Tomtomtom69

1. Yes. 2. Just select purpose of transfer from the list 3. Not necessarily. Just transfer up to the limit that WU accepts depending on the transfer method (debit or credit card etc.) 4. Comes to the same thing, but PC is probably better 5. Yes 6. Funds usually arrive in the afternoon of the next business day following your transfer. A transfer made on Friday will arrive at the same time as a transfer made on a Sunday night at 11.59pm, which is between 1 and 2pm on Monday, depending on what Thai bank you're with. For SCB, it's 115pm and for Bangkok Bank, funds are credited between 2 and 2.05pm.

They don't. I've entered at some checkpoints where the officer doesn't see the visa and then accidentally stamps me in on visa exempt and I'd have to tell him he got it wrong and so he would correct it.

That's not new. Thais have never liked foreigners.

Yeah banking in Vietnam is a pain if you're a non-working expat. Then again, retirees aside, it's quite unusual to find a country anywhere, with tons of non-working expats. Vietnam is a nice country but unlike Thailand, most expats there also work in the country as I'd consider to be normal. The situation in Thailand is most unusual, in comparison to other countries. That stated, Thailand itself is tightening the screws on non-working expats opening bank accounts (quite difficult nowadays; even agents can't help as easily as they once could and only one bank seems to be opening accounts for foreigners relatively easily, which is TTB). Wise is no longer supporting payments to the smaller Thai banks; only big ones remain supported. You can only get a 2-year temporary Thai DL on a tourist visa. Some offices don't even issue 2-year licenses to tourist visa holders. Some offices don't issue 5-year licenses to those on DTV visas or anything but a marriage, retirement or work visa.

No, they weren't common. I saw masks occasionally, but only like 1-2% of the Thai population wore masks before 2020, with a brief blip being October 2019, due to being heavily promoted by the government but that was on Bangkok public transportation only.

Very, very few masks are worn in Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. Out of these 3 countries, mask wearing is highest in Cambodia, but even there, you'll barely see 3% of people wearing them in Phnom Penh, and 1% in Siem Reap, 0.5% in the countryside. It's a far, far cry from Thailand. During the main part of Covid, you didn't even see Laotians and Burmese masking up much. I remember seeing photos of Laotians picking up their relatives and friends waiting inside Vientiane airport in late 2020 and barely a single one of them was masked. This would have been unthinkable in Thailand. According to a photo taken in late 2020 at a hospital in Shwe Koko, Myanmar, no masks worn inside that hospital either. Again, unthinkable just a few km across the border in Mae Ramad, Thailand. Even well into 2023, many Thai hospitals mandated masks (or mandated them again), such as one of the main hospitals in Mae Sot, near the Burmese border. While Malaysia was strict; they didn't actually mandate masks until August 2020 (though before this date, many private businesses did) and once the mask mandate was lifted, almost no one wore one anymore outdoors and in small shops, unlike in Thailand at the time. The contrast between Thailand and it's neighbors is huge.

You must have a bad memory or are getting your dates mixed up. In December 2019 hardly anyone wore a mask in Bangkok or anywhere else in Thailand. There was a brief period in October 2019 when the Thai government, knowing what was about to come, encouraged masks to be worn on public transit against pollution (which doesn't make sense; if anything, they might have had a point if masks were encouraged outside during periods of high air pollution). I think for a period of about 2 weeks, perhaps 20% of Thai commuters followed the government's advice but then dropped their masks by December. It was only when Covid started making the news at the very beginning of January in 2020 that masks started to be worn very extensively, so much so that by as early as January 12, some schools had almost 100% mask wearing, yet this was still 2.5 months before the lockdown and mask mandates came into force.

Most? No. I did a count on several occasions, in Bangkok to gauge what percentage of Thais wear glasses. This was before Covid. I estimated the percentage to be roughly in the range of 25-33% or around 1 in 4 to 1 in 3. An unknown number also wears contact lenses so it's possible up to 50% of Thais, especially those under the age of 45 or so, wear glasses or contact lenses, especially in Bangkok. I think the percentage is slightly lower, though probably similar in other larger cities such as Chiang Mai, Chonburi, Nakorn Ratchasima but significantly lower in the countryside, where it goes down to like 10-15%. Of course some older Thais also wear glasses for reading but they're not worn otherwise. While technically you could be correct in saying "most" wear them since "most" means above 50%, at least if we're talking glasses that are worn all the time and we're excluding reading glasses and contact lenses, it's a significant minority that are wearing them but not yet a majority. In Singapore, Taiwan, major cities of mainland China and a few other countries in the region, I'd say up to 75% of the population wears glasses, especially among those under the age of 40 or 45.

It's a hoax in the sense that it's actually not a real, separate virus, but merely a reclassification of the common cold, flu and pneumonia. I agree with you on how docile East Asians can be, but this applies only to a few nationalities. You'll see very few masks being worn in Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. In Vietnam, they're mostly worn while riding motorcycles and among some elderly people in the cities. Masks are only worn to the extent they are in Thailand, in Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, but Thailand seems to be a little worse than those countries.

To a Thai, no amount of mask wearing is uncomfortable. I observed double masked Thais wear their muzzles in 40 degree Celcius heat at the Chinese-Lao border in mid 2023 when barely anyone else around them was wearing one and Chinese immigration staff, still required to wear a surgical mask at the time, had to lift theirs up every 2 minutes to get some air. The 10 Thais I saw didn't even flinch. They're successfully indoctrinated.

Totally agree. Zero critical thinking in place. I laugh now when I walk past a masked zombie. I also ask people why they're wearing them. It's just stupid.

Thais are predominantly indoor people. Exceptions being rural farmers of course.

Another excuse to demand Thais wear their beloved face diapers and get boosted again.

The police might have paid an interest in this case because it happened to one of "God's chosen people". It would have been "anti-semitic" not to investigate this crime and bring the perpetrators to justice.

To be honest, I don't find this to be true, but neither am I upset about it. I don't personally need Thais to be better at English.

I agree but then I also think that in such an international environment, it's silly to assume everyone speaks English. Thais have this strange assumption that every foreigner or at least every farang, is able to converse in English. Some Thais even call it "phasaa falang" or "western language" as if all westerners were the same and that all westerners can not only speak English but there's only one language spoken in the west, which is quite ignorant. I would never assume that the locals can speak multiple languages, but I would expect there to be some that do (not for my benefit as I don't need it, but for those that do). There are certainly those who speak Russian, German, Chinese, Swedish, French, Spanish, Japanese, Burmese, Khmer and a multitude of other languages, at least in certain areas of the country, to facilitate communication with visitors or expats who happen to be from those countries. Visitors from some of these countries or put another way, some visitors from any of these countries don't speak English at all or very very little.

And my personal suggestion is to print out the customs form from the website/app and present it to Cambodian customs when you arrive at the border. It makes them find your record more easily. Customs may or may not print out their own version, which they will sign and stamp, but this doesn't mean you've printed out the form in vain. It helps them locate your record more quickly and saves time. I print it out before every entry now. Some borders will stamp and sign the form I present them; others will print out their own version. To do this, once you have a profile and you're ready to travel to Cambodia, you first input all your details including filling out the entry and exit border and entry and exit dates. Here's a tip: just put down 30 days (which is the maximum). Makes it easier. Always overestimate how long you're staying because if you underestimate, you'll have to request an extension (can be done via the app or website) or you'll pay a fine if you overstay. Having the form printed out also facilitates your exit on the Thai side if you show up at a more remote border where the Thai officials might believe you won't be allowed to enter and may ask you to check with the Cambodian officials. I can guarantee you'll be permitted entry - just show the printed Cambodian customs form to the Thai customs officials and they'll print out the Thai exit form for you. The website allows for stays of up to 30 days but I understand you can request an extension (once inside the country and your profile is active) of an additional 30 days through the app/website. Assume you're approved once a request has been made, even if it's not showing as approved. It will be once you arrive at the exit border. That being said, to avoid a 1000 Baht fine on the Thai side, you'll need to request customs grants you a 60 day permit before exiting. Some larger borders may be able to do this; otherwise, you have to go to customs in Bangkok to request it. For the majority of us, this will probably never be necessary but let's say you're interested in touring Cambodia and aren't tied down to a job here and would like to spend 2 months with the car or motorcycle over there, then it's worth it. Or you might be interested in touring both Cambodia and Laos and cross the border between the two countries rather than first coming back to Thailand before visiting the other country. However, for Laos - the maximum stay now is 15 days plus a 7 day extension (which you have to pay for). They won't allow longer. This new rule came into force last September or October. So if you combine 1 month in Cambodia with say 15 or 22 days in Laos that's a little under 2 months.

Yes I posted a link in an earlier comment but here it is again: https://apps.customs.gov.kh

How hard can the process be of buying new glasses? You get an eye test, they ask you what you see, put some lenses over to see if you can read the chart, then if one or both eyes can't see clearly, they give you a slightly stronger lens and that's really about it. You hardly need much language to communicate your needs for something as simple as that. Usually takes 5 minutes then wait for your glasses to be made, which could take anywhere from an hour to a few days.

I wouldn't expect there to be any English-speaking staff at all. In practice, there is usually someone who knows some English, however bad it may be, but I don't expect it. I speak Thai with all Thais regardless of where I am in the country. And yeah, what you describe is very common; you normally don't find many young Thais who happen to have good English being proficient at other tasks. As you say, they might just be a receptionist or store clerk. I also speak Thai with Burmese and Cambodian migrant workers, unless it turns out their English is better than their Thai (which is often the case in tourist areas such as Koh Chang, Pattaya, Samui etc.) in which case I switch to English peppered with a few words or phrases from their language (be it Burmese or Khmer). With Laotians I will speak Thai or Lao only.

I'm not shocked. Went to a popular Thai restaurant with mostly foreign customers in Bangkok. Place is housed inside a traditional Thai style building. While waitstaff do speak English, it's rather basic. They liked it that I can speak Thai.

Ideally, yes, but not if you're in a tourist area with lots of foreign visitors, such as beach resort areas near the French border or Barcelona, Madrid or Malaga.

Laos is very much uncrowded and yet the experiences you'll have there are similar to Thailand. Perhaps because the culture is very similar; the language is too.

That's because you are initiating the exchange. My experience is similar to yours (except I'm not as old as you nor spent as many years in Thailand) but I am fluent in the language and get treated alright most of the time but there are always going to be the odd strange experiences here and there, though they have greatly reduced over the years.

Correct. Thais also do this among themselves. Hence why they don't really do small talk with strangers, except occasionally when some old granny talks to you because you happen to have your young child with you. Most of the time, it's me who initiates conversations with Thais, who are very receptive towards me, but unless my son is with me, they rarely talk to me first. Totally different to America where you can find yourself chatting away with some stranger you met on the bus.