Yes, this is Thailand, but the Thais have never met a festival they didn't like, and there are a lot of ethnic Chinese living here, so they do it up pretty well here in Hat Yai. Chinese New Year was actually last weekend, but here it stretches into a week-long celebration, culminating today (pictures). We kicked off the day at dawn with a dragon- and shrine-filled parade, followed by a yummy dim-sum breakfast, and some crazy firecracker dancing at P Noot's Car Care business (video 1 - above, and video 2). The teams of shrine carriers from the parade spend the day going from place to place around the city blessing homes and businesses by dancing madly around under a super-long string of exploding firecrackers. Noisy and smoky, but fun to watch. Mid-day we all retreated from the heat, then regrouped for an evening at the festival. Many of the men who hauled shrines around all day turned up for fire walking (video). A bed of hot coals was prepared in front of the Chinese temple, and participants raced across singly or in groups with their shrines. Most ran at a dead sprint (can't say I blame them) but those that went at a more deliberate pace got bigger cheers from the crowd. Afterward, we saw a lot of men and boys limping around very gingerly, and one being carried by his friends. Welcome, year of the fire pig.

Labels: Chinese New Year, Hat Yai, Thailand

After a weekend on Koh Lipe (pictures), I've decided that my favorite marine critter of the moment is the giant clam. Some interesting giant clam factoids and nice pictures can be found here, and the Wikipedia article had this fascinating historical overview:

As is often the case with uncharacteristically large species, the giant clam has been historically misunderstood. Known in times past as the killer clam or man-eating clam, reputable scientific and technical manuals once claimed that the great mollusc had caused deaths; versions of the U.S. Navy Diving Manual even gave detailed instructions for releasing oneself from its grasp by severing the adductor muscles used to close its shell.

Today, it is generally acknowledged that the giant clam is neither aggressive nor particularly dangerous; while it is certainly capable of holding one fast in its grip, the shell's closing action is actually a defensive response, and far too slow to pose any reasonable threat. No account of a human becoming trapped in this manner has ever been substantiated. (full Wikipedia entry here)

I never felt threatened, but Trevor did tease me that they would take a finger if I got too close. Everywhere we snorkeled off Koh Lipe, we saw lots of giant clams. Some were so embedded in the reef their mantles looked like crazy colored sea slugs on the coral - bursts of vivid purple, blue, orange, red and turquoise. Others were more exposed, showing their enormous shells. There was something medieval about the giant hinge creaking shut with a dull thunk when a snorkeler ventured too close. After some internet searching, I now know that they actually sense light, and were responding to our shadows rather than any motion or sound in the water. And those brilliant colors are the result of symbiotic algae that provide most of the clam's food via photosynthesis. We didn't see any of the 1.5-meter monsters that are the maximum size for the largest species, but we did see one very impressive ~3-foot specimen.

Leaving for the islands on mid-day Thursday, we had actually planned to go to Koh Tarutao, the biggest island in Tarutao National Marine Park. We accidentally bought tickets to Lipe - the most developed of the park's islands - and decided not to bother changing them. Our boat pulled up to the island in the late afternoon, and not really having a preference on where to stay, we took the advice of the boat driver and headed for the Porn Resort (get your minds out of the gutter, you nasty folks - Porn is a very common nickname in Thailand, and has nothing to do with anyone's entertainment preference). They were out of bungalows, but offered us a tent on the beach for 150 baht a night, which we happily accepted. We even had time for a snorkel, which was actually quite nice right off our beach. Aside from the giant clams, and a lot of wicked-looking long-spined sea urchins, there were an incredible number of nondescript, 6-12" long sea cucumbers littering the sandy bottom around the coral. We spent the next three days watching the local people harvest them off the beach by the barrel-full, but repeated snorkel trips showed no sign of decreased numbers.

We managed to tear ourselves away from the lazy read-snorkel-nap-repeat cycle on our beach long enough to explore the island a bit. There are no roads, but a trail system connects the different beaches and resorts. Most of the lodging is still pretty basic, and fairly inexpensive, though some up-scale operations are starting to pop up. We had some sticker shock paying resort-island food prices for terrible Thai food again, but we were happy to find Jack's Jungle Bar dishing up some tasty local fare, along with some interesting live Mexican music. The singer was, we're guessing, temporary, as he kept forgetting which island he was on and yelling out "Happy Birthday!" between songs. We liked him a lot.

On Saturday we hopped on a snorkeling tour that proved way more fantastic than not. The first stop was unfortunate. Out in the middle of nowhere, there was an (admittedly) gorgeous coral mount, with (unfortunately) wicked currents. It was carnage. There were permanent but easy-to-miss buoy lines intended to keep the tourists from being swept away, while happily oblivious Thais in life jackets were towed around by their already-tired tour guides and baffled foreigners were left to figure things out for themselves. Amidst all of the face-kicking and confusion I dropped my snorkel, and we resigned ourselves to trading off and on for the day. The next site boasted some really fantastic coral, and redeemed the trip completely all by itself, at least in part due to the kind boat driver who tossed us an extra snorkel. The next two sites were both beach snorkels, so we were able to lounge on the sand and eat lunch between bouts of similarly amazing underwater viewing. On the last beach we found ourselves surrounded by massive schools of 2-inch long fish, all zigging and zagging in unison. Gorgeous coral, amazing numbers and variety of fish, exotic starfish, tons of giant clams, and even some pipefish (think sea horses only laid out straight) made it a memorable day out.

Sunday morning - and our ferry off the island - came way too soon. We definitely kept our eyes peeled on the boat-ride home, checking out the many islands we passed, and plotting our next Marine Park adventure!

Labels: Koh Lipe, snorkeling, Thailand

When I started my three month stint with NATR, I was a little worried I wouldn't want to leave. The crew appeared top-notch, the type of work extremely fulfilling, and the amount of backyard recreation truly blissful.

All of these perceptions proved true. Thus to my surprise, and overall contentment, I was ready to leave Kuraburi to fill a void that was growing in me due to Em's absence. While I will miss much about the Kuraburi area, I am stoked to stay connected with the crew by continuing to help virtually for the next few weeks.

NATR is in a transition of phasing itself out in the next few months. It is great to sit back and realize that there are current programs that will carry NATR's foundation into the future. Projects like the Kuraburi Information Center, continued vocational training and English speaking with local groups, various environmental education programs being led by our ACE Expert graduates, and the community-based tourism project I have been working on all will help develop the communities in a sustainable methodology benefiting local people.

Supporting our endeavors, the state of Phang Nga is focussed on developing ecotourism and beginning to put resources into the Kuraburi area. This is both for environmental sustainability and marketing differentiation. The states of Phuket and Krabi began on this "ecotourism" concept but due to high tourism volumes have stopped promoting the outdoor local Thai experience, which is also now harder to find.

It will be a test to see if the Kuraburi area can withstand the lure of big money as developers hope to build the next chain mega-resort destination up the Andaman coast. We believe the people in Kuraburi will resist as many locals have heard first-hand from other villagers in the Khao Lak or Phuket area how things have changed, and in their opinions, for the worse. These opinions are even coming from those who are now basking in tourist dollars, but conscious that their old livelihoods are dying out and their native forests are receding inland.

The other unique factor in NATR's success has been the lack of mafia intervention. Like most developing nations, Thailand has widespread corruption. Local mafia groups make sure to get involved where there is money. That has been our saving grace. We are not making any money and we are not getting involved in already established money-generating industries such as boat trips to the Surin Islands. So, we have been able to go about our business and support a community-driven process for creating tourism. It will also be interesting to see how the mafia reacts to programs such as homestays when the money does start coming in.

Either way, I feel lucky to have been there during such a transitional stage in little Kuraburi's history and to help push change towards the positive. I look forward to returning with Em and my parents and have a feeling I will be back beyond that.

My last weekend consisted of great jungle wilderness. Most of the crew went out to the Surin Islands, but due to the cost and knowing I will be there for a longer stay in a couple months, I chose to stay on the mainland. Jason and I found the seven pools, a beautiful playground just a few kilometers upriver from the dam we visit regularly. We ended up hiking too far upstream and had an adventurous river-walk/rock-slide back down to the pools.

Then Jeab took us to his uncle's property in Kapong. We went down for a big jungle hike his cousins had planned. With a late morning start, I was thinking it would just be a little stroll to some stream to watch them spearfish. But no, with lots of river walking, some fishing with bamboo poles made on-site, and many waterslides and waterfalls, it turned out to be a fantastic outing. The river walk is a true wilderness experience as you are not using any man-made trail and hence get to places that are literally off the "beaten path".

In addition to this great hike, we attended the funeral of one of Jeab's father's friends both nights we were in Kapong. A funeral in Thailand, and most of the east, is quite different from home. For instance, it lasts a week. They do conduct a more traditional ceremony the first night, but each consecutive evening has a party atmosphere with dinner, drinks, and card games. Again, a great experience. Thanks Jeab for your continued invitations to show me more of your country...I have enjoyed them all.

So, back to my transition here in Hat Yai. Stoked! My next month consists of virtual work helping grow Andaman Discoveries, some intense training for the return trip to the Himalayas, and starting to look for my next work project here after our two months of vacation! With Em's laptop and high-speed internet in our apartment, I am currently setting up the virtual office. Kind of nice to be able to rock out to new music (thanks NATR peeps) while working!

Labels: Kuraburi, sustainable tourism, Thailand