Paul at the Falls

Paul at the Falls
Originally uploaded by paulbrockmann.

The shot of me with the waterfalls below and farther away was taken by

the friendly young soldier mentioned earlier. (Couldn’t get a picture

of him since it’s not permitted; indeed I hope in mentioning him here

I’m not breaking some rule…) The one with me and two young friends

was suggested by the taller of the two guys, in the blue athletic

gear: he came up with his camera and asked if he could have a picture

with us both, with the Vietnam side in the background. Then his

brother joined in, and I decided to ask his parents to take a shot of

me as well.

This kicked of a bidding war for shots with Paul: this family was part

of a bus tour from Guangzhou, and just about everyone on board lined

up to get a picture with me. In the background is Vietnam. And while

we’re at it, let’s not forget that during the US war against Vietnam,

China worked with the Vietnamese…but within ten years of the end of

our war, China and Vietnam themselves had engaged in some pretty

serious cross-border wars as well. I’m quite happy that these seem to

have calmed down — it’s nice that in at least some parts of the world

things may be getting more stable and peaceful.

After this you’ll see a few shots from on the boat, or close up to the falls.