leftorright

Thanks elviajero, good to know.

I’m currently in the ‘under consideration’ period for an extension of stay based on marriage and have a re-entry permit that expires on 19/10/16 (the day I’m supposed to re-appear at Chaeng Wattana again).

I also have an overseas trip scheduled that brings me back to Thailand on 19/10/16 (Suvarnabhumi Airport), but probably too late on the day to make it to Chaeng Wattana before they close, meaning I will probably be there on the 20^th.

The immigration officer who handled my extension of stay application said this should all be OK and not jeopardize my extension of stay application, just as long as I re-enter Thailand no later than the 19^th.

While I trust she was knowledgeable, I'm not entirely without worries about the scenario. Does it, for instance, matter how immigration at the airport stamps me in (giving me one day on the re-entry permit or 28 on a visa-exempt)? And is it really OK to re-appear at Chaeng Wattana one day later than the stamp says?

Any experiences, thoughts?

I changed the reason for my extension of stay from work to marriage last year in Bangkok (while still working). Apart from all the docs required for a 'normal' extension on the basis of marriage (listed on their website) they asked for a letter from my employer confirming that I still work with them. I guess that was to check if had not overstayed my previous extension based on work. You may want to prepare for that.

Truly horrific story, even more so if the B-Post version is true. May the poor girls rest in peace.

On a different note: the high vertical concrete/iron banks of many of these klongs turns them into death traps for anyone unfortunate enough to fall in, potentially even for good swimmers. Having, at certain intervals and certainly at activity spots like piers, temples, playgrounds etc., stairs leading out of the water or even just simple handrails to hold on to till help arrives, could save lives (although admittedly not protect one from a psychopath trying to kick you back into the water). A (local) government that cares about public safety would not need much incitement to take such measures.

Alternatively, try to bring your booking for Kanchanaburi forward and spend more time in the south (where the air is indeed cleaner this time of year). You could then for instance add a couple of nights in Khao Sok National Park to the mix, staying in a floating raft house on the lake. Think hard about how you like your islands, especially in terms of tourist-density. Koh Kradan and Koh Muk, as recommended by grumpyoldman, offer white-sand beaches and decent snorkeling (KK) without the crowds that Phi Phi gets. West coast (Andaman side), this time of year should be better - weather-wise - than the east coast.

While the roads here are certainly dangerous, I'd say driving yourself is doable, especially if you're an experienced/confident driver. At least destiny will be in your own hands. Bring a good road map and invest in internet access so that you can benefit from online/real time navigation services for the finishing touches (if your rental car doesn't have some).

Finally I would like to second what craigt3365 said about elephants, and extend it to tigers.

Enjoy!

At the smaller piers you will usually find one or more privately managed ‘guarded’ parking lots where you can leave your car overnight or longer for a small fee. It’s usually locals having turned their backyards in a small car park. They normally find you before you can find them. I used their services several times during the past few years (Satun, Trang), without problems.

If you qualify you could also apply for an extension of stay based on marriage directly (so without applying for a non-O visa abroad first). I did it last month at CW (i.e. change reason for extension from work to marriage). In addition to the regular documents needed for an extension based on marriage they asked for a letter from my employer confirming that I still work with them (I guess to check if I had not 'overstayed' my previous extension based on work). No impact on WP.

Look for PoorSucker's list of documents to bring, it's on display in various threads here. It worked for me last month at CW. They didn't ask for TM30 then.

This shows the current and historical levels of water in Bhumipol Dam, which is the largest reservoir in northern Thailand. The water lever should be no higher than the black line and no lower than the grey line.

Untitled.jpg

Not as I understand it. AFAIK the black is the old operating curve, the grey the new operating curve ordered by the PTP government after the flood shortly after they took office. If you go back one more year, you can see how over a 6 month period the levels were dropped from the upper to the lower curve, and then below as excessive rice scam usage and lower rainfall never allowed the dams to recover even to the new lower limit.

That decision to drop the operating curve wasted a huge volume of water and may yet prove to be disastrous.

That would seem to make more sense indeed. It's the horizontal lines that indicate max. capacity and the minimum level at which the dam can still release water. My interpretation of the graph is that we will enter dry season with about 1,000 [unit] in stock whereas last year about 2,000 were used (needed?) to provide downstream areas with sufficient water until rains started to replenish the dam (and more than that in 2014 and 2013). The big question is how long this year's 1,000 units will last.

Otherstuff: do you have a similar graph for the Sirikit dam, or can you tell where these graphs can be found on the web?

Thanks for clarifying the black and grey lines. I just assumed that they were seasonal recommended levels. Graphs for all of the dams can be found here:

http://www.thaiwater.net/DATA/REPORT/php/rid_bigcm.html

There is supposed an English version as well, but it doesn't seem be working now.

There is lots of other info at the main site: http://www.thaiwater.net/web/

but I don't read Thai well enough to do much more than figure out the names of the dams.

Thanks for the links, very informative.

There's a great story on the web you in LOS are not permitted to read which put all these 'strange' goings-on in context. Things are looking pretty ugly.

Many folks use proxies, so give us a hint.

you could try googling some obvious search terms like purge and sentinel, perhaps something pops up

This shows the current and historical levels of water in Bhumipol Dam, which is the largest reservoir in northern Thailand. The water lever should be no higher than the black line and no lower than the grey line.

Untitled.jpg

I took photos of the water level in the Mae Kuang Dam near Chiang Mai from July through October. http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/840743-water-level-at-mae-kuang-dam/

There's a link to a similar graph in that thread for anyone interested. As of this week, that reservoir stands at 12.xx% capacity.

When I wondered why water was being release with levels already so low, someone replied that he had had a conversation with the chief engineer at the dam who said he was ordered to continue to release water (which eventually ends up in the Chao Phraya) because it is needed to counteract saltwater intrusion at the mouth of the river near Bkk. Good policy? The guy setting national priorities for the Irrigation Department thinks so.

If a minimum flow isn't maintained, the salt level at the water treatment intakes will rise. No, it can't be removed during treatment.

With salt water intrusion becoming a recurrent threat to tap water production for Bangkok and forcing dam/water managers to maintain a certain level of flow in the Chao Praya river at the expense of other interests upstream, it would seem sensible to explore the feasibility of relocating the intake point (for BKK’s tap water production) way up north, further out of reach of salt water. Does anyone know if this is happening already?

This shows the current and historical levels of water in Bhumipol Dam, which is the largest reservoir in northern Thailand. The water lever should be no higher than the black line and no lower than the grey line.

Untitled.jpg

Not as I understand it. AFAIK the black is the old operating curve, the grey the new operating curve ordered by the PTP government after the flood shortly after they took office. If you go back one more year, you can see how over a 6 month period the levels were dropped from the upper to the lower curve, and then below as excessive rice scam usage and lower rainfall never allowed the dams to recover even to the new lower limit.

That decision to drop the operating curve wasted a huge volume of water and may yet prove to be disastrous.

That would seem to make more sense indeed. It's the horizontal lines that indicate max. capacity and the minimum level at which the dam can still release water. My interpretation of the graph is that we will enter dry season with about 1,000 [unit] in stock whereas last year about 2,000 were used (needed?) to provide downstream areas with sufficient water until rains started to replenish the dam (and more than that in 2014 and 2013). The big question is how long this year's 1,000 units will last.

Otherstuff: do you have a similar graph for the Sirikit dam, or can you tell where these graphs can be found on the web?

The fog machines have been working overtime on this case: transferred, traveling abroad, back, not back, back but absent from work, and now apparently resigned since last week already…

Have there been any verifiable signs of the man still being among us since the news of his transfer broke?

Different experience here as compared to above 2 posters: never been asked to show a tax payment receipt when renewing my WP, and my labour office (BKK) does not allow me to apply for a WP renewal before I have received my extension of stay from immigration. Advice to OP: check with your labour and immigration offices what the exact requirements are for your situation (could be job dependent).

How can you get an extension reason for employment if that permit to be employed is about to expire. ? what date will they extend you to ? The order is backwards...they can only extend you as far as the permit allows .

I get my extensions of stay (1 year at a time) based primarily on the letter of my employer stating that I will be working for them during the year to come. I also provide a copy of my WP, but that does not need to be renewed yet. Has been like that for the past 6 years for me. I once tried to reverse the order (WP renewal first, extension of stay later), but Labour wouldn't have it: told me to come back after having managed the extension of stay, they did not even want to take my application into consideration.

Different experience here as compared to above 2 posters: never been asked to show a tax payment receipt when renewing my WP, and my labour office (BKK) does not allow me to apply for a WP renewal before I have received my extension of stay from immigration. Advice to OP: check with your labour and immigration offices what the exact requirements are for your situation (could be job dependent).

The other English language newspaper (Ekachai in today’s opinion section) has a more informative piece about what’s happening to ThaiHealth now. Recommended reading, especially for those uncritically buying the junta’s spin.

That's only 54 days of water supply at the stated release rate and assuming that the entire stored amount is usable.

Last year MoL (Bangkok) wouldn't accept my WP renewal application until I had managed my Non-B extension (both expired on the same day, within two weeks of my application). Immigration just wanted a copy of the WP as it was. So for me the drill now is Non-B extension first and then on to MoL for the WP renewal.

Mine took five working days: filled in the form (online) on Sat 2 May without issues, got notification of approval today (living in BKK).

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Here is an idea for the government

How about yearly inspections of the equipment of these inter-provincial bus companies

How about governors to slow down these inter-provincial bus companies

How about log books that show exactly how long a driving shift is on these inter-provincial bus companies

How about publishing the safety records of these inter-provincial bus companies

How about restoring democracy in Thailand so that these hair brained ideas from the military masters stop

yes, to all except the final point, I have been out this way for 13 years and I see zero difference between this bunch of idiots and any of the others that have been in power. Remember propellorhead and his outstanding idea to reduce flooding by tying boats across the Chao Phira and using their propellors to move the water faster? Moronic ideas seem to be universal among Thai leaders no matter if they are elected or not, so restoring democracy is not going to make a blind bit of difference.

Agreed that moronic ideas are produced by all sides and governments here, but at least under democratic rule the people will have chance every once in a while to vote them out if things become unbearable. That's a bit more difficult with the current bunch.

44 per 100,000 per year with a population of 67 million makes for 80.8 road fatalities per day on average. This suggests that the roads during long holidays as the current one (so far 260 reported fatalities in 5 days, or 52 per day) are actually relatively peaceful (although those dying in the days/weeks ahead from injuries sustained during the holidays may still help to close the gap).

So the Koh Tao case has convinced virtually the entire TV community that few words coming from the top of the RTP pyramid can be taken as truth, but here we go all out buying into whatever the same people feed us in what is most likely a political and certainly a highly suspicious case.

And then it is the Thai that get accused of lacking critical thinking abilities.

Ladprao MRT area was flooded. Klong Bang Sue (about 1km south) basically was the border between wet and dry in that area.

My experience just last week in Bangkok suggests OP's staff is right.

I had my WP and non-B extension both expiring at the end of this month. Went to Labour first but was told they couldn't accept my application with the non-B extension expiring so soon (10 days) and on the same day as my then current WP. So off to CW for the extension, which was granted no questions asked, and next day back to Labour, who then renewed my WP within the hour.