Raesum

No the general public can use it.We have a card that we share around the family.I think you will need to provide proof of name & address so take what you think is appropriate and they will issue you with a card.There is no cost. At times we have forgotten to take the card and so go to the front desk and say so and they just give us a slip of paper with a temporary number on it.They don't cross check our membership or anything.

There is a big Global House outlet on the way to Kanchanaburi.It has a huge car park but normally there are only about 20 cars in it. Maybe have a look at True Value Hardware-a few outlets around BKK-lots of American products at what seem like USA prices.

Generally I use my local-and I mean local- hardware who measures out nails and washers etc by the pound(or maybe the kilo) and then wraps them up in a bit of newspaper to take home.There is only one door but when you go inside it is like an Aladdins cave.You need to walk sideways.There is another good one on the Krunthep-Nonthaburi Road near an International School down towards the Nonthaburi boat pier(about 2 kms away)Its always packed out (with Thais.) Don't know how mobile you are so these may not be an option.

Ok have done this before(many times)- it works but don't expect to happen NOW .It will take a day or two . I dont know about your banana branches but with banks like nab and Commonwealth all you need to do is to log in onto your internet banking, follow the steps (to send your money to Kasikorn Bank Thailand)and Bingo!!! the money comes to Thailand within a day or two.Check with your (aus)bank!!Stick with the Good Guys ie nab CBA Westpac ANZ. You get what you pay for.......Go Suncorp.....

My Thai sister in law and I often share food dishes eg she'll bring me a delicious curry and I'll cook her and her husband spag bol or a pizza or something-

.A little while ago i purchased from Big C 2 foam boxes of Put-Siew(wide noodles cooked with soy sauce and a bit of veg) .As I hadn't given her any food for a few days I duly took the noodles out of the foam container, put them into a bowl,put them in the microwave and then promptly delivered them to their house while they were still "fresh"

Well the next day -(having assumed I cooked them and I didn't say whether I did or I didn't) -she said her husband thought my Put siew was so delicious I could open a restaurant.!! I didn't have the heart to say otherwise. You can be sure that next time I see the afore-mentioned noodles they will be going into the shopping trolley!! Do I feel guilty?-well yes a little but at least we're all happy.

I always reckon its not the size of the wedding that guarantees the length of the marriage.

We got married by a celebrant in Aus -haven't had the Thai wedding yet...We got married on the 13th, had 13 people at our wedding , after a meal at a local Chinese restaurant we caught the plane to New Zealand for a weeks honeymoon with my Dad(last time I saw him alive) and then came back to Aus and took the stepson camping for another week. And here we are 13 years plus 6 still happily married and enjoying our life in The Big Mango

Eek glad you are keeping us updated.My brother in law is going in for his prostate gland op and also at the same time they are going to redo the wound in his foot and apply a skin graft .Sounds very similar to yours.They are taking the skin from just below back of the knee.Where was yours from?.I don't know whether to tell him or not about how painful its going to be - what do you think? When my sister in law was describing the skin graft she mimicked something about something being joined to his nose!!Can you elaborate or was I reading the mime wrong?(I have still got a long way to go with my Thai) .Anyway chin up and all that. Don't worry you are not alone.(Just to confirm-you are in Chiang Mai?) If you were in BKK I would make it my business to come and visit you. Cheers Rae

Moonrakers the end I have seen was quite enough.I don't think I want to see any other end.Anyway...happy endings and back to the spuds

If its what I think it is-yes they do make a defeaning noise but beware as it also emits a kind of wee(for want of a better word) out of two front openings-reminded me of a steam iron.It does this on a very regular basis.When they come out, out our way we see people walking beside our canal with oiled plastic bags on sticks catching them. They'd make a crunchy hor d'oeuvres.!

Moonrakers this avatar is sooo much better than that other ghastly thing you had.I never quite got it......Mind you it looked like they would have been useful with a flame on one end lighting my BBQ. Cheers Rae

Makes me want to crack open a packet of Deb and boil the kettle!!!

I have only holidayed in Lampang for 10 days but had a great time.There was plenty to do every day.My 2 favourites were the visit to the National Park which is miles and miles and miles out of town but when you get there has hot springs, sensational massage and you can cook your own eggs!The other favourite is the funky ceramics shop where the mosaics on the walls were just breath-taking.Oh and did I mention eating and having a few beer changs alongside the river every night and and that morning we gave alms to the 1700 monks and what about the one hour drive to the flower show in Chiang Mai...Lampang..I'll be back!!!!

Looks like you should book directly thru the hotel website. I use Agoda a lot and have never had any problems with them.I find their website and booking facilities very easy to use and up-front

Take something warm as the aircon is freezing and also some food- as another poster advised-its expensive on board

Friend of mine had a full facelift there about 6 months ago. No complaints, efficient, clean, good follow up.

While we're on the "where can you find this...anyone seen methylated spirits around??There seems to be thinners and other stuff but no meths-I need it to try out a clothes cleaning method not for drinking...although with the price of wine here in Thailand.....

We bought a VW van not too long ago and I think the dealer was happy to see it go-with the price of petrol etc it would be expensive for a person to run.He didn't give us an actual discount on the selling price but rather gave us a very good trade-in price for the Toyota we were getting rid of.Yes I know-same same but different. As for the van-we had it converted to gas and she's a little bewdy!!!

My husband uses it alot when talking on the phone-the people are not necessarily subordinates or the like. When I say hello to our local "ice man" he always says Khrap pom back to me.

Eek It must feel like a bit of a never ending story but hopefully this will be the end of the long road. My (Thai) brother in law had a simple foot operation about 5 weeks ago.(He had major heart surgery-valve replacement- about 4 months ago) So after sailing thru the heart op he decided to get his troublesome under foot seen to. Unfortunately like yourself his worsened-however from what I can gather it took a couple of weeks for the Dr to prescribe antibiotics during his daily dressings at a local hospital.The story at this point is-the Dr has now told him he has cancer and not only will he need to get his foot operation re-gouged(I forget your technical term) but the Dr has also said it has led to him having postate cancer and will be operating on him for that!!! I know for sure that my BIL will wish he never had his foot seen to in the first place after survivng the major heart surgery. I myself am a bit skeptical about the postate thihg as according to his wife the tests were very minimal eg blood pressure.

Anyway at least you have a hand to hold at your bedside with the boyfriend back in town. Wishing you a speedy recovery and let us know the outcome.

Cheers

Rae

Catch the 505 (blue and white, airconditioned) bus from outside Central World.This will take you all the way to Pak kret.for 17 baht When you get off you will need to walk a little way towards the river, then thru some streets on your left to get to the boat that goes across to Koh Kred-2 baht

I was at a funeral once and the guy next to me was having a good old chat on his mobile phone!!.Occasionally I will go to the temple on Wan Phra to give food and listen to the monks.Well when I say listen its usually against a backdrop of women chat chat chatting . The obvious belief is that in this case and in the Thai GF case -if they are at the temple and seen to be doing what they think they should be seen to be doing then they have got all bases covered and they will get the "brownie points"

Without the appropriate resources, there won't be any much changes in the quality of education. I think the only one change would be more children will be wearing spectacles at a younger age.

I don't know about the kids actually getting the spectacles. In my husbands family here they all squint to read or if there is a pair of glasses handy they pass those around to read or look at the photo etc.Only a very few own a pair of their own glasses.

The one thing about the tablets that surprised me was the fact that the Government would have to borrow the money to purchase them. I thought that seeing as Taksin said every child was going to get one that he was going to put on his red suit and white beard and say Ho Ho Ho- heres your tablets!!! I should know by now -T.I.T

Chang had a problem a few years ago with some of the big bottles.The taste was certainly not beer.I put a post on TV and several members stated they had come across the same thing in all different parts of Thailand. I actually wrote to the brewery and did get some sort of reply back(not the offer of a free carton or two though) Happy to say that its no longer a problem and every bottle of Chang(Classic) is just as good as the last -if not better!

Indeed, both male and female Thais will often use the opposite gender-specific particle as a means of having fun, being amusing, playing a role or acting around their friends and for effect. This in addition to the teaching usage mentioned above. I've tried my hand at it myself occasionally, with mixed results

My (Thai sister-in laws) and myself on occasion use the Khraap option-especially when our husbands are being boorish or bossy or just plain nagging.It gives them the message-Yes we understand, we hear you- but as for "obeying"-Think again "mate". Its not as bad as it sounds and always draws a laugh from both sides.

Look for the big green sign with white writing(both Thai and English) on it that hangs high above the entrance off Tiwanon Road

In the one experience I had of someone I know being deported from another country-the authorities actually took care of the plane tickets and an officer accompanied the person back to land of origin.Having said that the person deported now owes the prosecuting country the cost of the airfares for all involved.They would not be able to visit that country again without paying all the monies owing first and then I'm still not sure they would be welcomed