Phuket Stan

I think you are referring to prik nam som, which is chillies in vinegar. Prik nam pla is the same chillies in fish sauce. So you need vinegar.

And dont forget to put in the chillis

The South Korean president has been quoted as saying former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra is the real cause of the current political crisis in Thailand.

At long last an article in the foreign media pinning the blame where it lies - on the greedy corrupt scumbag whose only concern is for himself and his equally greedy family and cronies. I heard the usual rubbish from BBC World tonight from a reporter who must have spent a lot of time with the Red Shirts - he was going on about how the rich elite in Thailand hated Thaksin "because he'd empowered the rural poor".

How to reduce a complex political situation to an 'us versus them' simplistic scenario - and that from the famous BBC!!!

The BBC has lauded Thaksin as if he is the Messiah for quite some time....when the reporter for BBC was a guy called Head it was pathetic how one eyed he was...am afraid that what was once a great if not the best in the world news service has been busy shooting itself in the foot and slowly slipping down the gurgler ...IMHO

On Thurs I drove from Khon Kaen to Bankok.....left KK at 8-30am with one stop for 30 minutes....arrived Bangkok at 7pm.....worst driving and most dangerous experience I have ever had...usually do the trip in 6 hours...majority of cars had Bangkok plates....most drivers were practising to become either F1 or rally contestants....very few big trucks on the road

I saw a farang up in Issan once who bought one of those kiddie rides you see at festivals.

It all packed down and fit in his pickup truck.

He didn't make a lot of money but he said it was enough to live on up in Issan anyway.

He was an ex-US army guy from the Viet Nam war and had been doing it for a while i believe.

At least if it doesn't work out, you could sell it and probably recoup your money.

A bar is the last thing i would think of.

Even if successful, you will most likely end up an alcoholic.

I think a very small successful business is better than a big money loser anyday. (and most farangs who come over here to make money, end up with the latter)

Whats that old adage ..."If you want to make a small fortune in Thailand make sure you bring a large one with you when u arrive "

Hi Thai Air phone 023561111 listen to the menu I find they give pretty good service compared to a lot of western airlines

I note the Phuket Gazette have now taken the report from their website....strange strange strange

Much as I detest child molestors, I really hope that there is more evidence than what has been reported here.

It seems strange that the child has waited so long before speaking up.

If he is guilty I will join the "string him up" brigade, but with this report I cannot form an opinion.

You get my vote....there is something not right about this

Yep I do smell a bit of rejection or a lack of funds.....

I know this young guy (he is about 26/27) in Bkk who has done a lot of condos...several in the new Metropolitan in Sathorn Rd....he speaks great english,well traveled and has some really good contacts....he did a small job for me in Phuket...I will PM you his name and phone number

Just now watching on television some of the Red Shirt women cooking in big pots. Maybe they are doing some good afterall. There may not be any more mangy soi dogs running loose in the streets of Bangkok.

What a racist statement

The 'uneducated buffoons' are the product of successive governments' failure to invest in education. Now the elites are to some extent being bitten on the bum for their (deliberate) failure.

It's a great shame the elites do not and did not have the wit to realise that a well educated populace would create a much higher GDP and, while the said elites would probably get a smaller share of the pot, they would still be at least as well off as they are now.

Look at what happened in Spain after the Franco dictatorship was overthrown. Education (amongst other things) improved and the economy expanded massively. Everyone benefitted. No this is NOT comparing the current Thai gov.t with Franco's Spain; and no, I don't admire ex premier and convicted criminal Thaksin one little bit either.

Yes, but why didn't the TRT. PPP do something about education when they were in charge? They had 5 years with the largest majority possible. Because they are crooks who don't care any more for the welfare of the Isaan people than the "elite" they keep attacking.

Its a shame the people of Isaan have been taken advantage of the way they have. They have legitimate complaints. But the current government has had to spend most of its energy dealing with Red leaders trying to overthrow it instead of working with them to improve lives. Lets see what happens in 2010 and 2011 leading up to the scheduled elections. Hopefully the more progressive (if there are any) Thai politicians took notice that there are things that need doing to improve the lives of their citizens.

Thaksin did something about education when he was in power....he had one of his minions unseal the exam papers before Thaksin's daughter's sat the exam....u do the maths

Sounds a bit similar to Marie Antonette's famous quip " Let Them eat Grass "

Thaksin to a "T"

Rice ....40% of GNP !!!! ...wherever do you get those figures from

If they want more tourist they should devalue the baht. I live here and its getting too bloody expensive. They just dont have a clue.

With You 100% on That one !!!!!

The Baht is too high! Tourism is down, but I don't like tourists anyway. Much safer driving around without them!

Where did u get your figures that tourism is down....if you like to check the arrivals at the International Airports within you will find that the figures are above the previous year by a considerable amount

With all the complaining about the baht being over valued maybe you should ask Gordon Brown and other European leaders what they have all done to their currencies to devalue against the baht....The Banks in Thailand did not get into the subprime markets etc etc which have bought the UK European and USA markets to their knees.....USA is coming out of it but I fear the other two have still some way to fall...IMYHO if I was brit I would bring enough money into Thailand now before the rate drops to the low 40's

I have never had to show hotel or plane bookings when getting visas (7) from embassy in Bkk....all very friendly but it does take a couple of days to process....they do have a 24 hour express service for which u pay more

Nice to see the BBC still has an anti Thailand and love Thaksin fixation with them showing policemen beating their sheilads and soldiers exercising ...to think that organisation was once the leading news scource in the world and now where it is...with the biased Head shifted to other pastures I was hoping that things would improve somewhat....ahh well.....

Re his money from the sale of Manchester City... did the UK government not seize that money because his original investment in the team was not CLEAN money ??

I always found Phuket Immigration office helpful and friendly....never ever had any kind of hassle in over 10 years...just get your papers in order when u go there and show some respect and have never ever offered tea money and none was ever solicited...never fails to amaze when I see expats in their lovely stinking singlets and dirty beach shorts with a can of beer in their hands at 10am in the morning with real attitude expecting to be treated as though they were someone important...only in their own minds are they important...one would never go into their own embassy in such dress and attitude....wouldn't get past the security for starters

It started with Real Estate in Phuket where they started actually taking homes from wealthy expats with homes in business names and fake share holders to becoming a national order after seeing how profitable and easy it was in Phuket, now they are going to the bars, soon it i will be franchises.

Where and when in Phuket did the Thai Govt take real estate that was properly owned by farang

Email the head office in USA and they will tell you

Marc Faber has made some really good calls in the past...he was right on the button about the baht in 1997...called the tech wreck in 2000 and was imploring people early 2007 to get out of the US and European markets ...I enjoy and always pay attention when he is on CNBC Asia

QUOTE (krading @ 2010-01-07 21:50:42)

QUOTE (Credo @ 2010-01-07 22:33:04)

All this stuff in Phuket is starting to make Pattaya look pretty good.

Stretching it a bit now aren't we?

I don't think so. Transport-wise and shopping wise, Pattaya is way better. We've got to be. Our beach is ugly.

Yes Pattaya so called beaches are ugly...shopping wise Phuket has everything you can buy in Pattaya ...You forgot to mention about the pollution in Pattaya....when I was there in Nov 2007 you could not even see the offshore islands....here in Phuket we can see for miles and miles...All you knockers of Phuket who say they will never come here is music to my ears....we dont need any riff-raff down here like the kind that idle away their lives in Pattaya

Does anyone know what ever happened to the tuk tuk driver in Patong who was arrested for murdering a Scandanavian guy about 2 and half years ago for demanding 250 baht instead of the 120 baht he quoted for the fare...the Scandanavian guy refused to pay the extra and it cost him his life

It is rumoured that many BIB have interests in tuk tuks and motor bike rentals...hence the lack of action

If you have a credit card you can tell them at check-in that u r planning to visit Siam Reap or anywhere else that pops into your mind...they may take your credit card details

Why they may want this info is because you only get 30 days on arrival and as your ticket is for 35 days u may not be admitted to Thailand.....the last thing an airline wants is to take you back to Aus straight away without u paying,,,,but as u have a return ticket cant see it being a real big problem

The law is the law and your ticketing agent is only doing his job advising you of it...imagine if it all turned to custard and he hadn't advised you....you would be very grumpy to say the least

All sites A OK with TTT in Phuket

KL has been asking for onward tickets out of Thailand for the last couple of months...not all the time ..its a bit hit and miss