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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Sponsored Where to shop for sports gear at Jungceylon Phuket
Phuket might be known for its beaches and nightlife, but the island also has a thriving fitness culture. From Muay Thai gyms to beach runs at sunrise, staying active is part of daily life for many who live here (as...
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Phuket Books: The Boy Wonder’s sad decline
PHUKET: The 1960s were Tom Wolfe’s decade, the stage upon which the founder of the New Journalism strutted with The Electric Kool Aid Test. The 1970s belonged to Hunter Thompson and the Gonzo journalism of Fear and Loathing in Los Angeles. Wolfe eventually turned to turgid meta-fiction and Thompson to shameless potboilers. But the 1980s saw the rise of P.J.…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Hogan’s hues of a brighter future
PHUKET: Having enjoyed a tour of the newly refurbished Angsana Laguna Phuket resort it was suggested to me by General Manager Jerry John, with a certain degree of pride, that the Kids Club was worthy of particular attention. While on holidays, every parent appreciates facilities for their children that provide entertainment, and are secure and well attended. Angsana’s Kids Club…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Take the art – leave the real antiques here
PHUKET: A dispute about the export of art and religious objects between the Thalang National Museum and a Phuket shop was tentatively set to rest after a meeting on December 15. The museum’s concerns that there was a risk of valuable national treasures being illegally exported from Thailand was looked into during the meeting headed by Vice Phuket Governor Somkiet…
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Phuket Gardening: Growing plants indoors and outdoors in water
PHUKET: When I first came to Thailand, I was, like everyone else from colder climes, astounded by the sheer range of plant life. Even more amazing was the way nature not only coped, but actually thrives in these hot, humid conditions, some of which seemed downright alien: smoggy air, poor soil, periods with either burning sun or bucketing rain. The…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Ingenious forms of jeans
PHUKET: Everyone has their favorite go-to pair of jeans, great for weekends and perfect for an array of casual events always held in Phuket. Denim is a classic material that is versatile and flattering for every age, figure, gender or style. It’s always changing and giving us new reasons to fall in love with it again and again. No matter…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Where the seafood’s @
PHUKET: Kan Eang @ Pier is a Phuket institution and has been so for more than 30 years. Originally called ‘Kan Eang 1’, this famous Phuket seafood restaurant underwent a major renovation and name change in 2007. The sprawling grounds stretch more than 200 meters along Chalong Bay just south of the pier and here you’ll find several al-fresco and…
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Phuket international airport expansion set to bring 12.5mn visitors
PHUKET International Airport (PIA) will be able to receive 12.5 million visitors per year by 2014 following a planned 5.7 billion-baht expansion, Thailand’s deputy transport minister told reporters during a recent visit to the island. Kittisakdi Hathasongkorh said the airport’s runway would be lengthened by 700 meters to allow the new generation of “superjumbos”, the Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-8,…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Tapping into a new year resolution
PHUKET: My eyelids are pinched together as the man taps repeatedly on my throat with his fingers. There’s no pain. The tapping stops, there’s a shift in the room and I can feel him now sitting across from me, a few feet away, staring at me, studying my expression. He says nothing, just sits silently and waits for me to…
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Phuket Property Watch: Rocking or rolling this season?
PHUKET: Whenever anyone mentions ‘The Rock’ I am always inclined to think of that other island just off the dock by the bay – Alcatraz. Certainly there is little resemblance between that former maximum security prison island and our own destination resort of Phuket. Getting off this rock is invariably easier than swimming in shark infested waters, though the proliferation…
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Phuket Gardening: Drying the seeds of success
PHUKET: A recent email from Clive in Karon poses a question about seeds. “Why do seeds need to be dried before planting?” he inquires and adds that he has seen lots of them drying in the sun here in Phuket. The answer is more complex than you might expect. Seeds are produced by most plants and they vary in size…
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Painting a brighter future for Thai kids
PHUKET: Guests and visitors of Angsana Laguna Phuket have been summoned to paint their way into posterity on a mural designed by acclaimed Australian artist, Christopher Hogan, as money is raised for local Thai kids with artistic promise. In celebration of its recent opening, the 350 tile mural will take pride of place in the resort’s newly refurbished lobby. The…
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Phuket Movies: Review of 2011 film releases
PHUKET: Expect a barrage of year end reviews and lists in coming days. Newspapers love them. They close a chapter, let us remember if we should remember a year at all, and remind us of what, if anything, we should hold onto from these past 12 months. Was the Tree Of Life a defining moment in cinema history, or a…
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Floods won’t harm Phuket construction sector: P-REA
PHUKET: Following a seminar held recently, Phuket real estate developers are less worried about the impacts of the flooding in central Thailand on the construction industry supply chain. Tanan Tanphaibul, President of the Phuket Real Estate Association, said members had worried that massive government-funded reconstruction of parts of Bangkok and the Central Plains region might have a negative impact on…
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Istana Phuket design claims global award
PHUKET: Prism Estates have won the Best International Architecture Award (Multiple Residence) as developers of the Istana Phuket residential estate at Naithon Beach. The International Property Awards (IPA) ceremony was held on December 12 at the Savoy Hotel in London, England and produced in association with Bloomberg TV and Google . The award validates the architectural vision of Richard Shearer,…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Decor – thinking inside the box
PHUKET: Being an interior designer often involves “thinking outside of the box” yet sometimes the opposite is true. Heading up such a team of designers and artists is Irish-born Brian Woulfe who, after two years in Phuket, recently held the lavish opening of his “Designed by Woulfe” offices at Baan Wana Park in Thalang. On arrival at his plush, purple,…
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Phuket Gardening: Rambutan – looks and tastes great
PHUKET: Of the glorious trees that grace our island gardens on Phuket, there are many small varieties that are considered ornamentals primarily on account of their decorative blossom. These include the flame bean (brownea or sok phuang), the erythrina (thong lang or coral tree), the abutilon or Chinese lantern, and the orchid tree (bauhinia or chong ko). Of course, a…
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Phuket Movies: An impossible sequel
PHUKET: FOR lovers of a good action movie Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol hits all the right buttons. Directed by Brad Bird (The Incredibles and Ratatouille), the film is about Russian terrorists who steal nuclear missile launch codes to try to start World War III. The IMF is shut down when it’s implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin, causing…
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Phuket Books: Teddy’s final adventure
PHUKET: There is a large and growing shelf of books about Theodore Roosevelt, most recently James Morris’s acclaimed biographical trilogy. National Geographic writer Candice Millard has taken a different tack, concentrating on his last great adventure in The River of Doubt (Anchor Books, New York, 2006, 416pp). Subtitled “Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey” this is the tale of his descent in…
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Phuket Dog Whisperer: Canine separation anxiety
PHUKET: In part one of our look at Canine Separation Anxiety we identified some of the many reasons and symptoms for its onset, so here in part two, we’ll look at various ways of treating it. However, it’s important to note that you should always consult a canine behaviorist first so that problem behavior can be correctly identified prior to…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Christmas in the chamber
PHUKET: Though only some divers know all the words to the Twelve Days of Christmas, every diver has heard or knows by heart a couple horror stories of “getting the bends”. From our training and bar room chat we get the the picture of a panicking diver disregarding protocol and bolting for the surface. As they shoot towards fresh air,…
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Phuket Lifestyle: Asia is seventh heaven for Chapman’s yacht designs
PHUKET: Born into a family of architects in England, it is hardly surprising that Jody Chapman became interested in product design and eventually graduated with an honors degree in industrial design from the University of Brunel in Surrey. He later went to work for the luxury car manufacturer, Austin Martin, where he used his design talents on the V8 Vantage.…
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A call to arts: ThinkDesign Art Festival at the Royal Phuket Marina
PHUKET: The first annual ThinkDesign Art Festival will be held from December 27 – 30, at the Royal Phuket Marina and will showcase the talents of over 150 visual and performing artists from Thailand and around the world. This is the largest gathering of creativity on the island since the Phuket Andaman Painting Exhibitions held over ten years ago. Michael…
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Phuket Property Briefs – Village wins again; luxury movie; private jet facility
PHUKET: The Village Coconut Island, has been awarded “Best Shared Ownership Development” in the inaugural South East Asia Property Awards which assists in promoting high levels of real estate opportunities available in South East Asia. The Village Coconut Island’s latest accolade sits aside the 2010 Thailand Property Awards “Best Villa Development” and recognition as one of Asia’s Top 20 Resorts…
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Phuket Property Watch – Beach Club bingo
PHUKET: For globetrotting party-goers the line up of posh beach clubs has led them for years from Ibiza, to Miami’s Nikki Beach and down to the Caribbean for sundowners on St. Barts. Asia’s beach club evolution kicked off with the iconic Ku De Ta, and has now shifted into top gear with Cocoon, Potato Head and the Rock Bar at…
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Water, water, everywhere!
PHUKET: Property and families have been destroyed by the recent floods in Thailand. What is Mother Nature trying to tell us? When I flew across the Pacific some weeks ago, the final descent took us over the central plains of Thailand. Looking down, there was water as far as the eye could see. It was a scene awash in melancholy:…
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City park high-rise promising
PHUKET: Annual returns of up to 10 per cent are being promised to those who invest in the condotel portion of The Light Suan Luang condominium project in Phuket Town. Backed by Phuket Living Co Ltd, a former partner in the Royal Place Condominium project on the bypass road, The Light Suan Luang is a 447 million baht, 15-storey complex…
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Phuket History – Nyonya-Baba link to Phuket and Penang
PHUKET: The Chinese community in Malaya grew rapidly during the 19th century. During this period, many Chinese immigrants were arriving in Malaya in hopes of finding jobs in the booming tin-mining industry. Most of the Chinese immigrants were concentrated around large tin centers along the Malay Peninsula, such as Malacca, Penang and Phuket. Chinese immigrants were usually young unmarried men.…
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Phuket Lifestyle – an improvement on perfection?
PHUKET: Depending on your concept and interpretation of life, you could take the “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it” approach or simply strive to improve what you’re actually already very good at. Silvano Amolini, Executive Chef at Dusit Thani Laguna is most definitely a man of the latter category. And typically of Signor Silvano, he has recently introduced an…
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Phuket Lifestyle – King’s Cup review
PHUKET: It has been quite a few years since I’ve joined the melee of press at Phuket’s King’s Cup Regatta. But this year was special. It was the 25th regatta and the closing party was a celebration of a sailing event that has survived such catastrophes as tsunamis, bird flu, economic disasters, change of venues and unreliable sponsorship. The King’s…
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Mandala Phuket takes home best condo award
PHUKET: Mandala Condominiums took home the prestigious Best Condo Development at The 2011 Thanachart Bank Thailand Property Awards, held recently at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in Bangkok. Mandala Condominiums – a collection of 24 over-sized apartments, all with private pools and located in Phuket’s prestigious Laguna area, was recognized at a gala ceremony attended by more than 600 CEOs,…
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