seesip

I also think the way you handed over the extra money to make it easier to change could have been a problem. I do that all the time in the States--like if something is 9.50 you give 10.50 to get back an even dollar. But I've heard many different times where that concept just seems puzzling to people here in LOS, not just in bars but restaurants, retail, etc. Might be better to just give the closest amount and deal with the extra change.

My favorite is Fuji, only been to the Airport Plaza location but I think there's another.

Anyone have any info on Gymnastics programs, either private or school based? Thanks for the input.

I hired Nirut Van on several trips to Mae Sai/Mae Hong Son/Chiang Rai. Nirut is a safe driver, very nice, and offered some suggestions for side trips along the way that turned out to be some of the best parts of the trip (i.e. no tourist traps with hidden pricing). The van is new and well maintained, I think it seats 10? Highly recommended.

mobile: 089-856-4511

mobile: 081-672-0750

I would ask for him specifically, I think he works with several drivers/vans, but I prefer him.

I stayed at the Fern Resort about 2 months ago, it was nice, lots of trees and a very natural feel to the surroundings. A small but nice pool. Not sure if they have spa facilities. They do have a restaurant in town, which was good and had several yunnanese items on the menu. 053-686-110/1. Good luck.

Back in Arizona the buzz for several years was MGM and some partners were going to build the same thing..Hollywood in the desert.

Wasn't that supposed to be focused on cgi/animation projects? I seem to remember reading about that a few years back in LA.

I thought they were calling it "Lanna Wood" which sounded a lot better. Maybe I made that up myself. Have to wonder what the likelihood of this happening is... can't seem to find any Hollywood backstory to the management team.

It looks like Painter was used for the portrait, which lets you paint digitally with actual brush strokes, and mimic different media. As hobbyist illustrations, hats off. But as Paintings, imho, they just don't cut it. Even if the portrait was painted entirely by hand, it looks like a slavish rendition of a snapshot... there's no decision making going on.

I had a friend in town who was looking to make a large wholesale orchid purchase. I took him to Siam Orchid in Doi Saket, it was a big operation and been there for a long time. The owner seems very nice. Might want to give them a try:

053 495 105

135/3 Moo 12

Doisaket

A friend who recently visited loved the gas mileage and easy riding. Can't seem to find one to buy in the States. Any one have any idea if it's possible to send one back? Or order a new one? Thanks.

Tried it once, so take this with a grain of salt, but the jerk pork was bland and nothing like any jerk I've ever had. The service was ok, but the food took forever. I'm going to give it another try, keeping fingers crossed.

I've had some good meals at "Issan 1 million Percent" across from the main entrance at CMU. It's in the strip of small restaurants along Huay Kaew. Grilled fish, Tom Sep, Namtok were all really good. They get busy but the service is decent and quick.

You might try finding local Issan folks through restaurants--there's a great Issan place across from Chiang Mai University called "Million% Issan" if I'm reading the sign right. You could try asking around at the restaurant for some input. There's definitely lots of Issan/Lao folks in town, it's just a question of finding out where they hang. Good luck!

Has any one been here recently? Wondering if it's still open, looking to strap on the feed bag tonight!

Looking at some houses in the area, from what I understand it's the oldest mooban in Chiang Mai. Kind of run down, but some nice houses available. Be interested in any experiences. Thanks!

Once again, thanks. i never even considered buying LCD's there as my experience has been that computer and electronics stuff is way more expensive in LOS than in the US. where did you buy them? If you come up with a load balancing combo solution that works well, i'd appreciate it if you'd post it to this thread or PM me. thanks.

After posts on this thread, i was already considering buying the 12 month pre-paid EVDO and offering the balance of months at a good price by posting it here. i could do the same with the LCD's. buy them, use them for 2-3 months and then sell them 1/2 price to someone here- everyone wins kinda thing. if i could get 22 or 23" monitors at that price, i'd definitely go that route.

I got my LCDs at IT City Airport Plaza, they have a decent selection, but there's also Panthip Plaza at the end of the Night Bazaar. I'll PM you if I get any results from the load balancing dsl.

If you need two monitors, you can get good ones here cheap, it might save you some hassles en route.

As far as internet reliability is concerned, I'm in Chiang Mai and looking into getting 3 separate connections from 3 providers and using a load balancing router. Not too savvy about the technical side of things, but I talked to someone at iNet here in Chiang Mai and they can take care of the setup and install, including setting up the DSL connections with the various providers. Check the website. I only spoke to them at this point, so I can't give you any reviews, but they seemed to understand the "big picture" which is sometimes rare over here.

Also I heard once that sometimes the faster dsl connections are less stable, not sure if any one can clarify this but I was told that for example, a 3mb line would be less stable than the 6mb line.

From what I understand, at Prem only Thai nationals are required to study Thai. Expat kids have the option of studying another language. Having said that, I think all kids should study Thai--relatively speaking no schools in the U.S. would let foreign students choose another language over English.

Regarding the difficulty of Thai vs. languages like Spanish for example, Thai can be hard early on because tones are hard for a Western ear to get used to. But verb conjugation, tense, etc. are way easier than Spanish or French imho.

And for the kids who are only here temporarily, learning Thai is still a great option in terms of getting a mental workout.... language study seems to be equal parts future usefulness, and brain exercise.

Kawila has good fights, if you go ask the promoters about upcoming fights around the province, some of the best fights are out of town a bit, 30 min to an hour will get you to many of the locations. Definitely worth the effort, the local matchups are often more entertaining than the big stadium fights.

Chiang Mai is a good place to start, it's easy to roll into town and find cheap accommodation, plus Lanna is a good camp to get started in. akirasan comments make a lot of sense, since there's camps almost everywhere in Thailand, decide what part of the country you're most interested in visiting, then take it from there. If you can manage a slightly longer trip it will make a big difference--in 1 month you'll see some improvements, but one week is probably too short. Good luck.

Thanks! I made it down there before deadline. Appreciate the help. FYI the contact info I got:

Sueklang Newspaper

"Total classified information newspaper"

//e-mail address removed as per forum rules//

053-283-634/5

Looking to hire a few entry level/graphics employees in Chiang Mai. Students or recent grads. Any ideas on good newspapers to advertise in, or websites to post? Any leads on Universities that have strong computer programs? I've heard of Techno across from CMU. Thanks for any advice.

They are not channot from what I understand but they've spent some effort to protect the buyers legally. You should contact Guy to get the tour / details, I've been up to have a look around and it seems very nice. 08-1677-7327.

I'm looking for a house in the area right above Khuan Singh intersection towards Mae Rim. Does anyone living in that area have any positive or negative thoughts? Any ideas on where to find a house? Thanks for any insights.

Try Sumalee Jennapa, at 29 Tanin Co., Ltd. 053-410-174. They're located behind Gat Tanin if that helps. Basically heading north from Chang Phueak towards Mae Rim, just before you hit Khuan Singh intersection on your left. The big market there is Gat Tanin. They're behind the market. She can give you detailed directions.

She is easy to deal with, speaks decent English, and is upfront about prices etc. Good luck.