flotsam

I just came back from KL on Friday. I followed the OPs steps almost exactly and had no problem at all getting a multi entry "O" based on marriage

The stuff I used:

Application with 2 photos (they gave one back)

Passport

Copy Passport signed by me

Copy Wife's ID card signed by her

Copy Wife's house registration signed by her

2 letters from wife requesting visa be approved. One in English and one in Thai (they kept both).

Copy of K Bank bank book updated about 5 days prior to my embassy visit showing 101,000 THB (In a Thai bank obviously) and signed by me.

Copy of marriage licence and copy of marriage certificate signed by both of us. In my case this/these are 2 separate documents from Oregon, USA (they kept both)

550 Ringgit which they collected immediately.

Some pointers I will offer: First, the original poster's story/advice is still spot on as of September 22 2011 when I picked up my visa. The only thing I will ad is that there is a huge construction project adjacent to KL Sentral about 1 block in size right where the airport shuttle buses drop you off and pick you up. In fact the bus stop is a tunnel. As the bus approaches the terminal, KL Sentral is on your left and a temporary metal wall from floor to ceiling is on your right. It made it hard for me to get my bearings. Hotel Sentral (which is where I stayed) is on the other side of the construction. They have built a decent covered sidewalk that skirts around the construction to get you to all points on the other side however it is on your RIGHT side as the bus drives up or the other side of the street from KL Sentral. I didn't even see a sidewalk over there for about an hour as the bus drop off/pick up point is pretty chaotic. Its hard to explain, and now I know why no one could tell me how to get to the Hotel Sentral. They all tried but it is hard to explain. Once you see the walk around its easy.

Second, at the Thai embassy there was a white couple in front of me with 2 visa applications. They had some problem with their paperwork and were sent away. I don't know what they wanted or what was wrong but it seemed to me that if your paperwork has a clear defect they WILL NOT accept the visa fee, or any paperwork. The point here is that I think if you make it to the stage of them collecting the visa fee then you will probably get your visa the next day. I got the feeling that while you are standing in front of the clerk and he/she is looking at your paperwork, that is the review, and if they give the nod and collect your money you are in the clear.

Third, they never asked to see any original documents but I did have them with me.

Good luck!

Hello all,

I just moved into a house neat Ladprao MRT. I've never spent much time up here before but so far its been quite nice. Anyway I am looking for a gym/fitness center somewhere close to home. Nothing fancy: free weights, nautilus type equipment, treadmill. I don't need classes or a pool or yoga or anything. So far on line I havn't had much luck with finding anything in the area. I thought maybe one of the bigger condo's here might have a decent gym that "outsiders" can join for a fee.

I also thought since I was posting anyway I would pose the question always on my mind: where is good food? Anything from street vendors to fancy sit down places. If its good I'd like to give it a try.

Thanks in advance,

Flotsam

I've never been there but Third Place Bangkok on 137/1 Sukhumvit 63 might be ok. I've heard you can rent "work stations" or some such thing by the day, week, month. I've thought of going there to do some work outside my house but never got around to it.

My wife and I have shopped around for things in Chattuchak and elsewhere for years. Chattuchak has always been cheaper. And they have many many stalls selling reproduction furniture. I bet some of the sellers on Phuket buy there stuff at Chattuchak. I guess the catch for you is the shipping cost, that might eat up the savings. The more you buy from one seller the bigger discount and you might even be able to arange delivery.

Thanks everyone. I'll look into these.

Hi,

I would like to back up my DVDs to my laptop or an external hard drive and be able to watch them from there when I am on the go and to have the back up. I have Windows 7 on my laptop. Can anyone recommend software for that? Also, any general advice about the process is appreciated.

Thanks,

Flotsam

How can you NOT go for it?

CNN (domestic for the US market) dumbs down all the international news. I would say it was not too biased because they hardly paid any attention to it one way or the other . . . . of course half the people I know here in the USA are confused as to which country is Taiwan and which is Thailand. . . . .

Wow. What a shame. RIP.

From being married to a Thai for many years I agree they are extremely superstitious and fascinated/terrified by ghosts and spirits. For every one thing you can do that brings good luck, there are 99 things that will bring the ghosts and bad luck to you.

I like gardening but I can only grow plants that don’t attract ghosts and bad luck (you would be amazed how many are on my wife’s no grow list). You can’t grow bananas too close to the house, for it will bring ghosts into your house. Which is kind of common sense since we all know how ghosts love banana plants . . . . . If you were to intentionally plant a banyan tree in your yard your neighbors might stone you, although I don’t know if it is ghost related fear. Monitor Lizards are also a very bad omen.

Someone on this board must know Ron. Whats the real deal Ron?

I am resident here but don't have too many big nights out - but when i do i normally go to places like Spasso, Q Bar, Bed Supper Club, Hard Rock- 2000-5000 baht per night on drinks...abit pricey but all have mostly good atmosphere and in those places there is always the chance of meeting groups of office girls on a night out who are always fun to hangout with and more if your lucky

More often- just drop off at one of the english/irish pubs next to BTS phrong pong on the way home from work for a beer or two- 300 baht,.

Now office girls you can't find there my friend, free lancers we call them here.

But still fun to go there, and if you are more happy to call them office girls , do so

I know what you mean But i have met a few girls who weren't actually freelancers- but its a fine line ill give you that . Having said that, if given the right incentives, aren't most girls in the world potential 'freelancers' ?

I don't want to offend any women (more power to you ladys!) but the answer to Expatj's last question is absolutely yes.

Thaksin in Thailand . . . . is there a detention facility that could hold him? The Thai authorities had some trouble getting their soldiers and police on the ground to function coherently. What would stop a red shirt mob from rushing a prison or court house and freeing Thaksin? Rioters were able to overtake armored vehicles with rocks in the BKK riots. Thaksin loose in Thailand would be even worse than what there is now.

I have been watching the x-change for USD and THB and it hasn't moved much at all since the crisis (which is a little odd actually)

That is not odd, the Thai Central Bank tries to keep the exchange rate in line with the USD.

I see. I thought the Baht floated against the USD. But the THB is not truely "pegged" to the USD is it? My first trip to BKK ten years ago was about 45 to 1 after all the "asian bubble" problems. Is there a known range they want to keep it at these days?

is it possible something as simple as the rainy season will help clear everyone out. No one likes a good soaking.

Yes maintaing control of the group known as "red shirts" is going to be the tricky part for them

Yes you never know. I have seen people killed from a single stray ball-bearing under the helmet (from a suicide vest). The guy just walked a few steps, then sat down, then laid down then just expired before anyone even knew he was hit. I’ve also seen people survive multiple rounds from a .50 cal (not in the head though) which I would not have thought possible.

Obviously even a glancing blow to the skull can still mess you up for good. A brain is just not supposed to be sloshed around like that.

It’s pretty darn strange that of all the time She Daeng was strolling around un protected that someone chose to take him out in front of a New York Times reporter. Makes more sense if you WANTED it to be as (internationally) sensational as possible Seems to me several parties could be responsible. An enemy of your enemy kind of thing.

When I was a young soldier in Germany I once passed out with quite a bit of doner meat in my mouth and teeth. Not only was it a horrible taste but i thought I had mouth cancer or something because I didn't remember eating it in the first place.

I have been watching the x-change for USD and THB and it hasn't moved much at all since the crisis (which is a little odd actually)

It seems like I picked a really sad time to move TO Thailand. Oh well, maybe being a contrarian will pay off, get in on the ground floor perhaps . . . . .

I did spend a month in Hanoi recently. I found it over all a little cheaper than BKK. The locals were out to milk the tourists a little but not too bad.

I think "My Friend Same" has the right attitude. Why not help a guy out OR at least just ignore his plea? unless of course you really think he is doing something illegal and then want to warn him. As to that, Thai immigration law seems to be somewhat vague and definitely selectively enforced. it is not easy to avoid "breaking" a law if no one knows exactly what the law is. Some nations like it that way: if they don't like you, you broke the law; if they like you, you didn’t break the law. One bureaucrat(or consulate) thinks the law is X and another thinks the law is Y; who is to say which is “wrong”? The French wrote the Napoleonic code to try to avoid this. As far as working: what if I am on vacation to Thailand for 2 weeks and reply to my work e-mails from my hotel, is that illegal? If it is Ok then what about a month or 6 months? Where is the line? I bet the real answer is no one knows.

Not suggesting anyone break any laws but no reason not to live your life to the fullest within the law.

I read in an Insect book on SE asian bugs that living in a stilt house or otherwise off the ground can reduce your odds of getting bit by this mosquito. Apparently this and some other types of mosquitoes tend to “hunt” only a few feet off the ground even though they can fly. The author said even just being a few meters off the ground can reduce your chances of getting bit. It is apparently a positive side effect of a stilt house. I don’t know how much truth there is to it but I probably wouldn’t move into a stilt house and throw away my mosquito net.

Thanks everyone. I will post the outcome in case anyone else is interested in the Portland Consulate.

Hello. I'll give some background before my question: My wife of 6 years and I live in Seattle WA in the States. I am planning on applying for a 1 year multi entry Non Imm "O" based on my marriage to a Thai citizen. Planning on moving to BKK in October (the wife a month or 2 ahead of me). Portland has an Honorary consulate and I am planning on applying there for my visa. Unfortunately they have not returned my e-mails and calls. My wife is a Thai citizen and also a US permanent resident and I am a US citizen. We were married in the US and therefore our marriage documents are from the county where we were married (nothing Thai). I have my wife's Thai ID card and house registration available.

So my questions:

Does anyone have any experience or advice with the Portland Consulate? Specifically what documents they like to see?

How soon can I apply for this visa if I plan on arriving in BKK in October? This is something I would like to strike off my "to do" list but I don't know if the visa needs to be used within a certain time of issuance.

Does anyone have any pointers I didn't ask about?

Thanks, Thaivisa is a great site I have learned quite a bit from reading these posts.