tutsiwarrior

plachon

didn't mean to imply that fresh water fish was poisonous just that it was not palatable. I have to admit that I don't like fish that much...just the variety that comes with sushi/sashimi and any seawater fish from the Pacific ocean off the west coast of North America. The Gulf of Thailand has probably got products that I wouldn't eat regardless of the heavy metal content. You ever see the fish comes out of the Bosphorous? They belong in a museum and not on someones' plate.

Thanks for your info and I will direct inlaws to information sessions given by the government when the time comes. Like I said...I want to do local freshwater shrimp and none of this tiger prawn business that seems to be the contention in this thread. If I could get 70-80 baht per kilo wholesale would beat 10 baht per kilo for cat meat F/W fish up and down the street with the same investment.

Cheers

Plachon

I would only engage in an activity that was environmentally friendly and sustainable. Certainly my rice paddy neighbors wouldn't like it too much if I was to discharge brackish water into the canals that they use. I wasn't thinking about tiger prawns just the local fresh water variety that could be a cash crop if sold in bulk to dealers then canned for export. I will look into your suggestion regarding discussions with local authorities...with a few figures and my wife's family basic agricultural smarts I should be able to get a grasp.

Fresh water pla?...I wouldn't feed that to my cat. If you've lived in Central Thailand and tried the local cuisine you may know what I mean. Might be OK for local consumption at 10 baht per kilo but I wouldn't want to sell something to humans that I wouldn't eat myself.

All the best...

Holy Moly...I shipped household goods from Abu Dhabi to Thailand under my Thai wife's name without any hassle. Get yourself a cover then investigate. Of course we only had a few boxes and not a container. Large consignments always put their noses into it. Break it up then have a look.

If you are US all the way around then you are meat. You got any Thai friends?

Best regards

This subject may be on another thread...administrator to advise. I have a non-immigrant 'O' visa that requires exit from Thailand every 90 days. What is the cheapest, less hassled way to do this? There are bus journeys to Cambodia (ugh)...train journeys to Malaysia (ugh) and air journeys to Laos and Singapore. Can anyone discuss the relative merits of one arrangement over another?...ie., how much cheaper is the bus fare to Cambodia with accomodation than a one day turn around in Singapore?

Remember, no Thai consular staff involved...just a stamp in the old passport from immigration officials. Any arrangements in Thailand other than depositing 1 million baht in the bank? My present visa is good for a year.

Best regards

Spellbound

Thanks for your reference. I will contact them regarding possibly extrapolating their observations to Central Thailand. There is no external heat source (re: heat from waste brine from the geothermal power generation process in New Zealand) that I can see at the local shrimp farms and I take it that this is required for larvae production. Could be that local producers buy ready to use larvae and dump them into ambient temperature ponds here amongst the rice paddies.

Anybody else got a line on info (maybe issued by the gov't when they were promoting the activity) specific to freshwater Central Thailand?

All the best

Beg to clarify. I'm talking about Central Thailand, ie. Adhudtaya, Suphan Buri...flat agricultural land north of the Smoke about 2 hours drive. Fresh water prawn farming of which there is a lot presently...dotted about the rice paddies that predominate. The obvious riposte is that I should ask them myself about about yields, profits and etc. I would like to enquire with an educated perspective. Hence anyone know about reading materials pertaining specifically to fresh water farming in Thailand?

A kilo of nice big prawns down at the weekly market at the local wat goes for 120 baht. If one were to scale it up to ship in bulk to dealers might be something there. Need to know about the investment required, yield per hectare and etc.

My wife's family are rice farmers and no one has complained about environmental damage from shrimp farms, polluted canals and etc. I can see that this may be a concern when one considers damage to mangroves and etc in salt water. This was something that I observed in Jakarta with shrimp farms on the Java Sea on the road to the airport. But I ain't proposing the same arrangement.

Cheers

Anyone know about freshwater shrimp/prawn farming in Central Thailand?...reference literature in any language? I don't want to get rich just generate enough income for myself and my wife's family to live in RELATIVE comfort. I understand that the government promoted this activity at one time with mixed results.

There must be some literature about...or does anyone have any personal experiences to share? My wife and her agricultural family would own and operate the business...I would only put up the capital...after reading a suitable prospectus.

Cheers

Hi Roger

What you described revealed the obvious that I had ignored...that my Indonesian girl friend was either always naked or just in panties and a t-shirt while at home and did not describe any extraneous complications that would arise from wearing trousers with regard to post bowel movement ablutions. Hence I withdraw my challenge to Prince William but to indicate that the 'hook' concept should proceed to the further development stage.

Asian mothers obviously impart knowledge to their offspring that shall forever remain a secret to a falang. What did William Bendix say in 'The Life of Riley'?...'what a revoltin' situation'...that we can't learn how to wipe/clean our ###es in Asia...

All the best...

If wearing long trousers,for sure you have to remove them for a squat toilet

My Asian friends assure me they do NOT remove any clothing

What a fascinating thread this is.

I agree with all the advice so far .

The only thing I have to add is that when using a public toilet and faced with the propect of stripping to the waist there is never somewhere to hang your clothes .

I always carry two short lengths of coathanger wire.

Use one to make a clothes hook and one to make a loo roll holder.

The technique was revealed to me by a girl friend in Indonesia some years ago...including a demonstration. If wearing long trousers, for sure you have to remove them for a squat toilet (if you wear long trousers on a daily basis you probably have recourse to a western toilet in your work place...shorts are not a problem).

Make sure that there is a bucket with a dipper in the toilet (if not then move along to the next one). After evacuating take a dipper of water in your right hand and while squatting over the hole pivot your right elbow on your right knee in a swinging action while using wrist action to have the water reach its' target. Sounds complicated but after some practice works a treat. You got to get your fingers in there but usually there is plenty of water to wash up with afterwards (faeces-phobia is a western thing).

Pretty weird having an attractive woman demonstrating toilet hygiene to a 45 year old man. Good sex after the demonstration as I remember.

Anyone know of a dedicated blues club?...clientle and performers only go there for the blues alone? Chicago, Oakland/West Coast, Memphis type music. Not necessarily just falang performers...anyone can play good blues if they got the technique and the spirit. I have heard of similar places in other SE Asia big cities.

Probably too much to ask if they got ribs, chicken and soul food on the menu...

A former associate had a filipina wife. On public transport back to her village he and she were mugged at gunpoint and were relieved of a significant amount of cash and jewellery. Don't know what this says about the Philipines. I know that from my little town in Central Thailand and taking the bus into BKK nobody would ever think about f*cking with a falang.

Does this click or am I making the wrong assumptions?

Someone on a previous thread said that the Thai Embassy in S'pore was absolutely the worst place to engage in any sort of visa activity...surly staff that couldn't be bothered and etc. Who needs the place anyway...looks like West Los Angeles run by Chinese...the good food is the only redeeming aspect. A SE Asian anomaly.

Dalmatian...Penang is the right place for visas...efficient consulate staff and a nice place to boot. Cheap and delicious tandoori chicken and naan bread on Jalan Penang in Georgetown.

I trust my sources as they were commissioning a plant shoulder to shoulder with me in the Middle East in the heat of the Summer. They didn't have any reason to b*llshit or impress. Just simple guys with Thai wives that didn't expect problems with US immigration and came in for a shock when a nazi put it in their face. Lets face it...immigration restrictions worldwide are a racist subterfuge perpetuated by idiots that trade in such activity.

I respect you lopburi but let's look at the wider picture...

Lopburi...you cool. I'm not blowing you off...just wanted to distinguish between the visa application process and the reality at the US Embassy. You wouldn't believe the nightmare scenarios that I have heard from others. Now with this terrorist business we could maybe exponentiate.

Where you from, dude?...you sound like a home...

Lopburi...thanks for your info...I am aware of the requirements. What I wanted to know from readers is with regard to dealing with the embassy immigration nazis when they get to the interview stage. I want to spare my wife any humiliation that may result from an interrogation. I don't need to go back to the US that badly.

That the application process may take months to a year would separate me from my wife for an unreasonable amount of time...in most civilized countries this would be viewed as a violation of human rights. But after 9/11 the US presumes that they can do what they want in the name of Fatherland Security.

Anyone got any info with regard to dealing with the US Embassy on the issue of visas?

<deleted> it...I say stick to a neutral spirit like vodka with mixers. With lots of ice a better hot weather drink than beer. With a concerted effort on the market perhaps we can get a local distillery to produce a local brand that would be available everywhere for cheap and get the locals away from the evil swill that they call 'whisky'.

Salud and bottoms up...

I am a US citizen married to a Thai national. I may sometime soon have to return to the US to find work and need guidance regarding obtaining a visa for my wife. We have been married for 3 years and own a house in Thailand. I have been advised by associates that the US Embassy in BKK considers all Thai women to be of ill repute and to expect the worst when applying for a visa regardless of the status or stability of one's marriage.

Anyone got any info?

Also...where is the best place in BKK to buy western food? I've only been to Foodland on Sukhumvit Soi 5 and they ain't got much. Anybody know where to buy Copenhagen Snuff? I hate smoking these Marlboro Lights for my nicotine addiction. Good bakery, nice cheeses and New Zealand beef come to mind.

Administrator...I expect you to stand with WMD to protect me from the politically correct that would have me eat insects and soggy rice in the name of not being uptight.

All the best...

Tutsi...you think you baaaad but you not bad enough for robertT. So choose off...4 am Soi Nana with WMD. I'll bring my bar girl entourage with me so you can see what you are missing.

I'll shoot my mouth off wherever I please...Go**ammit.

(Not really, folks...me and Tutsi are having a little joke...)

fearless robertT

Robert...you are a depraved individual. If business, crew-cutted individuals choose to associate in Thailand it is not for you to criticise. Your ridiculous analogy to Los Angeles street gangs begs belief...do you really think that people will 'sign' each other on Bangkok sidewalks? And your disrespect for lovely Thai lady bar staff has not gone un-noticed.

Please shut what you are doing and give the rest of us some peace.

Tutsi