FEB 2015
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Coming Events
Viking Wheelers: Around Bangphra Reservoir 21 February 2015 The Viking Wheelers will on 21 February repeat one of its classic rides which goes around the Bangphra Reservoir near Si Racha organized by Finn Soerensen. The Vikings plan to split into two groups, one riding a little faster and a little longer than the not so fast guys. The plan is to meet somewhere near Bangphra/Si Racha at about 9 am, do the cycling and return to the meeting place followed by lunch. Contact Finn Sorensen (finn@caretex. dk) for details if you wish to join.
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Swedish DJ star headlines new music festival in Bangkok By Joakim Persson
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S
tece Angello, a Swedish DJ-star, is now bound for Bangkok following his recent performance at the sell-out ZoukOut Festival 2014 in December in Singapore. The artist/DJ/remixer will headline the first ‘Maya Music Festival’ on 7 March 2015. Steve Angello is in particular known as a member of the former trio Swedish House Mafia. The event will take place in Northern Bangkok and is described as a world-class festival of Thai arts and electronic music. It is organised by Thailandbased FEEL Corporation with the support from the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). ‘Maya Music Festival: A Miracle of Art, Magical of Sound’ brings a combination of the miracle of Eastern arts and the magical of Western electronic music to the world’s first Naga-theme stage, featuring a state-of-the-ar t production and the legendary Steve Angello. In total four internationally renowned and four local DJs will perform including
Markuz Schulz, Paullie and Ono. Set to showcase the distinct characteristic of the Thai people and the nation’s cultural assets or “Thainess”, the festival is in line with TAT’s new campaign. The elaborately designed Naga-theme stage will play a part in presenting the unique Thai fine arts to the global scene. The story of the King of Naga under the majestic Chao Phraya River will be told on a 20-metre height stage designed by one of Thailand’s top architects. The Maya Music Festival will also be held in Shanghai, Sydney and New York in 2015. The first Maya Music Festival takes place at the 11th Infantry Regiment, King’s Guard (Rab 11) in Bangkhen, Bangkok. The event venue is designed to hold 1,500 seats in the VIP zone and up to 25,000 people in the regular zone. For more info: www.mayamusicfestival.com
February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 5
News Brief
Marimekko opens stores in Bangkok, Singapore Photo: Marimekko
Danish Ambassador to Thailand Mikael H Winther (fourth from left) is among guests who attend the grand opening of Bang & Olufsen flagship store at Gaysorn Plaza. Photo courtesy of Bang & Olufsen Thailand.
Bang & Olufsen opens flagship store at Gaysorn Plaza
D
anish owned HW Trading Co., Ltd., Thailand’s new exclusive distributor of Denmar k’s iconic audiovisual electronic brand, Bang & Olufsen, unveiled its flagship store at Gaysorn Plaza at a grand opening in the evening of January 22. The par ty was attended by Who’s Who on Bangkok’s A-listers and enthusiastic fans of B&O products, the embodiment of ultra luxury lifestyle. On hand to welcome guests were Kenneth Hovmoller and Peter Waagensen, who are determined to relaunch this top-tier Danish brand with distinctive aesthetics, cutting-edge technologies and
uncompromising quality, to reach out to well-established customer base as well as to the younger generations of sophisticated consumers. The B&O store in Thailand is the third in the world - after Shanghai and New York City - to feature Beoplay lifestyle products as part of the concept store, alongside B&O main line of home entertainment systems. Beoplay products are positioned at lower- to mid-market as an entry point for new generations of younger people to familiarize themselves with quality lifestyle products that are as well-designed as they are pleasing to look at.
O
pportunities afforded by the growing consumer markets of Asia play an impor tant role in Marimekko’s internationalisation. Over the past three years, new markets have been opened up in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, and the Marimekko stores in Asia have doubled in number. Marimekko is continuing its expansion in Asia. Retailer-owned Marimekko stores will be opened in the major Southeast Asian metropolises of Singapore and Bangkok in spring 2015.The intention is to open more stores in the next few years. The for thcoming store in Singapore will be in an excellent business location in the new Capitol Piazza mall. A Marimekko shop-in-shop was already opened in November 2014 at the famous
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6 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
Tangs depar tment store, whose international peers include, for example, Bloomingdale’s of New York and London’s Selfridges. The Bangkok store will be opened in one of the city’s biggest and busiest shopping centres, Central World, which attracts as many as 150,000 customers a day. “In our expansion in the international marketplace, we have focused fir st and foremost on regions with high growth potential. The Asia-Pacific region is our second-largest market area, and we already have a fairly strong foothold in East Asia. We are now aiming for two new markets in Southeast Asia as Marimekko stores are opened in Singapore and Bangkok in the spring,” says Mika Ihamuotila, President and CEO. “Singapore is a modern metropolis and very attractive to us, as it is considered one of the region’s top shopping destinations for tourists. As an aviation gateway it also serves as an access point to many Asian countries, and the city receives an enormous number of travellers.The capital city of Thailand, Bangkok, is in an interesting stage of development from the retail viewpoint. A number of high-class malls have been opened in the city recently, and it is rising to be a noteworthy rival to Singapore and Hong Kong,” Ihamuotila continues. Half of the new Marimekko stores opened in 2014 were in the Asia-Pacific region: two in Hong Kong, one in Chengdu in mainland China, two in Seoul in South Korea, and two in Japan. In Australia, Marimekko opened a companyowned store in Melbourne. Two further shop-in-shops were opened, one in New Zealand and another in Singapore.
February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 7
C
hr ist Church was once again filled with Scandinavian residents in Thailand in the afternoon of Christmas Eve on 24 December 2014. The special ser vice during which the gospel is read in your own tongue - with other parts being read in other Nordic languages - is a very old arrangement at first initiated by Scandinavian Society Siam with the vicar of Christ Church holding the sermon. It may date as far back as to the second World War during which the Danish community were caretakers of the British institutions in Bangkok while the British had either managed to escape or - if they had been too self confident - were laying down railway tracks in Kanchanaburi or “comforting” Japanese officers at hotels in Bangkok. Today, Scandinavian Society Siam is still part of the event, but since the establishment of a Church of Sweden in Bangkok, the association has taken a step back and only provides for a Merry Christmas glass of wine in the Church yard after the service. This year, the service was conducted by vicar Lars Ryderstad. The gospel was ready by Danish Consul Birgit Sarah Kondrup-Palmqvist Carlstedt, Norwegian Einar Davis, Swedish Per-Anders Andersson and - instead of Palli Steinarsson Icelandic Consul Poul Weber. The psalms were accompanied by organist Mabel Bandgren who also accompanied solo singer Trudi Carleson who enter tained three times during the service and was rewarded with a big applause after her last performance. Claus Gundersen, Scandinavian Society Siam’s treasurer, was host at the get-together outside the Church. After the service a Finnish service was held.
Traditional Christmas Service in Bangkok
by Gregers Moller Photos Disraporn Yatprom
8 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
Scandinavian
Christmas Bazaar 2014 raised funds for 101 surgeries By Saana Haataja
F
or the second year in a row Scandinavian Ladies, their international friends and ISB High School ‘Kids Action for Kids’ Club organized a Scandinavian themed Christmas Bazaar to raise funds for surgeries to Thai children born with a cleft palate, a cleft lip and other facial deformities. This special fundraiser event took place in Nichada on a sunny Saturday, just before the first advent. The long-waited day finally arrived with excitement for two reasons: firstly, will all the hard work from the past months pay-off and secondly,… will the Santa Claus find his way to Nichada? The preparations had started already in May, following up with product testing, several crafts workshops for children and adults, raffle tickets selling and a lot of baking among other things. The working team really wanted to make sure this year’s bazaar would be even bigger and better than last year. But really, no matter a person’s age, the possibility of seeing Santa Claus face-to-face was probably again the most thrilling of all. The bazaar did, in fact, look amazing by spreading to several stalls upstairs of Nichada Plaza mall. Just the crafts stalls with flowerpots, lanterns, julegubbar, ornaments, reindeer families, wooden Christmas trees, Christmas prints and so on took several tables. During the whole day the Café hardly had one table free as cakes, cookies, Norwegian style hot dogs disappeared to mouths of visitors, of whom some spent several hours at the bazaar being entertained by the different activities. In the end of the day the Bazaar Leader Anne Gry Ranchill could not have had a bigger smile on her face: “The idea was to create some Nordic
Christmas spirit to Bangkok and have many people share this unique experience with us. Now I can tell, this year we had a record number of small and bigger visitors joining us for playful games, creative workshops, Christmas treats, and for bringing season’s greetings to others with gifts and decorations. What came to Santa Claus, he did find his way to us on time despite all traffic congestion in the Bangkok air space. It seemed the Santa Claus had waited for seeing the children as much the children had waited for him - Santa’s corner was constantly filled with shy smiles, heartening hugs and secretive whispers to the Santa’s ear”. The bazaar team sends its warmest thanks to all generous people and companies for their incredible contributions. The Scandinavian Christmas Bazaar and Raffle were able to raise a net result of THB 1.265.821, which with Dtac’s match will be enough to give to 101 children born with a cleft lip and/or a cleft palate the muchneeded surgeries. This result is very significant to Kids Action for Kids’ work in helping the lessprivileged children whose healthcare system does not support them, and whose families cannot afford the corrective surgery. A very warm THANK YOU to all of you and Happy holiday season! Watch a short-film of the four brave families who let Kids Action for Kids share their stories with you. Please meet Lak, Ou, Google, Rin and Ohm: http://youtu.be/uXNCMHFDdt8 Follow Kids Action for Kids’ current projects: www.kidsactionforkids.org and Facebook www.facebook.com/kidsactionforkids
FACT BOX
O
ne out of every 700 babies in Thailand is born with cleft lip or cleft palate. These kids are often unable to eat, speak, socialize and smile, and their families can often not afford to pay for an operation. Kids Action for Kids (KAFK) organization works in close cooperation with Operation Smile Thailand (OST), which takes care of the medical part, and Dtac, which matches every Thai baht it raises. Since founded in 2009, KAFK has conducted more than 500 surgeries in Thailand. Currently KAFK is in process of completing 120 surgeries at Maharat Nakorn Ratchasima Hospital in Korat Province. In 2015 KAFK’s goal is to raise funds to double the number of surgeries. KAFK will continue with 120 new surgeries in Thailand, and enter Myanmar and target 120 surgeries there, too. February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 9
Arla establishes
new business region in Asia
A
rla chose Kuala Lumpur as location for new regional Head Quarters ser ving China and all of South East Asia Arla Foods is integrating its markets in China and South East Asia in a new regional market called Business Unit Asia. The regional office will be placed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as of March 1st 2015. Asia is vital to Arla’s ambitions to grow and to increase earnings for its cooperative farmer-owners in Europe. As the world’s fastest growing economic region with a raw milk deficit and a total population of 2.3 billion people, Asia holds great potential for dairy export, in particular for family nutrition products. China is a strategic growth market for Arla, while South East Asia (SEA) has been identified as a region, which could potentially become a new strategic growth market. The expectation is that revenue for the region will exceed 1 billion Euro within the next five years. The consumer needs in China and SEA have many similarities and therefore possible synergies within brand and product portfolio, marketing and innovation. “In close cooperation with our par tner Mengniu, we have developed our market in China. We have gained impor tant experience and insight, which will be levers to accelerate our expansion in Asia. We have strengthened our presence in several SEA countries and
it’s time to move the senior management and main leadership functions to the region,” says Executive Vice President Finn Hansen, head of Arla Foods’ business group, Consumer International. The new Business Unit Asia management will be based in a regional office in Kuala Lumpur and will be setting the strategy for all retail and food service activities in Asia. The unit will cover the Chinese retail sales through the partnership with Mengniu Dairy China as well as the SEA market. During 2014, Arla has established or strengthened the countr y management in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar and Philippines, and these as well as the management in Japan and South Korea and distributor sales in SEA will all report to the regional office.
New head of Asia To head Arla’s new Business Unit Asia Jesper Colding is appointed as Senior Vice President as of March 1st. Jesper is currently holding a position in the executive management of Mengniu Dair y China as Vice President for Marketing. From 2009 to 2012, Jesper Colding was Senior Vice President in Global Categories in Arla with responsibility for cheese and the BSM category. Earlier in his career, he was based in Malaysia as associate director in P&G with sales and marketing responsibility for Malaysia and Singapore. “Jesper has a broad strategic and commercial
The market for one of Arla’s key products, cheese, is expanding rapidly in all the countries in Asia. It started with mozarella for pizza’s but today the taste has become much more sophisticated. Photo: Chris Buecheler. 10 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
Jesper Colding is appointed head of Arla’s new Business Unit Asia.
experience and an in-depth knowledge of the consumers in both China and South East Asia. I am confident that he is the right profile to continue the development of China even further and to lead both the new regional team and country managers to a successful delivery of growth in Asia,” says Finn Hansen. Jesper Colding is excited to relocate to Kuala Lumpur to take up a new challenge for Arla: “Asia holds so much potential. There is a growing affluence among people and they are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of good health and choice of nutrition. We will build on the great foundation that has been created to refine our approach to the market in order to accelerate delivery of the strategic ambition. I am fortunate to have the oppor tunity to lead the next phase of Arla’s journey in a region I have lost my heart to.” Current head of Ar la’s Business Unit China, Frede Juulsen, will take up a new role in Arla, which includes responsibility for TPM (Third Party Manufacturing), Global Infant Milk Formula and the Supply Chain in Consumer International.
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February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 11
Erika to teach Malays how to
“Fika”
With a Masters Degree in International Relations and an ambition to start an NGO in Malaysia, opening a Swedish “fika” café in Georgetown might not seem like the obvious choice for Erika Teng, none the less Erika has chosen this, as a way to inspire people in Malaysia and as her first step on the road to start an NGO. By Lasse Henriksen
When Erika’s cafe “Fika” opened on the 17th of January, this counter was full of semla, cinnamon buns and other Swedish pastry.
I
n a narrow lane of moldy looking colonial shop houses in the UNESCO heritage neighborhood of Georgetown there is a house with a fresh painted facade. At first glance this looks like any other of the few newly painted houses on the street, but if you study the small painted frieze on the building you will see an elk and what appears to be blackberries. Here in an anglo-oriental atmosphere from the 19th century the 32 year old Swede Erika Teng is opening a Swedish themed café. “I don’t want a trendy or hyped café. I want a café with a relaxed atmosphere, a café that welcomes everyone as they are. I want to make sure local people can afford to go to, so the prices won’t be too high,” Erica says. This approach is in contrast to a lot of the cafés in photogenic Georgetown, where you will find cafes as the #SelfieCoffee, where baristas paint pictures and logos on the coffee foam.This is a city where a lot of newly opened cafés seem to focus on interior design and where the cakes tend to look better than they taste. But Erica has another mission, even though the café is quite stylish with a row of retro window shutters decorating a wall, simplistic white surfaces and pinewood details, she wants people to come for the social experience rather than the visual. She wants people to come for the so called “fika” experience. “Fika is usually one of the first words you learn when you come to Sweden, it means sitting down having a break together with friends, colleagues or family, having a cup of coffee and a cake, and then talk about things. It can be just ordinary things or political, and I really feel that in Sweden the coffee break, either with your friends or at work, is where things actually gets decided and evolves,” Erika says.
Pastry of change The good talks that Erika knows from the Fika-tradition are very important to her. She wants the café to be more than a café. It should be a source of inspiration to Malays, by showcasing Swedish culture and values through posters and small cards with facts about Sweden. A fact like there is free education in Sweden, the percentage of men that goes on maternity leave and similar information that might surprise locals and show them that there are many ways to build a society. “It’s not about showing that Sweden is the best country in the world, and that we do it the right way. I think every country should develop its own way. But it is important that young people feel that they can make a change or difference,” Erica says. 12 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
Q&A People starting to discuss gender issues or social inequality in Malaysia, rather than taking selfies, is not going to happen by itself. The main tool to secure this is to disconnect the Wi-Fi and have chat with people that are surprised that they can’t get online. Erika knows that she, in many ways, are more privileged than the average Malay, but she hopes that a good talk can show locals that it is possible to do things in new ways and inspire them to become active players in the society rather than spectators.
Let’s talk cake Well, coffee is coffee, and even though Erika plans to sell a European rosted fair trade version, the main focus is on the pastry. Even though the menu will be constantly changing and the recipes adjusted a bit to suit the Malay taste, some things will stay the same. There will always be sugarfree options baked with natural sweeteners, some of the pastry will be baked using whole grain flour and of course classics like Semla or the Swedish cinnamon bun will stay on the menu throughout the year. In addition to cakes, the café will ser ve traditional Swedish breakfast with homemade müesli youghur t, bread with cheeses, shrimp sandwich and possibly also a cold salmon sandwich. The light interior is inspired by the simplicity of modern Scandinavian design, but Erika have learned that with Malaysia’s bright sun, it can be blinding if every surface is painted white. When the cafe opens, there will be cards with facts about Swedish society on the tables.
The family gets it Erika is married to Malay man with Chinese ancestry, and she has used his family to test what pastry they like and to see if the family approved of the “fika” concept. The family turned out to be a valuable source of feedback. Even though she felt they were being a little harsh in the beginning, her husband explained to her, that the criticism was actually a positive thing. “The more they talk about it, the more they like it. Because then they think it can actually be improved to be really good. So they just want to hint you in the right direction. If it is hopeless they won’t say anything,” Erika says. The family has also embraced the talking and togetherness of the traditional fika. Gathering the family is not a new thing, but traditionally they have done it over dinner and not a cup of coffee. Erika opened her café named Fika on January the 17th and she hopes that this will just be the first step of a larger journey. It is located in Lorong Toh Aka number 20. “When I moved here my main purpose was to do something for the society. I thought how do I start up a NGO in Malaysia from scratch, I need to know more about the place and to get in contact with people, and so I got the idea of opening up a café to start with and then it can evolve to more than just being a café,” Erika says.
Reader profile of the month
Jan
Jørgensen
J
an Jørgensen is a 48 years Dane. He is the Managing Director of Atlas Pearls & Perfumes and moved to Indonesia in 1994 because of a job opportunity in the pearling industry. As a child in Nykøbing Falster he was fascinated watching and reading about pearl divers sinking into the deep blue. Jan studied Aquaculture in Perth, Western Australia, and star ted his pearling career in Kupang, West Timor. Now 20 years into his Indonesian adventure he lives on Bali with his wife and their two boys.
Working in Indonesia has taught me... infinite patience and religious tolerance, to the degree where I can’t see how otherwise I would ever have developed such tolerance. A major part of our operations is to develop relationships and ultimately agreements with local communities surrounding our remote pearl farms and this is very much the most crucial aspect of operating here in Indonesia. The best thing about doing business in Indonesia is... the process of developing trust, once you have trust then you are friends and partners for life, very loyal and hardworking people. In Indonesia I could do without.. the pollution there is so much more we can do to help steer this in a better direction. My best advice to a newcomer in Indonesia... is to first observe and never to think that business can be done by taking shortcuts and without permits. Work within the rules and regulations and always calculate in benefits to the traditional stakeholders. Since 1994 Indonesia has... changed in unbelievable ways, I relied mainly on ferries to get around the various islands but occasionally used airplanes which back then had open policy in terms of allowing smoking inside the cabin(not something I ever want to re live). These days flying around Indonesia
have become a much smoother experience. To have seen the Indonesian middle class gather pace so quickly, ownership of cars, motorbikes and houses and having expendable income is an incredible achievement. Living outside of Scandinavia has made me realize... that it takes all races, religions and beliefs to make this world go around, regardless of who we are we all have very similar needs and concerns in regards to profession, family and life in general. Since I became an expat Danish traditions have... become somewhat limited but we do maintain traditional meals for Christmas and Bali being so packed with variety I am able to sneak in some marzipan and nougat on occasion! I have known many Scandinavians during my time in Indonesia, there have been some real characters living in very remote parts of the country and it is amazing to see how they always tend to keep a slice of their home traditions and values with them wherever they go. In Indonesia I have picked up the habit... of drinking “mud coffee”, this is what I call it anyway using a table spoon of “kopi kapal api” and letting it settle in a large glass of boiling water and of course having a good selection of Batik Shirts when meeting representatives from the government. I go home to Scandinavia.. hardly ever, the last time I was home I was invited by my Grandfather to stay at his home, even though this was in June I gave in after the first night and asked if I could move a mattress into his sauna, once set at 25 degrees I was able to finally sleep without freezing. I doubt I will be able to return to Denmarks climate after my time in Indonesia. Eventually I want to leave for Australia... because my Parents are based in Perth and our 2 boys are very close to their Grandparents, Perth is where we had a home for over 10 years and have returned for holidays to visit family and friends so definitely Perth is on our radar.
February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 13
Agneta’s World
“Once upon a Milkshake”
T
his sounds more or less like the beginning of a fairytale and in one way, it could be. What is so special about milkshakes you might ask and I asked the same, when I met the owner of the milkshake bar “Once upon a Milkshake”. This relatively new Milkshake bar is located in Siam Paragon on the G level in the food court.You can hardly miss it, the purple color of the bar really sticks out. As I am allergic to diary products and only can taste small amounts of diary products, I have never really been into Milkshakes. When I see people drinking them, I’ve always wanted to try as they are colorful and stimulating, but until a few days ago, I’ve never tried one. Milkshakes have just recently become popular in Thailand. The Thai people have avoided diary products as many just don’t feel well eating them and are not used to it. Since Swensen’s , Starbucks and Cold stones entered the Thai market, more and more Thais have become familiar with milkshakes and it has become a popular snack among young people. “Once upon a Milkshake” is a Singaporean brand that makes “real milkshakes”. “What does that mean”? I asked the owner. He explained, “most milkshakes contain ice, but this brand use only soft ice cream. It’s in fact, more correct to call the drinks containing ice Frappe instead of milkshake”. Now we know. At “Once upon a Milkshake”, you can order among many different tastes and they are all named after fairy tale characters. Daniel and I enjoyed the bubblegum shake topped with colorful candies and with a rich taste. I also asked the owner how many milkshakes he approximately sells during a day and he answered, “around 50 cups/day, but the goal is 150 cups during an average day”. My advice, when you are shopping at Siam Paragon, take your time and visit Once upon a Milkshake, enjoy the richness and flavors of the different shakes and you will find new and more energy to shop away…
Daniel Herron 14 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
Agneta de Bekassy
Dusit Thani’s
new top floor restaurant
T
Nick Ramirez, new chef at 22 Kitchen & Bar.
he other day, Daniel and I walked into Hotel Dusit Thani and wanted to take a look at the newly decorated restaurant 22 Kitchen & Bar. This restaur ant offer s a great view overlooking the Lumpini Park. It’s a light and cool restaurant with sofas in the color turquoise, light wooden tables and a big bar. Here we met with the interesting and good looking chef, Mr. Nick Ramirez, who has only been in Bangkok a few months. Nick tells us that he was born on Maui, Hawaii, father Latin American, quite obvious when you see his olive skin and dark brown eyes. This young man is only 27 years old, but has already collected a good amount of experience. He has worked as Sous Chef on the opening team of the Wine Cask in California, USA. There he developed a passion for food integrity and a sharp eye for details. He was also joining the team as Chef de Cuisine at El Encanto by Orient Express, located on Santa Barbara’s Riviera and helped opening the restaurant Blue Tavern, before he decided to go back to Wine Cask. “I am in fact a restaurant guy, which should not be compared with Chef de Cuisine,” Nick says modestly. Today Nick is serving and introducing Pacific coastal cuisine to his guests. He prefers to cook seafood, but when asked which dish he likes most, he answers that “all my dishes on the menu are good!” It’s kind of Hawaiian style. Hawaiian food is a unique history of influence from China, Japan, Korea and Portugal.
Photos Daniel Herron
We also get to know that he is a dedicated soccer player and he has played for a Rumanian team. He had no idea about Asia before he came here, but he is impressed by the friendly Thai people and he likes the culture a lot. I had to ask if he also likes the Thai food and he answers quick, “Yes, I think Thai food has great flavors”. Nick is still a bachelor, but I wonder for how long???? Why not having dinner at 22 Kitchen & Bar? I’m sure you will not be disappointed. The 22 Kitchen & Bar is well worth a visit.
Ice cream for desert After every good meal, you might fancy a dessert. If you are close to Central Embassy, I would recommend you to go for an ice cream at NITROGENIE, a magic Ice Cream store.This is the first place in Bangkok that makes ice cream with nitrogen and the concept comes from Australia. You will see this little store from far away, as it comes like clouds of smoke from the shop. These ice creams have a heavenly taste, so delightful and it almost feels like they have no calories, but that is, of course, not true. When you inject nitrogen, the ice cream freezes instantly and is not allowing any crystals to form. That is what makes the texture so smooth and creamy. There are many different flavors to try and I went for a Nutella scoop and it tasted like more. Give it a try!
February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 15
Agneta’s World
From shakes to cocktails at
Wolff’s Jazz Bar!
A
while ago I found out, that one of my neighbors just opened up a small bar at Sukhumvit Soi 11. As most of you know, soi 11 is crowded with bars and restaurants and my first thought was, help, not another bar……. This bar is called Wolff ’s and doesn’t only offer the obligatory beverages; it also provides you with international top jazz musicians. When Daniel and I paid a visit one late evening, two well known musicians, the Dane saxophonist Jakob Dinesen and the guitarist, US born Daniel Phillips were entertaining the guests. The guitarist Daniel and I already met when he and a band performed at the Swiss embassy last year. I am not a big fan of modern jazz, but I have to admit that these guys are real professionals and know how to play. I think that this kind of jazz you have to understand and get familiar with before you really can enjoy it. On that same evening, the owner of the bar Mr. Harlan Wolff and his wife were present and Mr. Wolff had just introduced his second book, “Bangkok rules” to the visitors.This author has lived in Thailand since 1977 and his grandfather was a Swedish children’s book author. The books Mr. Wolff writes are as far as possible from a children’s story. With a background as a private investigator in Thailand, his books tell us about the red districts, crimes, sex, drugs, alcohol, you just name it…he also admits that he once upon a time was one of those “wild and crazy guys.” Today he has calmed down and is a dedicated family father with young children. I can certify that as I on and off see him playing around with the kids. If you want to find out about his” interesting” former life, you can order his books at Amazon’s, buy them at Asia Bookstores or just stop by the bar. You can also email him if you would like a signed copy, harlanwolff@hush.com Daniel and I were given a signed book each when we met Harlan and I have just started to read it and I promise you, it’s a crazy, gritty and real account of a Bangkok based PI’s milieu….to use Harlan’s own words. Drop by the bar, enjoy a drink or two, have supper (the bar also have a restaurant) and then go back home and start to read BANGKOK RULES! My suggestions for this month. 16 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
Photos Daniel Herron
Garden International School Sathorn, Bangkok
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February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 17
Sweden’s Ambassador to Malaysia:
“Malaysia is a bit forg By Joakim Persson
W
hen Ambassador Bengt G. Carlsson arrived to Malaysia for his first head of mission posting, he had a re-start as beginning: the re-opening of the embassy following on a Swedish government decision to first close it down and then reopen it again. “We arrived here in early September 2012 when just over a year had passed by since the closure of the previous embassy,” begins the Ambassador. The new embassy is situated in an office building at walking distance from KL City Center with a slightly slimmed organisation compared to the old embassy. A new residence has also been acquired. The Ambassador’s new deputy, Counsellor Louise Bonbeck arrived in 2014 from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Sweden. A Stockholm-based Defence Attaché also comes and goes, depending on events and activities. “Defence trade with Malaysia goes back all the way to the 1960’s,” says Bengt G. Carlsson. “And there are several deals on the cards and at various stages. So that’s no secret.” Promoting the military defence systems from the SAAB Group, with the JAS Gripen fighter as an element, is naturally part of it. “And to assist the promotion, we have a trade promoter; Jenn Lew, re-recruited from the previous embassy team.” “This is first and foremost a trade and business promoting embassy – we should be concentrating on offensive tasks, such as supporting business activities, and of course we have a consular service.” As for regular passport service for Swedes normally the mission in Singapore handles this these days. “Sweden now has a policy to concentrate passport service around the world. There are other embassies in the region that can offer full service, and Singapore is not really far away,” explains the Ambassador. “We can issue emergency passports but to Swedes living here we also recommend them to renew their passports when they visit Sweden – it is much cheaper and easier.”
Malaysia forgotten Bengt G. Carlsson also compares to the much larger Swedish embassy in Thailand, where he has also worked previously in his diplomatic career – and draws a connection: there is this big difference in visitors from Sweden, where Malaysia enjoys significantly fewer arrivals. 18 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
gotten in Sweden” “Since I know both places – and without saying anything negative about Thailand; it’s a great tourist destination – I find this a bit remarkable. Here we also have so many things to experience! I think Malaysia is a bit forgotten in Sweden; flying under the radar.” After two years in Malaysia the Ambassador himself feels that he now should travel more and explore the many things he has yet to discover in the Southeast-Asian nation. “I would like to see more interest in various ways. Everyone knows Thailand and Singapore, but less the country in-between… and which is a bit of a mix as well. A lot here, such as the infrastructure, is also more modern and advanced than in Thailand, and it’s half the population.” “I am happy to make the case for Malaysia’s variety and would welcome more Swedish tourism – and vice versa.” The embassy promotes tourism to Sweden, as much as it can, and partake when there are opportunities to do so.
Innovation as umbrella Sweden has new recently elected government is drawing up its policies and strategies. From the Swedish Embassy we can still get a broader sense what we can expect ahead. Innovation is a matter of the heart that the Ambassador wants to continue exploring as theme. “The previous embassy star ted a broad and strategic innovation initiative in 2011. And it’s something where Malaysia now has a large interest in and where we [Sweden] have a lot to offer. The government here is very clear with that, in order for the country to achieve its grand 2020 vision of becoming a high-income nation – now they are in the middle-income trap and treading water but working hard to reach there. Then they must become more innovative. And the government here is emphasizing this a lot and we collaborate with authorities, universities and investment agencies.” “And by matching the different needs and talents we believe we have found a good umbrella – being innovation – to work with. And within this you can include a wide variety of things, and various sub-branches. We try to support those Swedish companies already present here. That incorporates for instance transportation where we have world-class companies established with assembly plants. Then you per default get matters of interest concerning road safety, urban transportation and planning etc. There are also “opportunities for SMEs, consultancy services etc. of interest within this,” highlights the Ambassador.
I would like to see more interest in various ways. Everyone knows Thailand and Singapore, but less the country inbetween… and which is a bit of a mix as well. A lot here, such as the infrastructure, is also more modern and advanced than in Thailand, and it’s half the population.
Within official Malaysia as counterpart the embassy collaborates first and foremost with the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI.) “This is a very important ministry here and they continue to be interested in Sweden. By nature this is the ministry to collaborate mostly with and focus on. There is also an innovation authority under Prime Minister’s Office that we have teamed up with together with Business Sweden and our companies.“ “We are, among other things, working on doing a roundtable discussion on innovation, trying to bring that up on a high level, including ministries and corporate leaders on various sides – for instance within productivity. We have Swedish companies such as SKF, Volvo, Scania, Mölnlycke etc. that could have a lot to contribute when it comes to increasing productivity in Malaysia.”
Team Sweden Bengt G. Carlsson says he has been around and done promotion work in several countries and the talk of potential is always there. But on this front he thinks that this is something that Malaysia really has.
“I think we underperform here. Swedish companies, in particular SMEs, ought to be able to have much more success here! So the challenge is to make Malaysia more visible to companies in Sweden.” “We, in the region, have discussed having more joint promotion activities, and we are considering doing a smaller road show in Sweden in the spring, to meet the market so to speak. I think it would have larger impact if many countries do this together rather than just one.” “We like to view ourselves as a par t in ‘Team Sweden’, where there are other legs here. Business Sweden is one and then we have the companies that we are here to support. All of us should be involved in this, and different companies depending on the activity what we are doing at the moment,” suggests the Ambassador. “Then, whether it should be purely innovationbased or in a more specific sector such as health care or clean tech, I think it’s important that we work like this but stand united.” “We do various activities and it’s of course important to have the Swedish companies along. That has worked well. And it’s also important to involve also the academic world in this, to share research and ideas and as expertise.” On the Swedish side the new government must find its way and decide which countries to visit in the near future. “Malaysia is probably not on top of the government’s travel agenda; they are likely to star t closer to home. But we’re hoping the new government will be interested in Asia and Malaysia; we’ve had very few ministerial visits here. Again, I think that has to do with this country being quite unknown. But this is my job to bring this to a higher level and making the country more visible back home. And not just praise and embellishment; rather giving an informed and nuanced view. However this is after all a country with many advantages, among the top in the world as far as the ‘Ease of Doing Business’ index is concerned, and a very pleasant and nice country to live in or visit, one cannot deny that!” “In our yearly planning we submit promotion plans and present what we would like to do, and then we can apply for funding for example to do these innovation efforts and to attract attention in media and elsewhere. For us working actively with promotion and events out here, it is definitely very important to have access to these resources so we can combine them with funding and cofinancing from other stakeholders, such as our companies here. Successful promotion events are normally very costly, there is a lot of competition from other countries as well.” February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 19
Cinnamon rolls key to success for Bali-based Swedish family The Lassesson-family from Stockholm, Sweden, dreamed of a different life. An internet ad opened the opportunity to move to the paradise island of Bali. Nine years later they have built their dream life - and it was grandma’s recipe for cinnamon rolls that led the way. Text & Photos: Michael Töpffer
O
n Tamblingan, the main street in the Sanur-area of paradise-island Bali, two towering blond figures are sitting comfor tably in the shade of a lush tree at a café, drinking freshly squeezed orange juice. The name of the café is solid Swedish: Café Smörgås, or Café Sandwich. Guests entering here will see large photo-prints hanging on the walls, showing beautiful and well selected images from well known locations in Sweden, like Stockholm old town and the archipelago. Café Smörgås is a Swedish oasis in the middle of a tropical paradise. The two Swedes drinking juice in the shadow of the tree are Johan and Lotta Lassesson. Café Smörgås is their brainchild. It’s somewhat hectic at the café, customers are coming in a steady stream to find a seat and place their orders. The staff are busy serving coffee and juice, sandwiches with Swedish specialities like meatballs and salmon, and also one-plate meals, like pasta and, of course, fika - the Swedish term for a cake or a bun with coffee. Bestsellers are Swedish cinnamon rolls and Swedish style apple-pie. Johan and Lotta look relaxed and have a healthy appearance. While Johan is wearing paradise-suitable shor ts and a t-shirt, Lotta is 20 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
wearing her trainer outfit. She will soon be off to her yoga-course. “Our café is now almost fully operated by our staff. We mostly take care of bookkeeping and payroll,” Johan Lassesson, 50, explains. “We have a lot of family-time together, both for our hobbies and for each other. We are truly living a lifestyle we just a few years ago only could dream, says Lotta Lassesson, 48, and continues: “To take that step and to try to realize our dreams is the best thing we ever did,” she says. Ten years ago, they were living a very different kind of life. The family was living in the suburb of Bromma, just outside Stockholm. Johan had his own company in construction-business, with 16 staff. Lotta was an administrator working at state owned company, Svenska Spel. Both of them were busy with their careers, and especially Johan was suffering from constantly being under pressure as an employer. Time was always in shor t supply and daily life felt very predictable. “Both of us had for long been thinking of making a change in our lives, but we didn’t know how, Johan explains. They had been thinking of moving to a different area, or maybe selling the company to move abroad, maybe to Croatia or Mallorca for
six months, mostly for the fun and the adventure and to get a rest and to recharge. “I always dreamed of moving abroad”, says Johan. But somehow, their dreams never materialized. Their first daughter, Siri, was born around that time. A comment from Lotta’s sister really hit them in the stomach. “My older sister told me that ‘remember that children very easily get sick during their first years at kindergarten and need a lot of attention and to stay at home’. Then I felt I did not want to go through that period and having a stressful job. I really started to think that it was time to do something else,” says Lotta. That moment came in 2005. Johan was looking at some Internet ads. “Suddenly there was Swedish man selling s small hotel in Bali. It sounded too good to be true,” he says. The price was the equivalent of USD226,000. Both him and Lotta had visited Bali as tourists before, and loved the island. Johan got on the phone and called Lotta. “I just told him: ‘Let’s buy it’,” says Lotta. Then everything went ahead very quickly. In the summer of 2005, they travelled to Bali to see the hotel. They made up their mind and wrote a contract. The transfer date was set
to the coming new year. Back in Sweden, Johan sold his company, and Lotta quit her work. They started to sell their belongings and put ad out to sell their apartment. Many of their friends were impressed by their bold decision to leave the security and safety that comes with living in Sweden, to give it all up and throw themselves into the unknown. By now, they also had a second daughter, Sara, to take care of. “Some of our friends said ‘Wow, I wish I could do the same’,” but I just told them ‘just do it’,”, says Johan, who also admits that other friends made efforts to come up with excuses not to do something similar. “They could claim they owned a horse or a dog and that this made it impossible for them to move abroad,” says Johan. Even though the Swedish couple was preparing well, setbacks were inevitable. In October 2005, Bali was the scene of a devastating terrorist attack. Some suicide bombers blew themselves up in the middle of the tourist area. 26 people died and hundreds were injured. Suddenly tourists stayed away from Bali. This was definitely the wrong moment to start a hotel business. But the deal was sealed and there was no way out for the Swedes.
“Our worst-case scenario was that we will soon be bankrupted. But should that happen, we could always return to Sweden, look for work, take a new mor tage and buy a house,” they explain. The next setback was that it turned out it was almost impossible to sell the apartment in Sweden. The money was needed to invest in the hotel, but no one seemed interested in buying the apartment. “Only two days before our departure to Bali we managed to sell it,” Johan says with a smile. December 22, 2005, they left the cold in Sweden. With them, they brought three suitcases, a few CDs, computers, books and toys for the children. Clothes they planned to buy when in Bali. The first year they stayed in their own hotel. It was practical and cheap and gave them time to look for a more suitable home to rent. Siri was enrolled at a kindergarten, and Sara was taken care of by a nanny. The hotel had a staff of four. Johan and Lotta were focusing on running the hotel which only had ten rooms. But they were happy, and full of excitement for their new lifestyle. “When we first arrived, all felt great and it kept on getting even better and better, but after six months, reality star ted to set in. We
got depressed and thought of moving back to Sweden, but this feeling too evaporated and soon it started to feel good again. It was probably a delayed culture-shock,” says Johan. It also turned out that many of their hotelguests were longstayers. They could stay at the hotel for many months. That meant there was very little work for Johan and Lotta. “They never checked out so there wasn’t much for us to do,” says Johan. Slowly, they started to look at other business opportunities. How about something that was missing in Sanur? A Swedish cafe? They kicked off the project and found a suitable location in Sanur. They signed a lease and started on a very small scale. The premises was tiny and there was hardly a kitchen. Instead, they prepared cakes and salads at home and had it delivered by motorbike. Initially, sales were very slow. But success came with the Swedish-style cinnamon rolls.They became very popular in Bali. And later also their Swedish apple-pie. “It was my mother Kerstin’s recipes. The cinnamon rolls should have granulated sugar on top, while the apple-pie should have a crusty bottom and a freshness, not like those thick, american apple-pies with a top crust,” Lotta explains. February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 21
But even now, running a hotel and a café in Bali wasn’t easy. Costs were high and revenues uncertain. “There were times when we could hardly afford to fill up our car at the service station,” says Johan. Lotta remembers the hard times. “It was very stressful. We never knew if we would make it. It took us quite some time before we knew we could afford the school-fees for our children,” she says. But the Swedes kept on working to achieve their dream. After three years running Café Smörgås, the financial situation was so good they felt they can start to relax a bit. In the meantime, they had had an offer to sell the hotel, which they did. That meant they were able to recoup their investment plus a profit, and could focus in running the café. Today, Café Smörgås, is a well-known eatery and café in Bali. But competition is fierce. Almost every week, a new café or restaurant opens. “You need to have a niche, a speciality. Ours is being Scandinavian, or Swedish, and we try to keep a high level of quality,” says Johan. “Recently, we baked and delivered Swedish Princess-cake and Toast Skagen for a wedding party here in Bali. It was a Swedish man getting married to a woman from India. That was great,” says Johan. Their business has now also expanded into school catering and they have a staff of 25. 22 ScandAsia.Thailand • February 2015
Most of the work is now handled by an Indonesian man who used to live and work as a chef in Sweden. He speaks Swedish and knows the Swedish cuisine and tastes. Johan and Lotta spend a lot of time with their hobbies. Johan is into scuba diving, and Lotta loves yoga and Qi-gong. Both are into outdoor activities. “Sometimes I take my motorbike and my dog and drive down to the beach to go jogging. It’s great to be able to do this,” says Johan Siri and Sara have now turned 11 and 9, and both go to an international school nearby. Apart from a nanny taking care of the children, there is one worker taking care of the swimming pool and the garden. When housework is outsourced, there is a lot of time being with the family. “It’s so easy to meet here. You can just make a few phone calls and people will come over. In Sweden, you always have to plan many days, sometimes weeks, in advance, People there are so busy,” says Johan. When Scandmedia visits the family in their nice villa, Johan and Lotta have invited some friends over for a barbeque. At the barbeque, there are guests from Spain, Denmark, Australia and America. Some work in diving, others run their own businesses, or are able to work from home for companies located elsewhere. Many have brought kids with them, and they soon join Siri and Sara in front of the TV.
“Our children have friends from all over the world. They speak English with them, Swedish with us and Indonesian with the nanny. It’s very fascinating,” says Johan. Johan and Lotta have taken great care in giving their children a Swedish upbringing, with access to Swedish children’s books and TV. They have also been back to Sweden many times. “They think that Sweden is the best country in the world. They often ask when we are going to return next time,” says Johan. During the Lassesson-family’s time in Bali, they have seen many other Scandinavians coming to try to settle and starting a business, but most have failed. Many have the wrong strategy. “They come here, but keep one foot back in Sweden. They might have a house or something that makes them stay connected to Sweden.Then they don’t focus 100 percent on their project in Bali and it is much easier for them to give up as they can always very easily return to Sweden,” says Johan. “We never had that option. We had nothing to return to and were very focused on making it here in Bali. We were under pressure to succeed,” Johan and Lotta say. A few hundred meters away, the waves from the Ocean are rolling on to the beautiful beach, where tourists are relaxing in the shades of umbrellas. This is exactly the paradise Johan and Lotta used to dream of. Now it’s their dream come true.
มุมภาษาไทย l mum pha:să: thai l Thai Language Corner
Telling Time By Klavs Johansen (thai@maprao.dk)
T
elling the time of the day in Thai may be slightly confusing for the new learner of the language. We will this month explain the system and, hopefully, demystify it a bit. The only prerequisite is to know the numbers from 1 to 60, the rest you will learn here. If you need to brush up on the numbers, please have a look at the September 2014 column Thai When it Counts. First of all, we are pleased to note that you may get away with using the 24-hours-system, just as in the West. The Thais mainly use this system for time tables, for instance when announcing departures at the train station, and in other official contexts, such as reporting on the daily activities of royals in the evening news on television. The keywords are:
นาฬิกา / na:líka: / ~ a watch, and นาที / na:thi: / ~ a minute.
You start by stating the hours followed by นาฬิกา / na:líka: /, and then the minutes followed by นาที / na:thi: /, so for instance 17:30hrs becomes 17 นาฬิกา 30 นาที / sìp jèt na:líka: să:m sìp na:thi /, and 23:55hrs becomes 23 นาฬิกา 55 นาที / yî:sìp să:m na:líka: hâ: sìp hâ: na:thi: /. In cases where you wish to avoid misunderstandings, we recommend the beginner to use the 24-hours-system. The Western alternative to the 24-hours-system is the 12-hourssystem whereby the day is divided into two halves, AM and PM, so 2:00PM corresponds to 14:00hrs. The Thais, in contrast, take it a little bit further and divide the day into quarters, thereby arriving at a 6-hours-system. Let’s jump right into it: The six hours after midnight are preceded by the word
ตี / ti: / ~ to strike, so we get ตีหนึ่ง / ti: nùeng / ~ 1AM, and so on, until ตีห้า / ti: hâ: / ~ 5AM.
The following six hours until noon are succeeded by the word
โมงเช้า / mo:ng chá:o / ~ morning hours (the word is not used without the preceding number of the hour), and we get
หกโมงเช้า / hòk mo:ng chá:o / ~ 6AM until สิบเอ็ดโมงเช้า / sìp èt mo:ng chá:o / ~ 11AM.
โมง / mo:ng / ~ hours, that is, บ่ายโมง / bà:i mo:ng / ~ 1PM, บ่ายสองโมง / bà:i sŏr:ng mo:ng / ~ 2PM, and บ่ายสามโมง / bà:i să:m mo:ng / ~ 3PM.
The last three afternoon hours are succeeded by
โมงเย็น / mo:ng yen / ~ cool hours (again the word is not used without the preceding number of the hour), so we get
สี่โมงเย็น / sì: mo:ng yen / ~ 4PM until หกโมงเย็น / hòk mo:ng yen / ~ 6PM.
Finally, we start counting over again with the six evening hours. They are succeeded by the word ทุ่ม / thûm /, which we shall just consider as the word for evening hours, not to be used alone. Thus we get หนึ่งทุ่ม / nùeng thûm / ~ 7PM (1 hour into the evening) until ห้าทุ่ม / hâ: thûm / ~ 11PM (5 hours into the evening). Then you just need เที่ยง / thîang / ~ noon, and เที่ยงคืน / thîang khue:n / ~ midnight, and you are able to tell any hour of the day. That was the tricky part. The minutes are easy. We have ครึ่ง / khrûeng / ~ half, and we have, for example
เที่ยงครึ่ง / thîang khrûeng / ~ half past twelve.
There is no word for ‘quarter’, so placing the minutes past after the hour, we simply get
เที่ยงสิบห้านาที / thîang sìp hâ: na:thi: / ~ twelve fifteen.
Combining all the above into another example we get
ห้าโมงเย็นยี่สิบนาที / hâ: mo:ng yen yî:sìp na:thi: / ~ 20 past 5PM.
Left are only minutes to the hour and we have completed the whole system. The keyword is อีก / ì:k / ~ in, and, placing the minutes in front of the hour, we get for example
อีกห้านาทีสิบโมงเช้า / ì:k hâ: na:thi: sìp mo:ng chá:o / ~ 5 to 10AM. That’s it!
กี่โมงแล้ว / kì: mo:ng láe:o / ~ what’s the time?
The six afternoon hours are slightly irregular. For the first three, we use
บ่าย / bà:i / ~ afternoon, prior to the number of hours (left out when it is one o’clock) and then followed by
February 2015 • ScandAsia.Thailand 23
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