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justanotheroldhippy

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Posts posted by justanotheroldhippy

  1. First of all I have got to say 'Big Thanks' to UbonJoe for the help with questions on this topic. The British government have not made renewing passports easy for anyone, and it can be really stressful trying to decide what is, or not, acceptable to them as regards proof of address (me being one of the stressed out and worried ones!). What we don't need are the keyboard warriors that come up with really helpful comments NOT!) like 'use some common sense' etc, so 'UbonJoe', you are my hero of the day... seriously. This has been a nightmare for me, as - like many others - I don't have my name on anything! I with my wife to get my name on the rental agreement (just have never needed it done before so didn't bother), and my landlord (really good people) said they have one in Thai AND English! Brilliant (or so I thought)... printed off... signed on the line... job done... NOT. I didn't have my glasses at the time, and when I got home I realised that most of the English translations on the form literally didn't make any sense at all! ( Example... 'And rental amount has been completed on this contract. If the tenant rent due under the agreement. Lessor will refund guarantee at deduction..' WHAT???) So I realised that there is no way that our friendly passport staff in Bangkok would accept this.

    I eventually had a chat with one of the local police that I have known for some time... he suggested that he come with me to Immigration, complete with rental agreement (which reads perfectly well in Thai...but not English) and help me get something from immigration (in 'good' English) which confirms my address! I could have kissed him!

    I am hoping that the info from immigration will be all that I need... and... reading the answers from today's hero... I reckon it should be okay. Now all I have to do is email them for an appointment!

    A couple of points.... if I am going up there in person, why do I need someone to countersign my photograph? Surely they can look at me.... look at the photo.... look at my old passport... and go 'Yup!... that's definitely you! and.... if the person who signs my photo can be trusted to confirm that it 'is a true likeness'... why can't they be trusted to confirm where I live? Bloody madness I say.... all in all it is going to cost me around 8 - 10,000 baht to sort this out... and that is without the cost of the bl**dy passport! Pathetic system... but typically British lol

  2. Dear mr lite Beer. Instead of only copying the text of the Samui Times. I would have appreciated if you also had taken my comment about what really happend.

    After reading all the comments from people who didn't see the accident and only hear the gossip, I've to comment about this because I was a witness. 1. the truck driver didn't go fast, because I was driving behind the truck, maybe at 60 km. max. If I had droven harder I couldn't have stop in time without also hit the victims. 2. The farang wanted to pass the truck on the left and very close to the walkway. I saw that there was a little hole in the road close to the walkway. I suppose because of this the farang lost control of the motorbike and they fell to the right under the truck before the rear tires.

    I'm very sorry for the victims, may they rest in peace. But in this case it wasn't the fault of the truck driver!

    So both you AND the cement truck were going way over the speed limit then? Wonder what the stopping distance is for a cement truck from 60kph?

    I was overtaken by one 2 days ago on my way to Nathon (I was riding my Honda Wave) He flew past me, and I accelerated to see what speed he was doing. I caught him just before the bend leading up to the mountain (coming from Bantai) he was doing just over 90 kph! And overtaking anything that was in his way. The cars coming the other way had to move over or hit him head on. It was unbelievable, just wish I had one of those helmet cameras. They are all nutters, and this has been going on for years. I remember a few years ago when 2 holiday makers were walking at the side of the road (Bantai area I think) and were hit and killed by a cement truck. Of course it didn't stop. Dangerous, irresponsible scumbags.

  3. Once the police got involved she entered the system. They couldn't legally abandon her for if nothing else, fear of prosecution. Hospital will not release her for at least the very same reason.

    Better to use any money donated to quickly renovate to living conditions the bungalow she was in, obtain the OK for her to live there and provide some medical support if she requires it for legal reasons. No much to ask for is it?

    Good point notmyself, but it looked like the place she was in was not only derelict (they showed it on TV), and dangerous, but that it was private land, possibly due to be developed? Apart from the move to another bungalow, It appears she will be getting exactly as she wants and needs... hope so anyway. At least this way she can make the best of what time she has left. Personally, I think the family that have taken on the bills etc are fantastic... restores your faith a bit (mine anyway).

    • Like 1
  4. Why not respect her wishes and leave her alone?

    What kind of a nonsense comment is that? Is it beyond you to actually write something positive about how people have come together to help this lady? Unlike you, there are people who are genuinely concerned about this lady, and want to know how things are going for her. It seems pretty obvious (if you read the article) that she has indeed been 'left alone', apart from the people who want to help her. Aaaah... a bit late, but I get it... you are one those troll types eh?

  5. Complaining about 20bht? Don't be such a wuss. Accept where you are and get on with it. This aint no democracy... if you want that then go back from whence you came and take your sense of superiority with you

    Congratulations for being the first person to come up with the cliche '...if you don't like it then go home' ! I was wondering how long it would be till someone came up with it! ... and... if you read the post correctly, it is pretty obvious that the op was not complaining, simply curious to see if it was normal. But then... simple details like that don't stop the 'go home' wallies eh? Can't you come up with anything more original? or is it simply a troll post? Soooooooo boring!

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  6. <script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>


    I remember a post a while back stating the area had CCTV ?

    Indeed it has... unfortunately the incident wasn't reported immediately to the police apparently- only some 2 hours later. The young lady kept a memory stick in her bag with all of her bank details/passwords on it, and decided (rightly) to get back to her resort to contact her bank. The police will check the cctv to see if they can get more details of the snatchers though.

  7. The other day a bag was snatched from the shoulder of an English tourist... only been on Samui a short time too... not nice. Thing that makes this a bit different was that the girl was a passenger on the bike with her bag kept on her left side (normally the safest side), however, it seems that the 2 young Thai boys following them waited for an opportunity to whizz up the inside and grab the bag. Fortunately the bag had a fairly thin strap, which broke easily as it was grabbed, and therefore didn't result in the girl either falling off the bike, or the 'driver' losing balance and crashing. So it seems that carrying your bag on the left-hand side now makes you just as vulnerable to having it snatchedas if it was on the right-hand side. The incident happened in Maenam - between soi 7 and soi 6. The 2 Thai boys were riding a white (or light coloured) bike... probably a pocket racer of some kind, as it apparently accelerated off at quite a speed. It was not a Wave-type or Click/Scoopy-type of scooter anyway. 'Bum-bags' seem the best option... or putting the bag under the seat if possible. Be aware, and keep your eyes open for 2 scallywags on a light-coloured 4 stroke bike!

    • Like 1
  8. And then tons of ganja go through...

    How do you feel when eating these leaves ?

    They are a mild-to-fair stimulant which helps relieve tiredness and give a bit of an energy boost... which is why many taxi drivers and bus drivers etc use them... a bit like a red bull but without the side effects of caffeine (racing heart, blood pressure etc). Kratom is also used by many Thais to control the lesser forms of diabetes. It is quite a strange 'drug' and not really fully understood... although not an opiate, it reacts with the brain's opiate receptors... and is therefore physically addictive. However... whilst taking a couple of leaves acts as a stimulant, taking 4 or 5 leaves acts as a sedative! Although a stimulant, it is also very effective in providing pain relief in cases of chronic aches and pains (M.E./C.F.S./Fibromyalgia for example). It also has a slight mood enhancing effect in some people, and can therefore also help with depression. The Thais are well aware of its medicinal properties (not just the fact that it is a stimulant). The only real negative is that they are physically addictive, and 'coming off' them is the equivalent of coming off any opiate. There is a common trend among young Thai guys to mix the leaves with red bull-type drinks and (I believe) cola and even cough syrup. The results of this brew enhance the stimulant effects tremendously, with the effects being more along a cocaine/amphetamine hit. Some say that the mix is almost comparable to Yabba. A kind of 'Tea' is commonly made from the leaves, simply by boiling them up in water. Most police wouldn't be too bothered on finding a couple of leaves, although technically you can be fined 500 baht for each leaf. However, anything more than a couple of leaves is going to cause a problem. Not too long ago there was a move to decriminalize them, but that seems to have fallen by the wayside for some reason. Quite a few Thais will have a small tree (small being less obvious) in their gardens (if they have one!). A friend of mine had a 2 metre tree in his front garden and it was regularly stripped bare by the local Burmese workers living close by... he has now pinned a notice to the tree in Thai and Burmese telling people to leave it alone!

  9. Why haven't any lawyers come forward and offered there services to these guys. Come on people im sure there is someone out there following these ridiculous events who will want to do the right thing and defend these poor blokes.

    Sadly, because the lawyers are probably just as corrupt... and I am talking from personal experience. No way would they do anything to damage their relationship with police.

  10. I discussed this with a Thai colleague and she saw things slightly differently...she could see how the translation could be construed one way but understood the advert to mean that a woman who was worried about the safety of a condom would be more likely to say yes once she knew it was a Durex...

    My wife's response was similar... she understood as a woman who was concerned about having unprotected sex agreed to sex if a condom was used. Sometimes, somethings just don't translate well?

  11. If I was sentenced to 50 years i'd be a rapist or a murderer, or i would have done something insane like bringing a kilo of yaba into the airport.. your damn right i'm gonna laugh about it-you bleeding heart douch..

    lemme tell you this other funny prison story, when they transferred me from the jail to the prison, first they sent me to this 'police station' or so I thought, inside was a very scummy jail cell, we had to sit in it all day until the evening when they crowded us into this caged van that went to the prison.. there was this little window and every so often it would open and there was this young woman on the other side and she would read something off a document or call on someone.. every 2 weeks everyone was being sent back to that place and then back to the prison in the evening..it sucked when your name was called over the loud speaker because that was you court day, youd go there and they'd like give you some peice of paper youd sit there all day and then go back to prison.. the day i got released i saw my GF waiting outside when the van arrived, she said i was going to court that day and she thinks they got my case done, so i sat in there all day, and then at the end i got called up to that little window and that Girl read some stuff to me, my lawyer came in and had me sign some docs, he left and i saw my GF, I said it's almost time to go back, I thought i was going to court today.. she said THIS IS the court.. I said OMG this is a court?.. a scummy dirty jail cell with a small window and this girl on the other side that reads stuff.. this is the court.. they took me back to prison along with everyone else, only this time i didn't go up to the crowded cell, i appeared first before a prison warden of some sort, and out i went with about 2 other guys.. it was like pitch dark outside, they just the door behind us and my GF was there with her brother to drive me home..happy day that was..

    ^^ Thankfully, you don't speak for the majority of inmates. As said, I have gotten in touch with an independent who visits the prison regularly and they are going to arrange a visit with someone who WANTS a visitor. Doubt they'll object to a few baht being put into their account either so they can actually survive in there.

    You say you were in there for 1 month, fair enough. If you were sentenced to 50 years I doub't you have the same attitude about not wanting to have visitors.

    ok... fair enough... that was YOUR experience... in THAT particular prison... but Bang Kwang is NOT like that! NO 'dirty' prison clothes... and the court is a 'proper' court... pretty similar to a UK court in some respects... so, in a nutshell... not everyone feels the same as you about visits... not everyone in prison had the same experience or attitude as you... and not every prison is the same as the one you were in. Glad you are out though mate... sounds like you had a bit of a rough time, and a month can feel like a year in that kind of situation I reckon.

  12. Long time lurker, first time poster. There is a lot of misinformation below that I thought I could help clear up. I have been to Bwang Kwang many times over the years and procedures are always changing. Please see my notes below in bold:

    "I don't think it's a good idea to 'randomly' visit someone like that..if you know of a specific person that is having a hard time and needs help, particularly needs financial help-ie putting money into their jail account-then you can help that person.. 99.99% of the inmates would welcome a visit. Their days are extremely monotonous and even a 'banana visit' (feeling like they are in a zoo) is much better than the alternative.

    bt when you show up randomly like that, not even being a journalist who is writing about the conditions there, you are just clogging the system, the visitation at those prisons is VERY crowded, people are waiting for legal help, they are trying to get a glimpse of a loved one, your putting legitimate visits at an inconvenience so you can gawk at some random prisoner.. The visitation area is not crowded at all. Usually there are about 30 or 40 Thai family members on one side of the visiting area and 5-10 non-Thai volunteers, missionairies, embassy staff, family members 50 meters away on the other side. Gone are the days of everyone shouting through a wire fence trying to communicate across an open space to the prisoners behind a second wire fence. Now, each prisoner and visitor communicates by phone and the volume of noise is at a minimum. NO ONE is waiting for legal help or trying to catch glimpses of anything.

    Also you put the inmates themselves at an inconvenience, when you visit someone there-they have to change their personal cloths into this dirty prison garb ( i heard this through the grapevine), possibly miss one of the food handouts, wait in lines and all to see someone that has no business.. You have no business there, it's not a zoo and it's NOT a tourist attraction..just stay away from that place." The inmates definitely do not change their clothes. What they wear to the visit is the exact same clothes they wear back in the yard. They definitely do not miss out on chow time. A visit is 45 minutes long and a prisoner is informed 5 minutes before the visit starts that they have a visitor. They do not wait in any lines and very easily come into the longhouse that holds the phones.

    Food cannot be brought for the prisoner nor can it be currently bought at the prison. Previously you could buy various items at the prison store that would be given to the inmate, but those days are over for now. You can however make a deposit into a prisoners account and the prisoner will use that money for canteen purchases and for toiletries etc.

    Heather Luna-Rose is doing amazing work and http://thailandprisonersupport.org/the-prisons/ would welcome the chance to arrange a visit with an inmate in need. Please pm me if I can answer any further questions. Lastly, regardless of your intentions, 99.99% of the inmates appreciate a visit and welcome the chance to break up the soul crushing monotony that is their lives at BK.

    Cheers

    Absolutely agreed 100%... and well done for making it clear and a positive things to do (Sorry, don't mean that to sound as patronising as it does!). A visit can be a real highlight for a lot of inmates, and an opportunity to make a 'penpal' if deemed appropriate. Just remember that that not all inmates are murderers and rapists etc... some have just made dumb/stupid/wrong decisions or choices! Prisoners abroad has a website that is worth visiting. As far as I am aware you WILL need the name of the person you are going to visit... can't just turn up on-spec.Ignore the negative crap from people... the world needs more 'do-gooders'... just please don't treat it as a freak show. Good on'yer!

  13. The non-o visa for visiting family is still available. Many think it can be only for a Thai family which is not correct.

    She can easily get a single entry non-o by showing her birth certificate and copies of you passport photo page and extension stamp. If there is honorary consulate where she will that would be the best choice for getting a multiple entry visa.

    Great news... the normal tourist visa will probably cover her stay, but just in case she wanted to stay longer it is good to have that option... cheers! :)

  14. The Non-O for visiting you is no longer available. She should get a tourist visa just prior to her departure. They are available with either 1, 2 or 3 entries. If used correctly a single will get you 90 days permission to stay with one 30 day extension, a double, almost 180 days to stay with one border run and two 30 day extensions and a triple almost 270 days to stay with two border runs and three 30 day extensions. The visa cost is in multiples of 1000 baht per each entry, the extensions are 19000 baht each. The cost of border runs depends on where you exit the country and the travel.

    With a toruist visa you get 69 days permission to stay on entry which can be extended for another 30 days without leaving the country. Which visa she applies for depends on how long she wants to stay.

    Thank you for that... info much appreciated... cheers :)

  15. I am here on a retirement visa, and my daughter is coming to see me (haven't seen her for 7 years! Can't wait!)... I understand that she can get the tourist visa (3x30 days), but when my son came out a few years ago he got a visa for a year (a Non-O I think) because he was visiting a parent that had retired here. Does anyone know if that visa is still an option? If not, are there any other options for my daughter apart from the tourist visa route? Thanks for your help people.

  16. I used to live next to skippy in guernsey up until he left for ireland. My husband and i really liked him and we met his son kieran as well he had a hard time when he left guernsey difficult circumstances which wr helped him with. So shocked to hear about his accident its been upsetting hearing about this we often talked about him he was always in our thoughts so sad. We would like to know what happened to his body is he buried in the island would like to know a little more about him since we last saw him he left us in 2002

    I'm not sure if Skippy had a son, or if he lived in Guernsey... I know he did do a lot of traveling though, and had friends in many countries. I just hope the poster isn't getting confused with the other tragic death of the Guernsey chap that was posted shortly after my original post. For information: Skippy was cremated at the Laem Hoy temple in Bantai, in traditional Thai fashion. The driver of the minibus that hit Skippy (Skippy was on the 'wrong' side of the road remember) was devastated by the accident, and he - along with many members of his family - came to the temple to pay their respects and help with the cost of his funeral... and even made food for those present. A tragic accident indeed. He was a real character, and is sorely missed. I hope this helps the poster in some way.

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