TheSiemReaper

What about the British Embassy for once doing the decent thing??

Get the poor guys body home and worry about the monetary aspects later!!

I'm British and I don't expect my embassy to give a flying fig about my corpse once I've carked it. What does it matter where a body is finally laid to rest? I'd rather my family (or indeed my country) kept the money (and its expensive to fly the deceased home - it's not the same as finding them an aisle seat - there are health regulations to be met, coffins to be found to hold the body, etc.) rather than moved my no-longer-in-the-remotest-bit-concerned flesh around the world.

I actually agree with you, but this is not about you or me, but about the young mans family, who clearly feel different!!

If his family feel strongly enough about it - they can pay to take him home or otherwise they clearly don't feel that strongly and would prefer the British public paid instead... which they won't and nor should they.

An e-visa has the advantage in that you only get a stamp in your passport, not a full page paper visa, and then another page used for the stamps. The "printed" e-visa is removed when you return to Thailand

So if you are worried about using up your passport pages (as some here are) then an e-visa is for you

an the e-visa cost you $10 more than the normal visa

$37 charge on site and $3 cc fee

Regular visa at immigration $30

PS; just read on Pattaya Addicts someone just crossed at Poi Pet and was ONLY charged the normal fee no extra's

I've never paid immigration in Poipet so much as an extra bean to enter Cambodia either. Sometimes I think you folks over in Thailand must have "sucker here! Please take my cash!" written on your foreheads before you come to Cambodia.

You've all been robbed. You've all been cheated. Most of you appear to have been stabbed/mugged/beaten etc. on a visit here. Yet, none of this ever happens to me or to those people I know. Once again, I think you guys are trying to get into trouble...

It is 100% true and I've done it with a Thai national - so I can state this with a 100% degree of certainty. If you hand over a passport as you enter Cambodia; they'll stamp it but you are not required to do so and can hand over a National ID instead.

Your wife doesn't need a passport at all; as long as she has Thai national ID - she can enter Cambodia for up to 14 days without issue.

I'm sure that crossing is the same as Chong Chom. The Thai army and Thai immigration will let no one exit or enter Thailand with out a valid passport and no border pass or id allowed. She needs a pass port and no e-visa allowed at Choam Sa Ngam. Also Cambodia tends to inforce the 6 months left on passport, your wives only has 5 months as of now. She needs a new passport.Your wives needs to go to Ubon and get a new passport.

That's right and in any case, where border passes were ever accepted, they would have only allowed someone such as a Thai trader or gambler a one day or perhaps multiple day pass, that would only be valid for travel in the vicinity of the border, not away from it.

No way any substantial travel is ever allowed on a border pass and nor should it be. Every third party nationality needs a passport, so too do Thais. Besides, a Thai passport is cheap as chips (still only 1000 Baht), compared to the hundreds of dollars an Aussie or EU passport can cost. Only disadvantage is it's valid for just 5 years when nearly every other country issues 10 year ones (for adults).

Actually Cambodia will accept a Thai national ID for up to 14 days in country; Thailand and Cambodia have a specific agreement for this (rather like the Shengen Treaty area in the EU - a driving license will enable me to merrilly wander through many countries in Europe without a passport at all). If Thailand won't let someone out without a passport - fair enough - but they can certainly enter Cambodia without one.

What about the British Embassy for once doing the decent thing??

Get the poor guys body home and worry about the monetary aspects later!!

I'm British and I don't expect my embassy to give a flying fig about my corpse once I've carked it. What does it matter where a body is finally laid to rest? I'd rather my family (or indeed my country) kept the money (and its expensive to fly the deceased home - it's not the same as finding them an aisle seat - there are health regulations to be met, coffins to be found to hold the body, etc.) rather than moved my no-longer-in-the-remotest-bit-concerned flesh around the world.

'MikeBell seems to court trouble. I lived in PP for nearly a year and whilst I prefer Siem Reap, there are plenty of nice parts of town and I had nothing stolen in my time there at all nor did I ever feel threatened. As always common sense in desperately poor places is mandatory..'

There were four of us: my daughter/son-in-law + my wife (Thai) and I. We were walking on the pavement facing on-coming traffic. Two locals drove slowly towards us. The passenger attempted to snatch my wife's necklace but she managed to evade his grasp. It was 11am in broad daylight. The would-be thieves circled back on the other side of the road but when they saw they'd been recognised they never returned.

I would like to know how we 'courted trouble'? We were not alone; drunk; it was not after dark. When we re-told our story others had a similar tale to tell: a German lost his camera in the same fashion; a Cambodian waitress was knocked to the ground & her bag taken; and a French lady also had her necklace snatched.

Far from asking for it as The grim Siem Reaper would have it, I suggest it is he who has had a charmed life whilst in Phnom Penh.

Everyone I know has had something stolen, multiple times, or their homes burgled. An acquaintance has been assaulted twice at his door (he handled it), I nearly had my phone ripped off my ear by moto riders, my (ex) GF was assaulted in a Viet coffee shop by a Khmer man but she glassed him bloody and motodops have offered me everything under the sun, all of it illegal. So yes, a charmed life indeed.

The other stuff about accommodation is merely personal experience offered as opinion. No one is right or wrong.

Then I have to come to the conclusion that somehow everyone you know is soliciting their misfortune. I phoned 10 friends in Phnom Penh today and asked them all the same question; have you ever been mugged or had something stolen from your possession in Phnom Penh? They all came up with a "hell no"! The only person, I knew in Phnom Penh, to have had misfortune come upon them in person was a chap whose ex-Khmer-girlfriend arranged a horrific beating for him one day.

Burglary on the other hand is rife and the number of people who get their stuff nicked living in cheap accommodation is scary. This includes 2 friends staying in a tiny room together - who were burgled whilst sleeping in that room... which must have been terrifying.

I've lived all over the world in developing nations including Nigeria back in the 1970s and 1980s... and managed to make it through that (much, much more dangerous) environment without being robbed, raped, killed, etc. In my experience it's always people who don't know how to behave in a desperately poor place that get mugged... if you're not showing off your wealth in public; there are always more attractive propositions out there. Learn to carry a bag so it isn't easily snatched (I buy small rucksacks with handles on the top - so that in crowds I can carry them at knee-height - no-one pickpockets your knees.). Don't wear ostentatious jewelry. And so on...

You'd know better than to try and march through a room of starving people eating a McD's... so why is it that people don't know enough about the world that they'll walk through a poverty ridden place clutching goodies that would take people here 10+ years to earn enough money to buy (and that's assuming those hard-working souls don't eat, rent a home, etc. otherwise their wages are going to cover an iPad and a Canon camera sometime never) waving this stuff everywhere and then wonder why it gets stolen.

There are literally dozens of serviced apartment providers in Phnom Penh. The lowest costs tend to be $400-$500 a month with much more than that possible, More depends on the location and facilities you want than on the size of the apartment or the standard inside.

I completely disagree with the person above who states Thailand offers the best value for money in apartments. Every apartment I've been to in Thailand for less than $1,000 a month in rent would make a lovely shoebox but I certainly wouldn't want to live in it. Here in Siem Reap I have a huge apartment with 24 hour security (real security, I can leave a $1,000 mountain bike outside unlocked and it won't be stolen - in fact it's been there for a week now), pool, gym, maid service, etc. for $600 a month... Good luck finding somewhere similar in a popular Thai expat destination. And I'd rather boil my ghoulies in hot water than live in a Khmer-style place.

Agents fees are fixed by law in Cambodia (one month's rent on a 1 year contract) and it doesn't matter how you find your house - someone's getting paid an agent's fee. If it's not an actual agent - it will be the motodop who drives you to the place. So ignore the assertion that you're paying a steep fee for an agent - you aren't. Though one imagines that some agents try to talk the rent up in order to make a bigger fee.

Finding temporary accomodation is ridiculously easy with nearly all serviced apartments and indeed hotels willing to cut a long-stay but not too long a stay deal with someone. If you're really stuck and want somewhere dirt cheap - go to Street 172 and ask an expat, it may take you a whole 24-48 hours to find somewhere suitable.

MikeBell seems to court trouble. I lived in PP for nearly a year and whilst I prefer Siem Reap, there are plenty of nice parts of town and I had nothing stolen in my time there at all nor did I ever feel threatened. As always common sense in desperately poor places is mandatory...

What bar or massage shop did you meet your princess in? Serious question. Where did you meet her ? Did you ever bother to learn Thai ? The dishonest ones won,t touch you with a ten foot pole. The reason why is because you understand everything going on around you. One reason they want to keep you drunk and dumb. Really . How many foreigners can you think of have made an effort to learn some Thai ? My hunch less than one percent. That leaves 99% lost and later with an empty bank account.

And there it goes; the daftest post on this thread... "if you don't learn someone's language they're all thieves, if you do, then it's like having a magic protection stick for your wallet - ting tong mak much?"

Oh dear. 1. This is not a cultural misunderstanding; it's always good to blame things on "not thinking in Thai" but it's pure rubbish. Marriages all over the world are supposed to be based on trust. Yours is not.

2. How much money? It appears to be substantial if your wife is socking bricks of cash away in enough quantities that she has several stashes in the wardrobe. I'd suggest that there's a big difference between keeping 30K Baht on hand for emergencies and 300K Baht on hand so she can leave you for her Thai lover.

What you do about it is up to you. Me? I'd be looking for a divorce over this. It's not the money, it's the lack of trust. My wife and I have had some rollercoaster rides financially but we've never lied about them to each other. This includes the wonderful period when she was gambling a load of my money... But that's me and my wife. You need to work out what's right for you and perhaps yours.

Your wife doesn't need a passport at all; as long as she has Thai national ID - she can enter Cambodia for up to 14 days without issue.

@ Fullstop

It's a firm, yes it's possible and no, it's not guaranteed. I know people who have done it, 100% from Phnom Penh. But this is China we're talking about and goal posts, rules, etc. change daily.

Officially you are supposed to get a z-visa from your country of origin. Unofficially the only Western nation for which this is always true is France. The French upset the Chinese a while back and have been sent home to do their visas ever since...

If you can get the right invitation letter; it is very likely that they will process the application in Phnom Penh - there are plenty of people in Cambodia who get their z-visas and head to China.

However, having lived in China for 3 years - I can promise you that it's just about the worst place to work in Asia and the hardest place to live in Asia for foreigners - and my wife is Chinese. If you've heard that it's the land of milk and honey; think again.

That's debatable and very much subjective, depending on the individual.

If you can speak the language or are willing to learn, plus if you engage the locals you'll probably find China is actually one of the better places for expats to live in Asia (well, with the exception of air pollution in Beijing for example). In my opinion it's possible to integrate more easily into Chinese society, provided you are willing to learn the language and cultural nuisances and all, compared to say Thailand or Cambodia, where so few foreigners speak the language and various policies (particularly in Thailand) sort of combine to make expats permanently feel like outsiders. However, China also makes the assumption that if you are coming to live there, you will eventually become fluent in the language and adapt to it's ways.

Thailand and Cambodia never make such assumptions - in both countries you are treated like a tourist even if you have lived there for 20 years and are fluent in the language - the burden of proof is always on you to prove your bona fides, i.e. language ability and visa status etc. if necessary to be treated more as a local and not ripped off or have food made for tourist palates. But in tourist areas this can still be a difficult endeavour. Also, both countries make the assumption that "once a foreigner, always a foreigner" and thus everything from restaurants that make food "less spicy" to foreigners demanding more comfortable "western-style" apartments, food, ways of travelling and things they are used to in the west are assumed. There is no assumption that foreigners will ever go "local" in that their language abilities, habits, etc. will become like that of locals and nobody ever seems to get upset if Mr. Jones still can't string out more than beer bar Thai or Cambo after 25 years of continuous residence.

In that sense both Thailand and Cambo are much easier places to live, if you're looking for the conveniences of home at a lower cost. There will be more people who can speak English (even if it's not always the best, especially in Thailand), more imported food and more restaurants serving foreign cuisine and therefore there's less of a need to integrate than in China.

I have lived in both China and in Thailand and also spent a good deal of time in Cambodia, having travelled there many times. I have good friends in both countries (Thailand and China). While it might take longer to get to know Chinese people, my experience is that they are more keen to get to know you, stay in touch, help you out etc. once they know you than Thais are. Thai friends eventually tend to disappear after a while for no apparent reason, but Chinese friends are always waiting for you if you ever come back, even if it's just for a visit.

Chinese are more business like, Thais can come off as being a bit more immature and playful easy to befriend initially, but difficult to get to know intimately.

Each to their own I think.

I honestly can't disagree with you more than I do. I've lived and worked all over the world (including in Nigeria and Saudi Arabia) and I've never been anywhere less hospitable or less pleasant to be than China. It was and is awful. The Chinese are on the whole the most rude and disagreeable people I have ever encountered. The filth and pollution is overwhelming. The lack of English skills baffling at times (I don't expect everyone to speak English but I do expect those who work serving solely English speaking customers to do so). The food comes in two flavours; bland and bland with chili. (Prior to moving to China, Chinese was my favorite food in the world - now I flinch whenever I see a Chinese restaurant).

Visas are ridiculous, according to Chinese law because my spouse is Chinese I should be able to get a long stay visa (non-working); in reality during 3 years I lived there they refused to issue those visas to anyone because of the events they were hosting (Olympics through to Shenzhen Universiade Games). So I was stuck on business visas, fleeing the country every 30-60 days despite being there legitimately.

I did make Chinese friends but I don't find them any more (or less) attentive than friends from other parts of the world.

And I'm not sure how being deprived of your own culture or being forced to learn a language translates as "more enjoyable". That sounds like masochism to me. I do speak some Mandarin, some Arabic, some Thai, and even some Khmer but none of them in huge volumes. I don't expect to stay anywhere for 20-30 years and the universal language is now English - that's a done deal. So I'll continue to learn to give directions to taxi, order food and beer, and then pretty much skip the rest. I have better things to do with my time than learn languages to brag about learning them.

Officially you are supposed to get a z-visa from your country of origin. Unofficially the only Western nation for which this is always true is France. The French upset the Chinese a while back and have been sent home to do their visas ever since...

If you can get the right invitation letter; it is very likely that they will process the application in Phnom Penh - there are plenty of people in Cambodia who get their z-visas and head to China.

However, having lived in China for 3 years - I can promise you that it's just about the worst place to work in Asia and the hardest place to live in Asia for foreigners - and my wife is Chinese. If you've heard that it's the land of milk and honey; think again.

This year's Water Festival was awesome in Siem Reap. The whole town and surrounding provinces turned out for some great boat racing, some good food and lots of beer. Despite this there was no fighting/violent crime/brawling of any kind... just smiling folks having a good time. It was one of the nicest times I have ever spent in Asia. Thoroughly recommended.

Sounds like teaching at an International School making 2-3K US dollars a month would be ideal.

Good luck with that. There is only one school in Siem Reap paying that much and perhaps 2 or 3 in Phnom Penh. I have two fully qualified Australian teacher friends working at an international school in Siem Reap and they are each picking up barely more than $1K USD/month.

OK for clarification.

1. Richard - an e-visa is an electronic tourist visa issued online. An E-visa is the ordinary visa/business visa (all the serial numbers begin with the letter "E"). Not same, same but in fact very different.

2. There is nothing on a retirement visa officially. Speculation is rife. I suspect it will cost more than $60 a year when it arrives; I'd expect it to be closer to $500 (no tax from retirees = need to take more off you up front).

3. The law is clear that you only need a work permit if you work (as Sheryl says above). This utter <deleted> about the work permit being enforced on foreigners is only true if you are a Chinese or Korean national working in a factory. The government has said as much. And despite the expat hysteria to the contrary - there remains nothing but lousy anecdotal evidence of any other enforcement.

I'm not sure what's more disgraceful in this thread: the lording it over expats who haven't managed to follow a visa process that has been unneccessary for years or the racist "Thais are only about money" nonsense. Some of you should be ashamed of yourselves.

I have worked here in Thailand as a teacher for 7 years. Just found out...no 3rd teacher license waiver. Got two weeks notice from my new school to finish at the end of October. Thailand doesn't want me anymore.

Cambodia? I'm going.

If it IS total crap...I'll hop a plane to China.

Your fall back plan is dreadful. If you think Cambodia's crap - then China will be a nightmare. I went in the opposite direction from China to Cambodia. It's a million times easier and nicer in Cambodia than China.

better u than me,

from my apt on soi 4 to border is about 230 kms

so he was indeed flying

150 kms from border to sr

Yea i guess i drive slower than ur drivers but thats fine with me :-)

its the journey not the destination

No, not on that route. It's all about getting to the destination and minimizing the journey. It may be the crappiest journey in Asia (Poipet really is awful).

The speed limit where I come from is 70 mph on the motorway that's roughly 120 kph - back home I would expect that first journey to take less than 2 hours (everyone breaks the limit) and the second one to take fractionally over an hour. That's not even thrashing the car.

I've never spent more than an hour crossing the border at Poipet. Get there early morning or late evening and avoid the huge numbers of coach parties crossing. I normally leave SR at 5 a.m. and am in a hotel in Bangkok by 11.00 a.m at the latest. The best result I ever had was leaving my hotel in Bangkok at 6 a.m. and stepping over my front door way in Siem Reap at 11 a.m. exactly. The one time I did arrive in the mid-afternoon; I paid a nice Thai tour guide $10 for VIP service and promptly skipped the 3-4 hour queue in the boiling heat...

how did u do that> 5 hours???

It takes me 4 hours to drive to the border, average time there is 30-60 minutes and than 2 1/2 -3 hours to sr

so total time at least 7 hours

You drive like an old lady then I'm afraid. I hired a private car and the guy blew through from Silom to the door step of the border in exactly 2h 45 minutes. It took 30 minutes to cross and then my regular driver got me home in 1h 45 minutes (which is pretty much what it always takes).