Street food in Bangkok's Chinatown- Yaowarat, ordering from the seafood menu
Pad Thai
Fruit Vendor
The Yum Woonsen Lady Under Thonglor BTS Station
Squid Eggs For Sale at Chatuchak Market
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Street Food Thailand
Street food in Bangkok's Chinatown- Yaowarat, ordering from the seafood menu
Pad Thai
Fruit Vendor
The Yum Woonsen Lady Under Thonglor BTS Station
Squid Eggs For Sale at Chatuchak Market
Sunday, August 28, 2011
The Mahabodhi Temple- Bhod Gaya
Via Flickr:
A temple built where the Buddha attained enlightenment. It is in Bihar, one of the, if not the poorest state in India.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Sunday, August 21, 2011
San Juan Del Sur
A little piece of heaven on earth, after a week of doing medical relief work in Managua, some friends and I headed down to San Juan Del Sur. We were lucky enough to "discover" this secluded beach it was us and one other party on it. I am sure that by now this little piece of paradise has been discovered. Hopefully, the locals haven't been squeezed out. I pray that they get to share in the benefits of "development/progress"
We are the world, We are the children... of Nicaragua
Some pictures of some of the kids we saw while working at a clinic in Managua.
Drinks and Stories in Kosovo
In addition to lecturing at a Pan-Balkan Trauma Conference, I had the opportunity to meet a fair amount of locals, most of whom were associated with the medical system. While there, I had the chance to hear about the atrocities of war, and the hope of a new future. I was also fortunate enough to meet with internally displaced Serbians living on church grounds. They were the nicest family, taking the time to talk with us and share some moonshine with us (rakia I think). I felt sad that this old couple had to start again so late in life.
Friday, August 19, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
The Ganges in Varanasi
Via Flickr:
One of the dirtiest and choppiest rivers I've ever been in. The boat ride down the Gange lasted about 10 minutes before we called uncle. We were soaked. Aaah, the memories!
One of the dirtiest and choppiest rivers I've ever been in. The boat ride down the Gange lasted about 10 minutes before we called uncle. We were soaked. Aaah, the memories!
Bollywood on the Border!
This is a portrait shot I took of this Indian officer/dancer at the Atari Border. There is a border exchange that happens here on the Indian Pakistan border in Punjab. It ends up being a huge patriotic event, and virtually a bollywood dance off between the India and Pakistan.
Steve McCurry's Photo Blog
http://stevemccurry.wordpress.com/
One of my favorite photographers. I remember seeing his pictures on National Geographic as child. To this day, his pictures capture my attention. I love how his blog simply uses photos and proverbs to capture a theme. I hope to some day be able to do the same.
Scalp Massage
I swear, one of the best scalp massages, okay the only scalp massage I have ever had. It was a great experience. Very relaxing. Figure it would be great treatment for tension headaches! Next time I have one, I guess it means I'm chartering a flight to Kashmir!
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Good Morning Srinagar!
After spending the morning on a boat watching the sun rise, a couple of my Indian friends had gone into the White Mosque. I along with another friend were left waiting at the bank of Dal Lake. Slowly a large group of boys gathered and started walking to us. They had a rather serious look in their faces, as I planned our escape route, I decided to wave at them to break the ice. They soon had smiles on their faces and they took turns practicing their English with me once they found out I was an American. Its amazing how much a smile and a wave can do to diffuse a tense seen!
Dal Lake with the White Mosque in the Background
Dal Lake with the White Mosque in the Background, a photo by pholaphat on Flickr.
This was a Shikara tour with tea and biscuits around Dal Lake, courtesy of Butt's Clermont Houseboats. The owner is a real stand up guy. He did not have any housing because of a photojournalism workshop being held there, but he put us up at a friends place on Naveen Lake and set us up with this morning boat tour.
Sunrise on Dal Lake
Sunrise on Dal Lake, a photo by pholaphat on Flickr.
On a Shikara "taxi of the lake" watching the sunrise while having biscuits and tea. Could not think of a better way to spend the morning in Srinagar.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
View from inside the Gamow Bag
In case you ever wondered what it looks like from inside a Gamow Bag. We were testing it out during the expedition. Definitely enough room for two but it definitely gets claustrophobic. Hope I never have to use one of these for real.
Hard times in Ladakh
There was a significant amount of migrant works working through Ladkah. They were largely responsible for maintaining the roads. These guys had just cleared another landslide and were repaving portions of road. When I see how hard these guys work, I am reminded of how nice we have it in the US. At the same time, these were some of the nicest people I have ever met. I would love to have had the chance to interview them, the stories they must have...
Sunday, August 14, 2011
The Veil of Kashmir
In 2007 I took an overnight truck to Srinagar from Leh, definitely not something I would recommend doing again. Though we were exhausted and dead tired, it was definitely an experience to wake up to see our half awake driver flying down the hairpin turns and switchbanks along the river valley. After dosing off for a several hours we awoke to the sun rising over the Veil of Kashmir. As the fog lifted the desert terrain of Ladakh had switched to these green luscious valleys. It definitely seemed like paradise on earth. As we took in the view, the feeling began to change as the Indian Army/Police seemingly came out of nowhere... Welcome to Kashmir!
Ladakh- Women's Coop
Ladakh- Women's Coop, a photo by pholaphat on Flickr.
Women's Alliance of Ladakh
The health of families and communities are tied to the health of women – the illness or death of a woman has serious and far-reaching consequences for the health of her children, family and community. (taken from http://www.globalhealth.org/womens_health/)
Saturday, August 13, 2011
The Journey
The Journey, a photo by pholaphat on Flickr.
“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” – Henry Miller
Taken from Matador Network's 50 most inspiring travel quotes of all time.
Ladakhi Monk
Ladakhi Monk, a photo by pholaphat on Flickr.
As a Theravada Buddhist, Tibetan/Ladakhi Buddhism (Mahayana Branch) has always been very foreign to me. I do have to admit that it is amazing to see a society so devoted to Buddhism. I love seeing the praire wheels and how integral monks are to everyday society. I have heard from several people that Ladakh is more Tibetan than modern day Communist controlled Tibet is. I had the opportunity to talk to a Monk originally from Tibet. He had previously snuck back into Tibet as a layperson in order to visit his parental home. He told me about how saddened he had become to witness the infiltration of the state into Buddhism, there are secret police everywhere. What was heartening to hear was how the spirit and devotion of many Tibetans could not be crushed by the authoritarianism of the Chinese government. Sadly they are being turned into a minority in their own land, as Han settlers have been moving into Tibet turning it into a cultural "Disneyland".
Himalayas
Himalayas, a photo by pholaphat on Flickr.
I really wish this picture could do justice to the beauty of the Himalayas. The magnitude of these mountains and the boulders that litter the ground really puts things in perspective. Your realize how small your problems and worries are. It's amazing to see these streams and realize that they join to create these amazing rivers like the Indus, Zanskar, and Ganges.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Cool Ladakh Photos from BBC Blog
I just had to share these great photos from Timothy Allen's blog on BBC. I hope to have the chance to go back to Ladakh and test out my the photography skills I have developed in the last two years. Here is one of my favorite portraits from his blog.
Cultural Crossroads.
While traveling in Leh, I briefly met this Kashmiri man and his granddaughters. The children are so beautiful, coming from this crossroads in Asia. I imagine that they are not too different from Pakistanis and Afghanis. I am happy that they are so fortunate to live in a relatively peaceful region, and I had the opportunity to meet them. I think if people took the time to travel and meet people the world would be a better place. I have found that generally people are universally the same. They want the freedom of choice, and the opportunity to improve their lot in life.
Tibetan Refugees
The Tibetans have refugee status in India, though they have far more rights here than they do in China, they are limited by their status. They are not allowed to own land, and many of them live in camps. As China's influence grows in Asia, I worry about the fate of Tibetans in India. We have already seen what China's influence in Nepal has done to Tibetans rights there.
I hope this child, along with many others, have the opportunity to return to a free Tibet.
Also like this picture because of her Blackhawks jacket, gotta cheer for my hometown!
I hope this child, along with many others, have the opportunity to return to a free Tibet.
Also like this picture because of her Blackhawks jacket, gotta cheer for my hometown!
Where the Zanskar and the Indus River Join
Via Flickr:
Zanskar is the muddier (silt) colored river, the Indus is the green colored river.
Zanskar is the muddier (silt) colored river, the Indus is the green colored river.
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