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About Thailand / Re: Christmas destination advice

« on: September 21, 2012, 12:46:53 AM »

I assume you will allow her to see Bangkok for a few days since it is the capital city and well worth a visit. For hotel advice include a price limit for the room. Use a baht figure. In Bangkok being near the Sktrain might be useful. Quick, easy and cheap transportation to many areas of Bangkok. If my mother was still alive I would not have a problem with her using a hotel in the Sukhumvit Road area. Walk to rail service, malls, restaurants, street vendors, etc.

Visit Khorat. Bus leaves from Morchit bus station. One hour away from Khorat is Phimai. Nice restored wat, nice museum. Small town. Phimai Inn on the by-pass highway will be okay.
http://www.holidaycityflash.com/thailand/korat_things_todo.htm

In case you forgot, in Bangkok she can go on all sorts of day tours that you sign on to through local travel agencies on short notice. Tour company picks up at the hotel and will bring you back when the tour is complete. Very simple. Yeah, many people go to these places - but they go to these places because they are interesting and popular!

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Bangkok Expat Forum - Bangkok Expatriates Living / Re: Best street food areas in Bangkok

« on: September 03, 2012, 07:07:37 PM »

I like Food at Yaowarat and Wang Lang Market
yummy mak.

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Bangkok Expat Forum - Bangkok Expatriates Living / Re: VISA CHANGES For people entering Thailand by land

« on: July 11, 2012, 01:45:27 AM »

You will get 30 days visa exemption when you arrive BKK. If you travel in Thailand before Laos and fly out within 15 days after returning from Laos, you don't need a multiple-visa.

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Bangkok Expat Forum - Bangkok Expatriates Living / Re: Thailand Driving License?!

« on: June 02, 2012, 12:22:37 AM »

Driving licence from Australia (they only ask to see card part of licence)
Passport with Non-Immigration Visa
Photocopies of the passport.
Health certificate (practical physician) = 300 baht from any hospital or clinic
Residence certificate (Consulate or Immigration) = 2860 baht from your embassy, this is the most expensive part

Australian embassy opening hours 8am-11am for processing and 1400-1500 for collection

Once you have your documents go to the test centre (the one on sukhumvit road is conveniently located) and go to desk 11 with 2 photocopies of each document, after processing, you are given a card to do your practical, appointment times are 9am 11am 1pm and 3pm.
There were around 40 of us in one room. firstly there's a colortest and then a reaction test. each one takes about 1 minute.
after the tester signs your forms you go to desk 18, where you hand your documents over and they take a photo and 2 minutes later you have a thai driving licence. take this upstairs to 3rd floor and take your theory test, there are no specific times for this, just enter the room, where you are assigned a computer, choose language and answer 30 questions. some are common sense and some just didn't make sense at all. so having failed the first test getting 21 out of 30, they told me to do it again, this time i passed getting 23 out of 30 right. (at the time i didnt know, but there is a book on all the traffic rules that they allow you to read before you do your theory, just ask at desk 11, where you will be invited in for as long as you need). Upon completion, your driving license is activated and congratulations! you are free to legally join the madness of bangkok traffic!
if doing the motorbike test too, it is the same procedure but you have to ride a bike around a few cones and stop and indicate where signalled to.
These are temporary driving licenses costing 205 baht and 155 baht and last for one year, after that but before expiry date return to the same test center where you will be issued a 5 year thai driving licence.

Hopefully with this information it is possible to be in and out of the test centre with your new driving licence in around 90 minutes.
If going for both add another hour to this. don't worry about not speaking thai, most of the staff speak good english and are very helpful. :thumbsup:

Note: the test center discribes itself as being opposite 62/1. it isn't! and it's very easy to miss. doing u turns in bangkok are never easy at the best of times so if coming from the center of bangkok it's on your left hand side about 100 meters before sukhumvit soi 62/1

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Thai For Beginners / Re: THAI FOR BEGINNERS

« on: March 27, 2012, 02:32:51 AM »

The best way to learn is to be unafraid of practicing with the locals. Going to markets where you have to communicate with many people is a fun way to learn basic Thai.

Few Basicz words in Thai which would be helpful for the beginners:

   Hello = Sawa dee
Thank you (man says) = Kob Khun Krap
Thank you (woman says) = Kob Khun Ka
How are you? = Khun sabai di mai?
I am fine thanks = (man says) Pom sabai di krap.
I am fine thanks= (woman says) Chan sabai di ka.
Basically women say "ka" at the end of a sentence
while men say "krap".
You're welcome = Yin dee krap / ka
Wait = Roh sakru
I= pom (man)
I= chan (woman)
Come = ma
Come from = ma jak
I come from Australia = Pom ma jak pratet Australia (man)/
Chan ma jak pratet Australia (woman)
I love Thailand = Pom/chan rak Meuang Thai.
I love you= pom/chan rak khun

The word leu = past tense meaning it has happened already. The word is used at the end of the sentence to say something already happened.

I have come= ma leu
Go = pai
Gone already = pai leu
Go where = pai nai
Go soon = pai diauni
room= hong
water= nam
Toilet = hong nam
Where is the toilet? = hong nam yu nai?
to enter= kao
heart= jai
to understand = kao jai (literally: to enter the heart)
don't understand = mai kao jai

hope u have noted into ur diary

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Bangkok Expat Forum - Bangkok Expatriates Living / Re: moving to Bangkok from the US

« on: March 09, 2012, 11:11:17 PM »

Thailand is great so I think you should take the opportunity. If you are looking for housing in Bangkok there are many places but a many of these property companies are so so. There is one I have heard of http://www.bangkokcondofinder.com, they are supposedly very good. For schools there are many good but I'm afraid I have nothing to recommend. Good luck

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Pattaya Expat Forum - Pattaya Expatriates Living / Know More About Pattaya Before Visiting

« on: March 05, 2012, 11:58:34 PM »

If you are visiting on business, you may be busy during the day but at night you would have a chance to get out and see the nightlife and everything that it has to offer. There are many nightclubs that you can visit that have dancing and great music. Of course you will also find that trip to Pattaya offers really nice restaurants as well where you can sit back relax, have a drink and enjoy the wonderful food and the relaxing atmosphere. After a long day of business meetings you are going to want to sit back and just close your eyes.

But, if you are here for pleasure on vacation, you may want to make some plans before you arrive so you can set your schedule to what you would like to do. If you have children with you, then you are going to want to see the tourist attractions at the theme parks and at the zoos. If everyone is of age than you may want to make plans for scuba-diving and seeing the underwater adventures that you can have in Pattaya as well. Even if you do not have experience you can still enjoy the underwater activities in travel to pattaya .

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Thai Food / Re: Massaman ranked world´s best food by @CNNGO

« on: March 03, 2012, 02:37:05 AM »

You can get very inexpensive and good Masaman at NO ONE RESTAURANT , which is located a street away from TANO RD after Khao San Rd . Its on the same street as MAE KAIDEE"S Vegetarian restaurant which also makes masamans.
NO ONE restaurant also has inexpensive drinks like tea or coffee for 10 about 10 baht.

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Thai Food / Re: Thai dessert???

« on: February 28, 2012, 01:23:30 AM »

some favourite sweets among the Thais are :

- Thong Yip (sweet egg yolk cup)
- Thong Yot (sweet egg yolk drop)
- Foi Thong (sweet shredded egg yolk)
- Met Khanun (mung bean flour coated with sweet egg yolk)
- Mo Kaeng (egg custard with mung bean flour)
- Sangkhaya (egg custard)
- Bua Loi (glutinous-rice flour balls in coconut cream)
- Tako (jelly with coconut cream)
- Kluai Buat Chi (banana in coconut cream)
- Fakthong Buat (pumpkin in coconut cream)
- Kluai Chueam (banana in syrup and coconut cream)
- Luk Chup (fruit-shape desserts made of mung-bean flour with natural colouring)
- Thapthim Krop (diced water-chestnuts in coconut cream)

There are arrays of Thai sweetmeats for sale at many places ranging from sidewalk stalls, markets and small shops to top department stores. Try to taste some of the above to appreciate the marvelous taste of Thai desserts.

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Thai Food / Massaman ranked world´s best food by @CNNGO

« on: February 27, 2012, 08:34:45 PM »

One of my favourite curry dishes in Thailand is Massaman. This is one that I bought for lunch today which comes with beef and a roti. A great combination. This is rather fitting as CNNGO.com have just released their list of the "World's 50 Most Delicious Foods". And guess which takes their number one

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Thai Food / Pad Thai in an Omelette & Pad Thai with Deep Fried Wontons

« on: February 27, 2012, 08:19:12 PM »

Pad Thai in an Omelette

Pad Thai is one of my favourite Thai dishes and so I am always on the lookout for better recipes or variations. This one is certainly different. It is like the normal Pad Thai but it's wrapped in an omelette. It is called Pad Thai Hor Kai (ผัดไทห่อไข่). From what I can tell, the ingredients are all exactly the same, but instead of mixing the egg with the fried noodles, everything is wrapped in the omellete.



Pad Thai with Deep Fried Wontons

One of my favourite Thai food dishes is definitely "pad thai". The recipe and taste does vary a bit but the ingredients are often nearly always the same. Recently I have found some shops selling some alternatives to using noodles in this dish. The most notable was one using green papaya. Then the other day I found a shop selling this one. It is Pad Thai with Deep Fried Wontons (ผัดไทเกี๊ยวกรอบ) and it cost 35 Baht. It was certainly strange having the mixture without any noodles. It was a bit like eating nachos instead of pad thai. I am not sure if I was thrilled about it but it did make a change.