JimTripper

If the Op is just going back for material things I would call it a loss. Ask the Gf to mail important documents and start fresh from home country. Much ado about nothing. Thai's don't like long goodbye's anyway.

I don't think that eliminates all the hassles enough to make it worth it, but I could be wrong.

Bad air quality at Chang Nobyl, not sure about Chiang Mai.

Can you add Hawaii?

Hi Jack . How are you this evening?

Thoughts & prayers. Expat stuck in Cambodia in need of assistance.

Wrong! My balcony gets extremely slippery when I wash down the tiles. So much, that I very carefully scoot around without lifting my feet much and stay near the wall. We don't need it, you do. Go look in a mirror.

I used to do tourism for a year. Many Thai's don't understand that people can have money saved up and don't need to work at a fruit stand somewhere. They are also in a rush and want people scuttering about on that good old minivan going from place as quickly as possible. They think it's still the old school two week vacation thing from the 1980's, or they just like people scuttering about and not setting down roots because they are impatient children themselves. "Are we there yet?" People from well off countries have money and time for tourism. They don't need to rush about. They like to relax a bit and enjoy the scenery.

Or that the immigration officials themselves can't interpret things in a balanced manner. It's either a hard yes or no, with little ability to make a judgement call. A lot if things are like that in thailand, meaning they are extremes. It's either overly nice or real nasty, they pull your tooth rather then treat it, etc etc. but there is rarely any compromise or middle ground.

in your own mind

I can tell the philippines is not for me without even visiting. I never bothered to make that test trip.

I never use agents. The best price is booking directly with the airline.

Hi Jack

Some of of those vloggers there only say positive stuff, only interview people that seem happy and positive. You don't get a realistic view of the place because they don't interview people who make them feel like they chose the wrong location. Also, people would unsubscribe because they are feeding a dream mostly to guys stuck in the USA. I almost never see someone saying the place sucks on a vlog, except for the 'vlogging a dead horse guy' who seems honest. The guy who was attacked on soi pothole. I talked to a guy on Jomtein Beach who went to philippines after hearing about it and he gave a thumbs down to Philippines. He said Bali would be his target location in the area.

They could have bounced him at the land border crossing also??

I tried it and did not care for it. I was in an Airbnb by the airport in a working class neighborhood though, so maybe was not in the best area. I could see it being Ok if I had a nice condo in the historic downtown area, like Condesa. Felt like a dirty and kind of unsafe New York City. Very crowded. Shops with security bars where you point to something and they hand it through the grate. Nice city parks all over. People grabbing arse and smooching in public everywhere you go. Problems with the plumbing and toilets in the infrastructure. The younger guys a bit immature with giggling or being di@kheads. Women were aloof.

Entry was denied and he's stuck in Vietnam. What does your GF have to do with it?

Is it just a monetary judgement or is there possible jail time?

Siem Reap is my fallback in any situation like this as it's so close to Thailand. I'm assuming you have an ATM card with you with access to money. If you don't have an ATM card or credit card with you (never travel like that) hole up and ask your bank to express one to you in Cambodia using the guesthouse address. Often sites like Airbnb or Agoda will hold your credit card info in the system so you could book a month anywhere in an emergency even if you don't have your card. If you have no money take a bath in the river and check into a guesthouse where you pay at the end and have the ATM card expressed over Asap. If you have no phone ask to use the guesthouse phone, or if not sneak down and use it while people are sleeping or tell them to put calls on your tab. If you have no passport go directly to your embassy, declare an emergency loss of passport and get a letter that the new one is on the way and use that to check in to the guesthouse.

The last time I was there years ago there was no age requirement. Just went to a travel agent paid the $300 or so and got the passport with the year visa back in several days.

The problem with that funnyness is that the thai's are so over-sensitive about criticism that no matter how you word it, it can be construed by a court as defamation. That's why most people just say nothing without constructive dialog.

Puerto Vallarta was the only place I liked in Mexico enough to settle there. Lived there maybe 6 months total in a nice house on the hillside. If could afford a decent place there I would probably never have come to Asia at all. Like anything else, you get what you pay for. Water is crystal clear & clean. Beaches are great. Air is clean. Just slightly under USA/California pricing for rentals though when I was there years ago.

I only go into women's salons in thailand for haircuts. The guys get it wrong every time.

There was some guy selling all his stuff on here who did a thread on here a few years ago and I asked him why. He said the same thing, basically that the Thai's were not happy. Said he was moving to the virgin islands I think or something like that where he could get a visa. It always worried me a bit but I can see his point now. I think covid did something to the place in terms of people's general mood. It all started going downhill right when covid hit, or maybe even a little before it hit.

Where are you planning on living in Mexico? If you don't know and just wandering around on your own that's not a great idea.