Last Friday I paid a visit to the Malaysian and Australian Embassies in Bangkok. Getting there from the Lumphini MRT was quite a walk, but thankfully both of them were right next to each other.
Australian Embassy
People were attended to in an orderly fashion: we had to get queue numbers. Once at the counter, the officer was very accommodating, but curt. They certified my Australian documentation in less than 10 minutes. There is not much I can say about the embassy because the service was so efficient, and fast.
Malaysian Embassy
I got there quarter to two, and they were still having lunch. Apparently lunch breaks at the Malaysian embassy in Bangkok are two hours long. I met the liaison officer at one of the schools where I work part-time. She has been waiting since noon. When the doors finally opened, there were no security checks, everyone wandered in and formed a line, with the first person being separated by the rest by a red-line which obviously means "please stand behind this red line". No queue numbers needed. I felt bad? because I got there quite late and got served the third. Officer behind the counter told me that they normally took two working days to certify a document, but she added that I could wait around and see what happens after the crowd leaves. She told me the cost of the service, and I bent over and reached down to my bag (which was on the floor) to take my wallet. As I did that, my butt pushed back into the person behind me. "What is he doing so close?" I screamed in my head. I turned back and glared at him, returned my gaze to the officer who was smiling timidly, paid my money, and went to look for a seat. Soon after, that guy who invaded my personal space sat right next to me, and started fiddling around with his documents. He then asked for a pen, then asked if he could share the power plug (that I was using to charge my phone) to charge his phone. I lent him a pen, and I shared the power plug with him. Soon, the officer called out my name, and I collected my passport. I went back to my seat to retrieve my belongings, and my pen, and the guy whom I backed into asked if I knew place X. I looked at the address, checked it on google maps, and told him, "Yes, I know where that is, and I'll walk you there."
Some other minor events over the weekend:
1. Attended a participative play of the Wizard of Oz. I was one of the many Tinmans. It was at the British Club House. Half the audience, and even the hosts were not British.
2. First meal at Dean and Deluca. They messed up my order. Saw Gummy Bears and thought of buying it for a friend, but then checked the price: 150 Baht. I might as well go to 7-Eleven and get a 10-Baht pack of gummy bears. Otherwise, food was quite good.
3. Chatuchak with Mom and her girlfriends, also met with friends visiting from Sabah. As usual, it was hot, muggy, crowded, hot, did I say hot?
4. For those who want to buy Guesstures in Bangkok, forget it. Buy it online from somewhere. They don't sell it. I wandered around the malls in Siam and rang up Toys-R-Us. Mai mee.
5. MBK does not have the latest version of SPSS (currently only at version 21, with the latest version being 22).
Australian Embassy
People were attended to in an orderly fashion: we had to get queue numbers. Once at the counter, the officer was very accommodating, but curt. They certified my Australian documentation in less than 10 minutes. There is not much I can say about the embassy because the service was so efficient, and fast.
Malaysian Embassy
I got there quarter to two, and they were still having lunch. Apparently lunch breaks at the Malaysian embassy in Bangkok are two hours long. I met the liaison officer at one of the schools where I work part-time. She has been waiting since noon. When the doors finally opened, there were no security checks, everyone wandered in and formed a line, with the first person being separated by the rest by a red-line which obviously means "please stand behind this red line". No queue numbers needed. I felt bad? because I got there quite late and got served the third. Officer behind the counter told me that they normally took two working days to certify a document, but she added that I could wait around and see what happens after the crowd leaves. She told me the cost of the service, and I bent over and reached down to my bag (which was on the floor) to take my wallet. As I did that, my butt pushed back into the person behind me. "What is he doing so close?" I screamed in my head. I turned back and glared at him, returned my gaze to the officer who was smiling timidly, paid my money, and went to look for a seat. Soon after, that guy who invaded my personal space sat right next to me, and started fiddling around with his documents. He then asked for a pen, then asked if he could share the power plug (that I was using to charge my phone) to charge his phone. I lent him a pen, and I shared the power plug with him. Soon, the officer called out my name, and I collected my passport. I went back to my seat to retrieve my belongings, and my pen, and the guy whom I backed into asked if I knew place X. I looked at the address, checked it on google maps, and told him, "Yes, I know where that is, and I'll walk you there."
Some other minor events over the weekend:
1. Attended a participative play of the Wizard of Oz. I was one of the many Tinmans. It was at the British Club House. Half the audience, and even the hosts were not British.
2. First meal at Dean and Deluca. They messed up my order. Saw Gummy Bears and thought of buying it for a friend, but then checked the price: 150 Baht. I might as well go to 7-Eleven and get a 10-Baht pack of gummy bears. Otherwise, food was quite good.
3. Chatuchak with Mom and her girlfriends, also met with friends visiting from Sabah. As usual, it was hot, muggy, crowded, hot, did I say hot?
4. For those who want to buy Guesstures in Bangkok, forget it. Buy it online from somewhere. They don't sell it. I wandered around the malls in Siam and rang up Toys-R-Us. Mai mee.
5. MBK does not have the latest version of SPSS (currently only at version 21, with the latest version being 22).
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