This week’s travel photo of the week is appropriately named THAI PUSSY NAPPING. Many of you who have arrived at this blog were expecting to see some naked Thai girl rather than some ordinary Thai pussycat. If so, I am very sorry to have mislead you.

If that’s all you’re interested in, then you can mosey along now (as they say in Twitter). However if you have a genuine interest in Thailand, I’m sure you’ll find lots of provocative (non porn) material and articles on Thailand on this travel blog.

What’s the back-story behind the picture?

While having dinner at Morgan Cafe in the popular beach town of Kai Bae on Koh Chang Island (circa August 2005), I met this particular Meow-Meow. I believe she was the “house pussy” for the restaurant, but I’m not sure. One thing I do know - she sure was a lot better company than most of the THAIgers in the area. Let’s say, she took a particular liking to me! Meow!

Now believe it or not, in Thai language, a cat is called maa-ou (pronounced meow). Strange but true!

Continuing with the theme of children, this week’s travel photo of the week features some Malaysian children that I met on my Air Asia flight between Chiang Mai and Kuala Lumpur in November 2008.

I was admiring their beautiful T-shirts with the stylized elephants - simple but elegant - so I asked them where they got them. Smiling, the older one said “We bought them at a boutique in Chiang Mai.” Taking out my camera, they hammed it up while I took a picture of them.

Just my observation, but Malaysian children (of Chinese ethnic origins) seem to be somewhat more mischievous and more animated than their Thai counterparts. Crawling all over their seats like “little monkeys”, the Malaysian kids could not sit still at all. I believe their parents were two rows behind them.

Air Asia, a regional carrier that specializes in budget air travel within Southeast Asia, has an unusual way of dealing with air ticket refunds. About a week ago, I booked a RSVNS on Air Asia and purchased a one-way ticket online from Hat Yai, Thailand to Bangkok for travel on December 27, 2009. The cost of the ticket was 2115 Baht ($62USD).

Within thirty minutes after buying the ticket, I discovered that I had already purchased the same ticket on July 25. The cost of the original ticket was 1185 Baht ($35USD). After my blunder, I immediately sought to contact Air Asia to request a refund in full on the duplicate ticket.

Based on my experiences with airlines based in the USA, I thought that the refund would be straightforward as I caught the mistake right away and I wasn’t really taking anything out of Air Asia’s pocket. Maybe that was a little presumptuous on my part. If I had read reviews from disgruntled Air Asia passengers, I would have discovered that Air Asia’s refund/cancellation policy is not very consumer friendly. In short, it is downright awful - in essence Air Asia has a “No Refund Policy”.

Because Air Asia doesn’t have a Call center in the USA, I was resigned to the fact that I had to call their ticket office in either Malaysia or Thailand. After getting through to Air Asia in Malaysia, I appraised the agent about my unfortunate blunder. The agent told me that Air Asia could refund my first ticket (the lower priced one) and I could keep the 2nd higher priced ticket.

I told the agent that was unacceptable as the higher priced 2nd ticket should be the one that is refunded. Upon hearing this, the agent immediately reversed direction and told me, Air Asia could give me a refund on the 2nd ticket less a 850 Baht penalty. Even though I wasn’t totally thrilled with the cancellation penalty, I told the agent if that was the best she could do, I could live with it.

The agent further explained to me that the refund would not be issued to my credit card, but it (the refund) would be available as a travel credit which must be used towards a purchase of air travel on Air Asia by November 26, 2009. Putting aside my disenchantment with Air Asia’s refund policy, I accepted the terms and thanked the agent for assisting me.

I waited for 24 hours to pass – because I didn’t see the travel credit in my record, I decided to call Air Asia again. This time around I reached the Air Asia ticket office in Thailand. Explaining my situation to the Air Asia agent, she advised me that I would be issued a travel credit for the full amount of the 2nd ticket (no cancellation penalty) and that I must use this travel credit by November 26.

I confirmed with the agent, that the issuance of travel credits was Air Asia’s official policy on air ticket refunds and thanked her allowing me to get a “refund in full” on my duplicate ticket. Fortunately, I was able to use most of my air travel credit towards a purchase of air ticket for a friend of mine in Thailand. LOL, I still have 500 baht left over.

Bottom Line – Air Asia has a “No Refund Policy”. Once they have your monies, they are going to keep it!

This installment of the Travel Photo of the Week feature continues with the theme of children. I’ve have stated previously that children are great subjects for photography. Unlike adults, they don’t have any hang-ups or issues about a stranger taking their picture.

From my experience most children are absolutely delighted to pose in front of the camera. In Thailand, I have had children run after me on a number of occasions, begging me to take their picture.

For this photograph, I was touring the rural countryside of Northern Thailand’s Nan Province when I encountered some Thai children huddled together in back of a large flatbed truck. They were returning from school to their rural village. When the driver stopped along the roadside to pick up some bags of rice, the children got off the truck and posed for me in this special group shot.

Most of the kids are wearing some funky T-Shirts. If you look in the upper right corner of the photo, observe that one of the young girls is flashing the victory sign at me.

I’m sure you’ve heard of the “New 7 Wonders of the World”, an annual contest that is held to determine the most beautiful landscapes on this planet. To be honest with you, this poll is more or less a popularity contest as the more glamorous and better known “spots’ - i.e. Grand Canyon, Galapagos Islands, Amazon – dominate the selections.

Sadly, the New 7 Wonders of the World has never featured some of Thailand’s beauty spots. To compensate for this glaring omittance, the Paknam Website has come up with The Seven Wonders of Thailand for Thailand enthusiasts. The Poll is broken down into three categories - Natural, Man-made and Symbols of Thailand.

This new poll struck a resonant chord with me, as I am a veteran traveler of Thailand. I have explored many places off the beaten track in Thailand – where few travelers go - so I was able to place my vote(s) with confidence as a result of my vast travel knowledge

In the Natural Beauty Category, my vote is as follows:

1. Doi Chiang Dao - this rugged mountain rises dramatically above the landscape and the small town of Chiang Dao

2. Doi Tung Arboretum - the views from the grassy area onto the mountains of nearby Myanmar is unforgettable. Such a spiritual place!

3. Sunflower Fields of Mae Hong Son – during the months of November/December every year, the cheerful yellow blossoms of the Mexican sunflowers blanket the mountain slopes as far as the eye can see.

4. Phu Lang Ka – Located in Phayao Province in Northern Thailand, the vistas overlooking the mist covered valley of Phu Lang Ka - framed by a rugged mountain range near the Laos Border - is unforgettable.

Note: The Sunflower Fields, Doi Tung Arboretum and Phu Lang Ka are not choices in this poll.

Man made attractions – My selection here is Sukhothai Historical Park, a sprawling archeological site featuring the ornate architecture from Thailand’s classical period

Symbols of Thailand - Having experienced some of the authentic Floating Markets in Thailand, this would be my #1 choice in this category. Whenever I see images of floating market, I think of Thailand.

If you’ve been to Thailand, you’ll definitely want to go to the Seven Wonders of Thailand and cast your vote. The winners will be announced in November 2009.

I have taken many photographs of children during my many years of travel. With their natural innocence and curiosity, children make wonderful subjects for photography.

This week’s featured travel photo is the Little Girl from Mindo, Ecuador. I was walking back to my small hotel along a dusty unpaved street - just before reaching the entrance, a young girl of about 6 years old standing on the shoulder of the road happened to catch my eye. I believed she lived next door to my hotel.

Holding a flower in one hand, wearing checkered trousers and a colorful pullover, the little girl looked so very cute and innocent. Unable to resist the temptation, I pulled out my camera and took a picture of her.

The look on her face is priceless - she seemed to be totally mesmerized by the camera just like ‘a deer caught in the headlights’. I consider this picture to be one of my most memorable travel photographs.

Situated at 5.000 feet above sea level,
Mindo is a popular mountain resort located about 2 hours from Quito

Many Buddhist temples in Thailand are located either on a hilltop or the hillside of a mountain, and the views are often quite remarkable.

Wat Phra That Khao Noi, a hilltop temple in Nan in Northern Thailand, is no exception. Located a couple of kilometers southwest of town, the temple complex is not really special as it is relatively new, but the Statute of the Giant Buddha overlooking the town and Nan Valley is quite striking (and the panoramic views are of course wonderful).

The Buddha Statute reminds me in a way of the Christ the Redeemer (Statue of Jesus Christ), on top of the Sugar Loaf in Rio De Janeiro or the La Virgen de Quito at El Panecillo in Quito, Ecuador

The picture was taken shortly about 1 hour before sunset, and the rays of the sun give the Buddha a golden glow.

I really used to like Kamala Beach, a popular resort area on Thailand’s Phuket Island. Despite the many cafes and shops along the boardwalk, as well as many lounge chair and massage concessions on the beach, it used to be a fairly mellow and quiet scene. Believe it or not, I liked Kamala Beach even better after the Tsunami of December 2004 cleansed the area of the boardwalk and its horde of concessions. The Post Tsunami Kamala Beach was devoid of lounge chairs and there was only a smattering of tourists. I was there to survey the scene in August 2005 – the beach was wonderful and oh so quiet!

The last time I visited Kamala Beach was in December 2007 – things had changed considerably, not only was the boardwalk and all its concessions were back (and then some), a very disturbing development impacted the Kamala Beach area – Jet Skis had invaded the scene.

Trying to relax in the late afternoon from my lounge chair near Kamala Dreams Hotel was almost impossible due to the incessant noise of these awful machines whizzing by. Not only were they noisy, but the jet skis also dumped an inordinate amount of gas and oil right into sea, contributing to the growing problem of water pollution in Kamala Beach. The environment impact of jet skis are well known.

I bet you most of the foreign tourists on Kamala Beach were also put off by the recent introduction of these motorized contraptions. To me, you go to the beach to relax, read a book and have a quiet conversation – with the constant noise pollution of these jet skis, that’s damn near impossible. I guess that is what they call progress!

To get away from the noise (and the polluted waters), you have go another 2 miles up the coast to the relatively unspoiled beach scene at Laem Singh

For the 3rd consecutive week in a row, my travel photo of the week features some dramatic mountainous scenery in the tropics.

This photo of Mount Imbabura was taken from my hotel in Otavalo, a colonial town located in the highlands of Ecuador. Otavalo is at an elevation of 2560 meters (8500 feet) above sea level, and Mount Imbabura, an inactive volcano which rises to an elevation of 4630 meters (15,160 ft), dominates the tropical landscape. The summit as you can see is covered with snow.

Now consider that the peak of Huayna Picchu (Peru) is about 2,720 meters (8,900 ft) above sea level, and the summit of Doi Chiang Dao (Thailand) is only 7,200 ft above sea level – comparing these altitudes with the elevation of Otavalo (8500 feet up) and the towering Mount Imbabura, puts the issue of altitude into perspective.

Waking up in the morning in Otavalo, to see the ‘giant in the sky’ looming in the background gave me a feeling of elation.

Believe it or not, my search for the the most eco-friendly beach destination in THAILAND has uncovered a place I haven’t been to yet, and that is Koh Libong! I am sure most travelers have never heard of this relatively obscure island as well.

Koh Libong is the largest island in southern Thailand’s Trang Province. The island is home to a rather substantial colony of Dugongs, a large marine mammal that is closely related to the manatees. These creatures feed on the sea-grass beds that flourish off Koh Libong’s southeast coast. A colony of green turtles are also residents of the island.

From what I have read, there is more of a commitment to an environmentally friendly and sustainable tourism industry in Trang Province than anywhere else in Thailand. The governor of Trang Province has gone on record stating that he wants to avoid the haphazard and reckless tourism development that has ruined other island destinations in Thailand i.e. Phuket, Koh Samui, Koh Phi Phi etc.

In order to protect the natural beauty of the region, the Swedish Government has funded a master plan for sustainable development in Trang Province. In particular, on Koh Libong, Swedish environmentalists and Thai academicians from Bangkok have joined forces in an effort to make the island an ecotourism model for the region.

Three small Muslim fishing villages are scattered around the island – the native people in these communities seem to be enlightened about the need for conservation and environmentally friendly practices. The interior is home to rubber plantations and is heavily forested. There are only a handful of small resorts, all located on the west coast of the island. While many small beaches surround the island, there is only one “classical tropical beach” – a 1 KM stretch of golden sand fronted by clear, aquamarine waters.

Since I have never been to Koh Libong, I will have to wait to till I visit this island (and Trang Province), before I can assess the staying power of this sustainable tourism movement. If history teaches us anything, tourism development is usually guided by greed (and the pursuit of the almighty dollar) and has destroyed many an idyllic paradise.

Only time will determine the fate of Koh Libong and other island destinations in Trang Province. I have plans to do some reconnaissance there in 2010!

For your information, over the Christmas Holidays, I plan to visit Ko Lipe, considered by many to be overall, the most beautiful island in Thailand. From what I have read, Koh Lipe is another Island Paradise that’s on the threshold of getting trashed!