Locations: Chengyang's (程陽) Rain and Wind Bridge (25°54'16.66"N 109°39'15.05"E), Guizhou, China.
Date: 16 April 2005; 4.15pm
Camera: Canon 300D with kit lens
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Dong Villages (1)- Wind & Rain Bridge, Guizhou, China
Dong villages (2)- Drum Tower, Guizhou, China
Locations: Zhaoxing's (肇兴) Drum Tower ( 25° 54' 39 N 109° 10' 35 E), Guizhou, China.
Date: 18 April 2005; 8.15am
Camera: Canon 300D with kit lens
Both these are villages of the Dong, one of the many minorities that lives in the province of Guizhou in China. Wind and Rain Bridge (風雨橋) and Drum Tower (鼓楼) are very much the tradition and culture of the Dong people. These are very poor corners of China, only slowly feeling the effects and prosperity that is sweeping China.
The Dong people usually build their villages near rivers. They erect covered bridges with pavillions and porches to connect different parts of the vilalge. These bridges provide shelter against rain and wind. They are railings on both sides of the bridge where villagers can sit or lay down. Such villages normally housed a few clans. Each clan will have their own multi-storey pagoda-like wooden building, drum tower, where they hold ceremonies and festivals, greet guests and meet for clan consultations. It is normally the tallest building and the focus of the clan. Both the bridge and tower are normally constructed from wood and held together without any nails.
I visited these villages with a dear friend in 2005. Chengyang was already touristy then being one of the destinations frequented by foreign tour groups and covered by the likes of Lonely Planet because of their still-very-much intact bridge. The people there are already corrupted by tourists who thought that they are doing them a favour (but in fact corrupting them) by giving tips when they take their photos so much so that they demand to be paid for photos or even getting close to their homes etc.
Zhaoxing on the other hand, is still very traditional, incredibly friendly and hospitable. It is not on the map of Western tour groups yet and only hardy Chinese and overseas backpackers bother to visit this lovely and beautiful but somewhat slightly difficult-to-get-to village.
An excellent write up on these Dong villages can be found in chinabackpacker's Zhaoxing and Zengchong- a Dong village articles. Furthermore this month's National Geographic magazine has a well-researched article "Village on the Edge of Time" on the same subject.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Beautiful Manarola at night, Cinque Terre, Italy
Location: Manarola, Cinque Terre, Italy (44° 6' 0 N 9° 43' 60 E)
Date: 9 March 2006; 7.40pm
Camera: Canon 300D with kit lens
Manarola is the oldest village of the famed Cinque Terre of Italy. The village is probably the most beautiful of the Cinque Terre with multicoloured houses spilling down the hillside. The little harbour is surrounded by craggy rocks and I often wondered if it is really a suitable place for a harbour. There are walks possible around the hills where there are a number of small vineyards.
Technorati Tags: Cinque Terre,Manarola
Friday, May 09, 2008
Menace of pollution on Leshan Dafo, Sichuan, China
Location: Leshan Dafo, Sichuan, China (29° 32′ 50″ N, 103° 46′ 9″ E)
Date: June 1999 and April 2003
Dafo at Leshan (乐山大佛), not far from Chengdu is the world's tallest stone-carved seated Buddha figure. It was carved into a cliff face some 1,300 years ago. The 710m-high Buddha is a popular tourist destination, in no small part helped by the easy access from Chengdu.
The Buddha was given a "facelift"- clean-up and paintwork barely six years (2001) but another effort is needed this year as the figure is again stained black by pollution. The photo on the left shows how it was before the last facelift and the right shows how it appeared after that facelift. Despite concerns that led to factories close to Leshan being ordered to shut down in recent years, it is now again stained black by acid rain caused by toxic gases spewed into the air from factories and coal mines further north. Scientists now believed that major maintenance on Dafo will need to be undertaken every five years.
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Jackass Penguins at Boulder's Beach, South Africa
Location: Boulder's Beach, Simon's Town, South Africa (34° 11′ 20″ S, 18° 26′ 19″ E)
Date: 7 April 2001; 3.15pm
Camera: (analogue) Canon 500N with slides and scanned
This beach is at a place named Simon's Town near Cape Town on the eastern side of Cape Peninsula. It has a colony of Jackass Penguins since 1985 that has grown to about 1,000 strong. Jackass Penguins are African penguins- so-called for the donkey-like braying sounds they make when on land. Like pandas, penguins are much loved, in no small part played by their comical movements. These penguins are not shy or afraid of humans and are quite happy with humans getting close. However it seems they may have to be careful, lest they may be "raped" by other animals; just like the attempted "rape" of their cousin by an Antarctic seal (see 'Sex pest' seal attacks penguin).
Monday, May 05, 2008
A 100 km walking trail in Hong Kong!!
Location: Near Long Ke Beach, MacLehose Trail, Hong Kong (22°23'50.11"N114°22'5.32"E)
Date: 13 November 2004; 12.50pm
Camera: Canon 300D with kit lens
The impression of visitors to Hong Kong is a city of tightly packed sardine-like buildings with little empty spaces. Well, the territory actually has lots of greens and is well spaced out if one get out of the central area. In fact it has a 100 km walking trail that traverses some nice hills and beautiful beaches. The MacLehose Trail is really quite a gem as far as walking trail is concerned. It is broken down into 10 stages of different steepness and terrains, well signposted and very popular in the weekends. There are nice clean swimming beaches along the trail as well as some waterfalls. During the weekends many outdoor enthusiasts walk the trail and sea lovers sun bathing on beaches along the trail. The next time you visit Hong Kong make sure you make some time to discover this hidden treasure. You can visit the official website for more information on this and other trails in the territory.
Technorati Tags: MacLehose Trail,Hong Kong
Saturday, May 03, 2008
Glitzy Milan, Italy
Location: Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan, Italy (45° 27′ 56″ N, 9° 11′ 24″ E)
Date: 8 March 2005; 8.11am
Camera: Canon 300D with kit lens
Milan, the economic and fashion powerhouse of Italy; the fashion powerhouse of the world, perhaps. A Ferrari or some other sports cars can be seen every 10 minutes when one walks on the streets of Milan. Every chick seems to be a leggy model- especially the sales assistants at the boutique/fashion retailers. There's just so much to feed the eyes!
Milan is also probably the only city (oh, Manchester as well) in the world that has two top football clubs, AC and Inter Milan. The city is also well endowed with historical and beautiful architectural gems including the second biggest Roman Catholic cathedral in the world, the Duomo di Milano and this upmarket shopping arcade, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.
Technorati Tags: Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II,Milan
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