Wat Amphawan in Chiang Mai.
#thatonelostkid x Travel Journal
Chiang Mai.
vol. 03 // in colors and bw
It was in the middle of the week when I decided that I need an escape. I have been thinking about it for quite some time, but never really invested any time in planning and making a move towards going anywhere. Thus, in less than a day I bought a cheap two way ticket to Bangkok and got my escape.
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I went for the trip by myself, and coming back with a bunch of new family.
This travel journal is mostly portraits of people I got to know in Chiang Mai.
Dewi Natalia, the person behind Forasiacheers.
DEWI (26.06.2018)
Having headed to the south last time, I went up to the Northern Thailand. A fellow Indonesian photographer, Dewi, happened to be in Chiang Mai and therefore we arranged to meet and hang out together. We met for a coffee and a ride down to the China Town, where we had a warm bowl of Khao Soi as the rain pours down.
Food stalls in Chinatown.
Colourful tricycle in the middle of the Chinatown.
Grilling impatiently in the middle of the rain.
Being fellow Indonesians, we got along really well. She took me around the town; we talk, we laugh, we drink. We took pictures. I learnt a lot just by watching her. We had so much fun- because we both are photographers, and we both need good pictures of each other.
Photographer's self portrait #1.
We went to explore Wat Sawang Arom the day after. It's a temple in the middle of nowhere, an hour away from town. It's located in such a quiet neighbourhood that we thought that we were lost. She wanted to see the Arjarn as apparently a friend of hers learnt the art of tattooing with him- unfortunately the Arjarn wasnt there.
Photographer's self portrait #2.
And so we wandered around.
Exploring the nightlife of Chiang Mai.
Todd and Philip in a frame.
TODD AND PHILIPP (28.06.2018)
Todd is an interesting fellow. A scientist, an artist, an environmental engineer. He is so interesting that you never get bored listening to his story. We met when he was sitting down and drawing, and being the curious person that I am, of course I said hello.
Your solitude like a small chick straying from its flock that it took such a long time for reunion.
Philipp was staying in the same hostel at Todd's. He's also quite a personality. He's a Russian that doesnt drink alcohol. He's a fruitarian- that means he only eat fruits. He's a quiet man but he have a really kind heart.
It was always the three of us as we got lost in the middle of Chiang Mai.
My sweet little family.
We went for a ride up to the mountains of Chiang Mai in search of Ne Na artspace. We found it, but it was closed. We met a kind man who showed us around. It's a gorgeous space, an hour ride away from town. It has such a calming atmosphere around that we ended up sitting down and enjoying the view.
Comfy chair.
Lines of buddhas.
On the way back, we stopped at a temple just off the street. It's fully decorated with buddha statues, and it was gorgeous. It feels familiar, for some reason, and we sat watching the buddhas as Todd was having his smoke-break.
And we talked about life and its coincidences.
Looking and being looked at.
Gorgeously shining.
Monks in oranges.
Onwards in our wandering, me and Todd bumped into an old temple just off a cafetaria where we had lunch. It looks very old, with carvings on the wall and broken up bricks and a monastery attached to it.
The name is Wat Chet Yot.
It feels like a deja vu.
An art student drawing the carvings.
Blurry whites.
One of the Chedi.
A portrait of Todd.
As we are nearing the end of my escape, we went to see Philipp for his bus to Laos. We were waiting around in the bus terminal when, again, I saw a formation of chairs. It reminded me of Kampot and my friend Brad.
I had Todd to sit in one of the chairs and became the second chair-portrait I have ever made.
A portrait of Todd #2.
To end this travel journal, I'm attaching a couple of portraits that Dewi took of me / us.
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Credits : Forasiacheers.
"I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light."
- Helen Keller.
Thank you for reading.
Self.
© Lilu Herlambang, 2018.