Street signs in Hong Kong : One of my favourite things to capture when travelling are ‘street signs’. This picture taken in Hong Kong was one of my favourites. It shows the hustle and bustle that exists in the city with every sign screaming out to grab your attention.
Exposure: 1/100sec at f/7.1 and ISO100. Focal length 61mm taken with the Canon650D and lens EFS15-85mm
Today’s travel photo is the famous junk boats amidst the amazing backdrop of Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong. This boat is called ‘Duk Ling’ it was a fishing boat for more than 25 years. It is considered to be the last authentic Hong Kong junk. It is now operated by the Hong Kong Tourism Board. The Duk Ling holds up to 36 people. We did not manage to get tickets for a ride on this beauty on Christmas day. My tip is to book ahead.
2012 has been a great year for Sidpicky. I’ve travelled and learnt numerous things, learnt to respect the art of photography. The blog got a massive facelift and will continue to evolve in the new year.
2012 in images :
The year started in sunny Sydney where the beaches and the Aussie summer were truly a treat.
I even got a chance to visit the wonderful island of Tasmania.
Mid-year, I embarked on a trip of a lifetime to South Africa and Zimababwe. The trip to Africa essentially changed my personality and I am thankful for the experience.
We caught up with the amazing community in Humani, Zimbabwe and were blown away by their humility and passion.
In the middle of the year, after a lot of pondering and deliberation, we moved to Singapore to discover a new life and the amazing sights and sounds of this island nation.
I got my first taste of an European summer. Switzerland was amazing and its sights and sounds were impressive to say the least.
I re-discovered a new side of U.S.A and soak in the amazing breadth the country had to offer. From my first trip to Vegas
To the awe-inspiring Grand Canyon
To the San Francisco Giants Victory parade which showed me what baseball fever was all about.
I visited the amazing beaches of Florida
To the amazing art and architecture of Chicago
Moving to Singapore came with its benefits of easy travel within Asia, which led to visit Thailand and the sleepy village of Hua Hin
And to watching a creme de la creme cricket match, an India-Pakistan game in Colombo, Sri Lanka with the most passionate crowd ever
The end of the year took me to Kochi, India to see the amazing Chinese fishing nets.
And a Christmas break to the breaktaking land of Hong Kong
I reconnected with the best of my friends
and met some amazing new friends
2012 truly has been memorable. Here’s wishing everyone an incredible 2013. Season’s Greetings!
This one is titled ‘Buddha and the Sky’ and was taken in Suva, which is the capital of Fiji. Dramatic sunrises are an everyday occurrence and converting this image into an HDR just brought out the life and exquisite colour in this shot. Comments, feedback, critique are always welcome.
Exposure: 1/160sec at f/7.1 and ISO 100. Taken with the Canon550D with the lens EFS 15-85mm.
One of the most best things about travelling is the option to meet new people. You make fantastic friends, who you start awesome relationships with. But you also meet total strangers who you (or your camera lens) find interesting. You take one photograph and move on but the capture defines the travel in some way. These strangers depict the true beauty of travel. Here are 7 beautiful stranger portraits I’ve captured while travelling. Which among these is your favourite?
Dude from Switzerland
Water sports instructor in Fiji
Kids and Puppies in Japan
Boat vendor in Vietnam
Maori Guide in New Zealand
Shy girl in Zimbabwe
Highland dancing duo in Australia
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One of the big draws of being a travel photographer is the ability to see nature at its finest. And undoubtedly ‘Sunsets’ are the finest example of nature’s canvas. Here are some of the amazing sunsets I have witnessed in different parts of the world. Which one is your favourite? Leave a comment and let me know.
Sunset at 12 Apostles in Victoria, Australia
Sunkissed Meadows in Zimbabwe
Breathtaking Sunset in Sydney, Australia
Dramatic Colours in Clearwater Florida
Going Wide-Angle
The perfect African Sunset
Chillin at sundown
Romance around sunset in Clearwater, Florida
Caught on camera
Sunset at Clovelly pool in Sydney, Australia
One of the travel delights is to immerse yourself in local culture and when you are travelling in a stage of your life when you are not backpacking anymore, the experience truly becomes delightful. So on our trip to Japan we decided to stay at one of the most authentic Ryokan (Japanese Inn) in the Takayama located in Gifu, Japan. The Ryokan was called ‘Sumiyoshi’ and is about 3 hours from the capital city of Tokyo.
A ryokan is a type of traditional Japanese inn that originated in the 17th century. The Ryokan’s used to serve travellers along Japan’s highways. The Japan Ryokan Association estimates that there are more than 1200 such inns around Japan.
(This photo is available for purchase as a larger print)
This is a shot of a typical room in a Ryokan. The Guest rooms are constructed using traditional Japanese methods: flooring is tatami, and doors are sliding doors. Our ryokan rooms also featured a balcony, also set off with a sliding door. The warm, simplistic and UBER functional architecture of the room completely blew us away.
Our room opened into this hallway. The light and the decor tempted us to walk down and held the promise of a magical discovery.
This Ryokan had tons of 18th century Japanese art. The owner of the Ryokan showed us a vase that was 3 centuries old and she did NOT speak English. It was a universal win for the medium of ‘sign communication’. Most Ryokan’s have a collection of arts and crafts on display, but I bet it was not this impressive.
When we were immersed in 18th century Japanese war stories, the ‘nakai’ (or the staff) quickly replaced the table with the supplies for making tea. The Japanese tea ceremony is well renowned in the world and most hosts take it as an insult if you refuse the tea. When it tasted as good as it did, who in their right mind would refuse?
Next came the meals in the communal kitchen. Doesn’t the picture speak for itself? Most ryokan offer dinner and breakfast, which are often included in the price. This meal consisted of a traditional Japanese cuisine known as kaiseki, which features seasonal and regional specialties. (Kaiseki refers to a meal consisting of a number of small, varied dishes.) Vegetarians have to notify the owners during check in to give them time to prepare the menu. For sea food lovers, there is NO BETTER PLACE . The sashimi was divine and each dish was served at the proper temperature. The best part of the meal was the amazing hostess who did not speak English but managed PERFECTLY to tell us how to enjoy every dish.
That’s us having the gastronomical time of our lives. At a Ryokan, the guests are given the traditional japanese garment, Yukata, which is a casual summer kimono usually made of cotton. That dinner still gets me excited? It was a year ago, we visited this place and I can recall the taste of the food at will.
When we were having dinner, the naiki replaced the tea setting with the bedding. Bedding is a futon spread out on the tatami floor. It was a really comfortable sleeping on the futon. For anyone visiting Japan, we cannot recommend highly enough the experience of staying in a Japanese Ryokan. It is at once comfortable, intriguing, educational, and a divine treat for your tastebuds. If you have any questions, leave a comment and I will do my best to answer.
Further References and Reading:
Ryokan Sumiyoshi: http://sumiyoshi-ryokan.com/englishgallery.html
Japan Ryokan Association: http://www.ryokan.or.jp/index_en.html
More Ryokan images: http://www.ryokan.or.jp/english/photo/index.html
Geneva has tons of offering for tourists. In one of my previous posts, I wrote about making the best of a business trip. This was one of those trips.
Geneva is truly a global city. It’s a financial centre, and hub for international diplomacy. It boasts of numerous international organizations. The Geneva convention brought this city into prominence. The city is often referred to as the “Peace Capital.” If you have a very limited time in Geneva, here are a few places you must visit. This is for summer only. This is a french speaking part of Switzerland, so get your Bonjour and your Au Revoir’s ready.
The most famous Geneva Landmark is the Jet d’Eau which is a large fountain that rises up to an altitude of 140 metres. Unsuspecting visitors to the fountain(which includes your’s truly)—may be surprised to find themselves drenched after a slight change in wind direction.
The next famous part of Geneva is Lake Geneva and one of the best things to do is to take a cruise around Lake Geneva and look at some spectacular settings. Lake Geneva or Lake Léman is its popularly known runs in Switzerland and France. It is one of the largest lakes in Western Europe and its beauty is unquestionable.
One of the most enjoyable thing to do in Geneva is to take the small train and take a ride into old town. The buildings are right out of fairy tales and lead you back into 18th Century Europe with fantastic architecture and charming fountains everywhere. It’s as enjoyable as all the tourist books make it out to be.
For fantastic panoramic view of Geneva, you must visit the St. Pierre Cathedral. Inside the church is a wooden chair used by Calvin. There are a flight of stairs that lead you to the rooftop and gives you unrestricted views of the city. I wish I had time to do that this time around, but I know I’ll be back for this.
One of the best things to do in the summer is to chill before the ‘Reformation Wall’. The wall honours many of the main individuals, events, and documents of the Protestant Reformation by depicting them in statues. It is in the grounds of the University of Geneva. This is a great place for a family.
How can any one come to Switzerland and not go on a window shopping spree to luxury watch makers and swiss chocolate places. Rue du Rhone, is one of the most expensive streets in Europe. It’s not hard to see why. This is definitely a must do. Just make sure you wear shoes and a decent t-shirt if you want to be taken seriously on this street.
Swiss Army Knives are known all around the world and Victorinox is almost ubiquitous with it. The Victorinox flagship store in Geneva houses an amazing collection of Swiss Army knives which is sure to blow your socks away (and then hopefully, fix the socks as well).
In the limited time that I had I missed a lot of other places like the Patek Philippe Museum, The CERN university, Museum of Natural History. You should plan to spend at least 3 days in Geneva soaking up the culture.
Some more essential reading on Geneva.
Tripadvisor tips for Geneva : http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g188057-Activities-Geneva.html
Geneva Info : http://www.geneva.info/
Do you like this post? Share it and leave a comment to tell me what you think. If you think I’ve left out one of my favourites, let me know about it as well.
The Merlion with the head of a lion and the body of a fish may be the national personification of Singapore, but the breathtaking Marina Bay Sands resort is soon becoming the focal point of the Singapore Urban Landscape. It’s not hard to see why.
Marina Bay Sands (MBS) is an integrated casino resort standing on 20 hectare of prime land. It was developed by Las Vegas Sands and is billed as the world’s most expensive standalone casino property at S$8 billion. Wowzaa!
One of the most fascinating aspects of the resort is its 150m rooftop infinity pool. The pool is set on top of the world’s largest public cantilevered platform and boasts one of the best views from any swimming pool in the world. I cant wait to get up there and check it out soon.
The resort features a 2561-room hotel, a massive convention-exhibition centre and a premium shopping mall. Room rates start from S$400 a night and can go up to S$4000 a night.
The MBS blends and stands apart from the equally impressive Singapore city skyline. The resort is designed by Moshe Safdie an Israeli -born Canadian architect who says it was initially inspired by card decks. In addition to the casino, the other key components ois the circular ArtScience Museum (in the shape of a lotus) and a convention centre with 1,200,000 square feet of space. The resort also had its special feng shui consultants.
Every night there is an amazing light and sound laser show called the Wonder Full show, a light and water spectacular that is the largest in Southeast Asia. It is truly a sight to behold.
The MBS through a tilted perspective.
The Marina Bay Sands is truly a modern-day architectural marvel. Everything about the place just grabs your attention and retains it for a long, long time. I would recommend travellers to come to Singapore just to visit this breathtaking piece of architecture. For more information, visit http://www.marinabaysands.com/ or http://www.yoursingapore.com/. For more fantastic Singapore travel stories visit http://travelerfolio.com/
If you enjoyed the post and the photos and would like to buy larger prints, check them out here.
Canberra, the capital of Australia is a great tourist destination. If you are looking for things to do in Canberra, Australia’s capital, you must make it a point to visit Canberra Glassworks. It’s great place for the family where you can watch artists mould beautiful glass structures.
Typically, the transformation of materials into glass takes place around 2,400 °F (1,320 °C); the glass emits enough heat to appear almost white hot. The glass is then left to “fine out” (allowing the bubbles to rise out of the mass), and then the working temperature is reduced in the furnace to around 2,000 °F (1,090 °C). At this stage, the glass appears to be a bright orange color.
The major tools involved are the blowpipe (or blow tube), the punty (or pontil), bench, marver, blocks, jacks, paddles, tweezers, paper, and a variety of shears. Australia has developed an enviable reputation nationally and internationally for the quality and skill of its glass artists.
The Sign says it all doesn’t it?
The first form of the moulded glass.
You can sign up to work with the artists. They even let your put your hands in the kiln. The most popular place is called ‘Hot Shop’, (the place where artists blow glass) is the most spectator orientated activity within the facility and has the capacity to captivate the viewer for hours. Tip: Double check what’s happening in there before planning your trip
The final product are truly works of art. Check out some of these exhibits.
**Some of the more technical content is taken from Canberra Glassworks Officials website http://www.canberraglassworks.com/
