Letter from Burma

[Thetyim]

I'd be banging in a hot water system straight up.

I doubt the wiring would take it

[taxexile]

what sort of visa are you on, and are visas easy to come by and renew ?

[terry57]

I'd be banging in a hot water system straight up.

I doubt the wiring would take it

If that's the case Id be getting a gas one and if that's too hard I'd get a large container and heat the water over a portable gas stove same as I do here when I go camping.

Whatever, I'd be getting my hot shower going.

[Simon43]

Actually I've almost got used to cold water showers! I might wire in a small electric water heater, just to get the water to lukewarm, which would be fine for me. But a large 3-4Kw instant heater will definitely blow the fuses - if there are any fuses to blow....

Taxexile, AFAIK, the only visas available for Burma right now are either short-term tourist visas, longer-term business/work visas, and possibly some sort of marriage visa if you are legally married to a Burmese.

Since I want to stay in Burma for a longterm basis, (to pursue my radio hobby and do some good cause volunteer work), the only recourse for me was to find a job and get a work visa. My visa lasts 70 days and I can do a visa run to BKK. After about 2 renewals, I'm told that the Burmese immigration will provide me with a 1-year work visa.

But I have to stay in employment if I want to remain in Burma. Hence my teaching job which pays reasonably well and is topped up by almost 100% by my private/overtime teaching.

Simon

[Simon43]

Any plans to pick up a Burmese wife and keep it hush from the Thai one?

That is the very last thing on my mind

[Albert Shagnastier]

sort out one's needs and make necessary mod.'s and it's paradise

simple correctness that

[Gerbil]

Any plans to pick up a Burmese wife and keep it hush from the Thai one?

That is the very last thing on my mind

What? With your legendary success with women, you surprise me.

[Albert Shagnastier]

[OhOh]

Thanks for the life updates, keep them coming.You mentioned a phone line and the prospect of ADSL, what ADSL speeds are offered?

[Simon43]

what ADSL speeds are offered?

Slow and even slower....

The problem is not really the speed of connection, but the size of the internet 'pipe' that connects Burma with the outside world.

This pipe is slightly smaller than the overflow pipe for my toilet, and hence the access speed to international websites can be excruiatingly slow - I sometimes get faster connection by tying a letter to a carrier pigeon's leg...

On other days, I can manage a shaky Skype call to my wife in Phuket.

YouTube is impossible to use - I have never even got a video clip to play...

What? With your legendary success with women, you surprise me.

I am quite successful at filling their pockets with money, but not much else . I think I'll steer clear of a Burmese wife, (although with my voluntary work and helping the kids etc, I'm getting plenty of women offering to iron my underwear - sorry too much information!

[ltnt]

Advice: Steer clear of the female talk altogether as the sex Nazi's lurk everywhere.

[pattayardm]

YouTube is impossible to use - I have never even got a video clip to play...

You could try using video accelerator from speedbit - its a free program that speeds up youtube and some other online sites that stream videos. I have found it useful in the past when in places with a slow connection.

[roamer]

Hi

Great report.

Thanks for taking the time to post, I found it a fascinating read.

[pescator]

I agree. Most fascinating read.

[Mid]

Hey Simon what is news ?

[Marmite the Dog]

Hey Simon what is news ?

You should know. It's what you spend all day cutting & pasting.

[Mid]

fok you can be a tool marmite

news in relation to Simons thread aka Letter from Burma

[cambtek]

Love your work,simon.
I spent a few days in rangoon recently and I can almost taste it with your posts.We perused the night time attractions and there were some pretty girls but it was quite expensive.The girlsreceive a pittance and their minders take the rest.
I would love to come back to see the spitfires unearthed,go to bagan and orwells village in the north and also visit the mergui coast.

When I was young and had no sense in far off Mandalay
I lost my heart to a Burmese girl
As lovely as the day
Her skin was bronze
Her hair was jet
Her teeth were ivory
For twenty silver pieces
Maiden sleep with me
She looked at me
So pure so sweet
The loveliest thing alive
And in her lisping,virgin voice
Held out for 25

Eric Blair
Burma 1924
The more things change,the more they stay the same.

[OhOh]

For twenty silver pieces
Maiden sleep with me

An ounce of silver is US$30 x 0.9ounces per piece of eight silver.

US$540 at today's prices, is that what they charge?

[Chairman Mao]

Any news from Simon, or has he been eaten?

[Gerbil]

^ Been a month.... Must have been eaten.

[ltnt]

He posted last week on a different thread. Still in Burma and fighting the slow speed internet. I think it was the so called Thai lady's thread if you're interested?

[diverken]

Great thread a real good read...thanks

[Khun Custard]

I'd be banging in a hot water system straight up.

Problem is Terry that Yangon has frequent blackouts - a walk down any street and you will see large diesel gensets at the ready.
Yangon water is still pumped from the dam the Brits built at the turn of the century - the power problems in pumping are only eclipsed by the water quality that falls well below WHO minimum standards.

[Khun Custard]

Still in Burma and fighting the slow speed internet.

Might only be half the problem!
Back in the good old days it was said that 1 in every 10 was a paid direct report.
Now with internet, if the message is not in basic Burmese or English sending a message during the lunch hour or on a public holiday can often result in unexplained delays specially if it is in Chinese.
What about sending a fax - err, they are still illegal
Send a SMS - well for a registered SIM the price was US$150 about this time last year and the cost of a call from Yangon to Thailand was more per minute than from the middle east (to Thailand)