Lifestyle

Of all the mistakes made by the Thai beer industry Cheers "beer" has to be the biggest. There are absolutely no redeeming features to this beer. My theory is that nobody bothered to do a taste test before manufacturing and by the time anybody realised it was disgusting it was already in the shops and it would be a serious loss of face and money to put the stops on the whole thing.

A snapshot of life in a rural Isaan village. "According to a recent count there are three thousand eight hundred and sixty seven species of insect in the Prasat region of Surin province Isaan. Three thousand eight hundred and sixty two of these bite, suck, scratch and generally irritate the human body."

Established in 2000 the beer was always intended to be a brand, to trade on the name and reputation of one of the most popular holiday destinations in Asia. Not surprisingly the initial market for Phuket Beer was the tourist jaunts of the island, however it's reach has extended far from the coastal shores of Phuket. Phuket Lager Beer is now available in Japan, USA, Australia, Denmark, United Kingdom, Macau and Hong Kong and is said to be making its way to Canada and Malaysia in the near future.

Old piece revised and updated.

The news was not good; her mother had four ailments and was in hospital.

Thailand's controversial blocking of YouTube has forced expats to look for alternatives. This article lists a few of the alternatives that are available.

A mate called in to see me the other day. Not unusual you may think unless you live in the mountains behind Chiang Rai.

This states that the prosperity of a Thai village is in direct proportion to the amount of energy expended on unproductive activities.

A major issue when forming a relationship with a bar girl is to figure out how and when you change over from paying grad to paying house keeping? And therefore assume 'joint and several responsibility' with your darling. Make no mistake this is a major issue both financially, legally and emotionally.

One of the things I really enjoy about living in Thailand is having a drink with the girls.

The sin sot debate between western males has to continue until it is understood to the point where all good men intending to marry a Thai woman can get their negotiations right and can honor their commitment without impoverishing their future wives or themselves.