Xa Lạ

#travel #portraits #journal #authentic #culture

Footage captured during a three month backpacking trip through the heart of Southeast Asia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand left me with many experiences that I carry with me today. I compiled hundreds of hours into a short piece - a raw and earthy cinematic narrative delving into mindset of being somewhere that sparks uncertainty, adventure, and direction.

I refer to the 'experience' as a place itself, Xa Lạ, a Vietnamese word that translates to strange or foreign. How I may have appeared to the people I met as well as how I felt when experiencing their way of life. Xa Lạ also carries a meaning influenced by the French, tramontane. Meaning, a man who traveled over the mountain.