Emergency Police Service 191
Fire Brigade 199
Highway Police Service 1193
Tourist Service Center 1155
Bangkok Directory Assistance 13
Provincial Directory Assistance 183
Overseas Subscriber Call 001
Domestic Long Distance Call 100
Emergency Telephone Numbers in Australia:
Dial 000 for Police, Fire or Ambulance from anywhere in Australia.
Emergency Number from everywhere in Australia (from a mobile telephone, you must tell the operator from which state you are calling).
Embassy of the United States of America Chancery: Moonah Place, Yarralumla ACT 2600 Tel: (02) 6214 5600, Fax: (02) 6214 5970
British High Commission Chancery: Commonwealth Avenue, Yarralumla, ACT 2600 Tel: (02)6270 6666, Fax (02)6273 3236
Here is a link to a list of International Embassies in the nation’s capital, Canberra.
Public Holidays for 2006 in Thailand include:
January 1 New Year’s Day
April 6 Chakri Day
April 13 0000 to April 15 0000 Songkran Days (Thai New Year)
May 1 Labor Day
May 1 Mid Year Day (Banks only)
May 5 Coronation Day
May 7 Royal Ploughing Ceremony
August 12 Queen’s Birthday
October 23 Chulalongkorn Day
December 5 King’s Birthday
December 10 Constitution Day
December 31 New Year’s Eve
There are 23 species of crocodiles worldwide, but only two live in Australia, the estuarine (Crocodylus johnstoni) and the Freshwater (Crocodylus porosus).Freshwater crocs can only be found in Australia, and are seen in freshwater rivers, billabongs and swamps. You can track them down in Northern Queensland, the Cape York Peninsula and in the Gulf of Carpinteria regions.
Here is a list of Annual Holidays in Australia for the year 2006, with major events of note.
Nucifora Tea is a delightful full-bodied smooth black tea grown outside Innisfail in the Wet Tropics of Far North Queensland in Australia. It is without a doubt one of the finest black teas I’ve consumed – ever
Grown in the rich agriculture district of Palmerston, the Nuciforas have been growing tea here for more than 15 years. They only harvest the tender young tips of the plants, which produces top quality tea.
Nucifora Tea is grown without pesticides or herbicides in a tropical paradise. The weather in the area near Innisfail is surrounded by vast banana plantations, miles of paw paws, millions of acres of sugar cane, and pasture land stretching from the eastern fringe of coastal forests on the Coral Sea to the Atherton Tablelands to the west. This is a very special place.
Stop by any time, day or night, and get some tea from their roadside stand, just leave the few dollars they ask in the can and when you get home brew a pot of delicious tea from Queensland. Continue reading
The elusive Tree Kangaroo is found in Australia’s Queensland, where they flourish in the lush tropical forests. There are two species, the Lumholz and Bennett’s Tree Kangaroos. The Lumholz is named after the Norwegian naturalist C. Lumholtz, and are also known as “Boongary” with a scientific name of Dendrolagus lumholtzi. The Bennett variety is known as Dendrolagus bennettianus, and is larger than the Lumholz. Eight other species of Tree Kangaroos are to be found in New Guinea.
Both varieties are about two feet tall, but their tails are often three feet long! The female bears one young kangaroo at a time, and carries it in her pouch like all marsupials. They are found sleeping in the branches of trees during the day, and become active at night, being nocturnal. Tree Kangaroos can leap as far as 15 meters (45 feet) from tree to tree. They do not hop about on the ground like regular Kangaroos – they walk.
Australia’s Tree Kangaroos thrive on a diet of leaves and fruits gathered high in the forest canopy. Their large stomachs can handle the massive quantities of leaves they must consume to survive.
There are far more Lumholz Tree Kangaroos, spread over a large area of the Wet Tropics. The Bennett variety is only found in a small area around the Daintree River in Queensland.
According to the Wikipedia, the Southern Cassowary is the second-largest bird in Australia and the third-largest remaining bird in the world. Adult Southern Cassowaries are 1.5 to 1.8 m (5½ feet) tall and weigh about 60 kilograms (130 pounds). A reclusive forest dwelling flightless bird, they have a long sharp claw on each foot that can be used to rip out your guts if you get too close. There are historical references to Cassowaries killing humans, but they are shy creatures, and will seldom reveal themselves to the casual tourist.
Filet of Sole Dieppoise
Visiting northern France is a pleasure, with many villages along the coast offering a variety of fresh seafood. The seaport of Dieppe, captured between high cliffs and the seashore was more of a resort in its heyday, but the fishermen still bring in a catch worthy of your attention, and the local cusine benefits greatly from this treat. Parisians would take the train here, then ferry over to England. The English used to come here to swim, now they have discovered warmer places like Spain… but that’s another story.
There has always been plenty of sole to catch in these waters, and one local offering is “Sole Dieppoise,” a tasty dish that also features another local favorite, mussels. Modern variations also feature shrimps and exotic mushrooms, but locals keep it simple with the sole and mussels swimming in a divine sauce. Here is my own variation of the classic seafood dish from Dieppe; easily made anywhere you can get some fresh filet of sole and mussels.
The Cannabis Cup lives on in Amsterdam. In spite of many shortcomings, the venerable cup continues to hazily stumble on year after year, due to hefty subsidies from High Times magazine.
This 18th annual event will feature Patti Smith and her band, and the plan is to induct John Trudell into the Counterculture Hall of Fame.
If you are not familiar with John Trudell, or his band Bad Dog, you should be. According to his website, “Trudell, a Vietnam Veteran, served in the U.S. Navy from 1963-1967, attended college for a while and then dropped out. In 1969, Trudell participated in the occupation of Alcatraz Island by Indians of All Tribes, becoming a spokesman for Indians of All Tribes. After the Indians of All Tribes occupation ended in 1971, Trudell worked with the American Indian Movement, becoming national Chairman of AIM in 1973. Trudell was chairman of AIM from 1973 until 1979. In February of 1979, Trudell’s mother-in-law, wife and three children were killed in a fire of unknown origin.”
At that time he began to chronicle his experiences and his pain through music, and recorded a number of albums hailed critically by such artists as Bob Dylan. His material is a unique blend of poetry, Native instrumentation, blues and rock. With his new album “Bone Days” he has continued to try and raise the consciouness of all listeners to new levels of understanding.
The Cannabis Cup will be further enhanced with the legendary Patti Smith on hand performing her work. Patti Smith has been on the scene, literally, since the 1960s when she lived in New York City with famed photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. She worked in avant garde thater productions and visual arts, until she found her voice and the words to stir up the music scene, producing one of the first independent rock DIY albums, recorded in 1974.
Her career went on from there, with many bestselling albums including “Horses.” Patti Smith took a hiatus from 1979 thru the mid 1990’s, when she returned to the performing scene after the deaths of her husband and brother within a month of each other. Now she is a legend in her own right, showcasing the human condition with all its flaws and beauty through her music.
This year the Cannabis Cup will be held at the Melkweg, and the Sugar Factory. Finally the cup management wised up and found a spot right by the Melkweg to use for the displays and seminars, etc. that always accompany the music festival that is the heart of the Cannabis Cup.
The Sugar Factory was known as the Amuse Theater previously to this May, and its door is directly opposite the entrance to the Melweg.
The Melkweg and Sugar Factory are located right off the Leidseplein, which is easily reached from anywhere in Amsterdam by tram, taxi or foot.
Here’s hoping your Cannabis Cup experience is everything you expect it to be!
~Martin Trip