CHON BURI -- Foreign tourists expecting to enjoy a morning swim in the sea instead found a heap of garbage washed up on Jomtien Beach in near Pattaya on Tuesday, and had to clean it up.
Garbage is believed to have been carried out to sea from flooded areas in Chon Buri and other provinces during the past few days, and then washed up on beaches around Pattaya.
On Tuesday morning, the garbage was strewn along hundreds of metres of the sand at Jomtien Beach with foreigners seen collecting it and cleaning up the area.
Business operators along the beach said the sight of garbage washed up on the shore was common during the moonsoon season. Vendors and local authorities often held beach clean-up activities.
The foreigners who cleaned up the beach on Tuesday were those who woke up early and arrived eepcting to enjoy and swim and to sunbathe.
The fact they had to clean up the beach first, and that photos of them doing it were probably posted on the internet, raised concerns that Pattaya's image would be affected.