simon43

Oh, that makes it OK of course.......

Wasn't he the guy who created the Periodic Table? 🙂

Bravery? No, stupidity!! Brain-dead 🙂

I have no reason to doubt that my heart is healthy, but it's always wise for older folk like me to have the ticker checked out. My last ECG and stress test was maybe about 5 years ago. I checked online and the price at the various private hospitals seems high, not only because they seem to package the heart check-up with a whole battery of other tests that I can have done for a fraction of the price at Life Sciences in Pattaya. Can anyone suggest a hospital package in Pattaya just for checking the health of my heart? Thanks

I just wet my pants.........

Lol, that worked well (not) with little Laos the last time!!

Apparently the train service (Yunnan - Vientiane) isn't running because of flooding in the tunnels. today is sunny and dry 🙂

After several days of monsoon rain, I was surprised to see how deep the Nam Khan river is as it flows close to the old railway bridge.

Yes, I can save up a reasonable amount of money in say 12 months, by not diverting it to my charity. That's my current plan>> save up some money, return to the UK without a property arranged, then stay in some expensive AirBnB while I either sort out an RIO mortage and buy a small flat, or use my hard cash to persuade a landlord to rent to me. The social security system in the UK is 'weird' IMHO, but I'm just following the process. If you work hard, pay taxes, save up money, then when you start to receive a government pension, you are penalised for your diligence, unable to get housing benefit etc. OTOH, if you have less than 10,000 pounds in savings, you are able to get your rent paid, council tax paid (if you live alone etc). I have duly paid my NI contributions whilst working overseas, which means that I now receive my UK state pension. By supporting my own charity and not saving up money, I will get housing benefit if I rent a property, and possible financial help (loan) with my mortgage interest each month. My monthly online income is typically about $2,500, but I'm doing more lessons now, so it's about $,3500 now. so add on my pension and I can save up a decent amount of money in a relatively short time. Atpeace, my health problem is not treatable, but the symptoms can be managed and those symptoms havn't got worse in 25 years. I could live healthily to 100 years old perhaps in Thailand, but it's the unknown factor of whether my illness will get worst as I age/my immune system gets weaker 🙂

It is only 'an herb' when yanks don't know how to speak proper English...... 🙂

What a complete insult to appoint George Barrie as the honorary consul for Pattaya! Have they run out of double-barrelled applicants?

There is none! Experian only keep records for 6 years, so although I am in their database (because I'm on the electoral roll), the entry says 'no data' (because even when living in the UK I always use cash, never use a CC or borrow money). But many landlords assume that 'no data' means 'bad debt history etc' @DaRoadRunner, I hear you. I might have mentioned that when I visited rundown Blackpool, I thought it was 'OK', but that's because I was comparing to what I was used to in Myanmar!!

Not much, typically 20,000 baht. But I'm not considering moving for financial reasons. I'm thinking long-term care/medical reasons mostly, and I miss the West Country after 23 years away. For an RIO to buy a 100k small flat, I would need about 30k cash deposit. Thanks to the demand of my online science students for lessons, plus my UK state pension, that will take me about 7 months to save up.

You can also get it for buying a new property, not remortgaging an existing property. The loan is secured against the new property which then passes to the lender on your death (ie, you can't will it to your family etc).

UK pensioners claim their benefit online, with minimal actual travel to an office 🙂 Yes, a 2-stage return to the UK, staying in Blackpool initially is also a viable option. One other option that I'm investigating is buying a small flat in the west country via an RIO (retirement interest only) mortgage, where the property passes to the lender on my death, (since I have no relatives that I would want to inherit the property). One issue is that I rent a property, the rental amount each month is mostly paid by the local authority. If I buy a property, the monthly mortgage amount is not paid, although I might be able to get a reduced loan.

My medical condition has neither worsened nor improved in the past 25 years 🙂 But I'm assuming that as I get elderly, then it probably will get worse... I had a look on the spareroom website. It's shocking to see how much is asked by landlords (and how much tenants are willing to pay) just to rent a room in a shared property! Supply and demand of course... I'm in Laos right now, seeing if I should temporarily live here while saving up $$$ before moving back to the UK. OTOH, I could do the same by teaching again in Myanmar, and save money more quickly (because I would have my in-class teaching income, as well as my pension and my online income). TBH, it saddens me a lot to see what a mess the UK has become 😞

Lol, when I was in Blackppol during the winter a few years ago, I popped into a local charity shop and picked up a (seemingly) new North Face quilted jacket, top quality, 5 quid! Here's a photo of me wearing that jacket by the pier 🙂 (For some reason, people don't seem to approach me that much!!)

Yonks ago, I was stopped outside Nana Plaza by a group of Swedish men who said "It's wrong, it's wrong". Apparently, they though my Thai female friend was a young girl. She was 28 years old at the time.....

The only child sex tourism will be that between kids and Thai men - I was a police volunteer in Phuket for many years, never once did we find any foreigner involved in child sex tourism (I don't regard a 17 year old young woman as a 'child', even though the legal definition may apply). As to child exploitation, perhaps the authorities can arrest the parents of the young kids selling flowers at all times of the night, when they should be home in bed....

Yes, but to do that I need to rent an airbnb, get some wheels etc. To rent a place temporarily in the West Country is about 2,000 per month (I've checked), plus a vehicle etc. Openrent website advertises direct accommodation rentals and also tells you how many people want to rent each advertised property - the average is about 50! For me, with zero credit history, I'm at the back of that queue! Therefore, my plan is to save up 20-30k pounds, return to the UK, buy a vehicle for transport, stay in an Airbnb and hopefully persuade a landlord to rent to me because I have a large deposit, eg 6 months. All this will cost thousands of pounds, so 20k in the bank is prudent!

Poster Marin had commented: "Just to let you know it seems Simon has changed his mind again and is now going to Luang Prabang Lao" To correct this comment, I have not changed my mind at all. Were I able to rent a suitable property in the UK, I would be (metaphorically) on the next plane! But it seems that there is a huge shortage of suitable properties to rent. The only way that I stand a chance of renting a property is to pay perhaps 6 month's deposit money upfront (because I have no credit history, having been overseas for 23 years). I do not have that kind of money in cash right now, (because I usually use my excess income for my Burmese charity). Therefore, my decision to return to the UK is postponed, not cancelled! I am in Laos to minimise my personal outgoings (I don't need to rent a car etc, property rental can cheaper etc), so that I can save up funds more quickly for my return to the UK). Anyway, carry on

Isn't it great, living in a country with very few Muslims (unless you happen to live in the deep South)? I'm currently in Laos, haven't seem any 'black crows' over here....

I've had a 'love affair' with Luang Prabang for decades. My first visit was in the late '80s when the roads between Vientiane and LP were too dangerous to travel on, as well as being in terrible condition of course. We flew in on a 'wet hire' Lao Aviation plane piloted by some Danish pilots. Over the years I've returned to live and work in LP, appointed to be the Headmaster/Director of the international school. Between my other teaching commitments in Myanmar, I would always return to live in LP, to swim in Kuang Si waterfall and to ride my off-road motorbike around the mountain roads. After completing my last job in Mandalay, I went back to LP for a week, but retreated back to Thailand because the 'vibe' in LP had changed, as a result of the new train line from China. The town was literally overrun with Chinese tourists, and many local shops seemed to be now managed by Chinese, and many shops only had signs in Chinese language. A few days ago, I returned again to LP, because perhaps my previous visit was a 'one-off' bad experience. No......... it's got even worst! It's no longer a magic place for me. (YMMV). Prices have increased substantially, both for house rents and food. Maybe I'm getting old (I am!!). But I think the Luang Prabang that I used to dream about is no more... 😞

Jeez, could it get any worse for the people in the UK?

What's the problem? It will polish out....