Hanuman

I don't know why you're trying to sensationalise the "what if" scenarios. Yes there is the danger of flooding like every year but this year due to the flooding in Korat the news is "bigger" than normal.

Curt1591

I hope we can have discussions.

I'm not trying to "sensationalize". I am simply pointing out the concerns. But, for the people we met today, the situation was quite intense.

I thought an actual photo, from the scene, might be interesting.

If you want sensationalism, check out Dragonc, the Drama Queen, over at TA. This is a local Thai that completely loses himself in his cub reporter persona:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...g-Bangkok.html

What is funny, as soon as things clear, he's back to his "Come to Thailand" mantra, and will scold anyone who might affect tourism.

In any case, most discussions talk about riverside. In the UNLIKELY event that the caca does hit the fan, people do need to understand what the real threat COULD be.

I'm not worried. I don't think others, especially tourists, should worry too much. But being aware, being prepared, and understand the implications, can't hurt anyone.

In my not-so-humble opinion, the intense warnings given about the Bangkok situation are possibly an overcompensation for the lack of warnings before opening the flood gates on Korat.

Maybe too much, too late....

Hanuman

Well the Korat flood water goes into the Moon river which then flow through Ubon into the Mekong. For Bangkok we are concern about the run offs from the North and the next exceptional high tide is this Wednesday and they are predicting only 1.17 meters of higher than normal sea level. Not a problem for Bangkok but areas around Samutprakarn, Chao Praya estuary South of Bangkok, and Northern provinces around Bangkok are under flood watch.

If you don't want people to wrongly worry about the what ifs then you should not use New Orleans as an example of what YOU think might happened.

Curt1591

Your English is exceptional, but it is clear that you aren't understanding me.

Welcome back anyway.

kmkrnn

Hanuman...How is the riverr near your house?

Hanuman

No problem so far Karen. Looking forward to seeing you soon!

Kathie

Thanks for your comments, Hanuman. It's always helpful to hear reports from "on the ground."

rhkkmk

new orleans is a unique experience and example.... the city is mostly built below sea level which never should have been allowed...

AskOksena

Yo traveller,

Warm greetings (and a warm shout-out to lil' monkey god: hope you soon have SQ R in store for your rather attractive family! - and don't tell your TG cronies), and, well, traveller, for the past few days, a certain cherished 'high' floor at the Shangri-La's Krungthep Wing has been most acceptable for meetings. (Even those 'always on-call' masseuses, Khun 'D' and Khun 'K'.) Enjoy.

(And, hopefully for a few more days of work before flying back to Singapore. Returning for work/pleasure 15-22 November - guess the holiday and riverside reunion property.

Rain or shine, always an uplifting time, in the Land of Smiles. (And don't forget that airline.)

macintosh (robert)


...Singapore Girl, You're a Great Way to Fly...

gailmo

My husband and I took the train last night from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Before we left we were told that the train was not "direct". About 1.5 hours northeast of Bangkok we got off the train and were loaded into three huge buses. The buses took us around the flooded section of track --which was a 1.5 hour trip. Several times the bus drove down flooded roads and although it was dark, we did see major flooding in the area. We got back on the train at 10pm and headed northward to Chiang Mai. We arrived in Chiang Mai about 2.5 hours behind schedule. All said, it was a nice trip and a good break from regular air travel.

Kathie

Thanks for the follow-up, gailmo.

rhkkmk

thanks for this update.... for the life of me i can never understand why people wish to take this trip by train...

gailmo

I find airline travel easy and most of the time, predictable. Train travel and even bus travel gives me a better sense of what I call "real travel" -- travel with the locals at a pace that seems a bit more logical to me. I revel with the challenge of local travel!

With that said, my husband tolerates this travel format--most of the time. He was ok on this last train experience--and only grumbled a few times. He said it was better than the standard class overnight train we took a few years ago from Hanoi to Lao Cai.

Next up--Green bus from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai.

thursdaysd

"i can never understand why people wish to take this trip by train..." - no trek to and from the airport... no silly security... save a hotel night (not such a big consideration in Thailand, of course) - yes I have slept comfortably on that route... and everything gailmo said.

rhkkmk

all the better for the rest of us....more seats available on planes and a much better night's sleep... ok then, i won't ask the "real" locals on the flights to get off and to take the train so that you can meet them and share a crumb of bread or a bottle of wine..

Zeer

Hey Curt1591, appreciate the updates and the pics. Let's hope the worst is over for all those affected and they can get their lives back to normal as soon as possible.

Thanks for the heads up on that DragonC poster over on Trip Advisor. Seems a right clown. I'm so glad he's not on Fodors.

filmwill

I just read through all 16 pages of said 'drama queen's' posts on TA (there's a phrase I remember an old poster on Fodor's using awhile ago...hmm!) Wow, well I guess I've never seen someone so dramatic give seemingly good advice and up-to-the-minute reports to so many people (who, in turn, seemed grateful for the information.)

gailmo

We took the Green Bus this morning from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai--it is raining again and the rivers are REALLY full. Several places the water was over the road--but nothing serious. I keep thinking that all this water is headed towards Bangkok--and am hoping the watershed diverts it into another direction. I don't have a good map--so I don't know how the drainage works in this part of the country.

but....the Green Bus was fine....easy trip northward and we are now staying in a very nice little guest house just outside Chiang Rai. Also stayed in a beautiful small hotel in Chiang Mai and hope to do a mini-trip report on these two places at some point.