Wednesday, February 10, 2010

This Some Weird Stuff Going On Right Here

b_temple

This is one of those photos that tells quite a story, although I'm not sure what that story is. This photo was taken in a Buddhist temple in Rangoon, Burma, and the man on the right is draping some silk fabric on a happy looking statue that also happens to be smoking a cigarette. It seemed to be some sort of merit making exercise.

The guy on the left has a priceless expression that says, "Seriously, I gotta get out of here, this is way too weird for me. I crave normalcy and I'm not getting it here."

I tried to find out more, but language barrier, in addition to this being a place of worship, made me quickly realize the immensity of the task. So I have no idea what's going on here. But that can be a point in itself. Things don't have to always make sense to be awesome, and this is just the latest example of the world's rich tapestry of weirdness.
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Saturday, January 23, 2010

Being a Boat Driver Is Great

pp_boat

I gotta say, there are worst things in life than to be a boat driver. I'm Tom, a 45 year old Thai guy who works on Ko Phi Phi in southern Thailand. My job is to ferry people around the islands nearby and show them all the cool stuff here, like the caves that are home to the cave swift, whose nests make Bird's Nest Soup, and bluewater lagoons that are just TEEMING with colorful fish.

There are a few drawbacks. Some tourists like to complain, for example. I don't let it bother me, but I can't for the life of me understand why someone would fly halfway around the world, and come to such a tropical paradise as this, just to bitch about the very few things that aren't perfect here. Fortunately, folks like these are rare around these parts, but when I do meet them, I just tune them out and start humming Thai folk songs to myself.

It's a good life. I've got my wooden boat, which is surprisingly sturdy and seaworthy. Since Ko Phi Phi is in the Andaman Sea, you actually get some pretty rough water here during the rainy season. But my trusty craft has sailed through many a hairy situation unscathed. And my passengers have been very grateful for that.
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Sunday, January 17, 2010

We're Not Huge Fans Of Being Photographed

yan_kids

Um, excuse me, we're having an important discussion here, could you put that camera away? It's a serious matter, and no, we're not telling you what it's about.

Look, we realize you're a tourist, and we realize that we're cute kids, but if you don't get out of here with that camera, there are going to be problems. Yangon has plenty of beautiful temples, why don't you go photograph them instead?
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