My oldie for Gert, a photo from Chiang Mai, North

Photographer's Note

Gert complains that he is yawning from boredom, so I will try to cheer him (and others as well) up a bit. I break my Russian travelogue and jump to my archive. Eleven years is not so long but I have difficulties to find decent old photos.
In 2003 I and my friends from publishing house lost the job and became retired. Suddenly we had a lot of free time so I organized a five weeks trip for my seven (!) friends to South East Asia. Now I do not understand why I wanted to travel with such a big group. It was my first journey to Asia. I like Asia so much that later I went to other countries as well. We went to Thailand, Laos and Cambodia and the strangest adventure I ever had were during this trip. In Chiang Mai or Rai the local agency organized for us a few days trekking to the mountain tribes in the Golden Triangle. It is the are where three border meet: Thailand, Laos and Myanmar. What means of transport we used then! A few hours through the jungle on elephants, primitive float on the river, similar truck as here on the photo. And a lot of just walking in the mountains with backpacks. It was all prepared for us but we had the feeling it was real, not something played for the tourist (no coke from fridge :)). We haven't met any other groups. In the villages we slept just on the floor in primitive huts. And it was so cold in the night. Our guide went with a big basket with food that he prepared in the evening on the fire. Somewhere on the way he got fruits from the orchards. I ate there pomelo just from the tree, for the first time. Since then when I see pomelos in our supermarkets they remind me that trip.
In the villages I got up early and went around to observe how the people began their day. I have no idea where the people on the photo went.

The story about my adventures there is long so it will be in parts (if you will be interested, :).

Big beta version

Spyder, holmertz, papagolf21, tyro, fritzi007, COSTANTINO, macjake, jjcordier, jhm, kasianowak, ikeharel, annjackman, aliabazari, ChrisJ, ourania, Didi has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Spyder (4) 2014-11-13 2:15

Hi Malgo.
I was in Thailand in the early 80's, and was lucky to go north from Bangkok in a taxi of a Thai friend, so we saw what the tourists didn't always get to see. We were in a village like this one, as well as Chiang Mai & Chiang Rai.
This is a beautiful shot, and it always amazes me how many people they can carry on a small pickup.
Thanks for the diversion, I, for one, am glad to see photos of Thailand. I must get my slides of Thailand onto a disc.
Kindest regards
the ED

holmertz (102104) 2014-11-13 2:53

Hello Malgo,
Thanks for this kind of inverted dedication. It's not your Siberian photos that make me yawn, but there are lots of photos from other members that I find so dull and uninteresting that I just can't understand why they are being uploaded here.
Never mind, thia is a photo I like. Lots of people, lots of colour, something is going on for which we can use our imagination, the environment is interesting and the haze creates an exciting atmosphere. The light is still rather weak but you used it very well.
I would love to have seven friends for dinner (provided I had enough chairs), but I would never, never travel with them for five weeks :-).
Kind regards,
Gerrt

papagolf21 (152607) 2014-11-13 3:36

Bonjour, chиre Malgo,
Trиs bonne ambiance gйnйrale restituйe а travers cette composition.
Note d'accompagnement trиs apprйciйe.
Bravo !
Amitiйs.
Philippe

tyro (30513) 2014-11-13 4:42

Hi Malgo,

Wow! This is certainly very interesting - so interesting, in fact, that you have stopped Gert in mid-yawn: he certainly sounds as though he's enjoying this photograph as well as your wonderful notes!

How fascinating that you travelled with seven friends for five weeks: were you still all friends by the time you came home? Surely you must have had just one or two arguments on the way?

I think this picture was taken with an early digital camera - is that right? It's of remarkably good quality and I love the soft early morning light and the signs of mist still hanging in the trees. The soft light has given a wonderful vibrance to the colours and it picks out all the people so very well as they go about their daily lives and with so many piled onto that small truck.

What an adventure!

Fabulous!

Kind Regards,

John.

SNOOP_Chan (4377) 2014-11-13 5:21

Hello Malgorzata, very nice image here. The kind of everyday scene, nothing out of the ordinary but still it seems like the whole village was captured in this shot. I love the colors, you were very fortunate to be there.
Good take.

Sergiom (117241) 2014-11-13 5:30

Ciao Malgorzata,

Je me souviens de ma visite dans un petit village comme celui-ci, dans le nord de la Thaпlande. C'йtait trиs tфt le matin. J'aime beaucoup la petite brume qui apporte toute une atmosphиre.

Amicalement

Serge

fritzi007 (14698) 2014-11-13 6:45

Hallo Malgo,
bin zwar nicht Gert, aber mir gefдllt diese StraЯen Szene sehr, gut,es ist schon 11 Jahre her; denke immer zurьck wie wir in Europa nicht alles hatten!
Wьnsch dir eine schцne Zeit
Wolfgang

Nicou (193806) 2014-11-13 7:23

Hello

quelle vue superbe quelle ambiance de la jungle avec la brume et ces tons qui ressortent ces jeep et les personnage superbe scиne.
Bravo et amitiй
Nicou

williewhistler (16606) 2014-11-13 7:29

Hello Malgo,
the rather dull and misty atmosphere does nothing to dampen the spirits or subdue the sense of anticipation as the overloaded pick up prepares to take off...
Such a colourful and interesting scene with personnel of all ages dotted around,just gorgeous.
I`m already eager for the next edition.
Warmest regards Les.

rychem (72187) 2014-11-13 8:25

Dobre reportażowe zdjęcie, ciekawa grupa w lokalnych strojach, bardzo kolorowa, a nastroju i duszy dodaje zdjęciu mgiełka
pozdrawiam Ryszard

Gerrit (62042) 2014-11-13 8:58

Hi Malgo,
Interseting village view and good composition and colors.
I like the way you show the trees through the mist.
The photo is a little grainy absolutely worth showing.
regards, Gerrit

COSTANTINO (115673) 2014-11-13 9:03

Hello dear Malgorzata
you are very lucky to have so impressive
photos in your gallery like this one
I red carefully your useful notes
and I liked them very much
such a colorful and delightful photo
regards
Costantino

Silvio1953 (220775) 2014-11-13 10:09

Ciao Malgo, lovely composition with a lot of people, nice scene, wonderful colors, splendid light and excellent clarity, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

macjake (98262) 2014-11-13 11:09

Hi Malgo
haha...these oldies are always great, maybe not as old as Gert's photos, but still fun to see.

its so strange to think about you traveling with 7 people, now you seem to travel in much smaller groups or with yourself.

as in most countries in this region, they try to pile on as many people as possible in those trucks :)
fun shot indeed.

I'm sure Gert will approve and take him out of his boredom
cheers
craig

Cricri (176) 2014-11-13 11:19

Sawat die khaa Malgorzata :-)
Une belle scиne vie dans ce petit village du nord, beaucoup de dйtails, de couleurs ajouter a la brume, belle prйsentation de plus de 10ans qui reste un beau souvenir, moi c'йtait en 2009
Belle soirйe
cricri

lousat (138703) 2014-11-13 13:43

Hi Malgo,an oldie but not so old like the Gert's pics..ehehe...only 11 years ago! And it's a very nice capture from one of the most visited thai corners,Chiang Mai is always on the organized trips..the pic is nice and curious and made in a very excellent quality,you were a great photographer...like now..ehee..have a nice weekend and thanks,Luciano

carlo62 (81265) 2014-11-13 14:52

Ciao Malgo
il tuo vasto archivio deve essere molto ricco di immagini da tutto il mondo e non credo sia facile risalire a tutto ciт che hai fotografato.
Il 2003 non sarа molto lontano, ma non и piщ neanche vicino e questa foto inizia a invecchiare, prendendo tutto il fascino dell'etа.
Saluti
Carlo

saxo042 (38078) 2014-11-13 15:43

Hi Malgo,
There are plenty of colours, life and action in this excellent picture. The hazy background, the green vegetation and the brown buildings, all these parts cooperate into a very interesting scene. There are an abundance of details, things are happening all over the picture. A very fine picture!
Kind regards
Gunnar

jjcordier (79299) 2014-11-13 22:14

Malgorzata
Belle mise en image de cette belle rencontre matinale avec les villageois partant pour le travail. Tu en as fait des voyages depuis ce moment!
Amicalement
JJ

krzychu30 (15512) 2014-11-14 1:50

Czasc Malgosiu,
dla mnie w tym kadrze zawarta jest kwintesencja i idea podrozowania.Poznawanie nowych krajow i kultur.
Podoba mi sie ta "mglista"atmosfera-super zdjecie!

Pozdrawiam i zycze milego weekendu
Krzysiek

jhm (211734) 2014-11-14 2:00

Hello Malgo,

Thank you very much for your interesting note, I learn something new everyday on TE.
Eleven years is indeed not so long, certainly when you get older.
Very pleasant daily life picture out of these area with the people of the village.
Also the misty background in the forest makes these picture attractive.
Excellent composition, nice presentation.
Very well done, TFS.

Have a nice weekend,
John.

Fis2 (169903) 2014-11-14 2:19

Witaj MAlgosiu!
Lubie ogladac Twoje archiwum, jest bardzo bogate.
Fajna scena z zycia codziennego.
Kadr i kolorki super!
Pozdrawiam
Krzysztof

kasianowak (17672) 2014-11-14 2:31

Czesc Malgosiu
Wspaniale przygody, niesamite wspomnienia! Czytalam twoja notke z zapartym tchem, bo, podobnie jak ty, jestem podroznikiem-nalogowcem... ;-)
Bardzo ladne zdjecie, super koktail kolorow i ludzi. Mgla tworzy niepowtarzalna atmosphere.
Pozdrawiam serdecznie
Kasia

ikeharel (112565) 2014-11-14 6:26

A foggy rural scenery in far country, Malgo. managed well the light condition and show the action on daily life in the village.
A bit of "grains" effect, probably the PP result - but this is a minor issue when looking at the whole.
Have a nice weekend,
Ike

*** The trees in my pic. are not eucalyptuses, but a "good place to relax" on a any day. Thanks.

annjackman (23019) 2014-11-14 9:31

Hi Malgo,
It is good to dig out some old photos sometimes and this one is lovely. The group of people are very interesting and stand out well in their colourful clothes against the misty forest BG. A beautiful slice of life in this village.
Kind Regards, Ann

mkamionka (73560) 2014-11-15 0:49

Czesc Malgorzata,
Gert na pewno ma na mysli moje pocztowkowe fotografie bez ludzi i wspolczesne :)
Tutaj na pewno bedzie zadowolony :) Sporo tubylcow w ciekawych strojach i zdjecie wyglada chyba na starsze niz rzeczywiscie jest moze dzieki tej mgle ktora powoduje troche taka atmosfere.
Ja rzeczywiscie nie przepadam za ludzmi ale zdjecia Gerta maja naprawde swoj wyjatkowy urok.
Tutaj nie wiedzc ze to Twoje zdjecie pewnie zgadywalbym ze to wlasnie jego fotografia :)
Pozdrawiam serdecznie,
M

willperrett (14195) 2014-11-17 1:34

Hello Malgo

I like this informal tranche de vie. The vibrant foreground colours contrast interestingly with the muted misty background. The villagers don't seem to have noticed you, or at least aren't interested in your presence! Which is odd, given how remote you say this village was: I would guess that eleven years ago, Western visitors must have been relatively rare here.

Regards

Will

aliabazari (21445) 2014-11-18 17:53

Hi dear Malgorzata
Beauty shot of the village in the forest. Clarity and lighting are well done. Thanks for sharing

ChrisJ (171392) 2014-11-19 17:02

Hi Malgo.

A colourful assortment of hilltribes in northern Thailand. Songthaews must be in short supply in this area judging from the crowded pickup truck! The bg mist and fog adds mood and atmosphere. The thatched huts and washing on the line add authenticity. Tfs!

ourania (51103) 2014-11-21 10:28

Hello Malgo,
this photo is wonderful, it's spontaneous, exotic and real at the same time. I like very much the connection of each person with the group and the story, it's great that no one is posing and we are looking at daily life in a pure and interesting version. Details are superb, I also love the effect of the mysterious mist and the chromatic consistency. Your note is most interesting, personal adventures and subjective descriptions are always more fascinating than encyclopedic data. Congratulations and thank you!
All the best, have a great weekend,
Ourania

Didi (61589) 2014-11-22 2:42

Hi Malgo
Very interesting local scene very good lights with the mist
Well done
Warm regards

batalay (41261) 2014-11-22 21:33

Dear Malgorzata,

You captured the scene draped in mystery and mystique, but colorful and very interesting. The fog provides a spectacular veil for the background.

We just returned from a lengthy "working vacation," and will pick up posting again. But I did not see such interesting scenes, although I did see spectacular scenes in the South Island of New Zealand.

Warmest regards,

Bulent