Travelfish #463: Two weeks in Southern Vietnam

A quick stroll in a beautiful country.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 [Open in app]( or [online]() [Travelfish #463: Two weeks in Southern Vietnam]( A quick stroll in a beautiful country. [Stuart McDonald]( Mar 6   [Save]( [▷  Listen](   Hi! This week leading with a great piece on how visiting the beach can be an act of resistance. While it is focused on Palestine, there are plenty of parallels to more than a few destinations in Southeast Asia. Last week on Couchfish I had two Lake Toba entries for paid subscribers, one on [cannabalism]( and the other [on a pretty viewpoint]( more to come before I leave the island behind. For free subscribers, I took [a look at the Travel Foundation report]( on how tourism and climate targets fit together—or don’t—within Southeast Asia. On Travelfish I’ve (finally) updated our [two-week itinerary to Vietnam’s south]( first of many updates in this area. It includes a short section on sustainable travel in the region—expect a lot of more of this on Travelfish. With that in mind, the pics this week are from that part of the world. Cheers Stuart Clear waters Exploring the coastline near Phan Rang. Photo: [Cindy Fan]( (who clearly enjoyed better weather than I scored!). --------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐️ Story of the week  - [In A Land Of Apartheid, A Trip To The Beach Can Be An Act Of Resistance]( from The Nation --------------------------------------------------------------- 📚 What I’m reading - [Columbus: His Enterprise Exploring The Myth]( by Hans Koning (still) 🇲🇲 Burma - [Myanmar Military Gets New Aviation Fuel Supplies Despite Abuses]( from Aljazeera - [‘Cheats And Moneygrubbers’: Journalists For Hire In Myanmar]( from Frontier Myanmar ($) --------------------------------------------------------------- Looking to book your transport online when you’re on the road in Southeast Asia? For Vietnam, look [no further than Baolau](. For the rest of the region, [12Go should be your first port of call](. --------------------------------------------------------------- 🇰🇭 Cambodia - [US Condemns ‘Fabricated’ Case As Cambodian Opposition Leader Is Jailed For 27 Years]( from The Guardian - [Dynamite Doug]( via Campuccino (Podcast) [Ad: Phnom Penh’s Penh House, from US$70 per night. Click here for the details.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 🌴 Environment - [Why Some Travelers Fly Across The World Without Leaving The Airport]( from The Hustle (awful piece!) - [Intrepid Travel Is Rethinking Responsible Animal Encounters]( from AFAR - [Asia Expects Dramatic Rise In “Regenerative” Tourism]( from NikkeiAsia ($) (from 2020) - [Why Are Non-scientists Leading The World’s Largest Companies’ Sustainability Efforts?]( from Fortune - [Can Tourism Be Nature-Positive?]( from Crossroads Blog - [The World Promised To Phase Out Fossil Fuel Subsidies. Instead, It Doubled Them.]( from HEATED 🇮🇩 Indonesia - [‘This Is My Last Responsibility’: Indonesia’s Parents Seek Justice Over Child Cough Syrup Deaths]( from The Guardian - [In Bali, Paradise Is Being Upcycled]( from The Financial Times ($) - [The Other Side Of Lombok, Indonesia: Ancient Temples Open To Hindus And Muslims Alike, An Upland Shangri-la, And Islands Off The Tourist Trail]( from SCMP ($) - [On The Kahayan River Of Kalimantan]( from This Is Southeast Asia 🇱🇦 Laos - [Xayaboury Festival Is The Elephant In The Room For Lao Tourism]( from The Laotian Times - [Luang Prabang Hotels On Full Capacity Thanks To Chinese Tourists]( from The Laotian Times --------------------------------------------------------------- Looking for deals on organised tours? Here are a few for Southeast Asia via Travelfish partner GetYourGuide. CambodiaUp to [15% off a full-day trip Angkor Wat’s Kulen Waterfall](. IndonesiaUp to [15% off a tour to Merapi, Borobudur and Prambanan](. MalaysiaUp to [10% off a bicycle tour of Kuala Lumpur’s old city](. ThailandUp to [30% off a 4-hour tour of Bangkok’s Chinatown](. Vietnam Up to [50% off a one-day Hạ Long Bay tour](. --------------------------------------------------------------- 🇲🇾 Malaysia - [I Will Not Summarily Close The Book On MH370 Tragedy]( Bernama - [The Rise Of Youth Participation In Malaysia’s Political Landscape]( from SEAGlobe ($) 🇸🇬 Singapore - [Saliva Testing Rolled Out At Singapore Roadblocks, Checkpoints To Nab Drug Users]( from CNA - [Forget English. Test Aspiring Singaporean Citizens On Singlish Instead.]( from Rice Media 🇹🇭 Thailand - [There’s Never Been A More Exciting Time To Eat Thai In Bangkok]( from Bloomberg ($) - [Thousands Of Russians Flee To Thailand To Escape War]( from VOA - [Thailand’s Tourism Future Darkened By Air Pollution]( from NikkeiAsia ($) - [An Oasis Of Sakura]( from Bangkok Post - [A Look Back On February 2023 In Thailand’s Islands And Coastal Areas]( from Thai Island Quest [Ad: Bangkok’s Sala Arun from US$73 per night. Click here for the details.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 🇻🇳 Vietnam - [Vietnam Air Carriers Struggle To Attract Foreign Passengers]( from Tuoi Tre News - [The Vanishing Catch: How Women Are Suffering In The Mekong Delta]( from Viet Nam News - [From Vauban Citadel To Modernist Icon: The History Of Turtle Lake]( from Saigoneer - [11 Fresh Markets In Saigon]( from Vietnam Coracle - [International Tourism’s Lost Year]( from Vietnam Weekly ($) Random other stuff - [The Misunderstood Lives Of Sherpas]( from ABC - [What Is Decolonization, Why Is It Important, And How Can We Practice It?]( from Interdependence: Global Solidarity and Local Actions - [Buku]( via Dari Mulut ke Mulut (Podcast) - [Steel Sharpens Steel: Remembering Nate Thayer]( from The Diplomat - [Travel Has Been Completely Transformed By Technology. Is That Good Or Bad?]( from Brent And Michael Are Going Places Now that is a waterfall The spectacular Elephant Waterfall near Đà Lạt. Photo: [Cindy Fan](. --------------------------------------------------------------- See you next week! So that’s the wrap. I hope you are all in good health, and thanks for reading. Cheers! Stuart Travelfish weekly newsletter is free today. But if you enjoyed this post, you can tell Travelfish weekly newsletter that their writing is valuable by pledging a future subscription. You won't be charged unless they enable payments. [Pledge your support](   [Like]( [Comment]( [Share](   Read Travelfish weekly newsletter in the app Listen to posts, join subscriber chats, and never miss an update from Stuart McDonald. [Get the iOS app]( the Android app]( © 2023 Stuart McDonald Bali, Indonesia [Unsubscribe]() [Start writing]()