Changian

Yep, the sea is pretty bumpy right now. The waves don't look too big from the beach but it's a different matter once you are in them. You could probably surf them at the moment.

They also vary a lot, had lunch at Lonely beach the other day and one minute the sea was rough, ten minutes later it was almost dead calm and by the end of my meal it was rough again. So easy for people to be caught out if they aren't expecting a rip.

The other day I went out in a kayak to see how rough it was. Fun riding the waves on the way back to the beach but very powerful when they break. Probably wont do that again.

The 'I have been here longer than you and therefore I am right and you are wrong' mentality only holds true if I have been here longer than you. If I haven't, then it is a pile of crap and should be ignored.

Today my house caught fire. Sadly I didn't notice because I was too busy fighting my neighbour over a rock at the bottom of the garden.

From NotThanong who is not the managing editor of The Nation

Used to have a Honda X-11 (naked Blackbird) when I lived in Bangkok. Highly unpractical as you get stuck in traffic jams on it, but great fun. Sold it in 2003 through Peter at the old Siam Superbike, anyone here buy it? Easy to spot as it had a number '11' plate.

7/11 is a huge American chain with over 30,000 stores across the globe

7-eleven has been Japanese for the last 20+ years.

It could all have been so much easier if the Thai govt in 1907 hadn't agreed to the border line drawn up by French-Cambodian-Thai committee which showed Preah Vihear in Cambodian territory and then started circulating this map for official use.

Maybe other countries should be able to now go and dispute borders drawn up 100 years ago and which have been previously agreed upon by their own governments. No need for wars, just ask the UN to redraw the border for you.

Since the airport is already completed - opportunities for graft & corruption are limited.

Time for a second runway at SuvarnabhumiI think.

May well try ordering next time I'm in BKK. I've known Mark for best part of 10 years, not good mates, but I know that when he does something he aims to do it as well as it can be done - whether it is drumming in a band, golf or making burgers & ribs.

Makes you wonder how different things would have been if the US, Europe, Thailand etc hadn't supported the Khmer Rouge even after they had been overthrown by the Vietnamese, simply because they thought the threat of Communism was worse that anything the Khmer Rouge could do.

Pol Pot spent 6 years living in Thailand in the late 80s early 90s with a house in Bang Saen and another, where he spent most of his time, in an army camp in Saphan Hin, near Trat where he was protected by the Thai military. He could easily have been arrested then if the authorities wanted to do it. Guess they didn't.

Phew - that was close. Very fortunate for Dems and Army that there was a bomb and thus a good excuse to extend the emergency decree.

The title of the thread seems a bit misleading 'Bangkok residents support extended emergency decree' as less that 50% actually support it according to the poll figures and 53% thought that 'the blast was intentionally done to "create a situation" and incite violence'

But seeing as the story comes from MCOT - a government mouthpiece - this isn't surprising really.

Two people drowned off White Sand beach this weekend. A 43 year old Thai tourist from Nakon Sawan and 50 year old Dutchman - named as Adriaan Briene, according to Thai language reports.

Rip currents are being blamed as the cause.

As well as Geordie Mark there's Cockney Korn, born in London, educated at Winchester College and Oxford University, where he was a classmate of Mark, and current Finance Minister.

I'm waiting to see if Andrew Biggs makes a run for office.

The questions are tough. http://www.jyu.fi/ipho/ Go see for yourself.

Too right. Not one of them is multiple choice. No wonder physics isn't popular in Thailand.

I think the Thai govt should take this further and allow stylish clothes only in two sizes, anyone larger then a 'M' would have to make do with old rice sacks. It'd be motivation for lard <deleted> to do a bit of exercise which in turn would lead to a healthier country.

I was in Koh Chang recently, stayed for one week, came back to Bangkok on Tuesday. I never saw any dolphins but I did see plenty of jellyfish, I even got stung from one and plenty of dead jellyfish on the beach (I stayed at Panviman).

Actually slightly off topic but I can see you live at Koh Chang, while standing on the beach at Panviman I could always here a distant sound at sea, sounded like a diesel engine but there was never any boats out there, any idea what this is?

I live about 200 metres from the Panviman on the river estuary behind the hotel. The sound you could hear will probably have been the generator from the Panviman. The electricity sometimes goes off during or after heavy rain when either lines are down or they have to be fixed. I can hear it too sometimes, just a rumble in the background. ( Or if you are out on the beach, possibly it was KP Huts generator.)

This time of year you get jellyfish breeding around the estuary mouth so quite a few small ones around Panviman and the beach nearby. Not harmful, just a mild sting. But swimming through them is a weird experience.

In spite of the sharp declines in arrivals during the political crisis months of May and June 2010,

As the arrivals in June and July 2010 have picked up significantly

So in TAT speak: sharp decline = significant increase

How smart does the govt want the masses to be? Too smart and they might start asking questions and being able to spot propaganda when they see it. Not smart enough and they wont be downloading the volumes of classic Thai literature on offer to keep them entertained in the evening - as all the good sites will have been blocked.

The alternative to the guy being naive is that he knows what he is doing and is telling girls what they want to hear. When he comes to Thailand he'll have a few 'good girls' lined up. Odds are he can get a shag from a couple of them.

Just found out there was another dead one last week that wasn't reported anywhere. A 2.3 metre long Irrawaddy dolphin that was found floating near the shore. So we're up to ten dead dolphins in a three week period now.

This is what happens when Nation journos go out of their comfort zone and try to cobble together an article that doesn't blame Thaksin for something.

Makes a change from the usual 'Russian Caught up to his Neck in Snatch on Beach Road' stories.

This story has been going on for years:

Reuters: Thailand Will Buy Swedish-Made Gripen Fighters

By Nopporn Wong-Anan

BANGKOK, Oct 17, 2007(Reuters) - Thailand's Air Force will buy six JAS-39 Gripen fighter jets from Sweden's Saab for 19.5 billion baht ($574 million) to replace ageing F-5E fighters, Air Force chief Chalit Pukphasuk said on Wednesday. A member of the selection panel had said on Tuesday the Air Force would buy 12 Gripens in two batches. The first six would be bought between 2008 and 2012 and the second batch "as soon as possible", Chalit said.

The only countries outside Sweden to use Grippen fighters - Hungary, South Africa and Czech Republic have all had scandals involving corruption in the purchase of their planes.

(Probably no coincidence that someone with very close ties to people who are interested in buying planes is a regular visitor to a country that sells planes.)

Cant you just test the apps on a web based emulator rather than specifically buying a phone for the purpose?

http://developer.android.com/guide/developing/tools/emulator.html

Cafe Lu is in the USA. I guess you go the email that Thai office workers in Bangkok have been circulating with the photos taken there saying it is on Rama V Rd in Bangkok. It isn't.

Six days later and we're down to the skeleton which is split in two. Authorities not interested in removing the carcass.