THIS MONTH
Hua Hin Online Community
More busy times on the forums last month as low season in Hua Hin slowly starts to come to an end. Accommodation hunters will be delighted to see our range of places to stay expand with the inclusion of Markwin Lodge, Chada Guesthouse, Hua Hin Avenue, Baan Nilawan and house and condo rentals by Room by Room. A new website with easy online booking has been launched at www.accommodationhuahin.com , the forum also makes a great place to ask for recommendations and reviews of Hua Hin hotels before making your booking. As high season approaches the internet will be the key tool for securing online bookings.
More local topics involved discussions on crime levels and police in Hua Hin and although there were a couple of negative comments Hua Hin still remains to be one of the safest places in Southeast Asia to live or visit. A new local news website at www.huahinreport.com also highlights some of the top stories in the town, focusing on news for foreigners; it covered the opening of the new Sheraton Resort and updates on property and real estate news.
Another busy month on the real estate section as this is rapidly becoming one of the forum’s most popular topics of discussion. A “wish list” of things to look out for when purchasing from a new development was provided by one member with experience in the field followed by a number of subsequent questions from concerned buyers. For those with swimming pools we have two essential services for equipment and pool maintenance at GDL Poolshop and Pool Care Hua Hin.
Another HHAD beach party was planned for the 29th of last month, photos are on the site. These events are a great way to meet like minded expats and visitors. Over the last 4 years many people have got to know each other through online “handles”, our little events give them a chance to meet face to face!
On the subject of events a new organization has been setup offering activities and workshops for groups of children between ages 3 and 14 in Hua Hin. With creative and educational themes they offer some great party packages and workshops to keep kids occupied for an afternoon. More information can be found on http://events.wt-thailand.com
For those on the road there were reports on diving and snorkelling in Bangsaphan, the Tiger Temple in Kanchanaburi and a little known animal park in Hua Hin. The Hua Hin Blog has more details on these places. Hua Hin travel agents came under the spotlight with a number of recommendations, mostly for the same one. HHAD will soon be teaming up with leading travel and tour operators to offer a number or trips and tours around the area.
Many rumours were flying around regarding a possible clampdown on dependents for retirement visas, effectively doubling the financial requirements for married couples. With anti-foreigner sentiment running high at the moment these visa clampdowns are occurring at a frightening frequency; we cannot confirm or deny the situation, only offer a platform for Hua Hin expats to share their immigration stories, which often vary in terms of success with visa extensions. We all hope that democratic elections are held on the planned date of December 23 and we finally get a government that is a little more “farang friendly”!
HHAD forums are the definitive online message boards and discussions for the area with over 2,700 members. There are sections for finding and booking accommodation, seeking out bargains, and exploring the local area and beyond. There is also a nightlife section for the night owls, a restaurant and feeding guide along with an online meeting point for visa runners and clubs. The ever popular “Ask the expats” section is great for quickly getting the answers you need from the people that live here.
Logon and find out what is happening in Hua Hin:
There is also a blog for the Hua Hin area at:
Obituary: Colin Denny
It is with great sadness that we report the death of Colin Denny, who was tragically killed in the Phuket air disaster on the 16th September.
Colin ran CBD Asia, and was always busy on building projects here in Hua Hin, Bangkok and in Phuket. It was a business trip that took Colin and his wife Bee to Phuket when the tragedy happened. Khun Bee sustained a broken leg, damage to her back and other less serious injuries. Our hearts go out to her as she recovers and comes to terms with her loss. Our sympathy also goes to Colin’s two daughters who live in the USA.
Colin had lived and worked in 25 countries, he always said that Thailand was the best by far.
Rest in Peace Colin.
Oktoberfest at the Marriott
Experience Oktoberfest Munich Style at the Hua Hin Marriott “Mandara Beirgarten” from 20th-22nd October.Anywhere in the world, if the conversation is about beer, talk automatically turns to Oktoberfest in Munich. Taste Authentic Oktoberfest beer, “Paulaner”, the legend made of hops and malt, with a rich malty aroma, bright gold in colour with a full bodied flavour. Enjoy the party atmosphere in the Munich styled Oktoberfest tent while eating traditional Bavarian food, listening to live Oktoberfest music and of course drinking from authentic 1 litre Paulaner beer glasses.
Entry is 990 Baht inclusive of two Paulaner 1litre lagers, live music, traditional German cuisine buffet and much more.
Limited ticket numbers are now selling for the Marriott Oktoberfest, at the Hua Hin Marriott Resort & Spa.
The Hua Hin Marriott Resort & Spa is located directly on the beach, situated amidst lush greenery and tropical gardens which flow down to the white sand and blue waters of the Gulf of Thailand. It is only a 10 minute walk from Hua Hin centre.
For more information and reservations
Tel: (66) 32 511 881. Visit the website at www.marriottdining.com
Pranburi International Triathlon 2007
This is a new event for the area, and the inaugural race will take place on Saturday 20th October 2007 and is planned to become an annual event and an essential fixture in the Asian triathlon calendar. The people behind the event are the wellness orientated Six Senses Resorts & Spas and Operator Exotissimo Travel.
The race will be professionally managed by international race organizers and will take place on the beaches in front of the five-star Evason resort and back roads of Pranburi, the Thai fishing village on the east coast of Thailand, just south of Hua Hin.
International professional athletes will compete with local triathletes in the Olympic distance elite race, while a sprint distance short course will be set to attract corporate racers and fun runners.
Permission was granted by the Royal Palace, and the proceeds of this event will be donated to the Royal Project Foundation of His Majesty King Bhumibol. In addition H.S.H Prince Bhisadej Rajani has confirmed his presence at the event on 20th October.
There will be three races, the Olympic Distance, and Team Olympic Distance race and also the Sprint Distance. All the races will start and end at the same point but the Olympics Distance will have two loops of the swim course, the bike will have an extended loop added on and also the run will have a loop added on to make the distance accurate.
1. SPRINT DISTANCE TRIATHLON
This will be set consisting of a 750m swim, 20 km bike ride and a 5 km run.
2. OLYMPIC DISTANCE INDIVIDUAL TRIATHLON
The Olympic distance course will be set at 1500m swim, 40km bike and a 10km run. The start time will be 15 minutes after the sprint distance race has commenced and will follow the same course, but doing two loops instead of one.
3. OLYMPIC DISTANCE RELAY
For teams of two or three persons. Relay competitors will race the same course as individual Olympic distance competitors, however times for relay teams will be posted as a separate race and not listed against individual competitors.
COMPETITION AND PRIZES
In each category the competitions will be split into men’s and women’s competitions in the following age categories:
* Under 20s * 20-29 years * 30-39 years * 40-49 years * 50+
All finishers will receive a medal. There will be trophies for the top three finishers in each category.
PARKING
Competitors and spectators driving to Evason Resort on race morning should follow all signs and volunteer directions for available parking areas. Please arrive no later than 06:15. As the road leading to the car parking area is part of the bike course, to ensure athlete safety, this road will be closed from 06:15 until 13:00.
EVENT HOST
Evason Hideway & Six Senses Spa at Hua Hin is set amongst 20 acres of beautifully landscaped tropical gardens filled with lotus ponds and waterways, facing the Gulf of Siam.
RACE MANAGEMENT
Exotissimo Travel is a specialist bicycle tour and event operator based in Thailand and will be responsible for the management of all aspects of the race including designing and setting the course, timing and athlete safety.
The Race Director and General Manager of SpiceRoads, Struan Robertson, a committed triathlete who has participated in the sport since 1990, and with over 100 triathlons completed, from sprint up to ironman distance, combines his experience of organizing bike tours with the wealth of knowledge that comes from racing all over the world to ensure that that the race will be safe, exciting and extremely well run.
Interview with Geoff Beaulieu who is competing in the Sprint Triathlon
1. How did you get involved in this sport?
I have always been active in many sports, and when my buddy Rob “The Hulk” Davies told me about the Phuket Triathlon he was training for in December, I became curious, did my homework, and decided I also wanted to do it to have a new competitive challenge in my life.
Initially I was training for the December event, and when I went to get my bike tuned up at Hua Hin Bike Shop, they told me about the Evason sponsored Triathlon in Pak Nam Pran on October 20th, I was really excited, this would allow me to test my ability before the Phuket Olympic Triathlon.
2. How do you prepare for a Triathlon?
This is my first Triathlon, and I will be competing in the Sprint Category, 750 m swim, 20 km bike, 5 km run compared to the Olympic category 1.5 km swim, 40 km bike, 10 km run. This will allow me to find my strengths and weaknesses before doing the Olympic Triathlon in Phuket.
I think you should do your first triathlon for the sake of completing it, and to understand the event and all its stages. I will go into it planning to do my best. I want my body to be prepared to the extent that I can finish safely, having trained long enough and wisely enough to make it through without major discomfort or muscle injury.
Because the event has three components, running, biking, and swimming, I needed to figure out which aspects would take more time training for. If you are a fantastic runner and have little swimming experience, for example, consider spending more time in the water.
3. How do you train for the Sprint?
As you begin, you must have a minimum of 4-5 hrs. to train per week.
Two days a week I attend a one-hour fitness class at Wingtsun Kungfu Camp, www.wt-Thailand.com. K. Klaus’s gentle training manner, and ability to target areas for my flexibility training achieve excellent results. As well I have a technical coach, Richard Feldman, teaching me training techniques to improve my time for each event.
It is important to make your training fun, and mix it up with varieties of exercises to avoid repetitious muscle strain. Some days I do road biking vs. mountain trails.
Another very important aspect of training is food intake. I highly recommend two books to read, they will improve your quality of life Fitonics by Marilyn Diamond & Dr. Donald Burton Schnell (Avon Books) and Fit for Life by Harvey & Marilyn Diamond (Bantam Books). The fuel you use to train can really aid in recovery times between training days. And also I cannot stress enough how vital it is to drink 10-15 glasses of water a day to always be hydrated.
4. Why did you decide to do your training in Hua Hin?
My wife, K. Jiaranai, and I have been raising our 3 children here for almost four yrs now, and Hua Hin is an ideal place to cover all the training needed to do a triathlon. We really love Hua Hin, it is a special place with so many wonderful people. Thanks to my wife & friends, K.Jason & Suzie, K. Olivier & Lily, K. Martin & Sopee, for their support from the beginning. See you all at the Event!
On The Edge
OK! So you don’t believe in global warming. Like George W Bush you don’t believe the roughly 90% of scientists that say we are heading for serious problems if we don’t do something. Your happy, after all, the disasters are not affecting you. Or perhaps you believe that those magic scientist ‘chappies’ will solve all those nasty inconvenient problems before they get near you.
Do you have children? What kind of world (and problems) will you pass onto them? Will they look at you when you are old and ask ‘Why didn’t you do something, or at least help, a little?’
The Observer can inform you about some of the details, but ultimately it is your choice to do something, however small it might seem.
So what is global warming? Carbon dioxide and other gases warm the surface of the planet naturally by trapping solar heat in the atmosphere. This is a good thing because it keeps our planet habitable. However, by burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures are rising.
The vast majority of scientists agree that global warming is real, it’s already happening and that it is the result of our activities and not a natural occurrence.
Of course if to try hard you will always find a scientist who will say the opposite we are just giving you the overwhelming majority view. For example the American Association of Petroleum Geologists don’t believe in global warming, surprise surprise (how many people laughed here).
Currently glaciers are melting (the flow of ice from glaciers in Greenland has more than doubled over the past decade). Plants and animals are being forced from their habitat, and the number of severe storms and droughts is increasing. The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes has almost doubled in the last 30 years, as with hurricane Katrina and Bertha.
With temperature increases comes the spread of diseases, Malaria has spread to higher altitudes in places like the Colombian Andes, 7,000 feet above sea level.
At least 279 species of plants and animals are already responding to global warming by moving closer to the poles.
If global warming continues, we can expect catastrophic consequences with an estimate of (human) deaths from global warming doubling in just 25 years, to 300,000 people a year.
Global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, devastating coastal areas worldwide. Currently there are costal communities and island inhabitants moving from their homes because of sea rises and costal erosion.
Heat waves will be more frequent and more intense. Droughts and wild-fires will occur more often. And more than a million species worldwide could be driven to extinction by 2050.
In July of this year the reports from Europe showed parts of England having their worst floods in sixty years, during the summer, while in other parts of Europe (Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, Greece) people were suffering from the extreme heat (40˚ plus), and fighting wild-fires. Also in August, southern China had its worst floods in over 200 years.
A major new report commissioned by the UK government suggests it is unlikely that “dangerous” climate change can be avoided and the impacts of climate change will fall heaviest in poorer countries
Thermal expansion of water is already believed to be raising sea levels by around 1.8cm per decade; but the extent of that rise would be considerably greater if the Earth’s major ice sheets, in Greenland and Antarctica, were to melt.
As the Arctic is warming faster than the planetary average, a local warming of 2.7 °C may equate to a global warming of only about 1.5 °C, which some climate scientists believe is certainly going to happen whatever policies are now set in train.
Warming apart, increased concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will lead to rising concentrations in the oceans too. This will make sea water more acidic; not to anything approaching corrosive levels, but to a degree which could affect marine ecosystems. “Such dramatic changes in ocean pH (acidity) have probably not been seen for millions of years of the Earth’s history” said Carol Turley of the UK’s Plymouth Marine Laboratory
A rise of 2 °C, a UK commissioned report suggests, will be enough to cause:
* decreasing crop yields in the developing and developed world
* tripling of poor harvests in Europe and Russia
* large-scale displacement of people in north Africa
from desertification
* up to 2.8bn people at risk of water shortage
* 97% loss of coral reefs
* total loss of summer Arctic sea ice and extinction
of polar bear and walrus
* spread of malaria in Africa and north America
So all this is horrifying stuff and you would like to do something, just as long as it does not inconvenience your life style too much. Well there is good news, and wonder of wonders it might even save you some money.
Lets start with the home. Most emissions from homes are from the fossil fuels burned to generate electricity. By using energy more efficiently at home, you can reduce your emissions and lower your energy bills by more than 30%. Are you interested now! Here’s a simple hit list for you:
When your light bulb dies replace a regular incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (cfl). Specially for those of you who like to leave their outside lights on all night (try movement sensor lights). CFL’s use 60% less energy than a regular bulb.
Do you need your air conditioners on all the time. Use them only when you are in a room or put them on a timer or programmable thermostat. Clean or replace filters regularly. And remember to shut the doors. Almost half of the energy we use in our homes goes to heating and cooling.
If you are buying your holiday dream home remember to choose energy efficient appliances when making new purchases. Look for the Energy Label on new appliances to choose the most efficient models.
Use a little less hot water. When you rush to the kitchen to make a cup of coffee during a break in you favourite TV programme, only fill the kettle for what you need. It takes a lot of energy to heat water.
Turn off electronic devices that you’re not using. If you are not in the room why leave the television or DVD player on. Turn the computer off when you’re not using it, even energy saving mode uses power.
Unplug electronics from the wall when you’re not using them. Even when turned off, things like hair dryers, cell phone chargers and televisions use energy. If you have a dishwasher use it when you have a full load and use the energy saving setting the same goes for a washing machine.
Look at recycling at home. How about a compost heap (this is also good for your garden). Try looking for recycled paper products as it takes 70 to 90% less energy to make recycled paper. This also helps prevent the loss of forests worldwide.
If you have a nice garden think of planting a tree. A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can also reduce your air conditioning bill by 10 to 15%.
When you go shopping bring a bag with you, don’t load up on plastic bags. And avoid heavily packaged products. Is each biscuit individually packed, then wrapped, then put in a box and finally in a carrier bag so that you can get them home.
Buy fresh foods instead of frozen because frozen food uses ten times more energy to produce, also fresh foods are healthier.
Reduce the number of miles you drive and keep your car tuned up including check your tires weekly to make sure they’re properly inflated. Regular maintenance helps improve fuel efficiency and reduces emissions and proper tyre inflation can improve fuel mileage by more than 3%. Since every gallon of fuel saved keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, every little increase in fuel efficiency makes a difference!
When it is time for a new car, choose a more fuel efficient vehicle or perhaps convert your car to Gasohol. There are two gasohol station in Hua Hin the first is an Esso garage (opposite minibus station), the second a PTT garage (opposite Anantara Spa & Resort).
Try to fly less if possible, air travel produces large amounts of emissions so reducing how much you fly by even one or two trips a year can reduce your emissions significantly.
So now you have some simple things you can do, you don’t have to run out and hug a tree or wear a tie dyed tee shirt, these are very dated views of people who care for their environment. To be aware of your environment is the most important thing you can now do to help both yourself and others.
We all know that it is down to us individually, because politicians (throughout the world) will only come on board if it will gain them votes and power. Remember the Kyoto agreement all those years ago, need we say more.
“The biggest problem does not seem to be the technologies or the costs, but overcoming the many political, social and behavioural barriers to implementing mitigation options,” said Bert Metz and Detlef van Vuuren of the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency. “There is a multitude of potential obstacles, ranging from lack of awareness, vested interests, prices not reflecting environmental impacts, cultural and behavioural barriers to change and, in the case of spreading technologies to developing countries, the lack of an effective enabling environment for new investments”.
So you still need some convincing about the seriousness of the problem. Unfortunately we have little space to provide all the details for you, plus political discussion is usually rambling and scientific theories complicated. Most of you will remember the name Al Gore and some of you might know that it was his initiative that led to the making of the movie/documentary ‘An Inconvenient Truth’, this is your next stop for further information. Don’t worry, it is not bogged down in scientific or political rhetoric, it is primarily a presentation made by Gore and it was nominated for awards at both the Sundance and Cannes film festivals (see movie review on page 32).
Although the aim of this article is to make people more aware of the problems facing us and to try to nudge people in the right direction, there is now an awareness amongst more enlightened leaders around the world that the time for talking, blaming others and saying ‘No, you first’ must end.
THAI ACTION. The Thai government has set 2011 as the target date for 8% of the nation’s total energy to be generated from renewable energy sources. This development of alternative sources will be vital to Thailand as it currently relies substantially on crude oil imports. So it is a good decision both environmentally and financially.
To achieve the 8% goal, the government is encouraging the power-generating sector, consisting of Independent Power Producers and Small Power Producers to produce 1,900 MW of power from renewable energy sources. Power companies that wish to bid to supply power to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) must produce 5% of their installed energy generating capacity from renewable sources.
The government is using incentives, rather than compulsory measures, to encourage Small Power Producers to increase their use of renewable energy sources. Incentives include tax reductions, BOI investment promotions and possible increased fees for selling power to the grid.
To reduce reliance on imported finite fuel sources the aim would be to rely more heavily on domestically available energy resources such as biomass, biogas, hydro power and solar and wind power.
Biomass uses agricultural waste products, such as by products from rice, oil palm, sugar and wood processing mills which are plentiful in Thailand.
Wastewater from agricultural processing industries as well as municipal waste is used by agricultural mills and municipalities, respectively, to produce biogas.
Palm oil and tapioca mills build biogas systems as part of their wastewater treatment and use the biogas produced to replace fuel oil or LPG consumption or to produce electricity.
Rayong Province uses 70 tons per day of organic municipal waste to run a biogas plant with a gas turbine engine capacity of 625 kW.
Unfortunately solar power is currently relatively expensive, approximately four to five times higher than conventional biomass power generation. Thus, strong incentives are needed for Thailand to harvest its immense solar energy potential. If each house could afford cheap solar energy imagine the savings to the economy.
With wind energy there is high potential due to technological advances in turbine size and efficiency. Technology is now available for low wind areas, such as Thailand, with wind speeds of four-to-five meters per second (although we think Hua Hin has good wind power potential).
Environmental groups advocate the establishment of mini- and micro-hydropower plants to minimize the negative repercussions from large-scale dams.
Finally if you decide to try to help in keeping the planet clean and healthy, one of you biggest tasks may be in attempting to change attitudes of those around you who want to ignore any problem, or dismiss it as ‘just a natural change’.
On this page we have printed images as simple reminders of things you can do in your life that will help the planet, you can tear these pages out and use it as a reminder.
Here is your simple hit list for starters:
1. Be aware of high energy users, like kettles.
2. Air Conditioners: Close windows/doors. Use temperature settings.
3. Car: Green fuel, tyre pressures and a regular service.
4. Re-cycle what you can.
5. Un-plug or turn off devices not in use.
6. Shopping bag. And avoid unnecessary packaging.
The best of luck, it takes a little awareness to change some of the bad habits that we all have. Some of these changes may seem insignificant to you, but every little bit helps.
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