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Bangkok Tops “World’s Top City” List, Chiang Mai Second

Thu Jul 29 2010 02:42:21 GMT+0800 (China Standard Time) by Angela Kaye Mason

At a recent news conference, Bangkok Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra stated that the magazine gave the city a much needed morale booster and that it would perhaps help to make sure that the political protesters “behave themselves”. Thousands of international visitors had fled the city and hotels in the area became eerily silent after the political upheaval in the area caused tensions to build.

Bangkok best city Bangkok, July 29 (THAINDIAN NEWS) ‘Travel + Leisure Magazine’ recently gave Bangkok, Thailand their “Top City” award, despite the recent rioting in the streets of the city which sent tourists running for locations abroad. The award has left city officials both humbled and inspired.

One person was killed and ten were wounded on Sunday when a grenade exploded in the middle of a Bangkok shopping area. The authorities would not say whether or not the attack was politically motivated.

“What we have in our hands is very precious,” stated Sukhumbhand. “We must prevent troubles and any more losses from happening in our beloved city. We should not damage it any further.”

The polling for the magazine’s ‘Top Ten Cities’ list was posted in the August issue of ‘Travel + Leisure’ but the votes were actually cast by readers between the months of December and March, and ended just before the chaos broke out in the battered city. Civil disorder broke out in Bangkok just after the magazine’s polling stopped, and lasted 10 weeks. It ended on May 19, with almost 90 killed, and 1400 injured.

The governor of Bangkok went to New York to obtain the award from the publishers of the magazine, and met with Mayor Bloomberg. He asked the mayor of New York for advice in how to pick up a city after such tragedy. “‘Bad things happened, but we must move forward. We can’t stop. We must keep up the morale.’ That’s what Mayor Bloomberg told me,”Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra said.

Source:http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/thailand-tourism/bangkok-tops-worlds-top-city-list-chiang-mai-second_100403522.html

How ICT will change Thailand

Public hearings are under way in Bangkok and elsewhere in Thailand to consider a draft framework for national policy on information and communications technology covering the next decade.

The draft framework, called ICT 2020, has been developed by the Information and Communications Technology Ministry and the National Electronic and Computer Technology Centre (Nectec). It aims to establish the directions in which information and communications technologies (ICT) will develop in Thailand from 2011 to 2020. It has the concept and goal "Smart Government 2020".

The draft is expected to be submitted to the National Information and Communications Technology Committee by the end of this month, following the end of public hearings, and later to be forwarded to the Cabinet for approval.

Nectec’s deputy executive director Chadamas Thuvasethakul said the framework set out to create strategies that would ensure the continued development of ICT to support and enhance the quality of life for all Thai people. It will also create opportunities for Thai people to access knowledge and information via broadband access by ensuring "last mile" [remote rural] access around the country.

The current public hearings both invite public opinions on the draft and promote awareness of ICT 2020, which will come into effect next year. The hearings are expected to be complete by the end of this month. After Cabinet approval, work is expected to begin in October on developing ICT plans for government agencies, according to the provisions of ICT 2020.

The draft framework consists of seven strategies:

1. Providing and developing ICT and broadband infrastructure to allow access to information via broadband Internet for about 95 per cent of Thailand’s population by 2020. This will include "last mile" access to remote areas. While about 50 per cent of students in the country currently have computers and can access information from their homes, this will increase to 75 per cent by 2020. Aspects of this strategy also aim to reduce by at least 25 per cent the importing of telecommunications peripherals from international suppliers.

2. Developing ICT human capital and general IT literacy. The draft focuses on three areas: ICT professionals, ICT-competent workers or the general workforce and individual ICT users. The latter aims to reduce the problem of the "digital divide", with the hope that by 2020 at least 75 per cent of Thai people will benefit from IT literacy with ability to access information. At present, only half of the Thai people realise the important role ICT has in the economy, social development and environment issues. The workforce-related goal is to produce people with a capacity for productivity and international standards. ICT experts will be developed to support both the domestic and international markets.

This strategy also encourages the government to spend much more on research and development, which will help to improve Thailand’s competitiveness.

3. Enhancing and creating competitiveness for Thailand’s ICT industry. The overall aim is to increase the industry’s value to the economy by bringing revenue into the country and supporting the Asean community after 2015. The strategy aims for a domestic ICT industry that represents at least 6.5 per cent of gross domestic product by 2015, increasing to 7 per cent by 2020. It also aims for exports of ICT products, digital content and services with a compound annual growth rate of at least 10 per cent.

4. Developing ICT for good governance and smart government. The draft foresees government agencies being able to provide information, knowledge and communication. This "intelligent government" will feature integration, open government data and e-participation, and government e-services portals will provide services to all Thai people with equal quality.

5. Developing and applying ICT in order to lift the productivity of manufacturing and agricultural industries. This strategy will promote smart services and smart agricultural practices that are expected to increase national productivity and reduce logistics costs.

6. Developing ICT for "life-long learning". This strategy will promote the development of low-cost ICT devices for Thai people by local researchers and developers. It will also encourage people to access knowledge online as a form of life-long learning and promote ICT use by all Thai people.

7. Developing ICT for a green economy and society. This strategy will support moves towards the development of green cities and promote the use of ICT to support a green environment.

Chadamas said public hearings in Bangkok and upcountry were gathering information and directions from the public that would help ICT 2020 to enhance Thailand’s ICT productivity in the future.

Some people have suggested at the public hearings that the ICT 2020 draft should also cover national security, privacy, network security and the arrival of next-generation networks, in order that these issues, as they may affect Thai people, can be addressed, she said.

Source:http://www.nationmultimedia.com/home/2010/08/12/technology/How-ICT-will-change-Thailand-30135750.html

ICT cited as key to stronger, more unified Thailand

Kingdom sets out seven-step vision

Published: 11/08/2010 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Database

Thailand has defined its vision to increase and improve its use of ICT to help develop a stronger economy as well as boost social equality and environmental friendliness by 2020, as part of the Smart Thailand concept.

Manoo Oradeedolchest

Speaking at a public hearing hosted by Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, Chadamas Thuvasethakul, Nectec’s deputy executive director , said ICT can be used to strengthen the kingdom’s economy and reduce the social gap by boosting the public’s knowledge and the quantity of smart human capital through increasing the availability of high-speed Internet.

There are seven strategies of development to drive this vision, starting with building a next-generation infrastructure to allow equal access to high-speed Internet, with a target to reach 80 percent of the population by 2015, up from 3.4 percent today.

The second strategy is to build a more advanced ICT professional workforce and increase hiring so that the field represents at least three percent of the country’s overall workforce, up from 1.09 percent today.

The kingdom will build more highly skilled professionals and new skill capabilities, especially in multidisciplines that are necessary for creativity and innovation in ICT services.

The third approach is to build the ICT industry to become more competitive at Asean level and uplift Thailand’s ICT benchmarking industry competitiveness.

Furthermore, the use of domestic products will be encouraged, especially in software, ICT services and digital content.

‘Smart Government’ is the fourth strategy, providing intelligent and integrated services open to all stakeholders.

Currently e-Government services are still not yet widely used or accessible to citizens, causing Thailand’s rank in the e-Government index to slip from 64 in 2008 down to 76, from a total of 183 countries, in 2010.

Software Park Thailand board chairman Manoo Oradeedolchest said the government should adopt social networking as a tool to reach their citizens and encourage them to become e-Participants, and as a tool to recruit a talented workforce.

Chadamas Thuvasethakul

"Free trade and investment liberisation represents an opportunity to recruit talented people, but it is also a challenge to retain existing talent," he explained.

"The government should be aware of this and leverage use of social media to reach global specialised talent and the young generation."

Chadamas continued that using ICT to build a stronger economy is the fifth strategy, which can be achieved by enabling the use of ICT in agriculture and encouraging the use of wireless sensors with embedded systems and creating innovation in the service industry.

The use of ICT to encourage social equality is the sixth strategy, with the aim that all citizens should gain greater IT literacy through improved access to and utilisation of telecommunications and information services.

Using ICT to sustain environmentally friendly practices is the final strategy, with research and development of green ICT to be encouraged alongside the use of an intelligent transportation system and Smart Grid.

Moreover, Chadamas plans to propose some pilot projects for key initiatives such as Smart Grid, Green Data Center, e-Waste and the second phase of the Intelligent Transportation System.

"The success of this vision will depend on a strong political and a strong leadership and governance structure, together with an effective coordinating mechanism across ministries," she said.

A representative from the Royal Thai Police said the draft should promote the use of domestic security ICT, such as CCTV, to reduce costs from imported technologies and open opportunities for domestic professionals.

"Currently, any incident related to domestic security affairs needs CCTV footage as evidence," said the police source.

"It is estimated that 10 million CCTV cameras are needed to cover all critical areas."

Meanwhile, a representative from the Royal Thai Navy said the draft concentrates only on cyber security, but it should consider using ICT more to strengthen national security issues such as protecting the country and tackling cyber crime.

Methini Thepmani, executive director, Policy and Strategy Bureau, Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, said the draft will be proposed to the National Information Technology Commission (NITC), of which Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva is the chairman, and submit to cabinet a solution by next month.

Currently, there are discussions to establish a sub committee with the Labour Ministry to endorse national IT professional certification for project managers, system analysts and security experts.

Source:http://www.bangkokpost.com/tech/technews/190536/ict-cited-as-key-to-stronger-more-unified-thailand

Koh Kood (Kood Island)

Koh Kood is located at the very end of the Thai eastern maritime territory bordering Cambodia.

Covering 105 square kilometers, it is the second biggest island of the province of Trad , after Koh Chang. Due to past political problems in Cambodia , it was unaccessible for many years but it is now popular with those who seek an untouched paradise. What draws visitors, mostly locals, to come to this island is its completely pristine nature, both inland and underwater. Small mountains and ridged plains have given rise to many inland brooks, streams and waterfalls. Klong Chao Waterfall in particular is particularly spectacular. With three tiers, it brims with glittering water all year round, superb for soaking and swimming. It was once visited by King Mongkut (King Rama VI) and was given the royal name ‘Anamkok Waterfall’ in commemoration to Ong Chiang Lue, a Vietnamese king taking refuge in the Kingdom of Thailand during the reign of King Rama I in the late 18th century.

The original inhabitants were Thais and Cambodians who fled to the Thai territory when the French took over the city of Padjantakiri in 1904. The oldest community is Klong Mad Village whose residents still make a living out of planting rubber trees, coconut trees and basic fisheries. But the biggest community here is Ao Yai Village, a harbor where many fishing boats seek refuge during rough weather.

There is no regular public ferry route to Koh Kood. Some tourists catch a local boat that transports goods to the island, a trip of four to five hours. The boat leaves on Friday and returns on Monday. Chartered boats to the east side of the island take approximately 2 hours twice that for the west side. There are also speedboats, mostly operated by the resorts, that reach this tropical haven in about 90 minutes. The best bet is to buy a package tour that covers accommodation, meals, activities and most importantly transportation. Common activities here are island excursions, a visit to a fishing village, boat tours to nearby islands, swimming, snorkeling, scuba diving and coral reefs.
Bays dot the perimeter of the island with accommodation on Ao Prao, Ao Tapao, Ao Yai Kerd, Ao Klong Jao, Ao Klong Ta Din, Ao Klong Yai Kee, Ao Klong Hin, Ao Klong Hin, and Ao Ngam Kho. The resorts and hotels on the beaches listed above also offer tours. There is no commercial accommodation on Ao Prao, but it’s possible to camp on the beach or to take shelter at a nearby temple.

Before heading out you may want to pack a few essentials such as imperishable instant foods, sunhat, sandals, sun block, insect repellent lotion and balm, seasickness pills and a basic first aid kit. And don’t forget to bring enough money, there are no banks on the island.

Source:http://www.travel-to-thailand.net/islands/koh-kood.html

Chumphon Beaches

General Features
Located 463 km south of Bangkok, Chumphon is bordered by a mountain range and the province of Ranong and part of the Thai-Burma border to the west, the Gulf of Thailand to the east, Prachuap Khiri Khan province to the north, and Surat Thani province to the south. With a high mountain ridge to the east, as well as the west, Chumphon is vulnerable to monsoonal rains from the Gulf. There are two distinct seasons: the rainy season from June until January, and summer from February to May. The three rivers of Taphao, Chumphon and Lang Suan bring regular, year-round flows of water to Chumphon.

Riches on Land and by the Sea
Its proximity to the Gulf of Thailand means that the main occupation of Chumphon folk is agriculturally based in the fertile plains between the mountains where there is high humidity and good quality soil. The areas main income stems from cultivating par? rubber, palm oil, fruits and coffee. Most of Thailand’s coffee is grown in Chumphon. A wide variety of fruit is on sale alongside highways, such as Leb Meu Nang (cooking banana), pineapple from the Sawi district, longan from Lang Suan district, and durian and zalacca palm.

Gateway to the South
Chumphon is the first of Thailand’s southern provinces encountered when driving south, often considered less interesting than neighboring provinces such as Prachuap Khiri Khan, Surat Thani, Phang-nga and Phuket. Normally, tourists flow to destinations further south. However, Chumphon is the gateway to the south and has a number of natural attributes of interest ranging from high mountain ranges, mangrove forests, offshore islands and fertile coral reefs – especially those found in Mu Koh Chumphon Marine National Park. Touring Chumphon presents a variety of interesting attractions to visit such as caves, waterfalls, river rafting, mangroves, beaches and islands.

Source:http://www.travel-to-thailand.net/beachs/chumphon.html

Thailand to release 250,000 wasps to fight South American invader

Thailand is to release a quarter of a million wasps to fight a South American insect wreaking havoc on the country’s cassava crops.

Photo: REUTERS

The tiny parasitic wasps will be unleashed in Thailand’s northeastern province of Khon Kaen on Sunday in an attempt to control the pest outbreak.

The invader, the cassava mealybug, sucks sap from the plants and causes them to shrivel, resulting in the loss of up to half the crop.

The first colony of the wasps – which measure less than two millimetres – was carried by hand from Benin to Bangkok last year for testing and mass rearing.

The Anagyrus lopezi wasp is said to have already shown itself to be a formidable natural enemy of the cassava mealybug in South America and sub-Saharan Africa, injecting their eggs into the mealybugs
.

When the eggs hatch, they kill the unsuspecting host from the inside out. Scientists said the wasps posed no threat to humans, animals, or other insects.

Source:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/thailand/7894693/Thailand-to-release-250000-wasps-to-fight-South-American-invader.html

Phi Phi Island

Regarded by travelers as one of the world’s most beautiful tropical islands, Phi Phi Islands is the most desired place of visit, besides Phuket, in the southwestern coast of Thailand. The islands have long been famous for their exotic appearance and gorgeous fine sandy bays.

The islands are part of a National Marine Park in Krabi Province. They are surrounded by azure deep crystal clear water and rich in marine lives and coral reefs. It is the most popular place in the south of Thailand for snorkeling and scuba diving. Your best bet is to see green and hawksbill turtles munching on bubble corals, black and white banded sea snakes, squid, angelfish, black-tip reef sharks and leopard (zebra) sharks.

The island group is composed of two rocky, tree-covered islets Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Le. Phi Phi Don, the larger islet to the north, is well known for its beautiful beaches and coral formations. The 28-square kilometer island is inhabited by sea gypsies who emigrate from Koh Lipeh in the Tarutao National Park near the Malaysia water. The island’s best diving spots are located at the northern end at Cape Laem and the southern tip at Hua Rah Ket. There are long beaches with rocks scattered about. Ton Sai and Loh Dalam are the most attractive beaches on this island. Tourist facilities and accommodations and tourist services can be found here. Small tour shops here offer diving and snorkeling trips that will take you to nearby islands such as Koh Phi Phi Le, Koh Yung and Koh Mai Phai.

Located nearby Phi Phi Don is Phi Phi Le. The small island is entirely limestone and steep cliffs jutting from the sea. Surrounding waters average about 20 meters in depth, reaching 34 meters at the deepest point off the island’s southern tip. It has several beautiful bays, including Pileh, Maya and Loh Samah. Ao Pileh is a lovely cove enclosed by limestone walls of the island’s cliffs. Ao Maya, which is the shooting site of Leonardo Di Caprio film ‘The Beach’, is a small charming beach with fine soft sand while Ao Lo Sama has a good snorkeling place.

In addition, a neighboring island of Koh Yung north of Koh Phi Phi Don has a stone beach on the east and small sandy beaches amid valleys. The island is teeming with diverse colorful coral reefs. Koh Phai, another island near Koh Yung, has spectacular beaches in its northern and eastern sides. The bank of coral reefs comprised mainly of antler corals stretching from the north to the south of the island.

With its emerald crystal sea, secluded beaches, mountain cliffs, colorful coral reefs and undersea life, Phi Phi is a paradise in the Andaman Sea. The best time to visit Phi Phi Islands starts from November to April when the sea is calm. The islands can be accessed by boat from Phuket and Krabi, with an approximate journey time of 2 hours.

Source:http://www.travel-to-thailand.net/must-see-places/phi-phi-island.html

Broadband advertising ‘misleading consumers’

Photo: Telegraph

Nine out of 10 people find broadband advertising misleading and confusing, according to a survey carried out by ICM.

Consumers are left baffled by internet service providers’ use of "up to" speed claims when defining the kinds of broadband internet connection speeds people can expect to receive in their local area.

The survey found that 90 per cent of those questioned were unsure of exactly what broadband speed they received from their internet service providers. Consumer groups have repeatedly called for changes to the way ISPs are allowed to advertise network speeds in order to give customers a better idea of the sort of service they are signing up to.

A recent survey, published by Ofcom, showed that broadband providers were delivering only a small percentage of the headline speeds promised on "up to" 20Mb and 24Mb packages. Expensive high-speed broadband packages from companies such as BT, Talk Talk and O2 were delivering far less than that advertised.

Talk Talk, for example, achieved an average of less than 10Mbit/s in a 24 hour period on its "up to" 24Mbit/s service. Virgin Media was the only broadband provider in the Ofcom survey that came close to its advertised speeds, with most of its services providing twice the average speed of competitors.

Ofcom recently issued a revised code of practice tightening rules on the communication of broadband speeds at the point of sale, but advertising was not affected by the rule change. Consumer watchdogs claim the lack of information provided by ISPs makes it difficult for people to accurately and consistently compare broadband speeds between providers. Fewer than 10 per cent of people currently believe advertised broadband speeds are accurate.

Michael Phillips, product director of Broadbandchoices.co.uk said: "Customers have lost confidence in the advertising messages that are attached to speed"

Many broadband providers, such as BT, Orange, Sky and O2, make use of the country’s copper telephone wires to provide internet connections to customers. On average, these DSL broadband services hit speeds of 6.5 megabits per second on "up to" 20Mb and 24Mb packages.

Mr Phillips said: "The problem that people who get broadband over a copper line, the further you live from the exchange the greater the deteriation in your speed." He added: "Fibre optic is the way ahead."

Virgin Media is currently the only provider to invest heavily in a proper fibre optic network which has helped their broadband speeds. BT, however, has recently begun rolling out a similar fibre optic cable set up which should see broadband reaching better average speeds.

Nearly all of those interviewed by ICM said that advertising rules needed to be changed so that "up to" claims matched the real world speeds achieved by the majority of customers. Virgin Media’s consistently higher results in the Ofcom survey have led to them creating an online service publishing monthly average broadband speeds

Source:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/broadband/7975797/Broadband-advertising-misleading-consumers.html

Damnern Saduak Floating Market

The colorful floating markets in Thailand are one of the must-see places in Thailand. The most popular one is the Damnoen Saduak floating market in Ratchaburi. Here you will be amazed with a labyrinth of narrow canals congested with small, wooden boats, paddled mainly by female vendors dressed in traditional indigo colored farmer’s shirts, and conical straw-hats.

Despite its popurarity, it is still an attractive place to see a traditional way of selling and buying fruits, vegetables etc., from small boats. Boat-to-boat trading like this is a common way of life of Thai people who live along the waterways. Its practice almost ceased 20 years ago when most canals were filled up with roads. Now many small floating markets are being revived as tourist attractions and trading places for the locals. The market is lively as these vendors paddle their boats up and down a canal vying for their customers.

The market starts as early as 6 am and fades around 9:30 am. Most of the goods sold are fresh produce such as vegetables, fruits and food. It makes a refreshing morning scene out on the water and gives tourists a chance to try delicious Thai food.

In addition to the market, traditional Thai stilt houses, lush green orchards and palm trees make the trip even more memorable. Local boats are avaialble for hire to explore the villages.

The Damnoen Saduak floating market is located in the south of Bangkok about 1 hour drive. A visit at the floating market is usually combined with a tour at the great Buddhist chedi in Nakhon Pathom or Rose Garden.

Source:http://www.travel-to-thailand.net/must-see-places/damnern-saduak-floating-market.html

Koh Tao

Koh Tao or the Turtle Island when translated in Thai boasts the best diving spot in the Gulf of Thailand. Located northwest of Koh Pha Ngan, it has unspoiled coral reefs and a wealth of marine life that attract thousands of divers from around the world.

Located around 120 kilometers from the Surat Thani province, Koh Tao is in the same neighborhood of Koh Nang Yuan. Altogether they occupy almost 18 square kilometers. The island has eight kilometers of coral reefs around its shore.

Koh Tao, Turtle Island, Located northwest of Koh Pha Ngan

It hosts a number of diving schools and shops that can cater to specific needs of divers, whether you are looking for tranquil shallow-water coral gardens or close encounters with whale sharks. There are more than 20 dive sites around the island. Many of them are in the vicinity of the shore. Aquatic lives you can expect to see are sea anemones, batfish, schools of pelagics and iridescent barracuda. If lucky, you might spot the Spanish mackerel or scorpionfish. Diving is possible almost year-round, with a short exception during the monsoon season between November and December.
Onshore, the island is teeming with small sandy bays franked by palm trees. The island’s half-moon-shaped western coast is where most of the beaches are found. The most popular beach is Had Sairee on the west side. Its white sandy beach stretches 1.7 km and is interrupted only by a few big boulders. Resorts, bungalows and guesthouses are available in almost every beach.

It is convenient to go to Koh Tao from Chumphon Province. The island is only one hour ride on a high-speed catamaran from Ao Makham Noi Pier in Chumphon – a speed boat from Koh Samui takes you around 3 hours to get to Koh Tao. Nowadays, more travelers choose Chumphon as their starting-off point.

Source:http://www.travel-to-thailand.net/must-see-places/koh-tao.html