Dave the Dude

BOlopez, on 2010-09-15 23:48:31, said:

Ah, now I understand.

You have no experience of what you are talking about, you can't speak the language, you don't live in or most probably have never been to a Thai village but you have a lot of money.

Wow.

I am (almost) impressed with you.

I have lived and worked in 38 countries in my 50 years of working life and I have been fairly rich and fairly poor and now I have come to rest in a small village in Thailand where people actually smile and try to talk to me and the really amazing thing is that they are not after my money.

They actually like me and I don't go out of my way to impress them with money or anything else.

They know that I have more than some and less than others but I get treated much the same as anybody else does around here be they Thai, English, Danish, Australian, Dutch, Belgian, Austrian, German or Swiss.

I can understand now based on your posts on the " ..Fit-In" topic and what you know about Thai people that when moving to a new Isaan town the first thing that you want to do is hook-up with a bunch of Honkies.

chronological answers not listed according to priorities:

"Maybe Naam is out the back trying to count his millions again....but ur right he hasnt been around for a while. Wheres Wally?"

there is no need that i count my dough. the job is done by the software i wrote.

"Maybe busy studying for more postgraduate degrees at Mel Gibson University?"

i never heard of any Mel Gibson University. my degrees are from Aachen, Germany and MIT Boston, Massachusetts.

"maybe in the cool weather he is doing his garden. or sick of listening to us wining."

sometimes one is forced to take a break, sometimes one is just pissed off.

"Naam is one the TV greats, hope he is OK"

too much honour! i assure you that i am ok².

"Naam last posted on the 25/7/010, hes TV friends with Maigo6, so perhaps they are together. My bet is he's gone somewhere exotic enjoying some luxury or perhaps the tax guys finally caught up with him?"

unfortunately i never met Maigo. would have liked to though. the tax guys will never catch up with me again as they did once. au contraire! i just spend a few days in Singapore with a bunch of european friends and our bankers to finalise a beauty-effing-ful legal tax saving scheme on which i was working for nearly a year.

"Naam.. good poster and knew his stuff."

but stepping heavily on various toes.

"rob, you are talking about Naam like he has moved on or something.....he still knows his stuff & is a decent chap too
(not to mention a tad funny at times)...hope he doesnt read this."

i read that Neverdie!    punishment will follow (plans are changed. cheap wine will be served when you visit me).

"My mistake.. he knows his stuff.. but with moved it could be said he moved from the forum not this world into the next (if you believe that kind of thing)"

i am well and alive Rob!

"*also no confirmation from him that he received my mail; so, he might not have access to internet, being on a trip; just guessing."

an incorrect assumption LaoPo. i apologise for not yet answering your mail. but with 80-90 mails a day to answer i have to set some priorities.

"Perhaps Dr Naam doesn't want to reply to any posts because of one or more of the following reasons..."

another incorrect assumption Señor Kangorito.

"Can't imagine Naam being banned for anything"

incorrect assumptions galore. Naam can be banned if he tells a moderator where he can shove his warning.

"Sub species of human being."

enchanté! nice to meet you Powderpuff. my name is Wally Naam.

"He's probably taken the dog gambling to Macau and staying at his favourite hotel."

taking my dogs (plural) to Macau is a huge problem. they have to stay back (but in good care) when the Mrs and i spend
a few days again in Macau starting coming saturday till thursday next week.

"Or wait, maybe he's out looking for a TRIlingual gardener..!!! That has to be it, he has decided to make thing EVEN CHEAPER by hiring a TRIlingual gardener..!!!! Or wait, maybe he's om his way to Stockholm because his wife has been awarded the Nobel price in...in freaking EVERYTHING!"

apologies! i made a mistake by claiming our gardener is trilingual because he can actually converse in four languages
whereas his wife (our cook) masters only three languages. unlike anonymous posters who claim to be lawyers. advising thai banks on Basle 3 regulations, but admit that the broken english of their tee-raks are too funny. too funny are also their claims that they spend hundreds of thousands Baht per month and pay hundreds of thousands Baht in taxes but whine on TV about some spots on the lacquer of their SUVs any of my claims can be verified by two dozen TV-members who have been guests in our home and know me and my wife personally.
    
next!  

My earlier post, like that of some other posters, was Off Topic. The original OP was about the high cost of Notarisations.

Typically, most accredited Thai Lawyers will notarise documents for 500bt/page. No extra charges for a staple.

Most Embassy day to day work is carried out by Thai staff, who command a much smaller salary than their UK counteparts. There is in my mind no justification for their excessively high charges for most services.

Why. even a replacement UK passport costs £128 + courier charges to and from Hong Kong, and a 4 week wait,  whilst the same item is available in the UK for under £80!

I know it is a drive but persoanl I would go to Den Chai on Highway 11 and by direct and have them deliver. If you buy localy the chance is the item were made and transportaed from these factories and you will be paying 100%  extra, I know this far a fact. The same items in Surin 5000Baht in Den Chai  12000 baht in Surin.

Is this likely to affect the 70-80% of Thai-owned small bikes and scooters in Surin which doubtless have no book?

Let's not delude ourselves, Thailand DOES have a bad reputation. That's not something that can be changed overnight. Thais can change things by first dealing with corruption. It is one of the most corrupt countries on the planet, and polls have said most Thais just accept that. That basically means it is hopeless. So the answer isn't on an expat board, now is it?

I thought women in Thailand had a very positive image.  I don''t know any other country where the ladies are such a tourist attraction in their own right.

I thought it was the police, and the riots, and the Tourist Authority of Thailand, and the cheats and fraudsters that people complain about who gave Thailand a bad reputation.
I certainly don't know anyone that comes here because of them...

SC

I also like to drop in at the Coffee Corner when I am around. I think it is a clean well run place. There is a nice farang menu as well as thai food. Ray is a friendly individual who is knowledgeable about the area and always ready to point you in the right direction.  I would also like to nominate the rest room to be one of the best in Issan. I challenge anyone to find a better one.

Cheers

Amsterdam

leebie, on 2010-07-25 21:13:56, said:

Leebie,

I am in Sisaket as well. I manufacture furniture but from your post not within the price range you want. As a guide if you are looking for the basic stuff then Bic C, Tescos and the like sell assembly yourself stuff very cheaply. Personally I think Index and the like stuff is much the same chipboard junk but over priced. The one thing your will have to hunt for is a decent mattress. Most Thai mattresses are as hard as a rock and even harder if you turn them over. I bought a foam mattress some eight years ago and it has been and still is very comfortable, it cost 1,600 baht. A decent mattress (inner spring) will cost your about 10,000 baht.

If your travelling via Surin then fine. If you want want a day trip from Sisaket then try Ubon. Many large furniture stores etc and only 60 odd Kms away. Try Big C in Sisaket for the cupboards etc...

Isaanaussie