Terrible story, a photo from Southern, South

Photographer's Note

The ramparts of Galle, colonial heritage of the Dutch period (17th and 18th century)are elevated high above sealevel and that's where this man was during the fateful second day of Christmas 2004 whe a Tsunami took the live of about 40.000 Srilankans. His wife and daughter were not there but at the shore where now the children are playing.
Her never saw them again and now he is telling his story at the ramparts of Galle.

siolaw, patdeph, holmertz, tyro, annjackman, Budapestman, Vasa, Didi has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

snunney (67292) 2012-01-02 3:51

Hello Gerrit,
A sad tale indeed and a chilling reminder of this natural catastrophe that happened seven years ago. A good capture of this survivor with the place of devastation depicted beneath and now looking so calm and peaceful. Fine technical presentation.

siolaw (37568) 2012-01-02 3:58

Hi Gerrit,
A terrible story that is... very sad... one wonders if he was really lucky to have survived the tsunami... The picture is well related to the story... maybe he never goes down there any more!
Happy 2012 anyway!
Laurent

dta (51378) 2012-01-02 4:35

Hello Gerrit ,
A strong story ... we can feel the sadness in his eyes , it is obvious . A,d now some people enjoy the beach ... lve goes one .
Regards

patdeph (35738) 2012-01-02 4:41

hello Gerrit
this is a terrible and sad story,difficult to survive after have lost our own family.
The picture is beautiful,with a superb light,but difficult to speak about the beauty after such a tragedy.
Regards
Pascale

BennyV (12759) 2012-01-02 5:49

Dag Gerrit

Great picture with a tragic story. I've seen some pictures of the tsunami in Galle. Being down below there must have been hell. Life sometimes isn't good for the living.

Toch een gelukkig nieuwjaar.
Vooral een gelukkig nieuwjaar.

Benny

SnapRJW (18712) 2012-01-02 6:41

Hello Gerrit - A moving story and a human face to put to the devastation caused by the Tsunami. I was shocked at how many roadside graves we saw on the drive from Galle to Colombo. So little redevelopment too compared to Thailand, for example. Thanks for posting this... it puts life into perspective somehow at the start of a new year. Warm wishes Rosemary

holmertz (26906) 2012-01-02 7:58

Hello Gerrit,
I wish you a happy new year, although you started it with this tragic story. The picture is well composed in any case, with a strong foreground and a lively background with lots of interesting details. Along with the note it gets highly dramatic. Not much is needed to imagine the horror of that day when the monster waves hit this beach with the disastrous results.
Kind regards,
Gert

tyro (13065) 2012-01-02 8:08

Hello Gerrit,

First of all, a Happy New Year to you!

But what a sad and tragic tale you tell of this disaster and of this poor man's losses. Your picture too has a poignant and sad side to it: the happy children playing in the water below, the beautiful sea and distant landscape, the bright sunshine, but this poor, thin, wretched man with his sad features stands in the foreground recounting his personal story to you.

A beautiful picture but, oh, so sad a story!

Kind Regards,

John.

Fis2 (73084) 2012-01-02 9:39

Witaj Gerrit!
Interesting place.
I like POV and composition.
Good colors and sharpness.
Well done
Best regards
Krzysztof

annjackman (13183) 2012-01-02 12:32

Hello Gerrit,
Thankyou for telling us this tragic story as we should not forget what happened that terrible day. I had not realised just how many Srilankans lost their lives. You picture is of high quality and your POV helps to explain the landscape and how this man survived - TFS.
Best wishes for 2012.

Budapestman (82620) 2012-01-02 13:44

Hi Gerrit,
a splendid photo with sad and terrible story, the composition is superb, great photo, Tfs!

Happy New Year!
Boldog Új Évet Kívánok!
I wish you and your family happiness and health!
Boldogságot és Jó egészséget kívánok Neked és a Családodnak!
György

mauro61 (52527) 2012-01-02 14:33

ciao Gerrit,
il ricordo della grande tragedia che rimarrà sempre vivo.
L'immagine esprime questo contrasto nella gioia di chi è in acqua e nel volto dell'uomo in FG,
saluti
maurizio

siamesa (27449) 2012-01-02 15:10

Boa noite Gerrit

Really a very sad history. Sorry for this man that lose people that he loved. Very well registered.TFS
Abraços
maria

Silvio1953 (98093) 2012-01-03 1:00

Ciao Gerrit, really a sad story, great POV on lovely beach with man telling his tragedy, splendid light, excellent clarity and wonderful colors, very well done, my friend, Happy new Year 2012, ciao Silvio

Vasa (15970) 2012-01-15 12:31

Hello Gerrit,

Your photo has a terrible story but the composition is perfecet and the subject on the beach is joyful. I hope it is not the finish of your exotic serial. Warm regards,

Branko

Didi (48896) 2012-01-17 15:26

Hi Gerrit
Terrible story indeed
It's impossible to imagine the magnitude of such a disaster that could happen here.
Best regards