tomcat76

Google them. They don't seem to have their own website, but you'll get hits with their phone no. & email.

'Have now tried that. It didn't help. (Only found one P-T cookie.) EDIT: Correction to my OP: The progress bar animation doesn't stop. The white squares just keep going & going but my attempt to post just hangs up. 'Have to refresh the page and then post again. Always succeeds the 2nd time without any delay.

The last time I was there for the holidays (a few years ago) - the biggest issue was lodging. Not really an "issue" - just marginally harder to get a hotel room in the moderate price range. Showing up at your favorite hotel without a reservation seems more likely to result in either not being able to keep a room for your entire length of stay, maybe having to move mid-visit, or there not being anything available there at all. But I say "not a big issue", because there's ALWAYS stuff available somewhere although you may have to pay a little more than you wanted. As far as the bars, etc. are

Yes, and?

'Have rarely seen a competitive airfare (from LAX) to BKK on EVA. Seeing them talked about here, I've made it a point to check them the last few years and someone always seems to beating their economy fare by a significant margin (Korean, Asiana, Cathay Pacific, China E/S, sometimes AA or United).

Did you see my last post (#14)? Here's what I'm talking about... I think there was a discussion of this issue somewhere in the forums not too long ago.

I thought Thailand had inaugurated anti-money laundering schemes making it much more difficult for foreigners to set up bank accounts. Was that just talk? Or maybe Kasikorn is an exception for some reason? Or maybe they haven't kicked in yet?

(Assuming you're successful, and concerning tax...) wouldn't that be considered Thai-earned income, even if you're using your brokerage and banking accounts at home via Internet? But how would they know unless you file a return and inform them? And then once you do that what happens.... Would this be "working in Thailand", and require a work permit?

Well - I think shorts actually are forbidden, as are sleeveless shirts and flip flops. I remember I was aware of this from the guidebooks I had with me and maybe some other sources & so had no problem. I ALSO remember being accosted by the touts outside - one even tried the "palace closed today" scam on me. I'd heard about all that crap though & just ignored them & kept going.

Even a single carry-on can be kind of a pain on the usually crowded BTS. I do it; I'm sure I'll do it again; 'have seen lots of farangs doing it with far more luggage; but it's not fun getting to & from the air-link station by BTS.

Use a personal locking system - that way you don't have to depend entirely on the safe (although I think the room safes are adequate most of the time if you're not advertising your wealth and keeping a reasonably low profile). I do wish it were easier to set up bank accounts over there...

I'm finding I have to "double-post" everything now. I'll create a post (sometimes involving a quote, but not always), try to 'Post' it, and the process will hang with a stopped white-squares-on-green progress animation at the top. Neither the PC nor the browser nor even the webpage freezes. I have to Copy my posting to the clipboard, refresh the page, and then Paste to the Reply box and 'Post' again. The second time it always works. At first I thought this only involved posts in which I was including a quote; but have discovered that's not the case. 'Happens regardless. Then I thought

'Sounds like you had a bad experience, but don't let it sour you on these sites. I think they're so worthwhile. Get a good guidebook or two (stop by AsiaBooks maybe) and be your own tourguide. You might even be able to find a wingman hereabouts who's either never seen these things either, or would like to see them again. ('Doesn't the Grand Palace have their own on-staff tourguides though? 'Seem to remember doing that and had no complaints.) I would never ever grab one of the touts just outside offering themselves up as tourguides - they're likely to know a little something but actually h

Yeah - just saw a low fare from LAX to BKK at around $700 (well, didn't actually see it; got an email advertising it - didn't follow up)! Business right now must be slow. Edit: Went back and gave the email another look. $783 RT San Diego to BKK. Including the SAN-to-LAX leg, that's a pretty good if it's for real. 'Was from "BookingBuddy". (I DON'T think I've had real good luck actually being able to find the fares online that they put in their admails.)

I agree it's pretty safe, probably safer than many other tourist destinations these days. There have been shootings, even random, but hardly everyday, or even weekly or monthly. I think there was maybe one back in the springtime in which a foreigner was a victim. I may be understating it, but I don't think so. Someone will surely jump in if I am. Of the reasons anyone might have to not go to Pattaya, I really don't think personal safety would be one.

You may well be right, JK - what you're saying makes a whole lot of economic sense. However something tells me that even being the world's No.1 sleaze destination has a certain undeniable and enduring cachet to it, with enough net present value to keep the place going quite awhile longer. While Pattaya has a certain small universe of competitors (like AC) as a sleaze destination, it will have more I think as a family holiday destination.

That pretty well sums it up. Sometimes the trend is your friend, sometimes not... I'm just hoping I can squeeze maybe another decade out of the place. By then, If age doesn't put an end to it, inflation and global nannyism probably will have. Or maybe they'll have invented fully virtual mongering by then.

It is possible to pick up a key logger just by "driving by" the wrong website, depending on what OS you're running, what browser you're using how well patched and up-to-date they are, what other security software you're running (and how patched & up-to-date THEY are), configuration settings, and what you click on at the affected website... You could also have gotten it from an email (or an attachment to one, or clicking on a link in one). You can pretty much get them in the same way (i.e., using the same vectors) you get a virus or a trojan. If it's a shared PC, any user with admin pr

Your dad? And you're not in a position to remove it if he'll notice?

I see that Air Asia, Nok Air, and 1-2-Go are or will be at DM as of 1 OCT. 'Also I think Orient Thai. Apparently Tiger & Cebu Pacific. Does anyone have a list of all the airlines that will be moving there: the release above says 14.

I was hoping & thinking that might be the case (I mean the part about the reference info not really being necessary...). Thanks! You know, I just think Thai officialdom simply has a problem with the hippy-looking crowd, esp. if there's a scruffiness of behavior that goes with it.

'Sounds like these are much easier to go about procuring from inside Thailand.

I think mamasans are one of those institutions that are tough to generalize. They can be good; they can be bad. They can be helpful to customers; they can be helpful to bargirls; they can be helpful to both; they can be helpful to nobody in particular except themselves. Sit back, just enjoy the place for awhile, and watch them, and in most cases I think you can figure out what their actual agenda is. Sometimes, depending on what you see going on, you can buy one a drink & chat a little, and do yourself a big favor...

So on one can answer this "references" question? The form IS multi-purpose, i.e., used for the other kinds of visas as well as Tourist visa; can this just be left blank for a Tourist visa application maybe? (LA form actually uses the word "guarantor"; forms from the other consulates say "reference")?

'Have a next-door neighbor here in California with a large lemon tree. 'Lets me take all I want. Nothing like fresh-off-the-tree lemon (and lemon zest) in mixed drinks...