Thai Life
Thailand guides, travel tips, cultural insights, and essential local information—discover everything you need to know about living, visiting, and experiencing the Land of Smiles. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for Thailand guides.
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Patong readies for the Phuket Punchline
PHUKET: We’ve heard they’ve been scoffing our food, drinking our beer and eying up the women. Those dastardly comedians from the Whose Line Is It Anyway show have been seen floating around Phuket already, apparently “warming up” for their side-splitting show at the Holiday Inn tonight. That’s right folks, The Phuket Punchline Comedy Club’s exclusive and uncensored mirth-filled menagerie of…
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Phuket books: Battle of the Eco-Warriors
PHUKET: T.C. Boyle is the hardest working man in the literary business. Like the late Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, he writes seven days a week, and it shows. He has written 13 novels and nine collections of short stories. His first two novels – Water Music and Budding Prospects – are about the 18th century African explorations of Mungo Park and contemporary…
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Phuket property briefs: Hotel search engine; SALA group; APEC
PHUKET: In an effort to keep revenue streams out of the hands of OTA’s (online travel agents), six major hotel chains have invested in a new hotel search engine called Room Key. Joining in on the consortium are InterContinental, Hyatt, Marriott, Wyndham, Hilton and Choice. Technology for the system came via a third party acquisition of ‘helicopter’. Room Key DNA…
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Phuket property: New residential market demand is generated by wealthy Asians
PHUKET: Demand in Phuket’s residential and property markets is growing among wealthy Asian “tourists”, leading property consultancy Knight Frank Thailand has reported. Knight Frank’s latest research was conducted following the Airport Authority of Thailand report that Phuket International Airport had welcomed 20% more passengers in 2011.Statistics showed that 4.2 million arrivals had been counted at the airport last year, compared…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Go with the flow
PHUKET: One of the many perks of dressing in a sheer fabric, like silk chiffon, is the versatility of the material. This free-flowing style is destined to become a staple for every fashion-forward female in Phuket this year, as it can be dressed up or down depending on your wants and taste. Don a short version as a cover-up at…
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Phuket comedy: Whose line is it, Steve?
PHUKET: In the run up to The Phuket Punchline Comedy Club’s February 29 ‘Whose Line is it Anyway?’ show, the Gazette asks each of the comedians about themselves. Phuket Gazette: Where and when were you born? Stephen Frost: Leeds, Yorkshire in 1955. Steve Steen: I was born at home, but I don’t remember too much about it, I was pretty…
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Phuket Blues Festival and Blue Sky Air Show set to play to large crowds this weekend
PHUKET: Only hours away, this year’s Phuket International Blues Rock Festival is set to bring the canvas roof down at its new venue in the Festival Marquee at the Laguna Beach Resort’s Y-Junction. It is the place to be today and tomorrow for a sublime celebration of blues rock music with some of the finest musicians ever to appear on…
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Phuket development funds continue to pour in: Tanan Tanphaibul
PHUKET: Bangkok based developers will pump as much as 30 billion baht into the local economy this year, the head of Phuket Real Estate Association (P-REA) has said. Demand for reasonably-priced homes and condominiums is luring many investors to Phuket, P-REA President Tanan Tanphaibul said at a recent press conference to announce the group’s “Phuket Life & Drive 2012” exhibition,…
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Phuket Books: Yoknapatawpha on the Hudson
PHUKET: William Faulkner’s novels take place in Yoknapatawpha County in Mississippi. William Kennedy’s novels take place in Albany, New York. His Albany Cycle of eight novels include two of the very best in American literature: Billy Phelan’s Greatest Game (1978) and Ironweed (1983) which was made into a movie for which both Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep received Oscar nominations.…
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Phuket Lifestyle: QSI Tigers unveil new den; QSI fun run
PHUKET: Quality Schools International (QSI) Phuket unveiled its new and improved sports den, with students rushing the field after the ribbon-cutting ceremony. The US$120,000 (just over 3.7 million baht) new facilities include a multipurpose basketball court, a football field enveloped by a 100-meter running track and a new garden and waterfall. Emotions ran high at the opening ceremony with large…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Kata’s hot spot to chill by the sea
PHUKET: RE KÁ TA (doesn’t that name shout out loud?) is the newest incarnation of the passed-away Oasis, next to Boathouse at Kata Beach. The base for the annual King’s Cup Regatta, it’s not hard to see how the place got its spiffy name. Essentially, RE KÁ TA is a beach club: Simply lay your 1,000 baht down and you’ll…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Facetime with Dr Paul Ekman
PHUKET: Dr Paul Ekman has built an impressive career around research on the human face and the many subtle micro-expressions which expose emotions. He believes that regardless of geography or culture, mankind has facial expressions in common that even reach to the world of primates. Recently he presented a lecture, Emotional Intelligence and Education: Reading Faces, Recognizing Feelings and Revealing…
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Bidding for Phuket Town’s Thavorn Grand hotel, soapy massage closes tomorrow
PHUKET: The bidding deadline for Phuket Town’s iconic Thavorn Grand Plaza Hotel and adjoining facilities will close tomorrow at 4pm.A spokesperson from Star Asset Management Ltd told the Phuket Gazette that closed bidding starts at 415 million baht.The package for sale is for the 17-storey, 154-room hotel, its attached grand ballroom, car park and the adjoining “soapy” massage parlor in…
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Phuket health: Signs you can’t afford to ignore
PHUKET: We tend to think that if it doesn’t hurt it must be fine, but ignoring irregular eye symptoms is a big mistake. Why? Because there are no pain receptors in the eye, so if you’re seeing things but feel no pain it doesn’t mean you’re okay. Today, we will talk about “floaters and flashing”. These two are important warning…
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Phuket property: Asia’s big two markets mature
PHUKET: Talk about “dream island destinations” in Asia and without a doubt Phuket and Bali rule the numbers game in terms of popularity. If talk turns to resort real estate both are heavyweight contenders in the title fight. Round after round, punches or blows only end with the ringing of a bell. Practically speaking, when it comes to the life…
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Phuket Property: Mövenpick celebrates; Budget brand takes on Asia
PHUKET: It was recently announced that Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts plan 11 new hotel projects across nine countries bringing the company’s total number of operating and planned hotels worldwide to 100. The new hotels are in France, Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh and Thailand. The upscale company of Swiss heritage now has 69 hotels in operation and 31…
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Phuket Gazette’s weekly horoscope by Isla Star
AQUARIUS (January 21-February 19): Opportunities could be missed in the heat of the moment this week. Aquarians who aren’t on the ball are likely to miss out to others with keener attitudes. The stars suggest that you need to focus more strongly this is not an auspicious time for multitasking. The stars advise keeping negative thoughts to yourself as speaking…
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AMCHAM to stage Design Evolution workshop
PHUKET: Two leading home and building designers in Asia will head the Design Evolution workshop being held by the Phuket Chapter of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) at Royal Phuket Marina on March 9. Phuket has long been hailed as the birthplace of the tropical island villa getaway in Asia. Follow the amazing journey that started at the Amanpuri…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Jan Sylan as described by an officer and a gentleman
PHUKET: Captain James Forrest is a significant character in Phuket’s history as he was one of the few English naval captains who visited the island during the 18th century. His travel accounts are useful because they vividly depict the geography of the island, the abundance of resources, trade and how the inhabitants of the island lived during that period. Capt…
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Phuket Comedy: Who’s this Andy Smart anyway?
PHUKET: Phuket Gazette: Where and when were you born? Andy Smart: I was born in Portsmouth in a nursing home that is now appropriately a Casino, in 1959. PG:Any amusing tales from your childhood and/or school days? AS: I drowned when I was 7 in the Basingstoke canal, and was clinically dead for about 2 and a half minutes. Luckily…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Bangers cyclists will change lives forever
PHUKET: The kitbags are being put together and include Vaseline, talcum powder, bandages and ibuprofen for swollen muscles. Yes, it’s time again for those hardy cyclists of the Bangers On Bikes Charity Bike Ride to furiously pedal from the capital of Thailand to the island province of Phuket. The charity event was conceived three years ago by members of the…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Funk it up at the 2012 Mango House Festival
PHUKET: The Absolut Mango House Festival 2012 organizers have announced their entertainment lineup for South Thailand’s premiere house music event on March 7, 8 and 9 at the Mango House Bar and Restaurant in Lanta Old Town, Koh Lanta. The house music festival is a popular event at the island’s annual cultural extravaganza, the Lanta Lanta Festival. Back by popular…
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Phuket Valentine’s Day
History is unclear on whether any of The Beatles had journeyed to Phuket before they wrote their 1964 smash hit with its charmingly quaint lyrics…”Money Can’t Buy Me Love.” Clearly the lyricist Paul McCartney had never had the pleasure of a wander down Soi Bangla around midnight on almost any evening. Had he done so, he would have certainly witnessed…
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Phuket Books: Searching to do the right thing
PHUKET: At the age of 70, Russell Banks has written 14 novels. I’ve read two, The Book of Jamaica and Continental Drift which work out moral quandaries found on the border between a white working class hero from New England and the exotic world of the Caribbean. His latest novel, Lost Memory of Skin ( Ecco, 432 pages), takes place…
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Phuket Property: Sale and purchase agreements – what is important to know?
PHUKET: A property buyer or seller scrutinizing sales documentation may wonder what provisions should be part of a sales contract. A sales agreement typically starts with a description of the parties who wish to enter into the agreement supported by passport copies or company documentation providing full details of the parties. A preamble or recitals may follow setting forth specific…
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Phuket Property Watch: There’s no such thing as an easy A
PHUKET: I am often reminded by a chain of long suffering editors at the Phuket Gazette that my beat is property, tourism and leisure. Do I stray? Yes, like a punch drunk lunatic, wired on rapid fire staccato sentences. Some of it makes sense. Other times, it even makes me look into the mirror and pose the question – what…
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Phuket Gardening: Reading palms again
PHUKET: I recently came across a letter in which the writer lamented the absence of palms on Phuket’s beaches. Not like the Caribbean, he declared. While this observation is more or less true, there are a few sprouting improbably from the sand dunes at secluded spots around the island. And anyway, there are plenty of alternative trees: avenues of casuarinas…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Love on a wing and a prayer
PHUKET: Finnish daredevil Jari ‘Birdman’ Kuosma will hurtle from the skies of Phuket into the waiting arms of his betrothed on Februay 25. Jari ‘The Birdman’ Kuosma is Phuket’s own adventure action hero. He is known around the world for his sky diving talents and breathtaking exploits. From his home country, Finland, to South America to Africa to California and…
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Phuket Gardening: Totally tropical Phuket pineapple
PHUKET: My local plant nursery has hundreds of colorful bromeliads hanging in small pots, the profusion of which is unusual since they are not that common in Phuket gardens. One bromeliad that is exceedingly plentiful on the island is the pineapple. Normally grown solely for eating, its broad, spiky rosette of waxy, strap-like leaves set atop the characteristic oval fruit,…
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Phuket Property: Bangkok developers expand upcountry
PHUKET: Hit hard by high waters and high competition, many developers in the property market of Bangkok and its suburbs are now expanding their portfolios to include more upcountry projects. Real estate markets that stand to gain the most from such a trend include Phuket, Pattaya, Chon Buri, Hua Hin, Khao Yai and Chiang Mai. Leading property firms investing in…
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