Year: 2015
- Property
Property Watch: Community lifestyles and property value
PHUKET: At this time of year when we are all thinking about our objectives for 2015, it is also time to reflect on the direct and indirect influences that affect the value of our properties in Phuket. How can you take affirmative action to maximize any possible appreciation of your Phuket property investment?COMMUNITY CREATION My friends and acquaintances in Phuket…
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Property: Choose unique, not common
PHUKET: The clothes we wear, the cars we drive, even the food we eat are all, to a certain extent, a way in which we express ourselves. So are the houses we live in. Make it your own, says the developer of Andaburee Phuket, a new custom-built pool villa project. Unique and custom-made are the opposite of common and mass-produced.…
Read More » - Phuket News
Top cop downplays rumor of bombers hiding in Phuket
PHUKET: The island’s top-ranking policeman has downplayed rumors that the men wanted for detonating two pipe bombs outside the Siam Paragon shopping mall in Bangkok last Sunday are hiding in Phuket. “Please keep calm, do not panic and do not trust rumors. We have yet to see any evidence that the suspects are here,” Maj Gen Patchara Boonyasit told the…
Read More » - Phuket News
Rugby Six Nations: England to face Welsh dragon’s fire
PHUKET: England must “smash everything in red”, maintain cool heads and silence a raucous Millennium Stadium crowd when they meet Wales in their Six Nations championship opener in Cardiff on Friday (kickoff 3:05am Saturday, Phuket time), England World Cup winner Neil Back said. Stuart Lancaster’s side suffered a humiliating 30-3 defeat on their last visit to the Welsh capital in…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Hunt on for Bangkok bomber ‘Dragon’
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hunt on for Bangkok bomber ‘Dragon’ The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: One of the two men suspected of planting and detonating two pipe bombs near Siam Paragon shopping mall in Bangkok last Sunday has been identified by his alias “Dragon” and he is reportedly based…
Read More » - World News
Jordan military jets pound IS as king comforts pilot’s family
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Jordan military jets pound IS as king comforts pilot’s family Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Jordanian fighter jets pounded Islamic State targets in Syria on Thursday, before roaring over the hometown of the pilot killed by the militants while King Abdullah consoled the victim’s family. A…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket Police nab serial burglars in Thalang
PHUKET: Two Phuket burglars thought to have been involved in a series of recent robberies of homes in Thalang have been arrested, police announced today. The master thief, 26-year-old Saroj Seubsot, and his accomplice Prasert Thothip, 20, were detained after police discovered a large number of items at Mr Saroj’s house that were linked to the robberies. “Mr Saroj confessed…
Read More » - Phuket News
Teen drug runner busted with B100k in meth
PHUKET: A 17-year-old was busted with more than 100,000 baht worth of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) by Phuket City Police early this morning. The minor, who police named only as Mr Nuom, was found in possession of 200 grams of ya ice hidden inside a facial cleanser box, and ready for delivery to customers at Goodnight Resort, said Lt Col…
Read More » - Opinion
Opinion: Taking surf safety seriously
PHUKET: Kudos to Phuket Tourist Police volunteer Simon Luttrell for providing lifeguards with multi-language warning cards to help keep foreign tourists out of the surf in dangerous conditions. His generous action, though, raises the question of why local authorities and tourism agencies did not take similar action years ago. The cards (story here) address one of the key reasons why…
Read More » - Food
Beefing up the classic lazy Phuket beachside Sunday BBQ
PHUKET: To live on a tropical island like Phuket and not to go to the beach? It’s a crime! And yet, busy schedules, early sunsets and impossible heat during the day, all seem like good excuses for not making it there. At times, it feels like we only see the beach in our friends’ Facebook posts. Luckily, Sunday is here…
Read More » - Opinion
Opinion: Phuket Tourist Police should be your first call
Maj Urumporn Koondejsumrit has been chief of the Tourist Police since 2012. He earned a master’s degree in science in criminal justice for leadership from Sam Houston State University in Texas before graduating from the Royal Police Cadet Academy. Here, Maj Urumporn advises tourists to be alert in order to avoid becoming victims of a crime, and promises that Tourist…
Read More » - Entertainment
Books: An awful waste of time
PHUKET: In 2002 Michel Faber published The Crimson Petal and the White, an extraordinary novel of shifting social strata set in a time and place when they were most rigid: the early Victorian Age in London. By dint of cunning and determination, Sugar, a prostitute from the age of 13, rises from brothel inmate to kept woman to household governess…
Read More » - Thai Life
History: Southern Thailand courts united Japan’s first Shogun
PHUKET: Tokugawa Ieyasu was the first Shogun of a united Japan. In the year 1600, after the bloody battle of Sekigahara, Ieyasu managed to unite the warring clans of Japan under his sovereignty, ushering in a long era of peace under the Tokugawa Shogunate. A year earlier, in 1599, a visiting envoy from the Kingdom of Pattani presented Ieyasu with…
Read More » - Phuket News
Migrant worker found dead in empty elevator shaft
PHUKET: The body of a migrant worker was found at the bottom of an empty elevator shaft at a construction site in Cherng Talay last night. Police arrived at the scene, a Castlewood Group construction site on Soi Khok Tanot 12, at about 7pm to find the body of Myanmar national San Hla @ Nai, 34, floating face down in…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket laborer slashes girlfriend’s neck in jealous rage
PHUKET: A laborer was apprehended by fellow workers at an on-site construction camp in Rawai yesterday, after he slashed his girlfriend’s neck with a kitchen knife in a fit of jealous rage. The woman, a Myanmar national named by police only as Ms Yorla, 25, is still recovering at Vachira Phuket Hospital, said Capt Patiwat Yodkwan of the Chalong Police.…
Read More » - Phuket News
Canadian found dead by Thai girlfriend in Phuket
PHUKET: Police have yet to rule out foul play in the death of a Canadian man allegedly found hanged by his neck from the cement ventilation holes in his bathroom this afternoon. The 29-year-old expat originally from Prince Edward Island, whose name is being withheld until next of kin have been notified, was found dead by his Thai girlfriend in…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket Old Town plays host to Sketchwalk 2015
PHUKET: Some of Phuket’s most beautiful and historical locales will play host to the second annual Phuket Old Town Sketchwalk event this year from February 20 to 23. The Phuket Old Town Sketchwalk – organized by the Phuket Sketchwalk Club, Phuket City Municipality and The Attitude Club Co Ltd – will feature many special events, including sketchwalks in Phuket Old…
Read More » - Thai Life
Excuse Buster: Charging up your willpower
PHUKET: It’s a new year and a new opportunity for a new you, so let’s wipe that slate clean and start afresh. It’s just like we said to ourselves last year… and the year before that… and probably the one before that, too. For those of us who fall off the wagon: what is it that stops us from reaching…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket teacher answers prayers of mum with deaf son
PHUKET: The deaf man who disappeared from his family home last week has been found alive and well, and may soon undertake schooling thanks to a teacher at Phuket Punyanukul School for special children. Therdsak Sankaeo, 22, disappeared from his home in Phuket Town on January 27, prompting his mother, Ms Saithong, to make a public plea to find him…
Read More » - Opinion
Opinion: Jet-skis: a hazard for everyone
PHUKET: This letter goes out to Lt Col Chatchai Sakdee of the Phuket Marine Police. Dear Col Chatchai: My wife and I have been visiting Thailand on our yacht on and off now for the last four years and generally love it. There is one matter, though, that I would like to draw to your attention: jet-ski hazards to anchored…
Read More » - Phuket News
Patriots Super Bowl XLIX champs, Seattle in shock
PHUKET: The New England Patriots sealed a come-from-behind victory, 28-24, over the defending champions Seattle Seahawks with a goal line interception in the final seconds on a pass play that will go down as one of the most questionable offensive play calls in NFL playoff history. This was a game for the ages and one with more ebb and flow…
Read More » - Pattaya News
Police raid bags nigh B3mn in counterfeit goods
PHUKET: Fake brand-name products valued at nearly 3 million baht were seized on Tuesday in police raids on shops in Patong. The early evening raid, led by officers of Economic Crime Division 4 (ECD 4), resulted in the seizure of more than 2,200 counterfeit items masquerading as luxury brands, including Louis Vuitton, Channel, Prada, Nike, Adidas, Calvin Klein and Billabong,…
Read More » - Thailand News
Police see political overtone in pipe bombs
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police see political overtone in pipe bombs The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The twin pipe bombings near Siam Paragon shopping mall in Bangkok last Sunday night were “very similar” to two other bombing incidents – the explosion at Samarn Metta Mansion in Nonthaburi in 2010,…
Read More » - World News
TransAsia plane crash in Taiwan leaves 31 dead, 12 missing
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community TransAsia plane crash in Taiwan leaves 31 dead, 12 missing Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A TransAsia Airways (6702.TW) plane with 58 passengers and crew on board careened into a river shortly after taking off from a downtown Taipei airport on Wednesday, killing 31 people and…
Read More » - Phuket News
Police bust yields more than 14 kilos of kratom
PHUKET: Police arrested two kratom dealers and one user yesterday, following a tip-off that netted more than 14 kilograms of kratom leaves and a list naming more than 100 kratom customers. Lt Col Sutthichai Thianpho of the Patong Police led the raid that took detectives to the house of a suspected dealer in Soi Phra Barami 9. “On arriving in…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Bangkok shopping malls step up security after bomb blasts
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Bangkok shopping malls step up security after bomb blasts The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: MAJOR MALLS in prime shopping areas in Bangkok have stepped up security measures after bomb incidents on Sunday. Nattakit Tangpoonsinthana, executive vice president for marketing at Central Pattana (CPN), said the…
Read More » - Hua Hin News
Anger at secret moving of Rohingya
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Anger at secret moving of Rohingya The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Residents in Nakhon Sri Thammarat’s Hua Sai district were upset after the provincial office for social development and human security yesterday relocated 99 Rohingya people from the shelter where they had stayed for 22…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Warrants for Bangkok bomb suspects expected today
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Warrants for Bangkok bomb suspects expected today The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Arrest warrants are expected to be issued today for two men suspected of planting and setting off twin pipe bombs near Siam Paragon shopping mall in Bangkok on Sunday night. Information about the…
Read More » - World News
Jordan vows revenge for ISIS burning alive captured pilot
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Jordan vows revenge for ISIS burning alive captured pilot Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Islamic State militants released a video on Tuesday appearing to show a captured Jordanian pilot being burnt alive in a cage, a killing that shocked the world and prompted Jordan to promise…
Read More » - Thailand News
Serial rapist of elderly put on CSD ‘most wanted’ list
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Serial rapist of elderly put on CSD ‘most wanted’ list The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Crime Suppression Division (CSD) has put the much-sought serial rapist who assaulted several elderly women in recent years on its “most wanted” list and has issued details of his…
Read More » - Thailand News
NACC revokes land deeds for iron smelting plant in Prachuap
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community NACC revokes land deeds for iron smelting plant in Prachuap The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) has ruled that land-right documents for 11 plots in Prachuap Khiri Khan province were issued illegally and should be revoked. Prachuap Pattana Development Co Ltd,…
Read More » - Thailand News
Police nab B21mn gold heist bandits after ‘insider’ confesses
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police nab B21mn gold heist bandits after ‘insider’ confesses The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: POLICE quickly nabbed two men yesterday for allegedly stealing gold ornaments worth Bt21 million. Suriyachan Thaitanu, a new employee of gold-ornament factory Shining Gold, told police that he plotted the robbery…
Read More » - Phuket News
New tour guide regulations rolled out at Phuket airport
PHUKET: The Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MOTS) Phuket Office is cracking the whip on tourism businesses in Phuket, conducting island-wide raids and imposing stricter requirements for tour companies. “We checked the documents of tour companies and guides collecting incoming tour groups from Phuket International Airport, but did not find any illegal activity,” Santi Pawai, director of the MOTS Phuket…
Read More » - Thailand News
Two Aussies plunge from waterfall, one killed
PHUKET: One Australian is dead and another remains under observation in hospital after falling from Nah Muang Song Waterfall in Koh Samui on Sunday evening. Hugh Smith, 24, was pronounced dead on arrival at Bangkok Hospital Samui after he andBenjamin Thomas Kemp, 20, plunged about 60 meters down from the waterfall. Rescue workers spent about two hours transporting the men…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket Marine Police step up human-trafficking raids on fishing boats
PHUKET: Marine Police searched six Phuket fishing boats today and checked the documentation of 155 crew in their efforts to stamp out human trafficking in the region. The mass raid targeted vessels at the Tah Jeen Canal, near the fishing port area in Rassada, where Marine Police arrested two Myanmar nationals last night. “We found no illegal workers today,” said…
Read More » - Phuket News
Video Report: Police raid massage parlors for human trafficking, child prostitution
PHUKET: Police came up empty-handed in a series of raids on massage parlors in Phuket Town in search of human-trafficking victims and underage sex workers last night. “We had more than 300 officers checking massage parlors at Phun Phol Plaza, and along Soi 11 and Phun Pol Road,” Phuket City Police Deputy Superintendent Khunnadet Nanongkhai told the Phuket Gazette this…
Read More » - Phuket News
No change in Phi Phi national park fees
PHUKET: The entrance fees to the national park at Phi Phi Island remain unchanged, with foreign adults charged 400 baht per visit, a top park official there has confirmed. “There have been no changes to the national park entry fees at Phi Phi,” said Boonname Chauyradom, assistant park chief of the Hat Noppharat Thara – Mu Ko Phi Phi National…
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