Myanmar’s underwater wonderland

[buksida]

As tourism increases in the beauty spots of Asia and development races ahead in a relentless tide of construction, many of the natural wonders that attracted people in the first place are being swallowed up. Beaches become concrete boulevards, primary forest becomes a parking lot and coral reefs simply don't become. The natural expansion of human activity forces us to seek out new playgrounds. However, as the planet slowly runs out of untouched destinations, the emphasis is shifting toward their conservation and the reduction of our impact on them.

Myanmar is a newcomer to the tourism and scuba-diving industry, with a total of about 200,000 visitors in 2003 compared with 10 million in neighboring Thailand that year. The ruling military junta is making more effort to promote tourism in Myanmar, much of which is to the anger of human-rights activists who believe the generals will use the revenue to prolong their regime. But politics aside, the islands and waters of Myanmar's Mergui Archipelago are a beautiful part of the world.

Full Story: Asia Dive Site or Asia Times Online
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