Carmine6
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Posts posted by Carmine6
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The full bank address and perhaps your full address and the SWIFT account number BBKBTHBK (although they can look that up).
For my Bangkok Bank account in Chiang Mai, I was told to just use the main bank's address (333 Silom Rd, Bangkok), plus account number (which, as pointed, out contains your branch information) and account name. Also, include the SWIFT, which is: BKKBTHBK for any and all Bangkok Bank branches. (Lop's typing finger must have slipped
)This site will verify Swifts that your bank gives you. Can't necessarily look them up though as you usually end up with multiple possible codes. The XXX at the end of some codes is not part of the code, it's for branch numbers. I've never tried adding that onto the code though as the basic BKKBTHBK works.
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Woah, I was skeptical, but they have removed some reviews. I have one negative one still there and another gone. It looks like the overall stars are correct, so that hotels which were bad when I looked at them before still have low stars. But if you kind of average the stars in the writeups, they come up higher than the star rating in some cases. And I mean it's not even close.
Here's a funny 5 star rating for the Empire in Hong Kong:
"Posted by Vicky, Bahamas in August 2004
This hotel was the worst hotel I ever stayed in. We were on the 19th floor which the rooms were old and moldy. This horrible hotel had the worst service catered to Americans. The staff were rude and unhelpful. I will never stay at this hotel again."
The average of all the writeup stars, including the above "5", is 4.42, but the overall shows 3 stars. 3 stars is about right for that hotel, and I think that's what I gave them. But my review isn't there anymore.
So it looks like, go with the star rating. I do think the star ratings match my opinions of the hotels I've stayed at. There still are a lot of old negative reviews in there too. Some hotels are all bad reviews. Wonder if these guys are cleaning things up for certain hotels.
Bottom line for me is I haven't found any better rates for whatever hotel I've looked at. I also don't book unless I'm absolutely sure I'm going to stay somewhere since there are just too many horror stories about refunds with travel websites.
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So there I was sitting on a chair in tesco/lotus yesterday ...
...and on the front it boldly states that "The Romans are coming", as I really did not have any interest in any of this I just left the leaflet on the chair and went to find my Wife.
Does anyone understand the reference to "The Romans are coming"? Not that I'm schooled at all in religion, but I've just never seen anything about Romans coming.
Now if it said, "The Lord is coming", and and "Bob Lord" came to dine, then I'd say brush it off. I can see why this is a strange coincidence. But if this is a common evangelical theme, then I think it falls into the wait for another sign category.
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Not dangerous, only ugly...Now that we're all familiar with these, what's the story with the attached millipede? Any issues with these?
Patex
Good to know. My girlfriend crouched down to give it a nudge and try to get it to curl into a ball. I figured she wouldn't have done this it were nasty, but just wanted to check. If you see me do something stupid, however, you can't assume I don't know it's stupid.
I've heard that all centipedes are venomous to some degree but few millipedes are. Hope that's a good rule to follow.
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There are no flights to North American or Europe using May 2/May26 dates so appears they are making a schedule change. I just happen to have checked flights to SFO for that month a week or two ago and they were displayed ok so it is something that has just occurred - the flights were there before.
I have always received better price using local travel agent here in Bangkok (Bangkok Post advertiser) for EVA flights myself. About 5,000 baht cheaper for deluxe if I recall correctly.
Back in December, I tried pricing out flights for multiple dates in May and got the strange error mesage. I assumed it was just too early to book those, but guess it's something more than that.
Now it looks like LAX/BKK/LAX is working fine, but flights from BKK give the error messge, even for some April dates. Looks like software issue unless they're doing schedule changes on the fly or something.
Prices and schedules to/from LAX seem to be as they were before, but can't speak for other destinations.
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Eric,
You know how many people come to Thailand or Samui on a yearly base and how many out of these get murdered % wise?
You're probably more at risk crossing a road in your home town.
Its not the being murdered that is worrying me - its more the inference of many members of this forum that there is a vast amount of local corruption, crime, western lager louts and chavs on Samui - this being far removed from the idyllic impression given to me by friends who visited the island a few years ago.
I think your friends' view will more closely match your experience than some of the stories here. I stayed in Lamai 2 years ago and would definitely stay again. I'd actually planned on staying there with my girlfriend last September but we ended up staying in Chawaeng since her sister and brother-in-law were there.
I walked all over Lamai by myself at night and never felt uneasy. I actually found the town a bit subdued, as were the people. It's physically small unless you really get outside the tourist areas, so harder to find trouble. Had a very relaxing time.
Come to think of it, I did get a little fright from some of the speedos and some women who shouldn't bathe topless.
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It's possible that the bite is said to be more dangerous than it really is but when the Thais are more scared of this creature than they are of a cobra I have to think that the bite is serious. The local Thais have told me that some people die and that is good enough for me. I refuse to let them kill snakes on our property but they can feel free to kill all of these ugly creatures that they see. I have seen that all the snakes are VERY shy and as long as they are not cornered or antagonized they WILL try to avoid people. That ugly centipede is too stupid to run away and easy to step on or accidentally touch.
Wow, who's worried about Lethal? 2-3 days of agonizing pain is enough warning for me.
Now that we're all familiar with these, what's the story with the attached millipede? Any issues with these?
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Thanks. Not sure if I'll ever learn that first hand. I thought the taxes I paid on my BMW were bad in California, but I can't imagine buying that car in Thailand.
I guess the flip side is everything else is much cheaper.
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Since Im on the subject of this new acct, I do have a ? for the board. For wire xfers from the USA, will only the bank branch and SWIFT addresses be required or will I also need the routing (Passbook #)?The lady who opened my acct. said only the bank and SWIFT addies would be needed,my fin. institution ,Schwab, indicated that the routing # will also be needed, any comments from those familiar with the procedure will be much appreciated as Im still in the stage of gathering info before the xfer will actually be required,
Thanx much in advance,the Harpman
Check the Schwab website for the form. I know they had one a year ago. lopburi3 is right about the other requirements.
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I noticed red license plates the last trip to Thailand and couldn't get an answer, although I didn't try all that hard. There's also been a few references here to red plates.
Why do some cars/bikes have red plates instead of the white ones? They didn't seem to be emergency or government vehicles, or some other self explanatory type.
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Hi
I would really like to know the opinions of both thais and farangs as to what they think about people, or moreso thai ladies wearing considerable amounts of gold ie a 1 bht bracelet and a 1 bht necklace on a regular day to day basis. Do you think that it exudes class or do you think that it cheapens the person or do you have any other opinions of your own that you would like to share with me.
Any and all opinions are appreciated
JAF
I always wonder why topics like this are discussed on these boards. Is anyone here secretly wondering if they wear too much gold? Maybe if your significant other doesn't believe you, these might help, but hopefully you could just poll people you knew too.
I think more important than a certain amount of gold being the right amount is if it fits the person and the occassion. It has to match the way they dress and act. It only really stands out to me if it doesn't match.
I went back and looked at pictures and I pulled up the ones who I thought were wearing gold and they weren't and then others wore gold when I didn't even notice it. Bascially it made no impression on me when I was around people face to face. I was also surprised that my girlfriend wore gold much less than I realized. She wears cheap jewelry for those places she whouldn't wear gold, but she looked good when she did wear it. I guess because it also matched her clothes too.
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...Do have someone watch the builders on a daily bases better if it is a Thai guy that is on your side that understands what you expect for your money.
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What are others' experience with this?
My girlfriend monitored the construction of her family's house, since everyone else was out working on their farm. Lots of days I'd call her in the early afternoon and the foreman was at some meeting or something, so the workers hadn't even started working yet. They'd basically wait until the guy came. There also seemed to be lots of days off for festivals and town council meetings (the foreman was on it).
Nothing wrong with this as it wasn't my money, labor fee was fixed, and they finished on time.
I just think I would have gone crazy if I had watched all the downtime.
A side note: I offered to pay for a balcony off the second floor and it is so uncommon that the builder basically said no, by quoting something like 150,000 Baht.
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Has the baht stayed relatively stable against the dollar because the basket of thai currencies holds alot of dollars ?
Come to that does anyone know what is in the thai currency basket ?
If I had the foresight to know the answer I'd be a rich man. IMO People the likes of financial advisors would not be if they knew how to play the game with 100% positive results -- why do it for others if they could do it for themselves???Just an observation:- Over the past few weeks the USD has strenghtened against all major currencies, but the xrate between USD - THB has hardly moved. You figure it because I can't.
It is the worst kept secret that the Baht is more or less tied to the US dollar. A little fluctuation here and there, but, at the end of the day, not much of a change.
Looks like it's tied to the dollar until there's too much pressure, then it snaps. Of those 2 links from tywais, one was before the '97 crisis and one is after. So even though both say the dollar is over 80% of the currency basket, one says it hasn't varied much from 26 Baht per $ and the other says it's stable around 40 Baht per $.
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Sure, a new airport would be nice, and would be super convenient for me (as my main family base is on Sukapibal 3), but I don't think the local economy is on the make or break tightrope that the naysayers like to say it is. Even in the last "crash" (this is only one example, I know), we didn't even lay off one single employee (whether factory jobs or managers). The the most earth shaking thing that happened was that we reduced three shifts to two shifts. Our other busineses: pawn shops, pharmacies, orchid/plant export, pet fish export did business as briskly (and for the export side: better) as usual. As for our rentals, I don't even remember an increase in late rent payments. If that's a "crash," then I think the naysayers need to redefine their terms or at least get a better understanding of the local economy.
True, you have pikers living on credit. But then you have those (the 10-15% of the society that controls 80% of Thailand's assets/economy/wealth/etc.) who hold the reins here who have high savings rates and who can manage their lives AND the lives of those who work for them well enough to weather just about any economic storm.
Yeah, I don't buy the doom and gloom forecasts either. I have some long term money invested in Southeast Asian equities, and I think that region will continue growing. I know every time I go over there I see new, busy shops downtown and even in my girlfriend's hometown in the northeast, a new factory started up last year.
I have no knowledge of how travel from Europe has changed recently, but I guarantee awareness of Thailand in the US has never been higher. All kinds of shows have gone over there - food shows, travel shows, reality tv, movies, etc. Before 2 years ago I knew one person who had been to Thailand and then out of nowhere, I knew 9. And 4 of those 9 were there for business reasons. I think the number of US brand upscale resorts there now isn't an accident.
The one big concern I have is things like the new airport taking over a decade to finish or whatever it's been. There's either corruption or lack of funds or bad planning or some other big problem when projects like that stumble along. It won't take the new airport to keep the economy growning, but I think it'd help the economy whether growing or not.
But, I'd still like a few more Baht when I go to the ATM.
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Of course it's "possible," I'd like to know how many said analysts/executives are really betting on that though. I've love it to go to 42 or even 50 as most of my revenue is based in US$.
Yeah, they were really going out on a limb there. But that's an old story and it firmed up a bit since then. I wouldn't mind a few more Baht per $, but not if it's due to a weaker Thai economy.
If they could get the new airport running smoothly and then get the rail connection to the city, that place could boom. I know more and more people who are going to India for business reasons and it's been a 2 stop trip from the US. I think Thai Air could do a one stop now, but there are few flights. And Don Muang isn't the greatest airport to kill time in. But make a nice connector airport and there'd be a lot of new jobs around.
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Make sure you bring an International Driving Permit issued in the same jurisdiction which issued your US driver's license. That way you can get a Thai driver's license.
AAA (and the AATA (?)) are the only authorized US suppliers of these according the US State Dept., but you can just walk in and get one right there. I think it was $10 for the permit and then maybe $8 for the 2 passport spec photos if you are a member. Not much more if you aren't a member. Mine says "Issued at Heathrow, Florida..." even though I walked into a California office. I think they all will say that since that is where you send the application if you do it by mail.
Don't pay other places to have it done as they are much more expensive and they'd have to send it to AAA anyway, or forge them. They look pretty easy to forge, but no sense in paying extra.
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As a naive farang, I would expect the tsunami-effect (on tourism) and the oil-price-hike (on transport-costs & economic-confidence) to be negative, and the boost to consumer-spending from handing out loans to every village-headman to be running out of steam (and central-funds).
So IS a serious crisis near, for the Thai economy, and what are the signs to watch for ?
What do you think ??
Just recently, a business channel in the US had a report that tourism to Southeast Asia was up about 2% even after the Tsunami. On top of that, I can say that I see way more people going to Thailand in movies and TV shows, etc. Especially in reality TV, travel shows, food shows, etc. There is just more of a willingness to go to more exotic places than the usual Europe, Caribean, etc. than ever before.
Other good news is that the Japanese economy seems to have turned the corner which will help most of of Asia, and the Chinese are more willing to travel for vacations. And with Asia as a business destination more and more, that'll definitely spill over into tourist travel.
So I don't think tourism will let the economy down, unless something like bird flu took hold.
But, when you hear things like how long the new airport has been in progress, it's a crap shoot. It's hard to factor in graft and things like that.
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Here's the verdict from the UnitedStatesVisas gov website, which is linked from and managed by the US Dept of State. However, I do know people who have supplied financial information when their fairly poor relatives visited and their visas were approved. Realize that these are people reviewing the forms and for borderline cases, I'd expect it to help the case if it matches the story about the visit. For example, they might not be able to pay for their visit if it's assumed that they stay in hotels, but if staying with relatives, they could meet the funds requirement. It wouldn't turn a clear 'no' into a 'yes' however.
"Hosting Visitors to the U.S.
People often ask how they can help a family member, relative or friend get a visa to visit them in the United States. We appreciate their desire to help and do understand that sometimes the need for a visit can be urgent.
Under U.S. law, however, applicants for visitor visas must qualify on their own for visas to visit the United States.
This is what applicants must do to qualify for visitor visas:
* Complete and sign the required application forms;
* Bring evidence that their visit is temporary and that they will return home after their legally authorized stay; and
* Undergo security clearance procedures
We understand that you may want to help with the visa process. However, it does not help the applicant if you write a letter of invitation or personally guarantee his or her departure from the United States after the visit is over. The consular officer evaluates each visa application on its own merits according to visa law and procedures. You can be most helpful by making sure the applicant has all the information they need to submit a correct application and by explaining fully the standards for visa issuance."
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It's funny how some of recent posts here on TV mirror the stuff I had just gone thru.
I just recently applied for an ITIN using the IRS W-7 form. Filled out everything on the form using the electronic version of the form, had my Thai wife sign it, and then submitted it to the IRS office in PA. I included with the W-7 my wife's Thai passport, and nothing else.
About 3 weeks later, her passport was returned to my residence here in the states, and on the same day, another letter came with the ITIN.
I was surprised to receive the ITIN, because if you read the instructions with the W-7, it does say that the application must be accompanied with a completed tax form (i.e. the 1040). I apparently neglected to read these instructions carefully, nevertheless my wife was issued an ITIN. Maybe I was lucky.
I assume you checked box E and were required to file a return with it. Guess bureacracy helps sometimes.
I do know that it's very easy to get a business or partnership Tax ID online and you get it right then. I think from their viewpoint, if anyone wants to make it easier to collect taxes, they'll give you the number. Wish other things were that easy.
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Saw an item on BBC Biz news. China & India are experiencing a lot of new found wealth & are sucking up all the gold. Also it said something about the Dollar being at a good rate!!
Gold was this price 22 years ago and they think demand now will continue & the prices will keep going up.
There you go !!
9 months ago, my girl and I went to trade up the jewelry I bought her last year. I was astonished that even though the chain was broken and the bracelet was all bent up, I received about what I had paid. Now it would have been maybe 15% higher.
Also interesting is that while I'm surprised at some of the things she'll keep for sentimental reasons, she had little attachment to the jewelry. I didn't realize it was even possible to do this until she asked the shop how much it was worth.
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Bangkok Bank PLC is currently the only bank allowed direct deposit of US Government type retirement checks (special account arrangements may have to be made but it is possible).
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The cost of SWIFT wire transfer from US is currently your home bank charge, plus $5 at New York, plus .25% fee in Bangkok (200 min and 500 max baht range). I believe the other banks charge in the same range.
Lopburi3, is this fee only for Bangkok Bank? My banks use JP Morgan as the correspondant bank and whenever I wire money to a Bangkok Bank account, I'm charged a fee by my bank and then I get 99% of the foreign exchange rate. I know Bankgok Bank has a NY branch and can act as their own correspondant bank, so I assume this is their fee.
Also, what exchange rate does Bangkok Bank give on the transfer? Is it the rate listed on their website? This is about 99% of the current foreign currency exchange rate when I've checked. More accurately, it's set at some point in the day, so this seems to be within 1/10 of a % of 99% of the prior day's average rate when I've checked. Compared to the current rate, I"ve seen it as good as 99.3%. Once in a while I've caught a good rate, but it's gone the other way too.
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...ETRADE Bank>> A lot of foreigners opened accounts with them but their accounts were shut down once they found out they only wanted the account to transfer money from paypal. Wells Fargo might open an account for you but they arn't paypal friendly either.
I hope I have been of help but there isnt any easy way around it, You can always PM me if you want. Cheers Tony
This topic came up in another thread and I called ETrade to see what their requirements were for a non-us citizen account. He at first asked which country, since it couldn't be done for certain countries like Libya, and then said it had to be a writtten (as opposed to internet) application, and that the form is available at their website. Before I could ask where the form was located, he put me on hold and then came back saying they required a US mailing address and US Social Security number.
So, either this guy was incorrect, or they no longer do this.
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As I said what you give her is of no concern to me but I was putting into context with what the officer must consider - is her employment gainful enough to be a factor pointing to her return. And from the figures provided it can not.
Paying 12,000 baht for an apartment is not normal for a single Thai FYI.
What is "gainful enough"? From the information provided, it sounds like her income is significant. If you figure her rent is almost covered, then her income covers all of her and her sibling's living expenses. Supporting a sibling through school isn't all that cheap. Start adding up all the bus fares and food, shampoo, occasional movie, etc. and it get's to be a lot of Baht every month. Then every semester there are the books, tuition and other fees.
Now add on top of that all the living expenses that a 33 year old who runs a business would have and that's not a small number. So she probably has a decent income. Yes, it could be a low number if she's unbelievably miserly, but start adding up realistic figures and the range of what her income probably is, grows.
The original post says the money he provides is not traceable, and could be counted as business income, so I think add all that up and the income would look very good for whoever reviews the application.
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So since I've been living in Thailand which is about 3 years or so the gold "Baht" mentality has driven me crazy.
I don't understand the need to heap that crap around your neck and stand out like a sign saying "rob me please" so of course after the constant grinding whilst driving or walking past the GOLD SHOPS you eventually break down and buy 5 or 10 Baht worth. So what happens next is the Thai walks in the washroom in a busy Bangkok bus station and is promptly relieved of the wallet from inside a bag, I attribute this directly to the stupid a-s gold chain and bracelet advertising I've got money.
What I'm asking is this....If you've got money in the bank and access to it with 3 ATM cards and all the other crap you can want, why wear the chains and bracelets etc.
I'm not sure how much it matters if you're obviously foreign.
I think if you look back at how much the Baht depreciated relative to other currencies in 1997(?), it'll help explain why gold might be an appealing savings option. It dropped by about half versus the US dollar and I'm sure similarly against other currencies. Try living through that and feeling good about money in the bank.
That doesn't explain the wearing part, but if you have the gold, is it safer leaving it at home all day or carrying it with you? Depends on your neighbors and where you normally go during the day.
I also know from experience that if my girlfriend is wearing a nice necklace and bracelet she is treated differently than when she doesn't. Not everywhere and by everyone obviously, but enough that I've noticed it. Among strangers, there are very few ways to instantly communicate what kind of status you have other than what you're wearing. In Thailand, gold is much less expensive than buying lots of nice clothes, and more practical since you can always pawn or sell it. Overall I think the pluses far outweigh the rare instances that you'll have problems if you're otherwise careful.
My girlfriend has cheap jewelry to wear when security may be an issue, so she realizes discretion makes sense wherever you are. I always carry a fat dummy wallet in my back pocket so there's a typical target and then carry one of those thin money clip things with space for only 2 or 3 cards. And I keep the spending money in a small wad all by itself.
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Eva Air
in Thailand Travel Forum
Posted · Edited by Carmine6
For LAX to BKK I think Evergreen Deluxe versus Thai Economy is a fair comparison since they cost about the same. Hard to justify paying the extra money for Thai Economy, when I can pay the same for Evergreen Deluxe. The only other consideration now is the non-stop that Thai offers which knocks off about 2 hours each way and runs maybe $200 more.
But, I've taken to flying EVA economy now since it's actually pretty comfortable, and really cheap. If they were the same price, I'd consider them interchangeable. I do think EVA economy is more consistently better. Last Thai flight, the plane was shabby with only the overhead screen for entertainment. Service was ok, but it felt like they had priorties other than serving the customers.
Having said that, last year I flew Thai airlines RT with the girlfriend to Hong Kong and they treated her great. That crew was just a good crew and it was nice having them speak Thai for the things like emergency procedures. And my girlfriend's sister hates EVA. Her and her husband fly from London to Thailand fairly often and she hates EVA. But I think they only took it once and she's judging from one bad trip.
EVA gets a higher grade from me, but if Thai can knock down the direct price a bit, I'll switch.