Travelfish #485: The strawless turtle edition
A wrap on stuff worth reading
Hi!
This week I’m starting with a Hakai story on the roots of the plastic straw thing. Who could forget the turtle video they mention? It’s a great read and please do enjoy it with your morning iced-coffee … no straw!
Over on Couchfish, I had two pieces rounding out Java’s Mount Bromo for paid subscribers and then for all readers I took a look at Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands and what they are doing on the sustainability front. In case you missed it, last week I had a long piece on Booking, Travalyst and their claims about sustainability. This week coming I promise I’m going to write about something that has nothing to do with sustainability!
The Hakai story set the theme this week—turtles—without straws!
Cheers
Stuart
Baby turtle
Turtle hatchling release, Ujung Genteng, West Java. Photo: Adam Poskitt.
⭐️ Story of the week
📚 What I’m reading
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe
🇲🇲 Burma
Death Highways: Driving In Myanmar’s Conflict Zones from Frontier Myanmar ($)
Looking to book your transport online when you’re on the road in Southeast Asia? For Vietnam, look no further than Baolau. For the rest of the region, 12Go should be your first port of call.
🇰🇭 Cambodia
South-East Asian Countries Demand Denver Museum Return Looted Artefacts from The Guardian
New Concession In Botum Sakor National Park Handed To Cambodia’s Royal Group from Mongabay
Did someone order a beach view?
Ad: Salad Hut on Ko Pha Ngan’s beautiful west coast, from US$118 per night. Click here for the details.
🌴 Environment
Ashes from Nerds Eye View
Carbon Credit Speculators Could Lose Billions As Offsets Deemed ‘Worthless’ from The Guardian
Top Scientists Warn Of “Ghastly Future Of Mass Extinction” And Climate Disruption from The Guardian
Rice, Rice Baby from Around The World In 80 Scrapes
🇮🇩 Indonesia
A Plan For How Indonesia Will Spend $20 Billion To Transition To Cleaner Energy Has Been Submitted from AP
Indonesia’s Tropical Eternity Glaciers Could Vanish Within Years, Experts Say from The Guardian
🇱🇦 Laos
Vietjet To Start Direct Flights Between Laos And Vietnam from The Laotian Times
China Critics Chased In Mekong As Beijing’s Security Clout Grows from Nikkei Asia ($)
Looking for deals on organised tours **with no domestic flying**? Here are a few for Southeast Asia via Travelfish partner TourRadar. (Prices are in US$)
Cambodia
Cambodia Explorer (11 days, $920)Indonesia
Komodo Island Hopper (9 days, $1,196)Laos
North Laos by motorbike (7 days, $2,062)Malaysia
Sabah Highlights (7 days, $1,243)Thailand
Bangkok to the North (9 days, $1,130)
🇲🇾 Malaysia
Malaysia’s Iconic “Jungle Railway”: One Of Southeast Asia's Greatest Train Journeys from BBC
No Longer Semporna At All from From An Equatorial Lens
🇸🇬 Singapore
This Airport Was Just Named The Best In The World — With A Massive Indoor Waterfall, Vertical Gardens, And Michelin-Worthy Restaurants from Travel & Leisure
Kueh Salat Deep Dive: Part I from Singapore Noodles
🇹🇭 Thailand
Made Famous By Anthony Bourdain, Tourists Still Flock To ‘Cowboy Hat Lady’ from Traveller
Rising Sea Levels Forcing Residents In Thailand’s Low-lying Areas To Adapt – Or Leave from Mekong Eye
How A Bangkok Shrine Became A Gentrification Battlefront from Nikkei Asia ($)
T.I.C.D.: Ao Phang Nga (Part I: Coast & Estuary Islands) from Thai Island Quest ($)
A Day In The Life Of Thailand from NE Where
Looking for somewhere special in Penang?
Ad: Campbell House in Georgetown, Penang from US$72 per night. Click here for the details.
🇻🇳 Vietnam
Hanoi Wants Tourists To Stop Visiting One Of The City’s Most Popular Tourist Attractions from TIME
How Vietnam’s Infrastructure Incapacity Undermines Its Geoeconomic Ambitions from The Diplomat
Hẻm Gems: Đà Lạt's Nomadic “Cafe” Has No Menu, No Store, And One Table from Saigoneer
Random other stuff
Bhutan Cuts Daily Tourist Fee By Half To Lure More Visitors from Reuters
Sober Tourism Is A Growing Trend—Here’s How It Can Transform Your Trip from National Geographic
Cash-Strapped Taliban Selling Tickets To Ruins Of Buddhas It Blew Up from The Washington Post ($)
Tour Operators: Vanguards Of Change For The Travel Sector In Times Of Uncertainty from Asia Sustainable Travel
Your Boarding Pass And Weight, Please: Why Airlines Are Asking Passengers To Step On The Scales from CNBC
The Early History Of Counting from Lapham’s Quarterly
Not a baby turtle
Turtle hanging out, trying to pay me no attention. At Tulamben, Bali. Photo: Intrinity Divers.
See you next week!
So that’s the wrap. I hope you are all in good health, and thanks for reading.
Cheers!
Stuart