JAN 2014
The art of baking authentic
Danish bread & pastry
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Opinion
My New Year’s Resolution
M
any people make a firm decision to change something in their lives with the beginning of the New Year. Starting a difficult project like stop smoking is more likely to be successful if you attach it to a specific starting point that is easy to remember. Others refuse to make a new year resolution because if there is something they really would like to change, then why not start right away? An early 20th-century New Year’s postcard carried this most ambitious resolution:
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I will every day try to live a simple and sincere and serene life and repelling promptly any thought of discontent, anxiety, discouragement, impurity and self-seeking and cultivation cheerfulness and magnanimity, charity, and the habit of holy silence and exercising economy in expenditure, carefulness in conversation, diligence in appointed service, fidelity to every trust and a child-like trust in God. On a lighter note, Time published last year this list of “The Top 10 most commonly broken New Year Resolutions”: • • • • • • • • • •
Lose Weight and Get Fit Quit Smoking Learn Something New Eat Healthier and Diet Get Out of Debt and Save Money Spend More Time with Family Travel to New Places Be Less Stressed Volunteer Drink Less
Another website I found went a step further and asked visitors to come up with their funniest New Year Resolution. Here is my pick of their list:
Editor-in-Chief : Gregers A.W. Møller gregers@scandmedia.com
• • • • • • • •
Assistant Editor: Wachiraporn Janrut wachiraporn@scandmedia.com
So what is my own New Year Resolution? Well, I promise all ScandAsia readers always to keep a spare opinion piece in the drawer.
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I will stop saying,” Ooh, that feels nice” whenever the security guys frisk me at airports. I promise to suppress my urge to stand next to the bathroom door and scare my wife when she comes out, whenever she visits the loo at night, taking me to be fast asleep. My New Year resolution for 2008 is 1024 by 968 pixels! What’s yours! For my new year’s resolution I will stop using Facebook as the primary communication method with my wife & kids I will never again take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night. I resolve to not see any movie in which the octogenarian hero dances with a teenage heroine. I will do less laundry and use more deodorant. Start buying lottery tickets at a luckier store.
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Daily news and features here: www.scandasia.com
Gregers Moller is the Editor-in-Chief of ScandAsia and the founder of the Scand-Media Group. He has lived in Thailand since 1988.
Coming Events
Children’s Day
Saab Gripen has participated in Children’s Day since the first aircraft arrived. Here Group Captain Jakkrit Thammavichai poses with some kids in front of a Gripen and a SAAB 340 AEW at the home base of Wing 7 in Surat Thani.
National Children’s Day (Wan Dek) is celebrated in Thailand on the second Saturday of January every year. This year it is on Saturday 11th January 2014. Each year many places like Government House and armed forces bases put on special activities for children. In addition, many attractions allow children in for free or at least at a reduced price. Even the BTS Skytrain and MRT Metro allow children to ride for free on this day. A few weeks beforehand, the Thai Prime Minister will announce the motto for Children’s Day. It’s different each year. Children’s Day 2013 Motto: “Be Disciplined, Enhance Knowledge, and Bring Thailand toward ASEAN” The idea with Children’s Day is to raise public awareness of the importance of children and youth, in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Ammundsen’s Cup A classic among the many Scandinavian golf events in Thailand is the annual Ammnundsen’s Cup, named after the famous old Danish doctor Einar Ammundsen who lived a lifetime in Thailand after the second world war. The torunament is played on February 1, 2014 on the Kiarti Thanee golf course, sponsored by Tetra Pak. Details on www.zabaigolf.com
Scandiavian Society Siam: Swedish Golf Day ZabaiGolf, the golf section of the Scandinavian Society Siam, holds a special Swedish Golf Day on January 18, 2014. The tournament will take place at Vintage Club, sponsored by Lux and Oriflame. Details on www.zabaigolf.com
Annual Meeting at City Beach Resort Nordmenn i Hua Hin will hold the Annual General Meeting on Januarty 23 at City Beach Resort in Hua Hin. Members must bring their membership card and the membership fee must have been paid in no later than one week before the meeting in order to be able to vote in the meeting. The meeting takes place at 19:00 on 2. floor.
Party in the Ambassador’s garden The Norwegian Ambassador to Thailand, H.E. Katja Nordgaard will be hosting a Garden Party on Saturday 25 January 2014 at 6 pm. in her residence on Sukhumvit Soi 38, near BTS Thonglor, for members of Scandinavian Society Siam and their guests. Ticket price and other details on www.sss.or.th
4 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
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Past Events
Sunny day offsets low scores at Kvik Kokken tournament
By Christer Holmvall
O
n November 30th 2013 the KVIK KOKKEN tournament was held at Subhapruek Golf Club in Bangkok. It was a beautiful sunny day and 50 players joined the event. It was a very poor day for scoring in general but the A group had the highest results. Bjarne Kjersner had two birdies on his way to 35 points and the win. He was followed in the A group by Dan Enstedt and Geir Bing. 15 players in the A group had birdies. The B group was won by Kenneth Hovmoller on 29 points followed by Leo Alexandersen also on 29 and third place went to Flemming Heide on 28 points. In total the 13 players in the B group only had two birdies. The C group was won by Helena Ahola on 29 points and the CC group was won by Douglas Brown whom had a net 72 including 2 birdies. A great dinner and prize ceremony was put on by KVIK with many great door prizes. Bjarne Kjersner now leads the Race to Six Senses Yao Noi followed by Christian Stenhammar and the defending champion Erik Dahlstrom in 3rd place. The next tournament is the Swedish Golf Day which will be held the 18th of January 2014 at Vintage golf. Signup can be done as usual at www.zabaigolf.com
Norwegian Family Christmas Day
T
hai-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce held on 1 December 2013 a Christmas Party at the Norwegian Ambassador’s residence. The family event was complete with a wonderful Christmas buffet and a visit by Santa Claus.
Lucia Fest in Phuket
S
candinavians in Phuket Association celebrated Lucia the Swedish way on 15th December with children from the Swedish school in Kamala. Photos show the beautifully dressed choir at the dinner at Karlssons restaurant in Karon. Scandinavians in Phuket Association was established last year with the aim to be an association for all the Nordic residents in Phuket. 6 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
Past Events
DanCham Christmas lunch with Ambassador’s performance By Sine Neuchs Thomsen Photos by Embassy of Denmark in Thailand
O
n Friday November 29 Thai-Danish Chamber of Commerce held the annual Christmas Lunch, which they in their invite had called “the biggest and most-anticipated event of the year”. That would unavoidably raise the guests’ expectations prior to the event, but as the day ran off it turned out to fulfill them all. The venue for the Christmas Lunch was the Royal Danish Embassy at Sathorn soi 1, and after registration the 160 attending guests were seated to enjoy traditional Danish Christmas food. For a couple of hours the guests worked hard on getting through an abundance of herrings, liver paté, bacon and a lot of other traditional Christmas food plus an uncountable number of Carlsberg beers. Meanwhile the River Light Band contributed with pleasant Christmas-ish background music, which made it a bit easier to actually think of Christmas, even though the sun was shinning a lot that day. The rumors said that last year the Ambassador Mikael Hemniti Winther performed on his own guitar, so many were happy about seeing him entering the stage to once again entertain with a few songs. After an exiting lucky draw where the ambassador won at least to times, people gathered by the tables to enjoy themselves, and a few more beers.
Swedes flock to Christmas market at ambassador’s residence
O
n Sunday the 1st of December, the Swedish Ambassador hosted a Christmas market at the residence together with the Swedish Church, Swedish Women’s Educational Association (SWEA) and the Swedish School Association of Bangkok. Guests bought traditional Swedish food and drink, such as smörgåsar, lussebullar, glögg and saft. Other items for sale included Christmas handicrafts and a range of products from organizations that support marginalized children and youth in Bangkok as well as the survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) in the Philippines. To celebrate the first Sunday of advent and the start of the new Christian church year, the Swedish church held a service. “Första advent” is an old tradition and it is celebrated the four Sundays before Christmas day, when you light candles, go to church and in general get into the spirit of Christmas. Santa Claus also visited the residence to surprise the children; he is always a very welcome and popular guest! 8 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
Past Events
Presentation of the Danish Embassy
O
n Thursday December 12 the Thai Danish Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with the Danish Embassy held a networking event at the Ambassador’s residence at Sathorn soi 1. The location was chosen in order to signal the embassy’s close relationship with Dancham, ambassador Mikael Winther Hemneti explained when he welcomed the guests. During the evening the four sections in the Embassy were introduced, each by their head of office. Annette Rosenquist, head of the visa section, said her section is very busy at the moment even though it is April-June that usually are the peak months. So far there had been 460 applications for permanent stay in Denmark. Asbjorn Kristensen introduced the trade section’s work, and referred to a one month old satisfaction survey made among the clients which showed a very high level of satisfaction. The trade section has an annual turnover goal on 1,4 mio. Danish kroner. Helle Deleuran introduced on behalf of Consul Birgit Carlstedt the consular service. A surprising piece of information was that this year, 60 Danes had died in Thailand. Mac Shaw head of the political section told that they are working on a way to make the embassy more visible e.g. through social media. With the current political situation in Bangkok, he said he could not complain about the thrilling element in his work.
January 2014 • ScandAsia.Thailand 9
News Brief
Pandora marks 2nd anniversary in Thailand
T
he Danish Ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar Mr. Mikael H. Winther attended a celebration of the 2nd anniversary in Thailand of the Danish accessories and jewellery brand, Pandora. The event was organized at Atrium Zone, Central World, and presented three special collections from Pandora namely Winter Collection, 2nd Anniversary Set and the finale of the night, the Christmas Collection.
Pandora’s 2nd anniversary was honoured by the presence of Ambassador of Denmark to Thailand H.E. Mikael Hemniti Winther (2nd from the right side in first picture below) and his wife Mrs. Rattanawadee Hemniti Winther (3rd from left), Pandora’s founder Mr. Per Enevoldsen (center), Pandora Asia-Pacific president Mr. Kenneth Madsen (3rd from right), CEO of Tanachira Retail Corporation Mr. Tanapong Chirapanidchakul (4th from right), Sansana Chirathivat (2nd from left) and many celebrities.
Marimekko and Iittala criticized for labour conditions
T Telenor focusing on Internet acces
T
he Telenor Group reported revenues of NOK 26.0 billion in the third quarter of 2013, representing a revenue growth of 1%. A big part of this is from Asia. In Asia, a focus for Telenor is the need for Internet access with good connectivity and services for all. Currently, for Asia as a whole, only one out of four of Telenor’s customers have access to the Internet through their mobile phone or tablet. This represents a vast potential for the future growth of Telenor, said Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO of Telenor Group at the presentation of the result. In Thailand, where the Internet is already the main growth driver, Telenor added 240,000 customers during the 3rd quarter, he added. “In Thailand, the new 2.1 GHz network was launched in July. The migration of customers is progressing according to plan and dtac aims to have a minimum of 10 million customers on the licensed network by the end of the year. In the years to come, we expect significant cost savings and margin improvement from the transition to the license regime,’’ said Baksaas. Back in Scandinavia, Telenor had a weaker than expected revenue development in Norway. In Denmark, Telenor is embarking upon an ambitious transformation program as a consequence of continued challenging market conditions. Only Sweden performs well: “During the quarter, we saw continued improvement in Sweden on the back of solid execution and implementation of data centric tariffs,” Baksaas said. “Telenor Group’s performance this quarter is proof of a sound business with solid earnings and margins. Our effort to capture growth remains a top priority, while we will continue to drive efficiency improvements,’’ said Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO of Telenor Group at the presentation of the result. 10 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
he corporate responsibility watchdog organisation, Finnwatch, has criticized the two Finnish flagship brands Iittala and Marimekko for the low wages, long working-days and unsafe working conditions of the workers of a glass factory in Thailand manufacturing products for the traditional Finnish design firms. Labour conditions in the factory, located near Bangkok in the Thai province of Nakhon Pathom, were canvassed earlier this year by interviewing 19 workers. Of the total of 175 employees, roughly two dozen are migrant workers from Myanmar while the rest are from Thailand. The results of the survey was presented in among others the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat. In a comment to the report, Fiskars, the parent company of Iittala, has stated that the report by Finnwatch bolsters the company’s conviction that improving occupational safety in Thailand is a priority. Niina Nenonen, a product director at Marimekko, similarly told Helsingin Sanomat that the observations by the watchdog did not come as a surprise, as similar conclusions have been reached in the company’s internal reviews. According to Nenonen, Marimekko has devised a plan to improve the working conditions. Products manufactured at the factory include bowls and cake stands from Iittala’s Kastehelmi product family and glassware from Marimekko’s Sukat makkaralla product family.
January 2014 • ScandAsia.Thailand 11
News Brief
Defence State Secretary visits Thailand
S
wedish Ministry for Defence State Secretary Carl von der Esch visited Thailand on November 27-28 to discuss issues of common interest related to the defence cooperation. During his visit, the State Secretary met with the Deputy Chief of Defence Forces Admiral Amorntep Na Bangchang, Chief of Airforce ACM Prajin Juntong and Chief of Navy Admiral Narong Pipatanasai. The State Secretary also visited Wing 7 in Surat Thani, the airbase that hosts the Thai Gripen aircraft and the Swedish Support Group.
State Secretary and Chief of Navy Admiral Narong Pipatanasai Photo by Capt Punnarong Yuthavong
Norway’s Ekornes acquires IMG factories in Thailand, Vietnam
Thailand reconsiders visa fee exemption for Scandinavians, others
U
pper-end upholstery producer Ekornes has signed a letter of intent in early December 2013 to acquire fellow Norwegian producer IMG for an undisclosed price. Ekornes officials said the deal will give the company a new growth platform for upholstered seating at low and medium price points. “(IMG) has within a few years gained a solid position in international furniture markets with price efficient products, which will add to Ekornes’ portfolio of products,” said Nils-Fredrik Drablos, CEO of Ekornes. Founded in 2006, IMG’s product development and marketing offices are in Sykkylven, Norway, and its factories are in Vietnam and Thailand. Drablos said IMG will operate as a separate business unit within Ekornes, and said Nils Gunnar Hjellegjerde, principal shareholder in IMG, will be managing director of the IMG unit. “Following the acquisition, we have identified substantial synergies in revenues, in addition to economies of scale in purchasing and logistics,” Drablos said. The acquisition is expected to close by May 1, 2014. In the North American market, Ekornes is best known for its Stressless recliners and sofas. Most of its production is in Norway, but the company opened a plant last year in Morganton, N.C. IMG gets most of its sales in North America and Scandinavia. It has shown in the High Point Market since 2012. 12 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
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he Immigration Bureau will ask the Foreign Ministry to reconsider the decision to exempt visa fees for tourists and travelers from 17 countries. The 17 countries are Australia, England, the United States, Germany, France, Sweden, Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Finland,Norway, Israel, United Arab Emitrates, Spain and New Zealand. Immigration commissioner Pol Lt-Gen Panu Kerdlarpphol explained that the reason for reconsideration was that the 17 countries still charge visa fees on Thai nationals. The visa fee exemption should be reciprocal in order to be fair to Thai tourists and travelers wishing to visit those countries, he said, adding that, moreover, applying for visas to visit the US and England by Thai nationals is very complicated and problematic. The immigration chief said further that charging visa fees would help screen visitors to Thailand, especially criminal elements and tricksters who may capitalize on the privilege to come to Thailand to seek refuge or to commit crimes. He recommended two options of charging visa fees: the first is a minimum flat rate of 1,000 baht for each visa and the second which is to charge the same rates impose by those countries for Thai visitors which range from 750-3,900 baht.
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News Brief
From the Time of the Crocs
“F
rom the Time of the Crocs” is a new book about the Danes in Siam from 1865 and upwards which was launched on 15 December 2013. The book is a selection of some of the best historical articles written by by Flemming Winther Nielsen and published in ScandAsia over the past four years, edited and presented as a complete book. At the reception held at Mermaid Hotel Bangkok Flemming Winther Nielsen signed the book and hotel owner Jorgen Lundbaek served “beskojter and pullimut” which, according to one participant, tasted like the D-rations he remembered from his time as a drafted prvate. From the Time of the Crocs presents a realistic picture of the lives and achievements of the Danes. The glamour and the medals are peeled away and we are constantly reminded of the backdrop for their achievements, the unhealthy living conditions in Bangkok at a time when “you might have dinner with a man tonight and attend his funeral tomorrow”. We learn about Marqvard Jensen, the brave young Danish soldier who saved the North of Thailand from British colonisation; about Jenny Nielsen from Aalborg whose husband, the American Medical Doctor Thomas Heyward Hays, built the “The Neilson Hays Library” in her memory; about the impressive Danish Consul Frederik Carl Christian Købke without whose influence the Danes would probably never have played such a prominent role in Siam, and of course the most influential of them all, Vice-Admiral, Commander-in-Chief of the Siamese Navy, Andreas du Plessis de Richelieu, and H.N. Andersen, the founder of the East Asiatic Company. And many more outstanding personalities. We also learn so far untold secrets about the author, who we now know spent most of his childhood sailing dinghies on Vejle Fjord until he at the age of 18 escaped to Copenhagen where he made a living by renting out cars. He calls it “a strange mistake” that he was later enrolled at a college where he graduated with a diloma in “Social Work and Development” and then worked in the public sector for some years. But all this is of course today ancient history, “from the time of the crocs”. The book is available online on www.scandshop.in.th. The price of 750,- baht is incl. of VAT, but exclusive of postage and handling.
14 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
UD Trucks Thailand delivers first Quester heavy-duty trucks
U
D Trucks in mid-December delivered the first units of Quester, its all-new heavy-duty truck range, designed specifically for growth markets in Asia and the rest of the world, including Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Regarded as an industry game-changer, the Quester is designed, priced and equipped with features that cater to a multitude of different industries, from distribution to long-haul transportation, mining to construction. Thailand’s Asia Group, the receiver of the first units, is in the concrete pile manufacturing business that demands for especially strong heavy-duty trucks, catering the transportation of the massy products. The deal between UD Trucks and Asia Group - which comprises 15 units in total - includes the signing of a comprehensive 3-year maintenance and repair contract. Being part of the Volvo Group since 2007, UD Trucks has since geared up its manufacturing and distribution capabilities in Thailand. To achieve ‘closer to market’ status and ensure responsiveness to the demands from the Asian markets, investments over USD62 million (THB2 billion) had been made to expand the Greater Bangkok-based plant by adding a 20,000sqm facility with annual production capacity of up to 20,000 units. Additionally, USD93.5 million (THB3 billion) had been invested to increase the Thai dealer network. Since its official introduction in August, the new UD Trucks range has received rousing support from the industry. Commercial transport companies in Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia have put in orders for the Quester, regarded as an industry game-changer. The Quester is designed, priced and equipped with features that cater to a multitude of different industries, from distribution to long-haul transportation, mining to construction. With economic reports showing that Asia will have fast infrastructure growth, especially in Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia and Thailand, UD trucks believes that there is high demand for the right commercial transportation.
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The art of baking authentic
Danish
bread & pastry
Danish pastry may be world famous and widely available. But when it comes to authentic Danish pastry, only very few bakers have the skills it takes in Thailand. By Gregers Moller and Thana Poopat
16 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
My wife Mai is from Denmark, and after we got married and had our first child, she kept telling me with this dreamy look in her eyes about authentic Danish bread and pastries. So I started looking into how I could please her and find a way to give her that.
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he brand “Fyns Bakery” is a Danish bakery brand exclusively found only in a few retail shops in Bangkok, - plus online on scandshop.in.th The story behind the brand is quite romantic. It starts with the wish of Mr. Suppanai Ratanaprakarn to please his Danish wife, Mai Ellegaard who kept fantasizing about the taste of “real Danish bakery”. “At that time I did not know much about bakery, because when I attended hotel school in Switzerland, the bakery classes were the ones I sneaked out of if I could get away with it,” Khun Suppanai readily confesses. “It was hard work swopping all that heavy dough around and I was a young man who preferred spending my hyper-energy on a lot of other and more fun things, so I put only just enough effort into the bakery class to pass,” he explains. Khun Suppannai then went back to Thailand, where he continued being a hyper-active kid while at the same helping his parents manage the family owned Purimas Beach Hotel & Spa in Ban Chang near Rayong. And doing bakery remained near the bottom on the list of activities that he had any appetite for. Enter Mai Ellegaard. “As you know, my wife Mai is from Denmark, and after we got married and had our first child, she kept telling me with this dreamy look in her eyes about the one thing she still had not found in Thailand – authentic Danish bread and pastries. So I started looking into how I could please her and find a way to give her that,” Khun Suppanai says. During one of the couple’s visit to Denmark Mai Ellegaard helped him connect to a bakery on Fyn, which is the island from where his wife’s family originates.
Old school master baker “The master baker was a retired old style Danish baker. Over 70 years old. My first attempts to make pastry dough were simply rejected. Then he taught me that folding technique which is all important.” Little by little Khun Yu - the short name for
Khun Suppanai - learned the basics of baking pastry products like kringle and spandauer as well as popular Danish bread like rundstykker and rugbroed. Since the motivation was no longer just to pass an examination, it was suddenly not such a boring kind of work anymore, he smiles. “One of the surprises was that the same dough with a different finish or filling could become a variety of products,” Khun Yu recalls.
Back to Thailand “I was eager to start implementing everything that I had learned in Denmark when I came back to Thailand, but to my surprise it turned out to be far more difficult than I had imagined,” Khun Yu recalls. “Either the dough would rise too much or too little, or the crust would be too thick and hard or the inside too dry. Danes like their rundstykker and baguettes a bit chewy on the inside with a thin, crispy crust,” he explains. Every time he thought he was close, Mai shook her head. “Not quite. Close, but not exactly the same!” was her verdict. “It was frustrating, because clearly even the weather had some influence on the result. On hot and humid days, the bread would come out differently from the cool dry days,” Khun Yu recalls. “I spent about two years experimenting with adjusting recipes to get them to work in Thailand’s room temp. The room temp in Europe is about 25-27 C. In Thailand, it is 30-35 C. Challenging.” “But little by little I got to master it.” Baking Danish pastry or “wienerbroed” remains a tiring process which requires seemingly endless rolling and folding of the dough with layers of butter. Not only is it hard work, but it also takes time to rise and rest to do its magic. “Pastry making is lots of hard work,” he says. “And you’ve got to have enormous amount of patience, something that I had not had enough of in my younger years”.
stronger. Just being good was not good enough, so for the next several summers, Khun Yu went back to his master in Denmark to refine his skills. “Eventually, I also started teaching our staff at the hotel how to do it. Today, they do most of the baking and I only bake enough to keep my skills in shape and remain – at least in my own opinion just a little bit better than them,” he laughs. To help do he hard work, he now has a machine, but he still teaches his trainees how to do it by hand before he allows them to use the machine. Everything is still done in the Bakery Kitchen of Purimas Beach Hotel & Spa, which is only 4 by 6 meter, so that in itself puts a cap on the size of the production.
Marzipan allergy One of the ingredients in some pastry is marzipan, which turned out to be a special challenge. “At first we tried to order marzipan from abroad, but that was too sweet for my taste. The expensive ingredient in marzipan are the almonds, the rest is mainly sugar. The cheaper marzipan is mostly sugar and very little almond. Importing marzipan from Denmark was too costly. So I started doing our own marzipan using high quality almond imported from California. “The driving force was that I wanted to make the marzipan so good that I could serve it to my own family,” he says. On top of the technicalities challenges, Khun Yu found out that he is allergic to almond. Every time he wants to taste his own marzipan, he has to take an anti-histamine shot first!
From oven to table
Excellence
All the products from Fyns Bakery are sold frozen. The bread like e.g. rundstykker goes straight from the freezer to the oven and are ready in 10-15 min. Pastry products such as wienerbroed, kringle etc. are sold as dough and you finish it yourself by letting it rise and then bake it in a pre-heat oven.
From being mainly a hobby besides running the hotel as his main business, the idea of achieving excellence in baking authentic Danish bread soon became
Fyn Bakery products are available at www.scandshop.in.th January 2014 • ScandAsia.Thailand 17
Danish Vets in Bangkok:
Stray dogs’ miserable lives Around November each year, a Danish veterinarian Geneviève Jorgensen and her assistant travel to Thailand to lend their local colleagues a helping hand in the desperate campaign to put the number of stray dogs under control. Bangkok alone is home to more than 100,000 stray dogs. By Sine Neuchs Thomsen
stray dogs are also known as soi dogs or street dogs 18 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
“C
an we postpone the appointment to another day? We are so busy, the dogs just keep coming. I am in the middle of an operation right now,” said Michael Martinussen on the phone. We met a couple of days, or about 40 speyed dogs later, at the hotel where Vet Geneviève Jorgensen and her assistant Michael stayed in Bangkok. They travelled all the way to Thailand to help local vets sterilising mainly female street dogs. Their free service is financed by donations collected at Geneviève Jorgensen’s pet shop in Copenhagen.
A privilege “It is a nice way to use your privilege as a vet. The need for sterilisation of strays is huge. Wherever we set up a makeshift surgery, the dogs just keep coming in an endless stream. One more, yet another one, and then also the last,” said Geneviève Jorgensen, who appeared exhausted after a long day at the makeshift operating table, where they do the minor surgeries. They swooped in town for just one week, but they could easily work full-time with the number of free-ranging dogs on the streets. The number of stray dogs in Bangkok alone is estimated at over 100,000. All over Thailand, the number is put between 200,000 and 300,000, depending on which organization you speak to. A female stray dog can have two litters of 6-8 puppies per year. “No wonder they’ve got so many strays,” said Michael Martinussen, the vet assistant, who travelled to Thailand with Geneviéve Jorgensen for the third time.
Can’t just destroy Since she founded “Save The Street Dog” in 2007, Geneviéve Jorgensen has been to Thailand once every year. The two-person team can sterilize up to 20 female dogs a day during their week-long stay. Over the past six years, Geneviéve has operated on more than 600 street dogs. “They live a miserable life in the streets with plenty of diseases, and it is really exhausting for a female dog to get pregnant every time she is in heat,” said the vet, who graduated from the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University of Denmark. They are often asked why they even bother to operate on the dogs when they could simply introduce culling. “One thing is that if we kill some of the dogs, the rest will get stronger. That is simple survival of the fittest,” said Michael Martinussen. To which Geneviéve added: “With that said, it is not an option to kill them when we are in Thailand, because of the Thai people’s Buddhist approach to life. We have to accept and deal with that when we are here.” She said it could be tough sometimes. “We see dogs with diseases in our makeshift clinic we would never ever see in Denmark. When that happens we just try our best to help the dog, cross our fingers and pray for it,” she added.
Can see the change The actual surgery is only a small part of the whole process, which starts when the dogs are caught in the streets. A team of Thai helpers hit the dogs with anaesthetic darts to immobilise them before they are transported in cages to the clinic. Here they will get vitamins, antibiotics and another anesthesia, before they get shaved and go under Geneviéve’s scalper. Aside from preventing the dogs from reproducing, the minor surgery actually helps improve the dogs’ quality of life. After sterilization they simply start to feel better in general, they explained. “Last year was our second time in Hua Hin, and for me it was clear to see, that there were fewer dogs in poor health than the year before, when almost all of them were thin and starving after having litters of puppies,” Michael Martinussen explained and remembered that some of them even greeted them with wagging tails. “Such experience makes it all worthwhile. It was so obvious, what the treatment had done to the dogs,” he added.
Need more sponsors The sterilization of stray dogs is a relatively costly campaign in Thailand, and Geneviéve and Michael pay for and bring along all the instruments and medicines that they need. The money comes from sponsorships and from the collections at the clinic in Copenhagen. “After six years the companies which support us are starting to realize that we are serious about this. They see that we continue year after year, and it makes them want to continue to support. Besides we have a group of nice customers who often chip in to support us,” said Geneviéve Jorgensen. Expats living in Thailand are encouraged to provide financial support to the campaign. “The best thing you can do is to get street dogs sterilized. It is way too expensive for most Thai people to pay, but for many foreigners it is not. So just go out there, find a dog and bring it to the veterinarian. It helps!” said Michael Martinussen.
Since she founded “Save The Street Dog” in 2007, Geneviéve Jorgensen has been to Thailand once every year. The twoperson team can sterilize up to 20 female dogs a day during their week-long stay. Over the past six years, Geneviéve has operated on more than 600 street dogs.
January 2014 • ScandAsia.Thailand 19
Amy Yuan Zhuang is a senior analyst in Nordea Markets’ global research team. She covers Asian economies with a primary focus on China. Born and raised in Northeast China, Amy speaks fluent Mandarin, Danish and English. She is a CFA charterholder and holds a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Copenhagen. Nordea Private Banking To serve the growing community of Nordic individuals in Asia, Nordea has opened a private banking branch in Singapore. In Asia Singapore is the centre for private banking. Nordea’s financial strength and the AA-rating is clearly an added attraction for wealthy clients looking for a safe and reliable private banking partner. The Singapore team is composed of experienced, senior private bankers with financial market expertise. In the Singapore team are Eric Pedersen and Kim Osborg Nielsen (Danish), Haavard Farstad (Norwegian) and Jonas Bergqvist (Swedish).
Asia is still the engine of growth With a GDP growth above 6% until 2018 Asia is expected to contribute to about half of world growth. By Amy Yuan Zhuang
A
sia is a diverse region in terms of economic development. Matured economies like Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan will naturally see lower and stable growth. The remaining countries, such as China and the Southeast Asian countries, have not finished the industrialisation process. They will enjoy a period of high growth and benefit their matured neighbours through close trade ties.
Growing importance for the Nordics Thanks to industrialisation and abundant cheap labour, Asia’s importance to the rest of the world is growing rapidly, including the Nordic countries, which are trading more with Asia. Finland is the Nordic country that exports most (in relative terms) to Asia and Norway imports most from it. The Nordic countries’ export exposure to Asia can be explained by competitive advantages. For instance Finland ships its woods to Asia for paper production. Sweden exports machinery that is used in various industrial production in Asia.
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21 selected Nordea Markets analysts have their personal Twitter accounts. You can follow the analysts and get updated on the specific markets. On Twitter they provide insightful research on current issues affecting markets and economies.
The Asian boom in recent years was fuelled by investment, which has largely been domestically financed through savings. Both governments and households in developing Asia have had tendency to save rather than consume, leading to absurdly high savings rate. This is prevalent in the less developed part of the region, where insufficient public services fail to provide a sense of security to the people. Another reason for high savings is
@NordeaMarkets on Twitter you will find a total overview of the 21 Nordea Markets analysts. 20 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
the perception that the 1997-98 Asian Crisis was caused by insufficient domestic savings and overreliance on external capital.
Big spenders The current trade pattern may change in the coming few years, as Asia will gradually move from a production centre to a consumer market. Asia as a region has become the largest consumer of many commodity classes. China is a part of the explanation, but other Asian countries as well. Currently Asia Pacific accounts for a third of world’s oil consumption, where China takes about 12% of world total. The share will be much large for coal, because China alone accounts for half of world demand for coal. Asia represents 65% of total steel consumption in the world, 46% of it comes from China.
Irrational currency sell-off In a long time Emerging Asia was perceived as the place to be, leading to massive speculative inflows. The currencies kept trending higher vs. the US Dollar. Not surprisingly the Asian currencies were severely hit when money began to leave. The ugly memories from the Asian crisis exaggerated the sell-off irrationally. However, the correction this autumn has proved that some of the Asian currencies, such as Thai Baht and Philippine Peso, may have been unfairly punished. Other currencies, such as Indian Rupee and Indonesian Rupiah, will remain under pressure because of their relatively weak fundamentals, i.e. large current account and fiscal deficit.
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January 2014 • ScandAsia.Thailand 21
Float away in the magic of silence After five days in a boat house you are ensured recharged batteries and scores of stunning views on the inner memory board. To wake up on the lake, go to sleep on the lake, eat breakfast on the lake, while green mountains and small uninhabited islands slowly disappear behind the boathouse is the most relaxing and peaceful way of travel I have tried. By Sine Neuchs Thomsen
22 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
S
angkhlaburi is located northwest of Bangkok near the Burmese border with one foot in the tropical forest and one foot in a lake. The lake appeared after 1983 where the Khao Laem Dam was constructed across Mae Nam Khwae. Only the dead bold trees standing meter high in the lake and the half-submerged Mon temple tell that this has not always been a lake. With Visit Beyond’s Lake House Adventure, you literally live on the lake. From the moment the boat house leaves the starting point it will stay off shore until it reaches its final destination five days later. The lake has not yet been run over by plenty of tourists, so it is more or less yours during the trip. It gives a unique opportunity to enjoy the peaceful atmosphere that appears especially around sunset, where the red and orange gleam from the sun reflects in the water surface and envelopes the boat house. Every day has a new destination and a new adventure. We visited the coconut island and tasted an exclusive type of coconut. We visited an abandoned and overgrown but very charming hidden little temple that appeared out of nowhere a short walk from the bank through bushes and trees. We also had the chance to get close to the submerged Mon temple, a fishermen village and flushing waterfalls. When not exploring and searching the banks
for monkeys and other exotic animals, there are plenty of opportunities for relaxing. You can sail around in the kayaks, fish from the boat house or just enjoy an afternoon cocktail in a swim ring while the sun sets behind the mountains. Looking for a unique experience in the Northwest part of Thailand, the Lake House Adventure offers great opportunities fulfilling a need for nature, silence and best of all relaxation. With no access to wifi and constant electricity, you really have the chance to float away and enjoy the silence, the lovely wooden made boat house and breathe in some fresh clean air. The friendly staffs on board make sure you are neither hungry nor thirsty at any time of the day. And when the night falls over the lake and lights are turned on they mix a great selection of cocktails. Booked to full capacity the Lake House can accommodate 25 people. We were 13 people, and that was appropriate. Travelling alone, as a couple or in a group the Lake House Adventure is ideal if you want to mix the opportunity of complete relaxation with beautiful nature and stunning sights along the lake bank. If you seek action and true adventure, Visit Beyond will help you find more thrilling experiences. Though the trip had an amazing elephant ride and Bamboo River rafting it was not something that gave you a racing pulse or made you sweat more than you normally would in Thailand.
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January 2014 • ScandAsia.Thailand 23
มุมภาษาไทยสำ�หรับฝรั่ง
mum pha:să: thai sămràp fàràng
Tuning in on By Klavs Johansen
I
n the December issue of ScandAsia Thailand, we covered the sounds of Thai. Of course you are not expected to remember all the sounds just by reading that first entry, however it may prove a useful reference for what follows. Indeed, if you are a beginner, training will be needed to tell apart and pronounce the sounds of Thai at a reasonable level. Taking formal lessons and/or studying yourself with audio and books or a Thai friend are obvious ways to achieve this. But in addition, for those living in Thailand, moving around in the city offers plenty of opportunities for free lessons – free, that is, if you are moving around anyway. Take the Bangkok train system with its announcements of stations. An excellent way to practice telling tones, vowels and consonants. Let’s take a ride on a section of the
BTS Sky Train’s famous Sukhumvit Line. Remember to look back to the column in the December issue, if in doubt about reading the roman transcription of the Thai words, and don’t be shy of repeating the station names aloud after listening, even if it may get you some strange looks from fellow passengers. It’s all about repeating: สถานีต่อไป/ sàthă:ni: tòr: pai/ ~ next station...
We get on at สะพานควาย/
sàpha:n khwa:i/ ~ Saphan Khwai (the buffalo bridge) Note the difference between the short vowel /a/ of the first syllable and the long /a:/’s of second and third syllable. Note the aspirated /ph/ (like p in pencil) of /sàpha:n/ and the aspirated /kh/ (like k in king) of /khwa:i/.
Next อารีย์ / a:ri: / ~ Ari
Two good long vowels /a:/ and /i:/, both with plain mid tones. Do pay attention to the announcer’s pronunciation of the /r/!
Follows สนามเป้า/
sànă:m pâo/ ~ Sanam Pao which offers a rising tone on the second syllable and on the third syllable, /pâo/, a falling tone. Listen well, normally rising and falling tones are rather easy to hear and, hence, the first to be distinguished by the beginner. Note also the unaspirated /p/ in /pâo/, like the p in spice.
Coming up is อนุสาวรีย์ชัยสมรภูม/ิ
ànúsă:wári: chai sàmŏr: ráphu:m/ ~ Victory Monument Now that’s a gem from the language
perspective. If you can pronounce it correctly, you are either fluent in Thai or people will think you are. Highlights here are the difference between the short /u/ of the second syllable and the long /u:/ of the last syllable, the short /a/ of the first syllable and the long /a:/ of the third as well as the long vowel /or:/ of /sàmŏr:/, in this case pronounced with a rising tone. The part meaning monument is / ànúsă:wári:/ by the way.
Next is พญาไท/ pháya: thai / ~ Phaya Thai
which is straight forward, if, again, we notice the distinction between short /a/ in the first syllable and long /a:/ in the second. It probably pays to exaggerate a bit in the beginning, but as a rule of thumb, the long vowels are approximately double the length of the short vowels. Compare also to the /a/ in the
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24 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
Thai Language Corner for Farangs
the Train vowel combination /ai/ of the last syllable.
The subsequent station is ราชเทวี/
râ:tcha: the:wi: / ~ Ratchathewi featuring a nice falling tone on the first syllable and a long /e:/ in the third. It is also a good time to note the Thai pronunciation of /w/ in the last syllable.
Shortly after, we arrive at สยาม/ sàyă:m / ~ Siam
If not noted already at Phaya Thai, we take this opportunity to stress the /y/, pronounced as y in yes! Furthermore, a clear rising tone is heard on the last syllable.
Coming to ชิดลม/ chít lom/ ~ Chit Lom
we listen for the short vowels of both syllables and not least the high tone of the first syllable.
Next is เพลินจิต/ phloe:n jìt/ ~ Phloen Chit
where you should take good care to listen to the /oe:/ of the first syllable as well as the low tone on the last syllable. If you recall the previous station, try to compare the /ch/ of /chít lom/ with the /j/ of /phloe:n jìt/. By doing so, /chít/ and /jìt/, you also get the high tone versus low tone contrast.
Only a few stations to go, we arrive at นานา/ na: na:/ ~ Nana
with easy mid tones and all we have
to remember is the the long /a:/.
Coming up is อโศก/ àsò:k/ ~ Asok
with low tones and a long /o:/. It is also time to note how the final /k/ almost dies in the throat without ever being released. The same phenomenon applies to final /t/, as in /chít/, and final /p/, which we will not encounter on this trip.
And the last station before we get off is พร้อมพงษ์/ phrór:m phong/
where the high tone of the first syllable clearly contrasts with the mid tone of the second. Note also the contrast between the vowels /or:/ and /o/, first and last syllable respectively. This contrast may be even clearer, if you compare the /or:/ to the long /o:/ of the previous station, /àsò:k /.
Finally, our little Sky Train trip ends at ทองหล่อ/ thor:ng lòr:/
featuring two times /or:/, the first with mid tone and the second with
a low tone. A good place to practice this important distinction between mid and low tone before continuing a day in town. Later you may take the whole excercise in the opposite direction or repeat it together with your closest Thai to practice the details of the pronunciation.
เดินทางให้สนุกนะครับ/
doe:n tha:ng hâi sànùk ná’ khráp/ ~ have a fun trip!
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January 2014 • ScandAsia.Thailand 25
Medium
g u r o k o Ch A few years ago the Danish bakery chain Lagkagehuset invented something that for many Danes was a genius combination of two good and beloved ingredients in one bakery item: rye bread and chocolate in a bun. As it is very common to eat chocolate in thin slices on top of bread, this new product, called “chokorug” quickly became a popular thing for the Danes, either to bring home as a semi-healthy snack or just to grab on the go.
Evil
By Sine Neuchs Thomsen
Ingredients: Rye bread mix (found in e.g. Ikea) 200 gram chocolate, preferred dark 70 % 100 gram hazelnuts You can vary the recipe as you like it. Replace the chocolate with dry fruits such as dates, figs or raisins, and if you like it more as a savory, add sundried tomatoes or olives.
Are you done?
W
hen you have completed the above puzzles, please send your solution by fax to +66 2 943 7169 or scan and email to puzzles@ scandasia.com. We will make a lucky draw among the correct answers. Five lucky winners will receive a ScandAsia polo shirt. Name:
___________________________________________________
Age: ________________________
Mobile:
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Address:
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Deadline for submitting your solution is 15 February 2014 26 ScandAsia.Thailand • January 2014
The easy version is to buy a rue bread ready mix and follow the instructions on the packaging before following these steps. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Mix the content as told on the packaging Chop the chocolate in coarse pieces and add it to the bread mix. Shape the buns with two tablespoons with the amount of a small handful Let them rise in 60 minutes Roast the hazelnuts on a pan a few minutes. Rub them so the shell fall of the nuts before chopping them. Sprinkle the nuts over the buns Bake the buns at 200 degrees in 25 minutes. (if gas oven, use mark 6)
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