thaibreaker
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Phuket’s ‘Russian invasion’ – they’re here to stay
thaibreaker replied to webfact's topic in Phuket News
As I said, Belgians are mostly a sane and reasonable people. Except a few, obviously. With your CV, it's quite impressive to end up where you are now. In Norway we also do have a few of you guys, who see Ukrainian nazis on broad daylight, and support invasions, rape and kidnapping of kids, terror bombings of civilians, and so on. That makes me ashamed. Luckily you are too few to matter. But be careful what you wish for. Ww3 may be darn real, and that won't be pleasant for those who have chosen to side with Russia. It won't be pleasant for anyone. -
Phuket’s ‘Russian invasion’ – they’re here to stay
thaibreaker replied to webfact's topic in Phuket News
The Russian troll factory is working on all 4 cylinders. Wow! I will try not to make Belgium a no visit country for me, but this was hard to read. I always looked at Belgians as sane and reasonable people, but what on god's green earth was this .. Probably not a Belgian at all. -
You certainly can. But you must use a VPN connected to your home country, and give them an address (can be any, a friend's or a family member's), and a phone number. You will even get your physical card sent to your door in Thailand by DHL, if you say you're on a vacation there, if they ask. Been there, done that. I opened an account while in Thailand. Then you're good to go.
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Here is where the confusion lies. You can indeed extend all 3 visa exempts with 30 days, so you'll get 60 days x 3. So there isn't any 90 days maximum in 180 days at all. It's just obviously interpreted that way by some embassies and consulates (this is the first immigration officer I have heard of doing it too), if you don't use the 30 days extensions. They don't actually write or tell you that you can extend the 60 days visas within a METV either with 30 days. Just look it up. They don't say. But everyone knows you can do it on every entry. There is no maximum stay of 90 days in a 180 days period. That is just not a rule they ever enforce, nor does it exist today. Some web sites just haven't deleted it from back to when it was scrapped 15 years ago. Even back then it was very short lived.
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Baht bus from Jomtien nightmarket to Central festival Pattaya
thaibreaker replied to Nillerille's topic in Pattaya
Agree, but it is safe to ask the driver if it's already full of people. Then the cost is 10 baht no matter what. Otherwise, just hop on it, and never say a thing. They all go the same way and route, with rare exceptions. Even then, just get off and hop on the next. -
Agent advice needed
thaibreaker replied to Hellfire's topic in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits
OP, there is no way any agent will help you get an extension based on retirement before you are 50 years old. No way. They can help you with anything else, but not that. 50 years is the limit, even for agents. I understand you have some time left before you pass that milestone. After that, you are good to go. Agents will do everything for you, for a price. All stamps are legal. -
I have enough to help him
thaibreaker replied to Puppa's topic in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits
This guy from the outside brought the money I guess. But right outside of IDC they have an ATM, so escorted by an immigration officer, they'll let you use that one. Also, when you are fined at the prison where you appear in front of a judge, you will be escorted to an ATM there too, so you can pay the fine. I was escorted there. I was also allowed to be escorted to the ATM at IDC too, so I could get some drinks. There is a small shop for beverages and other light stuff you need, at the premises there. You could do that at your two weekly hours of fresh air. The queue was very long though... Btw, one should not count on paying their way out of an arrest. This might have been only for this contact they obviously already had with this outside (black) man. It was also more than a decade ago, so it might not be that easy today. -
I have enough to help him
thaibreaker replied to Puppa's topic in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits
Thanks 🙏 Btw, it might have interest for some how I was arrested. I came out of a mall in the centre of Bangkok after watching a movie, "The Equalizer". On my way walking back to my hotel, I was randomly confronted by two immigration officers. They asked to see my passport. It was completely random, since I didn't know anyone in this area. No one reported me. I was alone, staying in a hotel, waiting for my flight out of Thailand the next day, in fact. Didn't get that far... I said I didn't have the pp with me, but they asked for my name (which I told them), so they called it in for a computer check. They then discovered I was on overstay. Luckily I was driven to my hotel, so I could pick up my luggage and stuff. They don't always do that, I was told, so be aware. The back of this pickup was loaded with overstaying black people, handcuffed together. I was the only white person in that truck. We were driven to an immigration police office connected to IDC, where these black people were offered to pay a bribe for their release. A person from outside came to their rescue, and must have paid up, so a few of them were released. I didn't have the 60.000 baht or so they wanted, nor did I want to pay a bribe, so I went through the picture sequence with a couple of officers. You know the drill. Bragging about how they caught an overstayer I guess. The rest of us, were brought to the prison section, and to a temporary room on the ground floor, awaiting our time in front of a judge. Maybe this is of interest, the bribe thing actually shocked me, but these black people had contacts. They obviously knew who to call when they got there. Maybe this had occured several times before, it seemed that way. Anyway, the rest of the story you already know. -
I have enough to help him
thaibreaker replied to Puppa's topic in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits
I can give it a try. We were "stewed away", around 70 people in one big room, room 7 at IDC, after being taken to the judge and got our fine, two days after we got to a temporary room. At room 7 we got one tiny blanket to lie on, straight on the concrete floor, and got about 60 cm space or so, beside your "neighbour". We were of course stripped of phones, luggage (went into a store room) and such, so no contact possible with people on the outside. The food was terrible, some cucumber and rice 3 times a day. Spicy. I hardly ate at all. The lights were on 24 hours a day, no daylight, so the only sense of time was a clock on the wall. Very hard to sleep. Two times a week, for one hour, we were let out to a room downstairs to stretch our legs, or play some ball. A little daylight there, not much. That was it. Otherwise you were locked up 24/7, in these horrendous conditions. if one catched a cold or a flu, everyone probably got it. I was held there for 10 days until my embassy came to talk with me. I almost went nuts before that time. First then I could arrange for my release and ticket home, even having the funds all along. Deported on day 14. After my ticket was purchased, I was called up a few hours before the flight, collecting my stuff, and was driven to Suvarnabhumi. Usually in handcuffs I was told, but I wasn't. Had a terrible cold when I left, and my body was hurting after two weeks lying straight on the floor. The immigration officer escorted me through check-in, via their immigration office at the airport for some papers, and stamped my passport, and then escorted me to the boarding of my flight. Not a pleasant stay, that's for sure. Can't imagine how people survived being held in that same room for many years. Like one Korean, and two Chinese men were. -
I have enough to help him
thaibreaker replied to Puppa's topic in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits
I can't speak for today's practice, but back then, a decade ago, everyone got this same experience. The section you post, is just a text that has been unchanged for a long, long time. Same text back then. Practice was this same for all, if you were sent to IDC in Bangkok. They have a court system other places also, like for instance at Koh Samui, so the fine might be given elsewhere. Rules are the same though. -
I have enough to help him
thaibreaker replied to Puppa's topic in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits
Not true. Many foreigners actually can't pay that fine, and they serve that time in another prison than IDC. Then end up back there, when that serving is finished.