Greetings from coastal Thailand, where whale sharks are in the spotlight; dugongs face seagrass degradation; elephants need some help; and all kinds of people are yapping about how to resume foreign tourism. All of these stories and more are on the way in this edition of the Island Wrap.
Last week I published a recap of a trip we took to Ko Wiang, the largest in a group of karst islands found in a remote corner of Chumphon province. Even if you don’t do a boat trip to Ko Wiang and its satellites, the surrounding Thung Maha Bay is a gorgeous area for road trippers, cyclists and those who like things quiet. Later this week, I’m thinking it might be time for another Island Nerd post.
Yesterday I joined two other Thailand-based travel pros in a Travel Massive panel moderated by Ric Gazarian of Global Gaz. We dug into a bundle of issues regarding the effects of Covid-19 on the tourism industry and environment in Thailand. You’ll find a link to the video down the page in tourism industry news.
Over on Couchfish, Stuart shared a photo of himself as a skinny young backpacker drinking Beer Lao during his search for “the missile” in Attapeu, Southern Laos. He then bended back towards Pakse and asked, “why do people travel?” That story includes moving reflections from Stuart and travelers he’s met on the road.
I do love I Do I Do. Do you?
Pick of the week: BUSINESS
The mellow atmosphere, friendly staffers with no neat uniforms, reggae music, live bands, sea-view tables and, of course, great food and drinks all combine to make I Do I Do one of my go-to spots in the south of Ko Chang (Trat). This oddly named joint sits on Hat Sai Noi, a mini-beach within easy SUPing distance of Khlong Kloi. Grab one of their red, yellow and green business cards on your way out.
Weather news
After a stretch of torrential rain followed by a week of beautiful blue skies, much of coastal Thailand has returned to its regularly scheduled monsoon program. Storms are moving into the Andaman coast, although the Eastern Gulf has looked unexpectedly spiffy and it’s still a fine time to visit the Mid-Southern Gulf.
In Bangkok, two storms caused flash floods that, in turn, brought traffic to an hours-long standstill. In neighboring Samut Prakan, Richard Barrow had to grab a bucket to battle the “heaviest rain in many years.”
Off Ko Samui, a team is using a giant net and two cranes set on barges to salvage the wreck of the Raja 4 ferry that sunk on August 2nd. Speaking of the Raja ferry company, another tragedy was narrowly averted when two crew members jumped into the sea to rescue a woman who went overboard, reportedly in a suicide attempt near Ko Phangan. No one was seriously hurt — at least not physically.
Wildlife and environmental news
August 30th was international whale shark day and, in the video below, divers met one of these sea-jumbos when removing debris around Ko Haa. Also check out these facts about whale sharks; and a National Geographic story from 2018 on “the chaotic world of whale shark tourism.” It’s about the Philippines, but many of the takeaways also apply to Thailand’s relationship with the biggest fish on earth.
This video from Ko Haa offers a look at a green sea turtle enjoying a bite before a whale shark appears, in all its majesty, near the end of the clip. (Source: มาหยานิวส์ สื่อออนไลน์)
Thailand bestowed Royal honors on two foreign divers for their roles in the rescue of 12 boys and their soccer coach from a cave in Chiang Rai back in 2018. “Elik Brown, a Canadian national; and Ivan Karadzic, a Danish national, both diving instructors on Ko Tao, were among 115 foreigners who have been granted the Most Admirable Order of Direkgunabhorn,” reports Supapong Chaolan for Bangkok Post.
Divers removed another 200 kilos of discarded fishing nets and other debris from reefs near Ko Phi Phi, adding to more than 25 tons of sea waste recovered earlier in the year. Big clean-ups also took place around Ko Mook in the Lower Andaman; and Ko Wai over in the Ko Chang archipelago.
Returning to Ko Haa, divers freed 100 fish from a trap that had been set illegally on the seafloor in an area protected by Mu Ko Lanta Marine Park. It was part of a worrying trend described by the non-profit ReReef as “the scariest thing when tourism is reduced.” Unfortunately, a lack of tour boats can embolden illegal fishers.
Police are on the hunt for two foreign divers pictured groping marine life during a night dive near Ko Phangan over the weekend. Marine biologist Thon Thamrongnawasawat blasted the pair for “disrespecting” the sea critters.
In some very alarming news, a current carried sediment that had been dredged from the Trang River to Ko Libong, burying acres of seagrass and threatening the 180 dugongs that feed on it. The influx of mud also killed snails, clams, crabs and sea cucumbers while angering locals, some of whom voiced their opposition to the dredging project when authorities first proposed it two years ago.
Reporting for The World, Patrick Winn revealed that while some Thai farms do use macaques to pick coconuts, a recent report by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) exaggerated the practice when calling for a total boycott of Thai coconut products. One of the country’s largest coconut milk producers, Chao Koh (“Island People”), is bringing in independent auditors from France to prove that it does not use monkey pickers after its revenue dropped by 20% due to the boycott.
Edwin Wiek of Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand (WFFT) said that several farmers have asked the rescue facility that he runs in Phetchaburi to take macaques off their hands as a result of the boycott. Quoted in a separate story by Jiraporn Kuhakan for Reuters, Mr. Wiek also drew attention to the many owners of tourism-reliant elephant camps who are now asking the organization to shelter their jumbos.
Unfortunately, the charity itself is also under funded due to the lack of foreign tourists. Want to do something good? Donate to WFFT.
In more uplifting news, a team of 11th graders from Bangkok’s Ruamrudee International School took home one of the top three prizes from an environmental science competition held by the British International Education Association. Their winning innovation is a device that collects plastic waste before transferring it into a chamber filled with bacteria that decomposes the rubbish. Nifty.
Meanwhile, Thailand’s Dept. of Pollution Control is working on a bill to make all plastic manufactured in the country 100% recyclable by 2027.
Social media corner
Two fabulous shots caught my eye on Twitter and since I couldn’t decide between them, I’m featuring both. First, @MrVop posted an aerial view of Nakhon Si Thammarat province’s Laem Talumphuk, the longest cape in Thailand.
On the other side of Thailand’s portion of the Malay Peninsula in Khao Lak, @ytspar snapped a great photo of an elephant on the sand in the early light.
The above is a screenshot. I didn’t embed the tweet because tweets with multiple photos stack one photo on top of the next, so please click over to the original tweet to see the photos in full.
Tourism industry news
A lot of folks are anxious to see finalized information about the government’s “safe and sealed” proposal to use Phuket as a testing ground for a return of foreign tourists to Thailand. Well, this past week left more questions than answers.
The most informative articles that I read about the proposal come from Vincent Vichit-Vadakan of South China Morning Post, who questions if it’s “worth the risk”; from Tanyalook Sakut of The Phuket News, who stresses that “caution is vital”; and from a trio of Bangkok Post journalists who found “little backing.”
All three of those stories provide balanced, realistic takes on the many obstacles and wrinkles that need to be ironed out before “safe and sealed” can become a reality. Here are seven more articles about the proposal that may interest you:
When will Thailand reopen for tourism? Even officials don’t have a clue — Khaosod English
TAT outlines the realities of Covid-19 travel — Bangkok Post via TTR Weekly
Phuket hotels scramble to register as ASQL venues — The Phuket News
Opening up Thailand to tourists a ‘potential catastrophe’, wait six months urges Chula doctor — ThaiVisa via Thai PBS
‘Phuket model’ still in process, ‘may take time’ — The Phuket News
Pushback from local associations over the Thai government’s ‘Phuket Model’ — The Thaiger
Thailand plans reopening for long-stay visitors this winter — Bloomberg
On a Travel Massive panel titled “How Southeast Asia travel is rebounding,” journalist Anne Somanas of TTG Asia Media joined Daniel Fraser of Smiling Albino, and yours truly, to share thoughts on the “safe and sealed” proposal and much more. Here’s the video if you want to find out what we had to say:
Thanks again to Ric for organizing this panel. (Source: Travel Massive)
In other news
“The Tourism and Sports Ministry and the National Economic and Social Development Council already cut their projections for next year's foreign tourist arrivals to 12 million,” writes Somruedi Banchongduang for Bangkok Post. If that figure ends up being roughly correct, it will represent less than 30% of the nearly 40 million foreign tourists who visited Thailand in 2019.
After nearly two decades in business, Chaweng restaurateur Wilat Suranawarat is struggling with income of only a few hundred baht per day and overhead close to 100,000 baht per month. He warned Thai PBS that “if the government chooses Ko Samui to accept foreign tourists, it may only help big entrepreneurs.” Sadly, stories like his are common in destinations that rely heavily on foreign tourism.
Two restaurateurs from Bangkok, Chalee Kader and Jarrett Wrisley, told Greg Jorgensen of The Bangkok Podcast about some of their own struggles to keep their establishments afloat during this Covid-19 era. One takeaway: If you want to see fabulous restaurants around in the future, go out to eat now.
Two schools closed as a precaution in Hua Hin district after the mother of a student came into contact with at least one of 10 Myanmar nationals who snuck across the mountainous border. This was one of several recent instances of illegal immigration that have prompted Thai authorities to tighten border security.
Anti-government protests are continuing across much of Thailand, including a rally in Hat Yai that drew around 150 college students on Sunday evening. Meanwhile, with moral support from Progressive Movement leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, environmental activists from nearby Phatthalung celebrated after Parliament voted down funding for a proposed reservoir project in their province.
Facing a public outcry, the Royal Thai Navy’s long-standing desire to buy two submarines from China has been put on hold. It’s not the first time.
Karen forest dwellers are again standing up for their native rights to live on land in Kaeng Krachan National Park. In related news, Pinnapa Prueksapan, the widow of murdered Karen activist, Porlajee “Billy” Rakchongcharoen, called on Thailand’s attorney general to reverse “the public prosecutors’ decision to drop murder and other serious charges against four park officials suspected of collusion in her husband’s death” back in 2014, reports King-Oua Laohong for Bangkok Post.
Farmers in Narathiwat and other Deep Southern Thai provinces are having success with durian crops as an alternative to rubber and palm oil. In nearby Songkhla province, INN News published some good photos of the fishing lifestyle that unfolds amid Thailand’s largest freshwater lake. I love it down there.
A 63-year-old resident of Pattaya was met with smiles when he took his motorbike modified to look like a witch’s broom out for a spin. In more sobering news from Pattaya, officials placed 33 homeless people in a shelter after some folks showed “little sympathy” for their plight.
Phil of Ajarn.com and Mark of Thai Spicy both shared insightful blog posts about their recent trips to Ko Samui. And in Trang, Mark Wiens sampled Pakistani-Thai goat curry, goat nam prik and goat biryani for a video that made me hungry.
Reader James brought some old posts about living on Patong Beach in the late 1970s to my attention. They’re a bit dense but worth a look if you have a spare hour to transport yourself back to the Phuket of a bygone era.
Finally, Choltanutkun Tun-Atiruj of Thisrupt has long-awaited good news about Thai craft beer. A law change made it legal for brewers like Wichit Saiklao of Chit Beer to sell his craft brews beyond his small bar on Ko Kret. “I would like to drink local craft beer wherever I travel in the provinces. It’s part of the experience of the local scene and lifestyle,” he says. Now that is something to look forward to. 🍻 🌴