lowprofile

The link to another string about tics was very informative. Thanks!

I've trawled for information about this product but can't find anything to say if it is dangerous to animals (dogs and cats) after it has been sprayed around the house.Does anyone know if it is ok after a few hours, a day, a week?

I want to try and keep the termites down and also see if it is good for tics.

Thanks.

The burger at The Pier Bar (Ao Chalong Beer Garden) next to Kan Eng@Pier is pretty damn good and only 120B, if my memory serves me correctly.

Does anyone know if the "scheme" is still running or are the desks all back in working order again?

The Flying Clog will be happy then.

Put a sock in it lowprofile. You're going to spoil it for all of us at this rate...

How often do you use the airport? It sounds like you were very unfortunate, and I'm sorry to hear it. I've never seen the situation you describe and I've been going through the airport once a week for the last 2 years. So that's a 100 times plus, and NEVER seen the situation that you are describing.

Maybe the immigration officers have wound their necks in since this happened to you. Surely even they don't want to kill the golden goose by taking the piss, so they will wind back their little scam if and when necessary. I went through yesterday and it was perfect. One line for fast track and about 10 lines for the three planes that had just disgorged about 600 Russians and Chinese, who were, incidentally, running around like headless chickens in the immigration hall.

So, NO THANK YOU, I don't want to get in line with them. I'll spend 50 baht and be in my car within 5 minutes of stepping off the airplane.

I'm not trying to "spoil it" for everyone at all. The only way to make the process better for all is to improve it for all.

Another poster reaffirmed what I experienced, flying in and having deliberately slow lanes with "touts" in uniforms for the express service.

This is an appaling first impression to give tourists.

I don't fly every week, more like every 3-4, on average and I can tell you that i dread the thought of immigration queues, not just here, but everywhere.Most countries I travel to have slow service, this is not due to graft, though.

Suggesting that the immigration service would "wind their necks in" at some point is fantastical - the taxi service still hasn't.....

As to being in a line with healess chucks, you wouldn't be, if the Bangkok model was used.

I meet people at the airport every week, am legal and badged. None of our clients, of all nationalities, at all times of the day and night, have mentioned this to me or my team. I will be there again this weekend and will ask specifically about this issue. What time was the OP coming in?

Emirates from DXB at 20:00 on Tue evening.

For the posts suggesting a call to the General, not sure I want to go there, calls can be traced. I'm not even terribly happy saying what flight I was on! Immigration Police have the ability to make life very hard if they wanted to.

Arrived last night to a pretty full arrivals hall and a lot of unhappy people. 4 counters with long queues and 6 counters serving an "express" service. Use the normal queue and wait 45 minutes ++ or pay 100 Baht and wait 2 or 3 minutes in the express lane. Lots of people so pissed off with waiting on the normal lanes finally submit to the 100 Baht charge. When that flow has stopped the 6 officers on those desks simply kick back and have a chat, leaving still long queues on the normal desks.

I got "lucky" as they finally opened 2 extra desks up after 45 minutes. Lots of others would have had to wait for up to another 15 minutes at the rate the stamping was going on, though.

It was not like there was a shortage of officers on duty, there were 4 directing people to the express lane....

Why oh why they can not just have the single line for the hall and someone directing you to a short queue at a desk is beyond me. Oh, hang on a minute, maybe not. They have been exposed for charging the Chinese 500 Baht to get in and when that ended there was a 20 Baht charge to leave (seen it with my own eyes) now they need some other scheme and this, at least, looks legitimate though highly unethical.

The first impressions of a country which a tourist gets are (in my opinion):

1) toilets

2) arrival hall

3) transport from airport

The toilets are the best point of those three. Perhaps the cleaning company should be put in charge of the other two.

I can't see how they have got away with such a pathetic exit/entry area on such a busy road. Chaos will reign supreme. I see another underpass coming.............

"The Cook" opposite Romantica. Their Thai flavour pizzas are excellent!

I know there was a lot of publicity about an "assistance fee" for Chinese tourists arriving in Phuket airport some time ago. There now seems to be a "departure tax", too. Only 20 Baht, but still. Have these "officials" no shame?

Would anyone have any idea where I can get my Flymo hover mower fixed, by any chance?

South of the island, if possible.

It finally gave up the ghost with a deathly rattle and major seizure. Probably terminal, but might as well get it checked to see if it is repairable. I hate throwing things away.

Thanks

Nothing fundamental has changed in this journey.

The traffic has always been bad at certain times of the day. For this particular trip there was actually very little. I left the airport at a little after 10am and was home in under an hour. I was very surprised at how light traffic was.

Van the man makes the point about the driver only having a one way fare, he had the same oneway problem months ago, too, so why is the fare doubled now?

I have always supported the meter taxi operation over the "limo" option but it is getting to be even more expensive to take this ride than the one in a nicer, newer, better equiped limo.

Van thinks the fares are too low, the drivers are struggling - if that is the case then why are so many drivers holding the governor to ransom to get licenses for their illegal taxis? "Only 300 Baht" is the minimum wage for a full day, multiply

that by perhaps 4 runs and it is actually a "nice little earner".

The cost of living in Phuket is not so much different from Bangkok, yet fares there are very reasonable and many locals are able to aford to use taxis - that is simply not the case in Phuket.

Not so many months ago the taxi fare from the airport to Chalong was:

100 Baht for the airport

320 - 350 on the meter.

Today it is:

100 Baht for the airport

620 on the meter.

<deleted>?

The area around your resort (close to the circle) is generally one of the more dangerous areas to swim in the low season. You will find the board hire people a little further up the beach and also at the southern end, unless I'm mistaken. The south end of Kata also has a couple of hire racks and quite a few people surfing there. Nai Harn is the same.

Latex,

the best night's sleep you will ever have.

There was a string on the CM forum quite a while back where somone had a deal with a factory outlet in BKK, A fraction of the cost in Phuket (all Russian and Korean owned). I have a couple and they are fantastic.

LP

I saw a Youtube video about this recently and the doctor (?) said there was no bad cholesterol, it was all used to repair damage done to the artery walls caused by scouring from table salt. He said that normal table salt has too many impurities in it (including sand) which causes the problems. He said use Himalayan salt to avoid this.

No idea as to the authenticity of this, though.

Might be quackery, but who knows?

There is someone down near the zoo who does paramotoring (if the wind is crap). Don't have any details, though, sorry.

It amazes me how many blokes drink G&T here as where i'm from a bloke wouldn't be seen dead holding such a tarts drink.......seriously!

Ah Rickster, the classic closet homosexual reply. Thank you for confirming our suspicions.

Just found out I have another four days onshore.....

Life is good and getting better, but I need to ffind some more tonic!

Sorry, only got two left......

On the porch, birds calling, fish in the ponds, dog at my feet, nice looooong G & T, ice and lemon.

Paradise!

Shame it won't last long, though. I only managed to find 4 small bottles...................

I'd better make the most of it.