1st October

Hi

I was chatting away to Aimee today, and she said, "Dad, where is Uncle John Tranter? I haven't seen him for ages."

I replied, "Oh, he lives in another country now, on the other side of the world."

"Which country?

"Thailand."

"Oh!" she replied then went very quiet for some time.

"Dad", she said after being deep in thought for some time, "why can't we live in Toyland as well?"

Nick

2nd/3rd October

So I was told that I needed to be up early on Saturday Morning to see the best of the floating market. I duly woke at 5am and wore T-shirt, shorts, sandals, two cameras and wallet. I assumed I would be out two or three hours and could then go back to bed at around 9am.

Little did I know that I wasn't being taken to the floating market in Bangkok but the bigger and better one in Ratacaburi. We traveled by bus, a long journey, and didn't arrive till around 9am.

The floating market was great. The perfect way to shop. You sit in a boat, eating breakfast while being taken around all the floating "shops". No effort required at all. The canals formed a web of quaint aisles through which the boat women skillfully navigated using just one oar off the stern of the boat. It all seemed like a ride from Disney World. It's a small world!

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After we left Ratchaburi I was asked if I'd like to stop of in Patchaburi. I accepted assuming it was on the way back to Bangkok. I was wrong, it was much further South. After Petchaburi we continued South again to a seaside resort called Cha-am. It was now late afternoon and a seafood festival was just beginning. We decided to stay for the festival … and stay the night in Cha-am. Quite strange to check into a hotel with no luggage!

The festival was a bit like a German beer festival and I don't remember too much of the latter part of it.

Sunday morning was spent on the beech then a very long train journey (3^rd class … 40 baht) back to Bangkok. In Bangkok it was pouring with rain… floods everywhere.. couldn't get a taxi back home so spent the evening in a restaurant. Got home 11ish … What a weekend!

4th October

Saw "Sixth Sense" this evening. The film that the rest of the staff who'd seen it refused to talk about with anyone who hadn't seen it. I thought it was the best film I'd seen in a long time … can't say any more though, just in case you haven't seen it!

5th October

I wonder if Diane reads this diary. Wouldn't she get a shock if I quoted from her emails. Well here goes:

"Did have a minor crisis on Friday though. Was going into Bangkok with Karen (1st school P.A.) so she came here to get ready. She was in the bath covered in bubbles when the water and air con went off. It was then a bit of a farce yelling pigeon Thai to the deaf/daft handyman and trying to get things fixed. Still, got it sorted and got Karen sort of rinsed off in time to go out. Didn't make too good a job though as she started to froth as we waited in the rain for a taxi!"

6th October

Biggest downpour in the world this morning. Got absolutely drenched getting from under the umbrella into the door of the minibus. I'm sure you all wanted to know that!

7th October

Dined at a restaurant this evening where you're given a big pot of boiling water and lots of raw ingredients you have to cook your self. If the restaurant wasn't full I would suspect a bit of a con. I can just imagine the chef hiding in the kitchen sniggering to himself knowing that all the customers were doing his job for him.

8th - 10th October

Sorry it has taken me so long to emails but things have been pretty busy here. Nevertheless it is only two weeks till half term so hopefully I should have a chance to catch up then. My in tray on my desk is full and the inbox of my email program is overflowing. Off on another adventure this weekend so I'll bet I'm even further behind on Sunday evening when I return.

---

It's Sunday evening, I'm back ... exhausted ... been to a deserted island, played tennis, rode banana boat behind speedboat and went miles into the unknown on a mountain bike. Now I'm ready for a long sleep.

11th October

Latest from Nick:

A student walked into my class today wearing a hat made entirely from fox fur. It even had the entire tail, or brush, a dangling down the back of his neck.

I said, "What on earth are you wearing that for?"

He replied, "When I left home this morning, my wife asked me where I was working. I said at Tally Ho Training school today, dear. She replied,'where the fox hat then!!'"

Doesn't translate too well to the written word, eh!!!***??

Nick

12th October

Simon Foley has left the rest of us standing with his web site. A new trick every day and attracting lots of hits. http://simonfoley.com

13th October

It's official ... The Sahotas new album has been released. See the details at: http://visitweb.com/sahotas

14th October

Got a cold ... again!

15th October

I think it's one of those months where Nick is writing most of this diary!

I went to a fancy dress party the other day. I went with a girl strapped to my back.

The host said, "this is a fancy dress party, you need to dress up."

I said, "I have dressed up. I've come as a snail."

"A snail, you've just got a girl strapped on your back."

"I know. This is Michelle!"

Hope your cold gets better.............any consolation, I've got one too.

Nick

Saw the film "The Haunting" ... not as good as "Sixth Sense"

16th October

Thought a weekend at home was called as I was away last weekend and will be again next weekend ... so I stayed at home. Well I slept at home but went out in Bangkok.

First a bus trip to China town to buy material for trousers. Then a tuk tuk to Pantip Plaza to purchase a device for stabilising the power to this computer (due to the electric storms we've been having recently).

Next onto the klong boat taxi for another break neck whiz down the cut to "The Mall", a huge shopping complex in Bangkapi. Here doposit material with tailor, an old hunch back, half rimmed spactackled Dickensian character... (who took a strange measurement from the top of my zip, between my legs up to the small of my back?).

After this a walk around the amusement park on the top floor of this shopping centre. Went on twirly thing that went round and round very fast. Then drank a few large jugs of beer between us. Now everything was going t round and round very fast. So on to the dance machine:

Now I don't know whether these things are big in the UK at the moment but you see them all over the place here. Two players stand on the stage you can see in the foreground here .. then disco music plays with instructions on the screen telling you which of the blue and red arrows to bop onto. The machine keeps a score of how good your dancing has been. It was only when the music had finished I turned around to see about fifty people who had gathered to watch us. ... Good job I'd had the jug of beer!

Home cooked Thai meal then "The Street of Hollywood" nightclub

17th October

Sunday morning - School work

Sunday afternoon - Bit of gardening (mid life crisis) ... then fell asleep through two films on cable TV

What a typically English Sunday!

18th October

Supermarket shopping:

Most expensive item... Tin of smoked spam (for fritters .. breakfast) £3.05

Cheapest item ... 70cl bottle of Sovereign Dry Gin ...£2.70

Click here to see something that might not go too well with roast lamb!

19th October

Updated the Staff Gallery on the Bangkok Patana Schoo Maths Web Site.

20th October

Some staff and pupils were invited to view the dress rehearsal of the Royal Barge Procession along the Chao Phraya River in central Bangkok. We were taken by coach through some typical Bangkok traffic jams to an apartment block which overlooked the river. There we drank beer, ate eour'deuves (how do you spell that?) while viewing the historic spectacle. Life's tough

21st October

Im writing this diary entry on my TI92 calculator as I bought a PC link cable for it today. I"m sitting at the back on one of Simon"s assemblies...Id like to say it"s really boring but it"s quite good really (tha calculator and the assembly!).

There"s no apostrophe on this calculator so that"s why I"m using inverted commas.

22nd - 27th October

CLICK HERE FOR THE STORY AND PICTURES

28th October

Dear John

I don't know if anyone has told you but Alan Bainbridge (from Tipton) died yesterday.
It isn't known yet what caused it, but he had been off work since Wednesday with what he thought was 'flu. He fell over Monday night and was rushed into hospital where they diagnosed a fractured skull. He died Tuesday morning.

I was only with him on Saturday as he always came along to make coffee and things at my GSL/Commissioner Courses. He obviously wasn't well but still insisted on coming along and helping. He spent a lot of time telling about he wanted to do with his Scout Troop, and how he wanted to start a new Scout Group at Tipton and how they were going to celebrate the Millennium.

He was the same age as me. It makes you realise ... seize the day!!!

Andy

Friday 29th October

Though it was still the half term holiday I had to go into school to do some work. It was hard to remember I was in Thailand as I sat at my desk in a British school listening to BRMB radio live from Birmingham. I found you can receive it through the internet and as the computer in my office is permanently connected to the internet I had it on all day. When it was lunchtime in Thailand it was 6am in the UK so I was listening to the breakfast show with traffic reports telling of congestion on the M6 and Hagley road ... my old route to work.

Hmmm my diary entries are getting a little longer I hear you thinking. Well because I can now use my TI92 calculator to type I have found more time. At the moment it is 5pm and I'm sitting in the back of a taxi off to hire a car for the weekend. The rental garage is towards the centre of Bangkok, it is 5pm and the garage closes at 5:30pm. The traffic is... well you can guess... 5pm on a Friday in Bangkok. If I wasn't keeping myself busy typing this I'd be constantly looking at my watch and cursing the traffic.

6:30pm Got the car and successfully found my way back home :-)

Saw a 3D film at the "World's biggest" IMAX cinema.

Saturday 30th October

Having the car would make shopping for large heavy items much easier; of so I thought:

10:30am Started out for Jatuchack market, a 30 minute journey

12:30 driving around Jatuchack for the third time still trying to find somewhere to park!

1pm Eventually found a place to park and bought lots of big stuff for the house.

8pm Drove south

Sunday 31st October

Day at Ban Suen (by the sea)