Johnny99

I was recently at Suksawat Immigration for my 90 day report and specifically asked the officer about the need to report as I would be leaving Thailand in 96 days. He said, "No need, you have 7 days extra." I do not intend to report before I leave.

good on him....all americans are brain washed by their gov and are shovel fed crap every day....finally one of them coped on to their police state and self determined new world order, he only has shown them to be two faced hypocrites....give him a medal

Yes, that's a great idea. He only committed espionage.

Great topic. My (Thai) wife and I own and operate a small business here in Thailand supplying wholesale products to Thai pharmacies. I am the business owner and she is the sales staff (& bookkeeper, etc). Starting out, the only way we could compete with other larger companies, who were offering essentially the same products and were there first, was to provide a better quality of service. It really wasn't very difficult to stand out from the competition as customer service and quality control are virtually unknown here.

A few of our customer care policies are:

1) To have a pleasant and knowledgeable person answer the phone whenever a customer calls, including after hours. Usually my wife or our (adult) daughter. We don't use a receptionist or answering machine. This policy insures that our customers know that when they call us they will be able to place their order with no time wasting call backs or conversations with staff who are unable to help them.

2) We cheerfully accept returns of products that the customer has difficulty in selling with a 100% money back guarantee. This policy allows us to introduce new products that the customer might otherwise be reluctant to try out and also increases bulk sales to those who would like to take advantage of our promotions but are afraid of getting stuck with products that might go past the expiration date. If promotion products are partially returned we simply recalculate the original sale.

3) We treat each of our customers on an individual basis with regard to credit terms, difficult deliveries, special promotions and seasonal gifts.

Our level of customer service is one of the main reasons that we are still operating a successful business here today.

My wife and I own a box van that we only use occasionally. Most of the time it is parked next to the last attached house on our street and just sits there for a couple of weeks or more. Twice we found that the A/C was not working were told that "animals", I guess rats, had eaten through some wiring. It was an inconvenience to drive with no A/C and also costly to get it fixed each time. After the second time it happened we started putting moth balls under the hood, here and there, around the engine and it seems to have solved the problem. Of course, it's probably only a good solution if you don't use your vehicle every day.

Black squid ink fettuccine (from Makro) with garlic, olive oil, anchovies and finely chopped broccoli. Seasoned with oregano and basil that we grow in pots on the roof.

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for a gas stove, even repair shops have no clue, then get a new one. just for the safety and a peace of mind. that few thousand baht spending is worth, IMHO.

you may consider buying the exact Fagor model, then keep the existing one just in case spare part is needed in the future.

That's a good idea. I think it'll be more than a few thousand baht. My wife seems to remember paying 7000B and that was just 3 years ago. Oh well...

Buy a new one,we live in a throw away society I'm afraid,things ain't built to last and people don't seem to want to repair things any more.

You're probably right. Just seems like such a needless waste.

I've got a Fagor gas stove top and one of the burners won't keep a flame. The local repair shops have no clue. I sent it to Amorn Electronic Center in Chinatown but they took a look and didn't have the right parts. Fagor has no repair shop in Bangkok.

Anyone know of a good repair shop that can fix this sort of appliance? If I can't get a good lead here I'm about ready to throw in the towel and just go buy a new one. Thanks.

There's a massive public car park, entry North East exit of Ekamai BTS.

Thanks, I'll check it out.

Some good ideas but driving a 110 scooter to Pattaya? No thanks :-)

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Some good ideas but driving a 110 scooter to Pattaya? No thanks :-)

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Just get a taxi to the bus station or are you too cheap for such an expense?

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Next door, secure scooter storage 30 baht a day

Where exactly? Could you be a little more specific?

I'm planning to take the bus to Pattaya for the weekend and would like to ride my scooter to the Ekkamai bus station but no idea where I can park the bike for a couple of days. I once parked the bike for the day only with the lady with the small parking area at the bus station but she told me that I couldn't leave it over night. Anyone know of a condo or office building where I can park and either pay or tip the attendant? Thanks.

The 15 day stamp entry by land, or, the 30 day entry by air (whatever you want to call it) can be upgraded to a Non-Imm retirement visa at Phuket immigration without leaving the country as long as all other requirements are fulfilled.

These are the 800K for two to three months and a letter from your bank, plus photocopies of pages from your passport and your bank-book.

Almost KB. It will ( entry stamp for 30/15 day stay ) allow you to obtain a non-immigrant "O" visa which will support your application

for an visa extension ( valid for 1 year ) on the grounds of retirement, in my case without leaving the country.

Yep..From embassy site;

Application for an initial non-immigrant visa from the Thai embassy or consulate in your home country or country of residence. Once you have entered Thailand you will have to apply for the one year extension of your visa at the immigration office of your location. Please note that you will have to wait to be in Thailand for 60 days before to file your retirement application at the immigration office or you must have at least 21 days left in your current permit to stay. Providing that you fulfill all the conditions and provide all the documents required (including a proof of address in Thailand) you will be granted by the Immigration a one year extension and permitted to stay in Thailand for 1 year.

The foreigner on a visa exemption stamp or a tourist visa can obtain a retirement visa given that the foreigner already met the requirements for the non-immigrant O visa and for the one year extension application. The visa applications can be done at the immigration office in Thailand.

Well, it does look nice on paper but at Chaeng Wattana they were ADAMANT about not accepting the entry stamp on a visa exempt entry and it kinda did make sense when they explained that I didn't actually have a visa. Anyway, I'm planning to never let this happen to me again.

I had to leave Thailand and go to a Thai embassy to get a 60 day tourist visa in order to start the process with a proper VISA. As luck would have it I had a short trip planned just before my 30 day VISA EXEMPT STAMP expired.

In stead of applying for a tourist visa you could of course also have applied for a retirement visa.

I was in Singapore and the only visa they would issue was a tourist visa, no non-immigrant O and no retirement visa. Besides, I thought you could only apply for a retirement visa in Thailand. Isn't that correct?

Karen Bravo - In answer to your original post (and I did read the entire discussion) the Immigration helpers are 100% wrong.

This exact scenario just happened to me a couple of months ago. I was leaving Thailand with an almost expired retirement visa and short on time at the airport so I did not stop off at re-entry permit desk in the airport immigration hall for fear that I would miss my flight. I thought that I could simply re-apply for a new retirement visa when I returned to Thailand the following week. What a mistake that was!!!

I found out the "hard way" that an entry stamp is not a visa. I was told by the official Immigration staff at Chaeng Wattana that they could not convert my entry stamp into a 90 day non-immigrant O (the first step toward the year long extension) because I HAD NO VISA TO CONVERT.

So, as it turns out, making a wasted trip to Chaeng Wattana was the least of it. I had to leave Thailand and go to a Thai embassy to get a 60 day tourist visa in order to start the process with a proper VISA. As luck would have it I had a short trip planned just before my 30 day VISA EXEMPT STAMP expired.

If anyone thinks that they can get a retirement visa with an entry stamp only, please go to your local Immigration office and then let us know how you did it because it is not a visa so it cannot be done.

Here is some meeting info for AA in Pattaya and a couple of phone numbers. http://www.aathailand.org/schedpatybreakfast.html

AA has helped many to get their lives together. Good Luck.

Wow, you guys are a tough crowd. How do you judge a guy you know nothing about? He looks a lot like the Farang my wife and I saw on Beach Road and Soi 8 at 7 AM a couple of weeks ago. We were in search of a cup of coffee at that hour of the morning. It seems to be "the crack of dawn" in Pattaya. After striking out at restaurants and cafes we were forced to resort to instant coffee and packaged croissants from 7/11 and then took a short walk across beach road to sit on the stone bench and enjoy our breakfast.

We were treated to the sight and smell of a half nude filthy Farang who was clearly delusional or drunk or both. He stank to high heaven and had sores and some kind of white powder on his legs and the bald spot on his head and he looked a lot like the guy in the photo. He didn't bother us and we were just amazed that a Farang could be in that condition and still roaming the streets of Pattaya. When his toothless idiot Thai friend sat next to us smoking a cigarette we got up and left.

If it was the same guy I'm happy to see that he is getting some help and, to be honest, that the general public does not have to be subjected to his unsanitary condition. Anyway, you gotta feel sorry for those who cannot keep their shit together. Some of us can and others simply cannot.

Based on their last experience, they should have gone somewhere else for the port of call...and given another nation their money. Too bad.

What other "nation" in the area has what Thailand has to offer? It's the perfect place for R&R, either Phuket or Pattaya, relatively safe and plenty to keep the guys occupied. What 20 year old guy wouldn't love it?

you think a single member of the entire cast of Hangover II had a work permit?

Yes, I do. Foreign productions, especially big budget ones, are meticulous about adhering to the rules and regulations of Thailand. They will usually have on staff a Thai "immigration liaison" working in the production office to obtain work permits for foreign crew and cast members. Anyone that the production company brings to Thailand is always issued a work permit that is good for the run of the show.

I must say i hate the long, long walk from plane to pick up my bags - what genius thought of that one? and signage is terrible

Yes, it felt like a kilometer from the plane to Immigration when I arrived last month, seriously.

Sounds like he might have been drunk.

Alcohol is not the problem. It's the person who drinks it who's the problem.

A lot of people like drinking; this is a stone cold fact. So instead of asking for the impossible, ask for the realistic. 'Drink responsibly' But at the end of the day, if someone wants to drink a lot, that's up to them.

Hi rkidlad - Yes, it is the person who drinks and that's why asking an alcoholic to drink responsibly IS asking for the impossible. Alcoholics are not "social drinkers" who can have a couple of beers and go home. Whether intentionally or unintenionally we usually drink to oblivion. We call it the disease of acoholism.

By coming together to support each other in AA it is possible to live a sober life "one day at a time". I have been a "satsified customer" for over a decade and I wouldn't have the life I have today if it weren't for AA.

BTW, my wife is Thai so I find myself at many social gatherings in Thailand where alcohol is available. Anyone who has spent time here can attest that Thai people drinking too much is a problem in Thailand.

AA meetings in Thailand are available in both Thai and English. You can search the Internet for the website under "AA Thailand".

It all sounds pretty weird. An expat with a house in Phuket Town is wanted for murder with a 50000 Baht reward on his head and no one knows anything? With all of the nosy people in Thailand and the fact that not many Foreigners wear full beards I'm surprised there's not a run on the local police station with information on any bearded suspect at all. Even if there was only one 35 year old Western guy in Phuket with a full beard he would surely come under suspicion not matter how reclusive he tried to be. Makes me wonder - if he is the murderer, could it have been a premeditated act by a guy wearing a fake beard? Or have I been watching too many re-runs of Columbo? Anyway, if a bearded guy did suddenly shave off his beard, I doubt if any of the workers in the local 7/11 or noodle shop would notice, they'd probably think it was just a different Farang. Oh well...I hope the police can solve this case. My guess is that she met the wrong person on her way home after she left the Farang.