Dimmi Y performs nightly until midnight at the Hopf
Brew House on Beach Road.
by Elfi
Pattaya has its own, very good musicians. Still, it is good
to get a change to listen to a European group every once in a while. Especially
when they are an Italian group with a wide range of genres in their repertoire.
Funk, Rap, Soul and House make up Dimmi Y’s permanent pro-gram at the newly
opened Hopf Brew House, contrary to the easy going oldies which night time
revelers can hear most other places around Pattaya.
Dimmi Y is a group of seven young people, three of them brothers: Antonino Brusa
(Tini) on guitar is the band leader and founder of the group, Rodolfo Brusa
(Dodi) plays on the keyboards, and Francesco Brusa (Kekko) on base. Paolo Copia
(Poly) also plays the keyboards, while Roustam Karimov of Russia beats the
drums. Two very sexy singers entertain the customers: Tiziana Torrieri (Tizia)
and Dawn Marie Duncan (Shon) of USA, though with a lot of Chinese, Spanish and
Philippine blood.
All of them are good friends, not couples. Ladies and gentlemen, can you imagine
they are all still available?
E: “Tini, since you are the band-leader, how come you have two non-Italian
mem-bers?”
Tini: “Our original drum-mer didn’t want to join us abroad. We had to look for
someone new and found Roustam. He joined the band when we came to Thailand,
which was only two months ago. Shon has been with the band since 1991. We found
her in Italy.”
E: “Tini, how long have you been performing music?”
Tini: “Since I was seven years old. I always wanted to play guitar and I still
do. When I was seventeen I started to play professional and as soon as my
brothers were old enough to join me we built our own band.”
E: “It’s always good to have brothers, isn’t it?”
Dodi, Tini’s brother who sports a long ponytail, interjects: “You might say so.
We had no change to say no. Actually I was studying classical music. Piano and
Violin. When you get older you start to love modern music. We played a lot of
rock and pop at the be-ginning.”
Kekko, with long curly hair, adds on: “You know, first our mother forced us to
take music lessons until we started to enjoy it ourselves. I still remember her
anger when we sometimes skipped our music lessons to hang around with friends.
But she was right. I used to study piano, but my dream was to play saxophone. I
got one and all I did was polish it. We never found a proper teacher for me.
Finally, a few years ago I sold it. Now I am playing bass guitar and I believe
that’s the right instrument for me.”
E: “Poly, you are the non-brother Italian in the group. How did you join them?”
Poly, also long haired and tall, answers: “We come from the same town and we
have always been friends. We grew up together. As soon as I found out they were
forming a band I joined in. I started to play piano and keyboards when I was
thirteen, and the next step was to become a professional together with my
friends.”
E: “Which town in Italy do you come from?”
All three at once: “From Napoli, oh Naples of course. Is there any other place?”
E: “(cough, cough) excuse me please. I do have some Italian blood and my
ancestors come from Verona. It’s quite a nice and historical place, isn’t it?”
Kekko: “Just joking, but we do love Napoli, it’s beautiful.”
E: “I agree, especially with Capri around. Tizia, you are the only Italian woman
in the band. Where are you from?”
Tizia: “I am from Venice. I joined the band only about one year ago. We met in
Italy of course and they approached me to join them. Well, I haven’t regretted
it yet. They are all very good friends and a lot of fun.”
E: “Do you play an instrument also?”
Tizia: “No. I am only a singer. I do have some other ambitions, like
surrealistic painting. And I love to give massages Japanese style. It’s called
Sha Tsu.”
E: “Hey, that’s great. If your partners are tired you can mobilize them with a
good massage. And about the painting job, with a name like Tizia you ought to be
one. Are you somehow related to the great Tizian?”
Tizia: “Not that I would know. Sorry.”
E: “Shon, you are an American. How did you manage to join the group?”
Beautiful Shon smiles: “I was born into a musical family from Florida. We had a
Big Band. When I was one year old we left the USA and traveled around. Mostly in
Asia but also in Europe. At one of our concerts I met the guys and have been
with the band since 1991.”
E: “Coming from a typical musician family, at what age did you start to
perform?”
Shon: “At two. I started really performing when I was 12, in our band of
course.”
E: “The drummer always hides somewhere behind his instruments. Roustam come to
the front and talk to me. How long have you been with Dimmi Y?”
Roustam: “Only for two months. I am the newest member. When they got their
contract in Thailand they were urgently looking for a drummer. Some of my
friends recommended me and here I am.”
E: “You are from Russia?”
Roustam: “Yes, I come from Upa. Since Russia is open now, many young people like
to go abroad to see something new. I came to Thailand, I like it here.”
E: “I know you have been in Thailand for two months. How many days in Pattaya?”
Tini: “One month already. We have been to Bangkok and it’s quite a nice change
staying in Pattaya.”
E: “Only one month in Bangkok and you have had enough? How come?”
Dodi: “Too much traffic. We know Bangkok very well already. We came in 1991 for
the first time, we had a contract. Pattaya has a beach. We all love scuba
diving. We did it a lot in Napoli, now we can do it again.”
E: “No problem with pollution?”
Poly: “A bit. Around the beach here. On the islands it’s perfect. Maybe we are
spoiled. Naples and especially Capri have crystal-clear waters.”
E: “What do you think about Pattaya in general and about it’s so called
‘naughty’ night-life?”
All at once: “It’s a nice place. We’ve made quite a few excursions already.
About the night-life, to tell you the truth, we don’t know. We have to play
every night. When we come home we just take a shower and go to bed. That’s all.”
E: “Good kids. How long will you stay in Pattaya and what are your next plans?”
Tini: “We would like to continue to play at the Hopf Brew House. It’s a
beautiful place. We all enjoy it. We will have to wait and see if the contract
gets renewed. Our plans for the future? We are going for vacation to Italy in
the middle of July. Hopefully we will return to Pattaya in August. If this is
not possible we might go to Singapore. We like it in Asia. Besides touring in
Italy and once in Bangkok we have performed in Jakarta, Malaysia and Japan.”
E: “Well, I sincerely hope you will stay for quite a while in Pattaya. It was a
great pleasure talking to you, thank you very much.”
After the interview I enjoyed a glass of draft-Weizenbier while listening to the
sound of music from Italy.
From the Tourist Authority of Thailand
As precautionary measures to prevent
and avoid road accidents, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) urges all
road-users to strictly observe the following traffic regulations and
guidelines.
Rules of the Road
1. Before putting a vehicle into motion always check the
following: driver’s license, yearly vehicle tax payment sticker, license plate,
and vehicle condition such as wheel brake, emergency brake, headlights,
tail-lights, etc.
1.1 The maximum speed limit for cars inside a city limit is
60 km/hr and 80 km/hr for outside a city limit.
1.2 The maximum speed limit for motorcycles inside a city
limit is 60 km/hr and 80 km/hr for outside a city limit.
1.3 The driver should pay special attention to highway signs
posted on the left-hand side of the road for specified speed limits.
2. Always drive on the left side of the road. When there are
two or more lanes for traffic in the same direction, slower vehicles must use
the leftmost lane except when passing or making a right turn.
3. Always slow down to a safe and reasonable speed when
driving on a narrow road or when approaching curves, intersections, business or
residential areas, road construction zone, and oncoming vehicles.
4. Never pass any vehicle when driving through residential
areas, intersections, curves, or over a bridge.
Always pass other vehicles on the right.
Never pass other vehicles on the left except when the leading
vehicle is making a right turn or when there are two or more lanes for traffic
in the same direction.
5. When driving at night, always turn on headlights and
tail-lights.
6. Broken down or parked vehicles must be parked on the side
of the road or the shoulder of the road. A warning sign which could be seen over
an appropriate distance must be displayed. At night-time emergency red lights
must be used to provide warning.
7. Give the right-of-way signal to vehicles coming from main
roads.
8. Strictly obey traffic lights and posted traffic signs.
9. Never control a vehicle while under the influence of drugs
or intoxicating liquor, or while being sick or dizzy.
10. Always take safety precautions while in control of a
vehicle.
11. Always allow a safe distance while following a vehicle. A
good rule of thumb is one car-length for every 15 kph.
12. Slow down to a reasonable speed, and do not sound the
horn if it is not necessary while passing through the following zones; school,
hospital or public agency.
13. Always give a headlight signal or sound the horn and make
sure there are no obstructions or oncoming vehicles before passing the leading
vehicle.
14. When a driver is involved in an accident which causes
injuries or property damage, always provide assistance wherever it is necessary.
Immediately notify the nearest police station and identify yourself as well. The
driver who fails to stop at the scene of the accident which he is responsible
for would be considered guilty and might be sentenced to imprisonment.
15. Sound the horn and slow down the vehicle when approaching
a stopped vehicle which is letting passengers get on or get off and give warning
particularly to deaf and blind persons.
Baht Bus use in Pattaya
How to use:
Because of the overabundance of baht buses in Pattaya, many
problems may occur between passengers and drivers because of the lack of
understanding.
Almost al drivers pay rental fees for the buses that they
drive.
Sometimes they (the drivers) may attempt to get more money
than that which is established as a fixed price which is established by the
Ministry of Transportation.
This is not a common case among all drivers, but there are
some situations where drivers of the buses attempt to charge higher rates to
support their families.
In order to avoid this problem, we advise all passengers on
baht buses to follow a common standard.
1. Bus fares established within Pattaya are normally five
baht along Pattaya 2nd Road and Beach Road. The same standard fares exist for
trips from Naklua to North Pattaya or Central Pattaya and South Pattaya Roads on
standard routes.
2. Trips from the Air Conditioned bus terminal in North
Pattaya have prices posted for standard routes. Prices are up to negotiations
for passengers who want to charter a baht bus. To avoid problems, negotiate the
price before you go to your destination.
3. Trips to Jomtien on a standard route begin at Wat
Chaimonkol in South Pattaya near the intersection with South Pattaya Road.
Standard fares are 10 baht for a passenger to Jomtien Beach North, 20 baht to
Jomtien Beach South.
4. Negotiate with the driver if you desire to go to a
specific destination because the fare is different and you will not have any
problems if you establish a fixed price before-hand.
5. Take care of your personal belongings at all times and
remember to take them with you when you alight from the bus.
6. If you experience any problems, please call 191 at the
Pattaya Police office or 195 for the Tourist Police assistance and tell them the
number of the baht bus that you were riding on, a three digit number clearly
painted on the side of the vehicle and inside the cab, and the time when the
incident occurred and the police will apprehend the driver to investigate the
problem.
The Tourist Authority of Thailand, Pattaya office is
located at 382/1 Beach Road, between Soi 7 and Soi 8. Tel: (038) 428 750, Fax:
429 113.
Mr. & Mrs. Kim Caula. Mrs. Caula was the
guest of honor. She is a long standing member of the Chaine in Los
Angeles, and is the Exec. Pastry Chef at the L.A. Hilton Hotel.
by Elfi
The host of this month’s dinner of the Chaine de
Rotisseurs was Le Kaiku restaurant in Map Ta Phut owned by new Chaine member
Jean Charles “Charley” Miannay.
Chaine dinners are renowned for their special food and good wines, and it’s
no wonder that even though it’s a few kilometers away from Pattaya, 25
members came to see Charley and enjoy his art of cooking. Charley himself
looks like an artist, apart from his perfectly white, starched chef-jacket,
and art he produced by serving a perfect tasting six-course menu, followed
by coffee and tignaraises.
Members of the Chaine who
attended the dinner.
To welcome his guests, Charley served Punch Le Kaiku,
which gave members the right kick for all that was still to come. The dinner
started with melee de salades au foie gras (mixed salad with duck liver)
followed by fresh Salmon escalopes with morels. A lemon sorbet in vodka,
very unusual indeed but very refreshing at the same time, completed the hors
d’oeuvres. Wild boar civet was the main dish, prepared to perfection. An
assortment of French cheese, never to be missed with French food, and
profiterolles (eclairs) in chocolate sauce as dessert rounded out this first
class dinner. Three different, excel-lent wines were served: Mon Bazillac,
Muscadet and Chateau St. Jean de Graves, all sponsored by well known wine
distributor of Pattaya: B.J. Wine Cellar, who’s Mr. Rop showed once again
his generosity towards good friends.
Kim Caula and Walter Thenisch
present Charlie with his award for hosting the dinner.
French cognac served at the very end gave the final touch
to a perfect meal.
All in all it was a very enjoyable evening in a relaxing and cozy atmosphere
with a French touch. Charley and his friend Eric Lamiraux, Chef Cafe de
France at the Novotel in Bangkok, who helped out for this special event,
received plaques of appreciation from the Bailli Kim Caula who was, as well
as all the other guests, very pleased with the presentation.
