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Five regions create colorful culture display
Jordanian Minister of Culture is guest of honor at extravaganza
Chonburi Deputy Governor Monthian Thongnit
(center, left) presents H.E. Dr. Adel Tweisi, Minister of Culture from
Jordan, with the key to Pattaya City.
Governor Pracha Taerat and H.E. Dr. Adel
Tweisi and their entourage
tour the festival.
Boonlua Chatree
Bali Hai Pier was the location for the grand Five Regions Cultural
Festival, held over the period August 23 to 26 and opened by Chonburi
Governor Pracha Taerat.
The event was organized by the Chonburi Cultural Office, under Mrs Nipa
Jiamkosit, and had as its guests of honor the Jordanian Ambassador to
Thailand, Mohammed Ali Daher Nsour, and the Jordanian Minister of
Culture Dr Adel Tweisi and his wife.
 Governor
Pracha Taerat bangs the gong to open the festival.
Five elephants were provided to carry the Jordanian guests and the
governor in a parade that passed through Walking Street and ended at the
festival area around the pier. Then, at 8 pm, with the striking of a
gong and the firing of 99 rockets into the sky, the festival was
declared open.
On display were the arts, crafts and performing arts of the North,
Northeast, South, Central and Eastern Regions of Thailand, and the
Chantaburi Dance Art College and the Lopburi Dance Art College also
performed stage shows.
Chonburi was well represented, with displays from Baan Sukhawadee, Nong
Nooch Tropical Village, Million Year Stone Park, the Crocodile Farm,
Sriracha Tiger Zoo, Khao Kheow Open Zoo, Tiffany’s Cabaret, Alcazar
Cabaret, Sanctuary Castle, Art in the Bottle Art, Mini Siam and
Alangkarn.
The Thai Hotel Association Eastern Chapter put on an exhibition with
displays on basketry, hammer smith work, Thai desserts, fruit carvings,
and folklore.
Jordan’s culture was also on display, with a folklore art performance
organized by Dr Adel Tweisi and his wife.
Nipa said the festival, organized to celebrate the 80th birthday of His
Majesty the King, was designed to promote tourism and as a cultural
exchange between Thailand and Jordan. She said the intention was also to
encourage youngsters to take an interest in Thai culture and tradition,
and to join in arts activities.
Students from Chantaburi Dancing Art College
perform a dance in honor of His Majesty the King.
Expert wood carvers display their craft.
Arts and crafts of the North, Northeast,
South, Central and Eastern Regions of Thailand were on display.
Master hair stylists display their art.
Rungratree and Tony Malhotra emcee the event
in Thai and English.
Five elephants carried the Jordanian guests
and the governor in a parade that passed through Walking Street and
ended at the festival area around the pier.
Local students show keen interest in this
exhibition.
Jordan’s culture was also on display, with a
folklore art performance organized by Dr Adel Tweisi and his wife.
Ariyawat married and promoted on same day
The bride, Nam-Oy Lertsiri and
groom, Ariyawat Nuamsawat, pose during the wedding ceremony with parents and
grandmother Chalaem Lertsiri.
Narisa Nitikarn
August 19 was a memorable day for Ariyawat Nuamsawat, a star reporter for
Pattaya Mail. Firstly he married his fiancée, Nam-Oy Lertsiri. Secondly,
during the reception afterwards, greatly to his surprise, Pattaya Mail MD
Pratheep Malhotra announced that Ariyawat was being promoted to the position
of editor of the newspaper.
.jpg) Ariyawat
Nuamsawat, a star reporter for Pattaya Mail now appointed editor and his
fiancée Nam-Oy Lertsiri.
The traditional Thai wedding took place in Bangkla District, Chachoengsao
Province, during the morning, followed by a reception during the afternoon
at the Grand Sole Hotel on Pattaya Second Road.
Guests of honor at the reception included Mayor Niran Wattanasartsathorn,
former MP for Chonburi Chanyuth Hengtrakul, and Pratheep Malhotra.
Niran placed a garland around the neck of Ariyawat, and Chanyuth placed a
garland around the neck of Nam-Oy. Pratheep then congratulated the couple
and wished them and happy and prosperous future, and he then announced the
promotion of Ariyawat to the position of editor of Pattaya Mail.
“Ariyawat began training at the company when he was a senior at university,”
said Pratheep. “He joined the company after he graduated, and has continued
to work here ever since. Today is an auspicious day, and it seems
appropriate to announce that Ariyawat will become the new editor of Pattaya
Mail.”
Hearty cheering greeted the announcement, and the happy couple began their
lives together with the congratulations of everyone on this great double
event.
.jpg)
Chanyuth Hengtrakul former
Member of Parliament joined the ceremony.
.jpg)
Farooq Wongborisuthi, Sanit
Boonmachai, Rattanachai Sutidechanai member of Pattaya City Council, the
newly wed couple, Mayor Niran Wattanasartsathorn, Chutipon Kamolnath council
member, Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh and Verawat Khakhay, join to
congratulate the couple.
.jpg)
Pratheep ‘Peter’ Malhotra
Managing Director of Pattaya Mail Publishing Co., Ltd. expresses good wishes
to the couple and also announces the appointment of Ariyawat Nuamsawat as
the Pattaya Mail editor while the parents Lieutenant Arin and Chatkamol
Nuamsawat witnesses the appointment.
BCCT celebrates tenth anniversary of networking
evenings on the Eastern Seaboard
Graham Macdonald
The British Chamber of Commerce Thailand held its monthly networking
evening at the Hard Rock Resort last Friday. The sponsors were SCI
Double Impact who were represented by the Managing Director Bruce
Darrington. SCI Double Impact is an accountancy company which is
expanding here on the Eastern Seaboard.
 The
British Chamber is once again Platinum Sponsors for this year’s Jesters
Care for Kids charity drive: shown here BCCT Executive Director Greg
Watkins (left) and BCCT Vice Chairman Graham Macdonald (right), present
their sponsorship to Lewis ‘Woody’ Underwood.
There were many people at the event. Trevor Allen from Epicure Catering
was on hand to give his opinion on the culinary delights that were on
offer. Stuart Saunders of dental floss credit card fame was also there.
Steve Graham from ESC was on hand to give advice on all forms of
security systems. Jimmy Howard and his lovely wife Jenny were advising
Joe and Bea Grunwell who was going to win the Rugby World Cup. Andrew
Khoo was promoting the Hard Rock Resort to everyone he could. Peter
Smith was there on behalf of AA Insurance whilst his partner Malcolm
Scorer was hosting an event for the Elite Card programme at the Montien
Hotel. Everyone enjoyed themselves and the whole evening was a huge
success.
 Joe
Grunwell, Managing Director of Comcon Services (Thailand) Co., Ltd.,
James Howard, Managing Director of Katoen Natie Sembcorp (Thailand) Ltd.
and Trevor Allen, Director of Epicure Catering Co., Ltd.
The evening marked another milestone for the BCCT as it celebrated its
tenth anniversary of having a committee and networking evenings on the
Eastern Seaboard. The chamber now has over sixty companies who are
either in Chonburi or Rayong provinces.
The surviving founding members are GKN Driveline Ltd and MBMG
International Ltd., and Graham Macdonald of MBMG Int. has been the
chairman since the BCCT started here.
When asked what he thought the BCCT had to offer, Graham explained, “The
chamber has many different functions. We are the oldest western Chamber
in Thailand and have been here for over sixty years. In this time we
have learned what people need and expect from us. We now have extensive
experience in business presentations, business lunches, networking
opportunities, Thai language functions, briefings, lobbying, publicity,
sponsorship, trade missions, gathering information of all sorts,
signposting, mini-ambassador programmes, mentoring, sports and social
events, BCCT publications and the BCCT library. Basically, we are here
to help out members run their businesses successfully. The chamber,
under Executive Director Greg Watkins, has expanded to 640 member
companies and the staff in the Bangkok office does an excellent job in
helping with all sorts of enquiries and requests. We also do charitable
activities and that is why I am delighted to see Lewis (Woody) Underwood
here.”
 Samuel
Peter, Assistant Manager (F&B) of Amari Orchid Resort & Tower, Thatsanee
On-on, Assistant Sales Manager of Mantra Restaurant & Bar and Elyes Ben
Brahim, Director of Operations of Hard Rock Hotel Pattaya.
Graham went on to say, “As you may know I am also president of Care for
Kids and I am very pleased and proud to announce that the British
Chamber will be Platinum Sponsors for this year’s Jesters Care for Kids
charity drive. Woody and the Jesters have done a fantastic job over the
last ten years and thousands of deprived children have benefited from
the money that has been raised by Woody and his team. I would like to
use this opportunity to encourage people to go to the Fair this coming
Sunday. It is at the Diana Driving Range and all will be welcome -
especially kids. I would also urge people to go to Jameson’s Irish Pub
on Saturday, 15th September. We have many different items up for auction
and all proceeds will go to Care for Kids. We will also have the Rugby
World Cup on at the same time as well as Premiership football so it will
be a fun time for all.”
The next BCCT Networking evening will be at Manhattans Restaurant later
this month. Details of the event will be published in the Pattaya Mail
closer to the date.
Stuart Saunders from EsDesign (Far East)
Co., Ltd., Gerry Germenis, General Manager / Director of ESC and Michael
Goetz, Resident Manager of Amari Orchid Resort & Tower.
Peter Johansson, Managing Director of Tellus
Systems Limited and Clive N. Butcher, Managing Director of Highfield
Equity Co., Ltd.
Nawaporn Fuengfoo, Legal Director of Oz Thai
Sports Co., Ltd., Wilaree Kleesuwan, Lawyer of Sukhothai Associates
Inter Law Co., Ltd. and Thatsanee On-on, Assistant Sales Manager of
Mantra Restaurant & Bar.
Rene Christensen Dokbua from IT Mechanics
Group Corporation Co., Ltd., Ian Scrivener of ZedZero Two and Ian
Sherratt
from Scale Technology (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
Kevin D. Fisher, Manager Far East Region of
Cranes and Equipment Ltd. Europe-Middle East-Asia, Graham Macdonald,
Chairman of BCCT, Lewis ‘Woody’ Underwood, Greg Watkins, Executive
Director of BCCT and Steve Graham, Managing Director of ESC.
Gregory Pitt, Managing Director of Mackenzie
Smith Law, John Hammond from Eastern Seaboard Properties (E.S.P.)
International Co., Ltd., Barry J Hayles from E.S.P. Management Co., Ltd.
and James Saville, Director of Corporate Services & Sports of Asian
University.
Steve Graham, Managing Director of ESC,
Andrew Khoo, General Manager of Hard Rock Hotel Pattaya, Bruce
Darrington, Managing Director of SCI Double Impact, Mark Butters,
Director of BCCT and Hamish Dodds, CEO of Hard Rock International.
Allan Jackson from Sarens Asia, Richard V.
Jones, Director-Interim Management, David Mandel, Director-Business
Services Practice and Somkiat Ruentongdee, Executive Vice President of
C.P. Land Co., Ltd.
Rotary District Governor makes official visit to local clubs
Conducts seminar to advance world understanding, goodwill and peace
Narisa Nitikarn
District Governor Dr. Arnon Chirajavala made his official visit to the
Rotary Clubs of Pattaya, Sriracha and Laem Chabang on August 17-18.
 The
three gurus of Rotary, DG Dr. Arnon Chirajavala (center), Past District
Governor Premprecha Dibbayawan (left), and Past District Governor Som
Indra-payoong conduct the seminar.
This is a customary duty of a district governor whereby he visits every
Rotary Club in his district at least once during his term in office.
District 3340 R.I. stretches from the north-eastern-most to the
eastern-most provinces in Thailand, so a governor’s job to visit all 60
clubs for the purpose of instruction and giving advice is quite an
arduous one.
At the end of his business meetings with the presidents and secretaries
of the 3 clubs, the Rotarians jointly held a fellowship evening at the
Town in Town Hotel to welcome the governor and ensure that his visit was
not only all business but also an enjoyable one.
During the course of the evening DG Arnon presented club presidents
Wiboon Rakthongsuk of Sriracha, Surin Ratanawicha of Laem Chabang and
Preecha Peethong of Pattaya, each with a special pin of achievement from
Rotary International President, Wilfrid J. Wilkinson in recognition of
their induction of new members into their respective clubs.
The following day a seminar was held on Rotary Membership Development
and the Rotary Foundation.
DG Dr. Arnon stressed on the importance of bringing in new members into
the Rotary clubs as in the past few years the numbers were dwindling and
Rotary needs members to help in their noble task of doing good in the
world.
Dr. Arnon said that, “the mission of The Rotary Foundation is to enable
Rotarians to advance world understanding, goodwill and peace through the
improvement of health, the support of education and the alleviation of
poverty.
“The Rotary Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation that is supported
solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the
Foundation who share its vision of a better world.
“The Foundation’s Humanitarian Programs fund international Rotary club
and district projects to improve the quality of life, providing health
care, clean water, food, education, and other essential needs primarily
in the developing world. One of the major Humanitarian Programs is
PolioPlus, which seeks to eradicate the poliovirus worldwide. Through
its Educational Programs, the Foundation provides funding for some 1,200
students to study abroad each year. Grants are also awarded to
university teachers to teach in developing countries and for exchanges
of business and professional people. Former participants in the
Foundation’s programs have the opportunity to continue their affiliation
with Rotary as Foundation Alumni.”
Dr. Arnon also spoke of the Rotary Peace and Conflict Studies Program
which was established to provide professionals from around the world the
opportunity to be trained in conflict resolution and mediation
strategies and to become better equipped to help prevent and resolve
conflict, as well as foster policies and create settings that ensure
peace, worldwide.”
Rotarians from 21 clubs in the eastern region of Thailand, attended this
seminar and at the completion of the colloquium went off in their
separate directions, vowing to implement the Rotary ideals and programs
to make the world a better place for everyone.
District Governor Dr. Arnon Chirajavala pins
the badge of achievement on club presidents Wiboon Rakthongsuk, Surin
Ratanawicha and Preecha Peethong.
Santsak Ngampiches celebrates his 66th
Santsak Ngampiches, former member of
parliament for Chonburi, held a party at the Grand Sole Hotel on August
20 to celebrate his 66th birthday. Joining Santsak to welcome guests
from the worlds of politics, business and show business were his sons
Poramet, also a former MP for Chonburi, and Ekasit, who is an assistant
to the mayor of Pattaya. Amongst the guests were Mayor Niran
Wattanasartsathorn, former Chonburi MP Chanyuth Hengtrakul, Mai
Chaiyanit, mayor of Nongprue Municipality, Banglamung District Chief
Pratheep Chongsuebtham, Dr Thanakom Manthananon, director of Phyathai
Hospital in Sriracha, and Surat Mekawarakul, executive managing director
of Mike Shopping Mall Co Ltd. Pattaya City councilors and
representatives of the Mass Media Club and Pattaya Mail Publishing Co
Ltd also attended the gathering.
“New” Shenanigans holds soft opening in The Avenue
A most revered monk chanted a prayer and
anointed the main entrance.
Narisa Nitikarn
After spending 10 years hidden away under the Marriott Resort and Spa,
Shenanigans Irish Pub shut its doors there for the last time after a
raucous party on August 9. Ownership, management and staff then spent
the next couple of weeks moving lock, stock and barrel across 2nd Road
to their new home in the upscale ‘The Avenue’ center.
On August 25, as the grueling move was finally nearing completion, nine
monks from Dharma Samakee Temple were invited to perform a blessing
ritual to bring the new premises good fortune and prosperity. Trevor
Allen, owner, and Simon Dutton, general manager, treated the monks to
lunch, after which a most revered monk anointed the location with sacred
symbols.
With the formal festivities finished, Shenanigans held a soft opening
party with those in attendance able to lay claim to being the first to
tipple a pint in the new surroundings.
An official grand opening is scheduled for sometime at the beginning of
this month.
Nine monks from Dharma Samakee Temple were
invited to perform a blessing ritual to bring the new premises good
fortune and prosperity.
The soft opening included entertainment from
the resident band.
A horseshoe shaped bar similar to the old
premises has been recreated in Shenanigans new home in The Avenue on 2nd
Road.
Sports on a large screen TV will be an
attraction at the “new” Shenanigans Irish Pub.
International students complete “Asian Experience” at Asian U
Susan Joyce
After three weeks, twenty eight undergraduates and post graduates from
ten different countries have just completed their “Asian Experience”
with Asian University. They are returning to Europe with an enhanced
knowledge of business and culture in Thailand.
 Students
visit Buddha Mountain.
They spent their first four nights on campus alongside the Asian U
students, then four nights in Bangkok, and the rest of the time they
stayed at the Grand Jomtien Palace hotel. They have had many new
experiences. Four separate courses were included in their program, cross
cultural management and communication in Asia, International Business:
an Asian Perspective, Emerging Economies in Asia and Asian Culture and
Philosophy.
The lecturers were all well known in their fields. Kriengsek (the Thai
coach) enlightened everyone with information about some of the
differences between us and had the delegates taking part in role plays
about the way we interact with one another; James Rooney told the
stories of several successful entrepreneurs, all based in Thailand; Dr.
Narachai taught about the Thai economy; whilst Professor Krairit covered
marketing and people management in Asia.
A special guest lecturer was Dr. Tengku Mahaleel Ariff from Malaysia, an
ex CEO of Proton cars. He came to Asian U and gave an entertaining and
informative talk on globalisation, from an Asian perspective. The
auditorium was filled with the Summer University participants, as well
as Asian U students and staff.
 Ladies
pose with a hedge carved into the shape of an elephant in Bang Pa In.
Asian U lecturers included David Tan, who gave the group a taste of Thai
and Asian business law, and Kelly Ritchey who covered financing in Asia.
Dr. Viphandh Roengpithya (president of Asian U) attended many of the
events and gave several lectures covering the history of Thailand and
some of his many experiences working in Thailand and elsewhere.
Throughout the program, the participants especially enjoyed the
informality and chance to talk with Dr. Vip and all the other
presenters.
Apart from the classroom experiences, the students had the chance to
visit businesses in this part of Thailand. The Thai President Food (Mama
noodle) factory at Sriracha welcomed the group and Mama kindly provided
a helpful guide to tell us about the plant and answer questions. Mama
generously gave each delegate some samples of a new-recipe of the
popular noodles.
 Adam
and Marta take their first ride on an elephant.
The Toyota Motor plant in Ban Po was new, big and very impressive. The
environmentally friendly plant was opened at the start of the year, and
assembles pick-ups for export. The group had the chance to see the
assembly lines first hand, and again ask questions of the management.
The other visits were to the Bangkok Hospital Pattaya, where again the
hosts were senior staff, including Dr Iain Corness. After a presentation
on the business side of the hospital, the effects of tourist
nationalities and numbers, and information about some of the special
medical treatments available, a guided tour gave everyone a chance to
see for themselves. The European visitors were amazed, they thought they
were in a five star hotel, not a hospital!
 Come
on in, the water’s lovely.
The final visit was to a real five star hotel, the Amari in Pattaya.
Again, the general manager (Dominic) greeted the group and then Khun
Sunday gave an interesting presentation about the hotel chain and the
ongoing expansion and other developments. Dr. Vip was able to add some
more about the history of the hotel as he has family connections. After
the visit, the group enjoyed supper at Henry Bean’s, with Dr. Vip as
host.
The students’ representative, Adam, from Aston University, England, gave
a vote of thanks to Dr. Vip for all his input, advice and help with the
program. Dr. Vip gave each delegate a special present from Asian U and
Thailand; a gold badge to commemorate HM the King’s 80th birthday.
 The
students’ representative, Adam from Aston University in England, thanks
Dr. Vip for all his input, advice and help with the program.
Of course there were also social events, a visit to Koh Larn for games;
Thai culture, food and dance lessons from the Asian U students; sports
and games in the university sports hall, with the Asian U students; and
an international evening to give the Thais a chance to learn a little
about the visitors’ countries.
Elephant riding was a first for many of the group, the talk on
meditation from Chao Khun Suchart at Wat Yan was enlightening, a visit
to Nong Nooch was fun and interesting, Thai cooking was another
experience to take home. The delegates all enjoyed themselves, and they
all learnt a lot: from the lectures, the visits, the Thai students that
they met, and each other. Apart from the formal activities, they enjoyed
exploring on their own, and having further adventures. Joao, from
Portugal, said it was hard to identify the highlight, but it was
probably the lectures in Bangkok from eminent Thais.
The final dinner was happy and sad, but everyone is leaving with a new
group of real international friends in Thailand and Europe. The staff at
Asian U are now sorting out the plans for next year’s Summer University!
Bronagh, Marta & Marta sip a cool drink on
the river.
A novel form of transportation near Koh Chee
Chan.
Ingo ticks up another one
Jessica assists as Ingo cuts his birthday
cake.
Miss Terry Diner
Ingo Raeuber, the GM of the Pinnacle Resort and Spa celebrated his 42
years with friends last week. 42 years on terra firma, not 42 years as
the Pinnacle head honcho!
As you would imagine, Ingo has a large circle of friends from all over
the globe, and the folk at the birthday party reflected this, with many
guests from Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, UK, Thailand, Australia,
Korea, France and Nepal being present.
The celebration was held at the Casa Pascal restaurant, with a
multi-course banquet being offered, along with several wines, of which
more than several bottles were consumed. The occasion was so important
that Pascal and Kim Schnyder even gave themselves a night off from their
work in the restaurant to just be able to sit down with their friend
Ingo and the other guests.
For those who did not have a headache the following day, it had been a
night to remember!
Ingo thanks all his friends for attending
and most especially Pascal Schnyder for a tremendous banquet.
Christina and Malcolm Boden are flanked by a
guest from Germany and Ingo.
The Casa Pascal ‘Song Birds’ sang Happy
Birthday.
Friends from near and far were present to
wish Ingo many happy returns of the day.
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