French ambassador in good voice for Thai fete

Expatriates in Thailand know how the trick works. Former US ambassador to Thailand Ralph Boyce won great admiration because he insisted on talking in Thai to the press and politicians.

French Ambassador Laurent Bili is also resorting to the same trick. In his opening speech to launch "La Fete 2008" on Monday night, and presided over HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, he alternatively spoke in French and Thai.

Certainly, his Thai is not as fluent as Boyce's and he occasionally stumbled over words. But his Thai audience did not feel bad about this. Instead they encouraged him on silently to finish his speech without any glitches.

And he did.

He won the admiration of the Thais present. This could be deemed a prerequisite for the success of "La Fete", the festival that offers many types of French entertainment to Thais.

New hip PAD City

It now looks certain that supporters of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) are determined to go nowhere until they accomplish their mission.

A permanent stage is being built to replace the back of the

six-wheel truck where the alliance's leaders and guests took turns to give speeches. To Chamlong Srimuang, this venue will turn into a city free of corrupt politicians.

From what happened on Saturday, the city has swollen chock-full of citizens. But unlike other cities on earth, there's no registration. Citizens have great mobility to migrate in and out of PAD City.

Some temporary citizens are staff working at the United Nations Conference Centre, for the new city is located right in front of their building.

UN staff told The Nation reporters that they saw no problem about the creation of the new city. They said that since the PAD camped in front of their building, they had been allowed to go home earlier than usual.

Another plus is that so many food stalls have come with the PAD, offering a variety of tasty items on an avenue where food shops can hardly be found.

Once the city is completely built, menu choices will become even greater - to the sorrow of motorists.