Poo in the Water

       The UNESCO World Heritage Centre describes Halong Bay, Vietnam as “1,600 islands and islets, forming a spectacular seascape of limestone pillars. Because of their precipitous nature, most of the islands are uninhabited and unaffected by a human presence.” While planning my trip through Vietnam, this destination came up most often. Whether it was advice from people who have already been there, or research that I did online, this Halong Bay seemed to guarantee satisfaction. With hopes high, my girlfriend and I traveled 8 hours by van from Mai Chau, Vietnam expecting to be awed.
       Even though this World Heritage Site was visually amazing, it not only revealed more environmental issues that tourism presents, but also raised questions on what damage is actually caused by the tourists. I confess that on this part of the trip we did not travel “eco-friendly”, we went on a normal overnight boat tour of the bay. But by not going on the more expensive, “right” tour I saw the all the major faults of these “great deals”.

Poo in the water.

       Yes. POO in the Water. As our boat pulled up to a local village, who makes most of their money from giving tourists boat rides, we were offered to kayak or swim around the islands. Because of our fear of deep-sea monsters, we cautiously climbed into the kayak and started paddling. “What the hell is that?!” Her scream made me jump out of my kayak seat, almost flipping our little boat. As I catch my breath and ask her if she is all right, I see her poking a brown log floating in the water. Then, as my focus shifts from the 1,000’s of little limestone islands around me to the murky green water we are surrounded by, I notice poo. Not like “Watch out, there is dog poop on the side walk” amount of poo. I mean like big sea full of floating poop, poo. By this time my body was covered with the poop water because of the splashing caused by our inability to paddle together. Awesome. But, as we became more comfortable with the poo in the water, we laughed all the way back to the boat. As our paddling ended, I started to ask myself where this poop was coming from. Are there enough tours on these boats that cause this much poop in the water? Or is all this poop coming from the local floating village who use the water as their toilet?
       Along with exploring the damage caused by tourism, I will also try to discover how much of the damage is created by the locals and local companies. To analyze and compare these things on the world level would be insane. So, I will only discuss places I have been and things that I have seen.
Next week I will finally start discussing and getting deeper into specific issues and the locations they are occurring at. I will be analyzing the importance of traveling, along with the importance of keeping the travel destinations healthy. Lastly, as I presented in this entry, some weeks will be solely dedicated to questioning how much damage is actually caused by tourism.

Poo in the water.

Hello World!

       As my girlfriend and I attempted to squat on the knee-high stools without bothering anyone else enjoying their meal, the chef/waitress/cashier auntie dropped two bowls of steaming Pho Bo in front of us. This bowl of happiness made me forget who I was for the time being, I felt like just another Vietnamese citizen taking a lunch break. This was the first time on our trip where I felt invisible; it was the first time where I wasn’t stared at like I had money hanging from my eyebrows. I could finally relax. Then the slap of reality, “Do you guys have forks here?” Everyone at the table, including us, stared at this misinformed individual. Because we were in Asia and we both happen to be Asian, all we had to do in a situation like this was look down and keep eating, letting our black hair act as camouflage.
        This incident and incidents like this always bring up the same questions for me. 1. No matter how hard you try and no matter how much you hate tourists, when you leave your nest will you always be a tourist? 2. What is the significance of location?
In my head the first question always has a pretty certain answer: Yes, if you are a tourist, you will always be a tourist unless you create a new nest. Thus, transitioning slowly from visitor to resident. But, I can never produce a solid answer that second question. For the next 15 weeks or so I am going to try. Do not expect a statement like “…and therefore, the significance of location is blah.” It is not going to happen. But, I will explore the things that make a location important, as well as everything that lessens its importance. Along with writing about this matter, I have also already started visual research through the use of photography.
        To be able to take a photo in Los Angeles that convinces the viewer that it was taken in Tokyo amuses me. To be able to take a photo in Tokyo that convinces the viewer that I am in Los Angeles frustrates me. The photographs will help me unveil aspects of locations that will be the topics of my writings.
        Everything I say though, is coming from someone who has lived in the area of Los Angeles his whole life. I have been spoiled by it. There aren’t that many places where a person could have a würst with German beer for lunch, go to a Japanese Museum, then have amazing pad see ew for dinner, followed by churros for dessert. To someone from a place where imported goods are less prevalent, my blog may seem close-minded. I will try to be as unbiased as possible but I know I will slip.
If that mislead individual I spoke about before just wanted to have a conversation with a waitress about forks that ended in her getting a bowl of Pho, then why not just go to her local Korean owned Vietnamese restaurant?