May 31, 2009

April/May Slideshow

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May 5, 2009

Away in New Zealand in May

I am away in New Zealand till the end of May. This blog will be updated as soon as I returned.

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May 4, 2009

Having fun riding a buffalo, Sapa, Vietnam

Location: Red Zao farm boy at Sapa, Vietnam (22° 21′ 0″ N, 103° 52′ 0″ E)
Date: 4 June 2005; 11.15 am
Camera: Canon 300D with kit lens

There are many minorities living in the central and north of Vietnam. Among them, the Hmongs are the more populous; however there are also a sizeable populations of others such as Red Zaos in and around Sapa. Most of them are still farmers though tourism has opened up economic opportunities for them (also see this article). Life in the farm is still pretty simple for them; and most of them still like it that way. Well, at least one can learn to ride a buffalo at a very young age.

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May 1, 2009

Sunset camel rides on the Thar Desert, Rajasthan

Location: Camels & riders at sunset, Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India(26.92oN, 70.9oE)
Date: 30 Dec 2008; 5.10pm
Camera: Canon 400D with Sigma 17-70/f2.8-4.5

Jaisalmer, one of the most popular destinations in Rajasthan, borders with Pakistan and shares the Thar Desert. One of the usual activities while in Jaisalmer is to take a so-called "camel safari" out into, and spend a night in the desert under the stars. The Thar Desert is not exactly the sand dune-type deserts, the likes of those in Africa, that one normally associate with. In fact most of the desert is scrubby and covered with small gravels, instead of sand. There are small portions of the desert that is sandy and they are actually sand dunes; however such area is rather small and the sand dunes are not very high. Nonetheless it is still fun to spend a day (and/or night) out in the desert, so close to urban amenities.

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