Category Archives: Before You Book Your Flight

Before You Book Your Flight

Bangkok Pre Flight

2 Comments

International airlines subscribe to a set of standards that call for the airlines to be fined if they allow passengers to arrive in their destination country without proper travel documents.

When you check in at the departure airport, you will need to be carrying travel documents that prove when you intend to leave Thailand – usually in the form of a flight itinerary showing the dates when you’re flying out of the country, or train tickets if that will be your mode of departure.  Your airline won’t let you on the plane unless this requirement is met.
Of course, you’ll also  need a current passport – one that does not expire until a minimum of 6 months after you are scheduled to return home.  Travelers from the US, Canada, UK, Italy, France and Germany who plan to stay 29 days or fewer [see Note 1] can travel to Thailand without a visa.  If you want to stay longer than that, or hold a passport from another country, call the Thai consulate in your country to find out what kind of visa you’ll need for your visit.  It can take up to 60 days to get some visas, so plan well in advance.
If you change your travel plans after you arrive in Thailand and want to stay longer than 30 days, you can get a 15-day extension – consult a Thai consulate to find out how [see Note 2].   Without an extension or special visa, you risk getting thrown in jail for an overstay.  That would happen if during your overstay you were asked for your passport by any government employee (like a police officer).  Don’t overstay without an extension.
One key thing thing you need to decide before departure is whether your cellphone will work in Thailand.  If you have an unlocked phone with international transmission protocols (GSM), bring your phone from home.  If you’re not sure whether your cell phone is locked or it it supports GSM, call your mobile phone supplier.  If you don’t have an unlocked mobile phone, you can buy an inexpensive one in Bangkok.
It’s also a essential before you get on your flight to Thailand to print a Google Map with directions from the airport to the place you will be staying.  Few Thai cab drivers speak fluent English, but they all read maps.
And one final thing.  Take a picture of the first two pages in your passport with your cell phone.  If you lose your passport, it will make it easy to replace it.  And also, that will make it unnecessary to carry your hardcopy passport with you while you are out and about in Thailand.
[Note 1: The official Thai websites tell travelers they can obtain a 30-day tourist visa at the airport.  But what they don’t tell you is that the day you arrive is counted as already having been in the country for one day.  If you arrive on Jan. 1 and leave on Jan. 30, you’ll be just fine.  But if you leave on Jan 31, the immigration officials will charge you with a fine for one day of overstay (2,000 thb in February 2017).  The charge for overstays is subject to change – check Thai visa websites for the latest amount.]
[Note 2:  As of December, 2016, if you leave Thailand and stay away for longer than 30 days, you can re-enter the country and start a new 30-day automatic tourist visa period.  This can be done a maximum of 3 times in a 6 month period.  Thai laws about visa extensions change from time to time, so if you’re thinking of visiting Thailand multiple times in a given 12-month period, contact a Thai consulate in your area for the latest information.]
Thai Buddhism

Thai Buddhist Culture

Leave a comment

According to the most recent Thai census, approximately 85% of

The Supreme Patriarch commemoration
The ordination of Buddhist novices

Thais are adherents to  Buddhism – Theravada Buddhism to be precise – which is has elements of both philosophy and religion.

The key precepts of Thai Buddhism are the belief that each of us will be repeatedly reincarnated until we achieve enlightenment, and the belief that by doing good works (“making merit”) a person’s next incarnation will be more favorable for achieving enlightenment.  A corollary belief is that a person who makes insufficient merit to atone for his or her misdeeds will be reincarnated as a downtrodden person, or even as a lowly animal.
Buddhist monks and nuns have dedicated their lives to becoming enlightened and helping others.  They do this by following the edicts of “Dhamma”, a prescription for dealing justly and compassionately with others, and for meditating.  Monks and nuns are considered sacred souls and are afforded the utmost respect.
Thais do not consider men to be mature adults until they have spent time as monks.  Customarily young Thais do this during three-month Buddhist “Rain Retreat”, called phansa, which starts in July.  During this period no-one is allowed to leave the monkhood.  Often these days youngsters enter the monkhood for only a few weeks, but they must not do this during the Rain Retreat.
Thai people use the expression “unripe” for those men who have not yet spent their time in monkhood. After men have been a monk and left the monkhood, they are “thit”.
During phansa novice monks follow the 10 precepts;
1. Refrain from killing living things.
2. Refrain from stealing.
3. Refrain from un-chastity (sensuality, sexuality, lust).
4. Refrain from lying.
5. Refrain from taking intoxicants.
6. Refrain from taking food at inappropriate times (after noon).
7. Refrain from singing, dancing, playing music or attending entertainment programs.
8. Refrain from wearing perfume, cosmetics and garland (decorative accessories).
9. Refrain from sitting on high chairs and from sleeping on luxurious, soft beds.
10. Refrain from accepting money.
Both monks and nuns shave their heads.  Ordained monks wear flowing saffron (orange) robes and nuns wear white ones.  Monks and nuns rise at 4:00am to chant and meditate, and then at sunrise go out to beg for their daily food.  Devout Buddhist lay people generously provide monks and nuns with plates of food – thereby making merit.
There are a number of festivals and ceremonies throughout the year at which lay people can earn merit – usually by donating money to the local temple (wat) or doing good works.  Notable events for Buddhists are the annual ordination of novices into the priesthood, and the annual ceremony when monks receive new robes.
In Thai society people who have achieved success are generally considered to have been rewarded for making substantial merit in their previous and current lives, and are therefore afforded high respect.  At the very top of this stratified society is the king, who practices dhammaraja, a set of disciplined precepts which empower the monarch to rule wisely and fairly.
You can expect successful Thais comport themselves with dignity and respect for others, and for them to take seriously opportunities for making merit.  By doing so, they ensure their next incarnation will be  graced with success and a blessed life.