Mangkhut

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....

Thanks for answer Greenside.

So it will be the Index Mall thats next to R11 CM-Lampang rd and not the Index thats near CM stadium I suppose?

Can anyone recommend a dry cleaning shop in CM? Or does anyone know about a dry cleaning shop and the location in CM?

Thanks in advance!

Quote : "The town of Chiang Mai is perfectly rectangular"

When I walked around the moat with my Garmin GPS (ie inside the moat but on the pathway along the moat's bank) I measured each side as 1 mile on each side (Give or take +/-). Does this make it square and not rectangular?

My motorbike odometer reckons it to be ~6.5 km in circumference, ~4 miles, so thanks for the corroboration.

Is that the inner loop or the outer loop? Outside or inside the most?

Dont eat burgers very often but when I do I sometimes eat at Chiang Mai Saloon, which have shops in Loy Kroh and one in Rathiwi rd. Can add on different extras and tastes great. Not cheap though....

Well - after I started reading on this forum and similar ones I got the impression most western men are very unhappy about in and about Thailand. My impression could of course be wrong though........

This is how Cambodia work my friend. Its corrupted all over, especially the officials and government employees.

Sad but true.

I came in to Cambodia last month from Surin province of Thailand at the Chom Chok - O Smack border crossing point.

I had my 30 US dollars ready, but the officer insisted that I should pay in thai baht and the amount of 1200 baht, which is around 37 dollars. I didnt have a E-visa either. I pretended that I had spent all my that money and insisted paying in US dollars and the amount of 30 dollars. The officer then turned me back and had me sit by a table nearby. Then I thought by mysefthat I wasnt in the mood for a verbal fight so I pretended that I found som leftover baht notes and were able to pay him the 1200 baht he wanted. He smiled and processed my visa and I was in. Corrupt yeas i deed!

This place is very close to the Rajabhat University and Tanin Market, few minutes to the old city. Great place, great rooms with everything, great location with parking, coffee shop, restaurant, etc....rates by day about 700THB with good breakfast, by month 8000THB

Recommended by a friend a while ago...and my best find....after many years traveling to Chiang Mai...

ChiangMai 008.jpgChiangMai 014.jpgChiangMai 038.jpg

Thanks for the advice.

I had a look at their netsite and it according to that their smallest condoes start at 12 000 baht a month.

Cant find any at 8000 baht a month. Maube I should drop by and ask by myself.....

Hello forum

Plan to be in CM for a couple of months and would like to rent a decent sized room or studio apartment by month.

Must have air on and fan, fridge, water boiler, and a bit of furniture and safe parking for motorbike. Prefere a relatively quiet area but will consider everywhere. A place with pool and workout equipment would be plus but not a demand. A bit soundproof would be nice to as I like to strum my acostic guitar in the evenings... ha-ha.

I know most guesthouses and even some hotels offer rent by the month but in general I dont fancy these places for long term stay. To much traffic in and out 24/7 and noise. But a quiet place could be of interest.

Anyone who can recommend a place or maybe a netside to search for this?

I am not exactly sure what the price level might be for such a place but I can stretch as far as 7-8000 baht. Absolutely max 10000 baht.

Thanks in advance!

A stool sample is important to reveal what kind of bacterias or other microorganisms are present (if so) And also a test of which antibiotic or drug the present bacterias/microorganisms are sensitive to should be done.

Flagyl and alcohol are a definitive no-no. In fact one should not drink alcohol at all when one have stomach problems, especially when one have severe things as bacterias that should not be there. Alcohol irritates the pancreas so that is sends out more stomach acids. This in fact upsets an already upset an infected stomach more. With the tesult of stomach pain and mire diarreha.

Avoid dairy products, raw fruits and vegetables, spicy food, and food with a lot of fiber. And all other food that you usually react upon.

Wish you a speedy recovery!

If youre in a hurry and or dont to waste your time in a embassy queue - consider using Mr Kao at LMN Travel on the corner of Sisowath Quay/136 str (next to the Paddy Rice Irish bar and restaurant) You cant miss it if youre walking up the riverside. Mr Kao can arrange it overnight for 60 USD and 50 USD for two nights service. He speaks perfect english and is recommended before on this forum. I am picking up my visa tomorrow.

Dont want to make any conspirations in this case, but Valium and alcohol must be consumed in very very very high doses to be lethal.

He must have been upset with the exchange rate.

The norwegian currency has dropped down almost 25 % in a year and most of it the last 2-3 months. So its understandable that he took it out on the ATM...... NOT!!!