Leo Laksi’s Bangkok And Back

Pre Rup temple after sunrise

Pre Rup Temple is an alternative to the very popular Angkor Wat for sunrise.  In fact, climb the stairs to the top of the temple for a memorable sunrise.  On this particular day, the cloud cover was heavy so the sunrise was not as spectacular as it can be when it strikes the red sandstone, laterite and brick of Pre Rup.  An added bonus in visiting here is that there aren’t hundreds of people as there can be at Angkor Wat.  This morning, there was our small group and three others visitors.

Another thing.  Pre Rup is a very compact temple that is easy to access.  Angkor Wat is huge and sometimes loses intimacy, especially at sunrise when there are crowds of people trying to share the same expericience.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and Summicron 35mm f/2 lens.

Looking down from Pre Rup

Two tourists climbing the stairs

Different perspective

Central tower

One early morning we traveled to Kampong Kleang, a small fishing village on the Tonle Sap.  From Kampong Kleang, we took a small boat to a floating village about 30 minutes away in the Tonle Sap.

The Tonle Sap is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia and is the life blood of the Cambodian (Khmer) people.  It is known for reverse flow of its water from wet to dry season and the rich biodiversity surrounding the lake.

When we visited, it was still the dry season, however, in another month, the rains will fall and the water may rise up nine meters.

The land surrounding Kampong Kleang will be underwater with the only high ground being the temple grounds.  As the houses are built on stilts, there is little risk from rising high water.  And the people have been living here for thousands of years.  They are well aware of how to survive in this environment.

They go about their daily lives no different than people around the world.

To visit this village travel south by motor vehicle about 1 hour south of Siem Reap.  There are other villages closed to Siem Reap, however, they have become heavily visited by tourists.

Photos were taken with a Leica M8 and Summicron 35mm f/2 lens.

Walkway from the main entrance to the temple

We visited Banteay Srei temple early one morning, hoping to catch the glow of a bright sunrise against the red sandstone.  Sad to say that the sunrise was not spectacular so we were left with the beautiful red sandstone.

Banteay Srei is a relatively recent name and means “citadel of women”, referring to its delicate proportions and intricate decor.  Banteay Srei was consecrated in 967AD and dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva.  The original name of the temple was “Tribhuvanamahesvara”, meaning “Great Lord of the Threefold World.

The temple is a must-see.  It’s about 25km from the main Angkor complex.  It is heavily visited so I recommend that you visit early.  You will have the temple all to yourselves.  Later in the morning, there are lots of visitors.

Second gateway

Front facade

Intricate detailing

Rear view

Main complex

After a few days in Siem Reap, it’s time to take a break from the dozens of Angkor-era temples that are available to see.  One of the best alternate trips is to travel to one of the floating villages on the Tonle Sap.
The Tonle Sap is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia and is the life blood of the Cambodian (Khmer) people.  It is known for the reverse flow of its water from wet to dry season and the rich biodiversity surrounding the lake.

When I last visited Siem Reap seven years ago, I visited another village closer to town.  Since then, that village has become a tourist magnet with dozens of larger tour groups with the result that it sometimes feels like there are more tourists than villagers.

This floating village is about one hour south of Siem Reap with the last 15 kilometers over a dusty and narrow road, passing several small villages before stopping at land’s end at Kampong Kleang.   From Kampong Kleang, you boat down a narrow waterway for open water.  Ten minutes later you arrive at this village.  By June, the village will be gone, as it is rainy season and the lake will rise about 9 meters.  The village will then be moved closer to land.  In fact, the waterway will also disappear as its channel will submerge under the rising water level.

The residents of this floating village are ethnic Vietnamese whose principal livelihood is fishing (as you can probably guess).  Check out the last photo below with the large pig in a floating cage.  Also the small boat in the next to last photo is a local version of a grocery store.

This was not the best morning for photographs due to diffuse hazy light. And when you’re captive to a boat, it’s a bit difficult to plan your photos, both in terms of lighting (the location of the sun)  and the distance between your camera and your subject.  Sometimes you have to improvise.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and a Summicron 35mm f/2 lens.

Ta Prohm was built sometime in the late 12th or early 13th century.  It is also known as the “jungle temple” because it has been allowed to maintained its original “discovered” state from the early 20th century.  Although the undergrowth has been cleared from the temple, the large trees with their roots have been allowed to remain in place.  This has led to the temple and accompanying trees to have an eerie almost supernatural feel.

It’s a good bet for a decent photograph or two.  Between light and shadow and the vegetation, there is plenty of opportunities to be pleased with your results.    More so than at other locations that are predominately rock with very little contrast and flat lighting.

Some of the scenes in the Angelina Jolie movie “Tomb Raider” were filmed at this temple.

It is located in the central Angkor area and is easy to access.  There can be crowds there.  I recommend that you visit Ta Prohm either early in the morning or before closing at 6:00pm.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and Summicron 35mm f/2 or Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.

Actually it was never a contest.  I recently spent a few days at Angkor Wat and surrounding area in Siem Reap, Cambodia and brought a M8 and three lenses, the Summicron 35mm f/2, the Summilux 75mm f1.4, and the Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 and the Nikon D700 with the 14-24 f/2.8 zoom and the 135mm DC f/2 lenses. I figured that the two kits would complement one another.

In addition, I brought a Gitzo 1227 Mk2 tripod with G1275M head.  I carried the gear in a Thinktank Rotation 360.

The D700 failed miserably.  In fact in the first 30 minutes and after 10 shots.  The electronics in the camera packed up, causing the camera to not power up.  I tried to revive the camera by reinstalling the battery, installing a second battery etc.  Nothing worked.  Done.

So for the next few days I relied on the M8, mainly using the Summicron 35mm f/2. And the M8 succeeded in the extreme conditions.  The temperature reached a high of 36 Celsius and the humidity was 85 percent.  The tropical sun was constantly beating down on you and you felt like you were going to melt.

I will be posting on Angkor Wat in the next few days.  It is a wonderful venue for photographs.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and a Summicron 35mm f/2 lens.

Soi Thonglor has a reputation in Bangkok as being one of the trendiest areas.  That could be true at night.  However, in the morning, it’s a different world.  Trends never last long, always changing.  Or mutating.   However, stillness lasts forever, showing glimpses here and there.  It’s not the noise that’s important, it’s the quiet in between.

I had the chance to travel to the Maldives twice last year and I found the islands to be as beautiful and idyllic as can be found on this planet.  The water was crystal clear and teeming with fish and other sealife.  Scientists believe that within a hundred years, the Maldives will disappear under raising water that can be attributed to global warming.  After all, the highest point in the islands is 2.3 meters above sea level.  Check out my other Maldives postings for more photos.

Photos taken with Leica C-Lux 1.

I’ve stayed at several of the Tokyo Disneyland/DisneySea hotels, including the Ambassador, the MiraCosta and the Hilton.  Of the three, I prefer the Ambassador.  Although it’s the oldest, you never get the impression that its anything but top drawer.  The public areas, including the restaurants and the lobby, and the rooms are first-rate.  I have no complaints at all.

Although the MiraCosta is impressive with its faux-Italian decor and its direct private access to DisneySea, the Ambassador has a more impressive array of eating establishments.  Not only are there several on-premises restaurants, you’re just a 5 minute walk away from the Ikspiari Complex, what with its numerous restaurants including a fast food court.  Oh yeah, there’s also a supermarket.

From the MiraCosta and the Hilton, the Ikspiari is a train ride away.  Not all that inconvenient but nevertheless slightly more work.

FYI, you can also make your reservation at the Disneyland Resort Hotels online.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.

If you’ve followed my blog, you know that I’ve been “playing” with a Panasonic G1 for four months.  I bought the G1 and the Leica M-mount adapter to use with my Leica lenses.  The results with the Leica lenses, at least the wide angles, have been less than stellar, what with poor resolution away from the center of the image.  And with the 2X crop factor, wide angles lenses became less than wide angle.  Check out my other postings for impressions and photos taken with the Leica M-mount lenses.

However, the Lumix 14-45mm and 45-200mm zoom lenses on the G1 have performed in good fashion.  In color images, I found the sensor (and lenses) to produce rich color images although the lenses were not the sharpest at the wider apertures.  I also found the focus lock to be quick and accurate.  When you combine that with a compact design that’s easy to carry, you have a winner.

This series of photos were taken in a span of one hour.  They were converted to black and white using Nik Silver Efex Pro and Aperture 2.