Mousehound

A Hill Grass Yellow from Doi Inthanon

Great film clip. I think the comment about the sound is actually constructive. The is nothing wrong with the sound but a greater variation and tome Thai traditional music might work better. IMHO

A butterfly I had never seen b4 in my garden, this morning.... by the time I had got closer it flow off!

The Tailed Jay - Graphium agamemnon agamemnon ??

Feet and beak are typical raptor. For me most likely female juv Besra or as mentioned Sparrowhawk. My feeling it has the jiz of a Sparrowhawk but the markings look more like Besra.

Does 4 Corners have the same owner and same burgers as The White Plate did?

Don't know about the ownership.

But look up Trip Advisor "White Plate CM" and you will see a couple of detailed and positive reviews from expat CM residents. Looks promising.

I've met plenty of guys in their twenties that are mentally old and conservative a few in their seventies that are really young in their approach to life.

ducks

Where are you seeing these? Ducks look like Whistling D. But this species is not, as far as I know seen in Thailand

The pics are taken close to KY national park in Nakhon Nayok. The ducks are fairly common here. Here's a clearer shot.

Nice Lesser Whistling Duck. I was thrown by the apparent white rump in the flight shots which would point to Wandering Whistling Duck - as found in Australia. The Darter is a very rare sight. Well spotted.

Scum are scum wherever they come from.

ducks

Where are you seeing these? Ducks look like Whistling D. But this species is not, as far as I know seen in Thailand

anselpixel: I'm moving small-scale, personal belongings (books, cds, etc); nothing sparkly new or large, apart from two old mountain bikes in boxes. What sort of ducks do I need to have in a row to have a stress-free crossing? Do they charge import duty on bringing in this sort of stuff, do you know? Any pointers appreciated. Are you moving anything: maybe go 50:50? Thanks

Dont worry as long as the truck driver is the registered owner of the vehicle your in. What your taken they won't care. Thai side requirements is owners passport, truck restoration book (showing their name), proof of road tax (license). Thai side makes copies, ask you how long fills out forum stamps it and gives you a copy. The cost on the Thai side can be 1000 baht. You then get yourself stamped out of Thailand drive about 50 meters and stop at the Cambodian arrival and entry office. At present be prepared to pay 1000 to 1200 baht for a 30 day Cambodian Tourist Visa.

They may ask to see the Thai forum for the truck but they could care less. Be advised that a Thai vehicle can not get Cambodian insurance and the Thai insurance is no good for Cambodia. Also Cambodians drive on the correct side of the road. Thailand is the only country in SE Asia that does not. The official tourist visa cost for Cambodia is 20 USD, you can try be be prepared to be shot down. As of 1 October 2014 Cambodia tourist visa goes to 30 USD an E-visa to 37 USD (this crossing can not use an e-visa) and the Cambodian Business Visa or B-Visa goes to 35 per month or 420 USD per 12 months and Cambodia is now informing the requirement that you must now have a work permit for their B-visa, at present cost 100 USD but is expected to go up.

Actually more people in SE Asia drive on the correct side of the road ie. The left hand side of the road. Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore all drive on the left hand side of the road.

Little Butterfly

A great shot. Most likely The Common Grass yellow Eurema hecabe hecabe. And a female. Eurema are an interesting group. They can look quite different under ultra violet light showing black markings we normally can't see. They are very diagnostic. In addition males like to move to the tops of hills whilst females prefer the lower areas. Males can be very territorial and move down hill in search of the female.

New camera , new lens , one day to get acquainted , .. outcome ?

Ha! Ammusing shot of an Australian Bouble-barred Finch.

So what happens if you are on a 30 day permit to stay and want to purchase a condo?

Then don't buy a condo if you can only manage to get a 30 permit.

So are you saying that I can buy if I get say a 60 day tourist visa ? I ask as my friend bought a condo on a 30 day permit to enter and set up a bank A/C no problem. I assume this is no longer a possibility. He purchased a couple of years back.

Greater painted Snipe.

greater painted snipe.JPG

Male

greater painted snipe Female.JPG

female.

One of the few birds where the female is more colorful than the male.

Fortunately that applies to us people as well, mostly anyway.

Great work. I have found a couple of these in Perth, West Australia where they are extremely rare. Very cryptic and flush with low flight to drop down some 30 meters away. Where may I ask did you see these? I have never got a clear "shot" of them.

So what happens if you are on a 30 day permit to stay and want to purchase a condo?

I have lost a lot of money over the years following "professional advice" regarding property. Generally property needs to be very long term. You also need enough equity and income to ride out financial slumps especially if you don't have other income. Bank calls on loans owing to devaluation can be a major problem. After all if you do have to sell a property when things are down then you are going to lose if you sell it quickly as it will have to be at the buyers price. Property is not often fast to sell and can be expensive to sell. Also the return on investment is not always as good as other investments, Regarding CM I believe many of the properties I have viewed are way over valued. Sure getting in early etc can make a lot of money but unlike HK back in the early 80's when I made some serious cash CM is not a world financial and production centre. It may be a haven for Chinese trying to diversify cash assets but the Chinese may well find themselves in financial difficulties also and then CM could really suffer. Also I get the impression that many rentals by expats are under threat as the visa laws are tightened. Add to that CM is looking a little less attractive than it was even a few years ago simply because of the nature of the condo development. However, your best investment is usually your own home as that gives security and with that I can recommend wine as a good earner. Wine has easily outstripped any investments I have ever made in anything else. Strange, as I don't drink. But if the markets were to totally collapse and I lost everything else I might be persuaded to quaff the lot down!

If you are on a retirement visa pension but are leaving the country, for say 105 days on holidays, how do you handle the 90 day reporting?

Thanks

90 days from the day you arrive back in los,its suspended for better of words while your out of country starts agian when you arrive back

Thanks True Blue. I was worried about that.

If you are on a retirement visa pension but are leaving the country, for say 105 days on holidays, how do you handle the 90 day reporting?
Thanks

Well thats defiantly what it was,as i was less than 2 mtrs away from

it when it landed on my garden fence,seen me and flew off,i have seen

them in other paces in SE Asia,is there any other bird around Chiang Mai

that looks anything like the House Crow, I have lived in my house for nearly

25 year so know what birds are around.but i knew this was special as i had

never seen anything like it,around here before.

regards worgeordie

I know exactly how you feel, worgeordie.... defiant (your word!). I was once sitting in the back of a songthaew when we stopped by the traffic lights outside the Rincome Hotel, and there was a European Starling feeding on the grass verge. Nobody would believe me, though they do occur occasionally.

I do believe you Isanbirder. My friend saw one at the hot springs - on way to Sam Kanpaeng last january. No way he would have made a mistake. He has over fifty years of birding and is a biologist by profession. Also very familiar with Starlings.

I often kcharter a Red for the day (or half a day) to go out of town. eg. Chiang Dao or the Butterfly Farm, Queen Sikirit gardens etc with a bunch of visitors. Is this no longer possible?

Corvus splendens is a very rare bird indeed in Thailand. Birds of Thailand - Lekagul and Round report it as having been seen years ago in Petchaburi and now extinct in Thailand.

Interesting question. Might be worth asking if you are able to leave a 10k BHT bond with them - this being the amount I have had to sign for in the past. Then of course you would have the problem of collecting the monies back. I guess this could be deducted from the total owing. Best to ask them direct before renting. I am also interested in this, so hopefully someone better informed will come up with a definitive answer. If you contact a hire company direct can you post the finding here please?

Monitors are a type of lizard. They are very common in Thailand. BKK is full of them especially around the river. They can get over two meters and they will eat anything going. A bite would need attention as they carry massive doses of bacteria in their teeth. You often see them, floating on clumps of vegetation floating down the Chao Phraya. The Thai word for them is considered rude and to use it is unlucky, so Thais have an alternate term - but I don't remember what it is.