simon43

Having now based my self in Cambodia (next week ????!), I find most females can speak good to very good English. They've made the effort, since most foreigners speak no Khmer (and won't make an effort to learn it). I profess to only knowing 1 word of Khmer (bong!!). I can speak Thai, Lao, French and Burmese (some of these languages I can speak and read very well, others more basic). I should make an effort to learn some Khmer for politeness sake, but my old brain is currently struggling with practicing 'I need to buy a car battery because my hotel has no generator' in Burmese language....... Although Siem Reap has its own share of total 'slappers' and loser barang in Pub Street, I find most Khmer females very friendly and approachable and intelligent, able to discuss topics and not just say 'up to you..'. Most are physcially pretty as well :)

So Iran now is now attacking countries which are not involved nor taken sides in this conflict. I wonder what their justification will be...

Rubbish! I consider myself a decent person, but I'm neither shocked nor deeply affected. I don't hear you wokies making a fuss about the many thousands of civilians killed in Myanmar. Speak up about them and I might start giving Gaza more thought.

Just 36 hours after applying online, I received my tourist e-visa by email. (At least this demonstrates that I'm still allowed into Myanmar!)

I found a sturdy bag in Sakura for my 'emergency power' kit! Now the problem is that flights from Yangon to Heho are booked up for a few days. So I'll stay in Yangon for 3 days, visit the monastery school over the river in Dala Township (where I taught in 2012 - I have some old photos of my young students who will now be in their 20's). I might drop into one of my old school employers, but I don't expect any job offers! (Yangon is too polluted anyway....). There is also a good educational book shop that sells bilingual story books that I used to donate - so that's worth a visit. I would take coach travel, but this isn't possible since I teach online every evening and all the coach websites have either no seat availability, or foreigners have been banned from travelling on that route..... Such are the challenges of travel in Myanmar :) Update - (deleted). MAI manually issued the flight ticket with many apologies for their fcuked-up website...

Also, my Burmese language skills are up to asking "I want to buy a car battery because there is no electricity at my hotel. Where is the shop?" However, whether or not I can understand the reply remains to be seen.... I hope that by immersing myself for a few weeks in a (mostly) Bumese language enivonment, I can improve my language knowledge.....

I've arranged a visit to Myanmar for a few weeks, returning to my 'base' in Siem Reap a few days before the Water Festival. That gives me time to stock up on food and go into 'hibernation mode' at my room for the festival period....

Getting to the Inle Lake region is a bit of a journey. That's not due to the problems in the Middle East. Rather, it's because the flight from Bangkok to Yangon departs (for some unknown reason) at 2am on Sunday morning, arriving in Yangon about 1 hour later. My flight into Bangkok from Siem Reap arrives the previous afternoon, so I have a lot of time to kill AND I also need to teach 2 online lessons. Rather than fire up Zoom at a noisy airport, and risk having not enough 'juice' for my laptop, I'll stay for the afternoon at a cheap(ish) airport hostel that I know near Swampy. Once I arrive at Yangon, I have about 6 hours to kill before my flight to HeHo airport, which is about 1 hour from the small town of Nyaung Shwe, at the head of Inle Lake. As previously mentioned, I have neither the time nor the interest in taking the long coach journey from Yangon to Nyaung Shwe! My hotel in Nyuang Shwe is cheap, less than $10 USD/night. They also informed me that there is mains electricity for about 3 hours per day, (a fact that I remember being similar when I was in Nyaung Shwe about 14 months ago). The hotel internet and mobile internet is fine, so long as I buy SIM data cards for 3 different mobile networks when I arrive (Atom network is krap, so I won't buy that SIM), then use 3 different mobile phones at the same time AND the hotel wi-fi also to obtain a reliable internet connection, connecting all devices to my laptop using Speedify software. I've done this before in Myanmar and that works OK. To ensure that I can do my online lessons during these 'black-outs', I need to bring my trusty 12v/220v inverter and car battery charger with me (2 useful travel items when visiting Myanmar!). I'll buy a car battery when I arrive in town. I already have a strong LED light that clips to my laptop, and a solar-powered torch for getting about in the dark :) Car batteries are heavy, so I'm off to the local Sakura (secondhand item) shop today in Siem Reap to buy a cheap but strong bag to carry the battery, since I might travel up to Mandalay as well. The battery has to be 'abandoned' before I return home - can't take it on a plane. A Christian nun in Taunggyi emailed me yesterday about a new orphanage that's just opened with about 80 children, caught up in the civil war, (many people were evacuated from the town of Loikaw, south of Inle Lake). She said that they are teaching the kids English, but any teaching resources will be most welcomed. I think the local print shop in Taunggyi will be getting good business from me. I should emphasise that 'orphanage' doesn't always mean 'orphans'. Many of the kids do have parents, but the latter are destitute, and it's better for the offspring to stay at a monastery school or Christian orphanage, where they are safe, have clothes, food and other kids etc. My hotel also told me that nowadays the police ban foreigners from hiring motorbikes in Nyaung Shwe. That's annoying, because I don't want to be reliant on taxis to get around locally. I can rent a bicycle, and the furthest-away orphanage is about 8 miles from Nyauang Shwe - so that will be a nice ride. (I'll have to move hotels to Taunggyi when visiting the orphanages in that town).

At 64 years old??

I always use https://pattaya-express.com/ Very reliable

I think in this war situation, travel insurance won't cover you...

... and with that remark, (so similar to previous remarks by trolls), you have just given yourself away.......

Why let him hide his face? He's banged to rights as a drug dealer.... Don't ban him from Thailand... yet. Let him consider the error of his ways with a 10-year stretch in a Thai prison.

No way! Many of those countries are Muslim countries.... you know, the countries who refuse Muslim refugees 'cos they (those countries) are not stupid.....

In fact, (as I found out yonks ago), even trying to use ATM cards from UK banks can result in card suspension or account locking (my UK Paypal account was locked yonks ago when I tried to access it from Myanmar). I would normally take clean US dollars, plus some emergency funds in my Thai and Cambodian bank accounts. This trip will also allow me to drop into the various schools/colleges in Taunggyi to follow up job applications :)

Thanks.. It is certainly more easy to travel to/from Myanmar when based in Cambodia, as opposed to the UK. My purchase of the domestic flight from Yangon to Inle Lake (HeHo Airport) was declined by Wise because of the UK's sanctions against Myanmar - I'll have to buy that air-ticket using my Bangkok Bank account. I have previously taken the overnight bus from Yangon to Inle Lake, but it takes about 14 hours because of the many police checks on the way. Besides, my bones are getting old, so I've decided to fly. That flight was once shot at as it was coming in to land at Heho Airport, so I'll take my tin hat with me :) Hotels are cheap in Nyaung Shwe (the small town at the head of the lake), typically under $10/night for a basic hotel. This isn't a holiday for me (although in the 3 weeks of my trip I certainly hope to do some sightseeing). Apart from the 8 or orphanages that I already support, I plan to visit as many government schools as I can, including the primary schools in some of the floating villages on the lake. I also want to use my time to improve my Burmese language knowledge, which is pretty basic right now. I can read/pronounce Burmese OK, and get by in conversation, so long as it concerns schools, books etc etc. I need to find a Burmese wife..... :)

Finally I have booked a 3-week stay in the Inle Lake and Taunggyi region, leaving Siem Reap next weekend. I have various flashcards that are already waiting for me at my Lazada mailing address in Bangkok, and I'll print off A3 posters locally in Taunggyi. Apart from the orphanages etc that I already know about, a 3-week visit will allow me to visit local KG/primary and secondary schools, since they too are no doubt short of learning/teaching resources. I'll update (and with photos) for this trip :)

Dontan is the gay pick up/shafting beach (or so I hear). An early morning walk sounds risky (for most)

I would have thought hygiene rules would deem the pants not returnable... :)

George, you haven't made about comment about your life expectancy? (It might be rather short if you're recognised in Pattaya by certain AN members!) When are you planning to die? All your posts suggest a stressful life, which can't be good for your heart.

2 dics chasing another dic...... :)

Living in the jungle can lead to longevity... Varî Vãti Marubo: A senior elder of the Marubo tribe in the Amazon, she has lived her entire life deep in the Amazon rainforest. In 2024, she was estimated by her tribe to be over 120 years old, or approximately 107 based on government records, making her one of the oldest people living in the Amazon. Maria Lucimar Pereira Kaxinawá: A member of the Huni Kuin people in the Amazon, she was believed to be 131 years old when she passed away in 2022. I don't think Pattaya can be considered as the 'Jungle', unless you mean the concrete jungle.... I hope to live to 2069, but I doubt I'll achieve it!

GG is that you? (GG could refer to 2 different, regular posters lol!)

Unlike the other countries mentioned in this article, claims for asylum in the UK by Myanmar citizens were for the vast part made by those who had legally entered the UK to study. They were not made by illegal small boat immigrants. Why has the number of Myanmar citizens applying for asylum increased? Well, of course it's because of the dire situation back home in Myanmar! (It ain't rocket science...). Myanmar students come to the UK to study, in the hope of improving their own life and that of their families back in Myanmar. When their study course ends in the UK, it's no big surprise that they don't want to go back home, with little chance of employment, and the risk of being conscripted. But I hardly think that they want to live off welfare benefits. Mahmood stated "Britain will always provide refuge to people fleeing war and persecution, but our visa system must not be abused..." But IMHO, Myanmar students are not abusing the UK visa system. They are fleeing war and persecution, and trying to improve their own education so that the Cycle of Poverty is broken. What to do? Last year, USAID contracts to help Myanmar refugees in Thailand were cut by 83% (Google figures). The Myanmar military regularly refuses visas for foreign NGOs trying to help in Myanmar. By stopping student visa applications in the UK, another 'lifeline' has been cut. Let's hope that countries like Australia, Singapore etc continue to offer a window of hope for Myanmar students.

You seem fixated about their arse cheeks.....