| about this site | who we are | site map | reading tips | teaching tips | student tips | build vocab | | teaching vocab | hot links | visit Thai school | Bangkok Post | Post books | student weekly | home

This column is for self-study or classroom use and gives guided help with reading the wide variety of writing styles and topics that appear as feature articles in the Bangkok Post. The lessons include background information, skill-building practice and vocabulary explanations. September 30, 2003 Touring Thailand INTRODUCTION

The weekly Travel Guide column in Horizons is a fun place to find out what’s going on around Thailand – places to go, celebrations to be part of, unusual customs and events to witness. Events around the country can be fascinating both for local people and foreign visitors. The activity for you today gives you a chance to think about what would be of interest to a particular group of tourists. Teachers: Below are the details for five groups of tourists. Your students should work in groups, each group planning for one of the groups of travellers. Distribute copies of the five events to all students and in their group choose one event for their tourists to travel to. When they share their decision with the rest of the class, they should be prepared to give reasons for their choices. Group one is a family from Australia with three children, two boys aged ten and fifteen and a girl twelve. They will be moving to live in Chiang Mai after a week-long vacation in Thailand. Group three is five European business executives who have been visiting factories for a week looking for new products to import into their home countries. Group four is a high school class from a Thai school planning a visit to another part of Thailand to learn more about the culture of that region. Group two is three guys from the US who recently graduated from university and are spending two months traveling around SE Asia before going back home to find work. They have just come from Singapore and will spend one week in Thailand on their way to Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Group five is a group of students from an international school here in Thailand. When they get back to class after their trip, they will have to write essays about what they have learned on their trip. Students: Here’s what to do: Your teacher will give you a description of a group of tourists to plan an outing for. You will also get some details of five events that are taking place around Thailand. Work with the others in your group to choose an activity that will be good for your group of travellers. Also be prepared to explain to the rest of your class the reasons for your choice.

OUR STORIES FROM THE BANGKOK POST Mekong fireballs The Naga Fireball Festival, a supposedly natural phenomenon in which fireballs rise from the Mekong River in Nong Khai province, is scheduled October 10. The fireballs can be sighted between 6-9 p.m. Activities and plays begin October 6 and continue through October 12. There will be a procession of boats illuminated with light and candles in honour of the Naga, a contest involving building of castles made from beeswax, and light and sound presentation. Last year saw an unprecedented turnout for the event. This year Nong Khai villagers will open their homes to welcome visitors, and if that is not enough the provincial Phon Phisai hall will also open its door to accommodate the public. The best points for seeing the fireballs are the towns of Phon Phisai, Pak Khat, Bung Kan, Bung Khong Long, Si Chiang Mai, and Sangkhom situated by the Mekong River. For more details, call 042-325-406 to 7. Chiang Khan, Loei From October 8-12 this town by the Mekong plans a parade of castles made from beeswax, illuminated boats, merit-making, and the Thai-Laos friendship boat race. Air Andaman in cooperation with the Tourism Authority of Thailand and Loei Tourist Business Association is offering a two-night package to Chiang Khan costing 5,400 baht per person. You can also visit temples, a local market straddling the Mekong, cloth-weaving and a bat cave. For more details, call 02-229-9555. Explore Khmer ruins Thai Ecotourism and Adventure Travel Association is organising a tour to the Northeast. The four-night package takes you to explore Khmer ruins and Isan culture. You will be visiting the stone sanctuaries of Phimai, Phanom Rung and Muang Tam in Buriram built by Khmer kings. They date back to10th-11th century, the same period as Angkor Temple. In addition, stay with villagers at Ban Prasat, Nakhon Ratchasima, and Renu Nakhon in Nakhon Phanom. The tour party will stop at Ban Tha Toom to watch elephants and meet villagers, and then proceed to admire pre-historic rock paintings at Pha Taem in Ubon Ratchatani and the sacred Phra That Phanom Temple in Nakhon Phanom. For more information, contact 02-642-4399, e-mail: info@thaieco-adventure.org. Vegetarian season here While the Vegetarian Festival is about food in every part of the country, in Phuket some celebrants perform acts of self-mortification including body-piercing The Vegetarian Festival is here. The largest celebration will be held in Phuket from September 25-October 5. The event will also be celebrated in neighbouring Phangnga. Trang will mark the festival from September 25-October 4, just like the Yaowarj Chinatown of Bangkok, during which people of Buddhist faith generally abstain from eating meat and poultry. For more details, call Tourism Authority of Thailand at 02-250-5500 ext 3951. Buffalo racing in Chon Buri Chon Buri will be holding buffalo racing and a beauty contest October 9 at a field in front of the provincial city hall. The buffalo is no longer employed to carry heavy loads but it still helps small farmers till the land. The event is held to get villagers together for a bit of fun. Buffalo races and contests in which owners dress up their animals to compete for prizes, are usually followed by the traditional nong nang ban na beauty pageant. For more details, call 038-427-667, 428-750. • This lesson was prepared by Maureen Paetkau, a professional teacher of English as a second and foreign language and Assistant Manager and Webmaster for Learning Post at the Bangkok Post. Read our other instant lesson here. Return to our home page. | Comments to Maureen at maureen@bangkokpost.co.th | | © The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. All rights reserved 2003 | Last modified: September 29, 2003