|
Miss Poland pageant tours Pattaya
Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome
presents garlands to the contestants on arrival.
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Poland is a long way from Thailand, but that doesn’t seem to bother
organizers of that country’s national beauty pageant who brought the
contestants to Pattaya Oct. 6-7.
Twenty-four semifinals visited the Jo Louis Puppet Theatre, Nong Nooch
Tropical Garden and toured the city as part of a sweep through Thailand that
is being filmed and will be shown in Poland on the evening of the pageant’s
finals Oct. 24. The contestants also visited Bangkok and Phuket before
departing Oct. 13.
Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome said the city was honored to host the Miss Poland
contestants and the video will be good for the city. It is one of several
pageants to visit Pattaya, including the Miss Czech 2008 and Miss Thailand
2009 contests.
These two contestants radiate
beauty.
Beauty and the beast.
The contestants enjoy the Jo
Louis Puppet show.
A novel way to ride an
elephant.
The contestants take an
elephant ride while admiring
the landscape in Nong Nooch Tropical Garden.
Chonburi Governor Senee
Jittakasem welcomes the crew.
PCEC visits Ho Chi Minh City
Emcee Richard Silverberg welcomed everyone to the regular
Sunday meeting of the Pattaya City Expats Club on October 11 at the Amari’s
Henry J. Bean’s Restaurant and after the usual announcements, called on
fellow member Gary Hacker. Gary, in addition to being one of the US Embassy
wardens for Pattaya, enjoys traveling and has previously shared his trips
with the club, including his past trip to Hanoi, Vietnam.
 PCEC
member Richard Silverberg, MC for the day, introduces fellow member Gary
Hacker, by telling us a bit about of Gary’s interesting background.
As with his presentation on Hanoi, Gary took everyone on a great trip to
Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam. With his usual interesting and
entertaining commentary, he showed many pictures he took on the trip. As a
bonus, he also provided some pictures and brief commentary on his most
recent trip to Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Gary said it used to be there was no visa on arrival for Vietnam. You had to
get your visa from the Vietnamese Embassy in Bangkok. However, that has
changed. You can now get a visa on arrival provided you use an authorized
internet service to obtain the paperwork; their website is
www.visa-vietnam.org. Gary suggests that you download the form and email it
to [email protected] as the service fee is $18 instead of $20 USD if
you do it online. On arrival, the visa stamp is another $25. Speaking of
U.S. dollars, Gary suggests that you take U.S. currency, preferably in $1
and $5 denomination, as all restaurants and hotels in Saigon prefer it over
the Vietnamese dong.
Gary said Saigon has a nice new airport. On arrival, expect a thorough
inspection by customs. He took a taxi to his hotel at a cost of about $9
USD. If you are going the economy route, you can catch bus number 152 at the
gate into the airport for a cost of 1,000 dong (exchange rate is about
18,000 to $1 USD). He stayed at the conveniently located Nhat Ha 2 Hotel,
149 Ly Tu Trong Street for $35 USD a night - nice room, not shabby, included
breakfast. It was convenient to walk to many places of interest; one being
the Ben Thanh Market which takes up an entire city block.
 Roger
Rabbit, a.k.a. Derek McCarrick, proudly shows the MBE he was awarded by Her
Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. 74 years young, Derek raises money for many
charities by dressing up as a rabbit (named Roger) and competing in
marathons. Well done, Derek!
Gary said that Saigon is significantly different from Hanoi. It is much
larger with a population of about 7 million. There is a lot of carryover
from the French Colonial era. One being that the streets are laid out in
similar fashion to French streets, with several tree lined wide boulevards.
Another being the many push carts selling baguettes with butter and jam.
Gary said he especially liked the coffee in Saigon.
Another thing about Saigon is the number of motorbikes; they are all over
the place and much more in evidence than here in Thailand. For touring, Gary
said he walked to most places as they were not too far. He visited places
such as Notre Dame Cathedral, Opera House, and the War Museum. He also said
a visit to two of the older hotels is well worth it, the Rex is one and the
Majestic is the other. Both are charming and have historical significance.
Just walking around you will see many food stands, shops, and many lovely
Vietnamese ladies wearing the traditional áo dài (a silk tunic worn over
pantaloons). He also recommended a visit to Cholon District 5 (Chinatown)
for great shopping.
 Gary
entertained PCEC members with the account of his trip to Saigon.
He also said you should take a ferry across the Saigon River to see the
other side. Another enjoyable side trip is to take a small boat to see the
Mekong Delta. The one he took stopped at a salt water taffy factory and at a
rather exotic place for lunch offering such things as alligator, pelican,
and cobra blood to drink. They declined and asked the boat operator to take
them to a more conventional place to eat.
Another enjoyable side trip is to Vung Tau going by Hydrofoil. Gary said
there was much to see and do there and one could easily spend 2 or 3 days.
Although it is the base for oil and gas workers, it has become quite a
resort with both mountain and ocean scenery. There are many parks along the
water’s edge.
Overall, Gary found Saigon and the surrounding area to be a great place to
visit with good accommodations, transportation, and food. He said the people
are very friendly. He invited anyone wanting more information or advice to
contact him by email (email address is [email protected]).
In conclusion, Gary summarized his most recent trip, which was to Phnom
Penh, another city with leftover evidence of the French colonial era. There
are many pedicabs available to get around. Some things to see and do are
visiting the central market, the riverfront with restaurants on one side and
a park on the other, and the new Naga Casino and Hotel, a massive place.
Gary said that on his visit, the place was virtually empty of customers.
Outside of town, there are many villages and temples to see. Gary then
answered many questions from the audience.
Emcee Richard updated everyone on upcoming events and called on David Meador
to conduct the always informative, interesting, and sometimes humorous Open
Forum where questions are asked and answered about living in Thailand and
Pattaya in particular.
Dusit Thani Pattaya celebrates its performance
with an “All-Star Night” staff party
Management and staff enjoy an All Star party at the Dusit Thani Pattaya.
In its desire to enliven the
spirits of its management and staff, Dusit Thani Pattaya held its annual
staff party with this year’s theme, “All-Star Night” involving presentations
that emulated and impersonated chosen celebrities.
Chatchawal Supachayanont, hotel general manager acknowledged the hotel’s
efforts in riding out the economic crisis through their relentless and
dedicated performance in spite of the business slowdown.
VIP guests included Wallop Bhukkanasut, chairman of the Thai Airways
executive board committee, Paolo Randone of dusitD2 baraquda Pattaya and
Octavio Gamarra, senior vice president of Dusit International.
Women With A Mission at work in Sattahip
Rosanne Diamente
Members of the Women With a Mission charity group are working with
the Mercy Foundation of Pattaya to kick off small business enterprises as
part of their Chonburi Handicap Project. They hope this will establish a
sustainable income for 10 handicap persons and their families living in the
Sattahip area.
 The
delivery crew arrives with the fish.
On September 14, Rosanne Diamente with WWM, along with Pim Seaton from Mercy
Foundation and Judy Hoppe met at the local government office in Sattahip
where the first 10 handicap persons received funds to start this new
project.
For an investment of 4,000 baht, three cement fish ponds can be constructed
on each person’s property, with enough money left over to buy the food
needed to feed the fish for four months. If all goes right, after those four
months each family should have 450 fully grown hand fed fish to sell. They
will then take the fish to the local market to sell for a good profit.
This way, the handicap will have a sustainable business to earn the revenue
they desperately need to help their families and to feel useful and not a
burden.
 Preparing
the fish for their new homes.
Pim Seaton has set up training with the local government to teach the
handicap how to take care of the fish and then how to market them, thus
building a small business enterprise. The people are very excited to become
productive family members.
Working with the Redemptorist Center of Pattaya and local social worker
Joom, handicapped persons are chosen according to their family income and
whether the work can be done by the handicapped person.
We hope to establish more of these programs around the Chonburi area, but
that can only be done with the help of the local community.
If you would like to know more about the projects Women With a Mission are
doing please view our web site at
www.mywwm.org.
She is all smiles as she begins a new career in fish farming.
Filling up the cement “ponds” and getting them ready for the fish.
Proving shade is important for healthy fish.
The little critters adapt to their new home.
Rosanne Diamente (5th right), Pim Seaton (4th right) and Judy Hoppe (8th
right)
met at the local government office in Sattahip where the first 10 handicap
persons received funds to start this new project.
Rotary clubs in Pattaya win top Thailand trophies
Recognised for outstanding achievements in 2008-09
PDG Premprecha Dibbayawan (3rd right) presents the HRH Crown Prince
Vajiralongkorn Trophy to Past President Brendan Kelly (2nd left) as Past
President Judy Hoppe (left) PP Dennis Stark (4th right) Philip Morris (2nd
right) and PDG Peter Malhotra (right) look on.
Paul Strachan
Rotarians the world over are renowned for their humanitarian
efforts, work that is done on a purely voluntary basis, that has spawned
countless legacies that have changed the lives of millions.
 Peter
Malhotra, District Governor for 2008-09 expounds on the work of Rotary and
how the two clubs came to be recognised for their outstanding achievements.
This work is often a selfless task, which involves members sacrificing much
of their free time and funds in order to get these projects up and running.
In Pattaya there are a number of Rotary Clubs, all of which have adhered to
the motto ‘Service above self’.
At Alois Restaurant on Thappraya Road recently members from the Rotary Club
Eastern Seaboard and the Rotary Club of Jomtien Pattaya gathered for a
celebratory dinner, one that had been arranged by Peter Malhotra, Immediate
Past District Governor of district 3340 Rotary International.
 Past
President Brendan Kelly stated that the award was a symbol of the success
brought about by friendship amongst the Rotarians.
In his speech Peter Malhotra acknowledged the fine work that both these
clubs have been doing, work that has, in turn been observed closely at
district and national level which needed to be rewarded officially.
Peter said, “In the last Rotary year (2008-09) Rotarians in Pattaya have
proven beyond any doubt that their hearts are in the right place. Our Rotary
International theme was ‘Make Dreams Real’ for the world’s children. By your
dedication and tireless work, you have done just that. You have helped to
reduce the rate of child mortality and given children hope for a future.”
The Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya has achieved extraordinary success in not
just the number of projects they have managed but also the scope of each
one. Thus they were the recipient of the HRH Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn
Trophy for their outstanding ongoing projects for children.
Of note are projects to build playgrounds at orphanages, provide
scholarships for orphans, supply clean water filtration systems to schools
and communities, caring for children of families that are infected with the
HIV/AIDS virus, supplying warm clothing for children in the rural areas of
Thailand and supporting the schools for the blind and the physically
challenged in Pattaya.
The club has also worked together with Rotary clubs in the Philippines
supporting centres for children who have been neglected, abandoned and
abused.
PDG Premprecha Dibbayawan presented the HRH Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn
Trophy to Past President Brendan Kelly, who stated that the award was a
symbol of the success of all the members who worked closely together to
ensure all the projects were carried out diligently.
Another award that was given out on the night was the Krom Phra Kamphaeng
Phet Akrayothin Trophy.
H.R.H. Prince Purachatra Krom Phra Kampaeng Bejra or Krom Phra Kamphaeng
Phet Akrayothin was the Charter President of the Rotary Club of Bangkok in
1930 and is also considered to be the man who introduced Rotary to Thailand.
The trophy is awarded to the Rotary Club which has achieved the highest
percentage for attendance at the regular weekly meetings during the period
of July 1 until April 30 of the following year. This year the Rotary Club
Eastern Seaboard received this coveted trophy and it was accepted by Past
President Toy Ryser.
Adding to the convivial nature of the evening the managing director of Alois
restaurant, Vichai Priyatrakulruji, presented a cheque for 20,000 baht to
the A.X. Fassbind Memorial Fund of the Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya. It
was accepted by PP Judy Hoppe, PDG Premprecha Dibbayawan, Dennis Stark,
Apple Thamcharoen, and Jan Chris von Koss.
This evening was a testament to the work that these two Rotary Clubs do,
work that will continue to enhance the lives of disadvantaged children in
and beyond our community.
PDG Peter Malhotra presents the Krom Phra Kamphaeng Phet Akrayothin Trophy
to Past President Toy Ryser witnessed by Carl Dyson, Daniel Biel, Joy
Kealaphoumy and Assistant Governors, Steve Ryser (2008-09) and Jan Abbink
(2009-10).
Vichai Priyatrakulruji presents a cheque for 20,000 baht to PP Judy Hoppe.
Members of the A.X. Fassbind Memorial Fund include PP Dennis Stark,
Apple Thamcharoen, Jan Chris von Koss and PDG Premprecha Dibbayawan.
Rotarians and guests enjoy a congenial evening of friendship and fine
dining.
|
