Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is expected to return, smiling, to Bangkok this September, despite the 2 year jail sentence hanging over his head.
But he won’t be jailed, or even questioned, because the Thaksin you are likely to see at the Siam Discovery complex will be a waxwork effigy of the man in the world’s 10th Madame Tussaud’s exhibition of famous figures.
Siam Discovery, with other investors, is spending US$15 million on Thailand’s first professional exhibition of waxwork images according to issue 2121 of ‘Travel Daily News’. A spokeswoman said that 8,000 visitors per day were confidently expected through the doors.
Madame Tussaud opened her first permanent exhibition of lifelike famous figures in London in the late 1800’s. Centrally located in the British capital, it has for decades been consistently one of the top tourist attractions of the whole nation.
This article is Copyright © MyChiangMai 2010, no reproduction without prior permission.
Unfortunately not “The Beatles”, but just Beatles!
The Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi (try saying that to a Tuk Tuk driver when you are drunk) has opened a Beetle Garden where kids and their parents can learn about these fascinating creatures, and learn about their lives and habits.
The general manager of the Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi, Mark Bradford said “The Beetles Garden activity is a lot of fun for all the family, and at the same time is a great way to learn more about nature and the environment”
The Beetle garden is free and the activity runs from 10am to midday, and from 3pm to 5pm.
For more information or to make a booking, you can contact the Lanna Kids Club on 053 888 888 ext 8827
This article is Copyright © MyChiangMai 2009, no reproduction without prior permission.
Chiang Mai Zoo’s tiny female star has at last been named.
A staggering 22 million people posted in their name suggestions for our new panda cub. And an equally amazing 60% of them chose the name Linping, Minister for Natural Resources and Envrionment Suvit Khunkitti has announced.
The name is in fact quite a clever Chinese-Thai combination. ‘Lin’ is part of the cub’s mother’s name, Lin-Hui, while ‘ping’ comes from our very own River Ping which flows through Chiang Mai city. Put together, ‘Linping’ also means ‘Forest of Ice’ in Chinese, totally appropriate to the natural habitat of this endangered species.
Linping’s parents are here ‘on rental’ from their homeland, and the rental contract specifies that any offspring should be returned to China within 2 years. However, negotiations are underway to extend the period, as Linping and her parents have become the box office hit of the zoo. In fact, they are 3 of only 180 pandas in zoos worldwide.
Mum Lin-Hui gave birth following artifical insemination after her mate’s total apathy towards mating. Even regular exposure to 15 minute videos of other panda couples mating failed to raise any enthusiasm in the prospective male parent. Who knows? Maybe the patter of tiny paws could prove to be the answer?
Editor’s note: one reason for the ‘endangered species’ status of pandas world wide is the low sex drive of the males, plus the unfortunate fact that the mothers are notoriously careless. Many a panda infant has perished when Mum suddenly rolled over in the wrong direction. But with Linping already proving to be such good business for the zoo and the city, it is expected that every precaution will be taken for her welfare.
This article is Copyright © MyChiangMai 2009, no reproduction without prior permission.
Chiang Mai zoo recently added a Snow Dome, and it’s become very popular with the tourists.
Located in the panda observatory, the 560-square-meter facility cost a staggering 60 Million Baht to build and will be maintained at a temperature of -5 degrees Celsius. It has separate sections for pandas and visitors and it will be the new home for the panda family at the zoo.
The fee of 150 Baht for adults includes a loan of warm clothing. Each session is just 15 minutes but that’s probably long enough given the temperature inside. Only 50 people at a time are allowed into the Snow Dome so there may be a bit of a queue at peak times. There are 12 sessions in a day.
Many Thai people who have never visited a cold country do have a desire to see and play in the snow. Perhaps this is an ideal opportunity to realize that dream?
This article is Copyright © MyChiangMai 2009, no reproduction without prior permission.
