- Phuket News
Bay Regatta sets sail with blue skies and good wind
PHUKET: Thirty-five boats, sailing in five classes and flying the flags of thirteen nations, set sail yesterday, day one, in the Bay Regatta, affectionately known as the “Fun Regatta” to the participants. Countries represented included Thailand, Malaysia, the USA, UK, Canada, Germany, Denmark, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, the Netherlands and Ireland. The 16th annual Bay Regatta kicked off Wednesday…
- Thai Life
Phuket Books – The grand old farce writer: Tom Sharpe
PHUKET: Tom Sharpe can be described as the heir of PG Wodehouse, the master of English farce. His first satirical novels, Riotous Assembly and Indecent Exposure, were written about South Africa to where he had moved, after attending Cambridge University, to work as a teacher and social worker in 1951. A decade later, he was deported for “sedition”. In 1976,…
- Phuket News
Phuket land grab by villagers, stalled by police, title deed
PHUKET: Plans by local residents to develop over 100 rai of land in Chalong, they claim is theirs, ground to a halt yesterday after more than 60 police officers arrived to support the alleged owner, who produced a title deed as proof of ownership. The alleged owner, Prajit Hongyok, met fierce opposition from villagers as he rebuffed their claims that…
- Phuket News
Phuket Gazette Sports: African Nations Cup quarters offers a tasty mix
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World sports news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Last eight offer tasty mix at African Nations Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The right ingredients seem to be in place to make the knockout rounds of the African Nations Cup, which reaches the quarter-finals stage this weekend, a real football feast for fans a…
- Phuket News
Phuket Police still hunting for Jintana’s killers
PHUKET: Phuket Police have sent CCTV footage related to the murder of Jintana Mahattanapak to experts in Bangkok in the hopes they can extract fresh information that will lead to the arrest of her killers. Mrs Jintana, the human resources director at the Hilton Arcadia Phuket Resort & Spa in Karon and mother to two young daughters, was executed by…
- Phuket News
Phuket’s Yellow Pages / Business Directory now on sale
PHUKET: The Gazette Guide for 2013, Phuket’s only hard-copy telephone book is now on sale throughout the island and across the Andaman region. A list of the book’s retailers in Phuket, Phang Nga, Khao Lak, Krabi and Koh Samui is available here. With contact details of thousands of businesses, classified into 219 different categories, the 356-page book is priced at…
- Phuket News
Taxi drivers trigger full inquest into all Phuket tour business
PHUKET: Phuket Vice Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada has ordered the Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO) to inspect the business licenses of all tourism businesses across Phuket that have foreigners registered as part-owners. The news follows an inspection raid of a single tour operator in Bang Tao, on Phuket’s central western coast, at the request of local taxi drivers yesterday. The taxi…
- Phuket News
Autopsy results unclear about role of head wound in drowned Dutch tourist’s death
PHUKET: Bangkok autopsy results have confirmed that Dutch tourist Stephan Buczynski died from drowning, but were unable to determine the role the serious wound to his head played in the incident. Doctors at Patong Hospital were fairly certain Mr Buczynski, 26, had drowned, but police requested the autopsy because there was also a deep gash on the back of his…
- Phuket News
Phuket Gazette World Sports: Fall guy for an entire sport – Armstrong
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World sports news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Armstrong feels he is cycling’s “fall guy” Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Lance Armstrong feels he is the scapegoat of a sport that has always been subject to cheating, the disgraced American cyclist said yesterday. Asked whether he felt he was the ‘fall guy for…
- Phuket News
Thailand Futsal: Phuket United lose away match with Si Saket
PHUKET: Despite a hat trick by Phuket’s Brazilian winger Jardel, the island’s pro futsal outfit Phuket United lost 4-6 away to Sri Pathum Sunrise Si Saket Futsal Club last night in Si Saket. Played at the Si Saket Rajbhat University in Isarn, the match was both side’s 17th match of a 30 fixture season. Like their first match in Phuket…
- Phuket News
Phuket News: Rohingya risk births at sea to flee Myanmar
PHUKET: A newborn baby just eight days old was among the boatload of Rohingya refugees who made landfall yesterday in the Surin Islands archipelago, in Phang Nga province, to the north of Phuket. As the boat landed, local people brought food and drinks to the refugees, Khura Buri District Chief Manit Pianthong said. An estimated 110 refugees were on the…
- Phuket News
Phuket Football: Southern Sea Warriors to battle North Korean Army
PHUKET: The new-look Phuket FC – taking on a new nickname this season as the “Southern Sea Warriors” – are set to host DPR Korea League champions, 4.25 Sports Club, in a highly anticipated friendly match tonight in Phuket Town. The match, Phuket’s third 2013 pre-season test, will kickoff at 6pm at Surakul Stadium. Admission is 100 baht, though students…
- World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Israeli warplanes target arms convoy in Syria
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Israel hits Syria arms convoy to Lebanon -sources Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Israeli warplanes bombed a convoy near Syria’s border with Lebanon, sources told Reuters, apparently targeting weapons destined for Hezbollah in what some called a warning to Damascus not to arm Israel’s Lebanese enemy.…
- Phuket News
Runaway wheel from Phuket tour bus narrowly misses policeman
PHUKET: A wheel that had come off a Phuket tour bus raced off on its own down Thepkrasattri Road yesterday morning, narrowly missing a policeman in its path. The bus, displaying a Pegas sign in its front window, had picked up 32 passengers at Phuket Airport and was heading towards a hotel in Kata when it lost a rear wheel…
- Phuket News
Phuket Poll: Can Phuket handle the Russians?
PHUKET: Phuket in recent months has suffered a spate of public protests against Russians operating tour services here, including mob action that saw one tour operator in Bang Tao being ordered to close (story here). That minor uprising followed a blockade on the Karon beachfront road by hundreds of tuk-tuk and taxi drivers protesting tour counters along Phuket’s southwest coast…
- Phuket News
Phuket police net dealers in fire hydrant meth bust
PHUKET: Phuket City police yesterday made two arrests and seized more than 2,000 pills of ya bah (methamphetamine) and 102.29 grams of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) after staking out a Phuket Town fire hydrant. Acting on a tip-off from an informant, officers took up positions surrounding a fire hydrant in Soi Kamnan in Phuket Town, and waited for suspicious activity.…
- Phuket News
Phuket Sports: Europe’s best train at TSLC
PHUKET: With thoughts firmly on the upcoming 15th FINA World Championships to be held in Barcelona, Spain from July 19 to August 4, Dutch swimmers, Ranomi Kromowidjojo and Femke Heemskerk, along with Italian swimmers, Federica Pellegrini and Filippo Magnani, are currently training at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC). The Dutch national team coach Jacco Verhaeren explains why the Dutch…
- Phuket News
Phuket tourists injured as waves swamp Phi Phi tour boat
PHUKET: Six tourists were injured when a tour boat heading to the Phi Phi Islands (view here) was struck by large waves as it crossed Phang Nga Bay this morning. The boat, which departed from Chalong at about 10am, was carrying 40 tourists from Australia, Indonesia and China, an officer at the Tourist Rescue Center at Chalong Pier (map here)…
- Business News
Phuket Property: Thai hotels benefit from local software
PHUKET: About 1,000 member hotels of the Thai Hotel Association (THA) are benefiting from a locally developed room reservation technology that is changing the way hotels in Thailand do business online, keeping them ahead of the game in the global hospitality industry. The new ‘Software as a Service’ for independent hotels is the result of a recently formed exclusive partnership…
- Phuket News
Overcrowding at Rohingya shelter raises slew of concerns
PHUKET: Overcrowding at the Phang Nga Shelter for Children and Family, which was housing more than 100 Rohingya refugees, has forced the shelter’s director to have more than 50 of them transferred to a welfare center in Surat Thani. A bus with 13 Rohingya women, 19 boys and 20 girls is now en route to the Baan Srisurat shelter (website…
- Business News
Phuket Finance: Exploring the theory of Peak Oil
PHUKET: I read a fascinating report recently from a Harvard researcher that shatters the common view of how quickly oil is becoming a scarce resource. It essentially states that – given new technology – the idea of “Peak Oil” is fundamentally flawed. Peak Oil is a theory that at a certain point in history (approaching very quickly), humans will reach…
- World News
World News: Crack down on nightclubs after deadly fire
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Brazilian cities crack down on nightclubs after deadly fire Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Cities across Brazil are beginning to crack down on nightclubs to ensure they comply with fire regulations following a weekend blaze that killed 231 people at a club in the southern university town of…
- Phuket News
Phuket Gazette Sports: Football movements, bans and possible prison
Beckham trains with Arsenal to maintain fitness Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Former England football captain David Beckham is training with Arsenal in a bid to maintain his fitness, manager Arsene Wenger said. The 37-year-old midfielder is a free agent after leaving LA Galaxy at the end of the Major League Soccer (MLS) season in December. “He has asked to…
- Phuket News
Racha Rohingya “helped on’ by Thai Navy
PHUKET: The group of Rohingya refugees discovered off Koh Racha Noi today – numbering 205 in total – were given food and water before being “helped on” in their southbound journey. On hearing the news of the refugees’ arrival, Rawai Municipality quickly dispatched a speedboat with basic provisions. The boat departed Chalong Pier about midday, and on arriving at Koh…
- Phuket News
Phuket Sports: The party that sails around and around
PHUKET: This year’s Bay Regatta, organized by the Ao Chalong Yacht Club (ACYC), will be held from tomorrow to Sunday February 3. Rows of colorful spinnakers will sail through some of the world’s most famous cruising grounds, allowing sailors the chance to enjoy the spectacular scenery and party well into the night at some of the region’s most beautiful resorts.…
- Phuket News
Live Wire: A tale of internet worry and woe
PHUKET: TWO weeks ago in Live Wire, I produced a list of all the available internet packages in Phuket – at least, all of the packages I know about (click here). Last week, I explained that most people in Phuket will want to get a “3G” (I still hate that term, because it’s meaningless!) package for their phone(s). Most probably…
- Phuket News
Phuket Gazette Sports: Former champions Rangers bemoan SPL plans
Top Scottish clubs back plans to restructure league Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Scottish Premier League (SPL) clubs backed plans yesterday to restructure the cash-strapped game in Scotland despite vocal opposition from former champions Rangers.“The clubs were united in their view about the need for change,” said SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster.“I firmly believe that any change can only come from…
- Property
Phuket Property Watch: Khao Lak’s Ramada wins top award
PHUKET: The Ramada Resort Khao Lak achieved the honor of being a first-time two-time winner of the Top and Luxury Hotel categories by TripAdvisor in its 2013 travelers’ Choice awards, announced last week. Now in its eleventh year, the annual TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice awards honor the world’s best hotels, earning their distinction from those who know them best – real…
- Property
Phuket Property: New development targets beginners
PHUKET: Relieving much anticipation of the property market just north of Phuket Town, lifestyle home developer LH Muang Mai Limited (LH), the local subsidiary of trusted property giant Land & Houses, recently unveiled its third housing development on the island: Inizio – Koh Kaew. Pre-sales for the 590.8 million baht development were launched at the project’s site behind Phuket’s main…
- Business News
Phuket Business: Luxury auto dealer aligns brand with international football lovers
PHUKET: Football players from Phuket FC recently visited the TSL Auto Corporation (TSL) premium imported car showroom to thank the company for officially sponsoring the team in the upcoming Thai Yamaha One (Division 1) 2013 season. Phuket FC’s head coach Panipol Kerdyam made a personal appearance, alongside players Nontaphan Jiensathawong, Nenebi Tre Sylyee Tre, Luiz Eduardo Purcio, Girogi Tsimakuridze, Kritsada…
