|
Family Money: The
fall of Sterling
By Leslie
Wright
People ask me all the time what I think is going to
happen with Sterling, with the Euro, the US Dollar, Japanese Yen, and of
course the Thai Baht.
Although I suppose I should be flattered that so many
people value my opinion, it is, after all, only an opinion. As I’ve said
many times before in this space, I don’t have a crystal ball.
However, what I do have which the majority of amateur
investors don’t is access to the views of several internationally
respected financial institutions’ analysts, economists, and fund
managers. And it is worth mentioning that these guys’ jobs depend on
getting it right far more often than they get it wrong - which is a better
track record than many of us have, being only human.
From these institutions’ commentaries and industry
publications I am at least able to form an objective opinion based on
their consensus view of what might happen, although not necessarily what
will happen.
And that has served me both as an individual investor
and portfolio manager (and in turn my clients) better than the typical
flurry of hyper-hype meted out by the “instant” TV news services.
Artificial strength
For several years Sterling has appeared overvalued, and
many institutional analysts have been predicting its fall for some time.
However, despite a host of fundamental reasons why it
should fall, it continued to strengthen against a basket of currencies,
including both the US Dollar and the Euro.
Until recently, that is.
In the past few weeks we have seen a fall of
significant levels (some 10% against the Dollar and 8% against the
previously out-of-favour Euro) but, as is so often the case, there is
little rationale to explain easily the exact timing of the fall.
In this particular case, it appears to have been a
curious mixture of fundamentals, politics and investor sentiment.
Relative growth rates
Recent headlines in the US have focused on growth with
economic expansion continuing at a pace of 5.4%. Compare this with growth
in the UK of just 2% and there is a very real reason why the tight trading
band for the two currencies has been breached.
This continued growth in the US is far above what is
considered as healthy for long-term non-inflationary trends. As a result,
interest rates have risen sharply - and more importantly, the expectation
of future rate increases has also risen just as far.
The futures market is currently pricing in a Federal
Reserve Funds rate of 7.5% by the end of the year, but the UK rate is
6.5%. This contrasts significantly with the figures at the start of the
year: 7% and 7.25% respectively.
As far as the Euro is concerned, expectations have also
changed, since analysts now believe that, to stop the currency falling
further, additional rate rises will not be too far behind the US.
The taboo subject of politics cannot be left out of the
discussion. It is a fact of history that each time a socialist government
has been in power in UK, Sterling has suffered against other world
currencies.
Each time, public spending has increased dramatically,
and misguided meddling with monetary policy has often been an unmitigated
disaster. (This was especially true under James Callaghan’s ‘Old’
Labour when the country virtually came to a standstill in the mid-70s and
inflation reached 27%.)
Things seem not much different under Tony Blair’s New
Labour, which seems committed to increased public spending and taking from
those who have to give to those who are not prepared to work for it.
Recent losses by Labour in local elections may lead to pragmatic
politically motivated monetary policy changes, rather than perhaps sounder
economically-motivated ones.
Market sentiment
All of which leaves us to that most intangible of
reasons: sentiment.
Gloomy talk from the Bank of England about
“significant falls” and statements like “Sterling could fall quite
sharply” from its Deputy Governor, Mervyn King, do nothing but help push
the market down even farther than fundamentals might indicate as a
“correct” level.
Clearly there is little to be gained by “talking a
currency up” - after all, it has not done the ECB any good - but when
coupled with strong fundamentals then there is cause for people to listen.
So does this mean that the chartists will predict
further falls? Well, maybe not.
Sterling may well have farther to fall against the Euro
but it may herald a much larger fall in the value of the Dollar. The huge
US trade deficit and weakening stock market may prevent capital inflows
from supporting the value for much longer, and the Mighty Dollar may well
be set for a fall.
Investor sentiment being the fickle thing it is (but
such an influencing factor nowadays in stock market movements), when the
capital that’s been buoying up the US stock market for the past six
years starts flowing out of US stocks - as many analysts have been
predicting for well over a year - the most likely place for it to go is
Europe.
For investors in Sterling- or Dollar-denominated funds
investing in Europe, this is clearly good news. For global investors in
Dollar funds, again this should have positive long-term effects.
However, Dollar-oriented investors who have held onto
Sterling assets - either stocks or UK stock market funds - will have
suffered significant losses (at least on paper) in recent weeks.
And those who mistakenly think that because the UK is a
member of the EEC it is therefore part of Europe (which geographically and
financially it isn’t, of course, nor is its stock market - despite the
planned merger of its main index with Germany’s), and having listened to
commentators who are positive about the prospects for European stocks,
have stubbornly held onto UK assets, may have fared particularly poorly in
US Dollar terms.
What to do now? Sterling-oriented investors whose
portfolios are globally diversified will largely have been protected
against Sterling’s fall - as indeed was the case back in ’92 when
Sterling last took a major tumble. Indeed, many of these investors will
have made a windfall profit in Sterling terms.
And looking at the short-term prospects, it is
reassuring to see most well-managed global funds are retaining low
exposure to weakening currencies - ensuring that long-term relative
performance remains intact.
The worst thing that international investors who have
ridden Sterling down and held onto UK assets can do now is sell out in a
panic. This will only serve to lock in the loss - which so far has only
been on paper.
Leslie Wright is Managing Director of Westminster
Portfolio Services (Thailand) Ltd., a firm of independent financial
advisors providing advice to expatriate residents of the Eastern Seaboard
on personal financial planning and international investments. If you have
any comments or queries on this article, or about other topics concerning
investment matters, contact Leslie directly by fax on (038) 232522 or
e-mail [email protected].
Further details and back articles can be accessed on his firm’s website
on www.westminsterthailand.com.
Editor’s note: Leslie sometimes receives e-mails to
which he is unable to respond due to the sender’s automatic return
address being incorrect. If you have sent him an e-mail to which you have
not received a reply, this may be why. To ensure his prompt response to
your enquiry, please include your complete return e-mail address, or a
contact phone/fax number.
The Computer Doctor
by Richard Bunch
From David Tomlinson, Pattaya:
I don’t know whether you can help but I know that DVDs are segregated
into zones, what I am not clear on is what the zones are. My job in
Thailand will end in August and I will be returning to the UK. Naturally I
don’t want to buy either hardware or software here if it won’t work at
home, too. Can you advise please?
Computer Doctor replies: Firstly, you will find
that most of the videos available on CD here are VCDs as opposed to DVDs.
With regards to regions, Thailand is in Region 03 while the United Kingdom
is in Region 02. There are places that will ‘chip’ DVD players to
allow them to play DVDs from other regions. To my knowledge, these are
located in MBK and Emporium in Bangkok.
As I regularly get asked about the regions, below is a
complete list:
Region 01: Canada, U.S., U.S. Territories
Region 02: Albania, Andorra, Austria, Bahrain,
Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech
Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, European Union, Faeroe Islands,
Finland, France, France Metropolitan, Georgia, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece,
Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Iran (Islamic Republic of) Iraq, Ireland,
Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, the Former Yugoslav Republic, Malta,
Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal,
Qatar, Romania, Russian Federation, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia,
Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic,
Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
(Channel Islands) Vatican City State, Yemen, Yugoslavia
Region 03: Southeast Asia, East Asia (including
Hong Kong)
Region 04: Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Islands,
Central America, Mexico, South America, Caribbean
Region 05: Former Soviet Union, Indian
Subcontinent, Africa (also North Korea, Mongolia)
Region 06: China
Region 07: Reserved
Region 08: Special international venues (airplanes,
cruise ships, etc.)
Send your questions or comments to the Pattaya Mail at
370/7-8 Pattaya Second Road, Pattaya City, 20260 or Fax to 038 427 596 or
E-mail to [email protected].
The views and comments expressed within this column are not necessarily
those of the writer or Pattaya Mail Publishing.
Richard Bunch is Managing Director of Action Computer Technologies Co.,
Ltd. Providing professional services which include website design, website
promotion (cloaking), turnkey e-commerce solutions, website hosting,
domain name registration, computer and peripheral sales service and
repairs, networks (LAN & WAN) and IT consulting. Please telephone 038
716 816, e-mail [email protected] or
see our website www.act.co.th
Successfully Yours: Jo
Stetten
 It is said that the child is the product of its
environment. Jo Stetten, the new General Manager of the Amari Orchid Resort
could be described as that. He is a man who has travelled extensively and
spent his life broadening his horizons and breaking through national barriers.
Why? Because Jo Stetten is a child born into the oppression of a restrictive
communist regime. That environment has produced a strong man who needs to be
“free”.
In
1956, Johannes (Jo) Paul Stetten was born to German parents in Zabrze, Poland,
a part of Germany that was annexed to the Communist Bloc after WWII. At the
beginning of his life, the family was not even allowed to use their German
surname, being given a more Polish sounding one instead.
It was not until Jo was twelve years old that his father
finally managed to get out of Poland and Jo was enrolled in Elementary School
in Germany.
It was not long after that this young student began to
formulate ideas for his future. With no family role model in the hospitality
industry, he began to gravitate naturally towards that career. When he was
only fifteen years old, a friend whose father had a small hotel told him about
hotel life and Jo was hooked.
About this time he began to show not just a willingness to
work, but a strong will with it. He knew he must have training in the
industry, and learn other languages as well and this would take time. In fact,
all his time. “I had to give up all other pursuits,” and with that
single-mindedness of purpose he served his apprenticeship in the Hotel
Management School in Koln, graduating in 1976.
Against the family tradition, Jo Stetten then left home. He
was twenty years old, but had his sights firmly fixed on his career and took a
position as an Accounting Clerk with the Hilton in Berlin.
The next steps were to bring his linguistic skills up to
scratch and so he left Berlin and began a somewhat idyllic lifestyle of
winters in Switzerland and summers in Monte Carlo, to learn French, and one
summer in Bristol in the UK, to polish up his English.
By 1982, Jo looked as if he was really on the rungs of the
success ladder. He was a Front Office Manager with the Crest Hotels Group in
Hanover in Germany and the world should have been his oyster. But it was not.
In the following six years, he felt that he was stuck and advancement was
difficult.
Again, he had to make some hard decisions and left his
“safe” position and moved back to Berlin. It was there that he experienced
one of the most dramatic events in his life - the fall of the Berlin wall.
“It was incredible,” he said, the excitement of the moment still showing
after all those years. When I asked what year, the reply was instantaneous,
“Ninth of November, 1989.” It was obvious that the breaking out from
Poland that his family had managed was being re-lived by thousands of people
in East Germany. And the excitement freedom produces is still there in his
eyes.
Needing to break through his own boundaries, he took the
position as the General Manager of the Flamingo Beach Hotel in Mombassa,
Kenya. Jo Stetten was now off and running!
It was at this time that a young German girl took a
vacation at Flamingo Beach and met the new GM. Her name was Johanna, and she
and Johannes returned to Germany to get married. In the early ’90s life was
certainly accelerating for the newly enlarged Stetten household.
Joining the Accor Group, Jo spent another three years in
Germany, but there was another change coming. Jo was developing the urge to
visit South East Asia. This became so strong, that when a General Manager’s
position became available in S.E. Asia he took it. That was in 1995 and the
country was Vietnam. “There I was again in another Communist country,” he
said, laughing almost at himself, at the irony of it all.
Head Office for the local Accor Group was, however, in
Bangkok, and Jo had his first experience of Thailand and the Thai people - and
loved it. At last, here was an Asian country that shared his viewpoint on
freedom!
So it was not surprising that he set his sights on working
here, and by 1998 he was in Thailand, working as a General Manager, to now
finally take up his appointment at the Amari Orchid Resort in Pattaya.
For the dedicated hotelier there is not much time left for
hobbies. On his day off he sleeps in and then enjoys being with his wife and
seven year old daughter.
His advice to those who follow is that the life is not
easy. “You have to work when others are off. You must develop a strong will,
and learn, learn, learn.” Jo Stetten means it; a brief overview of his CV
shows attendance at over twenty professional seminars and courses, including
Summer Courses at Cornell University in New York.
There is no doubt in my mind that underneath his very quiet
and almost shy exterior, Jo Stetten is a freedom fighter. His family will be
led towards a life as free as he can make it for them. And that will be a long
way from his childhood in Poland.
Welcome to Pattaya, Jo!
Snap Shots: Accidentally
Yours
by Harry Flashman
A keen photographer will do almost anything to get that
never to be repeated shot. The whole procedure of getting that image onto
film becomes the whole reason for being, yes, even living, for that
instant. The true photographer will brave all odds, no matter how adverse
- just to get “That Shot”.
Harry Flashman was reminded of this basic photographic
truth the other day (and some of his own follies) when a friend rang with
a photographic tale of woe. Never being one to miss an opportunity, my
friend had taken the camera to the Chatuchak Weekend Markets. Now if you
haven’t taken your camera there, then you should. Chatuchak is a
veritable horde of incredible images, all under roof. However, be warned
that the red plastic roofing material will produce a red cast to some
images, and it is also very hot and very crowded.
 But
for my friend, he was totally taken by the park for motorcycles. At a
rough guess, there were around 1000 machines, all glinting in the fierce
sunlight. This was a perfect image of one aspect of Thailand, he thought.
Taking out his wide angle lens, he screwed it onto the
camera, keeping the other two lenses in the pockets of his photo-safari
jacket. Looking through the viewfinder he felt that a slightly higher
viewpoint would make for an even better picture, and fortunately there was
a pile of large stones that he could stand on, which he did. The perch was
a little “rocky” but it did not matter - the photographic position was
excellent.
However, as he focussed, the unsteady pile collapsed
and down he went, along with his precious cargo of camera and lenses.
Working on the age old principle that human bodies are self healing, while
cameras are not, he held his arms over the lens pockets, while cradling
the camera as he crashed downwards.
When the dust settled, and the red mist of pain cleared
he found that he was now trapped by a large stone over one ankle, and his
arms were bleeding profusely, where he had used them as lens shields! It
took three men to lift the stone from the ankle, and then a couple of
hours of agony to get to the hospital for X-Rays and dressing of the
wounds. But at least the photographic equipment was safe.
Harry did not have the heart to ask whether or not his
friend did manage to get one clear shot - but he will no doubt let me know
after the wounds have healed.
It was enough to remind Harry of some of his more
horrendous stories, the best being a shot for a Vodka advertisement. The
concept was a bowl of strawberries, with the vodka beside it. To make for
a very dramatic effect a 2 metre wide roll of black background paper was
hung on the wall, and the free end brought down over a sheet of glass
suspended between two stands. Two circles were cut in the black paper and
the bowl of strawberries and the vodka bottle placed over them. Underneath
the glass was a lamp to shine up and through the bowl and the bottle. The
studio camera was mounted on a tripod and the initial Polaroid shots were
to be taken to see the effect and check for lighting and exposure, etc.
Looking through the viewfinder everything looked fine.
The Polaroid film was loaded and as Harry hunched over the camera and was
about to press the shutter release there was a loud “crack” and the
glass broke in the middle, from the heat of the lamp below it. As the
strawberries and the vodka went sailing, they pulled the roll of
background paper off the wall, landing squarely on Harry’s head,
knocking him to the ground, cradling the camera in his arms. And what did
the photographer’s assistant do? Managed to save the vodka bottle!
Modern Medicine: Bulimia
- is it Anorexia?
by Dr Iain Corness
Last week I spoke about Anorexia nervosa and this
stimulated much comment, with some people asking if it were the same as
Bulimia. Now while there are some very decided similarities, there are
some very distinct differences as well.
Bulimia is also a dieting disorder, where the sufferers
believe that they are overweight. Again there are often family histories
of mood swing problems, dependence on drugs and other depressive
disorders.
In contrast to Anorexia, however, the Bulimic person is
more likely to be older, late teens and early twenties, and their weight
is generally within the normal range. The Bulimia sufferer gets to the
upper range of normal and then goes on an extreme diet to get the weight
down, again with purging and induced vomiting being used to quickly get
the weight down to the lower level of the so-called “normal” range.
This is usually done in response to some “stressful” situation, such
as splitting up with a boyfriend or similar.
However, the hunger response produces an immediate need
for food and “binge” eating occurs. The foods chosen are the high
calorie “forbidden” foods and these are eaten quickly and in private.
A family sized pizza and tub of ice cream being two commonly consumed
items.
But the bloating and then the “guilt trip” combine
to produce the situation of low esteem, poor body image and the cycle
starts all over again. But in essence, the Anorexia sufferer is more
likely to become disastrously underweight, while the Bulimic will vary
between the extremes of “normal”.
With this group, the incidence is about 3%, which
equates to 30 girls per 1000, but the end results are better than with
Anorexia. Around 70% of Bulimics regain stability with their weight and
dieting problem.
This can be explained in part by the later onset of
this condition. “Neurotic” behaviour, such as this, in response to
outside stressors is most often outgrown as the girl becomes older and
more mature (yes, we were all immature once) and so the incidence becomes
less in the later twenty year olds.
Unfortunately, the dangers of Bulimia are very similar
to those of Anorexia, and fatalities can also occur, often through the
results of acute purging. The imbalance in electrolytes can also produce
an irregular heartbeat which can also be fatal, as can the extremely low
blood sugars in the fasting phase. There is also a risk of suicide in a
young person with a serious depressive disorder such as Anorexia and
Bulimia.
Again, these dieting disorders are very difficult to
treat, but Bulimia is easier. Hollow comfort, I know.
 Dear
Hillary,
My regular flight arrives in Bangkok at 2330 hours
(11:30 p.m.) and by 0200 hours (2:00 a.m.) I arrive at my Pattaya hotel
only to find that my reserved room will not be available until noontime,
or cancelled, since I didn’t show up. This recurring problem appears to
be a misunderstanding of arrival time and date. I have tried everything:
“2 a.m. arrival, 2 o’clock in the morning, 2 o’clock at night, 0200
hours, dtee song,” but nothing seems to work. Changing hotels didn’t
work; what can you suggest?
Joe Olkewicz
Dear Joe,
Change airlines and arrive Bangkok in the morning!
Unfortunately, time in Thai is always a problem for the visitor, as the
Thai system is quite different. However, most hotels would recognize the
24 hour clock system, so you would say “Song naliga” (literally “2
by the watch”). Two p.m. is “Sip see naliga”, so there is no
confusion.
Dear Hillary,
I am sixteen years old and I am just finishing 9th
Grade. During High School I have started to have this little problem. I
get headaches to (sic) often. I don’t understand why. Maby (sic) its
(sic) because of the hot climate, but I drink a lot of water. Sometimes
that does’t (sic) even seem to help. I know you are not a doctor nor
(sic) a psychiatrist, but please help me!
Sinsirely (sic), Headache
Dear Headache,
It is really not Hillary’s place to advise you on
your health. If you have recurrent headaches then you should see a doctor.
Mind you, the headaches could be coming from your inability to spell and
your teacher shouting at you!
Dear Hillary,
I am always watching too much TV or playing too much
computer. When I don’t do either of these, I get bored. What shall I do?
Mad Max
Dear Max,
You could start by giving “Headache” (letter above)
some spelling lessons. However, if tuition isn’t your bag, then just
keeping hanging around. Maturity will come one day, bringing with it
booze, girls, responsibility, mortgages, and children who will complain
about being bored.
Dear Hillary,
When I was in the United States, I was planning to get
a summer job at a store near our home. Unfortunately, I recently moved to
Thailand and don’t see a way to get a job besides babysitting for some
experience in the work area and some extra cash. I also can’t see a
better way to spend my time. What are some suggestions of what I should
do?
Confused
Dear Confused,
Getting extra cash is always a problem. Most get rich
quick schemes only make money for the seller of the scheme, Hillary has
found out over her years of being poor. Since the economic crash of 1997
it’s not even worthwhile robbing the banks here any more as most of them
are broke as well. However, since you all come from the same school,
contact Mad Max and perhaps you could play tennis together, or ping pong,
go swimming or arm wrestling. On the other hand, you could do something
worthwhile and do some voluntary work for charity. The Pattaya Orphanage
is always on the lookout for people to help with the younger kids down
there.
Dear Hillary,
I would like to send some money to my girlfriend in
Pattaya, but I have heard that it is not safe and very often the money
doesn’t get there. I have sent some dollars inside a book, but I can’t
keep on sending books every month. What is your suggestion?
Wayne
Dear Wayney poo,
It’s easy. You just send the money every month to
dear Hillary here and I will personally make sure she gets it. Seriously,
it is just the same as sending money anywhere - do it through bank
transfer and she will definitely get it. Any other way is too uncertain.
If she has not got one already, get her to open an account here and go
from there.
Dear Hillary,
How do you attract “nice” girls here? I know it is
easy to get the girls from the many bars in Pattaya, but I would like to
experience someone different.
Wondering
Dear Wondering (or is that “wandering”?),
Attracting “nice” girls here is exactly the same as
it is in the US. Be nice to them and let nature take its course. Hillary
does not believe in magic potions you rub into your armpit and you attract
girls like flies to dog poo, a sort of “Make your armpits your charmpits
exercise!” Mutual attraction comes from many things, but being friendly
is one of the main ones. Relax and be nice and let things happen
naturally. However, if it’s just experience you want, stick to the
experienced ones from the bars!
Dear Hillary,
Every week you get letters from guys who are in
trouble, being ripped off, unsure of what to do, worrying what to do next,
etc. Why do they keep on doing this?
Amazed
Dear Amazed,
Why do they keep on doing what? Keep on writing?
That’s what advice columns are all about. Write in and get help. If you
wonder why they keep on doing the same things, then that’s different.
Generally it’s something to do with hormones!
GRAPEVINE
Mobile
phone mania
Have you noticed that mobile phones are
getting out of all hand in Sin City? Not literally, of course, but so
to speak. Last week, the driver of a baht bus thundering down
Sukhumvit Highway at an unmentionable speed answered the insistent
ringing, grunted once or twice and then turned round 180 degrees to
pass the phone to a petrified farang sat in the back. “This for
you,” announced the driver without any enthusiasm. The astonished
guy gingerly took hold of the infernal device as the vehicle swerved
to avoid a couple of motorbikes. Actually the call was a wrong number
from a British lady asking her husband to remember to bring home a box
of tea bags. The farang in the baht bus wasn’t even married and
ended the pointless conversation as quickly as he could. As he passed
the mobile back, the driver muttered in Thai something to the effect
that all foreigners are a blinking nuisance.
Beach bums
The problems don’t stop there. Jomtien
Beach has had its fair share of confusion caused by the wonders of new
technology. A mostly naked 140 kilo German guy, with huge overhanging
folds of flesh, caused great consternation amongst the deck chair
population as he lumbered Frankenstein like along the sand in enormous
swimming trunks searching for the ice cream cart. Suddenly men, women
and children fled in panic as the strains of Beethoven’s fifth
symphony started to bellow loudly from his groin area. The German then
had a lengthy conversation with his stockbroker in Frankfurt before
replacing the Nokia somewhere in the depths of his gigantic swim gear.
A tourist from Scunthorpe was absolutely disgusted and demanded,
“That is the sort of thing City Hall police should be looking
into.”
Tricksters and all
Pattaya is still at the stage of development
where people are impressed by the trappings of imaginary
respectability. Those in the know will tell you never to trust a guy
wearing a crispy white shirt and colorful tie, especially if he is
also wearing flip flops. Then if he starts to engage you in a
conversation about a time-share flat or the need for pensions advice,
it’s better to run a mile. Mobile phones are another mark of status.
After all, the reasoning goes, anyone who can pay the bills can’t be
all bad. In fact, mobile phones are part of a fair number of scams.
One guy, wanting to phone Europe, was offered the use of a
stranger’s mobile in a soi seven bar. Four minutes to Italy ended up
costing him 3,000 baht. As he initially dithered at the exorbitant
fee, there was the customary threat of needing to involve the police
if the dispute could not be settled amicably. A farang, whose car blew
a gasket near Sri Racha, was delighted when a charming stranger
stopped and offered to phone a garage on his behalf. The total bill
this time was in excess of 20,000 baht because all manner of other
faults were discovered on close inspection. Naturally.
|
No connection
A special Pattaya feature is the dead
mobile. This is where the set is not connected to the outside world
either because it is imitation or because the host company has cut the
line for non payment. However, this does not apparently prevent whole
hosts of people wandering round the city with the small devices neatly
clipped to their belts. They are obviously practising for the day when
they have a live connection. One local guy actually took “pretend”
calls every half hour or so to give the impression he is at the center
of a mad social whirl. When eventually exposed by a suspicious peer
group, he claimed he wanted to get used to picking the damn thing up
and replacing it in his hip pocket to minimise the chances of losing
it once he could afford a real phone. Such is the pull these days of
global advertising and western values.
Stop thief
But actually mislay a working mobile and
you’re really in trouble. According to police, at least two are
stolen in Pattaya every day and the chances of recovery are remote
indeed. The best chance may be to dial up the number of your own
mobile, before the battery runs down, and ask to buy it back. Anything
is possible in Pattaya. One farang who wisely reported the theft to
the renting company was sent in the post a six page form to fill in.
This was entirely written in Thai apart from a note at the bottom of
each page saying, “Please turn over”. He also had the submit
through the regular post a police report, a copy of his passport and
work permit and three copies of past bills. The complex bureaucracy
took the best part of three weeks, even with the help of a hired
translator, after which the luckless American received another letter
asking him to send a small photograph of himself signed and dated on
the back. However, this did not save him from receiving a rental bill
of 570 baht every month for the next year, followed finally by a
letter warning him he would be disconnected if he did not make fuller
use of his mobile.
Noisy future
Even though mobile phones are everywhere,
the bad news is that international telecommunications companies regard
Thailand as practically a virgin market. Surprising sentiment that
one. Latter day sociologists are already predicting that we can expect
too see the wretched devices causing the breakdown of marriages
(“Why haven’t you got time to talk to me?”) increased suicide
rates (by those who haven’t got one or never get a call) and
motorway pile ups as determined drivers try to tune into the internet
whilst overtaking in the fast lane. Not to mention the threat of brain
cancer from those harmful rays. But it’s not all bad news. A farang
whose wife recently ran up a 51,000 baht bill for a single month’s
usage received a letter from the company naming him Subscriber of the
Month and offering him a second mobile with a 20% discount on all
calls. As the logo of the company states, “We’re here to make life
simpler. |
Dining Out: Somsak’s
- still a revelation
by Miss Terry Diner
One of the problems with having a long established
restaurant is that people are exposed to so many new eating places that
eventually they forget you are there. Somsak’s Restaurant on Soi 1 (almost
next to the Markland Hotel) has been at that site for 12 years and it was,
almost with horror, that the Dining Out Team realised it was over a year since
the last time we had eaten there, let alone done a critique.
 The
restaurant is, of course, run by Somsak himself, now aged 60 and a long time
player in the Pattaya restaurant scene. The restaurant itself is interesting,
with use being made of lattice wood to give a “Thai” feel to the place.
The restaurant floor also does not have windows, being left open and airy,
with views into the surrounding large Mango and Tamarind trees. With the
“outdoor” type furniture, terracotta tiles and the gentle breezes, the
result is definitely an outdoorsy ambience, despite having a roof over your
head.
The menu is huge and almost defies description. The first
two pages are for beverages and cocktails and even includes Miss Terry’s
favourite Rusty Nail (Scotch and Drambuie 50/50, on ice or on its own)
followed by two pages of appetizers, all around 75 baht, including Chiang Mai
sausage, deep fried crab, spring rolls, steamed mussels and Mee Grob, the deep
fried rice noodles. Next up are three pages of Thai salads, around 90 baht and
covers almost every salad you’ve ever heard of, and some you will not have,
like Yum Hoa Plee, which is a banana flower salad, for example.
The next section is seafood and there are also three pages
of selections ranging in price between 90 baht for a Goong Choo Chee through
to 300 baht for steamed butter fish or sea bass. This is in turn followed by a
page of freshwater fish dishes, around 90 baht, and then another three pages
of Thai spicy soups, at 90 baht for a small and 180 baht for a large. If that
is not enough, there is a page of Chinese soups for about the same price and
then four pages of pork, beef, chicken and duck dishes, with most at 85 baht.
Next up are the rice and noodle dishes at 75 baht, a page of vegetarian dishes
(75 baht), then another section for European food with appetizers, soups,
salads and mains including pepper steak for 170 baht! Then it is more seafood
with prices around 150 baht. Finally, there are two pages of desserts. Simply
amazing!
With Somsak himself on hand to guide us (something he does
for everybody) we began with clams in small crucible containers, about the
size of egg cups, eaten with a decent hunk of garlic bread. The clams are
cooked with garlic, pepper and butter and the taste is so fantastic you end up
stuffing the bread into the crucible so that you can mop up every drop!
Next up was a sauteed Blue Spotted Sea Bass a la meuniere
that comes with “mast” potatoes. Never mind the spelling, this was a
superb boneless fillet of fish, with a lovely garlic flavour through it.
Another winner!
Our next dish was an Indonesian Chicken wrapped in Bandang
leaf. You remove the wrapping and dip the chicken in a special sauce made from
palm sugar and soy sauce - you begin to wonder just where did this man get all
these recipes! Fabulous!
By now, staggering, we polished off a plate of rock lobster
with garlic and pepper, a mangosteen sweetener and then a lime deep-fried ice
cream for dessert, one of Somsak’s specials that he brought back from New
York in 1967.
It was a brilliant evening, enjoying some very, very good
food, at very reasonable prices. If it is some time since you last went to
Somsak’s then you owe it to yourself to renew the acquaintance. If you have
not been before, then take our tip and spoil yourself. You will not regret it.
Animal Crackers:
Want to tame a Cockatiel?
by Mirin
MacCarthy
Cockatiels make the most endearing, affectionate,
responsive and easily tamed pets around. Only twelve inches in length and
half of that is tail, they are great mimics, inexpensive and love being the
centre of attention. Looking like streamlined miniature cockatoos with
predominately grey and white feathers with yellow heads and crests, they are
also never noisy or aggressive. They can be taught to talk or whistle and
with a life span of 20 to 25 years you have a long lived pet.
Kings of the Castle
If you are patient and calm and determined to befriend
your new bird then you are assured of success in taming these little honeys.
Be warned though, they easily dominate a household. They insist on being let
out of the cage, sitting on your head or shoulder and sharing any book or
newspaper you are reading, and of course nibbling it, walking around the
house on your shoulder and even take a shower with you.
Taming and Training
Cockatiels have naturally good dispositions and can often
be completely hand tamed in one or two sessions.
If the bird has not been hand fed clip one wing only or
better still have the shop owner do it. Clipping just one wing makes it more
difficult for the bird to fly away, but it is not permanent and will grow
out in five to six months.
Train the bird in a small room such as a bathroom and
cover all mirrors or windows it could fly into. One person trains the bird,
using a soft tone of voice. Never grab the bird’s body or pick it up from
behind. Be certain that the floor is well cushioned against falls. Talk to
it and offer it your hand, either your finger or your whole hand, fingers
together, horizontal to its body. Push gently against its legs and body,
just above the feet. The bird may step on right away or may try to fly or
run away.
When it settles down kneel down and offer your hand
again. Do not shy away if the bird hisses at you and fluffs up its feathers,
it is only bluffing. Keep working on getting it to step on your hand while
you let it know you are not afraid. Be patient, move slowly and keep
persisting. When the bird finally steps on your hand stay as still as you
can, don’t try to move with the bird immediately.
Talk softy to the bird and keep repeating its name. Try
to have the bird step from one hand to another. When you have reached the
end of your first hour with the cockatiel then it is really time to rest -
for both of you!
Try to establish a regular routine for the training, be
patient, move slowly and continue the training at regular intervals
throughout the first week. Remember to reward the bird with millet or
biscuit treats. Your patience will result in a loving feathered companion.
Down The Iron Road:
The Compound Locomotive 4, Chapelon (part 2)
by John D.
Blyth
A ‘Mixed Traffic’
Locomotive
Some writers have commented that all Chapelon’s work in
his own country was in rebuilding unsuccessful locomotives designed by
others; this is almost, but not quite true, and the 141P Class we now look
at was the exception. Even so, Chapelon did not have a free hand, as the
State Railway (SNCF) insisted that some features of ‘PLM’ practice
should be included, from 800 or so locomotives for general service built by
that company over the years. The design was carried out in a hurry, maybe
due to the war being imminent, but it was possible to incorporate many
proven Chapelon features in these 2-8-2 locomotives. They went into service
from 1941, a time when it might have been thought that war in Europe would
be at its height, but was actually following the fall of France and under
very different conditions.
 The
mixed traffic type, 141P290, at Paris, La Villette depot on 25 May 1951.
This locomotive was scheduled for the Railway Museum, but never reached
there.
The well-established Chapelon features were included in
this rather different layout, in which the cylinders were in line under the
smokebox, the high pressure outside, the low pressure between the frames;
the boiler was that used on the ‘Pacifics’ with increased pressure, and,
no doubt due to war conditions, piston, not poppet, valves were provided.
Their small driving wheels led to a restriction in maximum speed, but they
could exert 4000 h.p. continuously. Usually said to be a success, I was
surprised to be told by a ‘Chef de Depot’ in charge of many 141Ps that
they were ‘a little delicate’; it may be that wartime materials had
influenced the rigidity of the double-crank driving axle, not used again
after these 318 locomotives had been built. Many were soon put into store
when the war was over and all had short lives.
The 12-coupled ‘flying
test-bed’ 160A1
This very unusual locomotive was a rebuild of a 2-10-0
freight locomotive of Chapelon’s own P.-O. Railway; there was no intention
that it should be the fore-runner of series of such engines, although he had
published outline plans for a series of less complex locomotives with six
cylinders. In this case there were four cylinders, two high and two low
pressure, and two more low pressure, between the frames and driving the
fourth axle. All were steam-jacketed, to counter one of the most common heat
losses on a locomotive, and he also installed a secondary superheater to
re-heat the steam between periods of work in the high and low pressure
cylinders.
 The
very fine 4-8-4 express locomotive 242A1, which doubled the power output of
the poorish locomotive from which it was rebuilt.
It was found that the intermediate superheater could
alone eliminate condensation in the low pressure cylinders, and that the
high pressure superheater, more costly to make and maintain, could be
dispensed with, almost now lowering of efficiency being revealed. It is not
easy to make a steam locomotive produce high horsepowers at the low speed
common in freight train working, but this was done in the case of 160A1,
which was able to exert 300h.p. at 25 m.p.h. Other than the number of
cylinders and the various special features, the de Glehn system of
compounding was still adhered to.
Completed in June 1940, at a time when German forces were
advancing quickly southward, Chapelon hastily sent 160A1 off to Brive (where
it would have gone anyway), but conditions were such that no running of
‘light engines’ -i.e. with no train - was allowed, so at Lomoges it was
attached to a train of 1200 tons. Totally unfamiliar to the driver, who
didn’t even know of its existence until he had to drive it, 160A1
completed the run in fine style, and spent the rest of the war hiding in
Brive.
‘The greatest Steam
Locomotive of all?’
In 1932 the French State Railway (formerly the Western
Railway) had requested a new design of 4-8-2 express locomotive to be a
three cylinder ‘simple’ (i.e. not compound), intended to equate the
performance and efficiency of the best Chapelon compound practice. It
achieved none of this, was prone to derailment, and there after a short time
was set aside, well out of the public eye. In short it was a veritable slut
among locomotives, and it was this upon which Chapelon was to turn into - at
the very least - one of the greatest steam locomotives ever to run. Within
the limits of continental weight and size restrictions, there was to emerge
a locomotive approaching USA standards of power output, with economy as an
additive.
 The
remarkable ‘flying test bed’ 160A1, a very powerful machine at low
speeds.
The strengthening of the frames caused a change to a
4-8-4, to keep axle loadings down to 21 tons, and it was at this stage the
de Glehn layout of two low pressure cylinders between the frames, with the
possible overloading of the crank axle, was finally jettisoned, a three
cylinder system being substituted, one high pressure between the frames and
two low pressure outside. The use of an eccentric to drive the inside valve
gear was avoided by taking the drive from the fourth axle. Many items from
the ‘slut’ could be re-used: the boiler, much modified, wheels, tender,
and some motion parts, but the cylinders, again with piston valves, triple
Kylchap exhaust (for the first and last time), were all new and carefully
woven into the Chapelon principles, by now so well-known and so often not
understood.
The outcome was a locomotive as superb in performance as
it was in appearance; it could willingly produce 5500 horsepower in the
cylinders, and that task of the builder compounds - to equalise the output
from high and low pressure - was well achieved. It is sobering to recall
that some express passenger electric locomotives under design for the
Paris-Djion section had to be re-designed in order that their power output
should not be less than that of this prince of steam!
As a prototype it ran quite a small mileage, but was
dismantled in 1961 when it ought to have been put aside for the planned
National Railway Museum, now open at Mulhouse in Alsase. There is a Chapelon
‘Pacific’ there, but no 4-8-0, and no 141P. A poor tribute to one of the
greats of locomotive engineering, whose greatest achievement may well have
been the esteem in which engineers of other countries followed his example,
when his compatriots scorned his work. Gresley and Stanier, also Bulleid, in
Britain, the Duke of Zaragoza (engineer of the Spanish Northern Railway),
L.D. Porta, a keen and erudite steam man in Argentina, and many others,
gained by following his guidance. Only in Czechoslovakia did they adopt
compounding in quite a big way, but the communist coup put an end to the
co-operation.
Chapelon produced outline designs for post-war steam
locomotives, with power outputs up to 6000 horsepower; three cylinders
compounds, they would have been perfected versions of 242A1, the great
4-8-4. Work was actually started on a batch of 6000 h.p. 2-10-4 heavy
freight locomotives when an ill-judged edict from Government stopped all
development on steam ‘as coal was required by the steel industry’ -
steel needs coking coal, and the railway used non-coking coal, so it was a
farcical directive, especially when the Northern region of the railway had
asked for 50 of these engines to assist with their heavy coal traffic.
Millions of Francs had to be paid to the St. Etienne builders for the lost
order.
As I close, news comes from in that Chapelon’s great
book ‘La Locomotive a Vapeur’, published in 1952, has just been
re-published in an English language version. It costs over ?55 sterling, but
the original in French has been valued at over ?350! Contact me on (038) 426
030 for more details.
Copyright 2000 Pattaya Mail Publishing Co.Ltd.
370/7-8 Pattaya Second Road, Pattaya City, Chonburi 20260, Thailand
Tel.66-38 411 240-1, 413 240-1, Fax:66-38 427 596; e-mail: [email protected]
Updated by Chinnaporn Sangwanlek, assisted by
Boonsiri Suansuk. |
|
