Mini Frog

This frog is about an inch long. I used the flash so it looks much darker skinned than it is.

DW

Building Site Update ... we are here!

We came to see the house for a specific reason ... but we left some vital papers in Bangkok so that kind of fell apart! Still, all is not lost and we will do what we need to do!

So, here are some photos, beginning with a bucket for pouring concrete ... can you see any concrete???

Then other updating snaps!

DW

That's the view from the dining room to the master bedroom.

Excel Training in Bangkok

I will be leading a two day seminar on Spreadsheet and Financial Modelling on 4th and 5th July 2013.

Short, intensive and very interactive ... if you use Excel and you need help, come along.

Read up snd sign on here :

http://www.vmacgroup.com/Spreadsheet%20and%20Financial%20modelling/index.php

DW

Rooms are Showing!

They have got to the stage where the layout of the rooms is showing now.

Take a look ...

DW

Waffling on ...

Because of the very high costs of shipping i was able to bring just a few of my  possessions with he to Thailand. One thing that did survive was my waffle iron.

Today was waffle day: the first waffles to be made in Thailand using Mickey Mouse waffle iron. Take a look.

By the way, the recipe book that came with this iron disappeared in my last days in England. I had it in my hand and put it aside to bring it with me. It went somewhere i am sorry to say. As i researched recipes last night i came across some dreadful looking ideas too.

DW

Top Man!

One of my delegates said this week's course was the best course he had ever been on.

How about that?

DW

Lost Luggage? I'm an expert

Whoops they did it again! Lost my luggage, I mean.

I travelled with Etihad from Abu Dhabi to Riyadh but my suitcase did not! This follows having initially being bumped from the flight because they had overbooked it.

They eventually found me a seat after initially offering to fly me in the evening via Kuwait ... as if i wanted to do that!

Now it's the usual mess: which is typically when supposedly five star airlines reveal their true colours. We see how valuable passengers really are as they are ignored or are given assurances that are worthless and are even told lies. 

If ever they misplace your luggage, you are often on your own. I am still waiting for anything sensible from KLM following their mishandling of me and my luggage early in April. They really do not care. A promise of action within days becomes a standard response to look into your case that leads to a letter that says everything was beyond their control. Then someone responds to say USE MY NAME otherwise you will get lost in the system. Oh and by the way, it can take up to TEN WEEKS to sort out your problem which is funny when you realise that it took them just minutes to cause you stress, to cause you to have to walk around in the same clothes for days on end and to spend lots of money on taxis to cover for missed connections and collecting the luggage which they then refuse to deliver.

At the time of writing, my named contact at KLM has disappeared without a trace. They hope i will go away so that they can   save the GBP150 they owe me.

DW

House Update

Here is the house as at earlier today!

A lot more steel and concrete going into the foundations. A platform has arrived too!!

Not the best photos but better than nothing!!!

DW

Unique Toast

Just to show that one can make toast with a waffle iron!!

Mickey Mouse face to boot!!

Note the Marmite :)

DW

Don't ...

I just had to snap this ... Bangkok five minutes ago!!

DW

More Steel!!

As we were leaving for Bangkok i took two final photos and i hope you can see several more sets of steel work rising from the foundations.

DW

You Like Tractors?

Take a look at where we are just now ...

DW

Steel Work

Never thought you'd be excited by rebar did you? Here's some ... The house is starting to go UP now!!

DW

Missed Opportunities

Wherever i go i normally take at least one of my cameras with me, even if it's onlya phone camera.

Except for this evening when ...

The sun was sitting behind a cloud just before sunset

There was a flock of large Stork like birds flying around above us and then they settled the trees nearby

There were two water Buffalo paddling in the lake

The scenery was very photogenic

We will go there again tomorrow at the same time, armed with a suitable camera, to see if we can recapture any of what we missed today!

DW

Steel Arrived!

We were promised some foundation work on Thursday and whilst I thought it couldn't happen, some steel work arrived this afternoon. So, maybe we're on track after all!

I hope so because we have to go back to  Bangkok on Friday.

DW

Eureka Moment

I've tried many times to take photos in very low light settings and have always been frustrated.

A power cut arrived so we wandered outside and once my eyes had got used to the dark ... brilliant stars all over the sky. One shooting star to boot.

I thought, let's have one more try at taking a photo of the stars. Camera on! Change  the ISO setting to its maximum 1600. Point! Shoot! 

Nothing :(

I put the camera away and went back to star gazing. Then i had my eureka moment ... the camera can't take a photo because it is set to automatic by default. So, I thought, if I set it to manual focus maybe it will do as I want!

I went and got the camera again. Changed the focus setting to manual. I already had the shutter open for 5 seconds but I increased that to 6 seconds.

I pressed the shutter release button and after a delay of a second it took a photo ... of the stars!

I did it! Eureka!

The power cut is still with us so i can't post any photos here yet but I will as soon as I can.

UPDATE: here are three photos for you ... sorry but very low resolution although the originals are 5 Mb in size.

DW

Day One of my new Chez Moi Part Two

They did a lot today, considering they are using just hand tools.

A few more snaps for you. As i type this it is almost 7 pm and there are still 300 superblock blocks to unload.

DW

Proper Building Site Now

Take a look ... site mapped out, 3,000 superblocks delivered, a further 45 lorry loads of soil dumped, gravel and cement delivered ... the photo shows SOME of all of that!

DW

Proper Building Site Now

Take a look ... site mapped out, 3,000 superblocks delivered, a further 45 lorry loads of soil dumped, gravel and cement delivered ... the photo shows SOME of all of that!

DW

Day one of the new Chez Moi!

Right on cue the builders arrived and started mapping out the layout of my new abode. Here it is ...

DW

A Big Flower

Anyone know the name of this flower? I have seen several of them over the last few days.

They are about 6 inches across.

DW

The Local Fauna

This morning as we drove into town we came across several Elephants, of which this is one.

DW

What do you call a Frog Around here?

I think you might have guessed the answer to that question already. Around here a Frog might easily be called ... dinner!

Take a look at these specimens, though: eyes are gorgeous and their skin is smooth but LOOKS like sand ... camouflage.

You'll also see the Frogs before and after. You'll know what i mean when you see the photos :(

DW

Insects

Sitting outside next to a light anywhere in the world that i know brings insects to it.

I didn't take very good photos but this is what i got.

DW

I go for a walk and the dogs go for a Marathon

I have been taking a walk every evening here and one or more of the three household dogs go with me.

I walk for about an hour and the dogs run all over the place: even just one dog on its own will cover 5-10 times the distance i do i think.

In one place today, one of the dogs picked up the scent of something. That sent the two bigger dogs off on a digging frenzy. The Terrier idled its life away at the time!!

DW

The 30,000,000 Baht Folly

Someone has been building a very grand house near here. I believe it's not finished yet. So we went to have a look at the thing which, it turns out, is for sale.

I will not mention the nationality of the man who masterminded this folly but take a look at the flag in one of the photos below ... it contains a clue.

DW

Rain ... it knows how to rain

It's a long time since i lived in the tropics. I last lived tropically in Malawi although i have travelled tropically a lot since rhen.

Two nigjts ago i was woken up by the loudest rain i have ever heard. It lashed it down.

At the moment it's happening again: a veritable downpour. A deluge. Torrential.

The electricity has gone with the storm too: i don't know for how long.

Mental note to self: don't forget to buy a generator for the rainy season.

DE