bamboozled

Thank you, Cowboy. Wish I had known this a decade ago. Oh well, better late than never...

Well shoot....never knew that. Could reduce the number of border bounces. Is it 1900 baht?

A number of times I have flown (maybe take a Xanax?) to BKK timing it just so to catch the overnight bus to Muk which I think leaves at 8 in the eve or perhaps 10. Can't quite recall.

That's good news, fellers, thanks so much. It sounds like that will work out. I have been told in the past by another poster here that the 60 day extension to visit wife can be done once per visa and not once per 90 day entry. I've never tried to use it more than once so not sure which is correct. I'll report back when all is said and done. Cheers!

Thanks Jack. Do you have any knowledge about whether there would be an issue to get a new visa at Savannakhet after doing a 60 day extension on my current visa? Hmm, the visa is now expired, come to think of it. But I have a valid stamp until next month. It occurs to me that I prob can't do the 60 extension because the visa is expired. That makes sense, yes?

I think I have this correct but would like to check with my brothers and sisters here on Thaivi...I mean Asean Now. My Non-O multi entry visa (to visit wife) will expire in about 10 days and I am planning to go to Savannakhet to renew. However, isn't it true that I can get a 30 or 60 day extension at immigration here in CM "to visit Thai wife"? And one can receive that once per visa? My last visa was issued in Savannakhet and I have not yet used this option. If indeed I can get this extension, is there anything in following this path that would prevent me from getting a new Non-O in Savannakhet once the extension expires? That is, with this extension, I am able to kick the proverbial can down the road for 30 or 60 days. (I can't recall if the extension is for 30 or 60 days). Would immigration/the consulate look poorly on this? Thoughts folks? Thank you!

I'm reminded of some of the absolute crap that comes out of China. Completely unusable stuff, such as extension cords, tools, lights, tape, etc... They are very inexpensive to buy and so you give it a try knowing it won't last long. However, it hardly lasts the trip home and either doesn't work at all or breaks immediately, all the while staining your hands with whatever cheapo colorant was used to disguise the turd. I understand the race to the bottom with cutthroat price competition but to make a product so cheaply that it doesn't even work right off the assembly line is....amazing.

Holy moly did this make me laugh. Sadly, spot spot on. You left out the part about them having to borrow your tools because they show up with only one flat-head screwdriver, heedless of the type of job. Um, no doubt there are some real craftsmen here. But they are always in hiding. My apologies to my brother and sister Thai folk. To be fair, if I had grown up here, I'm sure I would operate in the same manner. That is, it's a cultural phenom and not a genetic disposition. I will hazard that it's a feature of most every country with a hot climate like Thailand. Prob not the only factor but certainly part of it.

It was all more exciting 20 years ago and I was, too.

Thanks so much, Vinny. And kudos to the guy that posted that. Good info for all of us in this here boat full of holes. Cheers!

Hmmmm so...HCMC off the list and only Savannakhet remains. For how long? Don't walk, run. Thanks for the update. This is very helpful to me.

Think I'll just do Savannakhet again. They mention financials on the HCMC page and though not sure if that means 400k or just 20k. Anyway, just thought another trip to HCMC might be fun but the main thing is to get the visa so I'll do a trip to HCMC on my own time. Thanks for the input, Vinny.

Can I jump in here, fellas? My ME Non-O is due to expire in about 3 weeks (already at 15 months). I know the drill pretty much for Savannakhet. I haven't heard much mention recently about HCMC. I got one there before Covid prob over 5 years ago now. Are they still running just like Savannakhet for Non-O? That is, no funds necessary? (I, too, have run into issues with Wise not showing as international and the credit advice didn't help). Lastly, does this also sound copacetic....? Going back to the US just before visa runs out. Come back in and get a 30 day stamp at airport. And in that 30 day window make my way to Savannakhet or HCMC to get a new ME Non-O based on marriage? Thanks!

The woman is bad news. It occurred to me....was this a dark theater and the footage is from an infrared camera? It kind of looks like it. I don't care to defend her, however, if it was indeed dark, at least the groping wasn't quite as blatant and obvious as it seems in the vid. I haven't seen that mentioned anywhere.

He said "and spend money"? The turnaround thing has been going on forever so no surprise for the agents. If they were interested in folks spending money in Laos they wouldn't let people pay the visa fee without getting a visa. I think the agent was just making up an excuse. You still pay a visa fee/Laos still gets the visa money whether they issue one or not (or someone gets it). I still don't understand why they won't take USD and do the same thing...just giving a stamp and sending you back. Hmm...perhaps since 1800 baht is more than $40, they're just trying to get the larger pay-out. And if someone insists on paying $40 USD (and that's an official rule/rate), they don't want to argue the point and possibly get any higher-ups involved thus they revert back to official visa procedure. The real reason doesn't really matter....just fun to ruminate on.

Take the $40, don't issue the visa. Take the 1800 baht, don't issue the visa.

They could take $40, too. ...It would seem to me. Plenty of places to change it.

Not picking a fight or anything, just musing.... I wonder if this is true, as stated. It's oft repeated, yes. But maybe the cart is before the horse...or something like that. The reason Thai's supposedly don't want to do that sort of work is because it pays so damn little. And the reason it pays so little is because there is foreign labor available, made up of hungrier, worse-off folks who are willing to do it because they don't have better opportunities. If the foreign workers were excluded/prohibited, either the work wouldn't get done or the remuneration would go up. Perhaps to a living wage. This is the same story everywhere in the world. It's all about the money. A friend of mine studied to be a nurse at the most basic level. Not a super skilled position but not laying bricks, either. The hospital in Bkk where she did her internship, that was very happy with her, offered her a job. The pay was 12k per month. Working 6 days a week, 10-12 hour days. This is in Bangkok, mind you. What kind of life does that get you? The pay here in Chiang Mai at a nursing home was only 7k/month. What burns me up is there are labor laws, minimum wage laws, amount of break-time laws, but so many businesses don't seem to follow them. And the workers don't seem to complain. Nor do the authorities seem to do anything. Did you folks know that when a waiter/waitress breaks a glass at MK restaurant (and inevitably, glasses will get broken in a restaurant), they have to pay for the glass out of their 38 baht/hour salary? Shameful.

I wonder what they're up to? I can't figure the game. Anyone? If you paid them in 40 in USD they could certainly change it. Not sure the USD/Kip rate but black market is much higher than the official, I know that much. But I suppose they would get less than 1800 baht of Kip? Hmm, what's the Baht/Kip exchange rate? Does that make any sense?

Congrats, Lolothai. Did you show a KR2? I've never shown one but it's talked about a lot on here.

First part of your post was nice and I will check those. I have heard they both do a nice spread, now that you mention it. Googling Chiang Mai buffet turns up little to nothing of value unless you like PITA or are searching for shabu. Plus, we don't only come here for info but to converse in the modern style.

The drink was an add on. Now drink minus 1k.

The buffet I first talked about at La Favola, and would like to find again, does not have luke-warm food hanging around. It's a fancy place and if you don't like the temp of the food you can tell them. There were a lot of food stations where things would be made to order. Carving stations, pizza station, pasta station. Seafood with oysters, shrimp, etc.... Desert station. They would come around with various small plates or to dish out pasta, etc... There was a separate room with artisanal cheeses and charcuterie, breads and crackers, dried fruits and nuts. The setting is lovely and you don't go wearing your sleeveless-tee and sandals. And if you paired it with the free-flow drink, you had your choice of sparkling, white, and red wines (not out of a box) and various mixed cocktails with high-end liquor. Everything was not perfect but it made for a fun "event" every once and a while. Worth the 2k splurge if you can spare it. As mentioned, it's a nice break from the usual routine (for me) and feels like I've taken a mini trip somewhere. Cheers all.

Thank you. I've heard they do a pretty good spread. I will give it a go!

I'll have a look, Hummin, thank you!