| The Land of a Thousand Smiles |
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20th January 2008, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand
Life as an elite athlete can be tough to say the least, with grueling daily trainings that pushes the body to its limits.
However, Thailand, the host country of the 4th ASEAN Para Games is sparing no effort to make the stay of the participating athletes an extremely comfortable one.
An excellent example of the cordial hospitality has been the Athletes' Village. Converted from the Suranaree University of Technology, the Games Village houses nearly 2,000 athletes for the duration of the Games.
Making full use of the expansive land area of the university, the village boasts of facilities and services such as a cinema hall, an Internet café, a beauty salon and most impressively, an air-conditioned dining hall able to house all the athletes at any one time.
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To cater to the diverse taste buds of the different contingents, the dining hall has more than 10 food stalls serving a free flow mixture of western and continental cuisine plus a good mix of Thai delicacies as well.
Athletes are spoilt for choice when it comes to food, thus providing the perfect tonic after a hard day's training. 4 meals are served everyday with breakfast starting bright and early at 6.00am and ending off with supper that stops only at midnight. Friendly and warm student volunteers can be seen everywhere in the dining hall, with an ever-present smile, assisting the athletes with food and beverages or just with maneuvering within the hall.
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And if the pangs of homesickness start to kick in, there is an ample array of telecommunication facilities found right within the dining hall as well. 15 internet terminals with flat screen LCD screens are provided for the athletes to send a reassuring email back to their loved ones, or to simply chill out by surfing some of their favorite web pages. If internet does not suffice, there is always the international calling centre, also found within the dining hall for athletes to make calls to their friends and family. Home, is really just a phone call away.
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As for the movie buffs, rest assured that your needs will not go unanswered. A movie theatre with a capacity of a hundred can be found within the Athletes' Village as well. With a good mixture of golden classics such as "The Spy Who Loved Me" and youth fare such as "Cat in the Hat" running throughout the day, no movie buff will leave the Athletes' Village dissatisfied.
Medical facilities are also well catered for with an amply stocked polyclinic located just at a 15 minutes walk from the accommodations area. The polyclinic comes with consultation rooms with even a dedicated section providing physical therapy for the athletes who might have a nagging injury to take care of.
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At the end of the day, it is time to retreat back to the air-conditioned comfort of the accommodation room, or have a hot refreshing shower just to wash the fatigue away. Thailand is not simply the Land of a Thousand Smiles, but the Land of a Thousand Comforts as well.
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