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Chilon

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Posts posted by Chilon

  1. Drove up from Bangers to KPP on Monday.  Pleased to report that the roadworks have ceased for the moment, the real bumpy stretches have disappeared and the Nakkers bypass northbound was more or less 2 lanes.   Sheer luxury-enjoy it while you can.

     

    The Villa Market near Nana has moved down the Soi and around the corner but is selling Aussie meat pies and pasties at 120 B.   Not cheap but they are good.

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  2. Rick,

     

    Nice outfit.   I'm back in Thailand in a week so will be riding in the country during early morning when the canines are most active.   I was carrying a folded over length of stiff fencing wire to ward off the more ferocious ones.    However after fending off one large black brute the bloody wire slipped and became enmeshed in my front spokes which required extreme effort on my part to keep going and escape the bugger.   I'm now upgrading to a whip aerial plus some chilli based dog spray.

     

    I thought about poisoned gaiters but perhaps a bit unfashionable or Wellington Boots but figured they could be too hot.

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    • Haha 1
  3. Street Cowboy, 

     

    Shadows were short 'cos around midday but cooler than SE Asia so didn't see any mad dogs but there were a few Englishmen around.  I was more or less one of them- whilst I was born in the UK I have lived most of my life in Oz.

     

    Depending on how you do the ride there are 800M of hills in 40Km so, despite the cooler weather I usually come close to blowing a gasket.

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  4. Fred,

     

    The Nakkers bypass is a work in progress, slow, slow progress.   Should be finished anytime soon in the next 2 years.  A lot of it is down to single lanes in either direction and you can get stuck behind an overloaded truck struggling to get up the gentle incline onto the couple of bridges.  It's a 50/50 proposition which is quicker-the bypass or going straight through Nakkers.

     

    BTW they must have rearranged the furniture in the new KPP immigration facility.  When we went there they had bigger premises but it seemed to be taken up by offices and I thought the waiting area was smaller than the old one.  

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  5. Timendres yes, the rate seems high.  In the US I think it around 3/100,000.

     

    Worth noting that although chemicals seem to be used excessively in Thailand the statistical link does not prove a causal link.   Other factors may be in play that are the cause and often the researcher is motivated to find a possible cause so as to fund further research.

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  6. Back from Patts and Bangers, hadn't been to Patts for 10 years and there is now an impressive amount of building going on. 

     

    Took assorted relatives of the GF down and had 2 rooms booked at the Amari hotel.   What I didn't know was that the place is undergoing reconstruction and the large pool I remembered had vanished.   

     

    Complained about the construction noise and the disappearing pool and the manager was very good-upgraded our 2 rooms to 2 suites on the top floor so I couldn't have asked for better.    

     

    The associated Mantra restaurant was another matter-food was good but 100B for a bowl of rice!!  

     

    Went to buy some stuff for the boat but a very disappointing selection of equipment at what passes for ship chandlers.   Nonetheless  whilst they had bugger all in the way of boat stuff one of the shops sold meat(!) so I did manage to buy some Falang sausages at the Blue Oceans marine shop in Sattahip.

     

     Swarms of Chinese tourists in Patts clogging up the footpaths in various industrial strength tourism processes getting in and out of buses and boats but I guess the locals must be raking it in.

  7. We've copped a fair bit of the black stuff here.  According to Mike from the Oasis he hasn't had much this year but last year he was complaining about it all through the dry season.  Makes running an open air restaurant difficult.

  8. It has been coming down here like a cow p1ssing on a flat rock.   Second lot of rain today.   There was a loud bang as it got heavier and has now managed to short out the lights on the recently completed driving range plus the associated restaurant across the river.

     

    I checked the weather forecast and, yes, still showing sunny with 0% chance of rain.

     

    We had rain a couple of days ago as well, almost like an early start to the rainy season.

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  9. Earlier this week I had cause to head to Bangers to see a man about a boat. It is some 45 years since I owned a boat and I've almost recovered from the experience so I have decided to have another go.

     

    On the trip down I saw that the Chief Potholer and Constrictor of Traffic of Nakkers Province has been busy.  The bypass is almost entirely one lane either way so it is actually faster going through the city.  The overpass onto the bypass is showing signs of wear and the roadworks north of Nakkers which were pleasingly absent a few weeks ago have reappeared(again).

     

    Apart from the usual wreckage of a truck where the driver had probably fallen asleep early in the morning and a more recent, complicated fiasco involving 3 pick up trucks with front and rear end damage it was uneventful.   The offramp into Sukhumvit was starting to clog up but by Bangers standards it was nothing and traffic moved on Suk so we were in the hotel by 2PM.

     

    Part way through check in at the hotel an officious concierge asked me to move my car.   It wasn't blocking anyone so I refused and made it clear it wasn't going to be moved until I finished check in.  Much unhappiness all round.

     

    Some time later at the room a bowl of extra fruit with a groveling apologetic letter and some discount coupons were delivered.   Assuaged my feelings somewhat but would have been better if the bloody coupons had been useful.

     

    The boat supplier was at Bang Na so went there via BTS followed by a sweltering 2km walk past assorted freeways and a rubbish filled swamp with ominous rustling that may have been rats/giant lizards or snakes or all three.   The boats on offer seemed to be of a good quality so I have ordered one which should be finished in 10 days or so ready for its maiden voyage on the mighty Ping river.   

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  10. Have visited KPP Immigration 5 times this year.   Experience so far is-

     

    First time, for an enquiry.  Excellent, welcomed by an attractive young woman who offered some bottled water and pointed out the WiFi password.   No other customers, perhaps because they had recently moved to the location near the bus station and they couldn't find the place.   Answer to the enquiry was  a bit confusing but at least everyone was nice enough.    8/10

     

    Second time, simply to lodge alien residence form.   Shocking.  Waiting room chocka, numbers that somehow related to the queuing system scattered over a table and harassed looking staff.   Asking what was the queuing system brought a snappy, unhelpful response.  Waited 20 minutes with no visible signs of any progress so walked out.    Returned in afternoon, less people and managed to submit the form in 60 minutes or so.  1/10

     

    Third time, simply to lodge an alien residence form.  So so.  Picked the afternoon and there were less people.  Managed to complete the transaction with a bit of discussion in 45 minutes.  4/10.

     

    Fourth time for an enquiry regarding extending/renewing my OA visa( 2 weeks ago).  Excellent.  A few customers around.  Welcomed by an English speaking person, invited to sit down and then discussed the best option.   He apparently used to work at Suvarnabhumi so knew the ropes.  Saved me time and baht by suggesting a multiple re-entry permit.  About 15 minutes.  10/10.

     

    Fifth time to apply for multiple re-entry permit( 2 days ago).   Excellent.  No customers at all.  Submitted form  to different English speaking person and got the permit within 15 minutes.  Another person then took over and explained future options and costing.  10/10.

     

    In summary they seem to have added some more experienced staff and the service does seem a lot better lately.     Hopefully it continues.     They really do need a larger waiting room though.

     

  11. Just did a trip to Mae Sot.  Extensive and impressive roadworks through the mountains which combined with the rainy season weather makes it more demanding than it should be.

     

     We were held up for 30 minutes whilst they were blasting a rock face or two and then driving in low cloud with poor visibility, light rain and a slippery mix of surfaced and unsurfaced roads of varying widths.   

     

    With the usual Thai creativity in interpreting the road rules and signage,  heavy trucks at walking pace up the hills and only slightly faster going down in low gear it meant you really had to pay attention,especially when overtaking .

     

    The road should be good when it is finished and it looks like it will further enhance growth around the Mae Sot/Burma area.

  12. On another topic, i had a pair of glasses made up at the KPP Big C mall.  Told them I wanted distance vision only, not multifocal.

     

    Picked them up 4 days later, seemed OK in the shop but when I put them on at the house everything level in the middle distance looked like it was tilted down on the right hand side.   It was as if I was walking at an angle.

     

    Without glasses the world doesn't look like that, just looks a bit blurry.   Beats me what they've done.

     

    Anyone else had glasses successfully made up over here?

  13. Fred,

     

    No worries, just drop by anytime.   If we're not there the Rottweiler will be glad to see you.   It will be on starvation rations and will appreciate a bit of fresh meat.

     

    Shouldn't have to worry too much about the toileting facilities, your bowels will probably loosen up with the hound in pursuit and peristaltic movements will quickly follow.  If it manages to get a grip on your jodhpurs, chaps or breeches it may even be able to help you drop your daks.

     

    Changing the topic slightly-one of the neighbours had a stainless steel longtail boat made up.  Looks nice but bloody heavy. and presumably expensive   I'm thinking an aluminium shallow draft one would be better if I can find someone to build it.

     

    Bill,

     

    The new house is in KPP, south side of the river and not far from Fred's place.  If you are visiting Fred he might be able to take you there.   Alternatively we're back in June so if you are in KPP and feel like visiting let me know and I'll give you directions and my phone number to assist.

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  14. Excellent idea Fred.  I think a 50Mx10Mx2M pool would be just the shot.  Should be around 1000 tonnes of soil to be dug out and I can use it to level the land.

     

    I've got a couple of shovels and a wheelbarrow so if you and your missus would like to wander over I'll show you where to start digging.

     

    And by the way the rainy season is about to start so best to get it done soon.   I'll buy you some 40 degrees and fried chicken when you're done and chuck in a free days fishing.

     

    What do you reckon-deal?

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  15. The things you learn about in Thailand-bloody termites.

     

    The house in the village has been finished for a  few years now and we discovered termites a couple of years ago.  It is mainly brick and concrete so apart from a window sill here and a corner of a cupboard there it didn't suffer too much.  The termites were exterminated over a year ago and haven't given them much thought until the kitchen ceiling fell in this week.

     

    I recall seeing some of the ceiling supports being put up and that they were steel.  Turns out that was the exception-most of them are wood and the little bastards had eaten them prior to dying.  So a year or so later the wood supports give way and down it starts to come.

     

    Not to worry ,found a mob that does ceilings for 100B /m2 plus material so off we go to fix it.  

     

    This morning the water stops in the upstairs bathroom-I come downstairs, water everywhere.  The fixers managed to hit a concealed pipe embedded in the upper floor concrete.

     

    Absolutely no good reason why the pipe was buried in the concrete as there was adequate space between floor and ceiling.   The other  thing I can't understand is that the wood came from the old wooden house that had stood for 40 years with no signs of termite damage.

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