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A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand
- Thread starter Leongsam
- Start date
La mian looks like fish porriage. I think i ate that once. Not nice.
Curry flavor not as good as laksa though.
They don't allow taxis to wait or pickup? Since when? since the coup? They put in the turnstiles one year ago and even then I had no problem getting taxis on the 4th floor. The turnstiles have a gap that if you align the turnstiles in a "X" pattern, you can go through with bags. The cab drivers even help you. They were shoo-ing off drivers in the beginning but this is thailand, and too much trouble so soon stopped
I last took a taxi in this manner just before the coup. Both at BKK and DMK (which doesn't have turnstiles)
Taxis don't need to wait. I just jump in one that's just arrived to drop a passenger.
Jah, you and Rotikosong are both right - there's a turnstile alright yet there's a gap and I guess Rotikosong's karmasutra's skill is put into good use for this gap. Roti please take note for last minute changes to rules, mafias in uniform these days changes rules flip flop here and there.
You've me confused with YY
Won't be able to test this out on next trip cos I'll be taking the bus instead
You've me confused with YY
Won't be able to test this out on next trip cos I'll be taking the bus instead
Oh no roti I did not confuse you as kamarsutra with YY, with due respect YY is the guru for cumla-shootla.
Anyway it's on the road once again, going home
Did you try to take taxis after the coup? I think they have become very strict now after the coup. The last time i was in bkk was during songkran which was long before the coup started. I took a cab from the ground floor i didn't attempt to go to the departure cos i knew of the turnstills. Driver attempted to somehow extract money from me but i insisted on the meter fare and i paid him extra 50bht.
Anyway don't you find it odd like you go to departures. Many soldiers, police etc. The turnstills are there to prevent ppl from inside the airport to try to take a cab. The soldiers just stand there and see someone go against the grain like somehow find a way to bypass the turnstills that are there to prevent him from going pass the barriers to take a cab since he is supposed to take a taxi from the ground floor. Sometimes we forget it isn't sinkieland and you can somehow break the rules i suppose with some balls.
how strict are the laws implemented by the military? From what i read on forums and ppl living there it doesn't actually affect ppl that don't have political agendas.
Yo, train a good option downtown. City line is a better choice over the express (half hourly or hourly runs?), and costs a fraction to last stop Pya Thai to connect with BTS.tonychat said:
Oi, spirit is willing but flesh is weak. Hard to rise to the occasion, despite the puying temptations :o:p
Today's slice of thai mango. Commentary on Cambo labour exodus (220,000?) messing up the economy in production sector.
Invite the cambodians to return
Published: 22/06/2014 at 12:18 AM
Bangkok Post
Myanmar, Lao and Cambodian workers — legal or illegal — we need them back. Their fears are understandable, having come from countries that were torn apart by civil wars, countries that have brutal histories of military regimes.
But we need to bring them back and reassure them of their safety. What’s more, we need to find a way to make them all legal. This isn’t just because of the oncoming Asean Economic Community (AEC), but in practical terms, we need their labour.
Having done the rounds with various foreign investors the past week, the call is being made in unison. Thailand needs to stimulate its economy. Well, obviously.
Foreign investors congratulate Thailand’s resilience (and luck) that through a decade of upheavals (two military coups, three uprisings and occupations, and a whole of lot of craziness) the economy still pushes on, battered and bruised though it may be. But they are worried that things might blow up if the general doesn’t have control. This has nothing to do with democracy, heaven forbid, or no one would invest in China. Foreign investors are not hypocrites. They are practical.
The following advice should therefore be viewed as the cold economic truth, nothing to do with bleeding-heart democratic ideals. We shall not presume it reflects the belief of all investors.
In terms of developing economies, many foreign investors prefer centre-right governments, which offer good prospects for investment. Anything to the left spells socialism at best, or communism at worst. This is not so good for investment. Even communist China is more right-wing capitalist in its behaviour nowadays.
So investors hope the general can get things under control, but also caution that the country must eventually return to democratic elections. One year, give or take, is an agreeable goal. Centre-right democracy, they say, best for investment. Subsidies are fine and at times necessary; investors understand this. But keep subsidies in check because they lead to abuse.
Whether it’s cooking gas or fuel energy subsidies, housewives and drivers risk being spoiled and failing to understand real value. They consume more than necessary.
Worst of all, subsidies lead to illegal smuggling, because locals realise they can make money selling subsidised goods across borders. The rampant cross-border rice smuggling that resulted from the rice-pledging scheme is one example. With the advent of AEC, smuggling will be even easier.
So don’t go crazy with subsidies. Foreign investors are good capitalists; they want real work for real value and real money.
The three basic factors to stimulate the economy are these. Cultivate more land. Put more people to work. Put more machinery to work. But in Thailand, we’ve raped our lands 10 times over. There’s not much left, if any, to cultivate. So forget it.
We can hardly put more people to work, because our unemployment rate is already quite low. But still we need labourers and factory workers.
Face it — a lot of us Thais are happy driving motorcycle taxis or having our little clothing stalls at the various flea markets. We enjoy the freedom of being our own bosses. This is fine. Personal choice. But we are not exactly driving the economy.
Therefore, we need the Myanmar, Lao and Cambodian workers. They are the workers that help drive the Thai economy. But of course, we can’t have them illegally. This leads to abuses by employers.
Legislate to legalise these workers. Monitor their welfare.
Last, the machines aren’t working because the people aren’t working them. They are in exodus. Not to mention, the owners of the machines still aren’t sure which way Thailand will head, toward stability or civil war? Thailand isn’t known for producing machines. We are a labour-intensive economy.
So it’s up to the general to get things under control and build confidence.
Keen foreign investors have their eyes and ears to the ground. They know what they want. Politically, they want us to the right of centre, with democracy in due course. They value control and stability. Economically, they want us to invest in infrastructure to improve productivity, logistics and transport.
And here are two more important factors. Keep corruption to a minimum and prioritise education reform.
That’s the political and economic truth, even if some find it emotionally distressing
Invite the cambodians to return
Published: 22/06/2014 at 12:18 AM
Bangkok Post
Myanmar, Lao and Cambodian workers — legal or illegal — we need them back. Their fears are understandable, having come from countries that were torn apart by civil wars, countries that have brutal histories of military regimes.
But we need to bring them back and reassure them of their safety. What’s more, we need to find a way to make them all legal. This isn’t just because of the oncoming Asean Economic Community (AEC), but in practical terms, we need their labour.
Having done the rounds with various foreign investors the past week, the call is being made in unison. Thailand needs to stimulate its economy. Well, obviously.
Foreign investors congratulate Thailand’s resilience (and luck) that through a decade of upheavals (two military coups, three uprisings and occupations, and a whole of lot of craziness) the economy still pushes on, battered and bruised though it may be. But they are worried that things might blow up if the general doesn’t have control. This has nothing to do with democracy, heaven forbid, or no one would invest in China. Foreign investors are not hypocrites. They are practical.
The following advice should therefore be viewed as the cold economic truth, nothing to do with bleeding-heart democratic ideals. We shall not presume it reflects the belief of all investors.
In terms of developing economies, many foreign investors prefer centre-right governments, which offer good prospects for investment. Anything to the left spells socialism at best, or communism at worst. This is not so good for investment. Even communist China is more right-wing capitalist in its behaviour nowadays.
So investors hope the general can get things under control, but also caution that the country must eventually return to democratic elections. One year, give or take, is an agreeable goal. Centre-right democracy, they say, best for investment. Subsidies are fine and at times necessary; investors understand this. But keep subsidies in check because they lead to abuse.
Whether it’s cooking gas or fuel energy subsidies, housewives and drivers risk being spoiled and failing to understand real value. They consume more than necessary.
Worst of all, subsidies lead to illegal smuggling, because locals realise they can make money selling subsidised goods across borders. The rampant cross-border rice smuggling that resulted from the rice-pledging scheme is one example. With the advent of AEC, smuggling will be even easier.
So don’t go crazy with subsidies. Foreign investors are good capitalists; they want real work for real value and real money.
The three basic factors to stimulate the economy are these. Cultivate more land. Put more people to work. Put more machinery to work. But in Thailand, we’ve raped our lands 10 times over. There’s not much left, if any, to cultivate. So forget it.
We can hardly put more people to work, because our unemployment rate is already quite low. But still we need labourers and factory workers.
Face it — a lot of us Thais are happy driving motorcycle taxis or having our little clothing stalls at the various flea markets. We enjoy the freedom of being our own bosses. This is fine. Personal choice. But we are not exactly driving the economy.
Therefore, we need the Myanmar, Lao and Cambodian workers. They are the workers that help drive the Thai economy. But of course, we can’t have them illegally. This leads to abuses by employers.
Legislate to legalise these workers. Monitor their welfare.
Last, the machines aren’t working because the people aren’t working them. They are in exodus. Not to mention, the owners of the machines still aren’t sure which way Thailand will head, toward stability or civil war? Thailand isn’t known for producing machines. We are a labour-intensive economy.
So it’s up to the general to get things under control and build confidence.
Keen foreign investors have their eyes and ears to the ground. They know what they want. Politically, they want us to the right of centre, with democracy in due course. They value control and stability. Economically, they want us to invest in infrastructure to improve productivity, logistics and transport.
And here are two more important factors. Keep corruption to a minimum and prioritise education reform.
That’s the political and economic truth, even if some find it emotionally distressing
Drove up to Kachanaburi, did the touristy River Kwai 1st time. Nature, with time moving slowly like river. Truth be told, I was bored to my skull. Was glad to drive back to civilization next day.
Thinking of doing Kao Jai next month, by car. 180kms, or 2+ hours?
Thinking of doing Kao Jai next month, by car. 180kms, or 2+ hours?
Anybody know the answer: What's the difference in terms of time/distance/convenience between the tollway (I think this is Road 3 - Is this also called Bangna Trad?) or the motorway ("7") from Bangkok to Pattaya?
I looked at Google Maps and there appears 7 is faster but the difference isn't all that apparent.
No, have not been in TH not since the coup. Will attempt soon. In the past, I go departures level every single time if I need a taxi, before and after turnstiles. The reason is not to save 50B (small $) but to save time since sometimes (especially at DMK) lines can be long. Yes, there are airport guards (not police lah) but I fuck care. Taxi drivers also calling you in front of them, sometimes helping you with bags. As one of my colleagues put it: grow some balls, just do, and if caught, be polite and respectful and remember to suddenly forget you speak any Thai.
Train is only a good option if your hotel is on the train line and/or near Phaya Tai, or it is peak rush-hour. Otherwise you save no time. Instead you'll sweat buckets going up and down and transferring. Good luck finding a taxi. Also the BTS has no space for luggage
I looked at Google Maps and there appears 7 is faster but the difference isn't all that apparent.
No, have not been in TH not since the coup. Will attempt soon. In the past, I go departures level every single time if I need a taxi, before and after turnstiles. The reason is not to save 50B (small $) but to save time since sometimes (especially at DMK) lines can be long. Yes, there are airport guards (not police lah) but I fuck care. Taxi drivers also calling you in front of them, sometimes helping you with bags. As one of my colleagues put it: grow some balls, just do, and if caught, be polite and respectful and remember to suddenly forget you speak any Thai.
yinyang said:
Train is only a good option if your hotel is on the train line and/or near Phaya Tai, or it is peak rush-hour. Otherwise you save no time. Instead you'll sweat buckets going up and down and transferring. Good luck finding a taxi. Also the BTS has no space for luggage
you need to do juicing to get your flesh up.
Same here (before turnstiles thingy, and guards shooing me off). It's just my aversion to Qs with longish lines, on peak arrivals.
On a lighter note, they moved the smoking areas (on departure level) to narrow corridors next to turnstiles. After being shooed off, red faced me detoured for a blow out smoke, relief after flight too:o
Used to cab it downtown, as the Makassan station is a pain for transfers. Got to leg it with baggage few floors down and walk to main road to hail cab (or worse, across the MRT to Asoke for BTS transfer). Until the buggy came to your rescue.
I must qualify airport link option, as my destination was far across the Thonburi side (Petkasem road). Blxxdy cabbie didn't take the Bangna/Param 2 tollway, instead took the (circuitous and) conventional route via Sathorn/Silom with rush hour jam ...>2 hours ride.
Phaya Tai took only 25mins, ok for luggage as it's start/end point (or travel light). Switch across the BTS at Siam, and ended at last stop (for now) at BangWa station. 1.15 hours total ride, for thb105 -minus anguish. Return cab ride to Swampy thb300-400 + tolls.
Fortunately, I now get driven 2 ways with under 1 hour. To DM, the ring roads are a blessing -only 45mins.
Difference is extra one hour or more of travelling time as BangNa trad is not Highway. Many traffic junctions along the way.
Thanks - you as always are the best person to know. Missed you the last couple of times. Hope all is fine and well.
So Bangna Trad == Road "3" == Sukhumvit?
Is there an elevated "expressway" portion of Road "3"?
Road "7" is the "motorway"?
Will be in your area next week.
Everything is fine. Just busy with a new investment in a faraway province but will be around for at least another 2 weeks.
See you next week .
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