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imnotinsane posted:I guess no one here on the forums has recently overstayed their visa in Burma? My flight out is the day after my visa expires and I have seen lots of posts on the lonely planet forums saying it should be fine you just need to pay a fine of about $6 Seriously, do not do this. Burma is run by an incredibly repressive and paranoid authoritarian regime. I'm on my way there now and have had several briefings about what to do and what not to do. One of the biggest no-no's is "Do not, under ANY circumstances, violate the terms of your visa." This means I can't even go to any tourist sites as I'm going on a business visa and they don't want to risk me getting labeled as a tourist using the wrong kind of visa. I would recommend either re-booking your flight of just not going at all. I assure you a month in a Burmese holding cell is not a vacation to look forward to. ReindeerF posted:The unusual thing about traveling in Southeast Asia is the lack of violent crime, the lack of pickpockets, the lack of aggressive border guards & police, the lack of theft in general and so on. That's what I was trying (and reading over my posts, completely failing) to imply when I said "Standard Southeast Asia travel." I still remember my trip through Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore as being one of the easiest and most fun trips I've ever done. It really is international travel 101, it's just that easy. I should know better by now not to read too much into the travel advisories. The state dept seems to think that everyone outside the US is a terrorist out to get us. It's always worth a look but I should never make any major decisions on travel without further investigation.
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Oct 20, 2012 13:29
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imnotinsane posted:I guess no one here on the forums has recently overstayed their visa in Burma? My flight out is the day after my visa expires and I have seen lots of posts on the lonely planet forums saying it should be fine you just need to pay a fine of about $6 You might have trouble finding a room in Yangon (all the cheap hostels had signs saying they wouldn't accept people with expired visas). If you are leaving the day after your visa expires i doubt you will get any trouble since your visa still is valdi when you get to the hotel.. Pay the small fine and be on your way.
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Oct 20, 2012 16:46
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Sorry if this sounds silly as heck but does anyone know of a signature Malay restaurant in Kuala Lumpur? There are lots of places serving nasi goreng on the side but right now I'm just gorging on Indian stuff and old timey Chinese. Wiki travel is not helping much. Can't seem to find a Malay place or those 24 hour curry houses. Guess that's what I get at staying in backpacker China town. It is nice to see speak Cantonese and be treated like a rock star and love/hate on new wave of mainlanders without being too drat racist. And what's up with the Chinese food menus with English but no Malay? Wow there's a lot of new high rises in Kuala Lumpur and building new metro lines. Not to get all dnd but is all that new money coming from China investment? I tried talking to a few local third generation Chinese and they just kind of smile and dodge the question because it's a complicated issue. In short the younger generation are integrating with each other to be multi lingual mixing up with each other. Sure there are issues but people are sending kids to Chinese schools to learn the work ethic and language to attract the new China money. But there's also a looming suspension of having a purge like Indonesia. Think it's time for ipoh tomorrow and have a change of scenery, perhaps more local stuff should appear and more Malay things. Hopefully it will turn out fun and if not there's a bus to penang. Anyone been to ipoh?
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Oct 21, 2012 07:11
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Enjoy the good ol rain. Chinatown is flooded haha.
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Oct 21, 2012 10:19
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Google Street View for Bangkok has been heavily updated. It's now full of all the useless dead end sois that NOBODY will ever visit. I've spent the last half hour or so checking out mah hood, or the area marked as "nobody will ever visit you" on Sheep-Goat's map (which is true). What is that car doing?  thaivisa.jpg 
Ringo R fucked around with this message at 14:14 on Oct 21, 2012 |
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Oct 21, 2012 11:12
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Ringo R posted:thaivisa.jpg
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Oct 21, 2012 17:32
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ReindeerF posted:Hahahah. That's beautiful. I can't wait until the streetviewmobile hits Pattaya. They won't worry about Pattaya... they'll just copy and paste this image over the whole map and change the bar names to 69 Cherry, Soi Sexy Bar and Greg's Bar.
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Oct 22, 2012 07:05
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Ringo R posted:thaivisa.jpg
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Oct 22, 2012 14:23
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I'm thinking about getting a bit of the Thai language down before heading over for some volunteering. The dude I'm going to be working with seems to think that getting the alphabet down wouldn't be of much help. Is this guy trippin'? Thinking back to my previous trip, it seems like it would really help with directions/getting around, and just connecting dots in general. Plus, it seems like a large part of the language that can be gotten down in a fairly short period of time. Well, at least compared to Chinese/Japanese. Other than that, I was going to get numbers, directions and maybe a few Whrere is___/How much is_____ sentence starter stuff down. Co-worker dude suggested idioms, but that seems a bit corny to start off with. Any advice from those that have tackled the Thai language? Not really looking to master the language, just want to hit the ground running, so that I can take advantage of being out in the countryside. Probably shouldn't learn too much yet, since I'll be digging a hole for myself by pronouncing everything like poo poo anyway :/
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Oct 23, 2012 00:46
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moflika posted:I'm thinking about getting a bit of the Thai language down before heading over for some volunteering. The dude I'm going to be working with seems to think that getting the alphabet down wouldn't be of much help. Is this guy trippin'? I took about 40 hours of Thai classes in Chiang Mai, after working in a Thai restaurant and being exposed to the language for a couple of years. Basic functional travel Thai isn't terribly difficult, after you wrap your brain around the five tones. Don't worry about the alphabet at first. It's etymological rather than phonetic (kind of like French). There aren't spaces between words either. The alphabet will just confuse you at a basic level.
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Oct 23, 2012 00:54
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moflika posted:Is this guy trippin'? Yeah, go ahead and learn the alphabet! You don't need to learn all the characters. I think only 20 or so are enough to read basic things. Restaurant menus are a good start. Google for a basic, touristy menu (fried rice etc) and see how much you can decipher. I found menus much more useful than children's books when I started out since those books contain weird cultural things that are never used in real life. Pro tips: 1. Don't listen to expats. Maybe 10% or less can actually speak decent Thai. The rest just say the same things over and over. It might sound/look impressive when you see them chat with Thais but it's really not. Thais will compliment your Thai even if you can only say one word. 2. Don't listen to Thais (too much). I've seen this a hundred times: Farang: Noi, how you say in Thai, I want bacon with my steak? Noi: You mean you want have bacon? Farang: Yeah, I want bacon with my steak. Noi: Oh ok, you say [WRONG]. Even some educated Thais struggle with English and can misunderstand what you're asking for, resulting in you getting wrong answers. However, farang will take this as FACT because it came from a Thai person so it can't be wrong. But it can be, sometimes. Just out of curiosity, where will you be volunteering?
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Oct 23, 2012 07:00
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Ringo R posted:1. Don't listen to expats. Maybe 10% or less can actually speak decent Thai. The rest just say the same things over and over. It might sound/look impressive when you see them chat with Thais but it's really not. Thais will compliment your Thai even if you can only say one word. Ringo R posted:2. Don't listen to Thais (too much). I've seen this a hundred times:
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Oct 23, 2012 08:15
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I'm sure when I start really getting into tones my motivation will drain quick. I'm used to the no spacing because of Japanese, and lack of a billion Chinese characters always helps. Ringo R posted:Just out of curiosity, where will you be volunteering? I'll be on an organic farm around the Chiang Mai area (http://www.sangobcm.blogspot.it/), and then I'll try to expand from there. I've been working on farms for 2 years in Europe, so I'm hoping to get involved on a more serious level somewhere. There seems to be a lot going on in Thailand organic farming wise, so it shouldn't be too difficult... ReindeerF posted:This is me, as Ringo R can attest to. Haha, it's pretty amazing how far you can get with just some simple small talk. I'm definitely going to have to work hard to force myself to continue to improve after reaching that small talk stage. It's waaay too easy to just stop and stay in soundboard land. moflika fucked around with this message at 08:47 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 08:33
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ReindeerF posted:ME MISSUS SAYS... Yeah, this sums up everything: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/552855-funny-thai-sayings/page__st__25 "PattayaParent" 9999 posts 
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Oct 23, 2012 08:52
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The idea of any foreigner who lives in Pattaya being a parent there is horrifying. When I was first learning my getting-around Thai, I accidentally ordered kee niao at an Isaan joint. The staff were entertained, I was confused until I figured it out.
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Oct 23, 2012 09:19
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I think the November monsoon has begun, at least here on Koh Tao. It hasn't stopped raining for about 14 hours and the forecast is for another few days of the same. Nuts.
Finch! fucked around with this message at 09:59 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 09:55
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At least you have whale sharks to keep you company.
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Oct 23, 2012 19:47
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I'm out of the water with some kind of sinus infection  The most annoying part of monsoon is the enormous puddle I have to wade through between my house and the road, and the permanent puddle just up the hill from the road to Jitsin that I also have to wade through. I'll probably end up with leg AIDS by the end of the week!
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Oct 24, 2012 02:17
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When I went SCUBA diving last time in Thailand I finished up with nasal pharyngitis, which is the medical term for "some kind of sinus infection." Got it treated for like 30 bucks at a clinic.
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Oct 24, 2012 03:47
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Sheep-Goats posted:When I went SCUBA diving last time in Thailand I finished up with nasal pharyngitis, which is the medical term for "some kind of sinus infection." Got it treated for like 30 bucks at a clinic. The doctor reckons I have pharyngitis but I'm not entirely convinced. No diving for another 7 days - that will take my total time out of the water to around 7 weeks. Awesome. Finch! fucked around with this message at 12:05 on Oct 24, 2012 |
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Oct 24, 2012 12:02
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Holy crap you've been out of the water almost as long as I have. It's a sad existence.
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Oct 24, 2012 17:38
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eviljelly posted:Southeast Asia really is Travel 101. You can land in BKK at 2am with just the clothes on your back, a few US$ or Euros, and your bank card, and you'll figure things out pretty quickly if you're even a semi competent human being. Showed up at 10pm, met up with a goon (rhombus) and ended up so poo poo faced I started ordering dishes for a stray dog. Also met some Aussies. Farang kee-nok to the max. lol internet. fucked around with this message at 19:35 on Oct 24, 2012 |
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Oct 24, 2012 18:24
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Finch! posted:The doctor reckons I have pharyngitis but I'm not entirely convinced. No diving for another 7 days - that will take my total time out of the water to around 7 weeks. Awesome. If you're not going to listen to the doctor don't go and you'll save money!
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Oct 24, 2012 19:01
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Planning a honeymoon next October in SE Asia, is this plan reasonable? Day 1 Leave Nashville for Bangkok Day 2 Arrive Bangkok late at night (most flights arrive 11PM or so? International date line  )Day 3 Bangkok to Chiang Mai early morning Day 4 Chiang Mai Day 5 Chiang Mai Day 6 Chiang Mai Day 7 Chiang Mai to Siem Reap via Bangkok early morning Day 8 Siem Reap Day 9 Siem Reap Day 10 Siem Reap Day 11 Siem Reap to Bangkok early morning Day 12 Bangkok Day 13 Bangkok Day 14 Leave Bangkok for Nashville early morning
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Oct 24, 2012 19:25
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Bwee posted:Planning a honeymoon next October in SE Asia, is this plan reasonable? What are you planning to do in Siem Reap? Aside from Angkor, there's not much to do\see in my opinion. I got a 2 day Angkor pass and left the Angkor wat for the last temple on the second day. By the time I got there, I was just like "Meh, more stones." I'd suggest one day Angkor pass and lose a day or two on Angkor. Also, maybe lose a day in Chiang Mai and add an extra day in Bangkok.
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Oct 24, 2012 19:37
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By Siem Reap I essentially mean Angkor Wat, I figured a relaxed 3 day Angkor Wat pass might be the best. Maybe not? Switching the Bangkok/Chiang Mai days sounds like a good idea. My fiancee wants to go to the Patara Elephant Farm and see the tigers, but I don't think there's all that much else in Chiang Mai she absolutely wants to do.
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Oct 24, 2012 19:42
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Bwee posted:By Siem Reap I essentially mean Angkor Wat, I figured a relaxed 3 day Angkor Wat pass might be the best. Maybe not? Unless you're SUPER interested in stone architecht, I'd highly advise against it. If you want to go for the sake of seeing cool poo poo, I'd suggest one day Angkor pass. What I did, at the Siem Reap airport, some doods are there on motorbikes waiting who will negotiate a price with you to take you for a whole 1,2 or 3 days. I think I did 40/day? If you go one day, they'll probably bring you to the best of the temples. If you must, go two days, but I highly do not recommend three days. Also BKK has the tiger temple, I think it's like a half day tour.
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Oct 24, 2012 19:50
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Sounds decent -- a flight from Chiang Mia to Siem Reap would be heavily recommended if you can find one. Also most people find that two to three days is plenty for the temples (actually most people say two but I could easily spend three there; the temples are so cool). An alternate suggestion, which includes an island and less travel time. Day 1 banjo to Bangkok Day 2 Bangkok Day 3 Bangkok to Koh Chang, arrange for "Discover" SCUBA dive on day 4 or 5 Day 4 Koh Chang (SCUBA?) Day 5 Koh Chang (Elephant tour?) Day 6 Koh Chang Day 7 Koh Chang to Siem Reap Day 8 Siem Reap Day 9 Siem Reap Day 10 Siem Reap Day 11 Siem Reap to Phnom Phen Day 12 Phnom Phen (Killing Fields, Touel Sleng, some night stuff) Day 13 Fly PP to BKK, shop in the evening Day 14 BKK to banjo Consider one less day on Koh Chang for one more day of Bangkok at the end. Or, optionally, a day in Trat, which is the little town you depart for Koh Chang for, for a taste of small town SE Asia. Or two days in Phnom Phen (you can go shoot an RPG at the shooting range or something, or just see the city more). If you go to Chiang Mai do a hilltribe trek. If you go to Koh Chang do an "Discover" SCUBA dive. These are real SCUBA dives where the instructor first shows you the basics in shallow water and later stays close to you during the dive so you don't get yourself into trouble. You don't get a cert or anything but you do get a day on the boat and two real SCUBA dives to see what's what. The 10 days or so between the dive and the flight is plenty enough to stay safe from the bends. Edit: As to time in Siem Reap, I'd say two days at least are mandatory, but they only sell the three day pass. Buy the three day pass but if you're templed out by day two move on to Phnom Phen (or back to Thailand or whatever) on day three. Angkor Wat, the Bayon, Ta Phrohm, and the Angkor Thom complex alone are enough for two wonderful days. There are at least a dozen more temples, usually a bit smaller but often in better condition or in more photogenic locations. There's also the city of Siem Reap itself to check out, which, while very touristy, can still be fun. Two to three days in Siem Reap is optimal, one would not nearly be enough time. As for tigers, the Tiger Temple that I'm aware of is basically a day trip West from Bangkok, the nearest town to it is Kanchanaburi. I went, it was neat, but it's also a bit out of the way. You also have to be careful because, you know, they're tigers. You might have a hard time talking your wife out of ELEPHANTS AND TIGERS GORSH but there's still elephants along the way in my itinerary plus she might get to see a sea turtle while SCUBA diving. I did. And a leopard shark. No whale shark though so gently caress you eviljelly. raton fucked around with this message at 01:13 on Oct 25, 2012 |
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Oct 24, 2012 19:52
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Bwee posted:By Siem Reap I essentially mean Angkor Wat, I figured a relaxed 3 day Angkor Wat pass might be the best. Maybe not? This poo poo vary between people. I spent two weeks around Siem Reap and i will visit it again. Angkor Wat complex is HUUUUGE and if you avoid two of the standard circuits - you will find many cool things there. Also there is giant and interesting Tonle Sap lake and all the local life around it.
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Oct 25, 2012 01:04
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I really enjoyed it too, but there are more temple complexes that are untouched - out by Kampong Speu maybe? I forget. I'd suggest, as I always do, a day in Battambang. You should see at least one Khmer town that has juussttt enough tourist poo poo to be comfortable, but is otherwise pretty unfettered.
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Oct 25, 2012 01:45
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Bwee posted:By Siem Reap I essentially mean Angkor Wat, I figured a relaxed 3 day Angkor Wat pass might be the best. Maybe not? Yeah Angkor varies from person to person. I've been 4 or 5 times I think showing various people around (I really should start charging for that), and you can do the big sights in one day (we usually do Angkor Wat sunrise, Ta Prohm, and Bayon/Angkor Thom), but it's pretty exhausting. The 3 day pass basically allows you to see stuff at a more relaxed pace, and see some of the lesser known temples. Also noticed that you'll be there in October which means lots of rain in the afternoons, so you may want to stick to only doing the temples in the mornings. Personally I'm happy to spend 3 days in Siem Reap, it's a nice little place as long as you don't get stuck on Pub Street the whole time (the surrounding alleys can be kinda cool though). Also if you do get bored of the town and the temples, head over to the West Baray and go down to the far end. They have a little beach with barbecues etc, and it's pretty much tourist-free. Swimming in the lake makes a nice break from the temple trekking.
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Oct 25, 2012 03:28
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I think 4 nights/3 full days in Siem Reap is a good amount. Having to do a whirlwind tour of the temples would be a pain. Getting more than a 3 day pass I think is generally a waste of money, but you can do three relaxed days in that time and maybe sleep in one or two of the mornings. It will give you time to linger in some temples, or to relax at midday so you're not forced to march around temples in the blazing sun just to make sure you hit everything you want to see. Plus if you have a few days you can catch a sunrise or a sunset at one of the temples, which I haven't done but I think a lot of people enjoy. You can get away with 2 days in SR, certainly, but you won't run out of things to do with an extra day.
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Oct 25, 2012 03:54
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Great, thanks all for the advice. Since it'll be our honeymoon and we want to relax I think 4n/3d in Siem Reap works best. What about Chiang Mai and Bangkok? My fiancée really wants to go to the Patara Elephant Farm and Tiger Kingdom in Chiang Mai specifically, but other than that we're open. Neither of us are super beachy people but if the beaches are absolutely not missable we'll consider them for sure. Thanks again!
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Oct 25, 2012 04:07
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Just got off a Cathay flight from Bangkok to Hong Kong. It's my first time on Cathay, I normally fly Thai or something. Anyway, from cabin doors closed to the time we landed, the cabin was full of Chinese people (particularly aunties) bickering, changing seats, chattering loudly and incessantly and so on. This is known in the Dune Universe as Mainlandersign. Of course as soon as the wheels got within 10 feet of the ground, the whole cabin was up on its feet opening bins and trying to scramble to the front of the plane, with the poor stewardesses trying desperately to re-seat them all and close the bins. I stay seated at the back like any sane person, waiting for some sign of movement, so once the herd had made its way about 10 feet away, I turned to the stewardess and asked, "This is my first Cathay flight here, but I have to ask, do you always get this many mainlanders?" She looked at me with this sad look and replied, "Always. Every destination."
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Oct 25, 2012 07:18
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I will fly Cathay whenever I can on long flights for one reason: power plugs in economy seats.
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Oct 25, 2012 10:34
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eviljelly posted:I will fly Cathay whenever I can on long flights for one reason: power plugs in economy seats. I fly Cathay long haul because I can cheaply cash in my AAdvantage miles for first class. Cathay has one of the best first class cabins in the world. You get your own little suite, a 4 course meal, lay flat bed, and a set of pajamas to change into. After 16 hours JFK->HKG I can honestly say I didn't want to get off the plane:
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Oct 25, 2012 17:55
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ReindeerF posted:Plane Chat This has been my experience on every Air Asia flight I have had so far. No one seems to really care and they just do what ever. The cabin crew never say anything. It's pretty funny. I don't know why the rush off for you know they have got boxes of stuff to wait for at the baggage claim. It's funny watching all the uncles and aunties try to take the emergency seats after the plane leaves but since you got to pay for the seat the cabin crew are pretty quick to send them back. I get to watch them get kicked out and feel pretty smug since I paid the $7 or what ever ridiculous low price it is for the emergency row. Thailand chat: What's the best prepaid plan for data? I think I will be staying in Bangkok so it doesn't need to work in the boonies. Also unfortunately you will all have to put up with my posting as it turns out my visa expires on the day I leave Burma so no issues. Currently in Hpa-An and so far Burma has been pretty great apart from all the heat and humidity. Tried to survive in a fan only room but I only lasted 2 nights and made sure the next place I was staying in had A/C.
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Oct 26, 2012 08:07
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Not to scare anyone or anything but lately there's been feral packs of Thai youth roaming around Ao Nang pier engaging in the ole' ultraviolence and a bit of (attempted) in and out with British tourists. They were arrested but will probably be freed within a week.
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Oct 26, 2012 19:33
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Modus Operandi posted:Not to scare anyone or anything but lately there's been feral packs of Thai youth roaming around Ao Nang pier engaging in the ole' ultraviolence and a bit of (attempted) in and out with British tourists. drat, nice area too. Stayed in Ao Nang a few years ago, loved it. At any rate, it's been a while since posted in here. Anything new going on in the area? I'm heading to Malaysia in December, planning on spending a couple days at Malacca, going to spend Christmas with the wife's family, then head to Koh Samui for a few days before chilling in Singapore for a little while. Anyone got any recommendations on what to do at any of those places?
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Oct 27, 2012 05:03
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I was going to go to Malacca again this year but goons convinced me not to. So I went north to Ipoh, it's really nice but do not take the KTM train. There was a incremental delay of 2 hours and became a major waste of time. Bus terminals in KL have been redone in 2 sections. Pudu Sentral goes north, and the other TBS (kinda far) goes south. Ipoh is a fun small sleepy city. Nice British colonial buildings and good souvenirs (their fragrant biscuits), good pastries (they use lard). Being in there for 2 days I saw 4 white people all day. Lots of Malaysian Chinese tourists for the food. NO CHINESE MAINLANDER TOUR GROUPS  There's the city centre of course, but a lot of nice sights are away from the city, like the big lime stone caves, and a few Chinese temples built into the rock. Think Batu caves but for Chinese stuff. The whole city is very serene and the folks extremely friendly, restaurants will call a taxi for you and the prices are the same for everyone. I expected to be ripped off but after doing the math it was not so! I was speaking Cantonese and being from Hong Kong so I was treated like a rock star. But for my other Caucasian travel buddy he didn't get rip off prices and lots of places offer full information on tours or whatever without solely promoting their own. My only gripe was that I had too much weird Chinese food. I did end up going to a fancy pants Malay restaurant in KL, the food was very very delicious and gourmet like ingredients, a nicer high end place perfect for a dinner date. It's call Bijan and while the cooking is on the heavier side of creams and less spice, the quality cuts of meat and ingredients make it more attractive to street stall stuff. Mind you, that's because I was too lazy to research for that holy grail street stall vendor in KL. Malaysia is growing on to me, I really want to learn how to ride a motor cycle and go south into Indonesia. Small towns do have its major charms, everything is cheaper, you don't get touts all the time. While the distances are greater since you have to rely on taxis a lot of times but if you have a car or motorbike then it would be perfect. The downside is expensive alcohol which is alright with me because I ate 5 meals a day and don't need more calories. Anyone know if there's a motorcycle traveling thread on how to pack poo poo or whatever for beginners?
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Oct 27, 2012 05:27
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