Tag Archives: buddhist It was hot. And dark. And – unless you enjoy clanging discordant pentatonic music – noisy. It was almost time for the evening performance at the Mandalay Marionettes Theatre. As we filed into the tiny space, a small band played Burmese classics to welcome us. Yoke Thay, traditional Myanmar puppet theatre, dates back several centuries. It was entertainment, held […]  Our private tour bus pulled over on a nondescript patch of road, somewhere between Mandalay and Pyin Oo Lwin. It seemed a quiet spot, with broken-down-looking vehicles parked at the side, and bamboo shop-fronts sitting back from the earthen verge. Ten photographic-tour participants, photographer Karl Grobl and Burmese guide Mr MM piled out of the vehicle, and […]  “I love the Burman with the blind favouritism born of first impression. When I die I will be a Burman … and I will always walk about with a pretty almond-coloured girl who shall laugh and jest too, as a young maiden ought. She shall not pull a sari over her head when a man […]  A friend of mine is currently bicycling around Bhutan. Bhutan! That magical, mysterious, land-locked country on the southern slopes of the eastern Himalayas where happiness is valued and elevations range from 200 m (660 ft) to more than 7,000 m (23,000 ft). Cycling! What a wonderful, life-embracing, inspirational woman she is. In spite of watching her progress with total awe and some envy, I […]  There are ups and downs when traveling with a photo group. One of the most important advantages is time: a group of people aiming to make pictures will often stay in one place long enough to experiment with light and angles and to focus on details, long enough to make the average non-photographer fidget with […] |
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