linno2

I agree about the rats being too expensive to waste on the likes of us! Here are a few photos from my local market with rats selling at 150 baht each. http://www.memock.co...on-in-thailand/

That is some serious money in these parts. I figured it must taste really good for that price so last night when my BIL shot one I had to try it. Silly decision that was - the taste was pretty awful and worst yet was that it lingered for hours! Only vegemite could get rid of the taste!

I think as a Pom I would prefer the taste of rat to Vegemite.

Living in a rice village there are lots of rats consumed - especially when they now capture them by electrocution with a generator and wire mesh. I can handle eating the hind legs - there is at least some meat on them and the spice makes them taste OK - I just dont like the head or tail attached. Now that you mention vegemite i think I will see what rat basted in vegemite tastes like - ha ha!

All comments bemoaning the absence of sex-education in all Thai schools are just factually incorrect. My other half has been teaching sex-education in a government school in Isaan for over a year.

I agree that sex education is taught in schools here in Isaan - but from discussions with our local teachers, they tell me that the way it is taught by some of their peers is not effective. They said that many of them did not feel comfortable teaching sex education and felt they did not have the skills to manage such classes with teenagers. A further problem was that some parents approached them complaining about the material and insisting that it was "bad" and "should not be covered in schoo"l. I know that teaching sex education is a universal problem with lots of challenges. I wish my daughter was being taught this subject by your wife as it sounds like she has a good teaching approach.

It seems the the one certain thing is 'uncertainty'! There are so many variables and competing opinons - even amongst the academics and economists and strategists. I have been pursing a simple approach with my family - don't get involved in any loans - pay any existing loans off as quickly as you can - think about growing something in addition to rice to spread the risk in case the 'rice mountain' comes 'tumbling down' - work on being moreself sufficient.

Now 19 confirmed dead and claims by the families that the 'addict' allegation is to absolve the manufacturer from having to pay any compensation.

Considering the reported UNAIDS rates of young people involved in sex in Thailand (similar biology in most of the world) and the school based sex education being 'hit and miss', does anyone know of informative sex education publications suitable for young Thais? I have a 15 year old and want to make sure she has all the information she needs to make fully informed choices. I know of many young people in my district that have an unplanned, earlier than wanted baby. I gave our sons the information and condoms a few years back and made sure they understood the risks, choices and responsibilities. My wife was really supportive and acknowledges the benefits. However whilst she knows that our daughter needs the equivalent she is not quite able to get around to it beyond vague references. Of course this is not a surprise and is a common issue for parents globally. In Australia there are some very good books written by girls that did get pregnant when they were still at school - telling their story fully and frankly in terms that their peers can understand. Would be good to know if similar existed in Thailand and would appreciate any references. If not - there is an opportunity for a publisher to make a contribution - perhaps through a Thai visa teenage forum?

from the most recent UNAIDS Thailand report...

( Status of the Epidemic

The spread of HIV in Thailand continues after the first diagnosed case nearly 30 years ago. From the first AIDS case report in 1984, the main driving force of the epidemic has been unsafe sex, and this has disproportionately affected women and men of reproductive age. Even though Thailand has had a National Strategic Plan since 1992 which helped the country succeed in rapidly slowing the spread of the virus during the decade that followed, HIV continued to spread during the first decade of the new millennium among the general population, with troubling trends in the key affected populations, including female sex workers (FSW), men who have sex with men (MSM), and people who inject drugs (PWID).

Despite the stable and slightly declining trend of HIV prevalence among pregnant women aged 15

‐24 years and male military recruits aged 20 ‐24 years, the risk behavior data in youth which reported an increase in sex‐partner mixing without condom use could be contributing to the increased risk for STIs and unwanted pregnancy. The age distribution of STI patients in which the highest number of cases was in the 15‐24 year age group, and the number of teenage deliveries per 1000 girls aged 15‐19 years had increased from 33.7 in 1989 to 50.1 in 2010.

Among the higher risk groups, the trend of HIV prevalence during the past few years remained stable at around 2% for venue based FSW. The recent evidence from prevalence surveys among non venue

‐based FSW revealed higher HIV prevalence than venue‐based FSW. This is especially worrisome since proportionally more of the non venue‐ based FSW are outside of the formal HIV prevention program than the venue‐ based FSW, and may not be receiving the same level of care and information about prevention of HIV and STIs.

The rapid spread of HIV among MSM has been observed from IBBS in 3 big tourist cities. In a 2010 survey, HIV infection among MSM remained high in Bangkok (31.3%). Lower prevalence was observed in Chiangmai and Phuket. HIV prevalence among MSM aged less than 25 years was at 12.1%. The trend of HIV prevalence among Transgenders was lower than MSM (around 10% in 2010), but the trend did not decline over the past years. Alike, the trend of HIV prevalence among MSW in the sentinel sites did not decline and was still high at 16% in 2010.

The prevalence of HIV among PWID attending detoxification centers is still high, at levels of 30% to 40%. The IBBS conducted in 2010, using respondent driven sampling (RDS) which represents PWID in communities, documented HIV prevalence among PWID at 21.9%.

The Asian Epidemic Model (AEM) and policy analysis were used to estimate new HIV infections as well as number of PLHIV for the purpose of planning for the ART program. It is estimated that 43,040 new infections will occur during 2012

‐2016. Among the estimated number of new infections, 62% will be through transmission among MSM, FSW and their clients and PWID; 32% will be through intimate partners and 6% through casual sex.

In sum, the epidemiological and behavioral data indicate that the number of new HIV infections in Thailand continues among key affected populations including MSM, FSW and PWID as well as certain subgroups of general population.

I am in Pakistan for another week - this story all over the papers with various claims including that there is a manufacturer selling fake tynol with toxic ingredients, that the 17 dead were also drug addicts, that the bogus copy is made with opium, that all the therapeutic components are 'safe' but the 'fillers' ae toxic adn a few more newspaper alleged variables. Reality is that at this time they are not sure exactly what killed the 17 people until the toxicology results are known. In the meanwhile they have arrested the pharmacies that retailed the product. Lets hope if the product is proven to be toxic that no more people are affected. Seems also that not all people who drank the Tynol died from it - some just got sick. Watch this space!

Many thanks Ackybang - I found the black heavy duty plastic sheet on a 40 meter roll x 4 meters wide and the waterproof tape to join it together. Also found a builder that seems to know what to do about it - I did download pictures and photos (some from Thailand) putting the plastic down and then the steel reo up on supports for hopefully 100mm house slab. I got the plastic from Global House in Korat - 50kms from Phi Mai

cheers!

I have 5 pumps at my farm in Oz. Grundfos and Davey. Grundfos is a good brand and the model you purchased is about $900 in Australia. It has the very useful feature of 'run dry or loss of prime and overheat cut out' and it is quiet and energy efficient BUT it is only for above ground tanks or to boost low mains pressure. Completely agree with Crossy, take it back as soon as possible and I hope you still have the receipt. It may be they were not up to scratch with product knowledge or there was a supplier inducement to buy Grundfos at this time. If sucking from an inground tank or bore you will need a non return valve for sure to help maintain prime. Make sure the suction pipe is off the bottom of the tank so that it is above any sludge build up. So in addition to the 'maximum suction lift' distance you also need to consider how high you may wish to pump the water - if you have an upstairs toilet or shower for example. There are lots of pumps on the market that suck from a depth of 8-9 meters and delivery from 40-70 litres a minute at the outlets. Go for higher litres/minute if a 2 story house.

Perhaps the funds should be used in some sort of controlled way (a challenge) to help so many farmers out of the bind they got themselves into (often but not always beyond their control) by using the title to their families generational land as securtiy for the many black market (and I am told often from a very large country to the North) money lenders who eventually end up owning the land. This way the farmer would have a fighting chance of paying back their loan with formal credit terms. After all the Govt bailed out millions of Baht of debt incurred by 'well to do' Thai people in the late 90's when they wouldn't or couldn't pay back their loans from the big banks - essentially the nation wrote off the debts as I understand - perhaps now time for the 'little guy'?

Excellent timing - just looking for a chung fi for the house as we are in the middle of lifting up 1.1meters so we are well above the road that has been elevated by our local council to now be higher than the floor of our house - hence 3 floods through the front door in the last 4 years. I can now sit down and work out the specification for the supply and tradesman. MANY THANKS ELECTAU

It's more of a question of affordability, rather than out & out corruption.

Corruption in the true sense is when you try to sell the item swearing till your blue in the face that it's the "real deal"

Thais in the majority who are on a moderate to low income can only afford fake goods when talking about showing off a top label, so to are the "visiting farangs" who are just bargain hunting for an even lower price, fakes are part of Thai culture, until wages equal fashion prices then fakes will be prevalent.

You can't always blame China or other neighbouring countries either for forcing their goods over the border, in most cases you will find Thai business owners selling their fake goods to Thai consumers, both fully aware that they are fake.

Price dictates all in Thailand.

I completely agree with this – let’s face it, if Microsoft and similar offered software at a locally (Thai) affordable price then the preference would be for the genuine item - currently the market price is equivalent to over a month's salary for the rank and file - would any Westerner pay that for Windows 8? Ok I understand the fear of such companies that Westerners may gain access to cheaper genuine software – so, make it in Thai language without the capacity to change it back to other languages. I am currently on a short term assignment in South Asia - they sell copy bags imported from and made in Thailand!! They are marketed as the 'good copies'. I have seen them complete with the tags and holograms and ownership cards etc. If I was not told they were copies I would never had known. I also believe that the market for $5,000+ hand bags remains the same as these people do not buy cheap copy designer items. The 'average' person does not buy $5,000 designer items so probably no effect on the market and it could be argued that the designer company gets free advertising for what that is worth.

If we are really worried about fakes, then fake drugs are a much more serious worry as they kill many thousands of people worldwide including Thais I am sure. In one Central Asian country I was working in, the conservative estimated share of fake drugs sold at pharmacies is 50%! In one rich Middle Eastern country I was involved with eradication of this problem - the science demonstrated that at least 20% of the pharmacy imported and sold had sub-therapeutic or no therapeutic value at all. Not so good if you think your daily tablet is controlling your blood pressure or diabetes or blood clotting capacity!! Perhaps without surprise, drugs that enhance sexual capacity are the most faked drugs in the world.

In Thailand my guess is that soon we will see a mountain of DVDs and CDs etc being ceremoniously squashed by a giant steamroller or burned. I never see reference to fake or even copy drugs - except for when the US payed for full page drugs attempting to stop the GoT from making available generic drugs for HIV positive patients - and this was all about profit - a bit unfair consiodering the cost of the drugs from US or Switzerland was clearly unaffordable AND rather a shame considering that Thais had been used for many clinical trials to get the drug regimes licensed in the US and other Western countries - then they were dumped and many died once the clinical trial requirements had been met!!!

And for my last thought on IP, the US has been the creator of many wonderful things using their intellectual property. I also know they are not at all averse to 'borrowing' someone else’s intellectual property if it suits the business plan!

I have had many Thai award tickets for my family as well - no real hitch and always able to get the flights I desire. Yes had to pay taxes but it has to date been worth it. QANTAS is the same tax wise for the redemption tickets. National flights are touch and go as to the value of using points as the tax can be only marginally different to the cost of a lower cost fare. What does amaze me is just how much tax you do pay the Australian airport - no doubt for that slick lean and efficient security service and for the cheap parking - ha ha. AMEX Thailand points don't seem to offer much these days - access to beauty potions and pills and some chance to get a discount from high end cost vendors of luxury goods or hotels or very fancy restaurants - none of which I have much interest for these days. I have always had good service from AMEX Thailand - certainly much better than AMEX Australia. I do get a little annoyed at the additional 3% charged for using the card - but also the same now for National Australia Bank's Mastercard - plus the crappy exchange rate (generally 2-4 Baht worse than advertised in newspapers) and then the 'foreign exchange fee' that appears on the statement - effectively adds 7-8% to the purchase price - Mastercard "leave home without it" or at least use it only when you have to. Oh and by the way if you are earning points from using MasterCard be aware that to ditch the 'reward' points will drop your cards interest charges by at least 6%. i found this out when Virgin released a credit card for about 9% interest. When I called NAB they immediately asked if I had the rewards points and said they would drop by 6% if I ditched them - which I did to good effect.

Just had a young bloke from Phi Mai, Nakhon Ratchasima diagnosed and hospitalised with same in the last 24 hours. He was engaged to undertake the mosquito spraying in ice growing areas. As is common he thought he had the flu which gets marginally better but then comes back with vengance. It is commonly misdiagnosed. Fortunately if early in the course of the disease it is easy to treat with a range of antibiotics. Not so easy to treat if left for a range of body systems to become progressively involved - liver, kidneys, heart and lungs.

Forget the toilet paper David, you will quickly master the art of using a bum gun, they are much cleaner than paper.

you think that a bathroom with no flush-down toilet has a bum gun?

The Farm does have both a squat and sit down toilet, but not a flush toilet

I got the reply overnight, sadly Naam, you are correct ... no bum gun ...

.

we have a couple of loos on the farm. The squat version and the pedestal version with the hand bucket flush! The comfort of a seat above ground without the complication of the button flush! Works a treat and worth the investment! The cool water showers are fine in the hot weather but a little challenging in the winter - buy an electric spontaneous hot water heater (make sure the electric system is adequate amps and cable and fuse rating) - they are from THB1500 upwards and can make life a little nore comfortable in winter. Otherwise the hot water in the camp shower can be a great substitute! The bun gun is a nice option assuming adequate water pressure.

Well the fact you have been invited home is to some degree significant. Your GF is willing to introduce you to the family so that actually means something. She is taking a risk by having you visit - as she will lose face if you never visit again. There is often a lot of drining and it may be good form to bring a bottle of foreign alcohol. If not buy a local bottle of Sang Som or Regency if you are flash. The smokes (foreign brand) may also go down very well. Remember to consider the alpha male in the family grouping and to give these items to him for distribution. This shows respect of a kind and may auger well for your futre - assuming you want a future!? But I agree with the former advice to be yourself and to be polite and show respect. Folks will recognize this and give great latitude for any technical transgression of culture, custom and practice. If you are intrested ask to look around the village - the village spirit house, the Wat (temple) and enything else that may be of interest in the specific village or town. Try the local food - perhaps even raise a toast to the hosts if appropriate. Wear reasonable clothes - especially at the Wat. Just be an OK person and it will all go well. Good luck!

I understandthat there are paper based products and even sheep wool based products for the blow in version of insulation - of course the paper one has to be treated to be fire retardant. There was also the sue of urea formaldehyde which may be available hre but has been banned in many countries due to the high long lasting concentrations of formaldehyde as a result - a carcinogen with many bad outcomes!

Any info on a moisture membrane under the slab - I have seen in other countries the use of plastic sheeting at the base of the slab - each strip of black plastic joined with a special adhesive tape - a bit like gaffers tape for those in the music industry. It is the standard approach in OZ and NZ for example and stops the rising damp as I understand. I asked today at Home Pro in Phi Mai and they could only direct me to a large roll of glad wrap - the sort used for wrapping furniture prior to storage or your suitacase at an airport as a security measure or for use as a painting drop sheet in Thailand. I have seen a lot of paint and render bubbling off walls in my own place and elswhere in Thailand (not related to plumbing problems) and was wondering if there were any first hand comments about this practie in LOS?

If any small birds get in your attic they LOVE to tear up StayCool and make it into a "house for birds". If you use that product and have a leak, it just is that much harder to find the roof leak. I would NOT buy StayCool or any similar insulation that is installed just under the roof tiles.

who installs StayCool direct under the roof tiles and not on the ceilings?

Wait, so that's where it was supposed to go?? No wonder I had such a hard time squeezing 150mm of product beneath the roof tiles!!

And where we live our area is bird free for some reason, it's quite weird. I've asked my gf why I never see any birds and she said because the locals ate them all! I was thinking about getting a birdhouse or bath to attract them but it might be seen as a buffet table.

There are tousands of birds around the temple though.

The silver insulation 'paper' is installed close to the roofing tiles/steel and the batts of fibreglass (often foil covered) are placed inside flat on the ceiling - well that's what i just saw at a roofing display newly installed at Home Pro in Phi Mai. That's what i will be using when 'rebuilding' the lower level of my house that has just been raised 1.1 meters - required due to the resealing of the road that now makes it higher than the house and 2 floods in 3 years - one waist deep through the living room 3 years ago. Venting the ceiling is also a must and the methods suggested are good - the flexi ducting is easy to buy from Global or Do Home or Home Pro - 2 kinds - one made from silver and one from plastic (more rigid) - both flexible and used for air ducting to vent clothes dryers and over stove range hoods. Whirly's are very common in Australia - particularly in industrial settings.

Cheers!

I have been asking about the same for a couple of years in Phi Mai as well - no local Thais seem to know where the dump is and the 'garbo's' are keeping it a secret. Think I will need a stealth operation to see where they go to at the end of the run - perhaps they do not want anyone to see what happens to the refuse?

For those unware the village fund is a sum of money that is administered by the village headman where locals in that village can borrow a maximum amount that has very generous rates of interest and the repayment schedule quite flexible. It was one of Thaksins ideas to keep the rural poor as loyal voters and a major part of the reason why he is liked by them so much..

Creating liquidity is in principle a good thing as most farmers have difficulty borrowing from main stream banks - for many people they have ended up in a debt cycle that they cannot service for variouis reasons. There is a mad rush at the time of annual interest payments to borrow enough money to pay the interest! It is also another opportunity for some to exploit the situation if they are incontrol of the funds. Just wish the loans could have come with some credit counselling. Of course a parallel situation has occurred in Australia with credit card debt.

I have been trying to find a breeder of blue or red healers - stumnpy or long tailed. Can anyone help with a contact?

In my thai rural experience it seems that just about everyone owes money to repay a loan from either the 1mil Thai Baht/village scheme that Taksin introduced, or to the multinational fertilizer and pesticide companies, to the tractor finance companies, to an informal money lender or to the bank. Tractors, fertilizers and pesticides are all sold on credit with the promise of vastly increased returns. These are all to often lost to floods, soured land, equipmemnt breakdowns without spare parts available for repairs and similar. Marketing strategies are effective at convincing people that they need more and more consumer goods like in most countries and Thai consumers respond predictably. Money is often borrowed to pay for weddings, funerals, Monk ordination festivities and medical care. And then there is the all too often example of the lender calling in the guarantors when the borrower has failed to make payments - on a number of occasions people did not even know they were a guarantor due to dodgy paperwork until the fast motorbike with 2 guys wearing full faced helmets paid a visit! Financial skills are not refined and older people in our village have come from subsistence agricultural/barter based economies. Saving for an unexpected event or even predictable risk is not the usual and occasionally when people do receive a financial windfall it is spent on some short term enjoyment. Compounding the problem is the apparent growing need to 'save face' by 'keeping up with the Jones's'. One tragic consequence is the loss of many a family's house and land due to the inability to pay the phenominal compounding interest when a flood or similar has stripped them of cash flow and inability to make the scheduled payments to money lenders. The title to the land that has been in their family for many generations is used as the security - mostly for an original loan that is a tiny fraction of the market value of the land. It is truly a tragedy in the making and not going away. In the Asian financial crisis in the late '90's the bad debts of many middle and upper class Thais were written off by the banks with funds from the government - not so for the poorer members of the nation with this current situation. In my own Thai family, borrowing money has been sorted out in a form of 'credit cooperative'. Essentially loans now mostly paid out collectively by the family - no new loans - working in cash or kind to pay off the now 'family based loan'. Not perfect but at least not going backwards any more. The initial challenge was being able to discuss and discover the full extent of the problem. Would be very interested to find out any more strategies for managing this difficult and very real issue.

Thismaybe is a sad case of mental illness which has gone unchecked. I have seen the same problem in Australia and the Uk when I used to work in the health sector in those countries. It can be associated with paranoid delusions that someone is going do the same to the person. They build up so much anguish about the pending 'threat' that the strategy is to do it to yourself so at least you know someone else cannot do it to you. Mental health is not particularly well recognized or managed in S.E. Asian countries. I hope he gets the care he needs.

I once worked for a country where we increased the price of tobacco by about 15 times. This was an attempt to place a price barrier in front of potential new younger smokers - I am sure it hurt the entrenched smokers financially. Interestingly the tobacco companies repackaged and repriced in a valiant attempt to counter the impact of the extra tax. My guess with the increase in alcohol is that price sensitive consumers will just shift to a cheaper more gut wrenching form of alcohol that fits with their spending habits. Sin taxes should theoretically be largely applied to address the medical conditions associated with the 'sin' - anti-smoking medication subsidy, alcoholics anonymous, health education programmes and similar. These are problems faced by many countries - lets hope it is a move in the right direction for the right reasons.