triffid

2 hours ago, mogandave said:

The woven bamboo baskets?


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

Thanks for the idea which may well work, provided the weave was tight - so maybe a rush/reed rather than bamboo - and the basket had a covering top to it.

I posted this also in 'international food' and am putting a copy of the text below, just in case....

I always go to a dentist called Chadathip. Curious that her name hasn't cropped up and wondering if I could have done a lot better. Who's their best dentist for measuring up and getting sets of false teeth, I wonder......may be doing that soon enough.

Just tell the receptionist at Elite Dr Min, she's really good. She did my crowns after root canals, but also a friends complicated denture and he hasn't had a problem.

Sometimes people use their Thai names, sometimes their nicknames.

So often, if you have a specific name, then google it or go on a dentist's website.

Remember dentist's in Chiang Mai often work in several places, so if they're not available in one they might be in another.

Turned out Min and Chadathip are one and the same

I always go to a dentist called Chadathip. Curious that her name hasn't cropped up and wondering if I could have done a lot better. Who's their best dentist for measuring up and getting sets of false teeth, I wonder......may be doing that soon enough.

5) What I wanted to establish if I could before I commit to non-refundable advance ticket/hotel room is that there are no rigid

Thai or VN airport immigration rules on a minimum number of available blank pages; or if someone here had run into

uncooperative immigration officers who refused to put stamps in available spaces even if they are in previous pages.

If you haven't yet entered into any commitments for your Vietnam trip then why not simply postpone it until you have got your replacement passport sorted? That's certainly what I would be minded to do were I in your shoes!

I want to join a friend who is booked on specific days next month - much sooner than the six weeks it would take me to get a new passport.

Thank you very much for the responses. I'd like to reply to the various points together below.

1) There is a clear half-page below the visa extension for the re-entry visa, which I intend to get at Bkk airport. [As mentioned

above, UK - and most European - passports don't need a visa for stays up to 15 days in VN.]

2) Elsewhere in the preceding pages there is definitely space for the four smallish Thai and VN entry/exit stamps.

[Actually there is also a big other blank space where a Cambodian visa which had been stuck on has fallen off, but the Thai

immigration officer, when he was putting the retirement stamp, refused to use it. But if the entry/exit stamps could be put

there I'll be home and dry.]

3) I have no good excuse for having left it so late - absentmindedness, senility.....take your pick!

4) The idea of a second passport is something I didn't know about. I'll give the consulate a ring tomorrow to ask first if

that's feasible given I don't have certifiable business reasons, business letter etc, and if so whether it could be

done in under three weeks. (I note the caveat above that it could be difficult.)

5) What I wanted to establish if I could before I commit to non-refundable advance ticket/hotel room is that there are no rigid

Thai or VN airport immigration rules on a minimum number of available blank pages; or if someone here had run into

uncooperative immigration officers who refused to put stamps in available spaces even if they are in previous pages.

My (UK) passport is pretty much full.

I've got a (current) thai retirement visa extension stamp on the top half of the last remaining full page of my passport; I intend to get a multiple re-entry stamped on the lower half at Suvarnaphum as I leave Bangkok (for a few days in Hanoi).

There is space a few pages back for the usual Thai exit and entry stamps; there is also space here and there for the usual Vietnam entry and exit stamps. (A British citizen is exempted from the need for a Vietnam visa for stays up to 15 days - and there is space for the 15-day limit Vietnamese stamp).

My query is as to whether immigration will kick up a fuss - either Thai or Vietnamese. I would much appreciate any info from someone with experience of such a situation or with certain knowledge about it.

(As soon as I get back to Thailand I shall send off for a new passport. But for now there is not enough time to get that before my planned travel.)

A terrific new find for those in the Bangkok or even Pattaya area.

Eastern Bangkok Veterinary Surgical Center AKA Parichart Suminthawong Animal Hospital

It is a very well equipped facility staffed by vets on the faculty of Kasetsart and Mahodol Vet Hospitals/Faculties

No website but they are on Facebook

My local vet referred me there as my dog had an oral tumor. It was much more convenient/fast than going to Kasetsart, vastly less expensive than Thonglor and did an excellent job.

They are in the Minburi/Lat Krabang area (airport vicinity) on Soi Kom Klao 11. Just a short distance into the Soi and before you enter the Mu Ban.

I was able to arrange through my local Vet to get the pre-op blood work done locally and bring it with me so that we were able to arrange for immediate surgery with just one trip, would suggest anyone else coming from afar do likewise. Most local vets will know who they are as it is well known among Vets in Thailand.

This is the staff:

20151004_175246#1.jpg

My dog was treated by Dr. Wannasit ("Tony") who rrained in the UK and speaks English very fluently.

I want to contact this clinic but unfortunately you omitted to give a number and I can't find it in the Facebook search. Greatly appreciate anyone helping out with contact info for the clinic.

Tel.: 02-5576608-9, 080-4993265

Line ID: parichartsah

https://www.facebook.com/psahospital/

Thanks, Nienke. The fb site is in Thai - which for me is a problem but it's a start. For the moment though I've had the cat seen by another vet, also with Kasesart teaching credentials

A terrific new find for those in the Bangkok or even Pattaya area.

Eastern Bangkok Veterinary Surgical Center AKA Parichart Suminthawong Animal Hospital

It is a very well equipped facility staffed by vets on the faculty of Kasetsart and Mahodol Vet Hospitals/Faculties

No website but they are on Facebook

My local vet referred me there as my dog had an oral tumor. It was much more convenient/fast than going to Kasetsart, vastly less expensive than Thonglor and did an excellent job.

They are in the Minburi/Lat Krabang area (airport vicinity) on Soi Kom Klao 11. Just a short distance into the Soi and before you enter the Mu Ban.

I was able to arrange through my local Vet to get the pre-op blood work done locally and bring it with me so that we were able to arrange for immediate surgery with just one trip, would suggest anyone else coming from afar do likewise. Most local vets will know who they are as it is well known among Vets in Thailand.

This is the staff:

20151004_175246#1.jpg

My dog was treated by Dr. Wannasit ("Tony") who rrained in the UK and speaks English very fluently.

I want to contact this clinic but unfortunately you omitted to give a number and I can't find it in the Facebook search. Greatly appreciate anyone helping out with contact info for the clinic.

You can only apply for the income letter by mail to the UK embassy in Bangkok, See: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-obtain-a-pensionincome-letter-for-thai-immigration

Thank you. I shall be looking into it pronto.

Thanks to the latest three responses - ojas, elviajero & jpinx. Based on them I am much encouraged. I'll have a shot at another extension of my retirement and the multiple re-entry as usual but now with the income, not the 3-mth deposit.

I shall get together my two thai banks' statements going back a year. They will show amounts of well in excess of the 65k baht mentioned coming in every month (so much in excess that even if the embassy expresses the amount on pounds immigration will probably realize it's more than 65k baht - but I'll keep the baht statements too.) I shall then approach the British embassy for the letter.

I live in Chiangmai. So it will be best if I can do as much as possible from here. (There is an honorary consul here but I doubt that the Bkk embassy will allow him any authority but maybe he will be allowed to authenticate the statements and so smooth the path a bit.) Can anyone please tell me something about the practicalities, e.g.: whom/how precisely to get the process going once I have the statements in hand? how much in advance of my visa expiry (6 March) I could start the embassy-application process? I'd like to get going asap.

Again, many thanks.

Your investment income, etc, are perfectly valid income streams. You can use the various banks statements to get the information, make a summary for your embassy and they will confirm the last 6 months of income (or a year if you have that far back).

Edit to add -- it is not important where the banks are -- UK, Thailand, EU, where-ever, -- it's only money coming in to accounts in your name that are interesting to them.

This is most interesting.

So if I produce bank statements (my thai banks, say) going back six months or a year showing money coming in and a healthy average balance the Consulate might give me the necessary letter? In effect the consulate is willing to take a sensible look at the statements whereas thai immigration have a rigid rule saying 'we only look for a steady 800k balance for the last 3 months - and don't care what the statement as a whole shows'.

Thanks for that info.

Grateful if Ubonjoe would clarify for me this comment he made

"No problem to apply for a tourist visa prior to your extension ends since it will be invalid a soon as you leave the country. The only problem you could have is if you have a valid re-entry permit when you enter the country."

I didn't understand what "will be invalid as soon as I leave" and how exactly the "problem" arises.

Your extension of stay ends any time you leave the country. It is reinstated if you enter using a re-entry permit.

The problem you could have with a valid re-entry permit would be the officer used it on entry instead of the tourist visa.

Understood, and thanks for clarifying. If I find myself entering in that situation I suppose I should ask the official not to do that.

Grateful if Ubonjoe would clarify for me this comment he made

"No problem to apply for a tourist visa prior to your extension ends since it will be invalid a soon as you leave the country. The only problem you could have is if you have a valid re-entry permit when you enter the country."

I didn't understand what "will be invalid as soon as I leave" and how exactly the "problem" arises.

Thanks again for the full and very helpful information and advice. Let me be more explicit about my constraints and what they stem from.

1) I needed the 800k in the thai bank a/c and have already taken it out. So in effect I've already forfeited the possibility of getting an extension on my retirement visa at its expiry on 6 March (less than 3 months away.)

2) For various reasons primarily related to my having spent my working life overseas I have capital/cash/investment but virtually no UK steady income - so the regular monthly income route is not open to me.

3) I live on the investment income from my stocks/shares which feed into my thai and other asian bank accounts, but just now I needed the 800k that I'd had on deposit here so took it out, so willy-nilly I can't now apply for an extension even if I had the 800k as there isn't time for a 3-mth depo before 6 March.

4) Come the summer I expect to have more than enough to make the 3-month deposit of 800k if I do decide to revert to my current modus operandi of having a retirement visa and multiple re-entry annually extended/renewed.

5) The question is, given my constraints, how best to manage my comings and goings in Thailand for the next 6/7 months (post 6 March until when I already have the visa and re-entry).

I'm sort of committed to a fortnight's trip to Hanoi in February - which falls within the validity of my current retirement/re-entry visa.

One option I might pursue could be to be to leave Thailand again just before 6 March to a neighbouring country and return with an SETV, get it extended by a month, and then go to England around June. In England I could apply for a non OA 1-year visa at the Thai Embassy in London - I'm presuming I'll meet the financial requirement by showing requisite cash in my accounts in England and/or Thailand. Once in Thailand I could then revert to keeping that 1-year visa going with annual extensions, as I'm doing now.

A second option would be to leave Thailand just prior to 6 March and for a while come to Thailand only on SETV s - given that it doesn't bother me to keep my stays to less than 2-3 months.

Most probably I'll revert sometime in 2016 to the more settled arrangement of annual extensions, i.e. the first option. But in the meantime I'd very much appreciate comments, caveats or useful info on those alternative plans. (I'm sorry to tax the time/patience of members by going on about this, or where I have been repetitive or obtuse).

Appreciate the responses & clarifications so far. Based on that I plan the following regarding travel/visas in the coming years. I would greatly appreciate your comments or suggestions on this.

In the coming 12-18 months I do not expect to be in Thailand for more than 3 months at a time. Hence I did not want to tie up the 800k baht.

My retirement visa expires 6 March. Before that, in February, I plan to one of the neighbouring countries - most probably Hanoi - where I thought I'll try to get the SETV mentioned above. Will there be a problem with this if I apply before the retirement visa has expired on 6 March?

I will go out again before the next 3 months. If that is again to a neighbouring country I will again apply for the SETV.

The following trip - in the summer - will be to England and there I may well apply for the one year retirement visa. At its expiry, 18 months from today, I'll decide on my future applications - and may well revert to annual extensions (with the 800k deposit).

The fact is that I foresee spending no more than 60-70% of the year in Thailand, and that 60-70% could be broken into 3 month chunks without a problem. My base for the remaining 30-40% would be England. It seemed the visas plan I mention above would suit my circumstances best. Have I missed something in thinking so?

Many thanks for reading through this.

Thanks for the your rapid reply. To be sure I have your very interesting suggestion about getting the 1-year non O-A (retirement?) visa from the UK I will need to unpack it a bit and probably need to ask you a few questions of clarification.

But before I do that I had the following question about the tourist visa. You say "get tourist visas from the UK",

- does that imply that a UK national can't get a tourist visa upon arrival at Bkk airport?

- if so can't a UK national get the tourist visa from a thai consulate in a neighbouring country or Singapore?

- if the answer to my questions is 'yes' and 'no' respectively then what are the so-called 'visa runs'?

I ask because 1) my current retirement visa expires in March; 2) I'm planning a trip to the UK until early summer; whereas in Feb I want to make a trip in Asia and was thinking of getting a tourist visa of some sort for 3 months until my trip to the UK a couple of months later.

I've been here for six years on a retirement visa extended annually - current one expiring early march. I expect to travel out of Thailand for a week or so in February and throughout 2016 I will not be here for a continuous period of over 3 months.

I therefore decided not to put the requisite 800k on 3 mths deposit and intend to get a tourist visa for my trips (of 3 months or less) to Thailand. If a few years down the line I foresee wanting to stay for longer than 3 months at a time I would want to revert to a retirement visa.

Is there a problem, difficulty or hugely higher cost with this plan vs. my previous arrangement of an annually extended retirement & multiple re-entry? For instance will immigration frown or worse at my repeated entry as tourist?

I have a UK passport.

Just returned from a short trip to Europe (Belgium via CDG – Paris airport) with mixed feelings for the airline used. As many of you know I used to fly Oman Air almost exclusively but their schedule changes and price policies made me look somewhere else, in this case Srilankan Airlines, based on glowing reviews from some members of Thaivisa.

So here it goes :

Airline: Srilankan Airlines

Ticket Price: Baht 53.200,- (promotion)

How Purchased (direct, agent, wholesaler, etc): direct

Dates: 26.05.2015 return 30.05.2015

Class of Service: business

Route: BKK – CMB – CDG – CMB - BKK

Aircraft Type: 3 times A330-200 and 1 flight A330-300

Seat Configuration (i.e. 3/4/3) on A330-200 : 2/2/2 on A330-300 1/2/1

Stopover City (If any): Colombo

Check-in Location (good or bad?): BKK excellent – CDG good

Immigration (good or bad?): BKK excellent – CDG good

Excess Bag Fees (if any): No

Lounges Used: BKK – CIP lounge and CDG One World lounge (Salon Icare)

Limo Service Provided: no

In-flight Entertainment: poor

In-flight Cabin Service (good or bad?): excellent

Seat Comfort: on A330-200 good – on A33-300 very uncomfortable.

Food Quality: taste not to my liking so cannot judge the quality.

On Time Performance: good

Comments: plenty.

First of all I’m a wheelchair (WCHR) passenger and I have to say that the service at Suvarnabhumi is second to none, the service at CDG was very good on arrival less so on departure.

The service at Colombo was shambolic to say the least, ground staff is rude and unorganized, the lounge although recently refurbished is dismal, I had to remind the staff 2 times I was waiting for my wheelchair, and nearly missed the flight (doors closed immediately after I boarded).

And regarding the food, I dislike overly spiced food, I like to know and taste exactly what’s on my plate and the lamb curry and Tajine that I tried failed miserably. But that’s purely my personal tastebuds.

All in all notwithstanding the excellent service on board I will not fly with Srilankan ever again.

Yermanee

p.s. I don't understand what so many members here have against Suvarnabhumi. My experience tells me it outshines nearly all the airports that I know.

Could you elaborate just a little on a) the extreme discomfort of the seat on a330-300, and were all seats converted to flat beds? Thanks.

Just a small point of possible information to look out for the future.

I was told that the Arbus A380 was to be scheduled for this flight BA009 and BA010 from July this year but when I asked the cabin crew were not aware although they did say there was a rumour that this flight might be moving to London Gatwick in the future, if that is proved correct then whether there will be any flights from Heathrow to Bangkok by BA in the future may be in doubt.

If they use the A380 from Gatwick I'll def try BA. I much prefer Gatwick and its a little easier to travel there from East London

EVA still offer the convenient night flight but the B777 is quite noisy and the cabins are just starting to look a little bit tired.

Also worth checking out Finnair from europe to Bangkok. From London the journey time seems to be the shortest one stop there is. Helsinki airport is also very pleasant. This year i flew 2 relatives with Finnair on business class from Paris, amazing prices, around 1400 euros each and great service/flight.

Plus they will have the new A350's on theses routes by next year.

I looked several times for a good price bkk-paris-bkk and saw nothing anything like as low as 1400€ (equivalent in baht). I like Finnair too but looks like you were lucky with the fare.

Thanks for the responses.

I did of course understand the scope of a schengen visa. I suppose my query was: does a Schengen country consulate - if it issues a visa at all - issue only Schengen visas, or can it issue a visa which does not give rights of travel in other Schengen states.

The following sentence in Donutz's response I think will resolve my problem best:

'When you get the visa in the first line it will say " Valid for: SCHENGEN STATES" in the language fo the embassy (SCHENGENER STAATEN, ETAS SCHENGEN etc.). indicating that the visa is valid for all Schengen states.'

If I may ask what may seem an unnecessary question: Is every visa issued by the consulate of any Schengen-member country automatically a Schengen visa entitling the holder to movement within all member countries, or is there also a country-specific visa that obligates the holder to stay within the issuing country. My thai friend thinks the latter and that something more is required to have an 'upgraded' (French-Schengen) visa giving the right to go also to other Schengen countries. I think the former; but I cannot find a direct and simple statement in the French consulate FAQ or elsewhere that I can show her. I want to help her plan a holiday covering also places outside France - France being where she will arrive from TH and depart to TH.

I have a 3yr old 15" macbook pro, am iPad 2 and an iPhone 5. I want to buy a new 13" macbook pro. My old macbook has a lot of music which I copied from cd s. In future I intend to copy more music from cd s but mostly to the new macbook (using Apple's separate cd player/copier device). My problem/question is this.

1) How can I initially get the music on the old macbook to the new one?

2) How can I get cd s copied in future on my new macbook to the old one (ideally sync over air/wifi, but if need be by cable)?

3) Of course I would also want either macbook to sync stuff to my iPhone/ipad - dunno if this will be automatic.

4) And of course I would want my address book and photos to sync between both MacBook Pro s and iPhone/ipad

Am hoping most or all of this will be possible without too much hassle - given that I'm a non-tech oldie of advanced age!

Reading (most of) those responses rekindled a degree of hope, which I'll try to keep alive for a few weeks longer.

Well, well. It seems there are quite a few of us - and I'd previously heard nothing but reports of perfection on the thai postal service. I've pretty much written off a nice book/catalogue of a NYC exhibition that's now about a month overdue.