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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H&M fashions arrive at Central Festival Phuket
PHUKET: Hundreds of shoppers are expected to line up at Central Festival Phuket early this Saturday morning to be among the first to get their hands on the latest threads from global fashion house H&M as it launches its first store in southern Thailand on two floors of the shopping mall. H&M is giving away more than 80,000 baht worth…
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Soap suds: A sidelong glance at Thai melodrama
PHUKET: Any “farang” who lives with a Thai partner will be familiar, possibly all too familiar, with the rarefied world of television soap opera. As I watch, I wonder what impact these soaps are having on the Thai psyche. That they are amazingly popular is beyond doubt. Viewing figures are massive; they are watched religiously in most households, and especially…
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Last Gasp of a humorist
I used to have high hopes for PJ O’Rourke as the Fresh Prince of American Journalism. If Tom Wolfe had invented the New Journalism in the 1960s, and Hunter S Thompson Gonzo Journalism in the 1970s, PJ O’Rourke broke new ground in the 1980s with Holidays in Hell, fiercely funny dispatches from chaotic hellholes and communist sumps around the world.…
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Live simple, consume less
PHUKET: Live simple, consume less. This philosophy is engrained in the business and life of custom surfboard maker David “Mousset” Sautebin. Originally from Bienne, Switzerland, the wiry 36-year-old stood in the entrance of his Nai Harn workshop clad only in Thai fisherman’s pants. A quiver of surfboards lined the doorway which emitted a tinny soundtrack of Bob Marley from within.…
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Feel-good football
PHUKET: On April 24, about 40 students from the Good Shepherd Learning Center had the opportunity to visit Phuket FC’s recently completed Republic Phuket football training complex. The event was a cooperative effort between Phuket FC fan club the ‘Mushy Peas’, and the Grumpy Old Man’s Society (GOMS) in conjunction with the Good Shepherd Learning Center and Phuket FC. The…
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All tied up: The art of cowboy rope tricks
PHUKET: With more people on the planet, nearly infinite methods of communication and a travel culture that sees people from all walks of life turning up in the most unsuspecting places, there is no telling where you might find influences from foreign cultures. For example, if Phuket entertainer Manoo Suwanmaneesilp hadn’t somehow gotten the chance to see old black-and-white westerns…
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Putting the ‘I’ in your Phuket garden
PHUKET: You probably hadn’t noticed that I was plowing my way through the botanical alphabet before getting distracted by more alluring prospects, or the pressing horticultural needs of a four-month- long drought. Well, anyway, most of the tropical plants listed under the letter “I” are in the index by virtue of an Indian designation: Indian banyan, Indian cork tree, Indian…
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Laguna Phuket to launch “Fully Booked!’ mobile learning center
Laguna Phuket has announced that it will be launching a new community project, “Fully Booked!”, which will see the opening of a new mobile learning center for schoolchildren. The project is one of many initiatives set up by Laguna Phuket to support its wider strategic goal on social and educational development, which aims to build the capacities of local communities…
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![SY Silolona confirmed host of the 2014 Asia Superyacht Rendezvous opening party [Video] | Thaiger](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0naHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmcnIHZpZXdCb3g9JzAgMCAzMjggMjIwJz48L3N2Zz4=)
SY Silolona confirmed host of the 2014 Asia Superyacht Rendezvous opening party [Video]
PHUKET: Asia Superyacht Rendezvous 2014 organizers have confirmed that the event’s opening cocktail party will be hosted aboard a luxury superyacht. “As the Asia Superyacht Rendezvous starts preparations for another spectacular event in 2014, we are happy to announce that the opening night cocktail party will be held aboard the stunning superyacht SY Silolona,” said Lucy Powell, Asia Superyacht Rendezvous…
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Kid Expo: Everything a family needs
PHUKET: QSI International School Phuket will hold its first-ever “Kid Expo” this month, on April 27, from 1-5pm. The event will bring together dozens of local businesses that offer services and activities for children, aiming to provide “everything a family needs” in one place, so parents can see what is available for their children to do here on the island.…
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Seacon Group plans three new villa projects in Phuket worth Bt1 billion
PHUKET: Seacon Group plans to launch three new villa projects worth 1-billion baht in Phuket, aiming for sales growth of about 5 per cent this year as the property market in Bangkok has declined. The group’s executive director Piya Sosothikul said the company predicted that demand for homes in Phuket would grow by 15-20 per cent annually over the next…
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Huge line up of events for Phuket Pride Week 2014
PHUKET: The Phuket Loves You Club (PLU) has just announced its line up of events for Phuket Pride Week 2014 with eight days of fun and celebrations planned. The theme for this year’s Pride Week is “Celebrating Who We Are”. All through the week there will be parties and events which will offer the opportunity for all people – gay,…
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Phuket Bike Week rolls into town
PHUKET: On April 11, Patong Beach welcomed thousands of motorcyclists and enthusiasts to Phuket Bike Week. With two decades of successful Bike Week’s under their belts, Phuket’s party-central has pulled it off again with a full schedule of activities amid a sea of bikes, babes and brews. Hawker stalls lined the boardwalk north of the stage, offering everything from alligator…
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![BISP students showcase their artistic talents [video] | Thaiger](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0naHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmcnIHZpZXdCb3g9JzAgMCAzOTAgMTk3Jz48L3N2Zz4=)
BISP students showcase their artistic talents [video]
PHUKET: The British International School Phuket (BISP) Year 13 Visual Arts Exhibition was officially opened earlier this month, and students’ work will be available for viewing until April 24. The exhibition includes 48 unique pieces by three different student artists. In addition, the Year two students will have their elephant prints on display. The following is a transcript of the…
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Bicycling for barflies
PHUKET: Bicycling Baz is only too aware that his is not the only opinion when it comes to cycling in Phuket. With this in mind, he asked his erstwhile drinking associate, Hugo Barfly, to write an alternative viewpoint from the perspective of a well-padded bar stool in Rawai. Here’s Hugo’s take on cycling in Phuket. So, I was sitting there…
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Walking the brand dogma: Hotel-branded residences
PHUKET: One of my recurring nightmares is that of a tropical island sunset framed by a sinking orange ball, and the erotically charged image of a scantily-clad, swimsuit-model type gently grasping onto the edge of a mega-villa infinity swimming pool, staring aimlessly onto an empty horizon. Please bear with me, I have not entirely lost my mind. Not yet anyway,…
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At the mercy of the sea
There are two crazy Frenchmen sailing around the world on a tiny boat and they are here in Phuket but leaving in one hour. That was the first word we heard at the Gazette of the adventurers who were in Phuket on a brief hiatus from their voyage in Poseidon’s watery world. Scenes from great ocean-faring tales were instantly resurrected…
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Phuket’s Bike Week expects to host 50,000 riders
PHUKET: The 20th annual Phuket Bike Week starts next week in Phuket and is expected to draw 50,000 bikers from more than 30 countries. The six days of activities, stretching from April 11 to 19, will include stunt-riding shows, group rides, concerts, a beauty pageant, tattoo competition and on Songkran day, water play. From April 11 to 14, events will…
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Don Battles: Author of the Orient
PHUKET: From growing up in a poor family after the great depression, to rocket engineer during the Cold War missile and space-race era, to entrepreneur in Thailand during the turbulent 1997 financial crisis, and to successful chili farmer in China and Northern Thailand – Don Battles’ life could fill many books, but for now, one will have to suffice. The…
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Experts gather in Phuket to discuss scientific advancements in AEC economy
PHUKET: The National Science Technology and Innovation Policy Office (STI) last week called a meeting in Phuket of the 10 Asean countries to discuss scientific advancement and flow of manpower as the inception of the Asean Economic Community (AEC) looms. “The objective of this workshop is to provide a forum in which experts can exchange their views and ideas about…
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![‘Music is My Life’ party kicks off tomorrow night at Diamond Beach Club [Video] | Thaiger](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0naHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmcnIHZpZXdCb3g9JzAgMCAzOTAgMTQ0Jz48L3N2Zz4=)
‘Music is My Life’ party kicks off tomorrow night at Diamond Beach Club [Video]
The ‘Music is My Life’ party kicks off tomorrow night at Diamond Beach Club in Surin. Well known local club DJs Taz (Phuket House Mafia), Nemo (resident of Catch), James Dougall (Evil Twins) and an international DJ (former music director at Bed Supperclub in Bangkok) are set to perform some killer sets in tribute to DJ Josh Ezelle, a former…
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Whale shark and manta ray sightings abound in waters north of Phuket
PHUKET: Whale sharks and manta rays are the climax for divers’ wet dreams – though admittedly most divers’ dreams are wet. Unfortunately, the probability of sharing ocean space with both of these majestic marine creatures on a single trip is absurdly low, yet just north of Phuket at the Similan Islands, that’s exactly what’s happening. While many of us are…
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Wine evolution or wine revolution? – Dinner at the Boathouse Bar & Grill
PHUKET: There is more to question about the glass of wine on your dining table than the usual “Is it half full or half empty?” The world’s thirst for wine has turned fermented grape juice into a precious commodity, and what used to be, and luckily in many places still is, considered art, has been turned by the forces of…
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Phuket Arts: Young artists on show at BIS
PHUKET: Phuket has been showing the signs recently of a burgeoning art scene that is maturing rapidly. Many resorts offer art displays in their gift shops or lobbies and Phuket Town has a number of galleries that host various media covering a wide range of genres. Keeping art alive and passing on the visual expression of culture to younger generations…
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Phuket Events: Phuket Bike Week 2014
PHUKET: Just in time for Songkran comes this year’s Phuket Bike Week 2014. Celebrating its 20th year, the event is expected to attract huge crowds of “rolling thunder” for the six days of festivities in Patong and Phuket Town. The first four days of the event will be hosted at Loma Park in Patong, from April 11-14. Activities will include…
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Phuket Books: Against the machine
PHUKET: For me, Thomas Pynchon and Robert Stone are the two best living American writers. Both have recently come out with new novels. I’ll get around to Robert Stone next time. Bleeding Edge (The Penguin Press, New York, 2013, 477pp) is Thomas Pynchon’s eighth novel. His first, V., astonished the literary world in 1963. Gravity’s Rainbow and Against the Day…
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Phuket Property: When you’re expecting
PHUKET: Life is odd. When you are young the future has no limits, time-frame or even, for the most part, a firm direction. Sadly, we get older, not wiser, and the time-line gets shorter by the day. Some nights, I lay awake and instead of counting sheep, start doing the math. This is not a happy place to be and…
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Phuket Gardening: More vinous virtuosos
PHUKET: Asked what “vinous” means, most people would opt for something to do with grape vines or wine. But in fact the epithet can be applied to any kind of vine or climbing plant, of which there are literally hundreds, ranging from creeping figs and ivies to towering tropical lianas. For the gardener, the important distinction is between tendrilous or…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Affordable autos at Central Festival
PHUKET: The 18th Andaman Motor Show now on at Central Festival Phuket until March 19 is featuring the latest affordable autos under a million baht from a variety of Phuket car dealers, each offering very competitive low-interest deals and down payments. Also exhibiting at the Grand Hall on the first floor of Central Festival are new luxury imports with multi-million…
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Suthas Rungsirisilp wins Thailand National Award at 2014 Sony World Photography Awards
PHUKET: Thai photographer Suthas Rungsirisilp was today announced as the winner of the Thailand National Award, part of the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards, one of the world’s leading photography competitions. Open to photographers of all abilities, the National Award seeks to uncover and honor the single best image taken by a Thai photographer entered into any of the ten…
![SY Silolona confirmed host of the 2014 Asia Superyacht Rendezvous opening party [Video] | Thaiger](https://thethaiger.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/3_201441815418332_qkRvQLEhNjoIsQmTVrTXmPmHurgDDcktcKslDpQt_jpeg.jpeg)
![BISP students showcase their artistic talents [video] | Thaiger](https://thethaiger.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/22_2014411144942941_LVltJRUBpgAMvddIyFNposURCVgyCscwlDtWqsLx_jpeg.jpeg)
![‘Music is My Life’ party kicks off tomorrow night at Diamond Beach Club [Video] | Thaiger](https://thethaiger.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/22_20143271638789_skDuzSiFgVjLRGtBRlVyEKkScLdOteSSGqzjmOsK_jpeg.jpeg)
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