The Battambang Circus is touring France, but before going on tour in France, the exceptional team of “Phum Style” will give a few performances in Battambang.

“Phum Style” relates the story of a city boy coming back to his home village after years in a surrounding that totally changed his life style, “Phum Style” is a amazing cocktail of humor, theater, impressive acrobatics and juggling, creative and energetic music compositions. Don’t miss it!

With the “Khmer Halloween” over. The teenagers in group 4 will still be performing “Ghosts” for a month. “Khmer Halloween” or Pchum Ben is a time in Cambodia when the ancestors of the dead are remembered. This is a fantastic show so bring all your support.

After one year spent abroad on professional training, the “group 3” (13 young adults) will enter a creation period from the beginning of November onwards, with the intention of producing a brand new show which will be scheduled from December 2008.

If you are planning a visit to Cambodia the Circus would love to see you in Battambang!

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Thailand has been in political trouble since Aug 26 when thousands of anti-government protesters seized the Prime Minister’s Office at Government House, and called for the resignation of Samak Sundaravej as prime minister who they claim he is a proxy of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

The Constitution Court disqualified Samak as acting prime minister, after finding him guilty of hosting two cooking programs while still in office. After a week of sharp political twists and turns, Thailand’s parliament elected Somchai Wongsawat as the country’s new prime minister.

Somchai Wongsawat, whose candidacy was supported by the governing People Power Party (PPP), has promised to do his “very best” as prime minister. Mr Somchai told reporters that the country had seen many conflicts, but that he personally harbored no anger or hatred. “It’s about time for national reconciliation in Thailand,” he said.
 
On Suday night protestors put up barbed wire and other barricades to enforce their siege of parliament, the protesters who had gathered in front of parliament to prevent Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat from delivering the government’s policy statement. Demonstrators had set up a blockade outside the parliament building, which Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat escaped by climbing over a fence. But as troops moved in, protesters pulled back from the blockade. According to the Bangkok Post on Wednesday.

According to eyewitnesses (Bangkok Post), no warning was given by the police prior to the raid. Dozens of tear gas canisters were fired into the crowd to dispurse the protestors. 2 protestors died as a result of the clashes with police. 385 others were treated for injuries caused by the use of tear gas.
 
TOURISM
BANGKOK October 8th,
Thailand, whilst it is in the midst of a political crisis, it is still safe for tourists and they are welcome to visit the country.

The political protests only affected a certain area near Government House but the rest of Bangkok and the other provinces are safe to visit.
 
The political tensions in Thailand have done little to change daily life. The area around the Independence Monument and Government House in Bangkok is still really the only area where protesters can be seen. Outside Bangkok life remains the safe for most locals. Tourist’s have report no changes or delays to transport systems or flights. All airports are open and working as usual.
 
All tourist spots, shopping centers, and riverside attractions, as well as all roads and public and private transport systems, are functioning normally with only 3 intersections next to Government House closed. All hotels, resorts, convention and exhibition venues in Bangkok and major attraction throughout the Thai Kingdom, for instance Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phuket, Krabi and Pattaya are open for business as usual. SuvarnabhumiAirport and regional airports around Thailand are operating normally with no disruptions.

TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand) has been conducting random interviews with individual tourists at various popular tourism sites around Bangkok, such as the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Khao San Road, Chatuchak Market, Suan Lum Night Bazaar, Siam Square and CentralWorld at Ratchaprasong intersection. Foreign tourists were asked how they felt about their stay in Thailand over the past weeks and early this week. All of the individuals responded positively and indicated that the situation has not in any way affected his/her visit to Thailand.
 
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has embarked on an immediate tourism recovery plan and is working closely with the Thai tourism industry to restore confidence in the destination.
 
Further stories on the political situation in THailand can be read on the Bangkok Post website. http://www.bangkokpost.com/081008_News/08Oct2008_news02.php

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The first Asian beach Games will be held in Bali from October 18th until October 26th. Bali will become the venue of this international event which will see 45 countries participating with over 10,000 athletes, officials, media and volunteers all flocking to the Island of the Gods for this world class event.

The Asian Beach Games is a multi-sport event held every two years among athletes representing countries from Asia. The games celebrate cooperation and unity despite differences where athletes from a wide variety of nations are able to travel, meet new people, and bring back memories about the rest of the world to their home nations. The Asian Beach Games forge unity and friendship between their member nations by joining athletes, trainers, and officials together.

Many of the usual beach activities will become sporting events such as beach volleyball, paragliding, Jet skiiing, windsurfing, trathalon, and swimming. however, there are some more unusual sports such as beach wrestling a game where wrestling is practiced in a swimming suit within a sand circle of 6m and consists of very simple rules. A match lasts three minutes and is refereed by a single referee.

Beach Kabaddi is another unusual game that will be played in Bali at the Asia Beach Games.  Beach Kabaddi is basically a combative sport, with four players on each side; played for a period of 15 minutes with a 5 minutes break (15-5-15). The core idea of the game is to score points by raiding into the opponent’s court and touching as many defence players as possible without getting caught on a single breath. One player, chanting Kabaddi!!! Kabaddi!!!! Kabaddi!!!! charges into the opponent court and tries to touch the opponent closest to him, while the four opponents make manoeuvres to catch the attacker. The players on the defensive side are called “Antis” while the player of the offence is called the “Raider”.The attack in Kabaddi is known as a ‘Raid’. This is Beach Kabaddi, the match of one against four which has all the ingredients of thrill, skill and dare. 

My tip for a great day of viewing would be the Dragon Boat Races I have my money on China to win! Anyone planning a trip to Bali should include in their itinerary a trip to see one of the varied beach events. For more information about the Asia Beach Games please visit the official website: www.bali2008.com

 

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In what can only be described as a truely fair settlment a Cambodian couple have circumvented the country’s corrupt and expensive legal system by taking the letter of the law literally.  In Cambodia when a couple divorces assets are divided equally between the couple. It seems that this couple decided to divide assets in half, literally.

The Khmer-language Koh Santepheap newspaper featured a front-page photo (attached) of a precariously perched half of the stilted former home of Meuon Rima and his ex-wife Nhang, both 40, which Rima sawed with surgical precision down the middle.

Rima, was last seen driving away from the village in south-eastern Prey Veng province with his half of the home, the daily reported.

It was not known where he had gone with his very detached portion. Not surprisingly, Rima had not felt the same need to divvy up the couple’s two teenaged children, both of whom he left with Nhang.

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On the 7th October 2008 the Battambang Circus will be presenting a very special show. The circus troupe will perform with the Royal Cambodian Ballet. The show will bring together about 70 performers and include performances of both classical and traditional dances, modern theatre performances, acrobatics, contortion and fun will also be provided by the Phare Ponleu Selpak troupe.

For those of you who will be in Battambang, or for those of you planning a visit to Cambodia this would be a show not to miss.

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My first revisit for a while to the beach resort area of Puerto Galera – I was expecting a shock.  It was inevitable that there would be considerable development since my last visit 10 years ago and there was. 

A rocky peninsular on the north coast of Mindoro Island housing one of the world’s finest natural harbours, Puerto Galera is just an hour by boat from Luzon mainland port of Batangas which itself is only 2 hours by road from Manila, making this a great getaway from the big city smoke.  But its real attraction for overseas visitors is the the excellent diving. 

El Galleon

In the old days I used to stay on Big La Laguna Beach, the third in a string of small bays facing northwards toward Verde Island, renowned as one of the most biodiverse marine environments in the world. However Big La Laguna has sadly been lost to concrete, so this time I stayed on the second beach at Small La Lagina…. Sabang being the first and the hub of nighttime activity.  Small La Laguna’s attraction to me is the excellent little dive resort of El Galleon owned by long timers Allan, Tommy & Andy (Australian, Swedish & British) through Asia Divers.

Best described as a competent and very friendly 3 star resort, El Galleon deservedly has a long list of loyal returnees who appreciate the efficient simplicity of the place and its long established, professional dive shop.  It was a good choice. Quiet at night but with its own locally popular bar perched on the headland separating Small La Laguna from Sabang, it is only a short stroll to the bustling nightlife area of Sabang for those who want it while remaining a peaceful recluse for those who don’t.

Sadly I only had one night and only time for one dive, but I did get the chance to talk to an American lady who was surveying for a Texas-based dive company about the diving.  We dived together at the protected Puerto Galera passage as the sea conditions were a little heavy, and afterwards she told me about the other dives that she had managed to do during her trip, which included Dumaguete, El NIdo and Puerto Galera.  The winners, in her estimation, were Verde Island and the Pier in Dumaguete, both of which she waxed lyrical on about.

My one dive was not spectacular though very enjoyable, during which we saw at least dozen spectacular giant clams, scorpion fish, triggerfish, lion fish, host pipefish, nudibraches and much more.  However we failed, as hoped for, to find the seahorses that are known to inhabit the area.

Coco Beach

Checking out the other places to stay in PG, my top choice for those who are looking to get away from the bustle remains Coco Beach, set on its own private beach a five minute boat trip from the Laguna beaches.  I have always liked this place, not least for its highly socially responsible, inclusive policy towards the local inhabitants of PG.  Each group of thatched, wood and bamboo chalets has its own local family that take care of it and treat you as if you are a personal guest… whilst allowing you the privacy of an hotel.  Although they now have 100 rooms scattered around the steep hillside slopes of the bay, and have recently added some aircon units too, it still has a very intimate feel.  Be prepared to climb to go to bed!

El Galeon is my choice for those who like close to the action or whose focus is more on the diving.

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This week marks the beginning of a 15 day Buddhist Celebration, Prachum Benda (“Ancestors’ Day”), more commonly known as Pchum Ben. Pchum Ben is a Cambodian religious festival, culminating in celebrations on the 15th day of the tenth month in the Khmer Calendar.

Cambodia is a country where family and elders are respected highly. Pchum Ben is a is a time when most Cambodians pay their respects to deceased relatives. In the words of Leakhena one of our Khmer staff at Symbiosis.

” We celebrate Pchum Ben for to be grateful to our ancients who have died and we hope that our prayers and food get to them.” (Leakhena Symbiosis ExpeditionPlanning)

Molika another of our staff members at Symbiosis describes Pchum Ben in this way;

“We usually consider it as perfect time for gathering of family and all of our relatives. We prepare food to the temple in the purpose to provide it to our ancestors that passed awayWe are delighted to do so because we believed it’s a communication between us and our ancestors, more importantly we also believe that they weren’t starving and always next to us even we are in different world” (Molika- Symbiosis Expedition Planning).

People cook meals for monks, bring offerings to the temple and throw rice near the temple early in the morning, believing that the ghosts of their ancestors will receive it.

Cambodia’s Buddhist traditions each village within a pagoda’s jurisdiction must offer food and other gifts to the monks. On the 15th day, all villagers come together to the pagoda with food and such special treats as sticky rice with pig fat and bean, and cake with banana wrapped inside, traditionally made for the Pchum Ben festival.

Apart from the offerings made through monks during Pchum Ben period, people must also prepare rice mixed with sesame seed.  Every morning at 4 AM, the mixture is thrown to the ground around the Wat’s temple to feed hungry ghosts.  On the final day of the festival families bring more offerings to the Wats. People either at the Wat or at home, depending on where the urns containing relatives’ ashes are.  And they will light incense sticks and candles to guide the spirits of their ancestors and relatives to the offerings they have prepared.

During the Pchum Ben Celebrations “It is important that we go to at least 2  Pagoda’s, because if our ancestors cannot find us they will bring us bad luck for the year.” (Leakhena- Symbiosis Expedition Planning).

It is often a quiet time around Phnom Penh during this religious festival as you most people go back to their home land to visit family. However, If you are in Cambodia for this festival it would be a very interesting time to visit a Wat or Pagoda to witness some of these rituals.

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Thailand’s 26th Prime Minister has been sworn in today. Thailand has elected Somchai Wongsawat, a 61 year old former judge and brother-in-law to the ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra. It is not clear what affect if any this will have on the negotiations between anti-government protester’s and the government. However, only an hour after being elected Somchai called for national reconcilliation to end the political tensions which dates back to when Thaksin was first elected in 2005.

Demonstrators however, remain at the Prime Ministers compound. They have occupied this area for going on to three weeks now. Prime Minister Somchai has said he wants to negotiate and bring about a peaceful solution to the ease the tensions and stop the demonstrations within his official compound.

All other areas in Bangkok remain unaffected by the rally. There has been no significant disruption to life and business in the capital beyond added traffic congestion in a few areas. The vast majority of the city, including all the major tourist spots (including The Grand Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Arun-Temple of Dawn, and Sanam Luang – The Royal Ground), shopping centres and riverside attractions, as well as all roads and public/private transport systems are functioning normally. Bangkok’s city taxi and rail services are unaffected. All hotels and resorts in Bangkok and throughout Thailand are open for business as usual.

Bangkok’s international airport and all regional airports around Thailand are operating normally. Rail services in provincial areas of the north and northeastern regions are operating normally. All air and land transport services, restaurants and business are operating on schedule whether for business or pleasure, visitors can as always look forward to a rich and rewarding stay in Thailand.

News articles used in this blog are cited as: “Somchai Becomes New Thai PM, Urges Healing” Written by Nopporn Wong-Anan. The Cambodia Daily. Travel Update, provided by East West Siam.

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The New York Times travel section offers a new upscale twist to an old outdoor standard.

IF the eco-friendly idea of falling asleep under the stars and roasting marshmallows around a campfire appeals to you, but the reality of pitching a tent and sleeping on bumpy ground does not, glamping, the new term being used for upscale — or glamorous — camping, could be your ideal green vacation.

Though dismissed by hard-core leave-no-trace campers (who don’t so much as move a rock for fear of affecting the area), glamping can still be an environmentally sound outdoor experience, even if it does include creature comforts (like not having too many creatures inside your tent). And though it is a relatively new trend in the United States and Europe, with its origins harking back to Africa and even Thailand, glamping sites are starting to pop up everywhere, with prepitched tents, tepees and yurts rising out of the landscape like sailboats on an ocean.

(Full story)

This exact topic came up recently while mapping out the keywords Symbiosis uses to describe its offerings. Specifically, Chris and I were talking about Hanuman Tents. The term “camping,” with its bugs-and-mozzies connotation, just didn’t seem right; although at its core, that is essentially what Hanuman Tents offers, sleeping in a tent out in the jungle of Angkor Wat-era temples.

Still, camping this is not. Travel is by 4×4 off-road vehicle. On location, luxury tents with equally luxurious beds and furniture are available, as are solar-powered hot water heaters for warm showers. Camping, no, but glamping? That sounds about perfect.

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Anyone planning a visit to Vietnam must attend a performance of the famous Thang Long water puppetry in Hanoi. Thang Long water puppetry is a traditional art form with distinctive culture identity of Vietnam. it came to existence, developed and diversified over a thousand years ago in the Red River Delta. Thanks to unique performances on the water, Thang Long water puppetry art is famous and highly appreciated all over the world.

The show is set in a small theatre in the Old Quarter Hanoi. The stage is somewhat different to a normal performance in that it is filled with water. A small pond like structure surrounded by beautiful backdrops. The performers- The Puppets- are all brightly coloured wooden puppets, ranging from fishermen, musicians and farmers to the amazing dragons. The puppeteers are all standing in the water manipulating these amazing puppets. The show is so life like you forget about the puppeteers and start imagining a scene of villagers going about their daily lives in rural Vietnam.

This October the water puppeteers are going on the road they will be introducing this unique art to a large number of American and Vietnamese people in America. The puppeteers are embarking on a tour of California, San Fransisco and Santa Cruz. Don’t worry, however, for those of you going to Vietnam or thinking about a holiday there soon, daily shows will still be performed at the Water Puppets Theatre in Hanoi.

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The ongoing border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand centering around Preah Vihear temple  have been delayed due to the unsettled political climate in Thailand.

Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said by telephone that it was the least Cambodia could do to give Thailand breathing room to get its internal affairs in order. “The dispute over the border has been around 100 years,” Kanharith said. “A few more weeks can’t hurt.”

Cambodia closed the border at the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple on its northern border in June. On July 7 UNESCO declared the temple a World Heritage Site over Thai objections, and a week later, Thai troops moved into nearby areas that it said are disputed but that Cambodia said is its territory.  Several rounds of talks have failed to resolve the deadlock with both sides vowing not to back down. Further talks are now on hold.

As far as access goes to the temple it is still uncertain about whether tourists are able to visit the temple. Some tourist have reported being allowed to visit the temple. In fact a good friend of mine braved the  so called “upgraded road” (flattened but unpaved) only a week ago to visit the temple. “officially” however, the temple remains closed to visitors.

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For any of you currenlty in Thailand or travelling to Thailand in the near future here is an update on the political situation in Thailand.

The majority of the current unrest is concentrated upon Bangkok. Other areas of Thailand have had no protests or demonstrations and travel in these areas is pretty much continuing as usual.

 

Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej was sacked today for breaching the Thai constitution. Samak Sundarevej was sacked for appearing in  popular Thai cooking show and recieving a nominal salary, whilst holding the position of Prime Minister which is prohibited under the Thai Constitution. However, it seems that this sacking will have little to no effect as  he has accepted the People Power party’s decision to nominate him again on Friday to lead the government, according to high ranking sources in the coalition parties.

 

Demonstrations:

The situation is calm at the moment, protests are restricted to the area arounf the Thai Independance Monument in Bangkok. The proposed strikes by the Unions have not occured as forsee and life goes on as usual.

 

Airpoirts:

All airports are operating as usual.

 

Symbiosis will regularily update this blog in relation to any changes in the current situation in Thailand.

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Just published a 148-page guide book showing where and how to enjoy responsible tourism activities in the three countries.  Over 25 activities in each country have been profiled in “The Guide to Responsible Tourism in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam”. Each activity creates income for local people, minimises potential negative tourism impacts, involves members of the local communities in running the business, conserves natural and cultural heritage, provides meaningful experiences for tourists, helps people with physical disabilities, and builds respect between visitors and hosts.

For example, the book makes it easier for tourists to trek responsibly with hilltribes, buy handicrafts that keep traditions alive, eat in restaurants that employ former street kids or people with disabilities, stay in accommodation that respects its local community, and discover nature in some of the most awe inspiring areas of Southeast Asia.

The colour guide book describes 82 tourism experiences from the tourist’s perspective, and how the activities help local people while respecting local culture and the environment.

Nice to see something proactive happening here (I write from Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital). I cycle to work each day, muscling between the tide of Lexus Landcruisers that wash through this city, illustrating the dramatic gulf developing between the few who have and the masses who don’t. Few people at the top appear to care about anything except personal enrichment!

Anyway, watch for an array of community-based tourism initiatives developing in Cambodia, Thailand and Laos, especially.  I will shortly be adding a section to our website showing how you can spend a few days living in a community and how your visit will help them maintain their way of life.

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If you are planning a visit to Laos and to see the extraordinary megalith jars of the Xieng Khouang plain… known as the Plain of Jars… consider staying an extra day or two. Now the largest of all known jar sites, the Ban Pa Keo Site with over 400 jars and an ancient quarry, is open to visitors. This remote area been visited by only a few people so far, mainly because it can only be reached after a five hour guided forest trek high in the mountains east of Phonsavanh Town. The two day journey requires an overnight stay in a Hmong village and includes a visit to the Thad Kha Waterfall – nice little adventure!

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