Chicog

yes, well the Bangkok Post has started to notice, too, albeit only in the Letters Page. But it's all a myth, right?

Scenic Pai on fire

I would like to both extol and regret the virtues of my current visit to Thailand. First, the good. I would like to thank all involved for a wonderful time on Samui, in Bangkok and then Ayutthaya. Along the way I heard many times, ''You must go to Pai.''

Wonderful scenery and great people. So I arrived in Pai late and had an early night with anticipated excitement for the week ahead.

Now to the bad. I awoke not to the beautiful scenery but no scenery at all! The entire valley was blanketed in smoke. Enquiring where it came from, I was told that it is slash and burn that is still used by the stupid people who know no better. It is a yearly event and that the mountains will be invisible until May when the rains arrive.

From what I saw of the town it certainly looks a fascinating place. Sadly, I am now back in Chiang Mai, as yet undecided where to go next.

So, as a welcome guest in your country, I can only ask why is this so. Slash and burn was outdated a millennium ago and with today's global warming, how can anybody say it isn't man-made when they see this acrid smoke all over the North?

JAMES

Burning season is here

It seems my letters of the previous two years have gone unnoticed by both the men in suits and uniform.

I refer, of course, to the usual burning season in the North. Usually starting in mid-March, it seems that these criminals are determined to take my precious holiday-time in Chiang Mai and Pai away from me, even though I now arrive in mid-January and intended to stay until mid-March.

Alas, I awake this morning in Pai to see all the spectacular mountain scenery is totally covered in poisonous and illegal smoke.

The entire community, whether it be babies or the elderly, are forced to breathe this poison and then flood the hospitals for medical help.

So, once again I will vote with my feet and head to Malaysia to complete my vacation. I feel so sorry that the potential of this region is destroyed by the afore-mentioned people in suits and uniforms. Years ago Thaksin promised to put an end to it, but he lied, and it seems today's suits are no better.

NIK ANDERSON

just to add, voltage is different here in Thailand (240v)

electronics stores here do have for sale laptop transformers for common brands that are for sale here for @ 600 baht more if genuine

Does *anyone* sell electronics these days that isn't 100-250V?

Avatar was awesome, got to get it on Blu-ray and a 3DTV. There is some good info here on products when they arrive.

http://www.3dtv-products.co.uk/

You might want to start saving up for one of these. I have

If there was one word to sum up the 2010 CES, "3D" would be it, and the Vizio 72-inch XVT Pro HD3D HDTV ($3,500) was one of the standouts in the nacent category of 3D sets. Sporting a mammoth 72-inch screen, it also offers 480Hz SPS operation with 480 zones of Smart Dimming LED backlights, wireless HDMI, SRS StudioSound HD audio, built-in 802.11n Wi-Fi with the Vizio Internet Apps platform, and, of course, Sensio 3D technology to make sure you get the most out of upcoming content sources like ESPN 3D.

10yrs going to Lucky's and Spicey's?

I've never been to Spicy. I've heard it's quite rough down there.

They asked me to go because the Korean guy wants to take place

Can you elaborate on this?

I'll repeat: the staff in Lucky will always look after regulars, in my ten years of knowing them in various incarnations. Ask for Nung or Tan next time you're there and ask for an explanation. Perhaps they'll be able to give you a different perspective on what happened.

Or just avoid the place if you don't feel comfortable there any more.

Fair comment from others though, if you're going to be there late at night either you, the rest, or everyone is going to be fairly pished up. Always a recipe for disaster if you can't maintain jai yen (even if you're in the right).

90 y/o dentist? LOL no thanks!

From what I've seen he has an excellent reputation, and you can't say he is inexperienced. What's your problem with his age? or just kneejerk stereotyping?

We all want Chiang Mai to be a clean city - each and every day - , but chasing away tourists with lies, exaggerations and false impressions is not going to help Chiang Mai get any better.

You could easily replace the phrase "chasing away" with "luring".

After all, there seems to be only room for extremes in this discussion.

Which country is a "true democracy" and does not allow anyone to appeal decisions of the court system? I don't think that I've heard of it.

I think when he says Final verdict, he means after all appeals have been exhausted.

Thaksin legged it, so I don't know if he finished all his appeals or not. I think he did though. And his bint owes some porridge as well.

.... this was at a disco with the security joining in on the 'fun'...not out on the street... regardless, i get your point...but get mine that thai are a bunch of pussies when it comes to fighting, everyone and there brother jumps in to beat on a farang at the drop of a hat... i don't know how it is where you're from, but that shit is far and few between in america...of course it happens, but it's not the norm...in thailand it's the rule.

point taken but as i have said earlier, i dont think the op has told the full story

I was at the Lucky early one morning when some pissed up backpacker decided to kick off. Before I got a chance to lamp the <deleted>, security had him out of the door and gone.

I am a regular and if security know you, they will always look after you. So I think you're full of shit.

My guess is you acted like a <deleted> somehow, got called out on it and gobbed off.

Never a wise thing to do in Thailand.

I would suggest you never go back there. They'll only piss in your drinks from now on anyway.

try bangkok ! 500 baht minimum. Or you can discuss it for 30 mins and get away with 200.

Or obey the law.

Sad to hear you have lost 200baht. My condolences, you only made one mistake , Being a falang in Thailand . See The police are continuing to make friends and influence the Falang tourist to come to the land of smiles in ressesion.

The land of smiles in what?

Seriously, why come out with this snide shit? They pull over both Thais and Farangs. They're only trying to deter idiots from increasing their chances of serious head injuries in the inevitable slew of accidents that happen here on a regular basis. The rest of it is irrelevant really; wear a helmet and don't get fined for not wearing a helmet - You have to be a bit thick not to work that out, surely?

Perhaps if you had half your skull bashed in after flying head first into a wall, you might have a different opinion. But that doesn't ever seem to concern anyone. Is every motosai rider in Chiang Mai bulletproof or something?

Strange indeed.

That's long list... I believe if you program all these in your phone you will gonna need them for sure, somehow this is asking for trouble.

Now I remember I did a First Aid course, I stopped it because in that 2 months everywhere I went minor accidents happened, after I stopped the course it was over... very strange.

For sure I am NOT gonna save this in my phone for the same reason, but this list should be pinned on top of the Chiangmai forum for sure.

Yes, do a first aid course here. And attend to an accident victim. Then pay his hospital bills, because Plod say you're responsible.

Erm..... No.

thanks for your help! I've sent an email to Thai Organics, maybe they can help, Otherwise I'll have to make it. We do have a Neem tree but seems ridiculous not to be able to just buy some. There are numerous Neem products but strangely no oil.

If you google "Chiang Mai University Neem Oil" they seem to have done a fair bit of study on it. Perhaps ferreting through those links will provide a contact who can tell you where they bought it.

Cheers,

ChicoG

OH:

And....

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Neem-Oil-t173386.html

10 to 15 million baht handed to a woman whose language you can't speak, whose culture you don't understand in a 3rd world country with a very high murder rate and an incompetent and corrupt police force at an age when you are probably not the most physically attractive you have ever been is not smart IMO.

I have a friend who was involved in a serious bike accident up country (he slid on gravel and tore up his leg quite badly); he was taken to the local hospital where he received what he thought was appropriate treatment. Because no-one was notified, his family and friends only found out about a week later, and rushed to get him into one of the decent BKK hospitals. Sadly, by that time, the infection was so bad he had to have the leg amputated. The BKK hospital told them the leg definitely could have been saved if he'd received appropriate medical treatment at the time of the accident.

So this doesn't surprise me. You may read something sinister into it, but Occam's Razor says it was probably that he did not get the correct medical attention, and if he was conscious then that's his own fault.

I would not f*** about when it comes to medical care. It's not worth saving a few baht over if you aren't going to be around to spend it.

Well it sort of explains why you hardly ever see anyone swimming in it. I'm not sure I'd want to eat the fish, either.

Ok Thanks, I'll try and find it again.

By the way by in front of D2, do you mean on the other side of the road?

If you come to the Red Lion I'll hold your hand and take you there.

Do you need directions to The Red Lion?

Kevin, surprised to read you didn't suggest he pop into the Red Lion for a free water and a chat about why it is the best pub in CM.

CB

If I have to explain the difference between 'in front of' and 'on the other side of the road' I may not have the patience for lengthy conversation. Besides, there is a much bigger match on tonight (Wolves v Liverpool) so I may try out The Sports Bar myself. I'm not so sure if the clientele will be as interesting as the late-night arrivals at Kheuy Chiang Mai, so it may go to a vote.

Oooh do give us the scoop on the new Sports Bar, looking forward to visiting it on my next trip.

I would think she'll need a scan (MRI, CAT, PET, can't remember which is which) to rule out things like aneurism and tumour.

After that it's anybody's guess. Most of the quacks here will just prescribe her a big bag of coloured sweets and send her on her way.

I think what you need is a referral to a Neurologist.

I was going to buy a condo on soi 8, but decided against it as i can imagine in a few year (s) it becoming like a soi 5 or even soi 4...already now walking down the entrance part of soi 8 in high season you pass a crowd of the 'shaved heads- tattoos- sleevless beer chang shirts- walking with beer in hand' crowd.

Not sure why you'd want to buy a condo anywhere *near* that street. It gets worse by the day.

i am in CM now and i am def watching the jets game, somewhere somehow. big jets fan, just cant miss that one. If someone has a fast net, we can probably stream it too, and share the cost. let me know if someone is interested.

www.p2p4u.net

Orang37,

Thank you for taking the time to offer such eloquent advice.

If only I had a bloody clue what you are on about.

I'm no rocket surgeon, you know.

A couple of problems with that plan. The signal is limited to 50 metres, the sign-in is password protected, and more importantly, there is a No Riff Raff sign to get past.

No, you see we stream the webcam through your wifi onto t'internet...

PS: 22,000 views?

And just remember, there's no such thing as bad publicity <heh>

Just a quick reminder to those that forgot or joined this post later on - I've got AIS 3G wifi in the pub.

I've got an idea. We put the webcam and mic in the Lion. Then we wander down to the Beaver and sign in. Then we send Wolfie in there for a BLT while his best mate is working behind the counter......

It could be like "I'm a celebrity, get me a BLT"

i have been to doi suthep before.....so that is out my list...

anything else near by? ...i'll be staying in Shangrila so wondering...how far is the sunday walking market? .......walk or songthew?

i know there is night bazaar but that is for night : ) .....

anything else guys?

The Sunday market starts at Thae Pae gate and goes inside the walled city.

I haven't done the whole thing recently, (I did walk across the gate part a couple of weeks ago) but there always seemed to be a lot more stuff that isn't always in the Night Bazaar, and you also have a lot more time and space to move around. If I'd had more time (and space in my suitcase) I would have given it a right going over.

Now let's analyze this as a review - this is a really weak review!

Can't really be arsed.

Ulysses:

Where is it? Sounds good.

And you keep saying that "two years ago was the worst year here in the last 12." Your memory is failing you. You lost a whole year of your life somewhere. I'm sure every member of TV who was here in March 2007 will agree that was the worst season in the last decade.

I don't keep saying it at all. You are the one now turning it into an absolute. I was relating MY experience and MY opinion, and illustrated it with some observations, nothing more, nothing less. Why on earth is that so hard for you to accept?

Re-read my last post, and then perhaps you can offer something to the debate, other than trying to pull down other opinions and then feebly trying to back it with "I'm sure every member of TV..." etc.

Well I'm a member of TV. I was here in March 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. And I don't think 2007 was the worst. So that's your absolute out of the window then.

If I say that the air in CM today was the best air anywhere in the world, what is that statement/opinion worth?

In itself, precisely squit. But if you offered your reasons, it would be something to discuss, wouldn't it?

The air is polluted in March. We all agree on that. Some think it's getting better, some worse. Is there anything we can do? Is there anything we should do? What have you done to make the situation better?

Three questions, and I will answer all three (speaking as a non-resident farang).

(1) In my experience, the only thing that would possibly have any effect is for tourists to write to TAT, local media, etc. and complain. It would need significant numbers to have a noticeable impact.

(2) Write to TAT, local media, etc. and complain.

(3) I write to TAT, local media, etc. and complain.

What the authorities should do is rent one of those big f*** off firefighting planes and go around dumping gallons of dye-stained piss on all the fires they see in protected areas.

Not going to happen though, is it.