29.4.12 - Cherating Turtle Sanctuary

After lunch on the second day, we went to Cherating Turtle Sanctuary. It was still scorching hot in the afternoon. We saw a number of tourist buses and vans parked at the car park. There were many tourists (some from other countries) visiting the turtle sanctuary.   

The place belonged to the Pahang Fisheries Department. 

Visiting hours

The building that housed the Cherating Turtle Sanctuary

This is a dugong

When we went inside, the indoor exhibition area was small and stuffy. I didn't check if there was any air-conditioner there. If there was, it didn't seem to be working.  We quickly exited the place.     

When we went to the pool area to have a breath of fresh air but were sorely disappointed to see the pool water so filthy. It was depressing and I felt embarrassed to be a Malaysian. Is this what we are showcasing to our visitors? Furthermore, there were many tourists there, and some were foreigners.     

The poor turtles are living in dirty water.

This is a real turtle that has been stuffed

We had to remove our footwear before we entered the turtle sanctuary building, and when we visited the pool area outdoors, we were barefooted. I was disgusted to find dog poop on the ground nearby this turtle exhibition area outdoors, where we had to walk barefooted. The people in charge didn't seem to be cleaning this place. Maybe it was a Sunday and they weren't working. What a great impression we (Malaysians) gave to our foreign tourists. We had been to 2 other turtle sanctuaries before - Segari turtle sanctuary in Lumut, Perak and another in Pangkalan Balak, Melaka, but this was the most disappointing of all. This was the one with the most tourists but not upkept at all. It's a shame that we had so many opportunities for eco-tourism but didn't know how to take advantage of it.

Turtle hatchery by the beach