Beautiful, tropical, paradise, idyllic, amazing, they are all words commonly used to describe Thailand, and those words are often accompanied by photos of Thailand’s pristine beaches, lush rain forests, idyllic islands and quaint villages and temples. In contrast to the Tourist Authority of Thailand’s glossy brochure photos, I have added a selection of photos [see photos below] which highlight the not so beautiful and idyllic flip side of the coin, “so to speak”.
Take a look at the first photo [below] and you will see the flip side I’m referring to is the problem of litter. Fortunately the problem is not widespread, but the fact remains, some of Thailand’s beauty spots are blighted, or should I say “trashed” by litter.
The photo above this paragraph might have looked half decent without the text, it would look even better without all the litter, without the text or the litter it would have been a nice photo of a beautiful Thai beach with a picturesque little island nestling in the background, what a shame !!.
More “Thailand land of Litter” photos.
Somewhere in paradise,actually this is just a few miles south of Huahin, I would like to say the beach was littered with natural beauty, but in actual fact it was just littered.
Situated at the northern end of Bangsaen Beach, underneath the shadow of Monkey Mountain, there is a long row of seafood restaurants perched precariously over the sea [see photo above]. Fresh oysters are dirt cheap here, at low tide you can see the man made oyster beds, they have a photogenic charm about them.
I did take a few pictures of the oyster beds but what struck me more was another man made sight, except this one was not so photogenic. I dare say that if you visit these quaint little seafood restaurants at Bangsaen when the tide is high you would see a rather more beautiful sight than the one I saw. Although I was happy to see the oyster beds, that sight was marred by what was really quite a disgraceful mess. See for yourself, take a look at the photo [above] it looks more like a third world scene, but this is a popular tourist destination in Thailand, a place where luxury food is offered, so why does it look more like a Calcutta slum.
The Hidden Charms of Pattaya Beach.
Your first day in Pattaya, an early rise and a morning stroll on the beach, take in some fresh air and get a feel for paradise, yes, this is going to be a great holiday. You never bargained for broken glass though did you [photo above], not on the beach outside your luxury hotel, never mind, the stitches in your foot will make quite a novel holiday snap.
Koh Samet is a place of outstanding natural beauty, so much so that it has been designated a national park, visitors must pay an entrance fee which is used for the upkeep of the national park. I took this photo [above] on a quiet little back-road on Koh Samet, to me it looks like the money is not being spent to well, it’s not being spent on refuge collection, that’s for sure.
Who’s rubbishing Thailand.
It would be unfair to apportion blame but don’t you think the institutions who are making financial gains should take better care of their most valuable assets.