yogi100

My friend lives there if that's the one with the security gate next to the new Findig shoe shop in Soi Bukhaow. His is around 56 square metres, it's immaculate but his rent is 20,000 baht a month. The estate is well kept, secure and has two very nice swimming pools but they're not cheap and some of them are very small. However the location is superb with LK Metro a 5 minute walk away, loads of local eateries and a regular baht bus service that can take you all over Pattaya 24 hours a day. As it sits off the road it is also quiet and peaceful and no rowdy behaviour from tenants is tolerated. You'd be hard pushed to find a comparable condo in such a convenient location.

I now see why I remember some oldsters taking a book, a crossword puzzle, a sandwich and a thermos of tea to the toilet especially when you're constipated.

I had a central aisle seat in March from LHR - BKK on a 747 and I could only get one foot in the space, the other foot I had to put in aisle up against the seat in front to avoid people stepping on it. I'm 5.8 and take a size 7 1/2 shoe.

There's precious little worth celebrating about England any more. In some parts of some towns and cities in England any St George's Day festivities are practically forbidden where the ruling council are run by Labour councillors.

Some readers especially those from the former English speaking colonies might find your heading of this topic a bit confusing and think you might be talking about a future event at some fellow's bar named George.

Myself and a pal of mine like most people are partial to seafood but not too keen on seafood restaurant prices especially those in Walking Street. We used to go to Tops and order a selection of sea food, prawns, fish, cockles and mussels. Unfortunately they do not sell crab or lobster. We'd also get a couple of loaves of French bread, butter, garlic dip and a bottle of spicy sauce. We'd also pop over the road to the Best Supermarket or whatever it's called and buy a big 2 litre bottle of plonk. Tops will steam or barbeque the seafood for you while you wait and then we'd take it back to our room with the girls we were with and have a good old feast. The whole lot used to come to less than a 1000 baht back when we were getting about 70 baht to the UKP so it would probably be around twice that amount now but still good value for money for four of you especially when we found that the four of us could not eat it all. What used to fascinate us was the fact that the girls used to prefer the prawns' head to the actual prawns themselves A good selection of seafood is also available at very reasonable prices in the Smelly Market behind the big Kodak shop in South Pattaya Rd and winkles are also sold but make sure you have a pin with which to pick out your winkles. But this much cheaper option is only recommended to those who have cooking facilities and know how to prepare seafood.

There was no condo sale, no tax issues, no 'money laundering' malarkey and no preferential interest reasons. It was simply a case of an elderly man sending his three kids (adult offspring) 10,000 GBPs a piece because he wanted to, nothing more, nothing less. He has UK bank accounts into which his pensions are paid and it was a straight forward gift in the form of a UK bank cheque being presented for payment into another UK bank account in the UK. Thanks for the input and it seems the clerk was simply informing the daughter that there COULD be an inheritance tax implication should she deposit her Dad's cheque.But since his estate is well below the limit (325,000 GBPs) no Inheritance tax issues will arise. But his daughter like many UK citizens is wary of the fact that our govt is introducing new ways of fleecing us all the time and their 'if it exists tax it' policies.

Well from what we have gathered the banks are duty bound to keep a record of such transactions should the situation arise at some time in the future that the giver of the cheque should decease and his estate become liable for inheritance tax. Any such gifts made in the seven years prior to his or her death will be taken into account and will form part of the deceased's estate. So what they can't nick from you when you're alive they'll make sure they get when you're dead. However the family can receive some consolation from the fact that their parents' thrifty nature has helped fund the Indian Space Program, their nuclear weapons capability and starving children in Pakistan.

This is a new one on me. My pal lives in Pattaya and is reasonably financially secure. He decided to send his three adult offspring back in the UK 10,000 GBPs a piece. He has his state pension and a local authority pension and some savings. He sent the three cheques off and soon received a phone call from his daughter who had taken her cheque into her bank to deposit it. She was informed that deposits over 3,000 pounds were now subject to a tax. This is possibly because the sum was a gift, she did not clarify the reason nor did she tarry to find out how much the tax would be, she simply walked out with the cheque in disgust. She is sending the cheque back to her father as she resents contributing to the legions of freeloaders now resident in the UK. Any Brits heard of this latest rip off?

Passing negative comments about things that affect us is part of human nature just like saying 'please' and 'thank you'. It's a far cry from being a 'doom sayer'. There are folk who could be referred to as such back in the UK but in their case it is somewhat justified.

Can't really find fault in your opinions apart from the those concerning the NHS although it has become more of an International Health Service in recent decades, a service for which it was never designed. The treatment is still very good although the care in the wards often leaves a lot to be desired in particular the recent scandal about the standards in Staffordshire hospitals. I no longer drive back in the UK and would never contemplate doing so in Pattaya. Everything else is better as you say although the climate is too hot for some folk who actually find themselves admitting they miss the seasonal variations of their home countries including the snow. The main grouse is the strong baht which is not the fault of Thailand but some expats and long termers are definitely feeling the pinch. Those who deny themselves the comforts of home for the sake of their booze money are often the most discontent particularly when they sober up. Many complain about the deterioration of the locals' attitude but most Thai people are still pleasant people and friendlier than back in London where I come from. I prefer being a foreign guest in Pattaya than being an often unwelcome foreigner in my own country.

If you're so clever why did you not warn him not to make the loan in the first place. The man made an error of judgement, admits it and has the balls to say so just in case this trickster tries it on with anyone else who may read this forum. He knows he was daft to be taken in and so do the rest of us so making smart arsed comments like yours serves no purpose whatsoever other than to display your ignorance. Most people including yourself have probablybeen taken for a ride at some time in their lives and in this instance the OP is describing how he was.

Ron I've heard that the Russian was found with a plastic bag over his head and that's what killed him!

Quite right too. You'd think that posh money grabbing bastard had enough cash as it is what with his being in the BeeGees and owning all the various Virgin companies and his own Pickle Company. What the betting he puts in a bid for Haywards or Crosse and Blackwell in the near furure

What the OP or any other enterprising would be manufacturer and supplier of pickled products in Pattaya should bear in mind is the fact that the town has become very popular with our friends from the Russian Federation. In that vast country with its vicious winter climate the growing and preserving of food is absolutely essential in order to survive the long winter months so Ivan and Svetlana are familiar and skilled in different methods of preservative pickling to such a degree that more pickling goes on in Mother Russia than any other nation on earth. Pickled mushrooms and tomatoes are very popular in Russia and the OP would be well advised to direct his skills in the direction of the production, preserving and marketing of these vegetables which are both plentiful and cheap in the Land of Smiles.

It's the same in the UK. Everyone I know hates our politicians on account of their lies, deceit, greed and the two futile wars they have sent our young men off to die and get maimed for life in. In the World Wars of the last century it was considered a politician's duty to ensure that their sons served in the armed forces and many of them were prominent in the casualty lists especially in the Great War. Due to their privileged position in society they were automatically made officers, usually junior ones who served in front line infantry regiments and those young men suffered an appallingly high rate of casualties. It will be a cold snowy day in Pattaya before you see a British politician's son listed among the casualties in Afghanistan. How times have changed in 100 years and with it the public's opinion of those who more or less control our lives

Cauliflower does indeed lend itself well to pickling. A chum of mine who lives in Pattaya has taught himself to be an accomplished cook actually makes his own piccalilli and very nice it is too. As you know piccalilli is a variety of pickle which along with other ingredients contains cauliflower. He is also a dab hand when it comes to making pork pies, his version leaves the world famous Melton Mowbray pork pie back at the starting gate. A slice of it with a dollop of his home made piccalilli along with a nice cup of tea makes an extremely agreeable snack

Several of my friends use the Bell bus and pay Bell themselves with cash when they arrive at the Airport.The fact that it's gone up in price should cheer them up. A couple of them are already debating whether they can afford to visit the LOS for much longer given the strength of the baht and their own limited income.

My Mother used to pickle shallots and they were indeed tastier than onions. All she used to do was take off the outer peel, lay then out on a large plate, sprinkle them with salt and leave them over night then the next day put them in a jar full of vinegar and Bob was you uncle in a few weeks time. Back in those days the use of chilli was unheard of but a few bits of chilli added to the vinegar would give them that extra spicy flavour. Chilli vinegar has been available in the few pie, mash and eel shops that remain in London for several years, an example of how an exotic spice has enhanced a traditional, old fashioned dish. Should you be able to obtain shallots in the LOS you can pickle them yourself and probably save quite a few bahts into the bargain as we are all only too well aware of the rip off prices Thai supermatkets charge for Western food products.

That's because bachelors and sometimes men married to native women in a foreign country often get a yen for the culinary delights of their original homeland. I'm from London and a popular dish in that metropolis is a bowl of jellied eels with chilli vinegar and pepper. It may not appeal to all palates but I look forward to having some on my return to London although is now considered something of a rather expensive delicacy. A fact that accounts for it now being considered being an occasional treat rather than a regular repast, this is due to the scarcity of suitable eels that were once native to the River Thames and its surrounding tributaries and marshland.

I've never availed myself of pickled cucumber. In its natural state I find it a somewhat watery, flavourless, bland vegetable and in its pickled state it would have much the same flavour albeit simply rather vinegary. Now a pickled walnut, onion or red cabbage would be a much more attractive proposition and would be a more successful venture if made available at a sensible price, not the extortionate sums demanded for some Western comestibles that we see on offer on the supermarket shelves of Pattaya.

They are possibly the descendants of the ones I encountered when I stayed there in 1999. We were paying 950 a night and I just stayed one night and moved into the Welcome Plaza at 600 a night. We then spent every trip at the WP for the next 4 years.

I've honestly enjoyed those early morning breakfasts at Crazy Dave's and that sullen waitress has been there for years. I also like Only Fools and Horses but as entertainment goes it does not hold a candle to the renowned late night/early morning cabaret show put on by Dave and his Thai wife Linda when they return to the premises worse the wear for drink and the fireworks start. One of the best free floor shows to be found in South East Asia!

I'm not trying to rain on your parade but I can't see the product flying off the shelves. A range of competitively priced familiar pickles might find a limited market with some expats and falang visitors exploring supermarkets but few of us will ever have heard of bread and butter pickles and will be exremely unlikely to buy any just like you would be unlikely to purchase jellied eels, a once popular dish in London among the poorly paid section of society which has today, due to the scarcity of the main ingredient has become very expensive. Eels which were once in abundance in the River Thames and the surrounding marshy areas are now mainly imported.

Myself and many of my expat and long termer pals use the Two Fat Ladies in Soi Bukhaow next to the Pook Swan Bar. They are helpful, knowledgeable, experienced and reasonably priced. Over the last few years I have used them on numerous occasions for minor maladies and afflictions and each time they have supplied me with the necessary potions to restore my normal health.