider in my Bathroom, i think, as it was the same size at the floor tile, 6x6 inches, Amazing.