Showing 41 - 50 of 118
Beyond the call of duty free
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 14/02/2016
» Giant billboards advertising Lotte Duty Free surround the 150,000 square metre shopping and entertainment complex on Rama IX Road, opposite the Grand Tulip Hotel. The tourist-oriented complex is due to open in June, but behind the glass shopfronts where the duty-free stores are supposed to be, the interior is empty.
Flower market vendors face last lonely Valentine's
News, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 14/02/2016
» This may be the last Valentine’s Day Onsirin Saenyakul ships her roses to vendors at Bangkok's famous Pak Khlong Talat flower market. Her two-rai plantation in Chiang Mai’s Mae Rim district has been the only source of income for her family for the past 12 years, and 80% of the roses are shipped by truck to Thailand’s largest fresh flower market.
Elite students receive a lesson in self-censorship
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 31/01/2016
» Teeraporn Suwanvidhu had a tough decision to make five years ago as president of the Thai Student Association in the UK: remove an article, or lose all support from the Thai Embassy next year.
The jury's still out on young judges
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 17/01/2016
» Five years ago Thidaporn Kornchoodej, then a 24-year-old lawyer’s assistant, was asked to sit in court to hear the verdict in a case she’d been working on. Her client was an American businessman fighting for custody of his four-year-old son, and Ms Thidaporn ended up sitting alone in the room with the judge as she delivered her ruling.
'Myanmar town' in fear as torture follows murder
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 27/12/2015
» Single-storey shophouses advertised for rent are now common in what was once a packed Myanmar community in Ranong's Muang district. Some families have left their belongings -- including a bicycle, in one instance -- as if in a hurry to leave the country.
Food fight: the battle over the future of farming
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 13/12/2015
» When Winus Srisombatraethong purchased green papaya seeds from farmers in Pathum Thani province in 2009, he had no reason to suspect anything unusual.
Gold rush crawls to a standstill
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 06/12/2015
» It was a billion-baht aerial survey of potential mineral deposits that sparked an enthusiastic start to gold mining in Thailand 32 years ago. Foreign investors were wooed and local communities were excited about the idea of new roads leading into their villages.
The army camp creeps on to the uni campus
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 22/11/2015
» Titipol Phakdeewanich does not discuss politics on Facebook. He was never “invited” by the military to undergo "attitude adjustment" sessions. His colleagues who teach at Ubon Ratchathani University describe him as not politically vocal, and his criticisms as not provocative or hostile, but within the boundaries determined by normal Thai politeness.
The magazines proving that sex still sells, even with ghosts
Spectrum, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 15/11/2015
» A woman is raped and murdered. She stands on the side of the street, close to where it happened, seething with anger and desire for revenge. She hitchhikes a ride from a motorcycle passing by and ends up having sex with the driver. When the man wakes up, the girl is gone. Little did he know, she was a ghost.
I'll speak Thinglish, if it's all the same-same to you
News, Nanchanok Wongsamuth, Published on 08/11/2015
» If you think you’ve noticed people using the term “same-same” when they should know better, you’re not alone — experts say non-standard English is gaining broader appeal.