tedsta.com >> tedy

it might be too soon as its only mid-May, but the conventional rule has been turned upside down in the first quarter of 2011. i feel the need to list them down:

-South Sudan voted for independence
-Middle East is on fire: Tunisia and Egypt saw change of governments and many other ‘leaders’ in the regions commit to shorter term of office
-UN and NATO intervened in Libya
-a 9.1 earthquake and tsunamis hit Japan
-Cote d’Ivoire President was arrested
-S&P downgrades US credit rating outlook
-William and Kate got married
-Osama bin Laden was killed.

It’s been two months and the experience has been truly wonderful. Being called ‘banana’ or fear thereof is more than a stone’s throw away. A friend of mine told me two reasons why Chinese generally have higher IQ than the rest-they are forced to compete from young age to attain a better education due to limited resources (after all 1.3bn people isn’t a small number) and the wonder of Chinese language (it must be one of humanity’s most complex method of communication with its various strokes and tones). But for freedom of choice, I’m almost convinced that every person should learn it from a young age.

Put aside the fact that mastery of the language allows you to speak to nearly a third of the world’s population, the benefit of brain stimulation is enough of a justification. I came to Beijing early this year to study mandarin. I paid for one semester (my slush fund has been depleted after nearly a year of continuous travel). With a little bit of help through CUCAS Excellent Student Scholarship, I managed to enroll at Beijing Foreign Studies University. This wasn’t my first visit to Beijing for that would be in May last year – at the start of my Transiberian journey. The visit, while lasted only for a short time, convinced me that this is a place worth returning to, especially to learn mandarin. It has the characters of a big city (something that I rather regret at a later time) and it has the weight of history guarding and burdening its development. But more importantly, this is the China central central! everything starts from and ends in Beijing.

When i arrived, I was armed with 6 characters – my Chinese name and “wo ai ni”. Of course this didn’t get me anywhere. I was determined though to make sure I get the most I can while I’m here, partly because a difficult trade-off I have to make between using the money for travel or tuition. My decision for the latter meant I have to maximise every penny spent.

Learning an average of 30 characters a day is absolutely hard, especially for a guy who used to see a character and considered it a picture of some sort. Now just because you know a character, it’s meaning and how it’s pronounced doesn’t mean that the average Chinese on the street will understand you (or vice versa for that matter).

The litmus test is ordering a dish in a restaurant – which I failed miserably. And no, it’s not over a complicated dish like kungpao chicken or sautéed beef, the humiliation is more humbling over a bowl of ‘mi fan’ (read: rice). This is after one and a half month of studying so you can start to imagine how frustrating and jaded I was. The funny part of course is when I tried my best to start pronouncing them in various tones hoping that in the end I would catch a break somehow. It ended up confusing the ‘fuwuyuan’ even more.

I’ve decided that I have to alter the way I approach my study. Some of them might be overly simple or plain obvious but they are critical:

1. Tones, tones, tones and tones.

Spend more time at the beginning on pinyin! Yes, I know it ’s boring, repetitive and downright annoying. But unless you get this part absolutely right, your effort in the future will be rendered almost useless. Let’s face it, most of us is above 14 years old. And guess what, we have to retrain our tounge, the shape of our mouth/lips and the wind force from within to pronounce Chinese correctly. When i tried to do retrain them, i didnt even know that my mouth and its compartments are capable of such maneuvers.

2. Learn proper stroke order

If you are serious about the language, you need to learn the proper stroke order to make sure you can recognize the characters better and enhance your writing speed (plus it’s more beautiful). When they were young, Chinese have to learn his by hard. There is no easy way out but practise, practise and practise.

3. Flashcards

Create flashcards and carry them with you whenever you go. The standard flashcard is two sides: at the front you have the characters and at the back is where you put the pinyin, English translation and sample words (as needed). If you have iphone/ipod/ipad and alikes, Pleco software is an absolute must. You dont need other dictionary.

4. Make local friends

When you are at school you tend to be protected. You language teachers will speak to you so they can be understood. Most people encounter different experience – yes they speak faster, with their own accents and if you are in Beijing, with lots of Rs. Bear in mind also that a lot of people do not speak putonghua well, they come from their respective villages in search for a better living in the big city. So having Chinese friends will undoubtedly help. If you want to fully immerse yourself in the culture even further, then having a Chinese boyfriend or girlfriend will turbo boost your learning experience.

That’s my two cents so far. The journey has just begun…

There is one thing that i love about traveling – you meet people who are in the same elated mood like you have. Positive thinking and attitudes all the way through – no matter what happened. Pickpocket – just a small incident, falling off the bridge while getting drunk – it’s part of the experience, missed the check out time and therefore has no place to sleep for the night – just find a small park for the night and stare into the lovely stars. It’s amazing. You become so resilient on all the ‘bad’ things but you just keep brushing them off like you are indestructible. It’s a tiny example of what enduring human spirit entails.

Prior to this trip i used to be rather pessimistic (ok, thats an understatement – i was the ultimate pessimist). I tend to find fault in decisions, plans and work out ways to navigate around them. For one simple reason – i don’t like uncertainty, i like things planned out. But while it has some merits, you also tend to attract a lot of negative attitudes and energy. And it is rather tiring. You have a different lens on how you view certain things, situation and eventually your life. I don’t think its healthy.

If there was one thing that i have learnt while i am on this trip, it would be ‘having positive attitude and not surround myself with negative energy’. Because most of the times, things always work out – maybe not to the way you are used to, or the way you want it to be. But it might also not be as bad as you think it would turn out. And even if things happened not the way you want it, so what? C’est la vie.

So i say to whatever keeping you from trying something new – Go For It!

Now, back to the business of travel blogging!

Berlin

I took a morning train from Frankfurt to Berlin. My Berlin’s couchsurfing host, Till, was still at work and wouldn’t be able to meet me till a bit later. I put my backpack in the locker and ventured out in the afternoon.

As always, the first stop is Staatsbibliothek Zu Berlin – its not exactly old and gothic looking, but it fed my soul. Plus the librarian was nice – she gave me a private (read: escorted) tour of the library:

She recommended me to visit another (older) library in the centre of the town – Preussische Staatsbibliothek. You have to become a member to visit this library:

After having two Berlin libraries under my belt in the arvo, i returned back to the train station to meet my host. That night, we prepared vegetarian meals together and his mates came over to discuss ‘the future of the traffic system’. Till has been in the automotive industry. Currently he is doing his advanced study and the project he is working on now is autonomous cars. Now i must say that this is one area that i have never educated myself on. So as you can tell, i made a rather interesting conversation partner. While they offer point of views about electric cars, car sharing, the need to protect taxi drivers, solar energy and the likes – i can only nod and nod. My only knowledge came from the doco ‘Who killed the electric car’ and apparently that was enough credence for me to be part of the group. I came out from the discussion – enlightened! I would never thought that someone would be passionate enough about traffics. Gosh.

I know Berlin is a city full of history. Given that i have limited time and wouldn’t want to miss out on even the smallest (but significant) historical part of the town, i decided to join a walking tour. My tour guide, a Canadian, is the most passionate tour guide that i have ever met. Kid you not, this is not his job – he is actually an art director in Canada but during European summer, he always visits Berlin and shares stories about Berlin with tourists like me. He loves Berlin sooo much. At times during the tour, you could see his voice started to waver and he was trying hard to hold back his tears. You couldn’t helped but moved by his amazing story and engrossed by how history has unfolded on the sites we visited.

So where did we go?

We started from the artsy part of the town. Berlin is full of graffiti – its all over town. But there is one part where its protected by law – Yes, the graffiti cannot be removed or defaced. Amazing right? The area used to be squatter’s quarter (and i think it still is in some part) and it reminded me of Copenhagen’s Christiania:

and of course Berlin is famous for its Berlin wall – which does not mean continuous brick walls (even though these were the main barricades) but also rivers and buildings, whatever practically feasible to separate East and West Berlin.

Along the river bank near the parliament, there were white crosses installed to commemorate those who were brave enough to make crossing attempts but killed in the death zone. I saw a granddad exploring this area with (i presumed) his granddaughter.

Around the corner is the Parliament with massive glass dome installed at the top,

On its left was a monument for dead Parliamentarians who were killed for standing up against the Fuhrer:

We then made our way to the Brandenburg Gate – its imposing structure on the city left no doubt in your mind that this is where battles were fought, ideologies were defended, victory marches were paraded, and freedom has triumphed.

and Berlin’s visit is incomplete without the view of Hotel Adlon – one of the most expensive hotels in Berlin.

you must be wondering – what the hell? Shall i remind you, that on that second row balcony from the top, the infamous shot of the King of the Pop (RIP) dangling his baby was taken. Ahhhh yessss (say you).

Now if you were to go back to history, West and East Berlins with their competing ideologies would of course showcase their very best architectures and accomplishments, just to prove that the grass was indeed greener in this side of town. One of the towering structure in East Berlin is the TV tower:

now spot the difference between the picture above and the two pictures below:

(hint, its a bit hard to see, but focus on the round ball and think of the sunlight)

did you see it? If not, its ok – its kinda hard. East Berlin is a communist country and by default an atheist one too. The irony is, in a very sunny day, the sun will shine its light on the most significant structure in East Berlin and oooopsss, you can see a cross – the very symbol of Christianity. (if you haven’t seen it yet, look again at the pictures closely). Amazing eh?

The walking tour continued to the Jewish Memorial – a somber experience:

And also to the most understated part of town – the most famous parking lot in Berlin.

why so famous, you ask? Well, underneath this car park is the Hitler’s Bunker – where he spent his last day and where he ended his life.

Some of Nazi’s architectures are left standing such as this building (now aptly used as the Tax Office):

There were only two large remains of the Berlin Wall, and this is one of them:

and yes, its just a wall (i was expecting more but a wall is a wall is a wall). The amazing thing bout this wall is what it used to represent. In one night, a wall was erected, the city was divided and life was never the same.

And every American who was in the tour got so excited when we visited our next stop, the infamous Checkpoint Charlie:

This was one of the saddest part of the tour as many stories were told about the kind of gross acts committed against another human being who in search for freedom have to die in vain. Of particularly moving was a story of a boy, 15 years old (i forgot his name), who was left bleeding to death in the Death Strip after being shot by the East Berliners’ guards when attempting to cross to West Berlin despite many people in the West who saw the incident pleading to them to save the boy. It makes me wonder that now we live in the longest peaceful era, are we taking freedom for granted? Or should we? For there is no alternative.

It was also Berlin’s Fashion Week:

You might have heard about Hitler’s burning of the book. There is a memorial dedicated to this act of madness – a simple yet with profound meanings. Its made underground with glass top from street level of a square room, painted white, with empty bookshelves attached to the wall. In one of the walls, there was an empty wall without no door. Genius, isn’t it? Really captured the incident.

For more pictures in Berlin, click here

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Well that portion at the top was updated as soon as i have left Berlin, which was like yonks ago. I have been grossly negligent in not keeping up with my travel update and now found myself wondering whether it is even humanly possible for me to make the detailed update as per before. In the end, i have decided that the answer is a resounding no. I have opted, however, to keep you up to date with my best pictures from the cities i have just visited and the people that made the trips extremely memorable:

Prague

Praha has always been a special city. Shan and Maria joined me up from London for the weekend. I was hosted by Xavier who have cool housemates, one of which is Sara from Sweden. It was also the place where we watched the world cup final between the Spanish and the Dutch. I supported the later and the pretty much summed by world cup predictions – i was going against the Octopus, what do you expect. RIP btw about the Octopus news this week.

For more pictures in Prague, click here

Munich

Three things i remember about Munich – BMW, Surfers at Englischer Garden and the Law Library. I was hosted by Felix who worked as a security analyst in a money printing company. How cool is that!

For more pictures in Munich, click here

Austria

There are only three reasons why i visited Austria – library, library and library. First, i went to Linz because its a good base to make a day trip to Admont – one of the most beautiful libraries i have seen in this trip. I was hosted in Linz by Christian. We partied hard by the river, watching rather enviously at the private party that was boasting loud musics on the yatch.

Admont

Then i traveled to the town of Melk (on the way to Vienna), to see another astounding library hidden in the monastery.

Melk

Vienna

Finally to top it all off, is the beautiful national library in Vienna. Its equally breathtaking especially with one of those secret and revolving shelves that unveil another layers of shelves of books behind them. Works of genius.

When i was in Vienna, there was a Live Ball happening coinciding with the AIDS conference. The town came to live with many people dressed in beautiful costumes.

I was hosted by Mina who was recommended to me by Felix from Munich.

For more pictures in Austria, click here

Budapest

Budapest is another beautiful city and my experience is even made better by my host Oliver who was extremely kind. Later on, we will meet again and discover Washington DC together – a first for me. He and his gf, Csilla took me to local night scene and i had loads of fun.

For more pictures in Budapest, click here

Roma

Roma is hot..hot..hot. Vatican is too wealthy. I was hosted by Francesco who took me on a scooter tour around town.

For more pictures in Roma, click here

Cinque Terre

This is by far my favourite Italian destination. The five little towns are paradise. I wish i was here longer!

For more pictures in Cinque Terre, click here

Venice

Venice is a beautiful city. I met Tony and Lucia who just arrived from their Mediterranean cruise. We met up for coffee in a beautiful museum overlooking the main plaza and then hunting around for Tony’s favourite shop selling leather bound. Oh, i was offered the most comfy couch at their hotel!!

For more pictures in Venice, click here

Florence

Did the obligatory Pisa visit. Florence is an ancient city. When i found out that some of the building is few hundred BC – i cant comprehend the timeline. The main reference in my life is Year 2000 (millennium), 1982 (my birthday), 1945 (world war II), 1929 (great depression) and year 0 (Christ was born). Beyond that was just way too far..

For more pictures in Florence, click here

Milan

If you love to shop, this is the place to be. Enough said. Duomo is an extremely amazing architecture.

For more pictures in Milan, click here

Marrakech

I slept overnight at Madrid’s airport before heading to Marrakech on a cheap 22 euros EasyJet flight. Love the orange squeeze, the hot desert (50 degrees!) and the camel ride.

For more pictures in Marrakech, click here

Madrid

You either love Madrid or Barcelona. I’m with the latter. But lots of people love Madrid. I didn’t feel the connection. Maybe i wasn’t in the right exploratory frame of mind. Though, I love the visit to Escorial library and to the home of Real Madrid.

For more pictures in Madrid, click here

Barcelona

This is the city that i’m ready to move to at anytime. i love Barcelona. The city offers everything: beach, mountain, great food, lively art scene, great people and perfect weather. But no city is perfect and one exception to my love to Barcelona is the fact that it is a training ground for world pickpocket associations. On the day Naomi arrived to join me in Barcelona, we were targeted by a group of 5 at the metro station. Lucky they didn’t get anything from us and people at the metro just looked the other way.

For more pictures in Barcelona, click here

London

I crashed at Shan and Maria’s place while i was in London. They took me on a city tour and Shan showed his infamous Ben’s shot. I was rather disappointed that the Old Reading Room was under renovation but a trip to Oxford made up for it. Naomi later joined me in the week after my visit to Bradford and Edinburgh.

For more pictures in London, click here

Bradford

The first thing that people asked me when i told them that i will be in Bradford would be, ‘WHY?’ Because Miss Y is there!!!!!! Enough said. i have loads of fun.

For more pictures in Bradford, click here

Made a day trip to the Theater of Dream where the best football team in the world resides.

For more pictures in Old Trafford, click here

Edinburgh

Miss Y, Mark, Vanessa and I made a road trip from Bradford to Edinburgh for the Fringe (the best art festival in the world!)
On the way, we saw two farms, side by side, having Orange Sheeps – yes they are not dyed. They are orange. You know there are certain things in life that you thought you know are absolute. I thought sheeps are white. How wrong am i! Goodness.

For more pictures in Edinburgh, click here

Montreal

True story – i met Natalie for a brief 4 hours while we were in Tokyo and few months later, i stayed at her place in Montreal. She couldn’t be a better host. I wish i could have spent longer there. She taught me how to eat Poutine (its chips with squeaky cheese and gravy) – its fried, cheesy, squeaky and full of gravy. well, all good things in life are bad, aren’t they? the countless Poutine i had while i was in Canada probably moved me one notch closer to the heart-attack-is-imminent level.

if you don’t already know, Montreal also has a web of interconnected underground cities. its amazing – you get to pick, do you want on the ground or underground. unless you are living in Montreal, you will find it hard to locate the entrances/exits (thats how i felt, anyway).

I also met Youla – Yvette’s friend while they were in Bradford. She took me around town for two days while Natalie was at work. We went to the infamous smoked meat restaurant, toured universities and monastery. I had a great time.

For more pictures in Montreal, click here

Quebec City

Quebec is France and it felt more European than a North American city. It’s as if somebody just took a slice of France in Europe, giga-transported it and attached it to North America. I meant, i’ve got a preview of the French vs English culture clash in Montreal, but i still felt culture shocked. I like Quebec, it has characters – especially the street arts littered around the town. But one of my favourite spot is outside my couchsurfing host’s house. The street is divided by a walkway where seats are installed during the summer (and bolted on the ground so ppl don’t take them home!). I like the spot. It’s as if your living room is extended right through the street. We have our coffee in the morning and our beers and wine at nights in that spot. Simple thing in life.

For more pictures in Quebec, click here

As you could probably tell, after Quebec i’m halfway through my travel and i have moved on to another continent, leaving Europe behind. This is the part of my travel where my plan is a bit sketchy. For example, i have now learnt that its a really good idea to have a map for the country you intend to visit, or at least know where the cities you are going to visit are located relative to each other. Despite my great affection for America, i was extremely naive when it comes to her geography. I paid for this mistake now because i have to pass through NY three times by criss-crossing the cities – a little bit of common sense Tedy!

Washington DC

Its dubbed Capital of the Free World and they were not wrong. You feel the buzz and i felt excited. OK, i’m a nerd, geek and political junkie. I love PMQs and C-SPAN. So that would probably put me on the extreme outlier of normality spectrum. What say you? I make no apology and i love this city.

I could write pages about the city and my experience, but here are the highlights:
-CS with Salman who is working for the IFC – the financing arm of the World Bank. We traded travel tips – me giving him Europe, he gave me South America.
-Met Yvette’s friend Josh and Meghan. Josh used to be an aide for Senator Bayh – so he hooked me up on a Capitol Tour trip (no WH tour for me, its hard to get and its a high currency in DC). I got to ride the private underground train senators used to travel from the Senate Office to the Capitol.
-Became a member of Library of Congress (LoC) – the largest library in the world! I went there twice.
-Met up with my Hungarian CS host – Oliver, and discovered the city together with his friend, Pedro.
-Did Ben’s Chilli Bowl
-Saw the largest collection of Rothko’s paintings in one spot in my life. I was on ecstasy! And guess what, lots of them are black!
-Got to seat inside the Supreme Court (see i’m so close to closing in on the three branches of government, i’ve got the Legislative and Judicial nailed down – pity that the Executive i.e. the White House got left out. It shall be one of my life missions!)
-Also went to Arlington: visited Renhquist, Burger, JFK, and Uncle Ted (RIP).

For more pictures in Washington DC, click here

New York

New York, New York……. its the city that never sleeps. You feel the vibe, you feel small in the sea of zoo many people. Its the ultimate melting pot. Everybody is here. You find every language is spoken in this city – no exception (ok maybe a little bit of exaggeration, but you get the point).

Here are my highlights:
-Successfully hosted by two CS hosts in the same city – Christian and Kwesi.
-Met up with Victor and his bro (they moved to NY from Melbourne approx 4 years ago)
-Became a member of NYPL (New York Public Library)
-Spent two days in Central Park
-Saw UN General Assembly in session

For more pictures in New York, click here

Boston

Boston is an extremely sexy city. Its cutting edge, retaining some of its old characters yet vibrant, thanks to the countless Ivy Leagues lining up on Cambridge. I thought i already shelved my desire to pursue further education, but my being there renewed and confirmed that Boston is the city i will one day live in. I’ve never felt in the right place for a long time, until this visit. Of course, i visited HBS and KSG. Also went to Sloan. I was lucky because it was also the start of the Fall semester so in KSG, there was a Forum of all the visiting fellows and the event is also for public. I attended the event where the speakers include, former Prime Minister of Haiti, former Mayor of Chicago, former Secretary of Education, former Knesset member, former Chief Police and a journalist. I was happy.

Daniel is my CS host in this city. He is ex army and now pursuing his further education. He is a cool chap – we explored JFK Presidential Library together.

After that, we met Meti – Yvette’s roommate and my friend while we were in Berkeley. She just started in Harvard. We haven’t seen each other for 8 years! yolks!

For more pictures in Boston, click here

Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls, while touristy, lived up to its expectations. I took an overnight bus from NY, which supposed to bring me right to NF. But at a bus terminal in Buffalo, NY where i have to change bus, the bus driver for the next leg didn’t want to take me on, because i have to stop at the US Customs and Borders to get an exit stamp on my passport (being Indonesian, i have to report upon entry and exit). So i was temporarily stranded, had to pay for a cab to bring me to the border and to the hostel. And guess what, the cost of the cab is more expensive than the original bus that took me from NY. Oh well, what can you say. I wasn’t really in the position to negotiate and i was at the cabbie’s mercy to take me. The alternative, stranded on the highway where the traffic is one way – its the start of the football season and all the Canadians are heading over en masse to the US side for the game.

For more pictures in Niagara Falls, click here

Originally i wasn’t planning to go to Toronto nor San Jose, Costa Rica. You probably have heard by now that Mexicana Airlines went bellied up in August. Yup, ive got 5 flight segments with them! This also meant that i have to figure out an alternative route to go to Havana. In a typical day, it should be relatively easy – fly to Mexico and you are sweet. Unfortunately, when everybody does the same it clogged the traffic and you have few options left. One of that option is to have either a 16 hr layover in Cayman Island or San Jose, Costa Rica. I chose the latter after i couldn’t get a straight answer from British Embassy in DC/NY whether i still need a separate British Territory visa to visit Cayman if i already have a UK visa. So instead of Montreal – Mexico City – Cancun – Habana – Bogota, my itinerary was altered to Toronto – Miami – San Jose – Habana – San Jose – Bogota. Mission accomplished – Cuban trip was saved!

Toronto

Its a short affair with Toronto – accidental rather than planned. Less than 24 hours but i’ve got to see a lot. The only regret i have was not being able to stay longer – Toronto Film Festival was on while i was there!!! Sean, my CS host for one night was great. He took me and another fellow CS to a local pub.

For more pictures in Toronto, click here

San Jose – Costa Rica

Its only a brief stopover – 16 hours, arriving in the late arvo and departing early the next morning. So i don’t get the full experience. Besides, i already have a negative preconceived image about San Jose – which is pretty much a city with nothing to see. And in my brief encounter, it confirmed my initial thoughts. Even fellow travellers i met at the hostel said the same thing. I didn’t even bother to take out my D90 – San Jose is officially the only city and country that i have visited but failed to get a single shot. Actually, i lied. I did take a shot using my BB while having dinner at the hostel – of the food and beer, that is. You can find it in my twitter post.

There were two other things worth mentioning – there were lots of fireworks at night because the following day is the National Day and my hostel manager was so generous that she drove me to her place, and unsew (is there such a word?) a Costa Rica flag patch from her hubby’s ambulance shirt.

Havana

I know i was expecting an old city but i wasn’t expecting a rundown old city. i have a mixed feeling about Havana. In one sense, everyone knows that the experiment has clearly failed. People felt trapped. But on the other hand, they managed daily life beautifully. There is a sense of ‘we are in this together’ every where you go. Tourism is the no 1 income generator for the country but you can see a segment of population that is touched by tourist dollars and those that dream of. I spoke to a number of locals and their plights were uniformed – if they could get out, they would have. they thanked me for bringing the world to them through my stories because they couldn’t experience themselves.

For more pictures in Havana, click here

Bogota

You heard so many stories about Colombia – that its one of the most dangerous cities in the world, you might get kidnapped, killed, mugged. I was so afraid prior to coming here that on my first day, i decided to not bring my D90 out. Nearly everyone told me to keep it safe because they were sure i will not see it again. On my first outing to Plaza de Bolivar, i was ‘naked’ without camera and i saw a score of tourists happy snapping with their DSLRs. I felt stupid. All the time i felt safe – there were only few occasions where i have to be a little bit guarded i.e. after 7pm in dark alleys. But thats the same everywhere.

Bogota is also my first South American city. As i arrived and met fellow travellers at the hostel in La Candelaria (historical part of town), i noticed something different i.e. majority of travellers in South America are more matured and experienced than the stereotype you find in Europe. They have at least few months of traveling under their belts and that makes conversation more easy going as you trade travel stories and tips to navigate around. You also get more from them as the conversation tend to be deeper than the usual hows-the-weather-obligatory-chit-chat.

I met a few cool people here: Ian, Travis, Sam, Dave, Marita, Sara and Natalie.

For more pictures in Bogota, click here

Taganga

I decided to go to Taganga in lieu of Medellin because of my diving desire. I originally planned to take diving class in Cartagena. But upon hearing that its 1/2 the price in Taganga, and equally beautiful, i decided to make a detour. It was all worth it, despite me cancelling on the diving course after the first day. I was on the ‘confined’ water session, which in Taganga means the sea, and i freaked out. i didn’t trust the machine, didn’t trust the system. I never thought i would react the way i did but i did. I was quite disappointed. I just choked, couldn’t breathed, and got scared. One day, i might give it another go, but for now – no thanks.

Instead, with the new found many days, i decided to take a 3 hour a day spanish lessons for 3/4 days. I met up with Ian again. Also, met up new cool people – Morten, the Swedish gals, Kiev and Alan. Sara turned up unexpectedly over breakfast.

We spent a lot of time in Cafe Bonsai – a cool Swedish cafe, a must visit especially its Mojito slush. Divine.

For more pictures in Taganga, click here

Cartagena

I left for Cartagena by bus with Kiev. We explored the city together on his last day in Colombia and my first day in Cartagena. Its a classic town, rich with history and colours. Call it fate, but i was walking alone (and rather lost) in the town when someone shouted my name… Oh la la… it was Marita. We then decided to go to dinner and a german pub, afterward. Good times.

I also went on a day trip to Isla de Rosario (beautiful!).

For more pictures in Cartagena, click here

Peru!

It has been an unexpected pleasure. I thought i would never like traveling in a group, especially having gone solo for the last 5 months. but my decision to go with Intrepid for Peru turned out to be extremely enjoyable. Maritza, the group leader is an amazing woman. She is Cuscoesqe and our mama for the next 21 days. My roomy is Jaime from Spain. We have Manja and Kai from Germany. Catherine is a park ranger from Port Macquarie – a compulsive shopper. Anne (from England) and her partner Patrick from Belgium are a lovely couple and finally Hayley from Queensland rounds the eight of us.

The journey started in Lima where we stayed in Miraflores. The next day after a brief orientation of Miraflores and old historic town, we went to Pisco, where the art of Pisco Sour making was revealed. We love Pisco so much that our group name is Pisco group. Early the next morning we made our way to Nazca, a small town where we spent sand dunning and boarding, looking at the Nazca lines and for those that paid USD75, a flyover (i didn’t go).

In Arequipa, i bought a small baby alpaca beanie. We went to Colca Canyon to see the Andean condors. After which, we went to Sibanyo where we had our homestead. Surprisingly, the bathroom is clean albeit no hot water. Funny thing happened during breakfast where we were fed with a bowl full of spaghetti and Jaime got a fried trout to top it off. I could see the struggling expression on his face when he got the bowl. We gobbled it all up despite the struggle.

The arvo before, we helped to collect some wood for fire from a nearby river. I carried them home, was struggling but for somewhat reason, when i saw Hayley and Catherine in the tradition Peruvian dress, i couldn’t stop but laugh and dropped the wood fire several times.

Puno was the next city where we based ourselves before heading to Lake Titicaca where we took a private boat to visit the floating island – Isla de Uros. We stayed in another homestead in the island – Kirane, where we spent the day helping to feed the pigs and sheeps, moving the bricks with donkey, and playing volleyball with the islanders. I quite enjoyed the experience, actually. Jaime had a heart to heart conversation with our house mama. She was happy foes us to be there but sad at the same time because she knows we will leave the next day. Its always hard for people that you leave behind.

We also visited Isla de Teqilla, where we climbed up to the very top to get a glimpse of how big the lake is.

Cuzco is our next stop – an amazing city (although, full of tourists!). This is the final city before the Inca Trail. We spent the day exploring the city, visiting the sacred valley, Saqqaywaman, the salt mine and a couple of other historical sites.

At the trail briefing, we finally met with other group that we will join for the trail.

After the Inca Trail, we spent a couple of days in Amazon Jungle via flight to Puerto Monaldo.

For more pictures in Peru, click here

Inca Trail – Machu Picchu

There is no question about it – the 4 days 3 nights Inca Trail is tough. The second day especially. But the porters and cooks were amazing. The highlights include:
-learning how to play Shithead (the fave card came), the loser has to shout to the campsite, “My name is ….. I am a shithead” – in any language. The first time is the hardest
-Manja, Kai and I decided to do our bit for the envo not the last day
-Manja, Kai, Pam, Sam and I decided to do Waynu Picchu. Because only 200 tickets are given in the morning, we have to run from our last camp site to Machu Picchu. The trail that normally took 2.5 hours was blasted in 45 minutes. We were the first at the Sun Gate and we got the tickets! The last of our five tickets were numbered 189th! We were soo high on adrenaline that it took us at least 3 hours to calm down. Amazing feeling!!!

For more pictures in Inca Trail – Machu Picchu, click here

Foz du Iguacu

Foz du Iguacu is a stop i did following Peru. It was the start of my Brazilian adventure. Its a relaxing town, although its more American style than Brazilian. Did the Fall from the Brazilian side (didn’t have the visa to go to Argentina), and visited Taipu – the largest hydroelectric dam and a joint project between Brazil and Paraguay. I, was technically on Paraguaian soil without a visa!

For more pictures in Foz du Iguacu, click here

Rio de Janeiro

My host in Rio, Daniel is amazing. He picked me up from the airport on the day i arrived. What made it more interesting is the fact that his friend from Sao Paulo, Lu, was also arriving a couple of hours later. Lu, would later become my host in Sao Paulo.

Now, i don’t speak Portuguese and Lu doesn’t speak English. So both of us were using sign language and google translator on her blackberry to communicate. We still had fun though.

Daniel and Lu took me around the city, various interesting places including:
-his voting booth during the Brazilian presidential election
-national park
-a nice restaurant as part of the Restaurant Week
-Rio’s first Hot Fair (read: Erotic Fair)
-second biggest shopping centre in Latin America, Barra Shopping
-Sugar Loaf
-and many others.

I also managed to do hang gliding despite various false starts with the weather. And this is also the city where i dropped my D90. As a result, i have screwed my lens badly (poor me!)

On our last day when he drove us to the airport, we had an accident on the tunnel. That was a crazy day. Our flight was cancelled (not delayed) but lucky we got put on another (and better) airline.

My stay in Rio was extremely enjoyable thanks to Daniel, my CS host.

For more pictures in Rio de Janeiro, click here

Sao Paulo

It was a brief affair in Sao Paulo, meant as a stopover before my next destination Santiago de Chile. I’m so glad that i met Lu in Rio. We flew together to SP then she drove me around town to visit the interesting facets of the concrete jungle. We went to SP’s highest building, the Municipal Mercado and the cultural central of Banco de Brasil. Thanks Lu!

For more pictures in Sao Paulo, click here

Chile

Some people like Santiago de Chile. Like Madrid, i didn’t feel the connection here. So after a day trip to Valpraiso, i got bored and took up the offer to join Levw (a German i met at the hostel) to do an overnight bus to Pucon. We met Amelie (another German) who was also taking the bus to Pucon. It was the perfect decision. I love it there! We climbed the Volcano (tough and icy!), visited the lake and waterfalls, did hydrospeed and went to a thermal. Amazing time.

For more pictures in Chile, click here

That capped my South American adventure. There is only one more leg of my travel – New Zealand. I’m feeling rather sad that my trip is ending but all good things must come to an end, eh?

Oceania – here i come.

So after a brief hiatus (i was enjoying my travel too much ), here is the next instalment. I was writing this partly on a train from St Moritz to Zurich (beautiful Swiss Alps, tunnels and bridges are beyond compare), partly from Zurich to Frankfurt and from Frankfurt to Berlin – its hard to travel and blog! once you are behind in your writing, you have to keep up really fast before new cities present you with new excitements and stories. and guess what, i’m one week behind! Berlin and Prague would have to wait.

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I’ve nearly done it all – from nearly not having a place to sleep in Amsterdam, smoking my first joint, to the James Bond’s 007 bungy jump, water rafting, paragliding, and skydiving 12000 feet from a helicopter.

Copenhagen

I took the 10:21 X2000 from Stockholm to Copenhagen. 5 hours later, i was in Copenhagen and it was wet, wet and wet.

After dropping my bags at Martin’s place (my 3rd couchsurfing’s host), i went straight to the national library. It was a huge library by the river side, combining an old and new sections. Marvellous. Here are some pic of the beauty:

At night, Martin took me to a local pub by bike (i haven’t sat at the back of a bike since i was 9!), we met his friends and finished the night rather sober.

The next day i went to the city:

Local library

A church

By the river side

and to the Royal Palace. You cant really take pictures inside the palace (you even have to cover your shoes with a plastic cover to avoid damaging the expensive wooden floors), but when i saw the Queen’s Reading Room, i couldn’t help but take out my D90. Goose bumps!!!!!!!!

A bit later in the arvo, Martin texted me – football party at his place. I couldn’t refuse!

One of Martin’s friend’s girlfriend is arriving from Austria, so we decided to send a battalion of half-drunk on a train to the airport to pick her up. I must say that i was nervous at first, bringing plastic guns (temporarily displaced from a kindergarten) and enough beer supplies on a train ‘defending’ the first carriage from ‘infiltrators’ and then ‘invading’ the airport.

I was so sure that security guards will spot us and prevent us doing silly things, but to my surprise, not a single police or guard was present. There was an old man who came (whom i thought was an undercover policeman), and i thought to myself, this is it! Only to find him uttering ‘You guys are cool’ and started doing a dance with us!! Hahaha

We then went to the infamous Christiania (the hippie town!). Martin took us to his bar – a really cool bar. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take pictures inside (out of respect to the squatters).

For more pictures in Copenhagen, click here

Amsterdam

The next day, i had to bid farewell and continue my journey to Amsterdam. It was an overnight sleeper train on a City Night Line. I was in the same cabin as a British psychologist who was coming back from a conference. The sleeping cabin was smaller than what i expected but i was glad it was clean and rather impressed by the small washer attached to our cabin.

Amsterdam oh Amsterdam – one of the most happening cities. You could see that people are happy to be there.

First thing first, the Openbare Bibliotheek. It was a modern building with many cool zones to chill out, such as places to watch DVDs or listening to musics.

After i hit my must-visit destination, i then went on a city tour.

Oh and in the centre of the town, Dam, there was a beach soccer tournament.

I also saw a protest by the LGBT community near the homo monument,

Then i went back to the train station, where i met Rudd (my 4th CS host).

The next day, Rudd took me to watch Team Oranje played. We were bar hopping and was lucky enough to find this nice bar with HD screen (it was an old theatre and get converted to a place for people to play gigs and concerts).

even Obama was ecstatic

After the game, we went to the World Press Photography Exhibition, but on the way we stumbled into a small local library

The exhibition was held in this old church in the middle of the red light district,

Rudd and I

Rudd admiring the Obama’s Inauguration pictures:

Dinner and pool were our next activities and i’m proud to still hold the unbeaten winning record in my travel thus far (against Frank – the Polish in Beijing, Tuyet – the British in Mongolia, and now Rudd – the Dutch in Amsterdam).

Next day was Den Haag where i wanted to visit the Parliament library in the Parliament complex .Unfortunately, it was closed to the Public, even the Parliament – it was a busy time after the closest election in history. The government was trying to build a coalition and it has been a week with no definitive outcome.

I managed to go on a tour of the Hall where the Queen delivers her annual speech.

and then i went to see the International Court of Justice – again i have no booking so couldn’t enter the place:

My disappointment was soon erased when i managed to make my way to the National Library – Koninklijke Bibliotheek. Another beauty!

After library visit, i headed back to Amsterdam. Rudd and I cooked that night and after that, he took me on a bike tour:

The next day, i thank Rudd for his hospitality and make my way to the central station to deposit my luggage. I’m meant to meet up with my second host later in the arvo (after previous contacts though emails and sms). I decided to have a hair cut because i can see a lot of white hairs growing on the sides, and after my haircut, i went to a local coffee shop to get stoned. It was a funny experience, because i didn’t get a happy or sad kick, but instead i felt a little bit dizzy. I could feel that it was quite hard to keep my eye lids opened wide, but most of the times i was just dizzy.

i was curious that my host hasn’t replied to the sms i sent earlier but given that another football game was about to start I decided to go to a local bar to watch it. When it was finished around 6pm, i browsed internet on my BB (free wifi, wooo hoo), and this was when i discovered through an email, that my host has bailed out of me at the last minute. His excuse, he couldn’t really kick out the other surfers who have been staying at his place. I was stunned because he didn’t even have the courtesy to call or text me. Email would be the last thing thing that you used when you need to relay urgent message.

So here i was, at 6pm and the prospect of no place to sleep for the night. I decided to go to the red light district where a lot of hostels are located – its also close to central station so less moving required. My priority was to find a place to sleep for the night and lucky i found a space at St Christopher. pheww…. what an experience. I kept wondering what happened if i never checked my email in the bar – i knew i would have tried to contact him again, but it would be rather quite late in the night. anyway…..

After settling down around 9pm, another American dude (i forgot his name) asked me if i wanted to go to another coffee shop – and there i was again. We decided to buy a happy kick – but yet again, i was just feeling dizzy. Oh well….

On my last full day in Amsterdam, i went to Rotterdam. I hired a bike to tour the city.

My first stop was to the Rotterdam Library

And i cycled by the river bank and through the bridge

Also went to the Tower:

and i had indonesian food for lunch:

I then returned to Amsterdam to have italian dinner with Rudd and his mate.

When i went back to the hostel, i touched my first ipad! Another backpacker was carrying ipad from the US and he let me played with it. I was surprised that it was rather heavy. I haven’t been sold on buying it the first time, and this now kinda confirms it. – maybe iphone 4 is a better bet (a cross to the dark side?)

For more pictures in Amsterdam, click here

For more pictures in Den Haag, click here

For more pictures in Rotterdam, click here

Paris

11.16 Thalyn Express took me from Amsterdam to Paris’ Gare du Nord.

After depositing my backpack at the station, i went to hit my destinations. First on the list was Bibliotheque National de France – Francois Mitterand!

It’s another modern library with many buildings. I had to pay 3 euros to enter and wasn’t really happy about that – isn’t libraries supposed to be free?

I was hunting for the main reading room, but realised i couldn’t imagine it will be located in this library. there must another one.

After this, i went to Sorbonne where i wanted to visit the libraries in the University of Paris. Unfortunately, unless you have prior appointments, you wouldn’t be able to (ugh!!!!).

It happened with another library located close to the Pantheon

My disappointment was quickly taken over by excitement when i found the infamous Shakespeare & Co bookstore… ohhhhhh… georgeousssss…. my knees were weak and ive got goose bumps all over when i saw the shelvings and the smells of the books……

It also happened to be the literary festival – Festival and Co, and i attended briefly one of the book readings:

Strolling along the river banks of Paris, in front of the Notre Dame, you see a lot of summer activities, such as:

Fishing, if you were alone

or if you were with another person, Kissing

The Notre Dame is a beautiful church

I then went back to the train station to pick up my backpack and head my way to the Witold’s place (my 4th CS experience), when i saw a group of Algerian football fans dashing through the metro gates. Algeria was playing England that night.

Witold and i had Italian dinner that night while watching the disappointing performance of England – in fact, the game was terrible with balls passed without clear purpose.

The next day is the Louvre – pics said it all:

After surviving nearly the whole day at the Louvre, i strolled along the beautiful Paris parks making my way to Arc de Triomp

Taking a break, i watched Australia drew against Ghana….

Then i made my way to the Eiffel and climbed to the very top!

and yes, i saw a guy proposing to his gf:

Sacre Cour is beautiful and thats where Witold and I had our brunch the following morning.

Then i ventured to the Erotic Museum – WARNING !!!, pictures below might offend some people!

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The obligatory Moulin Rouge,

And then i head to the George Centre Pompidue,

Rothko, oh Rothko!!!!!!

others that caught my eyes include

Also visited the most visited cemeteries on the planet to see

James Morrison,

Oscar Wilde – check out all the lipstick marks and graffiti….

After the cemeteries visit, i thought i should climb up the Notre Dame to feel a bit closer to the heaven:

and the Pantheon, where French revolution heroes and important people like Marie Currie and Louise Braille were buried.

Funny things happened to me while i was trying to get Long Champ bags from Gallery Lafayette for Jelita and Joey. While i was lining up for service, i heard someone called my name. And when i turned around, i saw Elizabeth (we studied in uni together) whom i haven’t seen since 2005 – she moved to Singapore for the job. We chatted briefly and promised to catch up a bit later – but unfortunately this didn’t really eventuate, because stupid me, i texted her on her old spore number than the one she gave me – and i didn’t realise this until too late. oh well, end of year, i will try to catch up in Spore.

I went to Saint Chapelle to see the beautiful stained glasses.

In the arvo, i met Erik Ilkehan and transferred to his chateau closed to Sacre Cour.

The next day is dedicated to Versailles Palace – originally i was about to give it a miss, but Erik insisted that i couldn’t leave Paris without visiting – and he was right. The pics again speak for itself:

From the palace, i went back to Paris to locate the other site of national library with a beautiful reading room. While i wasn’t allowed to enter, i managed to take a couple of shots from the outside – very very very very beautiful!:

Julie and I met up for brunch the next day near the Opera. She was on summer holiday back to France and heading to London and New York.

After catching up with her, i made my way to Museum D’orsay – unfortunately i couldn’t take any pictures inside,

and on the way back, i was caught in a big protest and strike – you wouldn’t be in France if you didn’t see the strike! They were protesting about the govt attempt to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62, even though the EU has raised it to 65.

Erik and I had curry for dinner that nite and we were scrambling to find a pub that plays Australia vs Serbia – you know what the outcome was My only hope at this time was England.

For more pictures in Paris, click here

Basel

After a week in a beautiful Paris, i made my way to Switzerland – Basel was my first stop and it was a 2.5 hour train ride away.

I went to visit Bank of International Settlement (only from the outside, couldn’t really enter the building)

Following that, i visited the university library:

and walk around the old town where i stumbled across this beautiful old bookshop:

I also went to the bridge across the Rhine where a lot of people are soaking in the warm summer:

Corinne (my 6th CS host) met me at the train station. She took me to her cozy place and after cooling down for a bit, we went to a local Thai restaurant to have dinner with Nicole, her sister:

It was nice food but slow service, really really slow. Probably because we were on a mission – there was a Switzerland vs Honduras game at 8.30pm.

Lucky we made it in time to see the game, even though the beers were flat and the final outcome, oh well, you know it.

We met Corrine’s friends – Sophie and Alex for the game, and when it finished, we headed to the Rhine with our beers – beautiful night and view from the Rhine:

For more pictures in Basel, click here

Bellinzona

The next day, it was less than 24 hours before i had to make my way to the train station again, to head to Bellinzona – a small beautiful city closed to Italy. I’m basing myself at a youth hostel so i can do the 007 Bungy Jump the following day. One thing that i realised is the clash between the jump time (i.e. 3pm) and the England vs Germany game (at 4pm). So i had to forfeit the game to complete my mission.

In the following morning, i made my way to Locarno (the town closest to the dam), toured the city for a bit,

before heading to Verzasca dam by bus

it was a huge dam!

and man, i was pumped!

and here is the video of my jump:

With adrenaline still high, i head back to town to see the last few minutes of the game, only to be disappointed with the total annihilation of the English team by the Germans. I couldn’t bear to watch it especially the surrender they displayed in the dying minutes – they could have at least fought back, the effort would at least make the fans feel a bit better. But no, they raised their white flags very early. it was very very disappointing.

For more pictures in Bellinzona, click here

For more pictures in Locarno, click here

Interlaken

The next day, i got up very early to catch a 6am train to Interlaken Ost – the city you should be in for all the adrenalin adventures. Interlaken to Switzerland is like Queenstown to New Zealand. After dropping my luggage at Villa’s Backpacker i went straight to my first adventure:

Water Rafting! fun fun fun

After 3 hours of being completely wet, i went straight to my second – Paragliding. Absolutely amazing! The scariest moment for me was when i saw the cliff and we had to run off it! But once you were airborne it was like having an afternoon tea (times 10,000 for the views).

My third adventure was in the following morning, where i travelled to a heliport in Lauternburn. I was to do skydiving from a helicopter – 12,000 feet with 40s of freefall. I couldn’t describe the feeling – it was exhilarating. An interesting note on this little excursion – we saw few skydivers getting ready for the Transformer 3 stunts with their costumes at the heliport.

Here is the video:

I went to Jungfrauch – Top of Europe in the afternoon. Very beautiful place.

Did a 2 hour hike

Saw a beaver

and took the train to the very top

I was tired when i got back to the hostel. Japan was ousted in a penalty shoot out and Spain kicked out Portugal. Oh, and it was laundry day too. Took me two hours to be in the queue. Absolute nightmare!

For more pictures in Interlaken, click here

Glacier Express to St Moritz

My alarm didn’t buzz the next morning and i was rushing like a madmen to catch a 7am morning train to Zermatt. It was the first time i nearly missed a train in my entire travel. And it was an important train because in Zermatt i had to board the Glacier Express (mine was the last train for the day). Lucky i was on it.

Glacier Express is famously dubbed the slowest express train but boasting beautiful sceneries. And it was worth every single minute (although in some sections – i succumbed to my eyes wanting to get some rest).

The train journey ends 7 hours later in St Moritz where i stayed overnight at another backpacker hostel. I didn’t manage to go around in this town because the place where i stayed was quite far from the city centre. But i did have a great dinner at a local restaurant. A table next to me was a Swiss family who speak Italian and wanting to know about my travel – very nice and friendly.

For more pictures in Glacier Express, click here

Zurich

The following morning, i took another morning train to Zurich. Like in previous cities, libraries were the top spots:

Pestalozzi Bibliothek

Zentralbibliothek

Kunthaus Bibliothek

saw a number of people jumping off the bridge

and met Paul Peyrot (a friend from Berkeley) whom i haven’t seen in 8 years! He’s married now and expecting his first child. We met up a famous cafe – Sprungli, which by the way, has the finest selection of extremely nice chocolates, cakes and desserts.

Paul then took me to his law practice:

where he printed a direction to a really nice modern library – i made my way there from his office, only to find that its closed for renovation for the week! (grrrr).

I went back to the main train station where Manuel (my 7th CS host) picked me up.

The next day i travelled to St Gallen to see the famous Abbey Monastery and the library. It was about 1 hour train ride away from Zurich Airport.

The main church at the Monastery

When i found out that no camera was allowed in the library – i knew that i have to figure something out. Lucky enough my pass was valid for the day, so i told them that im taking a lunch break, i headed to a camera shop and bought myself a point-to-shoot camera which i can hide in the pocket. But obviously with any new camera, the battery isn’t charged. So i asked the shop attendant to charge it, while i wondered around the small city for the next 2.5 hours. I kept circling and ending up at the same place despite many turns i took.

But the shots were worth it:

and St Galen is quite an artsy town –

After a full day in St Gallen, i went back to Zurich where i caught the first half of the Netherlands vs Brazil game. It was 1-0 for Brazil at half time. I quickly made my way to Zurich Airport (where i was supposed to be picked up later by Manuel), to see the second half and it was a fantastic atmosphere at the airport – The Oranje beat the Brazilian (and has officially been my selected team since Australia and England lost).

We went back to have a home cooked italian pasta, with wine and an orange chocolate cake from Sprungli and i was stuffed.

Its time to say goodbye the next day, we had a coffee at Starbucks and soon enough i was on my way to see Big Guy in Frankfurt.

For more pictures in Zurich, click here

For more pictures in St Gallen, click here

Frankfurt

I was on ICE train for an approximately 4 hours. Florian Fischer (aka Big Guy) met me at the platform. He lost so much weight. He was my roomie while we were studying in Berkeley and has since visited me twice both in Melbourne (him alone) and in Sydney (with Daniela). He now works in BCG.

He took me around town (it was a hot day and everybody was out in force ready for the game in two hours).

and to a local market to buy supplies for the barbie

When we reached their place, the game just started and the street was deserted. 90 minutes later, Argentina was humiliated and Germany advanced to the next round.

Meet No 1 (Froodol?), Florian and Daniela’s master! Flo and I took him for an afternoon stroll after the game,

and we had our dinner soon after that:

The next morning, we had our breaky (with coffee served in a Berkeley mug – nice)

and following breakfast, Flo ran while i cycled to Daniela’s vet clinic. She opened her first clinic in September last year and been very busy ever since.

Then we went to the stable, where i met their second pet, Arthur – a white stallion from Portugal:

I rode Arthur

and so did Big Guy

We then went outside to take Arthur and Floodol in an open space

And Big Guy, Floodol and I headed back home while Daniela brought Arthur back to the stable.

Once we reached home, Big Guy took me for another exciting activity, a first for me – flying on a light aircraft. I was over the moon:

The local airport

The plane – Katana

Plane check

The cockpit

Preflight check

Ready for takeoff

and off we went

Airborne

We circled the area 3 times (ok 4 actually – we couldn’t land the last round because Big Guy couldn’t bring the plane down – apparently a common problem during summer with hot air rising). It was a fantastic experience. Now i want to be a pilot too!

Following the full day adventures, Big Guy and Daniela took me to a nice restaurant for dinner. There i tried Frankfurt’s infamous apple cider. Despite repeated warnings on the effect it might have on my bowels and taste buds, i actually quite like it. The dinner and company were amazing – we talked about everything under the sun!

The next morning was the time to say goodbye – always the hardest. I bid farewell to Daniela at home while Big Guy was on a local train where he stopped one station before me.

Thanks Big Guy and Daniela – i have had an absolute ball, felt really at home and it was great to see you again! Appreciate especially the small details you put into making my stay extremely comfortable – especially the new shower and bathroom

And following this, i will be in Berlin and Prague where i will spend 4 days each.

For more pictures in Frankfurt, click here

Till the next update, take care.

p/s if you were wondering, yes Obama has gone MIA. I lost him in Zurich. if you found him, please write.

I’m writing this post on board of the Mariella of the Viking Line, cruising the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic Sea with Stockholm as the destination.

Since my last travel update, i have endured a four days three nights continuous train journey, roamed the street of Moscow, completely drenched in St. Petersburg and flew over to Helsinki visiting the continent i’ve always dreamt of visiting. I’m living my dream and it’s great to be alive.

Irkutsk – Moscow

I left you all in Lake Baikal.

The morning after my last update, an usual scene appeared at the lake – the ice was melting. It was getting warmer. I decided to take a quick stroll and soon were joined by other guests around the area.

Following breakfast, we were transferred to Irkutsk where we spent the afternoon wandering around the local market and the city centre.

At around 4pm, train no 9 took us to Moscow. This was the longest continuous train travel in the transiberian adventure – we spent a total of 4 days and 3 nights. Thank goodness for Choh Dai Di (Big Two) card game, otherwise, we would be bored to death.

When people say its a Vodka train – they are not kidding. I’ve skulled at least 14 shots in a space of 2 hours by fellow travellers. You couldn’t really refuse especially when they insisted – its impolite. They ‘dragged’ you to their cabins and when you seek refuge in your own, they will come over and bring the Vodka and some food to ’share’ with you. Very generous!

Mischa and Alex were the two main culprits.

This is Mischa in front of our cabin

This is Alex and I, playing hide and seek at the back of the train after Vodka shots

How do we kill the time apart from Choh Dai Di?

Choosing what meal to have is an important routine. As you can see, we have loads of selections:

Watching movies. I re-watched the Red Cliff (yes I and II) and The Transiberian movies

Day-dreaming

Play around with kids on the train

And of course, to at least have one meal in the dining car

After 3 nights, i was glad to finally get off the train. Funny enough, Tuyet and I got picked up separately as we got different hotels booked.

I took a quick shower and embarked on a metro roundabout trip – i have only a couple of days in Moscow and wouldnt want to miss the infamous metro stations and a night shot across the Christ the Saviour Cathedral.

It was a beautiful night.

The following day i went on a city tour:

A wedlock – when Russians get married, they hand their wedlock in this tree!

A view of the Kremlin

Moscow cities are littered with arts! I was particularly moved by the sculptural composition by Mikhail Chemkakin – Children are the victims of adults’ vices. There were 15 sculptures in total representing various Evils such as Child labour, Alcoholism, and Ignorance. The most prominent one is the at the centre – Indifference. It was a powerful message.

I stumbled across a photo exhibition in the middle of a park and look what i saw:

Sydney!

Here are the pictures from the most luxurious grocery stores:

The Kremlin:

The Red Square:

St Basil’s Cathedral:

GUM – the ‘best’ mall:

This area (consisted of a bare 10 shops) is in the world’s top 3 most expensive commercial rent.

The KGB building

Russian Duma (parliament>

I went back to the Red Square to see the buildings at night:

The next day, i started the day with a mission to see Stalin’s bunker but i failed miserably. It was closed – despite the city guide saying it’s open. The guard wouldn’t let me in. I have a feeling you might have to be part of a private tour but i couldn’t speak Russian to the guard to understand why he was yelling at me. In the end, i relented and left the place. Bah, what a way to waste 2 hours!

Disappointed, i spent the rest of the morning and a big chunk of the arvo in the Gallery.

I also made my way to tour the metro station again and also to the White House. The Kremlin is where the president works, whereas the Prime Minister, Putin, works in the White House:

At 22:20, train no 52 took me on an overnight journey to St. Peterburg, the final leg of my Transiberian adventure.

For more Moscow pic, click here

St Petersburg

St Petersburg is the most European-looking city in Russia. It’s opulent and very well planned. The day i arrived, it was pouring heavily. I was completely drenched as we toured the city.

Some pictures from St Pete:

The Library – unfortunately too much paperworks required to enter.

White chairs on a park outside Karzan Cathedral

Karzan Cathedral

THE bookstore – beautiful building

A sculpture dedicated to Pushkin

Hermitage – one of the largest museum in the world

I also visited the Museum of Political History and saw the balcony where Lenin made the speech to his comrades

Stalin’s study

Peter and Paul’s Fortress

Around midnight (when the sun about to set), i took a boat tour along Nevska River to see the infamous bridge openings. Yup, St Petersburg is well-known for many rivers and bridges and the city is separated into two for 5 hours every night when the bridges are opened. Apparently, if you were on the wrong side of town, you just stay in the pub until the bridge was brought down again.

The next day is the first Thursday of the month which also means that a visit to the Hermitage is FREE! I was lucky the queue wasn’t that long when i first arrived in the morning

Went to see all the famous paintings:

and a library setup in olden days:

Five hours later, i emerged culturally enriched and head my way to climb the St Isaac.

The White Nights Art Festival is also on, so prior to me going to my first every ballet performance, i decided to load up on carbs (didn’t realise i haven’t had a proper lunch) so this has to be a lunch-dinner combo.

Following dinner, i headed to the Mariinsky Theatre to see the Leonid Sarafanov Gala Performance

That performance capped my St. Petersburg’s excursion.

For more pic on St Pete, click here

The following morning, i made my way to the airport to start the European leg of my travel. Everything was pretty much smooth sailing until you guess what, the immigration at the Povolko airport. At first the ladies at the counter took a long time to process my exit from Russia. They kept glancing up. Then i was asked to move back 5 metres and waited for another 15 minutes. Suddenly, i was asked by another official to follow him. He spoke something in Russian and after realising i cant speak any, he just said ‘Sit’ while pointing to a row of chairs in front of us. It will be another 45 minutes before he emerged out with another official who approached me and said:

Official: Do you speak English?
Me: Yes
Official: My name is Sergei . I am an official with the Russian Federation. Do you understand me?
Me: Yes
Official: Good. Why are you in Russia?
Me: Travelling
Official: Why are you in Russia?
Me: Travelling – holiday.
Official: Why are you on holiday?
Me: …… its nice to be on holiday and see other cultures

And the interrogation continued for another 10 minutes with a successive of at least 20 questions including where i worked, what i do on a daily basis, where did i stay in Russia, what did i do in Russia, where else i’m going, why i’m going there, why do i leave for 8 months, etc etc.

After a while, i got tired and asked:

Me: Sir, i’m very happy to answer all your questions. But you need to let me know at the very least whether my paper is in order?
Official: hmmm… ok… its just interesting. That you have American visa expiring much latter than your passport.

At this time i knew what the problem was – normally embassies don’t issue visa longer than the expiry of your passport except America (and Australia too). So they must have thought that my passport is a fraud.

Me: I understand where you are coming from. It is actually a standard procedure for America to issue a 5-year visa regardless of your passport expiry. In fact, i don’t think you can get a shorter visa. You paid one price and you get issued with a year visa.
Official: I KNOW THAT
Me: (scratching head)

Then he started speaking in Russian to another official who was looking me up and down as if i were the biggest spy they could find. Then he said

Official: You can go now.

phew………

Helsinki

It was nice to see a familiar face when you just arrived at a new continent. Fon, whom i haven’t seen for nearly five years was strolling Monn when i saw her at the arrival hall. I met Fon during our university days through student union. we both represented Victoria at the national level. i used to be (and still am very much) intrigued by her sense of belonging. She grew up all over the world and i found out through her mum that she’s the only person i’ve known to date who used to hold an alien passport i.e. did not belong to a particular country. how’s that come about is another story – i will leave that to her autobiography.

We took a stroll to the city through beautiful park and a monument made of musical pipes (i forgot what its called)

We brought bread crumbs with us to the pond so Monn can see his favourite friends – meet “Kaap kapps”:

Mikko, Fon’s fiance, soon joined us to officially kick off the architectural tour of Helsinki. He is an architect and used to work as a tour guide. You cant ask for more! He took us to the famous church…

As i was getting out, i saw various greeting cards in various languages that you could take. I was surprised to find an Indonesian. There were lots of ‘prayers and words of wisdom’ and mine read:

‘Sekalipun kita kehilangan segala sesuatu, ada satu yang tetap kita miliki: Yesus Kristus! Bila kamu memilikiNya, berarti kamu memiliki segala sesuatu yang kamu butuhkan di tengah-tengah kesukaran dan kecemasan.”
Ibu Basilea Schlink

translated to be:

‘Even if we were to lose everything, there is one thing that we will always have: Jesus Christ! If you have Him, you have everything you need in the midst of any difficulty and worry’
Basilea Schlink

How apt and i hope it wasn’t the sign that i will lose all my belongings on my travel. Although for those who are keeping count, i have lost my water bottle in between my travel from St Petersburg to Helsinki.

From the church we went to Kiasma – a gallery where we relaxed at the cafe. Fon has always wanted Monn in this very artsy child seat:

We strolled along the city and on the way home saw many Finnish architectures.

My first home-cooked dinner in my travel courtesy of our legendary chef – Fon was perfect. There were: vegetable soup, ‘the lazy man’ bruschetta and for main, the vegetarian bolognese. Fon is a vegan and has been experimenting with various ingredients – you should really check out the newly launched blog on her cooking:

I have always admired parenthood especially young family. I don’t know how people can manage to bring up kids when they are working, studying etc. They always have special place in my Respect Spectrum. Fon described it as ‘you don’t have the time to think – you just do it’. I guess the concept of an entire person completely dependent on you in every single thing is mind-blowing (and admirable). Something very foreign to me.

I also learnt first hand that you require a lot of patience – lots of them. No wonder parents are the most wonderful people on this planet and why young people, are relatively, impatient. Because really, patience is a virtue and i don’t think you can ever compare the patience required in daily life to those required in bringing up a child. It’s a full time job – 24 hours and no break. Your sleep pattern is also altered depending on when the baby decides to get up or sleep. RESPECT.

On the other side of the coin, apart from learning more about yourself, you have the opportunity to observe how a new human being learns everything from zero. I’m naturally a curious person so observing Monn finding our or learning new things are in itself a privilege.

Back to my travel, the next day they took me to Kansalliskirjasto Nationalbiblioteket – The National Library of Finland.

Oh and i forgot to mention, Fon and Mikko took me to this little shop where they sell Obama mints – how could i resist not to buy. But they also have Obama’s finger puppet and soon enough Obama decided to rejoin me again.

Old section of the library

New section of the library

Monn loves stairs, so he climbed to the very top on his own.

Some pictures from Mikko’s city tour:

I was privileged enough to have been invited into Mikko’s niece graduation party – it was a family affair held at a beautiful house. I couldn’t resist with my camera. The house was opened for this very special occasion. Even Monn was dressed as a sailor.

and for the bonus, the house has a library!

There was one section of the house that i really like. Its at the corner next to the staircase to the top floor, by the window overlooking the front garden. I saw an old gentlemen in a nice white suit with perfect grey hair sitting down sipping his cup of tea. I didn’t take out my camera then, but managed to eventually make my way round that corner and spent a great part of our time at the party in this corner.

From the party, Fon drove us (Mikko was intoxicated) to her parent’s place in Kiita (spelling could be incorrect). It’s beautiful estate by the water. You can see a lot of works have been put into making the place cozy and beautiful. Fon’s parents just got back from Adjerbaizan and i was in charge of dinner that night. I cooked an improvised Sambal Tahu dan Tempe (with potato, long bean, bean sprouts) while Fon made a clear soup.

After dinner, we all went to have the traditional Finnish sauna in the house. It was my first time! I remembered the temperature was like 72 degrees inside – i took about 3 breaks in total for a 45 minute sauna. Felt relaxed afterwards and sleep was given.

The next day we took a stroll along the forest and when we got back, Fon’s mum made special hotpot for us. We have a lazy afternoon (stuffed with chocolates!) and headed back to Helsinki in the early evening.

Fon made a dish out of Tempe for dinner.

On my last day, i went to the bookstore in the city and checked out the local shopping scene. Didn’t really buy anything.

Oh, there is an Aussie bar too!

Fon then took me to the Torin (a tower with a cafe/bar at the top) where you can see Helsinki.

We also went to the park (i forgot the name) where there were graves around. spooky!

Soon enough, its time to bid farewell as my ferry to Stockholm is due to depart.

Fon, Mikko and Monn – Kiitos!

I got a nice surprise – i have the whole cabin for myself!

and nice buffet – i stuffed myself silly!

For more picture on Helsinki, click here

Stockholm

Well this post is a two part post as i’m writing this on board of X2000 train no 529 from Stockholm to Copenhagen. I spent the last three days and two nights in Stockholm.

The ferry arrived at Stockholm around 10am and soon i was transferred to the City Terminal. I put my backpack in the locker before venturing out in the city. I got myself the Stockholm Card (i swear its good value – you get free public transport, free boat travels and free entrances to museums!).

First stop was the Stockholms Stadsbibliotek with Gunnar Asplund as the architect. It has a beautiful Rotunda in the centre.

My second stop was the Riksdagen Library – the Swedish Parliament Library.

I was rather disappointed that i couldn’t visit the Bernadotte Library. Its closed when there isn’t any events/official events – so there goes my chance.

Along the way, i stumbled across a public high school celebration in the centre of the city. These young people were so happening with beer and alcohol everywhere. The roads smell of alcohol and people stood by the roadside cheering them on. It was electrifying to see them!

I also visited the Nobel Museum (a must, given Obama won the Peace Prize in 2009!)

After the museum, i visited the Cathedal,

and the Ericsson Globe to take the SkyView – the largest spherical building in the world

At around 6pm, i went back to T-Centralen to meet up with Dessy – my second couchsurfing’s host. She is a fellow Indonesian who is currently doing an internship exchange from National University of Singapore.

Dessy took me back to her place so i can put down my luggage and we headed back to the city for dinner and night stroll.

It is also the Love Festival week in Stockholm. The festival is held one week prior to the Crown Princess’ wedding. Her groom is apparently her personal trainer. so free concerts are everywhere!

The next day was spent in a Museum, Skansen and Fotografika. I was taking an easy day because i had to do my laundry in the morning (after 5 days worth of dirty clothes! – finally they are clean). Didn’t really take a lot of pictures on this day as i spent most of my time inside.

At night, we went to this nice organic restaurant – Nyagatan, to have our dinner. I have a gnocchi and Dessy had grilled salmon.

The next day, Dessy took the metro with me to T-Centralen before we bid farewell. (Dessy – Thank you so much for your hospitality and please tell me about Croatia!)

For more pics on Stockholm, click here

And here i am now sitting on seat no 22, second carriage of Train 529. My lunch was old potato chips and peanuts that Fon’s mum gave to me. Sceneries are lakes and forests. There’s a bit of a drizzle outside. The travel will take approx 5 hours and i will spend the next 3 days in Copenhagen before heading to Amsterdam.

Very excited especially the World Cup is kicking off soon. Go England and Go Socceroos!!

Thats the full lid!

The night before CX504 left Hong Kong for Narita was my first experience of ‘Lost in Translation’ – HK version. I saw the hostel lady who was still working at such a late hour obliging me to strike a casual conversation. It went like this:

Me: You work really hard
Hostel Lady: Pardon me?
Me: You work really hard
Hostel Lady: I’m hot??? Oh…. Thank You!

I just smiled – couldn’t bring myself to correct the misunderstanding that just took place. That was the first time i’ve seen her smile ever since she handed me the key to the room. I didn’t want to spoil it for her

Tokyo

Day 1

The next morning i flew to Tokyo. I got lost as soon as i tried to look for the hostel in Asakusa. After carrying 30odd kilos front and bag for about 1 hour circling the area, i decided what tourist does best when they get lost – hold the map really high, look a bit lost, and approach a group of individuals. My target was a pack of school girls in front of the station. Some of them have musical instruments with them, so i thought they must be friendly.

Soon enough – (and this would be a constant experience that I and many other backpackers experienced in Japan) they brought me to the front of the hostel (which took us about 15 minutes walking and asking a local police station). I couldn’t believe it. They went out of their way to help me. It must be my new haircut (or so i thought!).

I took a picture of the hostel lounge with Obama…

After all the paperworks, my plan was immediately in disarray. I was 3 hours behind my schedule and couldn’t make it in time to Hirajuku to see the weekend dress-ups people have been snapping about. URGH.

Instead, i decided to follow Panthep’s recommendation and head to search for the best Tonkasu in town. Made my way to Omitesa-don and soon enough i got lost again. So i tried my new hair trick on an older girl (she’s probably my age). While she didn’t understand what i was harping about, she knew where i wanted to go – coz the magic words work: “Tonkatsu, tonkatsu, tonkatsu. Maisen, Maisen, Maisen”. Maisen is the name of the restaurant.

This was the second time a complete stranger in the same day brought me to the front door (after about 10 minutes walking which was clearly out of her way coz we went to alley ways). I was amazed. Wanted to offer her to join me for dinner but was afraid it could be taken the wrong way so decided to just part our ways.

When Panthep told me that the Tonkatsu will melt in your mouth, i did not believe it. That melting in the mouth concept works for chocolate, tim tam, and similar substances. Tonkatsu? This is fried crumbled pork. How could it melt in your mouth???

And.. how wrong was I. It literally melted in my mouth. I couldn’t describe the feeling. It was the BEST tonkatsu i have ever had in my life! Here are some pics to make you drool… yum!!!!

After dinner, i proceeded to see the infamous Shibuya’s crossing. We (Obama and I) also got our centre place in Starbucks overlooking the crossing.

After my little outing, i went back to the hostel to catch some sleep.

Day 2

The next morning i made my way to National Diet Building (Japanese parliament). To my surprise, they only allow people who can speak japanese to tour the buildings. I tried to sneak in but was stopped when i’ve had to fill in the form and they are in japanese. i thought i could wink it – soon of course, i realise that there are too many columns and i couldnt even figure out which column was for first name. I was bitterly disappointed for not being able to visit this very important place.

As i exited the compound, located at the other corner was the PM’s office. There were protesters surrounded by TV camera, print journalists and the police. My curiosity gravitated me towards the crowd. They were demanding Obama to close down the Fukuama’s military base. I was tempted to bring Obama out.. but my gut’s instinct said no especially with heavy police presence.

From here i ventured out to the Imperial Palace compound. Couldn’t even go to the East Garden because they closed on Monday. I took pictures outside anyway.

In the late morning, i headed to the famous Ginza shopping district. I specifically made my way to the Sony building. It was disappointing – there weren’t any new gadgets that excite me. It used to be very innovative.

After Ginzad-out (and realising that a poor man like me couldn’t afford even a 1/4 of the stuffs that i want), i headed to Ryogoku for some Sumo actions – the tournament is held twice yearly (May and November). My timing was purely coincidental and i’m not complaining.

Obama and I tasted our first Chankonabe – a stew for the sumo wrestlers. I didn’t even want to ask what they consist of. I just gulped it.

For lunch, i bought a bento (nicely presented in a Sumo-themed paper box):

Here are some action shots and my picture with one of the wrestler. You will notice in that picture, Obama was hiding his face. He was too scared!

I headed to Akihabara for the famous electronic town. Saw a lot of crazy manga stores and decided to try out the legendary Maid Cafe. For the uninitiated, the maid cafe is targeted towards the geek (intake) of anime, manga and video games. I was none – i didn’t like anime, manga or video games (ok i lied – i like Doraemon and Sinchan ). The waitresses of the cafe dressed up as maids and become servants of the patrons who are the masters.

It was the weirdest experience. I couldn’t help myself but laughing all the time. Not at them despite all the silly games they played with each other and tried to encourage me to be part of it. But laughing at how i found myself in this place. I couldn’t take pictures officially but managed to sneak in two shots :

If that wasn’t enough, i went to Christon Cafe in Shinjuku. Like its name, its the catholic cafe. Amongst all the drinks, i have chosen Gabriel’s Stiletto direct from the Ecuperian Bible (which was the menu). Selections include Princess of Peach Pitch, Hells Maria, Midnight Mess and Angel’s Smile.

While Cheese with the Bible Toast is a chef’s recommendation, I’ve decided to jump straight to desert where Blessing the Holy Cross Brand Baked Cheese Cake stole my heart. Fancy Angel and the Garden of Eden were in the shortlist.

I’ve had an epiphany after such a religious experience – i wanted to see Tokyo full lights from the top. And there is no other building than the Met building. OK i lied, there was a New York bar grill (close by to the Met) which Lonely Planet raved about. I decided to try that out too. So here i was, accompanied by Obama having my splendid dinner. I had grilled lamb, chicken and pork (if you were wondering), a plate of duck-fat covered french fries and a glass of red. Oh, by the way, this restaurant was also made famous by that movie – Lost in Translation.

i signed out for the night after such a luxurious dinner.

Day 3

I’m a rather clumsy person. I forget things easily – simple things such as house key, mobile phone, or wallet. It is just a matter of time before something goes wrong. Sure enough, i lost my JR pass. There are two things that make a JR pass a valuable commodity: (1) you can only get it outside Japan, and (2) you cant get it replaced if stolen/lost.

I don’t know how exactly i lost it – It must have slipped out from the back of my Tokyo’s travel guide. Absolutely inconvenient – especially with my plan to go to Hiroshima, Okayama and Kyoto the next day. But i must admit that it made the travel a little bit exciting.

I had to make a police report for insurance claim. So instead of my original travel plan to East Garden of the Imperial Palace, which would have opened on a Tuesday, i spent my Tue morning explaining myself in a local Koban (police box found in street corner). Funny thing they don’t provide you with a hardcopy report, only with a reference number. I tried to push my luck (didn’t want to get on the wrong side with the insurance company) but given that its standard practice, i did the best that i could have done.

Oh there are no proper pictures from my adventures to Museum of Tokyo and the National Diet Library in the arvo. Because i bloody forgot to bring the battery for my camera (it was left on the charger)! I thought my camera was acting up when it displayed an error message: Please insert battery. You see how clumsy I am.

I went back home – jaded and tired. I needed to do my laundry. As i was waiting for my laundry, Holly – a fellow Aussie came to the dorm and introduced herself. We decided to visit a local Bar Six at Asakusa overlooking the nice temple. While it was raining, we were so glad we did it. It was a great view as evidenced by these pictures.

We also decided to stop some Japanese on the street to ask for directions to a local sake bar – our (including Obama’s) first sake in Japan! With that, we closed our beautiful night in Tokyo.

For more pictures of Tokyo, click here

Hiroshima and Okayama

The following morning, i took my first Shinkasen (bullet train). It was fast and i was tired – i slept nearly all the way through.

Goh Kimoto finally met me at Hotel Granvia’s lobby. We haven’t seen each other for nearly 6 years. Its amazing to finally be able to see him in Japan. He was kind enough to take a day off from his practical (he’s doing 5th year of Medicine) to show me around Hiroshima and Okayama.

First in the agenda was the Peace Memorial, but we were too busy catching up that we missed the tram stop. So we quickly rearranged our plan to go the the second site first – Itsukushima-jina Shrine at the Miyajima island.

But first thing first – our stomach needed to be filled and since we are in Hiroshima, you have to try its famous Okonomiyaki… Oh my my… they were great!

We were quite lucky that day because it’s low tide, so we can walk around the gate – otherwise they would be submerged in the ocean water.

It was claimed to be among the top three great views of Japan:

After the shrine, we went to the Peace Memorial where the site of the A-bomb Dome was preserved to the state on the day of the bombing. It was rather eerie. Despite any best intention, nuclear bomb should never ever be used again!

So Obama, please come to Hiroshima! (Ban Ki-Moon already made his commitment to come in August this year). They said that Obama’s visit to Hiroshima would equate to Japanese PM’s visit to Pearl Harbour. Beyond politics though, this site served as a reminder to any future generation of how lives can easily be decimated.

After Hiroshima, we made our way to Goh’s place in Okayama. He served me a fruit pudding, a cake roll and Suntory premium malt! This was just a quick stop before we have dinner proper (he had to dash off for a bit to finish up his presentation for the following day).

When he got back, he took me to a nice restaurant for a good ramen. Sorry, it was the best ramen i’ve ever tasted. I love it absolutely! Ramen was sooo yummy!! (Unfortunately, there was no pictures with my camera – it was in Goh’s and in my facebook). I told Goh – if i were to die now, i would be happy. Thats how satisfying the ramen was! Of special note was the thick soup. I think its made of pig’s bone. Loving it!

Okayama

Goh took me around his hospital the next day. It was an amazing experience, especially when i got the chance to meet with his patients and do a dress-up as a doctor!

After the hospital tour, he took me to the top 3 garden in Japan. Beautiful!

For more pictures of Hiroshima and Okayama, please click here

<----------------->

[Apologies the updates after this is a bit rough, i have been constantly on the run and lacking of sleep. as im writing this, im mindful of my 5am train trip to Ulaanbatar, Mongolia tomorrow and the lack of fast internet access has hampered my ability to arrange my pictures and do a proper writing update. In any case, i will always prioritise my pictures first to be uploaded online. This will hopefully serve as my permanent backup. In the mean time, we have to make do with the following bullet points descriptions]

Kyoto
-Had my first sleep capsule experience
-Temple, temple, temple, temple, temple, temple, temple
-Love traditional Kyoto!

Tokyo
-Back to Tokyo after 36 hours in Kyoto.
-Immediately went to Roppongi to catch up with Holly for drinks.
-We partied whole night (including an hour nap at crazy internet cafe) until 5am!
-We headed home, i packed for 1 hour and head straight to the airport for my beijing flight.

Kyoto and Tokyo pictures

Beijing
-Finally met Frank – my first couchsurfer host. There were 6 others couchsurfers surfing his place that day. Apparently a record for himself
-We played pool on the first night and got ourself drunk silly on 4 litres Tsing-Tsao and i don’t know shots of what.
-Let just say i don’t remember how i got back including how i lost Obama.
-Yes, you heard it right, i lost Obama that night. RIP. I was still upset. But at least he came back to his root in China
-Did all the touristy stuff – climbed Great Wall, Ming’s tomb, Summer Palace, Temple of Heavenly Park, Forbidden City.

Beijing picture #1

Beijing picture #2

and now im rushing to update this because i know i wont have proper internet for the next 19 days because i will be embarking on my transiberian travel tom morning. I have the alarm set at 5am. Ulanbaatar, Mongolia is my first stop and i think i will be staying at the Ger camp.

Till the next update!

p/s you can bookmark the following URL for my photostream in flickr – http://www.flickr.com/photos/30353357@N00/