OnMyWay

Mike, Get her cooking.....they are awesome cooks....

Oh Contraire!!!! I stayed 4 months in C&B in 2006 and paid 7500 a month. Now, in 2007 they are 22,000 a month for the exact same room. They just take te dialy rate (also up!) and multiply it by 30. So, 7500 just one year ago to now 22,000.......has anyone's salary at home done that???

Just wait until you actually arrive.....the dollar is way down and prices all over Pattaya are UP. You're in for a shock I think!

I along with Photoguy are off to cambo. Flight out on Feb 13th and heading for Sihanoukville for a bit. Then off to PP and Siem Riep. Join in for the whole trip, just part or whatever....it's "up to you". The more the merrier. I've been into Cambo about 10-12 times and always have a blast. Do a search and see some of the prior trip reports I've done. Cheers, Mark

Ditto! Unfortunately you got stuffed on that deal......

I stayed a month there and just a couple of notes: Roodtop pool is fine but they close it at 6PM at night! What a shame... My electric bill was padded when I checked out Internet connection was horrifically spotty! One wireless antennae on each floor and it doesn't cover the distance to the rooms. It was horrible! The rooms are decent average hotel rooms. The place was clean Mark

I'll call the police and let them know you are arriving back! BTW, any spare room in your luggage coming back? Happy New Year, Mark

There's a debate going on about IS and some of the professional photographers are now saying that it creates an unacceptable amount of digital noise in thier images. A friend of mine has a Pentax camera with IS and he likes it. He's not shooting professionally and it's fine for him. Most people that shoot using Canon are corporately sponsored by Canon or working for a company that Canon sponsors to use their equipment. Their aftermarket lense prices close them up to the average photographer. You look across a sports field or a celebrity event and you would just assume that Canon is the eq

Thanks Scalawag. Not a dumb question at all and NO they don't come with IS. You can buy lenses that are IS and those are quite pricey... Cheers, Mark

Steve, Sounds like you have the same lenses I have and you are no stranger to Nikon. You'll have a blast with hit. When I use the zoom i oten use my tripod and remote control. Camera shake is VERY hard to avoid when hand holding and completely zoomed to 300mm. I think on the SLR the 300MM zoom is equivalent to approx. 450mm on a film camera. I'll find some I've hand held and taken with the zoom and post them. In the meantime here's one of Koh Larn that I took. For those that don't know, Koh Larn is about 9 miles (?) off the Pattaya Coastline. Cheers, Mark

Toolman, i'm guessing you got the "packaged kit" with the tamron lenses. If so, your lese starts at 28mm and it's not quite the wide angle you'll want. And, the lenses are a VERY important part of the camera. While you'll be content I'm sure as you've got a good camera, I would see if you can go back to the camera shop and exchange for the Nikon lenses. For aftermarket lenses you can look for Sigma as they make good lenses for our Nikon's as well. Happy Holidays, Mark

I use a Nikon D50 and have the Nikon 18-55mm lense as well as the 70-300mm lense. I also use UV and polarizing filters. I've got the SB600 Speedlight flash and remote control. I was island hopping near Boracay, Philippines and some of the sailbots you saw were near the coastlines. Cheers, Mark Thanks for the kind words. Impossible to get those pics with a point and shoot or by just setting a camera on auto. Adverse lighting conditions and I have to use manual modes to seed speeds and aperature setting myself. Nikon D50 Digital SLR with lenses. See above... Cheer

Thanks for the great comments guys. Takes a lot of time to resize and upload all those pics. To know some people enjoy them makes it well worthwhile. Cheers, Mark Jack, Island hopping in the PI..... Thanks, Mark Thanks Joe! Landscape pics as well as childrens protraits are two of my favorites to shoot.... Mark

Guys, if you are expecting smut, this one's not the post. There are some landscape shots I've taken recently and thought I would share. Hope these don't bore you: Cheers, Mark

I was sitting having a conversation with an ex-pat who is also a business owner here in Pattaya. He and his wife went back to her village for a visit and decided to sponsor a large dinner and entertainment for the temple and all the monks. He said a fantastic time was had by all. He got back home and they had already mailed him a letter which he couldn't wait to open. He opened it and inside was not a single thanks. They wanted to know if next time he could just donate money instead of sponosring a dinner party. Just unbelievabel! Mark I forgot to add another side note.... As

Yes, there's an elevator and I can remember back 3 years it's been there??? You must have been there a LONG time ago! Also, there is an entire non-smoking section for you to eat in as well that was built. Mark

I stayed in room #3 last night and paid 750 baht. Faces Soi 7 and I thought the room to be quite nice for the price....Bed in #3 is SOFT....far from hard. Cheers, Mark

Having looked at housing in both Angeles City and in Pattaya it's not comparing apples to apples. While most everything in Pattaya is newer and much more aesthitic than in AC. Most everything I saw in AC is just like mexico....cynder block construction with razor wire everywhere. I couldn't find a condo building in AC that has parking, swimming pool, nice balconies or patios, AC for each room, etc. Cheers, Mark

I've spent up to 3 months at a shot in Angeles City and I generally agree with what Deep says here. One exception, most Filipinas are genuinly attracted to western men and get wet as hell when banging them. Thai's do it only as a job (of course there's a rare exception). Cheers, Mark

I'll never, EVER, fly those fuckwits again! Good luck on your flight.

hotel booked is Flamingos and you can see them at http://www.flamingos.com.kh/index.php Cheers, Mark

OK guys....here's the deal. Out to Cambodia on September 20th on Air Asia. Total far is 2500 Baht round trip! A steal.... Book online at www.airasia.com So far, 2 are confirmed. Mark

When I sold homes in California as a Broker I can tell you that it wasn't unusual at all to have someone buying their 2nd home and using equity from the sale of thier first. It's a rare situation that people in America can't sell their home and cash out with profits far exceeding that 75K-100K number. Of course, there are outlying areas that haven't appreciated as much as others. But, MOST people in the states have seen HUGE gains and are sitting on huge equity. I had a 1 bedroom condo that was an investment for me in Long Beach, CA. Bought it in 2001 for $51,500 and sold it in 2005 f

Soi 6, 7 and 8 for me....

Mike, I'm looking at 7-9 days. But, you could feel free to stay just part or all of them.... Cheers, Mark