Photo of the Day – Koh Panyee, Thailand
Arriving by long-tail boat at Koh Panyee
When three families set sail from Indonesia some 200 years ago in search of a new place to live, the vertical limestone cliffs of this tiny island hardly seemed a logical choice. But the first of these families was lured by the abundance of fish and raised a flag atop the cliff to signal the others – giving the island its name, Koh Panyee or the Island of the Flag. Today, more than 1,400 people from 315 families call Koh Panyee home. Over the years they have expanded their village to include hundreds of huts, restaurants and houses built on stilts over the shallow sea, as well as a school, a mosque and a health center. While fishing was once the sole industry for these villagers, tourism now dominates the local economy and the restaurants overlooking the sea are the perfect place to stop for lunch when spending the day touring Phang Nga Bay by long-tail boat.
