Diablo Bob

Interesting, used in conjunction with a roof rotary vent (cyclone) you might see good results. The main problem here in Thailand is a lack of insulation above the ceiling. The sun heats the air in this attic space and it just sits there all night long. Evacuate this heated air with the cyclone and replace it with cooler air with your little system might be the trick.

This is the ONLY reason I would fly Air Asia.....

Try The Pool Doctor Thailand (Bangkok), they have a wide range of heaters, including solar.

http://www.thepooldoctorsthailand.com/index.php?cPath=29

I didn't see the time of the monthly VFW meeting posted in the OP's post. So for those of you who want to attend, the meeting time is 10:30 AM, Saturday, 2 July, at The Dukes Riverside. If you are interested in joining the VFW but not sure, you will be welcome to come as a guest and sit in on the meeting. This would also be a good time for those of you who are vets but maybe not eligible to be a VFW member to meet us and find out more about your benefits such as the one stated by the OP. We are a service organization and are willing to help all U.S. veterans even if you are not a member.

I have a friend coming to visit me at the end of July through mid-August, not sure if he is a member, but might be interested attending a meeting, if he is here at that time. Is there a web site he can go to for location, dates & times for your meetings?

An interesting side note to this sad period of history is that not only was the Vietnam war a USA vs Communism conflict but at the same time there was an internal conflict happening between the Chinese Communist factions and the USSR Communist factions.

Vietnam was a USSR faction, the Khmer Rouge were a Chinese faction. It has been documented that the Khmer Rouge spent as much time killing Nationalist troops as they did attacking the Russian communist factions (supported by N. Vietnam)in Cambodia. When Vietnam threw out the Khmer Rouge, what happens, China invades Vietnam....... crazy era. Oh, China lost this little conflict, they ran into a Vietnamese buzzsaw.

I am not positive, but I believe that Laos was alighned with Moscow until the fall of the USSR.

Well, I think -- probably deliberately and I can see why you would -- you've put it bit simply but that's largely correct as far as it goes. But in fact the Chinese were VERY deep into Vietnam during the conflict years (billions of dollars of aid, weapons and even personnel) but it was always a marriage of convenience on very shaky foundation given historical enmity that goes back generations. When the Chinese and Soviets split started, Vietnam went with the Soviets (again putting things simply).

The Khmer Rouge would never been a viable entity without the North Vietnamese who sheltered, trained and sponsored them for years. That too was a a marriage of convenience on very shaky foundation given historical enmity that goes back generations and goes deeper than politics.

Laos was absolutely reliant on Vietnam as the Pathet Lao (who won their revolution and run the country) -- like the Khmer Rouge if not more so -- would not have been what they were or succeeded as they did without North Vietnam. So when Vietnam and China split, Laos went with Vietnam and thus were largely a Soviet client state as was Vietnam (though they tried to not anger the mighty neighbors too much).

Before anyone takes issue with this posts lack of nuance and streamlining, I fully admit to simplifying -- though hoepfully not being simplistic -- for the sake of brevity. This one a few topics that I tend to go and on about -- citing detailed facts and names etc -- so I'm trying to refrain from doing so here (out of pity for forum readers and laziness and concern for going off topic). I also am doing it off the top of my head so apologize for any oversights...

I kept it simple because it has been years since I read about this issue and I only know the basics, not the in depth history.

Thank you for filling in some of my fuzzy memories from the past.

Page 3 from last week.....

An interesting side note to this sad period of history is that not only was the Vietnam war a USA vs Communism conflict but at the same time there was an internal conflict happening between the Chinese Communist factions and the USSR Communist factions.

Vietnam was a USSR faction, the Khmer Rouge were a Chinese faction. It has been documented that the Khmer Rouge spent as much time killing Nationalist troops as they did attacking the Russian communist factions (supported by N. Vietnam)in Cambodia. When Vietnam threw out the Khmer Rouge, what happens, China invades Vietnam....... crazy era. Oh, China lost this little conflict, they ran into a Vietnamese buzzsaw.

I am not positive, but I believe that Laos was alighned with Moscow until the fall of the USSR.

It's the Brits fault.

Oh really....it is question of breeding and manners that it is common to many....So why blame the Brits?

Why not?

I `m half Yank and half Brit, which makes me a complete Yanker. But I suppose it`s better to be a Yanker then an Aussie or a Canadian. Oh, the stories we hear about them.

As for the OPs question, why do you take these forums so seriously?

Thai visa members come in 7 categories:

The good guys, the nice guys, the matter of fact guys, the droning on and on guys, the bad guys, the head bangers and the total A/holes.

Just like in real life, we can pick and choose who we respond to on Thai visa.

Believe me you can.

Beetlejuice, see what you started...... just by wondering what form of English someone was using Personally, I am betting the form of English was either French Canadian or Louisiana Cajon.

She is still pretty young for preschool (age 3)

Nursery programs will take her

NAPA School (Nursery Age 1-2, Pre-K program Age 2-3)

NIS Nursery (Age 2+) ** Starts again Early August

Once she gets old enough for preschool she will probably pick up Thai fairly quickly from the other kids (even if the classroom instruction is in english)

Age 1-2 is really best for exploration and experience with the parent

NIS K-1 is for kids 4 yrs old, my youngest just finished and next year will be in the K2 program. August 8th is the first day of the Fall Semester.

So Mr Bronco, you think that anyone who thinks that the farang connection isn't great, has no right to voice an opinion.Well i think that you are wrong, so does that make me a moaner.Telling people that if you don't like something then go somewhere else is the usual easy option to solve the problem.When we were there on the saturday, there were about 6 other farangs sat around a table talking. So i can probably assume that you were one of these.So let me fill you in here, when we entered we ordered 2 large leo's, after about 10 minutes we asked for the menu,we spent maybe 10 minutes looking through it, before we asked for our food.As i have stated it took a few minutes before the waitress came back to tell us that the food we ordered was not available, we then spent a few more minutes before we ordered our second choice, at which point we also ordered 2 more large leo's.So 5 minutes later we were informed that our second choice wasn't available. We then took the menu again, looked through it, made a third choice, ordered 2 more leo's and waited for our food. About 5 minutes later we were informed that it wasn't available, at which point we decided to drink up, pay our bill and leave.So in the space of maybe 35-40 minutes we ordered 3 different meals none of which were available, and we drank 6 large bottles of leo.Now comes the good part, during the time we were there, the 6 farangs at the table never ordered 1 beer between them. So i figure if you guys sit there all afternoon having a nice chat and putting the world to rights, then you must drink at least a whole 12 bottles between you in 4/5 hours.So look at this from a different point of view,if the owners don't improve the service and food, they will close down, because what you lot spend won't keep them in business will it. Then when they have closed where will all you cheap charlies go for your nice chats, so maybe i should get a life, go to a bar for a long chat, then in a couple of years curl up and die, do me a favour. As long as i am paying for what i want, if i don't get it i have the right to complain. I understand that i am in a foreign country, i have been here for 8 years, living just outside of surin, but if a bar puts out a menu, with say 50 items on it, then they should make sure that they have enough stock to satisfy orders, i could forgive maybe running out of a couple of things but the farang connection is now bordering on the ridiculous.So Mr Bronco before you make stupid statements, think about what you are saying, but if that is to hard to do, then please don't say anything.

Wow, If I were you I'd get to a doctor and get you alcohol problem under control! 6 large Leo Beers in 35-40 minutes between 2 people???

What you forget that when you go in a macshit place is that you spend more on a crappy meal than a Thai person gets paid in one day, It puts it in prospective does it not ,

I was at the mall eating a fish sandwich at MacDonald's watching all the Thai people across the way eating Japanese food for 400 baht per customer. I guess that puts it in perspective for me. 6 Farang in Mac's and none in the Japanese place.

The Thai people go to Starbucks. I can't afford it I drink at the little coffee place on the street with the robusta.

I use my 800 baht nokia and 12 year old Thai school kids are sporting the newest Apple phone. I drive a 10 year old Toyota and the 21 year old chick living next door is driving a BMW. Do you want me to go on or are things in perspective now?

you chose to live in there country. the real Thai people who do not live in Sin city live in the real Thailand, and 300baht is about there pay for a day. Very few Thais can afford to eat in resturants. or mac shit or. bluber king,My mother Inlaw works in a Thai hospital and she cannot afford to eat In any of these places. I have never see any Thais in Starbuks in Sahmut Sahkon, Because they dont build them in the Thai provinces, just the tourist places, so your view is distorted.

I don't know where you live, but in Buriram there are a few KFC's, very few tourist, not enough expats to support a single outlet and they seem to be doing quite well..... How do you think they do it?

Well I was looking into this and here is a TV thread from a while back. A wide range of prices quoted, anywhere from 35000 THB to 400000 THB.

I find it ironic that someone can call me a xxxxxxx and nothing is done about it.

Thanks for the personal attack. I am glad that the rules are unbiased on this forum.

Like it or not, Thai people consider Tuk Tuk's a low class form of transportation. If you are a redneck and want to drive one that is one things but for normal middle class people there are equal forms of transportation that are economical without looking like a tard.

They are not a stable form of transportation and flip over at even medium speeds.

My guess is that westerners that drive them want to feel like James Bond, but they are a throw back in time and the environment would be better off without them. Not to mention the noise.

You can only blame youself for that.

You brought personal attack upon youself by calling people wanting tuktuk as a redneck.

If you are quick to dish out insults, you should be ready to take one also.

Newbie is , pure and simply: a snob. All Thai people consider them Low class transport? Very wrong . Certainly the snobs would. Most see them as yes, noisy, ( Govt's. fault) But an excellent form of transport for short distances. Environmentally unsound? Totally wrong .They are all LNG or LPG, so their emissions are of a much lower order than those running huge petrol or diesel engines. As a basic vehicle ,they use much less inputs to build, so much better environmentally ,than your huge gas guzzling Isuzus or Toyotas , etc.,As for being rednecks, my understanding of the word, is that it refers to An ultra conservative ,Gun toting specimen from the deep south of the U.S.A.. Not a pleasant specimen of humanity.And certainly it would be ridiculous of one of them to drive a Tuk-Tuk,quite apart from the fact that their physical size , most probably , would render that impossible

To be a Redneck vehicle you need a place for a gunrack..... it qualifies, I love it!

Very good ,I don't know how to do that !!!!. Now, that is only the timetable for the long distance trains ,that is those that terminate in Nong Khai or Ubon. There are a number of "local services" that also run ,but are never listed on a timetable- can only find out about them from the station,that they originate from , or run through.Quite some fun little local trips

Very true about this just highlighting the "Important" trains. The trip from Ayutthya to Pak Chong is quite scenic and a 3rd class train would be great, and it isn't that long of a journey.

Here you go.....

SRT-NorthEastern Schedule.pdf

Consider Jasmine Homes (http://www.jasminehomes.co.th/index.php). Steve the owner will design the house to your specifications & handle all the permitting from the government and build it........

They have various developments in Sansai. Oh yea, they also build to a Western Standard.

Pakkie, Nigger and even Indibum can be construed as offensive, but hardly racist. Farang is a word often used by "farangs" amongst themselves and in that context is not offensive. However, sometimes when used by a Thai in an obviously derogatory way can be deemed offensive.By the same token, where does the oft used "Yank" fit in?

I come from the deserts in the South West of the USA. We are described as wetbacks, the Yanks are the Blue bloods from New England, a different country as far as we are concerned.

I don't know where Sinbin is getting his numbers..... I purchased 1 Rai in a development catering to Westerners, included water, electric and concrete roads for 1 million baht in Sansai Chiangmai. My property in Huay Rat Buriram is on a main road, Chanote deed and because it is on the main road it was only 150,000 per rai.

Somebody got ripped off.....

Try the train.

Chiangmai to Ayuttahya transfer to a train going to Korat (Narorn Ratchasima). Get off train at Pak Chong.

To comment on your original question, there are any number of hotels and (larger) guest houses with swimming pools. Regarding access to the schools, the schools (an exception is CMIS) are on the periphery and on different sides (N,S, and W) of the city. The ring roads are useful to get to them. None of the schools (I think APIS would be the furthest to go.) is longer than 45 minutes away from the heart of town. Renting a car might be a good idea.

I regret to say you are definitely not coming to visit international schools at a good time. They are not in session! Few people will be around. There are some modest summer programs in some places, but you really ought to wait until late September or early October when the schools will be more settled in the next academic year.

In the meantime, the school web sites have been improving. They are all worth a look: for what is posted and what is NOT posted. For one highly important thing, information on staff is very gradually becoming more complete, but there are significant differences among schools on what you learn about administrator and teacher training, credentials and experience. Judge for yourself. Is information complete? Are teachers credentialed to teach? Are they teaching what they were trained to teach, in what disciplines and at what grade levels? What and where is their experience teaching.

What I would really like, that seems to be absent on TV is first hand opinions of these schools from people who have children attending them. Information from teachers who work for the schools would be beneficial as well. I know there will be some bias from parents and teachers but some first hand information is better than none.

I would say that next to Food threads, the Chiangmai forum always has one thread or another dealing with the local schools, this includes Thai, Bilingual and International schools. Try using search...... works great.

Your right....Air Bagan

Wonderful, why not skip the trip and make donations directly to Burma's military rulers?

Air Bagan, the Despots favourite airline Mizzima.com - Boycott Air Bagan

Interesting,

I was in Germany when the Berlin Wall came down, I was working alongside the US military as a civilian at the time, and the town I was based in was 10 miles as the crow flies from the East German border. I watched in person as the East Germans poured into our town when the borders opened, and I feel blessed to have done so.

So that beggars a question....to boycott or not to boycott?

In my opinion boycotts can be counter productive, International travel is a great educator. Not only are we Westerners getting to see and enjoy the world, the countries that we visit, ( I'm referring more to off the beaten track places ), are curious to see us and meet us. In my opinion as a rule of thumb it is not helpful for we Westerners to go storming into countries demanding change, change will come from within at their own pace.

Don't underestimate the power of just being there, of just being seen, of just raising people's consciousness of other cultures.

Great answer, I agree with you. 50 years of boycotting Cuba hasn't worked for the USA.

^ I know a thai guy who imports bikes from japan and then registers them once here. So I would hope a car can be. Reckon a bit of cash can sort it out if vehicle is already inside, much less than duties for sure.

Please let me know what result your research comes up with if you don't mind.

I also thought about the same thing but for custom chopper- ie starting of with just a frame and importing bits individually then building it here.

I have a friend that just got caught trying this routine with a Harley..... It would have worked except the Harley dealer sent all 5 boxes/crates at the same time, they all reached customs in Bangkok on the same day! He ended up paying ALL the duty after going down to Bangkok to do some explaining.....

Anyone tried importing one? I've looked in to it and seems that even with all the taxes there'd still be significant saving on the price in Thailand. It's just that potential to get Burned hard with your car stuck in customs.

Thought about moving it to a neighbouring country as a non import ie say its for a tour around the region and then drive it into Thailand and register later; or atleast if need to pay then the car is on your hands and can turn around and go if not reasonable rates, much stronger bargaining position than it being locked up somewhere in the port.

Anyone know about tax on parts? Thought about getting an old BMW e30 at about 100k bht and modifying it as labour costs here are so cheap I think could create a real nice car for around 5-8 thousand pound.

I wouldn't want a convertable in Thailand. Way too dusty, hot and strong sun

I have an attorney researching this for me, as we speak. For my kit conversion, I only need to bring in a body, which I am attempting to do as "Spare Parts". The same with the engine etc... The question becomes, once completed, can the vehicle be registered.

Without wishing to be too nerdy, this crash site contains a single engined P51D better known as the Mustang.

According to the video it was part of 2nd Fighter Section, 2nd Air Commando Group, who were flying out of Cox's Bazaar (now extreme SE Bangladesh) on missions over Thailand when it was occupied by....., sorry allied with......, sorry gallantly fighting Japan.

Hope the pilot managed to bail out in time.

Yes, I realize that the aircraft was a P-51, quite often used as a bomber escort. As part of a Bomber Group in WWII there was always a fighter squadron to provide the bombers protection.

Can't view the video, my internet connection is way to slow.

There is the connection......

Interesting, I did a quick search to find out who might have been flying the P-51 and came up with this:

468th Bombardment Group

Constituted as 468th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 19 May 1943. Activated on 1 Aug 1943. Redesignated 468th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy) in Nov 1943. Equipped with B-29's. Moved, via Africa, to the CBI theater, Mar-Jun 1944. Assigned to Twentieth AF in Jun 1944. Flew over the Hump to carry supplies from India to staging fields in China before entering combat with an attack on railroad shops at Bangkok, Thailand, on 5 Jun 1944. On 15 Jun participated in the first AAF attack on Japan since the Doolittle raid in 1942. From bases in India, China, and Ceylon, mined shipping lanes near Saigon, French Indochina, and Shanghai, China, and struck Japanese installations in Burma, Thailand, French Indochina, Indonesia, Formosa, China and Japan. Targets included iron works, aircraft factories, transportation centers and naval installations. Received a DUC for participation in a daylight raid on the iron and steel works at Yawata, Japan, 11 Aug 1944. Evacuated advanced bases in China in Jan 1945 but continued operations from India, bombing storage areas in Rangoon, Burma, a railroad bridge at Bangkok, Thailand, railroad shops at Kuala Lumpur, Malaya, and the drydock in Singapore harbor. Flew additional missions against Japan after moving to Tinian during Feb-May 1945. Took part in mining operations, incendiary raids on area targets, and high-altitude missions against strategic objectives. Dropped incendiaries on Tokyo and Yokohama in May 1945, being awarded a DUC for the attacks. Received another DUC for a daylight strike on an aircraft plant at Takarazuka, Japan, in Jul 1945. After the war, dropped food and supplies to Allied prisoners and participated in show-of-force missions over Japan. Returned to the US in Nov 1945. Assigned to Strategic Air Command on 21 Mar 1946. Inactivated on 31 Mar 1946.