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| Click on the photo to see the album Koh Lipe, Thailand |
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Not quite Koh Kradan (see the 2009 blog), but pretty close...
Friday, February 17, 2012
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Friday, February 10, 2012
Sizzling Singapore
Singapore sizzles in more than one way:
1) the climate (yeah, generally hot, but in the range of 'just bearable' - during the day - and 'very pleasant' - in the evening and morning - while I was there);
2) the economy, along with Hong Kong and Shanghai;
3) the food: spicy and ubiquitous.
The Geylang area, situated east of the city center, not very far from
Changi Airport, does not resemble the Singapore cliche of squeaky clean streets and hurrying business people.
This is the lane at the back of my modest hotel (nothing to write home about, but clean and not too expensive); when I passed early in the evening I had the impression people were drinking ample amounts of beer (the bottles being kept cool in buckets of ice water in the middle of the tables); that this impression was correct was proven all through the night by drunken singing and shouting...
Back to the food: delicious mangosteens (as friend Jim describes them, "purple outside, slimy garlic cloves inside" - but of course they aren't really slimy, and their flavor is exquisite), plus the famous durian.
The durian is being slandered unjustly, in my opinion. Durians are said to be the worst-smelling fruit in the world, and
they are even forbidden in Singapore's metro, but they don't smell
that bad, really. Maybe not my favorite smell, but there is worse - and even if they were the champions in bad smell they would still be the champions in delicious taste!
Right at the entrance of the garden visitors are greeted by this:
The poor pets are doubly discriminated against: they don't just have to stay outside, they are also called pests...
The toilets are literally plastered with hints, explanations, and exhortations:
And when you are done with your business, you find out you've been using a happy toilet!
But whatever you may think of it: this toilet certainly had the most striking signs for 'Ladies' and 'Gentlemen' I've encountered so far.
This one made me smile...
...this one didn't:
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| It's full of jolly eateries and beer pubs |
The Geylang area, situated east of the city center, not very far from
Changi Airport, does not resemble the Singapore cliche of squeaky clean streets and hurrying business people.
This is the lane at the back of my modest hotel (nothing to write home about, but clean and not too expensive); when I passed early in the evening I had the impression people were drinking ample amounts of beer (the bottles being kept cool in buckets of ice water in the middle of the tables); that this impression was correct was proven all through the night by drunken singing and shouting...
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| Dim Sum being prepared |
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| I thought these were chicken feet for connoisseurs, but | a knowledgeable friend tells me they are duck feet (I hadn't looked closely enough!) |
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| hardware store selling good luck charms for Chinese New Year |
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| livingroom-cum-shrine, opening directly to the street |
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| colonial building in a curious mixed style |
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| longans & mangosteens |
Back to the food: delicious mangosteens (as friend Jim describes them, "purple outside, slimy garlic cloves inside" - but of course they aren't really slimy, and their flavor is exquisite), plus the famous durian.
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| mangosteen & durian flesh |
Singapore signs
My visit to the Chinese Garden provided me with plenty of examples for the rules and regulations the city is famous for.
Right at the entrance of the garden visitors are greeted by this: 
The poor pets are doubly discriminated against: they don't just have to stay outside, they are also called pests...
And when you are done with your business, you find out you've been using a happy toilet!
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| Geylang eatery |
...this one didn't:
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| Labrador area power station |
I guess even if you do not understand any of the 4 languages and are half blind, you will get the message anyway.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Round the World in the Sixties
My idea for a 60th-birthday present to myself was a trip around the world;
it did not happen last year, but who says that the 61st birthday isn't worth it?
At 61 you are not old...
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| 1951 Ford |
I had been working on the difficult task of balancing my dream destinations with my budget since I came back from Seattle at the end of August (2011); unfortunately I am just a bit short of frequent flier miles for a free round-the-world ticket (I have been saving up miles since 2008, with this in mind - but I don't have enough, even with buying miles, because there is a limit on how much you can buy in one year). So I have to rustle up about $4000 for the ticket (which I am doing by using savings that I had put aside for a rainy day - I've decided this day has come!); financially things are not working out the way I had planned, but it's not a disaster, and the miles will remain for other adventures.
THE ITINERARY
I've chosen Singapore because I have only been there once very briefly, and because I can travel to various places from there by train or boat (I'm thinking of Malaysia in particular). Originally I wanted to include Sri Lanka as a stop in my RTW-ticket, but it would have made it quite a lot more expensive.
March 4 Singapore - Christchurch - Blenheim, NZ
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| Blenheim |
I'll be visiting two fun-loving Servas ladies - my age - who were my guests in Istanbul. We got on like a house on fire, and I'm greatly looking forward to traipsing around Kiwiland with them (Lorraine has a camper van big enough for the three of us, and Caroline is an avid ballroom dancer: we'll have loads of fun, I know!).
March 18 Blenheim - Auckland - Vanuatu
Including this in the RTW, again, would have been expensive - I was hoping for a frequent flier ticket instead, but that did not happen either. (Unfortunately it's not easy to obtain those tickets, because although the airline alliances like to have faithful customers by tempting you with free tickets "anywhere in the world" they make it extremely difficult to actually book one, particularly if you don't depart from your home country).
Vanuatu is one of my absolute dream destinations (because a very good ethnologist friend who has lived and worked in practically all of the Pacific island states, says "If you have the chance to visit just one Pacific island, take Vanuatu" - and I trust she knows what she is talking about). So I bought an extra ticket from Air Vanuatu...
April 1 Vanuatu - Auckland, on to Honolulu on April 3
Fortunately I was able to include my second dream destination in the RTW. I'll spend as much time as possible on the Big Island and go to all the magical snorkeling places (again) that are described in a guidebook I used in 1998 (I circled the whole island, following this guidebook: some of the best snorkeling ever, including the Banda Islands, Indonesia, which were pretty amazing).
April 25 Honolulu - S.Francisco - Seattle
4 months (of dancing) this time!
Folklife Festival: contradance
Seattle parks: Dancing 'Til Dusk
Century Ballroom: Swing & Lindy
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Aug. 26 Seattle - Frankfurt - Munich
I have to report for 'work' on Sept. 1 - I won't actually have to teach, but I have to be present in Austria, for various reasons.
Home, sweet Home...
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| Lake Weissensee |
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| Lake Millstatt |
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Blossoms in February at my house
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How did I decide on this itinerary? Well, NZ and Seattle are the fixed points - in between I had a long list of places I would like to visit or re-visit, from Mauritius or Maledives to Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Philippines, Borneo, etc. etc. - obviously it's impossible (for me, anyway) to "do" all of them in one trip (because I want to spend at least 2 weeks in every place), so I just had to make decisions. Sri Lanka, Vietnam, etc. are fairly easy to reach from Europe, but I don't think I'll be going to the South Pacific or to Hawai'i that often, so I thought I should spend more time there. The destinations are mostly tropical or subtropical, with places for swimming and, most importantly, snorkeling, which is one of my favorite activities.
Another reason for choosing only warm climates is that I want to travel very light, with just a small carry-on and a daypack.
....just a carry-on and a daypack: My Travel Companions
The backpack, customized by a local shoemaker, has now wheels to be rolled along if smooth surfaces are available.
The backpack can be turned into a bag, with the wheels and carrying straps hidden away to protect them from airport baggage handlers.
Weight: backpack 9.5 kg, daypack 5kg
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