Post 364: Into Laos for a new Thai Visa

Bangkok Floods 2011 ....

The flood waters in Lak Si, Bangkok have stopped rising... that's the good news. The not so good news is that 32 thousand million cubic metres of water still needs to be drained. Three main canals, or 'Khlong', drain the water at a theoretical rate of 30 cubic metres per second. Unfortunately the 'theory' doesn't account for the mass of garbage that's accumulated and restricted the flow of the khlongs. Unfortunately, garbage isn't the only contaminent in the water that's been stagnant and festering for more than a month. Yellow fever, cholera, dengue fever and malaria are now more than just theoretical threats here. I'm lucky, I've got nothing more than bronchitis and although my tollerance to waterborne diseases will probably not be as high as that of the locals .... I haven't been swiming in it  ....

I've been back in Thailand for almost a month now ... and my 'Visa on Entry' allows me to stay for only 30 days. The only way to extend my Stay .... is to Leave. That sounds a little crazy, but this is Southeast Asia .... it's just the way that things work around here. In the not too distant past, I could have simply crossed the border into Laos, Cambodia or Malaysia, turned around and instantly got another 30 days visa on entry .... but times have changed. In early 2009, the rules changed so that crossing a land border would only give you 15 days of visa exemption, a process that could only be repeated twice. Now, the solution is to visit the Thai Embassy in Laos to obtain a proper visa.

Two days earlier, the bus station at Mo Chit had been flooded .... but today they're watering the grass. It seems that the walls and sandbags have done their job and buses seem to be operating normally. Travelling VIP 1st Class, the journey to the northern town of Nong Khai will take 11 hours ... but as the ticket costs only £8 ..... it beats flying. The bus leaves on time .... 7pm .... but progress through the north of Bangkok is slow. The elevated motorway is reduced to one lane ..... the other two lanes are now car parks with improvised market stalls and all of the activities that you'd normally associate with Thai life. The evacuees of Pathum Thani, Rangsit and Lak Si Districts have occupied the only available high ground and made it their home.

At 6am .... the bus drops me at Nong Khai bus station where a host of eager tuk-tuk riders offer their services. As a European arriving alone at this hour, they probably know my plans better than I do. 'Friendship Bridge ... 300 Baht' ... I know the real price and hang out until they see reason ... 100 Baht. The border opens at 6am and it's quiet .. amazingly quiet. In the mornings the crossing is normally active with Thai traders crossing into Laos to buy local goods to resell back in Thailand, and in the evenings, Thai girls crossing into Vientiane for a slightly different kind of trade. With no queue to slow me down, I pay my $35 for a Lao 30 Day visa and an extra $1 for the 'out of office hours' service .... and I'm in. Another tuk-tuk takes me to central Vientiane where I find a small hotel. It's way too early for 'check-in', but they'll need to register my passport before they'll let me stay (my passport will spending the night at the Thai Embassy here) ... look at me .... I'm actually planning ahead for once. I change $100 and that gives me 500,000 Kip .... more than enough for 2 days here including Hotel and Thai Visa costs.

The Thai Embassy is a formality ..... arrive at 10:30am, half an hour before it closes and most of the queues have gone. A 60 Day Double Entry Visa will cost about 200,000 Kip, or 2,0000 Thai Baht. If you follow the advice from many 'Thai Forums' on the Internet, they'll tell you that it's impossible to get a double entry visa from any Thai Embassy in Southeast Asia .... but you can. Just go to Vientiane, smile sweetly and ask for it.

After less than an hour at the Thai Embassy ..... I walk back to the centre of Vientiane .... I like to walk here .... because walking allows you to see stuff. The photograph above was taken in April 2010 and shows the restaurants set up amongst the earth works on the banks of the Mekong River. Below is the photograph that I took today ... from about the same position. Progress is unstoppable.... but I prefer the 'Old'.

Where once there was sand, now there are miles and miles of pavement ... empty pavement. It feels like I'm the only person here ... except for the statue .... but I have no idea who it is!!!

Thankfully here in Laos, the 'Old' seems to live in harmony with the 'New' ... but probably not for very long. I've seen 'change' across Southeast Asia, but the changes here seem to be happening more quickly than in other areas. Changes not so much in the development of infrastructure, but development in the financial means of the people ..... or I should say .... 'some' of the people. It seems that a two-tier system is rapidly developing here in Lao PDR (People's Democratic Republic) ... the 'Have's' and the 'Have Not's'. Maybe it's always been that way but today the 'Have's' are not embarrassed to display their wealth. I've never seen so many BMW X6's and Lexus SUV's in one place ....... the 'Have's' are wearing their wealth on their key chains. Western 'Brands' are this years 'must haves' here in Laos, but you wont see any of those brands being distributed through international chains ... NO McDonalds, NO KFC, NO Walmart, NO Starbucks and very few Fat people .... just an observation  ... mai pen rai kap

Post 363: Swiming in Lak Si

Bangkok Floods 2011 ...

Walking from the Lak Si apartment this morning, I noticed that the little Mira car was now an island. The waters were still rising and everywhere was quiet. The usual morning chaos was absent  ....... People were either asleep or gone.

At the entrance to the car park, the usual collection of Taxi Bikes had been replaced by a boat .... and that's not really a good sign.

Paddling along the Soi with a small bag of rice and a bottle of water .... there was just a single monk. His bowl was full but he accepted my small offering and provided the usual blessing ... 'koon wai nahm mai?' ...  he then asked if I could swim .. and I returned the question .... but he just smiled.

The only scooters on the Soi this morning were being pushed ... but their owners still smiled.

Large trucks and small boats were the vehicles of choice today ......

At Wat Lak Si ..... the Red Cross were evacuating the local population ..... and in my limited experience, once the Red Cross become actively involved in a situation, that situation is probably a little more serious than it looks. Flooding in European cities can be devastating, but in comparison to Bangkok, the water involved in European floods is probably a little less hazardous. By the time the waters reached the district of Lak Si, they'd been traveling for quite some time. During that journey the waters had collected a certain amount of debris, a huge amount of sewage, numerous snakes and at least a hundred crocodiles from a flooded farm in Pathum Thani. On Chanel 3 this morning they interviewed a young boy in hospital. His legs were heavily bandaged after accidentally interfacing with a group of five crocodiles in the flood water ...... less than 100m from my apartment.

Alongside the main highway, which was still passable with care, evacuees waited for collection ..... and maybe it's now time for me to follow them .... mai pen rai kap

Post 362: Amphibious Automotive Invention ...

Bangkok Floods 2011 ....

Floods can be depressing. So ignoring for a moment the death and devastation that the Bangkok floods have caused ........ here's a little proof that necessity truly is the mother of invention ....

As the waters flooded into the northern districts of Bangkok: Pathum Thani, Rangsit, Don Meuang, Lak Si, Changwattana etc., the people made rudimentary modifications to their vehicles. Plumbing pipe to create new air intakes and hose pipes for exhaust outlets. Provided that you can maintain a spark, keep water out of the fuel system, allow air to enter and exhaust gases to escape, then an engine should still work .... that's the theory. Well, at first I scoffed, ..... but now the jokes on me ... because it works.

For the first few days of the flood, local residents and taxi-Bikes continued to operate as normal ... but 'Normal' in an Asian way .... an inventive 'Make Do' kind of attitude that still exists in a society that hasn't forgotten how to use a tool kit at home. But then the waters rose and once a vehicle achieves neutral to positive 'Bouyancy' ..... the home-fix modifications became useless. At this point in time, 'We' would probably give up and admit defeat ... but 'We' are not Thai. If a Thai doesn't work then a Thai doesn't get paid .... and if a Thai doesn't get paid then a Thai doesn't eat. Hunger is a great motivator .... that thankfully 'We' have never experienced ....

So .... when the only vehicle you have is a Car or Scooter ... and the vehicle that you need is a Boat ... it's time to improvise. The Isuzu DMax is the normal mode of transport for most rural Thais' ... but will eight oil drums provide enough buoyancy to turn this metal beast into a boat? .... Who knows? ... It's probably a bad idea who's time has come ..... but 6/10 for effort and ingenuity.

Slightly lighter than an Isuzu DMax, the Scooter is possibly an easy conversion. Here, six oil drums should allow the scooter to float and mini paddles attached to the wheel spokes will provide drive. Steering might be an issue though. All in all ..... it's a well deserved 8/10

Taking the mechanical high ground .. this effort really hits the mark. If you want to raise the air intake and exhaust outlet above the level of the flood water ...... building an extra storey into your scooter is something that I would never have thought about ... but then I am 'We' and 'We' are not Thai. I have no idea how the new elevation will affect the already ponderous handling ..... but 9/10 for effort on this one.

I'm not usually a fan of choppers .... but then before today I'd never seen a version quite like this one. It might be an aging 2-stoke but the lady in the centre seems to be having the ride of her life. I'm not sure if that's because of the positioning of the exhaust pipe or the rear passenger??? .... This creation takes the full 10/10 ..... because it actually works ..... I love Thailand .. mai pen rai kap

Post 361: Koh Lak Si .....

Bangkok Floods 2011 ....

I woke this morning at dawn and following my daily routine, wandered down from the apartment to give food to the passing monks ... the traditional Thai ritual of 'Sai Baht'. There were no monks this morning, only water ...... lots of water

Yesterday I bought a pair of natty black rubber boots, 'Wellingtons' ... just like I wore when I was a kid. They came up to just below my knee ... and thankfully that was just above the water. I wandered to the market, more in hope than confidence. The stores along the Soi were all open .... but all flooded. They've built walls of sandbags and concrete block, but I fear many have missed the chapter on hydro dynamics. Water finds it's own level and if your internal drains are lower than the level of the water outside, no matter how impressive your wall is .... you'll flood from the inside out ... mai pen rai kap

Kids will be kids, and kids love playing in water. When that water is a free flowing river or a beautifully chlorinated pool then that's a good thing ..... but when it's sloshing around in the street mixed with sewage and garbage ..... maybe not so good

Arriving at the store .... shampoo, condoms and chewing gum. Looking on the bright side, yesterday they didn't have any gum ...

I did find food .... at the Food Hall in IT Square. I killed an hour enjoying a plate of kow pad gai. It was quite delicious. I'd been off the street for a little less than an hour, but in aquatic terms, it seemed like a day. The waters had risen .....

Along the Soi, the Taxi Bikes demonstrated the success of their scooter modifications. Yesterday I'd laughed at the improvised plumbing systems but today I'm impressed ... it actually seems to work. Perhaps more impressive was the sudden appearance of sexy thigh-high PVC boots in this part of town. It's unusual for around here .... but the matching 'skins' on the girls iPhones and BB's was a real touch of class ....

The water had breached the top of my natty new boots and the closer I got to the apartment the deeper it got. In the end I gave up. I took them off and handed them to a local guy who was wading towards the shallower waters ......

If this was happening back in Blighty, we'd all be getting bent out of shape ... screaming at Authority and trying to drown ourselves not just in water ... but in self pity. But this isn't England .. this is Thailand and the people here just seem to get on with their shit and smile ... and that's why I love it here

Post 360: Waters rising .....

Bangkok Floods 2011 ...

Crossing the International Date Line really screws up the body-clock. I know that midway across the Pacific Ocean I lost a full day of my life, but this morning Google Clocks told me that it's now Saturday 29th of October 2011 ...... and I was convinced that it was still Friday. Anyway, no matter what day it is, there was an interesting sight in the car park this morning. As I mentioned earlier, the only 'High Ground' in Bangkok is man made and when all of the existing high ground has already been taken, you have to create your own .... and the owner of this little Mira car has done just that.

I wandered down the Soi and found a delicious bowl of 'kow dtom gai' for breakfast (Rice & Chicken Soup). At 7am it's already warmer than an English summer day and there's something weirdly comforting about eating hot spicy food for breakfast. On the street, small fountains of water bubbled up from the drains and trickled down the side gully. Builders were busy constructing temporary walls with cinder blocks and cement at the entrances to shops. For 7am Lak Si was busy, and all of the busyness seemed to have a single purpose .... preparation for flood. 

I crossed the Lak Si Canal and noticed that the ramshackle residences that line its towpath were within inches of becoming submerged. Normally these dwellings sit a few feet above the water but today they're kissing its surface. The waters are moving in my direction and there's absolutely nothing that I can do to prevent it. Nature is unstoppable, so bend with it or break.

At Wat Lak Si, the waters had arrived before me. The individual buildings were now islands in a sea of tranquility. Monks and worshippers paddled between them but life seemed to be continuing as normal. The complex of buildings that form the Temple were constructed using traditional methods and design. Rooms stand on stilts and the areas below them are concrete, designed specifically to minimise damage and disruption in times of flooding. Monsoon rains and subsequent flooding are not a new phenomena  here in Bangkok, but the development of 'Western' style buildings is. If the floods do arrive then the Temple will be virtually unaffected, but those Thai's who chased the 'Western Dream' and built their 'two-up two-down' houses will probably have ample time to reflect on their folly .... mai pen rai kap   

Walking North, the narrow lanes running between the high density residences that sprang up during the rapid growth of Bangkok during the 60's and 70's were already running with water. I stood watching an elegant lady using a large white bucket to empty water from her home. Her efforts were futile but perhaps the simple act of acting in some way helped her to deal with the situation.

A little deeper into the narrow lanes and the water levels were higher. Residents were doing what they could but seemed resigned to the fact that the water would win. They moved furniture and belongings into the roof space above their humble dwellings and prepared to become prisoners in their own homes.

The previous day, or perhaps it was two days ago, I'd crossed this road using the footbridge. I'd used the footbridge because the traffic had been so dense that walking across it at ground level would have been impossible. Today, the only vehicle on this road is a rowing boat. The monks at the temple were right ..... I'm now living on the Island of Lak Si.

Post 359: Leaping forward ......

Bangkok Floods 2011 ....

Time flies. Maybe it was laziness or simply a case of too much good life …. But after leaving Thailand in May 2011, I’ve actually spent the summer in California. I returned to Boonville where my brother’s family home needed some finishing touches. Notably plumbing, electricity, windows, doors and a roof. Last year for me the ’Building’ part had been easy. Professor Steve Dewinski had been there to supervise my hammer-work and lets face it, nothing that I did would ever be seen on the surface. ’Finishing’ is slightly different because anything that’s done now will be visible for the life of the house. Ill fitting doors, windows that leak, hammer dents in the surface wood etc. Well, to cut a long story short, I spent the six months in California concentrating on enclosures for the growing stock of animals and extreme laziness …. So all in all, not a bad summer for me, but not too productive when it comes to my contribution for the family ….. ‘must try harder’

The ’Plan’ had always been to return to London, and from there to make plans for 2012. Well, the ’Plan’ changed. The news from my friends in Thailand wasn’t good. Severe seasonal monsoon rains had flooded the Central Plains of Thailand and the backed-up waters were slowly being released upon Bangkok. Bangkok is built on a flood plain (bad planning) and usually a combination of rivers and canal systems drain the waters from the Isan region through and around the Capital without a problem. This year however, the Northern water levels are far higher and the escape systems are proving to be grossly inadequate. The new Thai government has promised that Bangkok will be saved from flooding, but the last person to utter those words was King Canute …. and that really didn’t end well. And so, my ticket was changed and I arrived back in Thailand …. 28th May 2011.
At Suvarnabhumi International Airport the public taxi’s were reluctant to take me to the district of Lak Si. They offered alternatives, all of which involved massage parlours, dancing girls, gem stores and golf courses, but as I was renting an apartment in Lak Si, I decided to use the recently opened rail link.

Dropping my bag at my clearly unflooded apartment, it was difficult to see what all the fuss was about. There was no sign of flooding anywhere. So, I decided to visit the font of all local knowledge, the monks at Wat Lak Si. (’Wat’ = Temple). For an hour we drank tea and chewed the flooding fat and I left them feeling enlightened. Lak Si is apparently now an island and I can either walk a few hundred yards to see the extent of the flooding, or alternatively, wait a day for the mountain to come to Mohammed.
Well, I’m not good at ‘waiting’, so I wandered off in the general direction of the missing floods. Crossing the main highway via the footbridge, there was no sign of unwanted water, but the sides of the highway, the ‘high ground’ had become something of a car park. True, I could see large puddles in the distance, but surely this was a simple case of over-reaction?
With no obvious sign of the approaching flood, I wandered back towards my apartment and noticed that the local bike shops were doing a roaring trade in scooter modifications. Modified inlet and exhaust systems seem to be the order of the day. I’m no expert but I don’t remember seeing plumbing pipes featured in the manual of motorcycle tuning. Maybe it was a compliance issue for new Thai emission controls but I fear that it’s more than just the monks who fear flooding in Lak Si
So, the Taxi’s, the Monks and the Taxi Bike Riders all think that the flood is coming. Information from independent sources usually leads to the truth, but when you see a major Bank spending your money on anything other than bonuses and jollies .. maybe it really is time to start believing.
I popped into the local market, which since the opening of a Tesco Store at the end of the street, is now actually a few hundred yards away. Six months ago there were four grocery stores along the street, but since the opening of Tesco four months ago, two have already vanished. I hope it’s not a sign of things to come here in Thailand, but why should Thailand be any different to any other country? The closing of my favourite store was something of a shock, but the contents of the next most local store, and the next, was even more shocking. Aside from an ample supply of shampoo and condoms, everything else had gone.
Leaving the store empty handed, on the walk back to the apartment I noticed water bubbling gently up through the breather holes in the drain covers at the side of the street. Not usually alarming, but possibly a sign that the majority were actually right. Then, the sight of families moving South. Trucks, 4x4’s and even taxi bikes all loaded to rafters and heading South. If there is going to be a flood, then you head towards higher ground, it’s obvious. However, the water has accumulated on the higher ground and everything that stands before it is lower. The only high ground in Bangkok is man made and Lak Si stands between the mounting water and the ocean…… time to buy some boots .. mai pen rai kap