Laos, Thailand and Cambodia: Visit Them Before They Are Ruined
In the last several months, tourists have been flocking to these cities. Alas, there’s more to Asia that lures the tourist than just the stunning tropical beaches. So yes, if you can make it, go and explore before they truly become Asia’s lost gems.
Read Bangkok Chief of Bureau Denis D. Gray’s observations and lamentations on how tourists have taken over these places.
A fusillade of flashing, jostling cameras and videocams is triggered the moment Buddhist monks pad barefoot out of their monasteries in a serene, timeless ritual. A forward surge breaks into the line of golden-yellow robes, and nearly tramples kneeling Lao women offering food to the monks.
Later that day, a prince of the former royal capital struggling to preserve his town’s cultural legacy, protests: “For many tourists, coming to Luang Prabang is like going on safari, but our monks are not monkeys or buffaloes.”
However, are YOU perhaps precisely the type of tourist he could be referring to? Food for thought.
Tags: Asia, asia diving, asia-holidays, asia-hotels, asia-travel, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, tourism, VietnamRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Asia Travelogues, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand
4 opinions for Laos, Thailand and Cambodia: Visit Them Before They Are Ruined
tb
Mar 31, 2008 at 12:47 am
perhaps, but, are YOU perhaps the type of travel writer/blogger that promotes precisely the type of tourist he could be referring to? Food for thought.
Ruth
Mar 31, 2008 at 12:51 am
touche, tb ;-)
but I’m just the blogger. i can hardly change the way tourists behave, can i?
Ken Dunlop
Mar 31, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Ruth,
Hello there, I just returned from 6 - 8 months in Thailand, Malaysia and Cambodia. I was working there in the Scuba Diving Industry, and I so agree with the concerns you have echoed in your post. I am so amazed on the lack of thought and compassion for the locals in these areas. I went on one tour junket, and was saddened on how many people ignored the basic requests of the Monks and the tour guides reference pictures, touching, and to some extent speaking.
In Cambodia, in Ankor Wat, there were easily 60 - 100 tour buses at 6 in the morning at the temples, with thousands of people moving through….I was so glad I remained in my work area and did not add to the chaos.
Ken
Clark
Apr 13, 2008 at 11:02 am
I think the photo accompanying this article says a great deal about the topic (http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/04/13/asia/luang.php).
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