Posts/Entries
All posts/entries, for now, from over two decades of global travel. And a few colourful tags, too.
Citadel, Hué, Vietnam
Hué in central Vietnam was, from 1802 until 1945, the former imperial capital of the Vietnamese Nguyen dynasty, the capital of unified Vietnam & the political, cultural and religious centre of the country. However, given it's location near the geographical centre...
Hanoi, Vietnam
Hanoi, capital of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, has firmly shaken off its unwelcoming attitude to travellers and has become one of the most beguiling cities in Asia. It is (mostly) slow-paced and pleasant, while its lovely landscape of lakes, shaded boulevards...
Old Quarter, Hanoi, Vietnam
The Old Quarter of Hanoi, Vietnam's capital & second largest city, is a district of narrow, tree-lined, scooter infested streets full of ancient traders and general mishmash that’s unique to Hanoi. This area of the city has been a lively trading centre since the...
China-Vietnam Border Crossing || Friendship Pass
After a somewhat uncomfortable 3-and-a-half hour train ride earlier today from Nanning to Pingxiang in southwest China, I made it across the boarder into Vietnam, crossing over at the so-called Friendship Pass....
Detian Waterfall, China-Vietnam Border
A pictorial look at the stunning & remote Detian Waterfall straddling the border with China & Vietnam, the world’s 4th largest cross-border falls.
Guangzhou, Southern China
It's always weird crossing the 'border' from Macau to mainland China. It's an actual border, separating China from China. And it - the border crossing - is a more impressive sight then it was 12 months ago. Yes, the Chinese have been busy of late, busy building an...
Macau, China (2005)
I'm back in Macau, the former Portuguese colony but now a Special Administrative Region of big, bad China. I was here last year. That was my first visit & I was passing through en route to central China. I'm passing through en route this time too, destination...
Sao Paulo, Macau, China
Part of the UNESCO-listed Historic Centre of Macau in southern China, the Ruins of Sao Paulo (Saint Paul) is the most famous landmark in the former Portuguese colony, now a Special Administrative Region of China. Once hailed as the greatest Christian monument in Asia,...
Hong Kong, China (2005)
I flew Thai Airways from Seoul, South Korea, to Hong Kong, my present location & where I've passed the last few days. The 3-and-a-half hour flight was comfortable, although I was confused over the cabin crew uniforms; they were all different. A strange observation...
Big Buddha, Lantau Island, Hong Kong
The Tian Tan Buddha, more commonly known as The Big Buddha, is found on Lantau Island, the largest of the islands that form part of Hong Kong's New Territories. The 34-metre high, 200 tonne statue, depicting a Buddha Amoghasiddhi, was constructed over a three year...
Hiroshima, Japan
Hiroshima, my last stop on this my first visit to Japan, needs little introduction. It is known throughout the world as the first city in history subjected to nuclear warfare with the atomic bombing of the city by the Americans during World War II. Since that fateful...
Peace Memorial Park, Hiroshima, Japan
Hiroshima is a port city on the southwestern coast of Honshu in Japan which will forever be remembered as the city that, on August 6, 1945, was almost completely destroyed by the first atomic bomb to be dropped on a populated area. Today Hiroshima, with a population...
Himeji Castle, Himeji, Japan
The city of Himeji in the Kansai region of Japan is some 55 kilometres west of Kobe, conveniently located on the bullet train line enabling me to stop off en route to Hiroshima, my final stop on this my first visit to Japan. Although it has a few temples of note,...
Kobe, Honshu, Japan
Kobe in the Kansai region of Japan is an historic port and distinct city in its own right even though at times it feels like a fashionable western suburb of sprawling Osaka, some 33 kilometres to the east around Osaka Bay. Kobe's history is dominated by two important...