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Full house for Milan Crosse networking dinner
No surprise that there was a full house for the regular
monthly Milan Crosse Networking event, where the setting was again at the
Orangery by the Sea restaurant in the Avenue Complex on Pattaya 2nd Road.
 Jim
Howard, consultant, Milan Crosse Creative Ltd., Chris Bruton, Dataconsult
(Economist Intelligence Unit), Maurice Bromley, Go Industries and Stuart
Saunders from Es Design.
On a perfect balmy evening the group gathered on the outside terrace for
pre-dinner cocktails. The attendees representing the cream of the business
community on the Eastern Seaboard had all gathered in anticipation of the
presentation to be made by the doyen of the commentators on the Thai
political scene, Chris Bruton from Dataconsult (Economist Intelligence
Unit). Spotted amongst the crowd were Sam Parino of Alliance Refinery, Rick
Truscott of Power Generation Services, Kevin Fisher of Cranes and Equipment
Asia, John Gillies of Indochine, Attasilp Tokrisana of Boral Cement
(Thailand), Maurice Bromley of Go Industries and those gentlemen about town
Roger Yee, Joe Grunwell and Paul Wilkinson.
An excellent dinner was served in the private dining room and the superb
food was complemented by fine Australian wines. The highlight of the event
was the presentation from Chris and once again in his own inimitable style
he was able to give a comprehensive overview of the current political
situation with a very humorous edge. The style of Chris’ presentation made
the rather complex situation all the more understandable, helped by his
obvious familiarity with the main players and his long experience of the
political scene in Thailand. The presentation was really well received and
provoked great interest amongst the enthralled audience.
An energetic question and answer session followed during which many of the
potential scenarios for the future were outlined. For sure if any of these
gentlemen were eligible for political office in Thailand then the future
would be bright!
The evening was hosted by Jim Howard on behalf of Milan Crosse accompanied
by Cameron Stirling, the creative director of Milan Crosse Creative Co.,
Ltd.
World’s longest cake baked to
celebrate birthday of HM the Queen
76-meter longan cake raises funds for underprivileged children
HSH Prince Bhisadej Rajanee
(center),
chairman of the Royal Projects Foundation cuts the first piece of cake.
Vimolrat Singnikorn
The “world’s longest cake” was baked on August 12 to celebrate the
birthday of Her Majesty the Queen, and National Mother’s Day.
The cake, at 76 meters representing every year of Her Majesty’s life, was
prepared by the Amari Orchid Resort and Tower with the proceeds raised by the
event going to the Baht for a Better Life charity, which helps children from
underprivileged backgrounds.
This was the fifth year that the Amari Resort has organized this event, which
took place at Central Centre and was held with the cooperation of the Royal
Projects, Pattaya City Hall and Sophon Cable TV.
A briefing had been held on August 1 at Central Centre, led by HSH Prince
Bhisadej Rajanee, chairman of the Royal Projects Foundation along with Lady
Datchaneerat Rajanee, Mayor Itthipol Khunplome, Amari Orchid General Manager
Dominik Stamm, Rattana Jipathiwat Norapanlop, vice president of Central Group Co
Ltd, and Patra Sapyaprapa, zone executive of Central Pattana (Public) Co Ltd.
This year the cake was made with longan grown on one of the Royal Projects, and
sold in pieces at Central Centre for 60 baht per portion, or 699 baht for one
meter.
The event was held in total over the period August 9 to 12, with other
activities including students baking a cake for their mothers, and a singing
mother and dancing child contest. Prizes of 3,000 baht, 2,000 baht and 1,000
baht went to the winners of these contests.
The Baht for a Better Life charity was founded in 1995 and is divided into two
areas. One area raises funds for scholarships, books and uniforms for students
from the Duang Prateep Foundation at the Klong Toey slum in Bangkok, while the
other area is concerned with erecting and improving the buildings of schools in
remote or underprivileged areas of the country.
Traditional Thai dancers help
celebrate the “world’s longest cake”
baked in honor of Her Majesty the Queen’s 76th birthday.
Cowgirl wins Cowboy Night prize at Green Bottle
Sue Kukarja (left) receives the
spoils
of her 2nd place finish from Komsan Srisam.
Fun and laughter are the main draw
for the stage show.
Pattarasiri Siriwatanakul (left)
receives her 1st
place prize from Komsan Srisam.
Vimolrat Singnikorn
The Green Bottle Pub staged Cowboy Night on August 1, with guests invited to
turn up in Wild West attire and other activities all designed to take people’s
minds off the increasingly dire economy.
Managing director of the Diana Group Sopin Thappajug acted as host, with guests
including tourists, members of the business fraternity, and the media.
Prizes were given for the best cowboy costume, first prize going to Pattarasiri
Siriwatanakul of the Eastern Grand Palace, who made an exotic cowgirl and
received a 2,000 baht gift voucher. Sue Kukarja from Pattaya Mail Publishing Co
Ltd came in second place and received a 1,000 baht voucher.
The next special event on the calendar for the Green Bottle is Elvis Night,
which will be held on September 19, starting at 8:30 p.m.
Royal Cliff Beach Resort becomes the first hotel property
in the world to win 5 “Best of Awards of Excellence 2008”
The Royal Cliff Beach Resort
Managing Director Panga Vathanakul (1st row centre), General Manager Alexander
Haeusler (1st row 3rd right), Deputy General Manager Ranjith Chandrasiri (1st
row 4th right), Food & Beverage Director Paitoon Ritdej (1st row 4th left) and
Executive Chef Walter Thenisch (1st row 3rd left) proudly hold the five Best of
Awards of Excellence 2008 certificates, while senior executives and staff of the
Resort celebrate the unrivalled achievement with a champagne toast.
The Royal Cliff Beach Resort has become the first hotel
property in the world to win five “Best of Awards of Excellence 2008” from New
York’s Wine Spectator magazine, which is a new world record!
It is for the first time that five such awards are won by one hotel property in
one calendar year anywhere in the world. The restaurants which won the coveted
awards are Caprice Restaurant & Bar (contemporary European), Larn Thong
Restaurant (classical Thai), Grill Room & Wine Cellar (international grilled
specialities), Rossini (Italian cuisine) and Chrysanthemum Palace (Cantonese
cuisine).
The Resort was holding a world record set by winning three such awards in 2007.
Now, it has broken its own record by bagging five awards this year. In 2007,
Grill Room & Wine Cellar, Rossini and Chrysanthemum Palace achieved the “Best of
Award of Excellence”. Along with those three, Caprice Restaurant & Bar, Royal
Wing & Spa, and Larn Thong Restaurant, Royal Cliff Grand & Spa, have been
honored with the Best of Awards of Excellence 2008.
This unrivalled achievement has already been hailed by many wine enthusiasts,
winemakers and wine writers around the world. The award-winning restaurants
offer over 1,000 fabulous wine labels.
With ten of Pattaya’s best restaurants, dining at the Royal Cliff Beach Resort
is like embarking on a tour of the world’s finest cuisines. The just received
extraordinary recognition elevates the Resort as the world’s one and only
property offering ultimate wining and dining indulgence - all under one roof!
Charity Club of Pattaya
welcomes second
Platinum Sponsor
Christina Boden from the Charity Club of Pattaya collected a
cuddle and the second Platinum Sponsorship for the annual Charity Gala Dinner
from Alan Bolton of Alan Bolton Property Consultants on Soi 6/1.
 Christina
receives a cuddle and the club’s second Platinum Sponsorship from Alan Bolton.
The Gala Dinner is scheduled for Saturday January 24, 2009 at the Marriott
Resort & Spa Pattaya.
Alan Bolton became Platinum Sponsor number two and this will be the 3rd year
that Alan has been a sponsor. John Richardson of U.T.S. was the first Platinum
Sponsor this year.
Bertram Bear, the Charity Club’s mascot also got in the act with Alan adding to
Bertram’s wardrobe with a donation of an Alan Bolton Property Consultants
T-Shirts.
UNESCO visits PCEC at HJB’s
The regular Sunday meeting of the Pattaya City Expats Club
got underway at the Amari’s Henry J. Beans Restaurant on Sunday, August 10 with
emcee Richard Silverberg opening the meeting with the usual announcements. He
then introduced the speaker for the morning’s program, Sheldon Shaeffer.
 Canadian
Sheldon Shaeffer, director for the Asia and Pacific Regional Office of UNESCO,
shares with PCEC members his observations on education and literacy throughout
the region. Sheldon also had an interesting perspective on the Preah Vihear
Temple spat between Cambodia and Thailand.
Originally from Canada, Sheldon has been involved in the educational field for
many years, with many of those years in Asia. He holds various degrees including
a PhD in International Development Education from Stanford University, USA. He
currently is the director for the Asia and Pacific Regional Office of the United
Nations Science, Education, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Bangkok
Sheldon noted that UNESCO’s Bangkok Office is involved with 47 countries in a
region from Central Asia to the Pacific Ocean. He provided an overview of the
educational system in Thailand and noted, in some instances, how it compares to
surrounding countries. He said that Thailand has made great progress, especially
in comparison to Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. But, he noted that these other
countries are also taking great efforts to improve their educational systems.
Thus, Thailand needs to continue to make improvements to avoid being passed by.
He provided some statistics on Thai education. He noted that the Thai Ministry
of Education estimates 95% of children in Thailand are in school. He said
UNESCO’s estimate is a bit less, which is attributable to using different
criteria for measurement. He also noted that Thailand estimates their adult
literacy rate at 95%, but noted that this number generally reflects a
self-report by those who are asked if they are literate. He said UNESCO has
conducted studies in other countries based on a closer examination of the
populace’s comprehension of the written language. He emphasized that such a
study has not been done in Thailand so UNESCO cannot make any definite
observation, but that where these studies have been conducted, they generally
result in about a 20% lower estimate than that reflected by the national
government.
He observed that it has often been found that the literacy rate is affected by
whether children are initially taught in the language they speak at home. He
believes that a good approach is to start children learning in the language they
customarily use, but it is often a difficult sell to those that want to unify
their populace through the teaching of a national language.
He also noted that Thailand’s Ministry of Education does have a curriculum for
teaching about the dangers of contracting HIV/AIDS, but thinks it needs more
emphasis as it not universally adopted by all the schools. He also noted that
surrounding countries tend to have more continuity in their educational systems.
Although Thailand has continuity in its educational bureaucracy, it has had at
least 6 different Ministers of Education since he took over as director of
Bangkok’s UNESCO office in 2001. Sheldon noted that this does hamper things as
it is always good to have a consistent approach over time from those that direct
policy.
In response to a question from the audience, Sheldon said that Thailand has been
emphasizing the need to get away from teaching by rote. But, he said that this
will take time to fully implement as it involves retraining a substantial number
of teachers throughout the country. However, he believes they will get there
eventually.
Sheldon then commented on the current dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over
the recent designation of the Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site.
First, Sheldon said that although it is deemed a UNESCO World Heritage site,
UNESCO does not designate the site. The World Heritage Committee representing
the member nations to the World Heritage Convention receives, reviews, and
accepts such sites. A site placed on UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites not
only receives publicity, which may benefit tourism, but it can also receive
financial assistance to preserve the site from the World Heritage fund.
He went on to note that many borders, not just between Cambodia and Thailand,
are not well defined. In the case of the Preah Vihear site, as a result of a
dispute between Cambodia and Thailand, the International Court of Justice in
1962 ruled that the temple itself was in Cambodia, but did not rule on an
adjacent area of land of 4.6 square kilometers, which still remains in dispute.
The designation and events surrounding its nomination have rekindled the border
dispute. Sheldon said he did not know what would happen, but believes that the
military situation will ease. However, he does not anticipate that there will be
a resolution to the overall dispute anytime soon.
Sheldon’s talk was informative and of great interest, generating many questions
from the audience. As to the work of UNESCO’s Bangkok Office, Sheldon referred
everyone to their website www. unescobkk.org
MC Richard then brought us up to date on upcoming events. This was followed by
the usual humorous and interesting Open Forum session conducted by Sig Sigworth
and Lawrie Mcloughlin.
K.R. Bar and Steve Puttock donate to Charity Club
A representative for Apple
presents a donation
to Christina Boden from the Charity Club of Pattaya.
On Sunday August 10, Christina Boden of the Charity Club of
Pattaya was given cash by Steve Puttock and a representative of Apple, owner of
the K.R. Bar in Jomtien. The money they donated totaled 15,000 baht and will be
used for the Charity Club of Pattaya’s latest project, sending essential food
parcels to the needy in Isaan.
Club members have also been donating food parcels and clothing ready to be taken
to the villagers by Peter Rottmann who is the Charity Club’s representative for
that area.
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