Buriram Expats
Buriram Province - General Category => COMMUNITY BLOGS => Topic started by: Lourens on July 27, 2008, 09:05:37 PM
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Great idea this community blog effect. And I think it should stay open for comments. Keep it in the family I always says.
Anyway, some of you might have seen all this on a blog I kept on the other website but I have subsequently taken it off from there and was wondering where I could give free range to my ramblings. So here goes:
We have a bull. Or rather, our boy, Tho, has a bull. And he had three cows too. There was another old guy who used to look after the cattle for us but he became too old for the job and decided to retire. This left our livestock with nowhere to go at night and the only solution was to keep them in our yard, the same yard that we built a big wall around to keep the cows out and stop them eating our garden. Our garden is not your typical English country garden of the song but more of a natural style garden where anything goes. We did plant some trees and a few flowers and they were doing well with all the care and attention we gave them during the dry season. Then the rain came and they were doing even better. Then the cows came and most of them were eaten down to the roots. We decided to sell the cattle but could only get a buyer for the cows. It’s a buyers market these days and they can choose what they want and nobody wants a bull right now. So we still have to take care of the bull. Tho takes the bull out in the morning before school, makes sure he has food and water for the day and then brings him back in at night to feast on our garden. Then one morning he was late for school and didn’t take the bull to his usual spot but just tied him up close to mamma’s house. There was food and water enough but being a bull with ambitions to explore and, I’m sure, missing his cows too, he went looking around the house. The spirit house which stands in front of the house then looked like a nice place to scratch himself against. The spirit house did not stand up to this attention and tumbled over breaking into a hundred pieces.
Let me explain about the spirit house. Every house and building in Thailand has a spirit house which usually stands in a corner of the yard. This spirit house is there for the spirits of people who used to occupy the land before and when a building is placed, it is customary to give the spirits a house of their own so that they can stay there in peace and not disturb the people living in the new building. Offerings of food and drink are sometimes made at the spirit house to ask them or to thank them for good luck. The spirit house is a big deal and taken very seriously.
You can just imagine how the bull was seen after this incident. In a bad light is putting it mildly but amazingly he was still considered to be just an animal and animals do what animals do. Now action had to be taken to replace the broken spirit house with all speed. A new one was bought that very same day but unfortunately the Brahmin priest who does all these blessing ceremonies for us was busy with another important ceremony somewhere else. An appointment was made to get him first thing the next morning and he gladly obliged. All is well again in our corner of the village.
Post script: Another old guy offered to take care of our bull for us while the bull takes care of his cows. Everybody wins!
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Good story showing the importance and how seriously Thai looks at the spiritual side of life,where most foreigns forgot long time ago. (or so I feel anyway..).
In some way its amazing to see and try to understand the way thai life is standing for.but on the other side you can see so many contradictions in life here.. ummm .. sawadi
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All right. This is all new stuff never blogged before. But we're still on the spirit houses. I call it:
The Big Chicken Murders of 2004.
Soon after our house was built, it had to get the spirit house erected in an auspicious place on the property. The place deemed fit for such an important structure was in one corner of our property next to a nice tree that carried some significance for the family. The spirit house was built and duly blessed and inaugurated with the obligatory scented waters, powders, flowers and incense. It was a beautiful site to behold. All colorful and cheery and everyone was in good spirits.
The only problem was that the free ranging chickens who used the tree, for several generations, as their perch every night, now had a very convenient stepping stone up to bed. And you know what chickens do with all those worms and seeds they had for lunch. They defecate – profusely. This all went onto the spirit house. But not only that, the chickens also had to check out their new convenience which caused them to bump around and break some of the small statuettes and trinkets dedicated to the spirits. Very bad karma indeed.
The first order of business was to try and persuade the chickens not to use the tree as their perch. So every evening at sunset, the kids, armed with catapults, rattling cans and sticks went out to chase them birds away. But the chickens would have none of this. They were here first and that’s the way its gonna stay. I found it quite amazing to observe their perseverance. The chickens that is, not the kids. The kids would give up after dark. But those chickens would walk around clucking indignantly until they would find a gap and wham! They’d be up on the spirit house and on to the tree.
This went on for about a week when my wife couldn’t take it anymore. Every day she had to go out and clean chicken poo off the spirit house and try to repair broken artifacts. And every day she would tell her brother to take care of his chickens or else. . . But he would just say those are not his chickens. The plot was thickening. My wife grew more agitated with every chicken dropping she had to clean. Something drastic was going to happen. It was now just a matter of time before she snapped.
I was sitting on the porch one evening having my sunset beer when the kids came to do the chicken chase. My wife came storming out to do a children chase instead. She told them to leave the chickens and let them enjoy their last night. I thought this was a bit sinister but didn’t think much about it as the cool brown liquid soothed my parched throat. The sun set. All was calm. Only the odd gecko did its mating call. The wife appeared again but this time with a determined look on her face. She walked straight to the tree followed by two kids. Still silent, the kids got into the tree and started picking chickens as if they were the fruits of some weird genetically engineered plant. Slumbering chickens don’t move much and this made the task of collecting all of them easily accomplished. They got them all. Eleven chickens was bound and bagged and left for the next morning.
Brother-in-law Joy came by just after breakfast and did the deed. All the chickens, a whole generation, was wiped out and plucked and frozen by lunchtime. When wifes’ other brother Noi came around in the evening with his mates armed with a bottle of Lao Kao, the conversation naturally turned to the chickens. Or the lack of chickens in the yard. My wife had no problem explaining to him the dilemma that she had. Needless to say, the Noi was upset and started to throw one of his tantrums. But not enough rice spirit was consumed at that early stage to let him explode into violence. My wife’s timing was perfect. When Noi looked like he was going to do something radical, she produced a couple of bottles of beer (my beer) and all turned to smiles. A confrontation was averted. Anyway, Noi had his prize cocks safely stashed away in a coup at a friends house and all he wanted was a chicken to share with his mates for dinner.
All of this and not a word about bird flu!
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Great story Lourens :)
We live in town, and I miss all the similar "going ons" that seems to happen every time we visit friends and family outside of town.
Mind you, there is still a lot of gossips and stories that happen here. I hope to relate some in the near future ;)
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Thanks for that Somnat. I'm sure we're all looking forward to read your stories.
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Dogs are a very common sight. Some families have pedigreed breeds like Dalmatians, Rotweilers and Poodles, which I found surprising at first but the reason for this was because they breed them and sell them as pets. I understand they make good money from these too and I even investigated the possibilities myself at one stage. It is still in the back of my mind and may come to something in the future.
But the most common breed is the pavement mixture variety as found all over Thailand. Mangy looking dogs not well looked after and almost always infected with some kind of skin parasite. I feel sorry for these animals and at one time even went on a crusade to try and rescue some of them. The local vet sells an injection that takes care of that skin condition but it has to be followed up regularly otherwise it just comes back.
One day I was sitting with a neighbor having a quiet beer when a pick-up truck drove by. It had cages with dogs on the back and when I asked what that was all about, was told that it was stray dogs being picked up to be sold elsewhere for meat. All very natural in these parts and nobody thought it was out of the ordinary. It just goes to show that there are still some things I have to get used to.
You know how kids are; they bring home a dog as a pet and then forget to look after it. It then becomes the parents’ responsibility to take care of these animals. Our boy brought home such a puppy one day. It was very cute and everybody made a big fuss over it. The only problem was that it was a bitch and the first thing I thought off was that one day this bitch will have puppies of her own if we don’t do anything about it. My wife wanted to know nothing of the sort. “We can take care of the puppies when they arrive.†Of course this never happened – the taking care part of it I mean. The getting pregnant part happened in very short order and six puppies arrived not unexpectedly. They were ooh’ed and aah’ed over for a while but the novelty soon wore off.
Now we had seven dogs. Two moved away on their own accord because I think they thought it got just too crowded. I kept making noises to get rid of some of them but there were nobody who wanted them. They were all grown up and not so cute anymore. Also, it became a big problem to feed all these dogs all the time and it became more difficult to find food for all of them. And then, if we had enough food, they would start fighting each other like any dogs would. Also, they were making a mess of our yard dragging all sorts of rubbish around. All these dogs became a big problem. Then one afternoon we were sitting outside having sundowners when this pick-up with cages full of dogs came driving up. . .
We now only have one dog to take care of.
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My sympathies regarding the unwanted dogs, but if you were to witness their distress, you would never give them to the "dog truck". If you are in lower Isaan, then they are most probably taken to the Chong Chom border market, where the Cambodians come over and buy them. They are individually trussed up in sack cloths, waiting for sale by the kilo. Their wailing and cries of anguish are heartbreaking to any animal lover. How they are killed is another story.
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I do appologise if I caused any distress here and I realize that this might stir up a bit of controversy. There will be a number of people who read this and feel very strongly about animal abuses. But this is Thailand and this is how things are done around here. There are no animal protection agencies to look after domestic animals like you would have in the west. The only animal protection agencies are those for either elephants or monkeys and they are both privately funded.
The fact that someone takes the trouble to gather mistreated and underfed dogs so that they can be put to good use (feeding people), is a big plus in my opinion. They are no longer called pets at this stage. I mean, it’s not like you’re going to take a frying pan and say: “Here, boy.†Rather than letting these dogs suffer, use them to relief the suffering of hungry people. And that’s what it’s all about – the people. They come first and once every soul is fed, watered, clothed and housed, everything else will be looked after.
Now that is what I call getting the priorities straight. In some countries people will spend millions to care for pets while there are people without food and housing. How messed up is that! Don’t get me wrong here. I love dogs and cats have their place too. Sure a dog will a good companion and will protect you but then you must be willing to look after it. Once you cannot look after that dog anymore and it is starting to impact on your own well being it is time to get rid of it. And that is what was starting to happen to all the dogs we had. It was becoming more and more difficult to look after them all. So instead of starving half of them, it became time to reduce the numbers to a more manageable figure. And the best way to do that was to help feed people. hungry
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I do appologise if I caused any distress here and I realize that this might stir up a bit of controversy. There will be a number of people who read this and feel very strongly about animal abuses. But this is Thailand and this is how things are done around here. There are no animal protection agencies to look after domestic animals like you would have in the west. The only animal protection agencies are those for either elephants or monkeys and they are both privately funded.
The fact that someone takes the trouble to gather mistreated and underfed dogs so that they can be put to good use (feeding people), is a big plus in my opinion. They are no longer called pets at this stage. I mean, it’s not like you’re going to take a frying pan and say: “Here, boy.†Rather than letting these dogs suffer, use them to relief the suffering of hungry people. And that’s what it’s all about – the people. They come first and once every soul is fed, watered, clothed and housed, everything else will be looked after.
Now that is what I call getting the priorities straight. In some countries people will spend millions to care for pets while there are people without food and housing. How messed up is that! Don’t get me wrong here. I love dogs and cats have their place too. Sure a dog will a good companion and will protect you but then you must be willing to look after it. Once you cannot look after that dog anymore and it is starting to impact on your own well being it is time to get rid of it. And that is what was starting to happen to all the dogs we had. It was becoming more and more difficult to look after them all. So instead of starving half of them, it became time to reduce the numbers to a more manageable figure. And the best way to do that was to help feed people. hungry
OK you make a valid point, but if the dogs become superfluous, surely it would be better to have them humanely put down than to suffer the traumatic experience they inevitably do prior to being killed. Feeding the hungry people is one thing, but there is no shortage of food in Cambodia, and besides dog meat is a delicacy and commands a high price.
Many people turn their unwanted pets over to the wats, where there would seem to be an unlimited amount of food available, provided by the local citizens in the belief that their donations will provide them with a better life next time.
If only it were so easy to dispose of wives and girlfriends after they were no longer considered "cute" and became a drain on our pockets!
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I do appologise if I caused any distress here and I realize that this might stir up a bit of controversy. There will be a number of people who read this and feel very strongly about animal abuses. But this is Thailand and this is how things are done around here. There are no animal protection agencies to look after domestic animals like you would have in the west. The only animal protection agencies are those for either elephants or monkeys and they are both privately funded.
The fact that someone takes the trouble to gather mistreated and underfed dogs so that they can be put to good use (feeding people), is a big plus in my opinion. They are no longer called pets at this stage. I mean, it’s not like you’re going to take a frying pan and say: “Here, boy.†Rather than letting these dogs suffer, use them to relief the suffering of hungry people. And that’s what it’s all about – the people. They come first and once every soul is fed, watered, clothed and housed, everything else will be looked after.
Now that is what I call getting the priorities straight. In some countries people will spend millions to care for pets while there are people without food and housing. How messed up is that! Don’t get me wrong here. I love dogs and cats have their place too. Sure a dog will a good companion and will protect you but then you must be willing to look after it. Once you cannot look after that dog anymore and it is starting to impact on your own well being it is time to get rid of it. And that is what was starting to happen to all the dogs we had. It was becoming more and more difficult to look after them all. So instead of starving half of them, it became time to reduce the numbers to a more manageable figure. And the best way to do that was to help feed people. hungry
OK you make a valid point, but if the dogs become superfluous, surely it would be better to have them humanely put down than to suffer the traumatic experience they inevitably do prior to being killed. Feeding the hungry people is one thing, but there is no shortage of food in Cambodia, and besides dog meat is a delicacy and commands a high price.
Many people turn their unwanted pets over to the wats, where there would seem to be an unlimited amount of food available, provided by the local citizens in the belief that their donations will provide them with a better life next time.
If only it were so easy to dispose of wives and girlfriends after they were no longer considered "cute" and became a drain on our pockets!
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Perhaps we need a new market.
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Right, lets move away from the controversial subject of animals for food. Still on animals though but of a different sort this time.
Insects are common and plentiful. But mostly, they are pests. I’m thinking of flies, ants and mosquitoes here. Flies are particularly pesky if you don’t mind your general hygiene. Especially in the summertime when all the fruits are ripening and the kids are eating these in and around the house. It takes about a millisecond for flies to gather on your fruits. I tried spraying them with poison but that never works for long. They get used to the taste and a minute later, will be back for more.
I always say that the television will never replace the newspaper as a news medium. You cannot swat a fly with the television. Well, you can, but it's not good for the TV. And that is why I bought myself one of those bug zappers. It looks like a tennis racquet but the strings are made up of a wire mesh. The thing is charged with electricity and can give a human a nasty shock when touched. Now imagine what it does to a fly or a mosquito. It fries them with a reassuring ‘bizzz’. Sometimes you can even get a little smoke too. Very satisfying to say the least and hours of fun for the whole family.
I had one of those lights that attract insects at night and then zaps them as they enter the forbidden zone. But it got filled up so quickly that it was in constant power-drain mode after just half an hour. Also, one night a gecko got caught in there and that wasn’t a nice site. I gave up on using the light for humanitarian reasons after that.
Mosquito coils are another common site in Isaan. Every little shop sells it and every other house burns it. The smoke they give off is vile. Much worse than any tobacco smoke and at least twice as harmful. Insects die of the stuff! Yet, when you walk into some houses, it is all you can smell. Even in some restaurants they burn them. And they have a no smoking policy? I don't get it. Mosquito coils are fine if you burn them outside well away from any human or animal. Burn them where you think mosquitoes may congregate but please, keep them away from people. That is my opinion and a rule in our house. My wife said so.
I found a beautifully natural way of getting rid of mosquitoes. You swat them with the TV. No, seriously, you plant lemongrass. They hate the smell of lemongrass and stay clear where ever it is found. It's the citronella oil that drives them away. And now you can buy a balm or a spray that contains citronella oil. It is applied to the skin. The smell might not appeal to everyone, but it works for me. And as an added bonus, it also repels dogs and cats. I sprayed some on a screen door that always suffered under the attacks of our puppy but after a whiff of this stuff, the puppy left that door well alone.
More on my ant antics later...
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Ants are the woe of my existence. They seem to be everywhere. And no matter how hard I try, I cannot seem to get rid of them. The problem starts with us humans. I have a very hard time to try and convince the family to keep things clean. That way, the ants won't have a reason to enter the house. But, try as I might, there will always be some kind of food stuffs laying about. Even the smallest little bit of food will attract ants. It's a law of nature. And because ants are so small, they will find the tiniest crack to crawl through.
I went on a rampage at one stage and declared all out chemical war on the little buggers. It started with soap. I cleaned all the surfaces, washed all the dishes, scrubbed all the floors. The place was spotless. Then I took cans of bug spray, those cans with the long spout, and sprayed the inside of the house, into every little crack and crevice that I could see. Next came the chalk. It's a white stick just like the stuff my teacher used on the blackboard. You draw a line (you've got to draw the line somewhere) on any surface where an ant might wander. If an ant then crosses this line, its game over. Very effective stuff this and well worth the few Baht it costs. The inside of the house was protected, or so I thought.
On to the outside. Here I used the old fashioned spray pump with dedicated ant poison. You have to be careful with this stuff. I got a nice buzz from it and had dizzy spells from it for days after. I sprayed all around the house, in the garden where ever it looked like an ant might make his home and especially around the trash cans.
The scene was set. I could now sit back and enjoy an ant-free zone. This lasted about two days. Then the first ants started to appear again. Small in number at first and I thought they may be those that escaped the initial onslaught and will be zapped by my defenses in and around the house. “Give them rope, they'll hang themselves soon enough.†I said.
Next day, there were more of them. I had to make an inspection. Walking around the house revealed a thin line of ants crawling up one wall and entering the house via the ceiling. They will go to any lengths to get to whatever little scrap of food is available. Have you ever wondered why ants walk in those straight lines and how they do it? They walk that way because it is easy for them to follow a route to the food. How they do it is actually quite disgusting. The scouts go out to hunt for food and finds it. They eat – its been a long journey. On their way back, the food is digested and they do what every living animal do. They defecate. When they get back to the nest, the other ants follow the poo trail to the food, they eat and on their way back, they defecate. The rest of the nest have no problem following the brown brick road to the promised land of milk and honey. Try drawing a line, with your finger, across the line where ants walk. They will act all confused for a little while until a few of them pooped enough again to link the trail. Disgusting but fascinating none the less.
Anyway, it seemed I had missed a spot up in the ceiling. I did all the necessary spraying and drawing but it lasted just a few days before they were back. The bottom line of this story is – get used to them they will be around for ever. You may be able to reduce their numbers for a little while or even keep them in check, but you will never be able to get rid of them completely. Ants are not that bad really. An experiment done by some scientists found that there are actually no bacteria on ants. That’s why the Thais eat them . . .
I have tried all the potions and traps and poisons on the market but all of them are useless if you don't get rid of the root. Cleanliness, that’s the secret.
Now, was that heavy or what....?
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Cleanliness is next to Antlessness!
Given that many locals are raised in dwellings that lack floors and other amenities it is not uncommon that they have a somewhat different approach to hygiene than a Westerner.
Ants, as Lourens so humorously pens, can be a true pain in the.........well, kitchen!
If you live in an area that grows rice :) you might have seen small boxes of 'crab powder'. These are not for use after a dalliance with a local that has a different approach to hygiene! The powder is added to paddy water in order to kill the small crabs that tend to eat the bottoms of the stems. The physiological make up of ants is not dissimilar to that of crabs. Crab powder mixed in water and poured around the base of the house makes a quite effective, and inexpensive, barrier to all those uninvited guests. It's not 100% effective but it works.
Cheers
Steve
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Thanks for that information Mr. Steve. I've seen this crab powder before but never thought it could be used as an anti-ant anitdote.
About six years ago, my wife bought a small Honda Pop for mamma to ride around with but she had difficulty getting it on and off the stand. (Never thought of fixing a kick-stand did you?) Anyway, the keys then got into the hands of youngest brother Noi and he started using it. Or rather abusing it. I was told that he sometimes loaded up to three of his friends on the thing and then go for Lao Kao parties in another village! So, the keys got taken away and the bike locked up in the house never to be used again. It got in the way and moved outside about a year later and from that time was left in wind and rain to just waste away. I picked it up one day last year with the idea to see if it will still start. After stripping some of the panels off, it looked in a pretty bad state. I asked for the keys. Four days of looking for them later, I gave up. I packed all the panels to one side and parked the bike outside again.
The other day, I was cutting the grass around the house (mowing the lawn sounds to posh for my garden) when I discovered the little scooter again. Then I thought, I have time and we do need another bike around here since our boy started riding too. And I reckoned since I watched almost an entire episode of American Chopper the other day, I should be plenty qualified to tackle this little job. So the decision was made. I will rebuild the scooter and it will be available for my exclusive use to run around the village with. I took it under the carport and had a good long hard look at it. About three beers later I was very excited about this project and wanted to get started right away. But first I had to take inventory of my tool situation. I had an axe, a pair of pliers, a brick and a hack saw. Now, strictly speaking the axe is not an automotive tool but it depends entirely on your point of view. Disassembly was going to be tricky but doable. By this time it got dark outside and time for sundowners on the back stoop.
The following morning, with a clear head and an open mind, I ambled around to the carport again and found that it all wasn’t just a dream. The scooter was still there, dead as a doornail. But luckily I remembered about the socket set and screwdrivers in the car. So out they came and work started in earnest. Stripping it down was much easier than I thought it would be and the first day ended with the engine on the floor. Day two continued with stripping and by the end only the frame and a couple of odds and ends remained. The further I stripped, the more amazed I was that it actually ran. The piston came out minus one ring and pitted like a golf ball. The combustion chamber looked the same. The sleeve however, was undamaged. Pieces of the missing ring fell out of the exhaust pipe after I cleared the carbon from it. Clearing the carbon from an old exhaust pipe is another story all together. My good friend Geoff told me how he saw it done one time from his friendly village mechanic. You pour some petrol down one side of it, stand well back and start throwing matches at it until it sort of explodes. This sounded exciting and it just had to be tried. I followed the prescribed method exactly with the only difference that I left the pipe out in the sun for a while thinking that the evaporation effect will create a bigger boom for my bucks’ worth of petrol. Unfortunately I spent that on flicking matches at it. But the rule of averages dictates that one match will find its mark. And it did with spectacular results. Flames shooting out at both ends with a satisfying whoosh and a pall of black smoke later only left a few taps with the back end of my axe (see?) and a virtual mole heap of carbon was dislodged from its well established abode.
There were only a few things I had trouble with like getting the back wheel off. It was rusted in place. And removing the dynamo. For these little obstacles, I went to see my local automotive engineer. Well actually he’s just my friendly local village mechanic. I call him Mr. Fixit. He can make a plan with everything using anything at his disposal. He had a wheel puller once but it must have been used as something else at one stage of its life. It now resembles a modern art collection of scrap metal and bolts but would you know it? It still works. He had those troublesome bits off in less than a week. And it only cost me 20 Baht. No, really – it only took him about 15 minutes but he should sell tickets to watch him work. It’s amazing how he can make a plan. But when I took the engine back to him for a second time to open the crank case, I could see a little look of doubt in his eyes. Not that he couldn’t do it. I think he was beginning to question my abilities. Anyway, he opened the crank case and packed all the bits and bolts in a plastic bag for me to take home.
Back in my workshop (carport) I started cleaning everything from rust, oil and petrified cow dung. This kept me busy for several days but with the help of my brick (see?) petrified cow dung stand no chance at all. Ok, so I also used a brass brush and my chemistry background to clean aluminium castings. That’s where the toilet cleaner came in. Did I mention the toilet cleaner? Use your imagination but don’t tell my wife. Oh, and every bit got a new coat of paint as well.
My wife had serious doubts that the farang will ever be able to put this thing back together again and make it work. I needed a complete set of new gaskets and oil seals but there was no way that I would go out and buy them myself. If you lived in Thailand long enough, you just know you will pay double for anything of this nature. So after taking about a day to explain to my wife what I needed and eventually calling in the help of Mr. Fixit, she understood what it was that I needed. And she wanted money to pay for all this stuff. Lots of money. I told her that a set of gaskets will be worth peanuts and a new piston and rings only slightly more expensive. She left with about 2000 Baht with a worried look on her face. About an hour later she returned with a big smile. 450 Baht was all it took to get the necessary spare parts which included a new petrol filter. I said: “See? I told you so. Now where’s my change?†Wife: “There is no change.†Ah well. I could have gone and bought the stuff myself.
I had a good look at all the ports in the cylinder sleeve and saw some pretty rough edges in there. This is where I thought my Dremel Rotary tool might come in handy. So out it came and I did my best work smoothing all the rough edges and polishing the ports. Even the pitted combustion chamber got a once over and looked like new when I finished. Now came the job of putting it all back together again and again those amused looks from my audience. Did I mention I had an audience? There were a couple of the village youngsters who came around regularly to see the progress. I got plenty of “Tam aria?†which I later found out meant “What are you doing?†and heard “Bah farang†quite often too. But I am happy to report that it all went very smoothly. I put the engine back together in only one morning and had it mounted back in frame by lunch time. This was exciting stuff. I redid the wiring harness earlier by removing all the old insulation tape, patching the exposed wires and covering the whole thing again in new tape. It looked the business and even Mr. Fixit was impressed when he saw it later. “Keng, keng†was his exact words. (Come now you cynic type persons – it actually means “Good jobâ€. I looked it up.) The cables were oiled and hoses for the carburettor and oil pump cleaned and installed. Even the electric starter was refurbished. All that was left was to turn the ignition key and press the starter button. “Honey, where’s the key for the little motorbike?†No key. So, off with the ignition switch, down to the locksmiths and have two new keys cut. An hour later it was time for the truth. Will it start? Read all about it in the next exciting episode of this blog.
No, I won’t keep you on a cliff-hanger like that. I turned the engine over a few times using the kick start just to see if it will actually turn over and not make any funny noises. It didn’t. Make funny noises, that is. Then I pushed the starter button and, I’m not making this up, it started right away. At first I thought: “What the blazes is THAT noise?†Then I realized it was actually running. AND THERE WAS NOBODY THERE TO SEE THIS!! So I turned it off and had a beer.
The only problems that I had was that the new back tire is a wee bit bigger than before and now I can’t attach the original air filter box. But I made my own and it works fine. The only other problem is that I am left with a very strange looking o-ring and a very substantial looking spring and I have no idea where they go. But, like I always say, if it runs without these parts, they were never necessary in the first place and it was just over-engineered to begin with. I use the scooter every day now to run the kid to school and go to the shop when needed. I still haven’t fitted a kick-stand and I don’t want to because then almost anybody can ride it. I do get big smiles around the village these days and then I think to myself: “That will show them. Bah farang my a*se.â€
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We all have to get to Buriram in some way or another. We have several options here:
Traveling to Buriram from Bangkok may be done by plane, train, bus or private taxi and this can be an experience in itself. The first time I made the trip to meet the parents was by bus and I promised myself never to do that again. It was hell on wheels. You catch the bus at Khonsong in Bangkok. There are busses running all the time and they range from hot, stuffy, smoke belching death traps to the more comfortable air-conditioned coaches with reclining seats. I think we had about the middle of the range with upright vinyl seats and aircon stuck on artic in August when the heat outside is good to melt the wax in your ears. The price was right for just a little over 100 Baht to Buriram. This was way back in 1997.
First we had to get through the Bangkok traffic and, as you know, this is no fun but is made a little more acceptable if someone else is doing the driving. Once the bus hits the highway, it's full speed ahead. And I mean full speed. Until the traffic starts to pick up again. Then it's leaning on the brakes so hard that I could see the vein bulging in the drivers' neck even from the third row back. And this particular driver doesn’t know about keeping a constant speed, pumping the gas on and off all the way. I was ready to get off the bus after the first hour but no such luck. This bus does not stop for the first three hours of a ten-hour, 350 km trip. Yes, that's right - 10 hours for 350 km. And the first stop is just for the driver to make a pit stop. There is a dirty disgusting toilet on the bus for the passengers but I decided to give that one a miss. Besides, I don't exactly know how to use a hole in the floor on a moving bus.
The second stop came at about the halfway point through the journey. I was rather surprised to be let off the bus, but we were hurriedly herded to a small roadside cafe for what can only be described as a watery snack. Welcome to Isaan food! Some kind of soup with a few cabbage leaves floating in it, a very spicy pork curry also floating in some liquid and of course boiled rice with no salt. But I was hungry at this point and made the best of it by mixing rice and curry together. This turned out to be quite palatable.
After a half a cigarette (no time for a whole one), it was back on the bus again for the remainder of our trip. I tried a fitful sleep and eventually woke up just outside of Buriram at four o'clock in the evening. That’s ten at night or 22:00 hours for us regular folk.
As luck would have it, it was raining slightly when we arrived at the bus terminal so it wasn't too hot. From here we had to take a tuk-tuk home, which is in a village on the other side of town. But Buriram tuk-tuks are not the same as those you find in Bangkok, which is more of a tourist trap than a form of transport. What this means is that these tuk-tuks are geared to convey the locals but my girlfriend (now my wife love2 ) still had to negotiate a price. But nothing like the prices I got used to. It was only a couple of Baht and the driver was happy to see a farang in his taxi.
Aaaah the good old days...
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Last time I described my experience of using the bus as a means of transport to Buriram and vowed never to do that again. My next option was to take the train and there are several to choose from as I’m sure you’re aware.
Trains leave Bangkok’s Hua Lompong station several times a day on the North-East line. Prices are just a few Baht more than the bus but beat it hands down. There are several different trains, from the one that stop at all stations with hard seats and take for ever to reach Isaan (Cattle class), to the air-conditioned train with soft seats and skips the small stations, to the sleeper train that runs at night and only takes a couple of hours. I have taken them all. The last train is still much cheaper than the plane and in my opinion the best way to travel if you have the time.
Let me start with the first train. This is classed as 3rd but in my opinion that is only because they have not made provision for 5th class in their schedules. As I mentioned, hard upright seats only available if you board the train first at the main station. Because it’s so cheap, everybody and their luggage takes this train even if it is to travel only to the next station. The result? If you don’t push yourself through to the front (sometimes with force) and get on first, you may well have to stand for the rest of the day. No airconditioning here either. Only windows that are stuck on open sometimes even if it rains. But that can be a small blessing. A cooling breeze on a wet face does wonders for your well being. It can get hot on these trains – very hot. Imagine this: A coach packed with people, no personal space and no ventilation. Multiply this by six hours and you get the idea. Add a kid whining the Thai version of “Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?â€. I don’t know about you, but this can get on my nerves very quickly. Saving face then becomes a major operation.
But those are the negative things and I always try to look for the positive. Like the guys coming around taking orders for meals. What they will do is take orders and then phone this through a couple of stations further down the line. When we reach that station, the food is picked up freshly prepared and served right away. The bonus here is the fact that not only do they get the food, they also get the drinks. I’m talking cold beer here and it never tastes that sweet after a few hours of this crowd. Then eventually the train will loose a few passengers further away from Bangkok and you may find a seat to rest your weary bones. Usually by this time, if you don’t sit down, you will just fall down anyway. You see, I don’t have a drinking problem: I drink, I fall down, no problem. No, it’s not that bad. But it helps to pass the time. Only problem here is that eventually you will have to use the bathroom. Now, try using a hole in the floor of a moving swaying train after you had a few – not an easy task believe me. Eventually, just as you get the feeling that you can not take this anymore, Buriram will be the next station. Bliss.
The Rapid Express train runs only twice a day I think and you have to buy your ticket in advance. The train consists of only two coaches with reclining seats and airconditioning. I never found it crowded as tickets are sold only for available seats. It makes a few stops out of Bangkok and then heads North-East picking up speed. It skips the smaller stations along the way and saves a lot of time. The same catering arrangements apply here and I always find it very soothing to sip my beer as I watch the scenery slip by. Eventually I will drift off in a slumber and before you know it, it will be time to disembark. Don’t miss this station because the next one might be Surin…
By far the best option to travel the Buriram / Bangkok route is by night train. This train consists of two kinds of coaches: A coach with a couch and a cot in a cubilcle. Let me explain: There is a coach with crib closed by a curtain for seclusion. Then there’s a coach with compartments and a curtain on the casement with a catch on the close. (Stop, please stop!!) It’s a little room with a bed, curtains a door and a lock. Get it?
Book well in advance. These trains are very well maintained with clean bed linen and very helpful staff. In confidence off course I never had a crisis or a cause to complain (watch it, watch it….)
I’d better stop here. Next time – Another way to travel to Beautiful Buriram.
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Travel to/from Buriram with the train is nice and pleasant way to do it but ONLY WITH VIP, last time I took the standard (??!! :'( )train Buriram-Bkk it was HELL !!! >:D
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What is it with woman and underwear? I can understand that they like to wear the stuff but when it comes to my underwear, leave it to me to decide what to wear and when. It is illegal in Thailand to leave the house without underwear and I fully abide by that law. But when it comes to choosing the underwear I want to wear, I see it as a rather personal choice. My wife loves to buy me underwear. I, on the other hand, like to choose my own underwear. The underwear I bought in 1998 was a good pair and I wore it with pride for many years. But then one day they just sort of fell off and it was clearly time for a new pair. Now this decision takes a lot of careful planning and consideration before money is laid out and a pair of underwear is bought. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not about the money but it is all about the comfort of a pair of underwear. And if you find a good pair, you buy not just one pair but seven pairs. One for each day of the week. Let it never be said that I walk around with dirty underwear.
Then one day my wife comes home with underwear that she bought for me. Bless her little heart. She means well. Her explanation is that she does not like the underwear I have nurtured for so long. But that underwear came through a lot with me. We are like old friends as I’m sure you will understand after so many years of sharing intimate moments. They have been leaked in, farted upon, washed and stretched just right and those holes are there for a purpose…
Now suddenly my wife comes home with this strange new underwear and expects me to just put them on and wear it. “But they are XL dear“ she would say. Get this right: XL in Thailand and XL in the West means two entirely different things. Thailand XL is far too tight for my liking and as a starting point we can begin with XXXL and work our way from there. The underwear she got me now is the type worn by midgets with no particular pride in the tools stakes. (No offense to Thai men.) Right now, as it is, I’m typing this in a higher key than my normal speaking voice. And I don’t want to blow my own horn here either (if you’ll pardon the pun). But I need underwear with space to swing a cat. Not that I will ever do that (swing a cat that is) but you get my drift not to put too fine a point on it.
All I’m trying to say here is that I wish woman would understand about men and their underwear. We don’t all share the same tastes here. Sure I like soft and cuddly as much as the next man but at the right time and in the right places. But when it comes to my underwear, leave that decision to me.
Now you know much more than you wanted and I apologize for that.
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Flying between Bangkok and Buriram.
The plane flight from Bangkok to Buriram is available three times a week and can be another experience to write home about. Especially during the rainy season (July - October). Me and my wife took this flight on a then Thai Airways AR75 twin turboprop aircraft from Buriram to Bangkok right in the middle of the rainy season. When we left BFV (Buriram), it was already cloudy with light intermittend rain. On a previous flight this was actually a nice experience as the pilot then weaved between the clouds to avoid flying through them. Also, the altitude was kept much lower than I can remember from before with the result that you could quite easily make out ground features. Even people working the fields and water buffalo was clearly visible. But the closer we got to BKK (Bangkok) the heavier the clouds became and eventually the pilot could no longer avoid them. Trying to gain altitude just made things worse. Normally this flight took about 1 hour but on this day it took a lot longer. Then I discovered by looking out the window that we were circling because a small bush fire kept popping into view. We were in a holding pattern. The pilot came on the PA and announced that BKK put us there because of severe weather conditions on the ground. Remember that when this flight left BKK, it did so with a load of fuel to carry it to BFV and back because they don’t refill in Buriram. But flying low and in a holding pattern uses more fuel than anticipated. After about 30 minutes (or four large circles) the pilot announces that we are now cleared for landing. What he didn’t say, but I knew to be the truth, was that we were actually running out of fuel and simply had to land or else. I know this because the conditions we landed in was not ideal to say the least. We started our approach. Looking out of the window again, I could see what went on beside and ahead of us and it wasn’t pretty. You know the sort of clouds I’m talking about – no silver linings here mate. Things began to get a little bumpy. Then they got a lot bumpy and shaky. Not only up and down but from side to side as well. At first there were just gasps from the passengers. That progressed to shrieks and ended up with shouts for mercy. It was bad. I kept looking out the window and could at one point see the landing lights on the runway. We were flying sideways! Then came the touchdown. Or I should really say the slam down. With a loud thump we were on the ground but it didn’t end there. The plane started to skid to one side. And here I have to give all credit to the abilities of these pilots. As the plane skid to one side, the pilot would open the throttle on the other side to correct. He had to do this about three times before we were running in a straight line and down to managable speeds. On a scale of one to ten with ten actually hitting the ground, I give this flight about a nine and a half.
All this time my wife was silently praying to Buddah for a safe landing. She held my hand so tight that it still pained for a day or two after the flight. The interesting thing about it all only appeared after we came to a stop. It was only then that people began to get sick and the first time that I saw passengers actually using those little airsick bags. Flight attendants was frantically running around handing out warm water and more airsick bags. From this day on, I always keep my seatbelt securely fastened at all times while seated.
Three different airlines have flown this route since I started going to Buriram and all of them used twin turboprop aircraft. The latest airline, PBAir, uses a small executive jet. The flight only takes about an hour and Buriram airport is a 30 - 40 minute drive from town. There is a taxi service to town but make sure you know where you want to go. Useful terms to keep in mind are sy - left, kwa - right and trong - straight. The drivers don't speak English. The price may range from about 400 Baht to 600 Baht and they would usually want 50 -100 Baht extra if you go to a village outside of town. I haven’t used this service for a while now and prices might be different.
What was your experience?
Next time: Taking the taxi to Buriram.
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Just another day in Buriram
I witnessed an amazing thing the other day. I was watching television when suddenly there was a flash and a very loud bang. You know how it is when lightning stikes. First you see the flash then you hear the thunder? Well, this happened simultaniously. I hoped about a foot of my perch. Then it started raining. After a while when I got bored with what’s on the box I decided to go outside and watch the rain for a while. Then I saw smoke coming from behind the house. I walked around and saw what caused it. We have a large palm tree just behind the house and it was on fire. Sooo, that’s where the lightning struck. It’s an old palm tree and had a lot of dry fronds hanging from it. Now it was burning right at the top but only on the other side from where the rain was coming from. Pretty soon the fire reached the dry fronds lower down and it started burning furiously. I thought this was the end of our old palm tree but after just a short burst of intense flame, the burning fronds fell off into the wet rice paddy below. This left the tree with a clean trunk and only the new green growth at the top. Natures’ way of pruning away the old growth. Wonderfull. How many people in the big cities get to see something like this?
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The Thais always hiding from the rain when have lightnings,cover the windows with blanckets,many take the gold off their body in the belief any metal material attached to their body will attract the lightning directly to them..first I thought they rather stupid,but I see here in Thailand many many times thunders and lightning going very low to the earth....urrr scary!
Now I believe! surrender1
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Teacher killed by lightning in Thailand
September 28, 2008 - 10:48AM
Staff from a Perth school have headed to Thailand after a group of its students were left stranded when their teacher died in a lightning strike.
Social studies teacher Greg Crombie was leading a group of 15 students from Winthrop Baptist College on a week-long cultural exchange trip to Thailand, ABC reported today.
The group were resting near the water after a swim at Thad Tone waterfalls near the town of Nong Sung, in Thailand's north-east, when a thunderstorm struck, ABC reported.
It's believed Mr Crombie was hit by lightning.
A teaching assistant, reportedly in a serious condition, was to be evacuated by helicopter to Bangkok, about 600km from the falls, ABC said.
A year 11 student had also been hurt, it said.
The school's principal and a counsellor had flown to Thailand to be with the group and bring them home, but the earliest flight they could get back to Australia was tomorrow, ABC said.
AAP
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Exactly the way I see it...
(This was published by: Short story WIN LYOVARIN ? Translated MARCEL BARANG. Bangkok Post, Outlook Magazine. 6/04/2009 at 12:00 AM.)
One day visit to Buriram 4001:
Landing at Buriram International Airport servicing the capital of Thailand. If you travel on your own to join this tour you can travel by sky-train from the airport to downtown in ten minutes. Taking black-plate sky-taxis is not safe, as their drivers tend to fight for then fleece passengers. If you must take a private vehicle, Tourist Office limousines with robot employees are recommended. All robot employees are programmed for honesty. Safety is underwritten by the National Insurance Organisation.
The primary touristic attraction in the capital is the Phanom Rung Mega Temple under its air-conditioned glass dome. This stone temple has been famous for over twenty centuries. Its dome is a rare example of modern Thai savvy. Initially the temple lay in ruins in sun-baked wasteland for over two hundred years. When it was rediscovered by archaeologists, the authorities decided to restore it and turn it into a historical park. Inside the giant glass dome covering the whole temple area the temperature is pleasantly cool and the oxygen level higher than outside. Even from the ground you can see the sky clearly as if the dome did not exist. Phanom Rung is both a historical site and the biggest trading centre. Tourists should not miss the opportunity to purchase souvenirs here. There are plastic reproductions of famous Thai images, such as the Reclining Narai lintel, scale models of stupas, and all sorts of amulets.
In the afternoon visit the Thai Historical Museum, which is full of vessels and other antique exhibits. Archaeologists and historians assume that in ancient days people liked to inscribe their names on the implements they used, as most artefacts bear the names of their owners, such as Calvin Klein, Elisabeth Arden, Esthe'e Lauder, Nike, Reebok, Sony, Yamaha, Hitachi and others. Those artefacts were discovered in the 3810 Big Dig. They are the most historically valuable items to survive the global flood. The museum also has pictures of the capital in the pre-glasshouse-effect-cum-global-flood era, old three-dimensional photographs of stores in the first Thai period, for example Yaohan, Isetan, Daimaru, Harrods and St Michael. Many of these stores are still extant.
Most interesting also is the Vintage Car Museum which has more than fifty thousand ancestors to the sky-car, each with its own characteristics, from Toyotas and Hondas or Nissans to Benzes, Volvos and BMWs. This is the biggest centre of antique cars in the world. Every year more than five million archaeologists and other interested parties come here to study cars.
If you happen to visit the capital in December, you will witness the biggest celebration of Christmas in the world. Christmas celebrations have been a typical Thai custom for over two millennia. There is a huge parade of a Father Christmas image, the election of a Miss Christmas and illumination of the whole town.
Have dinner at the Buriram Recreation Centre. Thailand's capital has a profusion of restaurants, but we recommend a local delicacy more than a thousand years old: the hamburger, an ancient staple food only to be found in Thailand. The hamburger tradition here has origins as ancient as the local arts and culture, especially in Buriram where it has acquired Northeastern zest in such classics as rong hai burger, nam tok burger, tom yam burger, som tam burger, etc. The five-star dish we recommend is the nam tok burger.
Buriram has a most pleasant climate, neither too cold nor too hot compared to other cities. Buriram became the capital of Thailand in 3132 because it had the least pollution. First-time visitors should not be surprised to see children selling garlands at intersections in the capital.
Read more: http://www.bangkokpost.com/leisure/leisurescoop/14642/tour-siam-4001 (http://www.bangkokpost.com/leisure/leisurescoop/14642/tour-siam-4001)
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Hi-
Regarding the posts about lightning, it is a very sensible thing to have a lightning rod close to all areas that people inhabit. They are easy to build and you know that your loved ones deserve it.
Cheers
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It’s about time I did something about this:
I have been working in Bangkok for almost two months now and although it is not Buriram, it’s still Thailand for all intents and purposes. If you look really hard, you can find some similarities like the language. That is almost the same but with a few differences. Not that I know what I’m talking about by any means but the fact is that I can communicate and if my listener does not understand, I can revert to English and be understood about 86.32% of the time.
My wife is with me and we are enjoying the living in Bangkok. There is always the possibility to jump in the car and drive home for the weekend or just go and see some other places where we have never been before. Like the other day; we took an early Sunday morning drive to Ayutthaya. I’m told you have to see the place at least once. I don’t know Bangkok at all well and my dear wife has no idea how to read a map. I understand that this is a trait held by most women in the world. But the lucky thing is that I bought a Garmin Global Positioning System (GPS) for just such occasions as this. It even speaks Thai but my wife doesn’t like the female voice. Thus, she was named Toot at a very early stage.
I programmed Toot for our destination and set out on the road to Thai history. I recall seeing signs posted to Ayutthaya on previous journeys to Buriram and so we knew we had to travel in that general direction.
Here we have a conflict of technology, natural instinct and common sense. I’m a great believer in modern technology and follow the directions from the GPS to great annoyance from my wife. She trusts her instincts and can feel the direction we should be traveling in. We are both wrong and both right sometimes. The GPS would indicate a shorter route and I would follow it hoping to avoid traffic or something. But as soon as I make a turn that doesn’t feel right to my wife who’s instinct tells her to go straight, we get to a point on the thin ice of navigating that can be dangerous to both of us. Arguments may erupt. Eventually we would end up in a place we both agree looks in the right direction and we can proceed in harmony again. But then, Toot says: “Pai Kwa†and clearly the right direction is “Saiâ€. Now I know that can’t be right and I turn left. Now all hell breaks loose in the car. My dear wife gets pissed off at Toot and takes it out on me and I get pissed off as well and silence breaks like thunder. But then common sense takes over – There is a road sign that shows the way and we are saved. We never really get lost and always find our way home again.
Ayutthaya was a worthwhile trip but it was sad to see all those headless figures…
The other thing that I’ve encountered only on rare occasions in Buriram, are those guys, usually at parking facilities, with their whistles. You all know who I’m talking about. They are there to show you the way to go even if you were as blind as a bat, by following the whistle; you will know exactly where to go. Now take his cousin in Bangkok – He is a professional blower and must have gone to a special school where they teach the fundamentals of whistle blowing. This school teaches subjects such as Whistle Blowing 101, Advanced Whistle Blowing, and Whistle Blow Specialist. You start out with a plastic whistle in the beginner course and they teach you whistle construction and breathing technique together with moisture purging. Then you move on to the advanced course where you are required to have at least one week practical experience and a metal whistle of some kind. Subjects include, but are not limited to, Tongue usage, Whistle Code 101, Pea sub-classes and Projection. After a month of practical experience and skill demonstration in a suburban location, you will qualify for the Whistle Blow Specialist course. Now you are well on your way to Whistle Heaven. If you still have your hearing facilities, you are taught Advanced Whistle Code (understood only by those who teach it), Arm & Hand Signaling, Clenching (teeth), and Traffic Avoidance. This last subject is not well attended as evidenced by the fatality figures of these professionals. Upon completion of the Specialist course, you are issued with a highly polished brass whistle (with artificial pea) attached to a sweat absorbent material strip that is never to be washed for fear of spoiling the tone qualities of the whistle.
I work on the eighth floor more or less in the center of the building. I can hear the specialist Whistle Blower man on his whistle even as I type this. angry1
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A Blatant Plug
I started my own Blogspot. Only because I might want to post something other than strictly Buriram related and also I can include more pictures and video.
It's here: http://buriraminformer.blogspot.com/ (http://buriraminformer.blogspot.com/)
I also linked to Buriram Expats because it is still the best Buriram website there is. happy2
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Project #78
For those weekday evenings when the wife is watching Thai soaps on TV and I just can't take it anymore. One day I will scale this project up to full size and fly myself to places I only dream of.
(More picture will follow as the project continues)
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Wow,need alot of patient to put all parts together.. confused1
How long it take you to complete build one of these?
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Wow,need alot of patient to put all parts together.. confused1
How long it take you to complete build one of these?
This is only my first one. I started out with only the plan on paper downloaded from the internet. Then I have to make all the parts myself using Balsa wood. So far it took about two weeks working only some evenings.
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Project #78
For those weekday evenings when the wife is watching Thai soaps on TV and I just can't take it anymore. One day I will scale this project up to full size and fly myself to places I only dream of.
(More picture will follow as the project continues)
Hey Laurens
I used to build them in the UK. Good choice, a Supermarine Spitfire.
Can you source engines (elec or glowplug) over here?
or Solarfilm, wonderful stuff. I started out using WW1 type paper and dope.
Dave
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Hey Laurens
I used to build them in the UK. Good choice, a Supermarine Spitfire.
Can you source engines (elec or glowplug) over here?
or Solarfilm, wonderful stuff. I started out using WW1 type paper and dope.
Dave
There are quite a few places in Bangkok where I can get engines both electric and glowplug. The wood is from a stationer shop just down from the Bamboo bar. But this one is designed for a rubber band. Like I said - my first attempt. Maybe later I'll try something more ambitious. I've read a lot about the different coverings available but I'm not too sure what I'm looking for here. I saw some lightweight plastic sheeting that needs to be heated and shrunk into place. But what is this dope or banana oil? And can I use it with kite paper like when I was building kites when I was a younger kid? (BTW - the plan by Earl Stahl is scanned from a November 1946 copy of the magazine "Air World")
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There are quite a few places in Bangkok where I can get engines both electric and glowplug. The wood is from a stationer shop just down from the Bamboo bar. But this one is designed for a rubber band. Like I said - my first attempt. Maybe later I'll try something more ambitious. I've read a lot about the different coverings available but I'm not too sure what I'm looking for here. I saw some lightweight plastic sheeting that needs to be heated and shrunk into place. But what is this dope or banana oil? And can I use it with kite paper like when I was building kites when I was a younger kid? (BTW - the plan by Earl Stahl is scanned from a November 1946 copy of the magazine "Air World")
The plastic sheet(Solarfilm) is the way to go. It has impregnated adhesive on one side and when warmed up (Hairdryer/Iron nearby&NOT on it) sticks to the balsa and shrinks tight. Its much better than the old fashion way of using paper. Electric motors are new to me but seem to be used most times, now that batteries are so advanced&light.
Dave
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Lourens,I just want you to know that even I live in Nong Khai,I enjoy your blog very much.It is very humorous.Please continue!
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Lourens,I just want you to know that even I live in Nong Khai,I enjoy your blog very much.It is very humorous.Please continue!
Thanks for that bkkstan. It should serve as motivation for me to start writing about the things I like again.
Anyway, as promised earlier, here are a couple more pictures of my ongoing project #78:
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Hi Lourens, How is your project going ? wave1
Photos please. type1