CheGuava

Pretty nasty walk on the side of the highway, crossing the bridge.

I'd find a bicycle or something.

If it's an ATM in front of a convenience store then it's worth going back, going inside and ask if someone left the card there. (Check on the machine, then ask inside).

They all have a nice collection of forgotten cards. So if it's any consolation, it happens to everyone.

I get the point, but I do agree with OriginalPoster. I didn't come to Thailand to live in generic suburban hell.

This topic although a spoof, addresses an important point.

Simply put, there are just too many farangs coming to Chiang Mai.

Immigration when it becomes massive tends to destroy the very things the immigrants came for in the first place.

It has been true in the US and Europe.

It will be true in Chiang Mai.

Wait and see.

Agreed. But what to do about it? Farangs are still flocking here like flies to a steaming heap.

CONs:

Run out of money and you`re sunk. Suddenly paradise turns into a living hell.

As opposed to running out of money.. where? I'd like to know.

One thing Thailand is not short of and that's pro's.

Yes, but should the pros be mentioned under the cons?

Any of these Christmas buffets according to past years include smoked salmon and other seafood?

La Meridian

Le Méridien. It's masculine, so "Le". Either way that's not a diner. The original post asks for a diner, as per the topic title.

The Dukes I suppose could be considered a diner.

To me it seems not typical to find smoked salmon and seafood at a diner, but I will defer to folks more experienced than I.

This time of year, I think your best option is the Sankampaeng hot spring pool, 40baht entence fee, 50 baht to use the pool.

Agreed; can't swim this time of the year because it's too cold.

The fascination (obsession?) of straight men about ladyboys never fails to amaze.

They may be less straight than you might think. (Or that they might claim)

Which washroom will they use? Is this a cut/no cut thing?

It may have been a while since you were on an airplane, but they typically do not practise gender-apartheid in the lavs.

So instead of going to a real lawyer's office and getting an hour's worth of advice for free AND a free cup of coffee, you go to a coffee shop run by a lawyer(?) who can't make enough income in a real lawyer's office and PAY for a cup of coffee............

I think it's actually a pretty brilliant idea. A law office is a place with a fairly high threshold for ordinary people to walk into. If you can somehow make yourself more approachable as a lawyer and offer a low-pressure/no obligation way to test the waters then I think that is a very smart thing to do.

Hell, any douche nozzle would work! pg

Nope, many seem designed for very low amounts of water. I had to take a regular tap back to Global House for this reason.

I do think Global House on the middle ring remains a good bet, but you will have to find a _knowledgeable_ staff member, and expect some trial and error.

Balderdash! I have traveled around the north on both scooters as well as 250 dual sports, both solo and two-up. But then I like to go slow so that I can admire the views and read the signs and smile and talk to the people. I can have just as much fun on the scooters as on the larger bikes. Heck, my son's friends rode down to Phuket from Chiang Mai on their little Vespas and had a blast. In Thailand I can go for a road trip with everything I need for a few days stuffed into one small backpack. As we speak I am planning with some friends to go on an extended scooter trip next year. Sure every bike has some limitations and it would be great if I could afford to bring my WeeStrom over to Thailand. But give me a 125 Dream scooter and some time up north and my fun never ends.

So.. I guess that can be summed up as: "It's not the size that matters, it's what you do with it!"

Good post...but it sure will be difficult to get the book here,so maybe you could expand on the "push steering" and "late-apex cornering" terms for example....I did get your point at the end thou about the scooters "...and they're not nearly as much fun."...

I learned how to ride big bikes on the Internet, and push-steering means that when you want to go right, instead of leaning into the corner you just push your _right_ hand away from you, which initially (for an unobservable moment) begins to point the wheel to the left, which causes the whole bike to lean right, which gets you through a right hand corner.

Google taught me everything I know.

A lot of young people read thai visa but many don't post .

That's because it's seriously un-cool.

JUST about okay to quickly ask where to buy their favorite brand of muesli, but wouldn't actually want to be caught dead here.

Some actually set out to go to a Thaivisa party, take one look, and then run for the hills.

She doesn't sound Thai. Very VERY unattractive.

I expected better from Apple.

Zoe & Babylon is where most young farangs go to hang, it's like a congregation point when they can't figure out where else to go or can't figure out how to get cheap dates.

But I CAN figure out how to get cheap dates, by going to Zoe, Babylon, Heaven Beach and Roots Rock Reggae.

There's also Nimmanhaemin where I live, but it's a bit of a yuppie-latte scene. Many Thai chicks out and about at the main pubs there (Monkey, Warm Up and so on) but medium to medium-high maintenance. But Nimman is still a good choice, as is the general uni area including the apartment buildings in sois down from Suthep Road.

But again, you can't beat Zoe & friends for Farang chicks. They're incredibly easy after their second bucket, just make sure you get in there first before all the Thai boy-vultures zone in on the kill-site.

what about the fella who has profiles on every Thai Visa poster and cross references every post anyone makes with what they have posted previously

That would keep him off the streets though. Please don't say anything that would make him stop doing that.

International bandwidth is completely up to CAT and the ISP; there is nothing that any Internet cafe can do to increase international bandwidth.

( Personally I would just park in front of a pub, coffeshop or restaurant with good WiFi, buy a coffee and get the access code, then leave my laptop in my bike. )

Just in case anyone else like myself that didn't know what MTB stood for - Mountain Bike.

Tywais, thanks for the GA, because I didn't know what MTB was either. I was worried I'd have to go look for a Good Answer myself.

Yes,yes basic mountain bike price ranges in Thai Baht please if you know ! Need to get in shape. Nothing fancy or surely it will get stolen even if it is locked up with anything less than a Kryptonite lock.

Bicycles aren't particularly likely to get stolen in Thailand. Less so than motorbikes anyway. Just about any regular lock will do.

You can't ride on the sidewalk, usually. Have you ever seen a sidewalk in Thailand? You'd need an enduro bike to go over or around all the obstackles, uneven kerbs.. Stick to the road, that's what it's for.

Now I have seen it all.

Short trips are 20 baht.

I may have settled for 40 for that sort of distance.

And in this case, off the regular routes, I think 60 would be fair.

But no harm in being generous of course.

I can live with their spelling mistakes; TiT after all. And with all of it freely available on the Internet, I is not complaining.

The thing cannot live with is their editorial bias.

Man, talk about sky-rock-et-ing prices!

I bought a Samsung 23" Full HD LED monitor yesterday. Huge display, stunning definition. Pretty much doubles as a HD TV for upstairs.

4990 baht.

Oh -- My -- Goat.

I second that. Thai Chinese food will be nothing near the standard of HK or Singapore. It's more to Thai Chinese taste. Whereas in HK & Singapore, their Chinese food is fabulous,original taste!

Jia Tong Heng is a bit of an interesting case for me becuase I'm married to a Thai Chinese woman who absolutely loves the place but I never want to go there. She has good taste in food generally but despiste her Chinese roots learned eveyrthing that she knows about Chinese food in Bangkok. I, on the other hand, know little about food but lived in Hong Kong and Singapore and am about as interested in Thai Chinese food as I am in Swedish Chinese food.

I know I'd be interested in Swedish Chinese food.

I have always considered the MEI JIANG & YANGZI JIANG the best Hong Kong 'Cantonese Style' restaurants in CM.

Dinned at the Chinese opposite The Plaza Hotel the other week.

Opposite the Plaza hotel would BE Jia Tong Heng..?? Did you miss that?

But the parking just as bad ................

Doesn't matter in this case! It's for Dutch people so all they need is a wall for their bicycle . It's brilliant!