damnaam

Hi OP

The above are all correct about being 'out of season' HOWEVER, if you're gonna be here anyway you can still have a great days diving, just check out the weather forecast for the following day, assess the conditions for yourself (just like PADI taught you ;-) ) and book for the next day, there will be spaces! A mate of mine who runs a dive shop in Karon did good business last low season and said there were some great dive conditions to be had during that time on the day dive sites (King Cruiser, Koh Doc Mai, Racha Yai etc.) So, yep you're gonna be here during low season but an equal yep, it is possible to have a great dive during this time too :-)

a transvestite get together in phuket?you may have some competition up on bangla

Nah, i have better legs than them lot, amateurs i tell 'ya

Hmm, anyway, getting back on topic, I seem to remember almost meeting up with Mr Wolf at some place in Kata for Christmas dinner just before that fateful day 2004. So, hello! Only done one TV meet up before, in Chiang Mai for Songkran last year (hello Jockstar et al) Been in China for last few months, aside for a spell in Khao Lak last month, but gonna be in Karon for 4 days from 24/04 before heading back to UK for 6 months so if anyone fancies a beer next week post away :-) I'll be there!

Hello again after a long absence :-)

I've worked both as a divemaster then Instructor on/around Phuket for a few years during high season and can vouch for the fact that it ain't easy to find work, especially at this time of the season when, although there are a lot of punters around, there's plenty of Instructors & DM's who live here year round as well as the seasonal one's, most of whom would have got here late Sept/early Oct to secure some work, to contend with. Add to this that your friend doesn't know all the local sites, yet, and I think he'll find it hard...

It's hard work but the only thing he can do is get a thai mobile number, get some cards printed out with that number on it and get out there and leave those cards with as many people as possible (except, maybe, immigration and work permit dept ;-) ) Last minute things do crop up, somebody goes ill or (unfortunately) can't make the boat/school for another reason and you take it from there...

Best of luck!

Does any body have any diving contacts, a mate here at work wants to come over mid year and do a bit of diving.

If you can give me a bit of feedback it would be appreciated.

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Bronco, if u send a PM to damnaam, i'm sure he can help you out. We met him last week when he was on holiday in CM.very nice bloke and he is a diving instructor in Phuket.

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Cheers chuchok, great to meet some of the lads up there too

I'm going to have to head back to the U.K for a few months, as you can imagine there's been a massive downturn in the dive industry since events late last year and even dive instructors need to eat.

Nevertheless, Bronco, let me know when your mate arrives and I'll get him in touch with all the right people, give him all the info on the dive sites here etc and do what I can to make sure he gets the most from his diving

Cheers...!

I am looking to come to Bangkok and then on to Phuket in mid May. This will be my first time in this country. I was looking at weather trends and it looks like it is very hot and rains about 16 inches in May. Is this true? I want to be at the beach during the day enjoying the sunshine, not stuck in my room waiting out a storm. Also, is the night life back to normal in Phuket. If it's dead I can pospone my trip a month or two.

Thanks All...

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The monsoon rains set in around mid-May and yep, it'll be hot here! However, you'll probably not spend so long waiting out a storm - they don't usually last so long and the air is cooler after too

The nightlife in Kata, Karon and Patong areas is thriving...even if it wasn't I'm not sure I'd use the word DEAD to describe it

Enjoy your trip!

[ I’m a short arse but really enjoy putting 6 footers on their arse.

Take it easy.

jackr

Yeah, he's a short arse - so come on

Seriously though, there's no argument. Chiang Mai is way ahead of Phuket in terms of a true essence of Thailand. I rate it way above Phuket. Unfortunately for me though, being a diving instructor, there is no diving to be had in the region. If there were I'd settle in CM, or at least that region, like a shot. Love it!

Good to meet you jackr, til next time.....

PD

O.K let's get this thing back on track :-)

I've turned up at Alan Parker's (British film director of repute) office on Sunset Boulevard, L.A, not entirely unannounced I must admit - I'd phoned ahead, from a holiday in 'Cisco, since I was working on the stills for 'The Commitments' in London at the time - we got pissed, I got a sneak preview of the film, a slightly drunken insiders tour of Beverley Hills and then he fixed me up with a hotel opposite the Chinese Theatre since, being a backpacker, I had &lt;deleted&gt; all money. What a top bloke!!!

Working in television I've met countless other so-called celebs but generally avoid giving them the attention they so clearly crave - a'la the scandinavian approach espoused earlier in this thread.

Had to share the Parker story though since I genuinely appreciate some of the films he has directed.

Chok dii!

I'm with Wolfie on this one, I rarely use Tuk Tuks, being over-priced, scamming as they are. Nevertheless, they have price lists these days and I think the OP needs to understand things aren't always the same as back home

Me & the missus had a great time in Chiang Mai around the moat today, soaking people and getting soaked. It's not Songkhran which is stupid, just an unfortunate minority taking things too far. I never want to 'supersoak' people, never aim for the face or motorcyclists travelling at speed.

I find Songkhran to be pure fun and days full of fleeting but often touching encounters. My biggest respect goes to the people who just sprinkle water from a bowl.

I have the deepest sorrow for those who are injured or lose their lives through the actions of some idiots not adhering to the true spirit of the festivities. It is not acceptable.

Jai Yen Yen.

Cheers for last night chaps, catch you all again

Good to see a few of the guys...feeling a tad slow today.

Stay at home day for me too.

Nice one guys! Was great to meet you - Chuchok, jackr and Jockstar (who is on compulsory leave from here right now) and his other half. Bow & I had a great time and if you ever come down to Phuket be sure to let me know...

Any room at the table for an interloper from Phuket? I will be arriving in Chiang Mai, via Buriram and Bangkok on the afternoon of 14th. If I get my bearings quick enough, I'll be there, with the other half because, well, why not?

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Hi!

Answers to your questions

Swim test can be done in the pool or in the sea, it must be non-stop and is no less than 200m. On the last Open Water course I took, I had my students do the test in the sea off Kata beach, after confined water dive session, along with the 10 minute float which is also required.

The 400m Divemaster swim is taken with dive centre staff, PADI staff don't get involved until you do your Instructor Examinations. Don't forget also it is a timed swim, you will be marked on how long it took you to complete the 400m.

I suspect your swim technique is behind your concerns regarding swim endurance and/or speed as there doesn't appear to be any physical reason for this.

I'm currently in China for a couple of weeks but if you're still having problems when I get back at the end of March I'd be happy to check out your swimming and perhaps find out where you could improve a little.

Chok dii!

PADI Instructor 475744

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Hi,

Thank you for infos. I have some more question that other divers

might be intersted;

1-Do you have to take both 400meter swim and 800meter snorkel, or

just one of them?

You must do both and they're both timed.

2-Does snorkel test come with Swim suit (with PVC sponges for floating)

and snorkel put on?

I did my 800m snorkel in shorty wetsuit, fins, mask & snorkel. No other aids allowed.

3-Are swiming physical test are the hardest parts of test? are there

morephysical test for IE, IDC,... or they are just teorical?

I.E/IDC includes practical and theory exercises and exams. The physical tests are no harder than the ones at DM level.

4-Are CDC centers are realy better equipped and well organized

then other 5*****IDC center? Are certifications from CDC centers

carry more weight for it's credibility? If not, why they charge more

than others for their teaching?

I cannot disparage fellow diving professionals or organisations. From personal experience though, when seeking out a place to do my IDC/I.E I concentrated more on the course director who would be taking the course rather than whether he worked for a CDC, 5* IDC or otherwise centre. Don't forget course directors, who are the only people qualified to run an IDC, can and do move about. Therefore it's possible for a CDC to have a new course director in place who may or may not be better than the course director running an IDC down the road who works in a 'Gold Palm resort' for example. As for price, you just have to do a bit of research, ask a few face to face questions and make up your own mind as to whether you'll get value for money. Of course, value for money often doesn't equate to the cheapest deal.

5-Is having diving business or outlet profitable in thailand, or it's just

a reason for dive centers to be able to stay in thailand legaly, and

they are hardly surviving (they get their income from oversaes bank

accounts or abroad business)?

What you need to have or to do to be successfull in runing a diving

business? Are Bangkok and pattaya are recommanded in any way?

I don't find teaching diving particularly profitable, it's more of a lifestyle choice since I genuinely love it. I also have a far more profitable job in Europe for 5 months during the summer which makes things easier. I don't own my own dive centre but many people I know in the industry in Phuket do make a reasonable living from it. I've dived extensively in Koh Tao and even more so on the west coast, which I think is the best in Thailand. I'd imagine Pattaya would be in 3rd place behind these two but I've never had any inclination to go there. As for Bangkok, well, you're probably gonna be diving in Pattaya.

6-Which Dive center you work for? and your details in case i need to meet

up with you

I've PM'd you

U would might like to PM me the answers to question 5 and 6, due to it's ...

Thanks

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I've always thought you can see the moon in the same position on the hole northern part of the earth? Any astronomics here?

Regards, Patex

I don't have a degree in this but I don't think you have to be an 'astronomic' (whatever one of those is....) to figure this one out. Taking into account the curvature of the earth, surely when observing the moon above the western horizon, (where it is at the moment,) near the equator you must simply tilt your head to the right to gain a more northerly (say U.K) perspective and to the left to gain a more southerly (say N.Z) perspective. So, if you ever feel homesick for a more homely perspective on the moon - simply tilt your head

Give Seaworld Dive Team in Patong a call at 076 341 595, ask for Magali or Sacha, they can sort out everything you need.

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Dive asia is the biggest best equipped outfit in Phuket. They have their own pool and training center in Kata. Their instructors are first class as are their boats and boat crews. Their prices are on a par with everyone else except I think they deliver better service and have better equipment.

I've done all my certificates with them and am now preparing to take the dive master course.

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Can you tell,

-If the swim test done in swiming pool or sea?

-Was it exactly a 200 meter swim?

-How i can improve my swiming, I am 5feet 4.5 inches tall, muscular 145 Lbs,

and with realy strong long hands. Do you think i have lack of any technique

like not using or moving my body properly?

-Is Dive master 400 meter swim test by taken by a padi staff or the diving

center staff?

P.S i have check both Dive asia branchs (patong and Kata) they charge more

than other dive outlets in phuket.

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Hi!

Answers to your questions

Swim test can be done in the pool or in the sea, it must be non-stop and is no less than 200m. On the last Open Water course I took, I had my students do the test in the sea off Kata beach, after confined water dive session, along with the 10 minute float which is also required.

The 400m Divemaster swim is taken with dive centre staff, PADI staff don't get involved until you do your Instructor Examinations. Don't forget also it is a timed swim, you will be marked on how long it took you to complete the 400m.

I suspect your swim technique is behind your concerns regarding swim endurance and/or speed as there doesn't appear to be any physical reason for this.

I'm currently in China for a couple of weeks but if you're still having problems when I get back at the end of March I'd be happy to check out your swimming and perhaps find out where you could improve a little.

Chok dii!

PADI Instructor 475744

anyone else see the smile of the moon in thailand ??? or should i keep off the whisky

Yep, I first noticed it in Ecuador, where it was a 'perfect' smile, not like the slightly wry smile (off kilter...) we can observe in Thailand. Anyway, I think you'll find it has something to do with your proximity to the equator

"That all happened 4 weeks ago.  Let it go"

"you never know about the disaster"

"but the beaches are just miles and miles of white sand but NO PEOPLE"

Forgive me for saying so, but I find this collection of quotes to be Pollyanna-ish.

There were LOTS of people on or near the beaches recently - they got swept off and killed - hundreds of thousands of them across Asia.

A cataclysm of biblical proportions has happened, which is not going to be forgotten about just because 4 weeks has elapsed.

Tourists are not going to rush back , they will return - eventually - after a decent interval - after the thousands of unidentified bodies are returned to their loved ones. Perhaps even as long as it takes to put in place the warning system.

Right now the length of that interval  is pure conjecture - but be prepared to witness a muted Chinese New Year in Phuket.

Some beaches are indeed pristine now -  but it won't bring tourists back one nanosecond quicker.

There are so many holiday destinations now,  from Caribbean to Corfu.  I feel sorry for the Thais whose jobs are now in jeopardy on the Andaman coast. 

It needs serious Government action, not just skilled PR - I hear that the paperwork required  to apply for relief funds is mind-boggling.

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I understand your point of view but what is your idea of a 'decent interval'? I've tried to spend my money equally between all the places I normally got to eat or drink since 'that' fateful day. Many of the staff have already been laid off and the ones that remain in employment seem to fall into two categories;

1 - Cheerful - as in happy to still have a job and customers.

2 - Grumpy - as in fearing for their future.

I believe that any tourists with some savvy will be mindful of the fact that their currency is badly needed by many businesses here right now and will also see behind the headlines and the end of their own noses and realise that they should come and enjoy a holiday here, volunteer, or both, but at least come over...

Yawn.

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Well, the OP states that the negotiations were begun before the tsunami struck but this in turn makes their headline mis-leading. I seem to remember reading at the end of November that a proposed THAI Airways deal to buy the new Airbus had been shelved by order of Thaksin until the EU dropped its ban (health fears) on importing Thai chicken...

BTW I've never understood people who type 'Yawn' in reply to a topic. Can't you just literally yawn instead?

With the aid that has been provided from farangs around the world, finacial and otherwise, would it not be a show of appreciation to reciprocate.

How about the laws being changed on home/land ownership for example.

The king under these circumstances has been known to pardon prisoners in Thailand for any gratuitous help to its country. So why not the goverment?

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Dream on. If there is nothing to be gained by them doing something, they won't do it. And in this case, there isn't.

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Who is them? Having been involved in several volunteer projects over the past several weeks, each time I must leave my details on a list including contact info and passport number. My aim is purely to help and give, not to gain The purpose of the list? Probably to create a database of people who have volunteered and wish to do so again....

Sure, it would be great if one day they looked back and said 'hey, so and so did his bit in our time of need...' but when sh*t like this hits the fan it's time to do and to give whatever you can, without any thought of self.

Tourist divers help clean up Thai resort

BANGKOK: --  Around 300 volunteer divers, including foreign tourists, scoured the sea floor to clear debris around Phuket on Saturday as the Thai resort began to rebuild in the hope of reviving a tourism industry ravaged by the tsunami.

Two Buddhist monks sailed out on one of two dozen boats to bless the divers and say prayers to bring peace to the spirits of the victims of the Dec. 26 tsunami, which killed more than 5,300 people, half of them foreign tourists, in Thailand.

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I was on the diveboat - 'MV Discovery' - with the two monks - one of whom was world renowned, as you can see from this excerpt from Santana Dive website:

"Today we participated in a clean-up dive at Patong Beach. The reknowned Buddhist monk Bhikkhu Buddha Dhatu was on board to pray and to bless divers as they entered the water. This remarkable man was born in Vietnam. As a child during the Vietnam war 70% of his body was burned with Napalm. He survived and became a Buddhist monk at 13. He joined the Barefoot World Peace Walk with the Dalai Lama, covering over 9.000 kilometers through 19 countries in 3 years. At the Sydney Olympic he released 3000 doves. More pictures soon!"

Of course we didn't find out how revered he is until he had left the boat...

I'm pleased to report the sea bed and coral at Patong, Kata and Kata Noi are now free of a whole load of debris which not only look a mess but theatened further damage as it crashes back and forth during heavier currents. The majority of stuff recovered consisted of beach umbrellas, chairs, tables, broken up wood, awnings, glass bottles and sheet metal along with a sh*t load of fishing nets.

This was going on quite quickly after the event and mind you, not by foreigners. They may have been representatives of foreigners, but I doubt it. My friend has relatives in that aerea. he went down to help and told us that people were offered to buy off their property. These individuals had print outs with them. They claimed to be checking on missing persons, preparing for assistance etc. But always the offer to buy came on the table.

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Bloody Vultures! I'm sure the lawsuits will be coming next.

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It's almost a second wave of looting...

Tourists help rebuild Thai town

Trading swimsuits for shovels

BANG TAO, Thailand: -- A Norwegian man nearly falls through a roof he's trying to take apart. Two Australian brothers, covered in dust, clear rubble from a laundromat. A British woman helps knock down a wall.

These are no ordinary relief workers: Many are travelers-turned-volunteers who've traded their swimsuits and sandals for shovels and boots to help rebuild Bang Tao, a village on the Thai resort island of Phuket leveled by the December 26 tsunami.

"You don't really want to be enjoying yourself while something like this is going on," said Russell Kerr, of Maghera, Northern Ireland, who was at a "full-moon party," a youthful all-night dance bash on a Thai beach the day the tsunami hit.

"We've got a good bunch of guys and ... we're doing as much as we can," he said, dripping with sweat.

"We all ... probably could have been enjoying ourselves and having a good time somewhere else but, yeah, we made the right decision."

About 20 volunteers are working on the Bang Tao project, started by Springville, New York native Mike Cegielski, who has lived with his family on Phuket for nearly three years.

He left Phuket's Kata Beach minutes before the tsunami hit. He and his family were unscathed.

Cegielski, a business development manager for a Bang Tao hotel, said he and his wife pondered what they could do -- "knowing we were 10 minutes from needing help rather than being able to help."

He assisted at a hospital, then returned days later to Bang Tao where he saw people in shock, their community in ruins. He decided something had to be done.

The project's goal is to help the town's 100 families get back on their feet, using donations to repair homes, clear wreckage and to help rebuild businesses by fixing shops or buying equipment, like fishing nets.

"You can't just come in and fix homes," Cegielski said.

"Then we would have to keep feeding them because no one bought them boats, no one got the hotels going."

The volunteers hail from Germany, France, Ireland, Britain, Australia, the Netherlands, the United States and Norway. Covered in dirt, they knock down unstable houses, sweep out shops or fill large holes in the beach with rubble. Most lack construction experience.

Dutch student Jan Rosing of Utrecht, who was at a debating tournament in Malaysia before coming here, joked that construction possibly wasn't his "genetic manifest destiny," but he felt compelled to come.

Some stopped their Thai vacations midway to help. Others came from Singapore, Britain and the United States -- including a team of Alaskan firefighters whose usual specialty is search and rescue.

"I lived through 9/11 and I volunteered" there, said Gail Evertz of New York, who organized a food program for 3,000 workers after the terror attacks there, and brought new drills and hammers to Bang Tao.

"I felt for their plight. I felt I understood what they were up against."

Bang Tao was lined with hotels, bungalows and tourist shops that had sprung up just a year before the tsunami.

Offshore it still looks idyllic, with about 20 red-and-blue fishing boats bobbing on the clear green sea. But onshore there are piles, bricks, capsized boats and flooded cars. At least 30 people died here.

Richard Clinton, a policeman from Memphis, Tennessee, said he was moved to help after seeing images of the destruction.

"I'm tired of just writing a check. In America, that's how we help," he said.

"That's good, but this is better."

Some residents were initially leery of the help, but many have changed their minds.

Suthep Thongyorn said he felt defeated when he saw his travel agency's ceiling cave in.

Like other shops, he'd been banking on this area's peak tourist season -- which is now -- to survive. He had some doubts about the team, but after talking with them he said, "We feel better, like we have friends, we have someone to help us."

Volunteers said Bang Tao was already looking much better, as were the people, who were busy Monday slapping cement on new walls and cleaning up.

Cegielski aims to have villagers back on their feet before Chinese New Year in February, when business would normally be good.

"I hope in some way ... that we created hope that they actually could see their community back together again," he said.

--AP 2005-01-12

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Anyone know if they could use another pair of hands or is that a stupid question?

Everyone sitting at home, watching your cynical idea of a ratings war, is putting their hands in their pockets and doing what is right.

Bring on more news coverage.

We'll argue wether it's accurate coverage later!

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There is no argument to be had. Regarding Phuket, the coverage is inaccurate and un-balanced, period. Having worked for a major news channel in the past, I'm as aware as many that there is a producer sat in a gallery somewhere chasing headlines and hopefully an award or two somewhere down the line. It is sadly not enough these days to simply reflect events, you must 'make' the news.

The major news channels naturally monitor each other but you're not going to secure a good budget for next year unless you pull something out of the hat, y'know, the odd scoop here and there, this can set off a chain reaction as they then try to trump each other... Sure it's making people put their hands in their pockets and that is fantastic but is it all factual NEWS? I don't think it is.

In additon

Kamala beach has not been touched at all, no one has gone to even begin to clean up ( now 5 days)

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Well, if that's the case, why don't we get down (up from me...) there and get stuck in? I spent a couple of days volunteering at Wachira last week and a day doing a reef - check/clean up. Now at a loose end though sure I could be somewhere - doing something(?) more.

The boat house is still there, but of course if you've enjoyed a meal there before you'll remember its proximity to the beach. It was hit bad inside but they are refitting right now. Sure Kata was hit, but, from what I've seen, it's recovering fast. It is not what I'd call trashed.

Nobody has ever said that Thailand is in ruins. 

The news would have you believe it is. Despite constant reassurance from me, to people back home, that everything is pretty much back to normal where I live, I had a pharmacist friend in England text me yesterday offering to send out medical supplies I might be in need of. The others are just in pure disbelief that I haven't left the area already.

I don't believe the original poster was hinting at advertising holidays, more that there is a need to counter-balance, using factual information, the negativity of the mass-media. No harm in that...