Kotengu

AWSOME!!! Thanks for yourhard efforts!! the photo-text combo is great! i've saved it for future reference!!

thanks again!

"Nice one!!
what about your night out in Lao?
pictures of that?"

DITTO~

__________________
Kono Yo No Hate Made Mo, Anata no Koto o Aishite Iru~
Until the End of This Lifetime Too, I love You So~



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twknott

Another bit of info. If you don't want to be turned away for making an error on you paperwork. Have your application filled out for 20 baht by the little guy at the fold out table just to the right of the embassy gate. I had immediate service no delays. In fact, the four of us that went had no problem while we say others turned away for the smallest error. We also stayed at a hotel on Silom down town just off the river for 300 baht a night. There was a nice disco and lots of places to eat. Everyone was really cool to us. I work in Nongkhai and we go back and forth to Lao all the time. My wife is Lao. Lao is a nice place and easy to get service. Just smile and take everything in stride. Do not go on Friday to the embassy. Monday is not bad. We went on Thursday. Abide by the times posted. Do not deviate on the times they are fixed in stone. Remember also that all the employees in the embassy house are Lao not Thai.....except for the head dude of course. Night life and staying in Lao can be expensive. Do not bed the local girls and get caught. You will not be seen again for a few years and it is rougher on her.........NO BS on this.

DunceCap

Thanks for the added info!

I wonder if any of the new regulations (regarding teachers) changes any visa stuff?

__________________
Miles and miles to go before I sleep...

Robin Hood

Visa run to Vientiane 31/10/07.

I have just got back from a visa run to Lao for my Non – B, I did it the Duncecap way.

I took the 20.45 train to Nong Khai from Huay Lumpong.

I arrived at Nong Khai about 9.15 am, no problems.

(Please be warned though, I had ordered a breakfast of rice soup with pork and when it came it was freezing cold and B95 . The beer was also B120 for a large Singha)

I then got a tuk – tuk outside the station to the border, B30. 5 minutes by vehicle, 20 by walking.

When you get through Lao customs there are a lot of drivers quoting B3 – 400 for a lift to the Thai consulate. I opted for a songtaew with 5 other people, big mistake!

We agreed the destination and the price before we started; he took us to the market.
The reason being is this; the consulate only accepts visa applications up until 11.30am, then you have to wait until the next day. The time was about 10.40am and he basically said either pay him another B50 per person or get out and miss the visa application cut-off time.

This was not a misunderstanding; later in the day I met a Filipino who had the same experience but had given them B250 originally.

Got to the consulate (with about ten minutes to spare) filled in my visa application and handed in my documents for checking.

This is what I submitted.

Letter from M.O.E stating they accept me as a teacher after checking my degree.and T.E.F.L.

A copy of my degree, T.E.F.L certificate and a letter from my university confirming my degree.

A copy of the contract between my employer and myself.

A copy of my employer’s licence to operate and their financial status.
A letter to the consulate asking for a Non immigrant B visa for myself by my sponsor.

Something about the M.O.L

The head of the company’s photo and copies of their Thai I.D CARD.

A Thai police clearance report.

Two photo’s

Copies of EVERY page of my passport.

There may be more but it was in Thai, so I’m not entirely sure what it was.

Every one of these documents had the stamp of the school, a certified copy stamp, my signature and my sponsors.

They DID NOT ask to see the originals but I took them just in case.

They told me to wait in another area and after about 20 minutes they called my name and asked for the fee, B2000 for a single entry Non B valid for 3 months.

I left the consulate and negotiated with one of the vultures outside a lift to a hotel ( B150) I had found on the internet called “The Mali Namphu” It had good reports so I handed a downloaded map from their site to the driver and away we went.

When I arrived at the hotel it was fine apart from the prices had changed to what was being quoted on the Internet.

I paid B675 for a double Air-con with cable TV, en-suite bathroom and breakfast instead of the B550 but in all the hotel was very good and the breakfast ok.

(One down side was the cost of the laundry, B90 a kilo)

PLEASE NOTE.

All you pay 4 players, The hotel, under any circumstances do not allow “guests” in the room. I saw a very drunk Australian trying to get his new - found girlfriend in and being flatly refused.

A few good bars by the river (which is only 5 minutes walk ) if you are drinking Beerlao , it is cheap but any other beer, then you are paying over the top prices.
I found an Indian restaurant near my hotel called “Narims” I had an excellent meal of pakora and samosa starters , popadoms and chicken biriyani. All the pickles , sauces etc you expect to find and a large bottle of Beer lao. B180. Well worth it in my eyes.

I went to other bars around the area and all of them where ok as long as you were drinking Beerlao.

I arranged with a tuk-tuk driver to take me to the consulate wait for me there and then take me to the border B300. (Please believe me when I say, there is not much room for negotiation with these prices. They have got you by the ……. and they know they have)

I arrived at the consulate at 12.15pm for the afternoon opening of 1pm. There was a steady stream of people arriving and by 12.50pm there was a lot of people waiting for there passports.

I received my passport with my visa about 1.15pm and then to the border.

The usual performance crossing and then I walked to the train station (Not being tight, I had 5 hours to kill)

When I arrived at the train station I was informed the trains were on strike and the 18.40 sleeper to Bangkok had been cancelled. Not happy.

I booked a ticket for the next day’s 6.00am train to Bangkok. No 1st class this time , so 2nd class with air.

So off to Nong Khai in a tuk – tuk B30 and found a room. “The Khiang Khong” B400 and a very good room to. Air , double with en-suite and cable.

I went for a walk and found a Vietnamese restaurant and had an amazing meal of BBQ pork , glass noodle salad with lime, ginger and chilli and a large Singha for B150 unbelievable. Try getting that in Bkk for less than B500.

I found a few local ex-pat bars where they seemed to be waiting to die and looked rough as…….. But the beer was cheap so who am I to judge.

I got to the station the next day ( B60 tuk – tuk this time?) at 5.50am and then the train was an hour late, we left at 7.00am.

The train constantly kept breaking down and I arrived in Bankok at 11.15 pm, that’s right, an amazing 16 hours or more on a train…….

I got into my house at just after 12.30 am. Nackered !

So there you go, an up-to date visa run to Lao. Sorry no pictures, my camera is broken.

Untill next time…….

aging one

Nice concise report.

__________________
Too long in Exile, too long not singing my song.
Too long like a rolling stone, Too long in exile
Too long in Exile, baby you just arent my friend.
Too long in Exile my friend, Baby you can never go home again.

DunceCap

Thanks, Robin Hood, for a great addition.

My night out was spent dining on the river bank with a very beautiful woman. The warm night air was filled with the sound of music from the night clubs across the street. The Mekong River flowed silently by. The lights of the Thai Kingdom could be seen at a distance. We sat dining on freshly baked fish, hot basil pork, papaya salad, and sticky rice. Beer Lao was my choice. It came nice and cold in a glass bottle. We were provided with plates and spoons.
I remember observing people come and go from the clubs along the river bank. They weren't Euro-trash, or back packers. They were mostly wealthy business people. Just taking some time out to have fun. The capital of Laos is under a mass development project. It is receiving help from countries like Japan.

Becareful when walking on the sidewalks! Sometimes the manhole covers are left open with no warning signs. Many have met this fate. You must remain vigilant when walking.

On other times when I visited the capital, I had ..... other experiences. I hope to find time to write about them some day.

__________________
Miles and miles to go before I sleep...

keekwai

Small correction .. switch those windows around.

Get the forms from the LEFT window and hand them back in to the RIGHT window.

Saint Michael

I went three months ago or so and it was $35 US for American citzens or 1550 baht. Canadians pay the most for some odd reason.

Chili

Fantastic Thread Duncecap.

I only have one question - Do they issue Multiple Non B's still cos I thought they only did singles nowadays.

Chili

__________________
bru'd in scotland made from girders.

aging one

DC is living in the USA now. In the Cascades surrounded by nature.

__________________
Too long in Exile, too long not singing my song.
Too long like a rolling stone, Too long in exile
Too long in Exile, baby you just arent my friend.
Too long in Exile my friend, Baby you can never go home again.

Guy Mandude

Thanks Dunce Cap...great post! Question: Can you get a Lao visa in Bkk and avoid that step of the process at the border? The last time I was in Udonthani, the direct bus to Vientiane had a large sign that stated something to the effect, "You must already have Lao visa to take this bus."

Qwerty2

^ Yes, you can save a little time at the border by getting your Lao Visa in Bangkok. The Lao Embassy is located to the east of Rachada & south of Lad Prao. Probably the easiest way to get there would be to take the Subway to either Hwaykwang or the Thailand Cultural Center & then a taxi to the Embassy.

It takes 2 days to get a visa - apply in the morning & pick it up in the afternoon of the following day. I costs 1400 baht.

Quite frankly, unless you happen to live near the Lao Embassy, I wouldn't bother to get a visa in advance. You won't save much money or time.

Welcome to Lao Embassy in Bangkok

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I had my students check each others work!

goo_stewart

^I agree, waste of time and money to go to the embassy in Bangkok. There is no real advantage. It's the same for the Cambodian Embassy (really close to the Laos Embassy). They charge the same money as the border points and they take a couple of days to do it (unless you pay more for a rush job).

I could be wrong, but the only difference seems to be that at the Laos Embassy you get 30 days and at the border you get 15 days - fuck all use if you are just on a visa run!

Mr Pants

Cheers for the visa run information chaps. I'm on a bus to Nong Khai tonight. I'm (hopefully) getting a 60 day tourist visa so it should be fairly painless. I still dont want to bloody go though! I'll try taking a few pics myself