It is nice to call for change, perhaps I could also express it on my photos.

During my short trip in Kanchanaburi, fellow newbies tried their first elephant ride but I hesitated. The Sai Yok Elephant Farm was one of our destinations. I can see that their pets have been properly fed and cleaned yet I can’t bear riding on their backs for fun. It was cool watching them trek the slopes and managed not to slip. Some of the younger brood were trained to do the stunts for entertainment that left the tourist in awe. I wonder how life would be for them if they live freely in the wild.

Overlooking the Death Railway, Kanchanaburi. Photo credits to Techxplore

Travel. I kept hearing the tale about the Death Railway in River Kwai (pronounced as kwe) from friends who have gone to see this legacy. I saw pictures of it on postcards and travel magazines and dreamed of seeing it one day. Last Saturday, it was by invitation that I chanced to finally witness the historical bridge.

A bit of history…

In 1943 thousands of Allied Prisoners of War ( PoW ) and Asian laborers worked on the Death Railway under the imperial Japanese army in order to construct part of the 415 km long Burma-Thailand railway. Most of these men were Australians, Dutch and British and they had been working steadily southwards from Thanbyuzayat (Burma) to link with other PoW on the Thai side of the railway. This railway was intended to move men and supplies to the Burmese front where the Japanese were fighting the British. Japanese army engineers selected the route which traversed deep valleys and hills.

All the heavy work was done manually either by hand or by elephant as earth moving equipment was not available. The railway line originally ran within 50 meters of the Three Pagodas Pass which marks nowadays the border to Burma. However after the war the entire railway was removed and sold as it was deemed unsafe and politically undesirable. The prisoners lived in squalor with a near starvation diet.

They were subjected to captor brutality and thus thousands perished. The men worked from dawn until after dark and often had to trudge many kilometers through the jungle to return to base camp where Allied doctors tended the injured and diseased hence many died. After the war the dead were collectively reburied in the War Cemeteries and will remain forever witness to a brutal and tragic ordeal.

Nowadays tourists and locals flocked this area for site seeing and reminiscing the past– not much Japanese tourists were there that day. Floating restaurants have made it look commercialized, it’s as if you are along Chao Phraya River in Bangkok.

It isn’t that spectacular sight though, yet the story behind is what makes it grand. People set foot on the bridge where the train actually passes. You just have to stay at the side rail when you see it coming right after you. Good thing hubby was there, the height problem never bothered me at all. I felt secured that somebody’s watching my back most of the time.

Under the bridge you may opt to explore the river by paying 100 Baht/person on a motorboat. There were alot of Burmese migrant workers that are trying to earn a living in that area. They either sell fruits, postcards, toys and lottery tickets.

Thank God it never rained that day. I was able to do a little experiment with Canon 500D while being on my acquaintance stage whereas Tony have adjusted quite well with Nikon D40X. Our bonding made it more special as we have something to do in common. Taking photography as hobby and with your hubby doubles the fun.

Road leading to Ayothaya/Ayuttaya Province.

Travel. The beauty of the world and the freedom that comes with traveling is just too good not to let it pass.   I’ll be hitting the road with friends on a day tour to Kanchanaburi this Saturday.  It has been awhile that I haven’t gone to new places. I would love to observe fellow beings live their day to day life, discover new places and savor whatever attracts me.

What do I expect? I’ve been wishing to get a glimpse of River Kwai Bridge also referred to as the Death Railway, visit museums, and treat myself with their local delicacy.  I’m not that excited yet.  If I gauge it to 5, it is still on level 1.

Whenever I think of inasal na manok or chicken barbeque in Bacolod, the first name that comes to mind is Chicken Deli. During my short vacation few months ago, I decided to take a stroll down memory lane for a look to see from humble beginnings and inspiring moments that I shared with dorm mates during college over Chicken Deli in Lacson. But wait, you may ask how come there’s no chicken in the picture? That’s because I consumed bit plenty of those on my first few days, till I tried another delish menu among that’s been served.

Never miss tasting the grilled chickens when you travel to Bacolod City. It is said that Bacolod will hold its first Chicken Inasal Festival this coming May 15-20, 2009. A long stretch of stalls can be seen at the heart of the city between SM Mall and San Sebastian Cathedral. It is widely known as Manokan Country.

From Food

The vendor carefully explains how to grow these vibrant little flowers in a pot.  It is sold at 10 Baht per small bundle and you can choose different colors to be placed in a single pot.  Quite tempting yet my laziness hindered me from having it.  What’s crucial is how to maintain a routine in caring for this lovely thing.  I doubt if it stays longer than a month.

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Photo Assignment for October week 1
Theme: vendors/markets
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http://creativelens.wordpress.com

Imagine a world engulfed by water.

This solid structure originally built on land is what remains of Bangkok’s territory separating Samut Sakhorn province. The water in Bang Khun Tien have tremendously risen despite efforts of saving the land area.  People continuously plant mangroves and the government constructed sand sausages to somehow prevent strong waves from penetrating the nearby huge shrimp farming industry within the shorelines.  Twenty years ago,  schools, seafood restaurants and fishing communities occupy this area.  Today, only half of the populace remained. People are getting the feel of the irreversible threats of the mighty waters.

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Photo assignment for August week 1
theme: water

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I’m afraid
of the two kinds of disaster in this world:
the natural ones we can’t avoid,
the acts of God

and the man-made.

~Tsunami by Patience Agbabi~

I came at 3pm and lost my way to the 8th floor of Zen Department Store in CentralWorld. I thought I couldn’t make it as I have reached the cinema already. Finally I took the courage to ask one of the ‘men in black’. Dumbfounded of how I was able to reach the other end.

Inside where four speakers for the Photography and Digital Retouching session. I was a little upset in the end as they only gave few minutes for the digital artist to show some of his artworks but never have time to explain the process. In short, bitin.

The series of events for the Press Photo in Focus are organized by Canon. Workshop runs until July 5th. They have photo exhibits featuring the works of World Press and Thai Press members. Their moment shots are worth emulating.

Safari World, 21 June 2008

Bokeh has appeared in photography books on the year 2000. Bokeh came from the Japanese word boke which means “blur”. It is a photographic term referring to the appearance of out-of-focus areas in an image produced by a camera lens. Different lens bokeh produces different aesthetic qualities in out-of-focus backgrounds, which are often used to reduce distractions and emphasize the primary subject.

I took this shot using 18-55mm lens. My unrealistic wish is to upgrade either with 55-200mm or the wicked 18-300mm Nikkor VR lens.

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Special thanks to Patricia for letting me use the acrylic vine she designed.

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Well! What’s the matter with them?

Why are they acting that way?

Why, don’t you know? They’re twitterpated.

Twitterpated?

Yes. Nearly everybody gets twitterpated in the springtime. For example: You’re walking along, minding your own business. You’re looking neither to the left, nor to the right, when all of a sudden you run smack into a pretty face. Woo-woo! You begin to get weak in the knees. Your head’s in a whirl. And then you feel light as a feather, and before you know it, you’re walking on air. And then you know what? You’re knocked for a loop, and you completely lose your head!
– Bambi

I took this photo last year. It was right after I submitted my photo assignment for Siroy project on “buildings” theme. Around November 2007, in time of the Loy Krathong feast here in Thailand. Significantly with that full moon showing on top of the images of the buildings. For Thais it marks the end of the rainy season, anticipating December and January’s cold climate.

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Photo taken: Bangkok