jas007

Dom Pizza. Marcos.  And from what I remember from a few years back, the pizza at Cafe Le Mar was good.  

When I take a baht bus down Beach Road before noon, there are always some people already there, drinking.  I assume most are just on a different schedule and probably won’t still be there later in the day.

Years ago, I lived at the beach in San Diego and I used to run every morning.  Anyway, right on the Boardwalk at a place called Crystal Pier, there was a bar that was somehow open very early, with music blasting and people inside, drinking. I assumed then that people drinking at 7am might have had an alcohol problem.

I’ve lived in both places. Jomtien a few years ago, and I’m currently in Wongamat. 
 

Jomtien has more going on, for sure. More restaurants, night markets, etc.  Baht buses running up and down Beach Road. Wongamat is less busy. More of a residential area.  Nice condos and some hotels mixed in. To be sure, there’s everything you need. Some restaurants, some convenience stores, street food.  They keep the beach pretty clean  It’s hard to get into too much trouble around here, although a Bolt taxi to central Pattaya doesn’t cost much.

On 7/4/2023 at 7:35 PM, redwood1 said:

Hooters has tacos...

Sometimes, they’re ok. The last few times I tried them, though, I thought they could use a little more seasoning.

Hooters.  They were running daily specials. Everything half price between 3pm and 4pm or so.  
 

I used to go in the US once in a while, for lunch. In Pattaya, I’d sometimes go n the afternoon, just because of the special pricing and because it was open and I could watch the people walk by on Beach Road.  Ditto for the location on Soi 4 in Bangkok.  Whatever else you can say about Hooters, at least they were open during the day. Sometimes in Thailand, it seems as though trying to find something to do before 5pm is an exercise in futility. Air conditioning would have helped, no doubt.  
 

There are similar type places in the US.  One chain is called Twin Peaks.  Another is called Tilted Kilt. There are others, as well.  Breastraunts.  I don’t have a problem with the concept and I don’t mind paying for cold beer and decent food.
 

Anyway, it seems strange.  If the requirements are eventually increased, fine.  My only concern was to have some advanced notice.

So this is a fake site?

2 hours ago, BritTim said:

The only changes are that the health insurance requirement for those on Non O-A visas increased a while back. There were no changes to the basic financial requirements.

I wonder why the change in the financial requirements listed for the OA visa on the website of the Thai Australian consulate?  Someone make a mistake?  Or is each consulate free to make their own requirements?  

I recently saw a YouTube video from Integrity Legal. The discussion was about the financial requirements for the OA retirement visa extension as listed on the website of the Thai Australian Consulate.  Apparently, the financial requirements have increased substantially and, at least according to the figures listed, the requirement is to now show the equivalent of approximately 1.2 million Thai baht in an account or a monthly income that would be equivalent to that amount over the course of a year.

Has anyone has heard anything about a potential increase in the financial requirements for the O visa extension for purposes of retirement? If I have to increase the amount I keep in my Thai account, it would be nice to have some advanced warning.

My apologies in advance if this question has been asked a million times.

I have about 23 days left on my current 30 day stamp obtained at the airport. I now have well in excess of 800,000 baht in my Thai bank, but I just wired that money there within the past few days.

Is it still possible, given my circumstances, to apply for a Non Immigrant O visa either in the next few days or during a subsequent 30 day extension?  And once that is granted and once my money has been in the bank for at least two months, further apply for an extension based on retirement?

I did all this myself once upon a time, but that was years ago. If need be, I’ll hire an agent, but I’m not sure I need one. Then again, maybe I do.

The government says NO election after saying yes.

They kill a Thai General who was pro Red.

They do so next to a Wall Street Journal reporter during the interview.

They are trying to scare the media out.

BUT

Assassinations can go both ways.

Might I suggest a new movie?

"Bangkok REALLY Dangerous"

We can have sex, violence, assasinations, sex, reds killing, SEX, yellows killing, sex, and the fall of a regime with more SEX!

The government said offered the reds elections, and the reds said No.

The government offered elections with half a dozen "IFs", the red said yes. Look it up, it's on every news source.

They ARE the government. Not the thugs. Would you bow down and submit to a non-compromising band of fools, bums, crooks and thieves turned literal insurgents? No gov't has any responsibility to even compromis with such neanderthals as these. And it would set the example in the future that violence and riots gets results.

You seem to have selective memory. Did you forget about the band of thugs who stole the people's democracy in 2006? They're just going to take it back, that's all.

News reports are that he has died.

This murder will prove to be the beginning of the end for the current Thai government.

New elections and the show is over.But this government know they will loose.

a) This is an elected government.

Calling immediate elections gives the win to the terrorist Thaksin thugs. Nobody wants that.

c) Abhisit is a true democrat, negotiated peacefully and offered 9 months. They did not take it because it was not what they wanted. Thanksin ordered a civil war. Full stop.

Wow. Do you really believe that? Amazingly selective memory. Did you forget about the coup in 2006? The changes to the constitution and how they came about? As for who wants what? To you, they may be "Thaksin thugs," but to other people they're just protestors who want their democracy back.

Perhaps new elections NOW would solve the problem, at least temporarily. It doesn't look like the Red Shirts are going anywhere.

Just out of curiosity, I wonder how many of the posters here are Thai (yellow shirt) and how many are falang?

I'll give you my perspective, as an outsider: the Red Shirts have won. World public opinion is on their side. You can't take a country's democracy at the point of a gun and think no one will remember.

At a minimum, Thailand will see new elections, sooner, rather than later.

Not that I know anything in particular, but it sure does seem like the government needed a way to both save face and kick the problem down the road for six months or so. Hence, the decision of the election commission. They'll hold new elections and any problems will be addressed at a later day.

OK, thanks everyone. I guess I'll have to look closely at the dates, as I might not have the 21 days left by the time I get my embassy letter. Either way, it'll work out, I guess, as I do have a double entry tourist visa which will also cover the duration of my stay. I suppose a visa run won't kill me.

I tried to do a search, but it didn't work so well.

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone has any experience or information as to the possibility of converting a tourist visa to an O visa extended for retirement, in Phuket? I know this is routinely done in Pattaya, but what about Phuket? I see the US Embassy is doing an outreach to Phuket on March 19th, and so it would be easy for me to get my income letter. At that point, I'll be 10 or so days into my 30 day extension of my first 60 days on a double entry tourist visa.

Any advice?

Scam?

I don't know if they still do this or not, because I've been in the habit of using the metered taxis. Anyway, on my first trip in 2000, I just went with one of the "taxi" guys who was hanging around at the airport looking for a customer. Back then, it was 500 baht to Patong Beach. I knew I was going to Patong Beach, but didn't really have a hotel reservation, just a list of hotels. I figured one would have a vacancy, no problem. Well, I made the mistake of telling the driver I didn't have a hotel reservation, so, on the way to Patong he stopped at some travel agency place where I was told the hotels I wanted were booked up. Basically, I couldn't get out of that place until I agreed to purchase three nights lodging from the travel agency lady. As it turned out, the hotel was OK and the price was OK and I ended up staying there a few more weeks. Still, I felt I was scammed into staying at that hotel. What if I didn't like it?

When I last flew to Thailand from the USA on NWA/Delta, I used a credit card to buy the ticket. When I went to check in, they had some sort of a kiosk for printing out your boarding pass. You could insert your credit card, OR, you could swipe your passport. It took me a few times to get the passport properly swiped, but once I did that right, the boarding passes came out of the machine and that was that. No one ever asked to see the credit card. For what it's worth, when I originally booked my ticket, I had to include my passport number and so on.

Anyway, I wouldn't count on having that much of an easy time of it. Call the airline.

The blood, being bright red, is likely from the lower colon or rectum and could be the result of a number of problems: internal hemorrhoids, diverticulosis, polyps, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, cancer....

I'm sure a gastroenterologist would be able to sort the matter out. Some problems can be easily fixed, others can be managed. Cancer can be cured if caught early enough.

The story may sound funny, but penile fractures, while somewhat uncommon, do happen with some regularity. It isn't really a "fracture" as such, but a rupture of one of the chambers of the penis that normally fills with blood during an erection. Previously, the standard medial advice was to treat with cold compresses, anti-inflammatories, and so on, but this didn't always work out so well for various reasons, and so no the condition is now usually treated as a medical emergency with immediate surgery recommended. Google "penile fracture" and look at the pictures; then read the articles.

Anyway, it sounds like this guy didn't really get the best medical advice in Phuket. On the other hand, I wonder if the hospitals in Phuket are equipped for such a procedure?

Shenanagins is owned by the same people who own the Coyote chain? If so, and the Mexican food is more or less the same, it should be pretty good. Ditto for the Margaritas. I'll have to try it if it's open.

Is it not possible to obtain an extension at the Patong Beach immigration office?

It will work as long as your last entry is before your visa expiration date. Locally that is ofter 3 months from issue but at other places can be 6 months from issue - it is the use before date on the actual visa.

Thanks. I just got out my passport and it says "use by" June 13th. My second entry into Thailand will be before that date, so, with extension of the second entry, I can make it to July 2nd, when I leave Bangkok. Makes sense.

I thought I knew what I was doing until I read this thread. Now, I'm not sure.

I have a double entry tourist visa, obtained at a US consulate. I entered Thailand on January 11th, and they stamped me in until March 11th. My intention was to extend the visa at immigration before March 11th so as to get another 30 days. Then, right before the expiration oft he 30 days, I was going to due a visa run by leaving Thailand and then returning. At that point, I'd be stamped in for another 60 days. At the end of that period, I'd extend again for 30 days and leave the country at the end of the 30 days.

Will that not work? And if not, how do I get 180 days out of my double entry tourist visa?