December 31, 2010
A Marble Boat that is not really marble
Location: Marble Boat, YiheYuan, Beijing, China(39° 59′ 48.4″ N, 116° 15′ 48.9″ E)
Date: 19 October 2010, 11.10am
Camera: Canon 500D with Sigma 17-70/f2.8-4.5
Yuheyan, the Summer Palace was the summer retreat of the Chinese Emperors/Empress. The Palace is actually a landscape garden with a variety of pavilions, gardens, palaces etc centred around Kunming Lake and Longevity Island. The man-made lake was an imitation of Xihu of Hangzhou and the soil excavated from the lake was used to make Longevity Hill. The Summer Palace was destroyed twice —during the Anglo-French allied invasion of the 1860 2nd Opium War and during the attack by the eight allied powers in the 1900 Boxer Rebellion. The Old Summer Palace (YuanMingYuan) was also destroyed in the 2nd Opium War and was burnt down with looting and plundering of Chinese arts and treasures by British and French soldiers. Whilst the YiheYuan was rebuilt after the 1st destruction, YuanMinYuan was left as it is. Ironically the rebuilding of YiHeYuan by diverting funds originally designated for the Chinese Navy contributed to her second destruction. The destructions of these compounds etched a deep wound in the Chinese psyche as they represent the apex of Chinese humiliation and bullying in the hands of Western powers. These events continue to shape the mind and thinking behind some of China’s foreign and defence policies today.
One of the iconic structure in YiHeYuan is the so-called Marble Boat, a lakeside pavilion on the grounds of the Palace. It is a 2 storey structure which is not actually marble. It has a large stone base with wooden superstructure painted to imitate marble.
December 28, 2010
The “Mosque of the 4 Minarets” of Hyderabad (also known as Cyberabad or Tollywood)
Location: Charminar, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India (17° 21′ 41″ N, 78° 28′ 28″ E)
Date: 27 November 2005; 2.45pm
Camera: Canon 400D with Sigma 17-70/f2.8-4.5
Hyderabad is the 6th largest city in India. It has developed by leaps-and-bounds in the last few years especially as a major hub in the IT industry, earning itself the nickname “Cyberabad”. It is also the home of the Telugu Film Industry, second biggest only to Bollywood in India; that’s why the city is sometimes referred to as Tollywood. It has a huge Muslim minority and one of the most famous monument of the city is the Charminar literally meaning the Four Minarets. Charminar was built by a Sultan in 1591 after fulfillment of a prayer for the end of a plague that was ravaging the city. The monument is in fact a mosque (on the top floor of the structure) within a fort, made of granite, lime, mortar and pulverised marble. Surrounding the monument is the most bustling bazaar of Hyderabad, the Laad Bazaar. Due to the big Muslim population of the city, Hyderabad has reputedly the best Nasi Biryani (a Muslim rice dish) one can ever find in India.
December 26, 2010
The beautiful Art-Deco building, T & G Building in centre Napier
Location: Napier, New Zealand (39° 29′ 0″ S, 176° 55′ 0″ E)
Date: 16 May 2009, 9.40am
Camera: Canon 400D with Sigma 17-70/f2.8-4.5
Napier is one of the so-called “Twin Cities’ on the eastern coast, Hawkes bay, of New Zealand; the other of the twin is Hastings. It is a major port for the region, shipping most of the North Island’s wool, citrus fruits and pulp and timber. The city is more well-known for its Art-Deco buildings. Napier was leveled by an earthquake in 1931 and was rebuilt in the style of the then-popular Art-Deco style. Though many of the buildings had been replaced by more modern designs, most of the Art-Deco buildings in the city center remained intact. Today these are the major tourist attractions though a statue akin to the Mermaid of Copenhagen, known as the Pania of the Reef, is much photographed. Honestly you don’t miss anything if you have not seen the statue.
December 25, 2010
December 22, 2010
One of the most published images of Bangkok- Wat Arun
Location: Wat Arun, Bangkok, Thailand (13° 44′ 38″ N, 100° 29′ 19″ E)
Date: 24 June 2010, 6.35pm
Camera: Canon 400D with Canon 70-200/f4.0
Wat Arun is one of the best known landmarks of Bangkok. Situated on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River, it consists of a massive elongated prang (Khmer-style tower), and is surrounded by four smaller prangs. The prangs are decorated by seashells and bits of porcelain which had previously been used as ballast by boats coming to Bangkok from China. It is quite an interesting temple to visit but more stunning to look at from the opposite bank especially during sunset.
December 19, 2010
China is a place to go pick up handicrafts, traditional and modern ones alike
Location: Wuhouci, Chengdu, China (30° 39′ 35″ N, 104° 3′ 48″ E)
Date: 10 October 2008; 2.50pm
Camera: Canon 400D with Canon 70-200 f/4 L IS Lens
One of my favourite activities while travelling in China used to be shopping for handicrafts and collectibles. I enjoyed collecting unique handicrafts- those only produced in very small quantities and perhaps one-of-its-kind and not-too-perfect pieces rather than the factory mass-produced pieces. In the early days when China started opening its doors to outsiders, one can pick up many valuable collectibles at very good prices. For instance, I remembered buying a fabulous wood carvings from bed rests during my first trip in 1996 that used to have a vaunted place on my display shelf. However these days, anything closely resembles uniqueness are very expensive in China. That’s why I do not spend time looking for them anymore- only occasionally browsing just to see what’s in the market. Furthermore I do not have a big enough place to even showcase my current collection- adding more is just going to go to the storage.
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