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BAR LA CAGE SOI V.C. PATTAYA Diary for December. Every Day. Happy hour until 9pm. BOGOF! Buy One Get One Free! (Beer Chang = 32.5 baht! House Vodka & Tonic = 40 baht!) Saturday 13th. Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra. Afternoon concert at the Mahidol University. The program includes music by Bartok and Khachaturian. Tickets only 300 baht. Depart the bar 12.30pm. Saturday 20th. School Disco. From 9pm. The boys will be in their School Uniforms for this end of term Disco. All the hits of the 60s and 70s provided by Scratchy and his mobile disco. Sunday 21st . Classical Carols for Christmas. 7 - 9pm. A selection of traditional Carols played on the Gramophone for your enjoyment. Sunday 21st. From 11pm. “Later” with George Stanley. The Blues Crooner returns to La Cage for two very special ‘live music’ gigs. Arrive early if you want a seat! Monday 22nd. From 9 – 11pm. Wine & Cheese evening. Sample as many of our special selection of wines. Buy any glass for just 150 Baht and enjoy a chunk of specially imported English Cheddar !!!! Monday 22nd. From 11pm. “Later” with George Stanley, part two! The Main Man returns to woo us with his very special Christmas set. Wednesday 24th. Christmas Eve Party. From 9pm. A Christmas sing along. All your favourite Xmas hits. Mince Pies and a glass of Port at 11pm. Then at midnight, we welcome in Christmas Day with presents under the Tree for everyone! Thursday 25th. Christmas Day. Nice & easy. Chill and relax around the Tree with your favourite friends and your favourite drink. Wednesday 31st. New Years Eve Party! Come and ring in the New Year with us. Free welcome drink! Free Buffet! Free Bubbly to toast the chimes of Big Ben at Midnight! Everyone’s welcome to the Party! A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all. Bar La Cage (Mikes Bar). That popular little bar next to the award winning White Night Restaurant. Soi V.C. 273/98. 0894028741 All our ‘special’ nights are charity fund raisers for The Mercy Centre, And this year to date, you have helped raise well over 35,000 baht. Thanks. http://www.lacage-pattaya.com

That's good to know. I think you just saved a lot of stranded people the additional hassle of going to Immigration on top of everything else they're going through.

The next logical question is who, exactly, is in charge now? According to THE NATION: Chaovarat Becomes Caretaker PM No-1 Deputy Prime Minister Chaovarat Chanweerakul will become caretaker prime minister pending a meeting of the caretaker Cabinet, former PM's Office Ministers Sukhumpong Ngonkham said Tuesday. He said the caretaker Cabinet would make a former decision as to who should be caretaker prime minister replacing disqualified Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat. ____________________ The following appears in THE NATION: _____ People Power, Chart Thai and Matchima Thipataya Parties Disbanded By The Nation The Constitution Court on Tuesday ruled to disband three coalition parties, People Power, Chart Thai and Matchima Thipataya, and banned the three's party executives from electoral process for five years. The high court held the three parties for accountability on electoral fraud involving party executives, Yongyuth Tiyapairat of People Power, Monthien Songpracha of Chart Thai and Sunthorn Wilawan of Matchima Thipataya. In the fraud case linked to People Power Party, the high court cited the Yongyuth conviction by the Supreme Court as the ground to penalise the ruling party. For cases linked to Chart Thai and Matchima Thipataya, it invoked the rulings by the Election Commission as the basis to punish the two parties. The nine presiding judges reached unanimous decisions against People Power and Matchima Thipataya parties. And they formed the eight-to-one decision to punish Chart Thai. The high court opined that the punishment by disbandment was mandatory as sanctioned by Article 237 of the Constitution and that it had no leeway to selectively punish the party executives on the individual basis. ____________________ The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ PPP Dissolved The Constitution Court on Tuesday banned Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat from politics for five years and dissolved the ruling People Power party (PPP) and two other coalition parties, Chart Thai and Matchimathipataya, over voting fraud cases. "As the court unanimously decided to dissolve the PPP, therefore the leader of the party and party executives must be banned from politics for five years," said Chat Chonlaworn, head of the nine-judge court panel. "The court had no other option," he said. The verdict came amid a confrontation between Somchai, the brother-in-law of ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, and anti-government protesters occupying Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports. Somchai was elected by parliament on September 17 after his predecessor, Samak Sundaravej, was forced from office last month for appearing in television cooking shows. The judge, wearing a black robe with a scarlet collar, read the order live on national television. "No matter whether you are satisfied or not with the verdict, we ask you to accept it," he said. The verdict said the party must be disbanded because PPP executives had been convicted of vote fraud after elections in December 2007. "Although some party executives had no knowledge of the election fraud, the law stipulates clearly... the party must scrutinise its executives thus the party cannot deny responsibility," Chat said. The court banned 109 PPP, Chart Thai and Matchimathipataya executives from politics for five years. ____________________ And this, from CNN _____ BANGKOK, Thailand (CNN) -- Thailand's Constitutional Court ordered the ruling People Power Party dissolved Tuesday for electoral fraud, banning Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat and more than 30 party officials from politics for five years. The ruling follows months of opposition protests, including a week-old siege of Bangkok's international airport and sparked angry counter-protests by Somchai's supporters outside the court. The court also banned at least one of the PPP's ruling coalition partners, effectively dismantling the government over allegations of vote-rigging. There was no immediate reaction from Somchai or his party to the ruling. Demonstrators have occupied Thailand's Government House since August, forcing lawmakers to meet elsewhere. They said Monday that they would end the sit-in and move to Suvarnabhumi international airport, where they have left flights grounded and countless passengers stranded since November 25. "We wish we hadn't come here at all," said Keri Gannam, a visitor from the United States, who was honeymooning in Thailand. "It's just stressful. It's taken away everything... I'm supposed to have job interviews. I missed them." "Money isn't flowing in for us," said her husband, Andy. "And we came here to take a couple of relaxing weeks -- something both of us had earned. And it's turned out being a disaster, basically." The opposition People's Alliance for Democracy accuses Somchai of leading a proxy government for his brother-in-law, ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup. Thaksin returned to Thailand after the PPP victory in 2007, but fled the country again just as he was to appear in a corruption case against him. The anti-government protesters want Thaksin extradited and tried on those charges. It also accuses the PPP government of wanting to amend the constitution so Thaksin does not have to face charges. About 60,000 tourists arrive at Suvarnabhumi every day, and the airport siege has had a devastating effect on Thailand's vital tourism industry. Protesters at Suvarnabhumi granted two small concessions on Monday to help alleviate the misery of thousands of travelers. By Monday afternoon, 37 aircraft had left Suvarnabhumi. All but one airplane, which flew empty to Shanghai, landed at the U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield, about 140 kilometers (90 miles) southeast of Bangkok, airport spokeswoman Monrudee Gettuphan said. From there, travelers can try to catch a flight home. A convoy of buses, carrying Muslim pilgrims stranded at Suvarnabhumi since last Tuesday, was also allowed to leave for the naval base. From there they can make their trip to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj, a pilgrimage that Islam requires all able-bodied Muslims to make at least once in their lifetime. Authorities have estimated 100,000 passengers have been stranded at Suvarnabhumi since protesters began the siege, which has had a devastating impact on Thailand's tourism industry. Agencies reported Monday that the French government was sending a Boeing 747 to Thailand to help bring its citizens home. Frederic Desagneaux, a French foreign ministry spokesman, told reporters that the plane would take around 500 people and give priority to those with small children, people with health issues and senior citizens, The Associated Press reported. Protesters have shut down a second, smaller airport that the government had been using as its temporary office after being shut out of its headquarters, and demonstrations have occasionally turned violent. A pair of explosions injured 49 people -- three of them seriously -- when what was believed to be a grenade was launched at protesters at Government House early Sunday. Later, police said there was another blast in a road in front of Don Muang. Police say they do not know who carried out the attacks. But PAD blamed pro-government supporters. At the arrivals area of Suvarnabhumi on Monday, a CNN cameraman recorded a group of protesters leading a man outside. The man, his clothes in tatters and too weak to walk on his own, appeared to have been beaten. Somchai declared a state of emergency at the two airports last week, but it is not certain what powers the declaration gives the government. Somchai himself has been avoiding the capital, choosing instead to stay in the northern city of Chiang Mai.

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ Suvaranbhumi to Resume in 7 days, if PAD Leaves Airports of Thailand (AOT) acting president Serirat Pasutanond said Suvarnabhumi airport could resume operation in about a week once the anti-government protesters led by the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leave the airport. Mr Serirat expected it would take authorities approximately seven days to check the readiness of Suvarnabhumi once the protesters leave. He said 88 aircrafts stranded at Suvarnabhumi are gradually being released to transport the remaining passengers from the U-Tapao airport in Rayong province. AirAsia announced that the airliner had arranged special flights from Chiang Mai, Phuket and U-Tapao airports to more than 10 destinations to facilitate stranded passengers. People can log on to www.airasia.com for further information. Thai Airways also offered 14 outgoing flights from U-Tapao, one flight from Chiang Mai airport, two flights from Phuket airport, 16 incoming flights to U-Tapao, a flight to Chiang Mai airport and two flights to Phuket airport. For reservations and further inquiries, please contact Thai Airways at 0-2356-1111, 0-2545-4000, or log on to www.thaiairways.com.

Today I drove by the Thai Airways ticket office in Pattaya at about 12:30pm. They are open. Unfortunately, it is a madhouse. There were at least 100 people there. Apparently they are being issued numbers and have to wait their turn to be called. They were lined up outside the building. Along the Beach Road sidewalk a canopy had been erected and chairs were provided, enough for most of them to at least be able to sit down while waiting their turn. It was obvious most of them are going to be there for many hours. None of them looked happy. There was not even a semblance of a party atmosphere. Everyone looked frustrated and upset. There were also several security guards and police officers there to help maintain order. I was not able to see what the office hours are. If you are among those who will need to visit the office, I urge you to get there very early and bring some food and water with you unless you prefer to buy from the vendors strolling by.

Maybe they've been hanging around 'JOM-shun" too long . . .

I appreciate that. Emphasis on the word "usually." There have been times when I've gotten it wrong. The difference between me and some others is that when I do get it wrong, I admit it on the board and publicly apologize if my erroneous information caused anyone inconvenience. There are certain other so-called "scoop reporters" who have gotten plenty wrong, but so far have never apologized for anything at all or even admitted a mistake. Also, just for the record, I do not seek out "scoops." I don't think anyone has ever seen a post by me in which I called it a "scoop." It was simply that by sheer chance I found out something and merely happened to be the first to post about it.

I've even seen people wearing parkas, as if they're getting ready to visit Nanook of the North. Maybe some will have heaters and fireplaces installed in their homes. This year has been the coolest winter I've experienced in Thailand. I think it's great! Cloudless skies (and the reservoir has plenty of water thanks to all the raid we had only weeks ago), cool breezes, no need for air conditioning, low humidity, and temperatures so "just right" that Goldilocks would be happy at the beach. May it continue!

I hope you won't be one who goes.

Tuesday, December 2 OPENING RATES: US Dollar: 35.58 Euro: 44.785 British Pound: 52.885 Australian Dollar: 22.5075 Canadian Dollar: 28.4375 _____ CLOSING RATES: US Dollar: 35.43 Euro: 44.72 British Pound: 52.435 Australian Dollar: 22.625 Canadian Dollar: 28.3425

You have your opinion and I have mine. I don't see it the way you do at all. Obviously I'm not going to convince you and you're not going to convince me. I see it as wrong to keep posting day after day solely for the purpose of trying to win the contest and then rarely or never hearing from those who do that once the contest ends. You see it as perfectly ok. I hope you'll be among those who stick around once the contest ends. You asked about respect. If the people who are posting prolifically during the contest period disappear once the contest is over, the best I can tell you is my respect for those people will disappear right along with them.

It is. If you're speaking to another English speaker, the transliteration looks just like you would say 'Rama' as it has been spelled, so there's no reason not to say it that way - to another English speaker. Thai language lesson number one: You don't always pronounce Thai words the way they're transliterated and spelled in English. If you are trying to communicate with a Thai speaker, then if you say 'Rama,' nobody is going to know what you are talking about. When trying to say it the way the Thais say it, you have to say it roughly as 'PURR-rahm,' with a slight roll of the 'r'. Just how the Thai pronunciation ended up spelled as 'Rama' in English goes beyond me, since it's not pronounced that way at all. I think whoever came up with these transliterations tried to convert Thai letters into English letters, without regard to pronunciation. Many words are transliterated in the same manner, causing English speakers who are trying to say the word in Thai to be confused as hell. My favorite is the word you see transliterated as 'porn.' You see that word all over the place. I know how an English speaker is going to pronounce it. However, the Thais pronounce it as 'pawn,' like a pawn shop or the chess piece. Beats me why it isn't transliterated that way, but it isn't. I've said this a million times, and now I'll say it again. We are not 'fa-rang,' like you 'rang' a bell. We are not 'fa-lang,' like the first syllable of 'language.' And we are definitely not 'fair-rang.' We are farang, or if you prefer, falang. It's pronounced 'fa-RAHNG' or 'fa-LAHNG.' Anybody who has been in Thailand more than ten minutes has heard how Thais pronounce it. I've never understood why the hell so many farang refuse to pronounce it the same way. What's the hard part? I also keep hearing people who seem to think they are in 'JOM-shun,' which they think is part of 'pa-TAY-ya,' along 'ta-PRAY-ya' Road, not too far from 'Tep-PRA-sit.' I've given up trying to get several of my friends to pronounce those words correctly. Well, maybe they all speak 'eng-GLISH'

Thai Airways does have a ticket office in Pattaya, located at the junction of North Road (Pattaya Nua) where it curves into Beach Road. You might try simply going there. I understand the office is open. I would suggest that you try to be there either right at opening time or right near closing time. I would imagine they are extremely busy during the day. I don't know if they are extending their office hours. The same, by the way, holds true for the Immigration office. A friend was there yesterday to do his 90-day address report. He went in the early afternoon and said it was utter chaos there, mostly with stranded tourists concerned about over-staying their visas. I would advise getting there either very early or very late.

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ 350,000 Stranded The top official at the tourism ministry said on Monday that 350,000 foreign visitors and Thai tourists are stranded inside Thailand by the airport closure, and the number is increasing daily. "Around 350,000 passengers remain stranded in Thailand since the closing of the airports," said Sasithara Pichaichannarong, permanent secretary at the tourism ministry, in an interview with the AFP news agency. That figure includes Thais who were booked on flights out of the kingdom. About 10,000 Thai nationals are estimated to be stuck abroad by the airport closures, an official from the foreign ministry said. Earlier, Tourism and Sport Minister Weerasak Kowsurat said that the number of stranded foreign tourists in Thailand has reached 240,000. The toll will continue to rise daily and exponentially, he said, as more tourists reach the end oif their holidays, with too few planes to take them out. Mr Weerasak held a press conference at the Bitec Exhibition Hall in Bang Na, which has been turned into a massive, confused check-in centre for foreigners trying to leave Thailand. Flights arrive and leave at U-Tapao air base, 150 kilometres to the east. Some tourists are also flying out of provincial airports including Phuket and Chiang Mai. France, Spain and Australia have sent special flights to evacuate desperate citizens stuck in Thailand. Passengers have been advised to check in at least seven hours before their flight time, to allow for the drive to U-Tapao. The main Suvarnabhumi international airport has been shut since last Tuesday when protesters besieged it in their bid to topple the premier, and a day later they stormed the Don Muang domestic airport. She said that the tourism ministry would on Tuesday ask the cabinet to give them one billion baht ($28 million) to fund repatriation efforts for stranded foreigners, and to bring back the Thais stuck abroad. "We have currently received only a 10-million-baht budget for this operation, which is certainly not sufficient," said Ms Sasithara The government has warned that the week-long siege of the airports will cost around one million jobs and about 50 per cent of the expected tourist arrivals. (with reports by AFP)

You didn't. The correct link is: http://www.thaiair.com/Homepage/announce/sbia_situation.htm In any case, there is nothing there that indicates flights will be canceled in December. I don't know where whoever posted on Thai Visa got that from, but if there is anything at all that says Thai Airways will cancel their December flights, it's very well hidden. It also would make no sense for Thai Airways to make such an announcement. They service plenty of airports besides just Don Muang and Suvarnabhumi and those airports are open and operating. Considering that nobody knows at this point just how all this will play out, I can't imagine a reason why they would cancel their flights.

The two planets are Venus and Jupiter. Venus is the brighter of the two.

I voted that I would recommend my family to come here. First, the only one who would be likely to come would be my brother and I don't see anything any more dangerous for him than it is for me, and I am not alarmed in any way. I do think, however, people who don't live in Thailand and were considering Thailand for a holiday would be very likely to choose someplace else to go. Right now I doubt that many more people would consider a holiday here than they would a holiday in Baghdad. There are plenty of places in this world to go on a holiday besides Thailand. I have a feeling that is the choice most families would make for the foreseeable future. It's very sad to see, but I think the tourist industry is effectively dead, or at least severely injured, for quite some time to come. You wouldn't know it at the gay beach area, though. Today it was packed.

I'm not certain whether that information is correct. I can't find anything about that on the Thai Airways web site and I also see nothing about it in the news media.

Euro Boys is still open and operating normally.

Apparently the PAD has decided that the airports are the places to fight their battle. The occupation of Government House did not cause near the uproar that the takeover of the airports is causing. It seems clear they have no intention of giving up the airport sieges any time soon and have called out all the "troops." At the present time there simply seems to be no end in sight and they mean to make the airport situation even worse than it already is. The good news, if you can call it that, is so far they have made no moves to disrupt the U-Tapao airport, but at this point it wouldn't surprise me if they make moves to close down U-Tapao as well. It seems fairly obvious that these people are in it for the log haul and they don't intend to give up easily or soon. The following appears in THE NATION: _____ PAD Ends its Occupation of the Government House By The Nation In a shocking move, People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) ended its three-month-long protest at the Government House on Monday. PAD's co-leader Chamlong Srimuang informed anti-government protesters to abandon the Government House and move to gather at either Don Muang or Suvarnabhumi airports. "I will lead you to continue the rally against the government at either airport. We will abandon the Government House. PAD's guards are assigned to supervise moving of the equipments and tents to the new rally sites," Chamlong said. PAD had started the seizure of the Government House on August 26, forcing the prime ministers; Samak Sundaravej and incumbent Somchai Wongsawat, to work somewhere else including Supreme Command office. Somchai who was appointed to the position late October has never had chance to work there. Chamlong said the Government House was no longer secure as it risked being attacked by pro-government supporters. "I already alerted police about the insecurity and dangers on protesters protesting in the Government House, but they have done nothing," he said. Security and protection at Don Muang and Suvarnabhumi airports are much better and Upon hearing Chamlong, some protesters said they would continue the protest there and would not move to new site. "It is up to you if you wanted to stay here, but I would not guarantee your security. I don't you to die here," he said. There would be no protesters but PAD's guards staying overnight at the government House. The move will mean the end of live broadcast of ASTV at the Government House. PAD provided many vehicles, including six-wheeled trucks, vans and pickups for protesters who wanted to go to the airports.

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ Bitec Opens U-Tapao Check-in Counters The Airports of Thailand (AOT) Public Company Limited on Monday morning opened check-in counters for stranded passengers to take flights to U-Tapao International Airport at Bitec Convention Centre in Bang Na, aimed at reducing heavy congestion of passengers. People can check rerouting flights of different airlines by calling the Bitec at 0-2749 3974 or 0-2749 39 82. AOT officials had brought four x-ray machines and a baggage handling system to the U-Tapao check-in counters.

The original thread has been "unpinned" because it was getting lengthy. This thread is for airport situation information only. If you wish to post responses or opinions, please do so on other threads, but not this one. The PATTAYA DAILY NEWS has a very good article, with photos, showing the situation at the U-Tapao airport. As many of you know, the U-Tapao airport is normally a quiet airport. Right now, things are a little different there. Scroll down to the end of the article. There is an excellent 3.5 minute video that shows what's going on at U-Tapao. http://www.pattayadailynews.com/shownews.p...NEWS=0000007917 You can also find additional videos on YouTube. At the time of this posting, the media has not yet reported any changes at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang airports.

Monday, December 1 OPENING RATES: US Dollar: 35.32 Euro: 44.63 British Pound: 54.055 Australian Dollar: 22.8025 Canadian Dollar: 28.31 _____ CLOSING RATES: US Dollar: 35.52 Euro: 44.895 British Pound: 53.605 Australian Dollar: 22.6075 Canadian Dollar: 28.4275

Do you really think that's the same thing? A small cube of ham or a sip of wine compared to a $1500 prize? I don't think your analogy is valid.

It won't be me, for several reasons. First, I don't intend to go back to that bar. Second, people have complained to bar owners many times in the past about volume levels and many other complaints, and most of those complaints fall on deaf ears. Well, of course their ears are deaf. Mine would be too if I was subjected to music that loud night after night. While I wish the bar well, I don't like unnecessarily high music volume and I've got better things to do than to go back to have an argument with the owner. It would definitely be a shouting match. That would be the only way I could be heard. I deal with those kinds of problems by simply going to other bars where I'm a lot more comfortable. I really didn't want to go to that bar in the first place. The only reason I went was because people seemed to want a report about it. Ok, I've given my report. I don't go to the bars very often anyway, so when I do it will be a bar I enjoy. I don't enjoy music volume so loud that it probably vastly surpasses the volume of the band that recorded the music. While many may greatly enjoy high music volume, when I go out to the bars I'll go elsewhere.