wrassell

Hello Donny Much of what you say is true. Most people would like to meet face to face the people they do business with. If however you have a good reputation or have been recommended then most people will be willing to do business over the phone or internet. When starting a business from scratch you may have to take some of the less desirable jobs or customers, starting from the bottom as they say. As far as getting paid well I have found that if people are happy with the product or service you provide then most of them are more than happy to compensate you, with a few exceptions of course, maybe I was just lucky. I have completed many jobs purely in cyberspace and have only but once not been paid and that was a small amount. Yes I have worked from a beach front house and I was successful in doing it. Yes, it was work but having that ocean breeze and hearing the surf instead of a boss made it all to bearable. I have no experience with the box VoIP devices but I do know that at times international bandwidth can crawl here in Thailand. Ping times to the US can be up to one second, as for packet loss well sometimes 40 percent or more, all here in Thailand. I have tried several different VoIP services using just my computer and find some work well and some do not. One service will work great one time of the day then another service works better another part of the day. I do know the Vonage box works great in the US with cable internet, but where as using it in a third world country may not give expected results. I would try before I buy because here in Thailand you really cant take for granted that things will always work properly. Case in point is my phone line here in Thailand was down for over two months.

I think this technology is great, I call any US telephone for a penny a minute and talk as long as I like. I had a local phone number in San Fransisco that I could receive calls here with, but the draw back is my internet connection, is sometimes good, sometimes bad. I could do business in the US from a beach chair in Ban Seray with the right stuff, but the draw back there is the time zone difference and the salt air will just eat a computer up in no time. Lastly is all that back ground noise we have here in Thailand, like Leks loud two stroke motorbike going by or Rover barking his dam head off. This kind of technology is really going to open new opportunities for falang and Thai alike here in LOS. In the Philippines call centers are popping up all over the place. Some people bitch about this, they are thinking their jobs are at risk go figure. The internet has created a real global market place that a few years ago was available only to big business. Even with my limited skills I could, if I wanted, Find, secure, perform, bill out, and get paid, all from my house here in LOS, I could do all this via the internet.

Yes Chat-To Chak is very hot that part of the day. many places to buy hats. There some out door places to sit and drink water, beer is probably not a good idea. Inside the buildings it also gets very hot.... I always heard allot about Khao San road nothing there really for me and everything seemed expensive for what you got. Yes definitely allot of touts and cons, I have heard allot of bad stuff about the travel agencies there. I say go one time and see for yourself, but I'll never go back.....

I love going down to Soi Bukhao on market days (Tue / Fri) 30 Baht Beer Changs good chat and more eye candy than you can shake a 100 Baht note at. My telac does the shopping and I do the watching, most of the time we all sit and talk about nothing at all up till the time they start tearing it all down. You won't hear "you buy for me drink" or "I go with you " at this place, but it is a great place to meet new friends and it won't rip your wallet apart either. Well, unless telac goes crazy with the shopping. I counted four and a half people here, but I see no helmets. Lovely family never the less. The Thai version of Norman Rockwell My Telephone didn't work for over two months, could this have something to do with it.

Telac and I went to one 3,000B for her test and glasses the whole thing took an hour and a half.. good quality glasses....pretty close to Com City but across the street and down towards 2nd road just a bit

A few months back Telac and I took a trip to see the Royal palace. This is a very worth while trip for those of us that have some time to do so. Next stop was Khao San road, AKA backpackers haven. Man was I disappointed high prices for everything a crappy room went for 600. Rip offs and touts everywhere and they tried to short change me 5 times in one morning. What chapped my ass most is they refused us lodging in one place based on Telac being Thai .... Next day we were off to the big weekend market in Bangkok called Chat-Too-Chak this place is big. Chat-To-Chak is easy to get to from Pattaya. Just hop the bus bound for Morchit bus terminal from there a taxi Meter should be from 60 to 80 baht. Great trip for a Saturday or Sunday, go early and expect to be back late. Off to Bangkok Khao San road I will never go there again above two photos Below the weekend market in Bangkok called Chat-To-Chak Going home

Koh Larn is a great day trip from the city. Accomodations tend to be a little pricey on most islands in Thailand, Koh Larn included. Most people tend to take the ferry out for 20 baht each way then return on the 5PM ferry boat back. Catch the ferry at the Bali Hai Pier at the south end of walking street. the trip takes about 45 minutes each way, very relaxing ride there is a boat to the island at 10AM then 12noon later than that and you won't have much time out there to enjoy...... If you like to stay on the island ask any of the taxis they are all pretty good guys out there. cheers

Never been asked for a license in four years, I think if you are here on a 30 day entry stamp a license from your home country is enough. I don't know this for sure because most of my information is all hear say, so what do I know. Renting a motor bike here can have draw backs. If it is stolen then you are responsible, seems thieves target rental bikes more than the others, why? I have no clue but if that happens you are liable for full value as if it were in great shape.... Invest in your own lock seems the locks that come with rental bikes are way easy to pick or they are all using the same key....If you are involved in an accident it will be your fault, it appears that the Thai authorities know how bad of drivers we all are, and for our bad driving be prepared to fork out some cash. I heard of one guy being held responsible because he was at an intersection where an accident happened. Thai logic states if you had not come to Thailand for holiday then that accident wouldn't have happened in the first place ...Be prepared to pay, how much you pay all depends on your bargaining skills but you will pay....Remember you are at fault you are a lousy driver and most importantly your probably the only one with any money.... Other than that have a blast motor bikes are a kick in the ass to ride but just remember you are the bad driver here....

Keep it simple use one of the taxi services that operate inside the airport. I have always recieved good service from these people. Why take a chance your first time here. Cost is about 2,000 baht last I heard.

I miss the photos that were being posted so here is my small contribution. I don't take alot of pictures so I won't be posting every day. If I get a positive response then I will try to post more.... Most of the pictures here are of Koh Larn the photos here were not all taken on the same day..... hope you enjoy cheers Wrassell

Just curious if there are any good deals out there for visa runs from Pattaya to the new Cambodian border crossing. I currently pay 1,700 to go by mini bus that is usually full. I am not trying to be too cheap but I still like to save a little cash here and there. I use "Cambodia Inter" on Soi Bukaow, I don't know if he gives everyone that price, since I have been using him for a long time.

I agree dotcom_OD any of the vendors that have an association with the airport I think would be a good bet. Just trying to keep it simple for a first timer. My self I would catch a 100 baht taxi to Morchit then to Pattaya for about 350 total for both me and telac. Cheers

I did not know there was a stand or booth outside, a little more info on these guys may be helpful. For the newbie that started this thread I was keeping things simple for him. The stand outside may be fine, but there are also many hawkers out there to promote taxi service with old unsafe, uncomfortable cars that have little or no air conditioning, many times at more cost. I am not saying that all of them are that way, I am sure that some really good service could be found out there, but for the first timer with jet lag it can be risky. Yes the vendors inside are expensive but I have always received top notch service from them. I am not rich but after 24+ hours of travel the last thing I want is a lousy taxi with no aircon. Can you give us more detail on the taxi booth outside, like where we can find them, cost, and quality of service. I am all for saving money and would like to know more.

Sorry for your loss, but i had to laugh. is that what they mean when I hear TIT

If you get a taxi from the airport get one from one of the desks inside the waiting area just after you pass customs. Cost nowadays is somewhere around 2,000 baht. You might save a little cash hiring one of the hawkers outside but you're taking a big chance, not worth it. Haven't used Mr. Toon myself but the price sounds very good and I have heard him recommended before on this board. There are many places to stay here of coarse, and you can spend just about as much or as little as you want. You will find more information in the, Hotel and Accomodation Questions, section of this board. I wish it were my first time coming to Pattaya. You'll make some mistakes but you will also have the time of you're life....The thing you won't like is going back... Cheers