Travelfish #436: Satay smells good
What goes better with a newsletter than a clutch of satay? Nothing.
Hi all,
This week I kick off with a great piece on “Extractive Tourism,” a topic I’ve written on a bit over on Couchfish—well worth a read. In Burma, a writer reflects on the year after the country’s coup, while in Cambodia, there is a bunch of stories from a bar-hopping guide through to the risks activists face there. In the environment, the NatGeo piece on The Future of Forests is excellent. In Indonesia, we touch on forestry, farming, and a ghastly story about some lowlife deliberately poisoning dogs in Bali. Parts of Laos saw crowds over Pimai, even if the country is ranking last in recovering from Covid-19.
More trees in Malaysia, but also, what is it with the obsession over artificial islands? Singapore is all about the death penalty, while in Thailand there are khan bowls, Ko Chang and a holiday gone badly wrong. For Vietnam, stuff to eat on an island plus a worrying piece about the country’s floodlands. Last but not least, a couple of pieces on fabulists. Over on free-to-read Couchfish, readers are enjoying my piece asking what does travel smell like?
The photos this week, are a couple of quick smells of Southeast Asia.
Cheers
Stuart
Satay One
Satay, Kota Kinabalu. Photo: Stuart McDonald
Vaccinations snapshot
The following chart is per capita—not total numbers. The dark green bar is the one that matters—it represents the percentage of the eligible population that are fully vaccinated. You can see a full-size and interactive version of the chart here.
Source: Our World in Data
Travel summary
So where is open and where is closed? This chart by Hannah Pearson at Pear Anderson summarises the state of play in the region as of Sunday, April 17, 2022. If you’re after a detailed weekly report on the region, Hannah’s report is the absolute business. To receive Hannah’s report in your email mailbox every Sunday you can sign up here (it is free!). This is my go-to report for where things are at in the region. If you have any queries or suggestions about how the chart could be improved, please drop her a line via the Pear Anderson website here.
Source: The Impact of Covid-19 on the Southeast Asian Tourism Industry (PDF)
⭐️ Story of the week
What Is ‘Extractive Tourism’? And How Can We Stop It? from Adventure
🇲🇲 Burma
Soul-crushing Experience: A Reflection on One Year After the Return to Military Rule in Myanmar/Burma from Tea Circle
Smuggled Sketches Offer Glimpses Into Harsh Myanmar Prison from Reuters
A Brief Story of Myanmar (Burmese) Cuisine from Banyan Canopy (LinkedIn)
‘Quick Profits’: Activists Fear for Environment Under Military Rule from Frontier Myanmar ($)
🇰🇭 Cambodia
Bar-hopping Phnom Penh’s Bassac Quarter from Move to Cambodia
A Heart Out of Sync at the “Chaktomuk” in Cambodia from Los Angeles Review of Books
Attacks on UN Special Envoy and Human Rights Staff in Cambodia Reminiscent of Pol Pot Tactics from Asian Human Rights Commission
The Cambodian Activists Risking Their Freedom for the Environment from BBC News
Koh Kong’s Ecotourism Island Marred by Waste Pollution from Camboja News
Eviction Stalled for Floating Communities, but Options Limited for Ethnic Vietnamese from VOD
White Building Review – Cambodia’s Modernist Masterpiece Is Centre of Attention from The Guardian
🌴 Environment
The Future of Forests from National Geographic
Seagrass Joins Other Marine Life in Accumulating Sunscreen Compounds from Mongabay
Biodiversity: Why Should Business Care? from INSEAD Knowledge
🇮🇩 Indonesia
Plan to Carve Up Indonesian Papua Rings Alarm Over Fate of People and Forests from Mongabay
A Land Without Farmers from The Jakarta Post
Joy as Indonesia Passes Bill Outlawing Sexual Abuse and Forced Marriage from The Guardian
Silencing the Din in Indonesian Cities from Fulcrum
Who Killed the Berawa Beach Dogs? from Coconuts Bali
🇱🇦 Laos
Vientiane Remains Quiet but Luang Prabang Witnesses Large Crowds During Pimai from The Star
Laos Ranked Last in Nikkei Covid Recovery Index from The Laotian Times
Big Trouble for Tigers in Laos from Asia Sentinal ($)
Laos Farmers Turn to Game Theory in Bid to Outsmart Rats from Aljazeera
🇲🇾 Malaysia
Outcry in Malaysia as Failure to Replant Forests Sparks ‘Cover-up’ Accusation from Mongabay
Malaysia Has One of Asia’s Longest Coastlines. So Why the Obsession With Artificial Islands Affecting Environment and Fisherfolk? from South China Morning Post ($)
Boy, 14, Missing in Malaysia Diving Trip Believed to Have Died from The Guardian
So how do you compare different travel insurance companies? Read a comparison of Insured Nomads, SafetyWing and World Nomads here.
🇸🇬 Singapore
Over 400 Singaporeans Protest the Death Penalty from We, The Citizens
There’s Idealism at the Recent Death Penalty Protest but Is That Enough? from Rice Media
🇹🇭 Thailand
Redefining My Thai Identity from New Mandala
The Khan Bowl: Relying on Songkran to Survive Cultural Extinction from Rice Media
Rediscovering Bangkok from Bangkok Post
Koh Chang Revisited: Kai Bae Beach 2022 from Thai Spicy
How Our Dream Holiday to Thailand Ended Before It Began from The Times ($)
🇻🇳 Vietnam
Floodplain Wetlands of the Mekong – Going, Going, Gone? from The Third Pole
Nuclear Moves Up the List of Vietnam’s Power Mix from Southeast Asia Globe
Where to Eat Seafood on Phu Quoc Island from Vietnam Coracle
Random other stuff
Does Traveling to Every Country Count if You Don’t Post on the Internet? from The Washington Post ($)
His Tale of Crossing Antarctica Was Riveting. But How Much Was Fiction? from National Geographic
Dying Food Traditions from Vittles
Holidays in Soviet Sanatoriums: The Wierd and Wonderful Wellness Palaces of the USSR from The Calvert Journal
Paradise Squandered: What Really Happened to Sri Lanka’s Economy? from The Asia Foundation
Couchfish (Free-to-read)
Couchfish (Paid subscribers only)
Satay Two
Satay, Gorontalo. Photo: Stuart McDonald
See you next week!
So that’s the wrap. I hope you are all in good health and weathering Covid19 as well as possible.
See you next week,
Stuart