“In a country where antiquity is king, the fascinating tumbledown complex of churches and monasteries of the fortified UNESCO-listed mountain retreat of Mystras, last foothold anywhere for the once-mighty Byzantium Empire, feels like something of an upstart; it is only, at most, 800 years old.”
“If the present-day archaeological site of Ancient Olympia, the former celebrated sanctuary of Greek supreme god Zeus and the birthplace of the Olympic Games, doesn’t win gold for being Greece’s most redolent ancient site then it would at the very least be assured of a podium finish.”
“… one of the holiest sanctuaries in Greek mythology, the island is the mythical birthplace of the gods Apollo and his twin sister Artemis. Today, the fascinating archaeological site on the island, one of the most important collections of ancient Greek ruins on earth, preserves the remains of a sanctuary to Apollo and Artemis and the once-magnificent city, a bustling commercial centre, that developed around it.”
“The Buddha in grotto 13 is suffering from various levels of decay, as is the colourful plaster on the backing of his cave, most of which is gone – a little to the original is visible in the top right of this image. During carving, the large right arm of the Buddha needed support hence the need to carve a smaller Buddha.”
“Rather surprisingly, I had received a lot of negative Terracotta Army feedback from fellow travellers prior to arriving in the city. The words ‘disappointment’ & ‘overrated’ were bandied about quite a bit, as were the words ‘boring’ & ‘avoid’. I’m glad I didn’t avoid them as I found the Terracotta Army anything but boring. In fact, I found them fascinating.”
“I spent a bit of time at the summit attempting to appreciate the views, if not adequately photograph them, and cursing all those high heel-wearing day trippers I saw getting off the cable car. Oh China.”
“He sits with his hands on his knees looming over ships that pass beneath and when seen from the water is really an impressive sight.”
“Finally, after almost 3 weeks in China, I had found somewhere quiet and laid-back, and I took advantage of it.”
The classic Chinese image of tall karst peaks rising from the still, green waters of the Li River in southern China.
“The last piece of Asian land to be under foreign rule… fast developing into one of Asia’s biggest gambling meccas, with casinos popping up seemingly overnight, one of which I was prevented from entering due to my inappropriate footwear.”