Thai Visas and Immigration

I have heard rumors around about how painful Immigration Departments can be regardless of which country you are visiting and now I have experienced first hand that it is true.  When we decided to take the job in Thailand we started arranging all of our necessary paperwork to live in a foreign country as temporary residents.  We got ourselves Non Immigrant Visas which we can use multiple times for 12 months.  We assumed that this would allow us to stay in Thailand for 12 months and because we had to produce paperwork confirming Marcus' employment etc we also thought that this was our work visa as well. WRONG, we should know better than to ASSUME!
Turns out that the Visa is only valid for use for 12 months and the maximum allowed time to stay in Thailand consecutively is 3 months (90 days). So we have to leave the country every 90 days to get our Visas stamped then we re-enter get stamped again to allow us to stay another 90 days.  As well as that we were told that Marcus needs a work permit which can only be obtained once you are living in Thailand through a Immigration Law Firm, mountains of paperwork and all sorts of weird questions are asked and now they want Marcus to chase up all of his education paperwork from Australia as well to prove that he is qualified.  They also told me only days ago that this process can take over 60 days.  So we cannot apply for a 12 month extension on our Visas and forego the border runs until the permit is approved.  My frustration was that none of this information was given to us either before we left Australia or when we first arrived.  Maybe if someone had of informed me then we could have gathered all of the documents they needed.  Also I would have been more prepared and organised to make a border run, I could have made a little holiday out of it and visited Singapore or somewhere like that.
 
I know, I hear that little voice in the back of my mind telling me that I should have researched all of this before we left and should not have left it up to other people, but when a International company asks you to live and work abroad a person can be allowed to assume that they will take care of everything.  Boy do I now know that that is not the case, we were given a few flights and then dumped to figure it all out on our own.  I get upset some days when talking with other expat wives and they tell me that their companies handled EVERYTHING, insurance, expenses, housing, Visas, work permits, cars, drivers etc etc etc.  I come home and then tell Marcus how shit I think we have been treated by his company and of course he gets all defensive about it.  But in another light I think that maybe it is kind of rewarding and encouraging to know that we moved here with 2 small kids and did it all by ourselves with minimal help, maybe we are experiencing the real expat life, and for that matter the real Thailand.......

So now after spending the morning sitting in Immigration and handing over another handful of cash we have a 7 day extension on our visas to arrange a border run and get another 90 day stamp.  The closest country to Pattaya is Cambodia, its about a 3-4 hour drive one way and there are many bus companies that run daily trips over there for tourist and temporary residents like us.  Apparently everyone who doesn't have a work permit extension has to make these runs, you can go to Malaysia or Laos as well.  They charge you a pretty high fee for this service but they take care of all of your paperwork for you and make the whole process (hopefully) pain free.  We leave at 6am next Tuesday from a pub in town in a minibus. Oh and did I mention the kids have to come too?  We stop for lunch somewhere along the way, then when we get to the border we hope out, walk through the Immigration gates into Cambodia (or a neutral zone), get a stamp, then we walk a few steps to the other gate and walk back through the Thai Immigration gates and get another stamp and then back into Thailand, hope on the bus and head on back to Pattaya. 
Or that is how I have been told it goes.  I have also been warned to watch for pick pockets and begging Cambodian children, it is apparently quite bad.  There are also meant at be alot of Casinos that have been built recently along the border as gambling is illegal in Thailand but not in Cambodia so alot of Chinese -Thai people go there.  We wont be trying any of that, not with the kids anyway.  It will be stressful enough just keeping them occupied in the bus for such a long boring day.
So my week so far has been stressing about going into Immigration to request an extension (our Visas expired today so we were really leaving it to the last minute) and about organising and making the border run and stressing about making sure we have all of the papers we need.  I will absolutely die if I go all that way and end up forgetting a necessary document.  But the beauty, as I said before, is that the visa run company should handle everything all we have to do is walk through a couple gates and smile for the camera.
Well here's hoping anyway.......

Beaches, Tigers, Crocodiles and Elephants.

We have discovered since settling into our new home here in Pattaya that we have so much more time on our hands.  Marcus doesn't work the extra long hours he used to, well not yet anyway, I imagine that once production starts things will get a bit more time demanding.  But for now we are quite free to fill our time with nice pleasurable things.  I don't have anywhere near as much housework as I used to as our driver/nanny/maid cleans everyday and does all of our laundry and ironing and she also watches the baby when I need to make quick trips into town. We also have a maid who comes on Saturdays and cleans the whole house inside and out, it is so nice to return to a nice clean home after a busy day out.   Marcus doesn't have any of the duties he used to either, like mowing the lawns or cleaning the bathrooms.  The only job he has to do know is go to work and do the dishes at the end of the evening meal.  I don't even cook anymore.  I think since we have been here I have cooked a evening meal a total of 4 times.  If we eat Thai food it is cheaper to eat from the local restaurants than for me to shop in the supermarkets. 

An example of this freedom is what we got up to over the weekend.  Saturday morning Marcus went to work for a few hours then he went to the gym and afterwards we decided to head down to Jomtien Beach for the afternoon.  We spent the whole afternoon relaxing on the deck chairs drinking beers.  Marcus went looking for a restaurant for our lunch as we don't like to buy food off the streets vendors walking along the beach, their food is always cold and it seems to be too much of a gamble.  He found a nice restaurant and the waiter told him that he could bring the food down to us on the sand.  How lovely, we felt like royalty and of course I tipped the guy for his great service.  That evening after the kids went to bed we decided to try out a local pizza restaurant and were pleasantly surprised.  We weren't expecting to get great pizza all the way over here in Thailand, but that is exactly what we got.

Sunday we woke up to a hot and sunny day.  As it had been overcast and rainy all week we decided to make the most of it and take the kids to the clubhouse for a swim.  It was so nice to be out in the hot sun, although we can't stay long as Judd and I burn very quickly.  Afterwards we put the kids down for their naps and I headed into town for a bit of shopping and a massage.  2 hours later I got home and we made a last minute decision to take the kids to the Sri Racha Tiger Zoo, about 30 Min's from our house. 

We caught the 3.30 Tiger Show which Judd loved but I kept feeling so sorry for these poor animals being forced to jump through rings of fire and stand up and do jumping tricks.  I got the feeling that given the chance these tigers would rip their trainers apart.  They were not happy.  The trainers had these long metal sticks that they would hit the tigers with when they wouldn't perform properly.  One male trainer even smacked one of the tigers right on the head.  The tiger of course tried to take a swipe at him.  I was secretly hoping that the tigers would bite their trainers but of course I wouldn't want Judd and Lillie to see such a thing, but I felt so much pity for these poor animals being treated like freak shows.  I kept having to remind myself that I was in an Asian country and they don't treat or care for animals the same way that a compassionate country like Australia does.
They breed the Tigers at this Zoo too, this Tiger attraction was for people to walk past glass windows and stare at the Tigers in their concrete cells pacing back and forth snarling.  There would have been about 8 of these cells with 2 tigers in each plus all the other Tigers from the show and out in their tiny play yard with some sad looking old car tires for them to climb on.  What happens to these Tigers?
And they have a display (or freak show) where they have taken new born Tiger cubs from their mother and make them suckle a Sow whos own piglets have been taken away to suckle on the mother Tiger!  Preposterous!  I understand that sometimes things like that happen to animals in captivity when the mother rejects her offspring, but this was purely for show.  It just proved to me that nothing is too far if it can make someone some money, everything can be sold.

Next we saw the Crocodile show.  Now these guys had to have been drugged.  There is no way a Croc would let a person drag it around by its tail and let them stick their heads and hands and even put money in their mouths.  One lady trainer actually laid on the back of one of the big guys.  They even offer tourists the opportunity to have a photo taken while sitting on a croc. There was no way we were going to be doing that.

After this we headed down next to the Elephant show.  Now this was nicer, I could tell the Elephants were treated better if not kindly by their trainers, although one elephant did seem a bit skinny.  They did simple but entertaining tricks and Judd absolutely loved it.  He loves Elephants so for him to be this close he was having a great time.  At the end I gave him some money to give to the Elephant and I also bought a bunch of bananas for he and Lillie to feed to them.  I helped Lillie as I was a bit nervous that the Elephant would eat her instead.  We got covered in Elephant snot and saliva but it was a great experience. 

On our way out all the stalls and shows were closed but we came across the place where they let you have your photo taken with a tiger cub.  Well he was more than a cub, he stretched across our laps (the 4 of us all got a photo together) he was that long.  Marcus held the bottle of milk and somehow the lady managed to get a photo of all of us smiling, it turned out to be a great souvenir and only cost 150baht too.  I have always wanted to touch a Tiger, ever since I was really little, and I finally got to do it, but it came at a price for me, it made me sad to wonder what would happen to that tiger when it was too big to be used for photos, would it end up being beaten into submission for the show or would it end up somewhere more horrible?

Sadness aside it was a great but busy weekend.  We didn't argue or stress out, we just took each day and made decisions on the spot, no stress.  We had some real good family time. Marcus keeps telling me he feels like he is on holiday and honestly we could get used to living like this and it may make it very hard to return home.  Or maybe we can learn how to relax and enjoy life more from our time here and make sure we take that lesson home with us.

First night alone

My first night alone in Thailand.  I knew it would happen sooner or later as Marcus as obligations with other engine plants in other countries.  This trip however was just an overnighter to Bangkok to have dinner with some company vice president and then go to a seminar and meet and greet suppliers the next day.  I handled it pretty well I think.  The kids and I did our usual routine, playtime, a walk around the village, ordered dinner at the restaurant, bath time then bed time.  Not very exciting.  It did get a bit lonely after the kids went to sleep, there was nothing on TV as usual, and I found I wasn't very sleepy.  I snuck into Judds room and gently picked him up and carried him into my bedroom to sleep in our bed.  BIG mistake.  He may look all peaceful and cute while he is asleep, but he kicks and rolls around and snores!  He woke up at 1.30am to go to the toilet and realised he wasn't in his room and woke me up to ask why. Then he struggled to get back to sleep.  And to top it off in the morning, he woke up at 6.00am and lovingly woke me up too to ask for breakfast.  Ah what a night.  I wont be making that mistake again.  The next day however I decided to do some shopping to make up for the fact that Marcus got to go out to fancy restaurant in Bangkok and I got to sleep with a kicking and snoring child.  Judd and I found a not so little crockery market and I bought some vases for 20baht each, that like 80cents!  I also bought this weird looking floor cushion that I have seen around Thailand.  It has a triangle back rest and folds out to about body length.  It is really very comfortable.  I am typing this while sitting on it right now.  It was 670baht which was about $20.  It is kind of heavy but I plan to take it back to Aust with us when we eventually return home.  It felt good to get out with just Judd and visit the shops and take my time checking things out.  I left Lillie with the nanny, who she has come to really love.  She cries whenever Rainy leaves for home.  It is so cute.  I am glad she likes her though as it makes it much easier for me to leave her while I go and do my shopping.  It is just way too hard to shop with kids here.  The sidewalks are bumpy and full of holes or covered in market stalls and then Judd refuses to walk after 10 mins and starts to cry.  It is very stressful for me and made worse by the fact that it is really very hot and I cant stop sweating.  Gross I know, but its the truth.
Now it is the weekend and we plan to take the kids to the beach and get some sunshine.  It rains here nearly every day lately and storms about once a day too.  But today the sun is out and I plan to make the most of it. 

Walking Street and Rugby

We had our very first night out without the kids on Saturday.  Our lovely new friends from NZ offered to babysit for us for the whole day and night so we could go out and watch the AFL Grand final and check out the night life in Pattaya.  We were so excited.  Judd was too, he couldn't wait for us to leave.  It was such a relief to know that the kids felt comfortable staying with new people, it allowed us to really relax and enjoy ourselves.  The only problem was that we have been so wired and busy with setting up our new life here that by mid afternoon we were exhausted and ready for bed.  We pushed on though purely for the reason that we just couldn't give up such a great opportunity to go out without the kids in tow.  This country really isn't built for strollers and toddlers.

We went into Pattaya to a pub on Beach Road called Gullivers for lunch and joined up with some other expats to watch the game on the big screen.  The pub was great, the beer was great, the food was fantastic but the game was atrocious.  As it was between St Kilda and Collingwood and we are St Kilda supporters and hate hate hate Collingwood. It was the most painful game to watch.  Not only was it the second grand final in a week we had watched as the first one the Saturday before ended in a draw and the rules stipulate that a re match must be played to decide the winning team.  So we had to sit through another awful game of football and watch our team lose, again.  So we drowned our sorrows and played some games of pool, which surprisingly I won 3 of and I haven't played a game in over 3 years.  I was very proud of myself.

There were also alot of American Navy Sailors in town from the US George Washington.  They were so easy to spot, young, fit, crew cuts and all carrying backpacks.  They all walked around in groups of 2 or 4 and were surprisingly very well behaved considering they have been on a Aircraft Carrier for months on end. 

After more beers and dinner we decided it was late enough to head down to Walking Street to initiate ourselves with the infamous night life.  We caught our very first Baht Bus, which is a ute or pickup with a roof and bench seats installed on the back.  They drive around regular routes and stop when you either wave them over or press the buzzer to stop.  They only charge 10 baht per customer per ride.  Once I was told how to use them I realised how easy it was and how convenient they are. So we rode down to the end of Beach Road hopped off and took our first stroll down Walking Street.

It was alot tamer than we imagined, there were just alot of tourist (and sailors) walking along buying food and shopping at the market stalls.  There were of course all the cute little stripper bar girls outside each bar trying to coax people, especially men inside.  Our friend took us into a bar called The Iron Club which was a small club filled with podiums with naked or half naked girls dancing on them.  There was a round spa bath full of bubbles with girls dancing in it and metal rings hanging from the ceiling, which I soon learned were for them to swing from and do tricks on.  One girl swung right up to our unsuspecting friend and showed him her private parts and scared the shit out of him as he was looking down at his phone at the time.  I couldn't stop laughing.  There are two things you can do in a bar like that, laugh or gawk and I was trying not to gawk there were enough sleazy men doing that. Ewww.  This bar didn't have the girls doing ping pong ball tricks thankfully as Marcus and I weren't up to it, we were so tired that we had one beer at the Iron Club then left and walked the rest of the street and caught Baht Bus back to our friends car and headed home.  I think if we were to ever go back we would have to be with a few of our friends from back home, especially for me, I needed another girl to laugh with me.  I took lots of photos though, the neon lights fill the night sky and there is so much to look at that you hardly notice the half naked girls standing outside the bars.

I am not sure if I would be very comfortable with Marcus going there on a boys night out but it is something I will have to deal with as alot of the men who work over here take their bosses or clients out to Walking Street as this is a big part of what Pattaya is famous for.  I do trust him.  There are some expat women here who let the sex industry here spoil their experience of living in Thailand, they cling to their husbands and never let them go out.  But like Marcus said after we got home, you see worse in Australia and prostitution is actually legal as long as it is in a Brothel.  In Thailand it is completely illegal, the bar girls are purely there to entertain and it is up to the man to pay what they call their "bar fine" which releases the girl from her duties that night at the bar and she is free to go where ever or with whom ever she likes.  If the night comes when he is invited out with the guys, I probably wont sleep well but I wont stamp my foot and say "No you cannot go!"  I am not his mum or his boss, I am his wife and if he respects and loves me and our family he wont do anything untoward.  I know I would hate it if he tried to control me in any way, I know it would push me further away until I was too far to return.  And I know that he feels the same way.

Marcus in a scrum

All in all we had a great night out and then followed it up the next day by going to watch Marcus play his very first game of Rugby Union.  What a laugh.  He looked so different.  I admire him for playing though, firstly because he was very hung over and secondly because he had no real idea on what he was doing.  They were playing the US George Washington sailors.  WOW, they were big, muscled and gorgeous men.  There were a couple of huge African American men who were pushing 7 feet tall and almost as wide.  One of them gave Marcus a real big hit in a tackle, he came out with a huge bruise on his thigh, scratches on his neck and aches and pains all over his body.  But he wouldn't stop going on and on about how much fun it was to get out there and get muddy and hurt.  Judd loved it too, he got to run around and around chasing his football with the other little kids, they rolled in the mud and had a great time. Even Lillie enjoyed the freedom of just wandering around the big open field.  After the match (which we lost) we went over to the club rooms for a swim and a beer.  The club rooms are amazing, they are at a Polo Club.  The pool is huge, there is a big bar and restaurant and also an indoor riding stadium and stables.  Now I know why Marcus hangs around so long after rugby training, it is a great place to sit and have a few beers.
They don't play every week but they do train. I think the next game is against a team from Sydney who are touring Thailand in 4 weeks then there is a tournament up in Chiang Mai (northern Thailand) a place where I am dying to visit but apparently it is a boys only trip.  Yeah right, we will see about that.