DaamNaam

We paid our Burmese (Shan) maid 5,000 a month in our old 3 bedroom house in town, since moving to a bigger property with more rooms, carpets and a bigger yard we have incresed her salary to 7,000 a month, and she has free board and food.

Had many a Thai maid before her, all big dissapointments, and very lazy.

We have also helped our Burmese maid to get her Thai ID card, thanks to the help of "WE women foundation".

I hear to watch out for Burmese maids without work permit. To give work to them and to board them can be big trouble. What is the relationship between Thai ID and Thai work permit?

She has one, if you had read my post, and we are in the process of sponsoring her to get a full Thai ID. She is 100 % legal.

Are you?

My pen lie. Chill. I was asking not accusing. As I am not now in Thailand I guess I am legal.

It's mai pen rai, with a "R".

I was reffering to you when you will be working here. You will have a work permit right?

Well some of them look very atractive but can Chiang Mai support all of them?

it's doubtful CM can support all the malls based on its current population, but wasn't there a thread recently about a building boom here and how many people are coming from Bangkok?

The new malls will do just fine. It's the old ones that will have a problem. KSK will suffer. Airport Plaza will look and feel old in 5 years time.

Airport Plaza has a regular maintenance program and is generally kept pretty well, unlike KSK, never been a single satang spent on upkeep, and they have the cheek to charge folks to park there. Airport Plaza is free parking, always has been.

Robinsons are Singapore based and have high standards. Central is Thai based, say no more. Different mindset altogether.

We paid our Burmese (Shan) maid 5,000 a month in our old 3 bedroom house in town, since moving to a bigger property with more rooms, carpets and a bigger yard we have incresed her salary to 7,000 a month, and she has free board and food.

Had many a Thai maid before her, all big dissapointments, and very lazy.

We have also helped our Burmese maid to get her Thai ID card, thanks to the help of "WE women foundation".

I hear to watch out for Burmese maids without work permit. To give work to them and to board them can be big trouble. What is the relationship between Thai ID and Thai work permit?

She has one, if you had read my post, and we are in the process of sponsoring her to get a full Thai ID. She is 100 % legal.

Are you?

"You call someplace paradise, then kiss it goodbye". (The Eagles / The last resort / Hotel California)

We paid our Burmese (Shan) maid 5,000 a month in our old 3 bedroom house in town, since moving to a bigger property with more rooms, carpets and a bigger yard we have incresed her salary to 7,000 a month, and she has free board and food.

Had many a Thai maid before her, all big dissapointments, and very lazy.

We have also helped our Burmese maid to get her Thai ID card, thanks to the help of "WE women foundation".

Is the Bangkok Bank Be 1st card a credit card?

Or a semi charge card? I think I have read folks use it for online

purchases but the purchase is then deducted from savings.

It does say Visa on it but I have only ever used it as a debit card.

Wondering because when I use it the clerks sometimes ask me if I want to charge or debit.

Not really important as I have Capital One Credit Cards that do not charge a Foreign Transaction fee.

Although I only use them to book airlines.....

I use my Bangkok bank debit card for online purchases, booking rentals, hotels, Amazon purchases, etc. With no problem at all. No need for a credit card.

Akha Ama coffee, best in town.

I love the way the red shirts have both number one and two ballots. Guess they would have tried to buy them all. Noticed Abhisits party only has number four, and it's a most pleasant billboard, as far as billboards go. Red shirts have recently lost major seats in Isaan and Chiang Rai, hopefully it's a sign of things to come.

Play with fire...etc.

Forgive me for saying so Pedr, but if it's going to be on any day it should really be a friday !

Yes definitely Friday for fish, besides I have horizontal folk dancing lessons every Thursday

Thursday is visiting day at the womens monkey house MJM ?

Gecko books.

What an absurd promise to make. She can predict the weather now. That should secure the superstitious Isaan voters.

To me it reads they don't want another Loy Kroh rd full of bars. Can't blame them.

Ahka Akma coffee in Santitam area, fantastic coffee, fair prices.Lee the owner is a lovely chap too. Can buy in bulk as well. Google for map.

Suthep Road, half way up on the left, there are three shops (red and white spinning barber shop sign outside) run by the same company. 100Baht for a cut (up from 80B at new year). Shave, shampoo and cut comes in at just under 200B I think. One shop is staffed by men, one by women and the other I'm not sure (as in I've not been in, not that they're ladyboys).

199Baht everlasting special promotion wash and cut in Airport Plaza near the escalators on the 32rd floor (I think). Big red sign outside. Some of the staff are quite delightful.

200B(ish) next to Rimping at riverside is OK. 200B(ish) on Chan Klan Road heading south past the Lacoste shop before you get to Central Hospital, gay guy, good wash and cut.

The shops near Wat Suan Dok on Suthep Rd, all decent barbers there, been going for years. Was just there and It's still 80 baht, though I've always given a 20 baht tip due to the service.

Yes, it probably was.

I prefer a school that promotes and guides good humans rather than test / academic results only. Hence us choosing Panyaden school for it's "holistic" approach. Been a great move for us, truly blessed to be able to have our kids there.

100 % for sure, scorcher.

As I have said many times in the past, Chiang Mai is in desperate need of an injection of vibrant new life.

I see Chiang Mai as only being but a shadow of it`s former self and what remains has been left to stagnant and to fall into decline.

I speak from experience as one of the longer-term ex-pats. I am sure that the dwindling tourists figures will back up my statement.

Many Thai people have told me that they believe this state of affairs is political and the downgrading of Chiang Mai as a tourist destination has been deliberate. My policeman son has told me that the granting of business licenses for new entertainment venues, such as bars, discos and restaurants have been highly restricted; so don’t expect to see any major new entertainment developments within the town soon.

For those that prefer the town and what’s already there just the way it is, that’s good because it`s either like it or lump it, as there is no other choices in Chiang Mai.

Over the years many of my family and friends from abroad that used visit Thailand each year are now giving Chiang Mai a miss when they come over and prefer to visit places like Phuket and more Southwards because they believe there is more to do and is better value. I have to agree with them.

Do your friends speak Russian?

Who cares, as long as they keep moving on. Pattaya is a calling.

Songkran has it's roots in Hinduism. The Buddha being the 9th Avatar of Krishna and all. It's all relative.

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun DaamNaam,

The "minority" concept in Hinduism that Krishna is the source of all avatars, rather than Vishnu, is definitely related to the less common schools of Vaishnavism, eclipsed by far in the belief that all avatars are emanations, or incarnations, of Vishnu. Similarly, there are some Indian systems that believe that Ganesh (Thai: phii Ganet) also has avatars.

What do your eyes tell you: have you ever seen, in any Thai Wat, in a temple mural, a representation of Krishna ? A statue of Krishna outside, in the grounds of the Wat ?

In the less widely prevalent forms of Hinduism, there are believed to be ten avatars (Dashavatara): Krishna is the 8th. incarnation of Vishnu, and Buddha the 9th. In the Bhagavata Purana, the dominant belief, there are twenty-two, with Krishna at 20th., and Buddha at 21st.

The strongest connection with rain would be in the rarer interpretation, as mentioned, that the 8th. is Balarama, brother of Krishna, who is associated with imagery of clouds and rain, and that Lord Kesava (Krishna in that interpretation) is the source of all avatars.

The Thais who migrated to the fertile river valleys of northern Thailand in waves over centuries so long ago (as early as 5th. century CE, possibly, but probably a great majority driven south centuries later by Mongol pressure from the north to emigrate), were already agriculturists, already rice-growers, with, probably, no written culture, no mastery of ceramics or metal, an oral tradition whose richness we can know nothing about, matrilineal, matriarchal social organization, and animist beliefs. Very possible they brought the roots of the solar fertility festival with them which persisted as they absorbed Indic culture, and technology, through several vectors, including Mon, Khmer, Srivijayan, Chinese, etc.

In the most widespread belief, within Hinduism, in avatars of Vishnu, as expressed in the Bhagavata Purana, there are twenty-two: and I, personally, favor twenty-two because: at number thirteen, you have Mohini, the Enchantress, and the last of the twenty-two to come (we've been through twenty-one, already), Kalki, who is going to wipe the slate clean and expunge the planet of its scum of destructive human vermin.

best, ~o:37;

Krishna , Vishnu, Siva etc are to be found In Wat Chian Man (Oldest temple in the moat area), also in Wat Haripunchai (Lamphun) very well represented there. Wat Umong (Chiang Mai), ubosot near the old bull. Temple of the big Buddha in Ko Samui , Krishna rules the roost there.

Buddha # 9, Kalki # 10, coming soon to a theatre near you.

BTW, great "copy and paste".

Go Grandview. elektrified has it down on this one, placing it top of the list.

Forget the other options, too farang.

Grandview has western food, sushi, Lanna local cuisine.

Very popular with Thais, farang and mixed couples.

Go west on Huay Kaew to NimbleHymen (Super Highway).

Make a right headed north.

You'll pass Grandview- it's on the east side of the divided superhighway.

Go up to the next turn around, make a U turn....voila.

Buy her some flowers on the way; sorry Nancy the hair option too long and convoluted and no appt on Songkran weekend- no can do.

And tell us how it turned out.

Nimble Hymen. I know where you stole that from McG. lol

"If" it goes to hell? Take a look around, tell me where you think we are.

Probably because the world's biggest idiots all head to Thailand for what is actively promoted as the world's biggest water fight. <deleted> do you expect?

Interesting. Where is it promoted as the worlds biggest water fight?

Yeah, if anything TAT tends to over-emphesize the religious stuff. They do that too with the Loei Phi Ta Khon festival, which is a 100% animist fertility binge. yet then come up with some Buddhist mumbo jumbo to dress it up.

Songkran has it's roots in Hinduism. The Buddha being the 9th Avatar of Krishna and all. It's all relative.

As I have said many times in the past, Chiang Mai is in desperate need of an injection of vibrant new life.

I see Chiang Mai as only being but a shadow of it`s former self and what remains has been left to stagnant and to fall into decline.

I speak from experience as one of the longer-term ex-pats. I am sure that the dwindling tourists figures will back up my statement.

Many Thai people have told me that they believe this state of affairs is political and the downgrading of Chiang Mai as a tourist destination has been deliberate. My policeman son has told me that the granting of business licenses for new entertainment venues, such as bars, discos and restaurants have been highly restricted; so don’t expect to see any major new entertainment developments within the town soon.

For those that prefer the town and what’s already there just the way it is, that’s good because it`s either like it or lump it, as there is no other choices in Chiang Mai.

Over the years many of my family and friends from abroad that used visit Thailand each year are now giving Chiang Mai a miss when they come over and prefer to visit places like Phuket and more Southwards because they believe there is more to do and is better value. I have to agree with them.

You are kidding right? Glass half empty perhaps.

I have many workmates moving here at the moment who have all lived "down south" for eons. They love CM and everything in it, as they have said it has everything when you know how to find it.

Perhaps the negatives just miss the moment in time when they believed the girl next to them loved them and rainbows were above their heads. Time rolls on, and on and on.