TallGuyJohninBKK

So for your experience at BKK CW, are you saying it was a two-step process? First have to deal with transferring your extension of stay at that section, and then separately had to go to the re-entry permit section to get that stamp transferred as well? It's been like a decade since the last time I had to do this at BKK CW... But my vague recollection of my experience long ago was that it was all done in one step at the extensions section and by the officers there...

Were you there recently? If so, how was the general international transit experience there now, compared to what it was pre EVA's transit shutdown?

Anyone been out or around BKK CW Immigration in the past couple days? Any info if there's any impact there, either on their operations or access to the area, from the flooding that's apparently occurring in the Laksi area?

From your link regarding the new 2nd gen Moderna vaccine: "The European Medicines Agency therefore decided that the benefits of Spikevax, including its adapted vaccine, are greater than its risks, and it can be authorised for use in the EU. Spikevax has been given ‘conditional marketing authorisation’. ." 01/09/2022 Recommendation to authorise Spikevax bivalent Original/Omicron BA.1, a vaccine targeting the original SARS-CoV-2 and the Omicron BA.1 subvariant, for use as a booster in people aged 12 years and older who have received at least primary vaccination against COVID 19."

Seems like we're not reading the same Guardian article, based on your single sentence quote... You seem to have ignored the rest of the article, such as: "The decision to reduce the number of children who are offered Covid jabs has prompted outcry from parent groups and academics." AND "Prof Christina Pagel, of University College London, criticised the move.... “There is also the additional benefit to children of providing additional protection from developing long Covid, missing school during the acute illness and reducing transmission to household members, other children and teachers.” “When we know there is a safe and effective vaccine available this seems unjustifiable to me,” said Pagel, adding that – while rare – children had died from Covid.

The deaths of young children from COVID are pretty rare, though some have occurred in Thailand. However, dying from COVID isn't the only reason to consider vaccination for young people, as explained in the following: Life as a young person with long COVID: “You go through so many phases of up and down, it’s like being on a rollercoaster forever” ... "In March 2020 Kitty McFarland was a fit and healthy 14-year-old. She enjoyed ballet, paddleboarding, running and netball. Then she contracted COVID-19. ... About a month later the pair attempted some very light exercise, but the relapse Kitty suffered left her bedbound for the next eight months. “I mainly felt dizzy and exhausted. I would faint a lot and get heart palpitations; I could be just sitting around, and my heart would suddenly leap to 190 beats a minute,” says Kitty. She also developed a gluten intolerance and acute abdominal pain that caused her to faint and required several hospital stays." https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/30-08-2022-life-as-a-young-person-with-long-covid---you-go-through-so-many-phases-of-up-and-down--it-s-like-being-on-a-rollercoaster-forever

In the one confirmed myo case in the Thai students study, I believe they did follow-up exams sufficient to determine there was NO lingering after-effects, and indicated such in their paper.

If I were a person in my late teens or 20s, I'd opt for the Pfizer vaccine over the Moderna vaccine... because the science and research supports that choice. Even though as the Thai study above involving students explains, all of the cases where they found any vaccine side effects had short-term effects and all recovered quickly and fully.

Yes, and their full finding of that study was: "the risk of myocarditis associated with the vaccine was lower than the risk associated with COVID-19 infection before or after vaccination – with one exception. Men under 40 who received a second dose of the Moderna vaccine had a higher risk of myocarditis following vaccination." Rare myocarditis cases associated with COVID vaccinated typically have been mild and short-term. People usually recover fully and quickly. COVID death, they don't recover from.

Here's the greater risk people need to be worried about, per the U.S. CDC, and it's for the UNvaccinated -- not the vaccinated. 14 times greater risk of dying from COVID among the age 50+ group who are UNvaccinated, vs those vaccinated with two booster shots or better. Source link

The wife and I may be planning a trip back to the U.S. toward the end of the year -- first time outside of Thailand since COVID began nearly 3 years ago.... And looking for any recommendations / experiences from anyone who's gone TH - U.S. lately, under the new, relaxed COVID rules. I used to always default to EVA Air with their Taipei layover followed by one of their West Coast destinations. But they were out of U.S. travel from Thailand for a long time, not allowing international transit via Taipei because of COVID. So it's been a long time since I took them, their prices I checked lately seemed quite high, and I have no idea what the current lay of the land for travel to the U.S. is with the various carriers. Any recent experiences / recommendations for a reasonably pleasant, affordable journey? PS - I should have mentioned above, I'm a TALL guy who needs seat legroom, but don't fancy shelling out for business class... So I typically look for airlines where I can somehow get the emergency exit row seating in economy.