South African diplomats, fashion designers in Chiang Rai

CHIANG RAI (THAILAND), July 8 (TNA) - South African diplomats and fashion designers are visiting mulberry paper and textile production facilities in Thailand’s northernmost province of Chiang Rai. Led by officials from the Export Promotion Department, the group visited royally-sponsored projects under the Doi Tung Development Project in Mae Sai district, bordering with Myanmar. Officials say they expect the visit to help open up the South African market for Thai exports made by local hill-tribes. Meanwhile, tourism in the country’s southern district of Hat Yai, known as a shopping paradise among tourists, has become alive again after 53-year-old Sa-nga Nuangla, who is the only human doll in the kingdom, wandered around the town and gave away dolls and candies to children and foreign tourists. The man, a native of Chiang Rai’s Phaya Mengrai district, decorated himself with colourful dolls, and walked around business areas of Hat Yai as people, including Malaysian and Singaporean tourists, smiled and looked at him with surprise. Wearing dark sunglasses and big hat, Mr. Sa-nga just smiled and gave candies and beautiful dolls to children and tourists. He said he also planned to visit other holidaying destinations such as Songkhla, Pattani and Phuket provinces, where he would do the same thing -- giving away candies and dolls for free -- to children and tourists. Mr. Sa-nga sells water purifying machines and fire extinguishers in Bangkok but he says he journeys upcountry twice a month whenever he is free from his job. Certainly, Mr. Sa-nga is not a lunatic man as he says he does it because he wants to see people and tourists visiting the kingdom smile. (TNA)