dblaisde

I guess he was just testing my blood pressure. Fortunately it's normal

18 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

You seem to asking about an extension of stay based upon retirement.

No need for a police clearance or medical certificate. Those are required for a OA visa at an embassy or official Thai consulate.

You will need 800k baht in Thai bank for 60 days or proof of 65k baht income or a combination of the 2 totaling 800k baht.

You will need to do a report of staying longer than 90 days in the country to immigration in person or by mail or online.

You can apply for the extension during the last 30 days of any of the 90 day entries from your non-o visa at immigration.

If you are living in Hua Hin the Ban Phu Nam Ron crossing Kanchanaburi would be the closest crossing to get the new entries from your visa.

Thanks for the succinct lucid information. That's just what I needed.

I'll be up in Bangkok during the last month of the current 3, so I'm guessing I should head to Bangkok Immigration. Do I need to go to the American Embassy too? Somehow I thought they were involved, but I guess that's when I thought it required a criminal clearance from my home country.

What's the official name of this visa, anyway, so I'm understood at Immigration and can also do some research? Leave it to the Thais to create such a labyrinth. 

Thanks again much.

IMA_FARANG: I don't understand what you say at all. The scan says I've have until Sep 17 to use up the visa. That's the last day I can enter on the visa, but Ranong is saying that the visa will be invalid in 3 months, rather than almost 9 months left. They've said in effect "Don't try to get another 3 months on this visa when the current 3 months expire". This has never been the case before with my use of these visas and others here confirm that Ranong is clearly wrong. Why are you saying they're right?

The next time I'll simply fly, say, to Phenom Penh and fly back to Bangkok and get another 3 months and a big "<deleted> you" to Ranong Immigration.

By **retirement visa**, I meant the visa where you have to be over 50 and put  750,000 (or a bit more) in a Thai bank, get a criminal and health clearance, and some other things. That lets you do your "visa runs" within the country (eg my friends in Ban Saphan go to Hua Hin I believe) or even by mail by sending in a reporting form (every 3 months for both, I guess). You renew it once a year, which seems to be quite easy after you get the first one. My friends are all over 60 and they live here and never have to leave the country unless they want to. THAT'S what I meant by "retirement visa".

That's the one I'll try to get THIS year, since traveling from Bangkok to NYC on a visa run is a bit much. :) I expect there are instructions on here about how to go about getting THAT one.

ubonjoe--

Thanks!

So the problem is Ranong it seems, not the rest of Thailand or the visa itself--it seems the visa gives me the right to enter and leave the country till the expiry date, no matter where despite what Ranong says. Jesus H. Christ this is annoying.

Or perhaps what the Ranong people were *trying* to say is that I'm limited to 2 land border crossings a year. (but what's this shit about a 1900B extension).

I sometimes fly up to Cambodia so I guess this is how I should do my next visa run.

I'm getting old anyway so it's time for a **retirement visa**, which most of my friends have anyway. I've got the cash and I'm too old for visa runs! :)

Thanks for clarifying.

7 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

As suggested above believe they are saying they will only allow two border crossings per year (regardless of visa or not) in that case - as your visa is valid for one year from date of issue.  Just use another form of exit/entry and you will get the normal 90 day permission to stay.  

So please tell me what is another form of exit/entry that doesn't require a border crossing?

Yes, this all happened in Ranong. I've read of *others* problems there but never for me.

It *is* a 1 year visa, as can be seen by the "use before date". I presume it's an METV as well. I've gotten 3 of these things before with no problem. Either Ranong is wrongong or Immigration has changed to rules.

Thanks for any further clarification.

Ranong Immigration tells me my normally-good-for-1-year visa is only good for 6 months. I've only used the visa 3 months so far (entering 30/9/16) and did my second entry on the visa today. Immigration told me my next entry on the visa must be as an extension for 1900B, as if it's only for 6 months. I've had 4 of these visas in the last 4 years and they've always been good for a full year. And on my visa form in NYC I said I wanted a full year.

What's up? Is Ranong just plain stupid since it says "Enter before 18 Sept 2017". When I asked, they wouldn't/couldn't explain it and just said "This last time".

I'm thinking a thick epoxy spread over a wide area with a steel backing plate sunk into the epoxy for support. The computer works fine. The problem just occurred. 

The hinge mechanism is very tight. I may have to oil or free up the hinges somehow. They are the cause of the pressure needed to open the thing. This means opening up the beast, which I probably could do but don't want to.

I'd like to get some steel backing too, luck cut away the bottom of an old pan.

I read also epoxy with a fiberglass cloth patch (like for surfboards) would add the necessary strength to the patch. God knows where I'd get the fiberglass cloth though. Bangkok isn't a surfing Mecca. Maybe again, an autobody shop.

Jdietz...

Yeah, I was thinking of a autobody shop too, a product like Bondo, which I've used on cars at one point.

Where might I get the epoxy in Bangkok that you linked to?

This beast is an Asus X200-MA 11" notebook. A nice crack has developed. The computer works fine but won't for long like this.  I'll need glue (epoxy, acetone ???) I presume.

Is the cover ABS plastic?

Where might I find the necessary glue?

Actually, I google thailand for this: nac site:th, and found a vitamin shop that stocks it called nanavitamins.com. I called to confirm. Apparently the shop is very far away from Nana area. And I couldn't get a straight answer about the location (language problems).

http://www.nanavitamins.com/category

I've been to GNC and many Thai pharmacies for something called NAC, very common in US vitamins shops. It controls my OCD, though most people use it as an antioxidant. It suppresses the glutamate receptors, which suppresses obsessive thinking, my problem. 

I'm looking for any of:

L-tyrosine

L-theanine

Rhodiola

Mucuna

I had no luck at Fascino. I wonder if such things are available in Thailand and if not, whether I could get such things via Alibaba or Chinese Ebay? (since they may be viewed as "drugs" and confiscated by Customs.)

thanks in advance

thanks all!!!!

Does ebay ship to Thailand?

Just wondered where I might buy one of these in Bangkok and for how much. 

I search over Fortune Town IT Mall and failed. They list for around $30 in the States.

2 hours ago, Flow said:

Loads on Rachada Soi 3 behind Fortune. Witchuwan Mansion is good they got 2 bedroom studios but may be a bit too far in the soi.... best to just walk around or ask a Thai friend to show you around then choose

Thanks much, but I'm googling the area and it seems like a neighborhood for locals (or visiting Chinese/Japanese), not for English speakers who want to connect with the same.

And I don't know much about that part of town but isn't it far below Huai Khwang on Ratcha, which I'm hoping is a quieter area, and has more farangs.

Hell, maybe I belong in Thong Lor, but probably not with the 20K/mo max.

I'm looking for a studio in a quiet farang/thai neighborhood between 10-20K with walking access to the MRT. And an elevator for my old farang knees. :)

My battery is on the way out. Somebody in BKK must sell new ones. I looked up the price on Amazon and they're about $30, more no doubt here. Where's a reliable place in BKK I can pick one up without getting ripped off?

Already checked Lazada and InvadeIT.

12 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Some really good doctors there, though. It benefits from its proximity to Chula.

That's surprising. I've only been there twice, once to get an estimate on a dental cleaning (2000B) and this was back 10 years ago (I have used Mission exclusively for dental work for the last 10 years. (Dr Pissnu, a periodontist is a great dentist)).

Another time I went for something (can't even remember what) and saw an elderly female doctor who insisted that my problem was due to the one large bottle of Leo beer I drink a day. (It was completely irrelevant given what I'd come in for, and my liver function is excellent, but she was one of these women who believe that alcohol is the root of all evil).

I have an 84 year old friend in Bangkok who's running a machine with Windows Starter edition. It's awful and he can't even get it to recognize his book reader to transfer books. It's a Dell Inspiron mini 1018. The machine itself seems sound enough (I've had 30 years in computers).

I need a reliable shop to install an updateable windows 7 for cheap, since he doesn't have a lot of money. I don't want to burden him with a higher version of Windows. He's confused enough as it is.

Thanks.

wpcoe--

Thanks for the "trick". He's a good doctor and I appreciate your referral. 

BNH is kind of a sad place though. Almost deserted and looking pretty run down. The contrast with Bumrungrad is shocking. (Eight nurses in the ENT section and only one patient, me.)

The place looks more like an embassy in decay than a hospital.

thanks again,

Doug

6 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Ear/jaw pain can sometimes be TMJ. Because the pain is felt into the ear it is easily mistaken for ear infection.  If the  ENT finds no sign of infection, this may likely be the reason.

 

 

I went to Pasakorn and I indeed have an infection, on the wane since I started taken amoxicillin about 4 days ago. There's still some redness on the right ear drum.

But you may also be right about TMJ. For 4 months I've been chewing my food down to pulp to alleviate my gastroparesis, and that's when the jaw pain started up. (though the infection is only a week or so old)

Pasakorn told me to chew more gently which I'll do and hope the jaw popping and aching (on the same side as the infection) stops. 

Never heard of TMJ but it sounds like I've got it (from a brief internet scan).

cheers

PS: The World begs: What's the trick!!? :)