joe84330

good news.

Kalara have just started their second site within 12 months, the one Bangpor area is sold out and the one next door to me here in Bang Rak is going up at a really quick rate, probably the quickest I have seen a building going up. I have been told that 80% are already sold, so lets hope its the begining of something good economy wise.

the building job is usually a good pointer regards economical state.

I know it makes me sound a cynic but i think developers say "80% sold" or the likes as standard regardless if any have actually been sold to create the illusion that buying property here is a good investment and its a great developement.

show up with a deposit and watch how quickly those units become available

According to all their websites, Zilch properties on Samui.

zilch a family name or the number of projects they've completed?

reminds me of GM trying to sell the chevrolet nova in south america

showed this photo to a friend of mine who's been living on samui for the last 15+ years. he was a bar owner on the reggae side the entire time the bridge still existed. when i showed him the photo he started to reminisce, including a story about watching one obviously intoxicated person stumble out of reggae pub, get on his bike and lurch forward, striking the reggae pub wall. not done there, he managed to turn the bike around only to go forward long enough to hit a tree.

reorienting himself, he then proceeded to drive across the bridge.

i only qualify as a fisherman due to my experience as a professional beer drinker.

Did anybody find out if they do charters ? or has anybody a contact number as I could fancy a day out fishing.

*ahem, cough, harumph

small world, i help out at the regatta each year as well.

there is a lot of dredging going on at big buddha pier in plai laem at the moment.

spent last week at various marinas in phuket and the question always came up "when will samui have a marina?"

my best answer was by the time my kids get out of college.

anyone have any news or updates and even some juicy rumors?

one of my first solo driving trips to the sadao border, i continued driving straight over that new bridge south of nakhon si thammarat and ended up taking the coast road. was a bit of a hassle at first because i tend to drive fast but it certainly was scenic in places, including the lake and temple.

haha i knew this forum would come through. thanks everyone for the photos, more would be welcome. cool to put a photo with all of the stories i've heard.

Rooo please change my thread title to the ol' bridge over the swamp kind of thing, thanks.

i always hear stories about this old bridge but it was taken down prior to my arrival here 5 years ago. anyone have any photos? i tried GIS with no luck, forum search didn't help either. would like to see some photos!

actual motorcycles (not clicks or fino) cost as much or more than cars or jeeps. 700+ per day.

if you do intend to go by bike, i'd just arrange locally. island restrictions are for tourists, not long time residents.

bummer. i guess i have to send my boat back and ask for a refund

any plans for this event or similar this year?

i've driven right past the waves and whistles more times than i've been stopped.

after all the jet ski scams i'd hate to think what the charges would be if you brought back a horse with a scratch.

Thanks for some great advice Jimmy sadly received only after we returned

For those that are interested, from the Autoboy Soi just out of Nathon it took just over 5 hours of walking (plus water and refreshment stops) to reach the Wat at the 90degree turn at Lamai and we agree it has been one of the very best experiences ever on our stay on Samui and all for free!.

The views up there are truely inspiring and with not a noise other than nature it was a million miles away from the corrosive effect that tourism has brought to corrupt such a naturally magnificently beautiful Island.

We were helped on occassions by the excellent GPS service on my BlackBerry and once by a friendly local, however with a keen eye on the tracks it is pretty clear where the main traffic bears off at a fork and we used that to assume a best way when in doubt.

Stats were approx 22km distance walked (Autoboy Nathon to Lamai Wat) - 792m total of uphill climb on the route (Highest Alt reached was 600m) - 3000calories burnt

nice, thanks for posting. i've done some pretty extensive hiking throughout the U.S. and have always thought this island would be improved by adding an actual dedicated nature trail for hikers through the interior. i'll add this walk to my short list of things to do, normally i love to walk but these roads were obviously not designed with walkers in mind.

Maybe this trip he will give the Queen a new DVD (with his recorded speeches) that actually works.

Could you kind folks put the Obama's up in Buckingham Palace for a couple of years for us?

With Obama stuck in England, the Queen of Wasila, Sarah Palin will move the US of A to Alaska.

Not much choice eh? Obamacare or living with polar bears (and hunting moose).

fortunately those are not our only two choices.

now if you UK'ers could just keep him there, yeah, that would be great. thanks.

lady boxing in lamai is one of the best nights out on this small island. every bar owner in the world raises prices during an event but i don't recall ever paying more than 80thb for a chang. free fights and 80baht chang are ok in my book. i did go to the "stadium" in chaweng and won't pay for that ever again. i don't think anyone goes to lady boxing to see the next world champ.

Hi brahmburgers

There's no way to say this gently enough

while still making the central point,

so here goes...no offense to you intended

just neutral harmless facts.

I know the Ethanol process inside & out front to back

This is Total Nonsense.

It's a scam even though they say they aren't a scam.

I'm not a scam...

OK, well then, you certainly aren't a scam, are you?

What's the first thing you assume

when a man takes the trouble to tell you he's not a liar?

Only a Liar thinks that line is a good idea.

Ethanol brewing does not leave any fuel in the "dregs".

Definition of terms...Dregs are the residual solids

mainly the bodies of dead yeast.

Ask any Aussie / Kiwi for a sample of Vegamite or Marmite.

It's the bodies of dead yeast which happen to be very good for you.

They won't want to part with it,

you won't want to try it,

but at least you'll know what it is.

Stillage is the brew water (Beer) that contains Ethanol

Liquor and Fuel Brewers boil Ethanol all out,

as Ethanol boils at 78C while

Water boils at 100C.

There is increasingly more water vapor which comes off the still

at the end of the Ethanol boil,

because it's a balance of the two partial vapor pressures

but there is absolutely no point in stopping Distillation with 5-7% Ethanol remaining.

That would be just plain stupid.

When the Boiling Temperature stabilizes at slightly above 100C,

you have finished all Ethanol.

Ethanol kills the yeast in the brew at

11% Weight basis

14% Volume basis.

Next you boil the brew until the Ethanol has all left.

You initially add a large quantity of water to the fermentation tank

so that fermentation continues at a rapid rate

to the complete conversion of sugar with yeast still alive.

It's a calculated trade off, speed of reaction to the very end vs. more water in the brew.

So you would seldom actually achieve 11% Ethanol mixture.

Anyone can see it all happen at home.

Fuel Ethanol of course,

don't you dare drink a drop without first paying all applicable taxes.

Dissolve 1 kg Sugar in 5 liters water.

Best to boil the water sterile first but not essential

The big water bottles work great.

If you want a megabatch,

4 kg Sugar in the big 20 liter Water jugs.

Add a teaspoon of bread yeast,

it's the same animal as brewer's yeast.

Set it in a warm place for three days,

being certain to not tighten the cap.

In very short time bubbles will appear,

CO2 gas as Yeast breaks Sugar to Ethanol.

When you thump the jug on the floor and no bubbles shake loose,

the brew is complete.

Optimal fermentation temperature is 50C,

so setting it out in the hot sun is ideal

Put this mix in your car tank only if you are too drunk to drive.

If you are sober, it still needs to be distilled.

From another angle,

This is ridiculous because in order to get the supposed Ethanol from the weak stillage,

you'd first have to transport huge water weight to your location,

then put a whole lot of heat into the entire thing,

to get the 5-7% Ethanol that supposedly is left.

You'd then have to separate the water from the ethanol,

either by distillation tower or molecular sieve.

Then you'd have to dispose of the stillage,

preferably as suggested in the website,

let Dairy cows drink it.

They drink a lot of water, and they need a lot of protein.

Most Ethanol brewers completely dehydrate half the stillage

with the other half backfed to the next batch

The combined product,

with remaining raw stock solids, and solubles from dehydrated stillage,

is called DDGS Dried Distillers Grains with Solubles

With the dramatic increase in Corn to Ethanol

it's become an abundant animal feed

at 26% Protein and 13% Fat, if Corn Oil is not extracted

People would do well to eat it as well, it just hasn't hit the grocery shelf.

Different CoProduct remaining for other raw feedstocks.

watersedge, if you ever make it down to samui i'll buy you a round or two. home brew (which i've done before, from wine to ale and lager and even mead) , jack daniels or even a chang.

i've known angie for a number of years. the original eye 90 was the first bar i went to on samui, after cruising around all of the soi's. there is a reason she's not running anything now, and it's not because she runs the best bar.

Sometimes you shake your head in wonder. All these hotels , etc... know the capacity of the airport & BKK Air.

Isn't there a saying, definition of madness, keep on doing the same thing, hoping for a different result?

Just add more rooms.

well if you have a niche, a well developed brand etc. then your customers will come regardless. the people suffering from this issue are those who built a brandless property or a hotel with a very low brand value. conrad will still bring in customers in spite (or perhaps even because of) their location. same for W, Banyan Tree, Four Seasons etc.

try opening a 1,2 or 3 star anywhere off of the beach though and you are certainly going to feel the pinch. villa builders are a different breed entirely. not sure what possesses these guys to keep trying to push the sale angle at a time like this. TV should have an emoticon with a guy banging his head against the wall.