then again, speaking of Perhentian, I think i'm WAYYYYY overdue for a stint under the waves.
Happenings in Perhentian that i've come across lately :
- Fund-raising for orphans on the island. We contributed our bit for those kids laa of course.
- Perhentian clean-up on 24-26 September. This would be so good if not for the dreams of a raya trip. It would be great to have fun and have a noble objective at the same time - picking up Crown-of-thorns and rubbish.
Hmm.. which makes me thing... where did the rubbish come from in the first place. I've seen how us Malaysians disregard rubbish bins, and our tourist spots are no exception, and I would think that having once-a-year campaigns would come to nought if there is no education programs and awareness campaigns to show that dirty and polluted areas equals less people equals less money.
so there is the contradictions and conflicts of 'eco-tourism' - how to make money and have the inherently-pollution-generating humans at the same time.
a fine example would be the smokers. everything they do goes into the oceans, and this is the smokers who are also so-called eco-protectors - the divers, the DMs, the instructors, the boat drivers. The very ones whose livelihood depends on eco-tourism, they themselves are screwing it all by chucking their cigarette butts, wrappers, boxes, foil, into the sea and slowly poisoning the oceans with the toxins found in cigarettes.
so, dear divers and operators, take note.. the cumulative effects of those little butts might cause permanent harm to the oceans we love.
