Readers' Digest

Paradise in disguise- THAILAND

2008-03-26T02:50:00.000-07:00

Naturally, we used this as an opportunity to take a longer trip and began our week and a half long journey through Thailand.

Crystal Clear Water
Our first stop was Koh Phi Phi. This is without a doubt the most beautiful place I have ever been, and probably in the running for the most beautiful place in the world. Light sandy beaches, rocky outcrops, limestone cliffs, dense jungle, bright turqouise water, colorful fish....need I continue? The Beach (that movie from a few years ago with Leonardo DiCaprio) was filmed here. It's even more beautiful in person. Unfortunately, Koh Phi Phi's beauty isn't a secret, so it also has a packed tourist town. We decided not to stay in that touristy area, and took a longtail tuk tuk boat to a different bay and stayed at a little bungalow there. The beach where we stayed is actually one of the prettiest and best for snorkeling on the island.

Long Beach on Ko Phi Phi
'Long Beach,' the name of the area where we stayed, also provides great views of Koh Phi Phi Leh. Koh Phi Phi is made up of two islands- the larger Koh Phi Phi Don, and the smaller Koh Phi Phi Leh. If you've seen The Beach, they start out at Long Beach and swim to Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi Leh. There's no way you could actually swim that, but that's ok.
We spent most of our time relaxing on the beach and swimming through the warm crystal clear water. We also did some shopping, lots of eating delicious Thai food, kayaking, and snorkeling. We kayaked over the area where a group of black tip sharks usually roams, but we weren't able to see any from the kayak. Even though black tip sharks are supposed to be nice, I still wasn't in the mood to go swimming with them. We snorkeled in Maya Bay. Unfortunately, there is a lot of visible damage to the coral, but the fish swimming around it were beautiful. My favorites were the brightly colored parrot fish. My least favorites were the zillions of tiny jelly fish that you can't see but can definitely feel.

On the beach
This island was severly damaged by the tsunami. The main part of town is on a flat isthmus connecting to limestone mountains, so the wave just washed right over it. We were talking to a shop-owner who had been there during the tsunami. He said the aftermath was unbelievable. Even though many buildings survived, Thai government "rescue workers" came and bulldozed perfectly repairable buildings, some of which had not yet been searched for bodies. The government also prohibited people from choosing their own building company to rebuild their shops, so in order to get anything done you had to find a way around the law. Most of the island is totally rebuilt with just about no evidence of the tsuanmi, but there are still areas with rubble and debris left over. There are also tsunami evacution trails, though these pathways are so cluttered with other crap they are rendered pretty useless.

Riding on the Longtail Tuk Tuk Boat
Overall, Koh Phi Phi was absolutely beautiful and beats Mexico, Hawaii, the Caribbean, and Indonesia as my favorite island-y destination. Go there next time you have a chance.

one of the Longest Name In History Bangkok

2008-03-26T02:34:00.000-07:00

"Krungthepmahanakonbowornratanakosinmahintarayudyayamahadiloponoparatanarajthaniburiromudomrajniwesmahasatarnamornpimarnavatarsatitsakattiyavisanukamphrasit "
The translation here is pretty much the unabridged history of the city rather than a word.

krungthep mahanakhon or bangkok ...

The land of angels, the great city of amorn rattanakosinimmortality,
various of devine gems,
mahintara yudthaya mahadilok pohpthe great angelic land unconquerable,
noparat rajathanee bureeromland of nine noble gems, the royal city, the pleasant capital,
udomrajniwes mahasatarnplace of the grand royal palace,
amorn pimarn avaltarnsatitforever land of angels and reincarnated spirits,
sakatattiya visanukram prasitpredestined and created by the highest devas.

Earn money through Internet

2008-03-26T00:53:00.000-07:00

Use Internet to Earn Money।

MyLot is a great program for people who like to chat and earn a few dollars a day at the same time! The range of subjects is enormous and from all over the world. Upload pictures from your computer, list your passions and other features. Payment is by PayPal so you will need to get a free PayPal account . If you can't get PayPal in your country then they will pay by e-Gold .
BlueBayptr is a great PTS ( paid to search ), PTC ( paid to click ) PTJ (paid to join or sign up) and PTR ( paid to read ) program and, unlike some, has a low payout threshold of $2. This amount can be quickly reached by joining other programs from the Paid to Signup section, searching on links in your Inbox and clicking on banners in the Paid to Click area.
I earn about $7 a month on my own searches. Payment is by PayPal so you will need to get a free PayPal account.
Rpoints is aimed at UK/Euro surfers comparing prices of goods.Rpoints are ultra-cautious about awarding points. They take days to check, then credit, your points and then a month or more to validate them before you can cash in. A good forum explains all this. But, once the ball is rolling and you're clicking every day, the cash rolls into PayPal at £5 minimum a time and in £sterling too so you can have dollar and sterling PayPal accounts to save on exchange rates.

Increase your car's life and save fuel

2008-03-23T22:25:00.000-07:00

Save Fuel ,SAVE YOUR ENGINE
Take the following steps and save fuel.

Speeding. Ah, yes, the age-old adage that you need to SLOW DOWN. But don't just do it for your health. Do it for your wallet. Going speeds of over 65 miles per hour can decrease your gas mileage as much as 40%! OUCH! Try to keep it lower. And believe it or not, if you go this speed, you will only take on average around 5 minutes longer to reach your destination. A price that is worth more than it's weight in gold.
Tailgating. If you bumper buddy the guy in front of you, you must drive more erratically. You never know what the guy in front of you is going to do. You must accelerate and brake harshly in order to stay glued to his bumper. Stay your distance. If you simply must pass him, do it. Don't let him know he has to speed up. That is his choice. You
need to worry about yourself and your wallet, not other people's. It is not only safer, but also more fuel efficient.
Jackrabbit starts. Yep, peeling out may look cool off of the green light, but you pay for it. Figuratively and literally. You reduce fuel economy by around 21% every time you burn out. I hope you impressed someone when you did it because that is a hefty price to pay for 2 seconds of fun.
Harsh Braking. When you brake harshly, that means you are using fuel all the way until you have to brake, which is a total waste. Allow your car to slow to a stop by itself. It is much better for the car and your brakes and your gas and your wallet and your... do I need to go on?
Excessive Idling. Sitting at the drive through? Waiting for the bank teller? Drive-thru Pharmacy taking awhile? Shut that baby off. If you are going to be idling for more than 1 minute, turn off your engine. It takes more fuel to keep it running than if you just stopped and started it again