I knew a guy who overstayed for the gazillionth time for around two years.

He was out in the boonies and his Thai housemate called immi, he had no money, no income, no savings, no retirement or marriage visa just basically existing there as his folks back in the states mainly disowned him except for a wealthy friend. He was taken to the bKK detention centre until the overstay could be paid and he also faced deportation. The wealthy friend flew in and bailed him out and he was deported .

Here's the odd bit: he secured some job in the South so after a week in the U.S of A he went back to Thailand. I don't know how much money was involved in getting him out as in a fine but he went back and worked for almost a year then the school fired him and he overstayed again lol. He did the Malay border hop a few times before being arrested yet again, the wealthy friend flying him to bail him out yet again, and deported yet again as he had no money. Some here say there is a ten year ban but this is a true story, the guy was almost sixty too.

Absolutely nothing wrong with these ladies doing their job and maintaining a clean environment and hygiene. They are not interested in your 'junk' they are interested in doing their job efficiently and getting out of there fast before moving to the next place.

I mean wow, Western standards and all that. HK they briefly put a 'Cleaning in progress' sign up. We've actually got a young guy as a cleaner in the company and he's seen ladies get changed in the bathroom, putting on makeup etc just goes about his business and nobody notices him we thank him for keeping the ladies' loo clean and even apologise to him for the amount of mess.

Get an emergency passport.

There is no way mainland China will let you in if you have any sort of water damage or a pic that is blurred/damaged in any way it goes on face recognition.  Sorry you said layover, anyway, best get an emergency passport and have the old one certified and verfied as in visa stamps.

Good luck.

Similar thing happened to me when my son's water bottle spilled in my bag and passport was damaged so I'm just saying from my own personal experience. With world wide security and terrorist attack alerts you won't fly.

Always use a rubber spatula with teflon, as I said only for scrambled eggs. Can't link you from this device sorry on the carcinogenic issue.

The non stick or teflon variety definitely a no no just get a small one to do scrambled eggs in and only use it for that. Aluminium is supposed to give you cancer #note aluminium foil. Best pans are cast iron for general cooking.

You have to feel for these poor things, they aren't born by choice and have no homes. 

In mainland China there is the Yulin Dog festival which is in global news which should be shut down but That's China is not going to happen. Basically they round up strays and kidnap pets and butcher them for the festival as the Chinese ( not all) believe dog meat gives you strength. It's truly horrific and the images of trucks full of dogs as well as the practice of boiling the dog alive can't watch or look at stuff like that.

There are many animal rights groups trying to stop this and they need donations and the dogs they save require medical etc, I'm a supporter but only so much you can do.

22 minutes ago, samuijimmy said:

I was about to post the same thing! 

 

It would be better on Marmite!

Kind Sir.

Marmite would never enter this household as it is a Brit thing, Vegemite is black gold. Aussie breakfast of champions along with Weet Bix. One is based on meat extract , other is on yeast, anyway, these two pesky curtain climbers I am babysitting and they are crossed with a pure Persian. Lovely kittens.

Hahahahaha how true Jai Dee indeed I am , but that's a crossed Chinese spotted cat, the spots don't come out until it is older.

English grammar and spelling, ' The difference between knowing your shit, and knowing you're shit'. 

http://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/services/visas/visit-transit/visit-visa-entry-permit.html

11 minutes ago, thaitero said:

I think it is time to start looking for a woman. A woman knows how to do washing correctly..

Hey, did I tell you about the time I washed my hubby's jeans and all the tissue pack went through all the wash?

I won't mention the business cards and wallet. I'm an idiot, we can all be. Could happen to anyone.

PCCW were a bloody pain as you need a letter from them to prove you are the mobile number linked to all the HSBC accounts and other accounts and in the mainland you also have to go to bloody China Mobile and do the same thing or you can't get your $$$ if your ATM is also damaged. 

Lucky was just his passport.

Another big issue, here anyway, is you will need to update all your bank info for the new passport.

As in entry stamp ( which they can't find because it is washed out) they have certified copies, but still...then you go through the whole circus of 'I've got PR here what the' then they call, then you have to go to the PCCW , then ok, three hours later all good. 

'Show us the PR" okaaaaaaay here it is. I don't want to go through that experience again.

....many phone calls later.

Keep passport scanned copies with all the visa stuff.

A damaged passport is a damaged passport.

The OP does not say if the front page picture was washed out. With the pic wiped out that's a big issue. Go to the embassy, they will photocopy the passport, stamp it with certification embassy stamps and reissue a new passport in ten working days.

The visa can be transferred into the new passport. Yes I went through it all when my ten year old's water bottle spilled in my bag at a rugby do, and yes I never carry my passport around always have a pic in my mobile device but they had to go to this place and it was original ID.

So anyway, all the best but just go to the embassy, don't risk going over borders with it, you will be turned back.

If anybody else has a teenager I'm sure the lady in question is run off her feet. 

The main thing here is to socialize in the context of having a teen, make friends who have same age kids, enjoy the life and don't put so much pressure on yourself. 

Anyway the lady hasn't been back and there are many very good suggestions here.

3 hours ago, jenifer d said:

as many Thais will tell you

(and Lord Buddha has affirmed to me personally),

in Buddhism, you are presented w/many options

as to how to find "nirvana" (i.e., enlightenment)

Buddha tells us to explore and adopt the ones that work for us...

and discard those that do not work...

nowhere is it said in actual Buddhist lore to worship him...

....

There's a Buddhist forum here somewhere. Cheers.

Single white females in Thailand and the OP has a teenager plenty of things to do and mix in, to me sounds like she wants some friends and male companionship. This also depends on how long you plan to stay in Thailand as to any 'relationship'. 

Learning the language definitely so you can get around and communicate. I had plenty of male friends, just treat them as friends and brother types always worked for me then again I've never come across as a needy, desperate femme. Above all have fun, focus on work and connections. Try some embassy dos if you haven't already and expat clubs which some have mentioned.

I was reading an article about Trump and his association with doing business in China.

Good luck with that. Having lived there ( and in Shanghai and the South) I can tell you it's a narcissistic mess of a country full of petty, horrible, tribal people, looking to stab everyone in the back at all times.

There is no actual culture left, apart from bribery and pulling various scams. The 'pullers' of the scams are admired by all for being 'clever'. Virtually every city is the same drab Communist block meme with little defining it in any way special, save say Shanghai or Canton. As well as the culture drained from it there you go. The countryside is now grey and polluted and anything decent about it has been raped by those 'clever folks'.

No real mystery here for anyone who has lived in mainland China. It's the children of the 'Lord of the Flies' set loose in a library, but they already murdered everyone who could read. Expecting the world to marvel at how they built a chair after burning a house down, and it is a rubbish chair, that probably gives you cancer, it's basically the worse chair ever made and it smells of p**p. Every single business in China is the same thing over and over again, to the point where anyone with half a brain avoids doing business in China entirely. Trump is loving it. Because it has nothing of  of value to anyone other than China. 

And Chinese love their new p**py cancer giving  chair, and if you say otherwise you are a racist who hurt poor Chinese feelings.  Quit using the 5000 years of culture as a horrible excuse for behaviours and manners of the mainland Chinese cockroaches. People from Taiwan have had the same 5000 years of culture  and don't act like a bunch of tarded monkeys the way at least a plurality of mainlanders do.

You know, was such a sight today seeing all the smokie fires as it is Qingming here, honestly don't know what to advise you, there were folks burning all bits of money around trees. I mean smoke fires, did I say smokie very sorry can't delete it now.

So my advice is do your homework before a venture and all the very best to you.