Some of the finest bartenders in eastern Thailand will show off their skills in Pattaya later this year. The annual Pattaya Bartender Contest, usually held in September, sees cocktail specialists and drinks experts from many of the region's top hotels and nightclubs go head to head in a series of challenges. Bartenders are judged on their dexterity, creativity and presentation skills, with the winner receiving a cash prize, a trophy and the right to progress into the national championship. Entrants are also required to demonstrate their signature cocktail creations ...

Jazz lovers have the perfect excuse to visit Thailand in September, as one of the country's newest music festivals is set to return for its second year.   The Samui International Jazz Music Festival will run from Sunday September 18th to Sunday September 25th, with international artists joining the bill alongside local musicians for a week of live performances.   Artists due to perform at the event include Rotterdam-based soul singer Ntjam Rosie, jazz pianist Peter Beets, Russian saxophone star Oleg Kireyev, Canadian vocalist Irene Atman and Bangkok jazz act the Aswin ...

People spending time in Malaysia at the end of next month may have a chance to observe the nation's Merdeka Day celebrations. The event, also known as Hari Merdeka and Independence Day, is held every year on August 31st to commemorate the end of British colonial rule and the birth of modern Malaysia. Independence was officially achieved on August 31st 1957, when power was formally handed over to the Federation of Malaya and the new national flag was raised in Kuala Lumpur. Merdeka Day is a public holiday and remains a hugely important event 54 years later, with ...

Acclaimed conductor Stefano Ranzani will take the stage at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples later this year.   The Milan-born musician is due to perform two shows on September 9th and 10th, having the honour of opening a new season of classical concerts at the venue following its summer break.   Ranzani, who will conduct the Teatro di San Carlo's own orchestra, has played at theatres all over the world, but the venues that he appears at most regularly are in his native Italy, as well as Germany, France and Spain.   He started out as a violinist in the late 1970s ...

Madrid is set to welcome back the hit Mayumana show Momentum in August for a three-week run.   The Spanish capital staged the world premiere of the production in 2008 and the success it has enjoyed across the globe since then has allowed it to secure another series of performances.   From August 16th to September 4th 2011, the Mayumana team will once again leave audiences spellbound with a stunning combination of contemporary dance, compelling theatrics and catchy songs.   "Ever since its creation in 1996, the company has specialised in imaginative percussion ...

Brazilian Soccer Schools Summer Camps could be the ideal way to keep football-mad youngsters entertained during a trip to Phuket. Two week-long courses will be taking place in August, starting on August 8th and 15th and running from Monday to Friday. Participants will be taught a variety of skills from 09:00 to 13:00 local time each day, with specific tuition on passing, turning and beating players, as well as sessions on juggling footballs. Prizes will be handed out throughout the week and daily three-on-three 'world cup' tournaments will ensure players get ...

Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMA) is showcasing an exhibition entitled A Passion for Tradition: The Art of Li Yanshan. The display is available to view until October 16th 2011 and features a range of items, including hanging scrolls, handscrolls and more conventional paintings. According to the venue, the artist studied the works of the Yuan and Ming masters to develop his own unique creative style. In a statement, it explained: "The late Guangdong master Li Yanshan (1898 - 1961) was a key member of the Guangdong Chinese Painting Research Society and the principal ...

Hit rock band Paramore will play at Bali's Garunda Wisnu Kencana next month as part of their latest tour.   Fronted by charismatic lead singer Hayley Williams, the group have become hugely popular among alternative music fans starting with their debut album in 2005.   Since that record, All We Know Is Falling, they have unveiled two more LPs and plan to put out their fourth studio effort at the beginning of next year.   Williams recently revealed that the group have started writing material for the new album, so audiences may even hear some new songs over the next ...

An exhibition examining the function of imagery in artistic expression has commenced in Seoul this month. Rhetoric of the Images is taking place at the Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA) and is set to run until September 18th 2011, with the intention of showcasing a "new and constructive direction" for Korean art, according to a statement from the organisers. Featuring the work of 14 established players in the local art scene, the show aims to allow visitors to assess the rhetoric of each image and the methods they use to communicate messages and social meaning ...

MIG Real Estate (Merage Investment Group Real Estate) a Newport Beach, Calif.-based real estate investment company formerly known as Stoneridge Capital Partners, has sold Sunset Pilot Plaza, an approximately 100,000-square-foot Class A Las Vegas office property to Ameriprise Financial, Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. "Sunset Pilot Plaza is one of just a handful of Class A facilities in the market offering 100,000 square feet of contiguous space," said Greg Merage, Chief Executive Officer of MIG Real Estate. "This was instrumental in ...

American Custom Contractors is pleased to announce that GAF, North America's largest roofing manufacturer, has awarded the company with the prestigious GAF Master Elite Consumer Protection Excellence Award. This award recognizes American Custom Contractors achievement and dedication in helping consumers make educated roofing decisions. Only contractors who are Master Elite are eligible for this award. To achieve Master Elite status with GAF, a company must pass rigorous training and maintain specific standards of business and ethics in the roofing industry. Less than ...

A St. Augustine vacation rental home is being featured on the premier episode of the new PBS series Getting Away Together, Vacation Rental Pros' founder and CEO Steve Milo announced today. The privately owned home, Infinity Point at 4 Viejo Street, St. Augustine, was selected to inaugurate the new half-hour series, which debuts in October 2011 on Public Broadcasting System (PBS) member stations across the nation. Getting Away Together shows diverse groups of real vacationers -- families and friends -- spending time together in some of the most fascinating and beautiful ...

Sri Lanka is famous for its fabulous beaches, its national wildlife parks and for having an astonishing seven World Heritage Sites - the same number as Egypt! But it is less well known for its totally unspoilt rugged east coast - a virtual no-go area during the Tamil Tiger war. Now the area is opening up for tourism and Hayes & Jarvis (0844 415 1918, www.hayesandjarvis.com) has introduced a new tour - East Coast Sri Lanka - that spotlights the area's contrasting attractions. Describing the east coast as the country's 'hottest new destination' H&J recommends adding ...

Premier Virginia Beach cosmetic dentist, Dr. Christopher Hooper, is pleased to introduce a new online smile gallery. This helpful online feature provides patients with easy access to before-and-after photos of previous procedures performed in office. Easily accessible via the practice's homepage, the smile gallery offers patients an inside look at the results achieved by patients visiting Dr. Christopher Hooper. The pictures provided include examples of profiles that Dr. Hooper and his staff were able to achieve with functional appliances. These appliances are designed ...

Premier dentist in San Jose, Dr. Wesley Yemoto, is pleased to offer patients the opportunity to brighten their smiles and donate the fee to a school of their choice. Teeth whitening procedures have effectively restored the smiles of people with stained, dull, or discolored teeth and Dr. Yemoto is offering patients in the San Jose community an opportunity to do just that. Patients are encouraged to visit Dr. Yemoto to brighten their smile with a proper teeth whitening procedures. With the treatment patients gain the chance to donate 100% of their fee to a school of their ...

Dr. Hamon and Dr. De Buyl of Hamon, De Buyl and Associates, dentists in Katy, are pleased to announce the recent addition of contact forms added to his state-of-the-art website. Patients can simply visit the website to access and submit dental health information to the office via the online the contact forms. The contact forms were added by Drs. Hamon and DeBuyl, Katy family dentists, to create a new avenue for patients to ask questions or simply state how their visit was. Drs. Hamon and DeBuyl encourage patients to contact the practice whenever they have a concern ...

WESTPORT, MA-Dr. Michael Katz, experienced dentist in Little Compton, RI, is pleased to invite patients to visit Westport Dental's interactive website for access to patient video testimonials. Patients can now view video testimonials from some of Dr. Michael Katz's previous patients via his practice website. While visiting the website for this Tiverton dentist, patients can access the testimonial page to view positive reviews from previous patients. Each patient has received various treatments from Dr. Katz and the video testimonials show their satisfaction with the ...

New Branding in Effort to Expand Business into National and Global Markets Recently Payson Outfitters announced their new name and brand image, Santana Outdoors. The new name is in response to the growth the company has shown in recent years in both national and global markets. Santana Outdoors headquarters is located in Payson Arizona, hence the previous name of Payton Outfitters. They supply Payson and the surrounding areas with top quality outdoor hunting and camping gear and did so quite successfully. When they launched their website with online shopping capability ...

Change in the world of geotechnical engineering is accelerating with a vengeance, and nowhere is that more apparent than in the decision of Geotech consulting firm JACesare and Associates Inc. (JAC/CTS) to implement a fully automated, cloud-computing, Microsoft-based software solution from GeoSpec Systems. "We here at JAC/CTS pride ourselves on and emphasize our innovation, reliability, and accessibility," says JAC/CTS principal William Caires. "We walk the talk by doing and being just that--innovative, reliable, and accessible. We search out new and ...

The marketing experts at Towing Guru know how towing advertising on the Internet works. They offer comprehensive search engine optimization (SEO) strategies so that your company can be found on local online searches. An important part of Internet marketing for towing companies involves social media. Towing Guru offers social media setup and tips for making the most of social connections. You'll choose between several types of social media to link your site to. You should choose Facebook, a social networking site, since the majority of online consumers are Facebook ...

Skull motifs are now hugely popular in the fashion world and skull jewellery has become a leading trend. Stephen Einhorn's skull jewellery collection contains an eclectic range of skull rings, cufflinks, earrings and pendants, unique designs that will add a tough edge to your everyday look. Once a design associated with only a gothic look, the skull and crossbones motif can now be seen in all areas of popular culture and season upon season it continues to grace the catwalks of our capital cities and the pages of leading style titles. Popular with men and women alike, skull ...

Leading online voucher codes site DiscountVouchers.co.uk has this week introduced new retail offers which can help the nation's mums to maximise their summer budgets. The site, which regularly hosts deals for saving at more than 800 stores, is this week home to new money off vouchers which parents can use to save at Boots, Mothercare and more. Boots remains one of the most famous and trusted retailers in the country and is home to great quality toiletries, medicines and sun creams for the summer season. This week mums who want some holiday essentials for their kids can ...

Taylor Morrison has announced plans for Avalon at Riverstone, a heavily wooded 184-acre master-planned community that will front on an extension of University Boulevard in Sugar Land when it opens in 2012. Avalon at Riverstone is the fifth Avalon-branded community Taylor Morrison has developed in Fort Bend County. The land was purchased from Sugar Land Development, L.L.C. The principal partner, Johnson Development Corp., has developed master-planned communities in the Houston area for over three decades including Riverstone and Sienna Plantation in southwest Houston. "Projected ...

Brodie & Friedman, P.A., a Boca Raton family law firm that serves families throughout South Florida, is pleased to announce that managing partner Joshua K. Friedman was selected for inclusion in the Rising Stars list of the 2011 Florida Super Lawyers publication. Only 2.5 percent of attorneys are selected for recognition in the Rising Stars list. Super Lawyers' Rising Stars Through peer nominations, independent research and peer evaluations, Super Lawyers & Rising Stars selects attorneys for recognition as the top and up-and-coming attorneys in Florida. The ...

A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court protects makers of generic medicine from lawsuits by consumers who acquire side effects not adequately represented in warning labels. The ruling further hurts already-suffering individuals and has analysts predicting that a change in the laws will result. Inadequate Safety Warnings on Generic Drugs In 2001 and 2002, Gladys Mensing and Julie Demahy were prescribed the drug Reglan to treat digestive-track problems. After receiving the generic version, metoclopramide, from their pharmacists, the women took the medicine for ...