There has never been a better time to find good employment in Thailand! This is the only conclusion to be drawn from the recent announcement by Mr Philip Williams, webmaster of www.ajarn.com, that more than 400 job opportunities had recently been posted in a very short time, a huge record for Thailand. Our own Academy has also been affected, needing more trained teachers for our classes in all four of our provincial locations than were available – despite our own teacher training course!

For the benefit of persons 'not in the know', www.ajarn.com is THE teacher's web site in Thailand: where teachers go to find jobs, advice about living in Thailand, or anything else of interest to teachers.

Should anyone wish to contact Mr Williams about this teacher shortage, he can be reached via: philip@ajarn.com.

While the pay for teachers in Thailand is not as high as in many other places, the cost of living is a lot less, too – which means that money can go a long, long way here, if you're careful, while you're teaching and living a good life among some wonderful people and students.

Finally, apart from wanting to save up "a bag-full of money" elsewhere, are there any reasons why you would want to stay away from Thailand at this wonderful time?

• Let's see. Tornados or cyclones? Thailand has never had one. What about your country?
  
• Earthquakes? Thailand has never had one? And your country?
• Hurricanes? Nearby, yes, but not in Thailand. (If you live in Florida, you will appreciate that!)
• Terrorist attacks on tourists? Never. Not yet, anyway, though one must agree that it could happen in any country, anywhere.

What about the unrest and killings in Southern Thailand? These tragic events don't affect the rest of the country, but occur in the provinces of Pattani, Narathiwat and Yala, all of which are Muslim areas wishing to secede and form an independent state. This, of course, is not the only problem in these troubled areas, but none have shown an interest in exporting their violence to other parts of Thailand.

Well, what about a tsunami? Yes, we had one, as did other nations. Though we are not expected to have another one for at least another century, excellent early warning systems have been put in place to protect anyone who might find himself or herself in the wrong place at the wrong time, should another one actually occur.

Finally, despite a bit of government bickering (not at all unusual in other parts of the world, as well), and some nasty violence in the deep South, we can say along with all the other "old hands" of Thailand:

There is no safer place on earth than Thailand to walk alone at midnight !