justgoneout 出たばかり

The Rich, Poor, Fat, Ugly, Good-Looking, Pretentious, Fakes, High-class bets, Low-chips stakes, Smoke, Drinks, Professionals, Players, Gamers.

Some big one-off bets see their chips gaining grounds at different tables, while others walked off with hands tucked behind them heading to a -nearby toilet to wash away their bad luck, or to the chips-exchange counter to swap their luck (albeit with more bad luck!). Others warmed their seats with winning bets and losing them again in rounds of games that could see them killing a 24-hour plan from that same chair, with strangers who come and go besides or behind them, even accompanied with smoke (depends which 'class' of casinos one visits).

Tucked at another corner are machines that roll out fruits - stickers that rolled in tandem but stopped at different timing one after another - players bet an opportunity to strike it big. Together their eyes rolled with the fruits - to catch a chance to win cash prize that amount to millions!!

Chips were not the only to watch. Colonial buildings, architectures of betting houses, floor tiles of historic venues, pork-chop buns, milk tea, roast pigeons - are all well-worth time in this Chips-city of the East. Some reading up about Stanley Ho, his businesses and successes, prior to visiting Macau is definitely worth bringing you closer to understanding the feelings of sinful-nostalgia when you take strolls in the streets with all the glitterings at night.

Gamblers can skip this reading.... 3 days visit to this city needs planning. Otherwise you might just waste your time unwillingly but uncontrollably over curiosity inside the sights and sound of money.

I was with my brother. The moment we arrived Hotel Golden Dragon (a half hour taxi ride from the airport), his track shoe gave way. And hopping with an opened-mouth sole, half dangling, as if pre-warning us not to gamble - we arrived at a shoe shop at Macau's Main Square. He bought a good pair of walking Caterpillar. I had asked one of the cashiers about famous local foods which I could explore. He pointed out of the exit door, to the left and at the end of the square, just across a narrow street road is a famous pork-chop bun (known in Cantonese as ju1-pa2-bao1 猪扒包) shop. Its almost half-past five.

Cheap eats AND definitely good!
]

After-dinner finds...

St. Dominic Church Macau

Capitol Theater Commercial Center (國華戲院), which is now used as a market and arcade. Capitol Theater was the only cinema listed on the cultural heritage list of the Macau SAR Government.

Rich and Poor on the outside

a WEALTH of design and architectures







Macau-Taipa bridge

Reflecting the Attractions. This side housed the "high-class".

Macau-Taipa bridge

Day 2

Post Office

Building across traffic light from Post Office

Macau Square in the morning

Civil servants watering plants

In search for Ruins of St Paul's, we took a wrong turn and ended up having to walk steep slopes to reach one of the hilltops before walking down again only to realize Ruins of St. Paul was just a corner away from Exchange Square!....

Residents taking it slow... exercising at hilltop garden

Well designed poster outside Macau Museum at hilltop

Look out from the hilltop....

Alright, it was a tiring walk down when it had been an unexpected climb before that

Finally!

After long walks in the morning, and feeling hungry, we passed a street stall selling simple and tasty chee-cheong-fun

Shops at Macau Square selling breakfast

The Directional Sign Post we missed earlier!

One of the more popular pastry shop among tourists..

Taxi ride out to island Coloane to check out the Hac Sa Beach...

...and the recommended Portuguese restaurant "Fernando's". The salted cod was too salty for good enjoyment. The local drink called Sangria was refreshing with unique bittersweet alcohol and fruity taste....

Short taxi ride from the beach to Venetian Casino

Grand passenger pick-up and drop-off lobby of Venetian Casino

Entrance ceiling... Grand Artwork!

Evening walk back to Wynn Casino was good timing - we were presented with musical fountain

Checking out another recommended restaurant Fat-Siu-Lau

Recommended roasted pigeon, and pork chop

This looked like a hotel

And this queue at a local street stall at late hour seemed to serve delicious food for supper! (If only we had passed this stall before dinner!)

Day 3
Overslept and missed sunrise at Macau, anyway this is good enough

Breakfast at neighbourhood Ca-Chan-Thang - with all the locals in the house... wonderful feeling having breakfast with locals - and oldies!

Macau Airport

Yunnan - literally called "Cloud South", gets its name during the HAN dynasty (Empress WU reign) because of its location south of Mount Yun. This southern-west province of China shares its southern borders with Vietnam, LAOs, and Burma; and its northern borders with Tibet, Guizhou and Guangxi. The capital city of Yunnan is Dali with deep history of more than 2000 years, having had 22 emperors (9 of whom became monks), and its relation to Empress Wu, Tai-people, MU family.

Kunming, which derives its name from the Kunmi minority (which has totally disappeared), is known as "Spring City" as it beholds the priviledge of the best (spring) climate among all other cities in China. As a 'transit city, travellers to Yunnan traversed this clean and tidy city before arriving their final destination. Historically, Kunming was the textile distribution centre for the "Southern Silk Road" which started from Sichuan (through Yunnan) to Vietnam.

Renowned as the city of ancient literalture, Dali was ruled by Bai, Nanzhao, and Dali kingdoms. It was the political, economic, and cultural center through the Tang and the Song (960-1279 AD), and continued through the Yuan (1206-1368). The city is built on the checkered network of the Qing and Ming style, composed of 9 streets and 18 lanes. The city is now divided into the Ancient City and the New District (known as "Xiaguan"). The Ancient City, firstly built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) retains its ancient buildings, city walls and the old city moat. The famous "Foreigner Street" in the Ancient City houses handicraft shops, eateries, accomodation, cafes and pubs - locally flavoured. Xiaguan is home to the government of Dali Bai autonomous prefecture and where modern hotels, public squares, and shopping centres are available. Another famous' of Dali is its "Dali Stones" (大理石).

This magazine titled "Dali the World" from the room of Regent Hotel (风花雪月) hotel has this ancient Chinese poetry about the four seasons of Dali:
虫入风窝不见鸟 （风）
七人头上长青草 （花）
细雨下在横山上 （雪）
半个朋友不见了 （月）

The locals relate the four seasons with:
（风）- 下关一年四季都有风
（花）- 上关有“十理香“花树
（雪）- 苍山千年不化的白雪
（月）- 洱海月海中的金月亮

World famous and UNESCO listed Old Town of Lijiang was one of the well-preserved old towns of China. Located 2,400m above sea level, this town is also named "Little Venice of Orient" and "Highland Suzhou" because of its waterways. The extremely slow pace lifestyle in Lijiang makes it known to be one of the most laziest cities in China. Formerly ruled by the hereditary MU (木) family [literally 'wood'] in the Ming period, Lijiang town has no city walls, as existence of walls mean to cage itself (困) [The Chinese character "wood" within a box of four lines representing walls]. Lijiang's water originates from thawing snow from mountains and glaciers.

There are three towns of Dayan, Baisha, and Shuhe. Dayan has more than 800 years old folk buildings, old house tea road (茶马古道), waterways and bridges. Shuhe is famous cobblers' town where cobblers are as skilful as those in Italy. Baisha is the birth place of the MUs family.

Dayan Town has its many famous:
- water canals with numerous streams and brooks criss-crossing houses
- wooden houses of Naxi, Bai, and Tibetan -mixed architecture
- narrow cobbled streets
- 350 bridges of various structures, some dating back to Ming/Qing dynasties
- small twist-and-turn alleyways
- water wheels

Lijiang's "Square Market" 四方城 (literally four-directions market) was built before the construction of the old town. As named because the market linked roads, streets, alleys, lanes and even fields paths in the mountain outside the town in four different directions of North, East, South, and West. This street witnessed the booming commercial and cultural exchanges for Sino-Indian trade. Short-legged horses (capable of heavy loads and long distance walk) which are held in high esteem by the Naxi people, can be easily spotted in Lijiang.

Many of the 6,000 or so households in Lijiang today still do what their ancestors did - makig bronze and silver ware, curing fur, keeping inns and shops. Majority of residents belong to the Naxi ethnic group whose ancestors worshipped nature, regarding number of birds and animals as devine things. Local people are in the habit of washing streets, as Lijiang streets are hence forever clean, especially in the morning. Women are in charge of family affairs and men in leisure (poetry, calligraphy, painting and music). A flower fair is organized every year where families display their best potted flowers and artificial rockery. Growing flowers in courtyard is a lifelong hobby for many.

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This was planned and paid trip for 8 days but we cut short 2 days as mum was not well. Had arranged this private tour for (possibility) flexibility of changing schedule. Many years ago when I was on a group packaged tour to Korea and young niece had asthma which we wanted to cut short our trip, I had a good time arguing with the local guide which did not prove helpful.
Mum has this extra vessel in her heart that subjects her to abnormal heart beat, which we got to know after she did her gout-stones surgery a year ago and while in hospital then, one morning, her heart was beating at a rate of 150 per minute and cardiac doctors were rushed to her room, and all methods tried, the miracle was after GULPING GLASS OF ICED WATER, her heart beat was back to normal. Everyone had a good scare. Instead of surgery to remove the extra vessel which we did not think its necessary to subject her to, mum was on medication.
And throughout this trip she had several episodes of the abnormal heart beat including one in Lijiang Old Town where she felt giddy and looked worried. I was just as worried, very indeed. This trip was more of a worrisome than a relaxed one, so I would like to go back to Lijiang again soon. I had missed out on many photo-taking sites. Positively, mum was glad she'd been to Lijiang, tried and tested she said - which i said no more trips for her of high altitudes, and till today, she still stubbornly said its due to cold weather!
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16 Dec 2008 (Tue)
SINGAPORE --> KUNMING

Stayed: Green Lake Hotel

Green Lake Park behind hotel, where seagulls fly and gather at "Cuihu Lake" (or green lake). See, in China, one cannot simply do a direct translation of street names from English. I had enquired locals for direction to "Lu4 Hu2" - translated from "Green Lake" - but none knew. Upon the fifth encounter, the local students gave me a thinking-stare then questioned me if I had meant "Cui4 Hu2", and I said yes, which lead me to the correct Green Lake that i had wanted to go! And this "Cui4 is written the 'green' of Jade.

After stroll towards dinner place, mum's heart was beating fast and she was slightly giddy. We took a seat at a nearby bench. I was worried!!! Very worried because I was not sure if I could handle the situation had she fainted. Now that I am writing this, i feel that cold shudder again [not nice at all]. After dinner, we were back to hotel.

17 Dec 2008 (Wed)
KUNMING --> DALI

Our first stop was to stroll the old town of Dali and have lunch










[We shared our food with the guide and driver as food was abundant for just two of us]

Dali's Foreigners Street

Hotel we stayed used abundant "Dali Stones" to construct including floor tiles and pillars

This very nice rooftop resembled those 'green campaign' that is common in Asia where greens are planted at rooftops. However, guide said such view meant that the particular household is very lazy to even clear the wild grown weeds out of their rooftops....

Back to old town of Dali again..

Night scene of old town

This group was filming just outside the kitchen cafe where we had dinner.

The guide had introduced that we watch this popular stage performance where different cultures of Yunnan danced to their story - I was mesmerised by the clothings rather than the story which I didnt know what they were dancing to, though this night show received very popular crowds even among locals

18 Dec 2008 (Thur)
DALI --> LIJIANG

Buffet breakfast in Hotel

Ah ha! The best trip of the day - the local MARKET!!! A very active morning...

Then halfway through, mum needed to rush to the toilet urgently [guide was understanding, she said its common that when you travel with the oldies, toilet visiting is common request... I made the right choice of a private tour, I thought]. See this, out of market - pass Kindergarten - pass backlanes - walk through small lane - into toilet

We watched a local house visit- dance show [Three Tea Cups]. Kinda boring.

Next was lunch

We bid goodbye to our local guide, took about 3 hours car ride towards Lijiang city

beautiful terraced rice field in Yunnan

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Arrived Lijiang town in late afternoon about 3pm, greeted by Hotel's porter.

Mum had to walk very slowly as she got tired easily with the high altitude. Notice the layout of stones on the floor - in ancient days, these are the so-called "tea-horse pathway" where stones horizontally laid are paths meant for human, and vertically are for horses.. And indeed the horses know their paths!

This house constructed from clay is as old as the lijiang city itself, well preserved and unaffected by the earthquake in 1999

Alley outside Zen Hotel, where we stayed. This is a very cosy boutique hotel to stay in Lijiang. Another recommendation is the "Landscape Hotel" within Lijiang Old Town. I'd probably try that during my next visit.

We stayed at level 2. As mum could not take the climb after her 'heart pulse' incident, the night on return to hotel, I had it changed to ground level.

The 'four square market" (as directly translated, which should have meant "four directions market") is the 'central' of the town. Short-legged horses here are for pictures-taking (with a fee)

Our walk, albeit a very slow one, towards Wan-Gu-Lou - the tower of which at the top you could view part of old town

but as mum could not take the walk, we climbed only to mid-level - this as the view

The rest of the evening was spend strolling the town

The evening stroll was not a pleasant one. The guide left after seeing us to the central street and directed us how to go back to hotel on our own as we were supposed to have dinner. And as the evening turned cold (very cold), mum's heart beat was going fast. I saw her worry and suppressed fear. I supposed she saw mine too. I ordered bee hoon soup to share from a nearby restaurant, hoping the warm could put her heart as ease, but it didnt seem so. We just had a few mouthful, asked for the bill, and off we were back. At the square, mum rested on a bench. I was so very worried. Good thing she managed. By the time we were back to the hotel's lobby where there was a central heater (burnt coal), she said she felt better. I was then busy arranging to move our room from level 2 to ground level, when I saw her chatting away with a young eurasian couple at the lobby. That really put my mind at ease. The hotel staff was good. They cooked porridge for my mum knowing she was not well and had not taken much dinner. Mum said porridge tasted fragrantly good!! (though plain). In the process of worrying, I forgot to take a picture of the bowl of porridge!

19 Dec 2008 (Fri)
LIJIANG

Before day breaks - this sight was half beautiful of what I saw last night when moving luggages from room in Level 2.

Lighted room in hotel

Hotel lobby where we had our buffet breakfast

this was the 'heater' that 'cured' my mum last night

hotel's reception - the collectibles hanging around belong to owner's

just outside our room behind the lobby we heard soothing music and thought it came from a broadcasted CD player, only to realise later its real playing of gu-zheng

We were driven to Dragon Snow Mountain to watch a performance cheorographed by Director ZHANG Yimou,

Our lunch stop after the show

Went to a nearby garden for stroll

Mum stayed in hotel to rest later afternoon as it was very very cold outside. I was out with the guide. This is Lijiang Old Town seen from top of Wan-Gu-Lou.

20 Dec 2008 (Sat)
LIJIANG --> SHANGHAI

Stayed in Shangahi for one night

Went out to the streets of Shanghai.

21 Dec 2008 (Sun)
Back home

NORTHEAST INDIA - part of the East Himalayan region, and extending from Sikkim eastwards - comprises of the seven sister states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura.

Connected to India by a narrow stretch of land called the "chicken's neck", NEI is strategically located with borders of Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Myanmar and Tibet. All seven states are within the Jurisdiction of Guwahati High Court. NE India area is endowed with forest wealth, and the natural resources of exotic flora and fauna are invaluable to the development of eco-tourism. Containing a high tribal population in states of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland; each tribe has its distanct tradition of art and culture.

Another notable mention is the 2,900km Bramaputra River - the world's tallest river over sea level. Source from the Himalayas, it flows into the Indian Ocean then runs east for 1,800km through most of southern Tibet before it suddenly turns south and crosses the Himalays in 5,000-metres-deep gorges. Reaching India, the Bramaputra (son of Brahma) runs west and south through Assam and Bangladesh (there, the river is known as Jamuna), where it merges with the Ganges and forms a huge delta.

There is a quote that says NE India is a region that is "on the map, but off the mind...". Definitely there are many more such places on earth that would fit that quote, but particularly Northeast India would be worth a little more mention since it seemed "so near yet so far" in a region where people would know the Himalayas but missed its neighbour.

30 Nov 2007 (Fri)
OURS was a 9pm flight and after about 4.5 hours journey, and we arrived Calcutta. And interestingly as we were on a budgeted trip, when we arrived the budgeted hotel, the street outside as well as the hotel was pitch dark - meaning, there were no street lights and hotel's signboard and the hotel lobby was not lighted up. The hotel operator had to run the generator to let the lights run while we waited outside along the road. When the hotel was ready for receiving guests, we checked-in, and stayed for one night.

1 Dec 2007 (Sat)
CALCUTTA --> GUWAHATI --> SHILLONG
On the roads: 3 hours
Map 1-2-3

It was not a very pleasant rest but made do with it, that's travelling on a budget. The room..

We waited for more than an hour for our breakfast, when only the coffee arrived first,

and about an hour later then the main course...

Calcutta street, viewed from room

To the Bengalis, Kolkata is a proud intellectual capital of India, with an outstanding contribution to the arts, services, medicine and social reform in its past, and a rich contemporary cultural life. As the former Imperial capital, Kolkata retains some of the country's most striking colonial buildings, yet at the same time it is truly an Indian city.

Pushpak Hotel where we stayed overnight

A short walk out in Calcutta streets...

Our supplement morning coffee/tea

Walking along street back to hotel... the rickshaws here are unique only to Calcutta

Took a domestic flight at noon and arrived Guwahati Borjhar Airport 1 hour 10 minutes later.
Local driver securing our luggage/bags atop the van with a rope...

A 3-hour drive towards Shillong

...stopover for lunch

Arrived Shillong, the capital of the state of Meghalaya.
Meghalaya has been called 'The Scotland of the East' because of the similarity of climate, terrain and scenery with the Scottish highlands.

Chantilli Orchid Lake Resort Hotel, where we stayed

Weather was chilly in the evening. Dinner was prepared for us in a restaurant (near hotel's lobby). Food was good


2 Dec 2007 (Sun)
ShILLONG --> CHERRAPUNJI/ ASSAM (Kaziranga National Park, Assam Tea Plantations)
On the roads: 10 hours
Map 3-4-5

Breakfast... at same restaurant where we had our dinner last night

Our bags/luggages... ready to move to next destination

Departing hotel

Drove southwards 2 hours towards Cherrapunji...

Spotted these beautiful flowers at a petrol kiosk

..hitting the roads again...

Stopped at Duwangsin viewpoint....

An hour later, arrived Cherrapunji.
Cherranpuni is universally known to be the wettest place on earth, and also is the only place in India which has just one season - the monsoon. Its been said there is no month without rain, though rain occurs mostly at night. Cherrapunji's average annual rainfall is 1,205cm (comparable to Singapore's of 234cm average annual rainfall amount)

Noh Kalikai Falls, world's fourth highest:-

Taking pictures of the surroundings seems more exciting to me than watching the falls, though it can be quite pretty.

Next we drove a short distance to arrive Mawsmaicave, a limestone cave with a large fossil passage and two stream ways...

Entrance to cave...

Next we headed for Thangkharang Park, vicinity of Cherrapunji.

This is the Prunus Cerasoides flowers - "India's Sakura" i thought! Nice pink...

By the time we reached this restaurant for lunch it was already 2.30pm. However the service was impeccably slow, we spent 2 hours in there...- 1 hour waiting for our food. And this place is crowded

A narrow pathway outside the restaurant led us to the toilet room at the back of the restaurant, and while waiting, I saw this bird

After the much-delayed lunch, we drove further northeast to Kaziranga National Park. It was 8pm when we stopped at a Chinese restaurant for dinner, simple enough to fill our stomachs.

We hit back on the roads again after dinner and a short rest. Then one of the jeeps ran out of petrol and 2 groups of us drove to a "petrol kiosk", but when hitting on the roads again an hour later, the jeep stalled and driver realised he had been tricked. It was not 'petrol' but with mixture of water that was being loaded!!! It was coming to midnight and the 3 children in that car were asleep.

We (group of us 4) were in this other jeep that had to tug the other behind (where the family group were in). Not forgetting the weight carried by the jeep and the no-lights road we were being driven along, we were all admiring our driver's skills!! My friend who sat at the back of the jeep was definitely wide awake as she was so worried that if the strap that towed the jeep behind snap, and of which would hit the rear window behind her, she would get hit.

Good thing that we all arrived safely at Bon-habi Resort , though very late, about 4.30am in the morning - and very cold!

And when we went into our own cottages, there were no electricity. With the cold night air and all of us feeling so tired, the hotel staffs helped run the generator so that we could get electricity - the 20 minutes wait seemed long.

3 Dec 2007 (Mon)
ASSAM (Kaziranga National Park, Assam Tea Plantations)
Map 5

Our cottages....

Everyone in the group woke up late so by the time we met for breakfast in the restaurant, it was about 11am.

After brunch, we headed to Assam Tea Plantations - world famous plantation for Assam tea - famous for its rich full bodied, bright liquor. The tea from Assam is best for those who prefer a strong cup. To know more about tea cultivation in Assam and the glorious period of its recognition, please go to fmldotcom

We stopped along the road outside Kaziranga National Park to catch a glimpse of the animals...

and these 3 local kids got curious with us onlookers that they decided to join in...

Lunchtime!...

Men behind the preparation

After late lunch, we drove into Kaziranga National Park, to watch sunset and the elephants getting ready for bath and returning to their "home" to rest for the day

4 Dec 2007 (Tue)
ASSAM --> ARUNACHAL PRADESH (Itanagar)
On the roads: 4 hours
Map 5-6

Arunachal Pradesh is Northeast India's largest and most remote state with a population of just over one million, and also the least densely populated state with about 13 people per sq km.

The entire region had remained isolated since 1873 when the British stopped free movement. After 1947 AP became part of the North East Frontier Agency (NEFA). Its strategic significance was demonstrated by the Chinese invasion in 1962, and the India government subsequently broke up the Agency giving statehood to all the territories surrounding Assam. AP became the 24th state in 1987, though China continues to argue that until the international border between it and India are agreed, some of the territory remains disputed. At the same time the state is disputing its southern border with Assam, and in April 2001, the state government lodged a petition with India's Supreme Court against the government of Assam for 'large scale encroachment' on its territory. Having long borders with China and Myanmar, it is a truly Frontier State. The state was opened to tourists in 1995. (source: lonely planet)

Kaziranga National Park is the home of the Great Indian One Horned Rhinoceros. Other residents we saw in our safari tour included elephants, deers, wild boar, eagle and some migratory birds.

This morning, we were very excited with our itinerary as we shall experience riding on an elephant inside the park - the central and western range, for an hour!

This was the platform where we got on in oder to ride on the elephant

The Rhino!

what an interesting kingdom!

Best moments captured.. baby elephant cleansing itself! So adorable that i had the urge to jump off the big elephant I was riding on and run to hug it.

Returning to pavilion to 'unload' the elephants

I bet it must have felt lighter!

Close up of baby elephant!!!

(it was only after we returned back to the entrance meeting spot that we got to know our tour leader had paid for us a fee that the local trainers wanted to collect for having stayed below the platform to get close to the elephants and took pictures of them which was not in the itinerary). Fortunately ~ I thought.

Lunch at Green Arayana Restaurant, dishes were individually scooped and served to you to your choice and quantity...

Back to the safari, this time the central/eastern range...

The armoured heavy-built animal!! The rhinos were impressively prehistoric, massive and seemingly impregnable, with huge boat-shaped heads and three heavy folds of carbuncled skin arranged fore, centre, and aft, like armoured blankets. Though they look ponderous, rhinos are capable of amazing bursts of speed when on the attack.

Look at how the birds flew onto the rhino's back for a free ride!

This rhino slowly tailed us to the road while we watched. I was trying to imagine how it looked so clumpsy is able to 'charge' at a high speed??!

Leaving behind the armoured creature, we headed off deeper into the range looking for birds..
Spotted an eagle's nest!

And this was the apple tree which elephants enjoy eating its ripen apples. A local guide plugged one and cut a slice and I tried. Slightly sweet with a tad dryness - I liked it instantly, as for that moment I felt I could understand the elephant's diet!!!.... (though only their fruit meal from an apple tree!)

This was definitely one of the most enjoyable days I had thus far.

We were back to our hotel and packed our bags ready for the next move, to Itanagar - the capital of Arunachal Pradesh

Our early dinner, at the same Green Arayana Resort restaurant, during our stopover along the way...

We arrived ITANAGAR at night.

Hotel Itafort room

see the white door... open it and you've got a common (and narrow) balcony that leads to the next room...

view from balcony...

We had simple buffet in hotel's restaurant,

5 Dec 2007 (Wed)
ARUNACHAL PRADESH (Itanagar --> Ziro)
Map 6-7

Itanagar is known as the "Land of the Dawn Lit Mountains". It is a land of lush green forests, deep river valleys and beautiful plateaus. The land is mostly mountainous with the Himalayan range along the northern borders criss-crossed with ranges running north-south. The weather and the climate of Arunachal Pradesh are quite distinct from the rest of the country. The climate of the State is dominated by the Himalayan system and the altitudanal variations. The climate is highly hot and humid at the lower altitudes and in the valleys covered by swampy dense forest, while it becomes exceedingly cold in the higher altitudes.

Hotel Itafort and its surroundings, in a very cold morning...








The telephone which everyone used to call home and to 'report safety'...(kind-of a "rare find" in such vicinity)

Driving towards ZIRO, we spotted cows unique to Arunachal Pradesh, and driver was kind to let us alight to take pictures of them.. beautiful colors they wear...

Roadside market

We crossed the Arunachal Pradesh check-point, and this stall nearby the check-point sells tasty 'pan-cake' which was stuck piece by piece onto the inner top surface of the charcoal-heated 'stove' and when it was almost done, it would be removed, then 'flipped' (this requires skills!) and fed it back inside the stove to heat up the other side....

Dining area, and our breakfast...

On the roads again heading towards Ziro, located on the Apatani Plateau 1500m.

Arrived ZIRO...

ZIRO, famous for paddy- cum- fish culture, is considered one of the most beautiful towns in India, famous for its pine clad gentle hills around it and rice field all around. Ziro is home to the Apa-Tani tribe, recognized by UNESCO as a potential World Heritage Site for their highly efficient agriculture without animals or machines.

I took a short walk at hotel vicinity...

these kids were curious of my camera

One of our itinerary in Ziro was a visit to the Apa-Tani village...

Notice the "gate" - high leafy structures to block the cold wind blowing into their huts...

Passing by backyards of some houses.. WATERMELON TREE!!

Common pathway for the villages

Stuffed nose with plugs, started because the women wanted to look unattractive to males from neighboring tribes. Apatani women have been considered the most beautiful among the Arunachal tribes. The women tattoo themselves with broad blue lines from the forehead to the tip of the nose, and five vertical stripes under the lower lip in the chin. The women bundle up their tresses, rolled into a ball (Dilling) on the top of the head. They occasionally insert a brass skewer horizontally

Dinner was arranged for us inside a villager's house with firewood set in the middle of the room.. any unfinished food (all of us were polite enough to finish our food!) and leftover bones were thrown back into the fire to be burnt. It was a very cold night, and guests were invited to drink their home-made rice-wine served in a bamboo and it will be refilled every now and then.
For non-achohol drinkers, it was advised to 'give-face' by drinking a little and regardless, they would still be so happy to pour more into the bamboo stick to gesture you to finish their drink..
The wine did help warm our faces though

The head of the village could not be present, thus the assistant-head of the village came over

Local dance presented to us, which we joined in the fun later as well...

6 Dec 2007 (Thur)
ARUNACHAL PRADESH (Ziro)
Map 7

Breakfast!

Hari Village, another apatani village of Arunachal Pradesh.

Visited the Agricultural Museum in the village

backyard of the museum

Government School (just opposite the museum)

Residential area besides school...

THE BREADMAN!

Children after school... (location shoot: outside district museum)
I was glad to see school children in this area. Before this I had the perception that schooling in this area meant children running wild after school with unkept uniforms and sandy-brown shoes.. etc but I was surprised to see these children in smart uniforms and well behaved lot. Good-looking boys to the extend "handsome" faces!

A random purchase from this snack kart (we call it "kachiampute" back home) here tasted so good, with mixture of chilli powder and other spices..!

School children within school compound

Back to hotel, village outside hotel where children playing baseball...it was lunch time - while our group members were enjoying lunch, I sneaked out and took few shots of kids playing baseball..

Another fruitful event we had - a trip to the fish farm after lunch.
We fished on a primitive land using rods made from canes ~ very entertaining! All of us were so excited,... some of us shifted fishing spots when no fishes were caught, others screaming with excitement for even the smallest fish. Simply great fun we all had. AND probably a good reminder for those who have been reading my site, when travelling to countries where you are going to do forest trekking or trip down to villages, wear RED! You will look stunning in pictures.

Our prized catch for the evening - which ended up freshly cooked on our dinner table

Beautiful sky just before sunset, while we were waiting for our coach to fetch us

We were driven to a nearby hilltop to watch sunset... It had been a very very cold and windy evening..

7 Dec 2007 (Fri)
ARUNACHAL PRADESH (Ziro --> Daporijo)
Map 7-8

Everyone was "fully-dressed" - it was a very cold morning - temperature dropped to 4 degrees. Even any of us who stepped out to take pictures would come in the hotel lobby to complain it was so freezing cold - look at the fog....

Drove from Ziro to Daporijo

Stopped over for breakfast, at "view point cafeteria"....

Our food, jointly cooked by our 2 local guides and the cafe kitcher helpers

On the way we stopped by to visit Hill Miri villages.

Look at this family and friends!! I am always very fascinated by all these findings....

strong neck and legs muscles!

Aromatic coffee! and simple servings...

Villages were heart warming and happy to see us...

On our way out to the entrance, before leaving
children fascinated by pictures which friend was showing to them, during class' breaktime...

Back on road towards Daporijo....

Lunch stop

A quick tour of local market

Arrived DAPORIJO, Hotel Arun Subansiri

sunset (viewed from room's corridor)

our room

being a food lover and enthusiasts, i would want to try local food - this bakery 'hidden' behind the lobby caught my eyes - i bought 2 buns

Dinner in a village house (vacated) with ready-BBQ food served...

8 Dec 2007 (Sat)
ARUNACHAL PRADESH (Daporijo) --> ASSAM (Nameri National Park)
Map 8-9

ah!... finally, an understanding of the building structure which was taken during sunset last night

a small cafe where we had coffee post-breakfast

Street outside hotel...

Monastery in Ziro

Next trip to Itafort Southern Gate.. "Itafort" means "fort of bricks" which was where "Itaganar" derived its name.
The fort was built during the king of Jitari dynasty period of 1360 to 1550 AD. The total brickwork is of 16,200 cubic metre lengths. The three gates on three sides (eastern, western and southern) is said to have been built by Ahoms. It is estimated that more than 80 Lakhs of bricks, 45 cubic metres of stone and 46,300 man-days were required to build the fort.
When I took pictures of this fort area, I could not visualise how big the construction was. I think only if we had a chance to take a helicopter ride would you be able to see the area of the fort construction. I was merely seeing bricks...

Back on road towards Nameri National Park...

Drove past the infamous Brahmaputra River!

Arrived Nameri Park, where we stayed at an ECO Camp site... another adventure of our trip!

Listen to the birds chirping in the background, in this video

a member of our team, she's so nice! I was lazy to bring out my backpack so i merely held on to my jacket in case it turned cold later in evening and when we were out watching sunset, I needed to take pictures and got clumpsy as the jacket got in the way, so i hung mine (the pink one) on her bag

Watching sunset at Nameri Park...

this was where we had our dinner

Beautiful tents at night.

9 Dec 2007 (Sun)
ASSAM (Nameri) --> Guwahati
On the roads: 7 hours, excluding overnight train ride
Map 9-10-11

We were driven to the river bank near the camp site to watch sunrise

River Transport!

Goodbye Eco Camp!

Brahmaputra River seen from a hilltop during a stopover for break towards Guwahati station, for overnight train to New Jalpaiguri (NJP).

Arrived Guwahati Train Station at night for our overnight train to NJP

10 Dec 2007 (Mon)
NJP --> Darjeeling
Map 11-12

Arrived rail station of NJP station in the morning....

We were driven to DARJEELING TOY TRAIN station where we rode the infamous TOY TRAIN - awarded World Heritage Status by UNESCO in 1999. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway was designed as an extension of the North Bengal State Railway, climbing from New Jalpaiguri, via Siliguri, up 88km to Darjeeling.

The train was pulled by ancient blue steam engines, some over 75 years old and which still survive due to its unique historical importance and tourist appeal.

Residential houses near one of the train stops,.. fog got thicker within 5 minutes

"neighbour police post"??

This was taken outside our dinner venue

We were on the roads again heading to Darjeeling Hotel, and arriving late in the evening to check in

11 Dec 2007 (Tue)
Darjeeling
Map 12

Darjeeling is a town in the Indian state of West Bengal. The name 'Darjeeling' is a combination of the Tibetan words Dorje ('thunderbolt') and ling ('place'), translating as "The land of the thunderbolt". During the British Raj in India, Darjeeling's temperate climate led to its development as a hill station for British residents to escape the heat of the plains during the summers. Darjeeling is internationally popular for its tea industry and the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
---
We departed hotel at 4am for TIGER HILL (2585m)... [about the height of a 650-storey building]. It was extremely freezing cold and windy up at the hill, and the mini cup (one mouthful) of boiling hot coffee that we bought tasted so preciously good upon each sip).

When spectators who gathered at the hill first glimpsed the tip of the sun, all clapped their hands, some whistled and cheered the spectacular view... (cheered over a sun rise??!! its amazing!)

Tiger Hill presented to us incredible snow-clad mountain peaks of the Himalayan panorama on the eastern extremity of the Singalila Range...

From left to right, the peaks include Lhotse (which actually looks larger than Everest); Everest itself; Makalu; then, after a long gap, the rocky summit of Kang on the Sikkim-Nepal divide; the prow of Jannu in Nepal; Rathong; tent-like Kabrus south and north; Talung; Kanchenjunga main, central and south; Pandim; Simvo; horned Narsing; and the fluted pyramid of Siniolchu. [Actually never mind about the names, nobody remembers them. Basking amongst the scenic beauty is more meaningful]

Jeeps and taxis packed with tourists...

On way back to hotel, stopped by Yiga Choling (2438m), Ghoom Monastery,

The morning remained very cold despite the glaring sun rays. I was watching the prayers' actions...

Back to Darjeeling Hotel

Entrance to hotel via stairs climb by the side of the building....even a few flights of stairs got us all panting away after the climb as the altitude was high

Hotel lobby - homely ambience

Dining, reading corner, and reception

View from hotel entrance

Our morning visit to Himalayan Zoological Park - a breeding center for snow leopards, red pandas, and a home for mountain yaks, Himalayan black bears and Siberian Tigers.

The endangered Red Panda is the symbol of Sikkim. A thick matt of wool covers the soles of their feet. Living in temperate forests of the Himalayans above 1500m, they spend the day sleeping on trees with their tails wrapped around their heads. In the evening they go down to the ground to search for bamboo leaves and fallen fruits. Under stress, their anal scent glands produce a fluid with a repulsive smell.

Himalayan Black Bear - one of the four species found in India, is characterised by a V shaped buff colored breast mark which also gives its name as the moon bear. The most carnivorous of the bears, they occupy step forested hill ranging from 1500-3600m.

Barking Deer derives its name from the sharp barking call it gives when alarmed. Also known as Rib-faced deer, they are shy solitary forest dwellers and occur between 1500-2700m in the Himalayas. They are found in India, SEA, China and Japan.

Samhar Deer is India's largest deer, and they take to water readily and swims adeptly. They remain in herds not more than 4 to 12, and are found in India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Philippines.

The thick pale fur of the Snow Leopard keep it in camouflage against the rocks and snow in its habitat above the tree-line some 12,000-13,000ft above sea level. Hunted primarily for its fur, snow leopards are found in the Himalayas and Central Asian mountains.

Darjeeling Zoo is the only place in the world to breed Tibetan Wolf, a highly endangered high mountain species in captivity. Tibetan Wolf lives like a nomad coming down to valleys during winter and migrating up to the snowline in summer.

Leopard Cat is widely distributed in India, and lives in hollows of trees. It is nocturnal (active in night) in habit and is seldom sighted in the wild. Leopard Cat is widely hunted for its pelt

Back to hotel for late lunch before departure. Buffet spread was sumptuous and service was best for our stay in India thus far...

We had to walk quite a distance to our Coach, and which we were glad that we had an opportunity to observe the local bazaar streets... and we were surprised to see such crowds

We departed Darjeeling for 5 hours drive to Gantok, the capital of Sikkim.
Map 12-13

Back in coach, the fog became heavy just within 5 minutes as we departed but fortunately we were on a descending altitude and as we got lower, the heavy fog stayed at the top

Arrived GANTOK, checked in Hotel Sonam Delek

12 Dec 2007 (Wed)
Gantok --> Lachen
On the roads: 6 hours
Map 13-14

Morning view from room

Dining room where we had our breakfast and dinner last night

Checking out at hotel reception

... driver getting ready to pack our bags atop his jeep at hotel entrance...

A short walk to out where our jeeps awaited to drive us to Lachen, small village in North Sikkim

On the roads of Sikkim

(only one vehicle to drive through at one time)

Drive towards Seven Sisters Falls

Sikkim is a land of water falls... where every other corner of the road there is a water fall present. Located at North Sikkim, Seven Sisters falls through seven steps, hence its name. We only got to see its last 3 steps of falls

Back on the roads again....

Lunch stop...

Potted flowers of Inn's owners

Back on the roads again...

Walk down steps to view Eastern Singaila Range

We drove for another half hour drive before stopping by another waterfall spot

Back on the roads again and finally arriving LACHEN (altitude 3,600m) village at 6.30pm, after more than 6 hours on the road....overnight in Juniper Mountain Resort

Dinner in a room near lobby of hotel

13 Dec 2007 (Thur)
Lachen --> Lachung
Map 14-15

Walking out of the resort through the village houses for our next destination...

Drove a distance before arriving at a photo-taking spot of the Kanchengjunga range....

Back on the roads of Sikkim again...

Fascinated with sightings of icicles, we requested a brief stop here. Wonderful!

Back on the road again, nearby plateaus of higher altitudes

Shortly afterwards, drove to nearby inn where for our lunch....

Helpers in the kitchen preparing hot (maggie) noodles soup


Arrived LACHUNG (altitude 2,400m) in the evening, was freeezzzing cold!! And the water heater functioned on a "SHSC" (sometimes hot sometimes cold) system, meaning with just one pail to fill with hot water, it can be frustrating when you wanted a quick shower but you had to wait for the next running of hot water. One of our team mates suggested a great idea which I found it hilarious as she sang the "timotei" advertisement song... - that is wash hair first for the first run of hot water while you still had your clothings.

14 Dec 2007 (Fri)
Lachung --> Yumthung -->Lachung
Map 15-16-15

After breakfast we depart for Yumthang (3,500m) to a hot-spring house at Yumesamdong

Heading for the blue hot-spring house

Crossing the bridge,...

standing in midway of bridge - looking to your left and and right:

The hot spring house another short walk up...

Budget trip so budgeted spa - here's the men's version of "hot-spring pool"

On the contrary, women's room had only the pool structure but no spring water. We waited for the owners to 'turn on' the tab to let the spring water run and so a few of us ladies took turns to experience the "unique" feeling of "showering" (instead of "dipping" in) with hot-spring water through a running tap instead. We thought its 'cleaner' that way too.... and we were told the sulphuric residue should not remain on our bodies for more than 2 hours.

We were all hungry after 5mins of simple experience, and the simple hot instant noodles placed outside the spring house suddenly tasted so good!

ON way back to Lachung....snow along roadside

Back to village, see the cow's beautiful fur

Our lodge, Hidden Valley Guest House, for the night

The kitchen/dining house - just opposite our lodge

View from our room

Hot and delicious noodle soup fit for the very cold weather!

We all asked to have our water bottles refilled with hot boiling water where we could slip them under our bed covers to keep us warm. Portable heater in the room has no effect for such weather at such altitude. My room mate envied me for having such a big fat bottle! (now i learnt the advantage of carrying a big fat bottle with you when you travel)

15 Dec 2007 (Sat)
Lachung --> Gangtok
On the roads: 6 hours[/b]
Map 15-13

Getting everyone to gather for a group photo in Lachung before departure....

Someone in the team left her cap in the room, so good thing that while the jeep pulled over at the side of the road just a distance from the entrance, I got out of the jeep and took a few "Architectures of Lachung"....

before saying Goodbye to the village

Another waterfall, beautiful reflection of rainbow

Back on the roads again as we drove south towards Gantok, we were happy to catch one more good look at Lachung village below

Stopover at a monastery

A comfortable place to rest for the night in Gangtok

We were delighted that the toilet was much cleaner and bigger than those we had stayed earlier, only to realise its disadvantage - there was no heater in the room hence while bathing, the cold air that stayed in the spacious toilet made your shower experience not so pleasant.

Framed embroidery on wall of room

Out to the streets of Gangtok at night...

Do not despise the look of this shop - tasty rolls they sell! We got greedy seeing how they cooked it and friend bought one and we shared, a pre-dinner bite

Dinner at Snow Lion Restaurant - an upscale restaurant in town, good food and excellent service!

16 Dec 2007 (Sun)
Gangtok
Map 13-11

We left the hotel at 5am for a half hour drive to Tashi Viewpoint which offered another majestic view of Mount Khangchendzonga and other peaks of the Himalayas.

The climb up the stairs was not easy starting from the 'welcome' yellow sign post to the viewing platform - the small circular white stand in the middle of the picture

After breakfast in hotel, we walked to the Flower Exhibition Centre nearby

We packed our bags and checked out of the hotel after lunch. The owner was very kind to present us each a white shawl for good wishes and safe trip for the rest of the journey.

We then stopped over at Rumtek Monastery before heading to the train station. Rumtek Monastery, is also known as Rumtek Dharma Chakra Center.

The main structure of the monastery is in strict accord with the traditional architectural designs of the Tibetan monasteries. The whole structure is beautifully covered with murals, traditional Tibetan style paintings. Indeed, the General Secretary later received an architectural award for Rumtek Monastery from the State of Sikkim for the beauty, precision, and the authenticity of the traditional Tibetan architecture used to create the monastery. This was the first monastery built in India in the traditional design, and it became the model for many other monasteries built later throughout India. Visit this link for more information of the historical backgrounds and facts of the monastery

After dinner, we drove to NJP (train station) again to take overnight train to Kolkata

17 Dec 2007 (Mon)
Kolkata
Map 11-1

Arrived Kolkata train station early morning

Our local guide bargaining with the local porters

Finally on a verbally agreed price, our bags/luggages were lugged on these porters' heads out to the carpark

however, another bargain was negotiated as they demanded more after bags were taken to our coach

Outside Kolkata train station

We toured the streets of Kolkata after breakfast

Kolkata's Writers' Building - originally built as a residence for the British East India Company's clerical and administrative staff called as writers, hence the name Writers' building. This building summarises the political revolution of Bengal

St Johns Church, originally a cathedral, was among the first public buildings to be erected by the East India Company after Kolkata became the effective capital of British India. Due to poor subsoil conditions, the entire fourth tier of the steeple was omitted giving the building a compressed dumpy appearance

The General Post Office is a colossal building with a large dome, and an important public office. It is fairly well maintained and gets a coat of whitewash at regular intervals.

KFC in Park Street (after years of delay in opening, behind Bangalore and Bombay)

Kolkatta Police HQ

Kolkatta Reserve Bank of India

Kolkatta Royal Insurance Building

HSBC

Other historical buildings

Lunch at Peter Cat Restaurant

We shopped along Park Street, went to Oxford Bookstore, bought some books and thereafter proceeded to "Flurys" teahouse (English tea house with delightful ambience and great food). Next was dinner at Oasis Restaurant at Park Street before heading back hotel to pack for departure to Airport.

Calcutta Airport,...

~~~~~~~~~~

One of the magazines that I purchased from India published an article (by Kerry Little) about the roads of Sikkim and Gantok, which reminded me of the never-dull road journeys where road signs (erected by the Border Roads Organisation "BRO") are abundant in "lessons of living".....

LIFE IS PRECIOUS
DO NOT WASTE IT

BE GENTLE
WITH CURVES

IF YOU ARE MARRIED
DIVORCE SPEED

BREAK SPEED
THAT IS THE NEED

WE CARE FOR YOU
SO SHOULD YOU

SPEED THRILLS
BUT OFTEN KILLS

IT IS NOT A RALLY,
JUST A VALLEY

SAFETY FIRST
SPEED AFTERWARDS

HILLS ARE THE
CROWN OF NATURE

FORESTS HAVE MADE US
A BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE

SOMEONE IS WAITING FOR
YOU AT HOME

TIME IS PRECIOUS BUT
LIFE IS PRICELESS

MOUNTAINS ARE A PLEASURE
ONLY IF YOU DRIVE WITH LEISURE

AVALANCHE AHEAD,
WATCH AND GO!

BRO CAN CONSTRUCT ROADS ANYWHERE
EXCEPT THE SKY

TREES ARE EARTH'S ENDLESS EFFORTS
TO TALK TO THE HEAVENS

8 Jun 2009 (Thur)
Depart SIN 2345hrs

9 Jun 2009 (Fri)
ST GALLEN
"Stift" district - UNESCO World Heritage Site
Arrive Zurich 0630hrs - Kloten Airport.
Rail to St. Gallen station (Swiss Federal Railways)
Stay:St Gallen Einstein Hotel
Reference accomodation: Hotel Vadian; Gasthof Schwanen

A grand old hotel housed in former textile factory, the room was already warmed up when we went in but not knowing there was heater in the room (and we wondered why the room was warm) as we could not find the switch, only to realise the next day that behind the curtain and just right below the window the coiled pipe was the heater!
A jug of plain water (we purchased from the hotel) was so very expensive - CHR9 per jug!

ST. GALLEN is a modern and cospolitan city, watched over by the imposing baroque Cathedral in the heart of the stunning "Stift" district - awarded World Cultural heritage Status and is under the protection of UNESCO.

Lunch stop...

Legend has it that around 612, the monk Gallus either fell over, or stumbled into a briar patch, or spoke to a bear which understood what he was saying; whichever, Gallus felt he had received a sign from God to choose that very spot to build his hermitage. Thus sculptures or icons of bears are common in St. Gallen, where charming timber-framed houses lined the streets.

The best expressed art form of Oriel windows in the world is in St. Gallen, those supporting brackets (called corbels) have evolved into a whole art form and a fashion in the early 18th century. However, most Oriel Windows seen today are younger than the houses to which they are attached. Most are carved from wood, painted and then stuck onto the stone facade to satisfy the whim of the nouveau-riche merchant who lived within

Confiserie Roggwiller Tea Room at old town St Gallen

We ordered the infamous Swiss' Meringue, which was baked to the hard form, and tasted quite like sweet biscuit. I would have preferred the soft Meringue.

St Laurenzen church became the centre of worship for the protestant population with the arrival fo the Reformation in the 1520's

The "Stift" District (or Abbey District of St. Gallen) was included in 1983 in the World Cultural Heritage Site... view from top of church

Cafe stop for a drink

Dinner at AM Gallusplatz was so wonderful.. food was extraordinary, even the bread and butter spread alone was unforgettable... (dining was in a formal environment). According to a travel book, AM Gallusplatz is the city's best restaurant of high-quality French cuisine

Weather turned chilly at night, and when the wind blew, it was very cold!! But the walk back to hotel was quiet and beautiful

10 Jun 2009 (Sat)
ST GALLEN / Lake Konstanz
Stay: Einstein Hotel

UBS in St Gallen!

Tourism Centre.. we did not bring our passports with us which could entitle us to huge discounts off train tickets and we walked back to hotel and returned again to the centre to purchase train tickets (schedules). Validation of tickets were done by inserting the tickets into the 'ticket stamp box'

55 minutes ride from St Gallen station down south to Kreuzlingen (to go Konstanz) passed Romanshorn station

Walking towards St. Gallen train station..

Arriving Kreuzlingen

Buildings of Konstanz

Marktstaette (market square, originally: market shore) is the more lively part of the Altstadt.

Lake Constance (anglicized name of Bodensee) formed by the Rhine Glacier during the ice age, is Central Europe's third largest lake. It shares its borders with two other countries, Germany and Austria. IN the harbor of Konstanz, rotating Statue of Imperia holds a naked Pope and Emperor in her hands, symbolizing the power of women over men. It is also symbolic of the Council of Konstanz in 1414-1418, which ended the Western Schism, a period during which there were two and sometimes three popes at one time. Designed by artist Peter Fenk with the support of sponsors, the town council and the church were not amused, but the citizens of Konstanz embraced Imperia with relish (source: Kent E. St. John, Senior Travel Editor)


These nice flowers were taken from potted plants placed along walking path of Lake Konstanz harbour

Konstanz Train Station

Midway on our return ride back to St Gallen, we alighted at Romanshorn for a drink at a (seemed like) clubhouse,

... and we were happily relaxing until friend asked whether there would be a 'last train' departure time.. and suddenly we got worried, settled our bills, and went to the train stop. There was a 'button' at the post of the train stop and we were not sure if we should press that for train-stop alert or was that meant for something else.

Friend ran across the station to the shops opposite and did not managed to understand their language so came back to the stop and we pressed for the button, regardless, taking a risk better than to lose the last train, if it was, and indeed was!

We arrived St Gallen in the evening

11 Jun 2009 (Sun)
ST GALLEN / WILDERSWIL
Abbey Library - UNESCO World Heritage Site
Stay: Gasthaus Steinbock

Breakfast

Walk through Old Town towards Abbey Cathedral

The Abbey library is one of the oldest libraries in the world, containing more than 150,000 books and manuscripts, some dating from the 8th to the 11th centuries.

The "Stiftsbibliothek" as it is called in German, is the library of the former Benedictine Abbey of St. Gall. The solitary monk's cell founded here by the Irish missionary Gallus in 612 developed into a Benedictine Abbey. As early as the 9th century it had reached the height of its religious, intellectual, and economic fame.

Classical Antiquity, Christianity, and Alemmanic culture formed a synthesis in the St. Gall manuscripts. In 1805, when the Abbey, despite its fame, fell a victim to the political trends of the times, the Library fortunately remained intact. Unlike other institutions of the kind, the St. Gall Abbey Library did not become a mere museum after the dissolution of the Monastery, but remained a living library open to a studious public. Housing the Abbey's cultural treasures dating back to the period between the 8th and 12th centuries, the library is of inestimable importance to the entire world of art and history.

The Library contains about 150,000 volumes, its most unique treasures are the 2,000 manuscripts, most of which date back to the earlier and later Middle Ages when St. Gall was in its creative zenith. The are also unique documents for biblical and liturgical study, for palaeography, the history of the arts, music and literature, for Latin philogoy and German language research, as well as for the history of law and medicine.

The Hall is richly moulded, elaborately ornate and noble in proportion. The room is rightly described as the most beautiful rococo interior in Switzerland, constructed in 1758 under Prince-Abbot Coelestin II Gugger von Staudach, who also built the late baroque Abbey Church. The ceiling frescoes depict the first four Oecumenical Councils. The vigorously painted figures in the side lunettes portray Fathers of the Church.

Photo-taking was not permitted hence these 2 pictures are sourced.
The Baroque Cathedral

(source: www.lynnerutter.com/labels/travel.html)

The Library Hall

(source: http://curiousexpeditions.org/?p=78)

Through Old Town again to go back Hotel

Just before noon, we were out of hotel, took a train from St Gallen-Zurich...

Zurich Station

Accomodation availability bookings board at Zurich Station

Zurich Train Platform

... then Zurich-Wilderswil

Arrived WILDERSWIL, after more than 4 hours...
Situated in Interlaken, Wilderswil is a small holiday village known as a backpackers/trekkers paradise

Arriving Gasthaus Steinbock, our accomodation in Wilderswil

View from room,... rapid river gushing non-stop creating a water-flowing loud enough to beat the quiet atmosphere of the hotel, but at night could be a little noisy unless windows are shut which would stop the cool air from blowing into the room

Nice wooden bridge

Parachuting

Wilderswil town...

Wilderswil Tourist Information Centre

Walking further in Wilderswil town in search for food...

Dinner stop at Alpenblick Hotel

12 Jun 2009 (Mon)
WILDERSWIL / LAUTERBRUNNEN
Trummelbachfalle - UNESCO World Heritage Site
Stay: Hotel Schutzen

View of Wilderswil town houses from room in the morning...

Breakfast

After breakfast, walked this westside way up...

and passed cemetery (just behind hotel) before checking out of hotel...

... to take train southwards to Lauterbrunnen Valley

Arrived LAUTERBRUNNEN VALLEY, coming out of train station - the entry point of Lauterbrunnen

Looking across the road where we had just came out of the train station (opposite), and on left of road is "Tourist Information" centre

Lauterbrunnen village, with significant Staubbach waterfall as icon and backdrop

Hotel Schutzen where we stayed
Reference Accommodation: Hotel & Rstaurant Oberland

Tourist Information Centre

Our lunch stop

Fruits/vegetables baskets outside mini-supermarket

We walked to Trummelbachfalle, thundering glacier watefalls (drained from "Eiger", "Monk" and "Jungfrau") and the only glacier-waterfalls inside a mountain. Site has been named in the UNESCO World Natural Heritage lists

We took a tunnel-lift up the mountain; this was a wonderful experience as i felt like one of those 'mining workers' whom you would see in documentary programmes on television, where workers took those lifts to go underground to do their mining works - though this tunnel-lift we took, it went up instead.... interesting!

Waterfalls inside the mountain.. noticed the rainbow!

This black-white picture taken off from Jungfrau magazine would present a better aerial view inside the mountain

Out of the mountain,.. walking path down

We took a different return path to hotel

While we were having dinner at one of the cafe along the road (their food are really very salty!), we were fortunate to see cows crossing the roads. The big bells tied around their necks produced dense rythym as they walked, even the cars have to give way... (though there were only 1 or 2 cars)

13 Jun 2009 (Tue)
INTERLAKEN / LAUTERBRUNNEN
Stay: Hotel Schutzen

We took a train ride to Interlaken OST, not knowing that we could have stopped at Interlaken West station instead!

Anway we walked from OST station to Interlaken West....
see the mini sporty Ferrari

and the Postman of Interlaken!

Aare River, longest river in the entire Europe region.

Floodgate bridge

Nice fluffy bird of Interlaken! (I thought I should have seen it in the woods instead of the city area!)

Other side of Aare River,...

Start of our trek to Strandbad Neuhaus, to visit Oberhofen Castle

I was concentrating on photo-shooting the ducks here,....

... when suddenly my friend softly called me and tapped my left shoulder to look left and I turned my head, I saw the family here by the shores!! So wonderful!

Satisfied with the duck family, we continued our walks

... until we reached Strandbad Neuhaus and had our lunch

We proceeded to Oberhofen Castle,.. this is the entrance

Sign board

This was the water from which I refilled my water bottle, and I had diarrhoea for 2 days after drinking it.

Castle's vicinity and garden ground...

Beautiful Oberhofen Castle located on Lake of Thun ("Thunersee"), its architecture conglomerated from eight centuries. At present, the castle houses extensive exhibition of Bernese style of home decor, with interiors from the 16th to 19th centuries (we did not purchase tickets into the castle though). The romantic lake tower is an icon of the castle.

We then took a train back...

... to Lauterbrunnen

14 Jun 2009 (Wed)
LAUTERBRUNNEN TREK TO WENGEN / WENGEN TRAIN TO KLEINE SCHEIDEGG / KS TRAIN TO JUNGFRAUJOCH
Aletsch Glacier, UNESCO World Natural Heritage site
Stay: Hotel Schutzen

This morning we took a short trek southeast to Wengen, taking us about 2 hours to complete instead of the time as indicated in the sign post as the trek further up proved to be steeper than we had imagined and we were so tired!

The steep trails tire me like an old woman!

Nice view of glacier mountain, and flowers as we were 10 minutes away from Wengen town

Alright, arrived town of Wengen, just right up there!

Wengen at an altitude of 1,274 metres, is located on a sunny terrace, high above the Luterbrunnen Valley at the foot of the Eiger, Monch & Jungfrau. This traffic-free resort is the ideal departure point for excursion to world-famous 3,454 metres Jungfraujoch

Our lunch...

After ample rest, we walked to Wengen rail station, and took a train up to Kleine Scheidegg station in order to transfer to another cog-rail to go up Jungfraujoch

Arrived Kleine Scheidegg Station

The Jungfraujoch can only be reached through a 7.3 km long cog railway tunnel, served by the Jungfraubahn, which took about 50minutes. A section of the route travels through a tunnel hewn from solid rock

Arrived Jungfraujoch!

Splendid snow of Jungfraujoch plateau

The spectacular 24km Aletsch Glacier, is the longest (or mightiest) ice stream in the Alps of Europe. The most heavily glaciated region in the whole of the Alps also spreads out from here. On clear days, the panorama streches to the Vosges mountains in France and Germany's Black Forest.

The left cliff of this mountain resembled a face!!

Ice Palace on Jungfraujoch

The other side of Jungfraujoch

15 Jun 2009 (Thur)
GRINDELWALD
Stay: Hotel-Gletschergarten

We departed Lauterbrunnen to take a train to the East of Berner Oberland region, the Grindelwald

Train stop of Lauterbrunnen

Arrived station of Grindelwald

We stayed at Gletchersgarten, with its own antique lift inside the hotel..

View from room's balcony

View from hotel's entrance

Their dinner menu was simply great, we ordered 4 course set dinner

View of hotel in evening

16 Jun 2009 (Fri)
GRINDELWALD - FIRST to Balchapsee to Waldspitz to Bort, back down to Grindelwald

Stay: Hotel-Gletschergarten

FIRST is easily reached via aerial Gondola ride from Gindelwald

The map below shows the trail we took,
[1] FIRST - Bachalpsee
[4] Bachalpsee to Waldspitz [trail [4] was not passable, hence we took the other trail besides trail [4], in map]
[4] Waldspitz to Bort
- took about 4 hours in total of trekking time (including picture taking time)

Arrived FIRST at 2,168m, entry point to begin trekking ...

The easy hike to deep blue waters of idyllic Lake Bachalpsee passed along Flower and Marmot Trails and magnificient scene of thick snow surrounding the Alpine...

Spotted a Marmot

Continuing...

Alpine snail!

Patterned snow!

Semi frozen lake of Balchapsee...

Our orange bottles, and walking stick!

There were 2 trails to go from FIRST to Waldspitz, and we tried the route [4] and just 10 minutes into it, the trail is impossible to pass...

... due to heavy snow that covered the trail path

Hence we walked back to where we were earlier

and took another path...

Notice the painted red-white patch on the rocks, its an indication that you are in the right direction...

Nice Hut!!

Reaching Waldspitz soon...

Beautiful valley

Arriving Waldspitz, cafe for light lunch

The sausages are so salty!! And tomato sauce served in a tube!!

From Waldspitz to BORT,steep stairways trail down all the way until about 10 minutes away from the station that is on level ground, and fortunately the rain started only when we were about 5 minutes from the station, nevertheless with just one umbrella to share, we were still quite wet

Back to hotel... for dinner. Food was just so good

17 Jun 2009 (Sat)
GRINDELWALD - Gross Scheidegg
Stay: Hotel-Gletschergarten

Today we trekked to "Gross Scheidegg", the bigger sister of Kleine Scheidegg (where we stopped for our cog train up to Jungfrau earlier) ... via Milchbach Chalet (stopover for a drink) before stopping at Hotel Wetterhorn for lunch, before continuing our walk. We did not complete the walk to reach G Scheidegg as it started to drizzle and we thought before the rain turned really heavy, we took a bus down back to Grindelwald....

Start of walk...

aaahh!! Letterbox in the mountain range? Alphine letterbox??

Pretty face...

Another short distance to walking into the woods

Nice beetle!!

We passed this stream with strong currents of water and yet produced a high layer of mist above the running water that we seemed to be in a fairyland when we crossed the bridge...

Flower

Back on track

Blue beetle and dragonfly!

Another uphill task

We came by this Milbach Chalet and seemed to be deserted, and after checking out, there were operators for the cafe though pitifully empty

Spotted an alphine snail! Quite huge (and fairer too!) compared to a garden snail that I got to see back home

Seemed a flat picture cloth - but not, this was the view of the valley from the 2nd level of the cafe...

We continued our walk further, until we reached Hotel Wetterhorn, for lunch

Back to walking....

These alphine cows were huge!! And we had to cross the path and where the cows were grazing the grass. They mooed so loud and when they walked the bells over their necks were so huge and loud that we were so petrified that they would all chased us...!! I was so glad I managed to walk pass that section without harm,... (looking back and snapped)

It seemed likely to rain soon, so we quickened our pace...

It started to drizzle soon and we got to a stop where we took a bus down to Grindelwald station, and shopped at the town centre and also got into a cafe for coffee before heading back to hotel to pack up.

18 Jun 2009 (Sun)
BERN - UNESCO World Cultural Heritage
Stay: Bristol Hotel

Hotel arranged complimentary transfer to hotel (since we had our 2-trolley huge luggages with us). At Grindelwald station,...

took train to Bern

Bristol Hotel

View of old town from room

Reinhard bakery shop near Hotel

Bern in a nutshell:-
Bern was founded in 1191 by Berchtold V, Duke of Zahringen, for strategic reasons and enlarged by stages. In 1353 Berne joined the Swiss Confederation. After the fire of 1405, which almost completely destroyed the wooden-built town, the houses were rebuilt of sandstone. The medieval structuer of the city orginating from that time has remained unchanged up to the present day. In 1834 Berne became a university town, and in 1848 Berne became a university town, and in 1848 the Federal Capital of Switzerland. It is Europe's most flower decorated city and UNECO World Cultural Heritage. Its romantic, medieval streets with their 6 kilometers of arcades are one of the longest covered shopping promenades in Europe.

And Bern has lot's of nice fountains most of them in the old town...

Old town of Bern,..

Walking towards historical museum, crossed bridge above Aare River..

Historical museum of Bern is the second largest historical museum in Switzerland

Dinner was done at a Chinese cafe inside Bern's train station - and we saw a local drinking "rivella" and was told it was a famous drink in Switzerland, hence we ordered one as well [I could not remember the taste now that I am writing this]

19 Jun 2009 (Sun)
ZURICH [/u]
Stay: Hotel Sedartis

Hotel was located outside of Zurich at Thalwil. When I booked I had understood it as next to Zurich station, and when we were there, realised we had to take another train out to reach that hotel. Good that the hotel was clean and neat, and it would seem more like a hotel for the business people than for leisure tourists...

Thalwil Station...

... to Zurich Main Station, called "The Hauptbahnhof", after 10 minutes ride

Fountain in middle of junction outside Zurich station

Zurich's traffic...

Bahnhofstrasse - apparently the most beautiful shopping street in the world...and a stroller's paradise

Nice cafe for lunch

Continued shopping

Such a far walk to Restaurant Fischstube Zurichhorn, which friend definitely wanted to go as it was a must-visit restaurant recommended by her sister.

.. and interestingly we passed a nostalgic empire-like hotel,...

... passed a museum

... passed a park that seemed like a Chinese Garden..

before arriving at the restaurant by the sea

We took a bus back to Zurich station

Beautiful night view of lake and houses..

20 Jun 2009 (Mon)
Depart ZURICH [/u]
on flight home

Sunrise view

Back to Zurich Station, to the airport for our flight home..

Lombok is about 3/4 the size of Bali but slightly more populated than Bali. Also known as the "unspoilt Bali" - Kuta beach has such serenity - derived from the combination of white sandy beach and the clear & blue waters layered along the shores - almost primitive and uncivilised but neatly taken care of by nature. 'This is also a favourite honeymoon site', our tour guide Farosh had said - and when I was there at the beach and at the hill top, with another couple-friends, for a while I felt I should not have been there because of the romantic warmth (even under the hot sun!) Kuta beach emitted which I thought this should have been 'them-only' visit, not having 'extra' like me around. But nevertheless my girlfriend was even more playful than I when she was overly excited at the beauty the view presented. Scroll down and take a look at the pictures of Kuta beach,....

Reference reading "The New Bali"

29 Apr 06 (Sat)
Landing base (or airport) of Mataram

Batu Bolong Temple - literal translation "rock with a hole", a balinese temple. Legend has it that beautiful virgins were once thrown into the sea from the top of the rock and locals claim this is the reason why there are so many sharks in the water at this particular location. Hindu religious ceremonies are often held in this place.

Quinci Villa - located at Mangsit District of Senggigi, the most developed tourist area of Lombok

Lunch at Taman Restaurant

Our orders (clockwise from right) Rosemary Chicken, Ikan Utuh, Ayam Taliwang - simple Indonesian taste

Backyard of Taman Restaurant

Street outside Taman

Complimentary shuttle by the restaurant

Back to Quinci....

Dining area of Quinci

Senggigi Beach

Beautiful Life...

Children playing

Sunset

We went back to the same Taman Restaurant for dinner since lunch was good. However, dinner was not as great as we had expected. Our order Tom Yam Goong and Roast Duck(ling), and we enlisted help of the staff to help us cut the duckling...

30 Apr 06 (Sun)
Lombok South Island Land Cruise covered local places of rice harvesting field, senggigi traditional village on our way to beautiful Kuta at Southern island

Lookout to Lombok Strait

Cultivating Pearls in Sea

Beautiful River

Cotton Plant and Seed

Rice Harvesting Field

Traditional Village

Sindang Gila Waterfall, 20-minute walk down a graded trail and steps from Senaru Village

Back to Senaru Village - rice terraces afar

Lunch at Senaru Village (there were lots of wild dogs hovering around our table as if waiting for us to throw them food - I had a terrifying lunch as these dogs could seem quite dangerous and when another tourists group left their lunch table, immediately the dogs jumped onto their table and consumed the leftovers!)

Stick Fighting - a competition held by the local village head, an ad-hoc event that attracted many kids to participate and also attracted many watchers...

Cafe Alberto - dinner was done "in the dar" at the beach with each table given a candle lamp - it was supposed to be romantic but it did not seem so to us as we were eating in the dark with a faint source of light! And the fishes we ordered were full of bones and hence we could only remove the bones from our mouth

01 May 06 (Mon)
Breakfast in Quinci

Man fishing.... rare sight!

In car on way to Kuta Beach

"Cidomo" - Pony Cart

Reaching Kuta..

This way climb up to hilltop

On way to other side of Kuta

(notice the fisherman and boat)

Another side of Kuta Beach

On way to lunch,..

Lunch at Kuta Indah Hotel & Restaurant, our order Nasi Goreng Special, Ayam Taliwan, Satay Ayam

Roadside stall selling coconuts

View from tent stall where we had coconuts

Back to Quinci to pack up before heading back to airport.

We met some 'friendly' locals upon reaching the airport helping us with our bags despite our backpacks are manageable and we ignorantly thought the locals are helpful, only to our surprise that they demanded money from us after putting our bags down into the airport... and we gave, in return for a 'difference in culture' experience.

The photos speak....

The Peak Trail
Yes, with the same friend "CT" whom I was with the previous time we were trekking Dragon's Back - we had wanted to do the Peak Trail one morning but was foggy, this time we did it in the afternoon and although view was not clear, we managed.

Cheung Chau

This was what we missed the last time
Delicious egg tarts from Tai Cheong Bakery

Wonderful dim sum from Lin Heung

Loola Adventure - trip of adventures (boat adventure + boom netting, volleyball, campfire, flying fox, archery)

22 Oct 2005 (Sat)
Tanah Merah Jetty - boat we boarded heading for Bintan

Arriving Bintan Ferry Terminal

Private cars (as arranged by Loola) awaiting us outside the terminal

...sending us to another jetty where we boarded the local fishing boat

Out in the sea...

Boom-netting....

Fisherman...

to Loola Adventure village

walking to our unit/room

serene view from room


the "backyard"...

trying to see if we could see fishes or corals...

Late into the evening, low tide presented to us another wonderful view

Crabs!






Sunsetting...

Volleyball game before dinner

Setting fire at dinner site

Jetty at night...

Not sure if they were trying to catch crab or squid

23 Oct 2005 (Sun)
It rained in the middle of the night and we did not expect to watch sunrise hence most of us slept through till late about 9am, and though cloudy, we were still gifted a beautiful scenery with the tide running high

Flying fox - from far the sliding looked fun to participate,

but when I was there at the site and I looked up, the structure was really high

other colleagues were playing with fun, going again and again

when it was my turn to climb up the wooden steps from the back of the tall structure, I was already shivering and midway, I thought if I want I had to backout then because the other way down would be the front which was sliding down the line!

At the top, I confirmed I had height phobia - I was literally shivering with fear at the top and was the only one hesitating for a good 20mins (or more I was not sure) and my supervisor came up to encourage me and stood beside me, but my hands were uncontrollably shaking while holding on very tightly to the rope, and as I looked up at her, I told her "I dunt want...." (I was sweating profusely)

The depth below seemed to throw my heart down, not that I wanted to look, but the first look down locked the depth into my brain and I was hesistant (out of fear) until the instructor had to come up and explain to me, guiding me to sit at the verge of the platform and to slowly let my butt out bit by bit until I could "naturally" slide down... for a moment when he was talking to me in his very calm and manly voice, he lightly touched my back which I freaked out thinking he wanted to push me and I yelled while looking back at him "dun push me...!" (I was already tearing with fear, uncontrollably and unexpectedly, I was not sure if my face turned pale too!)

That freaky moment I was out of that wooden platform at the top descending down the line, I screamed all the way from one end to the other until I almost reached the sea,...

I had missed the "great view", as I had slided down the line with my eyes closed, but that was not important at all.

We played another round of volleyball and archery

before calling it a day, to freshen up and head back out of Loola Adventure

back to the ferry terminal for our boat ride home

Friend from Shanghai was here for few days in Singapore and then we decided we should get away over the weekend to Bintan together.

14 Oct 2005 (Fri)
Nirwana Garden Resort Hotel room

Views from the room

Room service - lunch - very delicious

Playground outside hotel

That's Calypso Bar - kelong style on ocean. And great music by the bar

Sunset

Bar Menu

The seafood restaurant

Men at work

View from shuttle-bus stop

15 Oct 2005 (Fri)
Great walk by the beach

Dinner at Baan Aarya - great food, friendly service, wonderful ambience, simply perfect for a wonderful dinner

Baan Aarya's Spice and Herbs Garden

Outdoor seating area

Sunset view

Sunset view of Calypso Bar and Restaurant

Dinner as ordered

Back to hotel - Asmara Spa_Pavillion Room

Post treatment - relax room


16 Oct 2005 (Sat)
Friend at airport,....

Cable car riding in Genting is not for the weak hearted - the fastest cable cars system in the world speeding up/down the longest cableway in Southeast Asia, the weakness or lightness of my heart could confirm that I have a weak heart. Throughout the ride I was so petrified that I straightened my legs against the inside wall of the car - as if I was suffering from bouts of panick-attack and going through a slow-dying ride with that rustic noise the cable-car made (having me thinking whether any of the screws would loosen and drop off thus throwing us out tumbling down the hill!!) - I survived of course.

The reward - beautiful sunset

Breakfast at the Hainan Kitchen in First World Hotel, I was told they serve huge pork bun - and indeed

Hitting the roads again on our way home

Visit Flora-Fauna blog to view flowers of Hong Kong Botanic Gardens

12 Mar 2005 (Sat)
Land Between Tour of the New Territories
Yuen Yuen Institute is a place of worshipping the deities of the three religions of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism

Luk Keng - the largest freshwater marsh in Hong Kong

Walking towards the Bride's Pool Falls, saw this Sundial used during ancient times...

Sundial is a device for measuring time by means of the movement of a shadow cast by the sun. It was widely used in olden times. There are two types of sundials – inclined and horizontal. The plate of this sundial is placed horizontally and the pointer meets the plate at an angle of 22024’ which is the latitude of the site. The pointer points to the Pole star.
As the earth revolves on its axis, it looks as if the sun is revolving round the Earth. Such movement is called “apparent solar revolution” – One completed revolution is a “true solar day” and when the day is divided into time, it is called “true solar time”
When the sun is exactly overhead, the shadow of the pointer is directly underneath it. This is 12 noon in true solar time. The sun apparently moves 15o for each hour and the shadow of the pointer also moves. The time measured in this way is called “Apparent Time” or “True Solar Time”, i.e. the time based upon the sun.
This sundial is located at 114o6’ E, which is 5o54’ to the west of which is the longitude used for setting HK Standard Time. Hence, the time indicated on the sundial is 23.6 minutes slower than our Standard Time. In order to get the Standard Time one has to add on 23.6 minutes to the time shown on the sundial.
In ancient China, the day and night were divided into 12 intervals of 2 hours each, called the 12 “Earthly Branches”, each with an individual name. These Earthly Branch, called “Zi”, starts at one hour before midnight. The sun rises and sets at “You” intervals while the noon is at “Wu” interval. The 12 intervals are shown on the plate of the sundial. As the plate is placed horizontally, the space between the lines showing the intervals are not uniform. Hence the angles of the North-South line are smaller while those near the East-West line are greater. These intervals shown to the south of the east-west line are mostly in the night therefore no shadow can be seen.

Sam Mun Tsai Fish Farming Zone

13 Mar 2005 (Sun)
Lantau Island Po Lin Monastery and Big Buddha - world's largest outdoor bronze Buddha statue sitting at a height of 34 metres and weighs 250 tonnes

14 Mar 2005 (Mon)