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Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum Pattaya supports another
world record attempt
Suchada Tupchai
The world of the bizarre returns to Pattaya as Ripley’s
Believe It or Not! Museum supports another weird world record attempt - 28
days in 12 square meter unit with 1,500 centipedes. Not just ordinary
centipedes, the smallest ranges from 5 inches (12.5 centimeters) long and
up.
 A
group of people will vie for the first prize of 30,000 baht by spending 28
days in a 3 x 4 meter unit with 1,500 large creepy crawlies.
Somporn Narchuatrong, Ripley’s general manager said
during the press conference, “We will attempt to break bigger and better
world records with yet more strange events.”
The record attempt will involve a group of people vying
for the first prize of 30,000 baht spending 28 days in a 3 x 4 meter unit
with 1,500 large creepy crawlies. Contenders will eat sleep and spend all
their time in the units, complete with modern facilities, but will only be
able to take a 15-minute break from the confined environment every 8 hours.
The current record owner is Boontawee Chiengwong of the
Thailand’s Samui Island snake park.
The first day of the endurance test is October 12, and
the attempt, should it make it the entire distance, would conclude on
November 9 this year at the Royal Garden Plaza. Entrance tickets through out
the event are available at Ripley’s Museum at just 50 baht per person.
One million customers send Emirates’ record tumbling
The award-winning international carrier enjoyed a bumper
August, with a total of 1,009,636 people flying on its ever-growing network.
This compares with 792,399 last August, up more than 27 percent.
Emirates also achieved a new record of 2,115 departures
from Dubai International Airport, against 1,577 in August 2002. And freight
loads surged to 52,430 tons, 28 percent more than last August and the most
ever carried by the airline - which pays special attention to cargo.
Emirates Group Chairman, His Highness Sheikh Ahmed Bin
Saeed Al-Maktoum, said, “This highlights the success of Dubai’s drive to
become the new global transportation hub for the 21st century and attract 15
million visitors by the year 2010. But we must never be complacent, and even
as our own records fall, we are preparing to redouble our efforts by
unveiling new products to please our passengers.”
Finnair opens Shanghai route
On September 2, Finnair began flying to Shanghai, the
only airline to operate such a service from Northern Europe. The new route
represents an extension of Finnair’s Asian growth strategy.
“Helsinki is situated on the biggest and fastest flight
route between Europe and the Far East. Finnair is exploiting this
geographical advantage,” said Finnair’s Petteri Kostermaa, VP Route
Strategies and Traffic Planning.
Finnair will fly to Shanghai three times a week, on
Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Like the other Far Eastern services, the
flights will depart from Helsinki late in the afternoon, ensuring good
through connections to the Shanghai flight for flights arriving from
European cities such as Stockholm, Oslo, Gothenburg and Copenhagen. The
return flight will also offer good onward links to Finnair’s European
network.
THAI to launch three new routes
Thailand’s national flag carrier is to launch three new
routes to India, China and Laos this winter, and is also preparing to
inaugurate routes linking Phuket and Chiang Mai with Australia and Japan.
Kanok Aphiradee, president of Thai Airways International,
said that flights would operate on the three new routes from 26 October 2003
to 27 March 2004 in response to the growing trade and investment sector, as
well as to accommodate more tourist and business travelers during the cold
season.
In October, he said, the airline would receive two new
Boeing 727-400’s for use on the new routes to Chenai in India, Guilin in
China, and Luang Prabang in Laos. In addition, THAI is preparing to
introduce new routes linking Sydney, Melbourne, Phuket and Bangkok, Tokyo
and Chiang Mai, and Tokyo and Rangoon. The airline will also increase the
number of domestic and international flights on a number of routes,
including Bangkok-London, Bangkok-Frankfurt, Bangkok-Copenhagen,
Bangkok-Seoul, Bangkok-Jakarta, Bangkok-Colombo and Bangkok-Krabi. (TNA)
Air India offers special discount fares for senior citizens
Senior citizens traveling to USA, UK and Europe from
India can now receive special discounted fares for travel on Air India
flights. These return fares which are up to 25 percent lower than normal
fares will be valid for outbound travel from India up to March 31, 2004.
Travel on these special tickets will, however, not be
valid out of India during January 2004 and from USA-UK-Europe to India
between November 15 and December 31, 2004. Men age 65 and over and women age
60 and over will be eligible for these discounted fares.
Seized drug house to be opened up for tourists
For years, Phanom Sapanek was the scourge
of the northern province of Lampang, operating a methamphetamines and
bribery racket from his 100 million baht Thai-style wooden house while
simultaneously sitting on the provincial administrative organization.
But now his house, seized by the Anti Money Laundering
Office (AMLO) is to be turned into a tourist attraction in a bid to conserve
what has been described as an important part of the province’s
architectural heritage and is expected to be open to the public in October.
Sitting on 39 rai of land, it is thought to be one of the
largest Thai-style residential complexes in the country, and constructed in
the elegant Thai Lanna architectural design.
AMLO secretary-general Pol. Maj. Gen. Pheeraphan Premphut
said that AMLO was handing over the house to the Lampang authorities, as it
did not have sufficient personnel or funding to ensure that the house was
kept in good condition. (TNA)
National Artists to showcase work at Bangkok’s new airport
Passengers using Bangkok’s new
international airport will be able to see the work of some of the
country’s most prominent artists, thanks to a joint project by New Bangkok
International Airport Co. (NBIA) and Silpakorn University.
As part of the scheme, the NBIA is providing 700,000 baht
in financial support to showcase works by 37 National Artists and leading
art teachers at Suvarnabhumi Airport, due for completion in 2005.
It is hoped that the ‘Suvarnabhumi Arts’ program will
introduce international visitors to Thailand’s unique artistic heritage
through the works of famous Thai artists including Prayat Phongdam, Preecha
Thaothong, Nonthiwan Chantanaphalin, Thaworn Ko-udomwit, and Panya
Wichinthanasan. (TNA)
Amadeus pushes e-ticketing
Amadeus has just launched e-ticketing for
10 additional airlines in Thailand following its introduction with Thai
Airways International in February. The 10 airlines are: American Airlines,
Air France, Continental Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa, Swiss Air Lines, Austrian
Airlines, Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines and United Airlines.
E-ticketing, pioneered by major airlines in the US, is
expected to replace paper tickets, underscored by recent announcements of
United, Air Canada and British Airways to phase them out by the end of 2004.
Amadeus president Asia Pacific, David Brett, said,
“E-ticketing had been implemented in 40 markets for 19 airlines in the
second quarter of this year. The average cost of issuing an e-ticket is only
around US$1 or US$2 per ticket. We expect this technology to generate cost
savings of up to US$7 per ticket for airlines.” (TTG Asia)
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