Malaysia,KL, 4 – 7 April 2012
A few great words to summarise Kuala Lumpur. It’s clean, fresh, organised, well structured, beautiful and very green city. I loved it. So much todo, so much to eat, and truly cosmopolitan and all religions seemed to be very happy side-by-side. I hope Malaysia will continue to embrace piece and harmony in the country. As an Indonesian origin, I am truly jealous!!
We stayed at the Swiss Garden Hotel in Jalan Pudu, a really nice, clean and affordable hotel. Its location is very centre, easy to get to great places in the centre of town on foot. It was a little bit far to walk to the PETRONAS Twin towers, but we did walk it, and as Kuala Lumpur was fairly cool in the evenings, it didn’t matter at all. If you plan to walk around KL, just make sure you carry some mineral water with you.
The layout out the city is really great, perfect for walkabout. Taxis are not too expensive, but you could also go on public transports such as busses and the monorail. The transport system in KL is so organised and it was easy to get to places. Most busses are air-conditioned, and the monorail system is well organised and the map is easy to follow.
There are so many things to do in KL, sadly we only stayed for 4 days, but we had so much fun. The China Town and the Pasar Seni were very special, but my favourite was the bird park. In the evening we would visit the street restaurants nearby the hotel. I can’t remember the name of the street exactly, I think it was at Persiaran Raja Chulan, not far from Jalan Bukit Bintang.
Evidently, many Indonesians go there now for short holidays, as Jakarta no longer able to offer that short break comfort. I think it’s time for Jakarta to tidy itself up, or its population will escape one by one to other Asian cities, particularly now Air Asia offer cheap tickets to all Asian Destinations.
KL, is really a destination worth a visit. This was my second visit, I went there with my husband in 1988, things got better since then. Well done Malaysia.
Germany – a day in Cologne Cathedral – 29 January 2012
Begun in 1248, the construction of this Gothic masterpiece took place in several stages and was not completed until 1880. Over seven centuries, successive builders were inspired by the same faith and a spirit of absolute fidelity to the original plans. Apart from its exceptional intrinsic value and the artistic masterpieces it contains, Cologne Cathedral testifies to the enduring strength of European Christianity.(Source: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/292)
VENICE, FREEZING FEBRUARY 2012, COLD BUT HAPPY SNAPPING
You probably have heard of Venice, a city apparently founded 1500 years ago, for sure long before Indonesia was born. A according to an online source Venice is linked by a series of over 150 canals and 400 bridges…..good grief…that many. I only passed about 50 of them in my 3 day visit. A friend and I visited the place during the coldest part of this year (2012), February 6th, to be précised. The canals were frozen and the air was so crisp and freezing, I felt that any part my uncovered body bits was going to just flicked off if I wasn’t careful, it was freeeeeezzzziiiing.
We spent most of the waking hours walking around the city crossing one bridge to the next, and spent an awful long time hanging around San Marco, taking pictures from every direction. It was fairly uncomfortable, wearing those enormously thick gloves and trying to click the camera’s shutter button at the same time. Oh boy…that was a miserable task, but managed to capture some amazing pictures from this visit. Phew!!
I am not much of a historian, so I am not confident enough to share what I know on this city historically, but if you need to know more about history of Venice, dating back to the beginning (well …..1500 years ago), do Google it, there are plenty of sources that would tell you amazing stories about this place.
I have to admit that Venice must be one of the most popular City in the world, even though the winter was so freezing, they were many visitors to this when I was there. Be warned that the city is quiet expensive, even for Londoners can be pretty expensive. Sadly there are not many public spaces where you can rest once your legs gone jelly, but a few churches open to the public, but you can’t chat there. The only option to rest is to stop in any cafe, have a cup of cappuccino or a glass of wine and just chill out.
The Italian tourist board is fairly organised and you can get all the necessary information on the city at the tourist information centres. River buses are easy to board, but these are not very cheap, but private taxis of course would be more expensive.
I enjoyed Venice tremendously, but certainly won’t go back there during the cold season, I found it hard to cope with the icy condition. The best time to visit Venice would be around April, May, September & October as June, July, August would be too hot and November to March would be too cold. Its climate is probably a bit like New York’s temperature, blue sky and cold win from the sea, contribute to the low temperature in the winter time.
Enjoy Venice, is a lot to see and to eat.
The view of Canary Wharf from my bedroom this evening, 08 March 2012
I have spent many hours running around in and outside of the house today, getting a few things packed for my trip to the Far East next week. I noticed the beautiful moon peeking out from the gorgeous pattern of clouds against the evening clear sky. I am so crossed with myself that I couldn’t find my remote control for my camera, the images of the moon didn’t come out very well. My basic tripod wasn’t a perfect tool for this type of shots.
In the end I managed to take a few clear shots of Canary Wharf from my bedroom window. When viewing Canary Wharf from my bedroom through my 300mm zoom lens, it looks so near. It reminds me of the time when I worked at Thomson Reuters in Canary Wharf a few years back, I used to wish that I could just beam myself up to work. I honestly feel so blessed and very lucky to be living in the highest part of South London and with my bedroom in the attic, it is just perfect to look out from the balcony on the clear evening like this evening.
I haven’t been using my zoom lens much in the past few months, and this evening was so magical to discover the Millennium Dome again in between the tall eucalyptus trees in my neighbour’s garden, which have grown ridiculously tall and bushy in the past 3 years. I could hardly spot the Dome during the day, but the bright lights around it were very distinctive this evening.
It is just so great to be able to drop other activities, get the photography gear out, open the balcony and just lost myself in it. In the summer, of course this would be done with a glass of wine or two, and some nibbles and just sit back on the lazy chair and enjoy God & human creations combined. The photos may not be perfect, but I have had a perfect moment with my camera when nothing else matter.
