LALes

Just bought some cheapo insurance for 650 baht. Here goes nuthin'.

I'm looking at the fine print on the AXA website and it says that the insurance is only good until you leave and does NOT start up again when you return!! This can be a problem for a Non O who has to buy insurance for the duration of the visa. What if I go out multiple times? Am I going to have to buy long term insurance each time? My extension expires in December. I don't want to be buying long term insurance each time I want to go out. Something doesn't seem right here. Can anyone clarify?

I see the fine print on one insurance company website stating that the insurance is valid only until you leave Thailand. If you leave and come back, it does not start again. This is a problem for Non-O if you leave and come back multiple times. Since my retirement extension expires in December, I'm assuming I will need to buy insurance multiple times for long periods. Is this correct?

can someone post the link for Insurance companies comparison? I have to do a Thai Pass to return from Vietnam next week. I'm Non O but I have until Dec.21 on my extension. Looks like I will need 8 months of coverage.

Total rubbish. Tons of girls on Soi Bukhao and Jomtien.

I'll have what they are smoking!!

I'm in Danang now and its quite empty. Of course, its only 2 weeks into the re-open so its too early to tell what it will look like in the future. The last time I was here in 2019, the place was full of Korean, Japanese and Chinese. They are all gone. Some Americans living here but only a smattering of tourists. Plane was half full coming over from BKK and not all of them were tourists. Not much different in Ho Chi Minh. I was the only white face around much of the time. I kinda like this. Vietnam is easier to get into than Thailand but not by much. Only difference is no quarantine. I still needed vax card, insurance, e-visa and negative Antigen 24 hr test.

I'm in Danang right now. Quite empty since they only re-opened 2 weeks ago. It wasn't exactly easy to get in but easier than Thailand because no quarantine. I still needed to buy health insurance and get an Antigen test 24 hours before flying. Had to show vax card, insurance, Covid test and E visa (I'm American) at the check in in BKK. Before you could get in line for immigration in Saigon, you had to download an app and show the QR code to an officer before proceeding. It was a bit of a bottleneck but they had a couple of ladies helping you to fill out the idiot form on your phone. Took an extra 10-15 minutes and you could go stand on line and get stamped into the country. Only one time did anyone ever ask to see my QR code and that was when I went into the upscale Saigon Center mall.

15 years in Jomtien and never rode a motorbike or bicycle. Long live the Songthaew!

I had Covid a few weeks ago. I'm not really worried about a positive test. Then again, TIT....

I'm flying on Friday and don't want to blow 3,800 on a PCR test at Bangkok Pattaya unless its the only option. Antigen 24 hour test is accepted by the airlines but hard to find here.

I had Covid a week ago. I took 6 Ivermectin pills over 3 days and didn't notice anything. I got better relief with Advil for the headache and bodyaches.

I'm using a Bangkok Bank Dollar account for immigration purposes. You can't use the machine for that.

Well, I did the show the money on Tuesday. Went to Jomtien at 4pm and walked right in. Went over to Window 8 and handed the girl my passport, my bankbook and the letter. She told me to make copies of necessary pages in both and come back. I did. I came back handed in all my stuff. They checked the figures and handed me back my passport and bankbook. They kept the form and copies. Done. Total cost 12 baht.

Damn, I just had their big double cheeseburger a few days ago. Been going to the Central Pattaya branch since they opened over 10 years ago. Sad news. Waaaaay better than McD or Burger King. Another one bites the dust.

I remember doing this last year and I don't think there is a receipt. Its kind of a joke. They look at your bankbook, hand it back to you and that's pretty much it. I think I had printed out some info and they took that and threw it into a pile on the desk.

My appointment for this was scheduled for Sunday. I went in there and talked to the young Thai assistant at Counter 8 and he told me to come on Monday. You can't come before. Bankbook update must be after, as well. This form was given to me when I renewed the Retirement extension in December. No mention of a bank letter.

2 hours after I went down there, the email approval came.

Over 24 hours waiting for approval and getting close to D Day. Screw it. Went over to Jomtien Immi at 4pm and got it done in 15 minutes.

Time for my 90 day report so I decided to try the new online system. I had used the old one before with success but that was a few years ago. Sat down at the computer to get it rolling. Probably needed to re-register so I did it. Immigration sent a password to my email and I clicked on the link to get started. Entered my email address and the password they gave me and got an error message, "invalid username or password." Huh? That's the password they gave me. I tried 5 times with the same result. Finally, I got fed up and decided to phone them but it was 11:30 and I figured they all went to lunch so I'll wait until the afternoon. While eating lunch, myself, I figured I'd try it on my phone and see what happens. Sure enough, I get right in and sail right through the process. Same email, same password. What gives? The response said they had received my information successfully. So how long do I have to wait for approval? One tip when filling out their form...always click on the magnifying glass icon to get a modifier menu that will put your information in the proper form for them.

How come there's been an uptick in Russians in Pattaya lately? The last 3 weeks, especially. Unless they are Ukranians.

8 years down, 12 to go. Better fatten up, boys.

An old, grizzled falang came up to me in central Pattaya last week and tried to bum 10 baht. 10 baht! You know the Pattaya Plunge is looming on the horizon.

I have 15 year old, high back, cloth chair that I love. You just can't get these anymore. Unfortunately, it wobbles and goes back way too far now. Maintenance guy on our building tried a fix but it didn't work. I'm in Jomtien. Any ideas?

Ahhh, the sweet smell of xenophobia is back! This time courtesy of Pheu Thai. Did you relly think they were any different from the ruling party when it comes to falangs?