Harbor and longtail boats at Ko Samui, Thailand Mar 2, 2026

Harbor and longtail boats at Ko Samui, Thailand

Do not be fooled by how simple Ko Samui"s longtail boats look from a distance; decades of local ingenuity have shaped their slender frames. These vessels, known in Thailand as "ruea hang yao," emerged in the early 20th century, when fishermen repurposed vehicle engines to navigate shallow waters that larger boats couldn"t reach. Handcrafted plank by plank, each boat reflects generations of skill. Their hulls burst with bold, striking colors, while decorative cloth and flowers often crown the bows—Buddhist blessings meant to safeguard both the boat and its crew.

© Foto2rich/Shutterstock

palette

Today in History

Mar 2, 2018Satellite image of sand and seaweed in the Bahamas
Mar 2, 2019You won’t see this on Mulberry Street
Mar 2, 2020And to think that I saw it in Cappadocia
Mar 2, 2021Fall for Chile
Mar 2, 2022Mount Rainier National Park
Mar 2, 2023Negratín Reservoir, Granada, Spain
Mar 2, 2024Modica, Sicily, Italy
Mar 2, 2025Megalong Valley, Blue Mountains National Park, Australia

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Oct 24, 2019Bridge of Hillsborough County
Jan 17, 2019A wassailing we go
Aug 4, 2021A special day for a special cat
Apr 20, 2019Glacial spires in the fog
Jan 1, 2019New Year’s Day in the land of the rising sun
Mar 4, 2025Happy Fat Tuesday!
Mar 10, 2020A festival of colors
Jun 6, 2019Engineering an artificial harbor in Normandy
Mar 13, 2019A look at Uranus, seventh planet from the sun
Jun 9, 2022Sweetheart Abbey, Scotland
Nov 21, 20222022 FIFA World Cup
Sep 9, 2021Islands of the Salish Sea
Jul 10, 2018Wyoming celebrates its statehood
Jan 17, 2022Martin Luther King Day
Jan 6, 2026Nuuk, Greenland
Jul 23, 2021Let the games (finally) begin!
Jan 14, 2024Whooper swans in Lake Kussharo, Japan
Jun 25, 2022Brown bears, Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska
Jan 28, 2022Short-eared owl
Jan 23, 2025Sundance Film Festival
May 12, 2024Happy Mothers Day!
Oct 27, 2022Bridge of Sighs in Venice, Italy
Jan 25, 2019Fighting evil with costumes
Jan 4, 2024Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California
Jun 13, 2020A gorge-ous mill in the Causses
Sep 29, 2024West Cornwall Covered Bridge, Connecticut
Jan 10, 2024Take the Stairs Day
Aug 7, 2018Guiding ships to safety
Jul 1, 2021Celebrating migrations
Mar 8, 2020Joan charges Riverside Park