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Category: Photography
Night At Santa Factory – Part 1
For photography, do go when the sky is still visibly blue and not already pitch black (before 7:15 pm on a normal non-rainy day).
A Simple Plan
The monkeys, they have a plan. When they see a sack of bananas, they don’t snatch it directly. They launch a coordinated sneak attack. One guy lifts her skirt while another grabs her from the back, hoping she’ll drop the stash. This candid moment came about when Carmen was sitting on the ledge as I fine-tuned the camera’s fill-flash settings.
Behind and below is a beautiful view of mangrove swamps and the Straits of Malacca. On a very clear day, one should be able to see Sumatra from up here.
The ‘Near Threatened’ silvered-leaf monkeys on Malawati Hill are in an uneasy but symbiotic relationship with humans. Their antics draw tourists to the hill, benefiting businesses in Kuala Selangor town. In return, they get food and tolerance from the authorities.
Olympus OM-D, ISO 250, f16, 1/250 sec with FL-50R in daylight fill mode.
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Nine Emperor Gods Festival Procession In Jinjang – Part 6
For a moment, I thought it was my friend Emily Lowe. The Ipoh journalist and Ipoh-centric blogger is also the webmaster of the Nine Empeor Gods’ Kew Ong Tai Tay Temple in Ipoh.
Jeez! What are the requirements for a webmaster these days? As it turned out, it wasn’t Emily for she is fearful of a pin prick.
Funny thing is that I was playing with her metal spike laid out on a table earlier. Surprised they didn’t do any form of sterilization except to pour liberal doses of cold water when the spikes, knives and spears are inserted into the cheek. Anybody knows why cold water is used, except maybe to numb the skin?
The original Ampang Temple is like a modern day Mega Church. Apart from donations and other forms of temple tax, everything from parking to hawker space is monetized.
I have been writing about this unusual mix of religion and commerce for years. Their mega success in becoming a mega cash cow inspired many similarly-themed temples in many other towns and areas.
Think of the original temple as the popular Line Clear and Nasi Vanggey nasi kandar restauants. They spawned many unofficial and unsanctioned outlets elsewhere, all hoping to cash in.
It is not an easy act to follow though. The Ampang temple plough back some of their revenue into charitable acts such as a public kidney dialysis centre, old folk homes and donations to schools.
Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 2500, f4, 1/80 sec.
Nine Emperor Gods Festival Procession In Jinjang – Part 2
The problem with educating kids is that no college or university graduate wants to make a career out of some horrific bondage practice that makes one become like a slab of meat hooked and hung in a cold room.
Mortification of the flesh by piercing the skin, tongue or cheeks with spears is now practised mainly in Thailand Phuket’s Chinese community celebration of the festival. The bizarre ritual attracts a large number of tourists.
It is no gentle hipster piercings such as those on lip, tongue, nose, nipple, navel and genitals. So what do the temple in Jinjang do to keep the practice and tradition alive?
They import a bunch of male and female expatriate mediums or trance specialists from Thailand. They are pierced in front of the public (including children), who strangely applaud each successful painful piercing with shouts of “Huat” (or prosper). Prosperity is a Hokkien thing.
Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 1000, f4, 1/50 sec.