Mangkhut

I am the queen of fruits thus I should be high priced! ?

Way too many high ranked brownshirts have their mianoi-money and whiskey money collected from the arenas of prostitution - so stopping that is missiln impossible.

Just look at what just happend in Pattaya.

Thanks for answer UbonJoe. That was what I feared. I couldnt find cheaper airfare out of BKK than around 1600 baht and 1900 baht in extension fee it adds up.

Maybe I should try to get a SETV before going....

Hi folks - advice sought.

I got a trip to Thailand coming up in approx 2 weeks. I plan to stay 6-7 weeks and then fly out to another destination.

As Im for the moment a bit far from and thai embassy/consulate it will be a bit hard to get any visa so I plan to fly in and get a visa excemption and then extend this. Will I have any problem checking in/boarding the plane to Thailand when my outbound ticket is 6-7 weeks later than my entry and after a visa excemption is expired?

According to Wikipedia Thai passports holders will get a visa on arrival as most european passport holders will.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Nepal

If youre talking about bringing a foreign plated vehicle into Thailand - forget it. Its not an option. If youre able to get thai plate on it it will cost you a fortune in taxes and fees and paracetamols for thousands of dollars to cure your headaches during this process. But most likely you will not be able to do so.

You can get a foreign plated vehicle into Thailand on a temporary monthly basis but it will require that you bring it to a customs office every month for a renewal of the temporary import. And such a temporary import can only be done up to six months and then the vehicle need to exit Thailand again.

By the way - thai government are about to change temporary vehicle import rules to the more stricter. Supposed to start from 27th this month.

So sell or leave your foreign plated vehicle where it is and consider buying another in Samui.

And they still keep a former Khmer Rouge officer as their prime minister. When will Cambodia get out of its curse?

The border closes at 10 pm and opens at 6 am. So your best option is probably to go to Nong Khai tonight - if you can find transport from Udon to there. And then early tomorrow find further transport to the border bridge and to Vientiane.

Vang Vieng is ok to visit. Many caves, svimming in the rivers etc.

Luang Prabang is a nice and interesting place which is on the UNESCO world heritage list. Lots of old temples and a good bit of french colonialiam feel left.

Phonsavan - plain of Jars. Certainly a interesting place. Lots of history about the secret war in Laos during the 70's.

Nong Khiaow - serene river paradise and tranquil resorts.

Thong Lor cave and nearby Carst mountains - fantastic experience going through the 7,5 kms long cave in a small wooden boat. Nearest town is Tha Khek.

Sii Phan Don - the 4000 islands in the Mekong river just on the border to Cambodia. Lots of history and relaxed atmosphere.

For the more adventorous:

Phongsaly - the northernmost province of Laos - highly influenced by the chinese. Thw journey there are as interesting as the stay.

Sam Neua - near Vietnam border - take a look at the caves where the Phatet Lao leaders hided - lost of history and vietnamese influence.

Cross over the Bolevyn plateu with its huge coffee plantations and visit the remote provinces of Attapeu, Sekong and Salawan.

Have a nice trip!

I agree with the others that have mentioned the heat. Its just become unbareable the later years. No outdoor activities during day in march/april/may - just sit in an airconditioned room not suffocating cause of overheating.

Visa situation isnt ideal, neither is owning land and property and work possibilities. But the heat man - the heat...

The ban of foreign plated motorbikes into Thailand (except Laos, Malaysia and S'pore plated) are meaningless and ridiciolous. "They cause accidents and ecological harm" ? Wipe your own front and backyard first. Thais dont even weat a helmet and pile unprotected toddlers on their mopeds and drunk driving are more of a rule than an exception, even amongst the brownshirts.

The few hundred overlanders that passes through Thailand pr year - I havent hear about one accident amongst them. And those from neighbour countries except L, M and S cannot cause much harm either.

Other countries are opening up such as Myanmar and theres also rumours that Vietnam will. Thailand on the other hand....

Everywhere and everything has its time on earth and nothing lasts forever. This goes for Bangla td and its neighborhood also I guess. Had some great fun there back 2002 - 2003. Was back last year and to put it mildly - the thrill was gone. It could of course be me, but I doubt its only about me....

No beachchairs, jetskiscammers, taxi and tuktuk mafia and the general pricelevel down there doesnt draw people I guess.

Southern Laos, particularly the 4,000 islands area (in the Meekong and near the Cambodia/Laos border), is brilliant. I too recommend not transiting through Thailand for travel experience reasons.

Agree - 4000 islands (Si Pan Don) The spectacular 7,5 kms long Konglor cave a bit off Tha Kek with an exit in both ends and a stream running through it (travel by boat possible) The Bolevyn Plateu, towns like Tha Kek, Savannaketh, Pakse etc - not Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur exactly but not without charm - southern part of Laos has indeed many nice and interesting spots for those who seeks.

Thanks for the quick replies :-)

My "enter before" date is in April so I'll be fine in that regard.

From your answers, it seems like maybe my best bet is to either to travel all the way down through southern Laos, or just fly to Cambodia, so that I don't have to deal with all the visa issues.

hay2u2's answer gives me some hope that crossing through Thailand could work, but I'm not sure I want to head all the way down to the border (2 days bus ride) and then find out that my immigration official isn't "having a nice day." Has anybody here had a similar experience with getting an immigration official to let you save your 60-day visa for a later visit? Has anybody had this request denied?

Thanks again for your help! This forum is awesome.

If your destination from Laos is Cambodia I cannot understand why you want to travel overland through Thailand to get there? You might have youre reasons of course. But flying from Vientiane to Phnom Prnh seems much easier or even travel through southern Laos by bus or by flying Vientiane - Pakse and then catch a bus through the border seems much more conveniant - to me at least.

Another option is to get a new tourist visa in Phnom Penh if you use your second entry to travel overland through northeastern Thailand.

Would like to see a Crf 300 as well.....

How should one react upon this? Cry or laugh......

Cant belive that travelling the way TS describes will have any economically benefits. If he on the other hand likes to take bus journeys that lasts up to almost 24 hours each way he might have some pleasures doing this. And if he do this to activate his second entry he loses the 30 days of visa extension one can get on every entry. Cant belive that it could be called a benefit or anything like it.

Extend your visa at the nearest place it can be done and if you like a trip up north and maybe into Laos - do it when your visa extension expires and you need to activate the second entry. And as pointed out above - dont wait until your second entry expires...

I have been this loop 6 times, one time by bus and 5 times by motorbike. Guess which one I prefere and which one I recommend? ;-)

You have already got many good advices here.

1. Do it by own vehicle - and own speed and stop where you want.

2. Accomodation in Pai - there are an abundance of hotels and gh there. Hard to recommend any. I stayed in a place just through the main center when coming from the CM side, on the right hand side, near the river. Cannot remember the name of the place. Costed 6-700 baht 3 years ago and for that price it was well worth it.

3. Accomodation MHS - Piya guesthose down by the lake. Nice bungalows for the price of 7-800 baht. Have pool too. Ngam Ta hotel - just on the corner from the main rd and the rd down to the lake. Rooms 8-1200 baht including breakfast. Ok value for money. Can be a little noisy because of the nightclub/disco straight across the road.

Definetively continue to Doi Inthanon and/or Mae Sariang. Nice and scenic roads and scenery.

Places to check out - many already mentioned:

- Tham Lod cave (between Pai and MHS) huge cave with stream in so that you need a boat to take you through parts of the cave. Stone age settlements inside the cave. Stream full og big fish.

- Several wiew points along the road. Stop for coffee and a chat with the locals.

- Ban Rak Thai - some 20-30 kms before MHS take right and head up into the mountains for 20-30 kms to the BRT village. A chinese settlement around a lake. Taste delicious tea and dried fruit. Look at the chinese styled houses, and take a dive into history. Why are those chinese there?nThe road and ride/drive up there are spectacular. Its up to 11-1200 masl. Thers also a relatively nice waterfall half way up.

- Dok Bua Deng field. (Sunflower field) located on the road between Khun Yuam - Mae Chaem. A little detour from the main road but quite a sight in the blooming season.

- Temple and cafe on the hilltop overlooking MHS. A nice temple in a spectacular setting on a hill right above MHS. One can walk there in from town centre in 20 minutes or so dependong of your physical shape or drive all the way to the top. Its also a cafe behind the temple with a spectacular view. You can actually look down on the airstrip in MHS which is very cool when planes comes in for landing.

Take your time and dont rush it. Its one of the best parts of Thailand IMHO.

And a helmet take off in the moment of the crash and falls into the road but it dont take off from the guys head, so I guess it was securely attatched to the shopping bag knob......

Well done mate. If youre head is worth nothing - then dont wear a helmet.

The first period of time after I stopped drinking I had a whole lot of thoughts coming to my head. Way to many and difficult to deal with. Actually the approx first two years were like that. It was not easy to deal with. Even to this day - 5,5 years after the last drink I have periods of "internal brainstorm"

I also felt like wanting to retreat to somewhere remote and live as isolated and alone as possible. But luckily I didnt do that. I drowned myself in work and worked almost twice as much as an average emplyee although that probably wasnt the best solution either.

As others said above in this thread - its about getting this "not drinking concept" into your daily life and handle this on a daily basis that is most important. Not that you shouldnt go to church or to AA or whatever that you can find that can help you, give you support and understanding. But most days are weekdays and life gas to go on.

The most problematic can be to find something useful to do. All the time you spent drinking, sleeping off drunkeness, dealing with hangover or "repairing" - is now avsilable time. So its worth doing some thoughts about that and maybe take up an old or a new hobby or whatever feels right. Cherity work, physical exercise or whatever.

The most important step is step 1. If you have admitted and understood step 1 - you are a long way already.

Think about all the good and sober times that lies ahead - wow man - thats something!

Dont send or invest more money than you can afford to lose....

There only thing to do about women who always want money and to be economically supported etc etc - if they are hi so or others, thai or other nationalities - kick tbeir greedy asses out!

If you want to sponsor something - then sponsor your local football club, your local hockeyclub, the Salvation Army or the Red Cross or anything similar. Everything is better than a greedy woman.

Go to the tourist offices in Chang Mai, Korat and Ubon Ratchathani -- they have detailed brochures about parks, wats, markets and lots of other things to do.

Since when did Chiang Mai become a part of Isaan?

Phanom Rung in Buriram province is mentioned a old Khmer styled temple that is reasonably restored. Khao Prasat Wihan in Sri Saket province - or to be correct in Cambodia, but entrance from the thai side. Its a old khmer unrestored temple. Have been occasionally fights between the two countries so it might not be open. Also Phi Mai in Korat province is similar khmer styled temple ruins.

The national parks of Loei province such as Phu Kradung and Phu Ruea is well worth a visit. The winery of Chateu de Loei with its huge grape plantations can be interesting if youre into wine or even if youre not. The Erawan cave in Nong Bua Lamphu - a cave that goes straight through a mountain is a special place and can be worth a stop and a climb up and through.

I like Udon Thani, a city that have many nice parks where one can spend some leisurely hours of relaxing and picknicking named Nong Bua, Nong Sim and Nonk Prajaak. Nong Khai is a interesting place with a border market and some restaurants and bars with a very nice setting along the riverside of Mekong. The town of Nakhon Phanom has some of the same qualities.

The drive from Nong Khai to Chiang Khan along the Mekong river is also quite scenic and there are some nice restaurants and coffee shops along the river banks.

Found it!

Indeed expensive - 500 baht a pr piece of a motorbike jacket and trousers. 5 days service. When I asked if possiblto pick it up after 3 days the the price immidiately soared to 750 baht pr piece. After some negotiating they went down to 500 baht pr piece again and pick it up in 3 days....