Leatherneck

Even worse...go look at what's happened to Nha Trang in Vietnam in the past 8-10 years...Russkies totally run that town now.

Christmas card in a bulging brown envelope you mean?

Not sure why they did that...and hopefully won't do it again. I was in Europe for almost 3 months this summer. When I returned home in Chiang Mai in October, I updated my TM30. Had a weeklong road trip through northern Thailand on my motorcycle in early December and then spent Christmas/NYE in Pattaya and Bangkok. Did my 90-day report (based on my October return to LOS) earlier this month with no problems. The guy in the box looked at my TM30 and actually gave me a thumbs-up gesture and didn't say a word about not having a TM6.

As bad as noise pollution can be in Thailand, it pales in comparison to Vietnam with their constant honking of vehicle horns and a plethora of other obnoxious noises.

Like you, I also stop for people in the crosswalk but I'm cringing at the same time that the driver behind me doesn't plow into me. Being on my motorbike, I'll likely be the dead one at the scene.

Yes, but they are even worse drivers than Thais.

More like a lack of....or totally devoid of.

Agree. The possibility of a "close contact" situation is nerve wracking since none of the insurance companies will cover it. When I came back last month, I didn't want to be near anyone...still don't.

Test aNd Go...I think.

I used AXA when I came back last month. If you end up going with them, suggest contacting Arawan Namak on Facebook Messenger to serve as your AXA rep. She was always available to answer all of my questions when I couldn't get through to the AXA main office. Fortunately so far I haven't needed to use the policy so I can't speak to how well they cover hospitalization. They state that they cover asymptomatic cases, but Awaran stated they won't cover "close contact" cases (but I think none of the insurance companies will). I have a similar situation as you. I am planning at 2-month trip to Europe starting in mid-July. I will have 7 months left on my Non O when I return and thought I would need to buy insurance to cover the entire period. If you're taking your trip before then, I'd be curious to know if you ended up having to buy insurance for the 4 months left on your Non O or if you only had to buy 30 days of insurance. A PM about that later would be greatly appreciated. The Thailand Pass process was very easy in my case returning from Indonesia last month. Good luck.

I returned to Chiang Mai on 30/12 with a visa exemption and started the process for a 90-day Non O six days later. Will get that on the 27th. And then ultimately get a one year extension in April. It's doable in Chiang Mai....provided you meet all of the requirements as mentioned by others. Need to start the process quickly after you arrive in-country if you want to avoid applying for a 30-day extension of your visa exemption and save 1,900 baht.

Because I wanted to...simple as that. If you want to do itself, so be it.

I arrived in Bangkok on 29/12 with T&G on a 30-day visa exemption. Met with my visa agent in Chiang Mai on 04/01 and started the process for a 90-day Non O based on retirement. Already had 800,000 ThB in my Bangkok Bank account for over a year and had to get a letter from the bank. Went to CM Immigration the next day and started the 90-day Non O process to get it finished before my 30-day visa exemption expired and to avoid having to get a 30-day extension. Should get the 90-day Non-0 on 26/01 at Immigration and will apply for the one year Non-O in mid March and then secure it in late April. My agent, who I have known for 10 years, has made it quite easy.

Today I read an article about a research study just completed a week ago in Hong Kong that showed that people vaccinated twice with Sinovac did not have enough antibodies to protect them from Omicron. The study had a small sample size but the results were quite clear. The researchers stated that it was unclear if a 3rd Sinovac jab would provide enough protection and that further research on that would be needed. I'm guessing that the powers that be in Beijing were not thrilled with the publication of the study and CCP officials/police have already paid the researchers a visit.

I'm all set to return on the 29th but I'm starting to see and accept that the likelihood of that happening is rapidly diminishing. But at least I have a fallback with a retirement visa extension here and can continue to hide out in Bali until January 2023 if need be. And with the Thai government flip flopping all the time, I may be here until then.