Tomtomtom69

Even more surprising is when they do this, despite there being a gas (petrol) station with clean and free to use toilets just 500m or 1km down the road.

Totally agree with you on that and I've noticed the same in my neighborhood. The ones in my area speak some Thai, but not very well and with a noticeable accent. In fact, I think a lot of what many farang think of as "thuggish Thai teens" may very well be Burmese or possibly Cambodian teens.

Yes. You just designate the entry and exit points in the app. Same thing on the Thai side - tell customs where you want to exit. You can enter or exit anywhere you want, as I have mentioned. Poipet is better if you're coming from Bangkok as O'Smach is too far away.

1. Most developing countries have problems with traffic safety. This isn't a primary concern for most people moving out to Thailand, to be honest. I just drove back to Thailand from Cambodia and to be frank, traffic there, especially in Phnom Penh, is even more chaotic than here. 2. Agreed. This is a very important one 3. Well - can't exactly disagree with you there, but the army will probably always have a major role here. I am hopeful that mandatory conscription will end (as they've been talking about) but could still take a few more years 4. Well, corruption is never going to go away. It's part of the DNA of people in this part of the world. 5. Difficult and requires co-operation with neighboring countries as well. Of course, plenty of air pollution is generated within Thailand; but unless the government greatly improves garbage collection services to discourage and hopefully eliminate burning of domestic garbage by rural residents, as well as bans big agro giants from buying rice, corn and other crops where burning of the waste is a major part of the harvesting process, then nothing is going to change. The same needs to happen in neighboring countries, so even if Thailand were to succeed (unlikely), cross-boundary haze would continue to be an issue, especially in regions within 50-100km of a border with a neighboring country, which is probably half of Thailand. 6. Agreed. 7. English skills - Thais speak decent enough English, in all the tourist and expat areas. If you're an expat, learn Thai. Don't be lazy. It's their country. If you can't stand being served by people who can't speak English to the level of fluency you demand, then Thailand isn't for you. A native English speaking country would be a better place.

Dream on. And yes, you are rambling. Nope, Myanmar is much dirtier than Thailand. You either had your blinkers on or didn't notice all the trash being tossed everywhere or burned. It's a much bigger issue than even in Thailand. War has been raging since 1948, which is almost a lifetime. Unless you live until the year 2100, then chances are, you won't be able to experience a peaceful Myanmar in your lifetime. Yes, the rebels COULD win over the junta, but that will cause MORE chaos (think Syria for example) rather than less. How are all the different ethnic groups going to come together and reconcile if there's such a power vacuum? Clearly, you know almost nothing about geopolitics and believe in unicorns and rainbows. The Burmese (which are very ethnically diverse) are battle hardened people; they're not going to go from decades of war to peace in an instant. It doesn't work that way. I agree with you that it's a fantastic country, but even during the relatively calmer years during ASSK's reign between roughly 2013 and early 2020, the country was a far cry from Thailand in almost every respect. Foreigners faced noticeably less freedom than in Thailand. Foreigners still faced travel restrictions as well - many parts of the country could not legally be accessed by foreigners (it's a lot worse now). While Chinese, Thais, Laotians and other Asians who could blend in, might have been able to sneak across the border and visit certain otherwise "closed" areas, us farang stand out too much to allow that to happen. Again, some limited exceptions exist, but overall, if you're a westerner, you were treated harshly if attempting to enter or found present within a restricted area. Fines, detention and possible deportation were all on the cards and of course, it's even worse now. My point though is to illustrate how it was like during the "good years". Foreigners could only drive vehicles registered in other countries into Myanmar on a tour (except for limited travel in border areas) partly due to Myanmar's penchant for control but also because they were terrified that we might encounter trouble or venture into restricted areas if we were given "too much freedom" to roam where we wanted, never mind that foreign plates would stand out anyway. Poor infrastructure. Regular blackouts have always been a feature of Burmese life, for decades now. Dual pricing is more common than in Thailand, with domestic airlines and most hotels practicing it. Burmese pay less than foreigners to stay just about anywhere. Other than in Yangon, Mandalay, Pyin Oo Lwin, Hpa-an, Naypyidaw, Mawlamyine, Ngapali, Ngwesaung, Inle Lake, Bagan and a few other places, accommodation is poor quality and massively overpriced for what you get. A lot of things just don't work. Hospitals are in poor shape. Rich Burmese come to Thailand or go to Singapore for their medical care. Foreigners can't get bank loans. Foreign tourists aren't legally allowed to stay anywhere but in registered hotels, resorts and other tourist related lodging. Legislation barely exists to cover a myriad of policy that pertains to foreigners living in and operating in the country, other than restrictions designed to make life difficult for us. So, if you do move there, expect it to be rough. You might have an OKish life if you're under 60, living in Yangon and don't have any medical issues, but once you're older, you're not going to be staying there for sure. You'll come back to Thailand in a heartbeat or return to your home country.

However, aren't there more foreign workers in South Korea compared with Thailand (well, unless we include all the documented and undocumented workers from neighboring countries, but they look similar to Thais). I mean, there are a couple of neighborhoods in Seoul home to foreigners from various Middle Eastern, African and SE Asian countries, something, which may stand out more than even in Thailand. Sure, we have Nana here and there's Pattaya and Phuket too, but overall, you're not going to see a westerner or visible foreigner running a shop anywhere in Thailand, except maybe for Indians. Thailand has a huge number of foreign visitors, whereas Korea (Incheon) merely hosts millions of foreign transit passengers; most don't enter the country.

Car passport (international transport permit) is ONLY issued to those holding BLUE registration booklets for cars. Motorcycles only receive a "vehicle inspection certificate", which is issued in English (partly in Thai). Car drivers receive this too; for motorcycles, this paper (there are two actually) is used to show customs in the neighboring country. Make additional copies of these papers and don't lose them. You'll need your passport and your original registration as well as relevant copies of your passport information page, visa and entry stamp and car or motorcycle registration page. Some DLT offices will also require you to present a certificate of residency or yellow booklet. If you don't have one of these, go to Chatuchak in Bangkok. They will NOT require one.

Hope my previous reply wasn't too long, I wanted to cover everything. A few more points I'd like to make (again, a bit lengthy, but very important to note): 1. For ENTRY to Cambodia (EXIT from Thailand), Poipet is a good border, but be prepared for lengthy immigration queues on the Cambodian side, easily exceeding 45 minutes. There is no dedicated channel for drivers of vehicles (there is on the Thai side, but ONLY for drivers, not their passengers). Even if you've already got a Cambodian visa and have crossed this border before, expect to spend 2 hours here in total (Thai and Cambodian sides combined) - of which the Thai side might take only 15-20 minutes, if you have the TM2, TM3 and TM4 forms filled out in advance and all necessary photocopies provided, otherwise, maybe 30-45 minutes, if you need to fill out the forms on site and/or make additional photocopies of your car registration. The Cambodian side will easily take you 90 minutes. You need 3 (THREE) sets of copies of your passport front page, car registration, tax information page and amendments page. Make like 5 or more copies just to be safe, but 3 will be required by Aranyaprathet customs and immigration. All other checkpoints I've ever crossed at, only require one copy and I've crossed at nearly every land border Thailand shares will all neighboring countries (except for Mae Sai and Kanchanaburi...where I didn't take my car across, although I've crossed on foot or with a Burmese car and driver on multiple occasions). Not relevant now, since those borders remain closed to foreigners (the latter is closed even to Thais at the moment). 2. Do NOT use Poipet/Aranyaprathet for re-entry into Thailand, unless one of the following applies: a) you're driving by yourself, since you can stamp in outside, avoiding the notorious upstairs immigration hall for foreigners; b) you're the driver but are traveling with Thai nationals as passengers (they get stamped inside but using the Thai queue); c) you're willing to wait for your foreign passengers at a mall or coffee shop in Aranyaprathet possibly for hours BUT make sure they are in possession of long-term Thai visas (LTR, non-B with work permit, non-O marriage with or without work permit or retirement visas). Aranyaprathet should NOT be used by anyone on a tourist visa, exemption, visa-on-arrival, is a national of a poor, third world country such as Nigeria, Bangladesh or Sri Lanka or who has any sort of "questionable" immigration history (regardless of nationality), as entry is very likely to be refused. Even visa-exempt Vietnamese, Filipino and Indonesian nationals should be careful here. Some stories suggest that there is a 1000 Baht VIP queue. If this rumor is true, then pay the 1000 Baht and you'll be good to go, even as a tourist. If you don't and you're not on a long-stay permit, you will almost certainly be refused entry and made to fly back to Thailand from Siem Reap or Phnom Penh. Be warned. Aranyaprathet immigration is no joke. Has been this way since 2015. 3. Ban Khao Din is a good border if you're leaving Thailand by car or motorcycle; as a border for exit and re-entering the same or if you re-enter, having exited at another border, provided the paperwork shows Ban Khao Din as the re-entry point. If not, customs will be upset and might try to force you to return through the border indicated on the form. It's a very friendly border, immigration-wise, hardly any people or vehicles will be crossing and it's only 50km south of Aranyprathet and maybe 70km from Poipet via the Cambodian road system. 4. Do NOT use Ban Laem or Ban Pakkard for EXIT as there is that military form required, necessitating a 60km round-trip from Ban Pakkard (80km round-trip from Ban Laem) if you don't know about it beforehand and have to go back to get it. Cambodian customs, as of February last year, is 5km FROM the border at Kamrieng (Ban Laem) on the Cambodian side (unless they've since moved it), which makes it even more complicated. 5. Do NOT use Ban Laem for re-entry into Thailand. Even though you'll be the only person with a car crossing and probably the only person in general, it may take immigration 45 minutes to stamp you in, because they'll keep bouncing you back and forth between the "health quarantine" channel (yes, health quarantine) where they stamp your car passenger documents. Customs is at another building 100m away. You'll also be told off if you park your vehicle anywhere but underneath the entry gate, even though you may be blocking Thai trucks from getting through. It's a very frustrating experience. 6. Re-entry into Thailand via Ban Pakkard, after having exited Thailand elsewhere, is fine. Unlike Ban Laem, 22km to the north, it's relatively straightforward upon re-entry. Customs and immigration are located together and the military form isn't needed to enter. 7. Hat Lek/Koh Kong is fine in either direction; it's very friendly, particularly on the Thai side. Beware the highway to Sre Ambel is under construction and parts of it are in poor condition (high clearance or 4WD vehicle or dirt bike highly recommended) BUT they're making tremendous progress, to the point that within 3 months, most of the mountainous section should be smooth tarmac and within 6-9 months, the whole project could be nearing completion. The contractor is Chinese (China Road and Bridge Construction Company). 8. Chong Chom/O'Smach and Chong Sa-Ngam/Choam are delightful border crossings, on both sides. Thai officials are particularly friendly here and especially at Chong Sa-Ngam. 9. You may be required to show your driver's or motorcycle rider's license to Cambodian customs (also, upload a copy to the app). Ideally, you should possess a 5-year Thai license + IDP (though the IDP isn't expressly required, it's good to have) OR one from your home country + IDP (for example, US state license or Australian state license accompanied by the relevant 1 year 1949 IDP). 10. Customs form MAY be requested to drive on the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville expressway. I was asked to show it yesterday. First time this has happened; previously, I was never asked for it. Only cars and bikes with stickers, showing they are 500cc and above are allowed to travel on the expressway.

You've been told wrong or they were referring to the pre-Covid rules, which only ever applied to Koh Kong (not anywhere else). Nearly every trip I make, I leave through one border crossing and return through another (regardless of whether I'm heading to Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia or leaving for Laos and then re-entering from Cambodia). Even pre-Covid, I would normally exit at one point and re-enter at another, the exception being Koh Kong (nowadays, I generally re-enter Thailand that way, but exit from another border). For Cambodia, you register your intentions through the Cambodian customs app (specifying the entry and exit points) and while Thai customs doesn't seem to care (except if returning through Ban Khao Din), it's best to inform Thai customs and tell them you're re-entering through a different border and check the paperwork for accuracy before leaving. If it's wrong, tell them to correct it and print again (you need to be able to read Thai though - as the critical information regarding re-entry borders is printed only in Thai, despite the form being bilingual otherwise). The rules have changed post-Covid and Cambodia has really improved it's system. It's definitely easier to drive your car to Cambodia compared to Laos (though Laos isn't difficult; you do need a car passport though). For Cambodia, you can get 30 days, although it's up to you what you specify (the first time I entered under the new customs system from Ban Pakkard, I received 60 days without even asking). I don't know what the maximum is, either 60 or 90 days, probably. If there's any chance of spending more than 30 days outside of Thailand with your vehicle, you MUST inform Thai customs BEFORE departure. The only way of extending the Thai customs paperwork from outside of Thailand is to return to the border with your vehicle IN PERSON, which sort of defeats the whole thing. If you need to do that, you have to sign out of the country you've just come from, re-enter Thailand and do a new customs declaration to leave. Otherwise, if you don't do anything and stay away over 30 days, you simply pay a 1000 Baht fine upon re-entry. Doesn't matter how long you've been away for. 1000 Baht is the fine for Thai vehicles. It's 1000 Baht per day for foreign vehicles overstaying in Thailand, with a maximum of 10,000 Baht. Therefore, if you need 60 or 90 days, seek permission through customs in Bangkok or at the border when you're departing. Enter the maximum amount of time you need for Cambodia into app BEFORE entering (although in-country extensions are allowed, they take around 2 or 3 days to be approved). Cross-border insurance is available for Cambodia now. You purchase it online prior to entry, but it's not yet mandatory. According to a Khmer Times article, it will soon become mandatory, though when exactly is not known. Laos seems to only allow Thai cars entry for 15 days now; you can however extend this once in country, thus permitting 30 days or possibly longer (depending on how long you are allowed to extend for). Previously, you always received 30 days automatically when entering. Crossing the Cambodia-Laos border from Cambodia will be a very frustrating exercise if you aren't aware of the unlisted rules. You need your car passport and it needs to be stamped from the time you leave Thailand. You need to tell Thai and Cambodian customs of this requirement; it's not done automatically. Only some of the larger borders have the stamps on the Thai side; meanwhile all of them have the required stamps on the Cambodian side (go figure, Thai customs is way less organized these days than Cambodia). For crossings from Thailand to Laos via Cambodia, the best border to use for EXITING Thailand is Aranyaprathet/Poipet. Chong Sa-ngam/Choam is also good (though for anyone in that area, unless they want to see Preah Vihear and Stung Treng, you might as well head directly for Laos, entering at Chong Mek, which isn't too far away). Chong Chom / O'Smach probably has these stamps too on the Thai and Cambodian sides, seeing it was always the most straightforward border crossing for vehicles in the past (haven't enquired as I haven't been there since 2022. Moreover, Cambodia has now moved customs twice; first from the hut 300m down the road from the border to a building over a km away in a back street and finally, back to the border where it should have been all along). Ban Khao Din, Ban Laem, Ban Pakkard and Hat Lek are not recommended as exit points if you wish to proceed to Laos, as Thai customs won't have the required customs stamps. Not only that, but Ban Laem and Ban Pakkard require a silly military form to be allowed to leave the country in your Thai registered vehicle (this is issued for free, but it's a silly bureaucratic requirement that requires extra time). It's easier in the other direction though (Laos to Cambodia), as you'll have the required stamps in your car passport already, seeing it is mandatory to present one to leave Thailand for Laos - thus crossing from Laos to Cambodia is the way to go. Once you're stamped into Cambodia, there's no real need to get the exit stamp from Cambodia and entry stamp from Thailand in your car passport anymore. I requested them, but struggled to get Thai customs at Hat Lek to co-operate. It was only thanks to the Cambodian helper being able to improvise that I was able to get any stamp. The head of customs was most unco-operative. In the Cambodia to Laos direction, it's mandatory, you're not entering Laos without these stamps. I realize that the vast majority of people wishing to drive to Cambodia from Thailand will return to Thailand, so no need to get too involved with the Cambodia-Laos direct crossing unless you really, really want to do it (like I did and have).

All of that has changed now, post-Covid. I usually drive into Cambodia from one crossing and come back through a different one. No extra forms to fill out. Simple procedure for entry on the Cambodian side now. Insurance also available and will soon be made compulsory.

NOPE - You list the driver as well. I usually travel by myself, have driven my car out of the country to all 4 of Thailand's neighbors on nearly 100 occasions and always put my details down.

You mean smoking weed in public? Well, it only became legal in 2022. However, I have to disagree - most foreign stoners / cannabis users tend to be quite respectful and smoke only where it's permitted. Essentially, other than at cannabis cafes and dispensaries, I have yet to see any widespread flouting of the law. There ARE consequences and foreigners are likely to be fined 2000-5000 Baht if caught by the police. I often go to tourist areas, but I don't spend my time hanging out in tourist ghettoes, which may account for my perceptions being different. For me, the most touristy places I visit are cities such as Chiang Mai, Koh Chang, Ao Nang, Krabi sometimes for a night and Khao Lak. I guess if you're in the middle of Koh Phangan where everyone is a foreigner, it's more likely you'll stumble across some disrespectful foreigners lighting up, but generally speaking, at restaurants where smoking of anything is banned, neither Thais nor foreigners do so. They usually go outside to smoke. Again, I emphasize that I don't hang out in Phangan, Samui, Phuket etc. I've never even been to the first two. I do visit Koh Chang on occasion and haven't seen anyone smoking weed where they're not supposed to. I occasionally pass through Pattaya on a day trip, but except for someone smoking on the street, I haven't seen any tourist "misbehaving" either. Don't know about bars, but might happen at some of the girlie bars. Not my kind of scene so I can't comment as I'm not a sexpat.

Oil sector? Well, until that guy answers us, it will remain a mystery, but I've not heard of westerners working in the oil & gas industry in Myanmar (well, not since Total pulled out anyway) and since he mentioned some unknown island, I'm going to guess, he's working in tourism (hotel or restaurant) or teaching, probably the former. I never really took a liking for Burmese food either; it's definitely not going to win any culinary awards. That stated, I can always find something I like and unlike Myanmar Beer, I don't find it challenging to eat Burmese food, but when other choices are available, I usually choose those. Thankfully, Thai food is found everywhere in Myanmar, even in the smallest, most rural hamlets. International cuisine dished up by hotels and restaurants in Yangon, whether it be Thai, Indian, western or Japanese or even fusion, tends to be quite good. As for safety - well...you're mostly correct if you do what you say, but there's always a small chance of becoming the victim of a crime, no matter how many precautions you take. The security situation in Myanmar has deteriorated since the coup and westerners make easy pickings for those who are desperate. That of course doesn't mean you're likely to be robbed, just that you are more likely to be a target compared to the locals. I've rarely felt unsafe in Thailand/Laos/Myanmar/Cambodia/Vietnam etc. BUT I ensure I don't do silly things or go places I shouldn't be. I'd feel very unsafe in Shwe Kokko so of course I don't go there (foreigners aren't even allowed to visit). Laukkai, Muse, Mongla etc are similar; Laukkai and Mongla are particularly dangerous. The Golden Triangle SEZ in Laos is open to foreigners, but a bit dodgy. OK to walk through during the day, but not really somewhere a westerner should find themselves in, especially at night. The market they take you to on a day trip by boat from the Thai side - perfectly safe though. I wouldn't visit a Thai bar in a rural area, nor attend a cockfight as a westerner, where drunk Thai men with guns, knives, sticks and short tempers are in abundance. That's just asking for trouble. Similarly, dodgy KTV places in Laos or Cambodia aren't venues that westerners should visit. That's where you'll find trouble. Anyway, it's good to see you're happy where you are. I'm about to visit Yangon again in the near future. Looking forward to seeing what it's like now, post-Covid and post-coup. Kawthaung and that southernmost area felt largely the same as it did pre-Covid when I visited in 2023 and 2024.

Since the offender was a foreigner, I would have confronted him. Had it been a Thai, I would have told the ship crew or management to deal with him. I am fluent in Thai, but I don't confront Thais if their behavior bothers me (unless it's something very serious...though that has never happened before) because I know they don't handle criticism well. However, when you tell an authority figure about someone else, they'll handle the problem for you. Thais respond to authority figures and quickly do what they're told when a complaint is made.

I suppose that could be, just that Myanmar was never really a country westerners traveled to on business very much and I know that technically, Russians aren't westerners, though they do look like us. I'm going with diplomats - that's who they probably were.