Local Samuiboy.

[mattias33]

Guys, i sat today, watching traffic passing buy, and the traffic that passed buy was brand new fortuners, vigos, and triton. Combined with the very old and worn pickups with something workrelated loaded on them. And a few motorbikes with sidecars and a bunch of smiling thaiboys. And offcourse the general scooters. Farangs and thais.

Now, a bit on the bottle, i came to the following thought. I myself is grown up countryside. Pretty much the same time i was born, my dad bought a residensy, consisting of approx. 10 rai of land. Very private. A little desert. We have the woods, a lake and privasy in our family land. In the whole area there is only 5 families living. The nearest village with Swedish versions of tescos and bigc and macro, are within 5 km drive, so it is not superdesert. But nature is there and we all love the place. If i were to ask somebody of my family or myself the following question: lets say 396 turkich* people move to this area, because its so nice and unspoiled. Within 2 years they start covering things from home. They start opening up a few turkich shops, and falafel/kebab kiosks. Would me or anybody in that area approve of that? No f....ing way!

So, point of the thread, the local man, born 30 years ago in samui, what does he think of the development we all bring with us? One point would off course be that we brought good hospitals, schools and so on to this place. But another serious point being that alot of foreigners dont want to live at home. They want to move to a totaly desert island and bring everything from back home with them to the new place. Tesco, bigc, starbucks, mcdonalds and so on. So now we as foreigners can live very comfortable on this once so desert and close to nature island. But what about the guy that was born here? How do they look at us and the development we brought? Did we do it only for our own benefit or do they also like it, (not only talking about the ones that sold family land for shitloads of money to dreaming farangs)?

Or did we destroy yet another natureclose spot on the planet earth to make it our dream?

Part of me think that many of the locals were happy as it was. What you think?

*The turkish example does not mean anything rasists. It was just the first thing that popped in my head were i could name some food-dishes. Can be changed into Italians with pastas or mexicans with nachos.

[Boater]

Part of me think that many of the locals were happy as it was. What you think?

i think locals who had land and sold it for millions of USD = Happy

[samuibeachcomber]

dont worry about the racist angle to your post..................too many PC brigade here anyway.

To answer your question,i would think many local thais who remember how samui was do not like what it has become.Others would be very happy because it has brought employment oppotunities too.

I'm not sure that western tourists that come here actually like it either,most like to come to a place that does not have the same things "back home",but they were built to tap into the tourist dollar.

[sbk]

I posted something about this a few years ago and got flamed for it. It was an interview with an old Samui resident who talked about what had happened to his home.

My how times change.

[mattias33]

I posted something about this a few years ago and got flamed for it. It was an interview with an old Samui resident who talked about what had happened to his home.

My how times change.

My onkle got beat up by his mom (my grandmother) for wearing the same "long hair" as the beatles! Times do change and it goes fast. But i tell you what, if you still happen to have that interview, post it. In this thread or somewhere else. I for one would love to read it. When was it made then?

[Devil]

Part of me think that many of the locals were happy as it was. What you think?

i think locals who had land and sold it for millions of USD = Happy

[MSingh]

I'm not sure Mattias but you've got me hungry now thinking of Kebabs, Nacho's & Pasta...

Seriously, as someone said, a lot of Samui people made more money than they could have ever imagined in their wildest dreams, that may not make them happy though as a lot of those simply don't know how to deal with the money & many seemed to waste it on trivial things..

Some of the Gambling stories i've heard about on this Island amongst Samui Folk is obscene..

Others probably have the money in the bank, but still drive that old Car you saw today Mattias, with that workload on & others still pick their Coconuts every day & sell Fruit for 10 Baht..

Old habits & all that...

[mistresserika]

It's been said many times before, about when peoples move around the world and change things as they go. The Samui people for example are descendants of fishermen from Hainan (China). Taksin is I believe half as least Chinese. Issan are originally Laos people, you can go on forever. Times change, lives change. Samui is not and never has been a desert island. The coconut palms which cover a great deal of the island, were originally planted by man. Coconut palms in their natural state grow on coastal areas. Most of the indigenous trees/ vegetation, which held the soil together were cut down and destroyed many years before we arrived on the island. Destroying coconut palms to make way for buildings is not a problem, the damage was done many years ago.

As said, when people roam the planet they take their heritage with them.

Mosques, for example, don't really belong in England. They are for the Muslim peoples. As are the Chinese temples all over the world. As are the catholic churches etc. We can go on forever on this topic...................

[mattias33]

It's been said many times before, about when peoples move around the world and change things as they go. The Samui people for example are descendants of fishermen from Hainan (China). Taksin is I believe half as least Chinese. Issan are originally Laos people, you can go on forever. Times change, lives change. Samui is not and never has been a desert island. The coconut palms which cover a great deal of the island, were originally planted by man. Coconut palms in their natural state grow on coastal areas. Most of the indigenous trees/ vegetation, which held the soil together were cut down and destroyed many years before we arrived on the island. Destroying coconut palms to make way for buildings is not a problem, the damage was done many years ago.

As said, when people roam the planet they take their heritage with them.

Mosques, for example, don't really belong in England. They are for the Muslim peoples. As are the Chinese temples all over the world. As are the catholic churches etc. We can go on forever on this topic...................

Alot of new information. At least for me..... .

[MSingh]

Has anyone any info on Populations of Samui people beyond the previous 15/20 Years ??

I could only imagine that then on the Island were actual Samui people or people from Nakhon/Surat who had a heavy interest in the Coconuts ..

[mistresserika]

Has anyone any info on Populations of Samui people beyond the previous 15/20 Years ??

I could only imagine that then on the Island were actual Samui people or people from Nakhon/Surat who had a heavy interest in the Coconuts ..

You can check this out.

http://www.1st-kohsamui.com/samui-history.html

[lazygourmet]

My neighbor in the Moo Baan where I am living in Bangkok is from Samui.

He is not driving a Fortuner but a Porsche Cayenne...

But last week, I was in Samui with him and that was (as usual) back to the roots: sleeping at parents 100 years old house, riding a wrecked Honda Dream and having a lot of good and simple fun with Nathon locales.

[MSingh]

My neighbor in the Moo Baan where I am living in Bangkok is from Samui.

He is not driving a Fortuner but a Porsche Cayenne...

But last week, I was in Samui with him and that was (as usual) back to the roots: sleeping at parents 100 years old house, riding a wrecked Honda Dream and having a lot of good and simple fun with Nathon locales.

I'd probably have a lot of simple fun if i was driving a Porsche Cayenne...

[Patsycat]

You'd bugger up the suspension in the pot holes...

[sezze]

I tend to agree that Samuian people are only looking at the money the tourists bring in . I know a few people original from Samui i they rent out houses etc etc , and make a lot of money each month . they are certainly not poor . Still got plenty of land which they do not sell unless there is another unreasonable high offer coming along . and that's it . They see the develpment as a way they make their living . The coconut trees ... well Thais do love their coconut trees but not more then money . Most of the people you see are not native Thais .

[trashy]

Sure, I understand that the coconut trees were a government insentive some time ago. Providing work and an income. I guess back in those days no thought was given to the damage they cause.

[limbos]

Trashy,

Do you really think that any thought is given nowadays to the damage caused?

[Mark Wolfe]

Sure, I understand that the coconut trees were a government insentive some time ago. Providing work and an income. I guess back in those days no thought was given to the damage they cause.

What damage do coconut trees cause?

And I think MSingh is right when he says:

I could only imagine that then on the Island were actual Samui people or people from Nakhon/Surat who had a heavy interest in the Coconuts ..

Tourism brings in a higher standard of life for the majority of the locals.

And from that history site:

The name Samui is mysterious in itself. Perhaps it is an extension of the name of one of the native trees, mui, or it is a corruption of the Chinese word Saboey, meaning "safe haven".

I don't speak Cantonese, so is saboey actually right? I'm a bit skeptical.

Edited March 21, 2009 by Mark Wolfe

[Eric1949]

Sure, I understand that the coconut trees were a government insentive some time ago. Providing work and an income. I guess back in those days no thought was given to the damage they cause.

What damage do coconut trees cause?

And I think MSingh is right when he says:

I could only imagine that then on the Island were actual Samui people or people from Nakhon/Surat who had a heavy interest in the Coconuts ..

Tourism brings in a higher standard of life for the majority of the locals.

And from that history site:

The name Samui is mysterious in itself. Perhaps it is an extension of the name of one of the native trees, mui, or it is a corruption of the Chinese word Saboey, meaning "safe haven".

I don't speak Cantonese, so is saboey actually right? I'm a bit skeptical.

Mark Wolfe, you obviously do not know much about forestry.

The coconut palm is NOT a tree, but a plant.

The roots of a coconut palm are weak compared to the trees which were cut down to make way for them.

The damage Trashy is probably talking about, is the errosion which take place with every rain storm. Samui was a jungle island, with plant/tree life evoluted accordingly. Man comes with his nuts and ruins the lot.

Edited March 21, 2009 by Eric1949

[Mark Wolfe]

Eric1949

Mark Wolfe, you obviously do not know much about forestry.

The coconut palm is NOT a tree, but a plant.

Oh, do I feel a syllogism coming on? ...Yes, you got me there; I'm not much of a woodsie guy, I guess...so a plant cannot be a tree, eh? So in the "animal, vegetable, mineral" world, what is a tree? So it's kind of like a really big snake that stands on its tail and is every so still for its whole life? Or is it simply a giant tree-looking crystal?

The roots of a coconut palm are weak compared to the trees which were cut down to make way for them.

Um, have you ever seen a group of healthy men try to take the root ball of a coconut "plant" out of the ground? It's like trying to dislodge a giant boulder. And the roots are strong enough, clearly, to keep a 30m tall palm upright in typhoon winds.

The damage Trashy is probably talking about, is the erosion which take place with every rain storm. Samui was a jungle island, with plant/tree life evoluted accordingly. Man comes with his nuts and ruins the lot.

Boy, ain't it the truth...I love your turn of phrase...

I would hazard a guess that Samui is still a jungle island. Don't quote me on that, but it's just a gut feeling....

(edit quotes)

Edited March 21, 2009 by Mark Wolfe

[sbk]

Well, yes, its true, people did move onto the island and "destroy the lot" but my understanding is that there has been a permanent human presence on Koh Samui for quite some time now so the loss you are bemoaning is a bit belated, to say the least.

The island was probably first inhabited about 15 centuries ago, settled by fishermen from the Malay Peninsula[1] and Southern China. It appears on Chinese maps dating back to 1687

Source: Lonely Planet

[ClaudeFeller]

My wife told me that some 20 years ago she and other locals were very curious and happy to see the falangs coming to Samui - new people, new style (mostly backpackers), nice talking. friendly. These days it is too much business and farangs are not the same nice like before.

[Birdman]

My wife told me that some 20 years ago she and other locals were very curious and happy to see the falangs coming to Samui - new people, new style (mostly backpackers), nice talking. friendly. These days it is too much business and farangs are not the same nice like before.

I live on Samui since 23 years minus yearly 1-3 months holidays somewhere else. At that time some Farangs lived and worked on Samui already since 10 years and longer. Many small bungalow resorts on most beaches were full with young backpackers and hippies. Some bungalows right next to the beach costed 20 Baht per night. Showering by draw well included, nightly campfires, guitars.

Almost everybody came from Bangkok by train/bus and from URT with the cigar, a long and narrow ferry operated by Songserm.

Lamai was the centre of happenings. Magic mushrooms omelet was on the menu at many places. Young travellers sold jewellery and clothes from India on the beach. Locals worked with tourists and on their plantations or were out on the sea catching fish.

Chaweng beach road was a sandy path flanked by many palm trees, dark in the night time. Reggae Pub was appr. at the now location of Zico's on that path. Around it was a dense palm tree forest.

The first package tourists arrived. The Imperial Samui opened, the first luxury hotel on the island. But the mood was still perfect. Everybody was very, very relaxed. Nature was at its best. No troubles at all. 1 week no electricity - no problem. There was magic in the air - a kind of natural energy coming from the smoothness and beauty of Samui. Almost everybody could feel that. Can't remember any problems at all in this years.

But later that changed slowly year by year. Most Farangs, who lived on Samui then could see commercialism growing and that "Samui feeling" disappear. They started to leave because of that. New Farangs came, another type. For every old Samui Farang 10 new Samui Farang came.

Before Samui was like another island. A place of happiness.

Edited March 23, 2009 by Birdman

[MSingh]

My wife told me that some 20 years ago she and other locals were very curious and happy to see the falangs coming to Samui - new people, new style (mostly backpackers), nice talking. friendly. These days it is too much business and farangs are not the same nice like before.

I live on Samui since 23 years minus yearly 1-3 months holidays somewhere else. At that time some Farangs lived and worked on Samui already since 10 years and longer. Many small bungalow resorts on most beaches were full with young backpackers and hippies. Some bungalows right next to the beach costed 20 Baht per night. Showering by draw well included, nightly campfires, guitars.

Almost everybody came from Bangkok by train/bus and from URT with the cigar, a long and narrow ferry operated by Songserm.

Lamai was the centre of happenings. Magic mushrooms omelet was on the menu at many places. Young travellers sold jewellery and clothes from India on the beach. Locals worked with tourists and on their plantations or were out on the sea catching fish.

Chaweng beach road was a sandy path flanked by many palm trees, dark in the night time. Reggae Pub was appr. at the now location of Zico's on that path. Around it was a dense palm tree forest.

The first package tourists arrived. The Imperial Samui opened, the first luxury hotel on the island. But the mood was still perfect. Everybody was very, very relaxed. Nature was at its best. No troubles at all. 1 week no electricity - no problem. There was magic in the air - a kind of natural energy coming from the smoothness and beauty of Samui. Almost everybody could feel that. Can't remember any problems at all in this years.

But later that changed slowly year by year. Most Farangs, who lived on Samui then could see commercialism growing and that "Samui feeling" disappear. They started to leave because of that. New Farangs came, another type. For every old Samui Farang 10 new Samui Farang came.

Before Samui was like another island. A place of happiness.

It honestly sounds great, beautiful in fact..

Not my Cup of Tea in the slightest but it does sound a better place than it is today & that's coming from someone ( me obvioulsy ) who fell in love with the Island 5 or 6 Years ago who has, in my opinion, watched it change for the much worse, for a number of reasons but mainly the people ( both Thai & Foreign ) that it has attracted, during that time..

Edited March 23, 2009 by sbk
discussion of moderation is not allowed in the open forum--please pm--sbk

[Boater]

Before Samui was like another island. A place of happiness.

Birdman

Do you have any pictures of ' Old Samui ' that you could share with us?

[BigC]

Guys, i sat today, watching traffic passing buy, and the traffic that passed buy was brand new fortuners, vigos, and triton. Combined with the very old and worn pickups with something workrelated loaded on them. And a few motorbikes with sidecars and a bunch of smiling thaiboys. And offcourse the general scooters. Farangs and thais.

Now, a bit on the bottle, i came to the following thought. I myself is grown up countryside. Pretty much the same time i was born, my dad bought a residensy, consisting of approx. 10 rai of land. Very private. A little desert. We have the woods, a lake and privasy in our family land. In the whole area there is only 5 families living. The nearest village with Swedish versions of tescos and bigc and macro, are within 5 km drive, so it is not superdesert. But nature is there and we all love the place. If i were to ask somebody of my family or myself the following question: lets say 396 turkich* people move to this area, because its so nice and unspoiled. Within 2 years they start covering things from home. They start opening up a few turkich shops, and falafel/kebab kiosks. Would me or anybody in that area approve of that? No f....ing way!

So, point of the thread, the local man, born 30 years ago in samui, what does he think of the development we all bring with us? One point would off course be that we brought good hospitals, schools and so on to this place. But another serious point being that alot of foreigners dont want to live at home. They want to move to a totaly desert island and bring everything from back home with them to the new place. Tesco, bigc, starbucks, mcdonalds and so on. So now we as foreigners can live very comfortable on this once so desert and close to nature island. But what about the guy that was born here? How do they look at us and the development we brought? Did we do it only for our own benefit or do they also like it, (not only talking about the ones that sold family land for shitloads of money to dreaming farangs)?

Or did we destroy yet another natureclose spot on the planet earth to make it our dream?

Part of me think that many of the locals were happy as it was. What you think?

*The turkish example does not mean anything rasists. It was just the first thing that popped in my head were i could name some food-dishes. Can be changed into Italians with pastas or mexicans with nachos.

don't know don't care

[MSingh]

Guys, i sat today, watching traffic passing buy, and the traffic that passed buy was brand new fortuners, vigos, and triton. Combined with the very old and worn pickups with something workrelated loaded on them. And a few motorbikes with sidecars and a bunch of smiling thaiboys. And offcourse the general scooters. Farangs and thais.

Now, a bit on the bottle, i came to the following thought. I myself is grown up countryside. Pretty much the same time i was born, my dad bought a residensy, consisting of approx. 10 rai of land. Very private. A little desert. We have the woods, a lake and privasy in our family land. In the whole area there is only 5 families living. The nearest village with Swedish versions of tescos and bigc and macro, are within 5 km drive, so it is not superdesert. But nature is there and we all love the place. If i were to ask somebody of my family or myself the following question: lets say 396 turkich* people move to this area, because its so nice and unspoiled. Within 2 years they start covering things from home. They start opening up a few turkich shops, and falafel/kebab kiosks. Would me or anybody in that area approve of that? No f....ing way!

So, point of the thread, the local man, born 30 years ago in samui, what does he think of the development we all bring with us? One point would off course be that we brought good hospitals, schools and so on to this place. But another serious point being that alot of foreigners dont want to live at home. They want to move to a totaly desert island and bring everything from back home with them to the new place. Tesco, bigc, starbucks, mcdonalds and so on. So now we as foreigners can live very comfortable on this once so desert and close to nature island. But what about the guy that was born here? How do they look at us and the development we brought? Did we do it only for our own benefit or do they also like it, (not only talking about the ones that sold family land for shitloads of money to dreaming farangs)?

Or did we destroy yet another natureclose spot on the planet earth to make it our dream?

Part of me think that many of the locals were happy as it was. What you think?

*The turkish example does not mean anything rasists. It was just the first thing that popped in my head were i could name some food-dishes. Can be changed into Italians with pastas or mexicans with nachos.

don't know don't care

You sound like Liam Gallagher..

[limbos]

Before Samui was like another island. A place of happiness.

Birdman

Do you have any pictures of ' Old Samui ' that you could share with us?

Here you can find some Samui pix from 1984-1987.

[t.s]

My wife told me that some 20 years ago she and other locals were very curious and happy to see the falangs coming to Samui - new people, new style (mostly backpackers), nice talking. friendly. These days it is too much business and farangs are not the same nice like before.

but the locals just get sweeter.

[MSingh]

My wife told me that some 20 years ago she and other locals were very curious and happy to see the falangs coming to Samui - new people, new style (mostly backpackers), nice talking. friendly. These days it is too much business and farangs are not the same nice like before.

but the locals just get sweeter.

Or cuter, depending on the definition of cuter...