sandyf

Indeed, I had booked and paid for mine before I left Thailand, although my slot was still available the day before. Even though 5pm on a Friday evening didn't appear to be popular, still took an hour to be seen, about 6.30 before I came out.

In Sept 23 I went back to the UK to renew my passport and used the one week service. I did it at Liverpool and went reasonably well, new passport in 5 days. The one thing that caught me out was at Liverpool i was told the old passport would probably be about 10 days later than the new passport. That was a bit disconcerting as I had assumed they would come together and the timeframe went past my return to Thailand. I decided to apply for a new visa which only took 48 hours, sod's law being what it is, my old passport came back the day I got the visa. I then had the choice, return on the re-entry permit or the new visa, I decided on the new visa. Came back and did my marriage extension at the 90 days, about same time as original would have expired. No stamp transfer, TM30 or 90 day required, despite what many will imply, there is no "starting over", the process is the same. Depending on your circumstances and whether you already have the re-entry permit, it may be worth considering a new visa.

The Idiocy is someone thinking they could tell the difference between standing under a white roof or a black one.

You can hardly compare Victorian railways to modern day systems, they effectively started with a blank canvas rather than negotiating existing infrastructure. The HSR in the OP is part of the Trans-Asian Railway Agreement, Thailand pays China for materials and expertise.

Not sure what you mean in first sentence.

Your words. "Three decades later, the dollar officially became the world’s reserve currency" Three decades from 1914 would be 1944 and Sterling was the reserve currency.

The reality is it didn't happen as envisaged.

It wasn't as clear cut as many would want to make out. It wasn't until the early 60s that global dollar reserves reached the 50% mark. It was about the same time that the "Triffin Dilemma" came to light slowing down the rise of the USD and also confirming the inability of Sterling to maintain its position. The most definitive marker was probably Nixon in 1971. What was envisaged after the war and what transpired are not quite the same, the transition from Sterling to USD for various reasons was messy and drawn out.

What "system" are you talking about. The one that monitors arrivals/departures or the one that monitors the visa status of those in the Kingdom. Some aspects of the first were suspended and being reintroduced. Immigration has never stopped stamping passports on entry.

You looked in the wrong place, Sterling was still the reserve currency until into the 70s. I remember the start of it's demise, in 1967 Harold Wilson devalued the pound to $2.40, making the UK and the US penny at par. In those days there were 240 pennies in a pound. Although a rapid global switch to the USD was widely predicted after 1945, the end of sterling's reserve role was prolonged until the late 1970s by the structure of the international monetary system and collective global interest in its continuation so that the retirement of sterling as a reserve currency was achieved through negotiated management among the developed and developing world. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229048743_The_Retirement_of_Sterling_as_a_Reserve_Currency_after_1945_Lessons_for_the_US_Dollar#:~:text=Although a rapid global switch,a reserve currency was achieved

The USD is not mandatory in bilateral agreements although it can be the currency of choice. Many Asean countries have bilateral agreements in local currency, as well as countries like Chinal,India, Russia etc. "Everything is priced in USD," is the nonsense.

You didn't say if he passed through Cambodian immigration or not, assuming not. When I used to go to the border every 3 months some moons ago it was to both Ban Laem and Ban Pakard. Can't quite remember which one had a toilet in among the trees of "no man's land", think intended for immigration staff but was used by people from both sides of the border. From what I saw wouldn't have been too difficult for someone to get across if they were that way inclined.

You will enter on the new passport, an old passprt can only be used to prevent a visa exempt stamp.

There is a saying about clouds and silver linings. Although it should never have happened and extremely tragic for the loss of life, it is much better it was destroyed under construction than later, when fully operational with possibly thousands of people inside and in the immediate area. Indications so far would indicate only a matter of time.

A lack of standards has bothered people since time started.

It is all about standards, but you would need to understand what that means.

Dress it any way you want, the "result" is not what was wanted. The referendum was a farce, based on the UK's fixation with a 50/50 benchmark. No other country in the world holds a referendum on that basis. There has only ever been 3 National referendums and there never be another one without significant change. A fractional majority got what they voted for and everyone has to live with mess it created.

The Chinese look to the long term, the route planned has much greater potential as a trade route. When I was in Luang Prabang there was regular services between there and Hanoi. South Vietnam and Cambodia are within fairly easy reach of Bangkok. Whole situation will be completely different by the end of the century.

Not unusual, the UKs High Speed Rail took about 10 years to get construction started. It is not until approval is granted the real problems come to light, unfortunately time does not stand still during the proposal stages. The 3 airport HSR is a classic example, land no longer available so tunnel required, another project!!

The majority of the UK doesn't like the result.

Indeed. The devil(s) will be lurking in the detail. Britain must allow US chlorine-washed chicken into UK markets if it wants relief from sweeping tariffs, Donald Trump has indicated. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/trump-tariffs-chlorinated-chicken-uk-b2726709.html In general, you are over seven times more likely to get food poisoning in the US than in the UK, according to data from the UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/chlorinated-chicken-bad-trump-us-uk-supermarkets-b2727317.html

Not really surprising. The Thais did not want the Chinese to have full control and they cannot afford to do it alone. Delays mean prices go up and questions get asked. Of course they could take a leaf out of the UK manual and cancel part of it. I would think it better to be built slowly than not at all. After all, we all benefit from projects started a long time ago. It was 200 years ago this year the first passengers went on a public railway.

You heard wrong.

Para 4.2

Quite. I would like to see the platforms at Bang Sue go into use but they are quite a distance from the MRT and may be a walk too far.