gobs

I definitely share your opinion Elfe!..

Just about the bed: definitely not! I afforded a very large and confortable mat laying down the floor of the bedroom to my dogs and... I like to much my eases when I'm sleeping

Cheers

Yeah! Same advice others tell you already:

Come here for some days, check and choose...

Nothing is better than his own sensibility.

Good luck and welcome in CM

Nice picture elfe! My spouse do adore!..

But for me, the bed, sorry, definitely not!

Yes, I confirm: no problem with flees and ticks!

Our dogs have a "shower" every week, and we take care...

Euh... OK floors not so "nice" at the rainy season ;-)

Cheers

Hi!

Here in Thailand, dogs generally live outside. On the land, or even... out! And almost never come in home...

For my part, my two dogs (female thai dogs, no breed) can come and go in the land as well as in home. I just take care they play "hard" together in the garden, closed with walls, and I never let them go outside.

Sure when my spouse and I are out for some shopping or visiting, they stay only in land!

At night, they sleep in home, sometimes in the bedroom on a mat when the weather is hot and AC is running ;-)

In home they never made a mess. And they never can go up on chairs, sofas or beds. These are only for human beings!..

Despite some hairs on the ground or some very little scratches here and there on the wooden floors in home, we like to feel they are very near to us (and they seem to feel the same!), and can decide what is good for them just at the moment. I mean better inside or outside...

I red somewhere it was not good that dogs can live in home (?)...

What is your opinion about this?

How do you do?

Advices welcome...

Thanks

Thanks to all.

I just want to add I don't worry about the amount of staff in departement-stores, OK? For me, no problem.

And sure, sometimes in the West it's difficult to find somebody in the whole store to give you even an information... I know...

For other part, why the owner should pay an "over staff" (even at low level labour charges...)? Better I suppose to have this money in his pocket ;-)

In fact, I was thinking if there was a "sociological" explaination.

For example, Carrefour, a french brand (same for Big C, american, or Tesco Lotus, british, in their own countries...), has not this amount of employees in its departement-stores in France.

So, why Carrefour does not do the same here in Thailand than it does in Europe?

After all selling a TV or some make-up is the same thing here and there. Yes, no!?

But maybe I make a mistake and don't understand something about this...

Thanks for some replies...

Hi all,

Just a little answer about the daily life of a curious ordinary customer...

So, from time to time, going shopping in some departement-stores (Big C, Carrefour, Global House and so on...), I noticed the staff is always very important. Very much more than in farang countries...

I tried to find a explanation by myself, but... nothing came ;-)

Someone here knows why so many employees here in Thailand?

Thanks

Yeah Sinclair, same email I received one week ago! So my question...

What's about that?

Hi all,

If I understand well, there will be a new internet criminal law issuing tomorrow the 18th of July, here in Thailand...

What about this?

And what consequences on using internet as a paticular?

Any explanations welcome.

Thanks

Hi all,

What about highspeed internet in Sankamphaeng area?

I live in Tonpao, near Bosang...

I used csloxinfo as provider and the dialspeed is very bad in evening here. Sometimes 3 minutes to download a TV page!..

Better at night and in the morning...

Cheers

Thanks Austhaied,

Quick reply!

Maybe I go tomorrow... Oops, today, now!

Cheers

Hi all!

I need a new battery for my Mac iBook G4.

Where to buy in CNX? A good Apple shop for spare parts...

Someone knows, please?

Thx

Gobs

And what about the great tasty french "CAMEMBERT"?..

I'm an addict! Yum, yum...

So, if you like, run to Carrefour... Import dairy products, there you will find a REAL Camembert from Normandie "AU LAIT CRU" from the Carrefour brand. Wooden white/beige round box of 250 g for about 190 B.

Very great taste! Even if quite twice the price we can buy in France...

For the best way to taste it, try their "french country bread" just cooked every day in their bakery... and a bottle of red wine (Bolero, about 350 !

Go back home quickly, put out in the garden everybody here, lock doors and windows, open the AC and enjoy a good time on a corner of the table of the kitchen...

I cannot resist!..

Cheese...

Ooops, no,cheers!

Hi all!

I would like to make a gravel lane running here and there through my garden.

But earth, here in Chiang May is like sticky clay, and for other part I do not want herbs comming through the gravel. So I think I must put a "mat" under the gravel...

But what type of mat?

In Europe there is something like felt: gravel cannot sink into earth, herbs cannot grow through, but water, yes, flows through...

Is there this type of mat somewhere here? And where to buy especially in CM?

Or any advices welcome

Thanks,

Gobs

Welcome to CM!

Great place, great people, great living...

But beware: one time you come... never you leave!

About motorcycle, for only 2 months I think better to rent. Honda Dream or Honda Wave, easy to find, easy to ride everywhere with and not expensive...

Cheers

Thanks for the advices...

But what is the name of the "fluorescent" green snake? Or family?..

Dangerous? Venomous?..

Very "strange pet" for the Westerner I'm!..

Cheeers

Savae,

Where to buy this repellant? Is it dangerous for dogs and cats?

I live in Chiang Mai, and have some problems with snakes in my garden too...

Thanks

Just look at the topic now...

I live in CNX. Maybe interested...

Which university? When do you leave?

Thanks

Hi all!

I notice a lot of "problem" with snakes in this thread...

For my part, I live in Sankamphaeng/ Chiang Mai in a pretty house with garden where I moved 8 months ago. And here, I feel nice, but...

But... during these last 8 months, I "met" maybe about half a dozen of different snakes in my garden... asking myself too how many I didn't "check" .

I notice some grey/brown and bright green 2/3 feet long, some black 1 foot long, some little yellow/black ringed and some with "no colours in the dawn", sometimes in my true footpath. These "meetings", as I'm not a nephew of Indiana Jones, make me uncomfortable when I'm "crawling" through plants and flowers, when I'm curing or doing new plantations...

OK, OK, I know, snakes are more afraid of us than we can be of them! But no matter...

At the beginning of the week, it was the best! This day, near stairs leading up to the terrasse and the entrance of my home and its bay windows (!!!..), where I was just planting some new tree, my dog barked loudy, hairs up on his back, pointing angrily the area where I was gardening. Then I heard something moving in leaves on the ground, just before a 4 feet long snake got out, and climbed a high plant, reached the roof of the parking lot aside... I ran up to the terrasse with a shovel in my hands, but when I approched, "master snake" gave me some ugly shhhhh-shhhhhh and quickly disappeared off my sight by the roof... while I stayed in a great expectation with my needless weapon. Then, where did he go, that is the question!

Because the land is closed by walls all around, except for the gate... and if snakes don't have the key, I guess they can go in/out by the gap between the concrete of the ground and the frame of the gate. Euh, better going out, eh!..

So, this 4 feet long snake, what it was?

Little head, long and slim body about 2 inches thick at the biggest, and a strange "fluorescent green colour", meaning "very" bright green colour like young leaves of a tree.

And what can I do, apart moving away from this house (thank you!)?

What can I do to take snakes away from my garden?

Someone have already had this "experiment"?

Well, as I do not want to turn my life to breding snakes, all advices welcome.

Thanks by advance.

Hi folks!

I need to change tires on my little Suzuki Sporty Caribian, and for the fun I would like to turn for some "big" ones... and maybe make the car a little higher

Does someone know a good off-road service store (that treats of Suzuki among others...) in CHIANG MAI?

With location and adress please...

Thanks

Thanks folks,

I'm going to have a look there...

Why not the bus? If I remember well, they have night trips BKK/CNX with "couchette-seats" (not a bed eh!..). About 600-700 Baths/seat...

Taxi from airport to bus station (about 300 Baths, no?..) and then bus...

Low prices and about 10 hours of a safety and quiet trip from BKK to CNX...

Maybe an arriving in afternoon here...

Yes, easier to go to Immigration Service near airport. Some documents needed... Office on your left hand side (like a spare little house...) when you enter the Imm Service. Easy to get with the documents (20 minutes), free, and very kind people!..

Good luck

Hi all,

I would like to buy an easel and some canvas for art-painting...

Someone knows some shop(s) in Chiang May?

Thanks

Hello Steve

Welcome to Chiang May!

We are a lot of westerners to live here in CM our retired time. Different ages, different nationalities and different densibilities... but, I guess, we are all sharing the same love of this city and its area!

About your shirts... I think better to forget (;-) and come here lightly to buy what you realy need here. Incredible choice, from first class brands to low quality fashion, but cheap and easy to wear...

In fact, the average climate here go from sunny and cool in the short winter (nov to jan, 26°C at day/15°C at night) to sunny and hot in the following summer (feb to may, 38°C at day/24°C at night). Between is the rainy season sunny and rainy 50/50 with moist air (june to oct, 35°C at day/25°C at night), but not rainy all day long: suddenly many clouds come, drop their heavy load during 1,2 or 3 hours and come back the clean sky. More often in the evening (because of the moson effect).

First of all, don't worry about your one year retirement visa. OK at the first time maybe it seems a little "complicated" but not at all difficult: if you have the famous 800,000 Baths on an account in a thay bank and all the "easy to get" documents required, there is no problem. Further more, here in CM, officers of the immigration service (near the airport) are very kind and only want to help you. You ask for every thing you need to know and they explain to you with a smile on their lips (...most of the time).

About renting, maybe you are a little optimistic. You are in the "low" grade. If you can, better to plan 12,000 to 15,000 Baths (or more!) for a house with garden and nicely comfotable in the near area of the city, about 15/20 minutes from center town and its up to date facilities. Easy to find "your home": many offers and some good agencies...

Very difficult to own for a westerner, except in condominiums (towers of apartments with 5 stars facilities) wich are built for. Many prices, from 1 million Baths to... no end! It depends of the situation, the space and the range of comfort...

I think too that living "in the mountain" is a "wonderfull experience", but as the westerners we are, maybe daily you should feel "lost" and "boring": there you are in the real thai country style life! Thay speaking, thay "facilities", thay shops and so on. Not bad at all (I do the "experience" in the east of Thailand and I learn a lot with very lovely kind people), but sometimes a little "heavy" to manage each hour of your life... imagine when you only want a CD, a magazine, a book, a real coffee or beer in the fresh shadow of an afternoon ending at an attended terrasse with some english locutor... or a good thick and juicy steack just now!

But I don't realy know: maybe it would be your way of life...

Furthermore you can easily get a thay driving license for a car or a motorcycle, and buy one. You simply need some "easy to get" documents in any case... and make you "free to go", where and when you want.

Here, life is "cool", quiet, safety, slow and without any worry if you "take the rythm" and if you "take the smiling": chay yen (cool heart) and may pen ray (don't worry) are the two more precious rules a westerner have to use to imerge himself in the real thay way of life... and it's exciting!

Hope I can help you a little...

Good luck Steve

Gobs