My Favourite Sunset

I have decided that my favourite sunsets are the African ones.

Sunset at Camps Bay | Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Africans seem big on sunsets. I say this because (1) there’s always a sunset cruise or a walk to see the sunset, (2) there were many people watching the sunset together with us at the Camps Bay beach (even a film crew), and (3) our local tour guide in Cape Town was obsessed with taking photos of sunsets in his own country.

Sunset at Knysna (Western Head) | Photo credit: Juxxtapose

It’s not hard to understand why. Not when every time we saw a sunset in Africa, it looked like a different one. Sometimes the sun went hiding behind a never-ending horizon, while sometimes it slip below the silhouette of trees. Sometimes it was dressed in fiery reds and oranges, while sometimes it adorned gentle purples and pinks.

Just fiery red ball | Photo credit: Juxxtapose

In some instances, one cannot help but think of the red sunset in The Lion King:

Fiery red sunset (tree included) | Credits: Disney’s The Lion King

I think it’s time to up my photography game. Maybe then, I will be able to capture the sunsets as stunningly as they are in real life. And also, perhaps it’ll look more like the animated version.

Sunset on a cruise along Chobe River | Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Sunset back at Chobe Safari Lodge | Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Watching the sun go down in Africa always marked the end of yet another amazing day and held the promise of another after a good night’s rest. It’s always about the feels, isn’t it?

Setting sun at Okavango Delta | Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Throwback: Brunch in Dublin

The hubs, with the unofficial designation of food-hunter, found this lovely brunch place in Dublin. Strategically positioned along River Liffey, the cafe directly looks out to the Ha Penny Bridge, simultaneously fulfilling #4 and #5 of my traveling favourites.

The Winding Stair gets props for both quality of food and atmosphere. Needless to say, I’m missing our time in Dublin.

The location of our brunch

Our view of Ha Penny Bridge

Irish seafood chowder

Smoked salmon with homemade potato waffle

Abra-cadabra

Another great way to feel the city in via the abra rides across the Dubai Creek. We kinda winged it when it came to actually finding the abra station. Basically, we had just got back from Abu Dhabi and were dropped back at the Al Ghubaiba Bus Station (which is next to the Al Ghubaiba Metro Station). We knew there was an abra station somewhere close by, so we just went around asking where it was.

Thankfully the two men we approach pointed us in the correct general direction, and soon we saw the Dubai Creek. We then turned right and walked along the creek until we came to this sign that told us for sure that we were in the right place.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Actually, we spotted a really long queue before we even noticed the sign.

If I were to be specific, we were at the Bur Dubai Station. Only 1 dirham to be ferried across the creek. This is still a means of transport for the locals. If you want to be tourists, there’s a one hour abra ride for 120 dirhams. We chose to be locals.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

The sight of such a long queue worried me initially because the sun was threatening to set. Thankfully the queue moved on quickly, despite a few men who were blatantly cutting the queue. Mostly, it was quick because 20 people get onto each abra, and they try to pack each abra to its maximum capacity. It also helped that there were many abras in the creek.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

(I wonder whether anyone has fallen off the sides.)

It was a beautiful ride across the creek, with the sun almost setting and the weather having cooled off for the day. A few minutes later, we got across to the other side safely before darkness fell.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Before the Rain Came

In my previous post, I told you about how it started pouring on our trip to the Ring of Kerry. Well, before that, we saw one of the most beautiful landscapes we saw on our trip.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Bur first, in front of that, was the prettiest, most nonchalant dog, lounging on an Irish donkey. Can’t decide which of the two animals I liked more. I imagine them thinking: Oh, another one of those green buses. We’re going to get those rectangular gadgets shoved in our faces again. We’re such superstars, obviously more worthy than the supposedly stunning valley behind us. Totally embodying the definition of self-assured.

The trouble is, I don’t even know which valley this is. It had a babbling brook running through it, and looked so peaceful and happy.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

I’m finding it hard to put to words what we saw. The photos don’t seem to do the place justice. Perhaps we remember how we felt as we stepped out in front of it more than the details of the place itself, and that memory alters the reality behind the memory we store in our minds.

We don’t remember the details. We remember how we felt when it happened.

Traveling Favourites

I spent a large part of yesterday drooling at future travel destinations. It’s a problem I have, that if left unattended, spirals out of control, and the next thing you know, I’m looking up the best route from Moscow to Helsinki. (Yeah… that kinda happened.)

Regardless of where I may find myself, I do have a few things I consistently love experiencing:

1. Pedestrian-only streets. Of course, the places where you finds these streets are usually closer to the ‘touristy’ side of the spectrum. But the reason I love such streets is that you get to walk and feel that atmosphere of the place unhindered by other distractions, like say, trying not to get hit by incoming traffic. This is especially so for places with no sidewalks along the roads. Such places may be more authentic, but I find myself simultaneously clutching my bag and looking around every minute to keep an eye out for traffic and pickpockets, and feeling too harassed to enjoy the place.

Good thing streets like La Rambla in Barcelona (below) are pedestrain-only, cos then I can enjoy the vibrant Spanish spirit as I stroll along.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

I also have a thing for photos taken from in the middle of the street. Pedestrian streets make it safe for me to capture such photos. Many times I have stopped in the middle of an actual road to snap such a picture – not a good habit. Thankfully, no cars were in sight on the road in Santa Monica below.

Photo Credit: Juxxtapose

2. Good panoramic views. View pictures from Beijing and Santorini below. I rest my case.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

I like how these views give me the sense of ‘seeing the big picture’, and of feeling minuscule. If the description of a place includes ‘panoramic views’, I’m more or less sold.

3. Riverside walks. No, not seaside walks. Yes, it’s different. The sand in my shoes and salt in my hair kick seaside walks down the ranks. I still enjoy seaside walks because they always make me feel like reflecting on my life, but I like them less.

Photo Credit: Juxxtapose

4. Water-body-side dining. Be it by the river, lake or sea, the promise of dining by it pulls me in. Very un-photogenic but yummy dishes at Jimbaran Bay in Bali:

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

5. Quaint cafes with the aroma of good coffee. I’m always on the look out for cosy quaint cafes to have breakfast, brunch, or coffee at. Usually these are unexpected finds, but I try to google top cafes before I travel now. We found this when we were hunting for breakfast in Christchurch:

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Needless to say, I don’t care much for the breakfasts provided by hotels.

No breakfast provided = cafe-hunting = happy me.

 

What are your traveling favourites?

 

Zhujiajiao, the Wonderful Water Town

I loved my visit to Zhujiajiao, an ancient water town about an hour’s drive from Shanghai. Quaint narrow alleys, gorgeous waterways, and scenic views.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

We reached the town at about 10.30am when the crowds were not quite in yet. We were rewarded with a serene boat ride down the waterways. Our ‘driver’ didn’t say much throughout the ride, but I guess some things are best appreciated silently, without the need for words.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Here I am trying to capture Zhujiajiao in all its glory. What I’ve realised in my years of traveling, though, is that no camera can ever fully capture what you see with your own eyes.

***

While it is not impossible to travel in China without learning the Chinese language, I find that it is awfully difficult to. I spent numerous occasions on my trip wondering how it was that non-Chinese could find their way around. There were many signs purely written in Chinese characters and many people who only spoke Mandarin. Having had Chinese forced upon me as a second language when I was growing up, I now wish I had been more diligent in becoming more fluent in the language. I particularly admire people who picked up Chinese at a later stage of their lives because I really do think Chinese is definitely one of the hardest languages in the world.

But I digress.

What I wanted to share is a little jpeg file that you can download if you’re interested in travelling to Zhujiajiao. I personally faced a bit of uncertainty when I was trying to find out how to get their via public transport. So I thought I’d create this handy guide that you can easily save into you smart phones for convenient reference.

So this is how you get from Shanghai to Zhujiajiao by public bus, complete with Chinese characters so that you can match the characters up with the signs you see along the way. I tried to make it as self-explanatory as possible, but if you have further questions, I’ll be happy to help. Information is true as of June 2014.

P.S I’m also looking to build a travel resource page to make traveling easier for all of you.

Back from Shanghai

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

I’ve been missing for almost a week now, but I’m back from Shanghai. And I have to say that Shanghai is my favourite Chinese city so far (Sorry, Beijing). Don’t get me wrong, Beijing was great. But Shanghai is all kinds of amazing.

I can’t wait to get my photos sorted out so that I can share them with you. But meanwhile, here’s a shot of a leisurely stroll along the Bund. The lit buildings are historical buildings, and facing them across the river is the famous Shanghai skyline with the iconic Oriental Pearl Tower.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

So you can imagine how beautiful the stroll was: cool breeze + history on the left + modern financial hub on the right.

Shanghai, Coming Up!

Photo credit: http://andyvance.com

Today is trip-planning day for me because next Saturday, I’ll be flying to Shanghai! Who would have thought I’d be going to China twice in a span of 6 months. I’ve heard wonderful things about Shanghai, not only about the beautiful Bund area but also the quirky and interesting French Concession area. We are also planning to also take 2 separate day trips to Zhujiajiao, an ancient water town, and neighbouring city, Hangzhou.

So I’m really excited to be going there, except that I haven’t done my due diligence in terms of reading up on the to-sees and to-dos. (Incidentally, I recently read an article about 5 types of people you want to travel with. I think I used to be Type #1. But Type #1, the obsessive compulsive planner gets annoying after awhile and lacks spontaneity. Not to forget also, Type #1 will definitely not get along with certain travel partners. So I’ve toned that down quite a bit over the years. And I think this is the reason why I’ve been getting slower when it comes to trip-planning these days.)

Traveling with a buddy can really tell you a lot about the person, especially since you’re gonna be eating, sleeping, and performing other personal habits, routines or rituals in her presence. I might even go to the extent to say that it will determine how close a friendship you two are going to have after the trip. That’s what I think anyway. What do you think?

Tianjin: An Unexpected Treasure

Tianjin was a little hazy the day we were there. The PSI reading was about 186 I think. Worse than it was in Beijing, surprisingly. Didn’t stop us from having a great time though!

Photo Credit: Juxxtapose

We only had about a day or less there so we had to be very selective about where we went. We chose to go to the Italian Style Street, also known as Italan Town or Little Italy. It comprises a few streets surrounding Marco Polo Square.

Photo Credit: Juxxtapose

Photo Credit: Juxxtapose

It was such a quaint little area and we kinda forgot that we were in China for a while.

After a caffeine fix at Starbucks, we took a stroll by the river. The river was lined with European-looking building as well. A very peaceful, serene walk, it was.

Photo Credit: Juxxtapose

Photo Credit: Juxxtapose