nisakiman

I found an earlier thread on the subject, but it's from 2008:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/170825-thailand-sisaket-to-cambodia-siem-reap-via-chong-jom/

Obviously, things can change in five years, so I wondered if the old thread was still relevant. The SOH and I will be based in Ubon, and we will go to Pakse and the Bolaven plateau for a few days, but were thinking of perhaps another foray to Angkor Wat for a few days. Are the transport links between Sisaket and Siem Reap relatively straight-forward, or a pain in the proverbial?

We weren't actually planning on a second trip to Khmer, but the missus has been with Mum and Dad since last month (she had to go back then because she needed to renew her driving licence - she was petrified she might have to take her test again! ). However, a month with Mum and Dad is starting to get to her (she's been trying to organise their house a bit better, but - they don't want their house better organised!). Hence the plan for a second trip!

Thanks in advance for any input.

It was probably occupied by some lovelorn farang who found the love of his life back working in the bar he'd just rescued her from. What floor was it?

OK, she is the personal assistant in Thailand to a previous member's here Thai operations. Her joining was an idea for her to see or look at how farangs talk, speak to one another and also PERHAPS give some info to help others. Plain and simple. She is out of the country at the mo but will l hope post again, but, to be honest the crap that has been dealt out here l have my doubts. We will see. I will see her next week and talk stuff.

Well you've certainly thrown a few gobbets of meat into the crocodile pen today, transam! I haven't seen so much snapping and snarling for a long time. Your young lady PA friend will get (as I'm sure you knew at the outset) a very strange view of farang!

Ah well, if she sticks around a while, she'll get the hang of it. In my experience, Thai women (I don't know about the men, not having known many) have quite a well honed sense of humour, which is a prerequisite for anyone dipping a toe in the shark-infested waters of TV.

And definitely kissing my wife on the mouth in public here is a no-no, although every once in a while we just say "to hell with it" and go ahead, but I am really talking about a peck (already scandalous!!!!).

Would be interesting to read a history of it.

My wife won't let me kiss her in public at all (most improper), even though we live in Europe. She's quite happy to kiss me on the lips at home, though. But the 'sniff kiss' is rather lovely. Although it is sometimes followed by "you need a shower", like a previous poster said!

I remain more or less neutral in terms of the political aspirations of the two parties concerned, since I don't know enough about their policies to make comment. There does, however, seem to be the assumption among the Thaksin-haters that anything and everything to do with Thaksin and his family is corrupt, and the protests are a result of wanting to address that corruption. Well, fair enough, but the reality is that removing this government and replacing it with the Democrats would do nothing more than swap one bunch of corrupt politicians for another bunch of corrupt politicians, but this time it would be a bunch of corrupt politicians who would look after their hi-so mates in the metropolis rather than the other lot who favour the great unwashed in rural Thailand.

If the Democrats want to govern, they need to tailor their policies to appeal to the people who voted for YL last time around and take those policies to the polls, not have temper tantrums because they didn't win and try to bully the winners out of power.

And they must surely realise that even if they do succeed in this power grab, they will never hold on to it, or if they do, it will be over the corpses of their countrymen. The riots that would ensue would make the current situation look like a playground spat by comparison.

Of course, then the army would step in, which is perhaps the long term plan, given that it's no secret that the army favours the Bangkok elite, and unlike in the west, is not loyal to the sitting government.

You say

I remain more or less neutral in terms of the political aspirations of the two parties concerned, since I don't know enough about their policies to make comment

You then proceed to act as if you know every thing about both parties .

Not at all. I made no comment on the actual politics of the parties concerned, because as I said, I don't know enough about them. So I am non-partisan on that level.

What I do see as an outside observer is a party throwing their toys out of the pram because they didn't get their own way. What they are doing will solve nothing and gain them nothing. If they want to rule, and rule legitimately, then they will have to address the concerns of ALL the voters, not just their chums in Bangkok. When they do that, then just maybe they will actually get voted into power. Until that time, they can only hope to be usurpers. And short-term usurpers, at that. Bully-boy tactics don't sit well with an electorate.

I remain more or less neutral in terms of the political aspirations of the two parties concerned, since I don't know enough about their policies to make comment. There does, however, seem to be the assumption among the Thaksin-haters that anything and everything to do with Thaksin and his family is corrupt, and the protests are a result of wanting to address that corruption. Well, fair enough, but the reality is that removing this government and replacing it with the Democrats would do nothing more than swap one bunch of corrupt politicians for another bunch of corrupt politicians, but this time it would be a bunch of corrupt politicians who would look after their hi-so mates in the metropolis rather than the other lot who favour the great unwashed in rural Thailand.

If the Democrats want to govern, they need to tailor their policies to appeal to the people who voted for YL last time around and take those policies to the polls, not have temper tantrums because they didn't win and try to bully the winners out of power.

And they must surely realise that even if they do succeed in this power grab, they will never hold on to it, or if they do, it will be over the corpses of their countrymen. The riots that would ensue would make the current situation look like a playground spat by comparison.

Of course, then the army would step in, which is perhaps the long term plan, given that it's no secret that the army favours the Bangkok elite, and unlike in the west, is not loyal to the sitting government.

Clearly, some people have absolutely no idea why mobile numbers are prefixed with a zero .....

They aren't in China.

Nor in Greece. Mobile numbers are ten digit and start with 69. Also landline area codes don't start with zero, either, so when you call any phone here from overseas the number you call is the same as when you call internally, apart from the country code prefix.

I want the crowd to come out. I want them to tell me how much they tip, if any. I'm serious. I feel that my Thai friends not tipping is not correct. The people servicing them work hard, some more than others of course, and need the tips to tip the scale of low wages! In any country.

Why don't you just look over some of the 800+ threads on this topic.

Why even bother having this forum.

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

You have a point when all the information he needs is already available and so could avoid cluttering up the forum with useless threads.

Don't you ever have similar conversations more than once? If this forum was used just as a reference site, it would not be the lively and entertaining place that it is. Of course subjects are going to come up more than once, but there will always be fresh opinions and new information. Don't knock it.

When my wife first came here to Greece, she was shocked at the amount of money I'd tip at restaurants! "Leave 20c", she'd say, "That's enough!"

She's kind of got used to the European system now, but when we're in Thailand, it's 20 Baht max at a normal Thai restaurant. I don't think the waiters expect anything, so if they get 20 Baht, it's a bonus.

Can't see tinsel or balls. At the top, did they go for a star or a fairy?

This being Thailand, I'd guess it would be a fairy.

100 Baht is not outrageous for a glass of wine, but the size of the glass is significant. Also, unless it is a popular place with a fairly rapid turnover of wine, chances are you'll end up with a glass of vinegar. That was even a problem sometimes in the wine bars of UK in their 80s heyday.

About 15 years ago I met a guy, Andrew Barr, who wrote a food and drink column for the London Sunday Times. He showed me his private collection cellar, which was wine he never drank, just kept as an investment and, I think, sort of a collection. His everyday wine was usually a 3-4 pound bottle of Chilean wine. See the same sort of stuff available here. Cassillero del Dialblo and Concha y Toro can be found in my local Lotus out in Salaya for about 680 baht. And, btw, I actually do enjoy some of the local Thai wines. Hua Hin Hills is actually okay. I do know that people who judge their wine by the price tag are usually making a big mistake.

I wonder if the Thai authorities will ever give us wine drinkers a break. 680 Baht for a Concha y Toro is daylight robbery. That's about €17. Here in Greece, I'd pay €5 - 6 for the same wine. The only Thai wine I've tried was garbage, but that was about eight years ago, so it may well have improved in the interim. However, I seem to remember it was no cheaper than imported wine, which puts it at an immediate disadvantage in the market. At Thai prices, not many are going to take a punt on a Thai wine when they can get an Aussie or Chilean wine at the same price.

On the subject of wines as an investment, I had lunch with a Greek friend a few days ago at his house, and he was telling me that he collects rare / old Greek brandies as an investment. He showed me a bottle of 100 year old Metaxa, and told me it was worth €600 a bottle! He also said he had 300 bottles of the stuff in his cellar! Ha! Better than gold, he said, as the value never drops. Dunno about that - all prices fluctuate, even vintage brandy, I would have thought.

I've used the train a couple of times when DM was the only airport. I seem to recollect it took over an hour on both occasions, and I doubt anything has changed since then. So if you go by train, allow plenty of time.

http://www.railway.co.th/checktime/checktime.asp?lenguage=Eng

gives the timetable

most are round 45 minutes

Yes, I'm sure most of them are around 45 minutes according to the timetable. Like my train journey on the express to Hua Hin was, IIRC, 3 hours by the timetable. However, the actual train took 5 hours.

For it to work well you would need to source the basic ingredients. Greek olive oil (the best in the world, in my opinion. Fresh, green and peppery), Greek Feta cheese, Retsina wine and Ouzo spring to mind on an immediate basis. Oddly enough, a (Greek) friend and I were discussing the possibility of exporting Retsina, Ouzo, Olive oil and Kalamata Olives to Thailand earlier this year. We may well dip a toe in the water to see how it goes, as I think Retsina in particular, given its strong flavour and low cost price (and thus relatively low sale price, despite the punitive taxes on wine) could well become popular with Thais. It's the only wine I can think of that would not be overwhelmed by spicy Thai food.

I've used the train a couple of times when DM was the only airport. I seem to recollect it took over an hour on both occasions, and I doubt anything has changed since then. So if you go by train, allow plenty of time.

Ummm...

Emirates used to be considered one of the best. Last time I flew with them was about 13 -14 years ago (economy), and it was really very good. Comfortable, seat-back screens (rare in econ in those times), edible food, good and friendly service, free unlimited drinks etc. I was quite impressed. Various logistical circumstances decreed that I haven't flown with them since (although I probably would have done, given the choice), but I'm surprised they have compromised on standards so much in the interim. They're sounding more like a budget carrier now.

Quite frankly, I couldn't give a twopenny <deleted> what TV posters think about older guys finding younger women. If it makes you happy, go for it. It's nobody's business but yours. If it works, wonderful. If not, move on.

And to preempt speculation, yes, my wife (of seven years) is younger than me by 22 years. However, given that I'm 64, she's not exactly a spring chicken, nor was she when I met her.

One of the funniest OPs I've read in a long time.

And it sure got 'em going, too! 8 pages!

Take it down the line. You'll find out what's what when you get to the nitty-gritty.

I've heard so many times "Oh, you can tell a ladyboy a mile off", and things like size of the hands or feet or the way they walk are trotted out. However, I know from experience that it's not always that easy. I was nearly at the point of no return once with a positively delightful little thing, and I put my hand on her(?) thigh. It was hard and muscular under my hand, and it dawned on me through a rather alcoholic haze that all was not what it might seem....

as it costs investors extra logistic expenses for having to change the car engines when crossing the border.

Obviously the guy knows what he is talking about, makes a lot of sense to change the cars engine! after all a left handed engine works different to a right handed engine, it turns in the opposite direction!!!!!

I think it's just wrong translation. The Nation writers do that a lot, I suspect they use Google translate sometimes.

Obviously they need to change the trucks (the front part of the semi-trailer), not the engines, so that the driver would be located on the right side of the truck when driving on the left lane. Having to do that each time you cross the border is a logistical nightmare.

Why a logistic nightmare. Please explain.

Lets assume for a moment an articulated vehicle from country X arrives at the Thai border, the vehicle is marshalled into holding bay, uncoupled and then proceeds to another section of the marshalling yard and recouples to a trailer heading back into country X, the arriving uncoupled trailer is in turn coupled to a prime-mover (left-hand drive for Thailand) and proceeds on its way into Thailand- this is a fairly normal procedure for transport vehicles travelling between England and Europe - in many cases only the trailer is put on the ferry / train for transport across the channel -i.e., dropped on one side and collected on the other side. This is also done in many countries when a trailer is put onto the rail system to be collected at a distant location by an entirely different prime-mover.

It's not rocket science but unfortunately many "experts" haven't a clue regarding freight movements as has been shown here in this thread.

So companies with trucks are just going to turn their goods over to another company in a foreign country? It sounds good on paper, but the insurance, legal problems, delivery deadlines get all messed up when you start this sort of thing. The logistics for that is a huge problem.

The logistics are in fact very simple. When I drove semi-trailers in Aus in the 70s, swapping trailers was normal practice. I'd often take a trailer from Melbourne to Sydney, drop it off for one of the local guys to deliver / unload, and pick up another trailer that had already been loaded for Melbourne. All you needed was the manifest with the trailer number on it. Into the yard, hook up and away you go. Ten minutes work to drop one off and pick another up. Piece of cake. As long as the paperwork is taken care of (and as Artisi points out, they do cross-border trailer swaps all the time between UK and mainland Europe) there should be no problem. And both Thai and Chinese are more than capable of organising that, if they deem it the best option.

Anyway, as I pointed out in an earlier post on this thread, driving a LHD truck on the left side of the road (or vice versa) doesn't create any great problems, since the elevation of the driver means he has an unobstructed view of the road ahead anyway. There are thousands of European trucks delivering goods in UK, and equally thousands of (RHD) UK trucks plying the routes across mainland Europe.

I note in the article they are very non-specific. 'Soon', could be next week, next month or next year.

I'll be transiting Doha in January - it would be nice if it's open, but I have my doubts.

I did it just a few months ago from Greece. As it happened, I'd renewed my passport last year (also from Greece), which made it easier. As long as you have a UK address you can use, it's really easy. They use the photo from your recent passport. All done online, card payment, no awkward questions, Bom Bom, job done. Piece of cake.

One-liners notwithstanding, why on earth would any manufacturer go to the expense of adding something that he can't even advertise as having been added? It makes no sense at all. How does he expect to recoup his costs? Even at wholesale prices, adding enough Viagra to be effective after one cup of coffee ain't going to be cheap.

And who or what tipped the police off to the fact that there was added Viagra?

This is an odd one.

Great island! Haven't been there in ten years or so, but I loved it. Definitely go back there when I get a chance.