Photography Adventures

Beijing In Five Days

2011-04-04T08:49:00.001-07:00

Silk Market

I stepped out from the airport with a huge smile on my face observing people, places and the beautiful climate, it was completely different from Singapore (was starting to enjoy 0 degree to -2 degree). After sending my luggage to the hotel, Scott and I went to dinner and visited the Silk Market to buy some warm clothing to wear during my 5 day visit to Beijing.

How they market and price items for sale at the Silk Market made me laugh. Everyone in the shop speaks English and eager to sell you something, just be prepared to be annoyed by the sales ladies and their persistence. Please ask Scott for further details as he has become an expert on the shop prices ;-)

In the evening we stopped by the "Hard Rock Cafe" and enjoyed several watching the Filipino band rock the house. We also took the opportunity to enjoy a few great drinks.....they were completely awesome, hmmm drink prices....well, you be the judge...;)

Summer Palace

I woke up early the following morning to meet my tourist guide and prepared for my 2^nd day trip. My tour guide, Carol, planned a full day for me, with visits to 5 interesting places. The first spot she brought me to was the “Summer Palace”. If you are looking for a place for a walk to enjoy nature and history “Summer Palace” is the perfect place to visit. This palace was more impressive to me than the Forbidden City. The "Summer Palace" has varied scenery and a more natural feel with lakes and trees. Nature is a function of this place.

We spent several hours in this park; the park is huge, with lots of temples and spectacular architecture. Summer palace is good for a day out with lots to do for every taste. You can spend your time at the art galleries (some awesome ceramics, calligraphy, woodwork, jade-art and paintings are on display) or the markets and souvenir shops.

Forbidden City

This is the place where the royals of ruling dynasties stayed. Forbidden City would give you an insight in to Chinese history. Buildings are well preserved in contrast to the modern architecture of the remaining city.

There are really cool rock formations throughout the garden and it's quite a cheerful display of beautiful old cyprus and juniper trees. The atmosphere was really relaxed, with many of locals also enjoying the area.

These is the largest stone craft inside Forbidden City as Ive observed that there's a lot of crafted rocks in this area (maybe one of the emperors loved rocks) but absolutely stunning...

3^rd place we visited was for lunch, Carol brought me to popular Chinese restaurant nearby forbidden city but didn’t manage to take any photos; I was so hungry and tired from walking that forgot to take photos :-(

Pearl Factory

Although I’m not a pearl lover the pearl factory amazed me. The pearls were absolutely beautiful. The sales girl did an excellent job doing demo for me and my fellow tourists on how they get pearls using an oyster pearl. Make a guess how many pearl inside? It was a lot, around 10 to 15 pieces of pearls depend on the oyster pearl size.

She taught us how to know the real pearl, she showed us a real and a plastic pearl, and I guess right a real pearl gives you a pearl powder when u rub them together (thanks to Google) but a plastic pearl does not, but a very slippery outcome.

Temple of Heaven

Temple of Heaven is on the must-see for travelers. If I remember correctly, it's a Taoist temple used for ceremonies to pray for good harvest. The park is huge and the temple is massive.

Seeing the locals here is one of the great things about park. You will find some talented musicians singing and playing folk songs or dancing to music blaring from small portable speaker systems.

Carol told me that the temple of heaven front architecture represents earth and big pool on the right was sacrificing area during ancient times (don’t know what’s the mystery of that pool and I don’t want to know).

Tea House

For those tea drinkers (wish I am but I'm not), this house will make you appreciate the real goodness of tea taste and help you to learn the benefits of tea that is right for you and good for your health, well as there were free samples to taste I did try types of tea, jasmine, oolong, green tea, and black tea. I enjoyed the taste of Oolong tea, it was so smooth and taste sweeter on your mouth after a sip. Unfortunately camera is not allowed inside so I took photos outside the tea house.

After visiting tea house she sends me back to my hotel didn’t notice the time was 4:00pm I was completely tired. I rested an hour to wait Scott from work also to get ready again for my dinner and to take more photos.

Alien Street

We visited a weird place called “Alien Street”, well sounds very weird that makes me smile. We checked the place after having dinner but unfortunately we did not see anything weird (it was just a street name and shopping malls) except people staring at us lol....so we sat down and grabbed some coffee and went back to hotel.

The following morning (my 3^rd day) I was completely excited about my trip, and to meet my new tour guide, Andy. Unfortunately it wasn’t Carol because they shift every day. Today I had 4 destination to check out, 1^st is “The Great Wall”, 2^nd Jade Factory, 3^rd Ming Tomb and lastly the Silk Factory.

I was dreaming to see great wall since I was 9 yrs old learning history around the world, so this time I’m like a child, very excited to see the wall. It was about 1 ½ hour from my hotel, smiling with the 4 Bulgarian people looking at me, (sorry they don’t speak English, even the tourist guide was having a problem talking to them, so I smiled to Andy and said keep talking with sign language,(he laugh) but they are nice people I like them :)

When we reached Great Wall, it was very cold (-2) and windy, well there is no snow, but saw a bunches of frozen ice on the road. Andy told everyone to take the rail going up to the great wall for safety; it was about a few minutes to go up, when we reached there I was amazed when i saw the wall (thought that it was made of bricks or hallow blocks) it was made of crafted stones!!!

Imagine lives sacrificed there to build the wall, people work 16hours a day without any sufficient food and water,generation by generation who wasted their life just to build the wall to protect their countrymen... It has been estimated that somewhere in the range of 2 to 3 million Chinese died as part of the centuries-long project of building the wall. It was saddened that makes my tears fall down...

After 2hours walking on top of great wall taking some photos while freezing, I bow down my head on the corner and spend a few minutes prayer for the people buried there. “Prayer as a priceless gift appreciation”

After spending quiet moments alone I have decided to go down with the Bulgarian people to meet our tour guide going to the next place. We were both freezing, its good to be just inside the bus bit warmer.

Jade Factory

As we are prepared to see the 2^nd place called “Jade Factory” my tour guide was giving some ideas about jade, as I thought jade was only green color, well I was so wrong, jade consist variety of colors, most emperors love jade they believe that jade represents long life, good health and beauty. Also that jade reflex your behavior identity, most Chinese people knows about it. The clearer jade you wore the purer heart you have.... (That’s what they said)

Take note believe it or not the subjects on this photos are made of pure jade, if you seen that the white wall on the middle is just ordinary wall, nope you were absolutely wrong; those are white, yellow and green jade.

Green Jade

Jade Accessories

Statues made of jade

Jade table sets ( i think the price will make you sick - About one million $$$$$$$)

Green Jade, I think most ladies like these like I do

I like green jade so I bought earrings for myself as a remembrance, character written on the middle is my last name meaning,make a guess???

After checking the jade we went to restaurant to the 3^rd floor of the building to eat lunch. The lunch brought a bit of a smile to my face, as it was same food as yesterday, good Chinese food, and different taste.

Ming Tomb

I don’t know the history of Emperor Ming so I was bit confused on what he looked like. All I know that Emperor Ming was the friendliest emperor in China, (please correct me if I’m wrong). The Sacred Way was the walkway to the Ming Tombs area used by the Emperors. You will be stopped on one side of this walkway and picked up at the other end.

About half way through, stone figures appear on either side of the walkway, first, that of lesser animals, followed by the more important animals, followed by soldiers and then that of ministers - well, at least that was my observation. I thoroughly enjoyed this walk, with willow trees lining both sides of the path.

Asis Photo Trek

2010-02-12T21:38:00.000-08:00

During my last two days in Vietnam I decided to stay in Saigon. The plan being to see what interesting photos I could capture in and around the city versus traveling to a location outside of the city to take photos.

Although I tried to stay away for the tourist spots I did manage to stumble into the Reunification Place and snap a few photos. Nothing too interesting; however, they do tell a story about the countries history, and I think including a little history lesson on every trip is well worth the effort.

I also photographed some other interesting pieces of Saigon architecture at night, as they are very impressive with all the lights.

Opera House

City Hall

As the date for the Lunar New Year approaches (14 Feb) the city gets busier and more decorations get put in place in preparation for the big celebration. It's too bad that I can not stay for the celebration, as I am sure that it would have been an incredible experience.

Lunar New Year Celebration Decorations

Golden Tiger - This is the year of the Tiger

The following series of photos are of the moped and how effectively it is used by the Vietnamese people to transport almost anything. It really is amazing to see and an great example of the creativity of the people living in Saigon. Needless to say, you would never see something like this in Canada, as we are way too wrapped up in driving huge SUVs. I guess it would also be hard to haul a snowmobile on the back of a moped.

Moped and picture frame. Just two ladies out for a day of shopping. I wonder how many trips it takes to do a full day of shopping?

Moped and balloons. I am sure they are just for the New Year celebration. I watched this guy for a bit of time, and for some odd reason he was having a tough time with the wind. I wonder why?

Moped and cooking oil. I wonder if they are full cans? Now that would be heavy.

Another picture frame. I wonder who was the lucky one to carry the glass for that frame?

Moped and empty containers. Can you imagine if they were full?

Moped and produce. I am not sure, but I think this is the John Deere of mopeds ;-P

Moped and flowers. I am sure this guy was just making a delivery.

Moped and ???. Your guess is as good as mine. Good use of packing tape though.

Moped and family. I have seen up to 5 people on a single moped, so this one actually has room for two more people.

Moped and ...................wheel chair. It took me until they actually passed by for me to figure out what was being carried. Oddly enough I did not see any handicap parking decal on the moped.

Moped parking. And this is just s small parking lot. Mopeds can be found parking in pretty much every corner of the city, and even in the lobby of the hotel.

Moped and empty coke bottles. I tried to get one of the guy hauling the full bottles; however, I was not quick enough with the camera. I also tried to capture one of a guy hauling cases of beer.

So this ends my visit to Saigon. My next blog entry will be from Thailand. Although there are no stunning landscape, or sunset photos in my first blog postings the photos do hopefully provide some insight into what it is like in Saigon. I wish that I had more time, as there are lots of other things to see and do in Vietnam, outside of Saigon.

Asia Photo Trek

2010-02-10T05:07:00.000-08:00

I have been in Saigon for 4 days now and must say that I think the place is pretty cool....but not literally, as it is sunny and hot every day. Yes, there are a lot of people, lots of traffic, poverty lurking around every corner; however, the city does have a certain appeal....after you get over some of the visual shock(s). Anybody that has never experienced this part of the world needs to jump on a plane and see what they have been missing, especially North Americans that just do not appreciate what they have.

On day 4 of my trip I took a hydrofoil ride to the town of Vung Tau. The trip in the hydrofoil takes 90 minutes and only costs 160 Dong ($8 USD). The ride in the old Russian hydrofoil is pretty cool, fast and smooth compared to traditional boats. A definite must if you visit Saigon.

My time in Vung Tau was only 4 hours, which really was not enough to check out all the sites. However, it did give me the opportunity to check out a few interesting places and warrant me putting this destination on the list of places to come visit for a couple of days in the future. Vung Tau is known for it's beaches, which I did not visit as I not a big beach person; however, I do like to see take photographs of that tell a story. For example this photo of the fishing boats tell a story of hard working people.

In addition to the beach Vung Tau is known for the large statue of Jesus standing high on a hill and looking out to sea. To get to the statue take a short taxi ride from the ferry terminal. The cost for the ferry is very reasonable and a much better option than walking, as it too hot and way to far from town (at least on a hot day).

Unfortunately, upon arriving at the destination you will have to walk up a lot of steps to get close to the statue. Trust me, the views from the top are worth the hike. Hikers will also be rewarded with the opportunity to climb more steps inside the statue and out along one of the extended arms (inside) to yet another great view.

Day 5, and a side trip across the river to visit Thu Thiem. This urban part of Ho Chi Minh has no beaches, fancy museums or large parks. Words cannot explain the living conditions in Thu Thiem; therefore, I will rely on these photos to try and explain what I experienced after getting off the ferry from Saigon.

Note that Thu Thiem is only a 5 minute ferry ride across the river from Ho Chi Minh city, but the differences between the city and Thu Thiem are huge.

I tried to focus on good people of Vietnam and their humble lives rather than emphasize the living/environment within which they are forced to live. I hope people see the beauty in the photos. More to be provided in the gallery(s) that I will create and publish at the end of my trip.

Asia Photo Trek

2010-02-08T04:45:00.000-08:00

So I have been in Saigon for 3 days now and starting to get pretty comfortable moving around the city. It has also taken me a little bit of time to get over the "jet lag".

Perhaps the most challenging part of getting around the city is crossing the streets, which I am sure others who have visited other Asian cities will be able to relate to.

From what I can tell the city absolutely loves mopeds, as they are everywhere and used for pretty much everything. Unlike North America, or many other countries, the traffic does stop long enough to really allow people on foot to cross the street.

So, you have to do like the locals and simply start crossing the street....mopeds and bicycles will just naturally flow around you as long as you do not make any sudden stops or move too quickly.

Cars on the other hand need to be given a little (lot) more respect, as they can hurt when they hit you :-) .

When it comes to transporting goods the mopeds in Saigon are king, closely followed by bicycles. I have seen mopeds with entire families (5 people) riding on them, mopeds hauling cases of beer, livestock, building materials and way too much weight. The same thing goes for bicycles...I have seen them hauling some interesting stuff.

For instance in the photo on the left, can you spot the person that is actually riding the bike? No? I am not surprised, as all I saw were the balloons.

The many images of mopeds I seen so far have inspired me to create/dedicate photo gallery to the power of modern moped transportation....it should be interesting and available shortly after I return from my trip.

The city of Saigon is a buzz of activity right now, as everybody prepares of the upcoming New Year celebrations. Everywhere you look there are people putting up decorations, setting up lots of lights and preparing the streets for a very big party. As each day passes, and 14 Feb (New Years day) draws near, the city gets a little busier. I cannot imagine what it will be like on the actual New Years day. I guess I will get a taste of the excitement during my visit to Phuket (13-19 Feb).

As expected, I am plan to get as many photos of the decorations in this city, as well as the other cities I visit in this trip, and include a special subset in a gallery for all to view at the conclusion of my journey. Hopefully you will return to read this blog and check out the photo galleries that get created.

Day 3 in Saigon and I decided to go on a road trip to Cu Chi, which is basically park/site dedicated to the Vietnamese freedom fighters and their heroes from the Vietnam war. The historical significance of the site and the amazing story behind the tunnels built/maintained by the freedom fighters was very impressive. However,
the 90 minute drive from Saigon, and back again, were not so impressive. Regardless, I believe the experience was worth the trip and something that others should add to the itinerary when visiting Vietnam.

Perhaps the biggest disappointment for me was that Cu Chi did not afford me much opportunity to get a lot of photos that I can include in my gallery of images from the trip.

I am going to wrap up this blog with a few details on the food. I can say without a doubt the food is some of the best that I have experienced in my many travels. There are way too many places to eat and, I am guessing that the odds of picking a bad place to eat is pretty low. To date I have been batting 100% and have enjoyed all the small restaurants that I have walked into. However, the restaurants that I have come to prefer are all Vietnamese (no surprise). Halal@saigon for example serves incredible dishes at amazing prices. The total cost of my meal being under $5.00 Canadian.

I have a few more days in Saigon, and hopefully a few more great restaurant names to share with the readers.

Asia Photo Trek

2010-02-06T08:21:00.000-08:00

Day 1 of the photo trek starts in Burnaby, BC with me jumping on the Skytrain and heading to the airport. Unfortunately this is a two part train ride, Skytrain to Waterfront Station and then the new Canada Line out to the airport. Total travel time for the trip was only 1 hr and cost $3.75 (2 zones). Except for the challenges associated with luggage the trip was pretty much uneventful, and the new Canada Line very impressive. Thanks Ron for taking my photo at Waterfront Station.

My arrival at the airport brought the first excitement for the trip. Although I am usually very good with math it would seem telling time is an issue, as I really messed up the time that I needed to be at the airport and instead of being 2 hrs before the flight only arrived 51 minutes before departure. Yikes, I am outside of the 60 minute minimum and was at risk of not being permitted to board. I must have looked desperate, as the Air Canada quickly spoke to her supervisor and obtained approval for me to board......THANK YOU SO MUCH....I wish that I had taken note of your name.

With 46 minutes remaining I did a mad dash to/through security and then right onto the plane. Thankfully there was no line at security.

I am hoping today is not an indication of how things will be for the rest of the trip. As I would prefer my excitement to be about the great sights that I will see versus missing flights, trains, etc.

The first leg of the flight was uneventful, thankfully, and ended with me landing in Shanghai China. The unfortunate thing about having to make a connection in China, at least for this trip, requires picking up your luggage, clearing customs, checking in at the counter (again), and then going back through customs. Which probably would not have been that bad had I not been told that my luggage was checked through to my final destination by the Air Canada staff in Vancouver. So after a little running around I managed to find my luggage, check in, and make it to my gate....only to realize that I had 5 hours to wait. Thankfully I qualified to use the Star Alliance lounge at the airport, and a fine looking airport it is if I must say so myself.

After a nice rest in Shanghai I boarded the flight for Ho Chi Minh city (only an hour late). The connecting flight was operated by Shanghai Airlines, and I must say that I was a little concerned with boarding the plane as it was a little rough. Sorry, no pictures, or should I say that you are welcome.

Although I was about 90 minutes arriving in Ho Chi Minh the hotel driver was still there waiting for me to arrive. Note that anybody visiting Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City) for the first time should definitely pre-arrange for a taxi to pick then up at the airport, as I cannot imagine driving in the city.

My first day in Ho Chi Minh was spent checking out the city, capturing a few photos of the architecture, enjoying some great Vietnamese coffee and relaxing. The first photo I captured was of the the city hall (better photo, without me, to be posted as part of the gallery being produced for the trip (at the end). For now you have to be happy with a few photos that also include me.

In my first day I spotted several opportunities to capture some interesting photos (e.g. lot of mopeds and the things people carry, architecture, people, Chinese New Year celebrations preparations, etc). Now I just need to get out to capture the images when the light is good (these images will also appear in the gallery that will be produced at the end of my visit.)