It is now October 12th. So far I have fallen into a rhythm of one day out shooting, followed by a day writing these field reports and general data hygiene. I would like to be able to get to the point where I can do this blindfolded in an hour or two after getting back from a day’s shoot, and I am sure it will get there. I have a bottleneck in my ingestion (possibly card transfer speed of V30’s), as I seem to cap out at around 40-50mbps which I believe my Angelbird reader and USB-C interface exceeds. Once on the SSD, cloning to the second is instantaneous with even 100GB transfers taking seconds. I am seeing a real benefit to my upgrade to a pair of WD Black 850 drives for this project. Cold storage backup takes forever as it’s a large mechanical drive but this is a weekly backup, and I can transfer the files in the background with minimal impact to my system.

 The next step would possibly to be to upgrade to V90’s or CF Express cards now that my Sony system supports them. The reality remains a set of four CF Express or V90’s (in a decent size) currently exceeds the entire budget I have for production. My hopes are to be able to shoot the project on the equipment I have, as storage-wise I have already been subsidised on faith alone. Even with Angelbird’s support I have spent around 26,000THB (800 USD) on 4TB hot storage and 24TB cold storage. For context, 26,000 THB exceeds two months at the average wage here in Isaan. This is the core issue I am consistently facing, in the UK or US cost of equipment is fairly negligible compared to wages, however there is no way I can produce long-term immersed fieldwork from a satellite. Even if I were, the cost of travel (and western living expenses) would nullify any gains. It is important I tell you this, as no YouTuber will. No magazine article will — and I have written enough of them that never got published.

Which leads fairly nicely into what I am showing you all today, this giant dragon. I have followed this landmark since the ideation phase, when they were mocking up dioramas (you can see the image set here and an interview with the art director and patron here). Overall, I am astounded by two things in particular. The easiest for me to explain would be the speed at which this is built. In the UK, they would think about this longer than this took to build. This cultural difference is what I love about Asia. The UK has become rigid and stagnant, committee run for the likes of no one. Thailand and Asia at large, is the opposite. There is very little in the way of idea and, well, a giant dragon being built. Since the diorama, we are just over a year. The foreman believes it will be finished in the next two months. That is an impressive rate of execution. One could argue that despite longer lead times, things in the UK tend to be built with permanence in mind. An argument I would full agree with — if made fifty years ago. Whilst the temporal nature of Asian infrastructure is the very reason behind Discover Temples of Thailand, it still begs the question: “Why does this happen here and not in the West?”

Before I make an attempt at answering that question, I will try and give a little information, a few observations and dig into what astonishes me most. The Thai Chinese Cultural Centre was opened to the public in 2013, as a celebration of Sino-Thai culture prevalent in Isaan. Since then, it has served as a prominent landmark and domestic tourism destination for the city. In close proximity to Chao Phu Ya shrine, that serves the community in the usual ways a temple does. It also houses Amphitagun’s studio, where he builds the dragons used in traditional performances. Sino-Thai schools practise traditional dragon and lion dances and has an Engkor troupe that is present in many public celebrations and charity fundraisers. During times of disaster, the shrine is basecamp for relief efforts, be it essentials for dispatch to flooded areas, or recently barbed wire and building materials for the Eastern border. It is of note and correlates directly to what I am about to inform you.

The dragon is unapologetically being built as a tourist destination, as a landmark for the city. The cost of the project is astronomical in local context — at 20 million Thai Baht — and proffers immediate scrutiny when there is seemingly so much more that needs to be addressed before giant dragons need to be built. This is where I need to dig deeper, and leave any bias at the door. We have already gathered that the efforts of the past have directly influenced the community positively, and we can see in the images in front of us that this project has created employment opportunity. And we can all agree that the supporting infrastructure surrounding increased tourism is a net gain for the city, without needing a degree to figure it out. That isn’t what amazes me, not in the slightest. its prudent and obvious. What astonishes me the most, is that they did not build a resort, a hotel, a bar, a night club, a strip mall, or anything else synonymous with Thai tourism. They chose to build a giant dragon, a symbol of strength, of faith, and of shared heritage. Am I so naïve to believe this is coincidence considering the obvious (if not publicised) formation of a corridor between South China, Laos, and Thailand? No I am not, but it still remains stark in contrast to Laos’ Special Economic Zone.