The Phuket News November 22, 2019

WOMAN IN PATONG DROWNING RESCUE WAKES

Chalong Hospital has finally opened, providing people in the south of the island with a limited range of medical services until a new seven-storey building dedicated to inpatient services is finally approved and built.

There are five doctors and 21 nurses now on staff, working out of the well-known blue building that has sat empty for well over a year, confirmed Chalong Hospital Director Dr Chuchart Nijwattana.

“Only the ground floor and first floor are currently used by hospital

staff. The top two floors remain unoccupied,” he said.

The location has long been known for providing basic healthcare services, with the small building beside the front of the hospital being the Chalong Subdistrict Health Promoting Centre. In late 2015, the Accident & Emergency Centre opened at the site when the decision was made to build a full hospital there.

Although the blue building, located nearly 200 metres north of Chalong Circle on Chao Fa East Rd, has been designated as the “OPD Building”, meaning it is intended to be dedicated for outpatient services only, Dr Chuchart noted there are

limited inpatient services available.

“There are 14 beds already in place in the inpatient section in the building, which is open 24 hours,” he said.

“Our Physical Therapy section on the ground floor is open 8:30am-4pm, Monday to Friday, and on the second floor is the Dental Department and Blood Laboratory, both of which are also open 8:30am-4pm, Monday to Friday,” he added.

The services provided at the hospital began without fanfare on Oct 1, Dr Chuchart noted, despite him affirming as recently as May this year that the plan was to withhold from providing any inpatient medical services until a new seven-storey

building had been completed.

“We had to deviate from that plan because I promised people that Chalong Hospital must open in October. So we now have outpatient and inpatient departments, dental and physical therapy departments and blood laboratory facilities,” he said this week.

However, he stressed, “All the departments currently in the outpatient building are there only temporarily. We will not expand or open any more services until the inpatient building is finished. I cannot confirm when that will be. I have to wait for approval first.

“Construction of the inpatient building has not even started yet…

Tanyaluk Sakoot reporter2@classactmedia.co.th

Tourists injured as airport van slams ‘wipeout’ car > p5

Leatherback lays eggs at Thai Mueang

A LEATHERBACK SEA turtle measuring nearly two metres long was found laying eggs on Thai Mueang Beach, north of Phuket in Phang Nga province, last Sunday evening (Nov 17).

Officers from Khao Lampi – Hat Thai Mueang National Park were called to the beach at 5:40pm after the mother leatherback was spotted nesting on the sand, explained Park Chief Mongkol Liwwiriyakul.

“It’s a rare occurrence. I have no idea why this turtle choose to nest while it was still daylight,” Chief Mongkol told The Phuket News

Chief Mongkol estimated that the turtle is more than 25 years old.

“The turtle measured 194 centimeters in length and 173 centimeters wide, and weighed about 200 kilograms,” he said.

The turtle laid 104 eggs, though 19 were be -

Officers carefully collect the turtle eggs to be cared for until hatching.

lieved to be infertile as they were smaller than normal, he added. The remaining 85 eggs were taken into care so they could be kept in ideal conditions to hatch in about 55 to 60 days, Chief Mongkol said.

“We are all so excited for when the day comes that they can be released into the ocean. If anyone sees a turtle nesting on a beach, please call us at 076-679134 so we can quickly go to protect the eggs and take care of them,” he urged.

Tanyaluk Sakoot

Patong drowning rescue woman wakes from coma

Tanyaluk Sakoot reporter2@classactmedia.co.th

ARussian-Swiss woman pulled from the water unconscious at Patong Beach early on Nov 6 has woken from her coma and been transferred to Bangkok Hospital Phuket to continue her recovery.

Natalia Startseva Bahni, 49, was pulled from the water about halfway along Patong Beach by passing tourist Ethiopian national Ephrem Shimondi Gebreegziabher, 38, who saw her floating face down in the water at around 6:45am.

Lifeguards on patrol from the night shift revived her through performing CPR. She regained consciousness and was rushed to Patong Hospital, then later transferred to Vachira Phuket Hospital, but lapsed into a coma.

Yet, Ms Bahni regained consciousness the following Tuesday (Nov 12), confirmed Capt Itthikorn Pacharadej of the Phuket Tourist Police.

“Today she was moved to Bangkok Hospital Phuket. We went to see her, and she could speak and greet us with a smile,” he told The Phuket News last Thursday (Nov 14).

Asked how Ms Bahni ended up in the water at Patong Beach so early on Nov 6, Capt Itthikorn said, “She said that she went to the beach to chill out and went into the water, but was overpowered by large waves.”

Ms Bahni has to remain in hospital to recover from a lung infection before she can

fly home to Switzerland, Capt Itthikorn explained.

“Next she will fly back to Switzerland to receive more medical treatment there,” he said.

However, two Chinese tourists rescued from the water at Phuket beaches last week have died in hospital, police have also confirmed.

Chinese tourist Dong Xuyan, 42, from Hebei, in northern China, passed away last Thursday (Nov 14), Capt Itthikorn Pacharadej of the Phuket Tourist Police confirmed to The Phuket News on Tuesday (Nov 19).

Mr Dong was recovered from the water unresponsive at Nai Harn Beach Tuesday on Nov 12.

Rescue workers performed CPR and he regained his own pulse while en route to the Accident & Emergency

Centre at the recently opened Chalong Hospital. He was later transferred to Vachira Phuket Hospital in Phuket Town.

Mr Dong was on assisted breathing, but conscious and alive, Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos confirmed at the time.

“Doctors informed us [Phuket Tourist Police] that Mr Dong had developed respiratory acidosis. Doctors had him treated by a haemodialysis machine and he remained in the ICU, but he passed away at 11:54am on Nov 14,” Capt Itthikorn said.

Mr Dong arrived in Phuket with his wife and child on Nov 2, and were scheduled to depart Phuket last Friday (Nov 15), Capt Itthikorn explained.

“His body is to be cremated at Wat Kosit Wiharn [in Phuket Town]. We have

already contacted Chinese consular officials to make arrangements,” Capt Itthikorn said.

Meanwhile, Chinese tourist Ho Leong Lawrence, 50, from Hong Kong, who was pulled from the water unconscious at Merlin Beach, south of Patong, on Nov 13, has also died, confirmed Patong Police Chief Col Anotai Jindamanee.

Mr Ho passed away at Bangkok Hospital at 11:03pm that same day, Col Anotai said, but declined to provide more details.

Mr Ho was pulled from the water at Merlin Beach by staff from a nearby hotel at about 2pm Wednesday last week. He was rushed to Patong Hospital, and later transferred to Bangkok Hospital Phuket, in Phuket Town, where he was breathing unassisted, but comatose.

Continued from page 1

…I am still waiting for the Budget Bureau to approve B153mn to expand the hospital with a seven-storey inpatient building with 156 beds. I expect the budget for this building to be approved in 2020. Once it has been approved, we can start the construction immediately,” he added.

Construction has even yet to begin for a separate twostory “x-ray room building” to be built from a B14mn donation from the administrators of the Chalong Hospital opens without

“We are waiting for the

Put Cho Shrine. The donation includes paying for an x-ray machine.

Chuchart said.

The turtle laid 104 eggs, of which 85 were were believed to be fertile and taken into care for hatching.

Photo: DMCR

Natalia Startseva Bahni poses for a photo with Phuket Tourist Police at Bangkok Hospital Phuket last Thursday (Nov 14). Photo: Phuket Tourist Police

The hospital is now open. Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot

Royal rainmakers halt efforts

Aircraft head for annual maintenance, water concerns still high

The Phuket News editor@classactmedia.co.th

The royal rainmaking division for Southern Thailand has ceased its operations to seed clouds over Phuket to fill the island’s main reservoirs due to the annual northeast monsoon settling in and for its aircraft to undergo maintenance.

Taentai Ponhan, Acting Director of the Royal Rainmaking Operations Southern Center in Surat Thani, explained last Saturday (Nov 16), “The southern region is now influenced by the northeast monsoon, which has caused more rain in the South and isolated heavy rain in some places. In the beginning of November, some areas in the southern region began to be affected by heavy rain which caused flooding,” Mr Taentai said.

During the months of November through February is also when the Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation Department’s aircraft undergo their annual repairs, he added.

Some of the aircraft from

the base in Surat Thani, which also conducts rainmaking operations elsewhere in Southern Thailand, have been operating continuously for eight months, Mr Taentai explained.

“We need to carry out the maintenance so that the aircraft are ready to combat water

shortages in 2020,” he said.

Since operations in the Phuket area began on Sept 5, more than 2 million cubic meters of rainfall has fallen across the island, he added, However, not all that rainfall made its way to help replenish levels at the

there has been little effect on Bang Neow Dum reservoir [in Srisoonthorn, Thalang],” Mr Atchariya said.

Mr Atchariya repeated the government’s call for people to conserve as much water as possible while “the relevant authority continues with its plan to resolve the issue”.

Mr Taentai assured that the Southern Royal Rainmaking Operation Center in Surat Thani will continue to monitor the weather and analyse trends for opportunities to create more rainfall for the island.

“We will immediately request plane support if there is an area requesting royal rainmaing support and the weather is conducive to making rain,” he said.

never reported water levels at Khlong Katha in Chalong.

Of note, at last report Bang Wad reservoir was little under one-third full.

The PPIO, responsible for maintaining water levels at the three main reservoirs has not publicly posted water levels at the reservoirs since June 24.

Meanwhile, water supply from Bang Wad reservoir, the island’s main water source, was reduced by 25% on Nov 1, and will be reduced to half its regular flow from Jan 1, the busiest week for tourism on the island for the whole year.

Also, any water currently left the Bang Neow Dum reservoir will be held back for use in case of emergencies.

Chantnrawong, Chief of the Agriculture and Cooperatives Phuket branch.

“Efforts were successful for Bang Wad reservoir in Kathu and the Khlong Katha reservoir in Chalong, but

The Office of National Water Resources (ONWR) reported that Bang Neow Dum reservoir as of Tuesday (Nov 19) contained 0.71 million m3 of its 7.2mn m 3 capacity. Of that, only 0.6mn m 3 was usable, noted the ONWR.

The ONWR last month stopped reporting water levels at Bang Wad reservoir after it exceeded 30% full, and has

The move comes as Graisorn Mahamad, Chief of the Phuket office of the Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA), struggles to make reserves last.

Under a project costing B585mn, the PWA is using private water sources for immediate supply to ensure houses and businesses across the island still receive running water.

island’s three main reservoirs, explained Atchariya

Bang Neow Dum reservoir in Srisoonthorn, central Phuket as pictured last weekend. Photo: PR Dept

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Tourists injured as airport van rear-ends ‘out-of-control’ car

Eakkapop Thongtub editor@classactmedia.co.th

Three Korean tourists were injured early last Friday morning (Nov 15) when the passenger van that was taking them from Phuket International Airport to Patong slammed into a car that was out of control after hitting the central reservation on Thepkrasattri Rd.

Thalang Police Deputy Chief Lt Col Phichai Phupommin reported that the accident occurred in front of PTT gas station on Thepkrasattri Rd southbound in Moo 5, Thepkrasattri, at about 2am.

When police arrived at the scene, rescue workers had already taken the three tourists to Thalang Hospital, Lt Col Phichai said.

The tourists escaped with only minor injuries, he added.

At the scene when officers arrived was a grey passenger van on its side with heavy damage to its front, Lt Col Phichai noted.

On the central reservation nearby was a Phuket-registered Honda sedan, with heavy damage to every panel, including the roof, he said.

The two men in the car – driver

Thirapon Thirinkornpong and his passenger Athit Prayunphokarat –had also been taken to hospital for treatment of injuries sustained in the accident, he added.

Lt Col Phichai later that day confirmed that the two men had already been transferred to Vachira Phuket Hospital in Phuket Town, but was unable to confirm what injuries the men had suffered.

Van driver Siripong Kleungkin,

Rescue service vehicle hit

THALANG POLICE ARE SEARCHING

for the suspects who fired a gun at a Kusoldharm Foundation’s rescue vehicle in Srisoonthorn last week. Luckily, the incident did not result in any fatalities or injuries.

Last Thursday (Nov 14), Capt Sophanat Nayao of Thalang Police was notified of an incident on Soi Thung Jien 2 in Srisoonthorn’s Moo 5 where a Kusoldharm Foundation’s rescue vehicle was damaged by a gunshot.

Chaiyut Rassamee, 46, a rescue volunteer with Kusoldharm Foundation, told police that he noticed the damage in the morning of the preceding day (Nov 13), when he was getting ready to join the ongoing “body cleaning ceremony”, conducted by the foundation.

Mr Chaiyut said that he discovered a scratch on the bonnet of his Toyota pickup truck and a crack on the windshield. Having noticed the damage, he first contacted Kusoldharm Foundation and next day proceeded with informing police as recommended by his colleagues.

Having inspected the car, police found one 11mm bullet and confirmed to Mr Chaiyut that the damage was done by a firearm.

In turn, Mr Chaiyut informed officers that a neighbour told him that the night before Mr Chaiyut made his discovery (Nov 12) he had seen three teenagers riding around his house and heard a gunshot. Then the three youngsters – two males and a female – fled.

47, said that he was driving behind the Honda sedan when the car went “out of control” and struck the central reservation, Lt Col Phichai reported.

Mr Siripong said that he was unable to avoid colliding with the car, which had sustained a direct impact from rear. After coming to rest, the car was left with its bonnet ripped off, a heavy impact to its rear right panel, another heavy impact to its front passenger door and a crumpled roof.

by

Lt Col Phichai in declining to offer any further observations than those included in his initial report was unable to explain whether the car had rolled after the van had struck it from behind.

Lt Col Phichai did confirm that Mr Siripong would be subjected to an alcohol test, the result of which has yet to become available.

Lt Col Phichai made no mention of whether police would investigate the speed at which the van was travelling at or how close behind the car the van was immediately before the accident.

The accident followed Thalang Police taking more than a year to bring a charge of reckless driving causing death against airport taxi driver Marut Puangbanjong for his high-speed wipeout in peak-hour traffic in October last year.

It also took the investigating officer from Thalang Police more than a year to present to the public Marut’s real name, saying that for the past year of investigating the accident he had “confused the wrong family name with another case”.

The Phuket News still has yet to confirm what verdict and what sentence was handed down to Marut.

bullet B1mn temple donation wins royal award bid

Mr Chaiyut discovered a scratch on the bonnet of his Toyota pickup truck and a crack on the windshield while getting ready for the ‘body cleaning ceremony’, conducted by the Kusoldharm Foundation.

“I have never had any arguments with anyone. I am just a volunteer. I have been doing this work for 10 years without getting any salary or benefits, This pickup is used to transfer dead bodies and I don’t even have money to fix the damaged windshield,” Mr Chaiyut told police.

Police are now checking CCTV in search for the suspects as ordered by Thalang Police Chief Col Theerawat Liamsuwan.

“Even though [it appears] the gunshot was not meant to harm anyone, the action was still illegal,” Col Theerawat said.

Eakkapop Thongtub

A 71-YEAR-OLD WOMAN who donated B1 million to Wat Mongkol Wararam, south of Phuket International Airport, will be recommended to receive a royal award.

The recommendation came at a meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall last Tuesday (Nov 12) presided over by Phuket Vice Governor Thanyawat Chanpinit.

The meeting was held to evaluate the contributions made by people recommended to receive royal awards for the year 2020, explained a report by the Phuket office of the Public Relations Department.

The royal awards are bestowed on the King’s birthday every year to people who “do great things for the Kingdom, religion, and the Thai people”, the report noted.

Vice Governor Thanyawat said that according to an order issued by the Ministry of Interior on Nov 6, the Phuket Government was ordered to

search for people eligible for receiving royal awards for 2020.

At the meeting the Phuket branch of the National Office of Buddhism recommended that Ms Nitra Piyathamrong, 71, be granted a royal award for donating B1mn to Wat Mongkol Wararam to build a pagoda and a prayer hall.

Those present at the meeting agreed.

“The Phuket Government will present Ms Nitra to receive an award,” the PR Dept report noted. The Phuket News

The driver of the airport passenger van said he was unable to avoid colliding with the car after the car had struck the central reservation on its own. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Phuket Vice Governor Thanyawat Chanpinit chaired the review committee meeting on Nov 12. Photo: PR Dept

MP Sira returns to Phuket Bangkok MP keeps the heat on The Peaks Residences probe

Eakkapop Thongtub editor@classactmedia.co.th

In Phuket last Thursday to seek answers in the ongoing investigation into the construction of The Peaks Residences condo project on a steep hill overlooking Kata Noi Bay, Palang Pracharath Party Bangkok MP Sira Jenjaka was told to wait until the next day (Nov 15) for the provincial investigative committee to file its formal report.

As of Wednesday this week (Nov 20), the report still had yet to be made public.

The Peaks project stands accused of being built on protect state forest land and of interfering with the Bang Rak Canal, which runs down the hill and into Kata Noi Bay.

As MP Sira arrived at Phuket Provincial Hall last Thursday afternoon (Nov 14), about 50 local residents from Kata held up banners protesting the condo project’s impact on the canal, asking who would fix problem and who would be held responsible.

Among those protesting the impact on the canal was Karon Municipality councilor Anurak Yamkhlai, who confirmed that he had filed a separate complaint on behalf of the local residents and

called on MP Sira to follow up on it.

MP Sira met with Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana and Phuket Vice Governor Supoj Rotreuang Na Nongkhai and other members of provincial committee tasked with investigating some of

the allegations into the The Peaks Residence project.

Vice Governor Supoj explained that the committee had already examined three issues related to the project: the approval of the land title deed; the project’s environmental

IUU ship agreed to be broken apart

A 3,000-TON SHIP SEIZED OFF PHUKET in September with eight Thais on board will be sent to the renowned Chittagong Ship Breaking Yard in Bangladesh to be broken apart.

The news broke after a meeting in Phuket last Thursday (Nov 14) between Marine Department Director-General Withaya Yamoung and Warawut Thangsuk, the owner of PK Shipping and Agency Co Ltd, which is the current owner of the ship.

At the time the ship was seized by Navy personnel seven miles off Phuket on Sept 14, it was presented on its AIS transmitter as the Uthaiwan, but was previously sailed under the name Wisdom Sea Reefer. At 102 metres long and 14m across, the Wisdom Sea Reefer was initially registered in 1977, and was last officially registered in Cameroon. It was also declared as an illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing boat by the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC).

Marine Department chief Mr Wittaya told the press that marine officials had already fined the ship owner for offenses “relating to people and ship”, reported the state-founded Thai News Agency (TNA).

The amounts of the fines were not disclosed.

“The legal process is already completed, so the Marine Department needed to discuss with the ship owner to guarantee that the ship will not be used to conduct illegal fishing again,” Mr Withaya said.

“From the meeting, we concluded that the ship will be destroyed. The owner of the ship Mr Warawut also agreed with it.

“However, before destroying the ship we must discuss with Third Area Thailand Maritime Enforcement Coordinating Center (ThaiMECC, which seized the ship) again,” he said.

“The ship owner said the ship will be taken to Chittagong, in Bangladesh. We will send some officers to make sure that the ship is destroyed,” Mr Withaya assured.

Ship owner Mr Warawut explained, “I bought the ship in Cambodia for B10 million, and I planned to have it broken apart and the salvaged parts sold at Chittagong, in Bangladesh.

“I ordered my employees to take the ship from Cambodia to an appointed area. The ship had to pass through Thai waters, but it was seized before reaching the appointed area,” he said.

“I did not know that the ship was blacklisted as an IUU vessel, and I had not intention of using the ship for fishing.

“It was our fault that we did not check carefully. Before this we had bought and sold 11 ships without any problems,” Mr Warawut said.

“It will take four to five days to take the boat to Chittagong, and one and a half months to have it broken apart,” he added.

The Phuket News

impact on the immediate area; and Karon Municipality granting approval to build the project.

Vice Governor Supoj said the committee will submit its report on Friday (Nov 15).

Mr Sira said that he had no

further questions at that time, but noted, “On Nov 25, DSI [Department of Special Investigation] officers will come to conduct their own investigation.”

Present at the meeting were Karon Mayor Tawee Thongcham and Karon Deputy Mayor Itthiporn Sangkaew. After the meeting, Mr Itthiporn rushed to speak with MP Sira about the Bang Rak Canal, but Mr Sira ignored him and rushed to get in his car and leave.

MP Sira called for investigations into The Peaks in August after he reported that he had received death threats over the project. He also reported that two people had already been killed over the project.

MP Sira subsequently filed complaints directly with the Phuket Governor, as well as the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), the Damrongdhama Center (Provincial Ombudsman’s Office), the Department of Special Investigation (DSI).

He also told Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavitana directly, “I will also file a request with the Anti Money Laundering Office (Amlo) to investigate the properties owned by and any financial transactions involving any officers related to this project.”

Sira Jenjaka, a Bangkok MP for the military-aligned Palang Pracharath Party, was in Phuket last Thursday (Nov 14) to follow up on the probe into the The Peaks Residences condo project in Kata Noi. Photo: PR Dept

The ship, seized seven miles off Phuket in September, will be broken apart at the Chittagong Ship Breaking Yard in Bangladesh. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

TBEAVAN Editor

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Fifteen years working in news and covering local issues and events in Phuket, with 18-month hiatus spent working for the Brunei Times on Borneo. From Queensland, Australia; 10 years living in the UK before moving to Phuket in 2000. Degree in business management. Spare time spent sailing or with family.

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in the UK. Now turning her

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Sinking hospital funding

he Chalong Hospital finally opening its doors to provide at least basic healthcare to people living in the south of the island is much welcomed, and long overdue. For anyone living south of Phuket Town, Chalong Hospital even with only its limited services now is vital. People relying on state healthcare and needing to see a doctor for services beyond their local clinic had only Vachira to go to – or the government-owned, but privately run Phuket Provincial Hospital in Rassada. Thankfully Chalong Hospital’s emergency department opened early, providing critical care to traffic accident victims and people rescued from drowning at our popular southern beaches. The faster a victim receives treatment, the better their chances of survival. Yet the ongoing debacle over the inpatient building still

Priced out

Re: Thai resort prices starting to squeeze Europeans

We are South Africans and have travelled annually to Thailand since 2002 for three to four weeks. Sadly, due to the very drastic increases across the board for accommodation, excursions, meals, drinks etc. And as much we love your beautiful country, people and food, we can no longer justify the cost of the visit this year or ever again. It is heartbreaking to know that we will not visit our “piece of heaven” this year. Thanks. We will always love you Thailand! Fiona Brown

Overdevelopment, over priced but the service and infrastructure seems to have hit a low low. Such a shame as this is a beautiful island that needs to get its identity back and stop trying to be everything for everyone.

Samantha McCue

Great read. Absolutely true, Bangkok Palace was filled with rude Chinese tourists. Phuket is pricey even the Chalong side. I go on vacation to get away from the push-

to come reeks of mismanagement and misunderstanding. No reasons have been given to explain why the delay in opening a true inpatient department in the blue building that stood empty for a year and then expand the inpatient department to the new building later.

If it comes down to a matter of funding, we need look no further than rock celebrity and running sensation Artiwara “Toon Bodyslam” Kongmalai raising funds for government hospitals. However, as magnificent as his achievements are, and as rightly placed his heart is in trying to help the average Thai, for politeness reasons alone no one in the public sphere is asking WHY the money he is raising needs to help fund primary state healthcare.

Chalong Hospital is looking for just B153 million for its dedicated inpatient build-

ing and shoving, and I love Thailand because I could find a cheap airfare and accommodations. But both have really gone up.

Michael McKinney

A beach too far

Re: Chinese tourists rescued from Phuket surf die in hospital

The continued death toll of drowning tourists sends a clear international message that Phuket officials still don’t care much about tourist safety. In spite of the routine blathering about “get tough measures” by the Gov’nr and other “officials”, there remains no consistent approach to lifeguards anywhere in Phuket. Tourists drown everywhere, so lifeguard services and patrols should be provided.

BenPendejo

Turned turtle

Re: Large leatherback turtle lays eggs on Thai Mueang Beach

With all the lighting on all the beaches all night long, the creature likely cannot tell the difference between night and day. Sad state of affairs when a turtle laying eggs is

ing, and that’s after a B14mn “donation” from a local rescue foundation to pay for an x-ray building and the x-ray equipment.

Meanwhile, the military powers that be this week were still trying to justify spending B12 billion on a second submarine from Thailand’s new investment darlings China –and that’s after splashing out B13.5 billion on one submarine that is scheduled for delivery next year.

Just the first sub already paid for would build 88 such hospital inpatient buildings – that’s more than one new such hospital building in every province in the country.

The second sub would raise that by another 78 such hospital buildings – that’s 166 new seven-story inpatient buildings fully fitted with medical equipment nationwide.

How do you justify that?

newsworthy.

Christy Sweet

Innocence lost

Re: Phuket Opinion: This cannot be tolerated

Children used to sell flowers is a common sight in many towns throughout many towns in Thailand. I’m not cognizant of trafficking but kids selling roses is an open secret. And this doesn’t just happen in tourist towns, it happens in Thai populated towns seht1912

It is time Phuket gets a statue showing that children in torn, dirty clothes selling things late evening at restaurants, bars, prostitution holes, etc. And Government Officials should twice a year regimental line up in uniform with cap and do a respectful Merit. Kurt

Wet, wet, wet

Re: Royal rainmakers halt Phuket cloud-seeding operations

Of course they take credit, for making it rain, but there's no eay to prove it.... me thinks it would have rained in any event. 8 months and little to

Phuket Opinion: This cannot be tolerated

Phuket Property Guide: Bungalows and villas Swiss man, 85, passes away on Phuket beach

Thai resort prices starting to squeeze Europeans

Royal rainmakers halt Phuket cloud-seeding operations

Double trouble: Will Smith meets Will Smith in sci-fi flop Gemini Man

MP Sira returns to Phuket over Kata condo saga

Husband flees wife with their winning lottery ticket

Russian-Swiss woman rescued at Patong Beach wakes from coma

American escapee Bart Helmus pronounced dead

Ah… so they could create rain during rain season, but now that rain season is over, they can't anymore? Ok.

Aranck Frena

Absolutely no clue how to manage water in one of the wettest places on earth. It is a good thing they dont let western engineers interfere, because then they can only blame the weather…

Slam City

James Bahr

Re: Korean tourists injured as airport van slams ‘outof-control’ car

Where I come from, whenever there is a rear-end collision, it is almost always the person in back's fault. I would guess that, as per usual, the poorly trained minivan driver was speeding and tailgating, and being an impatient and reckless fool that most public transport drivers are, was unable to deliver the new arrivals to their hotel safely. Welcome to your Phuket nightmare. BenPendejo 10 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

PURIYA

show.

Rorri_2

Service fees to go public

Private

hospital service fees on cusp of public disclosure

THAILAND

Bangkok Post

The government is set to reveal information on the actual costs of 200 medical services early next year after it categorised private hospitals based on their medicine and medical service charges so patients can know the prices before they receive services.

Prayoth Benyasut, deputy director-general of the Internal Trade Department, said information on the costs of medical services such as blood tests, X-rays, MRIs and doctor fees will be available on the department’s website and via QR code, the same way that medicine prices are already available for checking.

Step by step

On Oct 15, the department unveiled 164 private hospitals rated green, meaning they offer what was determined as reasonable medicine pricing for patients, on the department’s website.

A total of 354 private hospitals nationwide were assessed using three criteria: prices charged of up to 100% higher than the average retail price; prices 50% lower than the average price of similar items sold by private hospital peers; and no price complaints

within the past year.

The department rates the hospitals in three categories: red (high medicine prices), yellow (medium) and green (low). Information on the grade of each private hospital will allow people to gauge whether they can afford the cost.

academic studies, transparency and fairness, allowing consumers to check prices before deciding to receive treatment at private hospitals.

The first focus of the study will be 100 popular medicines such as painkillers and antibiotics.

Mr Prayoth said the department is setting up a panel to offer emblems to green-rated hospitals to reward them and raise public awareness about hospitals’ transparency and fairness in prices charged for medicines and medical supplies.

The move is expected to encourage hospitals that are rated red and yellow to make themselves more amenable to patients, he said.

Phuket in line

The names of private hospitals categorised as yellow and red have not been displayed.

Mr Prayoth said the department and its partner Chulalongkorn University are accelerating a study on the reference prices of medicines and medical supplies based on

Sasiphimon Mongkon, Chief of the Phuket Provincial office of the Ministry of Commerce, earlier confirmed to The Phuket News that four private hospitals in Phuket fall under the scheme and all of them complied with the order to display their medicine prices

via the website set up by the Department of Internal Trade.

“Every private hospital in Phuket is now registered and has set up its assigned QR code in a public area for people to see. They have all posted a notice with the QR code at their cashier points, medicine room areas and their public relations counters,” Ms Sasiphimon said in mid-October.

Mission Hospital Phuket is the only privately run hospital in Phuket to be given a “green” rating, the rating of the rest have not been disclosed.

A price comparison check through the searchable website for the common antibiotic amoxicillin revealed that Mission Hospital charged B41.80 per unit of one product containing the antibiotic (Amoksiklav 2X). Of the three remaining private hospitals on the island, one charged B80 per unit for the same product, while another charged B95 per unit and a third charged B217 per unit for exactly the same drug.

Additional local reporting by Tanyaluk Sakoot

Having obliged private hospitals to disclose medicine prices, the government now moves towards extending the implementation of the rule so medical service fees are available to public as well. Photo: Bangkok Post

One of the suspects is already in custody while the other is still being sought.

Two men face sexual abuse charges after girl’s suicide

sion of firearms, police said. Anont was still being sought.

THE CRIMINAL

Court on Monday (Nov 18) approved warrants for the arrest of two men accused of sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl who later jumped to her death from a building last Friday (Nov 15), police said.

Named in the warrants were Kittiyapong Boonthanad, 24, and Anont Doroseh, 25, who face charges of illegal detention and sexual abuse of a minor.

As of Nov 17, Kittiyapong was already being detained at Klong Tan police station for illegal posses-

Police said they sought the arrest warrants after investigating a claim by the girl’s mother that her daughter killed herself because she was so depressed. She fell from the 12th floor of the building where she lived with her mother in the Ramkhamhaeng area of Bangkok’s Suan Luang district.

The mother said her daughter had been detained in a house in Bangkok’s Klong Tan district some time last week and sexually assaulted. Bangkok Post

FFP bill seeks to end military conscription

The Future Forward Party (FFP) plans to table a bill in parliament that seeks to replace military conscription with the recruitment of volunteers.

FFP deputy leader Lt Gen Pongsakorn Rodchomphu said the party has gathered signatures from its MPs to propose an amendment bill to House Speaker Chuan Leekpai for him to include it on the House agenda for deliberation.

Lt Gen Pongsakorn said conscription has been in existence for about 100 years and now is the time for change.

The bill is aimed at reforming the military conscription system and is part of a revamp of the armed forces, said Lt Gen Pongsakorn, who heads the House committee on state security, border affairs, national strategy and national reform.

Under the bill, the minimum age for recruits would be lowered to 18 from the current age of 21 for draftees, while all men aged 18 to 29 would be eligible to serve as reservists, which a Cabinet can call upon through conscription if the country is threatened by war.

Regarding the key element of the bill to scrap the draft for the regular armed force and switch to recruiting volunteers,

length of service would be a minimum of five years, which can be extended for another five years.

Volunteers will also have the opportunity to enlist as non-commissioned and commissioned officers and can seek promotion to the highest rank of lieutenant colonel through an examination system. They would retire at the age of 46, Lt Gen Pongsakorn said.

The current law on military conscription only requires draftees to serve up to two years. With the proposed five-year service period, more time can be spent

to make sure those who enlist are welltrained and highly skilled, he said.

The bill will also prohibit senior officers exploiting rank-and-file soldiers by using them as personal servants, and prevent any human rights violations and actions that trample on soldiers’ dignity.

Lt Gen Pongsakorn added the bill will also grant an “amnesty” for those who evaded conscription before it takes effect.

He said several parties have voiced support for an end to conscription, adding that he wanted them to come up with similar bills.

B12bn second submarine buy still on

NONTHABURI

DEPUTY PRIME MINISter Prawit Wongsuwon dismissed rumors that the navy is reconsidering its plan to buy a second submarine from China, Bangkok Post reports.

“There’s no change to the plan. Everything remains the same,” Gen Prawit said on Monday (Nov 18) when attacked by media crews asking him to comment on a report indicating the navy will suspend the submarine plan and instead buy less expensive

Models of Chinese subs at a defence exhibition held in Nonthaburi on Monday (Nov 18). Photo: Bangkok Post frigates.

“Where does that rumour come from?” Gen Prawit asked in return.

His assurance was echoed by Adm Ruechai Ruddit, the

navy commander.

“We are still following our plan,” Adm Ruechai said, referring to the second submarine purchase in the 2020 fiscal year.

The Cabinet, under the previous government, gave the green light to the navy’s plan to buy three submarines from China worth B36 billion altogether. The scheme was put before the cabinet on Oct 25, 2016, and required a budget over 11 years. The first of Yuan Class S26T submarines, costing B13.5bn, is set to be delivered next year.

The Phuket News

Bangkok Post

BANGKOK

BANGKOK

Photo: Bangkok Post / file

A man reacts after drawing a black card, which means he will not be drafted, at a recruiting station in Pomprap Sattruphai district, Bangkok, on April 1, 2018. Photo: Bangkok Post

Where the journey begins…

Sponsored

The Thailand Yacht Show returns to Royal Phuket Marina on January 9-12, 2020. Now in its fifth year, the Show has firmly established itself as the country’s leading yachting and luxury style event and will once again showcase spectacular displays of yachts, marine exhibits and lifestyle products, plus an improved programme of side-events, parties and familyfriendly activities.

For 2020, we have pushed the boat out with a whole host of new

features, including interactive demonstrations, live music, fashion shows and a veritable smorgasbord of food and beverage options – including our brand new Floating Bar in the heart of the marina.

The Show’s main draw, of course, is the stunning selection of yachts – of all shapes and sizes – for visitors to admire and, if you’re lucky, purchase! From sleek motoryachts to sporty day-trippers, spacious catamarans to RIBs and tenders, the Thailand Yacht Show will once again offer the crème de la crème of the nautical world.

The private island of Koh Rang

Noi, only a short tender ride from the main exhibition, will once again be the picturesque setting for our Superyacht Hub and will showcase over six international superyachts at anchor there.

The Show will once again attract the leading names in the marine and luxury lifestyle industries, including Aquila, Beneteau, Lagoon, Monte Carlo Yachts and Sanlorenzo (Simpson Marine), Riviera and Ferretti Yachts (Lee Marine) whilst Boat Lagoon Yachting will showcase four models from Princess Yachts and Sacs Marine. Returning to the Show, Multihull Solu-

tions will present two Asian and world premieres from NEEL Trimarans and Asia Catamarans respectively, whilst lovers of all things Italian will rejoice as famed boat builder Azimut Yachts will display two brand-new models. Visit our website and social media pages (ThailandYachtShow.com or Facebook: @thaiyachtshow) to see all the latest developments and our newest exhibitors.

As well as our daily schedule of yacht parties, product launches and networking events, we are hugely excited to announce that the first ever amfAR – Thailand 2020 – a three-

day awareness and fundraising event for HIV/AIDS in the Asia-Pacific region – will run in tandem with the Thailand Yacht Show and will welcome the world’s top celebrities and entertainment industry leaders to Koh Rang Noi. Bigger, better and brighter than ever, the 2020 edition of the Thailand Yacht Show is the long-term home to the region’s yachting and luxury lifestyle community and we invite you to be a part of it.

The Phuket News is a proud media partner of the Thailand Yacht Show.

The Show’s main draw, of course, is the stunning selection of yachts.

The Thailand Yacht Show returns to Royal Phuket Marina.

Phuket to host TTM+2020

Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Phuket Office Director Kanokkittika Kritwutikon on Tuesday (Nov 19) confirmed that Phuket will host the major tourism trade event Thailand Travel Mart Plus 2020 next year.

In a very brief conversation with The Phuket News, Ms Kanokkittika said she was unable to comment at length on the issue, but did clearly note, “I can confirm that Phuket will host the TTM+2020 next year.”

The confirmation followed serious concerns that the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) had pulled the plug on Phuket hosting the major B2B event.

Thai Hotels Association Vice President Kongsak Khoopongsakorn on Monday (Nov 18) revealed that he had filed a request for Phuket to host the event to TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn and to TAT Phuket Office Director Ms Kanokkittika after the island was promoted by the TAT as the event host location, only for the official event website to have Phuket as the host pulled down.

The official Thailand Travel Mart Plus 2020 website as of Tuesday (Nov 19) still carried the message

“TTM+ 2020 is coming soon. Please stay tuned!” while carrying the official TAT logo.

“The Thai Hotels Association, Southern Chapter has paid much attention to the importance of tourism development along the Andaman coast, so we, tourism business owners in Phuket and in neighboring provinces, together have presented Phuket to be the host of the event,” said Mr Kongsak, who also serves as the President of the Thai Hotels Association, Southern Chapter.

“Phuket is ready – we have the

people and we have the facilities,” he said.

Mr Kongsak explained that just hosting such an event could give tourism to the Andaman coast a healthy boost.

“It is expected that more than B2.5 billion in revenue can be generated, and the event will attract more than 700 Thai and foreign tourism business operators,” he said.

“The event will be an opportunity for Thai tourism operators to negotiate and exchange information on goods and services between buyers and sellers. This event will

also increase the experience of doing international business for Thai officials and private companies.

“Additionally, at this annual event there are pre- and post-events that will give foreign buyers the opportunity to visit Phuket and neighboring provinces,” he added.

“Before this, the Thailand Travel Mart Plus 2020 website announced the event is scheduled to be held in Phuket on June 1-3, 2020, but after that the announcement was removed and at the same time there was a rumor that the location of the event had been changed,” Mr Kongsak explained.

“Therefore the Thai Hotels Association, Southern Chapter is concerned about the event. The success of the event depends on many factors, including the host’s readiness, tourist attractions which will be presented to tourism agencies, transportation, as well as buyers and sellers’ desire to participate the event,” he noted.

Based on the online survey responses from 72% of the buyers and 38% of the sellers who attended the TTM+2019, held June 5-7 at the Ocean Marina Yacht Club, in Pattaya, the event was expected to generate B2.77bn in economic and business value, the TAT reported.

A total of 59% of the buyers and sellers said they entered into immediate business contracts, a

strong indication that the trade show was attended by decision-makers on both sides, the TAT noted.

For TTM+2019, The TAT invited 338 buyers from 51 countries. In addition to representatives from top markets such as China (64), the UK (25), and India (23), the invitees included selected buyers from emerging source markets such as Argentina, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Turkey and Ukraine, the TAT explained.

The number of exhibitors totalled 370, of whom 89 were first-timers to the TTM+. By category, the exhibitors included Hotels and Resorts (277), Emerging Destinations (20), Associations (9); Entertainment Businesses (12); Tour Operators/Travel Agents (23), private companies and National Tourism Organisations from the Greater Mekong Subregion countries (GMS) (20); and other travel services (9).

Nearly all the buyers (99.18%) reported meeting new sellers; 97.92% said they had received more up-todate information; 89.71% said they were satisfied with their participation, and 93.80% said they had achieved their business goals.

Most of the buyers (85.19%) said they intended to join the TTM+ in 2020.

Dream Hotel and Spa wins four Haute Grandeur Global Awards

HOSPITALITY

DREAM PHUKET HOtel and Spa has picked up a total of four major awards at the prestigious Haute Grandeur Global Awards Gala Ceremony at The St Regis Kuala Lumpur.

Widely regarded as the world’s leading hospitality service awards initiative, the Haute Grandeur Global Awards recognises outstanding performance in the delivery of hotel, spa and restaurant experiences across 192 countries on seven continents.

In this highly-competitive industry, receiving an Haute Grandeur Award at the highly-anticipated annual presentation ceremony is considered the pinnacle of achievement in global hospitality.

As representatives of many of the world’s finest hotels, restaurants and spas gathered in Kuala Lumpur to see this year’s highly-anticipated awards presentations, it proved

to be a good evening for Thailand’s Dream Phuket Hotel and Spa with the beach resort collecting a total of four accolades.

While Dream Hotel picked up the awards for Best Design Hotel in Thailand as well as Best Rooftop View Hotel in Thailand for its chic Vu Bar, Dream’s Sanctuary Spa also scooped the awards for Best Hotel Spa in Asia and Best Spa Manager in Thailand.

On hand to accept the awards, Dream Hotel’s Director of Business and Brand Development, Mrs

Caryll McDonald, said, “It’s a great honor for us to receive this global recognition for what we are trying to do at Dream.”

Also representing Dream at the event, Patsada Satthacharoen, Executive Assistant Manager for Marketing added, “We’re really building something unique and special at Dream and tonight shows that all the work we have put in is bringing in results, not only through satisfied guests but also with these global awards.”

The Phuket News

Dream Phuket Hotel and Spa picked up four major Haute Grandeur Global Awards. Photo: Dream Phuket Hotel

More than 300 buyers from 51 countries joined the TTM+2019 held at the Ocean Marina Yacht Club in Pattaya in June this year, with the event expected to generate B2.77 billion in economic and business value. Photo: TAT

AN ARTIST’S ADVENTURE

Sail alongside Marilyn Band in her latest exhibition

Bruce Stanley ebstanley@rocketmail.com

Marilyn Band has been drawing and painting idyllic scenes around Phuket since she sailed to the island in 1980. She is undoubtedly the most celebrated local artist, with gallery shows at such distinctive venues as The Boathouse at Kata Beach. Her graphic designs have even animated the King’s Cup Regatta.

Marilyn will present new paintings inspired by the elegant limestone formations in Phang Nga at an exhibition opening this month at Mom Tri’s Wok Gallery Kitchen.

“For this current exhibition, I am presenting new work, a more abstract expression of Phang Nga Bay’s beauty, which intends to encourage the viewer the opportunity to interpret and appreciate a little bit of paradise,” explains Marilyn.

“I am quite excited about these more abstract works as it has allowed me to explore the essence of these limestone monuments in the bay.”

Marilyn has been creating art since childhood, strongly influenced by a family of artists who surrounded her with paintings and the creations of several

generations of her ancestors who designed and fabricated stained glass art.

“As a child, I recall our many family members worked in the glass studio drawing and framing small, coloured glass pieces which would fit into large windows, often in churches that had been damaged during the Second World War,” Marilyn says.

Marilyn later studied graphics at High Wycombe Technical College in Buckinghamshire, England before taking further art instruction in Florence, Italy, and at the St Ives School of Painting in Cornwall. She started her own art career as a graphic artist in a variety of advertising agencies in London.

On a holiday in the Seychelles, the direction of her life changed when she met her future partner, Nick Band. He was a world-class yacht captain based in South Africa and chartering around coastal Africa and the Indian Ocean. She joined him, and together they have been sailing the islands sprinkled around the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia for more than 40 years. This has allowed Marilyn the opportunity to draw and paint the now-disappearing tropical cultures from Zanzibar to Sri Lanka to Phuket.

Marilyn and Nick sailed from Africa to Phuket in 1980 and immediately built a studio made from local materials that has been the centre of her art projects

which extend into acrylic, oil, water colour, ink, collage and silkscreen creations.

“Phuket quickly became our home base as it had so many advantages over other islands we had visited. The local people were charming and the rural ambiance was captivating,” recalls Marilyn.

“At one point, my father came to visit to encourage me to return to England and take over the family’s stained glass operations. I was faced with taking the reins of a five-generation enterprise or continuing my life having sailing adventures with my husband. I chose life with Nick.”

During recent years, when Marilyn is out on a voyage, she sketches places where their yacht, Emerald Blue, visits. Then, when she returns to her studio, she has a full portfolio of drawings from which she can express her view of the world.

“I find the natural world a beautiful and magical place. My paintings are based on reality, inspired by many sea voyages. I paint to express my own feelings and vision of this wonderful world.”

For more information about Marilyn’s work, visit marilynbandart.com/contact.html. Her exhibition ‘Phang Nga Bay and Beyond’ will run from November 30, 2019 until January 31, 2020.

Thai cuisine shines in latest Michelin Guide

Postcards of Vientiane, 13

A pitch for tourism

Footballing legend John Arne Riise talks togetherness on Ko Panyi visit

The Phuket News

Helping local communities benefit from tourism doesn’t always have to be difficult. In fact, it’s often the smallest gestures that can have the longest-lasting and most meaningful impact.

Liverpool legend John Arne Riise learned this firsthand during his recent travels around Phang Nga Bay as part of a Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) documentary intended to promote community-based tourism development. The last stop on his travels was Koh Panyi.

Villagers on Koh Panyi still earn a good part of their living from fishing, but tourism has now become a big part of the local economy too, and several large restaurants have been built to cater to the rising influx of tourists, offering fresh seafood and stunning views. The hundreds of huts, shacks, restaurants and houses are built on stilts over the surrounding shallow sea.

Villagers and their kids happily pull local fish, cockles and clams from nets that soon will be served to visitors while helping sustain the local fishing industry in the most practical of ways.

There is also a large number of stalls and shops selling handicrafts and souvenirs in amongst the residents’ warren of houses. The village now has its own school, a solitary policeman and a health centre, plus several small football pitches, including the famed floating one.

The significance of it all isn’t lost on Riise, who sees sport, and in particular football, as a sort of glue that bonds sustainable community development.

“I think [sport] is the easiest way to connect people and to give people of different backgrounds a way out to a better life. We might have different lifestyles

something out of nothing that has had the most meaningful impact on sustainable tourism development on the island.

The Panyee FC team, currently one of the most successful youth teams in Southern Thailand, and winners of the South Thailand Youth Soccer Championships on many occasions, were excited that the Liverpool legend was coming to visit, and together they played Sepak Takraw, or kick volleyball, and an informal football match on the floating pitch.

Afterwards, Riise spent time taking selfies and signing autographs. It was a small gesture but was his way of giving back to local communities.

and come from different parts of the world, but sport is always the easiest way to meet other people and connect in a fun-filled environment,” said Riise.

The island has its own football team, Panyee FC, that got its original inspiration from watching the 1986 World Cup.

A group of young boys decided to form the team and built a pitch with bits of old wood and anything else they could find on the island. The island has a new and better land-based pitch today, but a newer version of the floating pitch is still there to show the tourists where it all began. It was a simple idea of building

“I feel honoured because I am so far away from where I come from in a small city in Norway. The fact that people recognise me shows how big football is and that I must have done something good in my career. I enjoy it because I know how much it means to them,” explains Riise.

Riise’s time in Phang Nga, and particularly on Koh Panyi, acknowledges the power of tourism as an agent of change that can improve lives. The idea of sustainable tourism should transcend conventional perceptions of travel like on Koh Panyi, where immersing tourists in authentic experiences is mutually beneficial for both the locals and visitors.

Liverpool 0 – 1 Panyee FC.

La vie Vientiane

Catch your breath in the underrated Laotian capital

Amy Bryant editor1@classactmedia.co.th

You know when a waiter sets your meal down on the table and warns you that the plate is hot, you have to touch it just to be sure? Well, in a similar vein, when I was advised not to bother with Vientiane on my trip to Laos PDR, I had to pay a visit. But this time I didn’t get my fingers burned. Instead, my travel partner and I had one of our most memorable trips to date.

Our journey starts in Chiang Mai with a 12-hour overnight bus, a shuttle across the kilometre-long Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge, and a somewhat sketchy land border crossing. (Travelling from Phuket to Vientiane, however, is a much easier ordeal, namely two short flights that transit in Bangkok.)

As we take a songthaew from the border to our hotel in the city centre, we notice street signs bearing “rue” and “boulevard”, a grid of carefully designed roads that run perfectly parallel to the Mekong River, and colonial buildings with shuttered windows and Parisianstyle balconies – all hangovers from the French occupation of the city from the late 19 th Century until 1975. The city is small too, perhaps the smallest capital in Southeast Asia, with a population of only 800,000.

Our first stop is a cooking class run by a Madam Phasouk, an impossibly petite, sweet Vientiane native who schools us in the art of Laotian cuisine from the comfort of her living room. We whip up a green papaya salad, a fiery mushroom larb and a hearty rice noodle soup, dishes ubiquitous on menus across Thailand but which are actually Laotian in origin. Bamboo baskets of sticky rice accompany the dishes, and Madam Phasouk explains that it’s the glue that holds any Laotian meal together, be it breakfast, lunch or dinner. Lao people even jokingly refer to themselves as luk khao niaow, meaning “children of sticky rice”. She laughs as we clumsily pound the papaya, tomato, herbs and spices with a wooden pestle but insists that, in local folklore, the amount of water we have left in the mortar at the end is indicative of our kind nature. We take her word for it, pay an incredibly reasonable 147,000 kip (500 baht) and head

off to the riverfront to catch a stunning Mekong sunset, Thailand’s Nong Khai province a stone’s throw away on the opposite bank. At the height of dry season, stretches of the river dry out entirely and enterprising locals from both countries fill the sands with food stalls.

We quickly learn that this kind of resourcefulness is deeply rooted in the character of the Lao people and is often harnessed to help those in need. COPE (Cooperative Orthotic & Prosthetic Enterprise) is an excellent example of this. The charity is the main source of artificial limbs, walking aids and wheelchairs in Laos, and many of its patients are victims of previously unexploded cluster bombs from the Vietnam War.

Walking around the COPE Visitor Centre, we learn that the US dropped a planeload of ordnance every eight minutes, 24 hours a day for nine years over Laos, making it the most heavily bombed country per capita in history. An unknown amount of cluster bombs remain and are detonated almost daily by unsuspecting rural villagers whilst lighting cooking fires, farming or searching for scrap metal. The centre tells the incredible stories of those still affected by the war some 40 years on, and how the charity helps pick up the pieces.

The Lao Disabled Women’s Development Centre is similarly inspiring. What started in 1990 as a sewing group has blossomed into a boarding house and vocational centre that’s trained over 400 women with disabilities in everything from sewing to IT to English to business, empowering them to find fulfilling, long-term work. We spend a worthwhile morning with the handicraft trainees, watching them weave local silk on old-fashioned looms and joining them in a workshop making earrings from recycled paper.

We take a leaf out of the locals’ book the following day and slow the pace. It’s often quipped that the “PDR” after the country’s name – meaning People’s Democratic Republic – also stands for “Please Don’t Rush”, and so we spend the day meandering mindfully between temples and monuments.

Each has a fascinating story to tell. There’s Wat Si Saket, one of the few temples to survive the 1828 Siamese invasion that saw much of the city looted and razed. There’s Ho Phra Keo which

housed the Emerald Buddha until it was seized by the Siamese in 1767. And then there’s the weathered, mossy stupa known as That Dam which is regarded as the city’s guardian spirit, inhabited by a seven-headed naga that protected the city from yet another Siamese invasion in 1827.

While many landmarks illustrate Laos’ chequered past with Thailand, the Patuxai in the heart of Vientiane tells the story of the city’s struggle with France and those who fought for independence. The war monument resembles the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, and the wide-lane roads surrounding it are reminiscent of the Avenue des ChampsÉlysées. Although designed and built by Lao people, it seems the country is keen to play down the Patuxai. A visitor’s sign brashly describes it as an unimpressive “monster of concrete”.

Our last stop is Wat Sok Pa Luang, a temple set in peaceful, green grounds on the fringes of the city where, on Saturday afternoons, the novice monks welcome visitors to ask them questions before leading an hour-long guided meditation. This might all sound a bit hippy dippy, and while we were sat in lotus asking earnestly about monkhood to start with, it wasn’t long before we were all laughing and offering the young monk tickets to Stamford Bridge should he ever make it to London. It’s true that Vientiane doesn’t boast a great amount of attractions. There are no viewpoints, no amusement parks and nothing close to Bangla Road. But that’s all part of its charm. Vientiane lets you catch your breath. And a chat with a monk will have you realise you don’t need that much anyway.

Photos by Lucy Richards Photography

Smiles abound in this friendly capital.

Rice noodle soup or khao piak sen.

The Patuxai.

Novice monks of Wat Sok Pa Luang.

Crossing cultures

The Siamese character seen through foreign eyes

HISTORY OF PHUKET

Nicolas Gervaise, a French resident in Siam in 1688, says of the Siamese character: “They make no scruples about being a little [dissembling] and those to whom they sometimes show the greatest politeness and respect are those for whom in their heart they have often contempt and antipathy.

“Usually they trouble themselves with nothing that concerns anyone but themselves, and the indolence in which they are born leads them to prefer the obscurity of an easy and quiet life to all the pleasures, honours and wealth they could acquire if they did any work”.

Pierre Poivre, an 18th Century French visitor to the peninsular west coast, noted: “the land is good and would produce a lot if the less lazy individuals among the inhabitants would make an effort to cultivate it. But the land still lies fallow, there is nothing any where but forest. I do not know whether the land has ever been cultivated since the biblical flood. No one either clears or cultivates it except in proportion to and the extent of what is needed.

“No one foresees in one year the mishaps that may occur in another … the year I was there, the country was threatened with famine and rice had begun to be quite scarce”.

The French Bishop Pallegoix was more admiring.

“The Thai receive foreigners with kindness … the Thai have a gentle, light, unthinking, timid and gay character. They do not like quarrels or anything that feels like anger or impatience.

“They have a charitable nature and never let a poor person leave without giving some rice or fruit … Old age is very much honoured by them. This nation is remarkable for its gentleness and humanity”.

This view was shared by De Bourges, who felt that for most Siamese, “a gentle poverty is better than an

abundance of goods accompanied by worries”.

One 19 th Century British traveller also notes the laid-back character of the local Malays.

“On the whole the Malays do as little work as possible. They some own small gardens with fruit trees, others are sailors and have seagoing prahus, raise large families and wait lazily for such subsistence as the bounty of nature may provide. The male Malay in his own country is a sort of gentleman who keeps aloof from trade whose pride is in his ever ready Kriss.”

Hans Morgenthaler, the Austrian geologist who worked in southern Siam, defends this languid ease, believing it made for a better life than the poor had in early industrialising Europe.

“In the west it seems to me all achievement is the result of a grim and sullen despair arising from the impossibility of escaping from frenzied work … here in Asia things are different. Life gives everyone all that is most essential for living, a loincloth, a stomach full of

rice and fruit, a wife and his betel quid. They are not tortured by any consuming and unattainable desires.”

In his palace in Bangkok in 1855 with the British envoy Sir John Bowring, King Mongkut attempted to explain the laid-back character of the Siamese.

“We have no wants, we have a hot sun. A gentlemen here only requires a waistcoat or so, but with you, [the British] how many wants?”

To this Sir John Bowring motioned around the king’s fancy palace, whose elegant walls were festooned with many new-fangled western contraptions, clocks, telescopes and other imported ornaments and replied, “But you do have wants, or why all these clocks, looking glasses, ornaments and a hundred things?”

Adapted with kind permission from ‘A History of Phuket and the Surrounding Region’ by Colin Mackay. Available from good bookshops and Amazon.com. Order the softcover 2nd edition at: www.historyofphuket.com

Colin Mackay

Bangkokians dressed in traditional clothes from 17th Century Ayutthaya, Siam’s former capital. Photo circa 1920s

Michelin Guide Thailand 2020

Phuket’s PRU maintains its star, but Thai cuisine takes centre stage

Chris Watson chriswatsonth@gmail.com

Now in its third year of partnership with the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the Michelin Guide in Thailand 2020 was launched on Tuesday, November 12 at the Bangkok Marriott Hotel The Surawongse.

Having added Phuket and Phang Nga last year to the inaugural edition covering only Bangkok, attention from restaurateurs and chefs alike was firmly focused on the addition this year of the vibrant culinary scene of Chiang Mai. This proved to be a little underwhelming, with no restaurants deemed worthy of Michelin stars as yet; however, in the meantime, a wide selection of Michelin Plates and Bib Gourmands were awarded for local residents and tourists to feast on until that moment arrives.

Leading award contenders such as Blackitch Artisan Kitchen, Oxygen Dining Room at X2, David’s Kitchen, and Khao at Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai were all recognised with the Michelin Plate which the Guide, always understated, signifies as “Good cooking. Fresh ingredients, capably prepared: simply a good meal.” The Bib Gourmand is defined as “Inspector’sfavourites for good value. These restaurants offer quality cooking for THB 1,000 or less.”

Within Phuket there were five new Plates: Kha Mu Boran (Kathu); Krua Kao Kuk; Mali; Meesapam Khun Yai Chian; Mu Krop (Chi Hong); and two new Bib Gourmands: Kin Kub Ei; and Naam Yoi. For Phang Nga there was one new Plate: Krua Bai Toey.

With many industry insiders predicting this outcome, anticipation was high as the launch moved on to the star revelation, with all eyes on the one- and two-star categories to watch for both downgrades and upgrades. On the negative side of the scales, there were no losses, apart from the expected, namely Gaggan Anand’s eponymous restaurant and L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, which both closed in 2019. Unfortunately, the recent opening of Gaggan 2.0 was a little too late for consideration.

Whilst understanding and accepting that Michelin is conservative in both awarding and removing accolades, the

questions on everyone’s lips are: “Why have there not been as yet any star downgrades? Are all our star restaurants really maintaining the required top-level standard?”

On the positive side, additions to the one-star category – defined by Michelin as “High quality cooking, worth a stop!” – were Table 38, offering a nostalgic tasting menu for a maximum of 10 lucky diners, and 80/20 showcasing innovative Thai cooking. Both located in Bangkok and helmed respectively by Chef Andy Yang, who previously held a star in New York, and Chefs Jo and Saki, these were almost assured due to the prior announcement that they would both be cooking at the evening gala dinner. This year, sustainability is the theme as Michelin encourages restaurants to move towards zero waste.

But there were some welcome surprises. Chef’s Table at Lebua State Tower, where Head Chef Vincent Thierry, a prior holder of three stars in Hong Kong, was awarded one star where many expected two and, somewhat out of the blue, Khao in Ekkamai, led by Chef Mukura, was upgraded from a Bib Gourmand to one star.

But the announcement of two new two-starred restaurants – indicated as “Excellent cuisine, worth a detour!” –was the excitement the event needed. Whilst the current esteemed holders Le Normandie, Mezzaluna and Suhring, represented by Chefs Arnaud Dunand, Ryuki Kawasaki and Matthias and Thomas Suhring, maintained their exceptional rating, R Haan and Sorn were promoted from one star to this lofty level. Iron Chef Chumpol Jangprai celebrates authentic Thai regional and Royal Thai cuisine at R Haan, using 100% local ingredients, whilst Chef Supaksorn Jongsiri at Sorn cooks close-tothe-heart Southern style cuisine. Both are indeed worthy winners.

Thai cuisine has finally received long overdue recognition on the global stage. So, whilst there were new Bibs and Plates across Thailand, including Bangkok and Phuket, our jewel in the crown, the only one in Phuket, PRU continues to shine brightly, retaining its Michelin star under Chef Jimmy Ophorst. The restaurant recently refurbished with a new interior, and with Jimmy continuing to push the envelope using local ingredients and adding new dishes, including fishtail bamboo with

wood sorrel fruit, a coral grouper fish with cauliflower and a stellar dessert emphasising his penchant for vegetables utilising a combo of local sweet carrots and coconut, the future is bright.

So, what can we look forward to next year? Certainly another region, be it Koh Samui or Hua Hin, and what I sincerely hope for: a three-star restaurant described by the red book as “Exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey.”

Building on last Tuesday’s awards, the world is definitely waking up to the reality of Thai cuisine in both acknowl-

edging and appreciating the wide variety, quality and genuinely surprising flavours and textures from our unique Thai products. Long may we continue to celebrate the heritage of Thai cooking! My heartfelt congratulations to all award winners!

Chris is a former Michelin Guide Inspector who, following an international career in hospitality spanning 30 years in both the Middle East and Asia, has now settled in Thailand and contributes a monthly column.

The finest of Thai dining earned R Haan in Bangkok two stars.

Chef Jimmy Ophorst at PRU in Phuket rightfully retained his one star.

Father figure

Statue honouring Phuket Town founder underway

Work has begun on installing a statue of Phraya Wichit Songkhram in the heart of Phuket Town as a monument to honour and remember the achievements of the man regarded as the founding father of Phuket Town.

The statue is being created from a photo of Phraya Wichit Songkhram taken in 1849 which sees him in a seated position. Cast in bronze, the statue will be 2.55 metres tall and up to 1.99m across. The base for the statue will be 2.3m square and 1.8m high, and the area around the statue to be developed for the monument will cover 164 square metres, Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupana announced earlier this month.

Built at a cost of B8.7 million – B7.5mn for the statue and B1.2mn for the base and surrounding area – the monument is being installed on the southeast corner of the grounds of Wichit Sangkharam Temple on Narisorn Road. The temple was chosen as the site as it was built by order of Phraya Wichit Songkhram at the time that Phuket Town was first being developed under his guiding hand.

The statue is being created by renowned Thai artist Sunti Pichetchaiyakul, who is best known for creating the sculpture of King Rama IX, Bhumibol Adulyadej, at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States, where King Bhumibol was born.

“The monument is being built through the collaboration of the Phuket Provincial Office, Phuket City

Municipality, Wichit Sangkharam Temple and Phuket people in order to show respect to the man who created Phuket Town 170 years ago,” said Mayor Somjai. “The monument will be an important place to learn about Phuket history in the future.”

The foundation stone for the monument was laid at the auspicious time of 9:09am on November 22, and the statue will be installed at 9:09am on February 28. Government officers and monks will be present for the formal ceremonies held to mark both events.

The man behind the statue Phraya Wichit Songkhram served as governor of Phuket from 1849-1869 and died in 1890 at the age of 54. His name in full was Phraya Wichitsongkram Ramrithidet Lohasetrak Phithak Siamrat Simatayanuchitpiphakdi Phiriyapichit Jangwang, also given the common nickname “Wiset”.

Also known as Thad Rattanadilok Na Phuket and Phraya Phu Ket Lohasetrak, Phraya Wichit Songkhram was the descendant of Rattanadilok Na Phuket family, an esteemed family name in Phuket and the surrounding provinces.

Phraya Wichit Songkhram was the son of the former Governor of Phuket “Phra Phu Ket (Kaew)”, and both are honoured by the main roads Wichit Songkram Rd and Phra Phuket Kaew Rd, which link Phuket Town with the Kathu valley, which was once the heartland of tin mines in Phuket.

Phraya Wichit Songkhram served as governor of Phuket Town from the late reign of King Rama III until the early reign of King Rama V. After his father passed away, Phraya Wichit Songkhram was nominated as the governor of Phuket and bestowed the title “Phra Phu Ket (Thad)”.

Following the “Ang Yi” rebellion of Chinese mine workers in 1876, Phraya Wichit Songkhram had a new, fortified, Governor’s Residence built in Tha Reua, near the Heroines Monument, effectively moving the island’s administrative capital from Thalang. The site of that residence is now called Ban Phraya Wichit Songkram and was registered as a National Heritage Site in 1985. It also became the reason against building a U-turn flyover on Thepkrasattri Road to alleviate traffic congestion in the area.

Looking to move the island’s capital further south, Phraya Wichit Songkhram ordered the development of the area that was at that time called Thung Kha, which is now known as Phuket Town. He invited Chinese people from Bangkok to establish businesses in Phuket so the island could develop rapidly. As Phuket’s economy boomed, he sent large tributes of taxes collected to Bangkok.

In return for his outstanding contribution, he was given 10,000 rai of land near Toh Sae Hill, which is now known as the old government quarter in Phuket Town where Phuket Provincial Hall and other main government offices are located today.

Sunti Pichetchaiyakul at work. Photo: NNT

The 1849 photo upon which the statue is based. Image: NNT

The statue will be 2.55m tall and up to 1.99m across. Photo: NNT

Qu’est-ce que c’est?

EDUCATION CORNER

Teaching is not a search for the right answer, it is a search for the right question.

Ever since my schooldays, the names “Selway” and “Paget” have been indelibly stamped on the back of my brain. I remember them for one reason only: that they sat in the same row as me during my French class – in fact, they sat in front of me. We occupied the “Rotten Row”, which was the line of desks at the furthest possible distance from the teacher’s predatory perch on a slightly raised platform at the front of the class. There were at least six single desks pressed up against the wall, all of them occupied in body if not in mind, and I sat in the third.

Once and only once each lesson, a swirl of strange nasal sounds would be directed at the inhabitants of the Rotten Row. This would be followed by a pause before the name “Selway” was intoned, at which point my brain registered alarm and I raised myself out of my blank stupor and began to compose my features. About five seconds would elapse before the name “Paget” disturbed the heavy mocking silence, and then, like Pavlov’s dogs, I became fully alert and prepared for my turn. When it came, I would distort my features in the mistaken belief that I could fool the teacher into believing that I was about to discover the meaning of the universe.

Then, a handful of seconds later, the linguistic baton was passed on and I settled comfortably into my former state. Once the end of the line was reached, the question would be floated to the rest of the class. D. A Thomas (how that name too is etched in my mind!) would respond in oral hieroglyphics and the epicentre of class activity would shift away, never to return during the lesson.

I did not, perhaps, deserve better. I was 14 and in no hurry to buy anything at all from the boulangerie, or to

purchase a single ticket to Rouen on the five o’clock train. I didn’t really need to be reminded how bad I was at French, but neither did I need someone to give up on me so readily. In some teaching version of virtual reality, a box was ticked and the job was done. And I had neither the wit nor the inclination to protest.

But now I am one – a teacher, that is – and I know how difficult it is to discover talent or ability when it lies hidden or crushed by apathy, fear or plain boredom. However, if there is one

thing I have learned over the years, it is that teaching is not a search for the right answer, it is a search for the right question – and this in turn requires a real sense of compassion for the learner; every learner. Without this, I might just as well go fishing.

Neil Richards is the Headmaster at British International School, Phuket (BISP). For more information, visit them at www.bisphuket.ac.th

Neil Richards

Photo: Pexels

BCCT CLOSES YEAR OF NETWORKING WITH A SUNSET DREAM EVENT

The last British Chamber of Commerce Thailand (BCCT) Business Briefing and Networking event in Phuket for 2019 was held at Dream

Arbitration & ADR for the International Chamber of Commerce Thailand, presented his business

After the briefing members and guests enjoyed networking with great food and drinks. Much thanks also went to venue and food

as well as Class Act Media’s The

ROCK SALT CHEFS ALL FIRED UP FOR SEASON ‘PIZZA DA ACTION’

DREAM BEACH CLUB KICKS OFF HIGH SEASON WITH A PARTY

Dream Beach Club kicked off the high season last Saturday (Nov 16) with its ultimate brunch and pool party, which now continues every Sunday. Brunch is served from midday until 4pm featuring over 120 items. The Pool Party, which kicks off at midday and grooves late into the night, features exclusive performances, international DJs, live musicians and Dream dancers to keep the party rocking until after the sun has gone down.

SOUTH KOREAN MEDIA VISIT CLASS ACT

A delegation of more than 20 CEOs and journalists from the Kyonggido Press Association, of the Korea District Association of Newspapers, visited the offices of Class Act Media and IMAGE Asia on November 14. The delegation, led by Sook-ja Kim, President of the Icheon Seolbong Newspaper, toured the offices and were given a first-hand run down on the variety of publications produced by both Class Act Media and IMAGE Asia, and were given a tour of the Live 89.5 radio studio and the Phuket Xtra TV studio. Thank you very much for stopping by! We look forward to your next visit!

The delegates stop for a photo.

The delegates toured the offices.

South Korea hit the Phuket airwaves.

Beach Club on November 14. Victor Smith, Chair of The Commission on

briefing on Avoiding Court Disputes with Arbitration in Phuket.

sponsor Dream Beach Club and cash sponsor Budget Car,

Phuket News and IMAGEasia’s Window on Phuket.

The sponsors were gifted much thanks.

Yin, Gift and Santichai.

The Nai Harn, Phuket this week celebrated the return of high season with authentic Neapolitan pizzas from visiting Chef Salvatore de Rinaldi.

Executive Chef Mark Jones and Chef Salvatore de Rinaldi.

RIVERHOUSE VILLA PROJECT LAUNCHES PHUKET INTO GREEN FUTURE

DIAMOND RESORT PHUKET SHINES BRIGHT AT GALA GRAND OPENING

More than 500 guests turned out for the Diamond Resort Phuket’s remarkable Grand Opening of their new property in Bang Tao last Saturday (Nov 16), held in time to be ready to welcome tourists during Phuket’s peak season. The event saw a host of performances throughout the night, including The Stream of Miracle Show, The LED Wing Show, Aerial Silk by Thailand’s Got Talent 2010 Winner, Jazz Band and many more.

BISP LOOKS TO CREATING A HAPPY, GREEN WORLD

The Green Thailand event hosted by British International School, Phuket (BISP) on Nov 13 introduced the Happy Green World program. This was the culmination of years of hard work by the school’s IB CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service) students. Twenty-six local schools and 41 teachers took part, and were taught how to incorporate the program in their own schools. The event was attended by Koh Kaew Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor) Chief Kurkiat Jitkur, Director of the Thailand Tourism Authority (TAT) Phuket office

Kritwutikon, and Sumi Soorian, Development Director of the Phuket Hotels Association.

Kanokkittika

Students, teachers and associates at the event on Nov 13.

The launch party was a gala affair.

From left: Johan Ghislain Robert D’Hondt, Phirchawees Boonyassatiean, Phuket Vice Governor Wongsakorn Nunchukhan, and Rudiger Pauline Leo Maes.

Ladies in waiting at the event.

Glamour and glitz on the night.

Riverhouse Phuket in Cherng Talay recently held its official sales launch with an impressive collection of local agents, developers and media turning out to support the event. The project stands out from the crowd with its uniquely designed villas, packed with the latest in green technologies. Every villa comes with solar panels and high-capacity battery systems that can power the whole villa. All 51 villas link together sharing and transferring energy between villas to maximize efficiency and make sure no energy is wasted.

The Riverhouse Resava JLL team.

The Riverhouse and SolarWert team.

20 EVENTS

fries, your choice, your style: natural, marnière, Provençale, garlic and cream or Thai style. Reservations recommended B295 P/P. shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

ALL YOU CAN EAT BBQ RIBS Come join

for Live Music from 8-Late Performed by Our Famous Two Chefs Band! Come for the FOOD - Stay for the Fun. www.twochefs.com

resort’s restaurants with live entertainment. Enjoy yourself in the natural setting of the resort gardens every Saturday night. Starting from THB 150 net per item. Reservations: contact Angsana Laguna Phuket at fbreservation-lagunaphuket@angsana.com or call +66 (0) 7635 8500.

The Nai Harn

Legends of Change Exclusive Book Launch

A revolutionary book powered by woman-kind… From doctors, nutrition experts and Olympic athletes, to mums, daughters and women struggling with chronic illness, Legends of Change is the ultimate compilation of 85+ first-hand stories, helpful habits, and life-changing tips from women who have transitioned into a vegan lifestyle. Guest Speaker: HEATHER MILLS, Plant-based buffet and cooking demo by Chef Jamie Raftery. 1 copy of the inspiring Legends of Change book. Limited Tickets THB1,100 until Nov 12, THB 1390 until the 22nd November. facebook.com/events/324561141721431/

James Suckling will bring his successful event for a third time to Phuket’s iconic The Nai Harn Resort. More than 40 of the top Italian wine producers and winemakers of worldrenowned estates will personally be present at the event. Guests will be treated to a multi-course live cooking dining experience at the casual open-air setting of Reflections rooftop terrace. For more information and bookings, please call +66 76 380 200 or fbsec@thenaiharn.com or check out https://www.thenaiharn.com/dining/james-suckling/ ALCOHOL MAY BE A HEALTH HAZARD.

LAGUNA PHUKET

TRIATHLON 2019

26th edition of Asia’s longest-standing triathlon race will take place during 23-24 Nov and comprise Laguna Phuket Triathlon (1.8K Swim, 50K Bike and 12K Run); 25 For 25 Sprint (0.5K Swim, 18.5K Bike and 6K Run) and includes LPT Charity Fun Run (5K, 10K and 2K Kids Run) to raise funds for Children First Fund (CFF) in support of underprivileged children in Phuket and Kao Kon La Kao Foundation to help hospitals in Thailand. Register at www.LagunaphuketTri.com until 17 Nov (or sold out).

Great Wines of Italy @

New Zealand Wine & Food Showcase 2

Returning for the 2nd year to Firefly bringing together the island’s to suppliers of the New Zealand beverages and ingredients showcasing the kiwi’s culinary scene at its best, with entertainment by NZ Idol finalist. Jessie Cassin. Thursday 28 November. 7 - 9 pm. Tickets are priced at THB 1,200 net ALCOHOL MAY BE A HEALTH HAZARD! Reservation, The Pavilions Phuket, firefly.phuket@pavilionhotels.com, 076 317 600.

Joint Phuket Christmas Sundowners hosted by AustCham

AustCham Thailand is delighted to invite members and guests to join us to celebrate the festive season at our Phuket Christmas Sundowners to be held on Friday 29th November, 2019, at The Boathouse Phuket. Taking advantage of the beautiful surroundings at The Boathouse Phuket, the Phuket

Sundowners offers a great opportunity to network with likeminded people from the business community. Cost: Baht 500 for AustCham members, partner Chambers’ members and Australian Alumni Members. Baht 900 for non-members.

MARTINA CARUSO : THE BEST FEMALE CHEF OF THE YEAR

For THE PRESTIGIOUS MICHELIN ITALY GUIDE 2019. 29 November: Masterclass and Lunch starting from noon, THB 2,200 net. 29 - 30 November: Degustation Dinner Food only THB 2,999 net. Food with special selected beverages THB 3,999 net. Starting from 6.30 at Tre Restaurant. Reservation, Tre Restaurant at Banyan Tree Phuket, fb-phuket@banyantree.com, 076 372 400.

Grow Boating Networking Evening - December 2019

The Grow Boating Networking Evening for December 2019 will be held at Royal Phuket Marina on Friday the 6th of December from 5pm. Sponsored by Thailand Yacht Show - https://www.thailandyachtshow.com Come and join in the fun, everyone is welcome. There is no entry fee, just drop your business card or register at the bar. We hope to see you there and if you know anyone you think would be interested in coming please invite them along. To join our mailing list please send an email to growboatingphuket@gmail. com Grow Boating is kindly supported by our media partner The Phuket News, Live 89.5 radio and Phuket News TV. See www.thephuketnews.com The Grow Boating Networking Evening is organised by the Thai Yachting Business Association. Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ groups/491098897758155/ or our Website https://www.thaiyachtingbusinessassociation.com/

1. Which country has a province, a city and a river all called Batman?

2. The woolly mammoth was still around when the pyramids were being built. True or false?

3. Mark Sinclair is the real name of which actor?

4. A “moment” was a medieval unit of time equal to how many seconds?

5. Movember raises money for and awareness of what? Answers below, centre

Crossword by Myles Mellor & Sally York

Across 1. Superman’s mom 5. Barely manages, with “out” 9. In the midst of 14. Storyline 15. Belt 16. Satchmo’s first name 17. Sweet cherry 18. “See ya!” 19. Not straight up 20. Instrument player 23. Get out of here!

24. Fargo’s state, abbr.

25. Duke’s grp.

28. Neighbor of Swed.

31. Org. for A. J. Foyt

33. Reserved, as in seating

36. California border lake

39. Bit of praise

40. One who puzzles to please

44. Whisky in Scotland

45. Its capital is Oranjestad

46. French summer

47. Shoe part

50. Fabric dyed for hunting purposes

52. Apple or pecan?

53. Arm of the Baltic

56. Target, as of a prank

59. Big digger

63. Pago Pago’s place

3.3

percent of all babies born in the world are twins.

22 species, one genus and a constellation in the shape of a whale have been named in David Attenborough’s honour.

3,000 miles per hour is the speed at which the cracks move when glass breaks.

385,000 kilometres of liquorice wheels are produced by Haribo each year, enough to stretch from Earth to the Moon.

135 million

US dollars is lost by Netflix each month by the 10% of users who share their passwords.

Source: Uberfacts

66. Bus driver on “The Simpsons”

67. Angel accessory

68. Word processor command

69. Military subdivision

70. Race pace

71. Adrift, perhaps

72. Laddie’s love

73. Fill to the brim

Down

1. Women drivers’ grp.

2. Baldwin, Guinness and others

3. Exterminator’s quarry

4. When many eat lunch

5. Founded, abbr.

6. “The Bridge on the River ___” 7. Big name in stationery 8. Bear

Yukon neighbor

1970s band ___ The Hoople

Yes, in French

Score of zero

Prime meridian std. 21. Supports the team

“From Russia with Love” writer

25. Sharp-witted

27. Ten million rupees

Damp and chilly

“Hold it right there!” 32. Compete in the Nordic combined

Electronic censor

Of a Middle Eastern country

Military rank, abbr.

Ring org.

Publisher’s addenda

Healthcare benefits giant

Diadem 58. Letter-shaped opening 59. First class 60. Dock-sitting Redding 61. Oodles 62. Canvas carrier 63. Seaweed wrap provider 64. Dali display, say 65. Fire starter?

Answers to this week’s Pop Quiz:

cancer, testicular cancer and mental health.

ISLAND VIEW

November 22, 2002 In Nigeria, over 100 people are killed in attacks aimed at the contestants of the Miss World contest.

November 23, 534 BC Thespis of Icaria becomes the first recorded person to portray a character onstage. The word “thespian” is derived from his name.

November 24, 1859

Charles Darwin publishes On the Origin of Species, considered to

be the foundation of evolutionary biology. It goes

November 25, 1952

Agatha Christie’s murder-mystery play The Mousetrap opens at the Ambassadors Theatre in London. It later becomes the longest continuously-running play in history.

November 26, 1976

punk rockers The Sex Pistols.

Anarchy in the U.K., the debut single of British band the Sex Pistols, is released by EMI, heralding the arrival of punk rock in the UK and beyond.

November 27, 1895

At the Swedish–Norwegian Club in Paris, Alfred Nobel signs his last will and testament, setting aside his estate to establish the Nobel Prize when he dies.

November 28, 1975

East Timor (or Timor-Leste) declares itself independent from Portugal after 400 years of colonial rule. It is invaded by Indonesia nine days later.

Source: Wikipedia

Wat Chalong. Photo by Tony Edwards.

Buy & Sell

BOATS, YACHTS FOR SALE

842 486.

Fortuner 2007 for sale

200,000 km. Two owners. Smart TRD 3.0 Good condition! Great deal! Call now!! 590,000 THB, Nony, Kathu, Phuket, Thailand, Nony_ntp@hotmail.com, (Eng/Thai) 099 2650808.

CARS, TRUCKS FOR RENT MEMBERSHIPS

from 10,000 Baht.

from 400 BHT. High Season from 12,000 monthly. All our cars are in very good conditions at affordable prices. From 10,000 BHT monthly, Stig Johansson, 110/78 Moo 2 T Paklok A Thalang 83110 Phuket, stigisaan@gmail.com, 0848474377.

7 seater for

We have a New top-model Sienta 7 seater for rent. Has reverse camera, mag wheels, leather and automatic sliding doors. Available from Sept 7. Price daily or per month. 0848474377. stigisaan@gmail.com

67500. Anette, lisanette2002@gmail.com, 0930914502.

Buy & Sell

SERVICES

Credit and investment in private section

With honesty, we are offering credit and investment in private section with excellent condition. Please feel free to contact us for more information. Georgette, GEORGESVALLER@ financier.com

Oceanus

1 Bed Condo Sale Rawai

Saturdays Residence beautiful condo in Rawai. Tastefully decorated with class. Short drive to beach. All condo amenities. Looks so

2 bed, 2 bath

Stunning Villa

Stunning 2 bed, 2 bath fully furnished villa for sale in Baan Wana gated community, Cherngtalay. Large backyard w/ spacious patio. Swimming pool with new outdoor shower. Fully equipped European kitchen. Email: mrsglasses1@gmail.com for full color property brochure 9,600,000, Khun Ju, Baan Wana Pool Villa, Unit 4a, phukethrm@hotmail.com, +66835037655.

fully equipped Kitchen – 212 SQM. Very high standard with a nice view. 2 Big Balcony, Jacuzzi. Location: Kathu, 5 min. Phuket Town and all department stores and International Hospitals. 086-268-7901. THB 11,5 M, Martin, martinhkt@yahoo.com

White sand beach

29 Rai with breathtaking views and 128 meter of white sand beach frontage on Koh Yao Yai , just 20 minutes from Phuket away , secure Chanote tittle , public concrete road , water, electricity and ready to build for sale direct from owner for only 5.5 mln per Rai. Montha, montha_phuket@yahoo.com, 095 0147888.

OCEAN FRONT LAND

7 Rai with 185 meter of ocean frontage, 800 meter from Yacht Haven Marina on Phangnga side, water, electricity, concrete road on the back of property, building permission for 12 two-storey pool villas. For sale direct by owner for only 6 mln Baht per Rai. + 66 95 0147888.

OCEAN FRONT VILLA

3 Bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 10-metre infinity swimming pool, maid quarter..., fully furnished and ready to move in.., usable area of over 330sqm....., very convenient located in a gated community at the south end of Ao Por, 50 metres from the ocean, 150 metres from the new Sheraton Grand Bay Resort, 3 minutes from Ao Po Grand Marina, 20 minutes from Airport and shopping centers..., for sale direct by owner 22.9mln. +66 95 0147888.

1 Bedroom Condo Kata

Seaview land

Nai Harn Beach

2.5 rai of superb seaview land overlooking Nai Harn bay & the Andaman Sea, ideal for deluxe villa (s) or resort. Walking distance to beach. Email development@amsasean. com Henri.

Dream Village Phuket house

2bed 2bath 295sqm land 100sqm living + veranda, compl. renovated.: new water, electric., tiles, paint in/out, windows, 3A/C, built in kitchen. 0870608400 engl/deutsch, price is negotiable picharly@gmail.com, 66870608400

Villa in Patong prime location

Villa in central Patong , top condition. Can generate 1.3 MB tourist rental income/y . 3 bed, 3 bath, 160sqm living. Furnished, garden. Ms. Manatchanok, 0800409411.

Villa Mission Heights Big Pool 3bed, 3 1/2 bath, 330sqm living, 900 sqm land, very quite aera, 2 km mission hill golf, 6km UWC, 8 km airport. owner finance. 0870608400 engl/ deutsch, price is negotiable. 10.9MB, picharly@gmail.com

Thalang House for RENT

2 Bedrooms, semi-furnished with next door gym and smiming pool. 199/167 Moo 9 Thepkasattri Rd. Thalang Phuket, 089 882 9246 sawasdeeka84@hotmail.com

Casa Lagoon

Phuket House 4 Rent

We have four houses with AmaZing Lagoon view Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, fully furnished available for short & long-term rental in a quiet area located in Koh Kaew area Phuket 0624236499.

2-Bed Furnished Kathu House for Rent

2bd/2bth furnished house for rent in Kathu near Loch Palm Golf Course. See link for more photos and details. www.kathuhouseforrent.com B13,500, May or Wes, wes@pillarmarketing.com, 0899733276 Stunning Ocean Views!

80,000/rent

or

A competitive month for anglers Sportsfishers hit the water for annual salt- and freshwater tournaments

November is not only the start of the tourism high season here in Phuket, but also a busy month for fishing competitions in both salt- and freshwater.

The Phuket Sportfishing Tournament (PST 2019) continues the long tradition of a major saltwater fishing tournament here in the beautiful waters surrounding Phuket. The event is a catch-and-release event for all billfish caught. Other more plentiful species will be kept and weighed.

The three-day tournament is for all age groups with competitors from all over the world. Junior anglers under 16 can enter for free and there are special prizes for both junior and lady anglers. There are some great sponsor prizes available with the main attraction being the Overall Winners Trophy and of course bragging rights.

Prizes are awarded based on accumulated points, which can make for some interesting fishing strategies. Sailfish experts such as Team Fish Eagle will most likely be targeting billfish, which are worth 125 points per sailfish, while other boats will probably try to boost their points totals with smaller species. Either way, it should

Siam

be an exciting competition based on skill and of course the mood of the fish.

Registration for the event was held at the traditional venue, Rosi’s Bar in Chalong, from 3pm to 8pm on Wednesday (Nov 20). The prize-giving party will also be at Rosi’s, on Saturday night (Nov 23), from

Cricket Sevens gets underway

CRICKET

THE ASIAN CRICKET Sixes Tour (ACST) are staging their second Siam International Cricket Sevens this weekend as the competing teams assemble in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand.

The tournament is being held at the Gymkhana Club with matches played Friday through Sunday (Nov 22-24).

Participants have arrived from England, Australia, India, Malaysia, Korea, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and Wales to take

The tournament is being held at the Gymkhana Club in Chiang Mai. Photo: ACST part with Thai-based players and officials, including youngsters connected to hosts Lanna CC and the Chiang Mai Schools Cricket Association (CMSCA).

The event is raising funds for the CMSCA to assist with the development of young cricketers in the area. Previous beneficiaries have progressed to represent Thailand’s national teams, including the women’s side, who have qualified for the T20 World Cup in Australia next year.

“The ACST is looking forward to welcoming everyone from far and wide to enjoy in fine camaraderie, good cricket and making friendships through the game,” said ACST Chairman Michael “Cat” Maher.

Fifty tagged fish have been released into the lake at EFT with prizes worth well over B1.5 million allocated among the 50 fish.

The minimum prize is worth B18,000 and the largest prize of two weeks’s free fishing is worth B80,000. The onsite scoreboard shows which fish have been caught and also which individual fish are worth which prizes. This has made for some interesting strategies so far with some anglers using their skills to target Siamese carp, which are worth more, and others targeting Amazon redtails, which are generally easier to catch. Entrants in the first week paying B1,000 to enter won prizes worth B80,000.

6pm onwards – with DJ Jason Wilder on hand for both days. Freshwater events also kicked off on Nov 1 with the start of the five-month long Exotic Fishing Thailand (EFT) Tagged Fish Event. This event is open to all anglers who buy a one day or multiple day ticket at Exotic Fishing Thailand.

For more information contact ExoticFishingThailand@ gmail.com for entry forms, rules and to make a booking to fish.

Make sure to pick up a copy of The Phuket News on Nov 29 to find out who were the top team at the PST 2019 and to get a detailed update on whose winning big at the Exotic Fishing Thailand tagged Fish event.

If you have questions about fishing in and around Phuket please feel free to contact us by email and we will do our best to help you with an accurate answer or direct you to another reliable source.

By Mike Bailey, Exotic Fishing Thailand Co Ltd

Email; exoticfishingthailand@gmail. com

Telephone; English 0883799377 or Thai 0811995922 facebook; https://www.facebook. com/Exotic-Fishing-Thailand-427820143951674/ Website; www.exoticfishingthailand.com

The freshwater events also kicked off on Nov 1 with the start of the five-month long Exotic Fishing Thailand (EFT) Tagged Fish Event. Photo: Exotic Fishing Thailand / file

Mike Bailey

FISH THE EXOTIC

Breezing through Brazil

Midfield battlers find redemption at Sao Paulo

BOX OF NEUTRALS

Michael Lamonato michael@boxofneutrals.com

The 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix was Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen’s most complete weekend of the season, but their exploits were overshadowed by the drama that engulfed the field behind him.

While Verstappen spent most of the race serenely leading the pack, the configuration of the podium changed five times in the last 20 laps and even once more after the chequered flag.

There was carnage aplenty for podium hopefuls. Valtteri Bottas’s engine went up in smoke on lap 52. The Ferrari drivers crashed into other on lap 65 and retired. And Lewis Hamilton punted Alex Albon off the road on the penultimate lap, sending the Thai tumbling to 14th and himself to seventh with a penalty.

But through the debris rocketed Toro Rosso’s Pierre

Gasly and McLaren’s Carlos Sainz to complete an unlikely podium finish.

Gasly’s performance was every bit as assured as Verstappen’s. Fastest of the midfielders in qualifying, he comfortably held the best-ofthe-rest position throughout the race, ensuring he could capitalise on the chaos that unfolded ahead of him. His

best-ever result culminated in a side-by-side final-lap drag with Hamilton to the chequered flag to beat the world champion by just 0.062 seconds before the Briton’s post-race penalty.

It was an emphatic demonstration of the Frenchman’s talent after his star fizzled during 12 lacklustre races with Red Bull Racing. He

was demoted to Toro Rosso in August for his struggles, where this week it was confirmed he’ll remain for 2020, but with his Sao Paulo performance he dared the sport to remember his name.

“It’s just the best day of my life,” an overjoyed Gasly said. “I didn’t think this would happen, coming back with Toro Rosso during the second

part of the season.

“I just kept working on myself, tried to push the team as much as I could, telling them we need to make the best out of all the opportunities… and today it just came to us.”

Whereas Gasly’s race was controlled, Sainz’s was a spectacle, recovering 17 places to the podium.

The Spaniard was forced to start from 20th place after engine problems in qualifying, but the McLaren driver picked up seven places in eight laps with some gutsy, no-holds-barred overtaking, and at the first pit stop window he was ninth.

But whereas his rivals subsequently made second stops for new rubber, Sainz expertly managed his ageing medium tyres for an unmatched 42 laps. He rose to eighth at the first safety car, and fourth place came to him as the frontrunners tripped over themselves, with Hamilton’s penalty promoting him to third.

It’s poignant to consider both Sainz and race-winner Verstappen were Toro Rosso

rookies in 2015. While the Spaniard perhaps lacked the ultimate speed of the Dutchman, he was in other respects his equal – but a paucity of opportunity in the Red Bull programme sent him packing first to Renault and then McLaren.

At Woking he’s made himself a popular fixture as the famous English team rebuilds from its unsuccessful Honda years, and claiming the team’s first podium since 2014 ensures him a legacy in that project.

“To get it coming from last is very, very special,” Sainz told Sky Sports. “I cannot thank enough the team and everyone involved in this because so far this year has been a dream come true and last but not least we got the podium.”

It was a fitting way for Formula One to open its two season-ending championship dead rubbers and a timely reminder that even in times of domination the sport boasts talent to turn any race into a nailbiting thriller.

Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Red Bull Racing celebrates with the team in parc ferme during at the F1 Grand Prix of Brazil at Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace in Sao Paulo last Sunday (Nov 17). Photo: Dan Istitene / Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool

Spurs sack Pochettino amid results slump

Jose Mourinho was on Wednesday (Nov 20) appointed Tottenham’s new manager to replace the sacked Mauricio Pochettino, with the club languishing 14th in the Premier League.

The Portuguese former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester United manager signed a contract until the end of the 2022/23 season, the north London club said in a statement.

Pochettino, 47, transformed Spurs’ fortunes after arriving from Southampton in 2014 and although he failed to win a trophy he took the club to the Champions League final for the first time in their history just six months ago.

But the Argentine was sacked on Tuesday, with Tottenham struggling in the league after picking up just three wins from their opening 12 games.

This season they were knocked out of the League Cup by fourth-tier Colchester United and suffered an embarrassing 7-2 defeat at home to Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

Exciting ‘quality’

“I am excited to be joining a club with such a great heritage and such passionate supporters,” said Mourinho, who has won domestic league titles in four different countries –Portugal, England, Italy and Spain.

“The quality in both the squad and the academy excites me. Working with these players is what has attracted me.”

Spurs Chairman Daniel

Levy said, “In Jose we have one of the most successful managers in football. He has a wealth of experience, can inspire teams and is a great tactician.

“He has won honours at every club he has coached. We believe he will bring energy and belief to the dressing room.”

Mourinho has won Champions League titles with Porto and Inter Milan.

The 56-year-old Portuguese won three Premier League titles over two spells in charge of Chelsea and returned to England to manage Manchester United in 2016.

Mourinho was sacked last December following a poor run of results and has been out of work since, most recently working as a TV pundit.

His first match in charge will be the London derby away to West Ham on Saturday (Nov 23).

Despite their recent poor run, Tottenham thrived under Pochettino’s leadership.

They qualified for the Champions League four times, culminating in a dramatic run to the club’s first ever European Cup final in June, which they lost 2-0 to Liverpool in Madrid.

However, domestic results had been on the decline since February, with Spurs clinging on to a top-four finish last season despite winning just three of their final 12 league games.

‘Reluctant’ change

That form has continued at the start of this season and Mourinho arrives with the club 11 points outside the Premier League top four, 20 behind leaders Liverpool and just six points above the relegation zone, though they are well placed to reach the last 16 of the Champions League despite the Bayern humiliation.

Levy said the club had been “extremely reluctant” to make the change, pointing at the poor domestic results.

The job done by Pochettino was all the more remarkable given the tight budget he was afforded by Levy for transfers and wages in comparison to Tottenham’s Premier League rivals, as the club built a new stadium at a cost of more than £1 billion (B38.968bn).

Instead, much of Pochettino’s success came from nurturing a squad of young players into household names such as Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen.

“I can’t thank this man enough,” Alli tweeted alongside a picture of Pochettino with the England international.

“He’s taught me so much and I’m so grateful for everything he’s done for me. Good luck and hope to see you again my friend.”

Spurs were forced to play at temporary home Wembley for the entirety of the 2017/18 campaign and most of last season before moving into their new 62,000 capacity ground in April.

The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust questioned Levy’s role in the diminishing results on the pitch.

“Is the manager solely accountable? How much has the board’s line on wages and transfers contributed to player unrest and disaffection?” THST said in a statement.

“Poch gave us many of our best moments as supporters, made Tottenham Hotspur a force to be reckoned with again, and forged a strong link with the fans. We will never forget the joy he brought us.”

Jose Mourinho (left) and Mauricio Pochettino, the man he has replaced at Tottenham. Photo: AFP

Sport

TRIATHLON

The Phuket News editor3@classactmedia.co.th

The 26th Laguna Phuket Triathlon “Race of Legends” this year once again features a strong pro athlete line up vying for US$20,000 (more than B600,000) prize purse on Sunday (Nov 24).

Headlining this year’s pro field is Michael Raelert (Germany), who holds “three-peat” LPT Championships, winning the gruelling event three times in succession from 2015-2017.

Raelert will be joined by Luke McKenzie (Australia), Ruedi Wild (Switzerland) who has double LPT wins in 2012 and 2013, Per van Vlerken (Germany), and Massimo Cigana (Italy), who currently holds four-time LPT champion status.

In the women’s field, sports fans will get to see top performances by LPT podium veteran Imogen Simmonds (Switzerland), whose recent impressive records include a great debut performance in Kona, third at the Nice World Championship and second at Frankfurt’s European Championship.

Simmonds will race neck and neck with Emma Pallent (UK) and Yvonne van Vlerken (Netherlands), the latter nicknamed “The Flying Dutchwoman”. Beth McKenzie (USA) will also be there adding to the strong pros lineup this year.

Thai triathletes will be led by Phuket-born Jaray Jearanai, who holds the record as LPT’s Thai champion for eight consecutive years

(since 2011) and recently broke his own record at the World Championship in Kona.

Asia’s longest-standing triathlon race, the Laguna Phuket Triathlon (LPT) comprises a 1.8km swim, 50km bike and 12km run in Asia’s premier destination resort Laguna Phuket area as well as various scenic locations in Phuket’s Thalang District.

The annual LPT weekend also now features a short-distance sprint triathlon race “25 For 25 Sprint” and the “LPT Charity Fun Run” (2km Kids Run, 5km and 10km Charity Run), which will take place in the late Saturday afternoon (Nov 23)

before the triathlon races on Sunday. Launched in 2018 in celebration of LPT’s 25th anniversary, the “25 For 25 Sprint” comprises a 0.5km swim, 18.5km bike and 6km run, totaling 25km. Last year the newly-launched sprint category sold out long before race day and saw a record-breaking number of participants, and raised more than B250,000 for Children First Fund (CFF) in support of more than 400 children at seven orphanages in Phuket.

Following last year’s success, Laguna Phuket Triathlon aims to double its charitable causes this year by also supporting Kao Kon La Kao,

Thailand’s largest charity run series, in support of hospitals nationwide.

“I’d like to thank all of the runners and triathletes who have participated in our annual sporting events, and our partners and sponsors whose support entitled Laguna Phuket Triathlon ‘Asia’s longest-standing triathlon race’ to its 26th edition this year,” Laguna Phuket Managing Director Ravi Chandran esaid at an event earlier this year.

“With our long-standing legacy, we realised that LPT’s value lies not only in being an award-winning triathlon race, but also in its success as a significant platform to raise

funds and awareness for meaningful charitable causes. Thus, I am delighted to announce that, in addition to the ‘Children First Fund’, we have added the ‘Kao Kon La Kao Foundation’ as charity partner this year. Every kilometre you run at LPT will become a B9 contribution to Kao,” he concluded.

Artiwara “Toon Bodyslam” Kongmalai, representing the Kao Kon La Kao Foundation, said, “It’s clear that Laguna Phuket and Kao Kon La Kao Foundation share similar vision in developing sustainable community and improving the quality of life. I’d like to also thank Laguna Phuket Triathlon and all runners at LPT Charity Fun Run this November for your support in raising more funds for Kao Kon La Kao Foundation to help hospitals in Thailand.”

As in previous years, athletes and participants in the Laguna Phuket Triathlon are encouraged to donate to Laguna Phuket Foundation for its ongoing local charitable causes such as “Fully Booked!” Mobile Learning Centre, Community Learning Centre, Laguna Phuket Kindergarten, Children First Fund, social enterprise restaurant “Seedlings Phuket” and many more.

This year Laguna Phuket Foundation aims to raise funds for the Children First Fund (CFF) to continue its nutritional support towards more than 400 orphans at seven orphanages in Phuket. Since the establishment in 2017 upon Laguna Phuket resort’s 30th anniversary celebration, CFF has been delivering food and sustenance to the seven orphanages in Phuket on a monthly basis.

Clockwise: Michael Raelert (Germany); Ruedi Wild (Switzerland); Massimo Cigana (Italy); Emma Pallant (UK); Yvonne van Vlerken (Netherlands) and Imogen Simmonds (Switzerland) will be among the forces to reckon with at the 26th Laguna Phuket Triathlon next Sunday (Nov 24).