duran
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Posts posted by duran
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You sure you want to be in the market now??
How much are you charging for that unsolicited anonymous advice on the internet?
Maybe the OP wants to buy leveraged short ETF's.
Merely by asking the question my hunch is he doesn't even know what a short is and shorting what are essentially mutual funds (85%)?
But it sounds from your comment you also sense a bear is in the air (shorting).
Scott Trade and Fidelity also hae us8 trades now. I'd go w/ Fidelity. During the crises, they had no issues come to fore.
I use both Fidelity and TD Ameritrade. In addition to lowering the cost of trades, fidelity also offers free trading for some ETFs:
http://personal.fidelity.com/products/trading/What_You_Can_Trade/offer-faq-popup.shtml
I'd recommend either platform and have had good experiences with customer service for both. Fidelity is probably preferred because the commissions are cheaper.
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In the downtown area in the mornings its easy to find roti with curry sauce, really cheap and delish, at some of the Muslim places. Also, at almost all times except the dead of night you can find Chinese style dim sum places. In addition to the sea food, to me this makes Hat Yai a nice place for food since you can get it all.
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Too bad, that place used to be really good. There was another malaysian/indian place called 'malaysian Aunty' with killer food that also closed down a couple of years ago. Is there any way to get good laksa here without taking air asia to Penang?
That's too bad to hear. I'd love a home-style laksa. Last time I had Laksa I went to one of the Secret Recipe chains and it wasn't bad.
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It happened near my house and i was in my room watching tv when i felt an earthquake like tremor. I was still wondering what had happened until i saw the bombing news
How safe or unsafe is Pattani for aging tourists with an interest in the history of the port there? It's a place I'd love to visit later this year.
I used to live in Pattani in the 90s, and I've been back twice in the past two years. I consider it safe in the sense that it should be OK if you take reasonable precautions. The main industrial fishing port is outside of town, and its easy to find transportation there during the day with local tuktuks. Transportation at night throughout the city is generally pretty hard to find. You're likely going to want to be back at your hotel in the early evening (i.e. by 8:30 PM). Last couple of times I was there I stayed at My Gardens Hotel and it was about $12-$15 a night (400-500 baht if I recall, could have been a little more).
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My GF just got a 6 month, single entry visa for Canada yesterday. Just dropped off her application materials, passport, and picked it up the next day and there it was. No interview necessary. She wrote a letter herself (we are visiting BC as tourists this summer) just stating the purpose of her visit, and also had a bank book statement, and a letter from her office as well with information about her job, salary, etc. The ace in the hole however was the 10 year US multiple entry visa she got earlier. Whew!
Good luck!
Congratulations! Have a great trip! When are you going? My girlfriend and I are hoping to be in Vancouver for the first couple weeks of September. I hope our visa application goes as smoothly as yours.
)M
Thanks! Well, we'll just hop over the border and drive to Vancouver for 2 nights and just do the usual thing - Stanley Park, etc.. Good luck!
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To the original poster - FYI according to the US Embassy's facebook page, they just posted a "how to" video and instructions on how to fill out the DS-160.
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My GF just got a 6 month, single entry visa for Canada yesterday. Just dropped off her application materials, passport, and picked it up the next day and there it was. No interview necessary. She wrote a letter herself (we are visiting BC as tourists this summer) just stating the purpose of her visit, and also had a bank book statement, and a letter from her office as well with information about her job, salary, etc. The ace in the hole however was the 10 year US multiple entry visa she got earlier. Whew!
Good luck!
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Well, it's a no go, denied. And after only 6 questions
1. who's paying for plane ticket? Both of us.
2. How long have we been together? 1 and half year (Jan '09)
3. Where u visiting and show me on map? Grand Rapids MI and pointed on map
4. Where u visited before? Spain and Dubai
5. Who went with when u visited the EU? Myself the boyfriend
6. Do you have a baby? No
then she was told no and giving a paper stating she didn't fit the requirements of proving she would return
We both feel cheated the guy at the window didn't even look at the stack of paperwork she had gathered bank statements for her business 3 years of lease agreement for her business, agreement between sellers, the bank and her on the shop-house she's buying and signing papers on the 15th next week. I'd like to say we'd feel better if the man took even 2 minutes to look at her papers and then said no but 5 minutes asking 6 questions and not look at the paperwork. Was thinking about waiting till after she gets the shop-house next week and trying again but if she gets asked the same questions and told no owning property won't matter. I read at http://bangkok.usemb...on-policy.html that policy is when reapplying your next interview is sapose to be with a different officer / interviewer. Anybody who's reapplied for a US tourist visa whats your experience with this?
Thanks again
Sorry to hear that man. I wonder, when she reapplies, will there be some material change in her circumstances that might increase her chances? For example, will she be purchasing her shop house? If not, I would be curious to know if a different interviewer is all it takes to get a green light. My thought is probably not, unfortunately. But who knows? Good luck.
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TMac, Svenn - she did indeed get the 10 year visa.
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One other important thing to note, if one applies for asylum and doesn't get it because they over exaggerated the conditions of their situation (and as noted earlier the standard is high), I believe you are effectively barred from entering the country from then on, or a similarly harsh penalty.
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Hey guys, I just wanted to report back the results of my GF's visa interview - She got it! She had originally had her interview planned for mid-May. Well, the unrest threw a wrench into that appointment. She received subsequent emails from the US embassy canceling her interviews twice, before it was finally rescheduled for today.
Her interview was scheduled for 1pm, but she had to wait until about 3:30 pm for the actual interview. She said the place was packed. She had requested her interview be in Thai, but the interviewee was an American woman who (according to my GF) was not totally fluent in Thai. The interviewer looked over 2 documents mainly, the first being the letter from her employer, and the second being the one I wrote for her.
She said that the main questions asked were:
1) What was the purpose of her trip?
2) Where did she plan to go? (specifically, what EXACT places did she intend to visit)
3) What is the nature of her relationship with me?
Seems that the interviewer really wanted to get at the bottom of our relationship, and asked my GF what *I* did and if *I* had a gf! My gf said she was surprised because many of the questions were about me, and NOT her. Anyway, the whole thing was over in about 5 minutes.
Thanks all for the earlier insight.
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Yeah, definitely horrible move on the part of the reds.
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Good question. If Samak and Somchai's governments were any indication, a Peua Thai government wouldn't be too much
different as far as policy in the south. Thaksin treated the muslims like crap, and during last year's Songkran rioting, I recall how some of the
reds actually shot at mosques with guns. I would be interested in knowing if the reds have issued any sort of "policy platform"
about the deep south at all. You'd think they might be sympathetic to the muslims if they truly are all for democracy and justice and so on, but who knows. Some of these
reds worship Thaksin and his record on human rights was atrocious.
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Thanks guys - I'll a PM or two later. Appreciate the advice.
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Congrats on getting the visa! Heartening to hear.
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Thanks for the positive replies guys. It makes me feel a little better. I'm actually quite worried about this.
One other question - how up front should she be about the purpose of her visit being to visit me? I realize its key that she convinces the consulate officer that she intends to return to Thailand (which she does) of course. Just wondering to what extent they will worry that she will stay in the states after arriving.
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Hi guys. I've been reading some of the threads here the past few weeks and gotten some great insight and info. Thanks for your generosity with advice and suggestions. I’d like to get some opinions on my own situation.
I’m a US citizen who used to live and work in Thailand. I’m now in the US working. My Thai GF still lives and works in BKK, and I’ve visited her often for the past few years. Now she will be applying for a non-immigrant tourist visa to visit me and my folks here in the US later this year. We do currently plan to get married but not for another year or so. What do you think is her likelihood of getting a visa?
1. She is a mid-level government official with the Ministry of Education, and has been an official for almost 12 years. She has an “official’s passport” in addition to a normal one (she says she heard that the official’s passport and her status as a govt official will help her, though we have no idea if this is true or just some “urban myth”).
2. Her boss is in the process of writing a letter for her to support her visa application process (but I have no idea what will be in it).
3. She has a master’s degree from Chula.
4. She owns a car but has paid it off.
5. She and her dad are both the legal owners of the condo she lives in in BKK (though only her dad pays the bills).
6. She makes about 20k baht a month. She doesn’t have a whole lot of money in the bank, but her parents are going to basically give her a lot of money to put in her account temporarily.
7. She’s been abroad several times to other Asian nations, but she has never been to the west.
8. I’ve also written a “letter of support” for her basically stating that she plans to come and visit me, and then return to Thailand, and stated my home address and all the usual language (but I have no idea if this is even helpful or not).
I could go on but it seems like this is most of the relevant information. What do you guys think? Thank you in advance.
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Whats Your Favourite Type Khutieow(noodle Soup)?
in Thai Food
Posted
Khao Soi for sure. Best I've had in BKK was in a store run by a Chinese Muslim not too far from the Khao San area (but far enough that there are never any farangs there). Followed by Chinese-style shrimp dumplings soup or bamee hang.
When I used to live in Loei, you could get Vietnamese style Pho up there. In fact they even called it pho. Very delish.