If any problems seem prolonged and you are worried about weight or growth, contact your health visitor, G.P or Dietitian.

The answer? First, shoot more film. Second, you can ask the shop to process only the number of shots you have taken. If the film processor knows what they are doing, they do this in the darkroom and give you back a “short” roll with the undeveloped film that was left.

Ask my favourite girls at Kodak Easy Express near the Made in Thailand Market on Pattaya 2 Road and they can do this for you.

I am glad that all of my lot got through the teenage traumas, and that as a parent, I survived them as well!

I have a problem; I am a bit more mature for my age of 15 than other people of 15 or 16. While my friends go out with each other to disco’s, I go out with my parents to fancy dinners. And when I do go to discos, I go with my grown-up friends because I happen to have a lot more older friends, than ones my age. I am always treated as an equal with them and sometimes I also just forget my age. And then when I am at school or together with my friends, I act more like a grown-up than like a 15-year-old. What can I do to, let’s say, decrease my maturity? Or is there anything I can do?

Cafe New Orleans has already celebrated its first birthday, and it was suggested to the Dining Out Team that we should re-visit and try some of the newer items on the menu. This report is the result of that.

For those who have not yet been to this restaurant, it is an oasis in the middle of the neon-lit madness called Soi Pattayaland 2. Quiet jazz is played as background and the place is decked out with New Orleans atmospheric posters and art. It does indeed have a “riverboat” feel to the place. The waiters and waitresses are professionally dressed up with amusing “dinner jacket” aprons. From the minute you walk in, the staff exude warmth and professionalism and you are made to feel very welcome.

The menu covers 60 regular items plus some specials. There are eight appetizers ranging from Tangy Mushrooms at 75 baht, to a Baked Mussels in white wine and cream (125 baht) and then through to a Smoked Salmon plate at 175 baht. Five soups between 95-125 baht including Creole Onion, Seafood Gumbo and Lobster Bisque.

Next up are four salads (60-140 baht) and then comes the first of the Cajun-Creole specialties - three kinds of Jambalaya (125-295 baht), complete with an explanation of the name.

Cafe New Orleans is well known for their Baby Back Ribs and they are next on the menu with a half slab (B. 265) and full slab (B. 395). Seven seafood dishes follow, again most in the Cajun-Creole New Orleans genre (B. 265-395) and then the steaks and beef choices, B. 445 for the Filet Mignon through to B. 565 for the Riverboat Tournedos.

Three chicken dishes (B. 195-265) are followed by six pasta based items (B. 170-235), then three special combinations (B. 275-595) and three BBQ combo’s (B. 325-395) and finally, ten desserts generally around B. 80.

In addition, there are some weekly specials and notice of the “All you can eat” Saturday and Sunday lunch ribs specials at B. 250.

This restaurant also has a quite comprehensive wine list, with moderate prices and the house wines at 650 baht are very affordable (and as we found later, very drinkable).

We chose a Tangy Mushroom in spicy garlic and pepper sauce, followed by the Bayou Garoupa special for Madame and a Smoked Chicken, black beans and broccoli soup followed by the Pasta Seafood Medley for myself. Madame chose some house wine, while I stuck with the usual Singha Gold. While you are waiting, a hot loaf of garlic bread and individual butter pats is supplied as well.

Madame’s mushrooms were indeed “tangy” with 15 grams of green Jalapeno peppers in each dish (we asked!) while my soup was simply sensational. The smoked chicken flavour, combined with big chunky pieces of vegetables produced a great starter.

The mains arrived together, with the Garoupa wrapped in cabbage leaf proving to be a very moist and succulent way of presenting this fish. With the baked potato and vegetables, this was an exceptional fish dish, and in generous portions, too. However, the Seafood Medley comes as an “art work”, so imposing you hardly want to spoil it by eating it! In a large hollowed out crusty bread loaf, is placed the pasta and seafood, with three mussels around the top opening. The eating proved to be even better than the appearance and was definitely the highlight of the evening for me. The sauce is also something special and I unashamedly spooned out the last drop from the bottom of the loaf. We were both completely satisfied by this stage and Madame even had to refuse the offered desserts!

Cafe New Orleans is an up-market restaurant serving imaginative up-market food at quite reasonable prices, especially when you look at the different cuisine and the quality of service and surroundings. You will not be embarrassed to entertain anyone at this restaurant. Highly recommended.

Visiting Professor John Burland of Imperial College London delivered a fascinating lecture to the students at the Asian University of Science and Technology last month on the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Perhaps most people, except Italians, do not give much thought to the Leaning Tower thinking of it as being a mere curiosity and Over There to boot. However, Professor Burland’s presentation was certainly not boring and put a new slant on the whole picture (sorry about the pun!).

Model of the Leaning Tower of Pisa

Professor Burland has been working on the stabilization committee for the last ten years under all sorts of Machiavellian pressures and politics. Law establishing the stabilization of the Tower of Pisa was never ratified, so every two months 3 thousand odd disenchanted Italian professors who thought they should have been included on the commission would write in complaining bitterly. “It was very difficult to make long term decisions when your political future is at stake,” said Professor John.

As he tells it, “The Tower of Pisa is not just a quaint leaning tower. We are not talking about some Disneyland curiosity. It is a beautiful architectural wonder - one of the seven wonders of the modern world. The Tower of Pisa has a fifteen-fold symmetry, very puzzling for the 12th century. It is built of beautiful marble that looks very strong, but between the inner and outer cladding there is nothing but rubble and lime mortar made very fragile because of the internal spiral staircase. Construction began way back in 1173. Interestingly, and perhaps what prevented its immediate collapse, was that it was built in three stages over 200 years. Three times during its construction it very nearly fell over and it is miraculous it did not. This entire century its inclination has been slowly increasing and accelerating to the point where the forces on the leaning side have accumulated to make not only toppling, but also explosion imminent.”

Professor Burland had to become a historian of the tower and its construction to mastermind its stabilization - one of the greatest civil engineering challenges ever. Evidence shows that the tower was decidedly leaning right from the beginning. Early builders tried to compensate by stepping the tiers, as a child would automatically correct a tower of building blocks. This gave the Tower a curious banana shape or as Professor Burland prefers, a better name for a beautiful lady is “A question mark. A rather complimentary enigmatic shape.” But of course, Professor Burland is in love with the lady in question!

Back in the 12th and 14th centuries, geographical site surveys were not a formulated science, so the leaning Tower of Pisa was built on top of spongy layers of silt and clay. Nobody at the time realized that compressing the clays and the fluctuating water table would contribute to the lean.

A budget of 15 million pounds, a mere drop in the ocean compared to the value of the tourist appeal of Pisa, has been spent on this massive 60 metres high structure with a foundation of 20 metres in diameter, leaning due south by five and a half degrees with fourteen and a half tons of applied pressure, 60 times greater on the south side. Not only to correct the tilt mind you, but just to stop collapse was challenge enough.

Over a period of years of frustrations, a scheme for permanently stabilizing the tower was painstakingly developed. “The process involved the slow and precise removal of soil from beneath the high side of the foundations of the tower. This would reduce its inclination by an amount too small to be visible to tourists but enough to add 400 years to the life of the tower.”

Many trials of this scheme for soil extraction were carried out, including computer stimulation. In 1999 a preliminary trial was carried out on the tower itself and the response was positive.

The full intervention of soil extraction began at the end of February 2000 and, to date, the inclination of the tower has been gently decreasing. This is, according to the good professor, money well spent.

The tower still has a long traverse to follow before it is completely stable and tremendous care and vigilance is still required. Professor John Burland hopes that by June 2001 (when the budget for stabilization is finalized) that the inclination will have reduced enough for the tower to be opened once again to the public.

After many years of difficult work the stabilization plan is now complete to preserve the stability of this wonder, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, for the next 3 or 4 centuries. That is certainly out of Professor John Burland’s direct successor’s concern, he says, as well as yours and mine. But it is comforting to know that modern technology has assisted in the preservation of valued ancient monuments, and renowned academics such as Professor John Burland are to be congratulated on their ten-year perseverance through enormous trials and tribulations to accomplished such a triumph.

Wars, as some of us have known them, place a heavy increased responsibility on the rail systems of the countries involved, in the way of a heavy increase of traffic, against the increased likelihood of the track, rolling stock and installations being badly damaged by bombing, etc. Three countries, to my knowledge, have designed and built locomotives specifically for war purposes; these are Great Britain, Germany (and from 1939 the countries it had occupied), and the U.S.A. Too big for one article, I will deal with each in a separate piece.

The ‘Standard’ locomotive for the ‘Old War’ was too late! - It did not appear until 1917. Up to that time locomotives of many types had been requisitioned by the R.O.D. (Railway Operating Division) for use in France and Belgium. The idea that French and Belgian engines should also be used was largely aborted by the local authorities keeping their locomotives well away from the war zone and letting the British get on with it!

W.D. 70790, built by Kitson & Co., in 1918 for the R.O.D., on a test run on the Jaffa Branch of Palestine Railways near Sarafand in 1946.

The Class 8K 2-8-0 of the then Great Central Railway was the selected type, and there were big orders for them on private builders as well as the GCR works at Gorton, Manchester. In total, for railway and R.O.D. use, no less than 647 examples were built, many of them after the war had ended. Of these the newly formed LNER bought 273, the Great Western took 100, and other railways seemed to shy off them as not familiar. Thus they travelled and some turned up in China (and lasted a long time), others in Australia. Quite a number did very little work at all.

Most remarkable was the requisitioning of 92 of these locomotives early in World War 2; they were intended to work in Iran and some did for a time, but most went to Palestine and Egypt, where I met them during my Army service in 1946/7. I offer a photograph of one of them between Jaffa and Lydda Junction in Palestine.

The Class 8 heavy freight locomotive designed by William Stanier for the LMS Railway and put into traffic from 1935 was the early choice for a locomotive to work behind the lines in France. The tragedy of the Dunkirk evacuation could not have been foreseen and only a few locomotives ever reached France, and they were lost forever. Others worked in Iran and in the Middle Eat countries; some were brought home in due course but many remained in Palestine especially. They were not a true war locomotive, and for that we must go forward a little in time.

D-Day was 6 June 1944. Early that morning British and Allied troops stormed the Normandy beaches as the first step in taking over the countries occupied by the Germans progressively since Hitler’s rise to power in 1933. Quickly following in was railway equipment of all kinds including locomotives, British and American by the hundreds.

W.D. 73794, a 2-10-0, at Gipsy Hollow Sidings, Longmoor, in 1945. Built by North British Locomotive Co. 1944.

The British war locomotive for main line work was a 2-8-0, said to have been based on Stanier’s Class 8, mentioned above; Sir William, as he was by then, had not been consulted, was distinctly miffed, and did not like the design anyhow! There was also, from late 1943, a longer version with ten-coupled wheels and a wide firebox; they were in fact much better but only 150 were built. One report says that the 2-8-0 version, which had a narrow firebox, was not too good on Continental coal, and the similar American type with a wide firebox was much preferred. Both types, side-by-side with the American type, did much work on Britain’s railways up to D-Day. Hundreds came back to work on British Railways after their war work was finished. Thus they had good innings, when it is remembered that they were built for two years’ hard work in any conditions.

CF Achiet a Bapaume, France, No. 511, formerly W.D. 75279 and built by Stephenson & Hawthorn in 1945, on which your reporter had the small adventure recalled in the text.

In Britain the narrow firebox was no disadvantage, but they were rough riding at any speed above 30 mph (48 km/hr), and a very unpleasant motion could arise by reason of a looseness between engine and tender. By contrast, my one ride on a 2-10-0, on the Longmoor Military Railway in Hampshire, suggested a far better machine all round. As they were less common and did not return to Britain in any quantity after the war, I illustrate one of the latter series, also at Longmoor. Surprisingly some of these ended their lives in Greece, working on the line between Thessaloniki and the Turkish frontier at Pithion. I hitched a ride on part of this section in 1970; the veteran locomotive ran well and quietly.

No one has preserved one of the smaller locomotives, but one of the larger ones has been returned from Greece quite recently, and it is to be overhauled and made available for work on one of the ‘preservation’ railways in England.

Military depots fifty years ago usually had a large network of railway tracks, as much of their traffic, human and otherwise, tended to arrive and depart by rail. So there was a big element of shunting work, and for this a very much simplified tank locomotive, based on a design by the Nunslet Engine Company of Leeds, was developed and built, as usual, in too great a quantity. Some of those destined for work in France went no further that the docks at Calais, where they had been unloaded! Operationally one could hardly go wrong with such a simple machine, although I believe a very small boilermaker was required if access was needed to the regulator valve!

We did not have this type shunter in the Middle East, so my own ‘hands-on’ experience has been limited to short a drive on the CF Achiet a Bapaume, in northern France in 1953. The ‘Chef’ finding an Englishman visiting, said that I was to be the driver of this English locomotive. Most of the fittings were familiar, but the steam pressure gauge was in Hektopiazes; I saw that there was at least some steam - not sure how much - so off we go. At what I thought was the right place, close the regulator, gently apply the brake - no brake! - apply fully - just a little brake; remember all the classic stories of near misses and pull the reversing lever fully into back-gear and re-open the regulator... we stop just in time. The ‘boss’ and his assistant were helpless with laughter.

Ah! These Frenchmen and their humour!

On the 29th of March in Zurich, the largest auction for Roman coins this year was conducted by the Swiss coin company Numismatica Ars Classica. The company, which is run by four Italian coin experts, is well known for its high quality coins.

Denarius of the emperor Augustus with his naval general and son-in-law Agrippa on the reverse, struck in the year 12 BC. Agrippa died later that year, which is probably the reason why the coin is so rare. (Sold for CHF 60,000)

This auction, which was #18, was no exception. The highest price at the auction was paid for a Roman gold medallion of 4 aurei struck in AD 308 for the Roman Emperor Maxentius. This gold coin came from the so-called “Parthentico hoard”, which was found in the Mediterranean in the 1950s. Almost all large gold coins known from this emperor are from this treasure, and this was the best known out of four pieces of this variety. The whole hoard contained some 20 medallions. After being called out at CHF 100,000, the hammer fell on the block at CHF 200,000, + 15% commission.

Sesterius of the emperor Galba struck in the year 68 AD. This is a splendid example of Roman portraiture of the best style. (Sold for CHF 50,000)

A gold aureus of the empress Julia Mamaea, mother of the emperor Severus Alexander (222-235 AD) became almost as expensive at the auction. A gold coin from this empress has not been for sale for more than 10 years. After strong bidding between an Italian collector and a Norwegian dealer, the latter secured the coin for CHF 190,000.

Medallion of 4 aurei in gold of the emperor Maxentius, struck in the year 308. This auction’s most expensive coin fetched CHF 200,000.

Silver and bronze coins also secured fantastic prices; for example, a silver medallion of the emperor Hadrian (117-138 AD) was sold to a Swiss dealer for CHF 135,000.

The huge interest for high grade ancient coins was proven during the whole auction. High prices were fetched even for the coins of the later, not historically important emperors. A solidus in gold, for instance, of the usurper Priscus Attalus (409-410 and 414-415 AD) was knocked down on CHF 140,000 after being called out on CHF 40,000.

A new record price was set for a silver denarius of the emperor Augustus (27 BC - 14 AD). Augustus was the first and the longest reigning of the Roman emperors. During his reign, Jesus Christ was born.

Denarius of Septimius Severus, 193-211 AD. The reverse commemorates the building of his triumphal arch, which still stands in Rome beside the Coliseum. (Sold for CHF 2,400)

These coins are normally traded for between CHF 1,000 and 2,000. A fantastic piece with the portrait of his general Agrippa on the reverse was not knocked down before it had reached a fantastic CHF 60,000. Agrippa was married to Augustus’ daughter Julia and was his heir to the throne, but preceded him.

The market for ancient Roman coins is world-wide. A lot of coins are found in the ground every year and millions of coins are always available. Most of these coins are common and of lower grade, fetching prices in the range of 5 to 50 US dollars. The few top pieces that are around are rare and widely sought after and these coins are commanding rapidly increasing prices, like the coins at this auction.

In the days of old Siam (now Thailand) the Siamese cat was only found in the Royal Court of Siam. It was the tradition of the time that only royalty were permitted to own Siamese cats. In fact, an early Siamese monarch was so enraptured by the cats that he threatened to execute anyone caught attempting to steal one. His successors preserved the status and purity of the breed and confined the cats within palace walls.

They became good luck cats and, according to Buddhist belief, the inheritors of the souls of dead royalty who were destined for the afterlife. So being difficult to obtain, to receive one as a royal gift was a great honour.

Earliest handwritten documentation of the Siamese cats date back to ancient manuscripts of the Ayutthaya period (1350-1767). Now held in the National Library in Bangkok, these “Cat-Book Poems” contain illustrations of cats and describe their physical characteristics and magical powers in verse. The poems describe the Siamese cat as today’s seal point; a white body with dark ears, feet and tail.

Siamese cats eventually appeared in Britain and America as the result of royal favour. The revered monarch of Siam, King Chulalongkorn presented a pair of Siamese cats to the departing American consul in 1878, which were eventually given to the wife of the American President, and another pair to the British consul in 1880 where they were successfully bred and then shown in Britain.

For many years the seal point (a cat of a creamy fawn coat with dark seal brown to almost black markings) was the only desirable kind of Siamese cat. Later, in the 1930s, first America and then Britain recognized three other classic varieties, the blue point, a cat of blue grey coat with deeper blue markings; the chocolate point, a cat with an ivory coat with chocolate brown markings, and the lilac point, a cat of a very white coat with frosty grey/lilac markings.

The original British breed standard of 1889 called for kinked tails. Legend had it that a Thai princess went down to the river to bathe and having nowhere to leave her jewellery, tied them to the cats tail so producing kinked tails. Today, kinked tails are thought to be undesirable genetic defects in show cats.

In keeping with its aristocratic upbringing, the Siamese cat is truly regal. Intelligent, affectionate, graceful and fiercely loyal, it quickly dominates a household. The Siamese is a one master cat, with characteristic beautiful piercing blue eyes, fluid, lithe flexible movements and a loud and often demanding voice. They are very expressive and beloved cats still today, but if it were not for King Chulalongkorn, the world may not have had the opportunity to experience these beautiful felines.