madjaristan

Welcome indeed,

If you want to discover the outdoors around the city, feel free to contact me. We live near Doi Saket, at the Mae Guang reservoir, on the way to Mae Takhrai and Jae Son national parks. I'll be happy to show you guys this little piece of Eden I fell in love with.

Cheers, Gabor

I've lived on Mauritius island for some time and I have to say that was one of my best times in my expat life. I think most people here refers to the northern part of the island when they talk about inaccessible beaches and dullness. On the southern coast however is very different. The little Indian communities in the south are very welcomingthe beaches are superb and there are some excellent diving sites. Food is great and yes, expats seem to be nicer altogether. General commodities however like renting a house or a bike can be less accessible than here in Thailand and definitely more expensive. Jobs are very hard tout get though as well as long term visas but if you can sort these out you can have a nice life.

"I was on the barracks those days"

I meant barricades, sorry

I was on the barracks those days. We went there with a group of Thai friends from Chiang Mai. They were anti-Thaksin. Not yellow, not red. Just had enough of him. One of them had a gun, a Kalasnyikov with no bullets. I was a rookie then, but somehow I ended up on the yellow side. In my home country I always fought against nationalists, demagogues and populists. There I prefer the left. Here I didin't take sides, just watched. And I saw what Rambo Isaan and his gang did. I saw the hate in their eyes, I saw their ignorance and arrogance in a brainwashed, mindless rage. I was there with students from Malaysia, teachers from Australia, doctors and university professors from Bangkok and many farmers, poor people from all over Thailand, from the North as well. "The national guards" as they called themselves. It was not the poor against the rich. It was the beast against the people.

That empty Kalasnyikov never left Chiang Mai), I only saw baseball bats and one or two knives on the yellow side. But I did hear shots from the other side, and two grenades.

I am sure both sides fired, that's not the issue here. The question is, if government supporters rally against the remaining opposition, where does this lead a country?

those yearly Po-Ro-Bo tests are a joke. last time I deliberately tested my car with worn out breaks and I got a pass. not to mention dozens of other safety tests that are not mandatory. as far as I know the authorities don't force people to change their old polluting cars because they simply don't have the money to upgrade. this is a regular policy in Thailand where most people live in poverty

Hi guys,

I recently acquired a couple of rai outside Chiang Mai. The soil seem like very hard and dry laterite with savanna like grass cover. There's no shortage in water (there's a big waterhole right next to us) but I'm wondering how to make hard laterite fertile. As far as I know tea, coffee, citrus, coconut and eucalyptus tolerate well this kind of soil. The only tree people grow around us is teak with a lot of added soil.

I'd appreciate any advice on laterite.

thanks,

gabor