we didn't have cash once going thru the train station. They said to go get cash and go to the land border. We went straight to the land border and they let us thru so we caught the train on the Thailand side
we are here on a retirement visa as well. We do like to travel so if we leave again we may not do the retirement visa. It may be better to extend and leave once in a while
How long are you planning on staying this time? If you plan to leave again within a few months maybe just do the 45 days and extend. As you know getting the retirement visa and paying for a reentry stamp costs some money. If you are planning on hopping in and out it's a waste of your money
it's kind of whatever you can get sometimes. They don't have many choices on the Thailand side. On the Malaysia side if you can't get a train you can take a bus.