Patong2

Was watching a Thai man shift crocodiles in a pond at a farm in Phuket. He was standing on a 150mm wide plank across the middle of the pool and herding them with a long pole. The crocodiles in this pool were 2m to 2.5m long so fairly sizeable and there were 50+ crocodiles still in the pool. He was facing the deep end of the pool and suddenly from behind him,a crocodile lunged out of the pool and tried to grab him by the leg. It bit his gumboot but he managed to shake it off and retain his balance all in the fraction of a second. He got off that damn plank very quick. The crocs in the pool were all excited and he would never have made it out alive if he had gone in. I'm not sure if he was shaking but we both were. A very scary experience just to watch let alone be on the plank.

Xylophone, don't go, please don't go. Your view and experiences in Patong are different to ours and keep others up to date on what is happening in this everchanging little place. Had a couple of very enjoyable meals at Santorini in Nanai thanks to your mention of it. Whats happening to Chang's over the road from there? Sad that "La Drinkeria" didn't survive. Nicely laid out. Took a group of 8 or 9 people there a couple of times and the food was reasonable, the waitresses lovely and the pool table got a bit of usage but the music was crap. Needed better marketing than just opening and hoping people came in. I wandered down to Soi Sansabai last night to enjoy a hamburger at Amena burger as I had felt a little guilty not being a customer for a month or two. I keep seeing this hard working lady still serving burgers even at 5am and she still manages a wave and a smile as I go past on a morning walk. So many Thais are just so friendly. Due to problems walking, we have really been frequenting restaurants etc close to home or where I can park and it is so nice to have friendly welcoming staff so pleased to see us. In our home country we can easily spend B4,000+ on a meal for two and never be greeted with "its nice to see you again" In Patong we get that and more from many places and the meals are less than B400 - B1000. Patong is still a lively friendly place and a great place to be. But Patong is very different, the days of Soi Crocodile in Bangla and the various busy bars like Two Black Sheep in Ratuchit Rd are long gone, but Red Hot still flourishes by the look of it. Perhap's we will see the "Irish Times" back in Jung Ceylon? We need you to keep an eye on the place for us and all the others who have contributed to this thread.

The biggest problem with Sleep Apnoea, as I understand it from my personal tests is not so much the breathing issue but what happens when you stop breathing or even worse, choking. Looking at my heart monitoring in the hospital it showed what happens. The body immediately reacts to lack of oxygen and goes into full recovery mode and pumps adrenalin right through your body. The effect on your heart is huge and a strain on your heart. The problem with Sleep Apnoea, in my case, my oxygen was stopping several times in a matter of minutes so it doesn't take a rocket science to realise that that strain on my heart meant I was not going to last as long as I possibly could and should. The machine also means I don't go to sleep talking on the phone (even with the most boring of calls) don't go to sleep at traffic lights ( not really a problem as the guy behind helps by honking and waking me up) but the real benefit is my wife is not lying there waiting for me to choke every night, and a wife with no sleep is not that great. So I view a CPAP machine pretty positively.

I have severe sleep apnoea. Have had CPAP machine for 20 odd years. Have a ResMed 10 Airsense for the last 5 years with a BMC P2 Nasal Pillows Interface (available on Lazada for quarter the price of my country) No real problems, after 5 years it is getting noisy so I will replace shortly. Use it every night, all night and made a huge difference to my life.

NZ is running out of money and has to use child labour to kill these feral cats? How much would it cost for the NZ government to get rid of them? $153,000 was spent on killing each wallaby on the govt program in Otago. Absolutely insane We could have hired a private jet for each wallaby and flown them back to Australia for a fraction of that price. "Government officials stand by $2.76 million spent on wallaby control in Otago, despite only 18 recorded wallaby kills recorded in the area, saying preventing a large infestation is “not wasted money”. They Taxpayers’ Union released a statement on Tuesday morning saying taxpayers should be “hopping mad” about a $153,000 kill cost per wallaby in Otago, after it received data of the wallaby spend and kills from Biodiversity NZ. “Taxpayers and Otago Regional Council ratepayers have forked out $2.76m and more than 26,000 hours of work for a wallaby control programme that killed just 18 wallabies,” executive director Jordan Williams said."

Definitely lower traffic volumes in the last couple of weeks in Patong, Karon/Kata and even Kamala. I even got a parking spot on Beach Rd about 5pm the other night and managed to find "Sweets" restaurant and "Karlsons" open which I was pleased to see as we had been unable to get down there since before Covid. Driving home from CherngTalay from a great comedy show on Tuesday night and had just about a free run at around 10pm. No traffic at all. Is there going to be a pick up in tourist numbers with Song Kran or is that only Thai's now? We used to get numbers of lunatic Aussie's and other farangs in Bangla Rd for Song Kran but I wonder whether we will see them this year. Wouldn't be missed by most people I think. Sat in Soi Sansabai for a few hours the other night and plenty of people walking the street, always enjoy people watching and the huge diversity of people here.

Probably best to use cars as a comparison as we know what they are like. The US fighters had a burnished/polished finish and rivets (few exposed) joins etc or seemed to fit with the streamlining. They looked every part of what they were. The Soviet craft looked like they came out of a tractor factory with the same standard as you seen on the jeep copies that you see around Patong for hire. They were not in the same class. Maybe not as bad as a Trabant but not great. It is hard to shed bias but I do try. Maybe the Soviet stuff is up to par in performance but I doubt it. An example where Soviet utilitarian design is better than Western is in the AK47 and SKS variants. The US AR15 is much better finished etc but hasn't the reliability of the old AK's. But that is the exception I think, not the rule

I was amazed looking at American F-16 and F-18 and comparing them to Migs (21, 23 and 29) of the same era and the disparity in build quality was enormous. The American planes were meticulously finished. The Migs look like they came out of a tractor factory, not a standard I would want to fly in. I took into consideration that the finish may have been to absorb radar. I know nothing of aircraft and do not claim to, but as a casual observer the big thing I took away from this was that the "Cold War" was basically a con to feed the US Military manufacturing companies. The US was way ahead in tech and quality compared to Soviets in my opinion.

No you definitely do not need a card to purchase at Makro. I am often asked if i have one though. One thing to note is that Makro only accept cash as far as I have seen.

What is the benefit of having a Makro Card? Do you get a cheaper price? If so, what rate etc.

Driving from Karon to Chalong yesterday and I realised I really look forward to the vista you get from the top of Chalong hill. As you crest the hill, the bay is spread out before you with boats, small ships and islands set on a lovely coloured sea. As you go down the hill and curve to the left the view expands to allow you to see all of Chalong and up to Phuket town, Just stunning. Drive from Rawai to Patong after about 8pm along the coast road and the many squid boats off the coast with their ultra bright green flourescent lights are a view I've never seen anywhere else. What are your favourites around the island?

Driving from Karon to Chalong yesterday and I realised I really look forward to the vista you get from the top of Chalong hill. As you crest the hill, the bay is spread out before you with boats, small ships and islands set on a lovely coloured sea. As you go down the hill and curve to the left the view expands to allow you to see all of Chalong and up to Phuket town, Just stunning. Drive from Rawai to Patong after about 8pm along the coast road and the many squid boats off the coast with their ultra bright green flourescent lights are a view I've never seen anywhere else. What are your favourites around the island?

I have the Brother DCP-1510 and have had great results. Around 6 years old no problems, away 2+ years and restarted as though it was yesterday. Toner available on Lazada Just use cheap 70gm paper available anywhere including supermarkets.

"Banshees of Inisherin" What a ridiculous depressing movie. The Irish version of the Icelandic movie "Rams" and just as pointless. A small village movie can be really entertaining. "Waking Ned Devine" is real comedy and uplifting to watch.

It is quite amusing walking down to the beach through Bangla Rd at 5am and often there are 2, 3 or 4 Indians bargaining with girls and ladyboys for whatever. Often the discussions are heated and yesterday a lovely Thai girl had clearly lost her temper and was shouting "F.... Y...." at the top of her voice in Soi Sansabai in some dispute with an apparent Indian.

Is it time for a new thread or even two new threads, One for the nice cheap finds and one for medium price and above? Since Covid we have lost many old places and there are many new gems opening up. Got to the stage where it is hard to decide where to eat as there are so many good places but we love trying new ones. But it would be good to have an up to date list of good finds that are open now. Your thoughts?

Have seen the chains going on bikes in Sawadirak Rd after about 7am as they have parked overnight and are now on the wrong side of the road. Longstanding rule and has been enforced for many years now with chains.

Yes, I just went to Google Maps to see how they spelled it in case someone wanted to search which road I was talking about. You are right, there has been a couple of really good restaurants up there and bars with a great view. Your wife was right to make you walk down, we have sat at what used to be Monty's Bar at the bottom of the hill in wet weather and watched several motor bikes lock up their brakes and the weight and slope made them career down until the rider jumped or fell off. The steep roads here are not for novice bike riders when it is wet.

Thanks to everyone for sharing info. Been on Tamsulosin for 12 months and no discernible benefit. Only have to get once during the night as prior to taking it. But ED, which roughly corresponds to the same time period, I had just put down to age and I was never advised of this as a side effect.

That is exactly the same road. I tried the other private road on the other side of the highway and it is pretty well advanced but just a single strip of concrete most of the way and a steep muddy track yet to be finished. My passengers got a bit nervous after we went through a deep boggy patch and they weren't keen on the last steep stretch at all. Probably OK on a bike but you will get dirty I'll update on that when it is complete.

Yes it completely bypasses the slip on Patong Hill but is not a great option as it is much longer and very steep in parts. I drove our little front wheel drive Honda Jazz with 4 adults in and had no problem so expect the Swift would fly over it. (Couldn't resist that) Don't go in the rain as there was still some crumbly debris on the road which may make it slippery and you would miss the great vista over Patong. Probably the inclines are about as steep as either hill from Nanai Rd to Hasippi Rd that runs along the top of the hill behind Patong.

On the bright side, an enterprising local has completed the new road that goes from the top of Patong Hill (off on the left going towards Kathu, a big concrete road where there used to be a lone elephant tethered) and exits onto the Patong Hill Rd at the bottom of the hill about 400m before the traffic lights. Definitely best viewed by going from the Kathu end. On the way down the hill near the bottom, just past the newish PTT petrol station there is a road to the left with a sign up saying "Open Now". Not sure what the "Open Now" sign refers to but go up the road and it goes past a go kart track and eventually a Cobra Show and the old ZiplineMax. It is a mature 2 lane concrete road and meanders past through forest etc and parts are very steep. Lovely drive through here. You will come up the hill to the new part which links through to the Patong Hill Rd and there are the best views you will see of Patong on your right and Kathu on the left. Take your good camera with you and get out of the car and have a look. The road is steep but certainly very well built. Take care and don't tell too many people about this new gem. Don't go when raining

Shatner's role in the "Boston Legal" TV series is brilliant

Hung Sen has been face to face with New Zealand's Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern. Ardern's huge PR contingent has advised that she has had a RAT test and has proved negative so far. Hang on a minute mate, This is the same woman that made RAT Tests illegal in New Zealand and threatened prison for my wife and I if we brought any back from Thailand. Her hypocrisy astounds me.

Definitely a lot busier the last week or so and traffic heavy last night too and pavements crowded. Went down to Karon & Kata on Sunday night and significant numbers of tourists on the streets compared to even a week ago, so things are definitely picking up. A word of warning, returning from our favourite restaurant on 9pm Sunday night and we were stopped at the Karon View Point by the police. Pulled over and spoken to and they wanted to know whether I had had a drink. No problem for me but they were stopping every vehicle and about 10 police at the checkpoint. Have been stopped here before so make sure you don't drink if you are going to drive. There are enough dangers on this road without you being half cut.