bergen

Best of luck in your further life!

Should have added, that kind of price is generally only available if you go out on the Monday flight and come back on a Friday. A long weekend trip is going to cost a bit more - unless your idea of a long weekend includes an 11 day duration (Monday to the following Friday). Not sure of the dynamics starting from Chiang Mai.

Good to see you are back from your sick-bed Bergen!

Thanks for the nice words SantiSuk, - have even had a few test sessions, and will probably be ready for the next hash

What and where is the Goldocast?

That's the stuff Midas made upon reaching the cottage industry age .

Sorry - that doesn't enlighten me much........

What and where is the Goldocast?

It doesn't appear that they will meet the end-of-year goal but who knows. I think it's up to 7 floors now.

Agree, it'll not be finished this year.....

I'll be in Ubon (city) today!

Agree SantiSuk - the price is good!

Was shopping in Ubon on Saturday and Makro had no water, while Sunee and Tesco had no shortage.

Couldn't find Pepsi Max at any of the big stores, but managed to empty a few 7/11's.

Seems very patchy. Our local Tesco in Kantharalak was stripped down for a couple of weeks and is only slowly recovering. But Tesco and Big C in Si Saket on Sunday was stuffed full - it was like 'floods, what floods?' On the beer front most places round here now have reasonable stocks of Archa, Leo and Chang.

Came accross a box of Singha in a local shop and snapped it up - the Mom behind the counter (well they are mom and pop stores) seemed taken aback at my glee in alighting on this find. I don't drink Singha but I bought it for its rarity value

(just kidding - my wife drinks the stuff but the last few weeks seem to have forced her to like Archa. At 30 baht a big bottle that's a result - perhaps I'll hide that case of Singha)

or just sell it to me

And here's the photo.......

I've seen the pick up with the paramotor too, and here's a pic taken 3rd of September near Ubon prison but don't know if the glider had an engine.....

Yes I'll be there and probably transporting Jim who'll be eager to arrive at Anthony's where he can finally have some Leo to calm his nerves.

1 room with big bed for me please..., and I'm a Singha drinker por favor.

IA - the wife has told me to order 4 kg bacon, and if you have any smoked ham, bring it along too.

If anyone play guitar, I might bring my harmonica................

Ear plugs may be useful to some....

Looking forward to the event!!

The newest and best hotel is Sunee Grand, and in the same complex is the City Mall, a supermarket, bowling, spa, water amusement park, bank, and at least 6 restaurants - to mention some.

The hotel also has minibuses available, and with Ubon metered taxis it's probably around 40 baht to the airport.

Pharoah Photo Shop also advertises a video to vcd/dvd service.

Corner of Sapphasit Road,near Wrong Way.

And I think that is a Kodak shop also.

I find the fear of snakes here amusing and their needless deaths unfortunate. I live right on the edge of a national park hill forest; the presence of snakes all around us is a given. I once found 3 snakes in my house at the same time. At another time my youngest daughter, then only 3 or 4, found one asleep under her pillow when making her bed one morning. I regularly swim alongside a dangerous Red-necked Keelback that constantly visits my pond.

I taught myself to handle snakes and have, over the years, handled most around here from 4m long pythons to a young (and therefore incredibly dangerous) 80cm King Cobra. I usually relocate them back to the forest, sometimes only a few metres from where I’ve caught them (my house is only 20 metres from the forest). I have no problem killing them, however, but only if they are to be eaten. Handling them safely (for snake and human) only requires a stick to pin them down so that they can be grasped at the neck; a bit of self-confidence helps too.

My attitude is governed by good economic sense as a householder and crop farmer. I have suffered a lot of damage to cassava tubers, car wiring & sound insulation, generator wiring, tractor wiring, and furniture caused by rats/mice. Snakes reduce populations of these pests. I encourage my neighbours (with some success) to adopt the same attitude…for their benefit, not that of the snake.

Snakes can very easily be moved away with a stick without the need to kill them. However, as an erstwhile large-aviary owner, I sometimes resorted to killing persistent egg-eating snakes since they just kept coming back.

With regards to the small brown scorpions, I’ve often been stung but find them no more painful than a simple bee sting. We also have the large Mountain Scorpions: I’ve relocated these often but have avoided being stung though the locals contend their venom is much more powerful than the common 1.5 inch scorpions, sufficient to cause limbs to swell.

I’ve been bitten in the foot by a red mountain tarantula – no worse than the wee scorpions or bees. I should add, though, that I’m not allergic to such things: I suffer only slight pain for 5 minutes and have no swelling. Stung often by wasps also and even by 3 Tiger Hornets (very big) at the same time: again, similar to a bee sting for me.

With regards to Thai farmers knowing their snakes…rubbish. Probably 99% of them questioned by me believe that the Common Rat Snake will cause the death of a cow by biting despite having no poison (they accept that humans are safe). Most of them also believe that the Sunbeam Snake is poisonous during the day whilst iridescent – in fact, it has no poison. Most cannot distinguish between the Reticulated Python and the Burmese Python (probably equal in numbers around me). Most snakes here are treated by most of my fellow villagers as poisonous and dangerous; their knowledge of snakes is extremely poor.

Are snakes a risk to me or my children? Far less so than taking my kids out for a drive on Thai roads, and yet we all accept that risk.

Rgds

Khonwan

I'm with you on this, don't kill what you don't eat. I live in the jungle and that's my choice. If I wanted to live in a snake free zone, I would move to Ireland. Jim

With small children running around, I will call it risky, but as they say: up to you. Wish you all the best, and hope you wont come back one day and say: I was wrong.......

Since AEON is not a bank they have never charged the 150 THB fee for foreign ATM cards

Hopefully your bank back home doesn't charge a foreign currency exchange fee

But valuable info for some who may not be aware?

There's a passenger ferry from Hua Hin/Cha Am to Pattaya, which will help to avoid Bangkok and central Thailand. Then take a bus further north/north east

I think there is some confusion here

Richard from WrongWay cafe in Ubon

is not making any bread (in WW anymore)!

Ting, his ex who runs WW might still be doing it, and if so the bread is good!

Used the Aeon ATM on ground fl. next to Fuji in Sunee Grand/Ubon City Mall today, and they are still not charging the annoying 150 Baht

Just a reminder of the upcoming November run........

If it didn't taste much in the country of origin, I wouldn't run to try it elsewhere........ ,

but then again - I might give it a try if only to refresh my short memory.

I remember Pho and other Vietnamese food as tasteless from when I visited Saigon/HCM city back in the mid 90's, and longing to get back to spicy Thai food!

There are many places to by various kinds of meat grinders in Ubon.

Makro, Home Hub, Home Mart, the el equipment shop on the ring road, and several smaller restaurant/home/kitchen tool suppliers have them.

Perhaps it'll be a more respectable place to drink if the owner increased the price of a small beer to 50 baht and up.....

Chiang Mai is full, sorry, try Pattaya.

Finally we have a gentleman with a sense of reality and a great idea. Pattaya would be a great place and I second the motion....

And Pattaya have no problems with flooding!