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Kat Payne

The Wooden Bridge

Here one of the boys who had been jumping is taking a breather and waiting for his friends to move out of his jumping space; he’s perched on the outer part of the bridge with his hand resting on the wooden rail.

THAILAND | Monday, 14 January 2013 | Views [195]

Here one of the boys who had been jumping is taking a breather and waiting for his friends to move out of his jumping space; he’s perched on the outer part of the bridge with his hand resting on the wooden rail.

The wooden bridge in Sangkhlaburi, Thailand, is not merely a means to cross the lake by, but the centre of the community, joining 2 sides together; the Mons, and the Thais and Karens. All through the day, but particularly at sunrise and sunset, the bridge comes alive with activity; people go to and from work, vendors sell their wares, children play, monks walk to the temples, foreigners take photos. The commerce, religion, rivalry, games, tourism and natural beauty of the entire area all come together on this one wooden structure. The bridge continues to give to the community, providing an area for people to trade, socialise and play, whatever their age. I have spent many happy hours there, sitting, watching, taking photos and soaking up the culture and diversity.

When the rainy season comes to an end, the level of water in the lake is high enough for the local children (and some foreigners if they are brave enough!) to jump off the bridge and into the water below. This group of boys were leaping off, climbing back up, discussing tactics for their next jump and showing off for my camera for at least an hour. They loved seeing the photos afterwards as well! The background shows the floating villages prevalent on the lake and also an audience!

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Monks frequently cross this bridge to get to the various temples; I love how their orange robes always stand out and make such a main feature of the photo. What was so great about this monk is he had a Canon camera better than mine, and was set on getting some great shots too.

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