Putting on traditional marching band numbers and moves with a touch of Thai culture proved to be the winning recipe for Pattaya’s all-city student marching band as it swept up gold medals and rave reviews across Europe.

Area residents prayed, made merit, paraded and lent help to the needy in honor of HM Queen Sirikit as the Eastern Seaboard marked her 79th birthday, national Mother’s Day.

The two newest members of the Pattaya City Council officially took office Aug. 9, filling seats left vacant by resignations before last month’s general election.

Residents of Banglamung’s Sak Ngaew neighborhood are opposing a planned extension of Highway 7 that cuts their village in half, placing most of its 100 homes under the elevated roadway.

This month’s shore leave in Pattaya for U.S. Navy sailors was not all rest and recreation, with personnel from the USS George Washington aircraft carrier group spending some of their time doing charity work on behalf area students, senior citizens and disabled residents.

Pattaya officials have finally moved against the city’s many jet ski scam artists, ordering every vendor working the area’s beaches to register at city hall by Aug. 10 or be classified a criminal operator.

Pattaya officials are hoping a proposal to build a tunnel to relieve traffic congestion at the intersection of Central and Sukhumvit roads will be approved by November.

Cars and motorcycles from 27 manufacturers revved up Central Festival Pattaya Beach for the Fast to Fest 2011 Pattaya Motor Show.

Local junior female windsurfer Siriporn Kaewduangngak or “Nong Dao” came in second place and took the silver medal at the World Youth Windsurfing Championships (maximum 18-years of age) held in Zadar, Croatia last month, and in the process booked her ticket on the plane to compete in the Pre-Olympics in Perth, Australia at the end of the year.

Nearly three months after promising a strict crackdown on scamming jet ski vendors, Pattaya officials are no closer to actually ending near-daily incidents of extortion and intimidation of tourists by beachfront criminal elements.