The Streets of Phu Quoc

You may recall from the 2014 blog that Phu Quoc is a bucolic island in the gulf of Thailand off the west coast of Vietnam, and 40 km south of the Cambodian coast. Almost the entire west coast of the island -48 km- boasts white sand beaches bordered on one side by warm seas, and on the other by virgin jungle. Here in Duong Dong, development is in high gear. While 500,000 tourists visited the island in 2014, plans are afoot to host 3 million a year by 2020. There is currently not nearly the infrastructure to support those numbers, so we have arrived in the midst of an impressive building boom. Since we were here last the island has added an international airport, a Disney-like amusement park and an 18 hole golf course on the north end of the island. Heading south from Duong Dong, several new, massive resorts have been built and many more are under construction. In anticipation of this new development, the only road servicing this side of the island is undergoing major up-grades. (Blessedly, the little grass hut we enjoy here at Moon Resort is about 200m off the road so, unless we venture out of our little Eden, we are un-effected by the construction.) Here is this process from a visitors perspective.

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Once a quiet island in the gulf of Thailand....

.... Phuc Quoc is quickly becoming a major tourist destination, home to some pretty swank tourist digs...

....with many more on the way. Servicing these resorts begins by tearing up the existing roads.....

.....and laying in the infrastructure.

Next the prep is done for the broad walkways....

....using the most modern methods...

.....and with impacts that effect some property owners more than others.

Finally, the walk ways are installed....

....and pavers installed...

And now these beautiful promenades are ready for their intended purpose....

.....because no one who lives on this island ever walks. If a local has to go two doors down the street, shop at the market, pick up something at a store across the street, they do it by moto, and park those motos (and cars and trucks and busses) on the sidewalk.  Despite the clearly beautifully designed avenues and the millions of dollars spent, tourists on Phu Quoc will always walk in the traffic, just like we did before the upgrades.