A Laos Kip for your thoughts?
This little Laos girl was travelling with her single mother, who looked about 20, and her three other sisters. They were amazingly happy and well behaved for the entire two day boat journey. They even ate the odd-flavoured crisps that I'd bought for the trip. At this moment she was watching the sunset and pretending to be oblivious to my camera.
This is one of my favourite photos from my year long solo round-the-world trip. It's far from technically perfect but nevertheless it holds a special place in my heart.
You see, pretty much my favourite part of travelling in developing countries was using public transport, not only because of the amazing scenery but also because its a rare chance to properly mix with the locals. We were all stuck on this boat for two days and before long the cramped surroundings turned us from "tourists and locals" into just "fidgeting people". One thing that never failed to impress me was the ability of the locals, be it in Bolivia, Nicaragua, or Laos, to sit for hours on end (sometimes 20+ hours) without any form of entertainment and never once complain of boredom, or about delays, or the uncomfortable surroundings. Compare this to the western travellers and indeed anyone you see on the tube in London - they cannot function without their Ipod or a newspaper or a book or a Playstation portable, or sometimes all of the above. I'm afraid to say I'm as guilty as the next person.
So it made me think: what do the Guatemalans/Nicaraguans/people from Laos (laotions?) think about all this time? One could hypothesise that their minds are less full of meaningless clutter than your average tabloid reader. Its doubtful they were pondering the dress Scarlett Johansson wore to the Golden Globes for example. So maybe they spend the time thinking about their friends and family and their place in the universe. If so, does this make them deeper, more at peace, more in touch with their souls? I'd love to know. But judging from the look in this young girl's eyes, and from many other soul-searching twenty-hour gazes I witnessed over the year, I'd say its something rather interesting.
Mekong River, Laos.
If you're bored, my travel stories can be found at www.getjealous.com/kieran1981
I apologise in advance for the bad jokes and devastating puns.
Update: This photo was shown on the Lonely Planet travel blog, Jan 2007
A Laos Kip for your thoughts?
This little Laos girl was travelling with her single mother, who looked about 20, and her three other sisters. They were amazingly happy and well behaved for the entire two day boat journey. They even ate the odd-flavoured crisps that I'd bought for the trip. At this moment she was watching the sunset and pretending to be oblivious to my camera.
This is one of my favourite photos from my year long solo round-the-world trip. It's far from technically perfect but nevertheless it holds a special place in my heart.
You see, pretty much my favourite part of travelling in developing countries was using public transport, not only because of the amazing scenery but also because its a rare chance to properly mix with the locals. We were all stuck on this boat for two days and before long the cramped surroundings turned us from "tourists and locals" into just "fidgeting people". One thing that never failed to impress me was the ability of the locals, be it in Bolivia, Nicaragua, or Laos, to sit for hours on end (sometimes 20+ hours) without any form of entertainment and never once complain of boredom, or about delays, or the uncomfortable surroundings. Compare this to the western travellers and indeed anyone you see on the tube in London - they cannot function without their Ipod or a newspaper or a book or a Playstation portable, or sometimes all of the above. I'm afraid to say I'm as guilty as the next person.
So it made me think: what do the Guatemalans/Nicaraguans/people from Laos (laotions?) think about all this time? One could hypothesise that their minds are less full of meaningless clutter than your average tabloid reader. Its doubtful they were pondering the dress Scarlett Johansson wore to the Golden Globes for example. So maybe they spend the time thinking about their friends and family and their place in the universe. If so, does this make them deeper, more at peace, more in touch with their souls? I'd love to know. But judging from the look in this young girl's eyes, and from many other soul-searching twenty-hour gazes I witnessed over the year, I'd say its something rather interesting.
Mekong River, Laos.
If you're bored, my travel stories can be found at www.getjealous.com/kieran1981
I apologise in advance for the bad jokes and devastating puns.
Update: This photo was shown on the Lonely Planet travel blog, Jan 2007