Travelfish #331: Ao Nang + On taking pics + Renew your account made easy!

Everywhere is on the way to somewhere Hi all, This week we have new coverage for [Ao Nang in southern Thailand]( found some great places to stay and eat, and of course, plenty to do. Do see our revised write–up for the skinny. Some minor housekeeping, we have added a far simpler way for existing members to renew their accounts. If your account has expired and you want to renew, please just go to the site, log in and then go to the homepage—you should see an option to do it there and then. There you go, that only took us two years to set up! Also, thanks to everyone who got in touch for the stickers—so many people got in touch we have already run out! So, if you missed out will be another week as we need to get some more printed. For everyone else, they are in the mail. Good travels, Stuart, Sam and the Travelfish crew Support Travelfish! If you'd like to chip in (if you haven’t already) for using the site, we'd love you to sign up for a year-long subscription for just A$35. [See more here](. Soapbox On taking pics ... especially of kids I was at a local restaurant for lunch the other day with our kids and one of their friends. The restaurant has a splash pool and the kids were busy doing what ten year olds do so well, splashing. We were the only guests at the restaurant and I was sitting within easy eyeshot of the pool. After a while I looked up to see an Indonesian guy by the pool taking pics of the kids. Not of the pool with the kids in it, clearly he was taking photos of the kids. I got up and hobbled over (just two weeks on crutches to go!) and asked him what he was doing—what were the photos for? He was surprised to be asked, but blurted out “They’re for Instagram”. “No they’re not” I replied with a smile and asked him to delete the photos he had taken. Which he did, and once I was clear he had totally deleted them (phones often store deleted pics elsewhere), I suggested to him that if he had wandered over and asked me if it was ok, we could have avoided the whole situation as I would have just said “no” upfront. We was extremely apologetic (and I think a bit mortified). It does bring to mind though the importance, when possible, to ask for people’s permission when taking photos, and when dealing with kids, aside from obviously asking their permission, if their parents are around, ask them too. After all I’m sure my kids would have said “yes” if he had asked them rather than me. Yes asking permission can remove that impromptu/natural look in a photo taken unawares, but it takes little effort to raise a camera and gesture to indicate “is it ok if I take your photo”, and I’d argue that is always more important than taken somebody’s photo more “naturally”. How would you feel if a complete stranger walked into your house and started taking photos of you and your family without asking permission? Often when you put the shoe on the other foot, the answer is obvious. Good travels, Stuart Premium members only: Book a round the world with [roundtheworldflights.com]( (must travel from the UK via Asia, Australia, New Zealand AND the Americas) and get £30pp off your trip. Offer valid for departures to December 2018. Log in to the Member Centre on Travelfish now for your coupon code and [start designing your own round the world trip »]( Featured Ao Nang This week we have (finally) got the last of David’s trio of Krabi destinations updated—[Ao Nang]( [Krabi]( and the [Railay Beaches]( are already up, and the more tourist–heavy/mainstream destination of Ao Nang creaked onto the site last night. Beach sculpture. Photo: David Luekens With southern Thailand it is easy to talk in degrees of mainstreamism (yes I made that word up) when it comes to destinations. There are still off the radar islands which see very few foreign travellers—say [Ko Si Boya]( or [Ko Sukorn]( for example, while somewhere like [Ko Jum]( is just on the radar and somewhere like Ko Phi Phi has its own radar station and satellite station! Ao Nang for years has been far closer to [Ko Phi Phi]( in popularity. One of the first areas to develop for foreign tourism in the province, it is now well and truly on the mainstream package tour hit–list. As some would venture, if your travel agent tells you Ao Nang is untouched you need a new travel agent. Plenty of scope for sundowners at Haad Noppharat Thara. Photo: David Luekens But for some travellers, Ao Nang is just what the doctor ordered. [No shortage of choice when it comes to hotels]( plenty of [international fare]( for those who struggle with Thai food (thankfully there is some3 good Thai fare too), an active nightlife (though as is sadly often the case now, watch your drink) ease of access (a simple run from the airport) and it makes for a convenient base to explore the surrounds. It is this last point that is probably worth emphasising. Ao Nang does make for [a very convenient base for exploring]( both the surrounding beaches, the national parks in the hinterland and the offshore islands. And, because of the volume of tourists, prices are often very affordable (klaxon warning you get what you pay for!) Do do a boat trip or three. Photo: David Luekens David’s advice to beat the hordes is to roll your own trip. Charter a longtail with a few able bodied travel partners and get going at the crack of dawn—that way you’ll be wandering the pristine white sands of Ko Poda while the hordes are still cramming down their ABFs with those terrible plastic sausages. Yes it will cost you a little more, but, well, somethings are worth splurging on. Lastly, don’t forget that much of what can be easily visited from Krabi or Railay Beach can also be visited from Ao Nang, so whichever of the three you are headed to, be sure to read over our coverage of all three—and yes, you will need longer than you planned. Read more about [Ao Nang]( [Krabi]( and [Railay Beach](. Travelfish partners [Browse the internet safely]( When we travel we always use TunnelBear VPN to secure our browsing. This reduces the risk from dodgy WiFi networks and idiotic ISPs who inject ads into our browsers. Use the internet safely with TunnelBear. TunnelBear offer a free 7-day trial or use it selectively and enjoy [500meg of data per month for free](. News from the region BURMA I: Aung San Suu Kyi stripped of Amnesty’s highest honor “Since Aung San Suu Kyi became the de facto leader of Myanmar’s civilian-led government in April 2016, her administration has been actively involved in the commission or perpetuation of [multiple human rights violations]( BURMA II: Rohingya flee refugee camps in Bangladesh “The UNHCR called for Myanmar to allow Rohingya refugees to visit their places of origin or resettlement sites to make their own “[independent assessment]( of whether they feel they can return there in safety and dignity”. ” BURMA III: Stigma or separation: The painful choice facing Myanmar's single mothers “Radiologist Myat Sandar Thant set up the foundation two years ago, appalled by the suicide of a patient who [could not face the shame of pregnancy]( CAMBODIA : Where in the world is Cambodia? “Chief among those recurring motives in the pre-election interviews was a tendency to view the international community as partisan, biased [and acting on behalf of the CNRP]( INDONESIA I: 40,000-year-old cave art may be world’s oldest animal drawing “Now, updated analysis of the cave walls suggests that these images stand [among the earliest traces of human creativity]( dating back between 52,000 and 40,000 years ago.” INDONESIA II: Boeing withheld information on 737 model “One Federal Aviation Administration manager familiar with the details said the new flight-control systems [weren’t highlighted in any training materials]( or during lengthy discussions between carriers and regulators about phasing in the latest 737 derivatives.” Huge. INDONESIA III: Indonesia stops search for victims of Lion Air crash ‘ “There is [nowhere left to search]( and we have stopped finding victims’ bodies,” Muhammad Syaugi, the head of the national search and rescue agency (Basarnas) told media. “We will limit our operations to monitoring.” ’ INDONESIA IV: The secret to the long life of Jakarta’s minibuses “However, the business of minibuses is not limited to state employees. Anyone who can afford to buy a vehicle [can register it as public transport]( LAOS: Details emerge of ‘confusion’ in Laos prior to dam collapse “Sources have allegedly told Radio Free Asia (RFA) that local officials were aware on July 22 – the day before the disaster – [that a crack had developed in the western auxiliary dam](. But it appears no attempt was made to alert people in villages below the dam until the following afternoon, just a few hours before the dam wall gave way.” MALAYSIA: Kristang: Anatomy of a unique Malaysian language “Members of the community have spread across Malaysia, and into other countries like Singapore and Australia, but the cultural centre of the Kristang community [is still Malacca](. ” SOUTHEAST ASIA I: This is what child marriage looks like “The 11-year-old bride, known only as ‘Ayu’, [checks all the boxes](. The migrant girl lives in a wooden house with no running water and does not attend school. She tied the knot with the polygamous 41-year-old, Che Abdul Karim Che Abdul Hamid, under Islamic law.” SOUTHEAST ASIA II: “They beat up online drivers there” “The analysis above shows that the conflict is [not a simple story]( of the victimhood of conventional drivers at the hands of rapacious technology firms and online drivers.” THAILAND I: Bangkok wants canal colourised, homeowners baulk “It was reported that the residents said [if they refused to comply]( and use the district’s painting service, its staff would threaten to measure their estates and demolish the buildings they deem to encroach on the public waterway.” THAILAND II: Chai Nat man’s lovely kwai friendship warms hearts [A man and his buffaloes](. THAILAND III: Child boxer dies after fight “Children should still be allowed to practice Muay Thai, as it is a part of Thai culture, but there should be a minimum age for those fighting in the ring, he said.” [How is this not child abuse]( THAILAND III: Songkhla town closes in on World Heritage status “The first is Nong Chik Road, which was formerly known as the Kao Hong area, a community created by [the first group of Chinese to migrate from Fujian]( and settling in there more than two centuries ago.” VIETNAM I: Hanoi to host Formula One street race grand prix in 2020 “The length and turns of this track will bring a lot of excitement. According to designers, it will be the most exciting track in the world.” [That we do not doubt](. VIETNAM II; Living on edge: Vietnam’s “black canal” dwellers “Under the French, they were the city's main arteries used to move goods and people around, but as roads modernized and as the population boomed with war refugees in the 1960s, [they became places to illegally settle]( VIETNAM III: China’s bear bile industry persists despite growing awareness of the cruelty involved “That means bear farming is very clearly coming to an end in Vietnam, “once and for all,” said Jill Robinson, founder of Animals Asia. “I think they realized that both internally and internationally, bear bile farming was [becoming a very unpalatable subject]( ” Travel writing ON TRAVEL I: Can traveling with a local really help bring travel to life? “ In a teahouse, [he explains to me]( that each time the glass is refilled, one should tap three fingers on the table by way of thanks. During the Qing dynasty, an Emperor had decided to pour tea for his servants, which was unheard of; forced to sit, they couldn’t perform the customary bow in his presence, and so they tapped the table as an equivalent. Ever since, this has become the polite convention.” ON TRAVEL II: We’re reimagining our travel journalism “People also increasingly want an “authentic” take on a place. When they travel, they want to feel as if they are slipping into the lives of the locals, not standing outside that life looking in.” [Really not convinced that is the case](. Interesting site Bangkok Podcast “In October 2016, the show returned with one of the original hosts (that’d be Greg) and a new co-host (see below) to take another look at all of the weird, wonderful, awful, interesting, and [mystifying aspects of expat life in Bangkok]( Travel shot [Khlong Muang: As calm (and as warm!) as your bath. Photo: David Luekens] Khlong Muang: As calm (and as warm!) as your bath. Photo: David Luekens Till next time [Sam and Stuart.] That’s it from us for now. As usual, enjoy the site’s new additions and drop us a line if there’s something in particular you’d like us to cover in Southeast Asia. Travel light! Stuart, Sam & the Travelfish team [( You're receiving the Travelfish newsletter because you signed up at Travelfish.org. Not interested anymore? [Unsubscribe Instantly](. Make sure you're getting our emails! If you're a Gmail user and would prefer your Travelfish newsletter in your Primary in-box rather than Promotions, just drag this email from the Promotions tab to the Primary tab, and click "yes" when it asks if you want to do that for all of our emails. Better still, [read this newsletter online.]( [Disclosure]( | [Privacy]( | [Unsubscribe]( We want travellers to love Southeast Asia as much as we do. 9 robinson close, hornsby heights, nsw 2077, AUSTRALIA [Unsubscribe]( | [Change Subscriber Options](