morpho

Oh great! Just what we don't need in Chiang Mai…more Chinese!!

Is it just me, or are things getting worse in sunny Pattaya ( I know it's the cesspit of the planet) .

Nearly hit a couple of youngs guy yesterday afternoon- no helmets - weaving in and of the traffic, cut in front of my car as I was turning- an inch away.

There seems to be little risk assessment, or any understanding of consequences of your actions which can kill you or change your life for ever.

Maybe I'm just getting old and very risk averse these days.

It's not just you…things are getting worse in Pattaya.

Just came back home to Chiang Mai after a week in Pattaya. Had a motorbike and spent everyday dodging all kinds of bad drivers and clueless pedestrians. It seems that no rules apply to driving there…just go where you want and as fast as you want without any regard for others.

Compared to Pattaya, Chiang Mai feels like a driver's safety course.

I just came back form Pattaya and 2nd Road is a total mess right now with the resurfacing, which seems to be taking place at a snail's pace. Anyone doing more than 10 kph on a motorbike (drunk or not) is asking for disaster!

I thought Pattaya has always been a World Sport Destination! Just not the sport they hope to promote now!

Wait!!! There's another story brewing. Do you see the cop looking at the money.

That's the guy's "male companionship"!

I just put both the retirement visa and multi-entry permit #'s on my arrival card. I've never had to point out my visa and entry permit stamps in my passport to an immigration officer.

One thing I learned is that the visa # is actually the # put on the entry permit stamp…and the entry permit # is the # put on the visa stamp. I know it sounds backwards from what you would expect but that is the way it is.

Enough already! Just stop making stupid media statements, and finish the investigation and arrest the pricks who did this…then crucify them

I'm sure the attackers are not Thai. Thai people would never do something like this!!

After living more than 3 years in Chiang Mai in an apartment next to a Thai neighborhood where the dogs go off at all times of night and day in a chorus that would wake the dead, I've come to the conclusion that most (if not all) Thais are completely immune to their barking. It just doesn't bother or affect them. And I must admit that after the first 2 years here, I've developed a certain immunity to them barking too. I had no choice since I didn't want to move (I like my place otherwise) and no one was obviously going to do anything to quiet the dogs.

Unless you're really happy where you are, I think you'll need to consider moving…but reconnoiter the new place thoroughly before signing on the dotted line.

The brutality of these murders is almost unimaginable. Whoever did this did it with intense malice/rage. I had never looked at bestgore.com before but did in this case and the photos are gruesomely graphic.

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I spent 3 heavenly weeks in a certain part of Vietnam earlier this year but I'm not telling where it is or how I got there 'cause I don't want it stampeded and ruined like so many other places in SE Asia. You'll have to find it on your own like I did.

You are not required to tell your location...but it would be nice...since you brought it up...what made your 3 weeks so heavenly...otherwise...you will be labeled just another selfish AH....IMHO

Fair enough.

All of the travel was in local VN buses…10 in total. Only 2 buses has another foreigner in it…1 in each. So it was all VN locals who spoke zero English but were some of the nicest people you could meet anywhere in the world, even to an American like me. The countryside was stunning…even in the cool, dry season. Each town was interesting, except for one foreigner tourist town in this part of VN, and had even more nice people who invited me to their festival parties and homes. The food was delicious and the coffee even better.

I also rented a motorbike for 5 days and drove into an even less visited area of VN and the countryside was even more stunning and it was quite the adventure on the bike.

I predict that within 10 years, maybe less, that the area will not be the same. So it is to be "discovered" now by those who find it.

Hope that takes me off the AH List…if not, I tried.

I spent 3 heavenly weeks in a certain part of Vietnam earlier this year but I'm not telling where it is or how I got there 'cause I don't want it stampeded and ruined like so many other places in SE Asia. You'll have to find it on your own like I did.

There are many but "In Bruges" has some of my all-time favorites such as "I just want a normal gun for a normal person"…Ralph Fiennes.

I usually don't say anything or just "mai owl khop" but have pulled my arm away when they grabbed it….but when several have grabbed my crotch it has really pissed me off but I just kept walking.

If the NCPO really wants to clean up LOS, dealing with ladyboys should definitely be on the list.

Kudos to him…sorry he got caught. Nice to see some payback for all of the scam Thai women out there.

PS. Yes, I have been stupid and scammed before but fortunately the damage was negligible/manageable.

I look at this as just because I also have white skin does not mean that I am your brother or friend. What I see is a lot of Westerners coming to Thailand with the attitude that they can do whatever they want and thus partake in risky behavior that makes them vulnerable to being taken advantage of. If people would just use some common sense in most cases, they would not get in the disadvantaged positions they find themselves. And when they show a lack of common sense, I find no reason to help bail them out.

Having said that, I can say that I have helped Westerners (who were total strangers) out in several instances when they deserved the help throughout no fault of their own.

Pretty much any Czech beer. They also set up a lot of the SE Asian beweries like in Lao and it shows. Budvar is a corker.

Agree. Budvar has been my favorite beer ever since I visited Czech Republic about 15 years ago. It's called Czechvar back in the USA and I used to keep stocked up at home. Still haven't found it anywhere in Thailand but did surprisingly find it in a bar in Angeles City in the Philippines.

Two years back, I was told by one Toyota dealer here in Chiang Mai that if I wanted to pursue a finance plan to buy a pickup I would need to have a Thai citizen sign as a guarantor that I would pay the remaining balance over the life of the loan. But like many things here and as stated by others above, you may get different responses from different dealers.

As for selection, I was looking at either a Toyota or a Isuzu at the time. I was leaning towards a Toyota as I had a Toyota pickup for 17 years back home but many Thais swear by Isuzu and claim that they are more durable and safer (if involved in an accident) than a Toyota.

PS. I ended up not buying a pickup and have just stuck with my motorbike for the time-being.

I'm American so many would say that I know nothing about soccer…sorry, I mean football. But Brazil did not look that impressive to me last night, except for the run and goal by Oscar which I thought was first class. Hopefully Brazil just had the jitters in the first game and will loosen up later.

As for the ref's decisions, I'll let the football "experts" draw their conclusion.

If you're new to Chiang Mai, I would suggest dropping into the At Nine Nimman restaurant upstairs at the corner of Nimmanheimen Road and Soi 9. They have a great selection of yummy Thai food at reasonable prices. Their menu is extensive, including many items that are not spicy, with both Thai and English names and photos.

Some of my favorite dishes are:

phat kapow moo (but can be spicy unless you tell them "phet nitnoi")

sin lek moo (make it as spicy as you want)

phat sii yuu moo (again make it as spicy as you want)

If you want any more restaurant suggestions, feel free to PM me. I've lived in CM for 3 years now.

Does anyone know if Cambodian E-visas are still not accepted for entry into Cambodia at these 2 border crossings?

My dad landed on Utah Beach on June 8 and eventually fought his way across France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and Germany with the 90th Division and was in Czechoslovakia at war's end. He passed away in 2008 but he and the rest of his generation will never be forgotten.

Nha Trang was a great place 10 years ago…but now it's completely overrun with Russians.

There's a place north of Nha Trang that is what Nha Trang used to be, but I'm not giving up the name of the place. People will have to find it themselves like I did!

As for Hua Hin, I've heard from some people who have actually lived there that life there is pretty boring.