Me & the Shan Women
Here’s a rare picture of me out in the world. These women are from the Pa-O tribe of Burma’s Shan state and had just returned from Bodh Gaya, the place of Buddha’s enlightenment in India. The white sashes symbolize their pilgrimage. The group included several monks and nuns and they were making a tour of [...]
Love, Burma
“Where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our own existence. And where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world.” — Joseph Campbell 10 Things I Love About Burma The Sounds of Silence — How is it that every place I go in [...]
I Dream of Angkor
Oh, the years I’ve waited to see Ankgor! Even though half the world and practically every photographer have visited these temples already, and even though it’s sometimes as crowded as an Asian theme park, that doesn’t detract from the experience of being here and soaking it all up. It’s truly magnificent. I love how it’s [...]
Dolma’s Garden
My home-base in Ladakh is the Skit Tsal guest house in Leh. It’s a traditional home stay in a nice, big house run by a lovely couple, Dolma and Phunchok. The grandfather, who’s still chugging along at 92, and their two young sons live here too. The two-story house is located in Leh’s upper Karzoo [...]
The Dalai Lama in Dharamsala
At the request of a Taiwanese Buddhist group, the Dalai Lama just gave a 4-day teaching in Dharamsala. Photography was not permitted at the teachings. (These photos are from Zanskar last year.) I bought a cheap FM radio to hear the English translation, and when it was even audible it was overlapped by a Taiwanese [...]
A Room With a View
This is the view from my room at eight o’clock Sunday morning. My guesthouse is in the north part of Leh, which is rural and wealthy compared to other parts of town and wasn’t affected by the floods. It’s perfectly quiet and lovely here. The fields have been harvested and fall is in the air. [...]
10 Things I Love About Ladakh
The Sounds — Waking up to the sounds of silence, nature, animals and people working quietly has a way of setting me straight. The Friendliness — There are few places in the world where you can approach a house and ask whomever is there for a cup of tea or a meal or give you [...]
Thank you, India
For various reasons — mainly health, work and visa — it’s time to go home for awhile. I have no idea where this labor of love will lead me or exactly when I’ll return to India, but one thing’s certain: I have no regrets. India is rough and exhausting, my body has suffered wear and [...]
On Photography
Picture editing is an extremely tedious but good process. It forces you look at all your pictures—the good, the bad and the ugly—and really think about if you’re really doing the kind of work you want, both technically and creatively. People think that photography is all about clicking away, but I think most photographers would [...]
The Blind Sufi
Today Mr. Guru invited me to visit a highly respected local Sufi, Rahman Sahib, a descendant of a major Sufi saint who heals people from illnesses, advises them on all sorts of decisions (including the highest people in Srinagar), and happens to be blind. Despite that, he can apparently read people like a book. I [...]
Zanskar Beauty
When it comes to the beauty of nature, including people, I’ve never seen anyplace as rich as Zanskar. It reminds me of the Navajo poem about the pollen path… Beauty before me. Beauty behind me. Beauty to the right of me. Beauty to the left of me. Beauty above me. Beauty below me. I’m on [...]
Living, working and moving on
After vowing that I’d never wait tables again, I have to eat my words. For the past week I’ve waited tables at Norlak, the little Tibetan restaurant where I’ve eaten daily since arriving in Leh. I knew that the place was short staffed (their cook left a few weeks ago, tourists have been pouring into [...]
