Brave Souls

When looking at peaceful scenery around Banrai in Uthaitani province, I would often forget that this was once a strategic military region which lies directly along the invasion route the Burmese repeatedly used.
Today, there are reminders of the area's past in the names of small villages: Tupklaie, Tuppung, Tupman, Tupluang, and others with the prefix "tup" which means an army. For hundreds of years, the area now known as Banrai was an important defensive line.
I once told a local man about a place I like to go to for peace and quiet and that something strange always happened when I'm there. When I least expected it, the serene and silent atmosphere would suddenly be interrupted by sounds of hundreds of white birds simultaneously taking to the sky from trees and bushes.
The man knew exactly where the place was and knew about the flocks of birds rising in unison. He said local people believe the area was a battlefield.

Photo location: Ban Hintoom, Uthaithani province