This is my beach!
At some point or another the term ‘forlang’ (foreigner) has applied to us all. It’s one thing to call a place home but its another to start calling yourself a local. Its easy to be in a place for a period of time & start to feel that this place is now my home but for some people, to be called a local you must have lived & been apart of that community for least 20 years while to others unless you were born there you will never be a local. For us white folk its clear to say that unless our parents are Thai & we were born in Thailand, then we are not locals. That’s not to say we can’t call Phuket our home which I’ll be the first to put my hand up & say it is but I do not consider myself a local, I’ll always be a forlang. Phuket is a small Island but even so each beach has its own village & unless you are from that village you are not a local to that village. This is seen in the water where we now introduce the term ‘a territorial beach’. You may have experienced this either by been snaked on the wave time after time, had your car tires slashed in the car park or blatantly told to leave the beach & your not welcomed. Don’t take it personally & unfortunately it is one of surfings negative sides that exists all over the world not just Phuket. Saying this Phuket has seen its share of local territorial incidences but compared to other parts of the world its generally very friendly.
The fact that there is even such a thing like locals being territorial in the water contradicts what being a surfer is all about. The ocean & beach is for everyone & as long as people respect each other in & out of the water then theres no reason why life can’t be peachy.
Tim’s Tip: When you go surfing in a new spot respect the locals by saying hello, giving them the first wave & cheering them on as you do it.
