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Sponsored Planning to extend your Thai visa? Why health insurance is more important than ever
If you plan to stay longer in Thailand, having health insurance is now more important than ever. Thai immigration often asks for proof of medical coverage when you apply to extend your visa. This applies to many types of visas,...
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No gain without the pain – Phuket’s own ironman explains
PHUKET: Emma Bishop speaks to Laguna Phuket’s Jaray ‘Ray’ Jearani after he competed in the Ford Ironman World Championships. Ray’s latest journey on the big island at the biggest triathlon event in the world has given the smiling 31-year-old a lot to think about and a fresh ambition to go faster and inspire more of his countrymen to take up…
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Phuket Sports: Khao Lak charity golf returns to Navy golf course
PHUKET: Following last year’s successful event, the second Khao Lak Charity Golf Tournament is teed up for another great outing on November 19 at the Tab Lamu Navy Golf Course in Phang Nga. Organizers are expecting to draw 100 entries this year, far in excess of participating numbers at the 2010 competition – a testament to the growing popularity of…
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Race-specific workouts for the Laguna Phuket Triathlon
PHUKET: You’ve registered for the Laguna Phuket Triathlon or the 70.3 Ironman. You have adhered to your swim-bike-run workouts regularly. But you may not be 100 per cent prepared for race day. You need to use “race specific” workouts to beat the competition. Practice the Swim Start situation. Running into the ocean together with a few hundred others is an…
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Phuket athletes at the Nakorn Trang Games
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) recently held a small ceremony to send off 50 athletes representing Phuket, who are currently in Trang province competing in the Nakorn Trang Games – the 29th Southern region finals for Thailand’s local youth Olympic games. The Nakorn Trang games began on October 25 and continue for a month, concluding on November 23.…
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Organizers undaunted as floods cost Phuket FIVB beach volleyball 15 teams
PHUKET: A lack of clarity in understanding which parts of Bangkok were flooded and how travelers could transfer to flights heading to Phuket has resulted in 15 teams pulling out of the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour, which starts on Karon Beach tomorrow. However, tournament director Geoffrey Rowe of Pentangle Promotions today pointed out that the teams who have…
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Phuket pedestrian killed on merit-making journey
PHUKET: A Phuket woman was struck by a car and killed yesterday, moments before embarking on a merit-making tour to a temple in Ranong Province. Police received a report at 5:30am that a woman had been hit by a car in the southbound lane of Thepkrasattri Road in front of Thepkrasattri Municipality. At the scene police found Somboon Keawprasert, 60,…
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Drug use among Phuket children “worrying’ officials
PHUKET: There is growing concern about drug use among children in Phuket, who reportedly make up more than eight per cent of all participants in drug rehabilitation programs across the island. Phuket Provincial Health Office statistics show that out of 1,414 people in drug rehabilitation programs in Phuket, 114 of them are children under the age of 18. Prajiad Aksornthammakul,…
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Phuket retailers scramble to stem flood shortages
PHUKET: Phuket’s major retailers are reeling from the effects of the floods in Bangkok and Central Thailand, which have crippled their distribution networks, sparking shortages of consumer goods and forcing local prices to skyrocket. The Phuket Internal Trade Office (PITO) has launched a blitz against market vendors and retailers gouging customers, saying there is no need for panic as Phuket…
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Phuket Tennis: Chang ITF tournament main draw starts today
PHUKET: The first Chang ITF Tournament Pro Circuit to be held in Phuket gets underway in earnest today with both Men’s Singles and Doubles main draw matches gracing the tennis courts of the Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club in Thalang. Seven seeded players will face their first test with number four seed Laurent Rochette of France (ranked 374 in the…
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Phuket Opinion: Amid the many bus and van crashes killing tourists in Phuket, it’s time to focus more carefully on responsibility
PHUKET: One of the most startling revelations to arise from the bus crash on Phuket’s Chalong-Kata Hill was a policeman telling the Phuket Gazette that there is no provision in law for police to lay charges against a bus owner and/or management company for vehicle malfunctions, such as brake failure. This is why bus, van and truck drivers who crash…
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Phuket Lomas International Youth Rugby Tournament sees King’s College Bangkok victorious
PHUKET: The first Phuket Lomas International Youth Rugby Tournament hosted by Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC) enjoyed fantastic support yesterday with King’s College Bangkok securing the inaugural champion’s title. In a tense final against Centaurs RFC of Singapore, the Bangkok side proved their worth as deserving victors by scoring two breakaway tries and one conversion late in the second…
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Phuket tennis hopes dashed at ITF tennis tournament
PHUKET: Hopes of a Phuket player qualifying for the main draw of the Chang ITF Pro Circuit tournament 2011 being held at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC) were dampened yesterday with Tachakorn Tonnon exiting the competition in the very first match.Tachakorn, who plays his tennis out of Chalong, lost 6-0, 6-0 to Wing-Lun Lam of Hong Kong in a…
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‘Amateur’ gold thief nabbed by Phuket Police
PHUKET: A 22-year-old Phuket man has been arrested in connection with yesterday’s brazen 950,000-baht gold heist. Dechin Gongsinon was arrested at his home this morning after police followed a trail of clues left by the seemingly hapless thief. Mr Dechin was found in possession of two of the stolen gold chains, police said. “The thief was an amateur,” declared Phuket…
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Stranded Phi Phi tourists towed to Phuket safety
PHUKET: Sixty-six tourists were towed to safety in Phuket last night after spending hours stranded at sea when the speedboat they were on broke down. In addition to the Australian, French, Indian, Spanish and Thai tourists aboard the Kamika speedboat, there were four staff members of the operating company, Phi Phi Island Marine. Tourist Rescue officers in Chalong informed Marine…
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Thief makes off with 950k baht in Phuket gold heist
PHUKET: A man posing as a customer made off with almost one million baht in gold yesterday after snatching a display tray from a Phuket gold shop. Police received a report at 3pm that Thong Tanet 1 gold shop near the Kaset Market in Phuket Town had been robbed. Phuket City Police top-brass, including Superintendent Chote Chitchai, Lt Col Jumroon…
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Phuket Governor pulled into appeal to fix deadly hill road
PHUKET: Patong Deputy Mayor Chairat Sukbal today pleaded for Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha to order the damaged road on Patong Hill to be repaired. The road was damaged by a landslide on October 13 after heavy rain fell across Phuket. The road suffered further damage after yet another landslide at the same location on October 19. At a meeting at…
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Floods force south-bound trains out of Bangkok
PHUKET: Floods in Bangkok have forced trains bound for Surat Thani, a popular jump-off point for tourists heading to Phuket, to start from the Nakhon Pathom railway station, on the west of the Thai capital. An operator at the State Railway of Thailand’s call center today told the Phuket Gazette that the move to shut down Southern Line services at…
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Japanese refugee in Phuket pot bust
PHUKET: A Japanese man fleeing the flood waters in Bangkok was caught with about 24 grams of marijuana this morning as he entered Phuket by car. Police stopped a white Honda Jazz at about 9:30am at Tah Chat Chai checkpoint for a routine inspection. In the car were three Japanese men, including Haruyuki Masuoka, 27. Police found four plastic bags…
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Phuket tourist mum dies, son seriously injured in motorbike accident
PHUKET: A German tourist was killed and her son seriously injured in a motorbike accident on Wednesday about 100 meters ahead of her husband and the boy’s twin brother, who were on another motorbike.Nicole Wittig, 47, was driving the motorbike at about 11pm on a road near the Laguna resort complex with her 17-year-old son, Mark, riding pillion when she…
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Thai Floods: Phuket becomes safe haven in Bangkok exodus
PHUKET: Roads and bus, train and airport terminals in Bangkok yesterday were jammed with people exiting flood-struck Bangkok, heading to safe areas including, quite noticeably today, Phuket. The exodus gathered pace yesterday, with long tailbacks on outbound highways with cars and adding to packed accommodations in Pattaya, Hua Hin and Chon Buri, among other destinations. For days, Bangkokians have been…
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Phuket Governor goes shopping for flood price hikes
PHUKET: Governor Tri Augkaradacha today inspected Phuket’s three largest grocery retailers after receiving complaints of price rises on some products following the floods in Bangkok.Joining Governor Tri were Prajiad Aksornthammakul of the Phuket Provincial Office, Phuket Internal Trade Office Director Supatcha Boonpalit, and Phuket MP Raewat Areerob.At each store, Gov Tri and his entourage were welcomed by the store manager…
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Phuket rises to send more flood-relief
PHUKET: On behalf of the Rotary Club of Patong Bach (RCPB) the Phuket Gazette office in Koh Kaew is serving as a drop-off point for flood-relief donations. The reception desk is accepting cash as well as bottled water, clothing (particularly warm items), blankets, baby products, canned or dried food, life vests, flashlights, small boats, and anything else that donors feel…
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Phuket tourists finger American snatch thief
PHUKET: An American man was arrested last night after allegedly committing a string of snatch thefts in popular tourist beach areas on Phuket’s west coast. Jake Bordes, 27, was stopped by police and charged with robbery after two tourists reported being robbed in separate incidents while walking in Karon. A Chalong Police report states that “Ritua Walli” was robbed at…
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Phuket Live Wire : Signing up for Internet service – Ten tips
PHUKET: Over the past month in these Live Wire columns I’ve given you a snapshot of what options you have for internet service in Phuket. Choices range from not-really-tolerable to surprisingly good. Most of all, the competition’s fierce and that bodes well for all of us. The key to it all is staying on top of what’s available, and how…
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Second event completed in Phuket Dinghy Racing Series
PHUKET: The second edition of the Phuket Dinghy Series took place off Nai Yang Beach on October 15 and 16 with 33 sailors in contention for honors. Organizers selected Nai Yang for this edition as part of three different racing areas, with the intention of allowing sailors to experience a range of conditions and test their seamanship throughout the three…
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Phuet Youth Sailing Club’s sailors selected for Youth Games
PHUKET: Six Phuket Youth Sailing Club (PYSC) members have been selected to represent Phuket at the National Sports Festival in Khon Kaen during November 2011 and the National Youth Games to be held in Phuket during March 2012. The six sailors are, Mak Sarawat (Laser Standard Class), Akapoj Kankaew and Sukanya Saiman (Super Mod Class), Teerapong Tohkratoak, Tanaporn Budgrim and…
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Phuket’s schools ready for PTT Cup
PHUKET: The PTT sponsored Schools Volleyball Cup will again take place on Karon Beach as a forerunner to the main PTT Swatch FIVB Phuket competition. Four schools will participate, including Rachaprachanukroh School, British International School, Headstart, and SOS Children’s Village. The event will be run over two days, starting on November 5, after the FIVB semi finals, and will finish…
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Phuket Gazette’s top sport tips: Tennis
PHUKET: The second most important shot in tennis is the return of serve. The goal for the return of serve is to neutralize the serve. Returning the ball deep into the court for singles, or at the side “T” for doubles, is where players should aim. The technique is to minimize backswing and forward swing. Measure the racket to the…
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Running tips by Jurgen Zack for Phuket’s triathlon
PHUKET: I started as a distance runner at the age of 14. I always had the desire to be independent. Running meant freedom for me and I could choose to run on my own anytime and anywhere in the world. Running is a sight seeing tour and I enjoy the stress relieving effect it has on my body. Running, for…
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F1 Grand prix in Jersey
PHUKET: “They compare it to Spa in Belgium, but it will have the feel of Monaco.” West New York attorney Joe DeMarco recently made a comparison between the New Jersey, 3.2-mile street circuit that will host the Grand Prix of America in 2013 – and the famous Monaco circuit. Firstly, I wonder who “they” are? And secondly, comparing New Jersey…
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