06-01-2012

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Friday, January 6 – Thursday, January 12, 2012

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SKIMMERS HIT OLD LOGO PATONG BANKS 100 72 0 32

Police have warned users of ATMs to be careful with the machines they use, because a gang of skimmers have been at work sucking bank accounts dry over the Christmas-New Year period.

K at hu re side nt Joh n Gillinder called The Phuket News on Tuesday (January 3) to add his warning, after having B160,000 stolen from his account.

“On Boxing Day (December 26) I drew B5,000 from my Siam Commercial account, using an ATM on Nanai Rd, Patong. I went to the ATM again on Saturday (December 31) and my account was empty.”

Mr Gillinder went to the nearest open branch of Siam Commercial, where records showed that the money had been stolen on December 27.

“They took over B160,000.”

Pol Capt Patapee Srichai of Kathu Police Station told The Phuket News that on December 31 he had received two complaints of skimming.

He said that in both cases the victim had been approached by two foreigners with white skin, aged about 30. One was tall and one was of average build.

The two men insisted on helping the victims to use the ATM. One victim said he thought the two men were French, but the other thought they were Arabs.

Mr Gillinder said that three men had stood behind him when he withdrew money on the 26th, and had spoken

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Ignore anyone who offers to ‘help’ you use an ATM - he or she could be a skim artist.

French. But they had not attempted to “help” him.

Capt Patapee said they were

on the lookout for the two men, but said they did not really have enough detail to identify

them, and there were no CCTV cameras covering the ATMs where the thefts took place.

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He added that he had heard of other cases in Patong, but could not give details.

Skimmers obtain details of cards and PIN numbers by sticking devices over the card slot of ATMs and over the keyboard.

The devices are carefully made to appear as part of the ATM, with the colours matching exactly.

The thieves can either collect the details later by plugging in a laptop computer or, in the case of more sophisticated gangs, by WiFi. Less sophisticated gangs may con or bully ATM users into letting them see their PIN numbers.

Using the information from the card skimmer the thieves clone the cards and withdraw the money.

A spokesperson for the Siam Commercial Bank said there are several precautions ATM users should use to reduce the risk of being skimmed: ■■ Never allow anyone to “help” you use an ATM. If necessary, walk away and use a different ATM; ■■ Use only ATMs in hightraffic areas with CCTV coverage, where skimmers will find it difficult to fit their devices without being detected; ■■ Check the keypad. If it is not flush with the surface around it, don’t use that ATM; ■■ Use ATMs that have a “tongue”, usually of green plastic, sticking out below the card slot; ■■ Change your PIN number frequently.

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Tai Naan underpass work to start in June

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THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

NEWS

Busman’s holidays

Strict checks ensure buses are safe during New Year holidays > 4

UK to review Tai Naan underpass frozen British expat pensions work to start in June There are signs of progress towards resolving the plight of the British expat pensioners who are calling for their state pensions to be unfrozen, as previously reported by The Phuket News on November 16, 2011.

The UK government has set up a working group that includes Treasury officials and members of International Consortium of British Pensioners (ICBP), to investigate the issue of frozen state pensions, which affects 500,000 British pensioners living in 120 countries, including Thailand and most of the Commonwealth.

Their state pension entitlement was frozen at the level

it stood at when they left the country, which for some is as much as 40 years ago.

John Markham, UK director of the ICBP, said, “The setting up of the working group shows that the government is taking the issue of frozen pensions seriously.”

A motion (EDM) calling on the government to end the freeze, sponsored by Work and Pensions Committee chair Dame Anne Begg, has attracted 101 MP signatures.

The ICBP has also attracted 13,500 signatures on an e-petition calling on the government to unfreeze expat pensions.

The petition can be “signed” at pension-parity-uk.com.

Councillor’s house burns, two hurt Three fire trucks took 30 minutes to put out a small fire in the home of a local councillor on Kathu Waterfall Rd on Tuesday night (January 3).

Thungtong police were alerted to the fire by the owner of the house, Worawut Sukharom, a member of Kathu Municipality Council, at about 8pm.

They in turn called for

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the fire trucks from Kathu Municipality.

Mr Worawut’s wife and son were treated at Patong hospital for minor burns but have since been released.

No other homes were damaged by the fire which Mr Worawut said was caused by an electrical short in the kitchen.

He estimated the damage at about B200,000.

CG image of the planned underpass, with Central Festival on the right of the picture.

Work will begin on the planned underpass at the Tai Naan intersection, outside Central Festival, in June this year, following approval from central Government. The Economic Team of the Pheu Thai Party announced the approval during a meeting at the Phuket Community Hall on January 3.

The underpass, with a budget of B600 million, will be the biggest roading project in the southern Thailand in 2012.

The underpass will be around 600 metres in length, with three lanes, starting from Chalermprakiat Ror 9 Rd (Central) to Vichit Songkram School.

Phuket Highway Department Deputy Chief Sathaporn Sornchana said he expected the project to be completed within two years.

Meanwhile, the B700 million underpass/overpass planned for the Samkong intersection (outside Tesco Lotus) has been postponed. However the project will be considered for the 2013 budget in October this year.

Accident black spot map release delayed

Phuket Land Transportation Office has postponed production of a free map booklet which was to be handed out to

visiting drivers to warn them about the island’s accident black spots. The map which was originally intended to be distributed ahead of the busy New Year period.

But, Teerayuth Prasertphol, Chief of Phuket Land Transportation Office, told The Phuket News, “We have just chosen a format for the map but have yet to decide on the size, whether to make it A4 or half that size.”

The four-page booklet will have a map of the whole island on the first page and tourist attractions on the second.

The third page will highlight accident black spot points, while the last page will carry contact numbers for important government and public sector offices.

The initial plan was to print around 500 copies of the map to hand out to cars and buses arriving from outside Phuket, to help drivers unfamiliar with the island’s roads during the festive period.

When the map booklet will come out is now not certain.

Black Spots: See page 11

Eaktat Tipmas with some of the amulets he stole.

Burglar’s 4-year run of luck comes to end After four years as a successful burglar, Eaktat Tipmas, 29, was finally arrested at his apartment in Phuket City on December 29.

Eaktat, originally from Chainat Province, admitted to police that he had regularly broken into people's homes

during the night and stolen whatever he could find.

Phu ket Cit y police searched his home and seized a long list of stolen goods, including Buddhist amulets, laptop computers, watches, cellphones and even motorcycles.

ISLANDNEWS

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Bad weather forces flight diversions

Fierce weather along the east coast of peninsular Thailand early this week forced flights from Bangkok to divert to Phuket, after pilots found conditions too difficult to attempt a landing in Nakhon Sri Thammarat.

The east coast of peninsular Thailand has been experiencing severe storms since New Year’s Day, with flash floods hitting Songkhla, Nakhon Sri Thammarat and Yala, and cutting the Asian Highway south of Chumphon.

On Monday (January 2) heavy weather forced an Orient Thai Airlines flight bound for Nakhon Si Thammarat to divert to Phuket.

The pilot of Flight OX8250, carrying more than 100 passengers, could not see the runway when trying to land at Nakhon Sri Thammarat. After circling for a while, he decided to head for Phuket and wait for the weather in Nakhon to clear.

“The weather was very bad so it was better to land at a nearby airport. We then provided buses to take the passengers to Nakhon,” the spokeswoman said.

AirAsia and Nok Air flights also diverted from Nakhon to Phuket but were able to go back to Nakhon later.

Yesterday (December 3), a spokesman for Nakhon Sri Thammarat Airport said that passengers booked on Nok Air flights to Bangkok had to be taken by road to Surat Thani because the aircraft were again unable to land in Nakhon.

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16 arrested as police raid two gambling dens Pol Maj Gen Chonasit Wattanavrangkul, Phuket’s new police commander.

New police chief arrives

The new provincial commander of Phuket Police, Pol Maj Gen Chonasit Wattanavrangkul, ar rived in Phuket last week.

Gen Chonasit was previously commander of police in Songkla Province.

His first day in Phuket was a full one, checking the many places where New Year celebrations will be held.

“In fact, I have been to Phuket several times, so I know a bit about the problems, such as traffic, but there are many things I need to learn.

“I am going to Kathu police station to check out arrangements for the New Year events, especially the

traffic and the parking,” he said. “Later, I will go to Sanam Chai [in Phuket Town, site of this year’s New Year countdown].”

He confirmed that his arrival in Phuket was part of a normal national reshuffling of senior officers in the Royal Thai Police.

“It is a regular reshuffle,” he said, but then added with a grin, “Here is better, because I will be a long way away from [terrorist] bombs.”

His predecessor, Pol Maj Gen Pekad Tantipong, has taken up a new post in Bangkok, as commander of the Royal Thai Police Legal Affairs Division.

A small gambling house, Sor Areerob Snooker, located in Moo 2 in Rawai was raided by police on December 30, just three days after it was first raided and ordered to close.

In the previous raid on December 26, Chalong police arrested five gamblers: Supit Kuniart, 51, Namote Trakarnkit, 46, Prajane Janit, 35, Sitthichote Wanyilae, 35 and Nantida Somjinda, 31.

De spit e t he pol ice warning to close, the owner of the gambling house decided to open again, resulting in another raid by the same police team on December 30.

Twenty gamblers were discovered, but most managed to flee the scene after being alerted of the impending raid.

Again, five people were

arrested on December 30: the owner of the house, Damad Sangli, 39, and gamblers Kudiris Binsahat, 47, Chupong Kuadkaew, 44, Pralane Janit, 31 and Nantida Somjinda again.

A set of playing cards and B1,380 were seized.

On both occasions, local residents made reports to Chalong police with complaints of noise disrupting the neighbourhood.

The gamblers caught in the second raid claimed they had bribed police to turn a blind eye to their activities, which is why they gathered again at the same location.

But the police team who raided the gambling house deny all allegations of bribery.

Meanwhile, on December 28 five Thai women – all in relationships with

foreigners – and two men were arrested in Patong and charged with gambling and possession of drugs.

Kathu police raided a hotel in Soi Nanai where the seven had gathered to play cards for money and to enjoy drugs.

Playing cards, B3,500 in cash, drug paraphernalia, ya ba (methamphetamine) and ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) were seized.

The group admitted they often gathered at hotels in the Patong area, shifting from one hotel to another to avoid being noticed.

Police noted that all the women had foreign boyfriends or husbands, and theorised that this was how they had initially met and formed their gambling group.

‘Gangster’ shot dead on NY Day A man with suspected gang affiliations was shot dead in Patong in the early hours of New Years Day. Police suspect a conflict with a rival gang member may have motivated the murder.

Wi roj D u a ng ja n, 35, originally from Nakhon Sri Thammarat province, was shot twice in the stomach

outside a bar on Soi Tun in the south of Patong at about 5am on Sunday morning. He died later in Patong Hospital.

Witnesses told police that Mr Wiroj had visited a nightclub on Soi Tun to celebrate the New Year. It was there that he met another man, known as “Ko Chit”, and proceeded to have an argument.

As the two stepped outside to settle their disagreement, Ko Chit allegedly drew a 9mm pistol and shot Mr Wiroj.

Police believe that both the deceased and Ko Chit had been competitors while working for the same “influential” person.

Officers are still searching for Ko Chit.

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ISLANDNEWS

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

IN BRIEF Prison population still soaring Two hundred prisoners were released last month in the annual birthday amnesty decreed by HM the King.

But already their places have been taken by others.

At the beginning of December, before the amnesty, there were around 1,600 convicts in the prison.

With the 200 already released and 200 more due to be released later this year after having their sentences shortened in the Royal Decree, Rapin Nichanon, Director of Phuket Prison was hoping that the prison would be a roomier place.

But in just one month, the population has climbed back up to where it was, and further – to around 1,700 inmates.

Mr Rapin said that new prisoners are being admitted daily, 80 per cent of them charged with drug-related offences.

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ALASDAIR FORBES Executive Editor 08 7884 9964 execeditor@thephuketnews.com From the UK; 40 years as a journalist and editor on magazines and newspapers in the UK, Middle East, Hong Kong and Thailand: Cheshire Observer, Chester Chronicle, Saudi Gazette, Gulf Mirror, Gulf Construction, Gulf News, Hongkong Standard, Asian Business (Editor) and Phuket Gazette (Managing Editor for seven years).

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Safety first: An official checks a fire extinguisher in a bus.

Long-distance buses get clean bill of health Phuket Land Transportation Office (PLTO) officials checked as many as 170 longdistance buses a day at the Phang Nga Rd bus terminal in Phuket Town over the New Year period, starting last Friday (December 30), in a bid to ensure passengers have a safe journey.

All the buses and drivers checked between 4:30 am and 10 pm each day up to Wednesday (January 4), were found to be in a fit condition to be on

the roads. The officials first checked bus drivers with a breath analyser, then checked their vehicles for working headlights, brakes and brake lights, tyres, windscreen wipers, fire extinguishers and emergency exits.

One of the officials told The Phuket News, “We have not found a single bus that failed the checks and had to be replaced.”

The number of buses soared to 170 on December 31

as people hurried to get home for the New Year celebrations, then tailed off over the next couple of days. The numbers rose again on Tuesday and Wednesday as people returned from the holiday, with twice as many people as normal using buses.

In addition to the tests at the bus terminal, a mobile team from the PLTO looked over buses at police check points on main highways, starting at the beginning of December.

Woman pulled from sea, boyfriend sought Police are looking for the boyfriend of a woman who says that he shoved her into the water from the end of Laem Phrom Thep early on January 2, leaving her to be rescued by a passing yacht.

Natenapa Choochote, 28, told Chalong Police that she and her boyfriend, who is from Nakhon Sri Thammarat, had a quarrel on the evening of January 1.

In an effort to resolve their differences, he drove her from her home in Thalang to romantic Laem Phrom Thep. They walked out along the cape but when they reached the end the quarrel blew up again, and he began to hit her.

Finally, he pushed her into the water. Luckily, she was spotted by a passing yacht, which plucked her from the sea and took her to Chalong Police

station. Pol Lt Col Boonlert Ornklang of Chalong Police said that they know who the boyfriend is and where he lives, but do not want to name him at the moment for fear of frightening him away.

Police intend to invite him to come to the police station for a discussion with Ms Natenapa, with the aim of reaching an amicable conclusion to the episode.

Russian tourist dies in balcony fall A Russian tourist, Anton Oleynikov, 32, died in a fall from a balcony of the house he had rented near Loch Palm Golf Club in Kathu on December 30.

His body was taken to Patong Hospital to await instructions from his family.

Sports facilities plan for Koh Kaew Khuakiet Chitkhua, the Chief Executive of Koh Kaew SubDistrict Administrative Organisation, has devised plans to develop a 30-rai plot of land around Baan Sapam School to include walkways and space for outdoor fitness equipment.

Surrounding the school will be a three-kilometre walkway, with an additional two-kilometre walkway behind Baan Sapam School, encircling a large pond. The pond is currently rented by the Koh Kaew OrBorJor from a private company and is used to produce tap water.

Mr Khuakiet says he intends to negotiate with the land owner over the space around the pond, and if successful, will proceed with the walkway development.

“I will discuss the plans again soon with the owner of the pond and director of the school.

After that we will survey the site and produce a proposal to submit to the OrBorTor council. If all goes well we expect the project will be finished around October 2012.”

ISLANDNEWS

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Vice-governors arrive to start work on Monday

Two vice-governors from northeast provinces will step into the posts that have been left vacant in Phuket for two months.

They will be inducted at Phuket Provincial Hall on Monday (January 9).

One is Dr Sommai Preechasin, the first woman to be appointed a vice-governor in Phuket. She is currently vice governor of Mukdahan province in Northeast Thailand.

She was previously Director of the Office of Foreign Relations of the Department of Public Works and Town &

County Planning (PWTCP) in Bangkok.

The other newcomer is Jamruen Tipayapongthada, currently vice governor of Srisaket province, also in Northeast.

He is already familiar with south Thailand, having been the Chief of the Governor's Office in Yala, Phang Nga and then Ranong, before being promoted to Srisaket.

Interviewed on phone with The Phuket News, Dr Sommai said she understands that Phuket often has problems related to land and property.

“Apar t from tourism,

Phuket’s economy has also been driven by land and property,” she said. “There are many foreigners living on the island, and we need to make sure they understand the [new] land zoning regulations.”

Dr Sommai said she has visited Phuket several times, including times when she was representing the PWTCP, discussing zoning and urban planning matters with both locals and foreigners.

She said that when she arrives in Phuket on Monday, she will see if there are any other problems needing to be fixed.

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The special issue of B100 notes printed to celebrate HM the King’s 84th birthday.

Bank set to issue Sri Panwa’s boss stabbed in bar fight new 50-baht notes One of Phuket’s best-known property and hotel figures, Vorasit “Plawan” Issara, was stabbed in the early hours of Wednesday morning (January 4) in a fracas in Phuket Town.

Mr Vorasit, scion of the giant Bangkok-based property developer, Charn Issara, and managing director of the Sri Panwa property development and hotel in Phuket, was apparently out with a group of friends at the Rachada night club in the Phoonpol area of town, an after-hours place that attracts people working

in night clubs and bars.

What sparked the fight, at around 4am, is not clear, but Mr Vorasit was stabbed in the stomach and back, and had to be rushed to the Bangkok Hospital, Phuket. On Wednesday afternoon he was listed in a stable condition.

Police have interviewed 20 witnesses and have visited the club. The investigation continues. Known for his good humour and charm, Mr Vorasit was, until he married in July this year, among Thailand’s most eligible bachelors.

Vorasit ‘Plawan’ Issara

Following its issue of a special commemorative B100 note to mark the 84th birthday of HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the Bank of Thailand is now preparing to begin issuing a new design of B50 bill to replace the ones currently in circulation.

The new bill, which will start to be seen in public in a middle of January will be similar to the current one, but with part of the number 50 printed in purple on the front and part on the back, so that when the bill is held

to the light the entire number ‘50’ will be visible.

The back of the note will carry an image of the King Naresuan Monument, in the middle and of the Chai Mongkol Pagoda, on the right.

The new bill, the Bank of Thailand says, is being produced using the most modern technology to prevent counterfeiting and to give the note a longer life.

As the new note is distributed through the country, older ones will gradually be withdrawn.

On December 2 the Bank began sending out its goldcoloured commemorative B100 note to those who had already booked.

A total of 9,999,999 notes are being issued, available only in special packages.

One package, priced at B200, contains a brochure with the bill mounted in it.

The other, at B500, comes complete with the brochure and a special carrier bag.

To buy either package, collectors should enquire at their local bank.

500 passports still not located Thalang Police are still trying to locate the 500-plus passports allegedly kept by accused loan shark Anthony Granata and his Filipina secretary Ressel Alpay.

As reported in last week’s Phuket News, Mr Granata and Ms Alpay were arrested on December 28 on charges of working without work permits and charging excessive interest on loans made mostly to Filipinos on the island.

They denied the charges and were placed in the custody of the Phuket Provincial Court.

Reports that they have since been released on bail could not be confirmed.

Pol Lt Col Somkid Khawsang of Thalang Police Station said, “After the police arrested them, four debtors laid complaints that Mr Granata and Ms

Alpay had possession of their passports, as security against the loans made to them.”

One of the debtors, who asked not to be named, told The Phuket News, “The police made official reports of our complaints, but the passports have not been returned.” Four more Filipina debtors are expected to complain tomorrow (January 7) about their passports also being withheld.

The unnamed debtor said, “I called the Philippine Embassy at Bangkok and then sent an email to them yesterday to explain to them about the case and asking how to solve the passport problem. I am waiting for a response.”

The Philippines Embassy, approached by The Phuket News, declined to comment on the case. www.thephuketnews.com

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THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

More opium being grown O piu m cu lt ivat ion ha s surged in Myanmar and Laos as high prices attract impoverished farmers to grow the illicit crop, particularly in conflict areas, according to a UN report recently published.

The study by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), using helicopter, satellite and village surveys, saw a 16 per cent increase in the amount of Southeast Asian land sown with poppies in 2011 since just the previous year.

The estimated value of opium production in Myanmar, Laos and Thailand – the countries where most of the region’s cultivation takes place – rose 48 per cent in 2011 from last year to $319 million (B9.6 billion), the UNODC said.

While cultivation was up 37 per cent in Laos since 2010, the vast majority of it takes place in militarydominated Myanmar, the second largest opium poppy grower in the world after Afghanistan.

Opium cultivation has surged in Myanmar and Laos.– Photo by Manfred Bruckels.

Some 256,000 households in Myanmar – signif icantly more than in Afghanistan – are involved in the crop’s cultivation,

security, poverty, conflict that’s raging in that part of Myanmar and the high prices that are available for people who wish to culti-

which mostly takes place in northeastern Shan state, the UNODC said.

“What is driving the poppy increase is food in-

vate,” said the UNODC’s regional representative Gary Lewis.

He spoke of “a swirling and often toxic mix of guns, of money and of drugs” in the area, although the UNODC’s research found the main reason for the increases in opium cultivation was the need for food.

“It’s very rare that I have seen poverty... in a rural setting to the extent that one sees in Shan,” Lewis told reporters in Bangkok last month.

Opium cultivation was also up 27 per cent from last year in northern Kachin state, on the China border, where tens of thousands have fled ongoing conflict between the government and armed ethnic groups.

Regional cultivation has doubled since 2006, and the report warned that the picture “grows dimmer” when combined with the fact that amphetamine-type stimulants are also a growing problem in Southeast Asia.

–AFP

Red Shirt Arisman re-arrested A top Red Shirt leader accused of terrorism over his role in last year’s opposition rallies was freed on bail on Thursday (December 29) for the second day in a row, his lawyer said.

Arisman Pongruangrong, who narrowly avoided capture by police commandos in

April 2010 by climbing out of the third-floor window of a Bangkok hotel, surrendered to authorities in early December after nearly 20 months on the run.

He was freed on bail in the Bangkok on Wednesday evening (December 28), only to be re-arrested

immediately on charges of defaming a member of the opposition Democrat Party in a separate case.

He was released again on Thursday after appearing in a court in the southern province of Songkhla and posting bail of B200,000, his lawyer Suchaiwut Chao-

attempt to ar rest him in connection with mass antigovernment protests that turned deadly in 2010.

He also faces separate charges related to the Red Shirts’ storming of an Asian summit in the resort city of Pattaya in 2009, forcing its cancellation and the evacu-

suanklauy said.

The sum was significantly less than the B6 million bail Pongruangrong had to pay in the terrorism case a day earlier.

Pongr uangrong is believed to have hidden in Cambodia after fleeing the capital after the bungled

Chatujak change Poachers kill elephants Bangkok City Hall finally agreed on Monday (January 2) to hand over the Chatujak Weekend Market to the landowners, the State Railway of Thailand (SRT).

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and the SRT met on Monday morning to discuss the handover, which the BMA and some vendors have opposed, reported the Bangkok Post. About 150 police from Bang Sue district

police station were deployed earlier at the market to ensure security at the railway’s request.

How much the BMA should be paid for its assets at the market has not been decided.

Both parties acknowledged that the SRT was reclaiming its right to run the market from the BMA, from Monday on.

The market’s lease, held by the BMA for decades, expired on Sunday (January 1).

At least one elephant from Kaeng Krajan National Park in Phetchaburi Province in central Thailand is suspected to have been slaughtered by ivory poachers.

Police, park officials and villagers rushed to the scene near the Krarang 3 Reservoir on Tuesday (January 3) after a report of the discovery of a carcass in tambon Pateng and

found an elephant burned on a pyre of rubber tyres, according to a Thai newspaper.

Officials suspect the hunters took the tusks and then tried to conceal the crime.

Another elephant was found a kilometre away with wounds after its tusks had also been sawn off.

Villagers said that three

more members of the same herd had been killed but officials and villagers could not search as it was getting dark and there were many wild elephants around.

The search continued on Wednesday.

Ched Daengburi, the headman of Ban Pateng village, said local people were not responsible for killing the elephants.

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NATIONALNEWS

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Flooding death toll now 823

The official death toll from months of flooding in Thailand rose above 800 on Saturday (December 31), as His Majesty the King said the damage caused by the waters was the “worst ever”.

Late reporting of deaths from the inundations in central and northern provinces – now largely receded – have seen fatality numbers continue to rise, the Interior Ministry said.

A total of 823 flood-related deaths have now been recorded, including 10 in heavy November monsoon rains in the south of the Kingdom, since the crisis began in July.

Three people are still missing.

In his annual New Year speech, King Bhumibol Adulyadej regretted the devastation caused by the deluge and sent his sympathy to those affected.

“The damage from the flood is the worst ever. It will serve as a reminder to people to be prepared because life is not always happy and people sometimes have to face hardship,” he said.

At their height the country’s worst floods in half a century affected 65 of 77 provinces in the low-lying nation, deluged hundreds of thousands of homes and forced the closure of large industrial parks, disrupting global supply chains.

The waters have since receded significantly, but more than two million people in five provinces continue to be affected and many areas still face a major clean-up operation.

–AFP

South blast kills soldiers Two soldiers were killed when a powerful roadside bomb detonated near their truck in the insurgency-plagued south on Tuesday (December 3), police said.

The men, both aged 26, were travelling to a New Year event in Pattani, one of three southern provinces where eight years of conflict has claimed the lives of thousands, both Muslims and Buddhists.

“They were invited to join a New Year party with local villagers,” said an official from local Mayo district police, adding that the victims had died instantly in the blast.

According to the latest figures from Deep South Watch, which closely monitors the conflict, 4,984 people have been killed and 8,300 wounded since the unrest began in 2004.

–AFP

7

Flash floods disrupt south Heavy rain and flash flooding on Tuesday (January 3) wreaked havoc in the southern region, especially in Nakhon Si Thammarat muang district, halting air and rail services and killing a girl in Yala.

Flooding also hit other parts of the south this week, prompting hospital evacuations, halting airline services and forcing train passengers to continue their journeys by bus, according to the Bangkok Post.

The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said flash flooding and runoff has hit nine out of the 14 southern provinces with almost 60 districts inundated.

But flood levels were receding in provinces in the deep south by Tuesday.

Earlier floods ravaged six Yala districts affecting almost 52,000 people and drowning nine-year-old Sareeta Sa-u.

The floodwater in some communities of Nakhon Si Thammarat province, such as Bo Sap and Ban Tok, ran as high as two metres, forcing locals to use boats to get around.

Authorities were mobilised to assist flood victims and evacuate those who wanted to move to safety.

The Nakhon Si Thammarat airport suspended all f lights, stranding several

Children walk through floodwaters after flash floods hit southern Narathiwat province on Monday (January 2). Heavy rain and flash floods caused New Year havoc in the south, with one girl drowned, a man feared dead, eight hikers missing, and evacuations ordered, officials said.

–Photo AFP hundred passengers.

Rail passengers travelling north had to board trains at Thung Song station because tracks between Nakhon Si Thammarat station and the station were submerged.

Those travelling south were asked to disembark at Thung Song station and take

buses provided by the rail agency to their destinations.

Floods battered six districts, three of which have been declared disaster areas.

Hours of steady rainfall on Tuesday morning flooded both inbound and outbound lanes of a stretch of Asian Highway 41 up to 50cm high, making

some parts impassible to all vehicles.

Phatthalung Hospital was forced to relocate patients and equipment to higher floors and reinforce a dyke to keep the floodwater out.

Governor of Narathiwat province Apinant Suethanuwong said on Tuesday authori-

ties were inspecting damage in 11 flood-hit districts to ask the central Government for help with rehabilitation and repairs.

On Tuesday, Yala was improving and authorities expected the situation to return to normal in a couple of days.

New Mekong species under threat Scientists were identifying a new species every two days in the Greater Mekong region, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said recently, in a report detailing 2010’s more unusual finds such as a leaf warbler and a self-cloning lizard.

But the conser vation group warned some species could disappear before they are ever recorded because of man-made pressures in the Southeast Asian area, described in the report as “one of the last frontiers” for new discoveries.

The report comes after Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos delayed a decision on a proposed hydropower dam on the Mekong river,

which activists warn would seriously threaten several unique species in the waterway.

More than 200 species were newly-recorded last year in the Greater Mekong, which includes Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos and the south-western Chinese province of Yunnan.

Some, such as the snubnosed mon key fou nd i n Myanmar’s remote Kachin state, were already known to local communities but never previously identified by the scientific community.

A species of all-female lizard, which reproduces via cloning without the need for males, was spotted by a scientist by chance on the menu

in a Vietnamese restaurant.

The list, dominated by plants, included 28 reptiles and seven amphibians, such as a vibrantly-spotted newt species and a psychedelic gecko.

The only new bird found last year was the tiny limestone leaf warbler, so-called because it breeds in limestone karsts in Laos and has a loud, unique call – the sign that alerted researchers to a potential new find.

The WWF report noted “urgent reminders” such as the dramatic 70 per cent drop in wild tiger numbers in little over a decade and the extinction of the Javan rhino in Vietnam in 2010.

The fund called on the

six leaders of the Greater Mekong Sub-region, meeting in December in Myanmar, to prioritise biodiversity,

warning that otherwise “the region’s treasure trove of biodiversity will be lost”.

–AFP

Mourners die in crash Twelve mourners were killed when their packed pickup truck collided with a passenger bus as they travelled to the funeral of a relative in the northeast, police said on Saturday (December 31).

Ten women and two men,

many of whom were sitting in the open-top rear of the truck, were killed instantly in the smash in Buriram province.

Four other people were injured.

Police said the early morning collision happened when the truck pulled onto a main

road in front of a long-distance bus from Bangkok.

Almost 100 people have already died and more than 1,000 have been injured in accidents in the past two days, according to the Interior Ministry.

–AFP

www.thephuketnews.com

8

INTERNATIONALNEWS

IN BRIEF Two die in Australia from Death Cap mushrooms Two people have died in Australia this week while a third remains in hospital after eating poisonous Death Cap mushrooms.

Four people were initially hospitalised after eating the fungi, unaware of its deadly properties, reportedly at a New Year’s Eve dinner party in Canberra. All parts of the Death Cap mushroom are poisonous and eating just one of the silky white-to-greenishbrown capped, white-gilled fungi can be fatal.

Storms cut power to over 100,000 UK homes More than 100,000 homes lost their electricity supply in Britain as storms of up to 145kmh uprooted trees which knocked out transmission lines and flying debris damaged power infrastructure, electricity suppliers said.

Residents in Scotland, northwestern and southern England were affected earlier this week.

New Year fireworks injure nearly 500 Filipinos Despite a government scare campaign, firecrackers and gunfire injured nearly 500 people in the Philippines as revellers welcomed the new year in one of the world’s most raucous and dangerous celebrations.

About a dozen plane flights were diverted or cancelled early Sunday due to dark smog from fireworks.

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Frustration over ‘amnesty’ Activists and Myanmar’s opposition expressed frustration on Tuesday (January 3) after an order to cut jail terms for all inmates appeared to fall far short of hopes for an amnesty for political detainees.

Around 300 people gathered outside Yangon’s notorious Insein prison on Tuesday as prisoners, including women carrying children, emerged from the jail following an order to reduce most sentences.

But the announcement failed to mention the plight of top dissidents, dashing expectations that Myanmar’s armybacked government would free more political prisoners as part of recent reformist gestures.

Nyan Win, spokesman for Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy, said it was not yet clear whether any of the party’s imprisoned members would be released as a result of the move.

“We were hoping for a real amnesty,” he said.

Myanmar’s political prisoners include former student protesters, monks, journalists and lawyers and their fate is a key concern of the international community.

About 200 political detainees were freed in October from the Central Prison Insein in Yangon, Myanmar.

–Photo AFP Under the order, death sentences will be commuted to life imprisonment, jail terms above 30 years will be reduced to 30 years, those between 20 and 30 years will be cut to 20 years and shorter sentences will be cut by a quarter.

Most high-profile dissidents, like those from a failed 1988 student uprising, are serving decades behind bars

and would have little hope of freedom as a result of the order, which was made to honour Independence Day on Wednesday.

A government official told AFP that it was still unclear how many inmates would be freed, but about 800 men and 130 women held in Yangon were set to be released.

Lawyer Phyo Nin Thein,

brother-in-law of jailed student leader Htay Kywe, slammed the announcement’s focus on “ordinary criminals”.

“If there is another amnesty like this one, it will not help the country,” he said.

Myanmar’s new nominally civilian government, which in March replaced a long-ruling military junta, has raised hopes in recent

months by reaching out to the opposition and the West.

About 200 political detainees were freed in October, but activists estimate there are still between 500 and more than 1,500 prisoners of conscience in Myanmar’s jails and many key dissidents remain locked up.

These include Gambira, a monk jailed for 63 years for his role in the 2007 clericled protests known as the “Saffron Revolution”, and former student leader Min Ko Naing, who is serving a 65-year prison sentence.

The United States on Tuesday said Myanmar’s decision to cut prison terms for detainees fell short of what Washington expects to reward reforms undertaken by the army-backed regime.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

“We remain concerned about the more than 1,000 political prisoners that remain in custody.”

The country recently announced plans to hold byelections on April 1, which could see Suu Kyi enter Parliament.

–AFP

Mubarak a ‘tyrannical leader’ Egyptian prosecutors on Tuesday (January 3) portrayed ousted president Hosni Mubarak as a “tyrannical leader”, as they made their opening arguments in his murder trial.

The ailing 83-year-old former strongman, who was wheeled into court on a stretch-

er, is accused of involvement in the deaths of protesters during the uprising that overthrew him in February. His former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly and six security chiefs were also in the dock, as were his two sons Alaa and Gamal who are being tried on corruption

charges. Mubarak was “a tyrannical leader who sought to hand power to his younger son Gamal, who spread corruption in the country and opened the door to his friends and relatives, ruining the country without any accountability,” said prosecutor Mustafa Su-

leiman. Judge Ahmed Refaat heard from the prosecution for an hour before adjourning the hearing to Wednesday.

Police and army troops were deployed to secure the trial at the Police Academy, which once bore Mubarak’s name. The prosecution has

been given three days to make its case after Judge Refaat previously heard arguments from lawyers representing the families of the alleged victims.

The hearings began on August 3 after months of protests to place the former strongman on trial.

–AFP

N. Korea holds mass rally in support of new leader More than 100,000 North Koreans rallied in support of new leader Kim Jong-Un on Tuesday, state media reported, days after he was proclaimed the “great successor” to his father.

The mass rally at Kim Il-Sung Square in the capital Pyongyang was attended by citizens and a number of senior officials, the state KCNA news agency said, in another sign the North is closing ranks behind its new leader.

South Korea’s news agency Yonhap said the North’s state television had released footage on Tuesday of a visit at the weekend by the young leader to a tank division.

The visit, during which Jong-Un spoke with military www.thephuketnews.com

This picture, taken from North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency, shows people holding a mass rally in support for their country’s policies and new leader Kim Jong-Un at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang on January 3.

–Photo by AFP officers, was his first solo inspection of the unit since the death of his father and longtime leader Kim JongIl, according to the footage,

Yonhap said.

On Saturday the North announced that Jong-Un, aged in his late 20s, had formally been appointed supreme commander

of the 1.2-million-strong military, the world’s fourth-largest.

Kim Jong-Il died on December 17.

–AFP

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Body of young female found on Queen’s estate grounds British police on Tuesday (January 3) said a woman whose remains were found at one of Queen Elizabeth II’s country estates had been murdered.

A murder investigation has been launched after a dog walker found the body on New Year’s Day in woods on farmland on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, eastern England.

The royals spend Christmas at the estate and the discovery came several hours after they attended a New Year church service, at which the queen’s husband Prince Philip made his first public appearance since a heart scare.

The remains were found just 1.5 kilometres from the main gate of Sandringham House, the royal residence on the 8,000-hectare estate.

Queen Elizabeth, 85, and Prince Philip, 90, are currently in residence at the house.

“We are at the very early stages of the investigation and it could be a complex inquiry,” said Detective Chief Inspector Jes Fry, of Norfolk Constabulary, at a news conference near the scene.

“The circumstances suggest this is a murder case and we are looking at missing persons reports and cold cases both locally and nationwide.”

The victim was a young adult woman and her body had been at the site for between one and four months, police believe.

Forensic experts were carrying out a detailed search of the area and a post-mortem expected soon.

Queen Elizabeth’s Buckingham Palace office declined to comment. The news will add to an already tumultuous festive period for the royals after Prince Philip suffered his most serious health scare yet. –AFP

INTERNATIONALNEWS

9

In US, growing talk of a possible war with Iran Fed by diplomatic tensions and election-year politics, talk about a coming conflict with Iran has reached a fever pitch in the US capital.

Speculation about a possible war with Iran ebbs and flows, but a confluence of events has served to fuel dire predictions among politicians and pundits that war may be on the horizon – either by necessity or by accident.

Some of the same hawkish voices that portrayed Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq as a dire threat requiring urgent military action are now warning that the United States must be prepared for war with Iran, while accusing President Barack Obama of lacking backbone.

John Yoo, a former Justice Department official under former president George W Bush, has called on Republican presidential candidates to “begin preparing the case for a military strike to destroy Iran’s nuclear program.”

Calling it an “unavoidable challenge,” Yoo wrote last week in the National Review that the United States would have legal grounds to strike at Iran’s nuclear sites – similar to the arguments made before the invasion of Iraq.

“It can argue that destroying Iran’s nuclear weapons is a combination of self-defence and protecting international security,” said Yoo, who during Bush’s tenure backed broad presidential powers to

Mitt Romney: ‘If I win, Iran will not have Lindsey Graham: ‘We need a regime change’. nuclear weapons. –Photo by Gage Skidmore –Photo by US Senate wage war and deny rights to terror suspects.

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has made a clear commitment to use military force if necessary, promising that if he wins the White House, Iran will not have nuclear weapons.

Both in the United States and Israel, lawmakers and commentators warn that time is running out on the Iranian “nuclear clock” and that at some point over the next year, economic sanctions will have to be abandoned in favour of bombing raids to stop Iran from securing the bomb.

Senator Lindsey Graham and other Republicans have said any US military action would have to be broader than a few “surgical” strikes on nuclear facilities.

“Their capability is so redundant you’d have to do more than go after the nuclear program, you have to neuter this regime, destroy the air force, sink their navy, go after the Revolutionary Guard and try to get people in the country to overthrow the regime.

We need a regime change,” Graham told the CBS show Face the Nation in November.

“If they get a nuclear weapon the world is going to go into darkness,” he said.

Despite rising tensions with Tehran and tough rhetoric from lawmakers, US military and defence chiefs have warned repeatedly that air strikes on Iran would, at best, only delay Tehran’s nuclear efforts by a few years while at the same time carrying huge risks.

Analysts who oppose military action worry that the United States could stumble into a war with Iran because a strategy focused on pressure and punitive sanctions may leave no diplomatic way out of the crisis.

“We are in such an escalatory cycle, if we just continue on this path much longer, we will essentially sleepwalk into a war,” Trita Parsi, author of a book on US policy toward Iran, said.

In A Single Roll of the Dice: Obama’s Diplomacy with Iran, Parsi argues the Obama administration tried a diplomatic approach but gave up too soon, partly because the Iranian regime’s crackdown on street protests in 2009 made it politically impossible for the White

House to pursue an opening with Tehran.

“It made a bad atmosphere much, much worse,” said Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council.

Obama faces similar political pressures that plagued former president Bill Clinton over Iraq in the 1990s, when Republicans blasted sanctions on Saddam Hussein as ineffective, according to Parsi.

Some US officials privately worry about sliding into an unintended war, as does Zbigniew Brzezinski, the former national security advisor during Jimmy Carter’s presidency in the 1970s.

“We think we are going to avoid war by moving towards compulsion,” Brzezinski said last month.

“But the more you lean towards compulsion, the more the choice becomes war if it doesn’t work. That narrows our options in a very dramatic way.”

Shortly before retiring, the former top-ranking US officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, worried that a lack of communication between the two countries’ militaries could turn an incident into a potential conflict.

“We are not talking to Iran. So we don’t understand each other,” Mullen said in September. “If something happens, it’s virtually assured that we won’t get it right, that there will be miscalculations.”

–AFP

‘Positive’ talks between Israel, Palestine officials Israeli and Palestinian negotiators held a “positive” first face-to-face meeting in more than 15 months on Tuesday and agreed to meet again today (January 6), but cautioned that full-blown talks were still some way off.

“The talks and atmosphere were positive,” Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh told reporters after the talks in Amman between Israel’s chief negotiator Yitzhak Molcho, his Palestinian counterpart Saeb Erakat and Palestinian negotiator Mohammed Shtayyeh.

Washington too welcomed what it described as a “positive development” after months of deadlock in peace talks over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal in 2010 to renew a freeze on most

settlement construction in the occupied West Bank.

Judeh, who hosted the meeting in the Jordanian capital, voiced cautious optimism.

“The two sides expressed their commitment to a two-state solution. We do not want to raise the level of expectations, but at the same time we do not want to minimise the importance of this meeting,” he said.

“The Palestinians submitted a paper on borders and security. The Israeli side received it, promising to study it and respond,” he said.

A Palestinian official close to the talks told AFP that “the meeting on Tuesday... brought nothing new because the Israeli delegation did not bring up any new element during the discussions.”

But “we agreed to have a second meeting on Friday in Amman under the auspices of the Quartet and in the presence of Jordan,” he said, on condition of anonymity.

He was referring to the international Middle East Quartet that includes the European Union, Russia, the United Nations and the United States.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas had earlier said that the Palestinians were looking for find “the right foundation” to resume talks.

“We hope Jordanian efforts work,” he said. Direct talks ground to a halt in September 2010, when an Israeli freeze on new West Bank settlement construction expired and Netanyahu declined to renew it.

–AFP

www.thephuketnews.com

10

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

OPINION

51 BLACK SPOTS

How can Phuket’s roads be made safe? > 11

Editor’s Viewpoint

NORACHAI’S WORLD

THE VICIOUS BITE OF THE LOAN SHARK Last week American expat Anthony Thomas Granata, 73, and his Filipina secretary Ressel Aplay were arrested, accused of working without work permits and with charging illegally excessive interest rates on loans; the interest they were allegedly charging on loans was 10 per cent a month.

Both have denied the charges, but whether they are eventually found innocent or guilty, the case highlights the very sorry situation of loansharking on the island.

Many people – in particular foreigners – are unable to borrow money from a Thai bank, and do not have savings when emergencies occur, or are foolish with their money.

Full blame cannot rest entirely with the loan shark. So called ‘victims’ enter voluntarily into an agreement with the loan shark. They sign a contract, are well aware of the interest rates and, in the case of foreigners, hand over their passports as security.

(Governments would no doubt be most alarmed at the

A busy year ahead.

Letters to the Editor Telephone troubles

I started to pay my TT&T bills by direct debit in April 2009. Unknown to me TT&T was collecting from my bank account, not only my monthly bill, but the bill of another subscriber.

I discovered this practice in October and contacted TT&T which admitted its mistake.

However, I was told that payments for the other telephone number would continue for another month (why?), and that the B30,745.25 owed to me would be repaid in November.

It was not. On December 9 I received a credit for only B20,000. Further phone calls, this time via a Thai friend, informed me that the next payment would be in January.

I am not holding my breath.

I visited the Kok Kaew offices of TT&T twice. I have made more than four phone

calls to the head office in Bangkok – always to be told that I would be called back.

But that has never happened.

I have sent three emails to icare@tt&t.co.th (a misnomer if ever there was one) and have never had a reply.

TT&T would originally not give me a phone line because I am a foreigner so I had to register the line under the name of the company that runs my estate. If I was one day late (twice) in paying my bill my phone was disconnected, hence the inception of the direct debit since which time my account has never been in default.

So tell me TT&T, as you operate a policy based, I presume, upon your mistrust of foreigners, how do you justify your disgraceful handling of this situation?

Who is more honourable?

Me or you with your contempt for customers?

Keith Marshall Chalong Contacted by The Phuket News, a TT&T official explained that the other subscriber, whose charges had been added to Mr Marshall’s bill, had paid B20,000 to TT&T and this was the amount that had been repaid so far to Mr Marshall.

The subscriber was expected to pay the remaining B10,745.25 in the current billing cycle, and Mr Marshall would be reimbursed “not later than January 7”.

Loan sharking [Re. American arrested for loan sharking] I think they should be responsible to pay for whatever they borrow because they were not being forced to borrow in the

first place. They knew from the start about the lender’s condition and they agreed to it.

I just don’t understand why after they get the money, after they’ve used it and now they are complaining that the interest rate is so high. They should instead find way to pay for it not by reporting to whoever.

What do they expect? After the arrest, are they expecting to just walk out and be happy?

It’s just like stealing. Well, just my opinion.

Blue If this man actually did do this crime I feel very sorry for the victims. Being so desperate for money leads to a sticky situation. These people should know never to approach loan sharks because they will end up in a whole lot more debt trouble.

Sally K

Letters may be edited for clarity or length. Email managingeditor@thephuketnews.com or fax 076 612 553.

Please include your full name, address, phone number, and email address. This week, congratulations go to reader Elliot Klein, whose effort is ‘Letter of the Week’, and receives a B500 gift voucher from Asia Books.

www.thephuketnews.com

thought of such a document – legally belonging to the government, not the bearer – being misused in this way.)

On the other side of the equation, loan sharks are hardly angels. They prey on the desperate. People need money and they need it quick, whether it’s for gambling debt, medical payments, or that new car. For this they pay an extreme price.

With the high interest, many are unable to keep on top of payments, because often it was a lack of money that drove them to take a loan out in the first place. The profession of loan sharking is high-profit. But it is also high-risk. People who are unable to pay may simply do a midnight flit, and the loan shark loses the money – hence the high rates demanded.

The bottom line? Don’t get involved. Loan sharks cause more problems on this island than they are worth – both for the sharks (it’s illegal and they could face jail if convicted), and for the victims, who find themselves in a ever-deepening hole of debt.

This week in history Bus safety?

[Re. Phuket long distance buses get clean bill of health] How do you thoroughly check 170 buses a day for safety?

Impossible. How do you thoroughly check the ability of 170 drivers a day? Impossible.

Am I feeling safer knowing the checks have been done....

NO. Maybe Thais have faith in the PLTO, but I suspect most farang do not.

Laurie Howells

Illegal gambling [Re. Seven busted in Patong for gambling] There is illegal gambling all over Phuket. I had illegal gambling going on few doors down from me. The police know everything that goes on in Patong. The police should try harder to crack down on illegal gambling.

Billy

■■ January 6, 1838: Samuel Morse successfully tests the first electrical telegraph.

■■ January 7, 1904: The distress signal ‘CQD’ is established only to be replaced two years later by ‘SOS’.

■■ January 8, 1835: The United States national debt is zero for the only time in history. In December 2011, the gross debt was US$15,098 trillion.

■■ January 9, 1768: In London, Philip Astley stages the first “modern” circus.

■■ January 10, 1984: The United States and the Vatican re-establish full diplomatic relations after they were broken off in 1867.

■■ January 11, 1922: First use of insulin to treat diabetes in a human patient.

■■ January 12, 1971: Reverend Philip Berrigan and five others are indicted on charges of conspiring to kidnap Henry Kissinger and of plotting to blow up heating tunnels of buildings.

HOTTOPIC 11

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

51 BLACK SPOTS How can Phuket’s roads be made safe?

Over the New Year period – officially from December 30 to January 4 – police and other authorities concerned with road safety have been watching the scores mount.

The news was not good.

They aimed for no more than four deaths in the period, using police check points to try to make people think a little more clearly.

It didn’t work. By January 1, six people were already dead, all but one while riding motorbikes. Most, it seems, were the victims of bad driving. One smashed into a parked car, one hit a minibus, one died when the bike on which she was riding pillion cut across traffic, and two simply went off the road with no help from others.

The other victim was hit by a car while crossing the road.

Another 55 people were injured in road smashes.

But apart from the generally alcohol-fueled mayhem over the New Year, 2011 saw a slight reduction in the number of deaths and injuries from traffic accidents on Phuket, according to statistics released by Phuket Provincial Police.

There were 2,150 reported road accidents with 133 deaths and 2,097 people injured. The figures in 2010 were, respectively, 2,076, 146 and 2,244.

Despite the reduction in the number of people who died compared with 2010, Phuket still remains one of the top five provinces in the South of Thailand when it comes to road deaths, according to the Road Safety Authority, which is part of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation.

Representatives of police stations around Phuket, the Phuket Highways Department and other relevant authorities came together recently for a meeting to discuss the problems and possible solutions.

Statistics from police stations show that there are two main reasons for accidents: driver behaviour and the roads themselves.

Fifty one accident black spots have been highlighted on the island by police, local authorities and the Phuket Highways Department. Problems with roads – poor or nonexistent road markings, poor road design, dangerous bends or bad surfaces – would cost more than B87 million to fix.

Sathaporn Sornchana, Deputy Chief of the Phuket Highways Department, which is in charge of traffic engineer-

ing explained, “Around 80 per cent of roads [on the island] belong to us and 20 per cent are owned and maintained by local authorities.

“In a meeting in August we compiled a list of 51 black spots. Since then some of these have been resolved.”

Black spots corrected using the 2011 budget included: • Kuan Ha Roi (the curve on Thepkrasattri Rd north of the notorious Baan Khor Ane bend): The road bed has been rebuilt to reduce the sharpness of the bend.

• The road into the airport from Thepkrasattri Rd to the Nai Yang intersection: The road is currently being widened to four lanes and lights are to be installed at the airport end. This is due to be completed around October next year.

• The curve at the Tha Rua Chinese Shrine on Thepkrasattri Rd: flashing speed limit lights, rumble strips and skid-resistant surface have been installed.

• Sala Dang intersection (where the old road to Phuket International Airport meets Thepkrasattri Rd): resolved by using traffic lights 24 hours a day instead of flashing amber lights at night.

• The road from the Heroines Monument to Surin Beach: Road markings using thermoplastic paint for the entire 10 km.

• Intersection between Thepkrasattri Rd and northern

road into Phuket International Airport (north of Blue Canyon Golf Club): Flashing lights installed.

• Kong Khor Ane, the much-disputed bend at the entrance to Baan Khor Ane: After a mob blocked the road, authorities closed one southbound lane. A glittering array of warnings were installed to get drivers to slow right down, backed by speed bumps.

• Kong Bang Duk (curve south of Kong Khor Ane): Flashing lights and speed bumps to slow traffic.

• Bend at Baan Rieng junction (west of Thalang): Flashing lights installed to warn drivers of curve.

• On bypass road in front of Phuket International Hospital: “no U-turn” signage installed and concrete blocks installed to discourage U-turns.

• Bend and intersection next to Baan Chalong School (on Chao Fa West Rd): Resolved by installing traffic lights, thermoplastic roadmarkings.

• In Patong, yellow crosshatching on roads outside Wat Suwankhiriwong, Wat Suwan School, in front of the Esso gas station and at the junction in front of the Government Savings Bank.

• Rumble strips installed on last tight curve on Patong Hill, above Wat Suwankhiriwong, and on Pisitkoranee/ Nanai Rd, near the intersection with Ha Sip Pi Rd.

Above, riders set off at the beginning of last week’s ride to raise awareness of helmet safety. Lefts, Sathaporn Sornchana of the Highways Office: “Some of the black spots have been resolved.”

• Intersection in Patong between Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Rd and Phrabaramee Rd: Lane markings painted.

• Raeng Dan Curve (on Patong Hill, near the shooting range on the Kathu side): Skid-resistant surface installed.

• Kamala: One kilometre of central reservation installed from Phuket Fantasy going towards Patong. Mr Sathaporn said, “Some of these black spots cannot be completely fixed until we get the 2012 budget.

“Meanwhile, we have talked with Koh Kaew OrBorTor (Tambon Administration Organisation) about finding a new site for vendors who currently block most

of a lane in front of Bang Koo School, opposite Boat Lagoon.” But some 30 black spots still await budgets for improvement. The main ones, with proposed solutions, are: • Kong Suan Maphrao (the curved near Hongyok Bamrung School on Thepkrasattri Rd, in the north of Phuket): Traffic lights and speed bumps; • Intersection in Bang Jo: flashing lights and rumble strips; Heroines Monument to Pa Klok, central reservation with U-turns (about 5 km); • Baan Don – Cherng Talay Rd (near Bang Tao Village): road markings; • Central reservations are to

be built in front of Cherng Talay School; from Dao Rung School junction to Kwang Rd; on Sakdidet Rd from Soi 7 to Pattanatongtin Rd; Chao Fa West Rd from Wichitsongkram School to Kwang Rd; at Kong Sator (curve on Patak Rd west of Chalong Circle); and on Viset Rd near the Vijitt Resort.

• Traffic lights are to be installed at the entrance to Wat Chalong.

But, Mr Sathaporn warned, “All of this can reduce the number of accidents but the reality is that people need to obey the traffic laws and drive in a way that keeps themselves and others safe.”

Sustained traffic safety campaigns are rare in Phuket, but on December 28 more than 250 students, teachers, village heads and local people in Chalong and Rawai joined a parade to encourage the use of motorcycle helmets, particularly during the New Year celebrations.

Deputy Director of Phuket Provincial Transport Office Wanta Pummrarosrukon explained, “We frequently hold education sessions to remind local people, students and teachers about wearing helmets.

Today’s activity is to remind them again to be more careful about driving and riding.” www.thephuketnews.com

12

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

BUSINESS

Maldives tourism industry slams closures of spas Tourism officials in the Maldives on Monday denied that health spas at luxury holiday resorts operate as brothels and sought legal redress to squash a government order to shut the facilities.

Last week the Tourism Ministry instructed resort hotels across the nation’s coral islands to close all spas and health centres offering beauty treatments and massages.

The crackdown followed protests by an Islamist party that claimed they were a front for prostitution.

But Sim Ibrahim, head of the Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI), denied emphatically that this was the case. “Sex tourism definitely does not happen in the resorts,” he said.

“The ban is very disruptive, not helpful for tourism and bad for our country’s image. We have asked for legal clarity to protect an industry that has been in operation for 40 years.”

Tourism is a key foreign exchange earner in the Maldives, a popular destination for well-heeled honeymooners where rooms can cost up to

US$12,000 (B360,000) a day.

At least 100 spas and health centres were shut immediately after the government announcement, but Ibrahim said tourism was crucial for the national economy and that he hoped the ban would be overturned within days.

Home to some 330,000 Sunni Muslims, the Maldives has a reputation as a paradise holiday destination but this has come under pressure from religious fundamentalists who are growing in influence.

President Mohamed Nasheed recently rejected religious extremism and urged his people to support a “tolerant” form of Islam practised in the country for centuries.

Tourism Minister Mariyam Zulfa told AFP that a compromise was being considered.

“The government is not against the tourism business,” she said.

The opposition Adhaalath (Justice) Party, a conservative religious movement whose website features an article criticising “lustful music”, last month staged protests in Male alleging spas were being used as brothels.

–AFP

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Regular Phuket visitor Superstar Virgo gets a whole new look > 14

Hard months ahead for auto makers Japanese automaker Honda on Tuesday (December 27) began destroying more than 1,000 cars in Thailand to reassure customers that no vehicles damaged in the country’s recent flood crisis will ever be sold.

The scrapping process at Honda’s plant in the central province of Ayutthaya is expected to take one month, the company said in a statement.

The plant is located in the Rojana Industrial Park, where heavy flooding in early October brought production to a halt and aerial pictures showed hundreds of new cars submerged in muddy water.

“While we were able to relocate many new cars that were awaiting shipment to a safe area, 1,055 vehicles that remained in the plant were finally damaged by the flood,” said Pitak Pruittisarikorn, Executive Vice President of Honda Automobile Thailand.

“We will not sell any of the damaged cars to customers, or sell or reuse any of the parts,” he added.

Most of the cars to be scrapped are mid-sized City sedans and Brio and Jazz hatchbacks. Production has yet to resume at the factory.

Piles of rubbish, rusting furniture and discarded machinery litter one of Thailand’s top high-tech parks, a former symbol of economic prowess laid to waste by weeks of flooding.

Many of the companies located in the country’s industrial heartland say it will be several months at least

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B750m makeover

Windows explode as a Honda car is fed into a compactor. Honda is trashing 1,055 flood-damaged cars at its plant in Ayutthaya.

–Photo AFP before their operations return to normal. Investor confidence in the Kingdom is likely to take even longer to recover.

“We’ve realised, obviously with hindsight, that we’re in the wrong place – we’re in a flood zone,” said Richard Han, Chief Executive of semiconductor maker Hana Microelectronics whose plant was badly affected.

“My customers understand that,” Han added. “They are moving their business elsewhere.”

Japanese high-tech giant Toshiba still has no idea when operations will resume at eight of its affected factories as new machines and parts are needed and electricity and telephone links have not yet been fully restored.

“We already destroyed

more than 100,000 damaged goods in our warehouse,” a spokeswoman said.

In total seven major industrial estates in central Thailand fell victim to the Kingdom’s worst floods in half a century, which left hundreds dead.

While many Japanese companies – a key pillar of the economy – have said publicly they remain committed to Thailand, in private there is frustration with the Government’s handling of the crisis, particularly its confusing advice.

“I wish the Government had done more,” said the president of a local subsidiary of a Japanese textile producer, who had to rely on the media for information about the disaster.

His factory, located in the northern suburbs of Bangkok,

close to where the Government set up its emergency response centre, was submerged in one and a half metres of water, despite the firm’s efforts to protect it with sandbags.

“In the beginning Don Muang was a flood relief and evacuation centre so the Government said it would be OK... but they completely failed,” the Japanese businessman said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The factory’s stock was destroyed and the machinery is now rusting and needs to be repaired or replaced. But he has no plan to abandon the kingdom.

“We will start operations again at the same place with all the employees,” he said, but added, “I hope the Government prevents flooding next year.”

The Board of Investment is planning to invite chief executives to Bangkok next month for a forum at which it says long-term flood prevention measures will be announced.

For flood-stricken firms, action cannot come soon enough.

“All of us are very sick.

We fought very hard. We’re very tired ... If the Government wants to do something, [it] must announce it quickly,” said Yeap Swee Chuan, head of auto parts maker Aapico Hitech.

–AFP

BUSINESS/TOURISM 13

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Asia survives doom – so far

The sight of French President Nicolas Sarkozy running to Beijing to solicit funds to save the Eurozone summed up what, for some, was the economic story of 2011 – Asia’s boom versus the West’s gloom.

Coming 14 years some nations in Asia were forced to go cap-in-hand to the International Monetary Fund for bailouts amid the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, the irony was not lost on observers.

As 2011 draws to a close with the US recovery barely at a trot, Europe staring into an economic abyss and even Brazil – once a member of the high-growth emerging club – facing possible recession, Asia is a beacon of hope.

Its economic emergence has also brought it new diplomatic clout, with US President Barack Obama very publicly shifting Washington’s foreign policy focus towards the region at two summits in November.

Obama used the APEC summit in Hawaii to propel ambitious plans for the world’s largest free trade zone, the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Twelve of APEC’s 21 members pledged to join the talks, including Japan, the world’s third-biggest economy.

The GDP growth numbers

tell a story of a two-track global economy divided between an emerging East and declining West.

Eurozone woes so far have not hurt Asia’s export-reliant economies as severely as the 2008-2009 US subprime mortgage crisis that sharply reduced global trade.

But analysts warn that Asia’s success cannot be taken for granted heading in 2012, especially if Europe falls into recession.

The two powerhouses of regional growth, China and India, were showing cracks by the third quarter of 2011 as export markets faltered, domestic demand softened, debts mounted and production slowed.

Japan struggled to recover from its March quake-tsunami disaster and Thailand’s output drowned in rising flood waters.

Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan all reported weak second-half figures.

“The main strength of Asia has been financial. Its banks are sound and aren’t laden with extreme levels of bad debt,” said HSBC Co-head of Asian Economics Research Frederic Neumann.

“There has been a credit boom across the region which

Cap in hand, Nicholas Sarkozy went to Beijing looking for funds to rescue the Eurozone.

–Photo Richard Pichet. fuelled economic growth. In that regard Asia’s resilience is somewhat artificial.”

China’s deep fiscal reserves drew a stream of high-level visitors including Sarkozy to Beijing this year. But growth in China, the world’s secondlargest economy, is expected to have slowed to 9.2 per cent in 2011 compared with the

10.4 per cent benchmark set in 2010, according to the staterun think tank, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The academy projects growth will slide further, to 8.9 per cent in 2012, its lowest point in more than a decade.

Some analysts believe that number is on the high side.

Dong Tao of Credit Suisse, for

Cambodia, Thailand to try talking oil Cambodia and Thailand sought in the last days of 2011 to revive long-stalled plans for joint offshore energy exploration along their disputed sea border, with Phnom Penh saying it wanted a deal “very soon”.

Politics and the occasional border clash between the neighbours have for years got in the way of solving a lingering dispute about overlapping claims to undersea oil and natural gas fields in the Gulf of Thailand.

But ties between the two countries have improved significantly in recent months, sparking fresh hopes that a deal can be reached that will finally allow both countries to tap into the potentially rich reserves.

Cambodia estimates that it is sitting on hundreds of millions of barrels of crude and three times as much natural gas, although observers say it remains unclear how much could be recovered and what the revenues would be.

“As both countries need income from oil and gas, we should reach an agreement very soon,” Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said after meeting his Thai counterpart in Phnom Penh on December 29 to discuss

re-starting the talks.

Thai Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan said after meeting Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An, who heads the National Petroleum Authority, “We hope that in the future we’re able to work on the overlapping claims area.”

Once “some processes” were finalised, he told reporters, “the oil and gas will come out in eight to 10 years, not now”.

Cambodia and Thailand first opened negotiations to jointly develop the disputed area in 1995, but they hit

problems when ex-Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra was ousted in a military coup in 2006.

Angered by Phnom Penh’s decision to appoint Thaksin as an economic adviser to the Cambodian Government, and amid a festering border dispute near the ancient Khao Phra Viharn temple on the border, Bangkok in 2009 decided to cancel a 2001 memorandum of understanding.

Tensions have eased markedly since Thaksin’s sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, came to power in August.

Impoverished Cambodia said it hopes to begin pumping oil in December this year from offshore fields outside the contested zone, with exploration agreements with US energy giant Chevron and French oil company Total already in place.

Cambodia was feted as Southeast Asia’s next petrostate after oil was discovered there by Chevron in 2005, but progress stalled apparently because of wrangling between the government and Chevron over revenue sharing.

–AFP

example, expects no more than 8 per cent growth in China this year – uncomfortably close to the 7.0 per cent minimum the Chinese government says is required to maintain social stability.

Neumann said he believed China was heading for a “soft landing” in 2012, but was more cautious about Beijing’s ability to sustain its credit-fuelled growth into 2014-2015. The same applied for the region as a whole, he added.

“The region’s growth is to a large part dependent on rapid credit expansion. Sceptics would question whether Asia is experiencing its own credit bubble, similar to what the West went through three

or four years ago,” he said.

Analysts said the main risk of a “hard landing” in 2012 was in India where growth slipped to a two-year low of 6.9 per cent in the latest quarter, hit by a series of interest rate hikes that have done little to curb high inflation.

The government cut its growth forecast for the fiscal year to March 2012 to 7.3 per cent from an original 9 per cent – still a pace any developed economy would envy but far below the official 10 per cent target set to tackle India’s grinding poverty levels.

In Japan, GDP shrank by an annualised 2.1 per cent in the June quarter after the March 11 quake and tsunami, and the nuclear crisis at Fukushima.

Producers raced to restore output, and managed it more quickly than expected.

Rebuilding efforts led to an annualised 6.0 per cent jump in July-September GDP. The Asian Development Bank said this week that trade between regional nations and rising domestic consumption fuelled by fast-growing middle classes would shield the region from the worst of the global fall-out.

Financial systems in Asia had been “little affected” by volatility in the credit markets and were keeping the investment pipeline liquid, it said in a report.

A defence against trouble in Western markets lay in “increasing intra-regional trade and financial integration, and expanding links with other emerging economies”.

–AFP

www.thephuketnews.com

14 BUSINESS/PROPERTY

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Cruise liner gets B750m makeover Regular visitor to Phuket, the cruise liner SuperStar Virgo, is receiving a US$25 million (B750 million) makeover.

During the three-week dry-dock renovation, which started on January 2, the 76,800-tonnage, 1,870-passenger SuperStar Virgo will have a comprehensive facelift that will include a new hull design as well as a makeover in its cabin, restaurants, entertainment, bodycare, shopping, sports and recreation venues.

It will return to home port in Singapore on January 23.

The SuperStar Virgo in its home port of Singapore, before going in for its big makeover.

TCEB wants B300m for World Expo bid

Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) says it will ask for B300 million for the fiscal year 2012/2013 to support its World Expo 2020 bid.

TCEB president, Akapol Sorasuchart, said the bureau is working with the Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Foreign Affairs to establish the budget that would kick in on October 1, 2012 at the start of the new fiscal year.

“Due to the disastrous floods the Government cut our budget by 20 per cent including the World Expo campaign budget to divert funds for flood rehabilitation.”

Mr Akapol added, “this has forced us to reduce road shows to Europe and North America, though trips to Russia, China, Japan, South Korea and Indonesia are still on track.”

Ayutthaya, the proposed city for Thailand’s World Expo

thaya to host the 2020 event are Izmir in Turkey, Ekaterinburg in Russia, Sao Paolo in Brazil and Dubai in the UAE. The final decision will be made in November 2013 by World Expositions.

The World Expo is regarded as the third most significant global event in terms of its economic and cultural impact. The biggest two are the Olympic Games and the FIFA Architects do well out of World Expos as countries seek to World Cup. Income from World Fairs outdo each other. This is the Aragon Pavilion at Expo 2008. is notoriously difficult to cal2020 bid, was underwater for ary 15 to June 15, 2020. culate, but the 2008 World two months and is now the foThe site is located 82 km Expo, in Zaragoza, Spain, was cus of a massive recovery cam- north of Suvarnabhumi Inter- estimated to have brought 135 paign to rebuild the province’s national Airport and just 42 km million Euros (B5.4 billion) in economy and infrastructure. north of Don Muang Airport. admission ticket receipts alone, Mr Akapol remains confi- It lies adjacent to the river, while the Dutch pavilion at the dent that the 1,500-rai site near about five km west of the 347 2000 event in Germany was the Bang Sai Royal Folk Arts highway just north of where calculated to have brought Centre remains the most suit- the 347 cuts across a major ring “potential revenue” of 350 able location to build the expo. road linking highway 340 and million Euros (B14 billion) to If Thailand wins the bid it highways 1 and 32. will host the event from JanuCompeting against Ayut- the Netherlands.

This year the World Expo takes place in Yeosu, South Korea. In 2016 it will be in Antalya, Turkey.

–TTR Weekly

www.ayudhya.net Tel: 0 7 6 3 8 4 6 6 4 -

www.thephuketnews.com

The ship will ply the straits of Singapore and Malacca in various itineraries including two-night, three-night and five-night destination cruises calling at popular locations such as Phuket, Langkawi, Port Klang, Malacca, Redang, and Penang. It will also sail onenight and two-night high-seas cruises.

Last year the line carried out refurbishments of the Star Pisces (based in Hong Kong) and SuperStar Aquarius (currently based in Sanya, China), at a total cost of US$13.6 million (B408 million).

Safety simply a matter of being down to earth Ground? Earth? The terms are interchangeable as far as electrical engineers are concerned. It just depends which nationality you are. I’m going to use ground but don’t think for one minute that I’m American.

There is a body of opinion that says that if nothing was connected to ground, no ground would be necessary and we could all save the cost of ground wires. However, whereas such a system would be quite safe, we would lose some important benefits.

Grounding has two key benefits.

Firstly by connecting everything to the main body of the Earth, everything must be at the same voltage and electric shock is impossible.

Secondly, whereas the neutral wire is connected to ground, by having a separate ground wire, it is possible to detect a fault such that the circuit is automatically disconnected from the supply.

Many years ago, electrical installations in Thailand had two pin socket outlets and no appliance was connected to ground. This was probably OK when the appliances in a typical Thai house consisted

info@ayudhya.net Mob: 087 898 8647

ELECTRICITY

AND YOU

by David Robertson

of a TV set, a fan in a plastic case and a top-loader washing machine in a plastic box.

For the past decade or so, three-pin socket outlets with a ground connection have been required by the Thai EIT code.

It surprises me that two-pin socket outlets are still readily available.

In general, all appliances with exposed metallic parts must be connected to ground.

That includes all white goods such as washing machines, refrigerators, irons, coffee machines and the like.

Audio/video equipment is often double insulated and requires no ground connection.

That excludes flat screen TVs which usually require a ground connection.

If your home already has three-pin sockets, good for you. If not, you may want to get sockets with a ground connection installed at least for those appliances which need it.

The size of ground wires is important. Remember, in case of a fault, we want enough current to flow such that the breaker trips. Usually, ground wires are one size down from the live wires.

The main ground wire to your consumer unit (fuse box) should be not smaller than half the size of the main supply cables.

■■ David Roberston is managing Director and Chief Engineer of Phuket-based Electrical Safety Consultants Ltd. For more information visit elec-safety.com. To ask questions email info@elecsafety.com

15

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

CULTURE

Snakes on a plane (almost) Airport security shocked > 22

RANDOM view

SPARKLING NEW YEAR Appropriately to welcome the New Year, Random View this week is of sparkling fireworks exploding in the sky above Kata and Karon.

It was taken by local amateur photographer, Simon O’Herlihy, from Sabai Corner behind the

Kata viewing point.

“I set my camera up on a tripod with a low ISO of 80, aperture at F8 and shutter at two seconds.

“Having water in the middle ground, in this case the sea, reflects the fireworks, which enhances the depth of field,” he says.

www.photohutgroup.com

Each month the best ‘Random View’ wins a B500 gift voucher courtesy of Photo Hut (see www.photohutgroup.com).

At the end of 2011, The Phuket News and Photo Hut’s ‘Photo of the Year’, chosen from all the competition entrants, receives a grand voucher for a total of B5,000.

Photos must have a Phuket theme, and be at least 1MB and 300dpi in size. Email entries to: managingeditor@ thephuketnews.com

Phuket galleries Ceramics of Phuket:

71/3 Vichitsongkram Rd, Kathu; 185/6-7 Srisoonthorn Rd, Cherng Talay, 076 326 870, info@ceramicsofphuket.com; ceramicsofphuket.com.

Designed by Woulfe Studio

Baan Wana Park, 177/22 Moo.4, Srisoonthorn Road, Thalang, 076 620 071, designedbywoulfe.com.

Dream Gallery

Boat Lagoon, 23/122 Thepkasattri Rd, Koh Kaew, 076 273 487, gallery@asiansourcingallery.com, thedreamgallery.asia.

I Mon Art Gallery:

29/2 Phang Nga Rd, Phuket Town, 086 961 8968, montian_29@live.com. Open daily 8am-7.30pm.

King Art Studio:

21 & 50 Soi Bangla, Patong, 086 682 9130, info@kingartstudio.com; kingartstudio.com. Open daily 10am-midnight.

Lat Design and Art Garden:

95/33 Sai Yuan Rd, Naiharn, 086 294 3971, ja_rassri@hotmail.com.

Little Monk Gallery:

95/33 Saiyuan Rd, Naiharn, 086 294 3971.

99 Art Studio:

23 Lagoon Rd, 076 270 845, s.niamkhuntod99@gmail.com.

Phuket Modern Art:

5/28 Haad Patong Rd, Patong, 089 646 8838, phuketmodernart.com.

Dream Gallery owner, Esmeralda Paya, stands in the middle of her treasure trove of Chinese antiques.

The stuff of dreams The Dream Gallery is somewhat hidden away among the large pleasure boats up in drydock at Boat Lagoon, in Koh Kaew. Perhaps one doesn’t expect a little treasure trove of beautiful Chinese antiques to be found just there.

But, according to manager Esmeralda Paya from Spain, visitors staying at five-star hotels in Phuket make special trips there to browse and buy the unique antique furniture, intricate embroidered textiles and hand-painted porcelain, all carefully selected and

GALLERY focus

imported from China.

Esmeralda says that her love affair with Chinese aesthetics began when she was working in Beijing, promoting commercial ties between her native region of Valencia and China.

Esmeralda soon went into business on her own account, consulting mainly for European businesses entering the vast Chinese market.

She could then also indulge

her passion for selecting old household items, anywhere between 80 to 200 years old and mostly from the homes of formerly rich Chinese families, exporting them to be shown and treasured, mostly by rich Western and Thai families.

The small gallery is filled with items displaying the patience that went into beautifying decorative items, whether they be intricate carvings in wood or stone, finely-embroidered cloth, or tea cups and plates that took a craftsperson days to hand-paint. Each is a

labour of love.

In the studio in her home in Phuket, Esmeralda can now also apply her sharp aesthetic eye to designing stylish jewellery that she makes herself, from shards of antique Chinese porcelain.

She makes monthly business trips to Beijing. Phuket is ideal for its convenient direct flights to China.

Meanwhile, in her gallery on the island, Esmeralda can now see her own labour of love growing.

–Norachai Thavisin

Red Gallery:

Phuket Art Village, Soi Naya 2, Rawai, 087 323 321, redgallerythai@yahoo.com; phuketredgallery.com.

Sarasil Art Galllery:

121 Phang Nga Rd, Phuket Town, 076 224 532, somkiatkaewnok@yahoo.com; oilpaintingsphuket.com.

Open daily 8pm-9pm.

The Love Art Studio:

28/13 Soi Naya 2, Naiharn, 089 471 5653, pui.t.l.a.s.@hotmail.com; theloveartstudio.com.

The One Gallery:

53 Srisoonthorn Rd, Cherng Talay, 083 634 6840, inone_111@yahoo.com. Open daily 11am-9pm.

Veerachan Usahanun:

110/34 Cherng Talay, Bang Tao Beach Rd, 081 490 4359, usahanun@live.com; veerachanusahanun.com.

Vichen Gallery Bzenter

Behind Da Vinci Restaurant, Saiyuan Rd, Rawai, 087 8903722.

Open daily 3-9 pm. (Telephone to view before 3 pm.)

Watcharin Art Studio:

27 Yaowaraj Rd, Phuket Town, 088 386 1449, watcharintinorodnit@hotmail.com, rindamagicalart.com.

Wua Gallery and Studio:

1 Phang Nga Rd, Phuket Town, 076 258 208, wua.artgallery@gmail.com; wua-artgallery.blogspot.com.

www.thephuketnews.com

16 MOTORING

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Small runabout, big personality MY CAR

More than half a million Morris Minivans were made before production stopped in 1982.

This super cute cream Morris Minivan is the only one of its kind in Southern Thailand and looks right at home in the retro surroundings of Phuket’s Old Town.

The adoring owner is Thana Suwanwipat, better known as Khun Tong, owner of Rom-Dee café and pub on Yaowarat Rd. He bought the 1967 Minivan last year for B600,000.

The van has all of its original features including the windowfree panelled rear and the steel front grille.

With a longer chassis than the standard Mini and a quarter-ton load capacity, this model proved popular in Britain in the 1960s as a cheap alternative to standard goods vehicles. By the time production ceased in

Thana Suwanwipat with his practical investment.

1982, 521,494 had been built.

Khun Tong always wanted to own an original mini, so when he set eyes on the minivan, he simply had to have it.

“The car is a classic. The price will not go down, so in a way, it is an investment,” he says.

The Morris has been kept in mint condition, though the engine had to be refitted to run on modern gasoline. It now has a 1,300cc engine, giving it a

top speed of 100kmh.

The only setback is the gas tank capacity of just 10 litres, which is limiting when the car manages just 10km per litre.

Khun Tong says, “I can make a return trip from Phuket town to the airport, but if I want to go for a long drive, I need to put extra fuel in the back of the van.

“Still, it’s more than enough to drive around Phuket town.”

–Kazira Hans

Tokyo Motor Show brings out the best and weirdest Energy-saving electric cars with advanced green technology were vying for attention as the Tokyo Motor Show opened Wednesday (December 28), with robots and computers becoming ever more part of the vehicles on display.

Companies are showcasing concept cars with “transformable” bodies and automotive computers linked to smart phones, while showing off energy-efficient vehicles with electric, fuel cell and hybrid engines.

As in years past, manufacturers are also showing off concept cars and other people movers.

Among them is the Kowa Tmsuk, a joint venture by electric optical machinery maker Kowa and robot developer Tmsuk, unveiling a concept electric vehicle called “Kobot”, with a body the company says “transforms” via telematics linked to a smart phone.

Honda is showing off the U3-X, a one-wheel rival to the Segway. Like the Segway, it is steered by shifting one’s weight, but the rider sits.

Volkswagen’s offering in the weird corner was the NILS, co-developed with the German Ministry of Transport, Building, and Urban Development.

Designed for commuters, the speedy electric one-seater NILS accelerates to 100 kmh in less than 11 seconds, and tops out at 130kmh. Its range www.thephuketnews.com www.thephuketnews.com

Weird stuff, clockwise from top left: The Honda U3-X, the Suzuki Q-Concept, the Q’Mo and the Volkswagen NILS. is limited, however – around 60km, or 30 minutes at top speed.

Suzuki weighs in with its own commuter car, the QConcept, looking as though it was designed by a maker of headphones. This electric wonder has a range of about 10 km (yes, 10), but with a length of just 2.5m, it should be easy to push into a space

when the battery dies.

Even easier to park should be the Q’Mo concept car put together by NTN as a platform for showing off NTN’s in-wheel motors. The twoseater has wheels that can be turned in any direction at the same time, allowing it to do pirouettes on the spot, or go sideways or diagonally.

On a more practical note,

also on show are the compact, fuel-efficient cars with which Japanese car makers hope to shake up moribund domestic sales as the sector tries to pick itself up from March’s quake-tsunami and the ongoing global economic downturn.

“2011 has been an unprecedented year of challenges – the March earthquake and

tsunami, the highly uncompetitive yen, the f looding in Thailand (which forced production shutdowns for Japanese automakers),” Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said.

“The Tokyo Motor Show this year, more than any previous year, demonstrates the resilience and tenacity of Japan and the strength of its people.”

Japan’s second-largest automaker Nissan, which is part-owned by France’s Renault, is showing off several electric concept cars, including the Pivo 3, which can be remotely manoeuvred with a smart phone.

Nissan has already installed automotive telematics in its Leaf electric car, letting drivers remotely control the air conditioning system and check on the car’s battery using a smart phone or personal computer.

Rival Honda, which has long been one of the main players in motor spor ts, showed off a sports bike and small concept car called the EV-Ster, both with electric engines.

Toyota is also looking to burnish its green credentials when it unveils the “Aqua”, a compact hybrid car, and several concept vehicles including an advanced fuel cell car.

The Aqua, to be sold under the name Prius C outside Japan, is being touted as the world’s most fuel-efficient car at 35 kilometres per litre of gasoline (82 miles per gallon), beating Toyota’s existing Prius model at 32.6 kilometres per litre.

The Japanese auto giant plans to launch the five-seater model in late December in Japan, before a gradual global roll-out.

–AFP, The Phuket News

PEOPLE 17

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Partying with the glitterati I

t’s not often that the rich, famous and glamorous go public in Phuket. Most slip in and lounge anonymously behind the discreet walls of places like Amanpuri.

Recently, however, top French fashion designer Christian Audigier and his partner, Brazilian fashion model Nathalie Sorensen were in Phuket to celebrate Christmas and the New Year.

They also celebrated Ms Sorensen’s birthday on December 20 at Phuket Town’s famed Ka-Jok-See restaurant, and allowed photographer Christian Mouchet to take pictures and hold a short interview.

Christian Mouchet: You are French, born in Avignon in the south of France. Can we say how old you are?

Christian Audigier: Yes, I was born in May 1958, so I am 53 years old.

CM: You are a fashion designer with a fine career in France, and then you took yourself to the US at the beginning of the 2000. Now your fashions are sold in 72 countries under the Ed Hardy label. Legend has it that you arrived in Los Angeles with just US$500 in your pocket.

True?

CA: [with a grin] Actually, it was just US$250.

CM: You have built an empire with Ed Hardy and now you’ve just sold it to a large American group Are you retiring?

CA: A semi-retirement – I’m doing some thinking about the future, possibly the development of a proper brand with my own name, Christian Audigier ... next, maybe 100 boutiques in Hong Kong, right next to the strong emerging economy of China.

CM: And to do this thinking you have chosen Phuket.

Why? CA: I’ve been here many times and I always stay in the same place, Twin Palms at Surin Beach. I feel like I’m at home there. They’re my friends, it’s a haven of peace and serenity, far from the craziness of America. I love it there.

On top of that, Phuket is practical – it’s just two hours’ flying time from Hong Kong.

CM: Your partner Nathalie Sorensen is spending Christmas and the New Year here with you...

CA: Yes, but it is also her birthday and we wanted to share it with close friends.

We celebrated it on the 20th in Phuket Town at Ka-Jok-See restaurant.

CM: Nathalie, you are a top Brazilian model and you are

Nathalie Sorensen celebrates her birthday by blowing out the candles on a huge chocolate cake at Ka-Jok-See restaurant, as Christian Audigier applauds. also an actress in a Brazilian soap opera... Your birthday, Phuket, Asia – have you have a good time here?

NS: It’s been superb. My birthday party was a great success. I know Asia a little. I

lived and worked for two years in Japan, Korea and Hong Kong but it’s my first time in Phuket. I adore it. I’d love to settle here.

Kong. Is that where you met Christian?

NS: No, I met him in my home country, Brazil, last year during the Rio Carnival.

CM: You mentioned Hong

CM: So, Christian, you ap-

preciate Phuket as much as Nathalie does – any plans to do something in Thailand?

CA: [Big grin] – Christian Mouchet can be contacted at chrismouchet@ gmail.com

Surf’s up, and so is Rick Gamble Rick Gamble

Manager of Saltwater Dreaming surf shop, head surfboard waxer and surf instructor.

■■ What were you doing before you moved here?

I was living on the north coast of New South Wales in Australia, and was a registered nurse working in accident emergency and studying psychology at university. I also had a business based around the construction industry.

■■ How long have you lived on the island and why did you move here?

I have been living here for 12 years now. I first came to work and originally taught social psychology at Prince of Songkla University. I eventually started a family here and now consider Phuket as my home.

■■ Tell us about your surf shop and school.

■■ What kind of music are you into?

Reggae, blues, grunge rock, Australian rock music, anything that gets the toes tapping.

Exposed The Saltwater Dreaming Surf Shop started as a hobby in 2000, while I continued to work in the hotel industry. I have now been working full time at it for two years. The surf school gets really busy in the low season, we teach people from all over the world how to surf, we run kids’ days on the weekends and help to support the local surfers and community.

In the surf shop we carry our own brand of surfboards, which are designed by me and John, our shaper from New Zealand. The surfboards are tested by us and a few pro surfers as well.

■■ What is the best thing about living here?

Most of my time these days is connected with the water and surfing. I like the warm waters and the sense of community among the lo-

■■ What is the funniest thing that has happened to you while living on the island?

In 2004 we had really bad flooding in Phuket and on my way home on a motorbike, I went through what I thought was knee deep water, but as I found out later it was much deeper and when I got half way through, the water was over my head.

I had to get off and push my motorbike home. Wasn’t funny then, but it is now.

cal surfers and expats. I also like that it is a great place for my daughter to grow up away from the pressures we have in Australia.

■■ What do you do to relax?

I am probably one of the luckiest people in the world, I have been surfing all my life and so my job is what I do to relax.

Just being in the water and around the ocean is definitely the best meditation for me.

■■ The person you admire the most and why?

Twelve times world champion surfer Kelly Slater, of course.

He is a great athlete, competitor and ambassador for surfing.

People are now saying he is probably one of the best sportsmen ever, and I would have to agree.

■■ Favourite food or dish?

I have many favourite dishes in Thailand, especially when my wife cooks them.

Probably my all time favourite Thai dish that I never get bored of is the Phuket Kuyteow ruea (boat noodle soup). It has tender stewed beef and other interesting ingredients.

There is a small restaurant at the local market in Cherng Thalay, which makes the best soup on the island.

■■ If you could come back as any other person who would it be and why?

Difficult question to answer, we all wish we were someone else at sometime, or had a little more of this and a little more or less of that. Life isn’t easy, whoever you are, and it takes work and commitment to do want you want to do.

I am living my life happily with a beautiful daughter and wife and really wouldn’t change anything. So my answer is me and do it all over again. www.thephuketnews.com

18 HEALTH

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

How about a new life’s resolution?

Each year so much is written and there is so much discussion about New Year’s resolutions.

More often than not, of course, we end up talking about how we broke them and how there is always next year.

Did you make a resolution this year to start exercising, stop smoking or cut down on your drinking? Have you broken your own resolution already?

However flawed it may be, I believe the concept of New Year’s resolutions is still great.

We are creatures of habit, and since it takes roughly 18 to 21 days to create a habit, that leaves us, when we try to reverse the habit, with two weeks during which our whole being screams at us to stop messing around and go back to being us, the real us.

That’s a lot of fighting with ourselves. No wonder we don’t often make it.

Life coach Anthony Robbins believes that a decision is only a true decision when followed by an action.

Unfortunately, in our NYE party state, we usually do

the opposite. We say, “After tonight, I am going to…” and then we continue to do the very thing we have vowed not to do for the next month, year or maybe forever.

But by doing that, the very act we are trying to avoid is actually reinforced and so never truly becomes a true decision where it becomes part of our nervous system.

A true decision is followed by an action that is so powerful that there is no turning back. Burning your bridges, so to speak.

I also believe that another flaw of the New Year’s resolution is that it looks at the very short term. It has been my experience that people over-estimate what they can achieve in the short term, yet under-estimate what they can achieve in the long term.

Maybe a better thought process is to sit down the day before the big event and map out what you would like to achieve in the next year, in the next three years and the next five years.

Once you know what you

Create smart goals for the New Year – such as finishing the Laguna Phuket Triathlon – rather than empty resolutions. would like to achieve, whether personal or in business and your career, then it makes the actions that need to follow a lot easier and far more specific to chart.

If, for example, your goal is to complete a 10km fun run, then you know that at least three or four times a week, you need to be out there running and working towards your goal, consistently increasing the distance that you complete each session.

If your goal is to finish the Laguna Phuket Triathlon, then

you know that you need to be completing swim, bike and run sessions, again gradually increasing the distance of each session until you can comfortably complete the distance and the course. Then you can work on completing it faster.

Notice that each goal is specific, measurable, given a specific time frame, and is realistically achievable.

You could call it a smart goal.

If your goal is to lose weight, or increase your heart

fitness, or tone up your body, decrease your stress levels, get outdoors more often or increase your networks and friends, see more of Phuket, travel the world or just become a better version of you in 2012, then the 10km fun run or the triathlon training will help you to achieve all of that, and more.

Time management is not about ticking items off your “to do” list. True time management is about making life goals and then making an action plan and then achieving them.

Now, say out loud with me, “I will not make any more New Year’s resolutions. Instead, I will go and make a personal life plan.”

Happy New Year... excuse me; Happy New Life. I hope 2012 is the beginning of a beautiful journey for you.

■■ Darren Hancock is the General Manager of Royal Phuket Marina Health Club, and Exercise and Lifestyle Coach. Contact him at darren@rpmhealthclub.com

Celebrating celery Often in a supermarket in Phuket, Thai or Chinese celery (Apium graveolens or bai khuen chai in Thai) is displayed next to the bigger Western celery more familiar to foreign shoppers.

The other noticeable difference is in the price, with the local celery being only a fraction of the cost of its imported Western counterpart, or the kind grown in the cooler parts of northern Thailand.

Taste-wise the local celery, which also resembles Italian www.thephuketnews.com

HEALTHY herbs

parsley, is more concentrated and is used sparingly in local cuisine, mainly as a fresh garnish in the same way as chopped spring onions or fresh coriander.

Its more concentrated taste and strong aroma are very distinctive in stir-fries and soups. Used with sliced strips of ginger in Chinese steamed fish, its strong flavour is infused through the whole meal.

While all celery is good for health, being rich in iron, potassium and vitamins, Chinese celery is said to have a number of medicinal benefits.

Warm Chinese celery juice is traditionally used to cure jaundice and low fever. It is also a diuretic and may be used to promote healthy urination, as well as to replace electrolytes when a person is dehydrated. It is also used to treat high blood pressure, rheumatism, digestive problems and scurvy.

HISTORY 19

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

The island’s wartime past G

randpa remembers the time when Japanese troops were strolling around the streets of Phuket town wearing military uniforms and holding guns just after World War II. Little evidence remains today of this difficult period for the island, making the words of the elderly a rare insight that helps brings this time in history back to life.

Trouble began for Thailand on December 8, 1941 as the Japanese advanced along the country’s southeast coastline.

Despite fierce fighting to resist the Japanese, the Thai army was defeated, which set fear among its citizens from east to west, including in Phuket.

The government at the time were pressured to allow the Japanese right of way through the country, giving them access to attack neighbouring Burma (these days called Myanmar) and Malaysia.

As a small boy, Grandpa was too young to remember when the Japanese entered Phuket, but he heard stories that the east coast was on fire as the troops marched onto the island.

The war had a catastrophic

GRANDPA’S

yarns

effect on Phuket, as the intense fighting between the Axis and Allied powers caused a famine that lasted for some time.

To support the Japanese, Italy stationed warships at Koh Tapao and Makham Bay on the east coast of Phuket.

In response, the Allied powers sent war planes to destroy the Axis. During the fighting several cargo ships containing provisions for the islanders such as food, clothing and medicine were destroyed.

The war planes were also sent to destroy Saphan Hin and Chalong, where it was believed the Japanese troops were stationed.

A few years later in 1945, when the war ended, Grandpa was old enough to remember what was happening around him.

He remembers witnessing the Japanese soldiers that remained on the island.

Grandpa remembers that the Japanese would sometimes sleep in the house on the corner of Krabi and Yaowarat

This building in Phuket Town, on the corner of Krabi and Yaowarat roads, is believed to have been a shelter for foreign women who were captured by the Japanese during World War II. roads in Phuket Town. This building was rented to house the female prisoners they had captured during the war.

Grandpa could not verify if there was any confrontation

Adopt a dog

on the island, but he does remember the soldiers remaining here after the war became part of the daily peaceful life in town as people’s fears subsided.

Looking at the Japanese roaming through Phuket Town gave Grandpa a sense of relief, as he realised they had become a remnant of the war, simply looking for peace in a chaotic

world of disarray.

It was not long after this time that the remaining Japanese left the island, and sent the women they had captured back home.

Pet of the Week

AMOS WANTS TO GO HOME!

This cuddly little girl was found on the streets of Phuket as a tiny puppy and grew up in our puppy run. She’s now nine months old and ready for life with a family.

Amos is pictured with Soi Dog Volunteer “Tone” who comes to visit her regularly.

Amos is a small female dog - sterilised and fully vaccinated. If you can give her a good home please call Soi Dog today on 0817884222. For more information regarding adoptions please email cindy@soidog.org. You can also visit our website www.soidog.org or follow us on Facebook!

If you are interested in adopting a dog please do not buy from the markets. Soi Dog Foundation has over 200 dogs and puppies available for adoption at any time. For more information on how to adopt visit soidog.org. All animals are fully vaccinated and desexed. Young puppies will be desexed free of charge as soon as old enough.

This beautiful dog, named Penny, belongs to Karen Ellison who lives in Kata.

Penny is a Jack Russell and Rat Terrier mix from the United States. Aged 2 ½ years old, Penny once flew business class with Karen, and next to chasing sand crabs and hunting lizards, she loves her bones.

Want to see your pet here? Email your photos to: editor1@thephuketnews.com www.thephuketnews.com

20 EDUCATION

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

My working holiday

Carol Arao, 16, a Year 11 student at the HeadStart International School in Phuket Town, decided to spend a week of her Christmas holiday last week learning about the workings of a newspaper.

Here is what she wrote about her brief internship with The Phuket News: I was in search of a new experience here on the island, which led me to becoming a work-experience trainee at The Phuket News. I am quite new to the field of newspapers because I usually don’t read the paper. But I was eager to Intern Carol Arao at her editor’s desk. learn how it worked now that reporters, took me to Mai Khao newspaper reporting, I also for the Tsunami Memorial had a brief introduction to I had a chance.

The newspaper has given Day ceremony. The second newspaper design, creating me a whole new perspective day I went out to Kathu for adverts for the radio station.

It is quite difficult to inwhen looking at journalism. the official opening of FlyIt was not just about read- ing Hanuman with another terview and take photographs ing the articles but also the reporter, Apinya “Bee” Saksri. because there are many things Then we headed to Chalong to consider. mechanisms of gathering the for a helmet campaign on the Reporters need to be able information.

Norachai Thavisin, from third day. On the fourth day, I to understand people’s meththe editorial department, gave went up to the Live 89.5 radio ods for accepting tragedies or me the opportunity to know station, in the same building at celebrating fun events. That what it felt like to be a field The Phuket News, and joined understanding is what makes articles interesting. worker and to understand DJ Ryan Dunn for a while.

It was only an introduction My five-day stay at The real pressure. I learned that the news these editors and to the newspaper work but the Phuket News was amazing. reporters wrote are not based experience in doing the writ- My special thanks to the whole just on facts but also on great ing was actually a lot more team who had given me the fun than it might at first seem. best media experience by acexperience.

In these five days, in ad- cepting me as an intern.

For the first day, Sukunya “Beau” Phoonpong, one of the dition to experiencing real –Carol Arao

Student winners of the library reading contest at Suwankiriwong School in Patong.

Reading, writing and Rotarians The Rotary Club of Patong Beach and Wat Suwankiriwong School in Patong recently completed improvements to the school grounds and education facilities, particularly the library, and celebrated with a reading contest for students at the school.

The library renovation involved cleaning the floors

and installing floor protection, repairing furniture and building story-telling benches.

The renovation was completed on November 19 and capped off with a donation of books by the Seng Ho Bookstore.

That served as the catalyst for a reading contest for 200 students at the school.

The month-long contest was designed to encourage students to borrow and read library books and was a success.

The Rotary Club hosted a party for all students who took part in the reading contest, with prizes for the most avid readers. Avid they were, too – the winners had each read 16 books during the month.

Students wait to dance on the stage at the Phuket Town New Year’s Eve Countdown.

www.thephuketnews.com

TIMEOUT 21

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012 BOOK

MUSIC

FILM The Adventures of Tintin

107 minutes Rating: G Director: Steven Spielberg Starring: Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig

The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: V1

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (ed.)

It Books, 88 pages The title says it all. This book can be read in a matter of minutes. But proving that size is not necessarily important, this book still packs a solid punch.

Written with the collaboration of 60 contributors, culled from a contributor pool of 8,569, Tiny Stories is the first book in a new three-book series from actor Joseph Gordon Levitt’s (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises) open collaborative production company hitRECord.

As a whole, the tiny stories and illustrations are charming.

Some have a distinctly bittersweet sensibility, some of them are quite simply hilarious.

Others get you thinking beyond the words on the page.

Tiny Stories is an attractive, if not substantive, little book; a nice thing to have on your shelf, or to leave out on a coffee table. To call it more than a diversion would probably be overdoing things, but it’s a good one nonetheless.

Undun

The Roots Island After close to two decades of music, world tours, Jimmy Fallon, and Grammy Awards, The Roots have crafted an album that not only elevates hip hop, but raises the bar for all those who dare call themselves a “Hip Hop Band”.

Undun tells the story of Redford Stephens, a young man of colour who succumbs to a life of crime.

The album begins at the end, with the death of its hustling protagonist, and unfolds backward to reveal how he reached such an end.

As befits a project about a dead man’s shattered dreams, it’s a haunted, shadowy album of regrets and retrospection. The backward structure and opening death lend a tragic air to even upbeat tracks like ‘Kool On’.

Undun ultimately registers as a melancholy, exquisitely downbeat cautionary tale about the dangers of street life; a concise, ferociously focused and seamlessly executed album.

If Indiana Jones had smooth skin, a British accent, lifeless eyes and no sense of humour, he might come across something like the plucky reporter at the heart of The Adventures of Tintin.

Of course, Indiana Jones had none of those things which is what made him so great, and while Tintin undoubtedly has its moments of greatness, it is let down primarily by the weakness of its central character.

After its highly stylised opening credits roll, the Steven Spielberg-directed motioncapture animation starts off excruciatingly slow.

While we’re thrust immediately into the story, the first half an hour of the film

feels like little more than a very good radio play, with some vaguely interesting images coincidentally happening at the same time. The story is good, the voices great, but the visuals are just okay, and not particularly exciting.

Then something happens – the story really kicks into gear, and Spielberg, having become familiar with the rules of the cinematic format, goes about systematically breaking them.

The result is an hour and a bit of awesome animated action. As Tintin (Jamie Bell) and Capt Haddock (Andy Serkis) race all over the world to beat the villainous Sakharine (Daniel Craig) to the treasure, the laws of physics, animation and storytelling are bent to

breaking point.

Unfortunately, beyond these impressive visuals and genuine globetrotting thrills, Tintin remains a difficult film to truly enjoy.

It does feel like a cartoon version of Indiana Jones – and that’s true in terms of style and tone – but where they differ is that Indy is a captivating main character, whereas the babyfaced Tintin simply is not.

He has no interesting flaws or central character points, nor does he develop in any way throughout the story. Andy Serkis (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Lord of the Rings) is undeniably the master of motion-capture performance, but even he is underutilised, little more than a nonstop comic

relief device – one that despite being entertaining, gets a bit tiring over the run of the film.

More effective are the comic hijinks of Shaun of the Dead duo Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, who play bumbling twin inspectors Thomson and Thompson; their screen time is more tapered, keeping their humour fresher and funnier than Haddock’s.

As for Sakharine: he’s largely forgettable, and you probably wouldn’t recognise Craig’s uninspired voice work if you didn’t see his name in the credits.

Despite these shortcomings, Tintin remains an entertaining film. It is unlikely to go down in Spielberg’s list of all-time greatest works, but if nothing else, it is an interesting experiment in motion capture technology that provides enough thrills and spills to keep fans and newcomers to the franchise entertained.

–Dane Halpin

As some movies and movie times change every Thursday morning, after The Phuket News has gone to press, the accuracy of the following information cannot be guaranteed. For up-to-date information, visit sfcinemacity.com, or phone the cinemas directly: SFX Coliseum Phuket 076 209 000 and SFC Jungceylon Phuket 076 600 555.

SFX COLISEUM PHUKET (CENTRAL FESTIVAL)

SFC JUNGCEYLON PHUKET (PATONG)

The Adventures of Tintin (E/3D) [G]: 11:15, 13:20, 15:40, 18:00, 20:20, 22:35 The Kick (T/E.SUB) [15+]: 12:25 M:I: Ghost Protocol (E) [13+]: 14:20, 19:40, 22:25 M:I: Ghost Protocol (T) [13+]: 11:40, 17:00 Real Steel (E) [G]: 14:10, 16:50, 19:30, 22:10 Real Steel (E/F) [G]: 12:50, 15:30, 18:10, 20:50 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (E) [13+]: 14:35, 17:10, 19:45, 22:20 Sor Kor Sor Sweety (T): 12:15, 13:35, 14:50, 16:10, 17:25, 18:45, 20:00, 21:20, 22:30

The Adventures of Tintin (E) [G]: 11:15, 13:20, 15:40, 18:00, 20:15, 22:30 The Kick (T/E.SUB) [15+]: 12:10, 17:00 M:I: Ghost Protocol (E) [13+]: 14:20, 19:10, 21:50 Real Steel (E) [G]: 12:00, 14:40, 17:20, 20:00, 22:35 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (E): 11:50, 14:30,

17:10, 19:50, 22:25 Sor Kor Sor Sweety (T) [15+]: 11:40, 14:15, 16:50, 19:25, 22:00

BRAIN TEASERS Across 1. Hate de exam! (6) 4. In waistcoat or money, man. (8) 8. Strange drink. (3) 9. Get free bathroom implement. (6) 10. Visit briefly – Jay’s a showoff. (8) 12. Dismembered slow birds. (4) 13. Could be said you are in sin at this beach.

(5) 15. Whip eye part. (4) 18. Bosses make very good eye protectors. (11) 20. Carrier as cardinal.

(3)

Solutions to last week’s puzzles

22. Uncle’s missile. (3) 24. Put up a piece of punctuation with tryst, we hear. (11) 27. Industry ends in race. (4) 28. Sleeps – no learner oozes. (5) 31. Am I right for a ruler? (4) 33. Little Morris’s got the Ecuadorian capital bug. (8) 35. Instrument made from bones and shirt. (6) 36. Sound of disgust from graduate with hotel.

(3) 37. Tic often mistaken for marriage paper. (8) 38. Cap ice oddly for emetic plant. (6) Down 1. Dictators of the French places. (7) 2. Truncated Barsetshire writer is a whore. (7) 3. Plants to keep shoes in shape. (5) 4. Cheeky chap: “I’m quiet.” (3) 5. Live up – and bad.

(4) 6. Herb’s brass band.

(7)

7. Musical routines?

(7) 11. Love, you and I say yes in Paris. (3) 14. Make repairs to do with the shop. (7) 16. Medically take care of special gift. (5) 17. 20 has officer commanding little associate. (5) 19. Take us and a country. (1,1,1) 21. ’Tis backward to pose for a picture. (3) 22. Size, Michael, of the

earthquake. (7) 23. Perplexed maids on NY avenue. (7) 25. Man in a varnish yearbook. (7) 26. Unpredictable Eric swallowed rat. (7) 29. Point at way to use food. (3) 30. Japanese food takes us back to quiet one (5) 32. Sweetener for squares. (4) 34. I follow no note to make sash. (3) www.thephuketnews.com

22 WEIRDWORLD

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Monks brawl at the birthplace of Christ

Christmas is supposed to be a time for sharing, and if anyone should be aware of that, it is members of the clergy – particularly when they are in one of Christianity’s holiest churches.

But apparently there was no such Christmas cheer last Wednesday, as dozens of monks celebrated Jesus’ birthday by brawling in his supposed birthplace – the Church of the Nativity.

The ancient church, built over the traditional site of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, is shared by three Christian denominations – Roman Catholics, Armenians and Greek Orthodox. Wednesday’s fight

erupted between Greek and Armenian clergy, with both sides accusing each other of encroaching on parts of the church to which they lay claim.

The monks were tidying up the church ahead of Orthodox Christmas celebrations in early January, following celebrations by Western Christians on December 25. The fight erupted between monks along the border of their respective areas. Some shouted and hurled brooms.

Palestinian security forces rushed in to break up the melee, and no serious injuries were reported.

A fragile status quo governs relations among the de-

nominations at the ancient church, and to repair or clean a part of the structure is to own it, according to accepted practice. That means letting other sects clean part of the

church could allow one to gain ground at another’s expense.

Similar fights have taken place during the same lateDecember cleaning effort in the past.

Abelovsky was released on about B75,000 bail after surrendering his passport, and was refusing to talk even

though he faces up to 10 years in prison.

Authorities believe the Czech was a courier for a criminal organisation that smuggles exotic species whose exports are banned. Authorities said Abelovsky only arrived in Argentina several days earlier and couldn’t have had time to gather the animals alone.

Aguinsky believes the boa constrictors, poisonous pit vipers and coral snakes, lizards and spiders could have escaped the cloth suitcase in the unpressurised cabin of the flight to Madrid, and perhaps attacked people there or at his final destination in Prague, where antidotes for South American snakes are not common, the source added.

Johnson shoots Man crashes AA himself on the john meeting – with beer

A US man has proven why guns and toilets don’t mix, admitting to accidentally shooting himself while going about his business.

And if shooting yourself isn’t bad enough, law enforcement authorities in New Haven, Connecticut revealed that the man – convicted criminal Darrel Johnson – will face charges after they responded to a call from the 51-year-old claiming he had been the victim of an attempted robbery.

When they arrived at the address shortly afterwards, police found Johnson suffering from a gunshot wound to the leg.

However, during questioning Johnson admitted a robbery had not taken place and in fact his gun had accidentally gone off while he www.thephuketnews.com

Guns and partial nudity - a recipe for disaster. was on the toilet, causing his injuries.

The embarrassed man revealed the gun had fallen from his waistband in the bathroom and fired off a round when it hit the ground.

Johnson told New Haven police that he had recently acquired the gun for personal protection.

He will now face multiple charges relating to being a convicted criminal in possession of a firearm.

Okay, so a police mugshot is rarely going to capture you at your best. But a few people last year were definitely caught at their worst.

Some people have guilt written all over their faces, and others, like assault suspect Robert Norton Kennedy, have apologies. The tattoo reads: “Please forgive me if I say or do anything stupid.”

The spirit of Christmas in full swing.

What we like to think could have happened if airport workers had not intervened. animated cartoon,” a source in the office of Judge Marcelo Aguinsky was quoted as saying on Tuesday.

2011’s Best Mugshots This camouflage might work well in nature, but it really stands out in the police station.

Officers only found Gregory Liascos when a police dog bit what appeared to be a patch of grass – which yelped in pain.

Snakes on a plane (almost) It is the name of a Hollywood blockbuster which is often dismissed as an utterly ridiculous concept.

Yet ‘snakes on a plane’ very nearly became a reality for passengers flying from Buenos Aires airport in Argentina.

Czech man Karel Abelovsky, 51, was made to open his baggage at Buenos Aires’ international airport after police spotted reptiles in the X-ray scanner. They found 247 exotic and endangered species in all, packed inside plastic containers, bags and even socks, each labelled in Latin with their scientific names.

“The air por t workers couldn’t believe it when they saw the movement inside the suitcase. It was like an

THE BIG LIST

The first step to recovery is to admit you have a problem. You don’t have to bring physical evidence.

But a “very intoxicated” man in the US did exactly that, crashing an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in Cincinnati, Ohio last Monday with a beer in hand before refusing to leave.

Darrin Porter, 45, allegedly showed up drunk at the 12 Step House at 12:15am and wandered the hallways, interrupting a meeting.

Employees escorted Porter out of the facility, but he allegedly returned. When police arrived, the suspect declined to answer officers’ questions and demanded to know their names and social security numbers.

Cory Smits, 29, was found guilty July 7 on his fifth offence of operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Mind you, if you looked like this guy, you’d probably spend your whole life intoxicated too.

Oneal Morris is accused of posing as a doctor in Florida and filling a woman’s buttocks with cement, mineral oil and flat-tyre sealant. Police say Morris was born a man but identifies as a woman.

Colorado native Michael Campbell is a sex offender who was arrested for being within 200 metres of a public pool. He was released later that day. He is pictured here in 2007 and then again in 2011.

Rodell Vereen, twice pleaded guilty to having sex with a horse. He was released from prison this year after serving 16 months behind bars. The horse was condemned to a lifetime of trauma.

Authorities in Georgia, USA, found Ranaldo Jack stuck in a woman’s chimney. He was charged with attempted burglary when it was revealed he was not in fact Santa Claus.

Police in Jefferson County arrested Levi Miller, Johnny Mullet and Lester Mullet of Bergholz, Ohio, for the alleged forcible cutting of the beards of several fellow Amish men.

Darrin Porter.

Police claim they detected a “strong odour” of alcohol on Porter’s breath and took him into custody.

He has been charged with disorderly conduct while intoxicated and obstructing official business.

Sheriff’s deputies in Arizona say Albert Tejeda’s unique tattoos – and lengthy rap sheet – leave him with a face they’ll never forget. Tejeda fled during a traffic stop and was later found with a samurai sword.

If you’re going to commit a crime, wait until AFTER your haircut. David Davis assaulted another man by stabbing him with scissors…while he was getting his overgrown hair sheared off!

23

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

LIFE&STYLE fashion file Kaye Smith

A stroll on Rawai Beach

Exploring Phuket with blogger Jamie Monk > 27

ACCESSORIES 2

3

Model.

Her Esprit short white dress (B3,500) is from Central Festival.

Her GC watch (B2,200) came from Robinson in Phuket.

She got her Bertie white shoes (B5,000) from England.

1

GALLERY

1. Necklace made from real orchid, glazed, B1,000.

2. Octagonal and rectangular woven handbags, B1,330 each.

3. Earrings made from real orchid petals, glazed, red B425, blue B650 and yellow B1,290.

Narai Phand 889, 1/F Turtle Village, Mai Khao. 076 314 898. Open daily 8am10pm.

Marina Kazieva Tourist.

Her peacock feather earrings (B330) are from New York.

Her white shirt (B800) was bought in Italy.

She got her white skirt (B700) in Russia.

She got her green bracelet (B550) from Spain.

Her white shoes (B2,100) were also bought in Russia.

Villa Suksan is a q uie

t seclude

ASE II RN PH NAI HA ING NOW H LAUNC

d deve lopme nt of bout ique villa s

com bini n

g lu xury and affor dabilit y

Villa Suksan is a quiet secluded Boutique Development of Bali Style Pool Villas combining luxury and affordability. Villa Suksan is inspired by the calm and tranquillity of the Balinese lifestyle combined with Thai and modern elements to achieve an elegance that is both comfortable and functional for overseas buyers. Our goal is to build high quality villas at an affordable price that blend well with the tropical environment. • Full property management • Freehold and Leasehold Ownership Nai Harn Beach & Rawai Bay Tel. 086 686 2389 or 076 384 691 Sales andrew@villasuksan.com

www.thephuketnews.com

24 DINING

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Re Ka Ta beach club is at the south end of Kata Beach.

New cuisine at Kata Beach The Phuket News caught up with Bryan Burger, the Executive Chef at the Boathouse’s new beach club, Re Ka Ta, on Kata Beach.

How long have you been in Phuket and why did you move here?

I have been in Phuket for the last four and a half years. After working in Bangkok for a while, I was offered the opportunity to work in Phuket and since then the island has become home for my family and I. The beaches and wonderful people were also a great draw for me.

Tell us about your new position at Re Ka Ta. Re Ka Ta is a new beach club that is sure to spark some great interest in Phuket. From the food to the drinks and wonder-

ful setting, people will really be amazed. With regards to the food, it is contemporary beach cuisine with some true signature dishes not found in Phuket.

What culinary events are coming up at the restaurant?

Next year we will have some chefs visiting us from overseas, but we cannot share the names of the chefs as we want it to be a surprise. We will also have some inspirational dining events and parties throughout the year.

What is your background and kitchen experience?

Originally I am from South

Africa, but after completing my culinary training in South Africa, I left to travel through Europe and Asia where I developed a love for global ways of life and cuisine.

I have worked in some remote and sensational locations as well as for the likes of UB40, tennis star Martina Navratilova, ambassadors, presidents and Royal Family members.

Bryan Burger, from South Africa, is the new chef at Re Ka Ta.

Re Ka Ta dinner menu highlights

Rock on – arugula, pear, caramelised onions, Crisp –pork belly, pumpkin and coriander spiced walnut dressing, goat’s cheese, B280 purée, bean shoot, coconut salad, B780 A Greek wedding – almond feta, tomato, The beef – wagyu fillet, mushroom marrow, romaine lettuce, cucumber, olives, pickled compressed watermelon, coffee glaze, B1,150 garlic, tomato vinaigrette, B250 Cave man – frying pan whole wheat pizza, tender Tuna in a can – needle beans, quail eggs, wagyu beef, sun-cured tomato, buffalo mozza, tomato, onion, capers, new potato, B280 rocket, aged balsamic, B450

What is different about your cooking style and what interesting dishes can guests expect when they dine at Re Ka Ta? The cuisine that we serve and the way that it is prepared uses modern cooking techniques, with a bit of living cuisine (raw food) to help bring the light, fresh and healthy touch.

In general our main goal is to revitalise beach cuisine to a more modern approach.

■■ For more information see rekataphuket.com.

A healthy, simple dish Papaya Rings with Guacamole

Papaya Rings made using Richard Cracknell’s recipe.

Peel and slice medium/ large ripe papaya rings (remove the seeds).

Place two rings on a plate, and scoop home made guacamole into the the middle of the rings.

Garnish with coriander leaves on top.

Raw Guacamole • 1 medium, ripe avocado • 2 sliced onions • one half of a small tomato • Tabasco sauce to taste • one tablespoon of coconut milk/cream • Himalayan salt to taste Chop tomato and onions.

Place ingredients in a bowl and mash until fine and creamy. Enjoy!

Recipe supplied by Richard Cracknell of the Living Food Cafe.

www.thephuketnews.com

DINING 25

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Books and bikkies blend With a huge personal collection of books at her disposal, a love of baking and a desire for a change in career it was only natural that Beverley Sangsuwan would eventually open up a bookshop or cafe.

And in Naiharn, she has managed to combine the two to create the very homely Book Cafe, located just before the hill that goes over to Kata.

Beverley and her husband Chewy have now had the cafe open for several months.

The cafe features an extensive selection of used books in good condition, most from Beverley’s collection but also purchased from various second hand shops, or donated by friends.

Non-fiction, local interest, and real-life stories also feature, with crime books being the most popular. Books are reasonably priced and those who return them in good

condition can get 50 per cent off their next book.

“I try to think about what I want to read. I try to find titles that are recent, modern and will appeal to most people.”

Most books are in English but there is also a small German and international selection.

Then onto the treats – the cafe is stocked with whatever goodies Beverley feels like baking that morning, ranging from chocolate brownies – a favourite with everyone – cookies, cupcakes, lemon cheesecake, custard slices, banana loaf, or Australian crunch (a chocolate, coconut, and cornflake slice popular with those from Down Under).

There is also fresh coffee and tea, protein shakes including banana shakes with bee pollen, sandwiches, and fresh juices, including Roselle juice.

Beverley hails from Manchester, England, but has lived

in Phuket for about six years.

“I was working as an English teacher but I got to the point where I wanted something different. I love being at home with the dog (Panda, a gorgeous sheepdog).”

She noticed there were not any used book stores around the Naiharn area where she lived so decided to go ahead with the venture.

The little Thai house has been renovated and is a cute hangout that sits on a small hill with a welcoming and friendly atmosphere and good music.

You can also find a small collection of handicrafts on offer, with hand-made cards, bags and earrings from Chiang Mai, and locally-made jewellery.

Above, Beverley Sangsuwan at the Book Cafe. Below, chocolate treats for everyone.

■■ The Book Cafe, 100/2 Soi Kata/Sai Yuan, Moo 7, Tambon Rawai, 0857942371, bookcafephuket.com. Open 10am to 6pm Tuesday to Saturday.

Famous french chef visits French Chef Regis Marcon, from the three-Michelin-star restaurant Regis & Jacques Marcon, will host a variety of wine dinners, cooking classes and wine tasting events at Six Senses Yao Noi Beyond Phuket until January 12.

Regis & Jacques Marcon opened in 1948, when Chef Marcon’s parents established a small business in the village of St-Bonnet-le-Froid, less than 100 km south of the

Chef Regis Marcon.

–Photos by Six Senses

French gastronomic epicentre of Lyon.

The restaurant now employs 48 staff and gained its third Michelin star in 2005, placing it among the top 80 restaurants in the world.

In the prestigious Guide Gault & Millau, the Regis & Jacques Marcon is awarded five toques, placing it alongside only 11 other restaurants out of 3,560 restaurants reviewed.

It currently scores 18/20

Cepe mushrooms grilled with truffle oil and rocket.

points, among the highest points awarded in the world.

Chef Marcon is internationally-recognised as an expert in mushrooms, and many dishes in his restaurant feature mushrooms foraged locally. During his stay at Six Senses, Chef Marcon will use locally-grown mushrooms from the island.

Scheduled events are as follows and bookings are highly recommended: Friday, January 6: Com-

munal table at The Living Room & Terrace, from 7.30 pm.

Saturday, January 7: Wine dinner at the Dining Room, from 7.30 pm.

Sunday, January 8: Cooking class at the Chef’s Table, from midday until 2 pm.

■■ For more information please visit http://tiny.cc/ hvnk0, or phone Executive Chef Anthony Reynolds on 080 60 911 28.

The Regis et Jacques Marcon restaurant in France.

www.thephuketnews.com

26 TRAVEL

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

IN THE EMERALD TRIANGLE It wasn’t until recent years that low-cost airlines such as Air Asia introduced new routes that connect Phuket to destinations such as Chiang Mai in the north, Udon Thani and Ubon Ratchathani in the northeast, boosting domestic tourism.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is working closely with airlines to support the new links and to ensure visitors have memorable experiences. A recent collaboration between TAT Ubon Ratchathani and Air Asia, for example, was the province’s offer to “Catch the first New Year sunrise in Thailand.”

As Ubon Ratchathani province occupies the furthest land to the country’s east, at an altitude of over 300m, some locations there, such as Pha Chanadai, are the best spots to greet the first sunrise in Thailand on the morning of January 1.

The Air Asia flight direct from Phuket takes just two hours, and the airport is close to the city.

Bordered to the east by the Mekong River with Laos on the other bank, and to the south by Cambodia, the province links the three countries in what has been called the Emerald Triangle.

During the reign of King Rama V, Ubon was annexed to Lao Kao town. Later, in 1899, the area was part of the northeastern monthon, serving as an administrative hub.

In 1900, its name was changed to Monthon Esan and when the monthon system was abolished, the city became a province. Ubon town grew rapidly during the Vietnam War because of the proximity of an American air base used by long-range bombers.

The province is large and important in the northeast.

With many fascinating temples all around the city, the city has become a place of pilgrimage every year at the beginning of Buddhist Lent because of its candle festival, featuring enormous works of art made from wax, which are paraded through the streets of the city.

The province has a unique folk culture, expressed in the indigenous cuisine, handicrafts such as silk and cotton products, basketry and bronzeware, and traditional events such as the candle festival held every July.

There are also 4,000 year old rock formations, prehistoric rock paintings in Pha Taem National Park, waterfalls and the “two-coloured river” www.thephuketnews.com

Above: A dog’s head-shaped stone is said to guard the summer palace of the Lord Naga.

Left: The Hor Trai or Buddhist Scripture Library) at Wat Thung Sri Muang in Ubon was built 183 years ago in the middle of a lily pond.

Below: Wild flowers abound on the stone plateau in Pha Taem National Park.

where the Moon River empties into the Mekong.

Kawee Prasomphol, Director of Pha Taem National Park, explains that the park covers 55,000 rai with many waterfalls, the largest prehistoric stone totem in the country, believed to be more than 180 million years old, and magnificent viewpoints overlooking the Mekong River, such as at Pha Taem, Pha Jek, Pha Moey or Pha Chanadai.

The province is rich in natural resources with the Teng-Rung forest, red and mixed forests. There are 50 national forests, three national parks, two botanical gardens, a wildlife preservation area

and a botanical park.

More tourists every year come to the province in winter, when breezes are very pleasantly cool. Wild flowers dance everywhere, flaunting their colours, with up to 44 varieties spreading over a stony plateau of the national park.

HM Queen Sirikit visited the park some time ago and gave names to the beautiful wild flowers that abound here.

A field atop Pha Taem and Sroi Sawan waterfall, filled with wildf lowers, was an unusual place for a press briefing. Ubon Governor Suraphol Saibhan and Director of TAT Northeastern Region Pattamas Wongpattanasiri were among

the officials introducing the New Year tourism campaign.

In previous years tourists camped on the plateau ready to see the first sunrise on the first day of the new year.

This time the province hosted a big celebration on top of Pha Taem with ceremonies of Tor Saeng Tawan (keep the light) on New Year’s Eve and Rub Tawan Mai (catch the first sunrise) on the morning of New Year’s Day. It also hosted another event at the Mekong River with a sound-and-light show, when tourists could float paper lanterns on the water, symbolic of floating away bad luck of the past year so they could

be free to receive good luck in the coming year.

Glowing lanterns were set up on a barge in the middle of the river to celebrate His Majesty the King’s 84th birthday.

Baan Pa Chun (steep cliff village) on the river bank is another nearby attraction where in dry season the water level drops nearly 10m, leaving the steep stony river bank visible.

By taking a short boat trip up the Mekong visitors can see Sam Phan Boke (3,000 holes) on the banks of the river.

This natural wonder during the rainy season is totally submerged under the river.

But in the dry season from October, Sam Phan Boke

slowly reappears as stony hills and holes filled with water.

The size of each hole ranges from a foot wide to 50 sqm in area, with depths ranging from 10cm to 3m. There is a narrow sandy beach, with glittering soft sand lapped by river water.

Folklore says that this is the summer palace of river dragon deity Lord Naga. A large stone in the shape of a dog’s head stands guarding the “palace”.

Magically, a large pond in the middle of this natural palace has emerald green water, in contrast to the brown water of the Mekong. Not surprisingly, it is called the Emerald Pond.

There are many faces of the province: the beautiful temples that hold the community together, an amazing waterfall cascading down to the deep pool below, the brooding stone totem, the prehistoric paintings, the endless fields of wild flowers and the views of the two-coloured river. Well worth a visit.

–Kazira Hans For more information, call TAT Ubon on 045 243 770, tatubon.org, tatubon@tat. or.th.

Air Asia flies to Ubon from Phuket three times a week, on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Contact Air Asia on 02 515 9999, airasia. com.

EXPLORE 27

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Longtails moored at Rawai. The fishing is all done at night and is over by early morning.

Fishermen build a traditional trap from bamboo and netting.

Going local at Rawai Beach R

ecently, on the final day of my parents’ holidays, we took a little drive to the south end of Phuket island, carefully watching the weather as the low season delivered up a day of sunshine and showers.

We got to Rawai Beach in bright sunshine, had not really planned to stop there, but there were dark clouds to the west, so we figured why not take a little walk around Rawai.

The beach here is not a swimming beach, it’s very rocky and shallow. Rawai is good for food – most of the beach road is lined with small restaurants – and from Rawai you can get a speedboat or longtail boat to nearby islands such as Koh Bon, Coral Island, Racha Yai island.

We did a trip last year

JAMIE’S PHUKET

from Rawai to explore the small island of Koh Kaew Yai, which lies off the tip of Cape Promthep and is a place of pilgrimage for Buddhists: there is a big Buddha statue on the island and a giant Buddha footprint.

Legend says that Buddha stepped onto the island before coming to the mainland of Phuket, where he first visited Rawai.

The name of the village is derived from rao wai meaning something like “we pray”.

We walked along the beach passing all the longtail boats.

You can’t have a trip to Phuket without some photos of longtail boats.

This end of the beach looks good for swimming actually, though there’s nothing here for tourists, no hotels or bars.

This end of the beach is for the locals and the fishermen.

Further up the beach in front of the village, a big banyan tree acts as a natural temple, adorned with coloured cloth, Buddha images and offerings. It seems that the Rawai people particularly like to make offerings of red Fanta!

Another shrine next to the jetty also had a couple of bottles next to the incense and flowers.

This is not really a rich area of Phuket. Fishing is still important, though for sure some people make money from tourists.

The fishermen and local people in the area are largely sea gypsies who are not the

TRAVEL DEALS New THAI promotion Thai Airways International has rolled out a new online promotion, Travel Around Thailand, to try to reclaim bookings lost to the recent floods.

The domestic campaign, Travel Around Thailand, follows Travel with Dad, a promotion that ended on December 31.

The new promotional fares are about 15 per cent more expensive than Travel with Dad, but are available for bookings and travel until March 31, with 30-day validity and frequent flyer point mileage.

The roundtrip fares from Bangkok are: B4,470 to Chiang Mai; B5,230 to Chiang Rai; B3,910 to Khon Kaen; B4,070 to Udon Thani; B4,290 to Ubon Ratchathani; B5,100 to Krabi; B5,360 to Phuket; B4,870 to Surat Thani and B5,910 to Haad Yai.

Also on offer is a oneway fare from Chiang Mai to Phuket, at B4,060. One-way fares are also available for exBangkok fares, at half price excluding airport tax.

For details visit thaiairways.com.

Half-price at Starwood Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide has “Red Hot Deals”, offering up to 50 per cent discounts at more than 160 hotels and resorts in the Asia Pacific region.

Under the promotion, rooms can be booked until January 31 for stays up until the end of March.

Red Hot Deals in Asia Pacific offers a room discount of up to 50 per cent from what the group refers to as the “best available rate.”

Eight brands under Starwood are in the promotion: St. Regis; the Luxury Col-

best looked after by the Government. The fishermen make their own fish traps and head out on longtail boats, dive down to the traps using home-made scuba gear. We found some guys making a new low-tech fish trap.

When visiting a more local area, I try to quietly blend in, wander about as unobtrusively as possible (not so simple, since I am 6 foot 3) and get an idea of local life. In the fishing village here in Rawai, there’s just a lot

of sitting around; the fishing has all been completed by the early hours of the morning.

There’s not just fish for sale.

Phuket people boast of having the best pineapples in Thailand.

Sweeter and juicier and not as sour as other pineapples.

You can buy little bags of fruit from fruit stalls all over Phuket, indeed all over Thailand. Normally you pay B10-20 a bag.

Mum and Dad got a bag of pineapple and with the clouds

clearing we headed off to Yanui Beach, just a five-minute drive from Rawai.

Read more of Jamie’s posts at jamie-monk.blogspot.com.

When he’s not writing about his explorations across Phuket, Jamie can be found working at liveaboard dive specialists Sunrise Divers in Karon.

More info: 084 626 4646, info@sunrise-divers.com; sunrise-divers.com.

Daily Brunch and Luxury Dinner Buffet from THB 610 View menu: catchbeachclub.com

lection; W Hotel, Westin; Le Méridien; Sheraton; Four Points by Sheraton and Aloft.

The deals cover 16 destinations: Guam; Australia; Cambodia; China; Fiji; India; Indonesia; Japan; Malaysia; Maldives; New Caledonia; Singapore; South Korea; Taiwan; Thailand and Vietnam.

In Phuket there are three hotels on the list: The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa, The Naka Island and Le Meridien Phuket Resort.

Elsewhere in Thailand there are seven properties in Bangkok offering deals, two on Koh Samui and one apiece in Hua Hin, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Khao Lak, Krabi and Pattaya.

For bookings visit starwood-ap.com/redhotdeals2012/ en/. A list of participating hotels is at starwood-ap.com/ redhotdeals2012/en/participating.html.

Phuket’s Most Fashionable Beach Club Surin Beach, 076 316 567, catchbeachclub.com

www.thephuketnews.com

28 ISLANDSCENE

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Hard Rock Café in Patong staged its annual “Guitar Drop” to bring in the New Year.

The music line-up, with DJs and live acts, was topped by famed Thai singer Da Endorphine.

The event was co-sponsored by The Phuket News.

www.thephuketnews.com

ISLANDSCENE 29

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

CELEBRATING THE NEW YEAR

Red heart-shaped hot-air balloons were popular on Patong Beach (above), while the fireworks there rose to a crashing crescendo at midnight.

Comedy band Pong Lang Sa-orn, above, topped the bill at the three-day local authority-funded countdown at Sanam Chai in Phuket Town. Below, children of all ages were delighted by the tunnel of lights at the event.

Thousands danced until the wee hours at the Phuket Electronic and Dance Music Festival on Karon Beach, featuring the IP DJ Hunt 2011.

The event was staged on two nights – De cember 30 and 31.

www.thephuketnews.com

30 ENTERTAINMENT IN BRIEF Soul superstar engaged at 69

Aretha Franklin has gotten engaged.

The 69-year-old Queen of Soul announced she was planning on tying the knot with long time friend William Wilkerson.

This will be the third marriage for the Chain of Fools singer having previously been married to Ted White for eight years and following their split in 1969 she married Glynn Turman in 1978 but they divorced six years later.

Perry asked Brand to file divorce Katy Perry reportedly asked Russell Brand to file divorce papers as she didn’t want to upset her religious parents, reports say.

The British actor revealed that the couple have decided to end their marriage after just 14 months. Russell filed the court papers in Los Angeles citing “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their split.

Aerosmith frontman engaged Steven Tyler is ready to walk this way, again: The 63-yearold singer is engaged.

Tyler’s representative con-

www.thephuketnews.com

firmed early that the Aerosmith frontman is engaged to Erin Brady.

Tyler has been married and divorced twice.

Star Wars sabre-master dies aged 89 Olympic fencer and movie sword master Bob Anderson appeared in some of film’s most famous duelling scenes – though few viewers knew it.

Anderson, who has died at age 89, donned Darth Vader’s black helmet and fought light sabre battles in two of the three original Star Wars films, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.

Anderson worked with actors from Errol Flynn to Antonio Banderas during five decades as a sword master, fight director and stunt performer.

Kings of Leon singer to be a dad

Kings of Leon frontman Caleb Followill and his wife, Victoria’s Secret model Lily Aldridge, said on Thursday they are expecting their first child.

Followill, age 29, and Aldridge, age 26, married in May in California.

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Knights of the round ball Once upon a time there was an aspiring cricketer named Henry, a bank teller named Robert, and a carpet fitter named Nicholas.

Two were of English stock while the other lived on the other side of the world.

At varying times they set out on new quests and adventures seeking fame and fortune. Lo and behold, their quests became legendary, and they were graciously knighted by the monarch of the realm.

Knights indeed they became, not of the round table, but rather knights of the white ball, the golf ball. For these three knights were none other than Sir Henry Cotton, Sir Nicholas Faldo and Sir Robert Charles, the only golfers ever to be knighted. And with something else in common, all were winners of the Open Championship.

This year the 140th Open Championship returns to Royal St Georges, (in 1884 it became the first course outside Scotland to host the championship). On this course in 1934, Henry Cotton won

Sir Henry Cotton (centre row, left) with a young David Brook (back row, left) and members of his Scottish Brewers sales and marketing staff in 1979. his first of three open championships, producing a record round of 65 which led to the famous Dunlop 65 golf ball.

Cotton, a talented cricketer, switched at the age of 12 to golf, turned pro at 17 (1924), played his first open championship in 1927 and his last one 50 years later in 1977, aged 70.

Ne w Z e a l a n d e r B ob Charles (born 1936) was the first left-handed Major winner, which he achieved at Royal Lytham St Annes in 1963 after a 36-hole play-off. Bob

was to win only one Major but over 70 titles in his five decade playing career. He still played on the seniors tour as recently as 2010. He was knighted in 1999.

Of the three knights, Nicholas Alexander Faldo has won the most Majors. Turning pro in 1976, he won the Masters in 1989, 1990 and 1996 and three Open Championships (1987, 1990, 1996).

Faldo’s illustrious career included an outstanding performance in the Ryder Cup, playing 11 times and being

captain in 2008. His knighthood followed in 2009.

Henry Thomas Cotton, the first-ever knighted golfer and nicknamed “Maestro”, played mostly in the UK. He rarely played in the US, just three Masters and two US Opens.

Along with his three Open Championship victories (1934, 1937, 1948) he played in The Ryder Cup Team four times and was twice captain.

Cotton retired in the early 1950’s, and turned to golf design, notably Penina in Portugal, his long-time home. Knighted in 1988, his legacy is renowned: a fearsome competitor, with a distinct coaching style.

The Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Award has seen many prestigious names, including Faldo himself back in 1977. Here was the knight perhaps rewarding the groom.

I had the privilege of meeting Henry Cotton in 1979 in Scotland at a special presentation lunch. Stories of his playing experiences enthralled as did a golf clinic from the sprightly 72-year-old.

These knights have done special things. I wonder who will be the next knight to come and join them at their very own Round Ball Round Table.

–David Brook

LUXURY 31

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Ride in a Convertible

Take a ride in a fabulous convertible, or another sports car, for a truly unforgettable driving experience. Rent now from only B3,800 per day, delivery to any hotel in Phuket can be easily arranged.

Email phuketstretchlimo@gmail. com, visit phuketstretchlimo.com, or call 085 311 1211.

Phuket Stretch Limo

Phuket Stretch Limo has imported top of the range limousines, with all vehicles kept in tip top shape by a dedicated team of professional drivers and hostesses. Because they have more than one, reliability is assured. Travel in one today.

Email phuketstretchlimo@gmail. com, visit phuketstretchlimo.com, or call 085 311 1211.

LUXURY PHUKET

The dictionary defines luxury as “a material object, or service conducive to sumptuous living”, while Wikpedia states: “Luxury goods are products and services not considered essential but are associated with affluence. The concept of luxury has been present in various forms since the beginning of civilisation. Its role was just as important in ancient western and eastern empires as it is in modern societies.”

On this new page, we’ll promote the very best in luxury living on Phuket, whether it be a yacht, jet, car, watch, fashion, or jewellery – so read on, and enjoy the Phuket luxe life.

Wahoo Luxury Yacht Charters T her e i s no b et ter way to appreciate the Andaman Sea, with its crystal clear waters and some of the most stunning scenery in the world than on a private charter yacht with Wahoo Luxury Yacht Charters.

Wahoo - Phuket’s favorite private yacht charter company offers

an unforgettable cruising, game fishing or diving experience in Phi Phi, Phang Nga, Krabi and beyond Your magical day begins with a warm Thai welcome from their on-board service team, who will ensure you are pampered to the fullest extent throughout the day, leaving you to relax, enjoy a

refreshing swim or explore on the Jet Ski and Sea Canoes.

Their sumptuous food menus are all freshly prepared on board, allowing you to dine al fresco in beautiful surroundings, with every possible luxury taken care of.

Email info@wahoo.ws, visit www. wahoo.ws or call 076 281 510, www.thephuketnews.com

32 EVENTS

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

WHAT’S ON IN PHUKET

List your events here for as low as B99 per line, or online at www.thephuketnews.com/events.php

JANUARY 14

people return to their homes and families for the three day festival. It is celebrated each year between the 13th and 15th of April. It was originally a religious holiday.

Songkran begins with early morning meritmaking, by offering food to the monks. Paying respect to elders and ancestors is also an important custom of Songkran.

Thailand National Children’s Day

UNTIL JANUARY 12 Beach Clean Up Art Exhibitions This exhibition is a great way to raise awareness of sea pollution to younger generations and to help them appreciate the value of the sea. The event begins at 6 pm at “Nakonnai Art Music” 84/34 Saiyuan Soi 2, Viset Road, Rawai. Contact 086 683 2188.

Is celebrated on the second Saturday in January. Children are considered as the most valuable resource of the country.

Many organisations from both government and commercial sectors have celebration activities for children. The Prime Minister usually gives each Children’s Day a theme that can be summarised by its motto.

Many Government offices are open to children and their family. In Bangkok: this includes the Government House, the Parliament House Complex and various Military installations. A notable example is the guided tour at the Government House, where children have an opportunity to view the Prime Minister’s office and sit at the bureau.The Royal Thai Air Force usually invites children to go and explore the aircraft. And also there are activities around Phuket on that day.

JANUARY 23 Chinese New Year JANUARY 26 Australia Day

Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Celebrated annually on January 26, the date commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet of British settlers at Sydney Cove in 1788.

Colourful dragon processions take place all over Phuket City, culminating in a popular and large fireworks display.

Young people pour scented water over Buddha images and on the hands of elders to show respect, and to seek their blessing.

Another custom of Songkran is to clean houses and anything old and useless must be thrown away. It is believed that anything bad belonging to the old year will be unlucky to the owner if left and carried on to the coming new year. The most prominent custom of the festival is throwing water.

Everybody throws water on each other, during the three day festival. The most popular place for water throwing is in Chiang Mai. Contact Suanluang Inter Wedding 076 221 976, email: info@interwedding phuket.com. See interweddingphuket.com.

Labor Day

MARCH 13

28-30 JANUARY Old Phuket Festival

However, all government offices will remain open. May 1 falls on a Sunday this year so May 2 will be the substitute day for employees.

MAY 5

JANUARY 30 Thao Thepkrassattri - Thao Sri Suntorn Festival

New year’s Thai buffet B100 per person. Fundraiser for the Phuket Pride Celebration raffle prizes for all. start from 5 pm to 9 pm. Contact CC Bloom’s Hoel 84/21 Patak road Soi 10, call 076 333 222. Email: sales@ccbloomshotel. com, www.ccbloomshotel.com.

Classical Music Concert H.E. Adm. ML Usni Pramoj will perform at Mom Tri’s Villa Royale. ML Usni Pramoj, a Privy Councillor is also an accomplished conductor, composer and violinist.

-Accompanying ML Usni will be Tasana Nagavajara- violin. Siripong Tiptan - violin and Kittikhun Sodprasert - violoncello.

-Antonin Dvorak: String Quartet Op.96 in F major “American” M.L.Usni Pramoj: String Quartet No.2

The festival celebrates the island’s victory in 1785 over an invading Burmese force.

Anyone travelling from Phuket Airport towards the south part of the island will have seen the famous Heroines Monument, commemorating the two sisters who led the people of Phuket to victory.

This is an attraction that will give you with a deeper understanding of local culture and history.

APRIL 6 Chakri Day A public holiday to honor the founder of the Chakri Dynasty, King Rama I.

APRIL 13-15

Time 6pm reception, from 7 pm concert.

Tickets B500 per person. Contact 076 333 569, pr@villaroyalephuket.com, www.villaroyalephuket.com

FEBUARY 2-4, 2012 Wahoo Thailand 2012 Sport Fishing Tournament This is Thailand’s largest-ever international sport fishing tournament. Prize money totalling over B3,000,000 (US$100,000).

Boats and teams are filling fast. For further information, please contact Warren Crowe on 081 270 4291 or email: info@rawaibeachfishingclub.com. www.thephuketnews.com

The government has established May 1 of every year as Labour Day just like most European countries.

The objective of this day is to recognise the employee’s duty and responsibility they show everyday of the year. The government has marked May 1 as a public holiday. You will find most private companies closed, including banks.

This year’s event will be the 13th anniversary of the popular Old Phuket Town Festival, held in collaboration with Chinese New Year. Contact: TAT on 076 212 213

JANUARY 22 CC Bloom’s New Year’s Party 2012

MAY 1

Coronation Day (Wan Chat tra Mongkhon) Commemorates the coronation of King Bhumibol Adulyadej in 1950.

MAY 9 Royal Ploughing Ceremony and Farmer’s Day Ceremonies giving blessing to the country’s farmers are held on this day. It is officially known as Wan Phra Ratcha Phithi Phuet Monkhon Lae Charot Phra Nangkhan Raek Na Khwan. This day is also observed as Farmer’s Day. Each year’s date is astrologically-determined and announced by the Bureau of the Royal Household.

A government holiday only, this ceremony revives an ancient blessing of the plants and ceremonial start to the new growing season. The action takes place on Bangkok’s Sanam Luang in front of the Grand Palace.

JUNE 4

FEBRUARY 14

Visakha Bucha Day

Record Breaking Mass Wedding at Promthep Cape

Falls on the full moon of the sixth Thai lunar month (May). A Buddhist observance commemorating the birth, enlightenment and passing of the Buddha. Also observed as National Tree Day.

The island is aiming to break the national record for the biggest mass wedding on Valentine’s Day next year. ��������������� The Thai traditional style mass wedding for 108 couples at Laem Promthep, the best sunset in Thailand. Other activities include offering alms to 99 Buddhist monks and planting trees as part of a schedule running from February 12-15, 2012.

Songkran Festival Songkran is the old Thai New Year , and is an occasion for family reuinions. Many Thai

On this, the holiest Buddhist holiday of the year, you will find the temples full with devotees receiving blessings and giving offerings. All government and public sector business will be closed, including most bars and pubs.

EVENTS 33

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

WHAT’S ON IN PHUKET FRIDAY Pool Competition Pool Competition at 9pm. Expat Sports Bar, Expat Hotel, Soi Taipan, Patong. www. expatsportsbar.com.

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Exclusive Dining at Paresa Recipe by Ryan is an innovative culinary dining venture, indulge in intricate dishes created by Paresa’s Executive Chef Ryan Arboleda, featuring a six-course set menu prepared in a live cooking environment.

Time: 6pm to 10pm. Call 076 302 000.

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Special Friday @ Indian Feast This Authentic Home-Made Indian Buffet will be prepared and served by our very own in-house Indian Chef Padum Kahtri.

Reservations are recommended, so please call “Les Anges” on 076 360 803.

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BBQ Ribs All You Can Eat O nly B29 5 per person at Shakers.

Rat-U-Thit Road, Patong. For reservations call on 081 891 4381.

List your events here for as low as B99 per line, or online at www.thephuketnews.com/events.php

Reservations call 081 891 4381.

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Saturday Brunch The B-Lay Tong Saturday brunch will be held every Saturday until January 7, 2012, from 11.30am to 3pm. B1,200 net per person. Two people receive one bottle of house wine between them. For reservations please contact +66(0) 76 344 999 and +66(0) 76 680 666 or e-mail rsvn@blaytong.com.

SUNDAY Sunday Roast Pork or Beef Dinner Every Sunday 2pm onwards Expat Hotel, Soi Taipan, Patong B290 per person. Stilton with Port or Wine Every Sunday 2pm onwards B290. See www.expathotel.com.

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Best Sunday Carvery in Phuket Roast beef, BBQ ham, chicken, pork and Yorkshire pudding. All you can eat B399.

Irish Times, Jungceylon, Patong.

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Sunday Brunch

Phuket Brasserie

Enjoy the original Sunday brunch in Phuket at Twinpalms, Surin Beach. 12-3pm (from B1,190++ per person). Reser vations please call 076 316 577.

Eat, drink, look and party. Live band, DJ and dancers from 10pm till late. All welcome. Call 076 210 511 for more information or look on www.brasseriephuket.com

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Curry Fridays at Navrang Mahal Start November 2011-January 2012. Every Fridays, all-you-can-eat authentic Indian curry buffet, B449 net per person. Draught beer B50. 7pm-11.30pm. Call 076 286 464.

SATURDAY BBQ at Expat Hotel Time 7.30pm, Expat Sports Bar, Expat Hotel, Soi Taipan, Patong. www.expatsportsbar.com.

................................................................................

Exclusive Dining at Paresa Recipe by Ryan is an innovative culinary dining venture. Indulge in intricate dishes created by Paresa’s Executive Chef Ryan Arboleda, featuring a six-course set menu prepared in a live cooking environment.

Time: 6pm to 10pm. Call 076 302 000, email: dining@paresaresorts.com.

................................................................................

Colin Hill Colin Hill performs (duo) now every second Saturday at Legends Bar in Kamala, with local guitarist Florian. 081 079 1069.

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Half-Chicken Spit Roast O nly B2 25 per person at Shakers.

Rat-U-Thit Road, Patong. Reservations call 081 891 4381.

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Half-Chicken Spit Roast Only B225 per person at Shakers. Rat-UThit Road, Patong. Reservations pleasecall 081 891 4381.

MONDAY Roaring Bhoys Live Music every Monday night. The largest selection of draught beer in Phuket. Irish Times, Jungceylon, Patong.

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BBQ Buffet All You Can Eat Only B325 per person at Shakers. RatU-Thit Road, Patong. Reservations 081 891 4381.

TUESDAY Pool Competition At 9pm Expat Guesthouse Sports Bar, Patong. See map at www.expatguesthouse. com.

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Lose Weight Now Ask Thai Weight Loss how! Take advantage of our free weight loss seminar from 7.15pm. Contact Michael 087 897 8997, 076 304 108, www.thailandweightloss. com.

.

WEDNESDAY Chef’s Dinner

Chef Dinner Wednesday at Surin Gate Kitchen, four-course chef’s menu, B750 per person. Great food with unique flavours by awarded Chef Daniel Isberg and Chef Coki. Reservations by email suringatekitchen@gmail.com or call 076 324 4577.

................................................................................

Quiz Night @ Peppers Quiz Night every Wednesday at Peppers Sports Bar near Laguna. Great food, great music, great beer. Contact 081 728 1010.

Facebook Peppers Sports Bar.

Interactive Pub Q uiz ni ght . Star ts from 8pm ever y Wednesday night. The largest selection of draught beer in Phuket. Irish Times, Jungceylon, Patong.

................................................................................

BBQ Ribs All You Can Eat O nly B29 5 per person at Shakers.

Rat-U-Thit Road, Patong. Reservations call on 081 891 4381.

THURSDAY Lose Weight Now Ask Thai Weight Loss how! Take advantage of our free weight loss seminar from 7.15pm. Contact Michael 087 897 8997, 076 304 108, www.thailandweightloss. com.

................................................................................

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AA Phuket Meetings @ TGM All meetings are one hour long and held in English at The Green Man Pub 82/15 Moo 4 Patak Road, one km from Chalong circle.Contact for details on 081 895 4763.

DAILY Lunch & Dinner Buffet Come and join our delicious daily Catch Brunch (12-3pm from B610 per person) and Luxury Buffet Dinner (7-10pm from B990 per person). Call 076 316 567.

Rotary Club of Patong Beach

................................................................................

Weekly meeting in English. Dinner out on first Tuesday of the month. rotarypatong. org.

All Major Sports Live

................................................................................

On the big screen. F1, MotoGP, Tennis, Golf, AFL, NRL. Irish Times Irish Pub, Jungceylon, Patong.

Salsa Class Rawai

................................................................................

Salsa Class in Green Man Studio from 6.30 to 9 pm, more information on phuketdance.com.

20% Off All Pizzas

................................................................................

At Shakers. Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Road, Patong. Free pick up Patong and Kalim areas.

AA Phuket Meetings @ TGM All meetings are one hour long and held

Chef’s Dinner Chef Dinner Wednesday at Surin Gate Kitchen, four-course chef’s menu, B750 per person. Great food with unique flavours by awarded Chef Daniel Isberg and Chef Coki.

Reservations by email suringatekitchen @gmail.com or call 076 324 4577.

................................................................................

Phuket’s one and only small batch handcraft beer. Happy hour daily from 4pm to 7pm. Draft beer B110/pint, cocktails two for B220. Live music at 7.30pm onwards. Behind the ship, the port zone at Jungceylon. Call 076 3667 753.

................................................................................

Quiz Night every Wednesday at Peppers Sports Bar near Laguna.

-Great food -Great music -Great beer.

Contact 081 728 1010.

Facebook: Peppers Sports Bar.

Only B325 per person at Shakers. RatU-Thit Road, Patong. Reservations 081 891 4381.

Half-Chicken Spit Roast

AA Phuket Meetings @ TGM

Wednesday Quiz Night @ Peppers

BBQ Buffet All You Can Eat

Brew Great Beer

................................................................................

Saturday Brunch The B-Lay Tong Saturday brunch will be held every Saturday starting from December 10, 2011 until January 7, 2012, from 11.30am – 3pm. B1,200 net per person. Two people receive one bottle of house wine. For reservations please contact +66(0) 76 344 999 and +66(0) 76 680 666 or e-mail rsvn@b-laytong.com.

................................................................................

................................................................................

O nly B2 25 per person at Shakers.

Rat-U-Thit Road, Patong. Reservations call 081 891 4381.

All meetings are one hour long and held in English at The Green Man Pub, 82/15 Moo 4 Patak Road, one km from Chalong circle. Contact 081 895 4763.

in English at The Green Man Pub, 82/15 Moo 4, Patak Road, one km from Chalong circle. Contact 081 895 4763.

................................................................................

Grizzly’s Sports Bar& Restaurant Watch all the sport that is on TV this weekend with us. Located between Loch Palm Golf Course and Kathu Waterfall.

Call 087 471 8747.

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Sunset Happy Hours & Ninjazz Don’t miss the Sunset happy hours.

Between 5pm and 7pm. “Buy one get the same one free” promotion. The Luna Bar, Centara Grand Beach Resort.

076 201 234.

Brew Great Beer Phuket’s one and only small batch handcraft beer. Open every day for lunch and dinner 11am until midnight.

Live music from 7.30pm onwards.

Behind the ship, the port zone at Jung­c eylon. For reservations call 076 3667 753.

Facebook.com/fullmoonbrewwork.

www.thephuketnews.com

34

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

CLASSIFIEDS JOBS IN PHUKET

Massage Shop Staff: New massage shop on Karon needs staff for massage, facial treatment and manicure.

Salary plus commission.

12 a.m to 12 p.m. 6 days a week. 089 128 4783 Pui (Thai).

Apple Mac Support: Apple Mac technical support needed to help with computer issues in Surin area. Please email admin@esxoasia.com.

Native English Te a c h e r : C h a l o n g K inder gar ten is l o oking for experienced teacher for class of 1012 c h i l dr e n a g e s 3 -7 years old. Monday-Friday, 8am-4pm. Start January 4. Call 080 624 7060.

Resume to phuketpre school@yahoo.com.

Sales Executive: Experienced sales executive needed to join expanding public ation. Candidate must be focused, disciplined and organised. English fundamental. Please contact info@thinkdesignmagazine.com or 087 281 0994.

per month. Give us a call at 085 619 4963.

Looking for a Team-Member

Modern Pool Villa 3 bedroom, 600 sq metre plot in peaceful location > 36

To advertise here visit: thephuketnews.com/classifieds.php Event company: Event Company is looking for bands, singers, dancers & any kind of single or group performers. hr@phuketeventcompany.

English- Sp eaking Waitresses: Deepaval Restaurant/The Lounge bar in Bang Tao requires three English-speaking waitresses. 080 722 3377.

Tr a v e l l i n g S a l e s - New Italian Bakery man: Sale representative & Supermart: In Surin

Employment - Scuba Diving: Urgently seeking two instructors to run a small dive shop in Phuket. SSI Instructor is a big plus, good English a must. Please send CV to office@sea-bees.com or call 076 381 765.

Expanding Our Team: Looking for Finnish or Swedish speaking Instructor to join our existing team in secluded but busy location. Please send your CV to office@ sea-bees.com or call 076 381 765.

available to travel around Thailand for our range of f a s t - m ov i n g c o n s u m e r products. Thai national, English-speaking, computer skills, driving licence and proven experience of sales to minimart, supermarket.

We already have more than 500 customers in Thailand. Salar y B15K plus commission. Contact via email skgf@skgf.asia.

CAD Technician : To

work in new office Phuket.

Pr of i c i e nt in Auto CA D (2004 or higher) for 2D drawing. Experience of 3D AutoCAD, Google SketchUp, Adobe Photoshop or Adobe InDesign would be a bonus. Proficient in Microsoft Excel, Word, Outlook.

Native EnglishT hai nat i o nal, g o o d Speaking Teacher: spoken and written EngNeed native Englishspeaking teacher with ability to speak, read and write Thai. Call 081 803 7189.

Talent/Performer for

lish, send CV indicating qualifications and experience, expected salary and recent photo to: david@ yes.co.th. Visit www.sound ideas.co.uk to see the type of work we do.

Beach. Kitchen (basic English required): Pastry/baking kitchen sous chef. Chef de partie/commis, steward service (good English required). Waitress/waiter.

Bartender. Supermarket assistant and cashier. Send CV by email marcellamocci@gmail.com.

Portfolio Analyst (full time) A unique opportunity to join this pioneering wealth management boutique in Phuket. We are looking for a highly-motivated employee, who has a passion for client service and for the investment profession. Candidates will grow with our company and must be able to multi-task numerous projects. The role involves regular contact with our high net-worth clients around the world.

Remuneration: thb 30k - 35k / month + annual bonus Working Place : Office in Phuket Boat Lagoon Applicants must: be female and of Thai nationality; speak and write excellent English; have a university degree in finance or business; have a minimum of three years' experience in finance or business; have strong PC skills, in particular MS Excel.

The role consists of:

Maid: Live in Thai maid To take care of house in Chalong and give daily massage to Farang. Pay B14,000 with motorbike to use age 35 to 50 and speak English. email information about yourself to ltnesneg@aol.com.

investment portfolio performance analysis and reporting; investment product analysis and new product research; regular client contact, including new client account opening and ongoing account administration; liaison with our trading platforms and banking partners.

Please send your curriculum vitae to: Jaruwan Naksalab, assistant to Managing Director: jaruwan@securewm.com www.secure-wealthmanagement.com "i n d ep en d en t a d vi ce for t h e n ew fi n a n ci a l er a "

Class Act Media publishes The Phuket News – Phuket’s leading English language newspaper – and broadcasts Phuket's most vibrant and coolest English language radio station – Live 89.5 FM.

We are currently seeking

SALES MANAGER (THAI OR FOREIGNER)

Urgently required for Sensive Hill in Kathu. Similar background and experience required, excellent salar y on of fer. Please contact K. Rin at 076 203 012 or send CV to guy@ sensivehill.com.

RESPONSIBILITIES: - Reaching sales target - Developing and following up new sales leads - Self discipline in developing and managing sales volumes - Preparing regular sales activities reports to the General Manager - Excellent communication and negotiation skills - Self driven and motivated with a positive attitude - Work well under pressure and achievement oriented

Sales Genius Wanted: International operat-

Competitive salary, bonuses and travel expenses, Friendly work environment, social security (10%) paid by the company, excellent career progress opportunity

Driver Wanted: For private car, good English, part time. Call 089 054 4354.

Waitress/ Waiter and Recept ionist:

ing company is building a Google-like street tour.

Apply at max@panomat ics.com.

Staf f Needed: Bliss Boutique hotel is looking for reception and kitchen staff. Are you interested or want to know more info?

Salary starting at B7,000 www.thephuketnews.com

INTERESTED APPLICANTS ARE INVITED TO APPLY BY SENDING A FULL RESUMÉ IN ENGLISH WITH A RECENT PHOTO & EXPECTED SALARY TO:

Class Act Media Co., Ltd. 99/7, Moo 1, T. Kathu, Phuket 83120 Tel: 076 612 550-2 Fax: 076 612 553 E-mail: gm@thephuketnews.com www.thephuketnews.com

CLASSIFIEDS 35

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

BUY & SELL IN PHUKET

To advertise here visit: thephuketnews.com/classifieds.php

Farang Food Paradise:

Investment/Business Opportunity for 2012 Buy on Kata Beach. Ideal for real estate and business investor 7 story building with new 360 degree view penthouse, furnished apartments, fully-equipped restaurant , and pool with terrace walk to beach.

Invest now and operate as residence business.

Contact Scott Bolls, Call +66 81 828 0972. email: sbolls@hotmail.com.

BOATS & YACHTS

dile. Three years lease paid.

Price B2.7 million only. Contact tomarell@hotmail.com for more info.

Kamala Bar for SALE!: 35ft Bay Liner Motor Yacht: Year 2009, twin 260HP Mercruisers, Aircon. Navigation, TV/DVD/ surround, fridge/freezer, coffee machine, vacuum, flush, full bimini enclosure, many other options. Immaculate condition, a steal at B3.99m. eddyelan@ yahoo.com, call 089 971 0278.

Very profitable bar on main road. Owner returning to Australia in high season. Has one bedroom with ensuite, three FS TV’s, pool table, stock, furniture. etc. Price negotiable.

Call Chompoo 084 844 3504.

B u s i n e s s f o r S a l e: Phuket slingsshot, Thailand’s only, and bumper cars. Call 082 419 0742.

Your specialist of imported food and drinks in Phuket. Visit our shop at the Billion Plaza, opposite Tesco Lotus. Contact 076 612 733, 076 248 900. www.phuketfood.com.

riculum. Experienced native English teachers to teach ages 1½ -6. Monday to Friday, 8am5pm. Bus service available.

Contact 076 282 232.

ABC International Nursery: Education for chilIndo Construction: 40 years experience of more than 20 years at your service in Thailand. Main contractor: study project, architecture design and construction and management. Contact 076 381 895.

CARS FOR RENT Car for Rent: Car in good condition, short and longterm rental with first class insurance and delivery service.

Contact 086 690 6007, email: k.niwatt@hotmail.com.

A1 Car Rentals: Fullyinsured. Starts at B12,000 to B18,000 per month. Please call 089 831 4703. Email for more info: a1carrent@gmail.com.

CARS FOR SALE

BUSINESS SERVICES

dren 18 months to six years old with experienced native English teachers following the UK EYFS curriculum. Contact 089 971 1813.

CLUBS SK A L I nt e r na t i onal Phuket: Skål is a professional organisation of leaders from all branches of the travel and tourism industry. www. skal phuket.org.

Singapore Club Phuket: Calling all Singaporeans in Phuket to join “Singapore Club Phuket”. Contact Robin on 081 803 7189, 076 303 500.

Guitar Lesson By Pro Player: Guitar/bass lessons beginner to advanced. Personal one-on-one or by DVD. Diploma of Teaching (Aust) degree. Call 089 777 3063.

English Computer man: Sales (new and used), service and repairs, WLAN a speciality. Free telephone advice. Contact 0846 257 744, computermanphuket@ gmail.com.

Phuket Scuba Club: PADI 5 Star Centre. Half-day,

All 4 Diving: 5/4 Sawatdirak Road, Patong Beach. Call 076 344 611.

EDUCATION

COMPUTERS

DIVING Jeep Wrangler 2.0 Litre Manual: B300,000.

day-trips, live-aboards and diver education. Call 076 284 026.

Under Water Video Package For Sale: Sony CX150 HD Vid.Camera with Equinox HD6 housing-40,000bt. Optional Asus Lap Top with one Gig video card B20,000.

Call 084 630 2165.

Native German Teacher: Native German TEFL teacher is teaching German and English to single students at home or small groups in Chalong. (German/English) 080 778 1220, (Thai) 081 810 9115.

C a l l 0 8 6 2 6 8 8 7 0 1.

Private Luxury Yacht Charters: Luxury day and overnight yacht charters with crew and chef on board. Rates from B49,000 per day. Contact 089 971 0278, Visit our website at www.yacht-char ter-thai land.com.

Dinghy Size 2.45 metre:

Inflatable tubes. Rigid hull and cover. Used only in fresh water.

B65,000. (new B100,000) 081 728 0140 or email milou2612@ gmail.com.

Jeep Wrangler 2.0 Litre Auto: Stainless, discTile It: Thalang. Wana Park on Srisoonthorn Rd. Phuket’s quality tile boutique. Tiles for interior, exterior, residential, commercial. Contact 076 620 168 or 081 424 2828. Email info@tile-asia.com.

brake, power-steering.

B440,000. 086 268 8701.

1943 Model Jeep (Ford) for Sale: Well-maintained, runs well B190,000 or nearest offer. Call 081 728 0140 or milou2612@gmail.com.

Phuket Consult Services: Insurance, personal

Digifox Marine: Marine inboard engines, hydraulic and mechanical equipment service, repairs and spare parts. MAN, Arneson, ZF, Rolls Royce and others. Professional team of engineers, high quality, personal approach guaranteed. Contact 076 336 221, 083 171 4141. Email info@ digifoxmarine.com.

assistance, legal assistance, police and emergency assistance, property management sales and rentals, company registration, visa and work permit and accounting. Call 081 691 9679.

Prot ec t your ho m e w i t h CCT V: C CT V &

Car for Sale: Teana top model 2010. Travelled 22,000 km. Sell B1,240,000. Please call for more details on 087 276 0529.

CHILDCARE Kiddies Home Nursery: Award for top Nursery

Alarm service. Protect your home with high-quality CCTV camera,and GSM alarm. Free survey and quote. Please call 086 105 8144 or click www. huketechnology.com.

BUSINESSES FOR SALE

for Phuket Province 2011. Ages 3 months to 4 years. Open 7 days a week and from 6.30 a.m. to 7.00 p.m. Rock Garden Village, call 076 528 862, mobile 082 539 8252 or kiddies home nursery@gmail.com.

Toursys: Tour operator soft-

Buds Nursery: Phuket’s

Bar Bangla Road for Sale: In popular Soi Croco-

ware. Presented by Blue D Zine Co., Ltd. See bluedzine. com.

oldest bi-lingual international child care facility. High-quality, time-proven schedule and cur-

www.thephuketnews.com

36 CLASSIFIEDS

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

BUY & SELL/HOMES IN PHUKET

To advertise here visit: thephuketnews.com/classifieds.php Daily/monthly. Please contact 089 728 4005 or email: t h a m a d 1 7@ y a h o o . c o m .

EDUCATION Cooking School: Fire up

your creative flare with Food Ser vices Cooking School.

Italian, Western and Thai cuisine. Try our famous pizza school. Call 082 816 0126, email: info@foodservicesth. com.

Dos & Don’ts of Thai Culture: Learn Thai and Thai culture that is necessary for enjoying life in Thailand.

Group classes three days per week, learning about the real dos and don’ts of Thailand.

The Genius Language School, call 089 203 9270 (Aooddy).

Visit www.thegeniuslanguag eschool.net.

MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS FOR SALE Moving Sale: Sign frame and alluminium C slats s i z e, 10 m x 3 m . A i r- c o n .

(1)40,000BTU, (2)20,000BTU. Shop glass front. All going cheap, call 087 276 0529.

Yamaha Serow for Sale: 220cc, year 1996.

Sale B45,000. Please contact Khun Nicolas (farang) 083 176 4265. Khun Ball 081 084 9532 (Thai).

MOTORBIKE SERVICES Dynamic Tyre Balancing: Dynamically balance your motorcycle tyres for a smoother ride with DYNA BEADS! Available at West Coast Service Center Phuket.

Your big bike specialist on the bypass road. 085 785 4440.

PERSONAL SERVICES

Health Food Store: On-

CBR 150 9 years old, modified w/ 250 fork, rear. Big 250 rubber, one of a kind motobike.

B30,000. Contact 080 530 9555.

This is an all inclusive original Thai massage shop.

Original Thai massage, Deep Thai, Swedish, foot massage and many more. Facial, aroma therapy full service manicure, pedicure including acrylics. Hair-braiding, waxing. Fish spa too. w w w.malimas sage.c om.

Open Daily 10 am - midnight.

Call 081 087 2460.

081 087 2560.

English-Thai Law Office: Visa, work permit, company formation, property transfer etc. Please telephone for advice. Contact 084 063 9223.

www.thephuketnews.com

Apar tment for Rent in Rawai: Business nine apartments, fully-furnished with swimming pool & office.

Contract 081 893 2165.

Luxur y Villa, Phuket Loch Palm: Plot: 650 m², own water, solar, living area 280 m², furnished, carport, 80 m² pool, four bedrooms, four bathrooms, 5 flat tv, ADSL, Cable TV. 19.5 million Thai Baht. +66 (0) 88 381 0012, email: office@palm-beachentertainment.com.

Kata Phuket Luxury Studio/Apartment: 60 sq metre. Lease hold 30+60 year option. Free furnishing and tranfer. B3.0 million.

Contact Scott Bolls, email: sbolls@hotmail.com, call +66 81 828 0972.

PROPERTY CONCIERGE

Nice Three Bed House for Sale: Three-bedroom

Live Music By Colin Hill: Popular expat pro musician (guitar/vocals) with work permit. Can perform solo, duo or band. www.play-guitar.net, 089 777 3063.

After a great success of the first phase, the Sunrise Ocean Villas is now starting to build the 8 other villas of "Phase2". The price of 17.9 million baht makes the project one of the most compettitive on the island for being only 60m from the beach.

Each villa has an living area of over 300 sqm, has 3 spacious bedrooms, all sea views, 5 bathrooms, a 10x4m infinity pool, maid's quarter and a covered 2 car-parking. The houses are specially designed to guarantee a complete privacy, with an open panoramic view of the sea.

house in Moobaan Tarn Thong Villa opposit Moobaan Chao fa California. B3.1 million. Contact Lee on 081 803 7189.

Selling Your Property?

Get maximum exposure on our topranked website. Call 080 143 2929 or visit realestate.phuket.net.

PROPERTY FOR RENT Kata Beach Centre Phuket apartments for

250cc trail bike B62,000. Call

Call for more details on 083 456 2185.

Foundation have over 300 beautiful dogs and puppies available for adoption. Fully-vaccinated and sterilised.

Contact 087 050 8688, email: john@soidog.org.

apartments and pool penthouses 115-375 sq metre, less than five minutes walk to two beaches (Kata and Kata Noi) Call 081 078 1246.

sage,100 9-10 Soi Post Office Patong Beach Phuket Kathu 8 315 0. The most beautiful, serene and tranquil facilities in Patong Beach.

Honda 25 0 D egre e:

Harley Davidson Soft Tail for Sale:

Why buy a pet?: Soi Dog

Rent Kata One-Three Bed Apartments: Superb

www.phuketpooltables.com.

Your number one billiard and snooker supplier in Phuket.

Sales, rent and profit-sharing.

All accessories and services.

Call 081 823 4627.

Mali Massage :Mali Mas-

CBR 150 modified 30K:

PET ADOPTION

THE SUNRISE OCEAN VILLAS

Phuket Pool Tables:

MOTORBIKES FOR SALE

condition with green book and insurance. B57,000.

Call 080 700 5560.

Chiropractic spinal adjustment with an experienced chiropractor can take away the pain almost as quickly as it began.

Call 076 612 707.

POOL TABLES

line health food store in Thailand. Good karma, all natural healthy, natural and organic products. 0822761675.

H o n d a Ph a n t o m 200cc 2007: Good

American Health Clinic:

rent and lease in luxury building with pool. Per day, week, month, year and 30 years.

Contact Scott Bolls, email: sbolls@hotmail.com, call +66 81 828 0972.

Beach Frontage: One bedroom self-contained holiday villa Rawai. Rental Day/Week Call 081 677 1641.

Apartment for Rent in Patong: New condo with swimming pool, security 24/7. 46sq metre, furnished.

Rawai Beach Front House: Rawai beach front Come visit the villas and you will be wonderfully surprised by the quality of the project as well as the quality of life you can find here.

house for sale/long term rent. Three beds, three baths with three air-con.

Cable TV, ADSL on area 1600 sq metre. Call 089 649 9939.

For appointment or more details, contact the project director Khun Monta at 081 343 0777 (Thai, English & German) Email: thesunrise villas@yahoo.com.

PROPERTY FOR SALE Stunning 3 Bedroom Pool Villa: in Kamala.

Large living entertainment area. Western style kitchen, built in bar, airconditioning, laundr y. 20 metre resor t style pool, beautiful established garden additional land with garden suitable for another villa or units total land 2,264 sq metre. Five minutes to beach and main street well below replacement cost B24.6m. Call 086 269 5108 English or 080 744 7625 English/Thai.

Thai Style House for Sale: Teak wood floors, stairs, walls, 2 bedroom.

Land 330 sq metre, peaceful location, five minutes to Patong, Chanot title. B5.0 million. 086 268 8701, email: f430spiderf1@hotmail.com.

Seaview Land Ao Makham for Sale: 33 rai land upon hill with seaview.

Very easy access from road.

B5 million per rai. Email: wapeebow@gmail.com.

www.thesunrisevillas.com

JINDARIN BE ACH CLUB & RESORT: Oceanfront Eco Resort on Coconut Island (three minutes off shore from Phuket). Private pier, private boat taxi, beach, beach pool, spa, sunset restaurant, elegant cottages. Coconut Island is only 20 minutes from Central Festival shopping.

Hurry, 26 plots already sold.

Call 083 520 0020, 076 238 732. Web: jindarin.com.

CLASSIFIEDS 37

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

HOMES IN PHUKET centre. Just 24 km north of Sarasin Bridge. Good road access and electricity. Very quiet, green area. Urgent sale for just B5 million total, non-negotiable. Contact 089 652 1951 or email phuket.pn@gmail.com.

Representing the Best Real Estate in Phuket!

Modern Pool Villa:



SEAVIEW LAND FOR SALE: Near Chalong pier,

LUXURY

LE

150 metres from the sea.

Three rai and one ngan plot.

Chanote title. Price: B20 million per rai. No agent. Call 087 278 7206

SA FO R

Stunning three-bedroom pool villa, five minutes from Laguna 600 sq metre plot in peaceful location. Finished to a very high specification “MUST SEE” Selling price B12.9 million. Please contact 084 994 9303 or email phuketpoolvilla.info@ gmail.com.

HOT!

LE

tact Stan on 087 978 5804-3.

SA

view. B4.2 million per rai. Con-

FO R

PROPERTY FOR SALE CONT.

บริษัท ดี ดี เอ็ม เรียลเอสเตท จำกัด

Sea view villa: Luxury

Perfect land for villa. Approx three rai, with chanote title, 2 km south of Thai Muang town

development benefits from beautiful and unobstructed island views. 3 bedrooms private estates offering attractive, modern yet tropical environments. Land plots between 170 & 324 sqm. with a built up area from 485 up to 596 sqm.

LE

HOT!

FO

FO

R

R

SA

SA

LE

NEW

5.79m THB

semi-detached modern style houses with perfect mountain view. 2 storey + private rooftop on 231 sqm with 3 bed/3 bath. Optional private jacuzzi on rooftop. Under construction!

Nice One Rai Chalong B7m: 200 metre off main

KAMALA: New quality development with

Sea view apartment

15m THB

KALIM: 2-bed/2 bath condominium on 3 levels with

178 sqm. It comes with fully fitted kitchen, sundecks & uninterrupted sea view from all rooms. As part of a fully operational resort, this apartment is foreign freehold and fully furnished. Ready to move in!

Bargain

HOT!

SA

LE

New townhomes

1,600 sq metre land, 240sq metre living area. Located in a quiet area. www.villa-sophiaphuket.com. Call 087 823 7371 (Deutsch and English).

road. In great location. Full chanote title. 089 651 3479.

Freehold studio

2m THB

PATONG: Spacious re-sale studio-apartment of 55 sqm,

including good size balcony with nice ocean view; Furnished. Nice & large swimming pool, 24h reception, shuttle service and two elevators. Foreign freehold! 1km from the beach.

Freehold condominium 5.5m THB

PATONG: 2-bed/2 bath apartment, Spacious 110 sqm

of living space; fully fitted and equipped kitchen. Large common swimming pool, 24 h security and a shuttle service to the beach. Fully furnished & foreign freehold!

Bargain

FO

FO

R

R

SA

SA

LE

HOT!

LE

townhouse. The owner wants quick sale hence below market price asking B4.85 million.

Contact 081 396 0880.

Perfect Land for Villa:

internal living space; 4 bedroom plus maid quarters. The kitchen, dining area, and lounge is of an open plan design and looks out on to the villa 10m private pool with fiber optic lighting. The villa also includes a gym / dance studio.

R

Best Offer B4.85 million Townhouse: Two bedroom

hold Chanote land at Khao Lak Beach, 3,312m2, price only B5,500,000 a rai. Call 081 651 9687.

Nice Garden Villa in Nai Harn: Private sale. Must see.

AO PO: On a total of 1,500 sqm with 342 sqm of

Sea front villas From 32.6m THB

RAWAI: Set at only 40 meters from the sea front, this

FO

pool, security 24/7. Furnished, 46sq metre, freehold: B2.9 million. Contact 089 728 4005 or email: thamad17@yahoo.com.

Two Rai Beachfront Land Khao Lak: Free-

60m THB

LE

New Apartment for Sale Patong: Condo: swimming

Private Pool Villas: Intira Villas is a development of 15 boutique villas in the heart of Rawai. Second phase open now! Only a few villas available. 083 594 9279.

Sale B15.9 million negotiable! Rent B65,000 per month, owner pays common area and garden. Minimum 12-month lease. Contact Jen 083 967 5777.

Ocean front villa

SA

one kilometre from Naiyang beach. B6.5 millions per rai.

Please call : Siriporn +66 (0) 896 499 939.

four beds/ four baths home in secure estate, fully-furnished inc 50” plasma TV. Pool & sala, 10 minutes to BIS, HSI, Central and three golf courses.

R

Land for Sale: 11 rai,

Sale or Rent: Spacious

FO

seaview Patong-Karon villa, four bedrooms, private pool.

Sell for B22 million, and also available rental daily and monthy basis. Please check more info at www.awphuket.com.

Boat Lagoon Pool Villa: Modern four-bed-

By Mission Hills Golf Course.

-1/2 rai of land (Chanote) B1.6 million. -6 rai, sea/mountain

space; kitchen fully fitted and equipped with high quality utilities. Spacious & modern! Large common swimming pool, well equipped gym, restaurant, 24 h security and a shuttle service to the beach. Fully furnished & foreign freehold!

Bangla Road

200 metres

ad -Thit Ro

URGENT Land for Sale:

KAMALA: 2-bed/2 bath apartment, 125 sqm of living

Rat-U

Photos and price online: See www.thevillaphuket.com.Contact owners to view: 081 270 1970 (Josh) and 081 270 2070 (Michi). Agents welcome.

Freehold condominium 8.75m THB

Patong Beach Road

room, four-bathroom villa with 8x4 metre pool for sale freehold with chanote title or leasehold. Newly-built, 316 sq metre internal area.

In beautiful marina complex, just 5 minutes drive to British International School.

Soi Sans Sabai Jungceylon

Sea view apartment

13.5m THB

LAYAN: 3 bed/3 bath apartment on 228 sqm. The

ocean views from this spacious, modern unit is stunning.

It’s part of a development which provides an excellent range of facilities. Ready to move in, fully furnished and equipped. Only 1 km to the beach!

Contact:

081 88 22 856 (English) 081 95 85 414 (Thai)

204/16-17 Rat-U-Thit 200 Years Rd., Patong, Kathu, Phuket, 83150, Thailand

www.phuket-tropical-realestate.com

www.thephuketnews.com

38 CLASSIFIEDS TRADES IN PHUKET

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

To advertise here visit: thephuketnews.com/classifieds.php

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www.thephuketnews.com 2011 Friday,22, Friday, December 16 – Thursday, December December 30, 2011 – Thursda y, January 5, 2012

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ISLANDSPORT 39

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Phuket’s Jinjuta fifth in international tournament Jinjuta Tongtan, 17, has recently returned to Phuket after winning the fifth-place trophy in the girls’ section of the Gate American Junior 2011 Golf Tournament in Florida, USA. The result makes Jinjuta the second Phuket youngster to make her mark in international golf this year, after 14-year-old Pariwat Pinsawas came second in the Callaway World Junior Golf Championships in San Diego, USA, in July.

Over 70 junior amateur golfers from around the world took part in the Gate competition, played on the ocean course of the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club, from December 19 to 22.

GOLF

Jinjuta was the only one of three Thais in the girls' competition to win a prize, in a total field of 27 girls.

Jinjuta, a student from Satree Phuket School, said, “I played in the Gate American Junior in Poland before, but was not as successful as I was this time.”

In the three rounds of the match on the par-72 course she scored 75-73-78 for a 10-overpar score. The winner, Marina Stuetz from Austria, won with a two-over-par 74-73-71.

Jinjuta now has her sights set on the Thailand National Games, which will be held in Khon Kaen in early March, 2012.

Jinjuta Tongtan, left, after claiming fifth place in the Gate American Junior Golf tournament.

Northern XI dominant in hemisphere battle The question of who is the most dominant in world cricket (or at least in Phuket) was played out at the Alan Cooke Ground (ACG) at the inaugural “Boxing Day” match between the Northern and Southern hemisphere sides on Monday December 26, 2011.

The Northern Hemisphere XI line up looked the stronger side on paper, with the Southern Hemisphere side depleted of some key players thanks to some over-zealous festive celebrations.

CRICKET

In the end, the Southern XI’s lack of front-line bowlers proved to be the telling difference between the two sides. While the Southern XI posted a reasonable score of 215 runs from their allotted 40 overs, the Northern XI took full advantage of the bowling weakness as well as several dropped catches by the Southern XI reaching their target of 216 runs in the 37th over.

The Southern XI batted first and got off to a steady start losing openers Danny Hyams (7) with the score on 31 and Ian Lenton (13) followed shortly thereafter. Burger Marx (31) was the standout batsman for the Southern XI, standing tall for almost two hours while he saw most of his team mates fall around him. While a number of the Southern XI batsmen managed to get a start, including Mario Pizza (28), Stuart Reading (24) and Anthony Van Blerk (21), nobody managed

to kick on with a big score to boost the innings total to a level which could be defended.

Pick of the bowlers for the Northern XI were Sameer Khan (2-12) and Roshan Jayasuriya (1-29). The Northern XI went into bat feeling confident that if they could see off the Southern XI’s only strike bowler, Neill Culpan, they would be able to secure victory.

Culpan, who was throwing down some missiles, struck early, dismissing opener Dean Noble (4). When the key wicket

of Sameer Khan (12) was secured in the 9th over with the total on 39 runs, the Southern players had a spring in their step as they headed towards the pavilion for the drinks break after 10 overs.

However this was where their party ended as a match winning partnership of 104 runs by Seemant Raju (63) and Rishi Sadarangani (63) saw the Northern XI take victory in the 37th over with only three wickets down. Pick of the bowlers for the Southern

XI was Neill Culpan (1-30).

This weekend the Island Furniture League gets back underway after a festive season break with Liquid Lounge Lizards taking on Island Cricket Club on Sunday.

■■ The Phuket Cricket Group is also planning to commence a new T20 competition in 2012 to be held on Saturdays.

Anyone interested in playing should contact secretary@ phuketcricketgroup.com or clubaffairs@phuketcricket group.com.

World Cup coach coming to Phuket Phuket will play host to a series of rugby coaching clinics run by former Australian national coach Bob Dwyer this year.

The f irst of th ree courses will be held at Thanyapura Sports and Leisu re Cent re f rom March 9-11.

Dwyer coached Sydney club Randwick to four Sydney championship wins before becoming Australia’s national team coach, leading them to victory in the 1991 Rugby World Cup. He was also inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame last year.

For more information about the coaching clinics, contact Pat Cotter E: phuketrugby@gmail.com

December’s Andaman International Soccer 7s in action.

A cash prize will be up for grabs for the winning team.

Teams sought for new basketball league Phuket Basketball Club is organising an annual basketball competition, the Phuket Basketball League 2012, from January 28 to March 31.

Matches will take place

at the basketball stadium in Saphan Hin and at Satree Phuket School.

The top three teams in the league will each receive a trophy and cash prize of

B5,000 for first place, B3,000 for second and B1,000 for the third-placed team.

For more information and to register a team, call 086 682 5500.

Soccer 7s returns for Songkran Registrations are now open for this year’s Phuket Songkran International Soccer 7s Tournament, which will be held over the Songkran weekend.

Games will be played at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Centre from Saturday, April 14, 2012 at 9am until Sunday, April 15, 2012 at 6pm.

It follows the success of the Andaman International Soccer 7s champions which was held early last month.

That competition was won

by Hong Kong-based Italian side Azzuri FC. For information and registration, email info@Thai7s. com, or visit thai7s.com, thaisevens.com. www.thephuketnews.com

40 ISLANDSPORT

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

The fishing competition that’s “this big”. Really!

ADVERTORIAL Rawai Beach Fishing Club (RBFC) is getting ready for next February’s big event – the Wahoo Thailand 2012 Sport Fishing Tournament, which has been attracting entries from around the world, not least because of the rich prize purse.

RBFC was formed in September 2009 by four likeminded anglers over a few cold beers, and has received the full backing of game fishing specialists Wahoo, who have been a sponsor of the International Game Fish Association in Asia for more than two years.

The club regularly organises freshwater fishing competitions but, says the club’s president, Neill Campbell, “It’s salt water game fishing that is our forte.

“We successfully organised a small tournament in the Similan Islands and now we are proud to announce a full-blown international competition from February 2 to 4 next year, again near the Similan Islands.”

Thirty vessels are already booked, and teams are coming from as far afield as Canada, South Africa, Finland, Dubai and Oman, on top of more local teams from Australia, the Philippines, Singapore, Hong Kong and, of course, Thailand.

“After the 2012 tournament we will have over 150 official members,” said Mr Campbell.

“Not bad for a small club based in the southernmost tip of this

idyllic tropical island.”

He stresses that any visitor looking to go fishing is guaranteed a warm welcome.

“Should you require any help on choosing a suitable vessel to fit your budget, please feel free to contact us at info@ rawaibeachfishingclub.com.

“We are also on Facebook and are building a loyal following there from around the world.” The club also has

a website at rawaibeachfishingclub.com.

The club practises catch, tag and release of billfish, with the emphasis on conservation and helping the next generation appreciate what we have put in place as a first for this part of the world.

“So please, come and visit us have a cocktail on the beach at our picturesque clubhouse and plan your next black marlin trip or fly fishing trip for pacific sailfish,” says Mr Campbell.

Apart from Wahoo, sponsors of the Wahoo Thailand 2012 Sport Fishing Tournament are: The Phuket News, IRE, PPI, Phuket Lager, Wine Connection, Kan Eang @Pier Restaurant, Phuket Fish Boat, Andaman Fishing Adventures, Thai2on, 4 REEL, Gotcha Big Game Fishing, Walkabout Bar, Lady Pie, Dilligaff Bar, Nikitas Rawai, Rawai Palms Beach Resort, Ocean Sports, Phuket Fish Park, Sea King Divers, Marine Life, Design Studio, PSD, PMA, H20 Pro Lures, Phuket Big Game Fishing, El Presidente Neill Campbell and the Rawai Beach Fishing Club.

SOLD! FC Phuket will move to BKK Following intense speculation over the future of FC Phuket, it was announced late Wednesday that the club’s Division 1 rights have been sold, and the club will cease to exist in its current form from next season.

The team bearing the FC Phuket name will now be relocated to Bangkok after FC Phuket chairman Nauruebat ‘Ko Lek’ Ayupong sold the club to Muang Thong United.

Muang Thong United also owns Siam Sports, who bought another football team called Rose Asia United last year.

Rose Utd did not play in Division 2 Bangkok, but the team exists, with stadium and all, and it now appears that Rose and FC Phuket will be merged and renamed to form a new side.

That side will then serve as a base for Muang Thong United to develop their B footballers and prepare them for the Thai Premier League.

The sale will not spell the end of football in Phuket though. Ko Lek is already working to form a new lo-

phuket@searasports.com 66 (0) 7630 4307

www.thephuketnews.com

cal side which will compete in the Division 2 Southern competition next season.

It appears several of the players were aware of the news in advance and have already begun making decisions for the future. Kone Adama, Phuket’s star striker in the 2011 season, flew on Monday to Myanmar where he will play next season.

Players Nene Bi, Abdoul Coulibaly and Boubacar Issoufou extended their contracts until the end of January, but their futures beyond that are unclear.

Thai footballers have already started looking for new teams, while local players are likely to remain in Phuket.

There are already rumours that star midfielder Sarach Yooyen might be signed on to play in Bangkok with the new D1 team.

It was also revealed that coach Somphong Wattana, who claimed he missed the last two games due to illness, was in fact back in Bangkok working his regular day job at the Thai Port Authority Administration Office.

ISLANDSPORT 41

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Star’s future up in the air

At just 21 years old, Frenchman Jonathan Matijas joined FC Phuket in the second half of the 2011 season and immediately proved to be a revelation in front of goal.

His confidence on the field made him an instant sensation, and he quickly snatched the starting goalkeeper position.

Fans were captured by his bold performances and precision, and they started asking, “Who is Jonathan Matijas and where did he come from?”

Some even compare his style to the fellow Frenchman who played for the French National Team and Manchester United during the early half of 2000s; Fabien Barthez.

But fa st for wa rd si x months since Matijas’ debut, and the excitement seems to have dulled. FC Phuket lost their Thai Premier League (TPL) promotion opportunity after a run of six games without a win, and the club will now cease to exist after being sold to pay off debts (see page 40).

Matijas, like his fellow teammates, is anxiously waiting news of his future.

The Phuket News caught up with him at a coffee shop to talk about his future in Thai football just hours before the sale was announced.

“I love Phuket,” he said.

“The team is great, the fans are the best. I started out really great with FC Phuket.

We played to win and we were really looking to bring our team to the TPL. “But the last month was bad as we lost our chance for promotion. That’s when things started to slow down. Some players seem to have lost

FOOTBALL

motivation. I think the worst time of the season is when the season almost ends, like in December when footballers are unsure of their future in the team.”

His contract with FC Phuket ended on December 31.

Matijas was due to head to Bangkok today (Friday), and will wait to hear from management before visiting his family in France for a few weeks. Assuming he does not play for the new Phuket Division 2 side, he will have no choice but to find another team to play for.

“I really do hope and wish I [could] be here next year playing for FC Phuket. It will really suck to have to leave the fans. They are best fans and best friends to me. They are like my family already. I care about them a great deal.

I will be very, very sad to leave.”

At arou nd 7pm on Wednesday, Matijas posted a message on the FC Phuket Fanclub Facebook page, bidding farewell to his fans and friends; “Hi my supporters!! I spent a magic half season with you. When you come watching our games you come with your heart, when you meet us anywhere you talk to us with your heart.

Fan clubs of FC Phuket, when you live you do it with your heart, that’s exactly why I played all minutes with my heart too,” the message reads.

“You are great supporters and amazing people too!! I’m gonna miss you all. Hope to come back one day, when the FC Phuket will have a project to become a big team, it will

JONATHAN MATIJAS FUN FACTS When he was in France, he worked as a male model. But he said he doesn’t want to that as his day job – he prefers to play football.

He wears shoe size 42.

He doesn’t wear black shoes or black gloves on the football field.

He chose number 30 because it was the first number he used in his professional football career. “I started my career with number 30 and I intended to finish my career with it.”

His neck warmer, which seems unusual in Thailand hot weather, was worn to protect his throat. “I shout a lot during a football game and I have no voice the next day. Then I discovered it helps if I wear a neck warmer and I can talk the next day. But in Thailand it’s very hot, so it can be a problem sometimes.”

His French teammates nicknamed him “The Croatian Guy” because he comes from a Croatian family.

His favourite movies are The Notebook and A Walk To Remember.

His favourite food in Thailand is phad mama (stir fried instant noodles with meat and vegetables). be a pleasure if I can be in your side at this time.

“Goodbye to my supporters and Happy New Year!!”

His post suggested he will leave FC Phuket for a bigger team, but when The Phuket News asked if that team would be Chainat, as rumoured, he smiled politely and denied it.

“It was a big rumour, a very big rumour. I believe Chainat will continue with their current goalkeeper (Mana Nopnech). He is good. As for me, I will leave it to my agent to negotiate with teams.

“But I have to tell you, when FAT (Football Association of Thailand) said they

might reduce the quota for foreign footballers from five to three in a first 11 squad, many teams started to rethink their offers, because if they can only have three foreign footballers on the field, they are more likely to choose strikers or midfielders over a goalkeeper.”

On Monday this week, teams in the TPL and Thai Division 1 sent a petition to TPL Co. Ltd, asking to reduce the quota for foreign footballers from five to three, as they believe the current quota does not do any good in developing Thai footballers.

Most teams seem to agree

Sarach Yooyen in mourning as father passes The New Year brought tragedy for FC Phuket midfielder Sarach Yooyen, as his 47-year-old father Manop Yooyen passed away from a long running illness.

Mr Manop had been sick for some time and had just been released from a two week stint in hospital to recover at his home in Samutprakarn province. His condition worsened and he passed away peacefully in his sleep at 1.42am on New Year’s Day. The teenage football hero was proud to know that his father had seen him wear the national team shirt when he

land’s best goalkeepers are with teams like Muang Thong United (Kawin Thammasajjanan) or Buriram PEA (Siwarak Tessoongnern). I will show them that I can be better than them. That is what I will try to achieve within three years. Then I will try to get into the national team.”

Being a French national with Croatian father, he is also hoping to be able to play with Croatia in the future. That is his five-year plan.

–Kazira Hans

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Finest Indian Food Air-conditioned Restaurant Indian Takeaway / Delivery Service Open Daily From 12 noon Until 10.30pm

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FOOTBALL

competed in the SEA Games in Indonesia in November.

“I knew my father wasn’t well for a while when I got called to play in the national SEA Games team. I was worried about him then, but I knew he’d be proud to see me in the national uniform.

Though the result wasn’t so great, I did him proud. Losing him at this early age is tough, but I’m going to try my best to take care of my mother and my younger brothers on his behalf,” Sarach said.

that the current rule reduces the opportunities young Thai footballers have to shine and develop their football skills.

It is a worry for Matijas, but he believes that he will be able to prove to the Thailand football community that he is good enough to play here.

“I have my life plan; Within three years I aim to be the best goalkeeper in Thailand. I will change Thailand’s football perspective about goalkeepers.

“At the moment, Thai-

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The Phuket News would like to thank photographer Pongpisit Raksaket for his tireless efforts supplying images of FC Phuket over the course of the 2011 season. Khun Pongpisit works at Bangkok Phuket Hospital and has a passion for photography, and has been taking photos of the Phuket football side for the past two years.

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42 INTERNATIONALSPORT

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

THE PHUKET NEWS TIPPING COMPETITION: 20

THIS YEAR’S GRAND PRIZE IS SPONSORED BY:

Man City extend lead FOOTBALL Ten-man Manchester City went three points clear at the top of the table on Tuesday after goals from Sergio Aguero, Yaya Toure and James Milner set up a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Liverpool.

City, who had suffered a shock 1-0 defeat at Sunderland on Sunday, opened the scoring on 10 minutes when Argentine star Aguero unleashed a speculative dipping effort towards the Liverpool goal.

Bobby Zamora struck an injury-time winner as Fulham stunned 10-man Arsenal 2-1 to derail the Gunners’ recent Premier League resurgence on Monday.

Zamora swept home the winning goal in the third minute of stoppage time at Craven Cottage after Steve Sidwell had struck an 85thminute equaliser to cancel out Laurent Koscielny’s 21st minute opener.

QPR captain Joey Barton said match officials had been “conned” into sending him off as 10-man Rangers crashed to a 2-1 defeat against Norwich at Loftus Road.

Barton was given the fifth red card of his career during

tally, though “apollo131” (300) is closing the gap quickly.

Albatross Lufthansa City Center have jumped on board as major sponsors for the competition, and will be donating the major prize for the year: A return flight from Phuket to the UK. For the month of January so far, “Farang2005” is leading on 30 points, with “apollo131” on 25 and “Chaochao” on 19.

The Phuket News’ resident expert Dane has had a solid start to the month, also tied in third place on 19 points.

This month’s competition Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel (right) vies for the ball against winner will take home a Manchester City’s Edin Dzeko.

–Photo AFP B3,000 voucher from Ausa stormy encounter between 2-1 win at Wolves on Monday tralia Bar and Grill in Kata, the two newly promoted to relieve the pressure on where you can watch all the teams, sent off for a clash with manager Andre Villas-Boas. international sport on 50’’ Bradley Johnson after earlier A last-gasp strike from plasma screen TVs or on the giving Rangers a 1-0 lead.

Frank Lampard secured a big screen.

Swansea scored their first vital three points for the LonThe Barclay’s Premier away victory of the season doners, the veteran Chelsea League takes a break over the as Aston Villa came down midfielder pouncing in the weekend for the third round to earth following their New 89th minute just moments after of the FA Cup. Undoubtedly Year’s Eve upset at Chelsea. Stephen Ward had equalised the match of the week will It was yet another disap- for Wolves. be when Manchester United pointing loss in front of their After the week of unex- travel across town to take on home fans for Villa, who have pected results, there were fierce rivals Manchester City won just three games at Villa understandably slim pickings on Sunday.

Park this term. in The Phuket News tipping The next Premier League Chelsea bounced back competition. match will be when third“Gafferworld” (316) con- placed Tottenham host Everton from their home defeat against Villa with a battling tinues to dominate the overall on Wednesday.

IN BRIEF Serena wins in Brisbane comeback Serena Williams marked her return to competition in Australia with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Chanelle Scheepers in round one of the Brisbane International.

The 30-year-old former world number one last played Down Under when she won the Australian Open title in 2010.

It was her first match since she was fined for an outburst in Septembe’s US Open final defeat against Sam Stosur.

Motorcyclist dies in Dakar Rally Argentine motorcyclist Jorge Martinez Boero has died from head and chest injuries in a crash on the first day of the Dakar Rally.

The 38-year-old fell on the stage between Mar del Plata and Santa Rosa de la Pampa in Argentina and died en route to hospital.

The event has suffered three fatalities in as many years. www.thephuketnews.com

Woods looks for winning start Having ended 2011 with his first victory in two years, Tiger Woods said the joy of being able to play golf with a healthy body has returned as well.

Woods says he has fully recovered from the leg injuries that ruined much of last season.

Woods will begin 2012 by taking on a world-class field in his first Abu Dhabi Championship, which begins on January 26, where the line-up includes US Open champion Rory McIlroy, top-ranked Luke Donald and defending champion Martin Kaymer.

Gary Ablett dies at 46 Former Liverpool and Everton defender Gary Ablett has died after a long battle against cancer. He was 46.

Ablett, who also had a season as Stockport manager in 2009-10, lost his 16-month long fight against non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma on Sunday night.

Phone +66 76 270958 abpoffice@yahoo.co.uk www.lcc-albatross.com THIS MONTH'S COMPETITION IS SUPPORTED BY:

‘Gafferworld’ claims last month’s prize.

ROUND 19 RESULTS: Man City Tottenham Wigan Fulham Aston Villa Blackburn QPR Wolves Sunderland West Brom

3-0 1-0 1-4 2-1 0-2 1-2 1-2 1-2 1 - 0 0-1

DANE’S TIPS ROUND 20

Liverpool West Brom Sunderland Arsenal Swansea Stoke Norwich Chelsea Man City Everton

TOP 10 PERFORMERS (JANUARY): 1. Farang2005 2. apollo131 3. Chaochao 4. Dane 5. mickyleeds 6. stegee

7. Clare Bolzon 8. keefers 9. Mal Kenyon 10. Patrick

30 25 19 19 19 19 18 18 18 18

Tottenham v Everton Aston Villa v Everton Blackburn v Fulham Chelsea v Sunderland Liverpool v Stoke Man Utd v Bolton Tottenham v Wolves West Brom v Norwich Newcastle v QPR Swansea v Arsenal Wigan v Man City

home win home win draw home win home win home win home win draw away win away win away win

TOP 10 (OVERALL): 1. gafferworld 2. apollo131 3. chasman 4. alanphuket 5. Mal Kenyon 6. MRB

7. dcoutts 8. Farang2005 9. scottkip 10. Paul614724

316 300 280 278 274 274 272 265 257 255

Rooney fined over night out FOOTBALL

Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has been fined a week’s wages by the Premier League club for a night out over the Christmas weekend, according to press reports on Monday.

Rooney was dropped by United ahead of their shock 3-2 home loss to Blackburn last Saturday, officially because of fitness concerns.

But several British newspapers reported that the star was punished for a below par training session on December 27 after a Boxing Day evening out with wife Coleen and teammates Jonny Evans and Darron Gibson, against team orders.

Rooney was fined approximately £200,000 pounds (B9.8 million) with defender Evans and midfielder Gibson also fined, the reports said. The trio were then ordered by manager Sir Alex Ferguson to come in on Wednesday – a day off – and train on their own as well as report for training on the morning of the Blackburn defeat.

Although the incident has

Wayne Rooney (right) was fined B9.8 million for a drunken night out over Christmas. revived memories of Rooney’s threat to leave the club in October 2010 before he was handed a vastly-improved club, several papers said the player’s future at Old Trafford was not in jeopardy.

The Daily Mail cited sources with knowledge of the situation as saying Ferguson’s punish-

ment of Rooney would not have a long-term impact on the duo’s working relationship.

United were due to play Newcastle on Wednesday evening, and Ferguson appeared willing to hand Rooney a recall at St James’ Park, telling Sirius XM radio station on Monday: “Anderson should be better, he

had 45 minutes on Saturday after four months out. And Wayne Rooney will be available of course.

“We had a few training sessions which he (Rooney) missed. You’ve got to be fit to play in this league, you can’t miss training sessions.”

–AFP

INTERNATIONALSPORT 43

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

Ligue 1, France

Premier League 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Team

P

W

D

L

F

A

Pts

Man City Man United Tottenham Chelsea Arsenal Liverpool Newcastle Utd Stoke City Norwich City Sunderland Everton Swansea City Aston Villa Fulham West Brom Wolves QPR Wigan Blackburn Bolton

20 19 19 20 20 20 19 20 20 20 18 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19

15 14 13 11 11 9 8 8 6 6 7 5 5 5 6 4 4 3 3 4

3 3 3 4 3 7 6 5 7 6 3 8 8 8 4 5 5 6 5 1

2 2 3 5 6 4 5 7 7 8 8 7 7 7 10 11 11 11 12 14

56 49 36 39 36 24 26 22 30 27 19 20 22 22 19 22 19 18 29 23

16 17 20 25 28 18 25 31 35 23 20 23 26 26 28 36 35 41 43 42

48 45 42 37 36 34 30 29 25 24 24 23 23 23 22 17 17 15 14 13

Team

P

W

D

L

F

A

Pts

1

Paris SG

19

12

4

3

31

17

40

2

Montpellier

19

11

4

4

39

23

37

3

Lille

19

9

9

1

33

19

36

4

Lyon

19

11

2

6

31

21

35

5

Stade Rennes

19

9

5

5

29

23

32

6

Marseilles

19

8

7

4

27

18

31

7

Toulouse

19

8

7

4

20

17

31

8

Saint-Étienne

19

8

6

5

23

21

30

9

L'Orient

19

6

6

7

18

21

24

10

Bordeaux

19

5

8

6

20

22

23

11

Evian TG

19

5

7

7

27

29

22

12

Brest

19

3

12

4

19

19

21

13

Valenciennes

19

5

5

9

18

21

20

14

Caen

19

5

5

9

24

29

20

15

Auxerre

19

4

7

8

26

30

19

16

Dijon

19

5

4

10

20

35

19

17

Nice

19

4

6

9

21

23

18

18

Nancy

19

4

6

9

17

26

18

19

Sochaux

19

4

6

9

21

34

18

20

Ajaccio

19

3

6

10

20

36

15

Coming up this week

Bundesliga, Germany 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Team

P

W

D

L

F

A

Pts

B Munich Dortmund Schalke Borussia M Bremen B Leverkusen Hannover Stuttgart Hoffenheim Köln Hertha Berlin Wolfsburg Hamburger Mainz Nuremberg K'lautern Augsburg Freiburg

17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17

12 10 11 10 9 7 5 6 6 6 4 6 4 4 5 3 3 3

1 4 1 3 2 5 8 4 4 3 8 2 7 6 3 7 6 4

4 3 5 4 6 5 4 7 7 8 5 9 6 7 9 7 8 10

43 35 38 25 30 22 20 23 19 27 24 23 21 22 17 13 15 21

10 12 22 11 31 22 24 20 19 35 26 34 27 29 28 21 28 39

37 34 34 33 29 26 23 22 22 20 20 19 18 18 16 15 13

21

Serie A, Italy Team 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

AC Milan Juventus Udinese Lazio Atalanta Inter Napoli AS Roma Catania Palermo Genoa Chievo Parma Fiorentina Cagliari Siena Bologna Novara Cesena Lecce

English FA Cup, major matches (Times in Thailand) Saturday January 7 Liverpool v Oldham Birm’ham v Wolves Barnsley v Swansea Everton v Tamworth Fulham v Charlton Gillingham v Stoke Macclesfield v Bolton MK Dons v QPR Newcastle v Blackburn

Norwich v Burnley Spurs v Cheltenham West Brom v Cardiff

03:00 19:30 22:00 22:00 22:00 22:00 22:00 22:00 22:00

22:00 22:00 22:00

Sunday January 8 Bristol v Aston Villa 00:30 Man City v Man Utd 20:00 Chelsea v Portsmouth 22:00 Tuesday, January 9 Arsenal v Leeds

02:45

Sport on TV: Times in Thailand Friday January 6 EVENT

TIME

CHANNEL

NBA: LAL v POR

10:30

Astro Supersport 3

Saturday January 7 NBA: GSW v LAL FA CUP: Birmingham v Wolves FA CUP: Swindon v Wigan

10:30 19:45 22:00

Astro Supersport 3 TrueSport 1 TrueSport 1

Sunday January 8

P

W

D

L

F

A

Pts

16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16

10 9 9 8 6 8 6 7 5 6 6 5 5 4 4 3 4 2 3 2

4 7 5 6 8 2 6 3 7 3 3 5 4 6 6 6 3 6 3 3

2 0 2 2 2 6 4 6 4 7 7 6 7 6 6 7 9 8 10 11

35 27 20 24 23 22 29 21 20 18 19 13 21 15 12 14 14 17 8 17

16 11 9 13 19 19 18 19 23 20 24 18 26 15 17 16 24 29 20 33

34 34 32 30 26 26 24 24 22 21 21 20 19 18 18 15 15 12 12 9

FA CUP: Bristol v Aston Villa FOOTBALL: R Madrid v Granada NFL: Steelers v Denver NBA: MIL v LAC FA CUP: Man U v Man City DARTS: World Championships FOOTBALL: Lecce v Lazio FA CUP: P’borough v S’derland

00:30 02:00 04:35 10.30 20:00 20:00 20:55 22:30

TrueSport 1 Astro Supersport Astro Supersport 2 Astro Supersport 3 TrueSport 1 Europsport Astro Supersport 2 Truesport 1

Monday January 9 FOOTBALL: Villareal v Valencia

01:00

Astro Supersport

Hash House Harriers Run 1348: Saturday January 7 at 3:30pm.

Hares: No Hope, Apeman and Singha.

Directions: Ao Po area. From Heroines Monument head east for approx 10.2 km. Turn right at the Ao Po Marina junction (HHH sign). At the Radi Medical Systems sign (approx 2 km) turn left (HHH sign) then turn right after 200m (HHH sign). Follow the road approx 700m to the laager and park off-road in the quarry.

Bus: Expat Hotel, Patong: 14:00 and Baan Rim Klong, Kamala: 14:30.

World number two Rafael Nadal won a closely fought opening match at the Qatar Open on Tuesday.

Nadal struggles in 2012 opener Spain’s Rafael Nadal had to fight hard not to lose his opening match of 2012, going a break of serve down in the final set before surviving against an opponent ranked outside the top 40 in the Qatar Open on Tuesday.

The French Open champion fought back with courage in his 6-3, 6-7 (2/7), 6-3 win over Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber, but it was a patchy performance which left an impression that tennis is a bit of a struggle for him at the moment.

Nadal found it hard to achieve rhythm and consistency with his ground strokes, sometimes leaving the ball short, and allowing his intensity to subside surprisingly during a second set spell when he went 1-4 down.

But after dropping serve in the first game of the final set, the world number two began to hit some more solid blows, particularly with inside out forehands taken from the backhand corner, and finished looking much more in charge.

“I didn’t have a chance to practice much, I had problems with my shoulder and knee, and arrived feeling so-so,” Nadal said, referring to an off-season curtailed by the late finish of the 2011 Davis Cup. He might have made life easier for himself had he converted the two break points he had at 5-5 in the second set, but Kohlschreiber saved one with a bold volley and another with a pressurising backhand drive.

The world number 43 from Germany also produced some good variations as he tried to

TENNIS deny the winner of 10 Grand Slam titles as much rhythm as possible.

But Nadal believes his shortcomings were just some of the normal difficulties in re-acquainting himself with a tennis match. He later came up with a more positive interpretation.

“I was happy with my level,” he said. “I think it is really positive I am through, and that is very important. I am happy having matches on the court. I didn’t know if I would be here a week and a half ago.”

Later Nadal’s perennial rival Roger Federer had an utterly different start to the year.

The second-seeded defending champion from Switzerland needed less than an hour to get past the former champion, Nikolay Davydenko, 6-2, 6-2.

Federer admitted that he surprised himself with the level of his performance against the Russian opponent who beat both himself and Nadal while winning the 2010 title here.

“I played aggressively, served well, and I had good movement, which is surprising early on in the season,” said Federer.

“But there again every match is new, and I will have to work on my game because every match in the draw is potentially tough.”

Later Gael Monfils, the fourth-seeded Frenchman, joined his compatriot Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the second round when he won 7-5, 6-3 against Rui Machado. –AFP

‘Sports Talk’

Saturdays 9AM - 12PM. www.thephuketnews.com

44

THE PHUKET NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2012

SPORT

GK’s future in the air Jonathan Matijas talks about what lies ahead > 41

Ponting hits back with timely ton against India CRICKET Ricky Ponting hit his first Test century in two years in chanceless fashion to silence his critics, while captain Michael Clarke reached his highest ever Test score on Wedneday as Australia took a iron grip on the second Sydney Test against India.

Ponting gave the perfect riposte to those calling for his retirement with a dogged 134 in a partnership of 288 runs over the dispirited tourists at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

At stumps on the second day, Australia were 4-482 (M Clarke 251*, M Hussey 55*) in response to India’s underwhelming first innings total of 191 (MS Dhoni 57*) for a lead of a near unbeatable 291.

Ponting took off for a single on 99 to mid-on and dived full length to make his ground as Zaheer Khan’s throw narrowly whistled past the stumps at the bowler’s end 20 minutes after lunch.

The former skipper climbed off the ground, his shirt covered in dirt – the most fitting metaphor imaginable – smiling broadly and with his bat raised to mark his first hundred in 34 Test innings, his last being 209 against Pakistan in Hobart in January 2010. It was his 40th Test century, his seventh against India and sixth at the SCG where he is also the leading alltime Test run-getter with 1,480.

Ponting was finally out

Australian batsman Ricky Ponting dives in desperation to bring up his first Test hundred in two years. A direct hit would have seen him run out on 99.

–Photo AFP

all round the world as the best side in the world, then you’ve got to win in all conditions,” said Strauss, speaking at the team’s Heathrow Airport hotel on Monday (January 2) ahead of their departure.

“I think it’s a really good time for us to have a lot of sub-continental cricket because we’ve done well over the last two years or so and this is a kind of new frontier for us, to win and hopefully win consistently in the subcontinent.

The upcoming series will be the first between England and Pakistan since the spot-fixing scandal. One concern for England is the batting form of their captain, who in 2011 averaged under 29 in eight Tests with no hundreds. That contrasted with the Middlesex left-hander’s career Test average of 41.98.

Strauss, who insisted he felt refreshed after an unusually long break (England haven’t played a Test since August), admitted, “last summer, I probably didn’t play quite as well as I’d have liked.”

England have two warmup matches, the first starting tomorrow (Saturday), before the first Test gets underway in Dubai on January 17.

In the other ongoing Test series, South Africa were on Wednesday in a dominant position over Sri Lanka at stumps on day one with 3-347 (A Petersen 109, J Kallis 159*, AB de Villiers 45*).

–AFP/The Phuket News

shortly before tea when he sliced, perhaps fittingly, to Sachin Tendulkar in the gully off Ishant Sharma. He batted for 335 minutes, faced 225 balls and hit 14 fours.

Clarke brought up his 18th Test century and fourth against India with a glorious cover drive off Sharma in the last over before lunch, before going on notch his double ton mid-way through the final session of play.

Meanwhile, England captain Andrew Strauss believes only by succeeding away to Pakistan and Sri Lanka will his side convince the whole of world cricket they deserve their number one Test ranking.

Last year England completed a 3-1 Ashes series win in Australia, all their victories coming by innings margins, before returning home to depose India from the summit of the

International Cricket Council's Test standings in a crushing 4-0 whitewash.

However, it is more than 10 years since England last won a Test series in the subcontinent, with Nasser Hussain leading the team to 2-1 and 1-0 win victories away to Pakistan (2000/01) and Sri Lanka (2001) respectively. But their upcoming tours offer a chance to improve that record, even though their

three Tests against Misbah-ulHaq’s improving Pakistan will be played in the United Arab Emirates.

Conditions, for a series taking place in the Middle East because no major matches have been staged in Pakistan since gunmen attacked Sri Lanka’s team bus in Lahore in March 2009, are though set to mirror those in the subcontinent.

“If you want to be regarded

FOOTBALL

“Does it look more likely that it is heading in that direction? Yes. Are we done? No.” The former England captain’s Major League Soccer contract expired in December – a month after he helped the team claim the MLS Cup crown.

Paris Saint-Germain, the big-spending Qatar-backed French club, was the most prominent outfit courting Beckham. But PSG sporting director Leonardo said in Doha on Tuesday that the club was no longer pursuing Beckham.

“He will not come to PSG,” said the Brazilian, citing “family reasons” for Beckham.

In numerous interviews in November, Beckham noted how much his family enjoyed living in Southern California.

However, Leiweke said there were other clubs still trying to lure Beckham.

“It’s not just Paris. He’s had other offers,” Leiweke told the Los Angeles Times. “And every one of them is greater and more expansive, bigger than anything we’re talking about.”

–AFP

David Beckham could resign with LA Galaxy.

Beckham deal ‘not done yet’ David Beckham may not be headed to Paris Saint-Germain, but it’s still not certain he will be back with Major League Soccer champions the Los Angeles Galaxy, The Los Angeles Times reported on Tuesday.

Tim Leiweke, Chief Executive of Galaxy’s owners AEG, told the newspaper that there was still no deal in place for Beckham to stay with the club, although Galaxy want to keep him.

“The stories were all over the front page of every newswww.thephuketnews.com

paper in Europe that he was going to Paris,” Leiweke told the Times. “I told everyone I would not pay a lot of attention to that.

“And now that the stories are that he is going to the Galaxy, I would repeat the same advice: Premature.

“We have been talking with David about staying with the Galaxy for three months.

And I said back in November, I was confident David would stay here and I still am.