UPDATE: Veg Fest Photo Album Above
travelmole.com Indonesian officials have suspended a pilot after a passenger jet landed at the wrong airport. The BBC reports that a Sriwijaya Air jet had about 100 people on board when it took off from Medan in northern Sumatra headed for Padang. However, it landed at an air force base, 12 km from its destination.
PhuketWATCH Daily Media Wrap
PHUKET: A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.
bernama Thailand is likely to achieve its official target of attracting up to 20 million international tourists this year, its Tourism and Sports Ministry said. Permanent Secretary Suwat Sidthilaw said the number of international tourist arrivals in Thailand this year had reached 15.96 million as of September 2012, an 8.69 percent year-on-year increase.
Phuket Update The team from Phuket leaves today for ITB Singapore. Held from October 17-19 at the iconic Marina Bay Sands. This is easily the most important event of the travel and tourism industry in Asia, bringing together leaders of world tourism from 120 countries. Phuketwan will be there. Look for reports.
bangkokpost.com In 2013, Supalai plans to launch more condo projects in other provinces including Udon Thani, Rayong and Nakhon Ratchasima after entering Had Yai in Songkhla, Phuket, Khon Kaen, Chiang Mai, Chon Buri and Surat Thani this year. The best market is Phuket, followed by Chiang Mai and Had Yai.
thechinapost.com Southeast Asia's top budget carrier AirAsia said it has aborted a $80 million deal to buy Indonesia's Batavia Air because it will be too risky for shareholders.the deal would have weighed on AirAsia as Batavia has $40 million in debt and an aging fleet, said one analyst.
bangkokpost.com Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra plans to file a defamation lawsuit against key members of the Democrat Party for accusing him of pulling strings behind the men in black in the political upheavals of 2010.
Editor's Choice: Today's Must Reading
Confessions of a troll: 'Trolling is an art'
http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/confessions-of-a-troll-trolling-is-an-art-20121015-27n3f.html/
nationmultimedia.com When Pheu Thai bigwigs flew overseas to meet Thaksin two weeks ago, they found out they could not bypass his ex-wife to strike a deal. Seen constantly at Thaksin's side in Hong Kong was Pojaman's brother Bhanapot Damapong. Now another brother, retired national police chief Priewpan Damapong, has become a card-carrying Pheu Thai member. Priewpan's primary role is in the government, where he will become Yingluck's No 2.
pattayadailynews.com South African tourist Jonathan Osborn Koch, 43, fatally shot himself at a Pattaya Beach Road shooting range with a 9 mm pistol. A similar suicide happened with another tourist last year at the shooting range.
nzcity.co.nz A woman whose New Zealand home was used as a transit house for boxes of cash her son allegedly earned from a multi-million drugs empire in Thailand has had a restraining order placed on her home. Police say Elaine Ashby's home was bought with about $184,000 she was given for allowing her house to be used to store up to $11 million in cash earned from Class B and C drugs sold by her son Lee Vincent's business.
thenextweb.com Chinese search giant Baidu is increasing its foothold in Thailand with the release of Baidu PC Faster 2.0 software, which offers security and optimization tools. A beta version of the product was first launched in June and reached more than 1 million downloads in just four months.
telegraph.co.uk A protest by 10,000 Muslims outside the offices of Google in London is just the first in an orchestrated attempt to force the company to remove an anti-Islamic film from website YouTube in Britain.
bbc.co.uk Burma's president has blocked a global Islamic body from opening an office to help Muslims involved in recent communal violence in the west of Burma.Thousands of monks have joined protests against the Organisation of Islamic Conference's plans to open an office.
guardian.co.uk The Scottish First Minister, Alex Salmond, has signalled the start of a two-year campaign to persuade Scots to embrace independence, after agreeing a referendum deal with the British Prime Minister, David Cameron.
Phuket People
hotelchatter.com Regent Hotels will finally open its first new property in a long time early December: the Regent Phuket Cape Panwa, Thailand. Set in its own private bay, 15 minutes away from Phuket town, the hotel features 105 rooms, suites, and villas. All rooms come with an iPad and happily, complimentary WiFi.
nationmultimedia.com There are only three major new hotel developments in the pipeline with a total of 371 rooms over the next two years, adding less than three percent to new supply on Samui, reports Bill Barnett. This contrasts sharply with Phuket, where there are more than 5000 new hotel rooms in the pipeline, resulting in an 11-per-cent spike in supply.
andrew-drummond.com It's always best to buy in an area where local Thais are buying. But not even the richest Thais will stump up the money wanted by some developers on Koh Samui and Phuket.
travelmole.com Royal Caribbean has warned agents that it's going to get tough on discounting as it unveils new commercial terms. The cruise line is cutting its base commission to 10 percent in a bid to encourage greater price clarity and to stop commission rebating.
traveldailymedia.com Thailand-based Onyx Hospitality Group has announced plans to bring its Ozo budget brand to the resort town of Pattaya. The 170-room Ozo Pattaya will be located in centre of the eastern Thai destination and will feature a rooftop swimming pool and restaurant, a fitness centre and snack bar.
afp A ''peeping Tom'' who used a pen-shaped camera to take an upskirt shot of a cabin attendant during a domestic flight in Japan has avoided charges after prosecutors failed to decide which prefecture the plane was flying over at the time, reports said.
Phuket World Sports Wrap
Baumgartner's Jump: Triumph or Freak Show?
A HIGH-SPEED jump from 24 miles was a magnificent thing to watch - but it sure wasn't science
http://science.time.com/2012/10/15/baumgartners-jump-triumph-or-freak-show/?iid=tsmodule/
stuff.co.nz New Zealand cricket great Martin Crowe's family is in "shock" following the news he has lymphoma. The 50-year-old former New Zealand captain was diagnosed with the cancer this week, a statement issued by his manager Louise Henderson said.
Phuket Vegetarian Festival, Day By Day
Parades and Places to Beat the Traffic
LEARN where the parades are each day to avoid Phuket traffic hassles.
http://www.phuketvegetarian.com/phuketvegetarian2012_en.pdf/
Phuket Coming Events 2012
Until October 22 Phuket Vegetarian Festival
October 21-24 Phuket International Sports Fishing titles
November 25 Laguna Phuket Triathlon
November 28 Loy Kratong Day
November 30 AustCham Phuket sundowners social and business networking
December 1 World AIDs Day
December 1-8 King's Cup Regatta
December 5 HM The King's Birthday
December 10 Constitution Day
December 15-20 Patong Carnival
December 25 Christmas Day
Phuket Coming Events 2014
November 14-21 Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket
Dear Sir, I am saddened by the lead photo you choose to display, showing the young boy with an assault rifle piercing his cheek. Why do you choose to glorify the stupid antics of an uneducated boy - that has nothing at all to do with the Vegetarian Festival. The images says 'violence and guns are cool'. He does not know any better, but you should and do. There is so much violence in Phuket, and you still choose this image to depict the Vegetarian Festival. Could you not find other images (of food, families, stalls, dress, history etc) which show this annual event? I am saddened. The media is part of the violence problem. Many of my friends have left the island in the past 5 years feeling that it is totally unsafe, two more have left at the 'almost murder' of Pla Wan Issara in January this year. Murder, shootings, stabbings are more now commonplace here than New York or Johannesburg. Surely it is about time that the media of the island stopped glorifying the violence, and instead take a strong stand against it. You have an important role to play and should be part of the solution - not the problem.
Posted by Anonymous on October 16, 2012 11:43
Editor Comment:
We have no hesitation in taking photographs of any event that occurs on a public street on Phuket and publishing them. To be selective would be to live in your make believe world, where only the good aspects of every event are permitted to go on show.
That said, Phuketwan's views are well-known. We have advocated a broader approach to Phuket's Vegetarian Festival beyond the piercings. Unfortunately, we cannot read those articles loudly to you. The festival itself is non-violent. And as most people understand, weapons do not cause violence nor does the presence of weapons ''glorify violence.'' To blame the media shows your lack of understanding may be wide and deep on most issues. Phuket is far less dangerous and far less violent than you make it out to be. Your fears are unfounded.