You will see that most trains are "3 digit" train numbers.

That means they are "ordinary" trains. Commuter between cities for short distance use.

Trains w 2 digits or 1 digit are usually Express, Rapid etc and dont stop at every station. Also Rapid trains usually have sleeper cars that many people use to head to Chiang Mai or Nong Khai.

12go or the SRT website do NOT sell online for Ordinary trains since the fare is usually 20-40 baht or so... and the processing fee of 30 baht would be higher than the fare itself.

Just buy it at the station. They are never full since its a "seat configuration" train (vs a sleeper car etc)

Read this post:

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If u mean Vientiane, its the one NOT next to the park or PatuXay.

Note they appear as "Thailand Embassy" or "Embassy of Thailand" in Google.

U r better off putting "Vieng Vang Hotel" which theres only 1 and across the road.

PD: Remember u now need to schedule an appointment beforehand (2-3 weeks ahead) to use that consulate.

Jai Cutler because Thailand isnt see internationally as a serious country (education wise).

The education level is among the lowest on the planet and that speaks of its education system, schools, teachers, etc etc

Yes... it will be experience taken into account to find another job in Thailand, or Laos, or south east Asia. But anywhere else it wont count basically.

Top schools will always ask for a teaching university degree.

A TEFL will open the doors of schools in south east asia, some in China, maybe africa not sure... but nowherere in the western world.

So if u r planning on building a "teaching career" (that one day u might wanna continue in europe for eg) or that one day ull get tired of being in the bottom of the salary scale... then i wouldnt get into teaching but into studying. Or both (as there r degrees online/ remote etc nowadays).

And please dont take it wrong. Its all friendly advise since i have friends who taught here for years and then it serves them nothing when going back to the western world... or when wanting to move up to better schools.

Its a bit more complex than that... i can see how it can be confusing.

The office that really enforces the whole u gotta have a degree is the Department of Labour which is the office that issues the work permit.

Years ago u would get the initial 90 day Non B w an invitation letter from the school

The idea is u come into the country w that, and u have 90 days to process ur work permit.

With that in hand u go to immigration and extend (push the deadline) of ur 90 days to a whole year (they push the date back 9 months)

Then they realized that many were coming in w that 90 day Non B and later unable to get a work permit since the Labour Department has a long list of requirements, mostly to do w the school/business itself but some to do w yourself. Unable to get the work permit u couldnt extend and would have to leave at the end of those 90 days

So what they do now (which honestly is smarter) is require a pre-approval letter from the DOL (dept labor) before u even get the first Non B

There r lots of dodgy degrees out there, schools that will hire u on a tourist visa, etc so u gotta read carefully if u say u wanna do it all by the book

Another option would be a private school like those teaching after school, by the hour etc... but unlikely if they dont know u and not sure it would differ much paperwork wise.

If its a government school then u also gotta deal w the teachers council (kurusapa) which requires u have a teacher permit. The first 2 years they give u a free pass which is reneable to another 2... for 4 years no biggie there.

I also agree w Steven that 30 or 40k wont buy u a life of traveling and enjoyment. U will pay the bills and not much else.

Time will pass by and u r pretty much going nowhere career wise.

Yes... u r learning language, culture bla bla.... i know.

But if u r focused on building a career it will be like wasted years since nobody will recognize that as relevant and real work experience.

U can checkout ajarn dot com which has testimonies of hundreds of teachers, what they earn, what kinda life they live... as well as classified jobs etc

Maybe ask a few schools there about the degree.

If a school says "its ok" its prolly cuz they already have people w no degrees working. Maybe they know someone or pay someone... etc

It won't be 100% clean.... but it would for u, as in ull have your visa and work permit.

Good luck!

@Maxim **********

i did it last time cuz it WAS cheaper

And SG is much nicer airport to hang out

Figured walk around.... have coffee... etc

But like i said; i was using EXEMPTION (not visa) so the whole "im gonna stay 1 day" raised suspicion.

Then i was asked for the ticket and they realized it wasn't even 1 day.... i was gonna be there for 3-4hrs

Even the officer at SG said "next time go use another country like Malaysia or Laos for ur thai errands"

They werent friendly

Again: MY experience

Had i put "5 days" in the arrival card i guess nobody wouldve asked a thing

Steven de Blaquiere i guess its impossible to answer accurately then.

We dont know if she has a multiple entry or not.

That breaks it into 2 completely different scenarios.

You even suggested in the next comment to patch it up w a 30 day exemption.

But going back to cost/time:

We can go and discuss how far her house is located from an airport... or bangkoks traffic... or the layover time for the cheapest flights...

Whether that is quicker than the van to Aranyaprathet

Or in my case... i prefer a plane.... an airport w coffee shops... etc even if i gotta pay a bit more

Its quite personal and ultimately up to her.

Its an endless array of variables.

I think the important thing is we r all doing this for free.... trying to help and sharing our experiences.

If she does consider Singapore... and she doesnt have a multiple entry... then maybe my comment will help her write "4" days in the arrival card and not be asked much... not sure.

Just sharing my 2 cents thats all.

@Steven **************

we are talking about 2 completely different scenarios here.

U were doing a border bounce.

Basically "activating" another 90 days of a visa u already have, and is valid for a year.

He isnt.

He would be using a 30-day exception scheme which is what they r becoming tougher with nowadays.

Basically he has no visa and to the Singapore eyes he is abusing a system.

Whereas u have a long stay visa.... married to a national...

The credibility of the story is vastly different.

Yes: i couldve just had bad luck.

Then again... outta of all options, it would be my least favourite.

@Steven **************

strongly discourage Singapore

I did that 2 months ago.

On entry u gotta fill the Singapore arrival card.

Maybe my stupidity but it asks to state how many days will u be staying.

If u fly back same day what do u write? 0?

I wrote 1

Pulled aside. Asked where i was coming from... TH

Where was my next flight.... TH

So why would someone fly all the way there for the day? Or even for a night?

Its pretty obvious.

Was detained and treated like a criminal for about an hour till i was given many warnings that every time i went back i would have to do "manual" and additional verification of documents (black list basically)

KL.... sure

Or any bordering country

Singapore i wouldnt

I had this 3 days ago

The email (gmail) came about 8-10hrs later (i later found out)

Both the one for account creating and the one w the appointment info

Trick that might be helpful:

Use the "forgot my password"

I did that and got an email right away w a temporary password

Which i used to get in and make the appointment