Jump to content

traveller123

Members
  • Posts

    438
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    3

Posts posted by traveller123

  1. I actually feel empathy for the farangs I saw who were very large sitting in economy,I'm 98kg myself so I even found it difficult cramped for the 3 hours so if that farang I saw was I would say 150kg plus just imagine that flight for him.

     

    There is another angle to this, pity the poor normal sized person in economy sitting next to the overweight guy.

    I am 78kg and a couple of times had this on long distance flights, it was not a happy experience.

  2. 37 minutes ago, PeterRS said:

    Agree with @fedssocr. Bangkok is a great first choice - and not just for the nighlife. The temples are magnificent and there is so much else to see in and around the city which is all so hugely different from western cities.

    I used to adore Bali - but that was decades ago when the tourist invasion had hardly begun. 15 years ago it had changed so much and I felt  sadly for the worse. Yet, if you want a totally diffferent experience from Bangkok and other regional cities, I would still recommend a week there. Instead of sticking to Kuta and the hotels in the southern Nusa Dua beach area (although a trip or two to one of the island's beaches is always relaxing), immerse yourself in Balinese life and culture by staying elsewhere. Try to watch a Balinese religious festival, listen to the feint sound of different gamellin orchestras practising as you walk by the rice terraces, see the various forms of Balinese dance including the spectacular kecak dance, visit the temple in the sea at Tanah Lot, watch the sunset from the cliffs near the little temple of Ulu Watu, attend an evening shadow puppet play and just watch as the local Balinese love it, etc. 

    I am sure I have mentioned it before I have used a very good tour guide on Bali.

    He is a gay guy in his 40,s, fluent in English and French who can arrange activities from serious hiking to cultural trips (I was with my partner and we were not interested in sexual meet ups)

    @Latbear4blkIf you are interested pm me and I can give you contact details.

  3. 18 hours ago, WelshGuyUK said:

    I stayed in the Agate in April/ May this year and was 1000 baht per night without breakfast. Half the hotel was closed off and just the one lovely pool. Staff were faultless. Lovely people.

     

    Yes, happy for guests and I had a few, but no identification needed as the boys were local and knew the staff.

    Fabulous to come out of the hotel into the gay surroundings for breakfast at Rolins Cambodian restaurant right outside and have a massage watching the boys wake up and come out for a walk 💓

     

     

    However, I have booked a another flight in October and the prices at the Agate have more than tripled and are now way too pricey for me.....3000 baht per night 😩

    Have you contacted The Agate by e mail and mentioned you are a returning customer.

  4. 5 minutes ago, Min said:

    Which places you would recommend for breakfast in Jomtien Complex, esp. a buffet-style one. Thanks.

    Min, we enjoy breakfast at the French restaurant on the corner near the hotel and a western breakfast at Tinnies, sometimes we will also walk down the promenade past the gay beach to the restaurant on the sea front at Pratamnak.

    Sorry I have never looked for a buffet style breakfast although if you want a songkaw trip the breakfast buffet at Casa Pascal on Pattaya second road is well liked.

  5. Whenever we go to Pattaya/Jomtien I always stay at The Agate, the entry level Crystal rooms are not huge but are fine for me and my partner. the staff are also very friendly.

    We spent a couple of nights there early June and they were not serving breakfasts which wasn't a problem as there are plenty of places to eat round about

  6. I am looking at fares originating in Thailand to England and return.

    Fares seem to be reducing for departures from mid September with Qatar flights to Manchester departing 19th September returning 24th October costing around 32,000 baht.

    Cheaper fares with Swiss/Austrian/ Lufthansa/Air France/KLM but they don't included a checked bag

  7. I am similar to @Londoner in that i have no confidence in using IT/phone technology.

    I live near to a small city in Isaan but will be going next month to visit family in the UK for 6 weeks.

    I have a very basic phone with a UK sim which I top up to maintain the number and use for calls and text messages in the UK.

    However I would like to take my Thai smart phone to use for internet access and I suspect for my Test and Go on my return, so I need to buy internet and roaming at the local store. The problem being nobody there speaks English and my partner (typical Thai) says don't worry I can do it, but I know from past experience often he can't do it.

     

  8. My partner and I also live upcountry and back in early August were only offered Sinovac followed by Astra which after talking to our Doctor we took.

    Typically 3 weeks after our Sinovac jab Pfizer suddenly became available in our area.

    Subsequently we have had a Pfizer booster.

  9. 3 hours ago, vaughn said:

    Does anyone in the area know the status of Poseidon? I've heard mixed reports on if/when they're openning.

    Normally i would book at Agate but they're still not showing when they will be open.

    ***edit***

    I did a bit more digging and found Agate's instagram, it appears they are SHA and opened on 15th November. Their website still shows no availability so maybe they only accept booking through the SHA sites.

    5B6DBC31-A1E5-4658-A842-288A4A1685A0.thumb.jpg.c4f87ebbc5b778fe7c7a872626321ffd.jpg

     

    I reside in Thailand and contacted The Agate by e mail, they would have accepted my booking for Christmas week but they are only taking bookings on a room only basis (no breakfast). Because I wanted to be able to have breakfast in my accommodation I reluctantly booked a condo instead.

  10. @Latbear4blk

    Thank you so much for the interesting posts and photos on your trip home to BA

    I know it must take a lot of time to put your posts together but this forum member for one has really appreciated them.

    I'm a 74 year old living with my partner in Thailand and I guess I will never get to South America but posts like yours are a substitute.

    Wishing you a safe journey

  11. On 6/6/2021 at 1:06 AM, anddy said:

    you are one of the few lucky ones then, congrats!

    Well @anddy I did indeed speak too soon.

    A friends Thai wife saw a post on the internet that all vaccine appointments not made on the official app were being cancelled - my appointment was made at an outreach clinic of the local hospital where my details were entered manually on a register.

    We went to the vaccination site this morning to find out if I was on the register - and of course I wasn't.

    A lady member of staff there played about on her computer and said she had made me an appointment for August 5th which is considerably later than my original June 23rd.

    Frustrating but TIT I'll find out if I'm going to be jabbed in 8 weeks time.

     

     

  12. 17 minutes ago, macaroni21 said:

    For the benefit of us not living in Thailand, could you explain what a pink ID card is? Is it a form of permanent residency? Does it allow the card holder to work (i.e. paid employment)? 

    It seems to me that you've lived a while in Thailand and have not needed this card until now -- and even then, as z909 says, it should have had no bearing on your vaccine entitlement -- so whatever this pink confection is, it has as little practical value as a pink tutu.

    You are correct it has little/no practical value. I have lived in Thailand for 9 years and I have never been asked for it before.

    Your question made me Google it's uses, as you can see in the final paragraph below they are not many:

    PINK THAI ID CARD SINCE 2016

    On 7 February 2016, the amphur and tessaban received a new regulation of 2 pages explaining the process for this new “pink Thai ID card”.  We translated that regulation in English for your understanding. Click here to read this Regulation of Pink Thai ID Card for foreigners.

    How to get this card:

    First, you need a Thai ID number to get the card. If your name is currently in a yellow (foreigners) or blue tabian ban (permanent residents) we suggest you to go at the amphur and/or Tessaban and bring all original documents and a copy of the following:

    • your passport
    • your work permit (if any)
    • your ta bian ban
    • your marriage certificate (if any)
    • your 2 books for permanent residency (if you are permanent resident)
    • birth certificate of Thai children (if any)

    It is always better to bring more documents than less as you never know what an amphur can request. For example, I wouldn’t be surprised that a translation of the passport could be requested in some areas, even if the regulation doesn’t specify it. Do note that in July 2016, I was the first foreigner to ask for this card in Nakhon Ratchasima. That means they might not be used to do that. It took 3 days for me to have this card.

    Bring all documents, make a copy and signed all pages in blue. The regulation also refers to a witness, meaning you must have a witness that bring with her or him his Thai ID Card.

    The process should be quick meaning on the same day or you will get it few days later. You must submit both thumbs as fingerprints and take a picture without shoes where they make the cards. Migrants workers for Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar have a similar card but it is white.  Dress properly for the day that you go to make your card.

    This card is valid for 10 years according to clause 8 of regulation in 2551. However, if you are over 60, it will be without an expiry date (also on same clause 8).

    For me in Nakhon Ratchasima, it was free. But according to law, they should ask you 60 baht.

    What are the benefits? We will see….maybe you will pay Thai prices in national parks? Maybe you won’t have to always carry your passport (But the visa is not written on that card). This is an official ID from Thailand, with your name in Thai and your Thai ID number. It will also fix the spelling of your Thai name.

     

    The only reason I got the ID card is that I was asked to show it when I go for the vaccine on the 23rd June. Will I need it? I don't know but I wasn't prepared to take the risk of being turned away.

  13. 15 hours ago, anddy said:

    The key phrase here is "who have registered" - that has been impossible for the vast majority of foreigners so far

    I live in Issan.

    I have been registered for a couple of weeks now with an appointment for a first jab on the 23rd June.

    I qualified because of my age, I had to register and provide my yellow Tabian Baan (house book) and the admin lady asked me to go and get a pink Thai ID card before my appointment.- The lady registering me was very friendly and helpful, the person I needed to see for my pink ID card insisted on me and my partner, who have a UK Civil Partnership, returning with our Civil Partnership certificate translated into Thai - strange as Thailand doesn't recognise our relationship, but I got what was needed and now we'll see if I get the jab.

×
×
  • Create New...