searcher22

Rain and 15-minute power outage just south of Mae Rim

Big C ,they have their own Casino brand,its a lot cheaper than,

Heinz,or S&W,think it was 125 THB a bottle,5% acid,made in France.

regards Worgeordie

Yes, the Casino brand from France is quite cheaper than the other imports.

Waste of money.

If you feel OK why worry.

While it's true that annual checkups for symptomless patients have fallen out of favour with most doctors, in this case the OP has digestive and sleep issues, so a checkup would be a good idea I think...even though it's perfectly normal to have digestive and sleep issues if you live in Thailand!

Meechok Plaza is a jewel of a shopping centre. I can park there and get all my shopping done. It has a Thai outdoor market, Rimping, McDonalds's, Subway along with many other affordable Thai, Asian and farang restaurants...all within walking distance. It's now being expanded. There's also a Lotus on the other side of the street.

I saw a farang there today dressed in suit & tie being shown around the premises by Asian businesspeople.

the cinema at Maya does offer a senior discount. you need to go to the desk right of the concession stand.

fyi:

http://www.sfcinemacity.com/index.php/en/timetable/lookup

http://www.majorcineplex.com/booking/search-results.php?cinemaId_1=92&cinemaId_2=91&cinemaId_3=40

In 2015, the senior discount at Maya started at age 55. It now starts at age 60.

Avoid using traveller's cheques in Thailand as you'll get ripped off, and bank tellers don't like them either However, make sure you have a Plan B if your ATM cards get lost or stolen, if the ATM machine gobbles one up or if your bank "freezes" your ATM card for whatever reason. Traveller's cheques might still be useful as an emergency backup, especially if you're staying in Thailand for an extended period of time. Otherwise, try not to use them in Thailand, and convert them back to cash when you return to your home country.

When I first joined A+, their premium was 50% lower than anything else on the market. My broker even told me not to expect such generous premiums in the future and even made me sign a form to that effect. The premium doubled the year after. And yet, IMHO. A+ is still competitively priced considering they cover cancer, southeast asian countries and allow you to fly back overseas to your home country for up to three months. Best thing to do is get a big deductible. Expect further increases in the years to come due to increasing medical costs in Thailand.

It's not a work permit that you need, it's a Thai companion! It makes things a whole lot easier. If you don't have a trusted Thai partner, there's a service in town called Chiang Mai Buddy that can help you with all of the aforementioned tasks.

Great post. Another major plus for Chiang Mai compared to other expat destinations is its very low crime rate. We all take it for granted. It's great to be able to walk around and not have to look over one's shoulder all the time.

Am staying home tonight too.

Big accident with overturned vehicle on the westbound underpass opposite MeeChok Plaza around 2pm today (Intersection Highway 3029 & 1001). Stay safe.

Fundamentally, I don't see much wrong with Buddhism.

What I do see is wrong is the Thai mis-application of Buddhism.

That's what all religious leaders proclaim when their followers are caught with their pants down, sort of speak.

Walk along Nimmanhemin Road and nearby soys and you're bound to come across one. Many places catering to digital nomads. Some have weekly and monthly rates and you can stay as long as you want.

keep a bay leaf in the muesli container. ants hate them and won't go near it.

In other words, it keeps them at bay.

I'm just recovering from an overnight bout of diarrhea and nausea, probably the result of buying a prepared meal that had been sitting too long at room temperature on a self-serve counter at an upscale supermarket. I probably didn't reheat it long enough. Be careful...danger lurks everywhere!

I put my muesli in a not very airtight container on top of the fridge. I don't get ants crawling up on the fridge, I think they know Thai electrics are dodgy and act accordingly.

I also stack small treats such as lightly-wrapped pastries and cookies in an unsealed plastic container on top of the fridge. However, as an added precaution, I put the plastic container in the middle of a shallow cooking tray filled with water. No ants have ever swum across.

I used to shop a lot at local markets the first 3 years I lived here. I also got food poisoning 2-3 times a year back then (throwing up every 2 hours all the night, sometimes with diarrhea "thrown in" as a bonus). For the next 5 years I shopped only at Rimping and Makro - and had food poisoning only once, not a year, but in the whole 5 year period. Of course you have to take into account my body getting used to the local germs, but I still choose to stay clear of the local markets. Maybe I am unique in this experience, but I don't think so.

Same here. Used to get food poisoning about 4-5 times a year after eating at shopping mall food courts or buying at local markets. I've since been buying from Rimping and/or cooking my own food, and I rarely have any problems anymore. Also a concern for me...foods with too much sugar/salt, pesticide-laden veggies, reused and unhealthy oils, the lack of hygiene, no government oversight....all these factors have prompted me to cook more of my own food.

Winter arrives this Friday (finally) !

The ring roads seem to be moving OK, but once you get off them there's a fair amount of gridlock.

Is there an underpass under the Mae Rim road at third ring road there yet or would that still be a mess?

Yes, the underpass is now open, so if you're travelling north<>south, traffic has improved. However, the connecting roads are still a mess.

Just got the 90 days slip back by mail. An unbeatable 3-day turn-around! Mailed it Monday morning, received it at home Thursday noon.

Note: My 90-day report was due Nov 17 (Nov 24 including the grace period). I mailed it on Nov 9, just eight days before the normal due date. Registered mail both ways.

There are five or six coin-up washing machines (10 kilo, 20B) behind the Maya near the superhighway, on the road leading to the Green Hill apartments.

As for drinking water, can't tell you, but avoid them if you can. The water won't kill you, but why settle for water of dubious quality?

Fact # 1: The MORE fruits and vegetables you consume, even if they are laden with pesticides, the LESS your chances of getting cancer.

Fact # 2: The LESS fruits and vegetables you eat, even if they're all organic, the MORE your chances of getting cancer.

Strange comment, but each to their own. Something to consider if quoting studies is who funded the study. Believe Coca-Cola funded one in the UK trying to disprove any link between sugar & obesity... believe that if you choose.

Tests were done years ago on Thais and very high levels of poisonous pesticides were found in the blood. As such, organic if genuine would definitely be the way to go for those that care about such.

Also another recent study found that switching to organic dramatically lowered the levels of pesticides in the average person even over a two week period.

Roundup as well has finally been labelled as likely to cause cancer, but again use it if you choose.

Rancid...if those living in Thailand are unable to eat much organic fruits and vegetables (due to high cost or low availability), are you saying that they should eat less fruits and vegetables to minimize risk? Please answer just "yes" or "no"...do not add any ifs buts or maybes.

If your answer is "yes", then you're wrong. The risk of getting cancer FROM THE PESTICIDES will indeed decrease, but the overall cancer risk will increase dramatically.

If your answer is "no", then you agree with the study.

Even though the study was not conducted in Thailand, it is nonsense to think that eating less fruits and veggies (conventional or organic) will decrease the overall risk of cancer. Fruits and vegetables have cancer-fighting properties too....don't deprive your body of them!

Fact # 1: The MORE fruits and vegetables you consume, even if they are laden with pesticides, the LESS your chances of getting cancer.

Would you happen to have a source for this rather controversial fact?

I tried to verify it myself, but I just found study after study linking pesticides to various forms of cancer and leukaemia.

http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/the_kids/2014/01/organic_vs_conventional_produce_for_kids_you_don_t_need_to_fear_pesticides.2.html

"A fascinating 2012 study used research-based models to predict what would happen if half of all Americans increased their (conventional) fruit and vegetable intake by a single serving each day; it predicted that doing so would prevent 20,000 cases of cancer a year. When the authors modeled whether this increased intake might pose risks due to the greater pesticide exposure, they concluded that yes, there might be 10 additional cases of cancer every year in the U.S. Put another way, the benefits far, far outweigh the risks."

The report concludes,"the overwhelming difference between benefit and risk estimates provides confidence that consumers should not be concerned about cancer risks from consuming conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables."

What about "conventionally-grown", the Thai way

I think it would be about the same, or even LESS, considering the cheap and abundant supply of fruits and vegetables here in Thailand as compared with northern-hemisphere countries, which would offset the increased chemical exposure. Common-sense washing & brushing should reduce risk further.

IMHO, the two bigger health risks in Thailand are the air and the sun, depending where you live.