Jdietz

It's that thing you use to download Firefox or Chrome after installing a new system.

Consider becoming a sponsor instead of spamvertizing.

4 out of 10.

Believe and science don't really mix. A small experiment will either prove or disprove my (and his) statements. Good thing, science

Just take the effort, please and report back, we can't do that from here.

^^^ that meter is indicating 3831.7 kWh.

It's so easy to refute that claim if you want to, as was mentioned several times before.

1. Look at the revs/kWh on your currently installed meter

2. Make sure something heavy is running (airconditioner)

3. Note the last digit

4. Count revs/10 revolutions (above meter would be 20 revs)

5. Note last digit again.

Did it go up by a full number? It's 0.1 kWh

Did it go up by a very small bit? It's 1 kWh.

Please let us know the result of this exercise. Also don't forget step 6.

6. Switch off the heavy stuff you don't need after measuring.

Mind, though, that unless you have a return ticket within 30 days of departure, your airline will most likely not allow you to board.

Best option is to get yourself to the Thai Embassy as in right now, and ask them for priority processing. They may be able to do it the same day.

When you found it and the emergency is over, I wouldn't mind to hear the long version though...

Here are my questions/concerns:

• Does this sound like a good visa "plan" for my situation? What are the difficulties with extending the tourist visa? Any experience with problems getting an ED-visa while in Thailand on a Tourist visa?

Sounds good, but you may want to get a 'double entry' Tourist Visa instead of a single entry. This will give you the opportunity to extend the 'trial period' to 6 months instead of 3 (with a visa-run in between) if you need / want. Extra cost of a double entry is inconsequential.

• I understand that I need a return ticket when applying for the 60 day tourist visa, ideally within the 60 day window after entry. What happens when applying for the 30 day extension? Will I need to provide proof of a scheduled departure within 30 days of extension.

If you have a visa of any kind, you don't need a return ticket. Same for extending. Nothing needed except Passport photo, 1,900 Baht and a filled out request form. Some locations also want you to show you have 20,000 Baht to support you.

• Will I have any problems with things like bank accounts, driver's license, etc. if I only have a tourist visa? Do I have to wait until I have an ED-visa to take care of these kinds of necessities?

Maybe, maybe not Some banks require lots of forms, others are fine with your passport only. Shop around. For a drivers licence they will want to see a Proof of Residence which you can get at your embassy or at immigration, but one or the other may have extra requirements you can't meet on a Tr visa. (Again, shop around).

Good luck!

-some- places want to see 20,000 Baht as well (just show it), never seen an extension refused.

Edit: Just to make it absolutely clear, you DON'T extend the second entry, only the first (and the third if you want to stay that long).

Extending the second one will bring you past the 'use before' date, so you can't use the last entry.

If you have money to throw away, you -CAN- extend the second one, but you have to make the last visa run before the 18th, giving you only 14 days extension effectively.

Won't help him now, but for the next entry:

The problem, most likely, was because he forgot to write his visa number on the entry form. (check his passport). If it's not there, the immigration official won't bother checking all his passport pages for the eventuality of a visa being present, and just gave him the 30 day stamp.

You walked along to beach to find a hotel and paid 10,000 baht per night?? And then the guy beat you with a stick??

You an English teacher by chance?

Have a nice trip, don't forget to buy the local coffee (it's great) and some candles....

As you -may- have noticed if you studied the pictures carefully (like having actually looked at them) you could maybe have seen that the meter in your photo is not exactly 100% the same as the Chinese thingy you found on Google...

- Different brand

- Different readout

- Different calibration (200revs/kWh <> 600revs/kWh)

I agree that most likely the Googled meter has readout in 10ths of kWh, but your meter most definitely isn't.

Also a usage of 380 kWh in a month would be doable, -if- you don't run the airconditioner all that often (couple of times a month), but most certainly not over a period of many months, with nightly airco usage and a computer running.

How long did you have that new meter? 3832kWh is maybe a bit on the high side for a few months, but not 10x.

FYI, here's yet another 'DD28' meter, with a totally different calibration of 300revs/kWh, there seem to be many models with this number around:

What other stuff has been connected to your meter is of course anybodies guess (Hall lighting, elevators, neighbors, ...)

Like I mentioned before it is easy to check if you can be bothered to sit in front of the meter for half an hour or so. Count 20 revolutions of the disc and see if the number goes up by 1 full digit, or just a small partition.

First I found on a quick internet search (let me google that for you), all prices on Koh Tao tend to be similar and lowest in the region.

PADI Open Water + 4 Nights Fan Room

11000 THB On Request 4 days

PADI Open Water (No Accommodation) 9800 THB On Request 4 days

Mods should look into auto-locking ancient topics, this one is 4 years old.

Actually I am pretty sure the meter on the picture is reading in KWh, and that the fourth digit is the units, not 10th of units.

This is easy to check, though, as the calibration information is right there on the meter: 200 revs per kWh. So sit down at the meter, count 20 revolutions of the disc (the black spot comes by 20 times), that should be 0.1 kWh.

Now if the OP is right, the last number should have moved up by a full unit, but I am pretty sure it will have moved only one small division.

Hi Jdietz, meaning to say, before my 60-days end, I just do border crossing and I will get another 60 days?

No,

To get 60 days you need a valid visa. Which can be:

- A Shiny new, unused visa, not yet expired (check use before date on it)

- An unused entry on a double or triple-entry tourist visa, also not yet expired.

If you have used a visa entry you can't use it again, so you need to get a new one.

If you enter without a valid visa entry, you get 15 days. (depending on nationality, but usually 15)

Be advised you can extend your current 60 days entry by another 30 days by visiting immigration, without leaving the country.

> What if I have a 60-days tourist visa?

If you have a valid entry left on your visa (not used, and not expired) you will get 60 days of course. If not, you will get 15 days on -any- land border. You will get 30 days if you fly into Thailand from outside the country.

In the bars or in front of 7-11s, their toys now stashed back home at their mother's home.

Either immigration to get a 30 day extension on his current 60 day entry, or a visa run to activate his second 60 day entry, his choice.

All three entries must be used up before the 'use before' date, so it may or may not be possible to extend the first two entries and use the third before the visa runs out, count your days.

Extension: 1900B

Visa run all in: around 2100B

For quite a comfortable ride take the green bus, they have a very nice premium class seat for 300 something Baht one way.

When you arrive in Mae Sai, there are red Songthaews waiting to bring you to the actual border, 15 Baht one way.

You will be dropped right at the checkpoint, can't really miss it.

Edit: you won't get an extension, just a new 15 day visa exempt stamp on entry.

Green bus schedule:

http://www.pheongrou...ai_province.pdf

Mae Sai Thailand/Myanmar border checkpoint by simdav79, on Flickr

Anywhere but Mae Sot actually, that border has been closed for about a year now. Mae Sai or any other international border you're close to will get you the 15 days visa exempt entry.

You're not going for an extension, you just get a new visa-exempt stamp, good for 15 days. You can do that any time you want, as it has nothing to do with your current visa.

Just walk through the Thai immigration, get stamped out.

Cross the bridge, leave your passport with Burmese immigration (they want $10 or preferably 500 Baht)

You will get a temporary pass, good for up to 14 days in Myanmar, look around the market for a bit.

Go to Burmese immigration (other side) to trade your temp pass for your (stamped in and out) passport.

Cross the bridge, fill in a new entry form and get stamped in to Thailand (15 days)

Done.

http://www.thaivisa.com/thai-bank-swift-codes.html

(KASITHBK)