Dustin Main's A Skinny Escape

Start Here Tour To Myanmar This Myanmar Life Blog

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Who is Dustin Main? Media Now Contact

Start Here Tour To Myanmar This Myanmar Life Blog Follow Me E-Mail Updates Instagram Facebook Twitter About Who is Dustin Main? Media Now Contact

Dustin Main's A Skinny Escape

Escape into the Real world

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March 19, 2010

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Photo of the Day - Organic Farming in Malaysia

Photo of the DayDustin MainMarch 19, 2010Kampung Raja - MalaysiaBlue, Malaysia, Green, Cameron Highlands, Asia, CouchSurfing2 Comments

Photo of the Day - The Goat

Photo of the DayDustin MainMarch 19, 2010Greymouth - New ZealandAnimals, White, Green, New Zealand

Meewasin Trail,

Saskatoon, SK, S7K 3H6,

Canada

dustin@lightmovescreative.org

Hours

All images and content copyright Dustin Main 2018 unless otherwise specified.

Wake Up Yangon

It's been quiet around here, but that's understandable given that trans-pacific flights aren't terribly photogenic, and the creativity-crushing jetlag that accompanies it

But I'm back in Yangon, and it feels (and tastes) great, albeit sticky (41c with the humidex these days). There is something about wandering the streets of this city that reminds you of what's so interesting about photography

So hold the naps, I'm back in Myanmar with fresh eyes. More stories to come straight from the source :) #Myanmar #yangon #everydayyangon #UnTourToMyanmar #MyMyanmar #streetphotographer #burma

In 5 Days: Back to Myanmar

It's been a nearly 9 months since I was last in Myanmar, possible the longest gap for me in 6 years

Time is funny, and it seems like so much, and yet so little has happened since then, both for me and for the country itself. With that said, I'm looking forward to catching up over a plate of laphet thoke
Here's to many new stories to come

#UnTourToMyanmar #ThisMyanmarLife #Myanmar #burma #MyMyanmar #inlelake #mightaswelljump

Fire In The Sky: Nya Mee Gyi (continued)

Once the balloon has created enough lift (or at least they think it has), the fuse is lit and the balloon is released. If all goes well, the fire balloon heads up into the sky and after 10-20 seconds, the fuse will reach the fireworks and they begin going off, shooting all around in mid air from the balloon.
There is not a straight neck in the festival grounds as everyone has their eyes transfixed on the fireworks display. It is seriously something spectacular, and something that just can't be captured on video in a way that does it any justice. Smiles brought on by awe are everywhere around as the balloon floats farther up, getting smaller in the distance as the fireworks continue to fire for 10-15 minutes.

This festival takes place just outside Taunggyi, Myanmar every Oct / Nov. Maybe next year you can join me :) #UnTourToMyanmar #Burma #Taunggyi #Tazaungdaing #Passionpassport #bbctravel #documentary #fireballoon #MyMyanmar

Fire In The Sky: Nya Mee Gyi

These balloons start off the same way, being brought out and inflated by the fire of fuel-soaked torches. Already though, you see that there is something that sets these apart. The paintings on these fire balloons are typically quite elaborate and no candles are attached to them. The work really pops as the spotlights shine on them.

And here comes what I lovingly refer to as "The Payload." A palatte-sized contraption, about 4-5ft (1.5m) tall is brought out and unwrapped. This thing is made of up to 5000 hand-made fireworks, and once the balloon is inflated, they will attach it to the bottom to take it for a ride to the sky.

They need some space below for it, so the inflated fire balloon is attached to a few ropes and released, allowing it to rise while still being tethered down. One person will hold a metal bucket on the end of a long pole from below the fire balloon to catch the dripping wax from the "fuel" so it doesn't land on the fireworks of the payload while it is attached underneath. This is also the time when people start moving away, and fast.Continued tomorrow... #UnTourToMyanmar #Myanmar #Burma #Tazaungdaing #Fireballoon #Documentary #igersmyanmar

Fire Balloon Festival Week

Adorned With Lanterns: Sein Na Pan (continued)

If the balloon feels like it has enough lift, the horizontal bamboo grid-of-candles is attached at one end to the bottom of the balloon. If all has gone according to plan, the balloon will be released, and the bamboo will be pulled up along with it, now held vertically. The candles attached to the loops rotate so they don't fall out, and the design of this is now visible as it floats up into the sky.
Now is the time for celebrations, as everyone points up to the balloon, dancing and cheering to the traditional music being played on the drums and cymbals.
#UnTourToMyanmar #Myanmar #MyMyanmar #Burma #Shan #Tazaungdaing #Passionpassport #Fireballoon #documentary

Fire Balloon Festival Week

Adorned With Lanterns: Sein Na Pan (continued)

By this time (5-10 minutes later), the balloon is fully inflated. Together, the team members holding the balloon move to rotate the balloon, to show off the design. It's now that you can see the full effect the candles make on the balloon, sometimes as a small picture, Burmese script, or just an interesting design with the painting on the balloon itself as a backdrop.

The torches are now removed from below the balloon, and the "fuel" is attached in their place. This contraption, held together by pieces of rebar, is a solid fuel which makes a flame that will keep the hot air going into the balloon after it leaves the ground, like a giant candle. We're close to liftoff.

Just a couple of days left to join me on the "Un-Tour to Myanmar" departing on Nov 19th for 2 weeks of Food, Festivals, and Photography... and also witness this festival with your own eyes. There is just one spot left, and you should come.

#UnTourToMyanmar #ThisMyanmarLife #MyMyanmar #Burma #Shan #Tazaungdaing #Passionpassport #Fireballoon

Fire Balloon Festival Week

Adorned With Lanterns: Sein Na Pan

There are two types of fire balloons at the festival. The first is adorned in candles called Sein Na Pan, and now is a particularly important time for them. Trays of candles in colored plastic holders are brought out, with little hooks attached to them. As the 9m tall balloon is inflating from the torches underneath, these folks are finding little colored tabs that have been attached to the balloon and hanging the candles from them. They must work very quickly, because as the balloon inflates and grows taller, these tabs rise higher and quickly become out of reach.
Meanwhile, a whole other group has been working on another part of the display. Off to the side, slim slices of bamboo have been fastened together in a grid approximately 10ft (3m) by 30ft (10m). Hanging from these are little colored plastic loops of which the same colored candle holders as above are attached. Younger folks duck and weave around, lighting each and every candle... and there are hundreds.In this case, the candles are attached to little parachutes, that will be released when the balloon is high in the air.

I know what you're thinking... and you're right, it is awesome (and maybe a bit nuts).Join me at the festival in less than 4 weeks! I have one spot left on my Un-Tour to Myanmar. You should come, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Link in bio.

#UnTourToMyanmar #Tazaungdaing #Fireballoon #taunggyi #myanmar #mymyanmar #shan

Fire Balloon Festival Week

I remember watching the Fire Balloon festivities in Taunggyi on TV on one of my early trips to Myanmar. The family I was with had their eyes glued to the screen, with the cameras zoomed in on the massive 30ft tall balloons filled with hot air lift into the black of the night sky. With a laugh, the mother looked over to me and told me with a laugh, "Fun when I was young, but now it's too scary!" Based on that, I didn't go myself until several years later. I know what driving in Myanmar is like (often crazy), so I took the advice that nearly every adult in Myanmar had given me, to stay away.

Eventually I went to see it for myself... and since then I've been to the Fire Balloon Festival in Taunggyi nearly a dozen times.

The Tazaungdaing Lights Festival is a (roughly) yearly event typically happening in October or November leading up to the full moon in the month of Tazaungmon on the lunar calendar. It helps celebrate the end of the rainy season as the transition to the cooler and drier winter will follow. Oh, and there are fireworks, explosions, and human-powered Ferris Wheels too.

My earliest experience with this celebration was the related Yi Peng festival in Northern Thailand, where small white paper lanterns are lit from below and let float gracefully into the air. I remember that experience with awe, watching the orange glow of hundreds of these slowly take off from all around. Leave it to the people of Myanmar to take it up a notch (or 10). I'm closing up the reservations for my "Un-Tour To Myanmar" where we will witness this festival for ourselves in just a few days... and there is just one spot remaining. Join me on Nov 19th, 2018 for Food, Festivals and Photography. Link in my bio :) #UnTourToMyanmar #MyMyanmar #Burma #Taunggyi #Tazaungdaing #FireBalloon #passionpassport #thediscoverer #instapassport #aroundtheworldpix #ig_masterpiece #flashesofdelight #travelog #mytinyatlas #visualmobs #theglobewanderer #forahappymoment #exploringtheglobe #magnumphotos #streetlife #streetportrait #documentary #everydayasia #sonyimages #sonyalpha #sonyalphasclub #sonyphotogallery #sonyphotography #Myanmar

Fire Balloon Festival Week

Today is the full moon, and that means something very special for me (and a few others joining me on the #UnTourToMyanmar next month...) A month from today, I'll be in the heart of the most spectacular festival I've been fortunate to witness: Tazaungdaing Fire Balloon Festival in Taunggyi, Myanmar.

For a week in Oct/Nov, teams compete with giant balloons (9m tall) made of Shan paper. Balloons are adorned with candles attached to the side and hung from below, or painted and carrying a cargo of hand-made fireworks beneath.

Over the next week, I'll be sharing gems from the past 4-5 years I've been photographing this event.And if you want to see it for yourself, I have a single spot left on my 14 day tour departing on Nov 19th. Link in my bio. Come and photograph (and eat) with me :) #tazaungdaing #taunggyi #mymyanmar #myanmarmagic #myanmarigers #burma #fireballoon #passionpassport

FOR THE CHILDREN

Win Kyaw Oo sees the future of his country through the plight of the children.

Since he was 10 years old, Win Kyaw Oo (31) has volunteered for the Red Cross in Myanmar, following the path of his mother and uncle, who were both volunteers as well. After university, at the age of 25, this transitioned to a job with the organization, a position that he describes as "My Heart." His job has led him into the field working with former child soldiers. There is a law in Myanmar that prohibits those under the age of 18 from joining the military. Since the military has faced more scrutiny in recent years, there has been an increase in the number of child soldiers released. Win Kyaw Oo has been tasked with reintegrating them into society, particularly in Rakhine State.

His task is not as simple as taking away their weapons and sending them home. These child soldiers have been earning an income from the military, and he must help them find a job and reunite with their family after fighting in wars for years. He acknowledges that it's a difficult and often frustrating job.

This concern for child welfare has extended elsewhere in his life. Tea shops, which are often staffed by children between the ages of 8 and 14, are a big problem he hopes to help solve. As they serve him in the shop, he'll ask them how old they are and why they aren't in school. More often than not, he'll hear that they are helping their mother make ends meet.

Missing out on an education means that these children will inevitably be stuck in this way of life, with few opportunities. Occasionally, he feels compelled to intervene. In one incident, he witnessed a shop owner step on the fingers of a young girl she employed. He had an altercation with the owner, and the police were called, but he knows little will have changed afterward. *** "It's hard for change, with the gap between wealth. These kids are like slaves, not people" *** Win Kyaw Oo hopes to set an example by opening up his own tea shop after hours. He wants it to be a place that is clean and pays fair wages, and where the employees are called “team members”, instead of “staff”, and have a say in the business.

10 Days

Bookings for my final "Un-Tour To Myanmar" of 2018 close in 10 days. This time, our focus is on Food, Festivals, and (of course) Photography... And there are just two spots left

Since 2011, I've made more than 16 trips to Myanmar while working on the documentary photography project "This Myanmar Life." In 2016, I hosted the very first Un-Tour To Myanmar as a way to try and experience the country and its stories in a deeper way

So join me on for 14 days of adventure in The Golden Land, from November 19th to December 2nd

For more information, check out the link in my bio to learn more, and save $375 when you join us

#UnTourToMyanmar #ThisMyanmarLife #Myanmar #burma #shanstate #documentary #TheGoldenLand

STANDING OUT

This Myanmar Life

Nang Kham Moon navigates between traditional and modern worlds.

Generations ago, ethnic tribes in Myanmar's mountainous Shan State would rarely marry outside their own village, let alone tribe. Now, although such marriages are more acceptable, long distances between villages is often the limiting factor as to whether couples will meet and the lack of communication and transportation options has kept these rural villages fairly isolated. It has only been recently (mid 2014) that mobile phone access has become accessible for much of the population in Myanmar.
When it comes to the practice of dating in villages, Nang Khan Moo (Moon) says it would go something like this: ** "When a girl likes a boy, she’d invite him to her family home one evening after dinner for tea. If she liked him, she would talk a lot. But if she didn't, she’d add a pinch of salt to his tea as a subtle gesture to let him know that it wasn't going to work out. And, if he didn’t like her, he’d let her know that he needed to use the toilet outside, and wouldn't return." ** Of course, elsewhere in the world, people can also be guilty of using passive ways to inform a date when not interested. However, while we might feel safe ending or abandoning a date in a big city since it’s unlikely we’ll run into them again, in the village there is no doubt you will.

With mobile internet access rapidly opening up a new world for teenagers and young adults, it won't be long before they're meeting potential partners online, rather than down the street in their village. (The story continues in the comments below)

#ThisMyanmarLife #UnTourToMyanmar #Myanmar #Burma #documentary