FARANG FOCUS

The Danish agronomist Gunnar Søndergaard was yesterday elevated to Commander of the Most Admirable Order of Direkgunabhorn, which is the highest possible order for a non-Thai person to receive. Gunnar Søndergaard has already previously received the Order of the White Elephant.

A widow who heard her husband being beaten to death by pirates yesterday appeared to forgive his killers.

If you are an expatriate, Thailand is the best country to find love - however, it's also one of the hardest places for learning the local language.

The body of an Irishman who had been missing in Thailand has been recovered. 24-year-old Michael O'Brien from Templeogue in Dublin went missing last Tuesday when he went surfing around Koh Phangan island.

Khon Kaen, Thailand - Isaan, as Thailand's 19 north-eastern provinces are called, is the country's poorest region. Degraded soil, a lack of irrigation and dense population have combined to make Isaan the country's fountainhead for factory workers, housemaids, bus boys and bar girls.

Immigration 1 Division (Bangkok Immigration Division) Service for area in Bangkok as: - Visa Extension - Re-entry Permit - Issue and change visa - Resident permit - Resident certificate - Aliens Registration- 90 Days Address report will be moved to Government Center, Chaengwattana Road Soi 7 (close to the Department of Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Chaengwattana Road.) on Monday 28th September 2009 (Except special labor of Laos, Cambodian and Myanmar nationalities service at old office)

Three foreign men and their Thai wives were honored for special contributions to community development in northeast Thailand late Friday.

Ladies looking for financial tips and an opportunity to share views on family healthcare, personal finance, wealth management, Wills and Trusts, are exclusively invited to ‘MBMG Women for Women’ sessions, a series of quarterly gatherings tailored especially for women.

The Phuket Gazette has learned that recent rumors of substantial increases in work permit fees may be well-founded. Discussions are underway in the Department of Employment that could once again lead to massive hikes in these annual fees.