Southeast Asian countries, travel agencies, and airlines are coping in different ways with the difficult financial climate.

For starters, tourism in the region is turning to regional travelers to ease the difficulty. Instead of appealing to American and European travelers, tourism marketing will call to visitors from other countries in Southeast Asia, which accounts for half of all travelers in the region.

"We will not be able to shield ourselves totally from the impact of the global slowdown but at least we have enough resources in the region," said ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan. "Asia's middle class will travel anyway. But rather than travel far away they will certainly consider closer markets like ASEAN." ("SE Asia eyeing regional tourists", AFP)

January 7 marks the 30th anniversary of the downfall of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime. The government marked the anniversary at an elaborate ceremony at Phnom Penh's Olympic Stadium, attended by about 40,000 people.

Prime Minister Hun Sen led the speeches and the parade, marking the day that the Vietnamese invaded, expelling the Khmer Rouge.

Not everybody was happy with the ceremonies, though. Opposition politicians have refused to join the festivities, saying that real freedom only began when the Vietnamese left the country in 1991. ("January 7 holiday provokes mixed emotions in the Kingdom", Phnom Penh Post.)

Also, no major Khmer Rouge commander has ever faced justice for the atrocities of their rule. Several Khmer Rouge higher-ups are facing trial, but few believe they will ever get their just desserts. ("Cambodia Marks Khmer Rouge Fall", Associated Press.)

More information on Cambodia's other festivals can be found here: Cambodia Festivals.

Tourism still a big cash cow for Indonesia despite crisis. Despite the economic slowdown, Indonesian tourism still earned about $7 billion in 2008, according to someone from the Indonesian Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

"Even though we are in the midst of a global economic downturn, the Visit Indonesia 2008 program achieved favorable results," said Sapta Nirwandar, the Ministry's Director General for Marketing, pointing to the 6.45 million tourists who ignored the alarmists and visited Indonesia anyway. ("Indonesian tourism generates $7 B in 2008", China Daily)

Lower jet fuel prices mean sweeter travel deals. Silver lining alert! Regional airlines have cut prices in the light of recent oil price drops. According to AsiaOne, Thai Airways is halving its fuel surcharges, joining airlines like Cathay Pacific and Malaysia Airlines, but never going as far as Malaysian carrier AirAsia, which was doing away with fuel surcharges altogether! ("Sweeter travel deals as jet fuel price falls", AsiaOne)

Investigation continues on Singapore Flyer fire. We earlier reported on the electrical fire on December 23 ("Small Fire at Singapore Flyer Grinches Passengers") that stranded several passengers on the Singapore Flyer. The Singapore Tourism Board has since hired the services of a team of engineers to look into the problem. Engineers from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan and German troubleshooters TUV SUD are among the investigators.

According to Jeannie Lim, a director with the STB, there was absolutely no time to lose. "With the right steps taken to prevent the likelihood of such occurrences in the future, and measures taken to ensure that the necessary emergency response plans are in place, we believe that public confidence in the Singapore Flyer can be restored," she said. ("International experts join Singapore wheel probe", AFP)

The coming Black Nazarene procession in Quiapo, Manila this January 9 will cause a traffic snarl, likely injuries and (God forbid) a couple of fatalities, and fill the Manila light rail to capacity.

The latter will have to cope with a different challenge, unique to the Black Nazarene procession: barefoot passengers.

Many devotees will go barefoot through the parade, as a sign of respect to the Black Nazarene. For once, the Light Rail Authority will relax its rule against bare feet on the train and allow barefoot passengers on the system, just in time for the procession.

LRTA Administrator Melquiades Robles commented: "We are more than ready to accommodate the increase in ridership on Friday, which we expect to be around 540,000."

For more information and colorful images to boot (hahaha, shoe joke there) check out this gallery: the Procession of the Black Nazarene, Manila, Philippines.