Year: 2013
- Property
Boom in budget hotels
PHUKET: The changing regional and domestic tourism landscape is creating a lot of business opportunities. More budget hotels are opening, with investors out to cash in on the rising number of middle-class and solo travellers, thanks to the tourism boom and economic prosperity.Most operators agree that this hotel segment has good prospects. Thailand is a key tourism destination in the…
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Trail cold but Phuket mother still hopes to meet daughter missing since 2011
PHUKET: A girl who seemed to have vanished into thin air after a Facebook session in Phuket Town in December 2011 remains missing, confirmed Chalong Police. The girl, Samudchaya “Nong Pin” Yanpunya, was 12 years old at the time of her disappearance (story here). “I transferred the case to the Crime Suppression Division in Bangkok before I was transferred to…
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Preserving Phuket’s old streets
PHUKET: As sprawl and congestion take full-hold of our island, Phuket city municipality planners and engineers strive, yet struggle, to preserve the last remnants of urban historical heritage, yet continue to face a number of obstacles obstructing the way ahead. Indeed, the narrow streets in Phuket’s Old Town district are currently undergoing a drastic makeover. The electrical wires that currently…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Microsoft implicated in NSA Prism scandal; Ireland passes limited abortion law; Russia alleges Syrian rebels used chemical weapons
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Microsoft helped NSA, FBI access user info – Guardian Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Microsoft Corp worked closely with U.S. intelligence services to help them intercept users’ communications, including letting the National Security Agency circumvent email encryption, the Guardian reported on Thursday.Citing top-secret documents provided by former U.S.…
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“Business Landmark’ in the works on Bypass Rd
PHUKET: Keep your eyes on the look-out – Bypass Biz Town, currently under construction right smack along the middle of one of the island’s most lucrative roads, is poised to be Phuket’s latest and greatest “Business Landmark”.Building on previous successes, reputable developer Boat Development Co Ltd, is fulfilling a much-needed real estate niche with its latest project, touted to be…
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Call for A- blood after Brit expat suffers motorbike crash head injury
PHUKET: The Phuket blood bank at Vachira Phuket Hospital is calling for donations of A- blood following an operation on British national Marc Harrington yesterday. Mr Harrington, 66, was admitted to hospital for a head injury sustained in a motorbike accident in Phuket on June 22. “He underwent an operation yesterday, in which we needed to use A- blood. He…
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Severe coral damage prompts DNP to limit dive tourists to Phi Phi Island
PHUKET: Coral reefs at the popular marine national park that covers the famous Phi Phi Islands near Phuket have reached a severe level of degradation due to bleaching, a senior government official revealed yesterday.“Bleaching has affected up to 70 per cent of the coral reefs around Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. Of the affected corals, 47.52 per…
Read More » - Thailand News
Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Ramadan peace blown; Credit Union chief got B3bn; PM Yingluck in show of solidarity; Vietnam cat smuggler nabbed
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Blast in Yala injures eight soldiers The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Eight soldiers were slightly wounded in a roadside bomb attack in Yala’s Raman district yesterday and authorities believe an insurgent group led by Saifulloh Balor might be behind the attack.Even though it was agreed at the…
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Phuket beauty salon owner overwhelmed by debt, found dead
PHUKET: The 28-year-old owner of a Phuket beauty salon is believed to have committed suicide due to the stress of overwhelming debt. Local residents spotted the body of Dussadee Ngoy-phutorn, from Sakon Nakhon, in a lagoon behind Phuket Rajabhat University (map here) at 7:20am today. Ms Dussadee, owner of the My Mint beauty salon in Samkong, Phuket Town, was last…
Read More » - Thai Life
Phuket Books – A slow death by flashbacks
PHUKET: Well-bred, highly educated and cosmopolitan, a new generation of African women writers – chief among them, the Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – has recently claimed their right of place in the publishing world. The newest entrant to this elite club is Taiye Selasi. Half Ghanaian, half-Nigerian, born in London, raised in Boston, a graduate of Yale and Oxford,…
Read More » - Phuket News
Laguna Phuket Marathon to be still bigger and better next year
PHUKET: Now in its ninth year, the Laguna Phuket International Marathon (LPIM) is going from strength to strength with numbers of participants expected to break 6,000 next year including runners from Asia, Europe and the Americas. LPIM is the largest destination marathon in Southeast Asia and sees participants push themselves to the limit in order to raise money for charity.…
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Islander’s Thai FA cup hopes crushed by Muang Thong
PHUKET: The Islanders Thai FA Cup dream came to an abrupt halt last night as they were knocked out 5-0 by current Thai Premier League champions Muang Thong United. The round 16 match was played north of Bangkok at Muang Thong’s 15,000 seat SCG Stadium. The first half finished scoreless, but Mario Djurovski put the home team 1-0 up straight…
Read More » - Thai Life
C’est la Fete! – It’s party time!
PHUKET: As the French saying goes – Un repas sans vin est comme un jour sans soleil – a meal without wine is like a day without sunshine. And even though there might not be quite enough sunshine in Phuket these days, there shouldn’t be a lack of wine and great food during the Bastille Day celebrations in Patong on…
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Go Eco Phuket gets going
PHUKET: After hosting the world’s largest underwater cleanup last year, local marine conservation group Go Eco Phuket and the Thai Government are joining forces again this year to break last year’s record by garnering support from over 1,000 participants for the reef and beach cleanup in honor of HM Queen Sirikit’s 81st birthday on August 12. The day after Her…
Read More » - Business News
Phuket Waste 101 – Dousing the burning issue
PHUKET: As you begin to read this article, try to recall your consumer decisions and habits today. Did you go to the convenience store? What did you buy? Was it put in a plastic bag? When you were done consuming, how did you dispose of your waste? What about lunch – did you have takeaway scooped into one of those…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Quebec grieves in wake of train crash; Asiana victims told not to evacuate; No Facebook, no CIA – says Venez minister; UN hits Vatican over child abuse; Mandela responding
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Quebec train set too few brakes, with deadly result Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The handbrake is the railroad industry’s ultimate fail-safe mechanism. It is supposed to help avert disasters like the one that engulfed a Canadian town on Saturday, when a runaway train loaded with oil hurtled…
Read More » - Thailand News
Phuket Gazette Thailand News: B12bn credit union embezzlement charge; Monk’s B95mn cars; Ramadan soldiers turn civil; HK sex slaves saved; Thailand to honor 119yo man
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Credit Union execs accused of embezzling Bt12 billion The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Mounting evidence that Klongchan Credit Union Cooperative Ltd embezzled nearly Bt12 billion has led the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) and the Anti Money Laundering Office (AMLO) to launch an investigation into…
Read More » - Phuket News
Cat alerts home owner to 5-meter python house call
PHUKET: A woman was alerted to the presence of a giant snake in the carport of her home in Phuket Town yesterday by her cat. “When I went out to hang my clothes up to dry, I saw my cat staring at something,” said Saisamorn Sungmek. “It was a snake,” she said. Kusoldharm Rescue Foundation workers responded to Mrs Saisamorn’s…
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Washing machine fire cleans out Chalong Temple SuperCheap staff room
PHUKET: Two fire trucks rushed to the SuperCheap convenience store located about 30 meters from Phuket’s renowned Wat Chalong temple on Saturday after being notified of a fire there at about 8:30am.“When we arrived at the scene we were confronted by flames coming from a staff room on the third floor of the building,” said Capt Kraisorn Boonprasop of the…
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Police: case of missing Phuket woman romantic, not criminal
PHUKET: Police confirmed today that they do not consider the disappearance of Bunyanee Sungparn, 29 (story here), to be a criminal case. “After her brother reported her missing on July 1, I checked her Facebook page,” said Capt Rattanatorn Bumrungthin of the Thung Thong Police. “I read a conversation between Ms Bunyanee and her brother, Weerawit Sungparn, that mentioned a…
Read More » - Thai Life
Phuket Gardening: Bromeliads offer a true taste of the tropics
PHUKET: I last wrote about bromeliads more than a year ago, but our focus on the letter “B” prompted a re-think. Apart from their deserved popularity as shade and house plants, I have re-focused my attention on this vast genus of more than 3,000 species for other reasons (click here for article). Recently I visited the Phuket Botanic Garden (click…
Read More » - Food
Phuket Food: Hurry for a curry
PHUKET: Given that Phuket offers very little in terms of flavors from the sub-continent, we pounced on the opportunity to try out one small Indian restaurant recently discovered by a couple of friends way out in Cape Panwa. Only a stone’s throw away from the city center, Cape Panwa seems like a parallel universe compared to the rest of Phuket.…
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Phuket Hajj pilgrims line up for free vaccines
PHUKET: More than 200 Muslims planning to make the Hajj this year took advantage of free vaccinations at the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization Hospital on Saturday. “The Provincial Hospital has partnered with the Phuket Public Health Office to offer free meningococcal meningitis and influenza vaccines to people in Phuket and nearby provinces who plan to travel to Mecca for the…
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Foul play not suspected in death of Microsoft engineer at Phuket villa
PHUKET: Phuket Police see no reason to open a murder investigation in the case of a former Microsoft engineer found dead at his villa at Ao Makham last week (story here). The man, American-born Clifford Nelson Bamford, was found floating in his villa pool by his housekeeper on July 1. “There were no signs of a fight at the scene…
Read More » - Thai Life
Phuket’s QSI graduates ready for the world
PHUKET: QSI International School Phuket graduated another group of six secondary students recently. The graduation ceremony was held at Centara Karon Resort where 100 guests attended the ceremony, which included several singing and dancing performances by QIS students. After receiving their diplomas, two of the graduating students, Jasmin Jadick and Jakob Klaic gave speeches thanking the school, their teachers and…
Read More » - Thailand News
Phuket Gazette Thailand News: High hopes for Ramadan peace; Thaksin clip a hit; DSI wants missing monk disrobed
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hopes for Ramadan peace hold The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Thai authorities and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) hope that the initiative taken by the government and Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), aimed at cutting on violence in the deep South, will yield results from the first…
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MV Hope at Langkawi, four more bodies spotted at sea
PHUKET: The Bangladeshi cargo ship MV Hope, which capsized in heavy seas south of Phuket on Thursday night (story here), is expected to arrive at Langkawi, Malaysia, today after being under tow from its position south of Racha Noi Island overnight. The news came as local fishermen reported seeing four bodies in life jackets off Koh Rok, off the coast…
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Relatives cry murder, Phuket police disagree
PHUKET: Relatives of a woman found dead in her car in an old tin mining pond on Monday believe she was murdered, but police do not agree.Wattana Itthisan, the 27-year-old owner of Fasai Minimart in Chalong, was found in her submerged car in an old tin mining pond behind Chalong Temple on Monday morning.“The driver’s window was open and the…
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Phuket man confesses to suffocating “nagging’ mother-in-law
PHUKET: A man who suffocated his mother-in-law after an argument in Phuket confessed to the killing several hours after the horrific encounter.The body of Prayad Phawaphutanon, 50, was found half-clothed and lying on her bed by her 14-year-old son when he returned from school yesterday evening, said Thalang Police Superintendent Sirisak Wasasiri today.“After finding his mother dead in bed, he…
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Phuket chief denies drug payoff, developer extortion claims
PHUKET: Kathu District Chief Veera Kerdsirimongkol has denounced accusations claiming that he accepted cash from drug suspects to overlook test results and that he attempted to extort money from developers by holding their machinery for ransom.Chief Veera flatly denied the allegations: “I have never sought benefits, money or otherwise, to release drug suspects. It’s not true, and all the other…
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Phuket health officials brace for MERS
Special Report MIDDLE East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) was first identified in Saudi Arabia in September last year. At least 80 people have since contracted the disease; 44 of them died. The most recent deaths, both in Saudi Arabia, were diagnosed on June 28. Both patients were dead five days later. MERS spreads more easily than its relative, the notorious SARS…
Read More » - Thailand News
Phuket Gazette Thailand News; Yingluck dumbs down Thaksin sound bite; Police payout for cell fire; Monks need more proof; Fireworks fatalities spark legal action
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PM downplays Thaksin audio clip The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Prime Minister and Defence Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said yesterday that Deputy Defence Minister Yuthasak Sasiprapha had spoken to her by phone about the audio clip in which it is alleged he and Thaksin Shinawatra discussed…
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American surfer dies in Phuket
PHUKET: A 60-year-old American surfing on Phuket’s popular break at Kata Beach died after falling from his board into the water.Mark Carroll arrived in Thailand yesterday and immediately hit Kata’s surf alone after checking into his hotel.“Mr Carroll appeared to have lost consciousness while surfing and fell into the water,” Pichai Wattanawalan of the Karon Police told the Phuket Gazette.The…
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Phuket’s Airshow and Family Picnic sets the bar with record turnout
PHUKET: The Airshow and Family Picnic held at Phuket’s Air Park over the weekend was a roaring success, with organizers estimating that nearly 7,000 people had attended by the time the two-day event closed last night. Navy League Phuket President Pat James, one of the key organizers, said the event was the largest of its kind ever staged in Southern…
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Phuket teenager shot in gang attack
PHUKET: A 16-year-old boy from Rawai was shot in the leg four times by a gang of teenagers in a reprisal attack in Phuket Town last night. The teenager, given the pseudonym “Korn” by police, was shot multiple times at the Esso gas station near the busy Slaughterhouse Intersection (map here) at about 9:20pm. “When we arrived at the gas…
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Chula United’s Big Bang neutralizes Phuket FC’s glory
PHUKET: An ever-determined 10-sided Phuket FC let their 2-1 lead against Yamaha League One (YL1) rivals Big Bang Chula United, slip away in the final minute of added time in a highly-charged fixture. Played on Saturday evening at Surakul Stadium, just under 4,000 spectators turned out, including some 300 pink-shirted BBCU fans – some rumored to be locals coerced to…
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Search for MV Hope Bangladeshi crew called off as salvage efforts begin
PHUKET: The Royal Thai Navy today called off its search for the remaining missing crewmen of the Bangladeshi cargo ship MV Hope, which capsized in heavy seas south of Phuket on Thursday night (story here). The news comes after the search yesterday failed to locate any more of the missing crewmen, Capt Thammawat Malaisukkarin, Director of the Naval Civil Affairs…
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