Global Sojourns Photography
Photography & Philosophy
Power of Nature and Change
Posted on May 1, 2013
I hadn’t planned on writing another blog entry on Cambodia, but then it is a good excuse to show some of the more iconic shots of the power of nature at Ta Prohm and discuss the inevitable change around us. Of all the photos I have seen of Cambodia, these tend to be the most common: nature coming in to continue the cycle of change…to return everything back to its source.
Change is a challenge nature throws our way, and how we reconcile change within our lives makes us who we are. Today’s world has undergone a paradigm shift in terms of how technology has removed us further from the physical world. A change that has many people struggling to understand what lies ahead. Where in the past we had a better understanding and thus security, today we float through ethernet cables from quarks to parallel universes. Yet fear not.
This is the beauty of evolution. When we understand that change is the only constant there is in our lives, it makes it easier to recognize our own purpose and meaning. We either adapt or struggle (e.g. blaming politics & the world until our last breath). At times, I have been terrified of change and struggled until realizing that change brings experience to life and, in essence, brings out a hero quality we all have inside.
This is perhaps why I find Ta Prohm so fascinating. Mother Earth has taught us: change & evolution is inevitable and in the future more great monuments may become covered in brush & vine as society decides to moves on.
The Hall of the Dancers at Ta Prohm intrigued me the most, mainly because some locals were filling me in on its history and I walked away knowing that it is futile to fight change. Understand change, embrace its inevitability and continue to move forward and add value to our lives and to those around us.
The 16th verse of Laozi addresses this well:
致虚极，守静笃。万物并作吾以观其复。夫物芸芸，各复归其根。归根曰静静曰复命。复命曰常，知常曰明。不知常，妄作凶。知常，容，容乃公，公乃王，王乃天，天乃道，道乃久，没身不殆。
Empty your mind and heart and be at peace, while around you is turmoil: endings become beginnings and beginnings will end. Everything flourishes and everything ends, it is what it is: the cycle of life. If you do not understand your source and nature, you will stumble and life will stagnate.
Understand your source and you can fulfill your destiny. Be tolerant among change and you can deal with all life brings your way until you are ready for the cycle to begin again.
My simple take on this verse: By allowing yourself to accept change, you to return to your source (your nature) where you are able to begin to understand how your world really works. With this understanding, you are ready for all life can offer…thus will accept the end.
Cambodia: Beauty of Angkor Wat
Posted on April 29, 2013
Angkor Wat is famous for a very good reason: it is stunning in its beauty as well as its mystery. The largest religious temple (Hindu) ever built almost a millennium ago and hidden from all until just recently. While photo opportunities lie everywhere, the ambiance of this vast piece of art is felt only by wandering through its amazing halls and structures.
While there is a peacefulness that surrounds the area, I cannot help but wonder about all the strife and tragedy that has occurred over the past thousand years…taking what was once a mecca of Khmer life and while never fully abandoned, fell silent as the forces of nature took over as regional politics and war ebbed and flowed.
In the jungle north of Angkor is one of my favorite spots, the Preah Khan temple, and unlike Angkor Wat, it has remained in ruins as there has been very little (if any) restoration. However, the lack of restoration actually creates more electricity for me. The temple is full of sacred images of Khmer women protecting the temple with their auspicious presence and as I sat down with my lunch (the fried cakes shown a couple posts earlier), I contemplate how vivid life must have been almost 1,000 years ago.
I admit to a certain naiveté, wishing that I could have been an explorer back in those days, understanding that it was a very hard life, for sure, but I imagine the unexpected delight that around every corner was possibly a new & vibrant culture to be experienced would have been worth the struggle.
My advice to any and all people can be best expressed by an article Jeff Goins wrote, I think it should be required reading for all: http://goinswriter.com/travel-young/
Cambodia: Morning at Bayon…
Posted on April 27, 2013
The first morning light brings with it the promise of a new day, and with it new dreams.
Morning can be difficult to claw yourself out of bed, especially pre-dawn. However, once your up and feel the anticipation of the day and the peacefulness that surrounds, there is not a better feeling. Bayon, outside of Phnom Penh was such an oasis. In the pre-dawn darkness, alone among ancient ruins, ruins that at the time were some of the greatest in the world, it was a blissful feeling.
Starting each day with dreams and hopes of happiness allows us at the end of the day to reflect on the beauty the morning brings to us. Reflections in photography are a powerful way to express an emotion of that time when you released the shutter. When what you felt can be reconciled with what you saw, and can then be shared with others.
Happiness in the most unlikely places…
Posted on April 26, 2013
Traveling to many countries we would consider 3rd world, I am buoyed by the spirit and love for life that I see from people who live day-by-day. The people of Phnom Penh and Cambodia in general were some of the most optimistic and life-loving people I have ever met. 
Walking around town, I was amazed at the relative ease in communicating with the locals, even though I only spoke at the very basic level of Cambodian (1-month crash course prior to my trip), and they had very limited – if any – English skills.
After graduating in the USA, I found work managing a bicycle & ski shop which allowed me to pursue two great loves: cycling and working on bicycles (skiing was a 3rd hobby, but clearly took a back seat to cycling). While walking the streets, I met two very energetic and busy guys who had a cycle repair shop on the streets and were very happy to try to explain their work/life/happiness in doing what they did in Phnom Penh. Generally they agreed that: “We are lucky, and we get to travel back home to see our families every year…”
Life is not so much a collection of material goods, but a collection of experiences from which you decide on your happiness. Lao Zi, the author of the Dao de Jing, once wrote (Chapter 44):
- 名与身孰亲？
- 身与货孰多？
- 得与亡孰病？
甚爱必大费，多藏必厚亡。故知足不辱，知止不殆，可以长久。
- Your name or integrity, which is more dear?
- Your health or money, which is worth more?
- Your strife for gain or time with those you love, when facing death which is most important?
Fulfillment does not come from the admiration of other, but with admiration of yourself. When you know when to stop & to love, the whole world belongs to you.
Look into your heart, and decide what is real and what is true. Know when to stop, reassess what is right and then follow your spirit.
A Magical Cambodian Christmas…
Posted on April 25, 2013
Back in ’05, I was in a bit of a dilemma as I could not head back home for Christmas due to certain permanent resident issues (with the US government), so I was in need of a destination to spend the final two weeks of ’05. Having just watched the Killing Fields and read a book about SE Asian history, Cambodia quickly came to mind and I booked the trip.
While my main itinerary included basic accommodations, I did make one tweak to my plan and arrange to stay at two historic, colonial hotels: the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh and Grand Hotel D’Angkor in Siem Reap. The history that filled these hotels is incredible: great adventurers, statesmen and royalty made these places their home.
The Le Royal in Phnom Penh triggered the most interest for me as it was the headquarters for foreign photojournalists during the Khmer Rouge reign from 1975-79. In the movie the Killing Fields (highly recommended before any travel to Cambodia), several of the scenes were shot in the hotel.
Staying there was a very strange feeling, as it is truly living in the lap of luxury: nicest place I have ever, and probably will ever stay. Yet the hotel also holds such a strong link to colonization and perhaps most important to Cambodians, the time of the Khmer Rouge rule where some of the worst atrocities of genocide and persecution have ever taken place.
Over the next few days, I will post some basic photos I took during this time, and how I walked away from Cambodia with an uplifted spirit. The people of this country have persevered and live life with a passion and love that I have rarely seen. Include this with a beautiful country full of mystery, historical building and ruins, and I will return.
The below photo is of the LeRoyal Hotel in Phnom Penh, and I did take as much joy as possible at this hotel.
FYI: while I did splurge and stay a night at each of these hotels, I would not recommend it unless you have the cash…quite expensive, and with all the beautiful sights to see I spent minimal time back at any hotel. When I do a photography trek, I prefer to stay at very modest hotels – as long as they have electricity (to power my computer & recharge batteries) and a bed, I am happy as I generally only spend time at the hotel to sleep & recharge. 1 and 2-Star guesthouses are generally perfect for serving this purpose. When traveling with friends or loved-ones, go to at least a 3-Star unless they too want to share the adventure 🙂
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