One of the more well trodden places in Kyoto is the Araishiyama Bamboo Forest. This is located on the western outskirts of Kyoto and is easily reached by train from Kyoto Station in around 15 minutes.
Continue reading “Araishiyama and the Sagano Romantic Train”
Kyoto is one of my favourite cities in Japan and also a photographer’s delight. Kyoto also feels less crowded compared to Tokyo and with just a 20 minutes train ride you can be out of the city and inside a forest, it certainly gives that big city with a small town vibe. Continue reading “4 Places in Kyoto for Great Views”
You’d probably heard about animal cafes. These unusual cafes have sprouted up in cities all over the world but are commonly found in Asia. They offer customers a chance to snuggle up to common house pets like dogs and cats over a cup of tea. Continue reading “Have an Iguana with Your Coffee”
Mention Japanese food and we think of sushi, sashimi and ramen. Mention Japanese beverages and we think of green tea and sake. However, we never associated Japan with whiskey until recently.
For many of us photographers who shoot with DLSR cameras and all it’s associated lenses, we would have accumulated some lenses and old camera bodies over the years as we progress through the hobby. Very often we wonder what to do with the old equipment even as we continue to upgrade to new equipment. And then there are those who suffer from GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) who often have a whole storeroom of photography equipment.
So I found myself back in Ipoh again this spring for a family visit. This time I decided to visit the old town area which has been experiencing a rejuvenation of sorts over the past few years. Continue reading “Old Town Revival”
Inle Lake was the fourth and final stop in our trip to Myanmar before heading back to Yangon. Due to lack of time we only spent 1 day here, but if we really could, we would have spent 2 days at least and I would recommend that anyone who visits here do that. This is the last blog for my series on Myanmar. For my other blogs on Myanmar, you click on the following: Yangon, Bagan, Mandalay, Mingun. Continue reading “Inle Lake”
There are some incredible sights of the ancient wonders of the world like the Great Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt and the Great Wall of China of which I have been blessed to be able to visit these 2 places and look upon their wonder. However, how about those places which never made it to the list of ancient wonders? The wannabes who might have endured to amaze their descendants? Read on, for this is one of those places which might have made it into the annals of historical wonders. Continue reading “The World Wonder that Wasn’t”
Just hearing the name Mandalay conjures up images of old British colonial Burma, and nowhere is this more vivid than in Rudyard Kipling’s poem of the same name:
By the old Moulmein Pagoda, lookin’ eastward to the sea,
There’s a Burma girl a-settin’, and I know she thinks o’ me;
For the wind is in the palm-trees, and the temple-bells they say:
“Come you back, you British soldier; come you back to Mandalay!”
Kipling’s poem was written for a bygone era that has been romanticized in literature. Nowadays it’s best not to bring up past British colonialism unless you want to cause a diplomatic faux pas.
Bagan was the second stop of our journey to Myanmar, and is also the main reason tourists come to Myanmar. This mystical land will bring out the Indiana Jones in you as you explore the ancient temples. For more on Yangon where we started our journey, click here. Continue reading “Land of a Thousand Pagodas”
Beyond the Little Red Dot 