THE CELEBRITY-BACKED vegan burger start-up Beyond Meat made a sizzling Wall Street debut last week, more than doubling its share price, as investors show an appetite for the growing trend in plant-based diets.

Backed by Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio and Microsoft founder Bill Gates, the California-based firm had valued itself at about $1.5 billion (Bt47.7 billion) at opening on the Nasdaq exchange.

Beyond Meat’s plant-based products on a store shelf in New York./EPA-EFE

Having priced its shares at $25, Beyond Meat began trading at $46 but soon sky-rocketed, ending at $65.75 per share – a valuation of $3.8 billion.

By the following morning the share had bounced further to $68.11, lifting the valuation close to $4 billion.

Founded in 2009, the company has tapped into changing consumer appetites as growing numbers of people turn to plant-based meat alternatives, whether vegans who shun all animal products or flexitarians advocating moderate consumption of meat.

Its public offering comes a month after its Silicon-valley rival Impossible linked up with Burger King to offer a plant-based version of its signature Whopper.

Nestle and Unilever are also aiming to cement their presence in the expanding sector.

Beyond Meat’s early trading success is further proof of the mainstream appeal of plant-based foods, according to Bruce Friedrich, director of the Good Food Institute, an organisation promoting alternatives to animal products.

“Investors recognise that this is not a niche but a mainstream movement and a huge business opportunity,” he noted.

“The plant-based meat industry is thriving, and consumers can’t get enough.”

Beyond Meat chief executive Ethan Brown, centre, celebrates with guests after ringing the opening bell at Nasdaq Market Site on May 2. /AFP

As climate change movements take hold across the world, environment-conscious citizens are looking for ways to reduce their impact on the world, including rethinking their diet.

The food firm says its signature Beyond Burger uses significantly less water, less land, generates fewer greenhouse gas emissions, and requires less energy compared to a small beef burger.

Eating a plant-based protein would “help address concerns related to human health, climate change, resource conservation and animal welfare” as it seeks to compete with the $1.4 trillion global meat industry, it adds.

Despite its popularity Beyond Meat is still not profitable and recorded a net loss of $30 million in 2018, according to its most recent financial records released Monday.

But it has seen strong growth, with $88 million in sales in 2018, compared with $33 million in 2017 and $16 million in 2016.

“We have a history of losses, and we may be unable to achieve or sustain profitability,” the firm cautioned in its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The group said it would use the funds raised to “expand our marketing channels, invest in our distribution and manufacturing facilities, hire additional employees and enhance our technology and production capabilities.”

While soy burgers have existed for quite some time, Beyond Meat is one of several companies that have taken the product up a notch by using sophisticated technology to make it taste, look and smell like meat.

It uses peas, fava beans and soy to make steak, sausage and minced meat alternatives and uses beets to make its burgers “bleed”. The product is already sold in thousands of supermarkets and restaurants, including TGI Fridays.

Beside Gates and DiCaprio, its early backers include Twitter co-founders Biz Stone and Evan Williams, former McDonald’s director Don Thompson and the Humane Society.

APPLE CONFIRMS its presence in the education business with the launched of two projects for users of its products –Everyone Can Create and Everyone Can Code.

In Everyone Can Create, Apple provides e-books for students to download and learn how to develop and communicate ideas through video, photography, music and drawing. And it gives teachers fun and meaningful ways to bring these skills into any lesson, topic or assignment.

The Everyone Can Create curriculum is now available on Apple Books. Some books are free though others may have to be bought.

Apple says its Everyone Can Create project guides were developed in collaboration with educators and creative professionals and followed on from Apple’s collaboration with educators that has lasted for more than 40 years. The aim is to foster creativity in the classroom, in particular to help teachers bring student’s creativity to life across any subject. With the 9.7-inch iPad with support for Apple Pencil and free, built-in apps like GarageBand, iMovie, Clips and Swift Playgrounds, teachers now have powerful creative tools at their fingertips.

The project provides two kinds of guides – Teacher Guide and Student Guide.

A teacher guide comes with supplementary teaching materials to make it easy to bring more forms of expression into any subject. It includes class activities that can be applied to any grade level, assessment tips and sample student work to get students started.

The Everyone Can Create student guide, meanwhile, offers a step-by-step approach that teaches students the core skills and techniques of each creative discipline using free apps available on every iPad. Student Guides that can be downloaded from Apple Book Store are Everyone Can Create: Drawing, Everyone Can Create: Video, Everyone Can Create: Music, and Everyone Can Create: Photo.

Apple believes everyone should have the opportunity to create something that can change the world and feels coding is an essential skill that everyone should have the opportunity to learn. To that end, it has designed a special program called Everyone Can Code that offers a new approach to help anyone learn, write and teach code, no matter their age or skill level.

The Everyone Can Code program includes a range of resources that take students all the way from no coding experience to building fully functional apps of their own. It starts with Swift, the Apple-created programming language that is powerful, intuitive, and yet easy and approachable enough to be a first programming language. Popular apps Airbnb, Kayak, Trip Advisor, Zova and Yelp are all created with Swift, which these days is considered one of the world’s most popular coding languages.

Apple says it has expanded its Everyone Can Code initiative to more than 20 colleges and universities outside the US. These schools will now offer the App Development with Swift Curriculum, a full-year course designed by Apple engineers and educators to teach coding and app design to students of all levels and backgrounds.

Students who don’t have access to such colleges, can still learn to code by downloading textbooks from Apple Book Store. Available Every Can Code books include Intro to App Development with Swift, App Development with Swift, AP Computer Science Principles with Swift, Get Start with Code 1 Teacher Guide, Learn to Code 1 & 2 Teacher Guide, and Get Start with Code 2 Teacher Guide.

Apple Thailand has also launched educational sessions in Apple Stores ranging in topics from photo and video to music, coding, art and design, and more. The hands-on sessions, collectively called “Today at Apple”, are led by highly-trained team members, and in select cities world-class artists, photographers and musicians offer teaching sessions from basics and how-to lessons to professional-level programmes.

A full list of Today at Apple sessions at Apple Orchard Road can be found at http://www.Apple.com/th/today/.

LISTING THE LINKS

Download Everyone Can Create books at:

Teacher Guide: https://itunes.apple.com/th/book/everyonecancreateteacherguide/id1357353934

Drawing: https://itunes.apple.com/th/book/everyonecancreatedrawing/id1357353820

Video: https://itunes.apple.com/th/book/everyonecancreatevideo/id1434350922

Music: https://itunes.apple.com/th/book/everyonecancreatemusic/id1434741739

Photo: https://itunes.apple.com/th/book/everyonecancreatephoto/id1434898103

Links for downloading Everyone Can Code

Swift: https://www.apple.com/sg/swift/

Educator forums: https://forums.developer.apple.com/community/foreducators

Books, Courses and Apps: https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewMultiRoom

A joint commitment for conserving protected birds and other wildlife was signed by Bali Vice Governor Tjokorda Oka Artha Ardana, Bali Police Deputy Chief I Gede Alit Widana, West Bali National Park head Agus Ngurah Krisna, and the head of APCB, Tony Sumampau.

Prior to the release, several habitat studies were carried out at the park to assess suitability as a potential release site for the birds. A total of 38 bird species were found within the Safari Park, indicating that this location could support a good carrying capacity of birds in the future.

Bali Safari Park, one of the leading conservation institutions on the island, is committed to the long-term protection and sustainability of Indonesian endemic and native species, through consolidated breeding and release programmes.

Captive breeding facilities were established specially for the Bali starling (Leucopsar rothschildi), a critically endangered bird endemic to Bali.

Captive-bred birds were released into the wild to supplement and increase Bali starling populations. Previous release programmes have not resulted in significant positive impact to wild populations and this current effort aims to change that.

Conservationists have identified two main challenges to the successful increase of wild Bali starling population numbers; firstly, low habitat carrying capacity and secondly, increasing adaptability of Bali starlings to their release habitat.

The success of the black-winged starling release programme at Taman Safari Indonesia Bogor in 2016, is used as a model of how captive-bred Bali starlings can be released as part of in situ conservation efforts, using similar release protocols.

Bali Safari Park has been conducting public awareness programs to encourage communities in three nearby villages, namely Medahan, Lebih and Serongga, as well as students from nine elementary schools around Bali Safari Park to protect and monitor the released birds and other wildlife.

STANDING OUT from all the other royal barges in this October’s procession on the Chao Phraya will be the Subhannahong. Her name refers to Hong, a swan-like mythical steed of the Hindu god Brahma that appeared in Thai lore during the Ayutthaya Period. Its graceful shape, especially the lean neck inlaid with golden lacquer and supporting an exquisite face suggests the dignity and great honour of being Brahma’s vehicle.

The Subhannahong royal barge is decorated with full regalia and insignia in honour of HM the King.

The barge is made out of teak and is the most majestic of all royal barges. Its figurehead is raised in flight with eyes bulging prominently, nostrils flared and fangs protruding from its grimacing mouth.

The head holds a crystal ball and tassel in its mouth and wears a garland and pendant around its neck. Its feathers, represented by gilded and mirrored ornamentation, appear to flow in the wind along the length of its body to its flame-like tail.

As the gilded paddles of the oarsmen flash in the sunlight in rhythm with their stylised rowing, their movement suggests that of gigantic wings and creates the illusion that the barge is in flight through the air.

In April, officials decorated the Subhannahong with garlands, and prepared crews for participation in the coronation ceremony. The Royal Household Bureau installed five-tier and seven-tier umbrellas and drapery as well as a three-prong pennant at the stern.

Officials of the Royal Household Bureau installed five-tier and seven-tier umbrellas.

The garlands decorating the royal barge’s prow were crafted by students and teachers of Satri Wat Rakhang School, specialists in the unique ancient art of floral embroidery.

Traditionally, the garland is a token of welcome, respect and symbolise well wishes to honoured guests, relatives and loved ones.

The floral garlands date back to the reign of King Rama V when they were made popular in the Royal Court by Queen Saovabha Phongsri, (1864-1919), who herself was a master of the craft and introduced the designs we are familiar with today.

The size of garland of the Subhannahong royal barge is very long due to its neckline.

The first component of the garland placed around the neck of the Subhannahong is known as malai and is made of yellow and gold tatar cloth, stuffed with kapok and embroidered with four dahlia flowers. The second component is the star-shaped bouquet, intricately designed with the use of uba – strings of plastic dahlias, hibiscus and galangal flowers tied together to form a long string, which is then attached to the six-pointed star structure.

The making of traditional Thai floral creations is a heritage that continues at Satri Wat Rakhang School, with its teachers and students assigned to craft garlands for the royal barge for the past six decades. 

Satri Wat Rakhang School has been crafting garlands for the royal barges since the tradition of the barge procession was revived in May 1957 on the orders of the late King Bhumibol.

The school is marking its 105th year this year, and the teachers and students say they are very proud and honoured to be able to serve the country and the Royal Family.

Students work on the second part of the garland creating beautiful ‘uba’ design.

Pranee Keawchalua, a teacher and expert in the field, said the garland for each royal barge is designed differently based on the features of the barge’s neck.

“The Subhannahong barge’s neck is very long, so we need to create a long garland, while the head of Anekkachatpuchong royal barge is shorter, so the garland is made to match its size.

“The Narai Songsuban HM Rama IX is the grandest, so we create a garland based on traditional patterns. We are all very proud to serve His Majesty King Rama X and be a part of his historic coronation ceremony,” she said.

Directed by Ethan Oulton and produced by Elise Meleisea, it opens with a dramatic shipwreck on the island of Illyria, where Shakespeare’s heroine finds herself haplessly and hysterically trapped through all of love’s amusing comedies as she struggles to seek out her true soul mate.

Tickets costing Bt800 are available at http://www.BangkokCommunityTheatre.com and Ticketmelon.

In search of a chair

Italian film “La Sedia Della Felicita”, or “The Chair of Happiness” in English, is the second movie in River City Bangkok Film Club’s 2019 series and screens at RCB Forum on the second floor of River City Bangkok on May 25 at 2pm.

Directed by Carlo Mazzacurati, the film blends mystery and suspense, romance and emotion, topped up with plenty of laughs.

Admission is free but reservations are recommended,

Email rcbfilmclub@rivercity.co.th or check out http://www.RiverCityBangkok.com)

Turning the pages

Once a month, SEA Junction holds a mini book and craft fair in room 408 of the Bangkok Arts and Culture Centre (BACC). The next one takes place this Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 7pm and, as usual, will feature new books from recognised publishers with an interest in the countries of Southeast Asia as well as used books in Thai, English and Indonesian on various issues related to Southeast Asia and the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). There are also a few literature and developmentrelated works from outside the region.

Find out more by calling (097) 002 4140.

The man from Paris

Mysterious Parisian Alexis, also known as Aazar, one-third of producer group Point Point, will be manning the deck at Barbarbar on Thonglor Soi 10 tomorrow night from 9 until late.

Expect full-on hard trap with jawdropping elements and a signature underline scratch. His track “Pop Dat” with 4B was one of the most played trap songs in 2016 and featured in DJ sets across festival stages and club shows all over the world.

Tickets are Bt500 with one drink. Find out more at (085) 253 2000.

Techno night out

Iconic and Mendy Indigo invite clubbers to a night of contemporary techno music with the Bangkok debut of special international guest Marcel Dettmann on Wedneday at Beam of 72 Courtyard starting from 10.

The German DJ, producer, and record label owner, considered one of the most influential proponents of contemporary techno, is a resident at the wellknown Berlin nightclub Berghain.

Tickets cost Bt950 with one drink. Book a table at (02) 392 7750.

THOUGH THE GRANDEUR of the three-day Royal Coronation ceremony was replaced by normal humdrum life in Bangkok come Tuesday morning, people won’t have to wait too long for another grand event – the royal barge procession. Also part of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s coronation ceremonies, the magnificent procession will be held in late October.

Oarsmen row the Subhannahong royal barge from the Royal Navy’s dockyard on the Thon Buri side of the Chao Phraya River to Ratcha Woradit pier, next to the Grand Palace, on May 4 in honour of HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s coronation.

The pageant will feature 52 royal barges with about 2,000 oarsmen, with the exquisitely crafted Subhannahong carrying His Majesty from the Wasukri pier to Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn). Upon arrival, the King will present robes to monks as part of the Royal kathin ceremony marking the end of Buddhist Lent.

During the three-day coronation ceremony, the century-old Subhannahong barge was docked at the Ratcha Woradit pier next to the Grand Palace. The royal vessel had been restored to its former majestic glory by the Royal Thai Navy and the Fine Arts Department’s Office of Traditional Arts.

Traditional practices during the Royal Coronation ceremony dictate that different modes of transportation, namely a palanquin, a white elephant, a horse, a motorcar and a barge, stand ready at each station in honour of the newly crowned monarch.

The Subhannahong royal barge was moored at Ratcha Woradit pier throughout the threeday coronation ceremony from May 4 to 6. She will be the supreme barge carrying the King during the royal procession in October.

Customarily, the post-coronation ceremony includes a royal procession by land and by water to temples, during which the King symbolically becomes the patron of Buddhism. This also gives the public a chance to pay homage to their new monarch.

All previous Kings of the Chakri Dynasty performed the royal land procession, with the exception of King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII), who passed away before being formally crowned, and King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX), who chose not to perform this ritual after he was crowned on May 5, 1950. King Bhumibol chose to hold the procession in 1963, marking the occasion of his third-cycle birthday anniversary.

Hence, the post-coronation land procession of the current monarch on Sunday was the first in 94 years after that of King King Prajadhipok (Rama VII) in 1925.

The royal land procession of HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn took place on Sunday (May 5).

The elaborate parade, with 1,286 participants, saw the King being carried on a royal palanquin down the seven-kilometre route from the Grand Palace to Wat Bovoranives, Wat Rajabopidh and Wat Phra Chetuphon and took almost seven hours to complete.

The post-coronation royal barge procession has only been held four times since the dawn of the Chakri Dynasty. King Rama I performed this ritual during his second coronation in 1785. Then the barges underwent extensive restoration work and were completed in time for the coronation ceremony of King Rama IV in 1851, followed by the coronations of King Rama VI in 1911 and King Rama VII in 1925.

In 1982, King Bhumibol ordered a grand barge procession to mark the bicentennial of the Rattanakosin era. During the late King’s 70-year reign, the pageant was held 17 times marking the Royal kathin ceremonies.

Artisans install the busabok in the middle of the Subhannahong royal barge that will serve the King during the royal procession to Wat Arun in October.

In preparation for the royal barge procession in October, the Royal Thai Navy has been working for a full year, refurbishing these exquisite boats that are kept in dry dock at the Royal Barge Museum on the Thon Buri side of the river. They are thoroughly cleaned and X-ray technology is used to inspect the condition of the vessels’ structures for effective restoration.

Artisans of the Fine Arts Department are in charge of restoring the decorative parts, applying new gold lacquer and inlaid glass, and generally getting the vessels ready in line with royal splendour.

Royal splendour

The King’s barge – the Subhannahong – was first built in during the reign of King Rama V, but only completed during the reign of King Rama VI – in time to mark his second coronation in 1911.

Made from teak, the 46-metre Subhannahong royal barge has the head of a mythical swan and is adorned with gilded lacquer and mirrored glass, a crystalline ball and tassels made from yak hair dangling from the mouth. The hull is painted black outside and red inside.

The busabok (spired pavilion) is placed in the centre, with a throne for the King and seats for the Royal Family. It is enshrined with royal regalia including the seven and five-tired chatra (umbrellas) as well as the royal umbrella and fan. The World Ship Trust gave the Subhannahong a Maritime World Heritage status in 1992.

The vessel is manned by 50 oarsmen, two steersmen, two officers fore and aft, a signalman, a royal flag bearer, one chanter and seven chatra bearers. The chanter leads the singing of the song that has been especially composed for this year’s ceremony and the oarsmen chant rhythmically in unison on each barge.

The royal barge procession of King Rama VI proceeded from the Grand Palace to Wat Arun in 1911.

After founding the Chakri Dynasty and making Bangkok the capital of Siam in 1782, King Rama I re-examined the coronation records from the late Ayutthaya period, resulting in a revised procedure and prototype for the rites of accession, including the royal barge procession.

King Rama I ordered the construction of a series of barges and named the most important of these Si Subhannahong. King Rama V later initiated the building of a new and similar barge to replace the original dilapidated vessel, and also named it the Subhannahong – this vessel has remained in use ever since.

 King Rama VII embarked for the royal barge procession to Wat Arun in 1925.

However, barges kept in the Navy dock in Bangkok Noi district suffered extensive damage during World War II, with only three royal barges – the Subhannahong, the Anantanakkharaj and the Anekkachatpuchong – surviving alongside 11 other vessels.

The major renovation of these barges was carried out during the reign of King Bhumibol and the dock that used to store them became the current Royal Barge Museum. A new royal barge named Narai Songsuban HM Rama IX was constructed to mark King Bhumibol’s Golden Jubilee in 1996. The prow is carved from wood and the figurehead depicts the god Vishnu riding the Garuda.

In October, people will have the chance to see a splendid procession of 52 vessels along Chao Phraya River.

The barges will be divided into different classes, with the four majestic royal barges – Subhannahong, Narai Songsuban HM Rama IX, Anantanakkharaj and Anekkachatpuchong – being stars of the event. The procession will also feature eight animal-masthead barges, 22 lesser escort barges and 18 other vessels.

Lido cinema in Siam Square, which closed its doors last June after 50 years in operation, is getting a new lease of life courtesy of LoveIs Entertainment, which is working with Property Management of Chulalongkorn University (PMCU) to turn it into a modern hub of arts, culture and lifestyle under the name Lido Connect.

From left: Nop Ponchamni, Thepard Kawinanan, Vorrapong Sukteera-anantachai,director of Chulalongkorn University’s property management office, and Boyd Kosiyabong are bringing the Lido back to life.

“Siam Square is a destination everyone knows and it’s well served by public transport. Lido has been here for more than 50 years, and we have given a lot of thought as to how we can best develop it so that it suits the needs of all lifestyles. We would like this area to be a stage for young people to show off their abilities. Did you know that Nop Ponchamni once busked here but was later banned? We are collaborating with LoveIs to pool our different creative ideas. Bakery Music was set up in Siam Square,” says Assoc Prof Dr Wisanu Subsompon of PMCU, which is responsible for Siam Square and Sam Yan.

“We are determined to offer everyone the chance to show off his or her abilities and to serve as a venue where people can find inspiration and meet their favourite artists,” he continues.

The first floor is being turned into an event space.

“We are very excited to be a part of this project, not least because Boyd and I have witnessed the development of Siam Square over the last few decades,” adds Thep-ard Kawin-anan, chief executive of LoveIs Entertainment.

“When we were young, there was nowhere we could promote our abilities in music, art or performance. So I was delighted when we were approached to be part of the project.”

Boyd Kosiyabong, the founder of LoveIs, agrees. “Lido holds so many memories. It was here that I saw the movie ‘Jaws’ for the first time. I walked through here every day to get to the Bakery Music offices.

“We will be neutral and welcoming no matter who or what you are. It can be a movie studio, a recording studio or even a church. We would like everyone in this society to make the use of this prime area at student prices. After hearing about this project, I told Wisanu it was really a great idea to open up this prime area to everyone.

“Lido Connect isn’t only for watching a movie but also live performance.” – Prisatorn “Aoo” Sakoonthai, design director of PIA Interior

“Siam Square has always been a hangout for teenagers and at Bakery Music that helped us to know what kind of music they were listening to and what they were doing. At Dojo City, a subsidiary of Bakery Music, Somkiat Ariyachaipanich kept an eye on the students after school and some of them went on to become the label’s artists. The area is synonymous with innovation and creativity,” he adds.

Lido was officially launched on June 27, 1968, two years after Siam and one year before Scala. A 1,000-seat cinema, it kicked off by screening the British action film “Guns for San Sebastian.” Its name was taken from Le Lido, a cabaret and burlesque on the Champs-Elysees in Paris. Fire broke out at the cinema on March 16, 1993 and it was later renovated as a cineplex featuring three theatres with the ground level divided into several shops. But Apex Production’s lease with PMCU came to an end on May 31 last year and the cinema closed its doors, much to the dismay of its many fans.

When Lido Connect reopens, probably as early as this year, those same fans will be delighted to see that the decades-old building will have lost none of its appeal. The university is spending Bt50 million on infrastructure and the developers are adding further Bt30-40 million to give the interior a ’90’s feel.

“I’m really excited about this project,” Prisatorn “Aoo” Sakoonthai, design director of PIA Interior Company told the media during his VTR presentation at the press conference of “Lido: Change to Unchange”.

The blackbox theatre is for performing art.

“We’ve thought long and hard how to renovate the building while maintaining its classic feel. As you all know, Lido was renovated after the fire and became three cinemas. We asked Apex Production’s Nanta Tansajja to borrow the blueprint of the Lido plan. We are sticking to much of the original design but giving it a better look and more utilities.

The first floor is being turned into a “Co-inspiring Space” and will be able to host every type of event.

Lido shop will offer products from several events.

“We have expanded this public area as a kind of showroom for creators to show off their abilities in what we are calling street events. People waiting for a bus can take a seat and watch the show or activity. This area is the heart of Lido and that makes it a perfect venue for new generation innovators and designers to expose their creations to the public,” the young design director explains.

The restrooms have been expanded.

The second floor will be a “Co-performing Space” and the venue for live performances such as music, performing art, design or even esports. The first theatre is suitable for one-man shows, while the second will serve as a kind of live house. The third is being converted into a blackbox theatre suitable for performing art and talk shows.

“We will keep the original neon sign and the entrance sign and add better lighting and acoustic systems. We will have a Lido shop to provide for all events to be organised here. We would like Lido Connect to be instilled in the collective memory of the new generation,” says Prisatorn.

“Our aim is encourage people to spend their leisure time here watching live performances, concerts and theatre plays.”

Let’s talk Lido

Here’s what a few well-known personalities have to say about the project.

Trisdee “Pizza” na Patalung, classical conductor of Siam Sinfonietta

“I was excited by the presentation. All the areas can be used by different groups in the field of classical music. That’s especially important today with so many small chamber orchestras or new duo emerging on the scene. This place is perfect for them.”

Natasha “Ong” Patamapongs of jazz band Mellow Motif, jazz producer and artist

“We are still a small community in jazz and there are many young groups who want to present their work but lack the stage to do so. Lido is in the right hands.”

Damkerng “Big” Thitapiyasak, artistic director of New Theatre Society

“I am so glad to have this area right in the heart of the city. As Bangkok Theatre Network, we have used everything from restaurants to abandoned buildings for our works. I think that it is a very good space especially the blackbox theatre, which theatre troupes can create their stage.”

Nattawut “Baz” Poonpiriya, director of movies such as “Bad Genius”

“Three cinemas Lido, Siam and Scala are like my school, and I was so sad when I heard that Lido was to be demolished. Now, of course, I’m thrilled to know that Lido is coming back with a new look. It’s going to be a great place for people to work in all categories of arts.”

Prart Aroonrungsi, chief executive and founder of Prart Music Group and Overdrive magazine

“For me, His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn has come at the right time for Thailand – so strong and confident. He is the hope of the Thai people.

Love Live the King!”

Prart

Bodin Charoenrat, frontman of pop band Mild

“As a Thai citizen, who has the deepest gratitude to our beloved King and the Royal Family, I would like to express my sincere allegiance to our King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

May he live a long life with good health and prosperity.”

Bodin

Palapol Ponkongseng, pop artist with GMM Grammy

“This is the most important ceremony in the history of Thailand and for Thai people, who have had a chance to take part in this history. I was so excited to see so many Thais get a chance to have an audience with royalty. This is an important opportunity for Thai people to glorify the monarchy.”

Palapol

Orathai “Tai” Dabkam, luk thung artist with Grammy Gold

“It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see this traditional coronation ceremony dating back more than two centuries. All parts of the ceremony were so great. I couldn’t hold back my tears when I saw the King in the midst of people wearing yellow shirts on Rajdamnoen Avenue.”

Tai Orathai 

Film director Yongyooth Thongkongtoom

“The ceremony was so magnificent and the images from the live broadcast throughout all three days reflected the grandeur and traditions of a ceremony that has been practised for a long, long time. It taught me a lot about the historical background, and what was behind the evolution. I am grateful that technology has helped record each and every detail of the magnificent ceremony forever.”

Yongyooth

Actress Anne Thongprasom

“I don’t know how to describe it in words. All I can see is that the ceremony has left me speechless and delighted. The ceremony was so magnificent and is a great legacy for our children … I am proud to be Thai, #Long Live the King”

Anne

Senior Colonel Wanchana Sawasdee, who played King Naresuan in the epic “Tamnan Somdej Phra Naresuan Maharaj” (“The Legend of King Naresuan”)

“I watched the coronation ceremony on television. My family and I were eagerly waiting to watch His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s first Royal command. The ceremony was overwhelming, and I feel that we, Thai people, are fortunate to be in a country that can preserve and practise ancient ceremonies.”

Wanchana

Dr Narong Prangcharoen, dean, College of Music, Mahidol University

“The monarchy has been in the heart of each and every Thai. Every King has been key to peace in our country. His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s coronation is an auspicious event. The last time this ancient ceremony took place was 69 years ago. For many of us, this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and a spectacular phenomenon.

This ceremony highlighted our ancient rituals, as well as our rich and strong culture. Such rare and grand ceremonies also show the world that Thailand has long-established traditions. This event will bring Thailand back into the limelight and helped strengthen the trust of allied nations in Thailand as an important partner in the region and a prominent force for the world economy. The coronation ceremony has made the country happy. We, the Thais, are pleased that we finally have our King, who is in our hearts now and forever.”

Narong

Assoc Darin Pantoomkomol, dean for Education, Academic Affairs and Research and chair of Jazz Department College of Music, Mahidol University

“Monarchy institution has played vital roles in the development of Thailand throughout the history of the nation. Nowadays in the reign of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn, many of his contributions made to the country through royal duties have been very well recognised both in the national and international societies.

This is the first time in my life, as well as many others’, to see these elaborate ceremonies which have been in existence for centuries, from the sacred purification ritual, royal ragalia presentation, to the spectacular Royal Land Procession. These precious moments will be remembered for my lifetime.

In this very special occasion of the formal coronation of His Majesty, I feel greatly honored to spend my days witnessing this once-in-a-lifetime moment with passion and gratefulness to the King and the Royal Family who have contributed greatly to Thai society, as well as served as Thailand’s unifying elements for centuries.

May I take this opportunity to exprees my respect and loyalty to the King and the Royal Family and to wish them happiness, good health and long lives.”

Darin

 Fancy yourself a coffee connoisseur with a love for dark roasts? Or maybe hoppy pale ales are more your thing?

The truth may be that our preferences for caffeine or alcoholic beverages – or indeed sugary sodas – derive not so much from the way they taste but how they make us feel, according to a new study by genetic scientists at Northwestern University that was published in Human Molecular Genetics on Thursday.

In her latest work,Marilyn Cornelis, who has published previously on the genetics of coffee consumption, set out to determine which taste genes are responsible for what we drink.

But to her and the team’s surprise, people’s preferences weren’t based on variations in taste genes but rather the genes that are related to the beverages’ mind-altering effects.

“The genetics underlying our preferences are related to the psychoactive components of these drinks,” Cornelis notes.

“People like the way coffee and alcohol make them feel. That’s why they drink it.”

The American Heart Association and National Institutes of Health-funded study collected 24-hour dietary questionnaires from some 336,000 individuals of European ancestry from the UK Biobank.

Beverages were divided into a bitter-tasting group and a sweet-tasting group.

Bitter included coffee and tea, grapefruit juice, red wine and liquor; while sweet included sugar-sweetened drinks, artificially sweetened drinks and non-grapefruit juices.

The researchers then performed a genome-wide association study of the consumption patterns, which were in turn validated in three US populations.

“Taste may be a factor,” Cornelis says, but “it’s an acquired taste.”

Coffee, because of its bitterness, “is something which we should be avoiding on an evolutionary level,” she explains. “But we’re consuming it because we learned to equate the taste with the caffeine effect.”

One factor the researchers did not account for, she said, was sugar and cream that participants may have added to their coffee to conceal the bitterness.

Cornelis also found that people who had a particular variant in a gene called the FTO preferred sugar-sweetened drinks. The result was surprising because the same variant has previously been linked to a lower risk of obesity.

Calling the finding “counterintuitive”, Cornelis says: “FTO has been something of a mystery gene, and we don’t know exactly how it’s linked to obesity.

“It likely plays a role in behaviour, which would be linked to weight management.”

The study’s overall findings could eventually help researchers find ways to intervene when consumption patterns become unhealthy.

Sugary beverages are linked to obesity and a variety of related conditions. Alcohol, meanwhile, is related to more than 200 diseases and responsible for about six per cent of global deaths.

“It tells you if you’re interested in intervening in some of these behaviours one thing will likely be the psycho-stimulant effects, so those could be barriers to people changing their behaviour pattern,” she concludes.

AFTER TWO years of mourning following the passing of HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX), Thais cheered with joy and hoped for a glorious and peaceful reign under the new monarch, His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn, whose three-day coronation ceremony ended yesterday in keeping with centuries-old practices and customs.

Yesterday – final day of the three-day ceremony – a sea of yellow-clad people gathered at the Grand Palace and nearby areas to greet their new monarch when he granted audience from the balcony of the Grand Palace’s Suddhaisavarya Prasad Throne Hall, the same venue where his parents – King Bhumibol and HM Queen Sirikit – gave audience on May 7, 1950.

A sea of yellow-clad people gather at the Grand Palace to greet their new monarch when he grants audience from the balcony of the Suddhaisavarya Prasad Throne Hall on Monday (May 6).

Nattamon Thamjumras, 61, a provincial manager at AIA Insurance Co, travelled from Nonthaburi province to attend all three days of the ceremony.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event after seven decades of late King Bhumibol’s reign. We only saw old pictures of the late King’s coronation ceremony, and I don’t know if I’ll get a chance to see it again,” she said. “On Saturday, I boarded a boat from Nonthaburi at 5am to Sanam Luang to be among the crowd of well-wishers during the King’s purification bath, the anointing ritual and the investiture ceremony,” she said.

Nattamon

Yesterday, she arrived at Grand Palace at 8am with the hope of catching a glimpse of His Majesty after missing the chance to see him during the royal procession on Sunday. “I am full of hope to express my loyalty to our King when he comes out to grant a public audience in the evening,” she added.

Seubsak

Seubsak Submoon, a 39-year-old teacher from Ayutthaya province, and his colleagues were among the thousands who took a place in the front of the Grand Palace early yesterday to catch sight of the King during the public audience.

“My office helped by arranging transport for us from Ayutthaya to the ceremonial site. This is an unforgettable experience. I’m glad that I have lived in two reigns – King Rama IX and King Rama X. It will be an unforgettable experience that I’ll share with my children in the future.”

Ladda, second from right

Ladda Weerapong, a 63-year-old housewife from Nonthaburi province, and her friends attended the royal land procession on Sunday and returned yesterday to join the concluding day of the Royal Coronation ceremony.

“I’m overjoyed to have had a chance to greet the monarch from up close. Two years ago, I had joined the cremation ceremony of King Bhumibol as a Red Cross volunteer,” said Ladda.

Gowit 

Meanwhile, Gowit Janmee, a 30-year-old lawyer who is also an amateur photographer, hoped to capture the historic moments in images. “Monday is my day off so I decided to get as close as possible to the balcony of the Grand Palace’s Suddhaisavarya Prasad Throne Hall to capture the historic moment of the King and Queen granting a public audience. We all used to learn about the Royal Coronation ceremony through black-and-white photos and historical books, so this is a great opportunity to capture this history with my own hands,” he said.

To Richard Kelleher, a foreign visitor, the coronation ceremony was an amazing event. “I’m from the UK and my country has a monarchy, too. So we have the royal family as well. We have the queen and you have the King, a lot of similarity. To have a monarchy institution, I don’t know how you think, but for my country I think we need this institution. The monarchy gives you identity, your nation and traditions and culture because a lot of traditions come from royal connections. I’ve been travelling around Thailand since last month, but I decided to come back to Bangkok to attend the coronation ceremony of your King because it’s a historic event,” Kelleher, 59, said.

Funden

Famous actor Funden Chanyathanakorn, who spent 23 years working as a rescue volunteer, also joined in the momentous event by joining veteran doctors from Lerdsin, Nakhon Pathom and Saraburi Hospitals to set up a mobile clinic to provide first-aid during the three-day ceremony.

“Our team has worked together since the royal cremation of the late King Bhumibol, as part of the project ‘We Do Good by Heart’. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience to watch beautiful traditions, culture and history through our own eyes,” Funden said.

With the temperature hitting 38 degrees Celsius on all three days of the coronation ceremony, local residents in yellow shirts made regular visits to the medical booth to get herbal inhalers or drinking water.

“During the royal cremation of King Bhumibol, we were overcome by sadness but the Royal Coronation ceremony is about celebration. I’m lucky to have been a part of history. Other foreigners might never have seen an ancient ceremony like us, so they might not understand how we feel. Though we encountered several political conflicts, our centuries-old traditions and customs have not faded. We should learn and live consciously,” Funden said.

Siriporn 

Siriporn Maiman, a 27-year-old teacher from Chachoengsao province, also worked as a volunteer during the royal cremation ceremony of King Bhumibol and expresses loyalty to the monarchy.

“On Saturday, I watched the purification bath and the anointing water ritual on television. The last day of the ceremony is also a historic event, which I won’t miss. When I’m in the actual ceremonial site, the feeling is different from what we see on TV. Here, we have companions who have the same heart,” said Siriporn.