6 Oct

6 Oct - Lots more rain . . . all day yesterday & all day today. The road near bridge over the Klong Plu river has again been almost washed out, half disappeared last night.

Siam Royal View have released more beachfront plots and marina plots which should be of interest for anyone looking for a beachfront house or wanting to own a riverfront house where they can moor a boat right outside the door. (I'm told that this plot plan was drawn by a guy who used to illustrate the Biology textbooks you used in high school. His inspiration for this plan was the anatomical diagram of a flaccid willy on page 89.)

Peace and quiet has been restored to VJ Apartment; the apartment of choice for foreigners who cant find anywhere better to stay, Thai nurses & middle management at hotels. The junkie English guy who had been consistently keeping most of the building awake by noisily beating his Thai wife was finally kicked out as events came to a head with him returning home after a night out only wearing a t-shirt, which was quickly dispensed with. It was up to the police to suggest he put some clothes on and point out that banging on all the doors on his corridor wasn't a good way to make friends.

Keeping on the topic of drunk foreigners . . . the grandly-named Koh Chang Entertainment Complex, and the girls who work there, were declared open for business on 2 October. If only there wasn't a particularly interesting episode of may favourite Thai soap opera on, I'd have been there with my camera to record the event for posterity. History's loss. But if you're looking for a night of cheap beer and mindless conversation about the size of your wallet and the option to "You nice man. You pay bar for me?" at the end of the evening, make a beeline for Koh Chang Entertainment Plaza, just north of Klong Prao beach.

There's a new steakhouse opening on Whitesands next week. I've got an invite to the Grand Opening and the food's free, so regardless of menu price, atmosphere and service the Texas Steakhouse on Whitesands is my recommended steakhouse on Koh Chang . . . . and will remain so, until I have to pay for a meal there or another steakhouse owner offers me a freebie.

Slight correction made to the ' Battle of Koh Chang' blurb in the Articles section - after a Thai historian emailed me. Some people are sensitive about facts, whereas I'm not one to worry too much if a specific ship was or wasn't sunk 60 years ago, which isn't an attitude shared by historians apparently.

After repeatedly criticizing D(is)ASTA the organisation in charge of tarting-up Koh Chang up for tourists, it looks like I may end up helping write their English language user guide to the island and even getting paid for it as the guys in charge are apparently "good people" but clueless. So I'll be in good company.

There's a small plot of commercial land for sale by the roadside a stones throw from the Amari Emerald Cove and half a dozen other resorts. Just under 1 Rai & suitable for retail or long stay / apartment type accommodation. Asking price of 7 million baht is negotiable. Foreigners can own leasehold on 30+30 year contract or usufruct if required.

If the terms 'usufruct' and 'superficies' mean nothing to you . . . they should. Especially if you're thinking of living or doing business in Thailand, as owning land though the previously common Thai registered company route is now very difficult / impossible to do. Usufructs & Superficies are two fully legal alternatives which provide security for foreigners. I added a bit about them to the Real Estate Section for anyone who's interested.

28 Feb

28 Feb - 'Youths hide anti-tank missile launcher near Ambassador Hotel' A recent headline from the Pattaya Mail - no real reason for mentioning it other than it does offer a timely reminder for owners of battlefield munitions. Remember, to lock up your shoulder fired guided missile launchers again after use. I find a length of chain and three-digit combination lock, readily available from your local haberdashery store for around 120 baht, does the job adequately.

More hotel feedback, this time from Val - praise for Tropicana and you're left with the feeling that Grand Lagoona has some room for improvement:

"We were meant to stay at the Amari, but cancelled when they announced a final rate that was doubled compared to our pre-booking rate the day before!

We followed your advice and choose to stay instead at the Tropicana. We completely agree with you, we loved it, thought it was really excellent. We would go back very happily.

One day we stopped at the Grand Lagoona, Bangbao for lunch and it was a complete disaster. The food was so bad that even some drinks had to be sent back. We can take some pretty average food, but that was probably the worse I've had in years, all countries considered. The place in itself was dirty, empty and had an eerie, spooky feel."

Land for Sale on Koh Chang . . . In response to emails I've received recently, I went off on a hunt for land the other day. Not just any land but the aim was to find small plots of 'Chanote' titled land with beach frontage and easy access to the main road i.e. land, suited to building a nice house on. This criteria ruled out the west coast, so we headed east and came back with a handful of places that anyone interested in living on Koh Chang should seriously consider plus a few other interesting bit & pieces.

Here's a taster . . . want to be able to walk out of your house & onto the sand?

A two storey concrete beachfront house, (needs renovation) built right on the shoreline on around 1500sqm of 'Chanote' titled land with private access. And it has about 40 metres of beachfront. Price: 5 million baht.

30 Jan

30 Jan - I was over on the east coast of the 'Oriental Eden of the East' the other day and was struck by how dead the three resorts I visited were - I expected to see some signs of life. One was a rather expensive western run place, (lots of local gossip about problems with the lease, rip offs, unhappy landlord etc) and the other couple were Thai run, one very nice and one best described as 'homely'. So, if you're looking for a bed on the east coast - take a look at Suan San Chan, (www.suansamchan.com) about 2.5km south of Centrepoint pier ad only been open for a couple of months. Three types of very tastefully designed bungalows from 800 - 1,200 baht/night all have hot water, AC, satellite TV; in this small 18 room resort. Bungalows are in a shady garden area and here's a small private beach - so it's a good place to get away from the tourist masses for a day or two or, if you arrive on the island late and just want somewhere comfortable to stay. Call Khun Paiboon, who speaks English & German, for a free pick up from the ferry pier. Tel: 07.137.5854

If staying on the east coast isn't your thing, but finding a small friendly place for a beer is - try 'Souk Bar', about a kilometre south of Centrepoint ferry. Run by a young, arty Thai guy called 'Ed' who's got a very nice little bar right on a small sandy beach, where you can listen to chill out music until the early hours. He's been open for 6 years but only recently got round to putting up a sign, that's how laid back it is.

And finally, if you don't want to stay on the east, don't want to eat & drink on the east but do want to live on the east, there's a funky house for sale right on the beach, literally a couple of metres from the sand. It's been recently rebuilt - supposedly as a guesthouse but the Thai owner now doesn't have time to run it, so it's for sale. 1.25 Rai of 'Chanote' titled, beachfront land and this 3 bedroom house for 5 million baht. Located 5 minutes drive south of Centrepoint ferry.