C NTACT THE MAGAZINE OF THE BRITISH WOMEN’S GROUP BANGKOK
May 2021
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’s message Page 3
Diary Page 4
Book Club Pages 8-9
Chiang Mai Trip Part 3 Pages 12-14
April Coffee Pages 17-18
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 Chairman’s Message I hope that you were all able to enjoy in someway, the Songkran Break, We were incredibly lucky to go sailing in the Andaman Sea, and it was good to see local tourism on the increase at notable tourist destinations around the islands. The locals could certainly do with it. It was so lovely to see so many of you at our coffee morning at the Sheraton, especially our 2 new members, Catherine and Shirley. It was wonderful to hear the chatter of so many ladies catching up and enjoying themselves We will see what the next week or so brings in view of coffee mornings, lunches and activities for May. We will obviously keep you all updated via Mailerlite and Face Book postings. Look after yourselves and all stay very safe Welcome to the May issue of Contact magazine wherever you are in the world and hope that you all had a happy Easter and Songkran.
The magazine is not as full as it normally would be due to restrictions on activities in Bangkok but we do have part 3 of Jackie Reynolds’ excellent road trip in the north of Thailand and some really stunning photographs which accompany this article.
Hopefully activities and social events will resume again in the not-too-distant future and the content of the magazine will reflect this.
Happy reading! www.bwgbangkok.org
info@bwgbangkok.org
Contact April 2021
May Diary SUN
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3 Mah-jong
4 Bridge Golf
5 Mah-jong Art Group
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10 Mah-jong
11 Bridge Golf
12 Mah-jong Art Group
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17 Mah-jong
18 Bridge Golf
19 Mah-jong Art Group
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24 Mah-jong
25 Bridge Golf
26 Mah-jong Art Group
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31 Mah-jong
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 Golf - (morning) Sheona Jackson Bookworms - 1st Tuesday (10am) Jane Upperton Scottish Dancing - 1st Tuesday (7:30pm) Karen Burr Wednesday Mah-jong - (beginners welcome) (10am - 1pm) Art Group - Bistro 33 Sukhumvit Soi 33 (10am -12:30pm) Karin Worthington
Fast
t
n Convenie
behind a e d i Clinic. t e n h t a t s s i t n I a Th PD d’s new O a r g n u r Bum It is perfect for minor illnesses, prescription refills, preventive care including vaccinations, or a doctor’s note. Instead of waiting for hours on end you can see a doctor, settle the bill, receive your prescription and be on your way in under an hour. Simply scan the QR code to learn more about the new OPD Instant Clinic.
www.bumrungrad.com Contact Center: 0 2066 8888
nsive
e Compreh
Bookworms - May .
The Diary of Ann Frank Nine of us sat down to discuss this book and we benefited from input from two members who were overseas-and another unable to join us. We also welcomed back Frances who is from Holland and was able to add more unknowns to the story including recommending a book called ‘The Sisters of Auschwitz’ written by the sisters who knew Ann and her sister Margot for a few months in Bergen Belsen Concentration camp before the Frank girls died during a typhus outbreak just months before the end of the war. The Frank family lived in Germany but moved to Holland when things in Germany were deteriorating for the Jews. When the father Otto Frank saw things deteriorating similarly in Holland he planned for his family to go into hiding and so took them and also another family of three and a doctor that they knew. Ann used her diary to confide her private thoughts and descriptions of how these 8 people lived for more than two years until they were betrayed and sent to different destinations where they all, except Otto Frank, died in the space of a few months. Our book group quickly acknowledged their terrible plight briefly comparing it with today’s Covid lockdowns. We discussed their lack of privacy with Ann sharing a room with the Dr. in accommodation too small, the lack of a bath and having to use a shared toilet which sometimes could not be flushed because of the need for silence. Above all the terror of being discovered and their awareness of what was happening to their fellow Jews . They knew of the deportations and the gassing. The diary finished on the day of the last entry and we all knew the fate of Ann and her family and friends. Only Otto Frank - Ann’s Father survived and after he found the diary spent the rest of his life making sure Ann’s story was told. We did not score this book out of respect for Ann and her family and all the other Jews who suffered the same fate. We were also, above all, reluctant to score the writing of a thirteen year old girl cataloguing two terrible years of her life until she died at the age of 15. We all believe this is a must read for everyone.
Next pick - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - by Mark Hadden June pick -Into Thin Air - by John Krakauer Next meeting : Tuesday 10th May at 10 am at 28-06 Urbana, 55 Lang Suan . Chitlom
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.
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CHIANG MAI – CHIANG DAO - LAMPANG – LAMPHUN – CHIANG MAI 23rd December 2020 – 3rd January 2021 PART 3 - by Jackie Reynolds
CHIANG MAI – LAMPANG (2 NIGHT STAY) Well off again to check out more of this lovely part of Thailand, we made an early start for our road trip to Lampang. There are 2 routes and we took the longer scenic one which wound through gorgeous mountain scenery, also stopping off at Wat Chalerm Prakiat which is on the list of “10 Unseen Temples of Thailand”. Before reaching the temple we came across “The First Valley Coffee Academy” at the top of a steep mountain road and decided
to stop for a hot drink. I, not being a coffee drinker, happily enjoyed a very good hot chocolate. We initially thought it was just a café but it turned out to also be a guest house perched precariously on the edge of a deep valley. Being the nosey person that I am I decided to take a look inside one of the rooms and found they had one whole wall of glass with an amazing panoramic view. I’m hoping to stay there in the future when visiting my friend again.
Then it was on to the temple entrance at the base of the mountain that the stupas were perched on. To reach close to those we had to take an open truck. Be warned, if you don’t like heights this truck ride is pretty hairy to the upper level having a very steep incline with twists and turns. Of course even though there are “no tourists in Thailand” we still had to show proof that we lived here to get the local price of B90 as opposed to B200. From the next stage it was an 850m climb up wooden stairs to the very top. I’m happy to report that it was not as difficult as I had anticipated from the base. It was a fascinating place with stunning views for miles, certainly not your traditional idea of a Thai temple. Well worth visiting, I can see why it’s on the list.
We arrived at “The Riverside Guest House” in Lampang mid afternoon. The expression “Life is not about the destination it’s about the journey” seemed very fitting on this occasion.
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April Coffee at the Sheraton Hotel