The Northern Rose

23 May 2011

Life is Easy, don't you think?

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TEDx Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai 2011
A selected one hundred people was fortunate to get an invitation to the first ever TEDx event in Chiang Mai, TEDx Doi Suthep. Here are a few "in-my-seat" photos from the event. Here, over at Flickr you'll find the rest of the images!

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I really would like to extend my gratitude for everyone involved to make this event come through. Especially Sheila Pham and Katherine LeRoy who both did an excellent job bringing all the pieces together in a huge organizing effort. And yes, it was a success, even with some interference minor technical '(T)EDx glitches' - I feel 4 U Alex :)

A brilliant set of speakers gave us a true TEDx experience. You can read more about the individual speakers here

I had the chance to exchange a few words with some of the speakers at the after party at MuMu Art, like the documentary photographer and Nikon Award winner Ryan Libre who are really setting a new standard for new upcoming photo journalists. I think i need to start making a separate blog post about him on my personal photo blog janfriman.com because of all the interesting projects that he is starting up from his base in Chiang Mai.

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I also had a chance to speak to the founder of Pun Pun Organic Farm, Jo Jandai and found out that life might be a bit easier than you think, at least if you are fortunate to live on a fertile peace of land where you can live self sustainably all year around ;) We do have a plan to go and visit them soon. Maybe even attend one of their upcoming courses on sustainable living and Organic Farming? Jo also told me the great news that we will soon have a daily organic food market with products from many of a fast growing number of organic farmers around Chiang Mai.

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15 Mar 2011

Thailand and its love of elephants

National Elephant Day - Thailand and its love of elephants

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Right, in Thailand its not only elephant day. It is NATIONAL elephant day. In Chiang Mais Mae Rim district, more precisely Mae Sa elephant camp, the love for elephants are shown by the feeding of no less than 70 chuaks เชือก (a special title in Thai for showing respect for elephants) an annual buffet at the 13th of March.

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Mae Sa elephant camp also holds a Guinness World Record for the largest painting ever created by a group of elephants. Eight elephants contributed!

Elephant day is about respect and fun (sanuk) at the same time. Typical “Thai ways” one might say.

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Places to go elephant riding around Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai and the monsoon forest of Northern Thailand is also a great place to go elephant riding . Why not go in the early morning to avoid the crowds. Mae Sa, Mae Taman, Chiang Dao are all well worth the visit. The Patara camp teaches you how to become a mahout and here you get a bit closer to the elephants, and its not all that touristic.

Someone maybe remembers the struggles of the elephant cow Motala, she stepped on a land mine close to the border of Myanmar. She was treated in the Lampang elephant hospital and was the first elephant in the world to receive a prosthetic leg. At the Lampang Conservation Center there is more of an educational show, where you can see elephants at work.

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Asian vs African
The elephants in Thailand are of the Elephas maximus species. These Asian or Indian elephants are smaller than their African counterparts. Actually, they are closer related to the mammoth than to the African elephants. White elephants, a kind of albinos, have always been considered to bring good luck in S.E Asia. We can also see how elephants plays an important role both in Hinduism where devoters pray to the god Ganesh to overcome obstacles and to be successful in studies, and in Buddhist legend where we have the jataka story of the Bodhisattva, the white elephant Chaddanta, with his six tusks - one of the previous life's of the Buddha.

Text: Per Sundberg & Photo: Jan Friman

4 Nov 2010

The Heart of Chiang Mai

A Photographical Journey
Some pictures capture your heart more than others for some reason. Even though they're not any photographic masterpieces, they contain a certain special something. Sometimes it's difficult to pinpoint exactly what it is or explain it at first glance. What you may find striking is that there is some kind of serenity and joy in these expressions.

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Since moving to Chiang Mai almost 4 years ago, my sincere joy for Photography has slowly returned after many years in 'Exile". Maybe this is due to the fact that Chiang Mai still is a place where the feeling of being alive and inspired comes naturally. This sense of 'Heart' and 'Soul' is most often captured and depicted in peoples faces and in their behavior.

Unlike many photographers I don't see photography as ‘frozen moments’. I would rather suggest the contrary. Great still pictures captures the flow of life that goes beyond physical borders and time limits. They blend your impressions and become part of your mind stream.

Chiang Mai has got Heart and it has certainly captured mine.

In Chiang Mai concepts like 'Culture' and 'Civilisation' still carry vital meaning and purpose. These concepts are still alive and connected to the history of the place and it's people. In many parts of a westernized society this link or connection seem to have been lost or currently is non-functional. The practical implication of a living culture is that people don't worry or fret that much about the future, they rather try to live in the moment, enjoying themselves, whatever may come in their way.

I hope that these pictures reveal some of the soul and inner sanctuary that I feel Chiang Mai so generously share with both its visitors and inhabitants.

Life is Easy, don't you think?

Thailand and its love of elephants

The Heart of Chiang Mai

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