Today's weather;
It's very cloudy right now and the rain is (momentarily?) back. It drizzled a moment ago and there's a shower right now. Current temp at 7 am is 24.8C.
Yesterday was once more a dry day, that was three in a row, right? The sun even broke through a few times,although very weak. Max temp reached 29.3C.
In Bangkok it's still a stand off although the tension may worsen with pro-govt rally and after a bomb blast 47 are injured in explosion inside Government House.
Although I'm surprised that nothing has happened so far to stop the airport blockade, it could remain this way until at least Tuesday, when if everything is correct, a court ruling could dissolve the current PM Somchai's political party because of corruption. That would achieve PAD's goal of the current government being dissolved.
The selfishness of PAD leads also to a tourist arrivals drop by 50% next year, according to this article.
It's a sad situation where Thailand will end up as the looser.
Camille
Sunday, 30 November 2008
Saturday, 29 November 2008
What to do in case of a car accident in Thailand?
What to do in case of a car accident in Thailand?
Well, there are a few things, first stay composed (providing there is no major injury) and smile, that's what the typical Thai reaction would be. Easiest will be to call your insurance and have them battle it out, but sometimes you work out a deal with the other party.
Whatever happens, don't get angry because it won't get you anywhere! Not easy to do sometimes, but it will benefit you.
Now, the concept of a breakdown warning triangle is lost in this country, so what to do? Grab the nearest piece of green vegetation and put it on the road. All of Thailand, except the freshly arrived tourist(s) will know now that an accident happened ahead. Just like in this picture!
Sometimes just a bunch of leaves on the side of the road are (supposedly) sufficient.
Once that is all sorted, sometimes you just got to deal with the strangest accidents. I leave it up to your imagination how this happened.
Drive safely!
Camille
Well, there are a few things, first stay composed (providing there is no major injury) and smile, that's what the typical Thai reaction would be. Easiest will be to call your insurance and have them battle it out, but sometimes you work out a deal with the other party.
Whatever happens, don't get angry because it won't get you anywhere! Not easy to do sometimes, but it will benefit you.
Now, the concept of a breakdown warning triangle is lost in this country, so what to do? Grab the nearest piece of green vegetation and put it on the road. All of Thailand, except the freshly arrived tourist(s) will know now that an accident happened ahead. Just like in this picture!Sometimes just a bunch of leaves on the side of the road are (supposedly) sufficient.
Once that is all sorted, sometimes you just got to deal with the strangest accidents. I leave it up to your imagination how this happened.Drive safely!
Camille
29th November, 2008
Today's weather;
It seems that things are turning for the better on the weather front. It's a cloudy sky but with small blue patches in it and it's dry! The rainy season seems to have left us although this doesn't mean the rain has completely gone, it just won't be there in the massive amounts we recently had. There's a very strong wind blowing though and this seems to be holding on for a few days. Current temp at 7 am is 26.7C.
Yesterday saw another dry day, the second in a row and the roads are almost back to normal, all the water has almost disappeared. Max temp reached 28.4C.
The other good thing is that my parents arrived save and well on Samui, yesterday, although they were very tired.
Here's a picture of one of the water pumps in action around the island, this one is located in Maenam. Note the car license plate at the left, that somebody lost and can come and collect here again.
In Bangkok the stand off continues; Heavily-armed police block main road to Bangkok airport so the PAD does the only sensible thing and Chamlong alerts protesters to move from Government House to Bangkok airport.
Nearly 100,000 passengers have missed flights since protesters shut down Bangkok's two main airports on Tuesday and the total could hit 300,000 as the shutdown continues, Tourism and Sports Minister Weerasak Kowsurat said yesterday.
The Office of the Attorney General yesterday sent back a police request to revoke bail for the nine leaders of the People's Alliance for Democracy. It said the procedure had not been carried out correctly.
The government should quickly end the occupation of Bangkok's two airports, otherwise red-shirt crowds will take the law into their own hands to deal with the yellow-shirt protesters, organisers of the "Truth Today" talk show said yesterday.
And last but not least the Police chief was removed yesterday.
Camille
Friday, 28 November 2008
28th November, 2008
Today's weather;
It's dry and cloudy but there's a very strong wind. Current temp at 7 am is 26.8C.
My parents are on the road, I hired a mini van with driver for them and they left Bangkok around 5 am this morning. If all goes well, they should be on Samui later today.
Dear readers, what happened with the subscribers, there were only 8 RSS feed readers yesterday compared to 18 the previous day! Please subscribe to my blog if you want to have updates announced to you. Thanks!
Yesterday was dry all day long and it was a nice feeling to be able to walk around dry! Max temp reached 29.5C.
All roads pictured on my Samui November 2008 rain pictures post got rid of the flash floods within hours after the rain stopped. There's still a lot of water coming down the mountains but the drainage systems can deal with this run off water, as long as it stays dry.
In Bangkok there's a growing unease and the capital is increasingly tense as coup rumours spread and the coup rumours scare office workers.
ASTV office and PAD protesters at Don Muang are attacked.
Many business executives who were only in transit when their plans were disrupted are hoping that Suvarnabhumi Airport will reopen as soon as possible so they can get back to work.
Camille
It's dry and cloudy but there's a very strong wind. Current temp at 7 am is 26.8C.
My parents are on the road, I hired a mini van with driver for them and they left Bangkok around 5 am this morning. If all goes well, they should be on Samui later today.
Dear readers, what happened with the subscribers, there were only 8 RSS feed readers yesterday compared to 18 the previous day! Please subscribe to my blog if you want to have updates announced to you. Thanks!
Yesterday was dry all day long and it was a nice feeling to be able to walk around dry! Max temp reached 29.5C.
All roads pictured on my Samui November 2008 rain pictures post got rid of the flash floods within hours after the rain stopped. There's still a lot of water coming down the mountains but the drainage systems can deal with this run off water, as long as it stays dry.
In Bangkok there's a growing unease and the capital is increasingly tense as coup rumours spread and the coup rumours scare office workers.
ASTV office and PAD protesters at Don Muang are attacked.
Many business executives who were only in transit when their plans were disrupted are hoping that Suvarnabhumi Airport will reopen as soon as possible so they can get back to work.
Camille
Thursday, 27 November 2008
An update about the situation in Bangkok.
An update about the situation in Bangkok.
It's not looking very good and a lot of whispers go around, announcing yet another coup (if this would happen, it would be the 19th coup since 1932) and PAD is bracing itself for crackdown.
A state of emergency has been declared around two areas in Bangkok, the two airports Don Muang and Suvarnabhumi.
PM: Air Force and Navy to help clear airports and Samut Prakaran authorities on alert over airport's seizure, with 30 emergency medical teams on alert.
If this doesn't look serious I don't know what does, although it must be remarked that the current Government declared a State of Emergency once already over the occupation of the Government House, but the army didn't interfere. It may be different this time around.
In the meantime PAD vows to fight off police crackdowns. Unfortunately everything points to a violent confrontation in the next 24 to 48 hours.
Kind of caught in the middle are my parents who made it yesterday into Bangkok because they were on a Thai Airways flight (most other flights were cancelled or re-called in mid air) but got re-directed to Chiang Mai, where they had to board the plane after a 5 or 6 hour wait before they were brought back to their final destination Bangkok, although at Don Muang, the old airport. It wasn't until 11 pm that they reached a hotel near Don Muang.
Today, after work, I just started another IDC I checked for flights from Pattaya to Samui but these were all booked until Wednesday 3rd December. Plan B was taken into consideration and I rented a mini van with driver for them and now they will be picked from their hotel hotel at 5 am, hopefully before too much political activity will go down (remember, their hotel is in the state of emergency zone!) and they can be safely on their way to Samui.
I'll be relieved to be able to welcome at Samui pier tomorrow!
Camille
It's not looking very good and a lot of whispers go around, announcing yet another coup (if this would happen, it would be the 19th coup since 1932) and PAD is bracing itself for crackdown.
A state of emergency has been declared around two areas in Bangkok, the two airports Don Muang and Suvarnabhumi.
PM: Air Force and Navy to help clear airports and Samut Prakaran authorities on alert over airport's seizure, with 30 emergency medical teams on alert.
If this doesn't look serious I don't know what does, although it must be remarked that the current Government declared a State of Emergency once already over the occupation of the Government House, but the army didn't interfere. It may be different this time around.
In the meantime PAD vows to fight off police crackdowns. Unfortunately everything points to a violent confrontation in the next 24 to 48 hours.
Kind of caught in the middle are my parents who made it yesterday into Bangkok because they were on a Thai Airways flight (most other flights were cancelled or re-called in mid air) but got re-directed to Chiang Mai, where they had to board the plane after a 5 or 6 hour wait before they were brought back to their final destination Bangkok, although at Don Muang, the old airport. It wasn't until 11 pm that they reached a hotel near Don Muang.
Today, after work, I just started another IDC I checked for flights from Pattaya to Samui but these were all booked until Wednesday 3rd December. Plan B was taken into consideration and I rented a mini van with driver for them and now they will be picked from their hotel hotel at 5 am, hopefully before too much political activity will go down (remember, their hotel is in the state of emergency zone!) and they can be safely on their way to Samui.
I'll be relieved to be able to welcome at Samui pier tomorrow!
Camille
27th November, 2008
Today's weather;
It's cloudy and a small drizzle is coming down, really small though, at the moment. Current temp is around 25C.
Yesterday saw torrential rain in the morning until around noon and after that it stopped all day with raining with even some bleak sunshine coming through.
My parents made it eventually to Bangkok after being diverted to Chiang Mai. They had to wait a dew hours there and arrived in a Bangkok hotel around 11 pm. They're waiting now to continue to travel on to Samui.
Not surprisingly Thailand has been put on world travel warning list by many countries.
A Civil Court orders protesters to leave Suvarnabhumi Airport immediately and also not surprisingly PM condemns seizing of airport as illegal and threat to democracy.
When our window to world was shut; PAD supporter gives first-hand account of airport seizure.
Anupong, man in the middle, holds the trump card and Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday offered himself as a mediator to broker peace talks between the government and the People's Alliance for Democracy.
Camille
It's cloudy and a small drizzle is coming down, really small though, at the moment. Current temp is around 25C.
Yesterday saw torrential rain in the morning until around noon and after that it stopped all day with raining with even some bleak sunshine coming through.
My parents made it eventually to Bangkok after being diverted to Chiang Mai. They had to wait a dew hours there and arrived in a Bangkok hotel around 11 pm. They're waiting now to continue to travel on to Samui.
Not surprisingly Thailand has been put on world travel warning list by many countries.
A Civil Court orders protesters to leave Suvarnabhumi Airport immediately and also not surprisingly PM condemns seizing of airport as illegal and threat to democracy.
When our window to world was shut; PAD supporter gives first-hand account of airport seizure.
Anupong, man in the middle, holds the trump card and Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday offered himself as a mediator to broker peace talks between the government and the People's Alliance for Democracy.
Camille
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
Today's situation in Bangkok
Today's situation in Bangkok
It's not getting much better unfortunately. After the closure of the Suvarnabhumi airport yesterday evening, at least four rounds of bomb attacks rocked Bangkok early Wednesday, injuring at least 12 people. 3 bombs at Suvarnabhumi airport and 1 at the old Don Muang airport.
THAI Air flights are diverted to Don Mueang, U-Tapao airports, my parents are on a shared Thai/Lufthansa flight, due at Bangkok around 1.45pm today, so i wonder where they will end up and how in the world they will get to Samui, since Bangkok Airways, Thai Air Asia cancel flights.
Airport negotiation with PAD fails.
Tourists urge to check with airport, police at these phone numbers
My personal problems aside, this will hurt Thailand. Tourists will consider twice where to go to without having a chance to either not being able to arrive or leave!
PAD being PAD is stating 'We'll be here till PM quits". More and more people seem to lose their faith and patience with PAD and I'm definitely amongst them. Don't get me wrong, whatever the previous governments in the last 10 years achieved under direct or indirect influence of Mr. Thaksin is not good and I don't think an entry of Mr. Thaksin into Thai politics is a good thing..
One reason the situation doesn't diffuse is because said Mr. Thaksin keeps trying to get his grip on power back.
There may be some friction in that camp also; Why Somchai no longer sees eye to eye with Thaksin.
The whole situation is heating up the military, police are urged to act against PAD.
It's going to be an interesting one!
Camille
It's not getting much better unfortunately. After the closure of the Suvarnabhumi airport yesterday evening, at least four rounds of bomb attacks rocked Bangkok early Wednesday, injuring at least 12 people. 3 bombs at Suvarnabhumi airport and 1 at the old Don Muang airport.
THAI Air flights are diverted to Don Mueang, U-Tapao airports, my parents are on a shared Thai/Lufthansa flight, due at Bangkok around 1.45pm today, so i wonder where they will end up and how in the world they will get to Samui, since Bangkok Airways, Thai Air Asia cancel flights.
Airport negotiation with PAD fails.
Tourists urge to check with airport, police at these phone numbers
My personal problems aside, this will hurt Thailand. Tourists will consider twice where to go to without having a chance to either not being able to arrive or leave!
PAD being PAD is stating 'We'll be here till PM quits". More and more people seem to lose their faith and patience with PAD and I'm definitely amongst them. Don't get me wrong, whatever the previous governments in the last 10 years achieved under direct or indirect influence of Mr. Thaksin is not good and I don't think an entry of Mr. Thaksin into Thai politics is a good thing..
One reason the situation doesn't diffuse is because said Mr. Thaksin keeps trying to get his grip on power back.
There may be some friction in that camp also; Why Somchai no longer sees eye to eye with Thaksin.
The whole situation is heating up the military, police are urged to act against PAD.
It's going to be an interesting one!
Camille
Samui November 2008 rain pictures
Samui November 2008 rain pictures
The last few days has seen some substantial rain in Koh Samui and as per usual, the hot spots on the island are same ol' same ol' with some serious flooding. There are loads of flash floods but in general the various new drainage systems around the island can handle that water within a couple of hours.
The problem that Samui is facing is partly that with all the new construction. nobody really cared about the water running down from the hills in the rainy season with no place to go.
Right now the rain has been going on for so long that the wooden doors are difficult to close, nothing dries up that got wet, shoes, towels, shirts, pants etc and everything turns moldy and smells unpleasant. The 'fresh air in a can' producers must love this time of the year!
Next problem coming up is the sewage tanks filling up with water and not being able to take more in. We have two of them and one is already overflowed and out of action. One bathroom down, one to go!
This is the road just around the corner of my house, at the end of this flooding is a 7-11 convenience store and over the whole 400 or 500 meters length, the average depth is about 1 meter. Once the rain stops, this flood might disappear rather quickly.
This is the same road, now looking from the 7-11 vantage point. This road has a problem every year when there's substantial rain, although, earlier on this month, before the heavy, non stop rain, this road flooded but it drained within a few hours compared to a few weeks previous years.
Another classic hot spot, just before the entrance to Big C on the ring road. This morning it has been raining very hard for around 2 hours and this area turns into a private swimming pool with murky water and heavy traffic!
Somewhere in the Plai Laem area, a river cut through a construction site and the site wasn't accessible but they still needed bricks from the site. This is one way of dealing with the problem, just heave the workers over and have them stick some bricks in the bay.
Best view of the day are a bunch of guys who make the best out of a bad situation and start to fish along muddy rivers. They have nets in their hands and whenever there's the slightest movement that may indicate fish, they throw the net in.
The last few days has seen some substantial rain in Koh Samui and as per usual, the hot spots on the island are same ol' same ol' with some serious flooding. There are loads of flash floods but in general the various new drainage systems around the island can handle that water within a couple of hours.
The problem that Samui is facing is partly that with all the new construction. nobody really cared about the water running down from the hills in the rainy season with no place to go.
Right now the rain has been going on for so long that the wooden doors are difficult to close, nothing dries up that got wet, shoes, towels, shirts, pants etc and everything turns moldy and smells unpleasant. The 'fresh air in a can' producers must love this time of the year!
Next problem coming up is the sewage tanks filling up with water and not being able to take more in. We have two of them and one is already overflowed and out of action. One bathroom down, one to go!
This is the road just around the corner of my house, at the end of this flooding is a 7-11 convenience store and over the whole 400 or 500 meters length, the average depth is about 1 meter. Once the rain stops, this flood might disappear rather quickly.
This is the same road, now looking from the 7-11 vantage point. This road has a problem every year when there's substantial rain, although, earlier on this month, before the heavy, non stop rain, this road flooded but it drained within a few hours compared to a few weeks previous years.
Another classic hot spot, just before the entrance to Big C on the ring road. This morning it has been raining very hard for around 2 hours and this area turns into a private swimming pool with murky water and heavy traffic!
Somewhere in the Plai Laem area, a river cut through a construction site and the site wasn't accessible but they still needed bricks from the site. This is one way of dealing with the problem, just heave the workers over and have them stick some bricks in the bay.
Best view of the day are a bunch of guys who make the best out of a bad situation and start to fish along muddy rivers. They have nets in their hands and whenever there's the slightest movement that may indicate fish, they throw the net in.Camille
26th November, 2008
Today's weather;
It's wet and cloudy again and last night I woke up a few times from the thunder and rain. Current temp at 7 am is just 23.7C.
Yesterday saw less rain than expected with 75.2mm. It pretty much drizzled all day though with various hard showers. Max temp reached 27.2C.
There's a lot of water on the roads and the known 'weak' points have problems with prolonged flooding. Some parts that have been taken care of by the local Samui government have drastically improved and the water is dealt with easily. This gives hope for the future and with the new local government we can only hope that things improve and a good and functioning drainage system will be installed all over the island.
The following was posted yesterday on a site called relief web, with a link to a Thai government site, but I failed to find this message in Thai;
Thailand: Heavy rains in Koh Samui warned
Koh Samui district today issues a warning announcement notifying local people of possible heavy rainfalls and strong wind in the Gulf of Thailand.
Camille
It's wet and cloudy again and last night I woke up a few times from the thunder and rain. Current temp at 7 am is just 23.7C.
Yesterday saw less rain than expected with 75.2mm. It pretty much drizzled all day though with various hard showers. Max temp reached 27.2C.
There's a lot of water on the roads and the known 'weak' points have problems with prolonged flooding. Some parts that have been taken care of by the local Samui government have drastically improved and the water is dealt with easily. This gives hope for the future and with the new local government we can only hope that things improve and a good and functioning drainage system will be installed all over the island.
The following was posted yesterday on a site called relief web, with a link to a Thai government site, but I failed to find this message in Thai;
Thailand: Heavy rains in Koh Samui warned
Koh Samui district today issues a warning announcement notifying local people of possible heavy rainfalls and strong wind in the Gulf of Thailand.
Camille
Tuesday, 25 November 2008
Situation in Bangkok worsening
Situation in Bangkok worsening
First shots have been fired and two people have been injured.
To put the icing on the cake, PAD has closed Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok.
The Suvarnabhumi Airport has been ordered closed after PAD protesters seized key entrance and other areas.
Analysts say Thai protesters trying to provoke violent response from authorities
In the meantime Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat has stood firm on his decision not to step down or dissolve the House of Representatives despite the latest rally staged by anti government protesters, government spokesman Nattawut Saikua said Tuesday.
The stalemate continues and a peaceful solution seems to be further away as days or hours pass.
This doesn't look good at all and I wonder where this will bring Thailand. Closing the airport is not sending the right signals to the rest of the world.
Camille
First shots have been fired and two people have been injured.
To put the icing on the cake, PAD has closed Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok.
The Suvarnabhumi Airport has been ordered closed after PAD protesters seized key entrance and other areas.
Analysts say Thai protesters trying to provoke violent response from authorities
In the meantime Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat has stood firm on his decision not to step down or dissolve the House of Representatives despite the latest rally staged by anti government protesters, government spokesman Nattawut Saikua said Tuesday.
The stalemate continues and a peaceful solution seems to be further away as days or hours pass.
This doesn't look good at all and I wonder where this will bring Thailand. Closing the airport is not sending the right signals to the rest of the world.
Camille
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