"The Rounds" January 9, 2004

I finally got around to having checked on the status of Bernard Trink's "Nite Owl" column, and went on line just now (Sunday morning); as I had heard to be the case, there was no "Nite Owl" column in Realtime's 2004 debut edition.

There *is* a book review by the famed columnist, who was profiled in the December 29, 2003 edition of Time magazine's Asian edition. Unfortunately, even after 40 minutes of searching, I couldn't locate the article, but it wasn't a bad piece. The piece quoted Bangkok Post Editor Veera Prateepchaikul: "Do you want something that's modern, or something from 30-40 years ago?"

That was a most puzzling rhetorical question on Khun Veera's part, as it ignores the fact that Trink's column was one of the most heavily-visited pages on the paper's website, drawing what Time reported to be about 30,000 visitors a week. (I've read estimates in the past running as high as about 40-50,000 unique visitors weekly.) And there are those who preferred to read it in the paper edition rather than online. Further to the puzzling nature of the question, if we expand it beyond Trink, did Khun Veera mean anything written from a few decades (or longer) ago no longer has any relevance?

In short, in the quote as cited in the magazine, it appears the editor waffled.

It's puzzling that the paper's management would keep Trink around at all, especially if he is, in their eyes, entirely irrelevant to the papers needs today. He apparently has lost his movie reviews as well as his "Nite Owl" column, retaining *only* the movie reviews.

Incidentally, while searching the Internet for the magazine article, I also did an archival search of The Bangkok Post -- and got not one single return for "Bernard Trink," "Nite Owl," and other similar search terms. Through Google I found a link to what appeared to be a column of his from several years ago -- but it was a dead link, delivering up a "Page not found" return. I wonder if the paper's managers have also decided to dump his digital archives? [Written Sunday, January 4, 2004]

Late note: Yesterday I found out an interesting tidbit of information about the power of Trink's defunct column. I was chatting with George Pipas, owner of the Texas Lone Staar Bar and Grill in Washington Square, about the column. George mentioned the first time he had asked me to send in a notice of some happening in his establishment and to include George's newly-established e-mail address. I sent the information to Trink, and within 8-10 days George received over 800 e-mails from all over the world. [Written Wednesday, January 7, 2004]

This year the Lunar New Year (often called the "Chinese New Year") comes January 22nd this year, and will usher in the Year of the Monkey on the lunar calendar's 12-year repeating cycle, which highlights a different animal in each of the 12 years.

Asia-wide, the Lunar New Year is arguably the biggest holiday around. It dates back many centuries, with the upcoming New Year being the year 4701 -- in other words, another century change, by that calendar. So, if you missed the celebrations for the 1999-2000 Julian New Year or the ones for the actual change of century (and millenia) 2000-2001 -- you've got another chance! I should add that another website puts the upcoming year as 4702, not 4701.

There an interesting website about the Chinese calendar in particular; you can find it here.; it even includes a printable calendar.

Here are the years, in their order of occurrence: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar. As you can quickly see, a new 12-year period, called a "Great Year," will begin in 2008, when it will be again the turn of the Hare to have his year. Beyond the 12-year period, there are blocks of time covering 60 years, or 5 Great Years, called a "Cycle," and 3,600 years, or 60 Cycles, called an "Epoch." And just as the Julian calendar has a Leap Year every 4th year (except those ending in "00"), the lunar calendar has a Leap Year that includes an extra month. The system for determining which years are Leap Years on the lunar calendar is somewhat difficult, and as far as I've ever been able to understand, the determination varies from place to place and context to context.

There are a lot of misconceptions about the origins of the Lunar New Year, but in fact it is based on astronomy. A lunar new year begins with the 2nd new moon after the winter solstice.

Anyway -- it's a big holiday, and with the large Thai-Chinese population in Thailand, it's a big one here, too. And it's invariably fun, one I'm looking forward to as we approach what will be for me my 15th celebration of the occasion in Asia! [Written Sunday, January 4, 2004]

The long and short of this is that due to a miscommunication between me and my police buddy, he thought I was asking him yet again about a retirement visa, not a marriage visa. And when he came back with the information, the words "marriage visa" weren't spoken by either of us (as neither were the words "retirement visa"), so neither of us realized the mix-up until the subject came up yet again last night in a chat we had.

As matters now stand, my earlier report was incorrect; it is NOT necessary for any foreigner marrying a Thai national in Thailand and wanting to stay here to have a bank account of 800,000 baht, but it IS necessary for him/her to have a bank account [in a local bank] of 200,000 baht.

As some of you know, I have a service through which visitors can subscribe to be notified via e-mail anytime I add to or otherwise change this site. (Anyone interested in subscribing can click here.)

Like most of us, some subscribers who've changed or dropped their e-mail addresses have forgotten to change their subscription address or to cancel it. In fact, just this morning I deleted about 10% of the addresses on the list for those very reasons. If you think you've subscribed but aren't getting the e-mail, let me know at MekhongKurt@BangkokAtoZ.com and tell me the address to which the notifications should be going, and I'll check into, manually starting the process of getting your e-mail address entered (though for your own protection you will still need to confirm the subscription yourself). [Written Monday, January 5, 2004]

Friends from the States e-mailed me overnight to tell me about a great new collection of 500 photos of Thailand now online. Each page has 12 pictures on it, and when I tested several of them just now, they all loaded quickly, especially considering I'm using a fairly slow computer hooked to the Internet via a dial-up modem. To start viewing them, click here. I haven't looked at but a few pages, but those were all really beautiful. Also, each picture is clickable so you can see a larger version of it. [Written Monday, January 5, 2004]

To tell you the truth, I had no idea Children's Day is just around the corner until I went to The Nation online to look for something else and stumbled across a great article listing the many things available ("SCHOOL'S OUT: Family things to do for Children's Day"). Khun Marasri Boonroj, the reporter who compiled the list of activities, all of which will take place in Bangkok, Rangsit, and Pathum Thani, deserves a whole bunch of praise for taking the time to do so. While there's plenty of exposure of adult-themed entertainment here, there's very little aimed at children. And good for [Written Monday, January 5, 2004]

Late Note: On Friday I read another story about about an event in front of Fortune City (Ratchadapisek Road at Rama IX Road, northwest side) about an activity for Children's Day tomorrow; read about it here (you'll have to scroll down a few stories to the one headed "Children's Day.") [Written Friday, January 9, 2004]

An idea once scoffed at but which has taken off here in Thailand is a wedding of medical treatment with tourism, a service aimed primarily at foreigners, especially those from countries where medical costs are prohibitive.

But those costs here are a fraction of what even the finest (and therefore most expensive) hospitals in Thailand charge for equally good -- in some cases better -- treatment. To increase the lure, more and more hospitals are offering packages, through which a patient travels here, undergoes whatever procedure(s) are required, then enjoys a holiday here. And the entire outlay, including airfare, weighs in at far below the medical treatment alone in many of the developed nations, particularly the U.S., where medical costs have gone beyond even the stratospheric.

Of course, people needing treatment urgently don't have time to set everything up then travel here, especially, of course, in emergency situations. Realizing this obvious point, the folks here aim for people needing an elective procedure (or just plain wanting one, such as a face-lift or sex-change operation).

One hospital newly-entered into this arena is Bangkok's well-known Ramkhamhaeng Hospital, the "mother" hospital of a group of 8 hospitals around the Kingdom, near the city center. If you look at their homepage, you'll see several packages offered, and their prices. For example, laser surgery on one eye is priced at 30,000 baht (about US$755 at this writing). The hospital's International Patient Support Team helps to arrange everything, including, if the patient wants, air passage, pre- and post-hospital stay accommodation, pick-up and return to the airport, and other customized services. They also visit patients in the hospital to make sure everything is going smoothly.

While I have no vested interest in this project, I do want to commend my former partners, "Doctor" Dennis and "Cowboy Jon, for setting this program up for the hospital and for themselves being the International Patient Support Team. Here is a letter the hospital received from a U.K. patient who had both knees replaced:

'50 something and crippled with arthritis in both knees, a failing NHS and very high private medical charges in the UK and to a lesser extent in Europe. All I needed was a less expensive option but it had to offer high standards of surgery and medical care - a tall order. Using the internet I found the Ramkhamhaeng Hospital, after a lot of E-mails answering my details questions about what would happen to me I arrived in Bangkok - late Oct 03

Prior to the operation as is typical of OA of the knees suffers my legs were bowed and very odd shaped knees 26 pills a day did little to dull the pain. SIX weeks Post Op I now sport a very smart straight pair of legs, I also feel taller, the transition is amazing. Over the next few weeks I will be returning to swimming, then gentle cycling and by the Spring mountain biking my greatest passion A NEW PAIN FREE LIFE. How did I get to this stage. . . ? Through the skill of the surgeon (Dr Sangad Limpiwattakee) and his surgical team, the excellent nursing care 24 seven and the physiotherapy staff who literally got me back on my feet. within days of the operation. The standard of nursing care I received was very much higher than I had experienced in the UK recently.

In my experience all the staff at Ramkhamhaeng Hospital could not do enough to help me and make my stay as comfortable as possible. An important feature was the support I had from the International Patient Support team(Jon and Dennis) collection from the airport, regular hospital visits and internet access in my room, importantly if I had any non medical problems they could help to resolve them.

I remember when Mr. Roberts was here; he came to Washington Square, where I had the opportunity to meet him. He came there only about a week or so after his surgery, and while he was walking a little slowly, he was doing so without any assistance, not even a cane. It was an impressive sight, and he couldn't say enough good about the hospital and everyone connected with it.

Ramkhamhaeng Hospital and its affiliated hospitals aren't the only ones offering such services, of course, but they are the newest entrants into the field and the program appears poised for great success. If you are in need of an elective surgery but are either unable to afford it or put off by the high cost in your own country, definitely give Ramkhamhaeng Hospital a look. You can contact Doctor Dennis at The_DocBangkok@yahoo.com. [Written Monday, January 5, 2004]

Although Thailand is generally a peaceful -- and peace-loving -- country, there are elements within the population that resort to violence.

Sadly, that happened again over the weekend, in the form of the 17 schools and 3 police stations were torched, and an Army armory looted, where 4 soldiers were killed -- murdered, really -- in the attack, according to The Bangkok Post, though The Nation mentions 20 schools and the armory, as well as the deaths of the soldiers and the looting, but not the police stations. You can see The Bangkok Post story here, and that from The Nation here.

Regardless of the precise details, it's clear that a well-planned, well-executed, and tightly-coordinated series of attacks took place in Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani Provinces in the extreme south of the Kingdom. The initial thought is that the attackers are Muslim separatists there, as there is a large Muslim population, a minority of which resort to violence to further their aims. It's worth noting that in general Thai Muslims are entirely peaceful and are well-integrated to Thai society.

Interior Minister General Chavalit declared martial law for the 3 affected provinces, and I don't blame him at all. One can only hope the authorities can quickly apprehend the perpetrators and allow a return to civilian rule at the earliest possible date. [Written Monday, January 5, 2004]

It always happens far too quickly to suit me that the cool season ends so soon, but at least this year we have had a decent one that has run a month already -- and even now, the nights are still pleasant. But the days are warming up a bit, not as much as is to come with the approaching hot season, but warming up nevertheless. Of course, visitors from northern latitudes who come here often do so in part to escape the cold in their home countries, so they like the heat. Me? Well, I've adapted in the sense that I'm far less comfortable in cold climes than I used to be, but unluckily enough for me, my body doesn't like heat anymore now than it did, say, when I lived in Beijing -- where it is plenty cold several months every year -- back during 1986-88. [Written Wednesday, January 7, 2004]

Due to security concerns, authorities in America have begun photographing and fingerprinting "selected" visitors, but there are concerns this will run into the millions. Civil libertarians have their own concerns about these new measures, too. And some other governments are taking great exception to them. Brazil, for example, in a tit-for-tat move, has announced it is instituting a program under which Brazilian authorities will be photographing and fingerprinting American visitors, regardless of the type of visa they are using to enter the South American giant.

There are upwards of 30 nationalities that are exempt as matters now stand, including visitors from Canada and Mexico -- but if I understand it correctly, by sometime next year those countries (and others') passports will contain computer chips with photographic and fingerprint data embedded in them, chips which can be scanned at the same time as the immigration officers scan the strip on many passports currently.

My main concern for our Thai friends traveling to the U.S. is the almost certain delay in travel the security measures will cause. The measures already in place before now, measures set up in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, already wreaked havoc, in some cases, with people's travel schedules. It's a long flight even to the west coast of America, a flight currently requiring a stopover (typically in Taipei, Tokyo, or Seoul).

On a note related to travel times, it may turn out to be worth it to check flight schedules traveling Bangkok-Singapore-the U.S. SIA (Singapore International Airline) has just taken delivery, I think, of a super-long-range Airbus that can fly from the city-state all the way to North America non-stop. If one's first choice involves a multi-hour layover in another Asian city and if one can instead schedule a shorter layover in Singapore's ultra-modern Changi International Airport, one may well save time flying via there. On the other hand, some people don't want to be cooped up non-stop for such a long flight. For those, it may be better to make at least an overnight stopover.

I remember about a 12 years ago when I was living in Macau and made 2 trips on Delta Airline from Hongkong to Dallas. Delta had just taken delivery of some MD 11 aircraft which were supposed to be able to fly Hongkong-American west coast non-stop, but which in fact lacked the range to do so. In a nice move, the airline management decided to make the refueling stop in Anchorage, Alaska. That had a couple of advantages. First and foremost, that broke the flight into two bearable segments -- 1 lasting about 9 hours (Hongkong-Anchorage), the other lasting about 5 hours (Anchorage-Los Angeles). And the layover in Anchorage was short. Further, passengers went through American immigration and custom checks in Anchorage, where the airport is, of course, much less busy than any of the other west coast airports are, even the relatively small one in Portland, Oregon. As I recall, the Anchorage layover was something like 1 or 1-1/2 hours. On both the flights I made, I stopped both directions in Los Angeles for a few days to visit friends, further breaking up the flight (given that I had flights of about 3-1/2 hours between Los Angeles and Dallas).

Anyway, I suspect we will find the new security measures in American ports of entry (not just airports) will lead to further delays in travel. As major a destination as the U.S. is, I'm quite sure people around the world will be watching how this all unfolds, watching with great interest. [Written Wednesday, January 7, 2004]

I forgot to buy a jar of instant coffee on my way home last night -- I'm out -- and while I normally drink just one cup in the morning, I do love my coffee. "No problem," I thought myself, "I'll just stroll down to the Tops Supermarket on the corner of my soi and buy a jar. That was a few minutes after 7 o'clock this morning.

In the event, the store wasn't open, and nowhere could I see the store's hours of operation posted. The steel shutter protecting the store's glass front doors was down, so I guess it's possible the hours are posted there -- but that doesn't help someone who comes along, as I did, when the shutter is down. Adding to the silliness is that in this particular store's case there is an entirely unprotected glass window just a couple of meters away from the steel-shuttered front door!

In many instances over the years I've noticed this oversight at all sorts of businesses, and have wondered how the owners could forget such a fundamental detail. Yes, I could have walked a few blocks to the next nearest source, a 24-hour 7-Eleven, but decided to give that a miss. Or there's the restaurant in my apartment complex, which would have been my choice in the first place -- but it does have its hours posted, and doesn't open until 11:00 A.M. At least I know. [Written Wednesday, January 7, 2004]

The Subway on Sukhumvit Road just east of Soi Nana (Sukhumvit Soi 4) is now open around the clock, 7 days a week, every day of the year. Besides being open all the time, The Subway shares its premises with a Coffee World outlet, a chain offering great coffees (and which is also open 24/7).

Delivery (within a limited delivery area) is available 10:00 A.M.-9:00 P.M., every day. Call 02-253-4400, or you can fax your order to 02-253-4401 for a Subway sandwich and drinks.

If you like sandwiches -- I love Subway's many tasty offerings -- then drop by. And if your a coffee lover, you're really in luck. Tell them you read about them here! [Written Wednesday, January 7, 2004]

The Christmas-New Year holiday period was marred by the horrific carnage on the Kingdom's streets and highways. The government, at the instigation of the Prime Minister, had vowed to have a major crackdown on traffic violators in an effort to have fewer fatalities and injuries resulting from traffic accidents than we saw in the corresponding period 2002-2003. But those efforts came to nought, with this year's tally soaring over 800 deaths and several tens of thousands of injuries.

While people in the position to know what they're talking about have long told me that as bad as the driving is here, it's not as bad as it is in some other places, it sure is bad enough here, and that's no joke. I've never been able to even begin to comprehend the Dr. Jekyll-and-Mr. Hyde transformation that takes place with an astonishing number of Thais when they get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle (or astride a motorcycle, as the case may be).

I remember an incident about 10 years ago, when I was still teaching up in north Rangsit. One of my Thai colleagues who had befriended me, a truly wonderful Thai lady, had a car and was driving into the Bangkok campus -- near my apartment -- and invited me to ride back into the city with her rather than for me to take the faculty bus. Since I was quite smitten with the gal, I readily accepted.

When we first pulled out onto the highway, she was her usual sweet, demur self. But the first time another driver did something not to her liking -- I've long forgotten what the errant driver's offense was -- my colleague was transformed into a screaming, cursing, fist-shaking, horn-blasting monster. And so it went the 3 hours it took us to get into the part of the city to which we were headed. [This was before the elevated motorway was open, so traffic was even more congested than it can be now.] She was weaving in and out of traffic, cutting dangerously close to other cars, several times nearly having a collision.

Adding to my confusion was the fact that between one incident and the next, she abruptly reverted to her normal self. The transitions between sweetness and monstrousness were instantaneous, and, frankly, more than a bit frightening, mostly because of my ignorance; until then, I was essentially unaware of just how widespread this transformation is.

This fact of life is a never-ending source of sometimes bemused, sometimes irritated, commentary among foreigners, especially those of us who live here. Some of my friends and relatives in other countries who've never been here openly disbelieve these stories, but once they come and witness it for themselves, they go back wherever with an entirely different idea of Thai driving realities.

While I remain as clueless as ever about why this transformation takes place, it is a significant factor in the great majority of traffic accidents -- and that according to the authorities, not to me.

Think about it: over 800 deaths in 7 days, in a nation with a population of somewhere in the vicinity of 63,000,000 people.

As a side bar, one foreign friend here noted that neither CNN nor BBC said a word about the horrific number of traffic fatalities here -- yet gave extensive global coverage to the crash of the charter flight that went down in the Red Sea during that week into the Red Sea, killing all aboard, at least 148 people. My stance is that the fact news organizations report the way they do says more about us, the viewing-reading-listening public than it does about the reporters, editors, producers, etc.: we are drawn, in terrible fascination, by death on a spectacular scale.

It seems officials throughout government have had a real wake-up call from this holiday season's horrific death toll. There is no driver education, really, here, nor are the concepts of road discipline and road courtesy even known by the great majority of drivers. Even foreigners who live here and who drive are forced to adapt to the unruliness of the Kingdom's highways -- it's either that, or risk being run over or into.

And that brings up the issue of traffic-law enforcement. I don't know what the answer is, but it's clear that as long as police officers view traffic stops as nothing more than a chance to line their pockets, safe driving will remain a distant dream.

Before someone brings up the reality of road rage on American highways, I will preemptively point out that it remains the rare exception -- not the rule, as is the case here in Thailand. [Written Wednesday, January 7, 2004]

As of yesterday, the baht stood at about 39.20 for 1 U.S. dollar in local banks here in Bangkok (and, presumably, around the country). One Thai economic forecaster is predicting the baht may hit 35 to the American dollar this year, and that the SET (Stock Exchange of Thailand) could soar past 1,000.

While not everyone invests in the SET, anyone visiting or living in Thailand who depends on the U.S. currency for their source of income (or holiday money, in the case of tourists) will not be happy if the baht continues to strengthen.

As of now, to all appearances, what have been dubbed "Thaksinomics" by pundits -- meaning the economic policies pursued by Prime Minister Thaksin -- have been stunningly successful. Certainly the Prime Minister himself is basking in the glory he feels (as do a lot of others) is shining on him, and shining on him rightfully. The baht is stronger by the day, the economy expanded by a healthy margin last year and appears set to do so again this year; if both continue apace, the P.M. and his fellow Thai Rak Thai party members will be sitting pretty come election time early next year, by when Thaksin will have to call national elections, a requirement in the Kingdom's constitution.

Some observers maintain there are disturbing similarities between the situation today, in these dawning days of 2004, and that of the days preceding the economic collapse that began here in Thailand 6-1/2 years ago. While I'm certainly no economist, even I can see the logic in observations that the property market is in very real danger of becoming overheated -- just as it did in the pre-1997 crash days. Some will recall that back then, then Prime Minister Chavalit denied there was danger looming ever nearer, even going so far as to deny any responsibility for the ensuing crash, preferring to blame foreigners (foreigners always make such wonderful scapegoats, just about everywhere, don't they???), especially the man hated across much of Asia, George Soros. Thai leaders as a group have longed failed to grasp the fundamental fact that while such denials play well with home audiences, it rings hollow in foreign ears, including important ears in places such as Washington, London, Paris, Berlin, Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo, Canberra, etc. *If* there were to be another crash or even just a failure to achieve the hoped-for, and widely predicted, goals, I would assume the immediate reaction would be a repeat of General Chavalit's back in 1997.

Naturally, I have mixed feelings about the strengthening of the baht. For me personally, it's not good, as my sole income is in U.S. dollars. And that's not to mention that prices continue edging upwards, leaving me and others in the same situation in the position of having to shell out more baht from a shrinking pot for the same goods and services. When I first rented my apartment, my rent equaled about US$300; today I'm paying the same amount of rent, in baht (the one major expense that hasn't increased), but now in U.S. dollar terms I am spending about $382 -- an increase in dollar terms of 27.3+%, or just over 9.1% per year; I'm just lucky that my landlord has a policy of never raising one's rent -- I'm paying exactly the same amount in baht today as I was when I first moved in over 3 years ago. Put another way, when I compare my raw baht amount available at today's exchange rate to the amount I had when the baht bottomed out a few years ago at around 58 to the dollar -- a period during which my income hasn't increased -- my purchasing power has been cut 1/3 by appreciation of the baht alone, without even factoring in price increases during that same time frame. I reckon that in real terms, my purchasing power has been whacked by over 40%.

But even I have to admit the strengthening baht makes buying foreign goods and services cheaper, when those goods and services are priced in U.S. dollars -- which is good for our Thai friends and others who have baht.

You can bet people in this part of the world will be paying a lot of attention to developments in Thailand, and I don't mean just people in Thailand, but right around the region; everyone remembers that the Asian economic crisis started right here on the banks of the Chao Phraya River.

P.M. Thaksin has dismissed as hogwash speculations that a property bubble may be developing again and a major devaluation of the baht may be in the cards -- and I just hope for my Thai friends he's right.

And yes, I'll freely admit I wish I could have back the baht I used to have -- but that I could do so without it being at the expense of my Thai hosts and friends.

An old Chinese curse says "May you live in interesting times." Well, those of us on the ground here, Thai and foreign alike, are sure as heck living in "interesting times," that's for sure!

I, along with a gazillion others, will be watching developments closely, with a keen, anxious interest. [Written Wednesday, January 7, 2004]

When I checked the Friday edition of The Bangkok Post today to check to see if I could locate the column apparently meant to replace Trink's "Nite Owl" column, I found one under the headline "Eat, drink and be merry" that I'm guessing is meant to be exactly that, if in a watered-down version.

My use of "watered-down version" is in no way a reflection against Colin Hastings, the writer of the column; though I don't know Mr. Hastings, I'm perfectly willing to assume he was tasked with an assignment, given the guidelines for accomplishing it, then did it.

In the online version of the column, it is very nicely presented, with well-done photographs of the venues Hastings reviews. I've been to many of the establishments about which he writes in today's edition, and can vouch in those instances for his correct assessments of them.

Today's edition is the first I've read, and I did notice one significant departure from Trink's defunct column: all the places reviewed are upscale ones, beyond the reach of "ordinary" residents and tourists, though well within the means of "quality" ones. I assume this implies the newspaper is supportive of the drive to attract more such "quality" tourists and, perhaps, to discourage others who aren't either of above-average private means and/or on expense accounts.

I like all the establishments reviewed that I have visited, and found them good value for money.

That said, I wonder if the paper has any plan to cover venues such as Patpong, Nana Plaza, Soi Cowboy, etc. Not every well-heeled resident and visitor necessarily is attracted to the sort of places as reviewed in the aforementioned column. Think offshore oilfield workers who rotate in here for their time off; I know a lot of them, and the great majority prefer less upscale places.

Perhaps an accommodation for that portion of the reading public while still staying within the boundaries set by editorial goals (to which I am not privy, of course).

It'll be interesting to see if the newspaper will move to fill the void in that area left by the cancellation of the "Nite Owl" column. [Written Friday, January 9, 2004]

Moonshine Pub in Queen's Park Plaza
Has Telephone Now (and Delivery in the
Plaza); Internet Service Set for Near Future

The Moonshine now has 2 telephone lines, one a fixed land line, the other a mobile phone. Those are, respectively, 02-260-1899 and 06-529-9481. Within Queen's Park Plaza, the staff will deliver orders; quite a few of the other outlets there have the Moonshine's menu available.

The restaurant-bar is open 11:00 A.M. - 1:00 A.M. daily. The food is quite tasty basic American and Tex-Mex food, at reasonable prices. The staff are quite friendly, as the owner, Khun Rattana.

Drop by to try their food, and check out their weekend music schedule, when they offer live music. [Written Friday, January 9, 2004]

Thai Scientist Wins Slot to Join Japan's 55 Scientists at Their Polar Research Station in Antarctica for 7 Weeks

Marine Scientist Voranop Viyakarn of Chulalakorn University here in Bangkok has won a coveted spot to be pat of Japan's research efforts in the remote Antarctic from late this year, as reported in today's issue of The Nation (see "Making history at the South Pole" for the story).

This is an historic event for the Kingdom, and Thailand is to be congratulated for this major achievement, most of all Khun Voranop himself for his remarkable achievement just by being selected.

Sometimes we from countries that lead the world in research tend to overlook that there is a huge amount of talent "Out Beyond The Great Murk." Just consider, for example, Indians who not only have taken the computer world by storm but who also independently developed their own nuclear weapons (the latter arguably unfortunately, but still demonstrative of scientific prowess). Thai researchers into tropical diseases are held in extremely high regard around the globe. One could go on and on, as many nation's nationals have proven themselves quite capable of breaking new ground on the very far-most fling boundaries of science and technology. [Written Friday, January 9, 2004]

Comments Invited: Khun Ae Number Two
Interested in Feedback on Her Photo Galleries

The subject of my most recently added photo galleries has taken a keen interest in reactions from you to those galleries; this link will take you to the 3 sets of photos here to date.

Having known Khun Ae for several years, I am not exactly the most neutral assessor of the quality of her pictures, though I sure can't see how anyone could ever claim her to be unattractive!

Please feel free to browse through her galleries and send her an e-mail: MekhongKurt@BangkokAtoZ.com -- subject = Khun Ae Number Two.

Khun Ae has already gracefully agreed to let me add more photos of her over the coming weeks and months, so her fans can be looking forward to seeing those. [Written Friday, January 9, 2004]

We *hope* this coming Sunday will mark the 2004 resumption of our activities after a break of a few weeks over the holiday season.

A meeting of the Board is set for this coming Sunday, while the first general meeting of the year is set for the following Sunday.

We invite one and all to drop by Sunday, January 18, 2004 at 3:00 P.M. in the back dining room of The Bourbon Street Restaurant in Bangkok's Washington Square; meetings run no later than 5:00 P.M., though anyone who wishes is welcome to stay on to visit with other members afterwards. Come on by! [Written Friday, January 9, 2004]

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So you've been a slacker and still haven't signed up for the free BangkokAtoZ.com Updates Mailing List??? ;-) Well, get with the program and sign up right now to be notified via e-mail whenever we add something to the site -- that way, you don't even have to visit the Updates Page to see if there's anything new -- we'll let you know by e-mail. If you want to sign up, just go to the sign-up page. I'm pleased to say that more and more of you are signing up, and I urge all of you not to hesitate!

If anyone reading this has a website and would like to place a link there for BangkokAtoZ.com, you can copy-and-paste the banner and text link below into your site; they are live links to this site's homepage:

I'll appreciate an e-mail telling me the URL of where you placed it. If you want me to put a link on BangkokAtoZ.com for your site, do tell me where you have placed our link, and I'll give you a link in a comparable position, of the same nature (i.e., banner-for-banner, text-for-text).