landy2a

If a world cup rugby match was scheduled and the bar was not going to show it I would drink somewhere else. If it was world cup round ball game it would not bother me, purely because I have not played it myself, and quite frankly do not have any idea or understanding of the rules. I feel this may change soon as TG loves the round ball game. I am not refering to Gaelic football here.. John

Just booked Bangkok-Sydney-Brisbane-Sydney-Bangkok with Zuji. Depart BKK 01/03/2006 (1 march) and return 30/03/2006 (30 march). All flights with Qantas/BA. US$ 793.20 which converts to AUD$ 1062. Qantas must have applied the fuel surcharge already. Have to contact Zuji tomorrow about changes to return dates if required and frequent flier points. John

I had previously played only 4 games in my life at the army base, Port Wakefield in South Australia, circa 1970. The greens were blacks as water was scarce and the putting surface was crushed slag from the Port Pirie blast furnace. A smoothing rake was supplied though. A silenced .22 rifle (legal in S A at that time) and a bag or bucket was as essential as clubs. The round was not a success unless a couple of rabbits were potted and a bucket of mushrooms collected. I did not endear myself to the golfers when I stole all the buggy wheels to make a trolley to wheel my dinghy out at low tide. Fast forward to Udon Thani, December 2004. John come to golf. Sorry no clubs John come to golf. Sorry I would only slow you down. John come to golf and use my spare clubs. OK To cut what could be a long story short, I LOVED IT. Not very good but with tuition I am improving. My sacrifices to the water god have decreased. Off to Hong Kong mid year to visit son and came back with a set of genuine, knock off Callaways at 8000 baht, US$150. Even my desirable little caddy who knows I love her dearly, but has plans to hook me up with her grandmother, was impressed. I am almost at the stage of having to buy golf balls with heat shields for re-entry protection. It is now a form of good exercise twice a week. Approx 500 baht all up with the exception of 100 baht for 10 water goddess sacrifices. There are, to me ,good courses in Udon, and excellent courses to those who know how to play a little further out. John

BigDusa, I will keep my eye out for you at the Qantas Club at BKK airport. Still have a dozen guest passes left. Errrrrrrrr you do have a boarding pass with a QF or BA flight number don't you...

Stevescottcfi, I do not know where in BKK but in Pattaya you turn right out of second Rd and into Central Pattaya rd. It is on your left a baht bus trip away. You cannot miss it. John

Check your travel insurance as for some companies even the International Driving Permit is not enough. They want you to have a local licence, not all companies but some.. John

From what I have been told, december 1st or 31st depending on who does the telling, is the deadline. If not registered by then supposedly bye bye. They should make you fill out a form if you buy a new card. I registered mine in Udon, they filled the form out and only wanted to see and record my passport details. Painless....... John

I live quite well in Udon Thani on 60k baht a month. Want for nothing and still save 20 k of my disposable income

Qantas ( One world alliance) have just issued me a one way QFF ticket BNE-SYD-BKK for half the award points needed for a return flight. There was a rider in the blurb that some countries require a return ticket but as I have a multiple non imm O visa with 6 months to run, a lease on a house in UT and cash in a Thai bank I have no concerns. Never been asked for a return ticket on any visit to Thailand. John

This Info is really only usefull to Aussies As I now live about 9 months of the year in Thailand I have finally bit the bullet. I used Qantas FF points to purchase a one way ticket BNE-SYD-BKK. I checked Zuji to find the price BKK-SYD-BNE departing BKK on march 1 2006 and returning 30 march 2006. All up US$772 which converted to AUD$ 1017. This is for a one year ticket. The same flights in the same time frame but in reverse direction ie. BNE-SYD-BKK return were Qantas AUD$1423 and Zuji AUD$1398. All were Qantas or BA flights. These tickets were also one year tickets. I will always buy from Thailand now.. John

I fly Qantas by choice. They have the best safety record of any airline. I am a Qantas club member so get business class check in and extra luggage allowance plus the goodies at the Qantas lounges. On flights from Bkk to Syd most of the cabin crew are Thai and as far as I am concerned give good service. I have also flown BA using a Qantas flight number and have found Qantas superior in every way. BA cabin crew on this leg must be the dregs of BA. I also collect Qantas FF points on both BA and QF flights so every 6th return trip is a free one. John

Wombat, onya mate... John

Convienence mainly Derek, I go away for 3 or 4 months at a time and chose to come back when the specials are on with Qantas, Thai etc. I get a cheap 35 day return from Thailand although Thai have cheap 60 day tickets sometimes. It is always nice to have a return ticket tucked away also. Getting plenty of horny backpackers into the shop mate??? John

Mike, I just passed it on without taking much notice of it as I thought it may not be known to all. I usually purchase a 1 year ticket from HWT at Noosa and buy returns from Thailand so I am a little out of touch with the normal 35 day tickets. John

Check out some fares at www.bestflights.com.au John

Mr Handy, Mutton guns are acceptable.. John

Congratulations to the Taffs, well played. John

AirAsia are now accepting bookings from KL to Clark. John

Some cost of living figures compiled by www.udonmap.com. Data curtesy of Udonmap.com, Interesting the cost of a santaew (baht bus) has increased by one baht since I last used one end of Jan 2005 "Udon Thani is fast becoming a popular destination amongst the ex-pat community for living, business, teaching or alternative holidays. Udon Thani can be a relatively cheap place to live compared to areas such as Bangkok or Phuket. We have gathered together a very basic list of living expenses for Udon Thani to give you a little idea how much various things may cost. Costs will of course vary depending on your own circumstances and budget, so you may have to make adjustments for your own personal situation. BUDGET Accommodation The average cost of a 3 bedroom house in the city - 1.2 million baht The average rent of a 3 bedroom house in the city - 3,500bt – 4,500bt City appartment rental - 2'500bt - 3'500bt per room Average electricity per month - 600bt-800bt Average water cost per month - 200bt-400bt Cable TV (Home cable) or UTV - 300bt per month Satellite (UBC) 1'600bt per month Average shopping bill per week 1,000-3,000bt Monthly washing and ironing service 400-500bt Monthly house maid service 2,000 - 3,000 bt Average hotel room 600bt, cheapest appartment style room 239bt/night Getting Around Second hand 2-3 year old Toyota Solona car - 350,000bt or 580,000bt new New Honda 100cc motorbike - 30,000bt, or 15,000-20,000 second hand Car rental 1'200bt per day or 1,000bt per day for a week or longer Truck rental 1,000bt per day or 800bt per day for a week or longer Motorbike rental 200bt per day or 150bt for a week or longer Motorcycle taxi around town 40-70bt Pedal taxi 20bt Santaew (Van taxi) anywhere around town 6bt Bus (non-air) to Nong Khai 27bt Train to Nong Khai 70bt Air Asia flight to Bangkok 400bt+ depending upon availability Eating & drinking Korean BBQ meal for two people 69bt or 69bt per person for all you can eat Large bottle of Leo beer 35 baht from the shop or 60bt from a restaurant Large bottle of Thai beer from Tesco Lotus 28bt Small bottle of Heiniken beer 33bt or 90bt from a disco Packet of Thai cigarettes 35bt or 8bt for Vietnamese cigarettes from duty free in Nong Khai Bottle of Thai Rice Whiskey 60bt, Large bottle Thai Rum 130bt Standard Thai Whiskey 120bt, Scottish whiskey 200bt per bottle Rice porridge 20bt Western food - Pie 'n' chips 100bt, Sunday roast 150bt American style pizza Medium 199bt, Large 299bt, free delivery over 150bt Italian style pizza 200bt 1.5lt bottle of mineral water 13bt Can of coke 12bt 4lt box of Australian Lydmans dry red wine 450bt from Nong Khai duty free Johnnie Walker Gold Label whiskey 1,040bt from Nong Khai duty free Sports & Leisure Swimming pool use at the Napali Hotel 50bt or 30bt at the Physical Education college Golf 200bt for 18 holes Pool 20bt per game 10pin bowling 60bt per game 20bt for shoe hire Thai massage 1hr 120bt, herbal 3hr massage 700bt 1hr internet use 15-20bt Monthly unlimited internet use at home 329bt (T-net card available from TT&T office Charoensri shopping complex bottom floor Local telephone calls 3bt per call, no time limit Standard computer with 17inch monitor, 20gig hard-drive, 2 gig processor etc 14,000bt " Some prices may be a little out of date but would not have increased too much. John

I involved myself in the last two days of Sonkran last year and had a ball. The real pain in the arse is the drunken falangs who start 4 days earlier than that and seem to search you out if you are carrying a camera, phone etc... John

Alan, From what I have been told you will get a palace for 10K to 14K baht/month plus expenses but with shared pool. I am looking to upgrade housing so will keep you informed. John

My income is around 75000 baht/month. This is a govt pension indexed twice a year. I live in Udon where I rent a small 2 bedroom house for 4000 baht month. This includes utilities but as I do not use aircon in Australia I have no need for it in Thailand. It is quite cool up there around christmas. I have either 2 ST or a L T per day. This is approx 1000 to 1200 baht. I have hired a motor cycle in the past for 100 baht /day but will buy my own this trip. I eat Thai food 95% of the time, my local hole in the wall cafes' know me and unless I order something specific they just cook me something different. They know no eyes, no intestines and mai phet so I get a tasty meal each time. I cannot eat all they serve me. This is at 20 baht a meal with a 20 baht tip once a week. The Thai customers never tip. I am not a big drinker so my average bin is 400-500 baht. I try to have 2 rounds of 18 hole golf a week at approx 600 baht a round. I am lucky to have resources behind me in Australia so if outgoings in Thailand exceed incomings from my pension there is no sweat. John

jacobus, taxi from BKK airport to Morchit approx 100-120 baht plus airport taxi tax 50 baht. John

Thanks mate John

I had a pair of reading glasses that were badly scratched. I took them and my current prescription to the opticions near Boots? in walking street. Four hours later new lenses in my old frames, 1000 baht. John