"Mandarin-style" French Fries could be a hit in China
That young woman nicknamed French Fries is proving wrong the cynics who think beauty queens just sit around all day polishing their nails and smiling for the press.
Miss Thailand World 2015 Thanyachanok Moonninta, 22, has been doing charity events, training in classical Thai dancing and learning to converse in Mandarin ahead of the Miss World pageant in Sanya, the resort city on China’s Hainan Island. And today she’s picking up her bachelor’s degree from Thammasat University.
The convocation at the Pridi Banomyong Institute comes just three days before she departs for China, where the waiting accommodations at least sound like they’ll calm her nerves a bit (not that she seems the least bit nervous, mind you).
Interestingly enough, the place is called the Beauty Crown, and it’s one of only a handful of “seven-star” hotels in the world – none of which, also interestingly, are in the West. Global hotel ratings follow no rigid standard, but this “quaint little inn” probably deserves at least two extra stars for its astonishing architecture, which resembles a row of enormous trees in colourful glass. It also houses the theatre from which the pageant will be televised worldwide.
Ketchup is almost certainly not on the menu at the Beauty Crown, but we’re sure that French Fries will do well in her preparations for the pageant final on December 19.
Thailand has been sending its loveliest ladies to the Miss World contest for 30 years, beginning with Parnlekha Wanmuang, who had a go in London in 1985. More than 100 countries are represented, but French Fries has a key advantage now that China holds the spotlight. With Mandarin one of her subjects at university, she spent some immersion time last year at Beijing University.
“I know the country quite well because I’ve been to several language-training camps in China and I’ve learned about the traditions and way of life,” she says. “I think that Thais and Chinese share many similarities – we’re like sibling countries. I’ve been learning about Chinese people and their language since I was young, so going to China for the contest feels like going home. I’m not worried about anything.”
You’ll recall that she put her Mandarin skills to helpful use following the bombing at the Erawan Shrine in August, serving as a volunteer translator for the Chinese tourists who were hospitalised.
In Sanya she’s hoping to be of aid to her fellow contestants. “I’d be able to translate and offer them advice about bus routes and food and directions. When I heard the finals were being held in Sanya I was even more excited, because it’s one of the cities of my dreams, with modern architecture, white-sand beaches and the beautiful blue ocean.”
Pledging to “try my best in representing Thailand and to win a prize for all Thai people”, French Fries is urging everyone to tune in to the pageant coverage on TV, in the papers, on Twitter and Instagram and at www.Facebook/MissWorldThailand.
