@Zack *****

But above all don't expect to make any claim on your Western insurance if you have an accident.

Americans, as said, are not a large group among expats, but they are probably large enough to subdivide, not by region of USA but a simple division between retired and working people. Among the latter presumably teachers can be found, but randomly. My sense is that you find the retired in the usual places for retired people. They are not remotely like Bangkok's commercial, legal, etc Americans and it isn't just because they are no longer working. They seem to me to be entirely different people. I assume that there must be a fair number of these commercial and professional Americans working in Bangkok. I've certainly had to learn more American English than I have had to learn Thai. I'd go without eating otherwise! Courgettes became zucchini, aubergine became egg plant, coriander became cilantro .................................... and this is at the Asok wet market, talking with Thais.

@Nongnuch *******

Another reason was that those embassies wouldn't outsource the work of properly checking. Who knows, those countries may have actually been able to show a profit on top of the outsource cost! As best I know, despite outsource being suggested, none of those embassies ever looked into the matter at all, let alone transparently. They just petulantly argued that they didn't have the staff or had other priorities (the arguments kept changing).

Yep, Pattaya is about nightlife and eats, these days some of the India restaurants quite good. But why not something totally different? Siverlake Vineyard. It produces some very good national award winners in Thailand. Definitely whites. I seem to remember including frizzante.

Might be worth noting. Chiang Mai has many copy shops. Try finding one open at weekends. Taking the trip out to Central Festival solved that for me.

I believe still 150 but the proviso is that Aeon ATMs can be a little difficult to come upon. They are no longer at Max Value stores so it is a question of is there a Mall-based Aeon Bank/Finance store near where you are staying.

In simplest terms, why on earth buy here in Thailand? I won't repeat the lengthy arguments - readily available from this site.

I thought a blanket ban. But like so much else in Thailand that might be subject to what authorities in a given area wish to do. We are back into the TM30 thing again for precisely that reason. Also I don't know the status of precedent/case law in Thailand - how much the Hua Hin case sets a precent or at least so until tested. RE the condominium act hheaven knows whether there has been a case. Certainly numeroous condos are full of a lot of bluster on the about going to the police, etc, to scare tenats trying to rent out and those trying to rent. I've seen it to work. Having your car locked in a car park does put you off but as to real force of law? Cough. Surely these would be civil cases anyway. And Thai owners will simply "wing it" anyway. As a foreigner the situation may be less easy, less negotiable and who wants another imponderable to worry about?

@Heidi *******

Worth remembering that Airbnb is essentially illegal in Thailand. Ditto similar platforms or self promoted short term rentals. The question arises how would you market your property? And, of course the legality of the earnings. Most simply don't declare. In UK or France the need for a marketing platform is far less than here as there you can register with local tourism offices, in fact those are amongst the best marketing mechanisms. %20keep%20it%20simple%2C%20yes,is%20a%20little%20more%20complicated!

@John *********

@Heidi *******

Yep, that is the Thai terminology, though "homestay' has crept in. The association is with agritourism. And it covers a multitude of possibilities, some very basic - sleeping on floors, etc. Though there is pleasant accommodation too, if never highly luxurious.