WinnieTheKhwai

I'm now officially confused who Kevin Hunt is.. Not Matthew?

I like modern wooden architecture; you don't see it that much but I like it. In addition to answering the poll, would you welcome building wooden homes and/or using more wood in parts of home architecture?

True to an extent but the problem is most of the concrete box shop houses that make up Chiang Mai had no character in the first place, someone pointed out in an earlier post Chiang Mai should have started preserving its heritage in a better way a long while back, it's past the turning point now. That concrete monstrosity of a hotel won't become anymore of an eyesore because of a McD's infront of it.

Um, Amora Thapae is a concrete monstrosity. Imm hotel, while made mostly from concrete posts & beams, looks rather nice to be honest. And most of it is hidden from the street view anyway.

It looks better than 90% of the usual crap architecture going up around you. Some pictures were posted a couple pages back.

As much as I'd like to rant at McDonalds, this architecture thing won't fly. Sorry.

I like tattoos on girls. The more the better. Especially the really wild religious ones, all over a hot girl's back.. Awesome. So they'd need to be the standard Thai traditional 'just black' ones. But elaborate designs are welcomed. Plus you got something to read and admire.

( I most likely woudn't marry such a person, but that wasn't the question. )

100% of the actual amount. The bank's policy is a bit less, but this is on the assessed value of the property, so if they agree it's worth more than what you actually paid then the net result is that you get 100%.

I work, WP, partner (not married, legally) also works.

I recommend you shop around a bit at banks and bank branches. It totally depends on finding a person at a branch who is good to work with. I think it depends on the person/branch more than the bank. One bank told us it would be easier if we were married.. We then considered it would be easier to go to another bank.

Final point of advice: EVERYTHING is negotiable.

Loads of Thai tourists in Chiang Mai now, up from Bangkok for the long weekend.

Not sure if the drama queens have ever been to Chiang Mai, but there are a lot of Yellow leaning people in Chiang Mai town. Today had lunch at a restaurant that has ASTV on all the time. And it's a popular place.

1. Go To Kham Thiang plant market

2. Purchase a Norfolk Island Pine Tree. (Not really a pine tree, but it's close enough and they do really well in the warm climate)

3. Plant & decorate. They grow really REALLY big though.

It may not be a real pine tree, but it sure is a lot realler than a piece of green plastic!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Araucaria_heterophylla

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/newsrel/2...02/nov0226.html

If you keep it in a pot it stays small; means you can move it indoors. (Though they like sun)

Thanks Termad!! A brave attempt to get everyone on the same page vis a vis the 'Democrat' party being handed 'power'.

I see Newin has announced he will not continue in politics, after Apisit's sterling performance he probably realizes he would look so second rate.

In the last election the Democrats party list vote was very near to PPP, in the next it will probably be a lot higher.

Thaksin was thrown out because educated people realized what an autocrat and greedy man he was. The demonstrations and coup were widely supported by the middle class.

Wow. Please go google what Democracy means. Honestly, pretty please. The ruling elite of Thailand threw him out in a military coup. Then 'educated' people found it within themselves to stick yellow flowers on to their tanks and guns.

Whatever that picture represents to you or what it says about 'educated people' a fine example of democracy or being a 'grown up country' with laws it was not.

Also, don't forget that McDonalds often tries some Thai influenced stuff, such as the McSamurai Pork Burger (great), McSomTam (awful), and some stuff involving sticky rice. (okay, given that their bread buns are atrocious)

The place will be packed with foreigners who complain about McDonalds destroying the universe. Look at the one in the night market. When I go there it's mainly tourists who have come to Chiang Mai to get a taste of Lanna culture.

I like the coffee, burgers and ice cream they sell. I won't be visiting that branch because there's nowhere to park my car. I suspect the place will be full of drunk foreigners staggering from the bars of Tha Pae Gate. Another reason for me to avoid this branch.

That did occur to me as well. I never liked Mikes, also because there isn't anywhere comfortable to sit. Mc Donalds to be honest looks MUCH better: a nice new building and air conditioning inside, and a nice terrace outside for the cooler months.

Did anyone consider that it might actually be a worthwhile late night option when out boozing and, erm.... AppreciatingLannaCulturing?

Parking wouldn't be an issue because I would have parked in my usual secret parking spot already.

And then there's breakfasts; other branches in CM don't do this I think, but in that location it makes a lot of sense to have a breakfast menu.

1. not related to being intoxicated on booze or drugs

2. did not involve (explicit) sex or commercial sex : let's keep it up to our usual high "moral" standards of discussion

Nothing spontaneous left after that

Indeed.

Well, I guess there's Songkran, that's pretty zany. Other than that.. Let's see, what did I do the past 15 years that was odd.. Getting married I suppose.

I once went and picked up a few things from the 7-11 but upon reaching the counter realized I'd left my wallet at home! Oh how I tried to explain to the staff, and the puzzled look on their faces! It was most hilarious, I'm laughing out loud now as I type this. It took me days to get over the excitement. Chiang Mai sure can be a wild old place sometimes.

I did this once at a restaurant. I was able to convey i would leave my cell phone as collateral. Then I realized I only had enough for a 1 way seelaw trip. 30 min walk/jog on the way back!

Ehm.. So you went one way to an ATM (or home), got money.. so why you had to walk back? Please tell, it'll keep me up tonight I swear.

Such an exciting place Chiang Mai.. Zany zany zany.

I had to google it. It looks ludicrously over-priced. You can stay at a very nice 4 star hotel for that money. This is just from looking at the room pictures, which looks very much like your typical run of the mill guesthouse that went 'boutique' and multiplied their prices 10-fold in the process.

See: http://www.pakchiangmai.com/room.html

See what I mean?

I commute 16 km to work everyday and I do that without touching the brakes.. And that's around 8:30am. Almost no traffic.

Follow-up to self: I thought I may have been over-stating this so I actually took note this morning.. Indeed never touched the brakes until pulling into the office parking lot. I dropped out of 5th gear down to 3rd twice, when slowing down for traffic lights but wanting to keep the car rolling. (Hyper-miling is fun. )

On the way back it's even easier because there's no traffic lights, only left turns.

50% even among sex workers is pretty ludicrous, I don't think I want to have that debate. Such a rate has never occurred anywhere in the world including Africa.

I think it's an error in using statistics plain and simple; there's no reason why Phuket's rate would be higher than Mae Hong Son, Pattaya, Bangkok, etc, etc.

One thing did occur to me last night.. There is a possibility that the 'Top government doctor' isn't stupid, but corrupt and this is a ploy to get some cool aids budget down South, and channel it away from places like Mae Hong Son where there truly is a problem. I would almost prefer that to be the case.. I have a much higher tolerance for corruption than for stupidity.

Hey.. I missed an opportunity to blame the Nation for not having a brain of their own to check such things.. Oh well, next time.

OMG ... where's the 'slams forehead' smiley when you need it....

Plain and simple: they don't understand statistics... Anyone bet it went like this:

1. Count number of positive HIV tests / people living with hiv/aids

2. Divide not by the total number of people present in Phuket but buy the official population number which for a place like Phuket is *MUCH* lower.

3. Multiply by 100%

Well waddayaknow, another botched statistic was born, in the country of ... something or another..

The problem is NOT migrants, the problem is NOT their HIV infection rate, the problem is 'the top government doctor' not knowing a percentage from a hole in the ground.

EVEN when counting migrants you can still arrive at a correct and reasonable statistic that's only marginally higher than when counting only relatively rich native Phuket people, but you have to divide by the right $(#*&$&(*# number!! Triple DUH.

.. but when they turn 10 it's okay?

one more thing to add could be that once you get to know the town you really rarely experience heavy traffic anymore. A lot of people from Bangkok visit around the holidays and then they all go to Doi Suthep and see the pandas at the same time, thus turning Huay Kaew and the Rincome intersection into a parking lot. Then they sigh and say "traffic in Chiang Mai is just like Bangkok" without realizing they just brought their traffic jam with them.

I commute 16 km to work everyday and I do that without touching the brakes.. And that's around 8:30am. Almost no traffic.

I'm going to come down on Ulysses side on this one.

That said, you can't help but note that to a lot of tourists, a place will be considered to have jumped the shark once the golden arches appear in the immediate vincinity of the things they came to experience.

There's some fireworks pretty much every night I believe. But indeed probably more on the 5th

I would look into a place roughly in the area of that very soi where Varee is at (soi just before you get to Varee); if you cross the bridge then you get to another soi (right turn) that ends up on the Old Lamphun road near 89 Plaza. That road has a housing development on hit.

If not that one then I'd look into other places in that general area, so roughly in between Mahidol Road and the next ring road. Or just generally the area of the old lamphun road. Something on or not far from the Middle Ring (the one with the underpasses) would work too, because you get to use that soi that ends up at Varee. That's the soi that starts from the Middle Ring just West of the bridge across the railway line. No traffic to speak of around there.

Here: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source...038581&z=15 NB: You can probably also take the road alongside the railway track; no traffic of any significance there as well.

So in summary, anything with easy access to the Middle Ring will do.

I have an English Subtitle track for Inglourious Basterds.. will that do? (Half that move is subtitled anyway, but for the English parts it's helpful to also have English subtitles. )

And Basterds is a far more entertaining movie anyway.

theres something going on at the royal flora site soon but i dont read thai

pic of truck taken 30 nov 09

can you or your wife tell me what its about and when ? .... coz i dont know

dave2

The garden is open. Actually it was open already every day except Mondays.

"Ratchapruek Royal Flora 2009

Join in showing loyalty and love to the King

30 November - 10 December 2009

At the Ratchapruek Garden, Chiang Mai.

Clown government.. Trying to enact something that's unenforceable, but will nonetheless stress the point that the country is become less free with more government meddling by the day.

Too pricy. If you're way out there on the n'th ring of Saturn, then compared with all of the long established places downtown such as but not limited to Mad Dog, Irish Pub, Mayflower et al, then it better be super special or super cheap.

It sounds like it's neither.

Thanks for the report Keo!!