Pattaya Drinking Ban

Yes, you read that correctly. If you like to drink and hang out in the bars and Agogo’s of Pattaya then you won’t be a happy camper over the next 3 weekends as elections draw near.

This coming weekend bars must close by 6pm on June 25 and cannot open again until Midnight on June 26th. This coming weekends ban is due to the fact that it’s the last week to register to vote as well as people getting ready to or going home to vote. For those of you not paying attention that means bars will be CLOSED tonight.

Next weekend Elections will be held on the 3rd so bars will again be closed leading up to the election. While I’m not absolutely sure of the times it’s looking like the bars will close sometime Friday night and not reopen again until late Sunday night or Monday. So just keep in mind that bars will be closed somewhere in the range of July 1st to July 4th.

The hat trick will conclude on the following weekend of July 8th and 9th when Pattaya holds it’s local Elections and bars will most likely be closed again sometime Friday evening until sometime late Sunday night to Monday morning.

While you will still find some dark corners willing to sell a few beers all of the major, or should I say licensed bars, will undoubtedly be closed tight.

I can hear expats and tourists alike scratching their head and whinging about it but it won’t do you any good. If you feel you must drink then stock up ahead of time and make plans with friends. If you don’t need the drink so much but will miss the bars, these weekends provide the perfect opportunities to explore Pattaya for all she has to offer, which is a lot more than most people would surmise.

Just to be clear the first 2 weekends drinking is banned throughout Thailand only the third weekend pertains to Pattaya.

Whatever your plans are be safe and have a great weekend

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Pattaya Jet Ski Scam in Action

Even though Pattaya is in the full grips of low season there are still plenty of tourists around to be taken advantage of at the beach, and they are still being taken by the same jet ski operators that continue to ply their scams on Pattaya beach.

Since I first wrote about the Pattaya jet ski scam in The Pattaya Jet Ski Scam in Pictures there has been a lot of activity from expats and tourists alike telling their stories here and more importantly on the Mayor of Pattaya, Tik Kunplome’s, Facebook page, Pattaya Furure. The Mayor for his part let everyone know that he was on top of the Pattaya Jet ski scam problem and that investigations were already in place, he also took the opportunity to go to Pattaya beach and to the Soi 9 police station for a photo opportunity showing himself in action.

Unfortunately that has been the only action taken in the Pattaya jet ski scam problem. For a few weeks after my initial post about the jet ski scams the Mayors Facebook page was full of activity with people from Pattaya and around the world telling of their experiences being scammed or threatened on Pattaya beach by the jet ski operators. The Mayor seemed to be taking it all in and responded to the majority of comments, and then it all went silent.

At one point the Mayor was asking if someone could put together a power point presentation he could show to Pattaya City Hall with the multitude of pictures and video of the Pattaya jet ski scams that had been posted as well as pictures of the people aiding in the scams. I found this an odd request especially when there was a supposed ongoing investigation into the scams by City Hall. We were told we would hear news of this investigation within weeks of the initial fanfare and here we are 2 months later and still no news of the investigation into the Pattaya jet ski scams.

Back on April 12th there was apparently a meeting between Jet ski operators, City hall and the Mayor where the jet ski operators were told that City Hall is considering banning all jet skis from Pattaya beach. If this was actually stated during the meeting it did absolutely nothing to scare the jet ski operators as they have thumbed their noses at Pattaya City Hall and the Mayor since then by continuing with the jet ski scams openly.

In a more recent development brought to my attention by Camille over at PADI, diving and Instructor Development (IDC) around Thailand , the Pattaya Mail ran an article entitled Justice Ministry, Chonburi governor join fray over Pattaya jet skis which not only talked about the Pattaya jet ski scam problem but also got reactions from Chonburi’s Governor and the Ministry of Justice. Of course,  they are all outraged by the scams being perpetrated on tourists, expats and Thai’s alike and it all makes for great copy but no one has lifted a finger to stop the scams from taking place.

Not to be outdone even Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister in charge of national security, Suthep Thaugsuban, has made headlines in the media by stating  after attending meetings with the Tourist Fraud Prevention Committee that the problem needs to be eliminated.

There are many forms of cheating, starting with Thais cheating foreign tourists, foreign tourists teaming up to cheat other foreigners, and Thais and foreigners working together to cheat other foreign tourists.

From the year 2007 to 2010, around 6,000 Thais were arrested for cheating tourists, and 517 groups of foreign gangs were arrested.

Suthep has assigned the Tourism and Sports Permanent Secretary Sombat Kuruphan the responsibility of preventing tourist fraud in Bangkok and at Suvarnabhumi Airport. At the same time, Interior Permanent Secretary Deputy Pranai Suwannarat will be in charge of towns frequented by tourists such as Phuket, Pattaya, and Chaing Mai.

From the top down there seems to be a lot of Thai politicians talking about fraud prevention in Thailand, they have even gone as far as using stern words towards those committing the fraud on the Thailand tourist community, unfortunately they haven’t gone as far as actually preventing these frauds and in the case of the Pattaya jet ski scam I think we all know who is running the show and it surely isn’t the elected officials.

For now the Pattaya jet ski scam continues daily on Pattaya beach just as it has for the past 2 decades or so and the Mayor for his part still talks openly about making Pattaya a top tourism destination, well Mr. Mayor if you can’t protect the tourists and and citizens of Pattaya from the crimes perpetrated by the jet ski operators on Pattaya beach then it’s highly unlikely that your plans for Pattaya will ever be taken seriously by the much needed tourists you are courting.

I can’t say this strongly enough:

Beware the Pattaya Jet Ski Scam

DO NOT RENT JET SKIS IN PATTAYA

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Thailand Travel Tragedies

Thailand Travel Tragedies is a new website being developed by the parents of Sarah Carter who died mysteriously after staying at the Downtown Inn Hotel in Chiang Mai back in February. Originally it was thought that Sarah and her friends had eaten some toxic seaweed at a local night market that made them ill but it soon became clear that there was more to the story.

Sarah Carter’s friends Emma Langlands, 23, and Amanda Eliason, 24 also became ill that day but with milder symptoms. After food poisoning was ruled out disturbing news of other deaths at the same hotel started to come out. A month before Sarah Carter took ill an American, Mariam Soraya Vorster, 33, of Seattle, died under similar circumstances but not at the same hotel. Within days of Sarah Carter’s death an elderly British couple were found to have died together in room 423 of the Downtown Inn Hotel. A week prior a Thai tourist guide died under similar circumstances.

All together there have been 7 deaths attributed to a mysterious illnes in Chiang Mai. Not helping matters much Chiang Mai Governor Pannada Disakul made the announcement before tests had been completed and came to the conclusion that these deaths were all a coincidence. An independent report has come to the conclusion that at least three of the deaths were due to myocarditis, the enlargement of the heart, cause unknown.

There have been quite a few conspiracy theories making the rounds MSG poisoning to puffer fish disguised as salmon. And while the Downtown Inn Hotel figures prominently in the deaths at least one death, Mariam Soraya Vorster, had no connection whatsoever to the hotel.

Food poisoning is most likely the culprit but because of the way the case was handled it’s doubtful we will ever know.

This has been a tragedy for all concerned and gives us all pause for thought about the things we often eat in Thailand but I have to wonder what a Thailand Travel Tragedies website will really bring to the table.

Richard Carter says the website Thailand Travel Tragedies has been set up because of the cover-ups the family has experienced in Thailand.

I can’t begin to know or understand this mans pain of losing a child and while I’m not sure of a coverup, once again Thailand authorities have bungled an investigation that is important, not only to those involved but to Thailand tourism. Time and time again Thailand has dropped the ball in such cases.

While Thailand Travel Tragedies is still being developed you can go to the home page and read the mission statement which reads in part:

This website has been set up to list all occurrences of fatalities or serious illness contracted while visiting Thailand.

This could be a very good thing. A website dedicated to tracking fatalities and serious illnesses in Thailand. In theory over time we may be able to see seasonal trends or work practices in certain parts of the tourism industry that need to be addressed. If they indeed gather information on all fatalities and serious illness this would be a very resourceful site for travelers as well as Thai authorities because it would be independent. Of course this would all depend on how they gather the information and if all cases are independently confirmed. Rumors and hypotheticals wouldn’t be helpful.

Unfortunately the mission statement goes on to say the following:

Its intention is to make all travelers to Thailand more aware of the very real dangers they face in a country which appears a tropical paradise on the surface but in fact has very low health and safety standards and an undercurrent of drug and human rights crimes covered up from exposure to the rest of the world.

This belies the initial statement in total. While bringing up health and safety standards is definitely within the realm of scope for a website that claims to want to document fatalities and serious illnesses in Thailand the drug and human rights statement pretty much tells the tale. This won’t be an impartial website to help travelers to Thailand understand the trends and risks.

I get it, I really do. The mans daughter died and that has to be an unbearable pain and I would want to lash out against the perceived bad guys too.  But, when you start to look at the facts it becomes a whole lot less clear.

Yes, Thailand is perceived by most of us westerners to have low quality health and safety standards…but do they really? I have always assumed so because I come from America that has some of the strictest health and safety standards in the world. That means it’s the safest, right? Wrong. In 1999 The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta compiled statistics from the most complete food poisoning study ever done in America. The study found that over 76 million Americans suffer food poisoning every year and that results in about 5000 deaths.

The agency’s estimate of annual illnesses caused by food poisoning is more than twice as high as that suggested in earlier studies, which put the figure at 30 million. Its estimate of deaths, on the other hand, is much lower than the old figure of 9,000. We aren’t just talking about mom and pop restaurants here either, major corporations have let everything from contaminated peanut butter to salmonella laced lettuce loose on the public knowingly and people have died.

Food poisoning happens every place in the world and people are dying from it as you read this and there is nothing you can do about it. How outbreaks of food poisoning are handled are critical and this is something Thailand has yet to understand. Hopefully the events of the past few moths in Chiang Mai have provided a wake up call to Thai authorities that they need to do more sooner and give the facts instead of trying to put a good face on things to save tourism.

I’m not going to comment on the human rights violations and drug crimes part of the Thailand Travel Tragedies mission statement as they are just ridiculous additions to what could have been a very resourceful site. Have there been human rights violations in Thailand, YES. Have there been drug crimes in Thailand, YES. As there have in every country in the entire world. Human beings are animals and yes kiddies sometimes we eat our own.

I really hope Mr. Carter can see past his recent tragedy to the point where he does develop Thailand Travel Tragedies into what could be potentially a very resourceful site for both travelers and Thai authorities alike. Not only might he change the climate in Thailand as it concerns reporting and handling such incidents but I think it would be a fitting tribute to a daughter he obviously loves greatly and misses dearly. Maybe through her he can help prevent similar incidents from unfolding as they have in Thailand.

One way to prevent any travel disaster is by using a great holiday provider, this will ensure airfare and accomodation are guranteed in terms of availibility and in case of any other disruptions. I normally use www.cheapholidays.com as they offer travel insurance also which gives me peace of mind and the only thing i worry about is packing for my next destination.

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Here I was out on my normal daily walk and taking pictures when I heard 3 distinct gunshots and yelling a few feet in front of me and to the right.

The gun had a distinct sound that only a Glock could produce and it seemed to be firing hollow point ammunition, or,  it could have been a really cool cap gun for all I know because I know about as much about guns as I know about necrophilia. Just to clarify, I don’t know anything about necrophilia. But I do know police and there were a lot of them around with their guns drawn and smiling.

It would seem I stumbled upon a SWAT team demonstration for visiting dignitaries at the Soi 9 police station. I was deep in thought and taking a picture when I neared the police station parking lot and was so caught off guard by the random gunfire that I actually ducked.

Why do we duck when we hear gunfire?

It seems like a half hearted evolutionary response. It’s like they got to the bottom of the fight or flight response tree and said ” gunfire, evolutionary response=duck because anyone firing a gun at you is definitely aiming at that melon you call a head”.

If I would have been on that evolutionary response team “Duck” would have definitely not been the response. Think about it, you see a violent gang of midgets approaching and you hear gunfire…the response is to duck? And what will you get for your trouble? Shot in the ankles that’s what.

Then again being the smart ass I am there is a good chance that the fight or flight response might have been a shimmy with a 180 degree turn and a Michael Jackson ankle kick. Not anymore embarrassing than ducking really. Well, the cops that saw me got a chuckle at my duck so I doubt the addition of a shimmy and ankle kick would have helped much.

After watching and photographing the events at the police station I got to thinking that maybe following some cops around for the day might be interesting. Obviously the SWAT team was only for show and I doubted they would be called to duty, but there are plenty of boys in brown around.

So, I picked the first police officer I saw and followed him. Fortunately for me he was on foot and didn’t seem to be going far. As a matter of fact he pretty much just walked out into Beach road at Soi 9 and stood there. I got excited when it looked like he might pull someone over or blow his whistle or something but it never happened. My first 15 minutes in real photo journalism wasn’t going so great but you have to admit he cuts a very striking figure.

No, if this photojournalism thing was going to work out I was going to have to go mobile so I beat feet up Soi bucow buakow buakhao that road that goes up to the Tuesday/Friday Market and headed to a place where many low lifes and miscreants are known to hang out, Tukcom. More specifically Starbucks. I had two reasons for my chosen location a perfect vantage point to cover any criminal wrongdoings and excellent Chai Tea Lattes.

My instincts were good,  the full leaf tea latte was perfect, and it didn’t take long before the boys in brown were swarming the place. Okay maybe swarming  isn’t the best word as there were only 3 boys in brown; technically only 2 as I think the one was only a trainee. Either way they were there in force and ready to take on any and all scofflaws.

You might be wondering at this point how I knew there was going to be a police action going on in front of Tukcom, well, like any good photojournalist I have my sources in the police station. Okay, maybe not in the police station but close to the police station. Alright, I overheard 2 cops talking about going to Tukcom to roust criminals.

Anyway I wasn’t 2 sips in to my latte man drink when I saw a very suspicious character rolling up the street, for some reason the police ignored him but I couldn’t help thinking there was definitely an arrestable offense there. What that offense could be I’m not quite sure but he’s definitely violated some law. I mean hell start with the mullet and work your way down.

As a side note and historical reference the man pictured above is known around Pattaya as Glitterman. He rides around town every day just as you see him. Actually this wasn’t a full tilt Glitterman day. On special days he uses another bike with more glitz and he trades the cape in for a full length golden trench coat and a swashbucklers hat complete with feathers as pictured below.

As I looked back to my latte manly cup of hot liquid I caught the police out of the corner of my eye swooping in and taking suspects into custody. You could tell this was serious business by the chains used to chain the suspects together. The criminals were clearly confused by the speed and effectiveness of this police raid.

I know, not much of a crime but I don’t care much for gunfire and really enjoy casually sitting while sipping my tea and doing my investigative journalism. Besides red and white striped curbs are clearly no parking areas and laws were broken and luckily I was there to catch the real police work being done.

As it turns out my investigative journalism career is pretty much stalled at the moment due to the local papers and news organizations not wanting to post such in depth, hard hitting, gritty and raw stories such as I write. Their loss.

Although I was disappointed that no one wanted this story the night turned out better than expected as I started work on a new investigative assignment on Walking street at Angelwitch A Go Go.This one may take a while as I cultivate informants.

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Thailand is hoping that those very familiar words that started the gold boom in America back in the late 1800′s will help to spark a mini boom of their own in Thailand.

Thai officials are hoping to trigger a tourist boom by promoting a gold panning festival in April along the Wang River in the northern province of Lampang. Residents of the Wang Nua district in northern Lampang have been supplementing their income for generations by panning for gold along the river during the dry season.

While the district doesn’t have enough gold deposits to support large scale mining operations it certainly has enough to supplement the locals income by an average of 9000 baht ( $ 300 ) per person during the dry season. Nothing to sneeze at for the locals but will this be enough to draw tourists to Thailand?

The gold panning festival will coincide with the Songkran festival in April which may or may not be a good thing. Coupled with the fact that the locals, who presumably know what they are doing, are only bringing in an average of $300 for a few months work there isn’t much incentive for tourists to come. Who knows maybe someone will strike it rich and start a new gold boom but I think Thailand would do well to publicize the already great festivals it has to a larger audience before seeing if this new festival pans out.

Drug Resistant Malaria in Thailand

Since 2007 when a new strain of drug resistant malaria was found along the Thailand-Cambodia border the World Health Organization ( WHO ) has been putting all their resources to work  to battle the resistant disease that could potentially spread rapidly and put millions of lives at risk.

In the 2007 cases of Malaria that presented in both Cambodia and Thailand were found to be resistant to artemisinin, the best malaria drug on the market. The most potent weapon in the fight against malaria was the treatment but now that drug resistant strains of the disease have arisen the WHO has aimed it’s resources towards the eradication of the drug resistant strain and stopping it’s spread internationally.

Malaria prevention has made amazing strides in the last decade, by WHO estimates the number of malaria cases has fallen by more than 50 percent in 43 countries. In 34 African countries estimates that more than 730,000 lives were saved between 2000 and 2010; nearly three quarters of them since 2006, when the use of both insecticide treated mosquito nets and artemisinin-based combination therapies became more widespread.

Malaria health experts warn that the loss of artemisinin-based combination therapies as an effective treatment would send the malaria-related death toll soaring again.

The Global Plan for Artemisinin Resistance Containment was developed by the WHO Global Malaria Programme through consultation with over 100 malaria experts from across the Roll Back Malaria Partnership. Funding was provided by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The new plan aims to contain and prevent artemisinin resistance through five steps:

1. Stop the spread of resistant parasites. A fully funded and implemented malaria control agenda would address many of the needs for the containment and prevention of artemisinin resistance. Additional funding will be needed to stop the spread of resistant parasites in areas where there is evidence of artemisinin resistance.The global plan estimates that it will cost an additional US$10-20 per person in areas of confirmed resistance along the Cambodia-Thailand border and US$8-10 per person in the at-risk locations within the Greater Mekong area.
2. Increase monitoring and surveillance for artemisinin resistance. WHO estimated in 2010 that only 31 of the 75 countries that should be conducting routine testing of the efficacy of artemisinin-based combination therapies actually did so. There is a risk of artemisinin resistance emerging silently in areas without ongoing surveillance.
3. Improve access to malaria diagnostic testing and use artemisinin-based combination therapies only to combat malaria. These therapies are frequently used to treat causes of fever other than malaria, which can increase the risk of resistance. To reduce the number of patients who do not have malaria taking the therapies, WHO recommends diagnostic testing of all suspected malaria cases before treatment.
4. Invest in artemisinin resistance-related research. There is an urgent need to develop more rapid techniques for detecting resistant parasites, and to develop new classes of antimalarial medicines to eventually replace the artemisinin-based combination therapies.
5. Motivate action and mobilize resources. The success of the global plan will depend on a well coordinated and adequately funded response from many stakeholders at global, regional and national levels.

Seeing as the Mekong belt has been historically the epicenter of drug resistant malaria emergence it would seem a lot of the activity to quell the drug resistant disease will take place in and around Thailand and Cambodia.

Every year, there are 250 million cases of malaria infections around the world, causing nearly one million deaths. If the combination therapies in use now see widespread failure then those numbers would rise significantly. Thailand  could and should play a key role in helping to implement these plans.

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DEA Targets Thailand Nightlife

In a new measure to stem criminal drug activity in South East Asia the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, in conjunction with Thailand authorities, have enlisted the help of Bangkok’s notorious nightlife to help in bringing criminals to justice. No, there won’t be undercover Thai female agents with guns hanging out of their g-strings but the Go Go’s and beer bars of Bangkok will definitely play a part in the search for criminal fugitives.

The DEA’s new campaign in Thailand will be using beer cozy’s, coaster’s,  matchbooks and more to track down their most wanted fugitives in South East Asia. Thailand’s nightlife has long been associated with a criminal element and the DEA is hoping that plastering wanted posters on bar paraphernalia throughout Thailand night spots that there is a good chance someone will not only see and recognize the criminals but also turn them in. The DEA and Thai authorities believe there very well may be wanted fugitives hiding in and around the Bangkok nightlife and Thailand in general so they think there is a good chance this initiative will work.

Color me skeptical but I think this is just another waste of time and money on an already over bloated war on drugs. Let’s face it the average punter sitting in a Go Go bar enjoying a drink may notice the wanted posters for a second but I guarantee they will be fighting an uphill battle for that attention from young, exotic, brown skinned beauties dancing in g-strings or less.

Then lets consider the fact that the pictures posted on these wanted posters are often outdated and the punters drinking may have a less than accurate perspective, IE beer goggles. I can imagine there may be a few drunken phone calls to the DEA proclaiming that a fugitive has been spotted only to find out that the fugitive in question is just another random drunk.

Can You Catch a Drug Lord in Thailand?

Now lets consider the more serious implications. We aren’t talking about the run of the mill yabba dealer here, we are talking about criminal king pins such as Wei Hsueh Kang, a high-ranking official of the United Wa State Army, a drug-dealing rebel group that controls a large part of northeastern Burma.

The United Wa State Army has been responsible for producing and trafficking tons of heroin and methamphetamine’s throughout South East Asia. Wei Hsueh Kang isn’t just another criminal, he is the CEO of a criminal organization. Highly unlikely he would be rubbing elbows with the average punter in one of Bangkok’s Go Go bars, and even if he did, do you think it wise to rely on information from loved up drunken tourists and expats?

Another complication is the reward money on offer for information leading to a fugitives arrest. In the case of Wei Hsueh Kang the reward is 2 million dollars, more than enough incentive for a down and out expat or the like to go looking for trouble where they would most assuredly find it. You might think no one would be stupid enough to take on such a task  and I would submit you haven’t met many Thailand expats. I could go on about the stories I have heard while sitting in such bars from supposed ex CIA, FBI and elusive Navy Seals who have run countless black ops in their minds.

And then there are the Thailand expats with a grudge who might find immense joy in cluing in the DEA to a wanted fugitive who turns out to be just another expat who they would love to see twist for a little while.

For it’s part the DEA and Thai authorities will tell you that the program has thus far been a success in Thailand, since it’s implementation in August of last year the DEA web Thailand site has had over 70,000 hits which they claim has generated over 120 leads they are investigating. I’ll bet more than a few of those leads have led to one or more of the scenarios I have described above.

Even though the program has yet to net a wanted fugitive, Thomas Pasquarello, the DEA’s director for East Asia already claims the program as a success:

We have received reports right from the very top of these organizations-they’re not happy with the program. They’re not happy with the publicity. And, again, for any criminal elements, they want to work underneath the radar of law enforcements. And, what this does is it exposes their operations, it exposes their network. So, it has had an impact on their operations

Now, I might be a tad slow today but if the DEA and major South East Asian authorities already know about these organizations and criminals wouldn’t you think they are already not flying below the radar? I doubt very seriously a few drunken tourists and expats seeing their outdated pictures are making them lose any sleep at night.

Although the DEA hasn’t stated the monetary amount dumped into this program I would bet it is in the millions and quite honestly I think those resources could have been used in a much better way, like setting up a hotline to warn punters in Thailand which Go Go bars are padding their bills or who has the best happy hour specials going on any given day. It won’t help to capture any fugitives hiding in Thailand but then again the DEA’s current program won’t either.

Pictures and Video Courtesy VOA

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This week a Puea Thai MP stated that there would definitely be a military coup in October of this year. Surapong Towichakchaikul, a Chiang Mai MP, said on Friday that he had  information which led to the belief that there would definitely be a coup. Apparently the potential coup makers have already drafted a new constitution and have hand picked a general, whose name begins with a “P”, to be the new Prime Minister.

Puea Thai chairman, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, has also received this information but it differs from what the MP had heard. The chairman’s information on the pending coup was generally positive for Thailand as a whole whereas the information received by Chiang Mai MP Surapong Towichakchaikul had very negative connotations for Thailand.

The reasons outlined for the military to stage a new coup were as follows:

1. There were rifts in political parties.  MPs had started to switch parties.  Politicians were up for sale despite being in a democratic system. This was a collapse of democracy.

2. Politicians had blatantly indulged in corruption.  Financiers behind political parties had openly sought interests from politics.

3. Appointments of government officials had been plagued with injustice.  Positions had been put up for sale.  The bureaucratic system had been destroyed.

4. People in society were seriously divided, beyond repair.

October is seen as a perfect month for a coup because that is when the new fiscal year starts in Thailand and the leaders would be better prepared to safeguard the peoples tax money.  Another reason October is seen to be the month of a new coup is because general elections will be taking place and it is believed that the Puea Thai Party will gain a strong foot hold in the government which will be seen as unacceptable by many Bangkokonians.

The Chiang Mai MP released this information, he says, in hopes that it will detract from those plotting a coup and bring to light their actions. Although the very same MP has no problems if there is a coup as long as it is for the betterment of Thailand.

With a long history of coups in Thailand’s past it is easily conceivable that another is around the corner. With 19 Red shirt leaders receiving jail sentences just two weeks ago for their part in the past year of protests and the lingering anger in the rural countryside still unabated anything can happen.

What Thailand’s future holds is anyone’s guess, but there are still dark times ahead unless someone steps forward that has all of Thailand in his or her heart and can bridge the divide that grows larger daily.

While there were many stories on Thailand in the news this week this was the one most under reported and clearly the one that should be on peoples minds…I’ll leave it at that for this week.

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Nicole John, the 17-year-old daughter of the American Ambassador to Thailand Eric John, fell to her death from the 25th story of a New York Apartment on Friday. Nicole John had completed high school in Bangkok this past year and was looking forward to beginning college in New York City when the accident occurred.

The accident happened at the apartment of 25 year-old iIlan Nassimi, who had thrown a party that night. Witnesses from across the street say they saw Nicole climb out of a 25th story window onto a ledge with a camera before falling. The witnesses called emergency services but there was nothing that could have been done to save the girl.

The New York City Medical examiners office released a statement ruling that the death was an accident and that Nicole had succumbed to massive blunt force trauma.

Investigators have now turned their attention to iIlan Nassimi, the owner of the apartment where the party was held. Nassimi was arrested on a misdemeanor charge the night of the incident for serving alcohol to minors, more charges could follow.

By all accounts Ambassador John and his family are very well liked and respected for the work he has done in Thailand since taking the post in 2007. My heartfelt condolences go out to the Ambassador and his family during this tragic time of loss.

Tiger Cub Denied Boarding Pass

Customs officials at Thailand’s Suvarnabumi airport probably see a very strange assortment of things as they scan luggage bound for departing flights but I don’t think they were quite prepared for what they found when they x-rayed what seemed to be a bag containing cuddly stuffed animals,  until one of them moved. Piyawan Palasarn, aged 30 and the owner of said bag, was about to board a flight from Bangkok to Tehran on Thursday when customs officials took her aside.

Exotic animals are very sought after in Iran as pets and can bring huge sums of cash to those willing to smuggle these animals out of the country. In many cases such as this a female is used and baggage is packed with stuffed animals as well to disguise the exotic animal being smuggled. It was surmised that Piyawan Palasarn would earn about 100,000 baht ($3000) for her role in the operation.

When confronted with the evidence against her Palasarn pleaded that she was innocent and that she didn’t even know what was in the bag that was handed to her by others she couldn’t name. Unfortunately for her CCTV camera’s are prevalent throughout the airport and she was captured on video arriving alone and remaining alone from check in to the boarding gates. She will be charged with several wildlife offences and could recieve up to 4 years in jail and a 40,000 baht fine.

A babies bottle with milk and some xanax were found next to the cub in the bag. The xanax was apparently used to try and tranquilize the cub during the flight as doctors found that the cub was force fed at least 10 xanax pills. While xanax would have lowered the metabolic rate of the animal the smugglers failed to realize one thing in their stupidity, that the x-ray machine would pick up a beating heart and other moving organs.

The cub is being cared for at the rescue centre of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation and is said to be doing well despite the smugglers efforts.

Related Articles of Interest:

• Thailand in the News Week Ending 4/24/10
• Thailand News Updates
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 09/04/10
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 12/05/09
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 03/13/10

Really not much to say here as a picture speaks a thousand words. Although I never need an excuse to post a picture of a beautiful Thai woman there really is a story of sorts here. 20 year old Fonthip Watcharatrakul, who won the title Miss Thailand Universe earlier this year, is heading to America to compete in the The 59th Miss Universe pageant on August 23rd in Las Vegas.

She’ll be competing against contestants from 83 countries and I do believe she has a good chance of winning as she is truly is stunning.

While I’m not one for beauty contests, especially one as schlocky as this,  I would be remiss if I didn’t cheer on team Thailand in this regard. Good luck to Miss Fonthip Watcharatrakul bring home that crown to Thailand.

Not Only Men Love Black Stockings

Many women in South East Asia love to wear leggings and stockings and dark colors are very popular,  unfortunately they aren’t just attracting the attention of yours truly and every other warm blooded male. It’s been scientifically proven that mosquitoes are drawn to dark colors and in Thailand there is always the chance that the mosquito is carrying dengue fever.

In just the first 7 months of this year Thailand has reported over 45,000 confirmed cases of dengue fever which is a 40% increase over the same time period last year. Fatalities have also increased with 46 deaths related to the disease this year compared to 30 last year. 26 of those deaths were women between the ages of 10 and 24 making the link to fashion not so silly.

Being at the height of the rainy season which runs from June until September doesn’t help matters much as mosquitoes are abundant and can be found throughout the country whereas the risk is greater in the more rural areas during other times of the year.

Endemic to the region, dengue is a chronic problem during rainy spells, particularly during the monsoons, when standing water and poor sanitary conditions provide welcome breeding grounds for the disease-bearing Aedes mosquito. No vaccine exists for the disease, which disproportionately affects children and the elderly.

Resulting in high fevers, rashes, headaches, joint pain, and sometimes internal bleeding, dengue is a pernicious threat because mosquitoes can lay up to 400 larvae at a time in vases, flower pots, and poorly drained streets.

Dark colors are a bad idea and not just for the ladies. It’s best to wear lighter colors and use some sort of bug protection especially during the rainy season.

In Transition

News and posts have been considerably light over the past month or so;  as you all know I have been wrapping up all the details of my life in the states in anticipation of my big move to Thailand.  Well, with everything just about done,  I will be boarding a plane later this week for Thailand. Emotions are running just a little bit high right now but I know in my heart I have made the right choice and I believe that will be reflected not only on Thailand, Land of Smiles but in my personal life as well.

I want to thank all of you for your support and for taking the journey with me this far. As my journey continues I hope you continue to follow as well because it’s only going to get better from here!

Related Articles of Interest:

• Thailand in the News Week Ending 4/24/10
• Thailand News Updates
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 09/04/10
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 12/05/09
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 03/13/10

Travel and Leisure magazine honored Bangkok with it’s top city award this week and it would seem the residents reveled in this by letting off a couple of grenades.

While I love Bangkok and all it has to offer you have to wonder what the idiots at Travel and Leisure were thinking…or smoking.  The past year has been marred by political unrest and uncertainty as Thai’s find political footholds to change the country. This week two grenades exploded as by elections took place in the city. I’m not even going to bring up the air pollution and traffic.
The Travel and Leisure article went on to say:

Figures from the Tourism Authority of Thailand show that in the first half of the year, the number of tourists and gap year travelers visiting Thailand rose by almost 14 per cent compared to the same period in 2009.

Really? I think someone got their wires crossed. Thailand’s tourism numbers have been sharply down for the year with the first 2 quarters being a total wash due to protests and violence taking place in the capital.

Thailand is a wonderful country to travel to with it’s beautiful landscapes, exotic locales and cultural landmarks but it seems Travel and Leisure were not only off the mark but off their rockers as well. To be fair the cities were picked via a poll and over 16,000 people voted for Bangkok and I probably would have as well but I wouldn’t have candy coated it while wearing my rose tinted glasses.

I didn’t bother checking out who came in second on their list but I wouldn’t be surprised if it were Afghanistan followed by Iraq. Business must be bad for the magazine as it doesn’t look like they can afford to hire fact checkers.

Bangkok and nine provinces remain under emergency control restrictions after months of demonstrations, riots and violence.

Again, I love Thailand and Bangkok…I’m moving there, but that doesn’t mean I can’t call a spade a spade.

Giant Catfish Losing Ground

Or water as it were. With China’s expansion along the Mekong with new hydro electric dams in Laos it looks like some species of catfish will be cut off from spawning grounds.

China has already completed four hydro-power dams on the Mekong, while another 11 are being built or planned in Laos, Thailand and Cambodia. Other smaller dams are proposed along its tributaries. The Mekong is south-east Asia’s longest river, rising in Tibet and flowing through southern China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam before reaching the South China Sea.

The giant catfish, which can grow up to 350kgs (772lbs) and the freshwater stingray, also be affected,  can weigh in at 600kgs (1,320lbs), will be effectively cut off from their spawning grounds up river in Laos and Thailand as they try to make their way from Cambodia and China.

China’s expansion into South East Asia is forging ahead but there is some hope in the Mekong River Commission, an international body made up of Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. The plans for the new dam in Laos are currently under this organizations scrutiny and the World Wildlife Foundation is hoping that they will veto the current plans in hopes that new plans will be drawn up to take into account several species that would be impacted.

You can always get up to the minute Thailand news by checking the RSS feeds located in the far right sidebar.

Related Articles of Interest:

• Thailand in the News Week Ending 4/24/10
• Thailand News Updates
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 09/04/10
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 12/05/09
• Thailand in the News Week Ending 03/13/10