pagallim

Food For Foreigners in Phuket have cod loin which I've enjoyed on several occasions. Speaking of which, I have a couple to defrost tomorrow for a Bacalhau Com Natas, a Portugese dish of cod and potatoes in cream. Pangasius (or Dory fish) is a no-no. Yes, cheap, but bears no relation to a western and UK in particular, white fish. That said, I have had it under the guise of 'fish and chips' a few times, and if it's dried and seasoned well, and cooked in decent batter, it's OK.

Mostly galvanised steel framing with concrete tiles. Again, in this environment, wood isn't practical being prone to infestation of termites and high humidity levels. Galvanised steel sheeting if used in place of concrete tiles, is typically to Australian manufacturing standard (common roof material there).

Maybe calling your knowledge of Thai roof constructions into question. With the exception of Lanna type houses, you would struggle to find any that haven't been constructed with steel and concrete tile or metal sheeting. The only wood in most houses are the decorative board pieces used on the underside of roof overhangs (see photo), and even then smart board is commonly used.

Reading again the original post, and taking into account all of the posters requirements, I think I would go towards Cape Panwa. There is still reasonably priced properties there, both for sale and rent, a few good quality restaurants with Thai rather than tourist prices, a couple of uncrowded pleasant beaches, and even closer to the main shopping and facilities of Phuket Town than Rawai/Nai Harn.

Problem with Khao Lak, fine for a hotel/resort holiday, but there really isn't any private accommodation available. The area is just one long strip, and whilst the beach is OK, living there (in my opinion) would be a nightmare. The shops and restaurants are very much tourist orientated, again, not great for a resident expat unless running a business there. There are better places and options further south, say between Khok Kloi and Thai Muang. Not many expats but some, and there are more than a few good restaurants, with the advantage of being within striking distance of Sarasin Bridge and the facilities of Phuket.

Pulse TV have all of the matches, from various channels, including BBC and ITV.

Perhaps consider Phang Nga, some decent beaches there and still relatively easy access to the facilities of Phuket. Parts of Krabi province also. Songkhla has some decent beaches, and Hat Yai has all of the major facilities in terms of shopping/restaurants etc.

I had spray foam installed to the underside of my roof in November 2015. One of the driving factors was a complete new paint of the house exterior, which included painting the roof tiles a dark charcoal colour (which obviously was going to absorb more heat). Anyway, first thing was to have the roof tiles checked for any missing or gaps which could cause leakage of the foam when sprayed. Job took the team 2 days to complete, with the foam applied to a thickness of 50mm. The house interior temperature was lowered quite markedly, I estimate between 3 to 5 deg C. As mentioned in other posts, there's the added advantage of the tiles being effectively locked in position, which eliminates potential leaks. Can't remember the last time I was in the roof space, but co-incidentally was there today as there's an issue with a domestic water header tank in the roof space, where the ball cock cut off seems to be stuck with the result that there's a constant overflow. Fortunately the over flow pipe discharges outside the house onto a lower passage roof. Some photos of the insulation, taken at the time of installation but still looks the same 7 years on.

Seconded, go to the official Samsung service centre in Phuket Town. Had a few things repaired there, quick and efficient. There will also be a warranty on the repair they make.

For clarity:

The Expat for sure, the Soi opposite Bangla.

I think you'll find that there are more Russians in Pattaya than Phuket. Do you actually live in Thailand? Regardless, ultimately they are just people wanting a holiday, and given the restrictions of lack of flights, currency and credit card controls, those who make it must be seriously motivated. Oh, and your other reasons are?

Patong: The Halfway Inn Heroes Expat Hotel Aussie Bar Chalong: The Green Man Happy Days Food For Foreigners Chalong Fishing Park Rawai: The Islander Freedom Bar Karon: Angus O'Tool's The Living Room Walkabout Bar Kata: The Tavern Kamala: Aussie Pub Bang Tao: O'Hara's Cape Panwa: Sunrise Bar

Agree with Expo, local kit at local prices. Some decent food places in that area also.

Best (my opinion) would be north through Kamala to Cherng Talay, then to Heroines, then right towards Phuket Town, right at the Bypass, left at Sam Kong.

From your description, are you confusing the road from Karon (hence Rawai/Chalong) to Patong, rather than the road from Kathu to Patong (over Patong Hill) which is the one that has collapsed? On the Karon side, there are a couple of small track type roads that lead to beaches.

Could also be a type of stag beetle.