richard_smith237

I agree... I'm 99% cashless now, everywhere I go... Where I used to leave a little change... paying digitally, I don't anymore. Being British, tipping has always seemed a strange custom to me. I'm paying for something, including a service, why should I pay more if I'm satisfied with that service... I expected to be satisfied, thats exactly what I've paid for. I love Japan for this reason... No tipping expected, yet service is impeccable. Most places in Thailand now have a 10% service charge so that takes care of the tipping IMO... and when there is no services charge my tip (or not) will depend on the situation...

Yes... and I pointed out that if I'm in the UK and heading to the US I will seek information first from the US Embassy Website in London as the requirements from elsewhere may differ, as may other sources. The Embassy Website 'should' be the updated and most accurate and official source - the point I wish to make is that the Thai Embassy, Jakarta Website is unnavigable... Not only is it unnavigable, the English version does not work at all. And, yes, I agree with you that the information is widely available elsewhere, and someone with greater travelling knowledge and common sense will seek out this information - others don't.... Its also common for people on this forum not to be aware of this information (cash requirement upon entry). Most people also use digital currency so the physical cash requirement is also antiquated. There is another facet to this... Thai Immigration have used this 'cash requirement' to reject someone they don't want, don't take a liking to, or don't buy their story that they are here for tourist and not work etc.... Thai Immigration use the cash requirement as a tool - sometimes unjustly it seems.

A bank statement is often required to show proof of funds when applying for visas… Wife has needed this for Japan, UK, Schengen Visas

I think you miss the point - not everyone is as worldly wise & travelled as you, I and most of us on this forum. I only knew of the cash requirement from posts on this forum about 7-8 years ago but have been here much longer.

Did you get the answers from the Thai Embassy in Jakarta ? http://www.thaiembassyjakarta.com/intro.html As I pointed out, that website is unnavigable.... Most tourists are not as worldly wise as you and I and may not cast their search for information as widely. If I'm in the UK and want a Visa to travel to the US, I look for information at the US Embassy London Website and may cross link with other source, but the primary information source will be the Destination Embassy / Consular site of the country I'm in (i.e. in this case Thai Embassy Jakarta).

Except that its widely documented on all (most) Thai Embassy Sites of the visa free entry regulations. The entrant must be prepared to get there. - 10,000 Baht per-person - 20,000 Baht for families That said - the Thai Embassy, Jakarta website is unnavigable. This is perhaps Thailand Immigration being very difficult to Indonesian entrants and there is right to complain if the rejections are of genuine tourists and unfair. The Issue of Korean Immigration being very difficult for Thai's to enter Korea has also been brought up in this thread. The rejection of genuine tourists in this case is also unfair. Both are poor situations and just because one country has unfair, spiteful or or even rogue immigration officers it is not justified or excused by another countries immigration officers behaving the same way... This just highlights that there are a number of people in official positions who are spiteful and there are forum members who seem to take some form of enjoyment in this.

Same here…. Seemed very quick at Suvarnambumi this week… (fast track) - through in about 5mins… 20min wait for baggage, very efficient. Normal Immigration lanes looked busy but mostly manned & flowing quickly. Whatever has been done (more manned counters) has notably improved things. Will it stay like this ? I’m sceptical.

Racism….. I think that’s the whole point of the Op.

Agree, address the issues - licensing… Your attached story is great, does the BFF dog need to be a PittBull breed, or will a Golden Retriever or Cockapoo etc also do exactly the same thing? I always see Pittbull owners make comments as to how great their dogs are with kids… Golden Retrievers owners never seem to feel the need to highlight their pet wouldn’t maul a child. Why is that?… is it the underlying knowledge that the breed can be dangerous, is commonly in the news for being dangerous, so they are compensating just as you are ?

Japan is too expensive 🙂 Not really…. If you’ve ever been to Japan you’ll see Thai’s there everywhere. The TG flights are always full of Thai tourists. Tokyo metro & subway is cheap. Ramen is 230 baht / a beer is 140-200 baht in most places. Japan is doing very well out of Thai Middle Classes tourism. Go to Hakuba, Niseko, Furano, Kuraro in ski season & there are always Thai’s there. Japan is an incredibly popular tourist destination for Thai’s.

That’s what travel insurance is for. Harsh… but things happen. In this case as Air-Japan is a low cost subsidiary of ANA, I’m wondering why ANA couldn’t put on a plane for them (all in use & fully scheduled?)…

That happens all over…. Westerners coming here & working… Thai’s are specifically targeted by Korean Immigration… & Koreans targeted by Thai immigration. Its been a long running tit-for-tat battle… By comparison, Japan is extremely welcoming - why the difference ?

Callousness then, masked in racist schadenfreude.

They need an electronic entry authorisation (eTA) or an e-visa. My Thai friend is VP of major car brand here in Bangkok, his wife has been rejected for eTA 3x in a row (she’s a former actress, relatively famous & wealthy). Another friend travelling with his wife, his wife was refused outright at Korean immigration & returned (they’ve traveled all over the world together without an issue).

But you seem not to mind dangerous dogs interfering with people’s lives. & I completely believe you on this. & if everyone was as responsible as you and trained the aggression out of their pets we wouldn’t have this issues. Yet, you also point out that you need to keep your dog under supervision when roaming free ?? Why? What are you scared it could do ??? The issue here is that so many others are not responsible owners, and this is where the danger exists - why full licensing must exist & issued only to those who can prove they are responsible… without this, IMO such breeds present an unacceptable risk to society. Agreed… although your China comment is as you like to put it, somewhat hyperbolic. Licensing & placing control on dangerous breeds of dogs is an act of a civilised society.

So you are also racist then? taking pleasure at fully legal Thais encountering dehumanising treatment at the hands of overzealous Korean immigration officers who are racist against Thai citizens.

100% racist…. I know of two recent cases where ‘well do to’ Thai females travelling with their husband were rejected a visa (3x in a row), and one refused upon entry. Korea Immigration is definitely racist towards Thai’s, especially Thai females. & Thai Immigration retaliate against Koreans making life difficult for many of them. It’s tit-for-tat. Wife was going on an all girls trip, they’d planned for Korea, but after looking into it some more just decided to boycott the place.

Journalists???? 🤣 The Thaiger regurgitates news from other sites.. often without any understanding or clarity of what may also be a very poorly written original source…. The headlines are often deliberately attention grabbing & often misleading. Each ‘author’ puts their profile at the base of their article - something they really should be too embarrassed to do !!

Somewhat of an expected response from someone who supports the free ownership of dangerous animals. Victims of dangerous dog attract are society - why should our children be at risk because you & people like you want to own ‘pitties’ ??? Nothing about low hanging fruit - everything about being part of a civilised society you seem to want not to be a part of…. Perhaps all speed limits should be removed too, because that’s all a bit nanny state too isn’t it ????

Or it’s an informed and civilised decision made for the benefit of society on a whole rather than continuing to permit such breeds at the whim of emotional want of some dog owners & continuing to see society at risk. Isn't that that governance & laws are for? to protect the public from itself (Rhetorical). It’s obviously an unmeasurable metric, but, there are children alive today because of such bans.

Yep - and all owners legally responsible and financially accountable for the actions of their ‘pet’…. …. Thus, responsible owners have no concerns… … & those who are not face prison time when their untrained dog mauls a child in the home, on private land or in public.

Eiw…. Someone’s house must reek of veggie fart !!!!

Like many on this forum, its clear that you are a very responsible and devoted dog owner. This is why I believe there should be strict licensing for all dogs.... Any dog should have a responsible and caring owner who can prove they are capable of taking care of the needs of that specific breed. The issue as I see it is that enforcement is a real issue, and when a dog such as yours is left untrained it presents a greater risk to society than dogs less powerful. Your response to this is naturally and understandably very defensive, its emotional response because you love your dog... Its a difficult discussion to have on a logical rationale.... But all the breeds which may fall under the 'Pittbull' type breed are clearly more dangerous than other breeds less notorious.

True Trans, but it is not the fault of the passenger either, and could cost him/her money, especially if they miss some connection, a lot more than the taxi driver. I think a 'charge for the time' is also perfectly reasonable... A taxi driver should be rewarded for both his time and the distance, its only fair IMO. As you mentioned Jonesey, it could cost the passenger on their side through no fault of their own, but thats part of the risk of travelling everywhere. In a situation whereby a taxi drivers is only going to be charged for the distance in heavy traffic, it would not be worth their while to take any passenger and consequently the taxi system would fall apart at any peak traffic period - this is why peak surcharging exists in the first place on the Ride Hailing Apps and also the 'time charge' in flag fare taxis. All of that said: What is the fault of the taxi driver is when they cancel a ride last minute and you've been relying on that booking to get somewhere... Yes, its happened to friends going to an airport, whereby they had a booking which was cancelled 30mins before, they then struggled to get a taxi an nearly missed their flight.... Its happened to me numerous times when booking a taxi (Grab / Bolt) a few hours in advance only to have them cancel 30 mins before hand and I cant get another at peak traffic times (the wife ends to taking me, which is inconvenient for her). We're relying on a service which has to be fair for both parties, but it also has to be reliable - the issue here is that I've witnessed a certain degree of 'Thainess' that gets in the way of reliability. .... and thats not a Thai Bash, I love this place, but I do see this and similar issues repeated based on a certain 'happy go lucky don't think too much degree of apathy' which is part of what makes being here enjoyable, but also very frustrating at times). These ride hailing apps where at their peak when UBER and GRAB were in competition... As soon as UBER were 'nudged' out of the market and GRAB had the Lions share of the business the standards dropped off - a perfect example of lack of competition which causes many issues. Thus: Its good to see more of these Apps in place, but I wonder how competitive they will really be.

The reason people don't want to walk, or more specifically, the reason I won't walk anywhere, is that its just too hot and humid. I don't want to walk 25 min walk to a shopping mall or restaurant and arrive wet through with sweat, I don't even want to walk 10mins to the local 7-11 and back for the same reasons... I go out and fettle with my motorcycle for 20mins and I'm drenched... Yet, I'm perfectly happy, running around on a football pitch for 90 mins... cycling round the sky-lane for two hours, going for a jog or dedicated 'exercise' walk... I actually enjoy getting the sweat on then, just not when I am wearing 'non sports clothes' and will be in an environment which is anything other than 'sporty'... As pointed out, not wanting to walk because of the heat and not wanting to walk because someone is being lazy are very different rationales and approaches... It would be unfair to levy the accusation of laziness at those taking taxi's, its more about simply being comfortable - those who are overweight would be overweight in any country, regardless of climate.