Not much I can add to all the above, except my b/f's & family's negative reaction to my polite reception of an unexpected visit ... Until the last year the only inspection visit we had ever received since we moved in to our new mansion in March 2017 was an early very friendly visit from the local BKKBank where we had taken out or were taking out house insurance. No sweat. And, as far as I recall, the only visit from Surin Immigration was about 6 or 7 years ago when we got a phone call from the village headwoman about 2 km away to say Immigration was visiting there & could we come to be inspected. (Perhaps intimidated by the high walls & 2-storey house? Mmmm.) Anyway, some 9 months or a year ago I was pottering around the front garden with nothing on except a pair of shorts and a car drew up in the entrance to our driveway, outside the high wrought iron gates, and out tumble 4 officers in Immigration uniforms. I ignored them for a few seconds as I thought perhaps they had a vehicle problem or were just checking their map. But no, they called to me so I wandered over & they said, rather apologetically (as they stared in wonder at my aging half-naked skeleton), that the boss had sent them out for visits and they were just passing by so could they see my papers please. I said Of course, smiling sweetly and trying not to feel embarrassed at my (in Thailand at any rate) relative nakedness. So I retreated in to the house & headed upstairs for my p/p & a shirt, returned & passed the p/p to them thru the gate. Then they said they needed to take a photo of me with them so I had to retreat to the house again to get the key to open the gate. Once done one of them cheerfully stood beside me as I explained that my b/f was at the family farm 40 minutes away (or 30 minutes if he's driving). They looked surprised that I had a Thai b/f and was living there with him (despite multiple visits together to Immigration over some 9 years and his BIL being a retired police officer), but they were all happy and waved farewell as they drove off. So I head inside to ring my b/f and he exploded and said what an idiot I was to let them in the gate! Could have been burglars or rapists or other criminals, the uniforms mean nothing. And nothing I said mollified him as he rang a friend in Immigration to check on their bona fides. And when he returned home a couple of hours later he said the whole family thought i was very stupid to open the gate for complete strangers, uniformed or otherwise. He didn't explain what he thought I should have done - perhaps ring him & put him on the phone to the Immigration guys to talk, then perhaps ring his Immigration contacts for confirmation? Life in Thailand. Never a dull moment. But also revealing of the peasants' attitude to anyone in uniform (which of course in Thailand is any government employee). And me feeling like an innocent abroad - following a lifetime in NZ & Oz where the policeman really is your friend.
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