According to multiple reports there appears to have been a tourist suicide at L'Anmien Resort last week. Apparently a Russian woman jumped from a balcony on the third floor, later dying from her injuries. Our condolences to all who were affected by the incident.
There tends to be several tourist suicides, fatal accidents and deaths from natural causes in Mui Ne's hotels every year, but most are kept very quite. This is the first jumping death that I am aware of (though high-rise resorts are only a recent thing). I've heard of more than one hanging in past years--the first was before I arrived, but I suspect they occur more often than any of us are made aware.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
BBC Say Vietnam Says No on Facebook
According to the BBC, in a rather cynical report, Vietnam denies it is actively blocking facebook, despite claims of employees from a variety of ISP companies. If that were true however, then why has it been unavailable through more than one ISP, running through different servers? Anyway, read the story here.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Thailand's Internet Problems Bigger than Vietnam's Facebook
As frustrating as Vietnam’s apparent government-initiated black-out of Facebook has been this month, we can be thankful that Vietnam is not Thailand. It might surprise people to know that Thailand is one of the most repressive countries in Southeast Asia when it comes to internet access. Thanks to a law passed in 2007, all Internet Service Providers in Thailand are required to collect personal information to identify users (name, email address, passport or ID numbers and other information) as well as log ALL activity they engage in on the internet (websites visited, information submitted and communications sent). This of course makes connects insecure and data transmitted is at risk of hijacking by criminals. Much like the internet censorship in China, Thailand’s focus seems to be sexually explicit material, as well as politically sensitive information (information and posts critical of the government). This level of censorship and monitoring of private citizens, expats and tourists does not come cheaply however. The extra software, hardware and management needed have caused internet access in Thailand to skyrocket, making it one of the most expensive countries in the region for internet access. Expect to pay $4-$6US per hour, on top of the cost of your drinks at any café, or your room at a hotel. Wifi is never free in Thailand.
Vietnam's Facebook Block Saga Continues
An article by The Press Association Sheds a little light on the current Facebook black-out in Vietnam:
“Government officials and managers at several of Vietnam's state-controlled internet service providers did not respond to a request for comment.
But technicians at two of Vietnam's largest internet service providers said they had been swamped with calls from customers complaining they could not access Facebook during the last week.
A technician at Vietnam Data Corp. said government officials had ordered his firm to block access to Facebook and that VDC instituted a block on the site on November 11. He declined to give his name because he was not authorised to speak to the media.”
Most of the article merely rehashed current discussion on the internet by users within Vietnam, but the above quote, if it can be believed, suggested something more sinister is going on. Granted, the only difference between journalism and hearsay is whether or not one gets paid to dispense it, but at this point in time, any little bit of information is very illuminating for users in Vietnam now who are largely now cut off.
Quite a few of my own contacts have told me that this move by Vietnam deals a serious blow to the expat community in Saigon and Hanoi, who relied on Facebook heavily for career networking and social activities.
Read the full article HERE.
“Government officials and managers at several of Vietnam's state-controlled internet service providers did not respond to a request for comment.
But technicians at two of Vietnam's largest internet service providers said they had been swamped with calls from customers complaining they could not access Facebook during the last week.
A technician at Vietnam Data Corp. said government officials had ordered his firm to block access to Facebook and that VDC instituted a block on the site on November 11. He declined to give his name because he was not authorised to speak to the media.”
Most of the article merely rehashed current discussion on the internet by users within Vietnam, but the above quote, if it can be believed, suggested something more sinister is going on. Granted, the only difference between journalism and hearsay is whether or not one gets paid to dispense it, but at this point in time, any little bit of information is very illuminating for users in Vietnam now who are largely now cut off.
Quite a few of my own contacts have told me that this move by Vietnam deals a serious blow to the expat community in Saigon and Hanoi, who relied on Facebook heavily for career networking and social activities.
Read the full article HERE.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Vietnam Blocking Facebook?
I've received several complaints from folks in Saigon this week, saying that certain ISPs are now blocking Facebook in Vietnam. There are a few posts from earlier in the year alleging that the government sent out a memo telling service providers to block the social networking site due to subversive content. I originally took these stories for a hoax until complaints of problems accessing the site surfaced this week. Do you live in Vietnam and are you unable to access Facebook this week? I'd like to hear from you--please comment!
Update: You can see a page from the alleged memo requesting ISPs to block facebook by clicking here. I can't say whether this is authentic or not. It's been circulating around the web.
Update: Haven't tried this myself, but below are instructions floating around to get around the problem:
Instructions:
1. Click: Start->Control Panel->Network and Internet Connections->Network Connections.
2. Click Properties of LAN icons.
3. Choose "Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)->Properties.
4. Use the following DNS server addresses: type: 208.67.222.222 in "Preferred DNS server" and “Alternate DNS server”
5. Click Save or OK
Additionally, I'm hearing complaints that some people can not access Twitter. Anyone else in VN having a problem?
Update: You can see a page from the alleged memo requesting ISPs to block facebook by clicking here. I can't say whether this is authentic or not. It's been circulating around the web.
Update: Haven't tried this myself, but below are instructions floating around to get around the problem:
Instructions:
1. Click: Start->Control Panel->Network and Internet Connections->Network Connections.
2. Click Properties of LAN icons.
3. Choose "Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)->Properties.
4. Use the following DNS server addresses: type: 208.67.222.222 in "Preferred DNS server" and “Alternate DNS server”
5. Click Save or OK
Additionally, I'm hearing complaints that some people can not access Twitter. Anyone else in VN having a problem?
Electronic Guidebooks
Below is my response to travel author/tv host Rick Steves, who recently wrote a story for World Humabout the trend toward electronic guidebooks, and asked for input:
"I'm a guidebook writer for SE Asia myself, so very interested in the topic. Those of us in the publishing industry know that it, like similar industries, is in very hard times. As you pointed out, there is a lot of excitement over electronic books, aps and readers, so I think its only natural to go in that direction. I just tested out Lonely Planet's new iPhone city guides. They were fun to use, and features like the maps with GPS, and ability to click on websites and phone numbers and make immediate calls were very helpful. However, there were some notable disadvantages. Tables of Contents, directories and lists tend to be very long and unwieldy. It's impossible to get the overall feel of the city with an eguide like this --it can only be read in bits and pieces--so it only really works if you already know where you want to go but want more information about a sight or venue or how to get there.
An iphone ap or electronic book does present the opportunity for a publisher to update the content more often (after all they don't have to pay to re-publish a paper book if a few phone numbers change--they simply issue an electronic update), however with the low budgets and stone-age business models guidebook publishers still use these days, I don't see this happening. And this is the problem... technology and platform can never replace good content... but the outcome I propose may not be what you expect. The interesting thing in all this is that the advantages of publishing with new electronic platforms, specifically things like iPhone aps, are geared more toward small publishers and individual developers--rather than the large book publishers. In this game, anyone with time, skill and expertise has the capability of producing a competing guide--with much more up-to-date content than a big publisher can manage. Inevitably everything will probably move to electronic format of some kind, but in the end, I think the big publishers will still be the big losers down the line--unless they revolutionize their processes behind the scenes.
Still for now, I know I appreciate putting my reference books all on one device if I can. As a guidebook writer that likes to work on my books while on the road, I otherwise tend to have to carry a whole heavy reference library on my back, which is not very nice!"
"I'm a guidebook writer for SE Asia myself, so very interested in the topic. Those of us in the publishing industry know that it, like similar industries, is in very hard times. As you pointed out, there is a lot of excitement over electronic books, aps and readers, so I think its only natural to go in that direction. I just tested out Lonely Planet's new iPhone city guides. They were fun to use, and features like the maps with GPS, and ability to click on websites and phone numbers and make immediate calls were very helpful. However, there were some notable disadvantages. Tables of Contents, directories and lists tend to be very long and unwieldy. It's impossible to get the overall feel of the city with an eguide like this --it can only be read in bits and pieces--so it only really works if you already know where you want to go but want more information about a sight or venue or how to get there.
An iphone ap or electronic book does present the opportunity for a publisher to update the content more often (after all they don't have to pay to re-publish a paper book if a few phone numbers change--they simply issue an electronic update), however with the low budgets and stone-age business models guidebook publishers still use these days, I don't see this happening. And this is the problem... technology and platform can never replace good content... but the outcome I propose may not be what you expect. The interesting thing in all this is that the advantages of publishing with new electronic platforms, specifically things like iPhone aps, are geared more toward small publishers and individual developers--rather than the large book publishers. In this game, anyone with time, skill and expertise has the capability of producing a competing guide--with much more up-to-date content than a big publisher can manage. Inevitably everything will probably move to electronic format of some kind, but in the end, I think the big publishers will still be the big losers down the line--unless they revolutionize their processes behind the scenes.
Still for now, I know I appreciate putting my reference books all on one device if I can. As a guidebook writer that likes to work on my books while on the road, I otherwise tend to have to carry a whole heavy reference library on my back, which is not very nice!"
Monday, November 9, 2009
IMAX Paragon Spills the Beans on Hollywood
I passed through the Siam Paragon Shopping Center in Bangkok today and noted that the Krungsri IMAX Theatre was distributing fliers of their upcoming movies. What surprised me was how far in advanced some of the films were listed, with screening dates that I don't think Hollywood has officially announced yet. In case you expats are curious so you can plan your future Bangkok runs for good cinema opportunities, films will be screened as follows:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
November 19, 2010
Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom of Doom
June 3, 2011
Transformers 3
July 1, 2011
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
July 19, 2011
Happy Feet 2
November 18
Puss in Boots (Shrek Spin-off)
March 3, 2012
Madagascar 3
May 25, 2012
On a related subject, it turns out Jackie Chan made a quick jump from Hanoi to bangkok today and will be speaking at the Foreign Correspondents Club. Unfortunately seats are already sold out.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
November 19, 2010
Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom of Doom
June 3, 2011
Transformers 3
July 1, 2011
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
July 19, 2011
Happy Feet 2
November 18
Puss in Boots (Shrek Spin-off)
March 3, 2012
Madagascar 3
May 25, 2012
On a related subject, it turns out Jackie Chan made a quick jump from Hanoi to bangkok today and will be speaking at the Foreign Correspondents Club. Unfortunately seats are already sold out.
Big Trouble in Thailand
Big Trouble in Thailand
I was very interested to hear about the new show on Bravo, "Big Trouble in Thailand," focusing on the troubles tourist face with scams, violence and crime in Thailand. It's about time. Unfortunately I don't have access to actually see the program myself. Take note Vietnam and Cambodia. You may come up next on the radar...
What is encouraging about the premise is that apparently the Thai Tourist Police, at least in the context of the show, have recruited foreign expats to assist them. Brilliant. I've been screaming this idea for a few years now. If only the police in Saigon were interested. We could actually begin to clean up the mess of crime thats piling up in District 1.
I was very interested to hear about the new show on Bravo, "Big Trouble in Thailand," focusing on the troubles tourist face with scams, violence and crime in Thailand. It's about time. Unfortunately I don't have access to actually see the program myself. Take note Vietnam and Cambodia. You may come up next on the radar...
What is encouraging about the premise is that apparently the Thai Tourist Police, at least in the context of the show, have recruited foreign expats to assist them. Brilliant. I've been screaming this idea for a few years now. If only the police in Saigon were interested. We could actually begin to clean up the mess of crime thats piling up in District 1.
Losing Our Family Atmosphere
Several videos have surfaced on Youtube of very lude dance shows in Phan Thiet/Mui Ne for Halloween. I'll just say the videos include nudity as well as trans genders. It is unclear which venue(s) hosted this (I wasn't in Mui Ne for the holiday and have heard nothing about this otherwise, so I have no idea), but the nature of the videos are very disturbing. I'm not going to post the videos here for fear of promoting the activity rather than discouraging it.
Folks, we do not need this kind of thing in Mui Ne. This stuff is not what Mui Ne is all about. We are not Saigon. We are not Phnom Penh. We are not Bangkok. Anyone who thinks this stuff is good for the city doesn't belong here, be they Vietnamese or foreigner. I'm all for having a good time and enjoying the nightlife in a safe and wholesome environment, but we must have some sense of standards, class and morality.
Mui Ne is in danger of losing its uniqueness, what makes it special and wholesome as a family destination. I can not and will not condone this kind of thing. The tourism industry has already collapsed in Saigon and Hanoi. I'm not going to prop up Phan Thiet and Mui Ne just so it can pull this kind of garbage.
Folks, we do not need this kind of thing in Mui Ne. This stuff is not what Mui Ne is all about. We are not Saigon. We are not Phnom Penh. We are not Bangkok. Anyone who thinks this stuff is good for the city doesn't belong here, be they Vietnamese or foreigner. I'm all for having a good time and enjoying the nightlife in a safe and wholesome environment, but we must have some sense of standards, class and morality.
Mui Ne is in danger of losing its uniqueness, what makes it special and wholesome as a family destination. I can not and will not condone this kind of thing. The tourism industry has already collapsed in Saigon and Hanoi. I'm not going to prop up Phan Thiet and Mui Ne just so it can pull this kind of garbage.
Phan Thiet Celebrates Status as Second Rate City
Vietnam Net Article
I had a good laugh at the title of the article linked to above. They obviously have no idea that it suggests Phan Thiet is something less than a nice city.
The article discusses the annual "Tourism Festival" in late October in Phan Thiet. The "festival" is largely a naval-gazing event that is never even advertised to the very audience it is allegedly intended to serve--foreign tourists.
Dinh Thai Thim is indeed a very interesting festival, but it has nothing to do with what the government is putting on in Phan Thiet, and it is more than an hour away.
They go on to mention that the event is a chance to honor tourism companies in the area... of course those tourist companies are only the ones that are Vietnamese-owned and in close partnership with, if not owned outright by, the powers that be...
I had a good laugh at the title of the article linked to above. They obviously have no idea that it suggests Phan Thiet is something less than a nice city.
The article discusses the annual "Tourism Festival" in late October in Phan Thiet. The "festival" is largely a naval-gazing event that is never even advertised to the very audience it is allegedly intended to serve--foreign tourists.
Dinh Thai Thim is indeed a very interesting festival, but it has nothing to do with what the government is putting on in Phan Thiet, and it is more than an hour away.
They go on to mention that the event is a chance to honor tourism companies in the area... of course those tourist companies are only the ones that are Vietnamese-owned and in close partnership with, if not owned outright by, the powers that be...
Cambodia and Thailand Closing Borders?
Uhg. Thailand and Cambodia have had a variety of hot disputes over territory in the last decade, mostly around the issue of Preah Vihear and perceptions over Angkor Wat. Thailand of course has had its own internal turmoil, brought to a head in the 2006 coup and continuing protests since.
Tensions between Thailand and Cambodia are coming to a head with the appointment of Thaksin--ousted as Thai prime minister in a 2006 coup--as economics adviser to Cambodia. Now Thailand is threatening to close the borders and shut off international flights linking the two countries. Cambodia has threatened to follow suit and ban Thailand products as well, among other actions.
So, my travel plans may have to adapt to evolving political situations.
Tensions between Thailand and Cambodia are coming to a head with the appointment of Thaksin--ousted as Thai prime minister in a 2006 coup--as economics adviser to Cambodia. Now Thailand is threatening to close the borders and shut off international flights linking the two countries. Cambodia has threatened to follow suit and ban Thailand products as well, among other actions.
So, my travel plans may have to adapt to evolving political situations.
Shipping from Vietnam
If you happen to need to ship anything from Vietnam, you may be interested in the response I just gave someone:
By normal post it's always been extremely slow to ship anything (anywhere from several weeks to several months), and things have a tendency to break. If you are sending anything that might break, I recommend using one of the Styrofoam boxes used for packing seafood. You can often find them for sale--very cheap--at shops near docks, ports and harbor areas.
Couriers are much faster--I've averaged almost two weeks no matter who I use. They are of course very expensive. DHL and EMS have been cheapest and provide good service. Many of the couriers have free pick-up service, the only problem is you have to wait around half the day, or all day, and they may not show up at all. For that reason I find it best to schedule the pickup for toward the end of the day, so your waiting is at a minimum. The post office often has a pickup service but I've encountered some corruption and unreliability with it.
Note that whatever you mail, particularly large boxes of mixed items, will be unpacked and searched before it is shipped. This can cause problems if you brought it already safely packed because all of that will be re-done and might be re-packed haphazardly. Make sure you insert yourself into the situation so you can control how it is re-packed.
Note that media like DVDs and CD's with movies and music can not be mailed back, at least unless it has the little government-certified stickers on it. Photo CDs and whatnot are fine. I've never mailed books out of the country, but that might be a problem.
By normal post it's always been extremely slow to ship anything (anywhere from several weeks to several months), and things have a tendency to break. If you are sending anything that might break, I recommend using one of the Styrofoam boxes used for packing seafood. You can often find them for sale--very cheap--at shops near docks, ports and harbor areas.
Couriers are much faster--I've averaged almost two weeks no matter who I use. They are of course very expensive. DHL and EMS have been cheapest and provide good service. Many of the couriers have free pick-up service, the only problem is you have to wait around half the day, or all day, and they may not show up at all. For that reason I find it best to schedule the pickup for toward the end of the day, so your waiting is at a minimum. The post office often has a pickup service but I've encountered some corruption and unreliability with it.
Note that whatever you mail, particularly large boxes of mixed items, will be unpacked and searched before it is shipped. This can cause problems if you brought it already safely packed because all of that will be re-done and might be re-packed haphazardly. Make sure you insert yourself into the situation so you can control how it is re-packed.
Note that media like DVDs and CD's with movies and music can not be mailed back, at least unless it has the little government-certified stickers on it. Photo CDs and whatnot are fine. I've never mailed books out of the country, but that might be a problem.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Jackie Chan Making Smiles
Jackie Chan is up in HaNoi this week with Operation Smile. It's the 20th anniversary of their medical charity work in Vietnam. A friend of mine is handling their photography. View Jackie's photos here: www.jackiechan.com or visit the official website at: www.operationsmile.org.
Thailand and SE Asia Not Quite the Bargain it Used to Be
I'm in Thailand now working on the AA Keyguide to Thailand, having just left Cambodia, where I finished up the Thomas Cook Travelers' Guide to Cambodia. Now that I'm on the road again, I've had to make use of credit cards on a regular basis to get cash. It has been a bit of a shock to see what fees are up to now. I was charged $50 on a single ATM cash advance--at that is just the bank fees back in the USA. So far, my overall credit card fees have averaged 7%. That does NOT include the money lost on currency exchanges within the bank transactions, and interest I might accrue if I don't pay the balance immediately, or the local ATM fee. There are so many little hidden fees!
Then on top of that there is the 7% Thai VAT (Value Added Tax). Thailand claims tourists can get this refunded, but there is a catch--you must spend at least B2000 (about US$60) in a single shop on a given day in order to qualify to receive the refund request form for that purchase (you also have to have a passport in hand). Then you have to fill it out and take it to the tax office when you leave via the airport (if you exit by land, you can not get the refund). Like refund procedures in other countries, the process is designed to be so difficult that most tourists don't bother with it. I'm also told that tourists don't get a full refund of the VAT. I haven't verified, but others yet have told me its only about 2%.
By the time all the taxes and bank fees and money lost in exchange rates is tallied, you'll be paying somewhere between 15-20% on top of the price tags.
But then this doesn't cover the 10-15% service charges at some hotels and I've found even a few fast-food restaurants.
Then when you take into account the fact that accommodation in Thailand is more than double the price of where I'm from--Vietnam--well, it feels like you are hemorrhaging money.
Then on top of that there is the 7% Thai VAT (Value Added Tax). Thailand claims tourists can get this refunded, but there is a catch--you must spend at least B2000 (about US$60) in a single shop on a given day in order to qualify to receive the refund request form for that purchase (you also have to have a passport in hand). Then you have to fill it out and take it to the tax office when you leave via the airport (if you exit by land, you can not get the refund). Like refund procedures in other countries, the process is designed to be so difficult that most tourists don't bother with it. I'm also told that tourists don't get a full refund of the VAT. I haven't verified, but others yet have told me its only about 2%.
By the time all the taxes and bank fees and money lost in exchange rates is tallied, you'll be paying somewhere between 15-20% on top of the price tags.
But then this doesn't cover the 10-15% service charges at some hotels and I've found even a few fast-food restaurants.
Then when you take into account the fact that accommodation in Thailand is more than double the price of where I'm from--Vietnam--well, it feels like you are hemorrhaging money.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)