ceejay

I suspect it will be a while before I fly on one of these. I've always had reservations about flying in an economy cabin with as many people in it as the A380 will carry. I even found that the journey was considerably improved when EVA switched from the 747 to the 777ER. So, the only two ways for Thai to get my business would have been to use some of the space to enhance economy seating, or to make the price attractive. Since EVA economy seats have a 33" pitch, compared to 32" here (and a slightly wider seat too) option 1 is off the table and I rather doubt Thai will be going in for price competition - they have regularly been up to £150 higher than EVA even when they were flying ageing 747's and A340-500's against EVA's new 777's. If that sounds as if I am plugging EVA then yes, I am. In my opinion they offer the best service for direct flights London to Bangkok and usually offer the lowest prices into the bargain.

I rather doubt that it is, but it looks very like a live cell chamber for a microscope. A cover glass, on which cells had been grown would be mounted in the left hand component using the right hand component as a retaining ring, with the O ring as a watertight seal to hold culture medium. Then put it on an inverted microscope, with the open side up, imaging through the cells through the glass.

I recently booked a Bangkok Air flight for the last week ion October,, one way from BKK to CNX, for baht 2250.00 all in. I chose them this time because the scheduling suits me better on that particular day. With the baggage upgrade I would have needed, Nok would have cost about 200 less so, at the moment, Bangkok Air are still pretty reasonably priced for the convenience of flying direct to/from Suvarnabhumi. There's an early morning flight that was even cheaper - that'd probably be the one to use if you were making a connection.

Thanks, Rogie. I'll know better next time. I can't on this occasion - it's telling me I do not have permission to edit when I try to save it. Out of time perhaps?

Well, I obviously made a complete b***s of using the quote funtion there - and I can't find an edit function. This is the link I should have put in: http://www.iobit.com/advancedsystemcareper.html

I don't see why there should be, at the price level you are talking about. I'm guessing that your other spending is equally frugal, so you'll budget what? 15 Euros a day total including guest house? That's about 75,000 riel a day - or 525,000 riel a week. That means carrying up to 105 banknotes around (I think the largest Khmer banknote is 5,000) if you change money once a week but, that apart, I can't see any problems.

Well, I have an opinion on this, but I'm just not sure what it is! (there, that's a help, isn't it?) I am sometimes attracted to femme boys because they are just that - men with effeminate traits. On the other hand, I see ladyboys as being, or trying to be, feminine, which is not the same thing at all. I suspect that is where the problem some people may have lies. It's interesting in this context that a good proportion of the frequeenters of LB bars self-classify as straight.

You'd probably be better off changing Euros into riel, rather than dollars, when you get there. I don't know of any Thai bank or money changer that will do direct exchange from one Foreign currency to another. They'll change your Euros into baht and then the baht into dollars - so you'll end up making losses on two lots of tourist exchange rates. I guess the same would apply converting Euros into dollars in Cambodia. You will need to change a small amount into dollars (50 or 60 dollars) before you go to cover the cost of a visa at the border, and living expenses until you get to a bank. At the price ranges you are talking about, you'll be able to get by using riel. You'll also be a little better off - the standard exchange rate in most places in 4000 riel/dollar - the banks at the moment will give you something slightly better: http://www.acledaban...ignexchange.php Acleda is the biggest bank in Cambodia. You'll find a branch locator under the "Contact Us" tab on that website.

I don't know who told you that, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Laos is one of the most, if not the most, beautiful countires I have ever visited. There are certinaly cheap backpacker type places on Don Khone in the 4000 islands, in the South (you walk past them on the path to Phi Phi falls). There are even places that fall into your price range in Vientiane: http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Naphavong-Backpackers-Hostel/Vientiane/46214?sc_sau=sfab&sc_pos=1 But your best bet is to go to Vientiane, Vang Vieng or wherever and just ask around the backpackers.

Can you edit the first post? Delete the existing text and put an explanatory note in there, perhaps?

Of course, you're right about the layout of the hotel FH.I'd only been there once, a couple of years ago, and I can't always remember what I had for breakfast these days..... That's very useful information you have published there. I've never before seen directions on how to get to the shrine without going through the hotel, and you'd never find that route in a month of Sundays without some help.

I visited here a couple of years back. To get to it, Fountainhall's directions for getting there are correct, but perhaps a little more detail would be helpful. I went into the main entrance of the Swissotel and, walking past reception and straight ahead is a glass wall. Through that is a restaurant. Walk straight through the restaurant and there is an exit to the pool area. Turn right and follow the path along the poolside and you will come to a small gate. Go through that and you will be on a road. follow that to the right until you come to the shrine. I'm told the hotel are not to keen on having tourists just walk through like that. I had no problems, but Ididn't ask! There is an image of Nai Lert in the shrine itself. It's under trees and quite gloomy there, so you need to take a flash photograph: There was also, rather incongruously, a filing cabinet: I wondered for quite a while what this was for, and why it was here of all places. I think I am starting to understand these things. Thais seem to have a way of mixing the artisitic, the mystical and the pragmatic in their shrines and temples. So, the cheap clock bought from the market in a beautiful temple is for telling the time, the plastic chair is for sitting on and the filing cabinet was, no doubt, just a place for keeping files or other stuff. I think that it offers a small window into the Thai attitude to religious buildings, which tend to be venerated in their own right in the West. I am not saying that is not the case in Thailand, but the attitude to religion, and religious buildings, in Thailand seems to me to be much more that they are a simple part of everyday life.

I got an email yesterday informing me my flight had been reroutrd to fly from Don Muang. Same flight number, same departure time. The email also stated that all Nok flights will fly from DMK from March 6th. That suits me fine - it'll likely be much quicker and more likely to go on time from DMK. It also gives them a chance to try out their new electrical systems before I have to fly!

Hi Rogie - no takers for this, I see. It's Wat Niwet Thamaprawat. It's on a small island, near the Bang Pa In palace, which is often a stop on day tours to Ayattuyah. It was built by Rama V, at the same time as Bang Pa In, when he was adopting European styles for many things - including building a Wat that looks like a small Gothic church. If you want to visit it, there is a car park at the main entrance to Bang Pa In. Walk through to the back, and on the right there is acess to a cable car that crosses the river to the island. Just go and sit in it and wait - it will be operated by a monk after a minute or two.

I'll leave it a day or so to see if anyone gets it. I'll be surprised if they don't - it's not exactly part of, but is certainly very close to, a well known tourist spot in Thailand.

And why not? This is a Buddhist Wat:

They're still booking Ubon Ratchathani, at least, from BKK. I checked when I read your post because I have a flight booked on the 9th May. The above is the response I got.

No, that shouldn't cause you any harm. The possibility I was referring to was that the original post might be intended to get someone to phone a premium rate line. Premium rate scams do happen, in various forms but it seems it's not that either. Just odd........

Or a scam. Is that a premium rate number?

Congratulations to Kokopelli and Rogie - I always thought my best chance was if no-one else entered! Thank you to Fountainhall for putting this together-and for you generosity in putting up the prizes. And even a booby prize! I'll try to take you up on that - but I'll not be in Thailand until early May.

Thank you, Fountainhall, for taking the time and trouble to put this together, and for being generous enough to offer prizes. I think someone should at least try to answer it - but it's too tough for me. Even so, I'll make an entry. All but one of these is a guess: Photo A - Europe. Somewhere in London - maybe the more downmarket end of the City, or somewhere like Holborn? Photo B - South America. One of the high altitude lakes in the Andes? Photo C - Australasia (New Zealand?) Photo D - North America (Aspen, Colorado?) Photo E - Europe (There's a lot of stuff in that style in Saint Petersburg) Photo F - Yayyy!! I got one!! Thats the Duomo - the dome of Florence Cathedral Photo G - Australasia - New Zealand again - those mountains look like ancient volcanoes to me. Phot0 H - Asia (Singapore??) Bet you I get one out of 8 for this! all the best for Christmas and New Year to one and all.

I probably would, if I were booking it myself. Bangkok to Siem Reap is a busy route in relation to the number of planes that fly it. Some flights do sell out. (This based on a visit 2 years ago. It may have changed since)

I think it may be more short term than that, Fountainhall. There are Spring tides - in the 3 metre plus range - due in Bangkok this weekend. That will back up the water flowing down the Chayo Praya.

I stayed there in the first week in July, in a Surawong room on the 8th floor. The rooms are as good as ever - large, and with very large beds too. They're very much as they have been for years, but everything is well maintained. The breakfast is OK, I don't usually use the restaurant for other meals. The service, as always there, was excellent. I stay there for a few days most trips I make to Thailand.