Some basic queries about Bangkok

[lorenzo]

Hello all,

Been reading some of these hints and tips, and it seems that there is a lot of people that can offer a lot of good advice, so here we go
1) want to move to Bkk in October 06, where if anywhere do I need to avoid renting, any areas of the City not best.
2) Currently working in the UK but have convinced the boss to let me work remotely from Bike, is it possible to open a bank account in Thailand in uk?, to enable wages to be paid in by my employer?
3) From the research I have done, take it the best visa I can hope for is the multiple entry visa, requiring the 3 month visa run. If anyone knows any different, PLEASE let me know.
Thanks
lorenzo

[theodore]

There are many nice areas of Bangkok and certainly as good or better than the equivalent areas of London and other large European cities, I am amazed that Peter4 hates it so much in Bangkok yet he still stays here.

Joy, the best advice is to come to Bangkok, rent a condo or apartment or even a hotel room for a few months and get to know the city. Then decide what combination of access, central location, services and space you want. the one thing that Peter4 does have right is that proximity to the Skytrain or Subway is a big help.
Thanks
theodore

[massagelondon]

Bangkok is a sprawling city and travelling is a big hustle - so being close to the public transport is very important if you don't have your own car/bike.

a paradox of this city is that skyscrapper and posh housing estates do mix with slums next to them and there is not any no-no areas where there is a higher danger than anywhere else around (I would say with an exception of red districts where there is a bigger chance of coming across strange or bad people - apparently many foreigners do congregate there).

I would rather stay away from the main shopping and commercial areas around Sukhumwit road simply because of the noise, pollution, constant traffic jams as well as inflated prices for everything from accommodation to drinking water. Those charges are not justified by the quality - simply they are tourist rip off.

You don't have to to open thai bank account - however for the tax purpose it would be good to have your wages payed there. For the time money can go into your british bank and you withdraw it from the atm. Depending on your visa and house registration papers you would be able to open a thai bank account.

As to visa - in your case, most probably, will be a student visa which is valid for 1 year. Simply you pay some £500 for the school and spare yourself problems with travelling abroad every 3 months.

What probably you would need is a fast internet connection for your work - many appartments do offer them as part of the service, but because the line is used by tens of tenants/guests it's often very slow, many times slower than what you got promissed when signing a contract.