Borobudur, Indonesia

When I was eighteen and stepped outside the airport in Jakarta the heat and humidity were so intense I thought I was going to faint. The city I lived in for a year as an exchange student was situated in the hills a few hours outside of Jakarta and thankfully, had a slightly more moderate climate.

But certain experiences in my early years have conditioned me to be somewhat fond of humidity. First it was summers spent in Wisconsin with my grandparents where I loved the warm thunder showers that would break the heat and bring mosquitoes. This was such a change compared to the arid dry weather of Southern California. Then came Indonesia where the vegetation was so lush and wet sensuality pulsed through the air despite the sexual constraint of the culture. After that came time in Connecticut and New York where summers were filled with verdant green and restless nights from heat.

And yes, these climates are sticky and gross and make my hair even more unruly. But I also feel a certain comfort in the warmth. I feel alive in the mess of it. And maybe that is precisely why I like humidity and the rain that washes it all away.

The photo was taken at Borobudur, a Buddhist temple in Indonesia. The bell shaped structures are called stupas. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borobudur

Very unusual structures, great shot!

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On the Road Again, From Kathmandu to Pokhara, Nepal

Great shot!

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Philippines photo diary

I fell in love with the Philippines back in 2010 when I visited it for the first time. The beauty of the country and the kindness of its people blew me away! I always knew that another visit wouldn’t take me too long. So I went back in October last year and I had the bessssssst time!

First stop: Malapascua, baby! I love love love this island with all my heart. I will never forget  the first time I went there in 2010 and met all those wonderful local people from the dive shop. I seriously missed them a lot, which is why I decided to go back there to say hi and of course to dive with the amazing thresher sharks!

On the last night we went to the island’s annual fiesta! It was nothing I’ve ever witnessed before. I was literally culture shocked, haha! The basketball court was transformed into a dance floor with crazy disco lights and let me tell you something; Filipino’s LOVE dancing and are not shy to show it. I had the best time of my life watching them having so much fun and dance like their life was depending on it hahaha, it was so cute! They all had their little dance offs and they even paid the DJ to play their favourite songs. I know because everytime this particular sound went off, it meant that someone paid the DJ to have the dance floor all to themselves & their crew to show everyone what they’ve got and everyone else had to step aside hahaha! Priceless and super fun night (despite hearing Gangnam Style like 100 times that night lol SHOOT ME!)!!

Awesome shots! Philippines is getting higher on our list all the time!

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Anna Maria Island, Florida

It’s been a chilly week in England; the rain was expected, but I’m more surprised by the fact that it keeps hailing. Over the winter, I coped with the cold by thinking of our 110-degree stay in Las Vegas over the summer. And now, as my teeth chatter during my wanders around Birmingham, I can’t help thinking about a very warm day that I had last month during my stay in Florida.

As somebody who doesn’t like swimming, dislikes spending too much time in the sun because of sensitive skin, and is actively terrified of going in the ocean (our beach vacations have always coincided with sting ray mating season), I shouldn’t have had much motivation for wanting to spend a day on Anna Maria Island. However, I was in a mood for some sort of adventure, and I decided that an afternoon at the beach was just what I needed.

After slathering myself with sunscreen and grabbing a big sunhat, I was ready for a day with the sand, the ocean, and my Josh. We started our trek at the north tip of the island, determined to wander along and find as many scenic views as possible.

The views of the ocean were beautiful. Despite my fear of swimming in them, I absolutely love being near oceans, and the Gulf Coast of Florida was no different. And after a cold, dry winter in Ohio, I was very glad for warm weather on a beach.

Awesome shot, and proof that you don’t have to be a surfer or a swimmer to enjoy the beach!

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London, England

Hi, last week I revisited London, and I took this photo with toemailer in my mind. What you see is my little grandson’s cute, small feet. Small Latvian boy, British citizen, maybe he will be the next globetrotter. Inquisitive as he is, who knows the soil of what lands these feet will touch some day.

Sounds like he is a natural born traveler! And we hope you had a great day today, Grandma!

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Surat, Gujarat, India

I had clicked this Pic while I was traveling back to Mumbai from Delhi … boarded a train with waiting list with no seats to sit, so it was a standing journey or sitting somewhere adjusted with passengers .
Train halt at a bridge near Surat(Gujarat) . I have got my Canon 550D so thought to get some self pics of my Foot …

Looks like you got a pretty good standing spot!

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George Town, Penang, Malaysia

I love art, especially modern art, and especially when I can see it for free. Street art is thus the ultimate art experience to me, and I love when town councils are smart enough to understand its value instead of discard it as ‘graffiti’ and paint some bad pastel color paint on top of it.

George Town understood this at best, embracing street art and this city’s history making the former speaking about the latter, or about any unique characteristics of this UNESCO town site.

So one day me and Alle set off to discover all of that the city’s walls had to offer us, and here are a few of my favorites!

The projects includes a total of 52 sculptures that serve as a humorous connecting point between the city’s history and its landmarks, with its people’s daily lives nowadays.

Isn’t it an original way of describing a town’s most unique facades? I just loved walking through history in such a modern way.

Just as much I also loved Ernest Zacharevic’s hand painted murals. They were interactive, engaging and thought-provoking, thanks to the Lithuanian artist’s imagination as well as the unique setting in which the murals become alive.

What a fantastic place to walk around, thanks!

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India

Numbers. 13.14. Looked at the guy on the bed, looked back at the number.

Pausing for a few seconds, I tried to make sense of it.

Was I supposed to share this small cabin, a bed so small I could not stretch fully myself, with another complete stranger??

…….and for the next 14 hours of the journey?!

Things work differently around here, I guess? I had paid 800 Rupees, or ($20)  for a Sleeper Cabin in the non-air conditioned Bus from Goa to Mumbai. The previous night, I paid 250  rupees  ($6) for a Huge room, even with my own toilet.

It was just 8 in the evening. Lights were immediately turned off, leaving only 3 dim coloured bulbs- the kind you see on roadblocks, or police cars in green, orange and blue.

If I needed a travel buddy, this would preferably be a good time.

All the reminders from family and friends, the stories from strangers and locals on how things get stolen in trains and buses kept playing in my head, just like the incessant horns in the city’s traffic. How people get mugged and all that. Determined not to be the next victim, I thought, hey if I build trust with this complete stranger, there would be a small chance he’d think of doing anything.

“Hi, how are you? Were you calling your mum or girlfriend?””, I picked up some clues as he was on the phone for the longest time, he must have been a family guy, he seemed very contemplative.

“Hi, I’m good. Ha, yes that was my girlfriend”, he spoke in perfect English.

The ice was broken. Sham was a roman catholic living in Goa, who had to travel to Mumbai for a week’s long training in his new company, LG. He has a bachelor of finance, but the previous bank job took him 120 kms 2 ways everyday. That was too much after 6 months. Goa was a Portuguese colony,  with their streets lined with catholic churches, biblical quotes painted on buses, and possibly one of the few places where cows get slaughtered for food in the ‘cow worshipped land”.

The most interesting fact? All locals of Goa could receive a Portuguese passport which allows them to live and work in Europe for a fee given to the government.

The tense muscles in my body eased. Even in that confined space that didn’t allow a single twist or stretch, I was comfortable with my new friend. This was also Sham’s first time sitting in a shared sleeper bus. In his 21 years, he’d not traveled much.  He must have felt as uneasy as I was in the cabin.

We all have perceptions of things, stereotypes  Bad ones tend to be the first that come out of our minds and mouths. I’ve learnt that it is never what it seems sometimes, and the world is a genuinely good place, with sincere people. I’ve  now gained a little more confidence for the next sleeper trip. India is a vast vast place, and many of the locals from other states are as unfamiliar and unsettled as we are. Lets throw out generalizations and stereotypes, the human spirit is the only accurate representation of who the ‘other guy’ is!

Beautiful post, there are good people everywhere!

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Monument Valley, Arizona/Utah

Three years ago (is it really three years?!) I travelled across America starting in New York and finishing in LA.  I did this through a company called Trek America who organise small group adventures across North America and I really could not recommend them enough, so if you’re thinking of doing something similar, check them out here!  I had an amazing trek leader, Raine and an even better group of people who were also along for the ride and I will always cherish my Trek America memories!  It’s hard to pick which place along the way was my favourite, but Monument Valley definitely makes it into the top 3 (alongside New Orleans, which I spoke about here)

Throughout the journey, Raine had been raving about Monument Valley and through my ignorance I thought that it was an art installation which was in a valley, really really blonde moment.  However, throughout the journey I learnt more about the natural landscape which, in my opinion, should be one of the Wonders of the World.

On arrival we were introduced to our Navajo guide, who showed us around the vast national park which is absolutely breathtaking.  The vivid red rocks have been the set of many a movie and you can almost imagine cowboys breaking in some of the wild horses which roam the plains.

Awesome place!

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Cork, Ireland

Ailsa’s travel theme this week is bridges. Being from Cork, everyday I cross many bridges. Apparently there are 29 in the city and 42 in the surrounding area. A lot of my photos are taken from bridges rather than of them, but here are a few from my travels.

Nice shot!

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London, England

Please let me introduce someone I’ve known for almost my whole life, and is basically another family member…Lauren Drozynski.

Home University: St. Lawrence University (class of 2011)

Study Abroad Destination: London, England

When traveled: January-May 2010, junior year spring semester

Program Traveled with: SLU London Programme

University Attended: The St. Lawrence University London Programme 

Claire: When did you go to London? How Long where you there?

Lauren: Junior year spring semester. This was the best time to go because the end of winter was mild and the spring was BEAUTIFUL.

C: What was your favorite part about London?

L:The culture difference and freedom I felt there. There was always something different to do because London is such a big and diverse city. Each part of it is completely different and I never got tired of exploring. There are parts of London that I didn’t even get to that I still want to check out.

C: What was your least favorite part about it?

L: Going home and not being able to travel anymore!

Places to go and see:

Alexandra Palace- In the very back behind the building, there’s an open park area with a big hill and you can see all of London. Go with friends, take some beer/wine/snacks and lay out all day.

Hyde Park – has the Peter Pan statue and Princess Di memorial

Wimbledon

Buckingham Palace

Tower Bridge/ The tower of London

Westminster Abbey

Parliament and Big Ben

C: Did you do/see anything that you thought wasn’t worth your time?

L: Never! Even when I got lost, it was an adventure, something new and exciting, even if I didn’t mean for it.

C: Name some other places that you traveled to outside of London.

L: The other places I traveled to and loved were Brussels, Naples, Pompeii, Rome, Florence and Venice. I was always excited to come back home to London.

Great interview, and who wouldn’t want to visit London?

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Laguna Verde, Chile

We traveled through the stunning Paso de Jama (4200m above sea level) to get from Salta in Argentina to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile. As the name implies, the town is in the middle of the Atacama Desert. It was established hundreds of years ago due to the presence of an oasis. It’s a small place with dirt roads and adobe houses. The plaza and main street (Caracoles) are pretty cool, but outside that it’s a bit of a dump. Our accommodation, Hostal Iquisa, was a ten minute walk outside the town and it wasn’t up to much. It wasn’t all that cheap either.

The draw to the town is the surrounding area. There are many excursions and attractions that one can do or visit from here – high-altitude lagoons, salt flats, star-gazing, sandboarding etc. – but we weren’t staying for long so we just picked one – a visit to Valle de la Luna or Valley of the Moon.

Us at Laguna Verde with Volcan Licancabur in the background, Our toes are approximately 4300m above sea level in this picture!

Fantastic shot, must have been a fascinating trip!

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Philippines

So true and nice shot!

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Albufeira Beach,Portugal

Photo’s from the 116′ers visit

The 116′ers are a group from a newly formed Motorsport Club in North Wales. A group of like minded friends sat down and decided to set up a club to promote motorsports and friendship. The founding team of 8 all took a weekend trip to Portugal.

Looks like they are enjoying themselves!

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Don Det, Mekong River, Vietnam

After a sleepy couple of days on Don Det, a fishing trip sounded like the perfect activity that didn’t require too much actual activity. We booked a trip for $6 each which departed at 3pm and returned after sunset. All gear included. Bargain. There was also the option to pay $5 extra and have a BBQ where they would cook you your catch. We decided that the chances of us actually catching anything worth eating were slim to none and we also knew the sort of standards that these trips held them selves to… i.e. none, so we stuck with the basics. After a bit of standing around, we were led down to our boat. It had a foot of water in the bottom, which, bearing in mind the boat is only about two feet deep anyway, is quite a lot. They had a go at getting it out with the electric pump but that turned out to be broken too. They ushered us in to the boat and off we went. Wet feet, wet bum, wet bag. Our boat men were brothers, the eldest about 16 and his brother can’t have been older than 14.  Knowing we were in the capable hands of two… children, we set off up the Mekong in the worlds most un-seaworthy long boat.

Wow, you sure mastered your technique!

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