The Photography of Dr. Jeffrey P. Harper

I saw this in my feed online and thought it might be interesting to go to the Bangkok Chinatown for Chinese New Year.  I had never been to Chinatown on Chinese New Years in all my years in Bangkok . . . plus, the Bangkok Chinatown is the largest Chinatown outside of China.  I took the Bangkok underground and popped out . . . 

[This trip was also an opportunity to test my new camera, the Fuji X-T5, in a variety of challenging lighting conditions: bright sunlight, deep shadow, and night street photography.  The X-T5 takes 40mp photos, but are posted here in only 850px on the long edge. You be the judge . . . but I am very happy with the results!]

 . . . I popped out a few blocks from the center of Chinatown . . . in the middle of a huge crowd.  It seems that I was not the only one with the idea.

Part of the crowd was congregating around this Chinese Temple.  We found out that one of the Thai Royal Family was due to arrive there soon to pay respects.  It was a big day in the Bangkok Chinatown.

I was hot and thirsty so I bought a pomegranate juice and was happy.

We cut through an alley to get to the center of the action.  The whole highly decorated area was a crush of people, many of whom were foreign tourists.

The many small Chinese temples were busy with devotees leaving alms and donations and being blessed by the monks.

Every imaginable kind of 'altar toy' was for sale in gold and red.  Fantastic!

This good natured monk seemed to enjoy giving water blessings to whomever stopped and donated.

We explpored deep down the beautifully decorated side streets of Bangkok's Chinatown.

Chinese New Year is a traditional time for fruit purchasing, apparently.

These ice blocks sitting in an alley looked inviting . . . as a shortcut over to the next street . . . and as a way of avoiding the crushing crowds.

Chinatown alleys always offer up surprise images, like this very old small industry.

Spotted amid the complex patterns of the alley was some kind of temple . . . let's explore . . .

Looking inside, we found this marvelous Chinese Buddhist Temple.  Serendipity!

The temple inner altar was fantastically decorated.

The inner temple altar in all its phantasmagoria!

Incense pot . . . 

The main altar displayed the pantheon of Chinese spiritual deities and revered monks behind glass.

The opportunities for amazing photos were endless here . . . I took many more excellent photos in there than I have posted here . . . perhaps I need an entry just for this marvelous place.

These were very low light (and smoky) conditions for photography . . . such beauty everywhere!

There were several small "side altars" around the inner chamber.

We spent quite a abit of time inside the Chinese Temple . . . and could have spent a whole day documenting this old, photogenic, spiritual space . . . but we left for the alley again and onward to the New Year celebrations about to happen.

Back out in the small alley . . . it is fun to explore for images here.

Many visual wonders to see along the alley walls . . . 

We popped out on the very crowded main street leading to the performance stage . . .

Moments before the street was finally closed to auto traffic . . . and vendors and 'selfie' takers took over.

Four local ladies all dressed up for a night of celebration.

Plenty of goodies to eat . . . healthy and otherwise!

As evening approached the crowd migrated toward a "main stage" for the nighttime events.

It became almost impossible to get to the intersection where the stage was set . . . but we somehow pushed our way through.

Revellers found time to pose with traditionally dressed street photo hawkers.

We finally made it to an area behind the stage where the handlers of the dragon were waiting to do their dragon dance down the crowded avenue.

The dragon head . . . staged and ready.

We roamed the side streets looking for interesting images to capture with our cameras.  We are never disappointed in Bangkok Chinatown for photogenic scenes.

A beautiful Chinatown scene . . . 

These small side street restaurants would become full after the street celebrations later in the evening.

The crows were becoming a crush on the main avenue . . . 

The anticipation was just killing him!!!!

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Night Arrives!

Night arrived at last . . . and we wriggled our way through this crowd to an area behind the stage where the performers were getting ready for the show.

Fantastic costumes everywhere back stage. . . .

A photographer's dream!

A wonderful array of traditional costumes.

The backstage area almost warranted its own blog entry.

New Years' revellers taking a load off their tired feet . . . and checking their phones for vital communication.

The backstage entrance light tunnel was popular.

There was no way to get close to the Dragon when it made its way out into the crowd . . . too many iPhone photographers!!!

I did manage this shot of the departing Dragon by holding my camera over my head.  Amazing.

After the dragon departed we decided it was time to beat the crowds back to the underground station, and headed out . . . but still with camera in hand for the fantastic night images.

Yes, we "fought" our way back through this crowd . . . but people were good and generous with our passage.

A beautiful array of lighting above . . .

The street food vendors were doing a brisk business after dark.  Here rice-cooked-in-bamboo . . . delicious!

People were out for a nice meal on the Chinatown streets tonight.

Long lines at this stall . . . it must have been good and tasty.

Preparing Northern Thailand spicy sausage . . . yum-yum!

We left the crowded main celebration avenue and walked along a parallel street . . . there was no shortage of photographically interesting things along this route.

A Thai Buddhist temple (Wat) lit up.

"Why not keep the shop open a little later tonight . . . maybe make some extra sales, what with the big crowds and all."

Why not set up a couple of card tables for those treasures you have for sale?

A real jumble sale.  This one was very sad to see . . . someone was very poor.  I looked for the seller, but could find nobody. I left 100 baht (US$3.oo) on the table as a donation.

This night busker had it all . . . even his own light show!

This Buddhist votive statuary shopkeeper had a brilliant way of lureing customers into their shop . . .  and it worked:

I bought the Ji Gong effigy (far right, top, third from right) for my collection.

At last, a shortcut back to the MRT underground station.

Then onto a crowded MRT underground train home. [This is the ONLY person on the train NOT wearing a mask . . . an American, of course!]

I have so many wonderful memories from that evening spent among the thousands celebrating Chinese New Year in Bangkok's Chinatown.  It was a visual extravaganza . . . and a photographers dream!

Back in December 2020, just as COVID 19 was bursting on the international scene and choking Thailand's tourist industry, the Thai government came up with a brilliant scheme to give vouchers to Thai residents for discounts at Thai resorts and restaurants in 'tourist areas' to spur more 'in country' tourism by Thais.  It worked . . . we took a road trip north to Loei, Chiang Khan, and the Mekong River.

Our route had us drive straight through to Loei from our home in a northern suburb of Bangkok.

The  majority of the drive north to Loei was on modern, divided expressway.  However, as we neared Loei the road reverted to a 2-lane country road.  We were lured into this strawberry stand with the promise of delicious fruit.

They were growing their own strawberries here . . . but they were asking a very high price for them.  We declined to purchase any strawberries here.

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LOEI

This is the old Loei I came to see . . . 

Loei is a provincial market town in the north of Thailand.  It is still "old Thailand" in Loei. I last visited here about 20 years ago . . . and yes, it has changed a great deal.

But there is still a lot of the old Thailand I know and love in Loei.

The street food in Loei is excellent . . . and the people friendly.

The old downtown of Loei still has locally-owned department stores and "supermarkets" like this one.

A street corner in downtown Loei.  I love snooping around in these old Thai market towns.

We stopped in this hole-in-the-wall restaurant for delicious noodle soup.

A busy market town serving a large agricultural community.

The things you see in Thailand! Yes, it was Christmas season even in Loei, Thailand.  They celebrate everything here!

We walked through the downtown and found the banks of the Loei River.  The bridge led to a beautiful city park.

There was fun to be had in Loei.

I sat across the street in a hipster coffee shop while my wife shopped in a fine traditional Thai textile shop across the street.

Yes, the hipster cool coffee shop can be found throughout the entire planet . . . even in the remote old market town of Loei.

Always interesting old stuff to be found in old Thai village stores.

Our very good, and very cheap Au Place Hotel in Loei.

Just a half block away from the hotel on a rural street we found this stylish Vietnamese restaurant.

We spent a couple nights in Loei and would venture out into the countryside in search of interesting things to see.  We found this amazing Buddhist Temple (Wat).

There were caves with Buddhas to explore at this wat.

There was this very beautiful marble temple on the wat grounds.

The marble temple was very interesting inside.

Marvelous light and reflection inside the marble wat.

We found this marvelous restaurant for our dinner on the second night in Loei.

The "elephant restaurant' interior dining area.

We had a fine meal in this old wooden room with traditional spirit masks hanging around.

Back at our hotel . . . they had the grounds lit up like a carnival!!!

The next morning we said good-bye to Loei and hit the road for then short drive north to the town of Chiang Khan along the Mekong River.

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CHIANG KHAN

We stopped at a riverside resort as soon as we arrived at the river . . . and this was out first view of the mighty Mekong River.

We quickly found our charming old wooden guest house.

Our guest house was right on a kind of 'walking street' through the riverside village.  The Mekong River is directly behind the row of houses and shops to the left.

Chiang Khan is a lovely and funky old Thai town with interesting shops and bike rentals.

With both front and rear doors open, you can look right through this hostel to the river behind it.

The many shops lining the walking street had ample supplies of local handicrafts to meet the tourist demand.

A guest house with street side 'beer chairs' . . . perfect for people watching.  I couldn't help but notice the Brew Dog Punk IPA bottle . . . from Aberdeen, Scotland, my former residence.

Such an interesting and photogenic little town.

Some shops hung fabric against the harsh afternoon sun.

Each shop-front seems to have its own personality, and the photographs are like portraits.

Beautiful local, high quality traditional textiles.

There were also many shops selling the usual array of souvenir 'touristwear.'

There is no shortage of restaurants and places to buy good, expensive coffee.

I love photographing these old wooden shops . . . anywhere in the world . . . but Chiang Khan had hundreds of them, and all with amazing shapes, features, colors, and textures.

A beautiful shop-front portrait.  The harsh afternoon sunlight actually enhances this photo by accentuating the wood grain and colors.

Another fabulous paneled storefront with Chinese lanterns. Lovely.

Just so much to see, notice, and photograph in this sweet little riverside town.

There was also some very nice chalk public art here and there.

Sweet chalk street art.

A very inviting bakery . . . delicious too!

Thai aesthetics are always fascinating and gorgeous. It's all in the details.  Here, a detail of the interior of our guesthouse.

When walking around such these richly aesthetic places with a camera in hand, I am prone to take these kinds of "still life" photographs: pleasing arrangements of objects in fascinating light.

Another "still life" of an old art gallery.

A very old wall revealing ancient building techniques.

Wooden wall with broom and ash tray.

Chalk graffiti on old panel shop doors . . . there is a story here.

Old panel shop doors reflected in a stainless steel table.  Nice.  These "still life" photo opportunities were endless in Chiang Khan.

A very nice tuk-tuk, although I never saw anybody riding in one . . . everybody walked around the little town.

We were getting tired and sore walking around the sweet town . . . deciding what to do next . . .

Massage! That's what's next!!  The massage shop owner was very kind.

a 2 1/2 hour Thai massage will cure whatever ails you, that's for sure!  This street side massage room was so beautiful. Just breathtaking!

We spent part of our days walking along a path next to the Mekong River.

Looking across the Mekong toward the 'wild side' of Laos.

Riverboat ferry both local people and tourists up and down the river.

Mekong River boats at the ready.

A fisherman going home.  Surprisingly, I did not see very many fishermen out on the river.

The fiew upriver toward the smoky Lao hills from Chiang Khan.

When the sun set we headed to the night market street.

CHIANG KHAN by NIGHT

As the light faded, and the heat dissipated, it seemed that every Thai tourist in town left their guesthouse and headed to the main walking street. 

The darker it got, the bigger the crowd under the colorful, and fading sky.

At last the sun had fully set.

Many of the shops, restaurants, and bars that were closed in the afternoon opened for the throngs that came out at night.  This craft beer joint was a welcome stop for me.

The interior of the craft beer hall.

The Thai hippies who ran the craft beer hall had a fantastic collection of beers and ales to choose from.

The town became even more photogenic at night. BBQ beef street hawkers.

The many stalls set up along the night street became a 'night market' - a favorite of Thai people and visitors to Thailand.  There was a wide variety of things for sale.  Nuts! I love nuts!

All the night market visitors brought their appetites . . . and were rewarded with a wide variety of delicious Thai specialties to eat.

Street performers in their traditional 'hill tribe' costumes entertained the gathered crowds.

My favorite street performer was this young busker playing electrified traditional old Thai music in a homemade outfit. Cool.

We enjoyed out nights walking along the Chiang Khan night market street.

After two nights in Chiang Khan we woke up early and said good-bye to the river and headed south.

Khon Kaen

We were about 30 minutes out of Chiang Khan and decided to take a different route home to Bangkok. Neither of us had ever been to Khon Kaen . . . so why not?

We didn't do too much sightseeing . . . just drove around town . . . found a great restaurant on Google . . . and found this magnificent wat to go in . . .

We were very glad we went inside.

There are many different altars in the large inner space . . . each with a group of people paying respects.

Very special light falling on the various Buddha images.

Pots for making donations and making wishes.

Such a pretty flower memorial altar.

This hyper-realistic wax monk was too realistic . . . and creepy.

We paid our respects here and then chatted with a monk before leaving.  We knew we haddn't spent enough time in Khon Kaen and vowed to return.

We left the next morning for a 7 hour drive home.  

It had been a wonderful vacation in the middle of the COVID Pandemic!

Just travelling along the highway from Leesville, Louisiana to Selma, Alabama, via Natchez,  all the way across Mississippi with my friend Bud riding along, we pulled off on a side road to seek refreshment and saw this gem from an older America: The Simmons-Wright Company store.

Only a mile or two before the Mississippi - Alabama state line.

The Simmons-Wright Company is a historic general store established in 1884 in Kewanee, Mississippi, a small town just outside Meridian in Lauderdale County. The building was listed on the  National Register of Historic Places in 2008. It looked inviting, so we walked right in.

A peek through the dusty window before we entered foreshadowed the delights within!

OMG! We walked in to find this time capsule of another era; the general store.  I am old enough to remember these kinds of stores from my childhood living in The South, but never imagined one would have survived, intact from that time.

All original store fittings, shelves, coolers . . . .

 . . . there was even the 'origional' cash register.  Amazing.

The cash register was a masterful work of art from a bygone era.  The mess around the store must have made it feel like a comfortable old shoe to the old man sitting behind the counter.  He kept a good eye on us as we wondered around.

A little bit of everything a person might want to stop in and get on the way home from the mill job.  I love the hand made  "No Children Allowed Without An Adult" sign.

No computerized stock control here, no bar code scanning or shelf space earning ratios.  You have to know your customers tastes. The array of food choices on offer speaks to the local cultural preferences.

The dry goods isle was half merchandise and half museum display.

There was a small "kitchen" area in the back.  Coffee, but it looked like we were either too late or too early for the cakes that go on the foil-covered trays.

An inviting pot belly stove surrounded by the "eating area."  I wondered if these seats filled up in the afternoon and evening with regulars who stop in to chat and for beer and snacks.

The pot belly stove was a work of art made of the patina of the passage of time.

The pot belly stove stood in a place of prominence . . . in the center.  It looked like it has been used right up into the present.  It was early October, but not yet chilly in eastern Mississippi, so it had not been stoked on this day.

The long side wall was was reserved for the "display only" shelving.

I walked around the old store in big loops taking photos and being stunned by the disheveled beauty of this space.

I hadn't seen or heard him enter, but at some point an old African American man came in and made himself at home.  He and the proprietor exchanged some friendly conversation in low, almost silent tones.

An "array of mixed plumbing supplies" and sweet potatoes.

"May I take some photos out back," I asked.  "Go right ahead," he replied as he pointed to this door next to the nail bins.

Nice.  A fine old, weathered back yard shed.

I love old rusted corrugation . . . I live for dilapidation and rusted corrugation . . . 

There was also an old "mill" of some kind behind the store. I decided to snoop around a little. An absolutely gorgeous corrugated building.

This door to the mill was locked . . . but what a photo!

This door was locked from the inside.

This image!  The things in this photo were made, manufactured, built, and assembled by somebody working somewhere at some real time and place in the past.  That cart was made for the purpose of moving around more than one man can hold at once.  It is also a tool of work . . . it was the focus of labor for some person as a part of their paid employment, day after day.

At last I found a large opened door on the side of the mill.  This machinery was inside . . . I snooped around more inside, but for the life of me, I could not figure out what this machinery was used for.  I even did a Google search . . . my guess was that it was a corn grinding operation at some time in the past.

These structures next to the mill were hints as to the purpose of the mill.  One looks like a 'corn crib,' but I am not sure.

Was ground corn meal blown up into this hopper for loading into trucks or barrels? I don't know, but  I loved the aged patina of the weathered wood . . .

The sun broke through a thin cloud cover and the light became wonderful.

Perhaps rooms for the hired seasonal mill workers?

I hadn't noticed this barber chair on the way in . . . but . . . I could have spent all day in that old country store and its outbuildings . . . but Bud and I had to hit the road.  We were heading for a place of great historical significance; Selma, Alabama, a place I have always wanted to make a pilgrimage.

My wife and I visited Poland (Kraków and Gdańsk) in the summer of 2014.  This entry is of the three days we spent in Gdańsk, while there is another entry for Kraków HERE.

Gdańsk is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever visited . . . and as good luck would have it, we visited during a street festival!

The statue to Neptune.

One of many small squares in the city center.  The architectural style was surprisingly . . . . Dutch.

Gdańsk is on the Motlawa River estuary.

An old city filled with wonderful architecture.

The architecture of Gdańsk tells a story:  "Parts of the historic old city of Gdańsk, which had suffered large-scale destruction during the war, were rebuilt during the 1950s and 1960s. The reconstruction was not tied to the city's pre-war appearance, but instead was politically motivated as a means of culturally cleansing and destroying all traces of German influence from the city. Any traces of German tradition were ignored by the communists, suppressed, or regarded as Prussian barbarism only worthy of demolition, while communist and Flemish/Dutch, Italian and French influences were used to replace the historically accurate Germanic architecture which the city was built upon since the 14th century. [Citation]

The Long Street with the old (circa 1327) City Hall towering over it.

Although I would have preferred to stay at an old 'boutique hotel,' we instead stayed at a modern 25 story hotel.  The plus side of the modern hotel were the views over the city.

Gdańsk was reduced to piles of stone and brick during WWII by Allied and Soviet bombers.  Almost all of what you see here was reconstructed during the 1950s and 1960s.

As luck would have it, we arrived in Gdańsk right in the middle of the annual St. Dominic's Fair. With 750 years of successful tradition, the history of the Fair goes back to the year 1260, when it was established by the decree of Pope Alexander IV. 

St. Dominic's Fair brought tourists from all over Poland, Europe, and the Far East.

Every street in the city was set up with stalls selling food and crafts. It was the biggest street food and crafts fair I have ever seen!

In addition to the street stalls, the fair attracted artists . . . 

 . . . buskers . . .

 . . . street performers . . .

 . . . morose balloon salesperson . . .

 . . . historically costumed information givers . . . giving me the Evil Eye! YAR!

 . . . and this guy (wearing a hat that said Crime!) who tried to entice the tourists to wager on his 'snail races.' The street fair was, in many ways, still like its medieval origins.

We enjoyed shopping at the many interesting crafts stalls.

Interesting bags . . .

 . . . very cool hats . . .

 . . . very cool hat and bag!  There were some very unusual arts at the fair.

Many beautiful textiles on sale.  We bought many things at the these stalls to take back home to Scotland with us.  I bought a hat!

These street stalls were so cute: they mimicked the style of the Gdańsk buildings.

The textiles, hats, and bags were nice . . . but the variety of FOOD at the festival was incredible!!!

The breads were fantastic!

The breads were fantastic!

I was in pig heaven for sausage lovers like me!

SAUSAGE!!!!

I loved cured and smoked pork fat as a child . . . a few thin slabs on a piece of peasant bread . . . mmmmmm!  But I resisted! 

Cures and smoked meats . . . a very Eastern European way of eating . . . and so very tasty!

Many of the shops put their fruits and vegetables out on the street.

Temperate climate fruits are a real treat for us.  These kinds of fruit in Bangkok cost a small fortune, so we went crazy living in Europe for a few years.

Lovely fruit.

Whole heads of sunflowers . . . that's the way to sell sunflower seeds!

Fresh, crispy cucumbers!

They had every kind of street food at the fair, including this actual Burrito Truck!  Amazing! (I didn't buy one, and immediately regreted it!)

We bought a lot at the wooden spoon stand to take back home to our cottage in Scotland.

A dealer of art and socks . . .

A woman set up her stool and sold her own crocheted items.  Sweet.

There were many buskers, but this guy was exceptionally good.

The weather varied from bright sunshine to dark clouds and sudden bursts of rain.

We found thee perfect Old Europe restaurant  . . .

We were hungry for lunch and found this charming old restaurant.

Down along the river quay.  A fine medieval dock crane on the far left.

River cruise ship for the tourists . . . 

For me, the lure of Gdańsk was the marvelous array of fascinating architecture.

A few of the old buildings survived the carpet bombing.

Such an odd building . . . all roof and dormers . . .

Narrow alleys, cobbles streets, ancient buildings . . . the charms of old Europe.

Here and there . . . public art . . .

My love of old doors, walls and windows was satisfied in a big way in Gdańsk!

I was told by a shopkeeper that some of these grand old doors and their stone casings were pulled from the rubble after the bombings and restored and reused.  Marvelous.

I marveled at these windows . . . exquisite!

Such lovely symmetry, color, shape . . .

A gate from the time of horse drawn carriages . . .

I loved the whimsical display.

So sweet.

A weathered door . . . and . . .

 . . . and its context.

A fine, formal marble doorway.

High relief stonework.  Nice.

Not all of Gdańsk's doors were as appreciated as I would like to have seen.

The views out over Gdańsk at night from our high rise hotel room were wonderful.

Making this photo blog about this wonderful city has made me very homesick for living in Europe . . . 

I don't know if I will ever return to Gdańsk, but I know I will always have fond memories of it.