Annual fete so popular tickets sales exceeded space
As twilight sets on 2003 and the festive
season is upon us, the Pattaya Sports Club (PSC) celebrated the end of
another successful year as a gallimaufry of 450 members and guests crammed
in to the traditional stomping grounds of the Town in Town Hotel to
joyously participate in yet another party. In fact, so successful are the
PSC parties that many had to be turned away after ticket sales exceeded
the available space.
Gerry
Carpenter and Frank Collins get into the swing of the festive season.
Party stalwarts made a beeline for the bar while many,
accompanied by wives and significant ‘others’ swiftly headed for a
table before the band began playing, while others were content to sit in
the hall and enjoy the cool evening breeze on the terrace overlooking the
pool.
Bjarne’s
set for the night, well for a little while at least.
Bjarne Nielsen assumed the position of tending to the
door and asking for tickets. La and Jim Montgomery, with the help of Mio
Aamlid, madly folded raffle tickets for the evening. While Ken Crow, party
chairman, tended to necessary organizational glitches, members ate and
drank their way through the evening. The hotel laid on yet another superb
buffet as diners lined up repeatedly for extra helpings.
Another
successful raffle over and done with - Jackie Montgomery, Ken Crow, La
Montgomery and Carl Engel’s daughter were exhausted after a good effort.
The band entertained the audience with assorted musical
numbers and was ably assisted by the young, talented Karin Thompson,
daughter of Bill, who was coaxed into a few songs, much to the delight of
the audience. Karin’s performance was followed by a classical Thai dance
from the graceful Nang.
Carl
Engel, PSC president, not one for speeches, welcomed everyone to the
annual Christmas party.
As the night rolled on and the beverages rolled out, it
was the raffle draw that kept people glued to their seats, and despite
some minor hiccups with the tickets, it proved a successful fundraiser for
the evening. On offer were the customary rice cookers, fans, hot water
urns and last but not least gold.
After President Carl Engel’s speech, the lovely Jackie Montgomery
took to the stage to announce the winners of the prizes before the evening
wound down, leaving serious partygoers to continue with their festive
cheer before many petered off into the night, ‘well full of it’.
The
‘Thompson crew’ on the dance floor.
Lucky
gold winners.
This
lucky door prize winner received a TV from President Carl.
People
lined the ballroom foyer for this year’s Christmas party.
Great
roast and smoked ham were aplenty for hungry diners.
The
Town in Town Hotel had plenty of food on offer for their ravenous guests.
Nang
wooed the audience with her graceful moves.
Marriott Resort & Spa hosts special competition
Suchada Tupchai
The popular word game scrabble in English has been around
for many years, as has the Thai language version. However, the enterprising
publisher of the Leaders Digest magazine, Sermsak Sopanont, has reintroduced
the word game to the nation.
Bunwit
Kengrian, chief advisor to Sattahip Naval Operations, presided over the
opening ceremonies.
To coincide with National Sports Day, the Thai Scrabble
Club was launched at the Pattaya Marriott Resort & Spa with Admiral
Bunwit Kengrian presiding over the ceremonies among honored guests from the
city management, council and local and regional politicians.
Sermsak
Sopanont explains the game as the Pattaya Mail team of Brendan Richards,
Suchada Tupchai and Tony Malhotra (left) readies to take on TAT director
Niti Kongrut with two lovely young advisors.
The opening ceremonies were led by a special victory drum
band by local school children, all of who performed exceptionally well,
drawing applause from the numerous guests, hotel management and visitors.
In his opening speech, Sermsak thanked everyone who had
helped him reach his goal of launching the game. “Thai Scrabble is for
everyone interested in Thai language, Thai or foreign. My aim is to promote
Thai language skills among today’s youth and enable them to use their time
wisely in the study of language and vocabulary as encouraged by His Majesty
the King,” said Sermsak.
Victory
drums were hugely popular with everyone.
A special friendly match of scrabble was also held
between the affable Niti Kongrut, TAT director with two lovely young
advisors, and the Pattaya Mail team led by Brendan Richards with Suchada
Tupchai and Tony Malhotra as back-up support and spelling advice.
What seemingly appeared to be an easy game was not true
with both teams finding it challenging to make words out of the letters
given; however, team TAT defeated the Pattaya Mail by a word. As hunger
pangs took over, everyone moved on to a tasty lunch provided by the Marriott
Resort & Spa.
With lunch completed Admiral Bunwit Kengrian presented certificates of
appreciation to those who helped make Sermsak’s dream come true as well as
those who participated in the day’s events.
Annual campaign draws in public for free motorbike safety checks
Suchada Tupchai
The issue of road safety has been the focus of the Ge
Laurent Foundation and the Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya for a number of
years. So much so, they hold a special annual campaign to promote awareness
among the population.
Pattaya
Police Chief Pol. Col. Kamolchai Tienrungroj is flanked by (l-r) President
Peter Malhotra, VP Alvi Sinthuvanik, Past President Kees Peperkamp, Past
President Jon Telleffsen and Ruud de Voss from the Ge Laurent Foundation at
the Annual Road Safety Day event.
This year’s project reached its high point with a
special checkup for the city’s motorcyclists at Mike Shopping Mall on
Beach Road. The shopping center car park was transformed into an informal
garage where hundreds of bikes were given a once-over by the students from
the Arksorn Technical College in Pattaya.
Peter Malhotra, Jomtien-Pattaya Rotary Club President
explained in his opening speech that this year’s project was a culmination
of cooperatives from a number of local organizations, chiefly the Ge Laurent
Foundation, Lions Club of Pattaya, the Arksorn School of Technology, Mike
Shopping Mall and the Pattaya Police station.
Peter
Malhotra, Pol Col. Kamolchai Tienrungroj and Pol. Lt.Col. Somchai Sodsai,
Chief of the Pattaya Traffic Police, inspect maintenance work on the
motorbikes.
Peter also welcomed Pol. Kamolchai Tiengrungroj, Pattaya
police superintendent to the podium to officially open the day’s
activities.
Rotary’s ongoing road safety project has emphasized the
importance of not only vehicle care but also a responsible attitude toward
driving or riding on the streets of Pattaya and Jomtien. As Pattaya City and
its surrounding areas continue to grow, so does the number of vehicles on
the road, increasing the rate of accidents and injuries. The Rotary project
includes seminars and educational videos as tools for spreading the word to
the public about the importance of safe driving.
Following the morning’s official duties, Pol. Kamolchai Tiengrungroj
watched the energetic work being carried out by the college students on the
long line of motorcycles waiting for their free inspections. He added that
it is activities such as this that are extremely valuable to the population
and was impressed by the level of cooperation and organization of the event.
He vowed to increase the police presence and participation at the next event
for road safety, which in turn would benefit everyone.
