Lordfoul

38 minutes ago, Pib said:

Helps a lot....thanks.  Shows it took 10 days for them to process your Non-Filers submission and 12 days mailing time from US to Thailand.   I'm a little surprised both were that fast.    Seems most everyone else has been reporting much longer times.  Hopefully, processing/mailing times have taken a very recent turn for the better.

I Assume I benefited from starting my process after some of the kinks had been worked out. Also my situation didn't require communication between two Government agencies. 

Although I have never received mail from the US in less than 2 weeks before.

I am in a bit of a different situation than most of you posting, but I thought some might benefit from this info.

Situation: Haven't filed taxes in the last few years. NOT receiving any government benefits/assistance.

On May 13th filled out the non-fillers info

On May 23rd status on 'Get My Payment' site was updated to 'Check is scheduled to be sent out on June 1st'

On June 12th Check received at Condo in Chiang Mai 

No dates on the envelope or check that I can see.

Correction: Check dated June 1st

Hope this helps

I wonder how reputable is an organization is that illegally brings in volunteers and gives them a false sense of security regarding working without the proper documentation?

A reputable organization should have no problem supplying a potential volunteer with the paperwork to get a Non-Immigrant O visa. For a legally registered organization it might take them all of 15 minutes to put this together for you and the only expense is the actual visa fee. It is also a very simple matter for a reputable organization to get you a work permit. A quick medical check up, a copy of a few pages in your passport and 10 minutes at the department of Labour (you are not even needed for the last part). If an organization is unable to provide you with a work permit, then they may not be legitimate.

I realize you don't care about whether you are working in Thailand legally or not, but others who come accross this topic might want to be better informed when looking for an organization to volunteer for.

Good luck in your search.

I'm already volunteering in Chiang Mai with a reputable organization with only a tourist visa and I've had no issues. I don't want this thread to turn into a discussion about visas. Let me take care of the visa situation, you guys tell me about the volunteer opportunities.

Just got my new 90 day receipt back by mail. I had 1 week left to report when I mailed it, it took 1 week to receive the new one. I live in Amphoe Muang Chiang Mai.

Horeca is a good option.

Their site is a Mess http://www.horecachi...com/contact-us/ but I have bought good quality cheese there fairly cheap.

Good salmon also.

Wonder where the Italian restaurants get their cheese??

Horeca maybe ??

Yes, and I provided you with a link that will create a fake SS number that will work on the site.

I registered with USTV Now and never was required to provide a SSN....and there's no place for it on their online member registration form...

And, for the record, I'm not trying to "promote" any service here, and have no personal interest in any of them.... USTV is just one of more than a half dozen different services I've reviewed in this thread....and if people bothered to read, you'd see I had some negative comments about their service in prior posts (when they canceled their prior service plans).

But, if anyone else can point to a site where, for free, they can watch ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, CW and PBS any time 24/7 all from the same site, please do post the info here....

Its not for free though is it... you have to provide the most personal of information which is your SS number, if you cant do that you have to provide a credit card,,

http://www.fakenameg...rity-number.php

Have I got a GREAT USA TV deal for folks here, and best of all, it's absolutely free with no catches or strings...

and is easy to complete, with them asking only that you create a User ID and password.

But for right now, I'd say, try USTVNow, see what you think, and post about it here....

I wish you woud have mentioned that you need an american social security number or USA credit card to register.

Not sure why you quoted my post, I made no mention of the sport you are speaking of.

I am trying to bring peace and harmony while you are spewing hate and negativity.

I urge my fellow countrymen to please stop calling the sport 'soccer' as it only further seperates ourselves from the rest of the world.

In the interest of international harmony can we please agree from this point forth to refer to the sport by the more proper name of

'Un-American Football'

Thank You for your co-operation.

do you mean 'gridiron'? that strange game where all those big, brawny, beefcake protagonists have to wear padding and crash helmets to protect their delicate little selves? which is erroneously called 'football' despite the ball spending the majority of the time in the players' hands?

preposterous, dull, tedious joke of a 'sport'.

football, or soccer, is the world game. any person on earth can play it anywhere.

I urge my fellow countrymen to please stop calling the sport 'soccer' as it only further seperates ourselves from the rest of the world.

In the interest of international harmony can we please agree from this point forth to refer to the sport by the more proper name of

'Un-American Football'

Thank You for your co-operation.

A guarantor is someone (or an entity) who will take responsibility for you if you fail to take responsibility for yourself it is not the same thing as a guardian or someone who provides financial support.

The hotel by providing you a place to stay is taking a certain responsibility for you being there. Just as an airline that take you into another country as a tourist has a responsibility in making sure you plan to return (at least on long haul international trips)

That being said I have never heard of a situation where a hotel has been held responsible for one of it's customers, although I have a heard of airlines having to take responsibility for a passenger who decided not to return.

It makes it totally accurate - I am paying my bills.

I have no doubt that they accept self, but that doesn't mean it is accurate. If you can be your own guarantor then there would be no reason for the question to exist.

Specifically speaking of the Thai visa form for the consulate in Laos if you properly fill out the form using an actual guarantor instead of self then you will also be supplying them with the Hotel information they require instead of fumbling around in front of the clerk looking for this information at a time when they are apparently rejecting applications at the window.

I have always used "self" in 50 years of travel and it has always been accepted. Even in India where they must have the most bureaucratic paperwork system in the world.

The Local Guarantor is your Hotel or person you are staying with. Unless you are Lao you can not be your own guarantor.

There is a line on the form for every piece of information they require.

I would put "self" in local guarantor section. Hotel address/phone number can be squeezed in in space at top of visa application form.

On Wednesday I applied for a double entry Tourist Visa at the Thai Consulate in Vientiane.

It was an especially quite day with only around 30 People in line when the gate was opened.

When I handed in my application the clerk flipped through my passport stopped and looked at one of my previous visa momentarily and then sent me to the main building to collect my receipt.

Today I picked up my Passport with a new double entry tourist visa inside.

This was my fifth consecutive double entry from Vientiane, I also have a Single entry from Singapore from a few years back.

Also in My Passport are three Non-immigrant Bs (With several extensions from 15 days to 1 Month) Several 30 day runs to Mae Sai and about four pages of transfered stamps from a lost passport.

I am In my 30s, Unmarried (legally), and not working. While I do not consider myself a tourist it is considered the defacto visa for those who do not qualify for any other type, I have been told this by immigration officials in Chiang Mai and Bangkok after they removed the 30 day border runs.

I don't know if any of this information will help anyone or not.

http://iu.qs.com/2009/05/12/qs-com-asian-u...gs-the-top-100/

Ranks CMU 81st in Asia (while Thammasat ranks 85!)

I can't find the full original article where they discuss their criteria, but I seem to remember published papers, class size and amount of exchange students being part of it.

As for ranking, they show as #33 out of 44 with CMU as #7 country wide. For world ranking, Payap comes in at 2549 and CMU at 478.

Sources: Thanapon and webometrics.

Good find. But, on what criteria are they judged? This is the problem.

Unis are unis. Teachers are teachers. Get lucky and you're lucky...

Lanna Antiques on Thapae Rd. sells Rain drums also.

Personal Video Recorder or Digital Video Recorder

http://pvr.truevisionstv.com/marketing/index.html

What is the PVR or DVR?

The machine was installed today Humax PVR-H100S. Apparently after 2 year of paying the extra 140baht a month we will own the box outright.

True called again today, so we took the deal. They will Install it on November 9th. It is definitely the PVR. They said it is because we have been subscribers for more than 5 years.

If it makes you feel better, They have always asked for my number at the Mae Sai border.

Is this post a wind-up, it is pretty obvious what the request for phone number was about.

I've been contributing to this forum for almost 4 years. I don't post here to wind anyone up. It is not obvious at all. I posted about the incident to get various opinions on it. Whenever we get tourist visa extensions at Jomtien they ask us to put our phone numbers on the photocopy. I've never heard of anyone getting a similar request at a border checkin.

I don't think that location lasted even 6 months.

Sorry to say it was brought back by a friend who just visited VN. Check out Airport Plaza though. Basement level, right at the back (if you enter from car park end), just before you turn right towards Robinson.

Trung Nguyen signed deals to distribute here 4 or 5 years ago, but nought seems to have happened. I suppose there's always (drum roll) Internet shopping!

I paid 2500B to have a unit moved from one room into a room that had never had one installed before. This included piping and a cleaning.

I tried a few tracert to US sites.

8 106 ms 54 ms 54 ms if-0-0-7.core2.s9r-singapore.as6453.net [209.58.96.13]

9 241 ms 240 ms 290 ms if-15-0-0-991.mcore3.PDI-PaloAlto.as6453.net [216.6.29.97]

And My ping times have dropped to the low 2xxms from the low 4xxms

I am using TTT Priemer 3mb in Chiang Mai

I believe the AAG may be live, doing traceroutes on a TRUE line, they appear to go straight from singapore to LA. I dont know how this could happen without the AAG.

Does anyone agree?

12 sg-icr-anc2-26-214.trueinternetg (122.144.26.214 ): 256ms 264ms 255ms

13 vlan548.icore1.s9u-singapore.as6 (116.0.83.57 ): 241ms 231ms 242ms

14 vlan1146.icore2.laa-losangeles.a (116.0.83.34 ): 249ms 236ms 237ms

True called again today, so we took the deal. They will Install it on November 9th. It is definitely the PVR. They said it is because we have been subscribers for more than 5 years.

Yes, That is what I said to her while she was on the phone with them. They verified it was the PVR and it is free. I use a dreambox. So I probably will skip this. It is possible that we are at the beginning of a role out.

I just wanted to give people here a 'heads up' incase someone was thinking of buying one, they may want to hold off.

Why don't you give them a call. They have English speaking staff.

PVR is advertised as being 10,000 baht and you must pay a few hundred baht extra every month for the service.

The deal your wife speaks of seems too good to be true.

Nope,

We live in Chiang Mai, no CAtv here.

Maybe this is what you wife heard about:

http://www.truevisionstv.com/news_detail.aspx?news_id=64

This free upgrade is not for PVR but to replace old analog receiver to digital.

Ah.. before they were known as PVRs They were know as DVRs

Do you mean PVR?