Thailand forum

The simplest way to stay a while in Thailand is get a tourist visa, preferably double or triple entry. Each entry is 60 days and can be extended 30 more. So triple-entry would allow you to stay for nine months, but you'd need to do a border hop to activate each consecutive entry and visit Immigration for the extensions. Get the visa in the US and if you need more later go to Vientiane where they do doubles.

Easiest to find travel companions when you get here. Go hang around Khao San Road with all the other backpackers and follow the banana pancake trail to Ko Phagnan, Ko Phi Phi, etc. One of the best ways to meet people is sign up for multi-day activities like trekkng up north or scuba live-aboards down south.

Starving, Bob has good visa advice.

As for companions - why would you want any? Just be like Kane in Kung Fu - go from place to place, meet new people, get in adeventures...

I've made some long-lasting friendships while on the road, and it seems it is easiest to strike up conversations with people when you are sharing transport (boats seems to really work for this for some reason), or a day trip or multi-day tour, just as Bob suggests above. Snorkelling or dive trip. Waterfall trip. Whatever. I've also had good luck meeting people when I've had something to share, like a large bottle of beer or a pizza or a bottle of wine or such. Just invite folks you'd like to meet over to your table. They might say no, but they might say yes too.

Having said that, I agree with MADMAC that moving around by yourself is just as appealing if not more so while on the road. It is fun to hook up with folks for a meal or a few drinks or such, but it is also easy to get side-tracked and wind up having something other than the holiday of your dreams because you wind up compromising on where to go, where to stay, where to eat, etc. There is a good balance there to be had to be sure - just don't let the need for temporary companionship outweigh why you are travelling in the first place.

When I first started travelling by myself, it felt awkward. But I got more and more used to it, and now I enjoy it as much as travelling with close friends. Just make sure you have good stuff to read with you, and use the time between ordering food and it arriving to write a post card or two to family and good mates back home, or to plan your next day.

"I also am interested in meeting a female who is interested in the same thing I am and wandering around the world for a bit and I think this situation would be a perfect opportunity to meet somebody with the same interest."

If you can't meet a woman out here, just go kill yourself, cause it ain't going to happen anywhere. It's easier than booking the flight. Guys who don't meet women here, don't want to.

I don't know, it strikes me as a touch strange that someone would travel all the way to Thailand in order to find a western woman. Based on your previous posts, I assume you live in Australia, which would seem to be a better place to find a western woman. It would be like me flying to Germany to try and meet an Asian woman. It can be done, but it doesn't make much sense. Same with food. For people coming here for vacation, most like to eat Thai food. Not that they can't get Thai food in Australia, but why come to Thailand to get fish n' chips?

All I can say is if it were me, I would go indigenous. If you want to meet a western woman, stay on the backpacker route. That's your best bet.

I am too. Libra - funny. At any rate, Backpackers tend to move around in the same places and hang out together when they get there. Available western women tend to be in this crowd. There are a few school teachers scattered in the provinces, but they're working and you are moving...

If I had to guess, I'd say that Starving isn't just looking for a western women, because as said above, those are more plentiful in the west. But instead, he's looking for a western woman who is looking to travel around southeast Asia in exactly the same way Starving wants to. You'd find a higher concentration of those while actually backpacking around southeast Asia than anywhere else. It's like if you wanted to meet a woman who salsa dances, you'd go to the salsa dance club.

"But instead, he's looking for a western woman who is looking to travel around southeast Asia in exactly the same way Starving wants to."

Exacto, I just wouldn't be looking for that. But I'm sure you must be right. In fact, Starving confirmed it. Were it me, I'd go native. But, to each his own. That's why we're all different.

Alright, Madmac, will do. Since it's in the Issan are - I had to look it up on that link - I'm sure I'll be around that area. The Issan area is my favorite region of Thai food. Didn't notice it till I'd some reading about the difference between regions' foods and all.