Maverell

Hey this thread has helped me !! I thought I was losing my sense of taste - I have been buying bottled chang for a long time, up until about 6 months ago all the bottles tasted the same, now its very hit or miss. Sometimes its disgusting. Sometimes its as it was.

I thought it was me.

Maybe some counterfeit chang is getting into the chain.

Look on the neck of the glass bottle of Chang, in tiny black writing you will see the date the beer was bottled. Don't attempt to drink (or reject) any beer older than 3 months.

You would (or maybe wouldn't) here in Thailand, be surprised to hear that some stores and supermarkets sell bottles of beer 12 months old stock or more!

Thanks for that Syd - maybe thats the problem

I and many others, stopped using Thai airways when they ruined their frequent flyer program. I will never fly with them again unless they are the cheapest on the market.

None

Two weeks ago I woke up with somewhat muffled hearing in my right ear accompanied by a bit of an echo when people would talk. At the same time, my right sinus and right side of my throat were feeling like I was coming down with a cold. I didn't think too much of it.

After 5 days I went to a doctor who said maybe I was at the early stages of an ear infection. I got some antibiotics and cold medicine and that was that.

Within a few days, the cold symptoms more or less cleared- but there is still a little pressure in my right sinus.

Then a week after the initial morning, I noticed a high pitched screeching noise in my right ear. It does not stop and hasn't stopped since I first noticed it. The sound is exactly what you hear the next day after going to a very loud concert. BUT I was not exposed to any loud noises prior to this developing.

I can change the frequency of the sound somewhat by clenching my teeth.

I also have tinnitus and have had it since 1988. At first I experienced the same symptoms as you, coupled with reduced hearing ability in the affected side. I do not want to scare you but it was caused by a very rare form of brain tumour. You have got a better chance of winning the lottery than getting the type of tumour I had so do not panic.

As far as I am aware there is no cure for tinnitus - it goes away or stays. There are things that can reduce its impact but I do not use them. Over the years I have got used to it.

You can read my story here http://lifechanginglife.blogspot.com

Hey this thread has helped me !! I thought I was losing my sense of taste - I have been buying bottled chang for a long time, up until about 6 months ago all the bottles tasted the same, now its very hit or miss. Sometimes its disgusting. Sometimes its as it was.

I thought it was me.

Maybe some counterfeit chang is getting into the chain.

ah gee i keep reading all this stuff thats been happing, but have never seen any voilent acks as yet. just moved here 2 weeks ago.

Lived here 11 years and never witnessed anything. Sure is safer than where I moved from!

Where did you live before ? "the OK Corral" either that or the centre for the blind.

The OK Corral would be a good description.

On a more serious note, I'm sure its still safer living in Thailand than most European countries

Well you have seen nothing YET. With the onset of large scale unemployment its going to get worse. Don't forget for Thais no money = starvation. The social security system here is more or less non existant.

I wish the OP luck - my facial nerve on the right side was badly damaged ( not severed so I am told ) back in 1989 during the removal of an acoustic neuroma (brain tumour ).The docs hoped the nerve would repair itself but it never did. I blame it on drinking too much alcohol

Thanks Maverell, sorry to hear about all your trouble good to know you survived though

Thanks for that For the first few years I was pretty pissed about it, but then when you think of the alternative life becomes clearer.

I wish the OP luck - my facial nerve on the right side was badly damaged ( not severed so I am told ) back in 1989 during the removal of an acoustic neuroma (brain tumour ).The docs hoped the nerve would repair itself but it never did. I blame it on drinking too much alcohol

Degree ... whats a degree .... 34 degrees celsius is good enough for me.

I hear that the UK financial services authority is changing the warnings given to investors before they sign on the dotted line....Financial Health Warning. Investments will only go down ... invest what you want to lose.

But when the bottom comes, whenever that will be, and certainly not any time soon, fortunes will be made.

Anybody know the what the rationale is behind these changes ?

Jurisdiction of each Immigration office is one reason.

Yes george, I am sure you are right, but surely the immigration rules are meant to be the same at what ever office you go to. Are you implying that they have realised that this has not been the case and perhaps some offices were doing more business than others

Anybody know the what the rationale is behind these changes ? 5555555555555555555 Stupid question I know !

I can understand your concerns, I do feel however, if Mum is above the 'Bar' and owns it, I'd be very suprised if she'd allow her daughter to 'entertain' the punters.

Plus, as mentioned before, your daughter is over 18 years old and would be considered as being an adult, able to make up her own mind.

As you point out she is 18 and she can do what she wants. I will go and see her when I return to Thailand.

Actually - isn't 20 the age in Thailand for working / entering a bar?

Yes the law states 20 years old, but in some bars other laws seem to apply.

Here we go again... I am sure that one of the red shirts protesting today was wearing a yellow shirt at the airport the other week !! The joke continues.

I do not think a 4 baht increase is the point. The point is the percentage increase. How can that be justified ?

My favourite Thai restaurant recently raised its prices by 15 % ( about 15 baht ) a dish - I asked the Thai boss why. He stated that ' customers not come now, I need money the same before'. I tried to explain that even less customers would come now but he couldn't understand, or didn't want to.

I was spending at least 1000 baht a week with him, now I go to the restaurant 50 metres away.

Yep - the exchange rate is hurting me, as are the beer prices in Soi Cowboy. My consumption of alcohol has reduced by 30 per cent.

Of course there were debtors' prisons. Have you never read your Charles Dickens? dam_n good thing too . . serve people right for living beyond their means and causing this whole global mess.

Yes people lived beyond their means but were encouraged to do so by banks and governments. The bankers wanted huge bonuses, the governments wanted their economies to look good. The general public relied on government and banks for advice, all they got was spend, spend, spend. So thats what they did.

I do plan to enjoy myself with what Pattaya has to offer but I hope that by strictly limiting my alcohol intake (say 3-4 drinks a day) and keeping up the exercise (running and swimming) and bringing loads of books to read on the beach, that I'll avoid the burn-out and liver problems.

3 - 4 drinks a day ..... I'll avoid the burnout and liver problems.

Sounds like wishful thinking to me The only time you will have for sitting on the beach is in the evenings as you will be in bed most of the day recovering from the night before. It will be dark so you won't be able to read !! So its back to the bars....and it goes on

Of course there will be an exodus of people from the tourist areas back to Isaan etc. as they lose their jobs.

I have a funny feeling that these people will not be as readily accepted back in their villages as people think. They have been a major bread winner for their families, and all of a sudden its gone, not just one or two families but hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands.

We are talking about a lot of money not going to the villages next year, they will not like it.

For some reason there are serious Internet problems in the UK. Trace routes reveal that there is up to 100 per cent packet loss on some hops. All within the UK.

Has a backbone provider gone bust ? Or is a foreign power involved in a massive DNS attack

I use a site in Norway 20 times a day and there are no problems there....... the UK is in serious sh*t and its not just the internet !!

Why would the gov't purposely under/over report tourist revenue?

Mostly because they have no Fing clue what tourists spend their money on and don't want to admit that it is mostly ladies of the darkness.

The above is probably one of the most accurate statements in this thread !! I appreciate families spend as well, but I am sure the majority of tourist money comes in with another sort of tourist.

I am sure that the people who arranged this seizure have little or no interest in anyone else except themselves. They could not care if a million people lose employment, could not care if the Thai economy suffers, and certainly do not care about foreigners ! They are solvent and can weather whatever storm comes their way - they have the money and power ( as already demonstrated ). They do not want to lose it.

There's lots and lots of alternative destinations, its a big ask to expect putative holidaymakers to roll the dice on their vacation when sun sea and sand are available elsewhere too.

Correct ! There are many other destinations with similar beaches, climate, girls ( if you want them ) and fun. Thailand has not got a monopoly, i say this even though I live here ( at the moment ) !

With an unstable political situation, ever changing visa rules or interpretation of those rules, a strong baht, a weak pound / euro, 145 baht a beer in soi cowboy the incentives to stay are disappearing by the minute...

I do nothing

As the number of tourists decline by 50 % it is only natural that border runs need to go up 50% so they are not out of pocket.....if you see what I mean.