Photo Competition 2021

To celebrate the launch of our first ever photo competition the Bamboo team have trawled through the pictures taken on their Asian adventures over the years and have each selected three of their favourite. Take a look through our best shots and find details of how to enter the competition at the end of the blog.

Tim

From the Arirang Mass Games in Pyongyang to the remote villages of Myanmar it is safe to say that Tim has seen his fair share of Asia and, as one might expect, he has amassed an impressive scrapbook of photos during his extensive travels. Here are three of his most memorable snaps.

Tufi Tribesman, Papua New Guinea

Famous for its tribal culture, Papua New Guinea has over 300 different indigenous groups and this gentlemen hails from the Tufi clan who reside in the fjords around the coastal town of Tufi where I was lucky enough to spend a few days. His head dress is adorned with feathers from various birds of paradise and his facial markings symbolise his status within the clan.

Thimphu Festival, Bhutan

Sitting quietly at the Tshechu in Thimphu watching the intricate Buddhist dances, it dawned on me that the main stage was not the only performance in town that day and that the crowd, in its own way, was equally eye catching. Everyone had turned up in their ‘Sunday best’ and this picture nicely captures the riot of colour provided by the festival audience.

Orangutan in Tanjing Puting National Park, Indonesia

Having travelled deep into Kalimantan’s Tanjing Puting National Park it was rewarding to see a good number of orangutans arrive at Camp Leakey’s feeding station. One of the group had grabbed more than his fair share of bananas and was looking my way as he made his escape without the others noticing.

Emily

During a four-year stint living in China Emily was fortunate enough to travel extensively within China and Southeast Asia. An avid Instagram uploader Emily took numerous photos during her adventures and here are three of her favourites.  

Everest Base Camp, Tibet

Tibet had long been my ultimate bucket-list destination before I finally got the chance to visit in 2018. This was a view of Mount Everest taken from Rongbuk, the access point for Everest Base Camp. It’s a long journey to get there from Lhasa, but the views along the way and when you finally arrive make every bumpy hour on the road forgotten. An experience that will stay with me forever.

Sumo in Tokyo, Japan

My last visit to Tokyo in 2019 coincided with the Grand Sumo Tournament, so of course we jumped at the chance to get tickets. I knew absolutely nothing about sumo before attending, but we got caught up in the action surprisingly quickly. Some snacks, a couple of Asahi beers, and a few hours of sumo ended up being of one our most memorable afternoons of the trip!

Litang Horse Festival, China

This picture was taken at the Litang Horse Festival on a trip through China’s Sichuan province in 2013. Litang is a rugged Tibetan town with a spectacularly beautiful setting on Western Sichuan’s Tibetan Plateau. We arrived just in time for the start of the festival and spent three days out on the grasslands with the nomads. The nomads we met there were very warm and welcomed us into their tents for yak butter tea (an acquired taste!). The races themselves were intense and chaotic, full of dangerous stunts and tricks. This particular rider briefly lost control of his horse and almost ran into the crowd, giving us this action shot a little too close for comfort!

Ewen

Ewen first travelled to Asia on a family holiday at the age of five. Since the early 2000s, Ewen has been lucky to have enjoyed regular trips all over Asia snapping hundreds of photos along the way. Having trawled through his impressive collection of photo albums here are three of his best.

Lone fisherman on Ban Gioc Waterfall, Vietnam

Visiting the remote Ban Gioc waterfall back in 2010 involved a long and bumpy road journey from Cao Bang, one of Vietnam's most northerly and least visited cities. The falls, known as Detian in China, straddle the Vietnam-China border and whilst there was a large number of domestic tourists on the Chinese side, I was delighted to have the Vietnamese side all to myself - just me and this local fisherman! Ban Gioc features in our 'Natural Beauty of Northeast Vietnam' tour: https://www.bambootravel.co.uk/tours/the-natural-beauty-of-northeast-vietnam 

Sunrise at Mount Merapi, Indonesia

Hindsight will say that I should have provided more information to my wife of only a few months when I told her that we were going to go on a sunrise walk with unforgettable views from our lovely hotel near Borobudur in Central Java. This was all true, but I failed to mention quite how tough it would be to climb up to the summit of Mount Merapi, an active volcano. The climb involved departing from the hotel at 1am and embarking on the climb in the pitch black. A significant amount of the 4-5 hour climb involves scrambling on your hand and knees and wading through volcanic ash in the dark, not to mention the intense smell of sulphur - this was not what she was expecting! Still, we made it to the top and were rewarded with a magnificent sunrise and some pretty incredible views down into the crater.  And I am pleased to say we are still married 8 years later!

Proboscis Monkey, Borneo

Endemic to the island of Borneo, proboscis monkeys, with their extraordinary noses and pot-bellys, are quite unique and can be spotted in the jungles of Sabah and Sarawak. They particularly enjoy hanging out in the mangrove trees close to water and that's where this adorable chap was snapped on a visit back in 2011 to the Bako National Park. Bako is a coastal park within easy striking distance from Kuching and it is a fantastic place to see all kinds of wildlife, monkeys and hornbills in particular.

Richard

Richard lived in South Korea for eight years and embarked on multiple trips all over Asia. While South Korea remains close to Richard’s heart, he found plenty of photo opportunities in the other countries of Asia. Here are three of his favourite.

Rabari Herdsman, India

This picture was taken in Jawai, an area of supreme natural beauty and India's premier destination for spotting Leopard. A common sight when venturing out on a leopard safari are the Rabari herdsmen and their herds. It is not uncommon for animals which leave the safety of the herd to be snatched by the leopards, but thankfully the herdsmen and leopards have learned to live together harmoniously resulting in a truly unique wildlife viewing experience.

One horned rhinos, Nepal

Once a private hunting reserve of the maharajas, the Chitwan National Park is the most comfortable place in Nepal to see animals in the wild. It has a healthy population of one horned rhino, which allow you to get surprisingly close during safari. We happened upon these two rhinos during our afternoon safari and thankfully they were happy to pose while we were snapping away.

Thorong La Pass, Nepal

Being keen hikers and wanting a challenge my wife and I embarked on trekking the classic Annapurna circuit for our honeymoon. This is a photo of my wife ascending Thorong La pass, the highest point of the trek with an elevation of 5,416 metres. It was an early start to the day – a departure around 4am, and around 12 hours of hiking but looking back it was one of my most memorable experiences in Asia. We are already planning to return and try one of the other multi-day treks such as the Everest Base Camp or Upper Mustang routes. Nepal is blessed with some incredible vistas and I’d highly recommend one of the short multi-day hikes from Pokhara to those looking to snap some photos of dramatic Himalayan landscapes.

Jana

Jana has been an avid traveller all her life and is a frequent visitor to Asia, a region she believes is blessed with the best food and friendliest people. She has snapped many memorable photos during her travels and has identified three of her best.

Sunset from Jimbaran Bay Beach, Indonesia

This sunset picture was taken at Jimbaran Bay beach on a holiday to Bali. The epic sunsets and excellent selection of beach restaurants serving the freshest seafood and arak make Jimbaran Bay my favourite beach on the island.

View of Hoi An from the Bridge of Lights, Vietnam

I have made four visits to Hoi An and I always try to make sure any visit to Vietnam includes this charming ancient town. This picture was taken on my first holiday to Vietnam and was taken from the famous Bridge of Lights. The view from the bridge overlooking the ancient houses and the river is one of the prettiest in town.

Early morning Tak Bat ceremony, Laos

This picture is special for me as it was snapped while I was on my very first research trip for Bamboo Travel. The daily morning ritual of 'Tak Bat', or giving alms to the monks, in Luang Prabang is a very special way to start the day and embrace the local lifestyle. Luang Prabang remains my favourite city in Southeast Asia due to its laid-back atmosphere and beautiful temples.

Robin

From the islands of Sulawesi to the mountains of northern Laos, Robin has visited some of Asia’s most photogenic areas during his career in travel. Here are three of his favourite images.

Akha ladies in Kentung, Myanmar

The clouds parted to reveal this scene on a day trek from Kengtung in northern Myanmar, an area that is home to many different hill tribes. Taken in October the rice harvest was well underway, and these Akha ladies are dressed in their finery for a hard day’s work.

View over the Annapurnas, Nepal

The Annapurna range perfectly framed for a fellow trekker on the Poon Hill route in Nepal. It was the finest mountain view of my lifetime (so far!).

Elephant at MandaLao Sanctuary, Laos

A magical moment when my son had an encounter with a baby elephant at the MandaLao Elephant Sanctuary in northern Laos. An experience that will be forever in his memory, and hopefully the elephant’s too!

I hope you have enjoyed our collection of images. If you would like to enter our photo competition, please dig out the photos you have taken on any of your lifetime travels in Asia and select up to three of your best shots to enter for the competition. There are two ways of submitting your entries – you can either attach on an e-mail and send to us at info@bambootravel.co.uk , alternatively post on Facebook or Instagram and tag Bamboo Travel. Please use the hashtag  #bambootravelphotocomp, and follow (@BambooTravelUK on Facebook / @bambootravel on Instagram) to see updates and other entries.

When submitting please include a caption or short description of where, who or what the photo is of. All entries must be submitted by the end of Wednesday 31st March, after which point the judges will get to work to choose the winning entries. Prizes will be awarded to the top three images as follows: 
1st Prize = A 12-bottle case of wine
2nd Prize = A 6-bottle case of Prosecco
3rd Prize = 'Encounters', a photographic hardback book by Levison Wood

Winners will be announced on our social media so please give us a like on Facebook and Instagram or follow us on Twitter. Winners will also be announced in our monthly newsletter so please subscribe below.