jimbeam1

I have seen them put the spoon in their mouth, before putting it in the communal pot

jb1

You say this as if you witnessed something odd. They are simply licking the spoon clean of other food before digging into a fresh communal dish. ;-)

When I go out with the Thai extended family it is the norm to use the same spoon you are eating with as your own personal serving spoon. The family is by no means hiso types but all live comfortably and have new clean homes. They also all follow the standard traditions of typical Thai cleanliness such as removing shoes before entering a house.

I've wondered if the eating things shows a type of intimacy and trust or if it is just lack of awareness of how germs are spread. It could also be tradition such as removing your shoes. I go to a dentist office in BKK where they want you to remove your shoes and put on the slippers/shoes they have in a shoe stand by the door. When you leave you put the slippers back in the shoe rack for the next person. The first time I went I was a little taken back that here is a medical office where they want you to share shoes/slippers with God knows how many other barefoot people as opposed to taking a chance your own flip flops may bring in some dirt on their floor which I am sure is cleaned daily. Yet, the shoe-slippers where a leathery type and there is no way they were washing those daily (if ever) and doubt very much they had disinfectant spray as a bowling alley has since you literally put the shoes back in the rack for the next customer.

I truly think there is a lack of awareness in terms of how germs are spread and if it comes to tradition then even if there is an awareness the tradition wins out. This is also very surprising given all the different flew epidemics that have broken out in Thailand. I've even seen them use a dry rag on the escalator railings to dust them as opposed to having some kind of damp alcohol/disinfectant rag since this is clearly one surface that has to be responsible for spreading tons of germs from those infected sneezing or using their finger to clear their nose.

I've never been one of those people worried about diseases from doorknobs but have become radically more aware of where of washing my hands and where I put my hands given the flu scares in Thailand combined with so many people cramped in small places here.

Nisa, You say that about the shoe/ slippers. We went to Kanchanaburi last week for a couple of days. Booked into a really nice hotel by the river. Two house coats in the cupboard nd two pairs of slippers, white on the outside,, black inside, showed them to my g/f. She cracked up.

jb1

Yet ANOTHER Bus driver falls asleep and people hurt........how many more people have to be injured or killed before someone actually DOES SOMTHING to stop this carnage on Thai roads and particularly with Bus drivers !.

Sadly the answer to your question is thousands. Because it aint ever going to change.

I am sure that the powers to be, just view it as a form of necessary cull.

jb1

Use common table spoon when eating in a group

In Thailand we don't use serving spoons - I've often been told. And when I insist on one, some Thai's around the table still use their own spoons to serve themselves

They all Dip in, and not always with spoons-licked fingers is the norm, What the H#ell is this Heath woman talking about, as in my last post speaks volumes-the truth, It is becoming sickening to hear all the BULL from educated people advising that diseases are on the way this warm season-as NISA said its generally warm all the year--and if it isn't there are still rules in cold climes the same NO wamed up food. keep your food cool and in containers, clean your food areas, common sense things.............teach common sense in schools and the home and then it's instilled into the people for life...

Toilets in general are Discusting...a good mobile is more expensive than a tiled shower room. with bleach.--third world education--coupled with modern Hi tech......JOKE

I have seen them put the spoon in their mouth, before putting it in the communal pot

jb1

Should Thai food actually be as tasty as many proclaim here on TV , pray tell me why MSG needs to be , or is thought to be , such a necessity in Thai cooking ? With the normal ' Thai lashings' of various herbs and spices , do you think MSG would be missed any more than one extra grain of salt which is also over-used , not forgetting , of course , the heaps of sugar ? I have my doubts .

Slightly off topic. But another good post.

jb1

What the hellll is all this MSG business, everything nearly is centered on MSG. it is-it isn't -it is -it isn't. The two oldsters from Boston Lincs England, on holiday, died. reported enlarged hearts, heart attacks--BUL--#hit....same time. 555555555....then mentioned suicide...BUL#hit...... and all this super MSG discussion....EVERY one knows there's a rat somewhere...............the only thing that should have happened is that the said establishment be closed -mucha pronto- until the real truth be found. Can you imagine what the families are thinking that lost mam and dad.???? MSG ???---enlarged hearts, I think they and their friends will think that farrangs here have gone crazy in the head. spinning out this story.

in their seventies. fit enough to fly, and holiday here, airport trauma's--Ha. Don’t you think if they BOTH had enlarged hearts, their doctor in Lincs would have advised them not to go--and their families also, as for suicide---the suggestion is ridiculous. My friend is from the said town in England , and the mood there is not very Thai friendly. All the discussion is of course is because people are concerned But doing the Miss Marples is somewhat upsetting to some, All they want is pressure put on the CMai authorities to come up with the truth. ( I am aware posters mean well)

Well said. But do you ever get the feeling that you are banging your head against the wall.

As for this MSG (choo-rot) thing I am very much against the stuff. But come on this is just another conspiracy theory.

jb1

Use common table spoon when eating in a group

Does that mean sharing one spoon between everyone in a group?

I guess it means using one spoon for serving the food, rather than everyone dipping their own spoons into the food for serving

That makes more sense than my original interpretation.

But wont happen

jb1

At least if you are on a bike and run into a car it is the car drivers fault.

Although I must say, I just wouldn't feel safe on a bike in Bangkok.

jb1

Maybe you could try and have her committed to some kind of mental health facility, I don't have any information about these places although I know they do exist in Thailand, maybe check the Health forum.

I would say he should make it very clear that if she does kill herself he will not be sending any money to her mother, that might make her change her mind as she still has some sense of obligation to her family, however misguided that might be.

As above.... Then Run.

By the way self harming is very common in Thailand.

jb1

Should Thailand take a stand against Gadhafi?

Not a chance in Hell.

jb1

Not wishing to make light of this. But M16s AK47s any Minimies?

jb1

The hotel needs some PR advice at this stage. Instead of the Thai standard cover up and hope everyone forgets, they need to become proactive. Meaning launch their own investigation, find out what is wrong, fix it, then apologize profusely to the family members affected. Otherwise I think the hotel is finished. Thais will figure a evil ghost is at work, and never set foot in the place. And farangs will access to media which will play this story up, and never set foot there either. This is the age of information being freely disseminated, so the old ways of covering up simply do not work anymore.....

The thing is that the hotel operators probably already know what the problem is.If they let the cat out of the bag, people will have to take responsibility for their actions/ or inactions and heads will have to roll.

If what softgeorge says is correct, then it wouldn't only be that tour operator nor just agencies from Australia blacklisting this gaff. This establishment is destined to a long slow death itself. Unless somebody shows some intestinal fortitude and either solves the ..... or confesses up to the ....

Lastly may I add. It astonishes me why this case has not had intervention at ministerial level.The buck stops with them if their subordinates refuse to carry out thier duties correctly. All round a dam_n disgrace that has put a blemish not only on the establishment,but Chiang Mai and Thailand as a whole.

I would like to add to that. Also the ministries/Embassies of the deceased.

jb1

It would make a tremendous difference also if the Public Health Ministry, checked on the condition of public toilets, as well as the many food halls and street vendors, where hygiene is non existent. Not just in the coming months, but throughout the year.

jb1

There are home pregnancy tests, home aids tests, what we need now are home residue pesticides tests. Go to the market and check out what you are buying before purchase.

I don't know if you meant that tongue in cheek. But not such a bad Idea.

jb1

The premier said the Army chief had pledged to do his best in solving the problem.<BR sab="375"><BR sab="376">Earlier, Army spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said that it remained unclear if those weapons were already missing or there was an error in inventory management.<BR sab="377"><BR sab="378">

Read : They are still negotiating

Got to hand it to you guys--this is top class sorruption. If they find a flaw in our statement--OK we'll just change our story

Just think what it would be like if they had a brain

Another thought. Imagine if they ever went Nuclear

jb1

Id say dont worry the moles and your lil bro will fall of eventually.

Or it will

Hey if you are not trolling? I would go see a Doc, cause as The laughing man said. They sure could be warts?

jb1

Bangkok Bank ask for a Work Permit to open an account, Kasikorn don't at the latest reports.

Some do and some don't. They will open an account on a 30 day visa exempt stamp for a fact.

Yes opened my first Bangkok BANK ACC AT Hau Hin on 30 day visa stamp.

jb1

I had to read the story again to see who was arrested. Ok so the truck had broken down. So you would imagine that it was parked at the side of the road obviously without any lights on? The coach comes along, within the speed limit? Rams the lorry, hence the dead and injured. I would like to read the coach drivers, or witness accounts of what happened. I get motorbikes coming at me an awful lot at night without lights, in the pitch dark and always manage to see them.

RIP the dead.

jb1

By the way why do they always show a licence number?

It shouldn't be to difficult to find out how they went missing. Who has recently purchased a house, or a nice expensive car??

jb1

The general did.

All his assistants did.

All their me-ah noi.... also did.

They also began to purchase expensive wine from abroad.... too....

OK, so who did it....?

They did.

jb1

"an investigation at the depot found that a total of hundreds of items mainly weapons were gone missing and believed to be allegedly stolen from the headquarters."

My god, what an appallingly bad sentence. Do the Nation's bosses know how crap the paper has become? A story this important and they couldn't be bothered putting one of the few remaining farang editors on the case?

"believed to be allegedly stolen"?! kind of possibly maybe... And if hundreds of weapons are missing, there is only one conclusion - they were stolen. Not believed stolen or allegedly stolen, but flat out stolen - by thieves. They were not borrowed, they were not lost behind the sofa cushions.

How can Suthichai Yoon show his face in public when his newspaper prints such garbage?

Ah but they may have been lent to someone

jb1

I haven't read the complete story. But I hope her parents don't use her to cash in.

jb1

I feel for you if it really is getting you down. But 11.00pm is not really late especially in a City that never sleeps. You should really be thinking that it is time to cut your losses and run. If you do, take a good look around before you put pen to paper again. Good luck.

jb1

My g/f just got her notice of acceptance through. I started looking on their web site after around 5to6 days. I kept getting an error notice coming up. I think is was on about the 15th day that i actually got the acceptance, to say we could go and pick up her Passport. She got the sms a day later. We done a lot of research into the application and felt rather good when it was all sorted. Good Luck

jb1

You know very well you won the argument,and you also know you won't get an apology either.

That's why they never admit to losing the argument to you,in the first place!

pretty clever way of saving face, eh!

Very true. My g/f just goes quiet for a while. Then starts on another subject, as if nothing happend Mai-Pen-rai.

jb1

Shouldn't the question really be "will country xxx allow the import of an airsoft gun through?"

I think in my country shouldn't be any problems to bring guns like this.

Well then all you need to do is check with the company you are flying with and you should have your answer

jb1

When someone jumps the queue in front of you, no need to start a fight, just call a custom officer. Explain someone needs assistance and point to the person who cut the queue. When there are long queues, customs officers are usually on the edge because everybody complain. If the guy doesn't have a good reason, he will be sent back to the end of the queue right away.

On the other hand, if there is a big queue at the custom and you may not make it on time to the boarding gate, airline staff usually help you to clear the custom.

But if there is a computer problem and everybody is held at the custom, not need to worry, the flight won't leave half empty and will wait for you

That all sounds quite reasonable, now doesn't it.

jb1