C
NTACT
THE MAGAZINE OF THE BRITISH WOMEN’S GROUP BANGKOK
July 2019
BRITISH WOMEN’S GROUP The aim of the Group is to enable its members to meet socially, to welcome its new members and associate members to Bangkok and to establish a programme of social, welfare and cultural activities.
Contents
Directory Page 2
Chairman and Editor’s message Page 3
Diary Page 4
Visit to Maeklong Railway Market Page 6-7
July Coffee Page 8
July Lunch Page 10
Book Club Report Page 12
Queen’s Birthday Coffee Page 14
July Activity Page 16
D Day Service Pages 18-19
Welfare Report Pages 23-26
Editor contact@bwgbangkok.org Advertising advertising@bwgbangkok.org Please note that the deadline for advertisements is the 5th of the month prior to issue. Please contact advertising@bwgbangkok for more information. PLEASE NOTE : Contact is published as a service to our members to keep them informed of news and events within BWG. The accuracy of other information cannot be guaranteed and is not an endorsement by the group. This also applies to advertisements that are included in Contact in order to cover some of the production costs. Every effort is made to produce Contact in good time to reach members before the first scheduled meeting, but the editor cannot be held responsible for unavoidable delays caused by circumstance beyond their control. It is the members’ own responsibility to know when meetings are scheduled and to contact someone to check if any changes have been made. Members are also asked to bear in mind when booking actives that most venues are not deemed suitable for children over six months of age and to make appropriate child minding arrangements.
Chairman’s Message It is that busy time of year again, with many people preparing for eventful summer excursions, visiting their home countries to enjoy gatherings with family and friends. Always said to be a holiday but by the time you return, you need one! We had a special day on the 13th June at the British club celebrating Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s birthday, enjoying fizz and our annual game of bingo. Followed a few weeks later by an exciting combined lunch/activity to the railway market. A great adventure organised by our hard working activity and lunch ladies. So exciting to take part in a very different day but also enjoying a lunch together, a great idea to combine the two things. Thank you ladies. Although the next few months are somewhat fallow there are still activities and drop in coffee and lunches organised, so please check the the calendar and mailerites. May I take this opportunity to politely remind members that it is important to reply by the dates requested, as the ladies who have to organise catering are under pressure to give final numbers in advance. Date for your diary 6th July AMCHAM are running a picnic at Patana School. We will be supporting ANZWG with their The Friendship lunch on August the 28th. So watch for the advert.
Ailsa Kneath
BWG dates to save, Wine and Cheese 20th. September, an evening to celebrate the return to the Big Mango! Plus, I know it seems a long way off, but our Christmas Lunch this year will be held in 2nd December , so put it in the diary. A number of our members are moving or have moved on to pastures new over the next few months and I would like to thank everyone for their support and friendship to the BWG. We will miss you but wish you every happiness in your new adventures.
Thought for this month. Success is not a final, failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.
Welcome to the July issue of Contact. I hope that you enjoy reading about some of the exciting activities and work done by the BWG over the past month. For those of you leaving Bangkok to visit family and friends or just for a break somewhere a bit less busy, have an excellent time and ‘Happy Holidays’. For those of you leaving Bangkok for a new life elsewhere, we will miss you but wish you all the very best and hope that you will keep in touch at least through reading the Contact magazine to find out what has been happening here in Bangkok.
www.bwgbangkok.org
info@bwgbangkok.org
British Women’s Group Bangkok
Contact July 2019
July Diary SUN
MON
TUE
WED
THU
FRI
SAT
1 Mah-jong
2 Bridge Golf
3 Mah-jong Art Group
4
5
6
11
12
13
19
20
26
27
Newcomers coffee Bistro 33 10am
7
14
21
28
8 Mah-jong
9 Bridge Golf
10 Mah-jong Art Group
15 Mah-jong
16 Bridge Golf
17 Mah-jong Art Group
22 Mah-jong
23 Bridge Golf
24
29
30
31
Coffee Jamies Italian 10:30am
18 Lunch Royal Oak 12 noon
25 Activity visit to Jim Thompson House
Weekly/Monthly Activities You are invited to join these groups, but final approval is at the discretion of individual group leaders
Monday Mah-jong - (beginners welcome) (10am - 1pm) Tuesday Bridge - Audrie Sill Beginners/Intermediate Golf - (morning) Ann McKinnon Golf - (morning) Sheona Jackson Bookworms - 1st Tuesday (10am) Jane Upperton Scottish Dancing - 1st Tuesday (7:30pm) Karen Burr Wednesday Mah-jong - (beginners welcome) (1pm - 4pm) Art Group - Bistro 33 Sukhumvit Soi 33 (10am -12:30pm) Karin Worthington
JUNE ACTIVITY AND LUNCH
Visit to Maeklong Railway Market By Sue Davy
I had been back in Bangkok on holiday for just a week when I was kindly invited to join the outing to the amazing market at Maeklong. It had always been on my list of 'must dos" when we lived in Bangkok from 2000 to 2004. I never dreamed I would be doing the trip fourteen years after we left. I met the happy group who congregated at the Emporium Suites and felt immediately accepted and part of the gang. It reminded me of my initial BWG meeting when Vicky Smith , the then chairman, met me on Nana Station, took me along with her to the lunch and made this bewildered newcomer very welcome. Thankfully this tradition continues. Sue Williams had arranged for a minibus to take us to Ban Laem Railway Station , leaving at 8am, for a supposed journey of one and a half hours. We drove out on to Sukhumvit and hit one almighty traffic jam. Slowly, slowly we inched along, but everyone was in good spirits and there was lots of catching up and chatter. It became obvious that this was going to take a lot longer than the very generous time that Sylvia had estimated and planned for. She had arranged this trip many times before for visitors. Now we had to be patient and just hope that we would get to the station in time to catch the train at 10.10am. Stress levels were rising but fortunately I had my little bottle of Australian essential oils stress relief and that was used and well received by all. At last we drove down a narrow lane, saw the train and arrived at the station with two minutes to spare before the train left. I reckon that someone should organise a BWG Mini Olympics as at least half a dozen women on that outing could make a decent relay team. The relief was
palpable , the train and station staff were greatly amused by our athleticism, and I'm only sorry that there was no one filming the spectacle. The ride on a little train ,that could have well featured on Thomas the Tank Engine, took us through some lovely rural countryside for an hour and then Sylvia told us that we were approaching the market and to look out of the window but to make sure we didn't lean out. We could have touched the buildings as we pulled into the station and the stalls were so close. There were many visitors so we did some nice Royal waves at all those below.  We left the train and had a wander round the market, walking on the railway track to see the stalls that had been pushed back to let the train through. There were the usual sights, sounds and smells of a typical Thai Market and some interesting purchases were made. Our driver was waiting for us at midday and we drove to the picturesque and peaceful Asita Eco Resort where Sylvia had called ahead and ordered our lunch. As always, the simple things are greatly appreciated and a dash for the washrooms preceded a delicious and relaxing lunch. We left Asita and thankfully had a much better drive back to Emporium, arriving there at 3pm. I am pleased that I volunteered to write the report as it gives me the opportunity to relive the experience and to say thank you to my travelling companions and to Sue Jones for inviting me. Sylvia, you are a superb and great tour guide. Many thanks to you all for making this such a special day.
July Coffee Date : Thursday 11th July Time : 10:30am - 12noon Venue : Jamie’s Italian restaurant, ground floor, Siam Discovery. BTS Siam. Cost : Pay as you go. RSVP : to coffee@bwgbangkok.org by Monday 8th July
nspiring ndividuals At KIS International School all students can shine. The midsize, caring community allows KIS students to be confident and to be appreciated as an individual, with unique dreams and strengths. The school is a full IB school, offering the International Baccalaureate Programmes for all age groups (IB Primary Years Programme, IB Middle Years Programme and IB Diploma), ensuring an academically rigorous curriculum that not only prepares students to be successful at university, but also teaches important life skills. KIS, it’s all about Knowledge, Inspiration and Spirit. Check out the students’ videos to learn more about their passion www.kis.ac.th
Tel: +66 (0) 2274 3444 Email: admissions@kis.ac.th
“With the power of imagination, characters can actually fly off the page” Jun, Grade 11.
July Lunch
Drop in lunch at the Royal Oak Date - July 18th
Time - 12 noon
Location - Sukhumvit 33/1 Alley. BTS Phrom Phong
Don’t forget to let Laura or Ann(membership@bwgbangkok.org) know if any of your details change, or you leave us, so that they can keep the database and, of course members up to date with the latest information. If you use Facebook you can join the group : BWG Bangkok Women’s Group MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS Please note Membership renewals are due by the 30th September. The renewal fee is 1000 baht. Thank you everyone for all being such fantastic supporters of the BWG. Your membership is very much appreciated. Laura (membership@bwgbangkok.org)
Celebrating 60 Years A proud tradition of learning excellence
We oer a British-style education for an international community, from Nursery through to Graduation. Find out how our approach to learning and outstanding teaching sta develop global citizens who shape their world through independence, empathy, creativity and critical thinking. Contact us at admissions@patana.ac.th www.patana.ac.th | +66 (0) 2785 2200 | 643 Lasalle Road, Bangkok 10260
Bangkok Patana is a not-for-profit, IB World School, accredited by CIS and NEASC
Bookworms - June 1. Bangkok Wakes to Rain - Pitchaya Sudbanthad This is a book that immerses the reader in everyday and past Bangkok and resonances with anyone who lives or has ever lived here. We didn’t feel that this was a book for everyone One comment ‘It’s funny to read a book about somethings we live every day’ The first page gives a clue -‘The last few children in blue and white uniforms have finished their after school work and are plodding in gangs or.... alone’ A book that people who have. never lived here might struggle to read. It wasn’t an easy book as it jumped around through events and years. It centres on an old house through which the stories become linked. Each separate story explores an aspect of life in Bangkok of which some of us were unaware but knew something of - Eg the story of competitions on the giant swing. Another chapter started with a construction of a block of flats and one of the workmen dying in an accident as is sometimes the case / the story is then about readying the flats to let and then one of the prospective tenants sensing the death of the builder and refusing to rent there. A good summary would be - Time collapses as their stories collide and converge, linked by blood, memory yearning, nance and the forces voraciously making and remaking the amphibian ,ever morphing city itself. Scores - 7/10 from 4 people who read the book. 8/10 - 1 2. Lethal White - Robert Galbraith (aka J. K. Rowling) This is the fourth in the Cormoran Strike detective series written by J. K. Rowling under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith. We continue to follow the story of Cormoran Strike, a private detective and army veteran with a somewhat shambolic lifestyle and back story and his assistant Robin, ambitious but with a certain vulnerability and a marriage which is in crisis. Whilst this book could be read as a stand-alone detective story, the previous novels do reveal the lives and relationships of the two main protagonists. In Lethal White, following an encounter with a mentally ill young man who asks Strike to investigate a murder that he witnessed as a child, Strike comes into contact with and is subsequently hired by an MP, Jasper Chiswell to investigate blackmail which is threatening to destroy his parliamentary career. Strike and Robin, beset by misinformation and Chiswell family secrets, attempt to work their way through the case: murder ensues. As with the other Strike novels, this is excellently written, the characters of Strike and Robin are compelling and the reader wants to know what will happen to them. In the meantime for lovers of this genre of writing, like me, there is the trail of detection, wrong turns and danger to keep you hooked. I sincerely hope that the next instalment will be published in the not too distant future. Scores - 7/10 - 2, 8/10 - 1, 9/10 - 1
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Queen’s Birthday Coffee at the British Club
BCTFN British Community in Thailand Foundation for the Needy (Under the auspices of the British Embassy, Bangkok)
SAVE THE DATE
PLOENCHIT FAIR 2019 Saturday 30th November 2019 At
Bangkok Patana School
643 La Salle Road (Sukhumvit 105), Bangna, Bangkok 10260
We hope to see you at the Fair to help us raise funds for Thai Charities Raffle, Rides, Games, Shopping, International Food & Drink Plus Live Bands and Entertainment
591/17 Sukhumvit Road Soi Villa Bangkok 10110 Tel: 02 2041587 bctfn@loxinfo.co.th www.ploenchitfair.org
www.facebook.com/ploenchitfairbkk
JULY ACTIVITY Date: - Thursday July 25th Time: - We will meet at Asok BTS station at 10.30 am from where we will take the BTS to Jim Thompson’s house, a 5 minute walk from the National Stadium BTS station. Venue: -
Jim Thompson House and Museum
Details: -The Jim Thompson House is a museum housing the art collection of American businessman and architect Jim Thompson. The house was built in 1959 to showcase the art collection of Jim Thompson as well as being his home. The property spans a rectangular rai of land and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Bangkok, sporting vibrant jungle foliate in the heart of the city. Once we have viewed the house, we will have lunch in the renowned restaurant. Directions: - See above Cost: - Entry fee 200 bht per person. Lunch and transport at own cost.
Deadline (to book): - Tuesday 23rd July 2019 Contact: - activities@bwgbangkok.org
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D-Day Service at Christ Church Bangkok By Joan Bartlett
As Gale Bailey MBE was unable to attend the Service of the 75th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings, she asked Jane Rodgers to represent her. I accompanied Jane, as my husband had served 30 years in the Army and also I lived in Kent when German bombers flew overhead to bomb London! The service was held at Christ Church, Convent Road and was like any Royal British Legion service in any church in the United Kingdom. There were a number of familiar faces from the BWG and other groups in Bangkok. Present also was the British Ambassador plus Ambassadors and representatives from Australia, New Zealand, America and many European countries. They all laid poppy wreaths during the service.
There were a number of children in the congregation from some of the International Schools here in Bangkok. The Shrewsbury School Choir performed beautifully with one young student singing a solo in German. A representative from each of the schools present laid a wreath. There were a lot of Thai children amongst the school groups and they must have wondered at us when we sang so lustily ‘I vow to thee my country’ and the British National Anthem. The service was taken by the new vicar Rev. Norman Jones who I thought spoke very clearly.
After the service we were then provided with snacks, courtesy of the Black Swan and then a few of us then went to Bistro 33 where a free buffet lunch was given and a video was shown of the landings in 1944. Army bands and the badges of some regiments or corps were displayed, unfortunately my husband’s badge was not there, but my son’s was!!
It brought back many happy memories to me of the life I led as a military wife.
Festival of Lights
July Welfare News
By Liz Dobson
Recent Welfare Happenings The British Women’s Group is primarily a social group, but a by-product of our get-togethers, is our welfare function. Things are set up so that money collected in the alms bowl that we pass at our coffees and lunches, the profit from raffles and money from the sale of secondhand books at the Royal Oak all goes into our welfare fund. We have an Annual Giving Calendar which is comprised annual amounts that we give to various charities, organisations and sponsorships that we have committed to. The cracker group also donate their profits to favourite charities. Obviously all of these donations can only be made if we have the funds. In the past two months the welfare coffers were swelled especially by the amount raised from the raffle at our 50th Anniversary/Combined Women’s Lunch and also by the Guess the Amount in the bottle that we ran that day. The money in that bottle, (B6,291 in case you wondered) kindly donated by Lynne Musson, also made for a larger than usual alms bowl contribution to funds. We sent our annual donations to the Ruth Center for rice for the elderly, to the Little Birds Foundation which provides a safe house for HIV positive young people now too old to be in care and to Camillion House a home and day care for disabled children. We also sponsored a young autistic person being trained for employment at Steps with Theera. Steps is where we hold the monthly welfare meetings (usually the last Wednesday morning of the month) in Ekami Soi 10 and they serve excellent coffee, come and try it. We had a couple of extra appeals recently and we sent a donation to the Mercy House Foundation towards uniforms for some of the children and also to Project L.I.F.E. so they could put up protective netting in their garden at Ban SaiLom. We also sent a donation to The British Legion on the 75th Anniversary of DDay. Hope you are interested to see what happens to your money. Don’t forget to pop into the Royal Oak and stock up on reading matter.
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PLF-SaiLom 1.33/54 Moo 3, Sukhaprachasarn Road 1, Pakkret, Pakkret, Nonthaburi 1.1.120 THAILAND
May 29,2019 Dear Gale and BWG,
Thank you for your prompt assistance to purchase equipment that would help us with our gardening project at Ban Sailom. All of our members presently come from Rachawadee Boys Home and they all enjoy watering our plants and seeing them grow. We noticed this year that our vegetables were drying up fast and going brown so the frame and sun screen that we can set up with the help of your donation will allow the plants to stay green. Protected from the heat the seeds we plant will lre able to grow up to vegetables we can eat! We use our garden's vegetables in our cooking classes at Ban Sailom and Rachawadee Boys home. The 9,000 baht was transferred from the bank where it was deposited into the Project L.LF.E. Foundation's (PLF) account that is used for Sailom (Suppofting and Advocating for Inclusive Living Opportunities Ministry). Please find the receipt 586129270 attached. Many thanks from all of us at Sailom,
[Uu Dorothy Klynstra PLF-SaiLom