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With more than 124,000 square kilometers of mostly rainforest, Sarawak is naturally blessed with numerous waterfalls, many of which have yet to be explored. Surrender yourself to the cold, fresh, sparkling mountain water and let your worries swiftly wash away. Come live the adventure.Step onto the longest tree-based walkway in the world and get up-and-close to the pulse of the rainforest. At 25 metres above ground and 480 metres in length, the Mulu Canopy Walk will provide you an experience unlike any other. From dense vegetation to colourful ! owers, swinging monkeys to swooping birds, you’ll discover something new with every step. Come live the adventure.

www.sarawaktouri sm.com

ourcorridor

039824 STB0058_Posters-20"x30" (7v)-R2.indd 2039824 STB0058_Posters-20"x30" (7v)-R2.indd 2 8/06/11 12:54 AM8/06/11 12:54 AM

3

In 2004, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), ecotourism and nature tourism were growing three times faster than general tourism.

The UNWTO forecasted at the beginning of this year that international tourist arrivals are projected to increase by some 4-5% in 2011 in spite of economic challenges, political upheavals and natural disasters.

So tourism is set to grow. And you can help the environment at the same time - instead of being an ordinary tourist, why not be an eco-tourist? As an eco-tourist or eco-traveller you have the power to make a change. For one, you and your family can bask in a local cultural experience at a charming but new territory, explore the pristine countryside, meet genuinely endearing local people, explore the attractions and sample local delicacies.

Agro-tourism is another expanding opportunity. Farmers generate additional income by hosting visitors around their family-owned croplands, educating how vegetables and fruit grow, and promoting farm products. When you

are on the move, try walking or cycling instead of hiring a car – you’ll see and smell more that way. Trust me, I walk all the time!

There are a number of ethical eco-resorts and eco-lodges in the region that provide comfortable even luxurious accommodation while ensuring minimal negative impact on the environment. They are usually designed to maximise alternative energy use, promote water conservation, use sensible waste management and employ local communities with fair wages.

Staying with these kind of ethical resorts or booking up with eco-tour operators will help to support their businesses while ensuring a sustainable future for all. I would also like to congratulate the Gaia Discovery editorial team for producing the inaugural Gaia Guide, which is a step in the right direction for preserving Asian beauty, heritage, culture, natural environments and communities.

Jose Ramos-Horta, President, Republic of Timor-

Leste; Nobel Prize Laureate and Honorary Advisor, Gaia Discovery.

FOREWORDJose Ramos-Horta

President, Republic of Timor-Leste and Nobel Prize Laureate

Tourism is a vital industry especially in underdeveloped and developing economies. Excessive and irresponsible tourism development and practices, however, can lead to significant stresses on society, natural landscapes and wildlife.

The environment really needs our care. With natural disasters like tsunamis, earthquakes, droughts, floods and more, we see further challenge to our environments.

Ecotourism offers one part of a solution that can help bring balance. It can serve the interests of tourists while at the same time stimulate prosperity and sustainability. Ecotourism is set to grow.

4

8 TAKE ACTION

SIKKIM STUDIES takes a trip to the foothills of the

Himalayas with some Singapore Scouts.

12 ETHICAL

DAVE WILLIAMS left behind corporate climbing to take

up a life’s dream of kayaking in Thailand.

16 ADVENTURE

TIMOR LESTE is one of the truly unspoiled places to go

in SE Asia. But take some soap and mossie repellent!

The only handy guide to responsible tourism, culture and

heritage in Asia.CONT

ENTS

5

20 WHAT’S ON

GAIA DISCOVERY’s guide to the most interesting,

challenging and eco-friendly events and

happenings across the region. Check them out.

22 DO’S AND DONT’S

TRAVELLING somewhere special? Then treat it that

way - and do the right thing for yourself, the planet, and

the people.

24 DESTINATION SARAWAK

The KELABIT HIGHLANDS in Sarawak offer some

stunning and totally original places to stay. Get right

back to nature with a long weekend stay in a

longhouse.

28 SCUBA DIVING

BALI and PUERTO GALERA both offer some of the

coolest places to take the plunge. Not just stunning in

terms of variety, they offer an astonishing number of undersea flora and fauna

varieties.

32 CULTURE

KADAYAWAN in the Philippines holds a regular

festival of indigenous people that will make your

eyes pop and ears ring with joy. Then there’s the food...

34 EXPERT

HITESH MEHTA designs, builds and photographs some of the finest eco-

lodges on the planet. Find out how he started, and

what drives him.

38 RESORT

THE FARM and KRI ECO RESORT both promise you

will come away feeling refreshed, revitalized and

ready to do your bit for the environment. The Farm shows how vegan living

can be a delectable choice.

CONT

ENTS

6

PUBLISHER MUSESEcotourism dawned in the

late 1970s; by early 1990s it was the fastest growing sector of the tourism industry, expanding globally between 20% to 34 % per year. The prospects for ecotourism are huge. Travellers, especially from Europe, are seeking to reduce their carbon footprint while submersing themselves into local activities, hence adding – not subtracting – value to communities visited.

In thinking green, tourism and hospitality operators such as travel agents, transportation companies, hotels, resorts, community-based homestays, camps and convention centers are starting to embrace social and economic responsibility.

In putting together The Gaia Guide, we strive to feature such responsible operators from Asia. The criteria used in selecting these are the same used by The International Ecotourism Society. It defines ecotourism as: "Responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the

environment and improves the well-being of local people." (TIES, 1990)

Ecotourism goes beyond nature-based tourism in benefiting local folks and destinations environmentally, socially, culturally and economically.

A well-respected eco-architect, Hitesh Mehta (featured here with me) has spelt out this framework clearly in the International Ecolodge Guidelines. To help portray the concept of ecolodges better, he has authored, photographed and illustrated the amazing Authentic Ecolodges “chai” table book. Read about Mehta, who also sits on our panel of advisers, on page 32.

The Gaia Guide points travellers towards responsible tourism. We hope you’ll enjoy the launch issue and look forward to your feedback!

Mallika

The Gaia Guide is published by Gaia Discovery in Singapore for travellers worldwide.

It is printed three times a year, distributed for free at high traffic environmental seminars, tourism events, travel operators, hotels, resorts, dive centers, sports centers, restaurants and more in Asian cities.

The Gaia Guide is also posted on the web! Find it on Gaia Discovery as well as partnering websites, for free access and download.

THE TEAM

Jeremy Torr, EditorMallika Naguran, Publisher

Contributors: Gunver Bennekou, Kayti Denham, Henrylito D.Tacio, Anusha K, James Teo, Simon Pridmore

Photographers: Adam Butler, Daniel Groshong, Imran Ahmad, Scotty Graham

Printed by Percetakan Imprint in West Malaysia on FSC paper and soy ink

Gaia Discovery

15 Upper Boon Keng Road #15-1067

Singapore 380015

Tel: +65 9663 7289

mal @gaiadiscovery.com

SUBSCRIBE TO THE GAIA GUIDE & GAIA DISCOVERY TO

ENJOY STORIES AND TREATS...GAIADISCOVERY.COM

7

8

FLOODS ARE in the news globally right now, but in the Indian Himalayan province of Sikkim, the clouds dump about 300 centimetres every year without fail. That’s a lot of water, and it regularly demolishes the roads. In the dry season, the roads barely cling to steep hillsides. During the monsoon, they usually lose the battle and end up in the bottom of the valley. In fact getting there from the nearest airport (Bagdogra)

takes about five hours on a good day.

Sikkim Students

More, if the road has been swept away by an avalanche or landslide. Vehicles only travel at an average speed of 25kph but that’s understandable given that the road climbs and swoops around countless hairpin bends, crossing through thousands of

metres of elevation. All of which makes getting to school very difficult for students, many of whom live in isolated communities on remote hillsides. Often, they simply can’t go.

“We wanted our children to get a good education year round,” says Santabir Limboo, a village elder in Hee Bermiok, one of the tiny villages perched high above the Rangit River in West Sikkim. Limboo and the village elders solved the problem by setting up their own private school in a rented village house – and the local children came in droves.

But the new school – the Pole Star English School - was so successful that it led to another problem: lack of space. There simply wasn’t enough room for so many keen seekers

Singapore scouts forgot their PSPs and bought-

in hawker food for a week and a half while they got down to the

serious task of building the new classroom from

scratch. Tough!

SIKKIM STUDIESby James Teo

How scouts from Singapore travelled halfway round the world to help build a new environmentally-sensitive classroom for remote village children in India

Take Action

9

of knowledge. The villagers had the land, but didn’t have the manpower or the money to add any more classrooms for would-be students. Coincidentally, some Singapore Rover Scouts were looking for a challenge with a difference. One of them, Jeremy Chan, worked for award-winning Akitek Tenggara and had experience building environmentally sensitive structures. He wanted to do something green, but useful.

As chance would have it, Jayne Low, Singapore-based regional marketing manager for Jet Airways had just started looking at Sikkim as a destination. Low heard through the grapevine about Hee Bermiok’s school - and the scouts - and realised she held the key to the problem. “I spoke to my boss and told him I thought we should help put these people together,” she recalls, “and he said yes!”

Bamboo Best

Back in Singapore, Chan started drawing up plans for the extension. First

Some pupils travel

hours to get to school

Limboo and the other village elders spoke to

local tourism activist and green missionary

Supratim Raj Basu (below), who said a few classrooms would solve

their problem. Basu founded innovative Help

Tourism, dedicated to improving the life of

remote villagers, but not at the expense of their

culture.

HELP AT HAND

10

they would need bamboo poles to support the roof, strong enough to cope with excitable schoolchildren. The poles had to be soaked in mountain streams for a few weeks to leach out the weak, pithy cores. The roofs would be sailcloth or corrugated iron, brought in on trucks when the roads were good. Crossbeams to help stabilise the structure would be made of local timber, screwed and lashed together. After arriving in Sikkim thanks to Jet Airways and Help Tourism, the scouts hammered, sawed, drilled and nailed for nine days.

“We had to work with what we had,” remembers Chan. “When the electric drill stopped working, we used a hand drill. It

was that or we stopped work.” The long-awaited classrooms slowly emerged.

Nifty FiftyThe job was almost done;

the teachers gave it the once-over. The extension was built, ready to provide room for another 50 or so students to learn all year round. The celebrations could begin.

“We now get students as young as four,” says Limboo proudly. “Their parents are farmers, delivery workers, carpenters and labourers.”

And the pupils keep coming. The Pole Star teachers don’t do it for the money; they earn a lot less than their government school counterparts. “We do it

TRUE CALLING“We established this

school here so that the children could learn, but

as important, learn in English too,” says Kabita Chhetri, a senior teacher

at Pole Star English School in Hee Bermiok. “In today’s world, the

children need English to gain skills.” Students

have gone to be doctors, engineers and more.

11

with passion,” says teacher Kabita Chhetri, who has an MBA as well as a second teaching degree.

The finished extension was solid enough to use all year round, and was voted a big success. Students have gone on from this remote community school to be doctors, engin-eers and other professionals, so they must be doing it right.

“Even some of the teachers at government schools send their children here!” smiles Limboo.

Thanks to the new classrooms, when the rains come, the students can now carry on learning. Although none of them are actually brave enough to say if year-round homework is a change for the better.

About as far north as you can get (see map)

Sikkim sits wedged between China, Nepal,

Bhutan and West Bengal. It is reached by some very rough roads across a narrow 40km

wide sliver of land.

ON THE EDGE

Sikkim has amazingly colourful

temples and monasteries - and

lush fields

12

“I admit it, I am a bit choosy about who I take ...”

DAVE WILLIAMS is a lifelong naturalist and animal lover, dedicated paddler, serious beard-wearer and very genuine bloke.

He wasn’t always that way. Back in the early nineties he was a model executive in an established American company. “I was in middle management, living the American dream. I was working for my paycheck every week, and the future was all planned out,” he remembers. Then he took a trip to Thailand, to check out the paddling and birdwatching scenes and it all changed.

“Now, I am following what I realised is my dream,” he says. “It’s no longer about the money.” What it is about is two things, says Williams: offering seriously well organized and rewarding canoe, rock-climbing and trekking trips

around the south-west of Thailand, and secondly - making sure that what he does with his Paddle Asia company offers minimal damage to our precious world.

Shanks’s Pony“Just being here impacts the environment,”

Williams admits. But he makes sure whatever he is offering, by water or land, involves the

absolute minimum of motor transport. Customers walk, hike, canoe or mountainbike to wherever they are going to, unless it is absolutely necessary to use a bus or plane.

His life is now completely dedicated to offering holidays to regular and repeat customers, and to putting together qualifying courses for outward-bound style award programmes for

Dave Williams was a successful businessman in the United States when he took a trip to Thailand, 19 years ago. His visit made

him realise there was much more to life than climbing

the corporate ladder.

Just being here impacts the environment

A MAN FOR ALL REASONS

by Jeremy Torr

Ethical

13

schools and groups from all over Asia. Williams admits he is a bit choosy about who he takes. He says he doesn’t want anybody along who doesn’t have the same values as he and his team of guides.

No Sourpusses!

As he succinctly puts it: “one sourpuss can spoil it for all the others.” This approach has ensured that for the last 12 years he has built up his business steadily, and now has a staff of seven offering his special brand of eco-tourism. Despite the fact he doesn’t really like the phrase.

“Everybody today seems to be touting themselves as an eco tourism company. But the big guys just do the same as before, internal combustion assistance included. They just visit “green”

destinations but still use as many cars and buses,” he says.

Williams says this makes it harder work for the really green, little guys like him but he carries on doing the same thing anyway. “We also do bird-watching and long-trail hiking, and for those you really have to know your country. It’s so easy to get lost that you have to go back again and again to research the really green routes that don’t do any damage,” he says. “One of the trips we offer is a 340km coast to coast walk across Thailand. You won’t find that on any other tour operator’s itineraries!”

Old HandWilliams started paddling in

1978, and has plenty of experience in both very serious whitewater and sea kayaking. He has paddled most of the

Corporate climber? More

like eco executive!

Dave, his chief guide Nipon and wife Moo are the key people in Paddle Asia. They have built up a formiddable reputation

for eco friendly tours that take visitors where

they want to go - without damaging or

impacting the locale or the people there.

OFF TRACK

14

dangerous rivers in Colorado, and almost 370 kilometres of the Grand Canyon. Closer to home, he has paddled extensively in Thailand and in the rivers of Laos.

His current right hand man (and woman) are guide Nipon and wife Moo, who both help in the business. “Nipon is a great guy and so good with the wide range of people and skills we get,” says Williams. Nipon, from Phatthalung province, has a degree in tourism from Ratchapat University and the typical warm Thai approach to people.

Multi-skilled“Nipon is an intelligent and

knowledgeable guide who dramatically improved our understanding of the culture, wildlife and locations,” enthused one customer.

He still keeps up with the other sports he offers visitors in the area, riding hardcore

mountainbike trails, rock climbing and archery. “I just like what this area has to offer,” he says. A lifelong student of natural history, ornithology, biology, botany, paleontology, and Eastern Philosophy, he loves the outdoors – but realises how fragile it is.

“We at Paddle Asia are small by design,” he says. “This minimises our impact, and also has the advantage we can adjust and bounce back if customer numbers change.” In his early days in Thailand, Williams worked for a few other outdoor tour operators, and says that was a valuable learning experience. “I learned how not to do it, back in the early days,”

he laughs. But now, he says, he is doing it as right as he can, with the environment firmly in mind at all times.

“I do it this way because it’s my life,” he adds. “I am following my dream, so we can all feel good about what we do.”

15

Paddle Asia Cont.

Bikes are the best way to explore the country, especially in places like Sukhothai in Thailand

16

TIM

OR TI

MES

Travelling to less developed places is something great to talk about when you get home - and a chance to help people who need your smiles as much as your dollars.

By Jeremy Torr

FLYING TO Timor Leste is easy. Just jump on a plane at Changi. It’s a four-hour flight to Nicolau Lobato Airport - but when you arrive it’s like you have been traveling in time.

“Bon dia’” says the official, smiling broadly. He takes my

passport to enter the visa details - by hand - into a great big book. No computers here; no electronic tickets or passport scanners. Timor Leste is still a very under-developed country, and this is where much of its charm lies. Admittedly Dili, the

2012: Ten years of

independence

Adventure

17

capital, has its share of street chaos with hooting mopeds, food vendors, the occasional internet café, and chunky 4WDs.

But venture just a few kilometers up or down the coast to Manatuto or Liquica, or head inland up into the mountains towards Maubisse and the change is dramatic. As Jose Ramos-Horta, president of Timor Leste, said to us, “the Portuguese were here for 400 years, and they did basically nothing for us.”

Land that Time Forgot

All they left when they went was their language, and a deep abiding Roman Catholic faith. No scenery-spoiling motorways, no river dams, no railways, almost nothing apart from a few colonial buildings, an odd church or two and the remains of an old fort. All of which left the countryside as untouched by modern progress as anywhere in the world. “We are a poor country, but we are proud of it and want to welcome people here,” added the president.

“This,” said our guide the next day, “is some of the most stunning scenery.” He was right. We had driven about forty minutes out of Dili, east along the coast road past the huge statue of Christ the Redeemer on its crag at Ponta Fatossidi (Cape Fatucama), through tiny thatched-hut villages with running kids and groups of fishermen sitting playing cards.

Once through the villages, the cliffs at Ponta Hatolana Rein are simply stunning. The road clings to the edge some 250 metres above tiny white sand beaches as the cliffs, covered in green tropical plants and huge white gum trees, plunge into the pure blue sea. The rock faces glowed red, black, and white with marble in the afternoon sun, fit for a scene from the next James Bond movie – but without a soul in sight.

Head for the Hills

We passed by Dollar Beach (it’s called that because the locals used to charge a dollar to drive onto it) and stopped in the

tiny hamlet of Berhedan for local honey, sold in old rum bottles yet tasting of native flowers. Every place we passed people waved and smiled – but they did caution us to be careful where we

swam. The national animal is not the crocodile for nothing.

Next day we took a trip into the hills, to a tiny village near Letefoho where a new school was being opened. The road there can be described as a challenge, you definitely need a 4WD. Winding up across the mountains we had wonderful views out over Dili to the sea, and glimpses of the scores of tiny hamlets that seem to hide behind every curve of the road and hilltop.

Apparently the local people shunned the more open land nearer the sea and preferred to

live in the hills where it was harder for marauding tribes to

mount surprise attacks. Whatever the reason, this fondness for hill-dwelling has preserved a unique

way of life. Tiny

Everywhere we went, people waved and

smiled

Timorese village women wait for a festival to begin

18

fenced plots of cassava and corn sit next to rushing streams and thatched storage barns.

Dogs and chickens wander about on single-file paths between rice patches. Men and women in locally woven turbans herd the local cow between smoky huts. All this makes trekking and walking in this area excellent, but check your accommodation options first – hotels are thin on the ground.

Let the Dancing Begin

Once the ceremony to open the school started, the local orchestra – a group of older women with gongs – led the festivities. They were joined by village elders in ornate feather and silver headdresses – and some very cool shades. Everybody joined in, laughing, dancing, stamping to the music, eating pig livers, drinking strong local coffee and relishing super-sweet milky puddings.

The celebrations went on for hours – but there was so much of interest it was never tiring. A Singaporean policeman, on local duty with the UN, stated the obvious: “It is very different from Singapore.” About as different as you can get.

If you want to see something even more different, take a day off, head up or down the coast or follow the twisting trails into the hills, where Timor offers an unparalleled visitor experience. The same history that has given locals a very basic way of life means there has been virtually

no erosion of the natural landscape.

With none of the modern fixtures we’re used to, the country is pristine in the purest sense of the word. Sure there is dirt, but it is pristine dirt. There are leftovers from the Portuguese colonial era that hint at more genteel times, but the majority of towns are still unspoilt, with local markets and a variety of clothing and headgear that will astound.

Tribal elders with turbans and silver decorations mingle with baseball-capped youngsters in trousers. All seem to get along, and if there is a chance for a get-together and celebration, everyone congregates to stomp out the traditional dances to the sound of a woman-driven gong orchestra.

Orchestra Tedia

“I have to admit the noise gets a bit tedious after a while,” says one local resident. “I’d love them to change the tune a bit.” Nevertheless, to a visitor the sounds are mesmeric, and the sight of a team of senior women beating their brass gongs in uncannily dissonant time is highly memorable. Most celebrations are accompanied by lots of local coffee, aromatic and very mellow; and food can be anything from spicy mixes of cabbage, spinach and onions, to a slab of pig’s liver slathered in rich gravy. Yummy.

EAST LAND

In this new nation in the Far East, there are no motorways, no river dams, no railways,

almost nothing apart from a few colonial

buildings, an odd church and the remains of a

fort. Which means the countryside is as

untouched by modern progress as anywhere.

19

There are over 240 species of bird, some 30 of which are unique to Timor.

And for dessert, sweet mango and coconut milk pudding with a wild banana or two to top it off. Perfect.

If immersing yourself in local life doesn’t grab you, then take a hike into the remote areas. Nature spotters will drool over wildlife like the reticulated python (up to 8 metres long) and over 240 species of bird, some 30 of which are unique to Timor. It sure beats looking at casinos.

Safe as Houses

Before we left Timor Leste, I thanked our guide and asked him what he wanted me to tell our readers. “Please tell your readers Timor Leste is a safe and friendly place to visit,” said the president. He didn’t need to say that: It is both those and more.

Timor Leste is a stunning destination, with a new experience around almost every corner, a friendliness that borders on the naive and unspoilt places to discover in the lowlands, the uplands and the hard-to-get-to places in between. And thanks to all those old unloved Portuguese roads, there are plenty of those still.

Tribal elders with

turbans and silver

decorations mingle with

baseball-capped

youngsters. All seem to get along. At special occasions, everyone gathers to stomp out traditional

dances.

Delicious coffee comes right off the bushes in the highlands of Timor Leste

20

Welcome to the best and greenest guide around for where to go and what to do over the next few months.

Angkor Wat Bike Race & Ride 3 Dec Siem Reap, Cambodia

What better way to relive the ancient Angkor civilization days than to pedal a bike round the ruins? For leisure or competition, bikers can soak in Siem Reap’s iconic backdrops with jungles, rice paddies, buffaloes and elephants. Village Focus’ projects that help local Cambodians stand to gain from your sweat!

If that’s not enough, the popular Angkor Wat International Half Marathon takes place the next day (4 December) in front of Angkor Wat and includes segments for

wheel chair and artificial limb contestants to show their might among the ancient ruins.

villagefocus.org/bike

Gaia Reef Restoration10-15 Dec Gili Trawangan, Indonesia

Build new coral reefs! Using the Biorock process, this restorative act will provide shelter for fish, promote marine biodiversity and help prevent beach erosion around Gili Trawangan, an idyllic island of Indonesia. Organiser Gaia Discovery welcomes scuba divers who are keen on giving nature a helping hand.

gaiadiscovery.com

Anapurna 1001 Jan, 6 AprNepal

This is Nepal’s original ultra-trail race with 50km, 70km and 100km courses. For the fit and adventurous, this competition takes runners through moun-tains, forests and villages. Entry

fees go towards rewarding Nepali runners. If you think the chances of you waking up on New Year’s Day with a hangover are high, then plan for the Annapurna Mandala Trail on 6 April instead. There, 12 stages will see runners passing through Tibet, by the ancient walled city of Lo Mantling and the peaks of the mighty Himalayas. anapurna100.com

Sinulog14,15 Jan Cebu, Philippines

Why not join in the month-long fiesta celebration in Cebu in

honour of Santo Nino or the Baby Christ with religious

WHAT’S ON

21

processions reaching a high point in the third week on a Saturday followed by a grand street parade the next day? Bask in the revelry of the festive dances and fireworks. The Sinulog buzz is not to be missed so head on to Cebu!

sinulog.ph

Thaipusam 7 FebSingapore, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives

Watch the traditional kavadi attam dance performed by

Hindu devotees during their ceremonial worship complete with heavy kavadis or yokes that bear their burdens. These can be in the form of milk pots or chariots with flesh-piercing skewers. The range of body piercing will astonish you and offers the chance to capture some unrepeatable photos.

yoursingapore.com

Spirit Festival28 Mar -1 AprUbud, Bali

An uplifting festival of yoga, dance and music designed for social and ecological harmony. In its sixth year, the Bali Spirit Festival will see more inter-

national acts like Kissmet from India and the UK (pictured here) to add to sacred world music from many cultures.balispiritfestival.com

Songkran Apr 13 -15 Thailand

You can have it wet and wild, but traditionally during the Thai’s new year, the act of water pouring on the head is gentle and pure to wash away all

misfortunes before ushering in a sparkling clean new year. Songkran is celebrated with

temple rituals throughout Thailand (where you can give alms) and full processions in Chiang Mai. Head to Kao San Road or Silom for fun and feuds with water guns!thailandlife.com

Rock and Roots30, 31 Mar Singapore

In its third year, Timbre is about to surprise fans with more music greats to echo previous yearsʼ luminaries: Bob Dylan, John Legend, Bouna Vista Social Club... surf away for 2012 artiste announcement release!

rockandroots.com.sg

WHAT’S ON!

And donʼt forget - if you have an event, let us know:mal@gaiadiscovery.com

22

DO’S

& DO

NT’S

Here’s how we can get the best out of our selfish sojourns without causing disturbance and disruption to the environment. And maximizing opportunities to enrich other people’s lives.By Mallika Naguran

Goodie Baggie

Thought about packing just about enough or less rather than squeezing every possible thing in your bulging luggage? Consider buying those extra clothes needed, especially tees and toiletries at the travel destination itself. Most places have clothes especially tees; Bali and Thailand in particular have wonderful soaps. Your tourist dollar boosts local trade and you get new outfits.

However, pack a few used clothes, shoes or trinkets that are still nifty but no longer your favourite. You can give them away to the poor or leave them behind in the hotel rooms for the staff to use or distribute. Take some gifts with you to give away random by consulting travel agents or browsing the web for advice.

Ask your friends to help contribute too. Sometimes, little things count. Here’s a useful list to remember: Burma – ballpoint pens (biro) for school kids. They need these to go to school. India – clothes for children, men

Be an eco

traveller!

23

and women. Indonesia - clothes for children, men and women. Vietnam – children’s picture books, battery-operated CD players. Thailand – kids picture books, portable CD players. Cambodia - mosquito nets, books.

Trippy trappy

Incorporate a visit to a village or a home, better still, arrange for homestays as part of your getaway. You learn so much more of the local culture by mingling with real people, not just trained tourist operators.

Pick up a few local phrases, write them down and build them up along the way with your own dedicated language notebook. Also don’t hesitate to teach the residents some words and phrases of your own lingo, helping to strengthen their language skills and confidence in dealing with tourists. Write them down and give them the paper of words and phrases for them to keep.

Take time to stop and chat with people on the street. Share a smile, a joke or invite them for a cuppa with you. No reason to behave like a tourist just because you are one!

Photo motto

Ask permission before you snap a shot of people or property, and thank people after. If you have a digital camera, show them the shot taken. Don’t be surprised if they are amazed by the image of themselves as they may not have come across a digital camera before.

In some cities (like Hanoi and ethnic minority villages in Vietnam), you may be asked for money in exchange of photo taken and this you may find out, rather unpleasantly, even after seeking consent. No harm tipping or buying the local handicraft to show your gratitude – it’s definitely quid pro quo!

If you intend to give, email or snail mail the subject a photo printout, that is wonderful. Remember to keep your promise though to prevent them from being sorely disappointed or worse, disillusioned with trigger-happy and self-seeking tourists.

 

Shoppa Shocka

Bargain hunters listen up. There are just two words for you - stop it! I hear stories of rich tourists boasting of the huge reductions gotten by tough bargaining in poor countries. Remember, haggling for a modest discount is fine but hammering down to cost price is indecent. That extra profit margin made through your purchase may just go a long way to putting one decent food on the table a day or providing warm shoes on kids in blistery winter – things we often take for granted.

Don’t Do Endangered

When visiting fairs, markets, street shops, make it a point to buy something for yourself or your loved one. It’s great to have a souvenir and at the same time, you stimulate more local trade. Consider getting Christmas or birthday gifts for others. Buying in advance is cheaper anyway – you won’t burn a huge hole in your pocket come December with mass purchases in super fancy malls. Better still, you will receive compliments on your unique and exotic finds. And remember, always refrain from purchasing products made from prohibited, endangered or near extinct flora and fauna. Say no and if possible, explain the reason to the tradesman, who is probably unaware of the environmental threats caused by his actions.

Fabrics from Kok Kong Village, Thailand

Dongria Khondh community, India

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Stephen from Sarawak and Danish Tine once had a dream. Now that dream has been fulfilled with the establishment of Jungle Blues Dream in the Ulung Palang longhouse in Bario, a village in the Kelabit Highlands of northeast Sarawak, close to the Kalimantan border. The Bario plateau is remote and without

road or river transportation, so it is very peaceful. Around 1000 people live there, mainly Kelabits and Penans. The village is rather widespread as there are paddy fields in between the longhouses and surrounded by forests. Trekking into the woods brings on delightful discoveries and so does walking to remote villages.

Maecenas aliquam maecenas Sociis mauris in integer, a dolor netus non dui aliquet, sagittis felis sodales, dolor sociis mauris, vel eu libero cras. Interdum at. Eget habitasse elementum est, ipsum purus pede class.

Idyllic settings

around Bario longhouse

Kelabit Highlands in Bario bring you closer to nature and a bunch of rather interesting folks.

Gunver Bennekou reports.

Stephen and Tine

The Penans are a charming lot that make

Borneo even more endearing.

BORNEODestination

25

While roaming, you might bump into old Kelabits with elongated ears, or come across Penans carrying wild sago from the forests. The village also has a touch of modernisation - an internet café and some cars, although there are no paved roads.

The homestay is situated in a new Kelabit longhouse made of Agathis, a local wood, while poles are made of ironwood, transported from Miri or Marudi. The longhouse is situated on top of a hill so from the balcony you can enjoy a wide-angled view of the beautiful paddy fields and surrounding mountains. Moreover, you get the most wonderful food in this place. The main dish is rice, which is a bonus as the fragrant Bario rice is famous throughout Sarawak.

Tine and Stephen have their own paddy fields which mean the rice can’t get any fresher. Even

the vegetables are picked from the forest. My favorite dishes are wild ginger flower salad and soup made of wild spinach – very delicious.

Fresh MeatThe meat is local too, either from the forest such as wild boar or deer, which can be roasted or smoked. The fishpond delivers fresh fish.  The pineapples from

Bario are particularly sweet and the local fried bananas are

mouthwatering. The food is usually prepared at the open fireplace in the

longhouse. A sape, a local musical instrument, sits in the front room, ready for action. Your host Stephen is a fine sape player, and ready to serenade his guests. The walls in the rooms are decorated with local material and Stephens’ own artwork too. The art gallery doubles as the living room and exhibition area.

LOCAL FOOD

COOKED ON AN OPEN FIRE.

VERY LITTLE USE OF FOSSIL

FUEL.  AND A GREAT

CONNECTION WITH THE

LOCAL COMMUNITY

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This is eco-travelling at its

very best

Simple life, music played from the traditional sape, a stroll along

rolling padi fields... A Bario longhouse stay

can offer all these and more, leaving lasting

impressions on you and your companions well

after you leave.

The neighbour to Tine and Stephen’s little slice of heaven is the headman of the longhouse. On a fine evening, there is a possibility you’ll be in very good company with all these artistic and musically-inclined neighbours!

Dream Time

Staying in Jungle Blues Dream is really eco-travelling at its best.  It offers a house made mostly of local materials. Local food cooked on open fire. Very little use of fossil fuel. 

Add to that a great connection with the local community and culture. All the boxes are ticked for you. The only

large carbon footprint is your trip to Bario. The only possible way to go there is with a flight from Miri.

Twice a day MASwings sends a little Twin Otter plane over the highlands to Bario where a marvelous sight of the rainforest awaits until your descent into Kelabit’s charming highland enclave.

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SOME THINGS NEVER GO OUT OF FASHION AT

KELABIT HIGHLANDS

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Small things matter Text & photos by Simon Pridmore

Puri Jati diving in Bali is what is commonly termed “muck.” The calm bay, particularly around the mouth of a small river, is a haven for octopuses and a nursery for the more unusual creatures found in

Indonesia’s seas. At first, you dip below the flat surface and it seems that there is nothing there. But then a trained eye spots what looks like a sprig of weed and, on closer inspection, the weed turns out to be a very rare and exotic Ambon Scorpion fish, with its partner lying perfectly still only centimetres away. As you approach they both start to weave and bob in unison, mimicking the way seaweed moves on a tide.

A few metres further on, you lift a patch of weed to reveal a baby hairy frogfish hiding beneath and a small white mark on the sand turns out to be another baby frogfish relying on its unusual colouring rather than camouflage to protect it.

Every coconut shell and discarded bottle or jars turn out to be the residence of an

Creatures of the sea need somewhere to hide

from the big, bad and ugly. Sometimes, these hideouts can be rather surprising. Like a rusty

can, glass bottle or a toy car! Some trash

inevitably becomes part of the local habitat.

A nursery for unusual

creatures

BENEATH BALIScuba

Diving

29

octopus and they can often be seen scuttling across the sand clutching construction materials to improve their homes. Collapsible juice bags make useful front doors, it seems. When not busy collecting, they bury themselves and their

homes deep in the sand. A pile of debris in a pit is a common indicator that here is the lair of an octopus.

The site slopes out gently along way from the shore until you reach a steeper section, which takes you down to 30 m (100 ft) and more. The slope is good for spotting fingered dragonets, inimicus devilfish,

flying gurnards and many kinds of file fish and if you look closely you can find ghost pipefish hanging in the fronds of ferns that decorate the slope like puffy white clouds. These are the home too of unusual yellow, white and black nudibranchs.

Curb your environmental instincts and resist the urge to pick up any trash you see lying on the bottom. It is not only the octopus that needs to find creative housing solutions on the featureless sand. A sheet of plastic provides protection from predators and a tin can makes a romantic pied-a-terre for a pair of blennies!

Leave it all behind...PADI and SSI Dive Centre    fun dives    beautiful bungalows    families welcome    

beach volleyball court    no cars or motorbikesprofessional and friendly staff

PADI and SSI Dive Centre    fun dives    beautiful bungalows    families welcome    

beach volleyball court    no cars or motorbikesprofessional and friendly staff

Muck diving... What a wonderland of sorts!

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Photographers - pack wide-angle lens when

on a trip to Puerto Galera. With visibility stretching to 50m on

good days and swaying sea fans and colourful soft corals, getting a good panoramic shot

isn’t too hard.

Utterly Amazing GaleraBy Mallika Naguran

Puerto Galera is just one of the 7,107 islands drenched

in the sun that offer top scuba diving and land-based attractions. There are about 3,000 marine species alone in this Southern spot, but don’t hold your breath for the big stuff. Sweetlips, humphead parrots, barracudas, jacks and puffers can be found, along with healthy coral cover.

Puerto Galera, a reservation area under the Man and Biosphere Program of the UNESCO, is located in the Mindoro province of the Philippines, about a three-hour drive south from Manila City to Batangas Port, and an hour’s boat ride from there to El Galleon jetty. Asia Divers is a PADI 5 Star Career Development Center (CDC) that was founded in 1987 by Allan Nash who heads up Asia Divers and El Galleon Beach Resort, both located next to each other. There are more than 30 dive sites within reach by boat in 15

PUERTO GALERA

Open water to tech

diving in Puerto Galera

31

minutes, and you can dive five times a day if you like, including a dusk or night dive. Easy and nice, perfect for Open Water divers at clear 18m depth. Take a boat out and dive at about 9m depth and fin towards coral crusted boulders standing about 4m high. They offer pretty views until you reach a hole that’s wide enough for just one to swim through at a time.

As you emerge from the other side, a hard coral garden greets you where you may chance upon yapping moray eels, puffer, porcupine fish and even a 3-metre long banded sea snake.

The Canyons

Now this is a tricky one depending on how the tides flow and where the currents dictate. Diving at 28-30m depth you come across three beautiful walls set apart by plunging ravines. Currents can be pretty swift so grabbing on to a rock while ogling at the extra large sweetlips and snappers isn’t a bad idea. You end the dive by posing next to a relic – a nearly 2m big anchor camouflaged by coral that once served a proud Spanish Galleon well.

At nearly 21m depth you come across a cave and then another at 27m depth; between those, you sweep past a seabed covered with lovely soft and hard corals that’s home to surgeonfish, fusiliers, cuttlefish and more. The variety of coral cover is astounding with large table corals, bommies, and soft corals, even lacy gorgonians. Take with you a magnifying glass if you don’t have a trained eye, or you might miss the tiny pygmy seahorse on the yellow fan coral.

Verde Island

Now the boat tide to Verde Island takes about 45 minutes. Gear up at leisure and drop off on the east side of the island where the pinnacles peep above the water surface. Here you can go deep, but don’t get carried away by the amazing lofty formations covered with myriads of sponges, crinoids and corals. For certain do not get swept away by the outrageous currents. Lots of pelagics, jacks, barracudas, and corals.

Welcome to nature’s playground!

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Kadayawan is a festival of festivals. It honors Davao’s artistic, cultural and historical heritage, its past personified by the ancestral lumads, its people as they celebrate on the streets. You’ll find the floral industry’s representatives parading in full regalia in thanksgiving for the blessings granted on the city.

The celebration has three aspects: tribal, industrial, arts and entertainment.  Commemorated every third week of August, it is a week-long celebration with floral

floats, street-dancing competitions and exhibits of island’s tourism products and services.

The two big parades of the festival are often held during weekends.  The street dancing, called Indak-Indak sa Kadalanan, is done on Saturday while the floral float parade falls on Sunday.

The floral float parade Pamulak Kadayawan is a spectacular finale – patterned after the Pasadena Parade of Roses in the United States.

Kadayawan Indigenous Festival Celebrates a Rainbow of Cultures By Henrylito D.Tacio

KADAYAWANCulture

Remembering the ancestral people - lumads

- as youths take to the streets in celebration of

Davao’s greatest festival. Head down to Mindanao

Province to be infected by the joy of this season.

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STREET DANCING, FLORAL PARADES: DAVAO IS A

RIOT OF ACTIVITIES

34

HITESH

“LET’S STOP MAKING THE ENVIRONMENT A VICTIM ...”One person who has

initiated change and is influencing the tourism industry for the better – through ecology-friendly design appreciation is Hitesh S Mehta, an architect, landscape architect and environmental planner. He is the president of HM Design based in Florida,

Mehta has put together an architectural compendium of 36 exemplary ecolodges from around the world that serve as builder’s inspiration and tourism’s saving grace.

Called Authentic Ecolodges, it supports the idea that the environment should never

become a victim with the rise of mass tourism and accompanying onslaught of ill-managed hotels, resorts and lodges. Mehta quit his job to spend 30 months on the road travelling to 46 countries to research and develop materials for his book - and more eco-friendly design theories.

Expert

35

The book culminates Mehta’s decade-long research and interviews with architects, eco-consultants, developers, operators, indigenous communities and stakeholders in the ecotourism industry, where he came up with a criteria system to determine ecolodges.

“Ecotourism, in my opinion, is any tourism in nature-based locations that practices the three main principles of protection of nature; benefits to local people and offering of interpretive programs,” says Mehta. Ecolodges, a growing trend in accommodations, must embrace these three principles plus any other two out of the eight other principles, as defined by Mehta’s research paper in 1999. 

A Lodge too FarIn short,

ecolodges are “low-impact, nature-based accommodations of two to seventy-five rooms that protect the surrounding environment; benefit the local community; offer tourists an interpretive and interactive participatory experience; provide a spiritual communion with nature and culture and are designed, constructed and operated in an environmentally and socially sensitive manner."

Authentic Ecolodges tracks down environmentally responsible and aesthetically beautiful ecolodges in far and exotic locations. After visiting and inspecting 48 lodges personally, Mehta excluded 8 that did not meet the set criteria made consistent throughout. Four properties were omitted due to page constraint. The book features 36 diverse ecolodges from budget to luxury status with another 8 ecolodges described in “on the drawing boards” chapter.

Best of the Best

Featured ecolodges are grouped according to twelve

themes that include sustainable building materials, creative design, indigenous construction techniques,

art as architecture, innovative technology, biodiversity for conservation, and more. Page after page, beautiful illustrations by Matthew Lewis tag each conceptual element accompanied by photographic images taken by the author himself. The lodges are assessed and reviewed by the author for their architectural relevance,

Eleven basic principles for ecolodges were set out in a 1999 paper. These are:

Help in the conservation of the surrounding flora and faunaHave minimal impact on the natural surroundings during constructionFit into its specific physical and cultural contexts through careful attention to form, landscaping and colour, as well as the use of vernacular architectureUse alternative, sustainable means of water acquisition and reduce water consumptionProvide for careful handling and disposal of solid wasteMeet its energy needs through passive design and renewable energy sourcesUse traditional building technology and materials wherever possible and combines these with their modern counterparts for greater sustainabilityEndeavour to work together with the local community and involve them in the initial planning stagesOffer interpretive programs to educate both its employees and tourists about the surrounding natural and cultural environments

Contribute to sustainable local development through education programs and research

Use environmentally friendly sewage treatment systems

PRINCIPLES

36

impact on the environment, sustainable operations (financially as well), and tourism appeal. “The three main reasons I wanted to do this book was to raise the bar in the ecolodge industry, increase awareness amongst travellers of today and add to the body of work for professionals and academics alike,” said Mehta.

Special Places

“It is my hope that community-owned and operated ecolodges continue to grow; that there will be public and private partnerships for owning and running these special places,” he said.

Hitesh Mehta is the longest serving board member of The International Ecotourism

Society (TIES) and the author of International Ecolodge

Guidelines. He was also a former captain of Kenyan cricket team.

Crosswaters Ecolodge nestled in the Nankunshan Reserve of Guangdong, China

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At The Farm resort & wellness centre in the Batangas province of the Philippines, western medicine complements age-old Asian practices such as Ayurveda, an ancient healing movement originating from India. 

A team of doctors and nurses administer personalised programs to guests with specific health issues that include vegan food supplement like wheat grass shots, exercise likes brisk walk and yoga, meditation, and cleansing treatment of the kidney, liver and gut. Vegan food grown organically is served at The Farm, mostly raw and deliciously prepared.

So good it has won several cuisine awards.

But health is not limited to the physical. “Holistic involves the healing of the mind, body and spirit,” says Michael Di Lonardo, general manager of The Farm. “In treating the physical body, you touch the mental and spiritual. That’s the basis of holistic care.”

The Farm sees varied guests, from weekend trippers reveling in the delectable vegan cuisine to health sufferers. Guests can book up to participate in the numerous health and fitness programs including yoga and invigorating nature walks in the grounds of the estate.

Detox programs are prescribed after consulting the in-house doctor, and depending on the guest's' condition, this can include nutritional microscopy, colon hydrotherapy, wheatgrass infusion therapy, Digital Meridian Diagnostic System (DMS), kidney cleansing, liver cleansing, body salt bath and also massages. 

Drinking virgin coconut oil (VCO) is also recommended as a medical boost. According to the doctors, VCO cleanses from the

Take a break from the ordinary and get HEALTHY in the Philippines

Virgin Coconut Oil has been taken as a health

antidote since time immemorial because of its anti-microbial, anti-

fungal and anti-bacterial properties. Cold-pressed virgin coconut oil retains

all these goodness. Take two tablespoons a day to keep common ailments at

bay, keep your immune system working at peak fitness - and because it

tastes good too!

DOWN AT THE FARMBy Mallika Naguran

Resort

39

mouth to the anus, killing parasites, viruses, fungi and bacteria.

At The Farm, coconut oil is used in the manufacture of soaps, and the shell of the fruit is used as a bowl with which delicious home-made granola and fruit is served. Massages are to optimize the flow of chi to the body and harmonize it. 

Chi in Chinese medicine or prana in Indian medical traditions refer to life force within us beyond the physical. It is to re-connect to the “inner essence” and develop the ability to obtain healing energies through nature. Staff at The Farm will share the health benefits of eating raw health

foods to boost the body’s immune system. Guests return home not just with memories of feeling better after having stayed

at The Farm, but with new-found wisdom of how to eat right and live healthier.

Peacocks, ducks, age-old trees help with meditation while vegetables grow naturally without chemicals to feed guests with wholesome vegan foods

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Eco can mean a number of things to different people. By Mallika Naguran

building of his Kri Eco Resort, even including the jetty that Max’s father helped to build, aided by local talent. In fact, everything about Kri Eco Resort is handmade: the Sunset Lounge and its lazy deck chairs, the bamboo chalets, the coconut leaf and nut wall finishing and interior décor.

Even the bricks are made by hand by the senior local people on Max’s team. The first thing that springs to mind for most is the preservation of nature. For Max Ammer, a pioneer dive operator in Raja Ampat and owner of Kri Eco Resort and Sorido Bay Resort at West Papua, Indonesia, people are at the heart of any ecology-related business. “To me, eco means working with the local people to build a better future,” says Ammer. “I want local people to make the money,” says Max, who reveals that he could have built the resorts (including the higher-end

KRI, RAJA AMPATby Mallika Naguran

Resort

Conservation at Raja Ampat now is taking on new heights with an aerial monitoring programme sponsored by CI and various other NGOs. This involves a light aircraft

surveillance to keep an eye on illegal activities on water and land. And the pilot keeping vigil behind the wheels? None other than Max Ammer!

The first thing that springs to mind for most is the preservation of nature. For Max Ammer, a pioneer dive operator in Raja Ampat and owner of Kri Eco Resort and Sorido Bay Resort at West Papua, Indonesia, people are at the heart of any ecology-related business. “To me, eco means working with the local people to build a better future,” says Ammer. Little of the coral reef at Cape Kri (house reef) was destroyed or impacted upon with the

41

Max believes in employing local talents, even as dive guides and masters; as such he invests heavily in education and training, which includes English Language conversational and writing skills. He did not wait for PADI to roll out instructional workbooks in Indonesian language. Instead Western teachers were hired to translate materials and concepts from English to Bahasa Indonesia, plus oral instruction and pictograms. “This is how West Papuans with elementary education get their advancement in scuba diving careers at Kri and Sorido Bay eco resorts,” explains Max.

Every night, following dinner, guests gaze at the juvenile bamboo sharks wading in the shallows just below the dining lounge on stilts. In the morning, we are awakened by hysterical cackles from endemic birds such as eclectis parrots, brush turkeys, sulphur crested

cockatoos and hornbills. No need for alarm clocks here.

At breakfast, we are startled to see a pair of coconut crabs huddled around a bamboo pylon at the lounge ceiling. Hideous as they are, they are also harmless and rather immobile; apparently they lie on coconut trees and love cracking the solid fruits with their rock-hard pincers.

Fish Fantasia

I sat a respectable distance away from them. The guest rooms at Kri Eco Resort are also perched above the waters, so a daily sight would be numerous fish species flitting around the pylons, seeking shelter from sea currents or storms. Baby barracudas pursue parrotfish of amazing variety, tagged along by turtles.

An important regulatory mechanism of the Raja Ampat Marine Park is the Rp500,000 tourism entrance fee, which

involves the issue of an annual waterproof plastic entrance tag to scuba divers. Part of the fee goes to community development, conservation and enforcement, covering marine areas and land-based activities such as logging and mining.

In 2007 and 2008, priority was given to the “Posyandu” system, which is a healthcare provision for mothers and children. Something that’s also close to Max’ heart: in the early days, he had improved the water wells in Raja Ampat with chlorination and safety measures and created 13 new wells for the local people.

Sorido Resort) and run the operations quicker with more experienced staff from other parts of Indonesia, but he chose to train and work with local Papuans instead to help them out of poverty. Management staff and trainers include a few Westerners. Still, Max is committed to West Papua in more ways that one. He builds local talent and skills in this remote region of Indonesia spanning from tourism-related ventures to trades for livelihood to careers in scuba diving.

Local Talent

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Gaia Ad -Subscribe

& Gaia Ideas

With Thanks to Our Distinguished Panel of Advisers...

Jose Ramos-Horta, President of Timor-Leste and 1996 Nobel Laureate; Balgis Osman-Elasha, IPPC Member & 2007 Nobel Laureate; Thomas J. Goreau, President of Global Coral Reef Alliance & Coordinator of UN Commission on Sustainable Development Partnership in New Technologies for Small Island Developing States; James Canton, CEO of Institute of Global Futures; Kala Vairavamoorthy, UNESCO-IHE; Hitesh Mehta, eco-architect & TIES Board Member

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