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 TRANSITIONS

ABROAD

.J8 FEATURE: D0MINICA

lsland Hopping in the Andaman Sea Dan Cooper
Hiking the Ancient Road of Kumano Winifred Bird
Travels in Kyrgyzstan Lies Ouwerkerk
The Hill Towns of Tuscany and Umbria Sam Lowe
Hiking in South lceland Melissa Barton
Volunteer in Australia Claire Moss
Wildlife Volunteering in Greece Lili Debarbieri
Volunteering in Sri Lanka Khya Saban
lreland's Conservation Services Brent Nichols
Dominica bills itself as the nature island of the
Car ibbean for good reason says writer Peggy
Coonley. lts spectacular lush and varied flora and
iaLrna are protected by an extensive rratural park
system, it is the most mountainous island of the
Lesser Antilles. its volcanic peaks are cones 0t lava
craters, and the island is characterized by lvonders
ke Boiling Lake, the second-largest thermally
active ake in the lvorld
'

How to Find Jobs: 0ne Teacher's Experience and Tips Claire Varley

The Benefits of Going Local: TEFL Training 0verseas Genny Griffiths

ls TEFL Right for You? Factors to Consider When Doing Your Homework Katie Rice
Teaching in Spain: The Down and Dirty Guide for Prospective Teachers Niki Papadopoulos
Teach English in Ghina: Demand is High With the Upcoming Summer 0lympic Games Ken Driese
Lessons From a Teacher in Prague Jennifer Johnson
A Valuable Commodity: Teaching English in the French Caribbean (No Experience Required) Philip Cartelli
Network Your Way to an Internship Christine Hucko
Finding Pub Work in England: A Barmaid's Tips for Landing a Job and Living Like a Brit Emma Stratton
Work in Australia's Tropical North: Take Advantage of the Country's New Working Visa Laurie Pritchard
The New Shanghai: An Expatriate's Perspective on Living and Working in China's Largest City Mark Andrews
,$ 8-
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 lsland Hopping in the Andaman Sea
THE ADVENTUROUS TRAVELER'S ESCAPE FROM THAILAND'S TOURISTY RESORT AREAS
by Dan Cooper
Most visitors to Thailand's beaches end
up in the same three popular resort areas,
Phuket, Koh Samui, and Krabi. But these
are no more Thailarrd than Acapulco is
Mexico. Al1 are over-deveioped, crowded
with tourists, and full of Western-style
bars and fast food. If peace and quiet
are what you're after, several chains of
less well knowry beautiful islands offer
the slightly more adventurous traveler
a chance to experience more traditional
Thai life.
Try island hopping on the Andaman
Sea off Thailand's sunny west coast, from
the small coastal province of Satun. This
is the jumping off point for the 61 islands
in the Tarutoa National Park, including
Koh Lipe, Adang, Bu1ory and Tarutoa. A
30-day tourist visa for Thailand is easily
obtained here at no cost.
Satun is a small Muslim town that sees
few Western tourists. Children and even
adults stared at us when we walked down
the streets or caught the 1ocal songthaew,
a sma1l open-back van with two benches
that serve as 1ocal buses. Very quickly,
however, the stares were replaced with
big smiles and laughter when we greeted
them in Thai with "snwadee kap," or sim-
ply said "he11o."
As luck would have it, when we arrived
in February, the annual Satun Kite Festival
was taking place. We witnessed a marvel-
ous display of kite acrobatics and two of
the largest kites I have ever seen. It took
three men to launch them and a truck to
hold them down once aloft. The celebra-
tion started off with a colorful perfor-
mance of traditional Thai dancing by over
100 Thai youth decked out in shimmering
gold, greery and purple silk sarongs.
While in Satun it's worth visiting one
of Thailand'' largest national parks,
Thale Ban (Contact: Tel. 0-7172-2736-7,
fax. 0-7472-2730; reserve@dnp.go.th).
Day trips for bird watching and hik-
ing can be arranged in Satun (Contact:
info@thailandbirdwatching.com, www.
thailandbirdwatching.com). You can rent
small "cottages" in the park for longer
stays. On our visit we were fortunate to
spot a large wreathed hornbill. Thale Ban
is one of the few places where you can
see these impressive turkey-sized birds
with their large curved bills. You can also
hike to Thale Ban's famous nine-tiered
Yaroi waterfall and take a refreshing dip
in a cool pond at the fifth leve1. Although
promoted as an easy hike, we found it
a bit challenging because of the narrow
rock path along the gorge.
Our real goal was Koh Lipe, but there
isn't much accommodation available
on the island, so we stayed in Satun
while we waited for a cottage to become
available on the island. In the meantime
Sinkiat Hotel was pleasant for 665 Baht
(about $20).
Koh Lipe is a short ferry ride away. It's
small and still supports a Thai fishing vii-
Iage. Accommodation ranges from pricey
beach bungalows to simple tents, so you
can find something to fit every budget.
But book in advance. We stayed at the
Leepeh Resort for 970 Baht, which was
about $29 (Contact: 66-8-9459 5219 or fax.
; and@man-island-hopping.
66-7 622-0661.
de). The ferry stops outside the coral reef
and long-tail boats pick you up and take
you to your resort for 30 baht (less than
$1). Our hut was rustic bur envlronmen-
tally friendly with only a ceiling fan, no
hot wate4 and electricity only from 4
p.m. to 6:30 a.m. There are no polluting
cars or paved roads on the island, only
dirt paths and the occasional motorbike.
Several restaurants nearby serve fresh
caught fish, prawns, or squid right on
the beach. You dine by candlelight look-
ing up at the stars and listening to the
crashing surf.
You can hire a long-tail boat from one
of the locai fishermen to go snorkeiing or
to visit nearby islands. Kayaks are also
available for rent at the Daya Resort.
At the east end of the beac[ a trail
cuts through the island to the rougher
north-east shore. Here is the orlginal fish-
ing village where you can see fishermen
repairing their traps and long-tail boats.
Chicken and ducks roam freely among
the traditional Thai stilt houses with their
woven bamboo walls.
Several less expensive resorts are on
this side of the island. You can get a beach
bungalow for only 300 baht (under 910)
a night, although the sea is rougher and
the beach steeper and dirtier than on the
other side of the island.
Moving on to Koh Phi Phi, a one-hour
ferry from Krabi, we first stayed on what
the guidebooks described as "quiet"
Long Beach. Unfortunately, it was neither
long nor quiet. Fully half of Long Beach
is taken up by parked long-tail boats. A
steady stream of boats patrols the beach
like sharks waiting to gobble up passen-
gers going back to town after a day of
sunbathing.
After one night listening to the steady
roar of the long-tails, we packed up and
moved to the northeast tip of the island,
as far away from town as we could get.
We lucked out and found a new resort
that wasn't listed in the guidebooks yet.
Erawan Palms (www.pperawanpalms.
com ) was a bit pricey, but had a secluded
empty beach and a pool. We splurged
and paid over 2000 Baht (around 958).
Fisherman from a nearby Sea Gypsy vi1-
lage provided fresh fish and an interest-
ing insight into Thai sea culture.
By visiting the southern remote islands
of Thailand, you can avoid the crowd-
ed beaches. Hopefully, after relaxing on
these islands you'll be better able to deal
with the hustle and bustle of Phuket or
Phi Phi. Who knows, after the relative
deprivation from Western-sty1e luxu-
ries, you may even want seadoos and
McDonald's. We, horveveq, will stick to
tne soutn ot lna1land.
Dan Cooper is a freelarce writer and a profes-
sional travel and garden photographer. Dan
and hjs wife recently completed a 5-month
tour of Asia, including China, Vietnam,
Burma, Lombok, and Thailand. He is also a
professional garden designer and landscaper.
Contact him at cooper_9@symaptico.ca.
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