Through my lens » Going places

Spring’s escapade at Lindau

Yen — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 19:07:44 +0000

Have I mentioned for the zillionth time that spring is my favorite season of the year? Actually I love all the seasons except, maybe winter. But now that spring is almost over (bawl!), I thought it might be an excellent idea to celebrate this year’s wonderful spring season by being outdoors, just us, our bikes, the wonderful sunshine under the amazingly blue sky. Germany has plenty of wonderful getaways and countless endearingly charming towns and one of them gem is Lindau. We wandered off during a prolonged weekend and headed towards Lindau in the south of Bavaria. The town has a beautiful half-island situated at Bodensee, or Lake Constance, a large lake bordered by Germany, Austria and Switzerland.The half-island itself is not that big. One can even circle the circumference of the island by foot in an hour or less. There are even steps and ladders all around the island leading you towards the clear waters of the lake! I like!! If you happened to be on the island, then take the opportunity to go up the lighthouse. From above, you get an amazing sight of the port of Lindau, as well as the gentle slopes of the Alps in Austria and Switzerland situated at the opposite side of the lake. We cycled and we walked. A satisfying Italian meal on a balmy spring evening on a wonderful island at Bodensee with an awe-inspiring view. I could have fallen in love. And in love I fell.

Walking Boston

Yen — Mon, 09 May 2011 18:22:08 +0000

I’ve read that Boston is a compact town, where most of the important sights around town are easily reachable on foot. True, provided that you have a pair of comfortable walking shoes (believe me, you’ll gotta need’em). Besides that, public transportation like the ‘T’, the local metro system, is superb. You can reach almost anywhere in town with the ‘T’. What brought me to Boston, I was asked a few times by some locals. Well, honestly, I don’t really know. I thought that perhaps I can try out its seafood and the famed New England Chowder. Aside from food, a breath of fresh air from the Atlantic Ocean might do me good before hitting NYC next. A very good idea indeed. That was too long an explanation I supposed, so I answered, just to look around .We were blessed with pleasant weather the first few days in Boston. Armed with a map and with Lonely Planet as our guide, we headed out to get to know Boston by walking The Freedom Trail. The trail leads us to various historic sites and monuments around town. The trail was surprisingly well marked (even on the road with red bricks!) so it’s difficult to get lost. One thing I’ve noticed though, at the corner of almost every two blocks, you’ll definitely find a Starbucks. I guess their business strategy is like, okay you can pass by the first one, even the second or third one but sooner or later, you’ll end up ordering your Latte in the fourth Starbucks! We came upon neat neighbourhoods throughout the route and one of these reminds me of Norway with its wooden colourful houses and cheery potted plants. Whereas some neighbourhoods around Bunker Hill have rows of townhouses made of red bricks, one of Boston’s trademark I guess. It was especially beautiful during sunset while walking past these houses, with sun rays glinting on their window panes and their walls shining a fiery red.To me, a visit to a new place won’t feel complete if I don’t catch a bird’s eye view of the place that I’ve gone all the way to visiting. There are a few places in Boston where you can catch the magnificent view of Boston from way high up. The Bunker Hill Monument offers a pleasant view enough, but I find the small cooped-up area at the top of the monument rather stuffy, especially when there are about ten people cramped in that small area with another group of people heading up the narrow, spiral staircase. Not a very good idea if you’re prone to claustrophobia but it has an advantage because the view up there is free, so we can’t complain much. Another excellent alternative would be the Prudential Center which is situated right in the middle of Boston. It offers an exceptional view of the town and you can even see MIT! The good thing about the Prudential Center viewing platform, the audio guide is provided free (the entrance is not free of charge though) and you can stay up there as long as you like so that you can enjoy and listen to the guide at your own pace. We did and bf almost got sunburned up there because it was a sunny, almost summer-like day with clear blue sky and the viewing platform is covered with transparent glasses and so you can imagine what a super greenhouse effect it produces. Nevertheless I really enjoyed my stay up there .What I like about Boston? The sights, the ocean, the seafood, the laid back local, the seafood (oh, have I mentioned it before? I guess I love seafood too much!) and everything that I was lucky enough to have the chance to encounter during my short stay!

Roaming the States!

Yen — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 20:51:13 +0000

My first twenty dollar bill, crisp and new, fresh from the ATM machine!
My adventures in the States were eye-opening indeed. However my trip didn’t start off well as planned. After checking for the hundredth time that I had everything covered, I didn’t realised that I was totally in for a surprise at the airport.

I was supposed to fly from Frankfurt to Boston by transiting in Montreal. I checked in online a day before departing and everything was confirmed and all was well (or so I thought). Then when we went up to the counter to drop off my baggage, the lady at the counter double checked our passports and told me straight in the face that I can’t fly. I thought she made a mistake and told her to recheck. Then her answer was again, no, I can’t fly to Montreal because I don’t have a ~~stupid~~ visa for Canada (What a joke!).

So we had to uncheck-in and had to seek for another alternative to travel to Boston because apparently bf has no problem transiting in Montreal, so the problem was ONLY me! But I did manage to rebook my ticket to Boston by transiting in Munich in the end (after almost panicking for an hour). So bf and I had to fly separately to Boston. He from Frankfurt to Montreal and then Boston whereas I was to fly all the way to Munich before taking off for Boston with me landing two hours later than him. I was told there was only one seat left for the flight from Munich to Boston. Was I lucky? YES! But still it was a stupid start to a memorable trip. Another lesson learned.

A walk in the park

Yen — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 23:04:39 +0000

Little did I know that Schwetzingen, a quaint town near where I live, well-known for its castle, Schwetzinger Schloss, has a HUGE compound with picturesque landscapes and calming retreats for those looking for a hideaway from the hubbub of city life. We spent the whole day exploring the park and still I have a feeling that we haven’t covered the whole area yet! There were so many corners and little attractions in the park that really caught my attention. Especially this willow tree with its long ‘hairy’ branches gently swaying in the spring breeze by the pond. It looked like a scene cut out from a Chinese painting.One thing which strike me as rather unconventional is that I have never come upon a mosque ‘in’ the compound of a castle anywhere in Germany before and there in the Schloss garden of Schwetzingen, is the magnificent mosque by a lake. I waited for the evening sun to finally poke out from the clouds that day and my patience paid off. The image of the mosque reflected by the tranquil waters of the lake is absolutely breathtaking. With a park this beautiful, I think I know where I’ll be spending my afternoons this summer .

The spell of Jiufen

Yen — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 08:13:48 +0000

During our last night in Taipei, we weren’t too sure whether we had enough time to visit Jiufen (九份) due to our rather tight itinerary. But we did manage to squeeze in Jiufen into our must-visit places in Taiwan and I was really, really glad that I didn’t miss out this wonderful town. The name Jiufen (九份) literally means ‘nine portions’. We arrived at Jiufen around dinner time and dusk was settling down fast. According to our tour guide, Jiufen was once a bustling mining town during the Japanese occupation period in Taiwan but as its natural resources depleted, the town declined rapidly in significance and soon forgotten. But thanks to films like Hayao Miyazaki’s Oscar winning anime movie “Spirited Away” the town was once again revived. I totally love the movie “Spirited Away” and I was thrilled to find out that some scenes from the film were inspired by the quaint town of Jiufen. Roaming the streets of Jiufen really made me feel like I was “spirited away” into the 50′s era due to the setting of the town. Red lanterns hung overhead in every streets and corners. Classic tea houses are apparently a common sight here. Eateries furnished with wooden stools, old-fashioned cutlery and tea sets complemented the whole idea of a town far away from modernisation. Nondescript shop houses and foot stalls occupied every space available. I was walking around hunting for some typical Taiwanese food and came upon this stall selling something that I’ve never seen nor tried before, an ice-cream-peanuts-coriander-wrap for 35yuan (about 3.5MYR). The taste was absolutely heavenly. I wanted to come back for more but unfortunately it was closed after my stroll around town. Before you leave this town, you should try a bowl of this glass noodle soup with fishballs. The soup was sweet with the goodness of fish stock and the glass noodles were too tasty. I definitely would recommend that you visit this town just before dusk and see the transformation of the town from day to night when the lanterns started to twinkle against the dimming sky. It was all too magical.

Reliving Firenze

Yen — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 13:29:00 +0000

Whenever the name Firenze was mentioned, images of a city sprawled with tourists in khaki-pants and straw hats, of gelaterias swelled with a plethora of served-in-pathetically-small-sized-paper-cups-which-always-make-sure-you-come-back-for-more mouthwatering gelati, of pantomimes in every corner of the city, of long queues at every must-visit-and-must-see attraction of the city, would automatically flash across my mind. However overrated this city might be, some things, some places and the food in Firenze have this uncanny draw on me, despite the crowds, the traffic and overpriced gelati! I read somewhere that, the amount of tourists in Firenze during high season actually exceed the number of native Florentines residing in Firenze itself. I am not surprised.Bargain hunters for leather goods and souvenirs are completely spoiled for choices as leather goods (be it fake or genuine) can be found almost in every corner of Firenze. Shopping was far from my mind. I was completely content with simply walking its streets, hunting for the best gelato in town! If I were to live in Firenze, I would be one fat but happy girl because I don’t mind having one or more gelato every day . I can still recall the smooth chocolatey-texture, or the fruity kiwi scoop and that nutty pistachio at the tip of my tongue. It was simply divine, strolling the streets of Firenze with a cup of gelato in hand and the Tuscany afternoon sunshine warming the tired limbs. The magnificent Duomo beckons its ever faithful throngs of visitors over the years. Sitting down on one of the many benches around the Duomo, watching tour guides frantically waving at its followers and admiring the giant piece of architecture. Guarded by its many angels, I was happy for not being a tourist for a moment.

On the trail of Cinque Terre

Yen — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:06:44 +0000

(Click here to view my Cinque Terre photo set)

Cinque Terre is known as a heaven for avid hikers. The five villages of Cinque Terre are connected via well-marked hiking trails. The ‘shorter’ hiking trail from Riomaggiore until Monterosso is known as the Sentiero no.2 which is about 9km long. I know I wouldn’t be able to cover the whole trail in a day without wearing myself out, so I did the trekking in two days, which, in my opinion, is optimal, with enough time for you to walk leisurely around the villages.My second day of adventure in Cinque Terre started from Corniglia. It was a lovely day, blue-sky with soft patches of harmless, white clouds. I headed towards the vineyards in the direction of Vernazza. The morning sun was still hanging low in the sky when I started out my hike. The path led me through orchards and along vineyards. From afar, I caught a glimpse of the charming village of Corniglia, perched atop a cliff above the glistening waters. Occasionally, I’d passed by a hiker or two, who greeted me with a cheerful buon giorno. The path was sometimes paved smooth while at times it was a little rocky. I was mostly alone throughout the hike. However the thought of losing my way didn’t occur to me at all.Steep slopes of wild bushes, vines, cacti, all thriving in this superb Mediterranean weather and an open sea spreading invitingly just below the slopes resided on one side. Rocky walls, terraced vineyards and olives orchards settled on the other side of the path. There were so much to behold, so rich a view made perfect by the blue sky and sunshine.The trail from Corniglia to Vernazza was well-marked and it took me about an hour and a half to reach Vernazza. I saw the tip of Vernazza jutting out magnificently as I descended towards the town. It was such a lovely sight to behold. Vernazza was already bustling with life as I strolled along its streets at around 10am. People were shopping for groceries and restaurateurs were already vying for their first customer of the day under colourful canopies outside their restaurants. I bought a postcard with exactly this view of Vernazza above, as seen on the way to Monterosso (but the picture above is taken my me ). My second leg of hiking to Monterosso continued and uphill I charged. This part of the hike was the most challenging as I couldn’t recall how many flights of stairs I’d climbed. The sun, at this hour, was already hot on my skin.The path from Vernazza to Monterosso became a little hostile and sometimes it was so narrow that it was only as wide as my feet placed side by side. It was quite tricky when there was opposing traffic from other hikers, with nothing for me to hold on to except leaning closely to the wall on one side and letting other passed me by. Wild, thick shrubs and the unforgiving sea were just scant inches away from the path with no handrails in between.After about two hours of uphills and downhills, with T-shirt soaked wet with perspiration and I was all hot and toasty, I finally caught a peek of Monterosso, nestled comfortably behind some hills. It is also the only village amongst the five with a sandy beach. The water was a colour of bluish aquamarine and it was so clear. I immediately regretted that I didn’t brought along my swimming gear with me. There, I have an excuse to visit this wonderful place again .

Adventure in Cinque Terre

Yen — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:09:11 +0000

Before the summer finally bade its goodbye in October, I decided to take a short break in Italy before the cold sets in. My lone venture in Italy this time took me to the wonderful five fishing villages, known as the Cinque Terre situated at the Italian Riviera.A giant mosaic depicting the residents of Cinque Terre building the terraces that made Cinque Terre so unique as it is today
My plane landed in Pisa airport and from there, I took a regional train to Riomaggiore , the first of the five coastal villages if your starting point of adventure is from the south.Be prepared for the view that greets you when the train emerged from the dark tunnel of Riomaggiore’s train station as you might be in for a little surprise. I was physically worn out from all the waiting and traveling. My mind wasn’t at all ready to drink in the landscape that opened out before me. The train appeared to be moving on an invincible track on a cliff with the open sea directly underneath as it slowly came to a halt in Riomaggiore.The train station of Riomaggiore
Stepping out of the train and breathing in the fresh Mediterranean air, I felt somehow refreshed. The warm sea breeze soothed like a balm to the soul. With my (heavy) backpack on my back, I followed the narrow walking trail (which is closed during sea storms) built along the rocky cliffs leading towards the village of Riomaggiore. Riomaggiore, my favourite amongst the five towns.
I’ve seen pictures of the town taken by friends and heard them raved about this place, so I thought I knew what lied ahead. However, seeing this place for myself for the first time totally knocked my breath away. Colourful houses under the deep blue sky were stacked atop another, like a giant formation of Lego bricks. The tunnel along the Lover’s Walk with colourful graffiti
I didn’t linger long during the first day in Riomaggiore as I wanted to head towards my hostel before nightfall. Therefore I headed straight to Manarola, the second Terre. The trail connecting both towns is known as the Lover’s Walk as the view along the way was especially romantic I supposed ? Manarola
The beauty of Manarola can almost rival its neigbouring village Riomaggiore with its pastel-coloured buildings rising up on the edge of a steep cliff. I was half expecting the villages to be sprawling with tourists but all I saw was just a handful of travelers and backpackers, sitting by cafés and gelaterias, enjoying the evening sun. I sat by the steps of Manarola’s small harbour, watching and listening to the gentle rippling of waves, occasionally accompanied by a seagull or two, basking in the warmth of the Mediterranean sun, like a contented cat sunning itself by a window. The whole place was so peaceful. I almost felt too reluctant to head back to the train station to board the next train to Corniglia, where my hostel was located.

Wonderful forest of Palatinate

Yen — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:30:40 +0000

We were invited to spend a wonderful autumn Saturday at a colleague’s place a couple of weeks ago. The agenda of the day was to hike a small part of the Palatinate forest located in the southwestern of Germany. In order to reach this place, we had to snake through some tunnels and drove along highways which crisscrossed right through the scenic forest. I hadn’t been to this part of Germany before and I think I’d found my calming retreat from the everyday life. Tall looming pine trees greeted us along the way and the excited chatters of my colleagues’ kids were occasionally punctuated by the distant pecking of woodpeckers.Everywhere around us was all wood, greens and soft, damp earth. Very tranquil, very peaceful. We met some fellow hikers along the way and apparently a hiking marathon was going on during that day and from what I gathered the hiking marathon trail was 40km long! Our trail was rather modest compared to the marathon and our aim was to reach this sunken cave, formed by massive boulders and rocks. The view from inside the cave was wonderful. My highlight of the day was when these super cute kids of my colleagues’ saying Spaghetti! in unison for the camera. That’s German version of saying ‘Cheese’ when posing I guess .

Across the border and back

admin — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:47:47 +0000

We stay quite near the border of France-Germany and I love my short weekend getaways to the bordering town Strasbourg. One of my favourite corner in Strasbourg, the Petite France. I enjoy strolling by the rows of well-preserved half-timbered houses along the serene water canals and stop for lunch to taste the famous local Alsatian cuisine tarte flambée. Hmm..it’s good staying in the middle of Europe .