MOKEN STYLE: SEA GYPSY WAY OF LIFE | วิถีชีวิตชาวมอแกน

Moken Village on Surin Island, Phang Nga, Thailand. หมู่บ้านมอแกน หมู่เกาะสุรินทร์ อุทยานแห่งชาติ พังงา

Despite the fact that there have been more and more tourists visiting the island, the Mokens are truly island childs still.  In this blog I have put together a few footage and images of them doing their “Moken things”: building huts, fishing, picking up wild fruits in the woods, and simply chillin’!

ถึงแม้ว่าในหลาย ๆ ปีที่ผ่านมา มีนักท่องเที่ยวพรั่งพรูกันไปเยี่ยมหมู่เกาะสุรินทร์มากขึ้น แต่ชาวมอแกนก็ยังรักษาวิถีชีวิตดั้งเดิมของเค้าไว้อยู่ตลอดเวลา ในโพสนี้บีรวบรวมวีดีโอและรูปการใช้ชีวิตต่าง ๆ ของชาวมอแกนมาให้ดูกันนะคะ ไม่ว่าจะเป็นการจับปลา เก็บผลไม้ป่า สร้างกระท่อม รวมไปถึงยามมอแกนชิวด้วย ลองดูกันค่ะ 🙂

Moken Village on Surin Island, Phang Nga, Thailand. หมู่บ้านมอแกน หมู่เกาะสุรินทร์ อุทยานแห่งชาติ พังงา

Moken Village on Surin Island, Phang Nga, Thailand. หมู่บ้านมอแกน หมู่เกาะสุรินทร์ อุทยานแห่งชาติ พังงา
Being welcomed to the village by the Moken kids (I brought my own flower halo though haha)

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BONDING WITH THE MOKEN SEA GYPSIES | มาเล่นมาชิวกับชาวมอแกนกันดีกว่า!

Moken Sea Gypsy Surin Island Thailand Travel Adventure

After a few days of adjusting-ourselves-to-primitive-island-life, it was time to properly bond with the lovely Moken Sea Gypsies.  We came up with games, taught them to sing, and simply hang out with them, trying to learn as much as possible about them and their way of living.  Let’s have a look at a video on how we did this:

หลังจากที่บีและเพื่อน ๆ ได้เริ่มมีความคุ้นเคยกับการใช้ชิวิตบ้าน ๆ แบบชาวเกาะแล้ว  พวกเราก็เริ่มมาทำความรู้จักกับชาวมอแกนกันค่ะ  เรามีการให้เด็ก ๆ เล่นเกมส์ สอนน้อง ๆ ร้องเพลงกันอย่างสนุกสนานด้วย ลองดูวิดีโอกันนะค้า:

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ARRIVING AT THE MOKEN VILLAGE, SURIN ISLAND | THAILAND

Last year I had a spontaneous trip to the Surin Island National Park in the South of Thailand, and this trip has and will surely remain my Top 10 favourite trips of all time.

Accompanied by my childhood friend and her freediving instructor, I hopped on a speed boat from Phang-Nga province in the West coast and headed off to our destination.  Just like most tour boats, there is a mix of foreign and Thai travellers and some staff from the touring company.  I however spotted a small group of young men who didn’t look like visitors from abroad.  They didn’t look like guides either.

They all had very similar features, height, big shiny eyes and beautiful dark skin.  They spoke some sort of dialogue in which didn’t at all sound familiar to me.  My freediving instructor then explained that they were the “Mokens”.

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MY ISLAND ADVENTURE TRIP–AN INTRODUCTION

Have you ever wondered how it is like living on an island 60Km, off-shore with no electricity, water supply network or phone reception?

Last year I visited a sea gypsy village near to where my friends and I stayed for our getaway.  I never knew a small beach front on an island had been hiding a tribe of hundred with a primitive way of life all along.

And I wonder how their everyday-life was like.  To be inhabiting on a piece of heaven like this, it is surely a blessing. However, when it is rainy season the Monsoon storm had no mercy for small long tail boats nor for human.

But still I would dream to live on this island.

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NEVER AN AVERAGE LUNCH AT WHALE’S BELLY

Who says fine dining only comes at dinner time?

This was my excuse: it was my birthday and hence I could spoil myself with something nice–something special.  Whale’s Belly did not fail to impress before and so we had always intended to come back.  My parents and I arrived at noon and were greeted by very attentive staff with big welcoming smiles on their faces.

Cozy lunch table in a pleasant and quiet environment. Photo Credit: Readme.me by Fatty Uncle
Cozy lunch table in a pleasant and quiet environment. Photo Credit: Readme.me by Fatty Uncle

A young and charming waiter seated us, carefully placed the napkins on our laps and handed to us the menus.  He informed us that the dishes were carefully crafted by their Executive Chef Mr. Mai Apirawit whom–after having collaborated with a number of 3 Michelin star chefs in restaurants around the world–was named “The Winner of  IRON CHEF, Thailand 2014”, by IROHA CHEF Thailand TV program.

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EXCLUSIVE DINING AT 22 KITCHEN & BAR @ DUSIT THANI BANGKOK HOTEL

I had a chance to host private dinner at Dusit Thani Bangkok‘s rooftop fine dining restaurant namely 22 Kitchen & Bar.  Our guest list that evening included VIP’s from the British Embassy, British Council and British Chamber of Commerce Thailand.  We needed to make sure the evening was impeccable and memorable and this was why we decided to pick this venue.

Guests started to arrive just as the sun was setting.  

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