Food-vendor Pimjai Pholmoon is forced to charge Bt20 a dish after four years at Bt15.

The rising cost of living is changing lives and social behaviour. Sunday Xpress hits the streets to find out just how badly the common man is hurting

Government official, late 20s, unnamed

"The room I'm sitting in is filled with overachievers. Many graduated top of their class, some with PhDs, and all are ranked well within the top 1 per cent of the country's most highly educated. All are earning less than Bt13,000 a month.

Despite popular belief you need to be loaded to pursue an elite education and take a salary hardly enough to pay for petrol: more than half of my colleagues take the bus to work. Those who don't drive the smallest cars with the most efficient petrol use. They still spend half of their salary on fuel.

Filled with idealist views of saving the environment and playing a small part in improving Bangkok's traffic, I initially took the bus to work. It worked out all right in the beginning, although I started worrying the pollution would give me lung cancer.

Then, the final straw - the rain. On the best buses, it still got stuffy and claustrophobic. Everyone is forced to shut windows to stop the inside of the bus from getting drenched. On the worst, leaks meant I got an impromptu shower. It took two hours to get home.

I dug out the rest of my savings and got my ageing car fitted with a gas system. I save a bit more on transport now, even though it cost me four months' salary. I worry that LPG prices will rise, too.

It's not all bad though. The ministry canteen charges Bt25 a dish, although we all gasp in awe at a bar of Wall's Magnum ice cream that costs an unholy Bt40.

We thank the rain. It means electricity for air-conditioning at home is saved. Gruelling 12-hour work days cut down on home electricity bills, too.

Why do we do this? Well, for new civil servants, we say we've taken enough from the country and want to give back. I hope and pray we do not change."

Sakson Koasa, 27, single, Bangkok company employee with a bachelor's degree

"I used to buy any food I wanted, without limit. I didn't mind how much it was. But now I have to calculate prices before deciding what to buy. I don't want to spend more than Bt100 a day while at work. The only cost I can save on is food. I've stopped eating out and having parties with my friends."

With his Bt8,900 salary, he's in financial trouble "I have to borrow between Bt500 and Bt1,000 from friends some months."

His monthly expenses are Bt3,000 for a the car to work and meals during the day; Bt2,000 for dormitory rent and utilities; Bt700 for a mobile and Bt600 for Internet cafe use.

"I've cut the money I give my parents from Bt1,000 to Bt500. When I can, I give them an extra Bt2,000 if they say they haven't enough."

Soaring costs means this computer technician skips breakfast.

"Daily transport costs come to Bt62 a day."

Belt-tightening means his favourite pastime, online gaming, is a thing of the past. It cost Bt600 a month.

"I had to stop. There was no choice." He's had to give up drinks with his mates, too. Visits to the cinema have been replaced by watching borrowed videodiscs at home. "I used to see 10 films a month. Now I go three times."

With money for necessities only, "I won't buy a new cell phone, no matter how badly I want one".

Sarisa Suvarnasuddhi, 24, office worker for a multinational.

Sarisa thinks twice before eating out or buying new clothes. Inflation and rising costs have made her more disciplined in money matters.

"Whenever I want to buy something, I have to think twice. I prefer to eat at home rather than spend on eating out. But if I have to meet with friends, then it's okay, sometimes."

Sarisa earns Bt28,000 a month. About one-third goes to helping her mother pay for necessities.

"My mother, who does the supermarket shopping, complains that prices of all groceries are rising sharply.

"But we're not reducing purchases. We try to save by using less electricity at home. At night, I sleep in the same room as my father and mother. In the daytime, we use an electric fan. If it's too hot, we huddle in one room and turn on the air-conditioner."

Sarisa saves Bt5,000 a month and makes sure she always has Bt10,000 in her current account for emergencies.

Living on Srinakarin Road, she has to drive to work. In the morning she shares with her dad, who takes the Skytrain then a bus home because he finishes earlier.

"Shopping makes me uneasy. I think very carefully before I buy anything," says Sarisa.