etravelblackboard.com Virgin Blue announced that the rising cost of fuel has forced the airline to increase the levy on international flights as well as double charges on baggage. The airline also said there will be a rise from $40 to $60 on baggage fees for flights to New Zealand, Fiji, Bali, Phuket, Port Moresby, Solomon Islands, Samoa, Cook Island, Port Vila and Tonga.


A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.

nationmultimedia.com Thailand planned to invite Indonesia to send observers to "embed" with Thai soldiers at the border where Thai troops clashed with Cambodia, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said. The observers will be witness for the Thai side that it respected the ceasefire with Cambodia.

latimes.com For nearly a decade, Scott and Jean Adam's home has been a 58-foot custom-made sloop and the ocean below. For their most recent adventure, the Adams planned to travel across the Indian Ocean from their temporary dock in Phuket then head up the Red Sea. But a few days ago, UN officials announced that the Quest had been hijacked in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Somalia.

nydailynews.com The Adams have been sailing around the world for more than six years on their yacht, the Quest, according to a website the couple has, detailing their journey. "Another aspect of our travels is friendship evangelism - that is, finding homes for thousands of Bibles," the website states.

cnn.com Jean and Scott Adam and two other people on board, Phyllis Macay and Bob Riggle, had been traveling with yachts participating in the Blue Water Rally since their departure from Phuket. But they broke off on February 15 after leaving Mumbai, India, to take a different route.

Associated Press Authorities rounded up dozens of dissidents and cracked down on calls for a "Jasmine Revolution," which urged demonstrations in more than a dozen Chinese cities Sunday apparently modeled after the wave of pro-democracy protests sweeping the Middle East. The source of the call was not known and many activists seemed not to know what to make of it, even as they spread the word.

monstersandcritics.com Dozens of activists were arrested in Zimbabwe on charges of subverting President Robert Mugabe's government after police raided a public meeting where the revolution in Egypt was being discussed, lawyers said. The incident came amid growing uncertainty over the health of the 86-year-old Mugabe, who failed to return to Harare from Singapore where he was undergoing medical attention.

texakarnagazette.com Dissidents in military-ruled Burma, want to know more about what happened in Egypt despite a state media blackout. ''Everyone is trying to find out information and is interested,'' said Mark Farmaner of the Burma Campaign UK, which is based in London. Dissidents are ''talking about whether they can learn anything from this, and what examples there are,'' he said.

cnn.com On state TV, the son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi blamed drunks, criminals and foreigners for fomenting violence in the North African nation and warned of a chaotic civil war, return to colonialism and mass poverty if citizens didn't rally around the ruling government.

bangkokpost.com Letter: It can't be expected for Phuket to be like a European city, but there are still things the city administrators Phuket bosses can learn. The first of these would be eradicating rip-offs from tuk-tuk drivers, jet-ski operators and others. Next would be a shuttle from the airport to beach resorts. Without improvements, Phuket will continue sliding down in its appeal and, like Pattaya, increasingly attract bottom feeders.

indiatimes.com Passengers on a Malaysia Airlines flight had a close shave as one engine of their aircraft failed soon after take-off. Almost two hours after it departed from Delhi for Kuala Lumpur, MH173 made an emergency landing at the IGI airport with all passengers safe.

melbourneweeklyeastern.com.au Nine months after the siege of Bangkok, Thailand continues to struggle with competing color-coded political factions, against a backdrop of court-endorsed controls on freedom of expression.

bignews.biz Twinpalms Phuket Resort, a privately owned five-star hotel on Phuket, has announced ambitious expansion plans. Twinpalms aims to open a resort in Koh Samui within two years and has already acquired the land for this. They are also planning to establish operations in places such as Hainan in China, Bali in Indonesia, Philippines, India and Vietnam.

thejakartaglobe.com The new ArtScience Museum at Singapore's Marina Bay Sands opened with three blockbuster exhibitions: Genghis Khan: The Exhibition, Traveling The Silk Road: Ancient Pathway To The Modern World and Shipwrecked: Tang Treasures And Monsoon Winds. But instead of zipping through to the exhibitions, here is some advice: Stop, stand back and admire the architecture of the museum itself, for it is a sight to behold. Designed by Israeli-born architect Moshe Safdie, it is in the form of a blossoming lotus, or 10 fingers. Some of the galleries are actually located inside these "fingers."

malaysiasun.com Malaysian police have arrested three suspects involved in the heist of some 725,000 condoms, which have not yet been found.Mohamad Shukri Dahlan, the police chief of Malaysia's northern Perak state, says the heist was "an inside job."

tmcnet.com Conservationists say they got a rare glimpse of a two-metre leatherback - world's most endangered sea turtle - together with dozens of eggs in western Indonesia. Khairul Amra, a member of a local conservation group, said the giant turtle was spotted on a beach on Sumatra over the weekend just before it plunged into the water, leaving 65 eggs.

wsls.com Las Vegas Sands Corp. wants to build "Euro-Vegas" in Spain, its CEO Sheldon Adelson said in Singapore, touting a euros 15 billion ($20.3 billion) plan for a massive strip-style casino resort in Madrid or Barcelona.



February 23-26 Phuket Gay Pride Festival, Patong
February 25-26 Phuket International Blues and Rock Festival 2011
February 26-27 Phuket Spicy Soccer 7s, Phuket International Academy
March 4-6 Pool Asia Expo and Conference, Hilton, Phuket
March 14-19 ADFEST 2011 at Movenpick Resort, Phuket
March 26 St Patrick's Day Ball, Movenpick Resort and Spa, Karon. Details 081 3979809 or 086 9469232
March 27 Earth Hour commemoration on Phuket
April 13-15 Songkran Festival
May New PPAO Hospital to open, Phuket City


Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket