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Previous entries

Returning Home - Again

The God Illusion

Going Home

2022

A Change of Direction

Dogs and Pandemics

The Forgotten tenors

Nine Things I will Miss about Thailand

Circles

Just Do It

Ayr on a Shoestring

Oh Lonesome Me

Tipping Point

Movie Reviews

Putting Pen to Paper

A Year to Remember

A Year to Forget

10 Reasons I Cannot Go Home

China Girl

The State of Play

Veggies

Mind Your Language

New Horizons

Injustice

Honeymoon

Taxes and Death

Also-rans

Stinkhorns

Grey is the Colour

Beating Myself Up

Nothing More to Say

Better Late than Never

Staying Put

Musical Chairs

Wanderlust

A Dog's Life

A Sabbatical

A Welcome Diversion

A Guide to Business Ethics

Remembering the Austin Allegro

Our Lords and Masters

In Transit - Part 2

In Transit - Part 1

Nagging Doubts

While Bangkok Burns

An Evening to Remember

Thai Business Malpractice

The New and the Old

Christmas Lights

Groundhog Day

Singapura

Possessions

Adventure is Out There

Education

Grabbing it While You Can

A Few Ups and Many Downs

Limbo

Pack Up Your Old Kit Bag

Salmon

Bananas

Religion

Football

Grateful

Yummy

Ate Two Caesar

Swine Pie

The Thai Rollercoaster

Stuck in the Middle

There's no Regrets

Profit and Loss

Running on Empty

Getting it out Your System

National Mistrust

Bring in the Old, Out with the New

Humility

I am Reviewing, My Situation...

Wat Phrabhat Nam Poo

Today I will Mostly be Eating...

Mortality

The Thai Experience

Wat Khaowong

Reality Bites

Wat Simalais

Amazing Thailand

He Must have a Big Wand

Right Place, Wrong Time

Carousel

Tin

And it does go on

Mangos

Bring Him Home

Resurgence

Protege

Listening to my Reader.

 

Archives

Diary Archive 18.

Diary Archive 17.

Diary Archive 16.

Diary Archive 15.

Diary Archive 14.

Diary Archive 13.

Diary Archive 12.

Diary Archive 11.

Diary Archive 10.

Diary Archive 9.

Diary Archive 8.

Diary Archive 7.

Diary Archive 6.

Diary Archive 5.

Diary Archive 4.

Diary Archive 3.

Diary Archive 2.

Diary Archive 1.

 

 

Adventure is Out There

 

So quickly do things turn around. From Ploy having to pawn some of her gold so we can keep everything running for the business we are now buying that gold back, my new Dell workstation computer arrives next Tuesday, I shall probably purchase a new laptop next week and we treated ourselves to a new TV, I have another article due to be published this month, we are still awaiting another payment and are very likely to receive another order very soon. And after all of that we will still have money in the bank and to top it all Ploy's agency job is also starting to bring money in. And finally I may be able to recover some of my pension money from the UK using these QROPS schemes which although parasitic, for me at least, mean something instead of nothing.

Money goes to those who have it (or at least a little bit of it). When we had no money everything seemed to put further drains on our empty piggy bank, like the TV breaking down or customers paying late. When we have a little money customers pay quicker and a cold caller might actually bring in a little money from nowhere.

It was my birthday last week and it is our intention this year to celebrate a little at Christmas. Attempts to find somewhere for a spot of turkey and sage and onion stuffing on Christmas Day have been thwarted by the silly prices some places are asking and not wanting to travel all the way to Bangkok just to fight obese and drunk foreigners in a pub for a luke warm brussel sprout. But we have found our old Christmas decorations and the tree we bought from Singapore seems to have weathered its travels well enough so we intend to decorate the house a little this Christmas and perhaps we can find a small turkey in Bangkok to cook ourselves.

And as we settle even more comfortably into life here I have began to get a little itch to return to the UK for a short holiday. Although Ploy and I love each other's company we also like very different things in a holiday; both being only children we also retain that need for our own time and independence. If we stayed in Thailand I would take a few books (and my new laptop!) to Koh Chang whereas Ploy would prefer the bustle of a big city. I like to spend hours in classical CD shops and art museums (not something easy to do here anyway) whereas Ploy tolerates that only because she loves me. And if we returned to the UK together we would have the hassle of getting a visitor visa for Ploy and I really don't need further form filling at this point. So I thought of returning by myself.

A further prompt for this came from an article about the world's best airlines which Singapore air was top of yet again. I instinctively went to check prices for the flights to London on Singapore Air and they were 48,000 baht which is quite reasonable for that level of service. However I still only have Silver card status and even after that trip am still short of the necessary Gold card miles. So I looked at Eva Air who I know fly direct to London from Bangkok; (travelling via Singapore either means an overnight flight which I don't like - you arrive early morning in the UK and no hotel will let you check in, or you stay overnight in Singapore for the early morning flight from there which adds expense but also wastes a day of the holiday). And I remembered they also had executive economy seats which from experience on Thai airways are well worth the little extra. And there they were, 67,000 baht for executive economy on Eva, number 11 in that airline review and I also noticed they fly to LA, San Francisco, Toronto, Vancouver and New York, all with executive economy seating, the US being my most frequent destination as we have most customers from there. And flying executive economy with a Silver card from them also gives you access to lounges and faster check-in. Why didn't I see this before. So it looks like goodbye Singapore Air after 11 years together, I will miss you.

So 3 days in London with perhaps one of those days a trip down to Portsmouth, (my home town), meals at Porters or the Lancaster hotel (not the best food - although it used to be very good - but the places have fond memories for me), visits to Tate Modern, warm dark beer in musty pubs, CD shops, Foyles bookstore, (no longer the biggest in the world but big enough), and then the train to Edinburgh for three days there, meals at Creelers and Monteiths, trawl the pubs and walks along Portobello beach. I am looking forward to it. Immensely. Perhaps later in January or early February while there is still a frost on the ground and log fires in the inns, (and assuming I can find our warm clothes from Canada). A chance to recharge batteries before making 2013 an even better year than this one.

 

 

 

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