Johpa

Pai is in a beautiful location, but it is none the less a tourist town, and increasingly a town that is attracting Thai tourists. And the ride to either Chiang Mai or Mae Hong Son can get tiresome. But it is certainly an option and worth exploring. Currently it is not my cup of tea, if only because of the music scene. I might suggest looking at Chiang Dao if you want to be somewhat rural as it is closer to Chiang Mai with an easier drive into the big city. If you speak Thai and are looking for investment in an area with high potential growth then check out the still somnolent Wat Chan due south of Pai.

Contrary to some observations, the doggy doo doo has not yet hit the fan, and in fact has not yet been ejected toward the fan, but the signs are clear that the time is imminent. What we are seeing is jockeying for position when the time becomes clear to all and the country declares a mandatory 60 day time out and all sides are ordered back to their corners before they come back out swinging in earnest to view for their place in history.

There are just too many factions within factions to keep track of them all. The powers within the "reds" and "yellows" have their own internal divisions. There are divisions within the parliament, divisions within the court, divisions within the military. There are divisions within divisions and nobody knows who is going to come out on top so most folks are hedging their bets. The Bard loved these Machiavellian scenarios for his tragedies.

My only advice to foreign ex-pats is to not take sides and to not get involved. You are as naive as the red shorted Isaan farmer who thinks Thaksin is a savior or the equally naive Bangkok-based yellow shirted Sino-Thai low ranking corporate Dilbert. What, you thought this was all about democracy?!?

Best now to quote from the Bard:

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,

To the last syllable of recorded time;

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,

And then is heard no more. It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing.

....Sondhi Limthongkul behind the steering wheel again...

But only in the role of chauffeur.

Johnpa

No idea if you've already made your decision, but I wish too to oppose the idea that automatic scooters are trouble-prone. They use more fuel, but are easier to learn to ride. I hold the much disputed notion (here) that automatics are safer in heavy traffic - particularly for relatively inexperienced drivers.

In your place, I'd want to be as certain as possible that my daughter was aware of the risks involved in driving here, and always selected (if possible) less traveled roads and made it her business to see and be seen (reactions will be those of youth, happily). ...

No issues with awareness as the daughter has spent significant time in Thailand and is aware of the craziness of Thai roads. Not to mention that dad has as much experience as anyone posting here, with daughter having spent many hours on the back of my bikes in all conditions.

It is only that I have not bought or even looked at scooters in well over a decade and I understand that the ol' Honda Dream, one of the best designed, most rugged, and most reliable two-wheelers I have ever seen, are no longer available and I am out of the loop of knowledge of the current scooters available, so I appreciate all the input. I actually prefer the semi-autos to the full autos as we live up in the mountains (daughter will often be commuting from town to home on the weekends) and the full autos often do not shift appropriately when driving on the steep and windy roads that sometimes are not paved.

It is a pretty big stretch of the imagination to classify an airline seat as a "Veblen good" but ya gotta admit that Thai society does provide some comfort to those of us who have long been fans, and have actually trudged through the writings of that great Norske-American Thorstein Veblen. Veblen's opus really hits the mark in Bangkok.

At first glance, I thought The Irrawaddy was the name for a Burmese tabloid. But upon further reading it appears to be Thai publication.

Although the Irrawaddy focuses upon Burma and takes an anti-government stand, it is published in Thailand for obvious reasons. It most certainly is not a tabloid, on the contrary, it is an important source for news and opinion on events in Burma and around the region and is highly regarded. It is worth reading and supporting.

There's no way we can just say flat out it is or is not an insult of compliment. Its just not that kind of word.

Ferrang khee nok = white shit bird

I'm pretty sure I can say flat out that is an insult .....

First, how do you go about digging up a thread over a year old?

Second the phrase is not always used as a strong insult, often it is used as simply a mild, if not playful, rebuke. Although in English the word sh*t is considered extremely impolite, the word khii in Thai is not considered impolite, thus I can say pretty flat out that yours is a bad translation.

Any ideas in Thai for an equivalent of "for the sake of..."? I can easily build more specific phrases such as "for the security of" or "for the love of" but I can't quite find a good phrase for the more generic term "sake of" and have not been able to convey the subtleties to my wife to get a response.

And its one..two..three, what are we fighting for? Maybe he should indeed be reiterating that perennial existential question down in Bangkok to the Reds and Yellows to see if he can get a coherent answer.

So, simply put, The Vietnam War "advertised" Thailand, therefore Pattaya, as a holiday destination. Post Vietnam War many G.I's went back for their "wives" to take them home, or just drink beer and boom boom again.

Now being considered an "old hand" let me note that there were relatively few American tourists in Thailand until the late 1980s. One encountered far more Europeans and Commonwealth citizens than Americans back then. In the very early 1980s I went three months before meeting another American on the Lonely Planet gringo trail of that era.

It is an easy ride to Amphoe Long on a motorcycle. But it will be a few hours of riding. The majority of the way is divided highway until east of Lampang, and then it is very good road the rest of the way on Hwy 11. Take the left onto RD 1023 to Amphoe Long and then follow to Phrae without having to travel to Den Chai. I do not know the area that well, but I would imagine that the bus to Den Chai would stop at the intersection with 1023 with connections on local taxis to Long. You might want to spend the night at the Thepavong Place guesthouse in Phrae and talk to the owner, Karl, to get his advice on local transportation options.

There are two possible reasons that come to mind as to why Thais use the term. One is that the word is used somewhat akin to a Thai particle to nuance the degree of certainty to the sentence. And the other is that Thai, especially the written form tends to be a topic centered language as compare to English which tends to be a subject centered language. In Thai they often begin a sentence with a phrase such as " as for the <noun phrase>...." Using the word "actually" in front of the sentence serves a similar purpose.

Nothing is going to change the cycles of repeated military coups until the lese majeste laws are removed from the books.

why dont they employee some 'expensive' farangs to sort all this out. people who understand marketing and the western world. As you have stated they have wasted millions. Nip it in the bud and get some professional objective intelligent people involved. This country is so insular it is going to get left behind. Wake up Thailand before Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia sweep you away.

The reason that they don't employ Farangs to help out is that they would have to admit they can't do it themselves and thats never gonna happen.

Typical neo-sahib mentality. There are plenty of Thais with the capability and knowledge to run TAT. The problem is that old school yet modern world sakdina patronage system insures that merit is not rewarded, only connections. The inept and the corrupt always rise to the top of these institutions to milk the profits, (kin muang in Thai), for personal reward and also to pay back those who they paid to obtain the position in the first place. All regardless of the fact that there are qualified Thais to run these government programs. It is not only TAT, but include such institutions as the Police and the military. This pattern is clear for all to see: buildings abandoned after a few months once the contract had finished or my all-time favorite waste HTMS Chakri Nareubet.

The key thing to remember is not to confuse a totally corrupt system with the abilities of the Thai people.

My daughter will be moving to Thailand next month for college and I want to get her a scooter. I have been out of the loop for scooters for at over 20 years since I bought an indestructible 125 Honda Dream back in the late 1980s. I hear the modern Dreams are not built the way they use to be. Is there a scooter out there with some of the old time durability characteristics of the older Dreams? Although the scooter will be mostly used around town, it will also be used to travel back home up into the hills (Chiang Mai) on the weekends so it should be able to handle some dirt roads and a few bumps. And it needs to be big enough (125cc minimum) to get fat Dad around on his visits when he hasn't rented a D-Tracker.

The school has a very interesting history. It was the originally the brain child of M.L.Tri Devakul (Boathouse, Le Meridien, Phuket yacht Club etc). Hence the involvement of Prem who he is very close to due to similar proclivities and a joy of partying in their younger days. He was the architect for the school (and is one of Thailand's most respected architects). He originally called the project 'three generations' as he had some idea that the pupils, parents and grandparents would all live on the campus.

What is now the Prem school was originally conceived by Devakul as a real estate housing development back in the early 1990s when such developments were the rage. I had access to these original solicitations in both Thai and English as someone had contacted faculty at my former high school back in the US regarding a possible "sister school" affiliation and one of the faculty contacted me to get my opinion. The original solicitations noted that Bangkok families could have their children educated away from the sins and pressures of Bangkok by buying land and a house that would guarantee placement of their child into the school. The sales pitch was more in the line of having grandma or mom live with the kid during the week with dad flying in on the weekend to their gated rural retreat. The concept of a northern rural retreat had only recently been made fashionable by former political king maker Phichai Rattakul who had built his "Mae Ruay" teak log cabin outside of Mae Rim.

The rural poor HAVE a voice, a vote like everyone in Bangkok... so what do they do? They sell it off to the highest bidder.

Isn't that the core of US style democracy, one dollar one vote? Look most people vote for the party that is going to give them the most. Poor people will take a few hundred baat in the pocket and wealthy people will take much, much more, but cleverly hidden in the form of tax breaks and other rather nefarious incentives. And then the few of us who would like to see policies that benefit the larger society are branded as "socialists" as if that was a bad thing.

Look no surprise that the very conservative WSJ would be pro-Thaksin, he is their kind of man, totally corrupt yet wealthy enough to garner Wall Street's respect as Wall Street cares not how that wealth is earned, a very Thai sentiment indeed. The Red Shirt's vote is there for the asking. But the Yellow shirts have decided they don't want to bother to throw a few bones to the rural poor, if only because the Yellow Shirts are overwhelmingly Sino-Thai and their more newly assimilated Bangkok brethren who see the more ethnic Isaan and Khon Muang folks as lesser human beings not deserving of the spoils of State. Such lesser human beings are never invited to the table to kin muang.

can you who adore socialism give examples of good things it does for its people. from my studies it just makes everyone miserable. unless you are an elite.

Uff Da! I am so tired of the endless stream of illegal immigrants entering the United States from those socialist Scandahoovian countries. The misery on their faces is truly heart wrenching.

Veera and monks on stage now. Blessing being given.

Monks are so hypocritical.... amazing that they can even chant without being struck down by lightening for being posers of spirituality.... a complete disgrace.

I daresay newbie that Thailand may not be the best choice of location for you.

Some may be awaiting the Messiah during this traditional millennial month, but I am still awaiting the Pickle King to deliver the same coup de grâce to TV that his presence delivered to the old soc.culture.thai usenet group.

i disagree, thaksin is the one who excogitated the idea of the class war becasue he knew that he could instiigate the poor majority but surely behind the scene he is more worried about his frozen asset and will do everything to get it back (soon!!!), while he sits back and relax and watch thailand self destroy. if he is really fighting for democracy why don't he go back to thailand and join that reds to demonstrate?

Au contraire my misspelling wordsmith, the class war started long before Thaksin came into power. But most of the battles have been waged by the elite against the poor, just as they have been waged in the USA. For a better insight into the long running struggles in Thailand I suggest reading Chai-Anan and Morrell's fine book on the political battles of the 1970s: Political Conflict in Thailand. Alas the extreme prejudice of the brutal response back then by the Bangkok elite against the rural poor, who dared to organize themselves, stifled any political activity by the poor for an entire generation. Thaksin may be the poster boy, but he is not the underlying issue.

Keep in mind that in the Thai government or postal system, the moo ban doesn't typically feature. It's a lot number, Tambon Name, Amphur Name, Province name.

Funny, our house has both a lot number and a village number, the villages within a tambon often having a postal number, usually sequential following the main road within the tambon. But just as often mail arrives with the village name written on the address as well. A typical postal number might be 12/3 which designates the 12th lot in 3rd village of the sub-district.

A list of all villages within an amphoe can often be found at the amphoe office or at the local sub-district offices (O.P.T.). Each of these offices often have a large map inside the entry.

But as others have noted, many of the housing estates call themselves moobaans or villages, but they have nothing to do with the technical meaning of a Thai village, it is just an advertising word for the real estate developers.

Brix, in the Montri Hotel, I've recommended several times before, so no need to say much about it yet again.

But I offer Brix as a high standard of comfort, cleanliness, and quality food.

Where else might be up to that standard?

Brix is indeed clean and comfortable, but the food is somewhat ordinary. I can get better food and larger portions down at the Stube, just no air-con.

Am I just getting too old to care, or is there another reason I never noticed anything slanted one way or another at the Lemon Tree?

And thanks for the head up on the Kiat Num, as I now have another possible location to track down my wacko brother-in-law so as to serve him legal papers.

It completely ignores the reason for the demonstration now, how it is financed and what the ultimate goal is.

Reason: This was as soon after Thaksin assets were seized they could get it organized.

That is an overly simplified explanation. Thaksin may be the poster boy and financier of the "reds", but remember that Thaksin was elected because he was willing to throw the poor a few bones from the public coffers and his opponents represented by the "yellows" call that "populist" politics and argue against giving the majority of the population any financial reason to vote for their cause. The "yellows" openly argue for a limited democracy with the poor being under represented in the voting. Look at the photos and listen to Sondhi Limthongkul speech and if you can't see the ethnic undertones then you must be dumb, deaf, and blind.

The "reds" are upset that the man they helped put into office was kicked out in a very undemocratic move. Yes, Thaksin was one corrupt SOB, but the "reds" know that just about every other leader in Bangkok is equally corrupt. That Thaksin did not share his spoils of rule in a socially acceptable manner with his peers is not a major concern of the rural folks as they were never going to get a cut from the Bangkok elite.

Bottom line is that the vote of the "reds" is there for the taking. But the folks financing the "yellows" aren't interested in winning the hearts and minds of the rural poor, on the contrary, they want to keep the rural poor and especially the ethnic Lao (Isaan) and Khon Muang (Northerners) marginalized in the future just as they have been marginalized in the past.

I'm always amazed that pot heads think that ganga is not a drug and that they don't realize when they are addicted to it. I speak from personal experience as many friends of mine (mostly Americans) smoke it .As a non user I can tell you Ganga smokers are boring company and I am glad the drug is illegal. I don't think these pot heads realize that it is serious for them if they are caught in possesion of it in Thailand. There must be better ways to enjoy yourself in Thailand than turning yourself into a half wit by getting "stoned."

And I am always amazed that beer drinkers think that alcohol is not a drug and that they don't realize when they are addicted to it. I speak from personal experience as many friends of mine (mostly Europeans and Aussies with a few Yanks and Hosers thrown into the mix) drink vast quantities of the stuff. As a non-drinker of beer I can tell you beer drinkers are boring company and I am chagrined that Thailand tolerates such openly public addiction to this particular alcoholic drug in beverage form. There must be better ways to enjoy yourself in Thailand than turning yourself into a half wit by getting drunk on fermented hops.