This boy was walking across the old French railway bridge over Mekong River in the Four Thousand Islands (Si Phan Don). Life slows down to a gentle pace in this quiet corner of Laos.
At noon, children on Don Dhet and Don Khon (the two small islands joined by this bridge) get off school and fill the air with their shrieks and laughter.
The boy looks deceptively alone in this photo, as he was on his way to join a group of his friends who were calling him loudly from the other end of the bridge. He was walking at a brisk pace, and I barely had the time to set my camera on burst mode, my shutter speed at an appropriately fast setting, and compose the shot (hence the slight blur).
Any visitor to this part of SE Asia will be lulled into a very real sense of calm and relaxation. Chilling down on a hammock, watching life go by from the porch of your bamboo bungalow, going for a swim, walking or cycling along the banks of Mekong River… Life can be good at the Four Thousand Islands.