Jamie
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Posts posted by Jamie
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Sampling will not necessarily tell you what you want. I've had samples taken in a mold ridden bathroom as well as outside in ambient air. The outside air had a higher spore count than the bathroom sample.
Again, if you have water damage, you need to fix the problem. If you have mold issues on the inside of walls, you will in all likelihood not even pick this up on a test. Post clearance is more important.
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Thanks everyone. Wife is using soy milk as an alternative for now as she couldn't find any almond milk. Daughter seems to be ok with it.
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Thank you all for your help with this. I appreciate it.
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ubonjoe,
Thank you sir. I appreciate the reply.
If they decided to do a visa run to Laos, is it as simple as walking through, getting stamped and turning around which allows for the extra 30 days of stay?
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My wife and daughter are currently in Thailand visiting family. Wife was a Thai national, now is a US citizen. Daughter is a US citizen. Other than the visa run to Laos, etc, what other options do they have to stay longer than 30 days? Was quickly looking online earlier and seen requirements for proof of financial means of 40,000 baht though this is for a tourist visa. Any help is appreciated.
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Do you have a weakened immune system? Severe mold allergies or asthma? If not, you probably have little to worry about. Why do you want to test for mold? If you had water damage, you most likely have mold or remnants of mold. Remember, without water, mold doesn't grow.
Instead of spending time and money getting samples taken and tested, wouldn't it be better to get to the source of the issue? Any environmental remediation company can remove the affected (I am assuming it is dry wall) material. They generally seal off the area they are working, remove the moldy material, and clean up all while using HEPA filtration. They should do post sampling clearance to make certain they have done a proper cleanup.
I have a background in the environmental field with a number of years spent dealing with indoor air quality issues.
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Wife and daughter are in Thailand currently visiting family. My daughter is allergic to cow's milk as well as coconut. While in the States, she was drinking almond milk. I'm trying to find out if almond milk is widely available (or available at all) in Thailand. They are currently in the Sakon Nakhon area. Wife has been trying to give her soy milk as a substitute but daughter isn't really wanting it.
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Bought our tickets today. A bit more than I wanted to pay, however my wife wants to spend a day in Korea to do some touring on the way back. We ended up using a travel agent here in the US. My ticket was $1518 flying from Tucson to Bangkok and then flying back with them through Korea. All international legs will be on Korean Air. My wife and daughters ticket (daughter will be in my wife's lap) came out to around $1600.
We seen good prices flying from Tucson to LAX and then LAX to Bangkok via China Airlines (below $1200) but she was adamant we do the tour in Korea. Oh well.
Wife is Thai and is going to check on some travel agents in Thailand.This won't be useful at all. She should be looking for travel agents in the U.S. who/which specialize in Asian travel. Travel agents in Thailand will not be able to help with tickets ex-U.S.A. Sorry for not being more clear.
Do you want to fly from Tucson? If not, I assume you will drive from Tucson to Phoenix or Los Angeles?
What is your target price?
A quick search shows an "L" fare on UA for $1,320 all in. (9/16/13 - 10/28/13, various routings, no stopover). Adding a stop-over in NRT on the return bumps the price to $1,431 all in (on UA).
CA has a fare (today) for $1,229 all in.
All prices ex-TUS.
You should try to purchase ASAP. Prices will likely not decrease and you are already inside the 60 day APEX window (for a Sep. departure).
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Where in the U.S. are you beginning/ending your journey?
Adding a stop-over in Korea or Japan can/may significantly increase your air-fare.
What is your budget/target price?
I would book two separate itineraries: one for your wife/daughter and one for you, you can link the two reservation records later.
One stop options via NRT or ICN might be limited to JL/NH/UA/DL/OZ/KL (code-shares excluded of course).
Assuming your wife is Thai maybe have her look around for nearby travel agents which specialize in Asian travel, or just go with an airline's web-site.
I'm in Tucson AZ, so could fly out of either Phoenix or Los Angeles depending on what the cost is to either of those cities from Tucson. China Airlines had tickets under $1000 leaving LAX.
The best the travel agent I've used previously could find was around $1500 flying Qatar Airlines but that was Tucson - Chicago - Doha - Bangkok. I had her check the cost for a short layover in Korea, and it was about $100 cheaper flying Korean Air.
Wife is Thai and is going to check on some travel agents in Thailand.
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Thank you both for your input. Didn't think much about the baggage fees, but yes, I'll need to factor that in.
Looks like UA may be the way to go. I despise them as a domestic airline. I hope they are a bit better on international flights.
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Hello Everyone,
My wife and daughter will be flying to Thailand from the US to visit family in September. I will be following a few weeks later. We will be returning together in late October but would like to spend a day or two in either Japan or Korea.
Can anyone recommend a travel agent that deals with non-US based airlines departing from the US to BKK and returning? The travel agents I've dealt with here deal mainly with US-based airlines that also appear to be more expensive. I'd use an online travel site, however with wanting to do a layover in a different country as well as making sure we are all on the same return flight makes it difficult.
Thanks,
Jamie
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STOP!
Let's talk about getting married before the divorce.
I am an American with a Thai wife. I did it like you plan to do and it was a mistake.
If you get married before applying for her visa to the U.S., they ( immigration, homeland security and the state dept.) intentionally slow the process assumming that many Thais marry Americans to get into the U.S. and then disappear.
I did everything to the letter and it took almost three years to get my wife's visa after we were married in Thailand! We applied the day after our wedding. It also cost me a few thousand US D more as well.
All three agencies will claim not to have received documents they require to send ( even tho I had sent them registered mail and had confirmation of delivery).
Twice all three agencies claimed to not have the same document. And yes, all three agencies will require their own copy of the same document as well.
They then require you to resend the same documents, pay the fees again ( some $200+ us d) and then wait sometimes up to 3 months again to see
if they are approved! You can see how this can really extend the amount of time required to get the visa. Three three month delays....an extra 9 months!
I was almost ready to get my wife into Mexico and walk her across the border when it was finaly approved in 2 years and 10 monhts' ( while in the US. many Mexicans thought she looked Hispanic and would walk up and start speaking Spanish to her! lol )
My advice to you is to hold off on the marriage for now, apply for a " fiancee visa" ( sp? ). Take her to the U.S. and marry her there. Then you can get her perm resident visa after you are married in the states.
I have met others who had the exact same problems I had after getting married first. Even the same documents were lost!
We all agree, it is much faster and cost much less to get her to the states first, and then marry her.
Get this done correctly..and next time we can talk about divorce my friend.
Chok dee! ( good luck )
WOW! Sorry to hear about your lengthy ordeal. Good to hear it all finally worked out for you. And I really appreciate your reply.
But isn't a CR-1 visa in fact a form of a "marriage visa"? I thought it was very similar to a K-1, only the CR-1 requires multiple guarantors?
Really what I want to know is, if I go to the District Office in Bangkok and sign the papers there to make it "official" in Thailand...will it also then be recognized and "official" in the States????
Thanks again,
Brian
My wife came over on a K-1 visa. At the time (this was 2008), the processing times for a CR-1 visa were shorter. If you get married in Thailand, the CR-1 visa means the US recognizes your marriage that took place in Thailand.
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Just wondering if you can rent a car seat for a toddler at the airport. Here in the States, rental companies rent out car seats. I'd prefer not to bring along the car seat we just purchased as it was rather pricey and really don't want it getting beaten up from here to BKK. If not, I'll just pick up a less expensive alternative.
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Luckily we will be able to get her in to an allergist this month. We should know if she has outgrown her cows milk allergy. Keeping my fingers crossed.
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My son had a similar issue & was on prescription formula. There was no where to buy it that we could find in 3 trips over a year, neither in BKK, KK or Samui. (different brand)
It may be available somewhere but do you want to spend your holiday hunting it down? We brought a few cans over with us, at over a year old the need for formula should be greatly diminished. Just make sure to pierce a hole in the foil first if packing it in the checked luggage, I didn't & 3 cans exploded all over our clothes!!!! Thankfully there was still enough salvaged but it made for a smelly & messy first day. The other option is to decant it into strong food bags, takes up less space that way too.
Thanks Boo,
Yes, usually at a year old they recommend switching to regular cows milk or some sort of substitute. The general substitute is soy which we aren't too keen on switching to. The other alternatives are generally almond or coconut milk, both of which lack some key nutrients found in cows milk or formula. The pediatrician recommended we stay on the formula for the time being.
The plan is to get her in to an allergist, however it's about impossible to get an appointment short of 3 to 6 months out here.
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My wife, daughter and I plan to visit family in September. My daughter has a cow's milk allergy and has to be on a special hypoallergenic formula (Similac Alimentum). She just turned a year old and the doctor told us to keep her on this for the time being. I'm just wondering if this formula is available in Thailand, or if we need to plan on buying multiple cans of it before our trip.
Thanks in advance,
Jamie
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Re forms, take a look at these urls:
http://travel.state....types_2994.html
http://travel.state....forms_4230.html
http://bangkok.usemb...howtoapply.html
https://ceac.state.gov/genniv/
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While I'd think it'd be possible to apply for a K-1 after a rejection for an NIV (tourist visa), reckon the interviewing ConOff might not be real happy about it. Give the sequence here, would appear that you were perhaps, just perhaps, trying to beat the system by getting the NIV then have the GF travel to the U.S., get married, and apply for an Adjustment of Status. Frowned upon.
Mac
Thanks for the good links.
Basically I'm in Thailand for 2 years now, on a retirement visa (extension).
I want to work back in the US for a year or so then return here, and I want to bring my girl with me, who never worked bar, can speak english, and has university degree.
But, she has no money, no property, no children, none of the things that qualify her for a tourist visa.
Her family is small and has property.
.So A K1 with the full intention of fulfilling it's purpose (getting married in America) seems like a better option to be awarded a visa, I guess .
However on the K1 form there is a place to state your income or self employment. Neither of which I have (YET), really.
I would be starting over in the US, looking for a job. My savings is pretty minimal, enough to make a new start, but less than the yearly retirement amount.
I'm not trying to bet the beat the system, but to understand it and simply obtain a visa for my GF.
thanks.
If you have little to no income either from a job or investments, you will most likely need a co-sponsor. You need to have income that is 125% above the poverty level, otherwise, a co-sponsor is your real only way to move forward.
I second the idea of you looking at the visajourney website. It was extremely helpful when I brought my wife (then fiancee) here to the States.
I am not sure about the requirements, but a K-3 may be another option which is considered among other things a "Spousal Visa." In other words, get married in Thailand first.
There are pros and cons to both visa's so DYODD.
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I'm not sure about your question because you didn't tell us what form you are using. Are you looking to bring your fiancee to the US for marriage? If so, you need to fill out form I-134 which is the Affidavit of Support. This form has room for your income as well as other investment monies. As for requirements, yes, in this case there are. Your income must exceed the poverty level by 125%.
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Save your money. If you have mold on your lower floor, you are going to have mold spores throughout the building. Even if you had no evidence of mold, there are always going to be mold spores floating around waiting for an opportunity to grow. The only way to control mold is to remove one of the main things it needs for growth, that being moisture. You are better off spending your money on a de-humidifier or two to bring down your moisture levels throughout the building. Clean up the existing mold with regular soapy water. Forget bleach and water...it really doesn't help.
I'm an environmental specialist and have dealt with indoor air quality issues in the past.
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Ice cream in a burger bun.
They do that in the Philippines.
Maybe not the weirdest but definitely something that turned my stomach. She loves her som tam. I can't stand the smell of it. Well her "new thing" is to add some concoction she makes including what I suspect is rotten squid or fish. The smell is enough to peel paint. New rules, eat it outside, and brush your teeth before even thinking about giving me a kiss.
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I guess the saying is true in this case...The Sh*t really did hit the fan huh?
cant blame ya for taking the opportunity to use that joke....
thaiswimmer, in all seriousness, some woods when they get damp can have an off-putting odor to them. I remember as a kid, the wood they used to make the paddles for paddle ball had a very nasty smell to them when they got damp.
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I guess the saying is true in this case...The Sh*t really did hit the fan huh?
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I've lived in my apartment for 2.5 years and never had a cockroach problem...until last month. I am assuming someone in the complex isn't the best housekeeper. I've tried baits, sprays, professional pest control, sealing up cracks, holes etc around the house with spray expanding foam and I'm still finding evidence of them. All food is kept sealed up. We used to keep fruit out, but now all that has to be placed in the refrigerator. It is frustrating. If we don't get rid of them soon, I'll telling the apartment manager we are out when the lease is up.
There are natural repellents that are an option, but I'm of the opinion, when it comes to cockroaches, you need to be tough. That may be difficult if you have children or pets in the house. Something no one else has mentioned yet is boric acid, although maybe not the best if children or pets can get access to it.
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bing.com/travel I think was advertising this exact function on an ad I saw earlier yesterday.
Interesting Jimjim. I will have to take a look at this.
My advice (worth 50 satang) is to fly Southwest Tucson to LAX and then get the Thai Airways (TG) NON-STOP LAX to BKK (the only one from USA nowadays)... I would also forget about JAN and FEB 2010 (and maybe early MAR) and then one week before/after Songkran (April 13-15, 2010)... late MAR early APR is the best weather and the lowest overall prices for you plans.Thanks jazzbo. I thought Thai Airways was somewhat higher priced than other airlines (though I've not looked at them that closely)? I'll have to take a look and see what I can find. Thai Airways doesn't fly into Phoenix? I thought I had seen them there before, but could be wrong.
Baby car seat
in Family and Children
Posted · Edited by Jamie
Ran in to the same situation you did when the wife and I went back recently. Get an inexpensive carseat in the U.K. and bring it with you. I just left it at the in-law's house when we returned to the U.S. I'm not sure what it is, however child safety doesn't appear to be very high on most Thai's priority list. They also make different harness type restraints you simply lock in to the buckle portion of the seatbelt. They are a lot easier to use than lugging around a carseat, though they offer less protection and may not be available for a 15 month child.