phuketjock

45 minutes ago, The Deerhunter said:

I had much the same experience on my last 90 day report. This was  in Sri Racha office Chonburi. Sri Racha staff have always been very polite and helpful for several years now towards me. A new civilian guy in a newly opened 90 day only office, told me I was over due and would have to pay 2000.  I said, "No. Look at your calendar. I landed on x date and 90 days was last Thursday.  This is Tuesday, three working days late and I am allowed up to 5 working days late.  We were up north last week and came back at the weekend."   He walked over to a uniformed officer and they played with my passport and a computer calendar and the uniformed officer said.  "You are late and it will cost you 1000.  The civilian guy said  "You owe 2000, I mean 1000 baht like I said."  I knew they were BS so I smiled and said "I am sorry but I am 2 days within the 5 day grace period and there is no fine owing."  I stepped forward towards the seated uniform guy as I said this and my body language made it quite clear I was not going to buckle.   He scowled at me and said "OK I will let you off this time but next time I will fine you 2000 baht if you are even one day over the 90 days."  I smiled politely and just possibly a trifle triumphantly at the Civvy guy and walked out.  They tried that on the wrong guy this time.

There is no "working days " in a 90 day report period, it is a 90 day report weekends included, otherwise it

would not be 90 days would it?

17 hours ago, phuketjock said:

I had Intra Ocular lens replacement in both eyes about 5/6 years ago, if memory serves me right.

I too was like you and was sick to death of wearing glasses and my eye doc spotted what he

suspected was the beginnings of a cataract in one of my eyes so recommended lens replacement.

In my opinion the best decision I have ever made, no more glasses and 20/16 vision for a while, it

is now only 20/20 and will with time I am informed by the doc deteriorate slowly, but the surgery

can be repeated to revive vision apparently.

I had my surgery at Bangkok Phuket Hospital and the cost was around 78,000 baht per eye and went   

very well approximately 1 to 1.5 hours including prep for surgery. Same procedure on other eye about

5 to 7 days later. The biggest problem was that you cannot shower or wash your hair for 2 weeks, not

wonderful but wholly worth it. All carried out as an outpatient, home after surgery.

I would imagine that the cost may be considerably more after 5/6 years but I don't know for sure?

I know at least 5 other people here in Phuket who have had the same procedure and all are as happy 

as I am with the results.

I would definitely recommend it.

I lifted this from Bangkok Phuket Hospital Site gives you much more info but no price unfortunately.

http://www.phukethospital.com/Treatments-Services/Eye-RLE-Surgery.php

I had Intra Ocular lens replacement in both eyes about 5/6 years ago, if memory serves me right.

I too was like you and was sick to death of wearing glasses and my eye doc spotted what he

suspected was the beginnings of a cataract in one of my eyes so recommended lens replacement.

In my opinion the best decision I have ever made, no more glasses and 20/16 vision for a while, it

is now only 20/20 and will with time I am informed by the doc deteriorate slowly, but the surgery

can be repeated to revive vision apparently.

I had my surgery at Bangkok Phuket Hospital and the cost was around 78,000 baht per eye and went   

very well approximately 1 to 1.5 hours including prep for surgery. Same procedure on other eye about

5 to 7 days later. The biggest problem was that you cannot shower or wash your hair for 2 weeks, not

wonderful but wholly worth it. All carried out as an outpatient, home after surgery.

I would imagine that the cost may be considerably more after 5/6 years but I don't know for sure?

I know at least 5 other people here in Phuket who have had the same procedure and all are as happy 

as I am with the results.

I would definitely recommend it.

13 minutes ago, IgboChief said:

I do not presume anything and for that reason I like to have a plan and also a plan B -- served me always well so far.

But thank you already for your rich and helpful contribution.

 

Cheers

I am sorry igbo but most people look forward to living their lives to the full not looking forward to death,

doom, and gloom and certainly not at the ripe old age of forty.

Why would your wife die before you and why would your daughter leave? and if they do that is what happens

in life and hard as it may be most people get back on the horse and get on with life, mainly because you have

no choice of what life throws at you.

What if your wife and you live to a ripe old age in happiness and love and your daughter gets married to a nice guy

and has your grandchildren, would that not be a better outlook for your future?

Cheer up man and enjoy life.

1 hour ago, NancyL said:

Joe, I consulted the website of the Portland consulate before posting and it says that in order to apply for a single entry O visa one must submit "Marriage certificate and proof of spouse's Thai citizenship, Letter of invitation from volunteer organization in Thailand, proof of condo or home ownership."  This would imply rather narrow basis for granting a 90 day O visa.  The OP isn't able to supply any of these.

I'm sorry Nancy but I would take Joes knowledge on immigration matters before yours, or in fact just

about everyone, especially overseas consulates, who notoriously never update their websites, believe

me trust Joe.

1 hour ago, NancyL said:

Kim, it's not that difficult to obtain an FBI records check or to go to your local law-enforcement agency to ask them to fingerprint you and get a state check.  That's what we did and the local township police thought it great fun to fingerprint a nice older couple who were sober, smiling and wanted to be fingerprinted.   In looking around the fingerprint room, I commented "gee, this room looks like you have to hose it down from time-to-time" and the laughing staff said, "normally the people we finger print are puking, pissing, and don't want to be here"

 

Anyway, do that and see what the report says.   It's not like the Thai Embassy is going to run their own criminal check on you.   If you don't like the report you get, then come to Thailand with a tourist visa and the idea you'll have to pay the big baht to a Chiang Mai visa agent to work their magic with Chiang Mai Immigration.  Remember, you've been warned.

 

Otherwise, if your U.S. police report is clean, then move along to get an O-A visa in the U.S.  It's the "Platinum Visa"  that will minimize your contact with the vultures at CM Immigration that love to feed on newbies.

Nancy that is a bit naughty if he comes in on a 90 day non "O" he will not have to do a conversion just a straight extension

and he most certainly will not require an agent to extort money from him. I can't think why you would say such a thing when

the guy is obviously looking for genuine information, what you wrote scared me, " Remember you have been warned ", really??

The extension will cost him 1,900 baht per annum. 

How much does an O-A cost against a 90 day non Imm "O" in the US ??

26 minutes ago, Kim1950 said:

Thanks, it appears to be too perilous and time consuming to navigate the OA long stay Visa through the DC Embassy, unless I find a in country agent, or this could take months and then get jammed for some offense that was dismissed 40 years ago. What's pathetic and I talked to the FBI, big felonies can fall through their database and small offenses, even dismissed could show with no disposition,. This is because all this is dependent on each individual state. Like even today some states don't report crimes of illegal immigrants to the Federal Government.

 

Anyway, I was stationed in Thailand for two years during the Vietnam War and later traveled there on business many times. I fell in love with the country and dreamed of returning there for an extended stay, maybe longer, and also visit Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. I did short service in those places. There were many clandestine operations out of Thailand. My memory bucket list. Look and see, do research, much is available today, maybe keep a journal of the experience, then and now. Make peace with it all. Who knows retire there.

 

Money and health are not issues. Once there, it seems, other veteran communities can help me. In your opinion, how do I get into Thailand with the goal of a extendable one year stay that allows me travel to neighboring countries. Thanks.

 

 

These are the basic requirements for the Phuket office and generally they are the same for every imm. office with 

slight differences for other offices, as you don't say where you may settle in Thailand you may have to research a 

particular office after you decide where you wish settle.

Your first extension, it is not a VISA, but an extension of your permission to stay on the grounds of retirement and is

renewable every year indefinitely, I am on my 9/10th year on this extension. It may appear a bit scarey the first time

but it really is not, it is in fact very simple if you just follow the necessary steps.

There is no requirement for a medical certificate but you will require a residence certificate, referred to as up to date

address registration in the text below. Hope this helps.

With this extension you can come and go as you please but you must ensure that you obtain a re-entry permit if you

intend to leave the country because if you don't you will, on departure, immediately invalidate your extension and will

have to start the whole process all over again. You can opt for a single re-entry permit 1,000 baht or a multi re-entry

permit 3,800 baht if you intend to make many excursions in a year. Either re-entry will remain valid for the duration of

your extension.

If you do not leave the country for 90 days you are required to report to your imm.office .

It would appear that the bikers posting are blaming the car driver and visa versa, imho

I think the bike must take most of the responsibility for this stupid accident, the car

driver not being entirely blameless. Having said that I have lost count of the number of

times I have had to make a last second swerve to avoid hitting an idiots door on opening,

not only endangering me and the idiot but the traffic behind and alongside me, in my CAR.

I dare say the stars of this video will not be repeating this performance anytime soon. At 

least I hope not???

1 hour ago, twozeds said:

sorry phuketjock Im at Laem chabang so Pattaya is about the nearest town for me….there is an Home Works in Pattaya will give them a try many thanks

No problem as long as you can locate what you're looking for.

Cheers.

If you are looking for something it is always useful to state your location,

Home Works in Phuket have coated cables of various diameters.

4 minutes ago, Lamkyong said:

get yourself an android box   lazada have then  dont choose the cheapo ones (just advising)   download MOBDRO  for android for free.  you will wonder why you ever paid for uk tv before

but you will need at least 6 mb internet

" I have an Android box " Guess you missed this part of the op?  and the fact that he is asking about satellite.

There is not really a choice for what you want True is the only satellite tv company that has

all the things you want but no Sky, BBC yes.

There are I believe some iffy companies around also.

1 hour ago, IMA_FARANG said:

As others pointed out there are a number of valid ways to do it.

I arrived in Thailand 5 years ago on a Non O multi-entry visa then and have extended it each year annually in Bangkok.

In my particular case I get my Social Security pension sent to my Bangkok Bank  account by direct deposit from the U.S. each month.

It takes some paperwork to set up a direct deposit that way initially but once you have it running  the money arrives in your Bangkok Bank  account  on the 4th of each month.

I've been doing  it that way for over 4 years now, and it works fine  for me.

I am a U.S. Army Vietnam veteran if that means anything, but not retied military.

 

 

 

Sorry but it is not possible to extend a VISA.

3 minutes ago, blankagain said:

Have been to Tesco and all they had were smaller.

Looking around for about 100 x  230 size.

Fair enough happy hunting.

1 minute ago, blankagain said:

Just realised should have been in the Pattaya forum. 

I would guess Tesco in Pattaya will have the same selection

Don't know how large you are looking for but Tesco has loads of different sizes.

Just in case anyone is looking for one there are numerous Gas and Electric 

work top and work top inserts 2 and three ring gas and 2 ring electric hobs

at very good discounts below Home works just outside KFC.

There is a stand alone 4 ring gas cooker with oven for under 6,000 baht if

your interested. ( it was still there yesterday ). 

1 minute ago, eisfeld said:

The thread does have some interesting information so I'd rather see the mods delete the personal bickering and bring it back on topic instead of closing it for everyone.

If the thread closes the info will not go away eisfeld it will still be

available for viewing should anyone wish to do so.

44 minutes ago, xylophone said:

Sorry for the readers of this thread if I have to refer to an earlier post, which thankfully has now been deleted, because it was full of inaccuracies and vitriol, however I feel I need to put the record straight for my own peace of mind. Let me address the points one by one: –

 

– I was not one of the "bankers" who used other people's money to bail out institutions, in fact my bank in New Zealand was a conservative bank and had nothing whatsoever to do with the financial shenanigans in Wall Street or its environs and no way did we entertain things like CDOs in our portfolios which were foisted upon unwary investors in other banks/countries.

 

– Just like any business unit (I ran a business unit, i.e. a business within a business) we were tasked with making a profit, which we did and legally so.

 

– And as for this, "I have many friends who would dearly love to meet people like you face to face to tell you how absolutely

disgusted they feel about the stress and upheaval you and your kind have caused in their lives". Well I and my team caused absolutely no stress and upheaval upon your friends lives, none whatsoever. We made our clients money.

 

– In fact if they had been invested in the funds which we were running for clients/customers, ever since 1997, when it first started, up until now they would have made money, and those statistics are available online. This includes going through the tech stock crash of 1999 and the GFC starting around 2007.

 

– Two entirely different scenarios with regards to banks and investing, which you clearly know nothing about. My clients/customers are happy and have not lost money, whilst others around the world may have done, but that's of no fault of mine.

 

– That's because I ran my business unit (read a business within a business but with all the same structure of a stand-alone business) well and ethically.

 

– Contrary to what you keep quoting and even though I didn't quote this, I never, repeat, I never made $2 billion or even $2 million for that matter, but the investment funds I put in place reached just under $2 billion before I retired. And as another poster (Karen Bravo I think it was) tried to apprise you, some folks are paid a salary for running that sort of businesses because it is within a banking environment and that was the case with me.

 

So sorry to disappoint you in respect of not bringing my millions/billions of dollars to Patong, but they just didn't exist and they never did, and I never said they did, this is just a figment of your misreading/assumptions.

 

And as for living in Nanai road, well I choose to live there because I live in an apartment owned by friends and whenever I go away they take care of it as well as my car and my motorbike and my post etc, and I couldn't hope for an easier life. Up to me as they say here.

 

Now here's a suggestion for you, rather than you keep aiming your vindictive posts at me (for whatever reason), why don't we call a truce and you can press the ignore button on me and I can press the ignore button on you and then we won't have to waste time going through all this crap.

 

 

As I recall from your post # 2176.

"Well I did start up a business with $100k in seed capital and build into just under $2 billion in 7 years, including seeing

it through the "Tech stock crash" of 1999, so at least you are right about one thing! "

I struggle to find anything in this post that says it was not your money or your business lying by omission is still lying

From another of your posts on 28/5.

"Really not interested in putting up with your drivel anymore, so will press the ignore button on you."

Please feel free to do as you please but don't come on here telling porkies about what you said previously because as

you can clearly see it is all on record on this thread.

There is nothing vindictive about the truth, you just think it is because you disagree with others points of view, so to

you they must be wrong.

If you think that Patong is such a failure what are you doing here preaching your doom and gloom incessantly? you

are free to leave whenever you wish. I happen to like where I am living and it pisses me off when people like you who 

contribute little to the well being of the place continually put a downer on it.

Take your negativity back to where you came from please.

Press any button you like who the hell cares, I surely don't.

2 minutes ago, xylophone said:

"All the business’s are on Sois just off either side of Rat-U-thit rd". 

 

No-one.........part of your post number 2395!!

This is not an assumption then, this is what I was referring to.

" then they are fairly public knowledge surely! "

Not a part of any of my posts.

15 minutes ago, xylophone said:

True enough, but if they are already operating in sois near a main road, then they are fairly public knowledge surely!

Now who is making assumptions??

3 minutes ago, Flustered said:

Pretty obvious why the OP does not post on this thread anymore. It has moved a thousand miles away from the original topic, a lack of tourists in Patong.

I don't know but perhaps " Patong is dead " may not have been the correct

title for the OP?

3 minutes ago, NamKangMan said:

 

You wanted "first hand" information.  You got it. 

 

Go ahead and say all those businesses for sale, are not really for sale. 

 

369 for sale in the next post.  That's 369 "For Sale" signs displayed on the internet.  Hardly rumor, or "third hand information." 

 

Get a brain man. 

NKM  there are businesses for sale on Phuket all the time and at the beginning of low

season there are usually more than at the beginning of high season, does that help you?

I have never said there were not any businesses for sale I have said that I don't believe

Patong is dead or any where near dying and I have nothing more than the facts of how

our businesses are doing, which I have relayed to this thread, which after all is what the

op is about no? 

You can choose to accept what I have posted or not up to you it is what it is.