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Waterworld: Ecotourism in Thailand

A story about how a little village in Thailand is using ecotourism to raise itself from the mud and teach people to save the environment.

Ban Khun Samut Jeen is a village on stilts in Samut Prakan Province, Thailand. It reminds me a bit of the movie Waterworld, a 1995 film starring Kevin Costner about a post-apocalyptic world underwater. Due to global warming and erosion, a large part of the village was completely wiped off the map. To keep their plight on the map, the villagers promote ecotourism through their Homestay. A part of the profit helps support programs that combat erosion and educate people on how to save the environment.

    

Their Homestay was a great deal. For the price of 600 baht ($18) per adult a night, you get lodging, three delicious authentic Thai meals, and a learning experience. Even though it is only 19 kilometers from chaotic Bangkok, it feels as if you are a world away. Located where the Chao Phraya River meets the Gulf of Thailand, it is accessible only by boat. It was not the easiest place to get to. But it was well worth the trip.

To get there, we used the toll road from Bangkok to Samut Prakan. We followed directions to Pa Ree Port, “ท่าเรือป้ารี่”. (GPS coordinate 13.550067, 100.531123). We got there at dusk and parked the car overnight for 100 baht ($3). Across the parking space is the port where we hired a longtail boat to Ban Khun Samut Jeen port, “ท่าเรือบ้านขุนสมุทรจีน(บ้านผู้ใหญ่สมร)”. For our entire group, it cost only 150 baht ($4.50).

We raced along green tea-color waterways for 15 minutes and reached the port by nightfall. Our adventure did not end there. The port is about a 10-minute walk away from our destination. We dragged our suitcases on a raised dirt embankment flanked by water on each side (note: only bring backpacks next time). The darkness around us did not help. Along the way, we heard splashing and gurgling sounds from the water. Thankfully we had strong flashlights to light to way.

We arrived tired and hungry at Ban Khun Samut Jeen Homestay. The owner, Puyai Samorn, was not expecting us. It was completely our fault we did not call from Bangkok to confirm and had arrived so late they had thought we canceled (note: always call to confirm our stay next time). They scrambled to cook us dinner and set up a hut for us. It is a beautiful wood structure with thatch roof built on stilts over the water. Wood plank walkways guarded by friendly dogs connect it to the main building, restrooms, and other huts.

The traditional Thai meal served was amazing: deep-fried shrimps and fish,  steamed crab and clams, sour soup with seafood,  and Thai omelet (sorry, no pictures because we were too hungry). After we filled stomachs to the brim, we retired to sleep under mosquito nets on pads on the hardwood floor. It was not a 5-star place but it was authentic, which, to me, beats luxury on most days. 

In the morning we woke up to the sun rising over the Gulf and a delicious breakfast of shrimp rice soup. Our guide came to pick us up with a full itinerary (also included in the price). He was there to give us an education on the village and what they are doing to promote ecotourism.

He took us to plant mangrove trees along the coastline, a project started by the villagers to help with erosion. They had also built sea walls to keep the entire village from being swallowed by the Gulf. Because they did not receive enough government help, they had to raise money from corporations and fundraisers to build them. The walls and the mangroves have been the most effective ways of slowing down land loss.

We also visited a Buddhist temple in the middle of the ocean and accessible only by a long bridge. It was once partly under water. Now it sits lonely on an island. People had to excavate it out of the muddy water after they built the sea wall. Evidence of water damage is in the peeled walls and raised wood plank floors.

Among the amazing sea life we saw were fiddler crabs and mudskippers, fishes that could glide around on their fins. As we looked out toward the Gulf, our guide pointed at the poles sticking up in places. “These were utility poles. During low tide, sometimes you can see roofs of homes, hospital, and school that are underwater,” he said. 

After, he took us on a walk around the village (what’s left of it). There were a cute elementary school and wood homes nestled among mangrove trees. Along a part of the beautiful paths were plastic bags and bottles – trash from Bangkok washed downstream into this coastal village. I asked about recycling and trash collection. The guide replied sadly that no matter how often they picked up the trash there would be more. Being so close to a major city, it is a receptacle of things carried by the river. It has to start at the source.

After a delicious seafood lunch, we bid farewell to the wonderful people and friendly dogs. Ban Khun Samut Jeen is one of the most special places we have visited. It is a hidden gem that is both a cautionary tale and a hope. It has suffered at the hands of humans – by our reckless behaviors and series of bad decisions. If we can save it, then it would prove that what humans damage we can also fix. It is not too late.

To contact the Homestay, send a message through their Facebook page.

 For more stories on ecotourism, please click here.
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How to save Sapa and places like it

Sapa, Vietnam. Why should we care to save it? The gorgeous valley of fertile land where bubbling brooks empty into waterfalls and a perpetual fog covers the tip of majestic mountains, is home to many hill tribes like the Black Hmong, Red Dzao, Tay, Giáy, Thai and Phù Lá. Their culture and languages are different from those of the Vietnamese. There is also a long history of the Vietnamese government marginalizing and segregating the tribes. If Sapa were a woman she would be a beautiful middle-age, scarred by her battle with the world.

When outsiders enter a place, regardless of intention, there’s a wide ripple effect that can destroy the innocence of its residents. Here, an entire generation is being raised to service the tourist industry. Everything that once existed for a utilitarian purpose now exists for entertainment – a zoo of artifacts and people.

I wonder if we were also entertainment. To hear the native young tribal women mimic an American, an Australian, or a British accent was a glimpse into the education vital for them to work in the industry and make the money the economy here has come to rely on. Farming is hard work. Joblessness is prevalent. Is it just a matter of time when rice fields would exist only as props?

It’s hard to not feel guilty being here with our Western mannerism and money and the carefully constructed life we carry on our backs. We look and we hear but we will never understand. There is a line drawn between the two sides: invaders and invaded. As time passes the line gets darker and more difficult to erase.

Our wonderful guide from Sapa Sisters, Giao, did her best to represent her home. Yet I got the sense that she mourned the Sapa she once knew as she looked wistfully at the landscape. Our night at the home of a Black Hmong family after a full day hike through the verdant hills and rice fields was probably the closest to an authentic experience we had here. We helped make a dish of young bamboo shoots with eggs for dinner and slept under mosquito netting in a room lined with hard mattresses on the floor.

As I lay awake listening to the karaoke singing from the next door guest house filled with Vietnamese tourists, I wondered what Sapa was like before outsiders had found it. Its only sin was being beautiful and we all pay the price for having destroyed it.

There are hundreds of Sapas in the world – a once paradise wrecked by tourism. It is one of the reasons why writing about traveling is a double-edged sword. So, what can outsiders do to minimize our negative impact on the places we visit?

  • Do not buy from children

I realize this sounds harsh and heartless. How can we not support the beautiful, innocent children? Well, the reason you see children selling tour books, handicraft, or trinkets on the sides of the road is because people buy from them. By doing so, you are perpetuating this trend. Children should be in school. They should be playing with other children. They should not be shouldering the responsibilities that belong to adults.

What you can do to help:

Ask locals or your guide if there is a school around. Schools in southeast Asia, or under-developed parts of the world, often do not run on government funding. Offer to buy raw rice or school supplies to donate to the schools.

  • Minimize trash and take out what you bring in

Wherever humans go, we bring trash. It’s in the plastic bottled water, the food wrappers, the plastic bags. Along the hiking trails, I saw debris of litter left by people passing through. In a city, there would be someone whose job is to pick up the trash, put them in a trashcan, and dispose of them in a landfill. But in a remote place far away from that convenience, where does the trash go? Along the road, of course.

What you can do to help:

Bring in reusable water bottles and bags. Be mindful of what you consume and how you consume them. Pack in the trash you brought in and dispose of them once you’re back in the city. If you have more time, consider volunteering to pick up trash.

  • Support local businesses

From speaking to our guide who belongs to the Black H’mong tribe, I learned a few things. Here, many wealthy Vietnamese invested in building hotels and resorts and selling ‘authentic’ hill tribe experiences to tourists. These businesses often use Vietnamese who moved from other parts of Vietnam. The money tourists spend on these businesses don’t often stay local nor is used to help the hill tribes. While it may be convenient and comforting to stay at resorts or big hotels, eat at chain restaurants or coffee shops, it doesn’t help. Supporting local businesses like a homestay, a tea house, or an herbal bathhouse run by members of a  hill tribe will allow the money to stay there and be used to better the community.

What you can do to help:

Support businesses that employ minority ethnic tribal members. Sapa Sisters and Ethos Spirit are two of the businesses that are committed to helping local hill tribes by employing their members as guides. They would also be great resources to help you plan your trip in the most responsible way you can.

 

What are some of the places you have visited that left a lasting impression (either good or bad) on you?