Main Entry: car·pe di·em
Pronunciation: \ˈkär-pe-ˈdē-ˌem, -ˈdī-, -əm\
Function: noun
Etymology: Literally, pluck the day
Date: 1817
Latin. seize the day; enjoy the present, as opposed to placing all hope in the future.
The very words that formed the foundation my entire travels were built upon.
Mission Accomplished.
7,164 kilometers or 4,452 miles (not counting to and from US), 139 days, 5 countries, 25 cities, over 10,000 photos, H1N1 – an additional sinus infection, food poisoning, four computer break downs, one typhoon and the complete exhaustion of my nine South East Asian lives… I believe I qualify for BIG status.
Starting from where I left of in Siem Reap, Cambodia I made a quick change of plans. One of the advantages of being on a flexible schedule is that when you walk into a travel office, it’s like walking into an ice cream shop – look at all the flavors and decide what your flavor of the day is going to be. The goal was to get into Thailand, pretty simple really. I was presented with several options – something that has only recently come to fruition. Five years ago you were lucky to get into a back of a truck and make it to the Thai Cambodia border.
One option that hadn’t even been on my radar but sounded very pleasant with a touch of the exotic was the small island Koh Chang.
One bus ride, to a bus, to a border, to a bus, to a boat, to a tuk-tuk later and I was at the Porn Bungalows on Koh Chang. It’s funny how my decision making process fell into place. I was looking at Koh Chang to see if I could swing it and noticed the Porn Bungalows, that’s all it took. Unfortunately the Porn Bungalows were a big disappointment, I could go into the details but it probably isn’t worth it – luckily on my walking trip there I stopped by a few other beach side resorts, one of them happened to be full of win and my new crash pad.
I stayed at Koh Chang for a week or so – give or take a couple of days. It became a transition point in my travels when I switched off the full throttle pace I was setting. It was also the same time I decided to forgo any more posts as I had felt that I had sufficiently covered Thailand on my first expedition.
I still managed to shoot off and on but it wasn’t with the dedication I had pursued till then. I wouldn’t characterize it as lazy because in reality I was still setting a faster working pace than the other travelers.
With that note we’ll start the photos. I finally caved into shooting sunsets gathering quite a few good ones – so there might be a surplus in this post.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/640 second
Aperture: F/7.1
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Nov 30, 2009, 5:29:40 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/80 second
Aperture: F/3.2
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 160
Date Taken: Dec 4, 2009, 6:01:01 PM
This shot kills me, It could have been a 10 but it was completely spontaneous and I wasn’t quite ready when these kids came running. For the web it probably looks great – for large scale prints though, the girl was to close for the F value and came out blurred.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/80 second
Aperture: F/7.1
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Nov 30, 2009, 5:44:29 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/160 second
Aperture: F/7.1
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Nov 30, 2009, 5:39:47 PM
When I first got to this spot there were a few people with cameras finishing taking pictures – on their way out one of them said to me “oh you just missed it,” this is while the sun is still up and quite bright. FYI to anyone taking sunset pictures – when the sun has been below the horizon line for 10-15 minutes sometimes more is when you get the best photos.
NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/80 second
Aperture: F/3.2
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 160
Date Taken: Dec 4, 2009, 6:01:03 PM
While I was in Koh Chang the mosquitoes and I were no longer getting along. The place I had was actually a nice bungalow but I was so fed up with the mosquitoes I got this idea to pitch my tent on the bed. Long story short it worked. I’m not sure what the cleaners thought when they saw it, but that’s nothing to worry about.
This bed mattress/frame set up isn’t typical from what I’ve seen – this was the first, but it worked great for my tent and if I remember right it was $9 a night for beach front.
After Koh Chang I had this plan that I was going to go to Bangkok and just chill until my parents arrived for the final leg. Having just come from Koh Chang my tolerance for everything Bangkok was very thin. I stayed near Khao San Rd. for three days before I couldn’t take it anymore. A short bus ride later and I was in Ayutthaya – a small town north of Bangkok that historically was part of the seed that grew into Thailand. I can’t remember exactly how many days I was there but it was a nice place to just chill out and enjoy the food. The guest house was only two blocks away from an awesome market, a definite plus.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/1000 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 11, 2009, 3:41:27 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/640 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 11, 2009, 3:49:39 PM
I left Ayutthaya for Bangkok to meet the parents. Once they arrived it was onto the compressed island hoping itinerary. Before we made our way to the islands we did a full tilt Bangkok mash up – hitting all the major spots, and a couple of extras for some authentic culture that was out of the tourist circuit.
After Bangkok we made our way to Krabi and Railay Beach East. I could go into the details of Railay and Koh Pi Pi but I’ll just say it’s definitely worth the visit – no spoilers.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/2000 second
Aperture: F/4.0
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Date Taken: Dec 17, 2009, 5:24:05 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/2500 second
Aperture: F/4.0
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 17, 2009, 5:25:50 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/2000 second
Aperture: F/4.0
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 17, 2009, 5:27:28 PM
I hit this shot a few times, while the details won’t show through on the web – I can say that the last photo is a panorama totaling 46 inches across at 240 dpi and 18 bit depth. That’s a complicated way of saying that it would print out amazing on huge medium.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/1600 second
Aperture: F/2.0
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 18, 2009, 7:05:50 AM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/640 second
Aperture: F/2.0
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 18, 2009, 7:06:44 AM
After Railay beach we hoped a boat over to Koh Pi Pi – the place they shot the movie “The Beach” It’s also one of the places that got hit hard by the tsunami.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/250 second
Aperture: F/8.0
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 20, 2009, 12:28:40 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/500 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 102 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 20, 2009, 12:34:29 PM
These two photos were from Maya Bay where the majority of The Beach was shot. Before getting here we did some snorkeling with a ton of fish – it was one of many trips into the water. I would have liked to have known what I was seeing, or have taken pictures for that matter. I dropped the ball on having a book and a waterproof case for my camera – next time.
After Koh Pi Pi it was another boat ride to Phuket a short overnight stay and a plane ride to Singapore.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/3200 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 11:37:16 AM
I stayed an extra day and got the chance to do a small picture mission around the city. It was nice to be able to shoot architecture like I am used to.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/1600 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 12:09:58 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/30 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 12:12:41 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/30 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 14 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 12:19:17 PM
The three above are from the national library.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/320 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 12:43:29 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/80 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 640
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 12:04:05 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/640 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 500
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 11:43:55 AM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/200 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 16 mm
ISO Speed: 500
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 11:52:09 AM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/640 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 16 mm
ISO Speed: 500
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 11:51:26 AM
One thing that was nice about shooting in Singapore is that there is a surplus of air conditioning and malls. I was able to shoot a building or two – hop into a mall and cool off then shoot a couple more. I did that for the whole day, I’m not even sure how many malls I went into but I can say there are a lot of them.
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/320 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 1:00:31 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/1000 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 140 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 1:08:55 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/400 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 2:03:35 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/160 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 105 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 2:10:20 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/400 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 150 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 2:48:01 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/160 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 2:39:56 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/125 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 2:40:01 PM
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3X
Shutter Speed: 1/250 second
Aperture: F/2.8
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Date Taken: Dec 25, 2009, 2:10:49 PM
All in all South East Asia was a great experience; I’d recommend it to anyone. I’d like to say more but it wouldn’t be anything I haven’t already said in my previous posts. People I have talked to back in the states like to get an all encompassing wrap on the travel experience but there really isn’t one. The length of time I was over there and the vast amount of terrain I covered really divided up the typical suitcase view into many parts that would take more then a casual beer to explain. To fairly characterize a place like Thailand to Vietnam to Laos to Cambodia to Singapore is impossible, yes they have similarities – but they have completely different facets.
On that note I’d like to flip this topic upside down and introduce the follow-up act.
Tour de South America
6 Countries 7000 miles a whole lot of awesome. The bottom half of the trip will require some flying – most likely out of Castro to Punta Arenas and down to Usuaia, Rio Grande and over to the Falkland Islands then back into Argentina for Patagonia and Buenos Aires.
Financially the trip is probably 2 or 3 years out for myself (unless someone wants to fund me), but I will be aggressively searching for another driven, ambitious, and spontaneous Nikon shooter that is whiling to commit (knowledge of video production software and hardware is a major plus). I’m budgeting $12,000US assuming one other person comes with. One thing I learned from South East Asia is that costs are just about cut in half traveling in twos, so this trip could actually come in around $6,000. The numbers seem real low – I didn’t think it was possible but South East Asia was my reaffirmation. I haven’t looked at my total expenses yet but I think I was around the $6,000 mark INCLUDING my $1600 worth of air travel.
Unlike South East Asia though there will be significant camping do to the rouged terrain and lack of housing accommodation. I am also exploring transportation methods that would be feasible and more organic than the rigid structure of bus travel.
There are other incidentals that sneak up prior to take off, namely items like clothing, camera gear, support gear IE laptops, tents, sleeping bags, medical shots, insurance, ect.
I’m still dreaming beyond this for Egypt, Morocco, Turkey, Russia, China, Tibet, Nepal, India, Indonesia, and Greece.
Anyways, the take away is this… South East Asia was a dream that started with a dream; this was that dream – time to start working to make it a reality.
The Future:
I’m not sure what the frequency of the posts will be, but they will still find their way here. For those of you interested in my next steps however I’ll provide some insight and maybe you might be able to assist.
Ideally I am looking to go back to school to get a Masters in Business Administration from University of Arizona in Tucson. It’s strategically located for all year motorcycle riding, 2-3 years of fervent Spanish classes, and the friends that I already have in the area.
On the side I plan to get back into Landscape Architecture part time to support myself and ramp up my photography to be self sustaining. The economy isn’t so hot there right now and the leads on LA jobs have been dismal… this is where I am as of today.
I have everything online for qualifications here:
Professional Portfolio – http://therocketfactory.com/thesis/samuel_chapman_professional_portfolio.pdf
Professional Resume – http://therocketfactory.com/thesis/samuel_chapman_resume.pdf
School Portfolio – http://therocketfactory.com/thesis/samuel_chapman_school_portfolio.pdf
I’ll have an updated photography portfolio online within the next week.
I am looking for ideas on this one… the more ideas the better the chances of making it happen.
