01-JAN-2009
Please Help My Mother
A man begging for money from the public to help his mother who is sick. He was moving his head up and down non stop for at least 20 minutes.
By the way, there are two faces of Shanghai. One part representing the modern out look with high skyscrappers while the other side consist of a lot of old buildings.
06-JUN-2007
The Lost Soul
Spotted this man sitting at the bus stop in his own little world. There he sat all by himself with his dirty looking clothes and jeans. He doesn't even careless of what was happening around him like a lost soul in the city.
That's My Life
This is the typical life at the countryside of Sapa, Vietnam. You can see some of the peddlars sitting by the roadside selling their goods. Some of the tribes walk for miles to town to sell their goods and take home the necessasities back home. Life as such.......
Check out these shots also :
24-JAN-2007
A Nibble
The kids don't have much to eat or even enjoy. Just the local food (if any). The poorer families just live by eating rice only. Attached below are a couple of pictures illustrating the scene of village life.
Sad
This group of children looked depressed and sad. No smile and the first boy also got the sniffles. I wonder what were their parents doing? And even what was on their mind. Probably nothing, just staring without any particular reason. They don't even look curious or excited seeing a tourist taking a shot of them - since there's no sign of joy or excitement on their faces.
A Face With Many Stories To Tell
I am sure if we were to sit with her and speak her language, she will be most happy to tell us the story of her life. It's not an everyday face we see in the city, except if we went to look for them.
More Than A Thousand Words
I found this shot a very moving and captivating image. It's depressing in a way but I feel a swell of compassion in my heart for the children. Their facial expression with their dirty looking clothes describes to me a life of hardship.
Man Made Stroller, but without wheels
I have seen a man made stretcher, a handmade baby cradle (like the image below which you use a cloth to wrap and tie around one's body to hold the baby/child), but not a man made stroller (without wheels) like this one. I suppose this is another convenient way to carry the younger ones especially if he is already too big to be wrapped around the body. It must be pretty scary for this little boy. It is definitely not fun for those who are carrying him and having to walk a long distance which they do from the homes to the town to work. I was told the journey could take as long as 1 full day and the roads are steep, narrow, muddy and still they do this everyday without any complaint.
Life At The Other Side
Here you see a very young boy lugging on a couple of logs. To me they look heavy especially him being so small and young. I can never imagine any city kid having to do that ...I only presume that's because of the lifestyle and environmental setting. Being where they are secluded from civilisation that's the way of life living in a tribal community.
Below is a BW conversion of the image:
You will find that the BW conversion brings you closer to the boy but as a result you loose the details at the background. This is just a comparison of the impact that an image can give you if you were to use either colour/BW.
Left Alone
The children are left behind while the adults go out to work. Some go to school, while others just wonders around.
Almost Mohawk Hairstyle
Very often we see little children playing with sand and getting themselves dirty. This boy clad in a dirty T-shirt, held on to a lump of clay. This is probably the only thing around for him to play with other than a few stones on the ground. It is so different if we compared to a city kid with lots of toys to play with. He probably hasn't even seen a hot wheeler car before. I am sure if you were to put your kid here with them, they would probably have no problem blending in but if he were to see that car, he would be thrilled and also wished he owned one.
Check out this shot and you will know what I mean.
A Sign Of Hope
The joy on the children's face with their peace sign of hope.
Below is another`Peace Sign' shot which I have captured in Tonle Sap Lake. See the different interpretation of the sign which is suppose to signify `peace'. For this child, it symbolizes money (USD2).
Survival
While the adults go out to the fields to work, the children are left at home to take care of the younger siblings or play among themselves. Look at this girl, despite her age and small size, she has to carry her little brother piggy back who is sound asleep.
It's quite a common sight to see the older siblings carrying the younger ones around, even some will cradle them to work.