The Photography of Dr. Jeff Harper

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Songkran is the actual Thai Buddhist calendar New Year holiday . . . and the third New Year celebrated each year in this wonderful country (the others are January 1 and the Chinese New Year). I had a ten day holiday from work (in Bangkok) . . . so I hit the road.  The first four days in Hua Hin, and the next five days on a road trip through Trat Province to Khlong Yai District and then on to the Cambodian boarder (Hat Lek) at the furthest Southeast point in Thailand.  I will be putting up all my best photos from this trip over the next few weeks, as time allows, so keep checking back.   Photos from the Hua Hin part of my holiday follow this blog entry here.

Trat and Khlong Yai Provinces boarder the Gulf of Thailand, so there is no shortage of tropical vistas.

The topicality was ubiquitous . . . as these back lit palm trees against a blue sky testify.

EXPLORING the MAIROOD FISHING VILLAGEThe main attraction of the Khlong Yai coast are the many small fishing villages built on pilings in the estuarial mangrove inlets.  The good thing about having your own vehicle is taking the small seaside roads so you can check out any "local attractions."  This is Mairood Fishing Village.  We stayed here for two days and two nights.  it was a photogaphers paradice . . . . completely unspoiled by mass tourism . . . and beautiful colors.

Thai fishermen paint their photogenic boats amazing colors.

The fishing villagers were very friendly.  This fisherman called out to us to join him for an evening's trawl!

All the villages had an array of boats in all sizes and configurations.  it was a photographer's heaven . . . and hell: how to choose between so many fascinating images?  We stayed at the fantastic, and rustic, Mairood Resort which you had to walk through hte village to get to!

The wooden houses of the fishing villages were connected by old wooden boardwalks above the muddy mangrove bays.

Although I am sure the occupants would want "better," the colors and textures of this house are something fantastic. I might be interested in trading homes.

With all the un-air-conditioned houses packed so closely together, everyone must get along.  Three generations enjoy a mid-day meal in 40+ heat.

There are bits and pieces of adornment here and there throughout the village.

An old fisherman swelters in the heat, kiddie fan in hand.

 A fisherman's shack, Mairood, Thailand.

This jaundiced old bachelor fisherman kept a messy shack.

Rusty corrugated "tin" roofing has become the icon for degradation. Why?  It is so beautiful.

Most of the fishermen and their families keep a tidy, clean, and spare house.  They all live on the floor; there was hardly a chair in the village.

Life within the village.

Incredible line, pattern, and shadow.

A benefit of building your home over the estuary is the convenience of casting your nets from your front porch.

The irony of this photo was not lost on this old fisherman.

Apparently the fisherman (above) had not tended his spirit house properly.  It is interesting that his spirit house was made of the same materials as his home.

Most houses had a spirit house . . . often in a better state of repair than the main house.

No matter where I have been in my life, there has always been a house made into art.

Most residents of these fishing villages spend the hot part of the day sitting in their open-fronted houses looking out over their dock and boat.

The dock poarchs are the workplaces of the fishermen.

The docks are used for a variety of purposes.  Here shrimp are drying.

Some docks are very busy places in preparation for the coming night's fishing foray.

Very clever: shells used as net weights.

Neatly stacked stuffed shell net weights.

There is a system of colored flags to identify each owners' nets when deployed at sea.

Bright net flags.

A wide variety of colored flags are used, making the fishing village a very colorful place indeed.

The bows of the fishing boats are festooned with colorful flower bouquets, gossamer bunting, and garlands for good luck.

There was no hiding the colorful boats!

The Everyday here seemed bright and profound: the Supra Mundane of the Buddhists.

Although remote and undeveloped, the villagers are not cut off from the modern world: I saw many iPhones here . . .  and notice the satellite dishes atop the shacks.

There were many elderly people in the village.

I thuroughly enjoyed photograaphing the corregated art of Mairood Village.

The area around the village, and the Mairood Resort, was sandy Mangrove marsh and beaches.

Mangrove plants are very strange . . . they throw up shoots in the lagoons . . . and knees in the swamps.

The villagers abandon worn out boats in the lagoon . . . but not forever, it seems.  Many of the houses seem to be build of disassembled fishing boats.

Out on the beach this man came up to us eager to share his amazement, and good luck, about the bee hive rich in honey he had just robbed across the lagoon.

While the open fronts of the houses face the estuary and docks, the backs of their homes are in the mangrove swamp.

The mangrove swamp is full of interesting, and photogenic, things.

It would be wonderful to be a child in this environment . . . the opportunities to  fantasy play in the mangroves is limitless.  It reminded me of the several years I lived, and played, in the Sabine River swamps of Louisiana in my own childhood (1958-1960).

I found these girls among the mangroves . . . on some kind of a lark.

My cabin at the Mairood Resort was as comfortable as it was beautiful . . . and a stone's throw from the mangrove swamp, beach, and fishing village.  Perfect!

This photography stuff is difficult . . . and hot!  Poor me . . . . I had to spend the afternoon at the Mairood Resort pool.

The grounds and gardens of the Mairood Resort are beautiffly landscaped.

EARLY MORNING MAIROOD, THAILANDWe woke very early one morning to go out on the docks to see the Buddhist monks on their morning alms rounds.  It was quiet, calm, and clear as the village awoke.

A few people were up and starting their day . . . . but no monks.

The fishing boats sat  still in their morning moorings.

The village was still asleep.

We walked to the bridge where we would walk the road to the nearby Buddhist temple.  There was one dockside shop open selling vegetables and fruit.

A part of Mairood is firmly planted on the ground. 

As we walked toward the Wat, the morning light started to pour in.

An eager shopkeeper opening early (6:00am) on what promised to be a fiercely hot day.

The local hardware store opened early too.

The walk to Wat turned out to be three kilometers.  The scenery was breathtaking; the light perfect.

We saw a great variety of spirit houses along the way.  Some home made . . .

. . . and some store bought.

But all the spirit houses were serving their purposes well: to house the spirits in nature that were displaced when the humans came and cleared land and built houses.

Many people were out in the "cool" morning air (it was 28c at 6:00am!) tending small garden plots.

As we walked along the country road taking photographs, these monks caught and passed us on their way back to the Wat.

We followed this young monk to his Wat.

The monks, young and old, arrived back at the Wat with the morning's alms.  Th Abbot told us they will eat only once a day.  Monks continued to arrive in small and large groups.

It was a very spiritual morning.

The Wat bell . . . used to call the monks to meditation and study.

A peaceful and tranquil place.  The rural Wats are more serene than the noisy and dog-infested Bangkok counterparts.

Yep, all roads lead here . . . that's a certainty.  The Wat crematorium stained with the soot of those once alive.

We arrived at the fantastic Mairood Wat and were greeted by very friendly monk who showed us around and explained its history and pointed out some of the building projects going on which he was in charge of.

Sorry.  I took about twenty perfect photos of this Wat and could not decide which to post . .  so here is another.  Incredible beauty.

Self portrait at the Mairood Wat.

It was the perfect morning to wear your new dress while riding your new bicycle before it got too hot.

We walked back to Mairood village in time to see some boats coming back in from the over night  fishing.

The colors of the village, fishermen, and boats were vivid.

This was the fish of the day being offloaded.

What's for lunch?  Not seafood AGAIN! The poor children.

The simple beauty and charm of home made spirit houses, recently tended, was touching.

Mothers and children awaited the return of the fishermen with news of the catch . . . and their safety.

A Mairood Sunset

As we walked around the  village we noticed the sun was getting low.  Villagers were beginning to prepare the evening meal:  seafood, what else!

 As the sun began to set, and he heat and humidity began to subside, the village children came out to play.

Sometimes it seemed like the children were posing . . . it was such a perfectly beautiful evening.

Magic light . . .

During and after the Killing Fields of Pol Pot, this part of Thailand was a haven for Cambodian refugees.  many of the residents of the Mairood Village are of Cambodian nationality, like this little girl.

A boy lost in play among the thick hyacinth tangle at sunset.

This girl and her dog were inseparable.

And, my oh my, what a sunset it was!

For the boys it was time to climb up onto a squid boat . . . .

. . . . and play pirates in the squid rigging.

 We were at the estuary outlet one sunset.

Children were out playing in the fading light.

This boy was very sad: he had just learned that his family as going to move to "the city" from Mairood village.

There is so much to do and to explore in a young world.

Young Sisyphus.

Sunset Boyplay.  When and where indelible memories are made.

With the last of the light fading, more and more boats left Mairood port for a night's fishing n the Gulf of Saim.