Ecotourism Archives - The Crowded Planet

The Lemons of Gargano

You know where we are, right? We’re in Gargano, the northern part of the Apulia region in Southern Italy. Here we take a walk around Zio Michele’s garden, taste some great fruit and veg, and learn about organic farming. How we ended up learning about lemons If you’ve read our previous post, you’ll know we stayed at the lovely … Read more

DIY Kerala Backwaters

A boat trip around the backwaters of Kerala is high on many travellers’ lists, but it can leave you with a big hole in your wallet. Here’s where we teach you to do it yourself. For peanuts. Think Kerala, and it’s likely you’ll conjure images of palm-fringed canals and sunsets from the deck of a … Read more

On the Tragic Fate of Temple Elephants

Well, we haven’t had a Festival Friday for a while. To celebrate World Environment Day, this week we would like to offer something different. An article on the Onam festival in Kerala, and some thoughts on the fate of temple elephants.

India Fatehpur Sikri elephant carving — Elephant carving in an Indian temple

Kerala has something different from the rest of India. A mellow, slower pace of life. Touts won’t bother you, rickshaw-drivers are likely to be napping on the back of their vehicle. If you have read Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things, you’ll know what I mean. Kerala is a place of crumbling colonial architecture and steamy forests, criss-crossed by canals and fringed by beautiful beaches.

Kuala Lumpur Thean Hou Temple with Petronas

We have spent the whole of April retracing the steps of our trip to Malaysia, to celebrate Visit Malaysia 2014. We got lost in the jungle and witnessed ancient festivals, tried delicious food and explored amazing nature. Do you need any more convincing? To say farewell to Malaysia, we have rounded up ten good reasons … Read more

Uncle Tan: Borneo rainforest on a budget

For us (and probably for most of you) Borneo equals wildlife. One of the best areas for wildlife watching is the Lower Kinabatangan in the Malaysian state of Sabah; that’s where we headed, for a three day trip into the rainforest. One of my life long dreams was to see the rainforest and wildlife in Borneo. … Read more

Meeting the men of the forest

To celebrate the week of Earth Day, we explore Sepilok, a centre in Malaysian Borneo where orphaned and injured orangutans are rescued and cared for. My first encounter with an orangutan was a magical one. I was in Singapore Zoo, where free ranging orang utans are kept. It was the hottest time of the day, humid … Read more