North of Africa

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Worldwide | Wednesday, August 11, 2010 | flickr photos

In 2008, my wife and I spent a part of our honeymoon in Morocco. After the romance and luxurious comfort of Paris, the steamy, dusty, cacophony of Marrakech was an adventurous culture shock.

The narrow, broken laneways were a frightening yet fascinating rabbit warren amongst the mud-brick homes of the Moroccans eking out a living in whatever way they could. Every now and then, the narrow path would open into an undercover souk or a wide sprawling marketplace. People sold their wares from rugs on the dusty ground, or food from the open windows of their homes. Shopfronts were mostly large alcoves with goods scattered about or piled high.

After the initial awe and confrontation of a way of life unfamiliar to me, I began to see the character of the people and their surrounds. I took my camera everywhere, finding unobtrusive moments to capture individuals or slices of life including the ancient spice merchant, the schoolchild locked out of school, the blind bellringer, a cart with both driver and donkey equally hunched, and the mechanic's temporary workshop.

Of course, there are many more moments of Morocco beyond the five I have put forward here.

When I travel, I like to immerse myself in the culture of a foreign country. I usually spend my first day sitting in a public space amid the hubbub, unable to understand the words spoken all around me. I am the foreigner.

On that first day, I will observe for hours, learning and trying to understand all the alien sights and sounds, before I even touch my camera.

This is exactly how I would approach the Bhutan assignment should I be successful. I will meet the thunder dragon before I capture him in my lens.