tom yum goong

Totally agree with the BMA,

Ban those ###### bras. No bras should be worn during Songkran !!

Tesco Lotus definitely stocks balsalmic vinegar, i bought a bottle the other day.

Tops Supermarket also stocks it.

I'll second that some Thais are indeed scared of geckos, or at least the sound they make. Something to do with ghosts (isn't everything here) apparently.

Incidentally there was a movie out last year about a gecko ghost women or something. Didn't watch it, just saw the trailer.

The other day, I saw a full page ad on the back of the Thai language newspaper "Daily News" of a white Toyota Fortuner.

Underneath the word Fortuner it said "Exclusive". And it wasn't TRD. Perhaps a new version available in white?

she said 'yet'

Just stay safe, son.

rotflmao

maybe someone would care to provide a translation for 'yet'

good one.

The only used car dealer i would consider reccommending to anyone here is Sure Motors in Phuket Town. You won't get a bargain there because they aren't cheap but I know a couple of people who have bought from them and no problems so far.

http://suremotor.com/

I have been round every used car dealer in Phuket as I was looking to buy a car a few months ago and decided to buy new instead. I wouldn't trust any of those guys as far as i could throw them, plus the markup on them is outrageous.

Sure Motors seemed like the most trustworthy and professional, plus they have a good reputation. However, the price wasn't right for me. Not much more to buy new.

Why not check out the Phuket Gazette for classified ads from private sellers? Look for farangs who need to sell in a hurry as they are leaving Thailand. The second hand car dealers will only give them a pittance so you can bargain hard. Depending on how much of a hurry they are in, this is your best chance of a bargain.

Forgot to add, always let your misses negotiate if buying from a Thai.

Farang = extra $$$ surcharge

anyway i got a question that i didnt want to start a new thread for, what is Kapow in english?

holy basil

I suggest u skip Pattaya and Jomtien altogether and head for Rayong or Samet

When the swell picks up during the rainy season you can just about body board there. Its choppy though and the ride lasts about 3 seconds.

I believe u can pick up cheap body boards at Supersports branches in Central.

Phuket has the best surf spots in Thailand but thats not saying much. Surf season starts in May.

Rayong surf spots:

Hin Suay Nam Sai - Rayong

Mae Ram Phung

Koh Samet

I'm so tired of the OMG... Global Warming Nonsense. I wish they would just publish all of the statistics that everyone has gathered and not just the one's that champion their own cause. Has anyone ever bothered to actually check their stats or look at some of the lesser known studies? Less than 4% of our Glaciers are melting world wide, most are actually growing. The water level world wide hasn't increased by more than 1/4" on a worldwide average in 100 years. Global temperature rise, some places are warming and some are cooling and not by strictly north and south regions. Most of this is cyclical for our world.

Has anyone noticed that this Global Warming Terror only started after the fall of the Berlin Wall? The world has to have a world threat to keep the masses in check... they have to divert our attention away from what the world governors are doing and focus it on a world threat. Well the cold war is past... Now we have to worry about either drowning, freezing to death or winding up on a planet that is total sahara. The Global Warming Guru's can't even agree on what will happen. Except that we'll all die and we'd better be very afraid. I'm afraid of them...

Just finished read Michael Crichton's "State of Fear" in which he pretty much says the same thing, even the bit about the rise of Global Warming as a global threat after the fall of Soviet communism.

I know its a science fiction novel but he quotes actual scientific publications and reports. Interesting point of view, goes against everything we are led to believe in the modern media, but I trust them less and less each day anyway.

Just out of interest, why is Safari not safe?

I work 5 days a week, 9am to 5:30pm

Everyone else in my company works 6 days a week, which means that you have absolutely no life whatsoever. It can't be good for morale and i'm sure contributes to the inordinate amount of sick days that every takes.

When i went for my interview, I stated that if i wanted to sit in an office all week, i could have just stayed in the UK and made many times what they were offering. Sure i am willing to work hard, but the point of moving to Phuket was to enjoy being on a tropical island. Sitting in an office is the same anywhere in the world.

I have been trying to convince my bosses to give everyone a 5 day week, or at least 5 1/2 days, but no one is listening, so its staying 6 days for the time being.

I voted Patong, not because i particularly like the place, but Karon is dead boring, the beach has absolutely no shade and the lagoon/ditches behind the beach totally ruin the scenery.

messi hit the bar, should have had a penalty for terrys climbing all over messi and catching the ball with his hands, one cleared off the line.

i think barca could have won by more.

lamps come on some of barcas passing and holding the ball was excellent.

one thing attack is the way to go in the champions league 16 goals in 4 games.

chelsea will have to go there with a attacking team none of this grind out a 1 -0 win drogba is not the answer should be a good game over there.

Its much easier to hold the ball and pass it around if you are playing against 10 men. Barca could indeed have had more but then again they had a numerical advantage. Barca is a great attacking team and I don't think any team in the world could hold out against their attack with 10 men for so long.

Attack is the way to go in the Champions League? An attack-minded team hasn't won it in the last 2 seasons, and I doubt will do it this season.

Barca's defense will get found out against teams that are strong defensively and play on the counter attack. This would have happened last night except for a dodgy red card.

Agreed that Chelsea are going to have to go all out in Barcelona. Should be a great game if the ref doesnt try to ruin the game with stupid sending offs. Dont write Chelsea off just yet, they are only a goal down at the halfway stage.

totally out played by barca in the 2nd half, messi and ronaldino the two best players in the world.

Hardly a surprise as they were playing with 10 men. And in the second half, Chelsea scored first and should have got another if Drogba hadn't wasted a gilt edged chance.

If it was 11 vs 11 it would have been quite different. Bring on the Nou Camp.

have you tried the weekend markets (talad tai rot) in Phuket Town?

the big one is opposite Naka temple, just off Chao Fa West road (can't remember the name of the road its on, but its the first road on the left after the Central Festival intersection. Most of the stuff that was for sale at the Chalong temple fair can be found there.

The traditional sideshows at the temple fairs. When I first visited the annual Chedi Fair in Paknam (about 15 years ago) you could still throw a ball at the target to dunk a girl in the water. It seemed to be one of the most popular attractions too but just disappeared completely a few years ago.

We still get that in Phuket. Only last week i was at Chalong temple fair and got the girl on my second attempt.

Happy days.

One of the biggest changes from the old days is the disappearance of trams and bicycle rickshaws from Bangkok. A bit before my time though.

just curious about your nick, anything to do with ThaiPro.com?

I heard the guy who runs it lives in Pattaya.

I've waited a long time for this and it's great to see.

It can only escalate - I predict June this year there will be a new "leader".

I don't like Toxin either but who would you have as the new leader?

Could be a case of better the devil you know than the devil you don't.

I like ice cream on my bread

how about deep fried bread with ice cream filling?

you can still find some places that sell it here in Phuket, not sure about BKK.

I vote for gorgonzola and sun dried tomatoes on black olive ciabatta. Good bread is one of the main things i miss when i am in Thailand.

well its not only their dangerous driving that creates a bad impression for tourists, its also the fact that they try to scam tourists.

one of the worst ways is to stop off at a "travel agent" on the way and attempt to convince those who haven't booked in advance to book a room then and there, stating that they won't be able to find a room otherwise. "fully booked" etc etc.

they also make commission for taking tourists to a hotel even though the tourist wanted to go there in the first place. the commission is of course added to the room rate.

amazing Thailand.

scumbags.

i recently had my car tinted and went for a brand called Myridium. my gf is friends with the owner of a car accessory/audio shop so i got it done there, i asked him what brand he used and went for the same. Its also got a nice mirrored effect without being very dark from the inside. Its actually working really well at keeping my car cool, although its a white car so that probably helps.

as far as i know, Lamina and Myridium are good middle of the road brands (about 4-5,000 baht)

3m is a little more expensive but very decent (i had my windshield done with 3m because it had a nice light tinting but is supposed to be very good at keeping out the heat, which i can confirm).

apparently the best is V-Kool but its not cheap, over 15,000 for a Jazz.

Just shop around for a good deal.

The gimp scene is definitely the more disturbing one for me.

However, what keeps me awake at night is the "curb stomping" scene in American History X. Thinking about it still gives me the shudders.

I agree with the poster above that you often don't get people who are good programmers/code writers who are also good graphic designers.

Personally, I would much rather have someone who knew what they were doing in such things as usability, information architecture, browser compatibilty, html code writing, programming etc. than someone who could design a pretty web page and then slice it up into a table layout.

Unfortunately most web designers in Thailand seem to belong to the latter group and are not moving with the times.

Take a look at the most successful websites in the world and see how "pretty" they are. Most are very functional but are great for their intended purpose.

I also rented a Soluna Vios a while back and will admit that it was actually quite easy to get used to.

However, it doesn't stop me feeling that it still looks a bit odd. What bothers me most is the empty space in front to the steering wheel. Just one of those thngs.