Tuesday, December 31, 2013

flew south for the winter break

drove to the airport and bought a six hour flight going south to anywhere


to a place composed of exotic islands 
 

where rocks seemingly and randomly spring up from the sea

as far as the eye can see

 
some shaped over time by wind and water to take on strange and magical forms

 
houses idly floating on the ocean 

 
pristine beaches with clear blue green waters 

 
numerous signs around populated areas warn of a constant potential danger in this region

 
an inviting resort bar sits comfortably above sea level and overlooks the yacht and sailboat speckled bay

 
typical scene from a waterfront neighborhood

 
when one asks for the food to be prepared spicy, the wait staff always asks for confirmation, often more than once....

 
dog and kitten share an awww moment

 
a rented lounge chair comes with tattered parasols that are constantly adjusted by a diligent staff who meticulously track the motion of the sun across the sky

 
a true island bar

 
a young couple enjoying the calm seas

 
preferred method of travel between islands

 
more leisurely travelers move about by taxis

relaxing on the beach on christmas day


Sunday, October 27, 2013

found a few more pics in my camera

photographer advertising his services on a weekend

appetizer platter for one

nighttime view of an industrial town in the northern taiwan 

weather proof art installation 

kids keeping busy on a downtown sidewalk

backstage scene at a fusion musical performance

a statue of a famous past admiral

in a country that might have the most devout christian following - an impromptu service street-side somewhere near city hall

fall makes a quiet entrance 

a snack at a roadside shack - the spoon is a substitute for a bottle opener



Sunday, September 22, 2013

mid autumn festival on the south china coast

tourists lining up for the few taxis working on this holiday weekend

one of many alleyways in the center of town

the ruins of st paul's cathedral at dusk

festive overhead lighting along a busy walkway close to senado square

huge neon signs are emblematic of most gambling towns

most commonly seen on facades of older casinos

the city skyline under a full moon

a family-run food stall where three generations work simultaneously to combat grease flareups

an comedian entertains the crowds with the help from a volunteer

what the .... ? 

one of numerous security officers patrolling the fairgrounds

another busy food stall 

the main attraction - a fireworks competition over the bay

the competition runs over several days - many hours of fireworks choreographed to music

fireworks and macau tower 

on the new strip modern-day casino hotels are springing up on farmland

an old village walkway lined with majestic trees

a view from one of the many free shuttle bus rides

a large and ornate aquarium in one of the newer hotels



Saturday, August 10, 2013

wide-eyed in wonder in a distant land

 stayed in a nice hotel - the stylish lobby showcases some very interesting artwork

 nothing like a nice room to make a traveler feel at home in a new land

one of the pleasures of traveling - morning coffee on the rooftop restaurant and lounge

 one of the many friendly restaurant staff members posing for a picture

 some of this land is incredibly lush and covered in vegetation

 a small wooden boat beached on the shore of a small lake - motionless except for the occasional ripple made by a water skipper

 raindrops on lily pads catching the sunlight on a hot morning

 an idle cow hanging out along a dirt country road

 wonderful architectures abound in the capital city

 in all colors

 many of the old colonial french buildings, monuments, roads, parks have fallen into disrepair

 artwork at the national museum garden grounds

 a view from the hotel rooftop looking to the east

 view from the same spot - looking to the west

 laundry drying on a middle-class apartment rooftop

 as dusk falls, a nearby market begins to come to life

 fruit vendors setting up for the evening commerce

a food vendor anxious to sell meals to the hungry evening rush

 street vendor with a temporarily flooded scooter drive-through

 the streets get flooded after each and every tropical downpour


a cobra artwork, quiet and seemingly motionless, stalks an unsuspecting passerby

 somewhere downtown, a child follows after his mother

 monks making the morning rounds giving blessings and accepting offerings from shopkeepers

two monks wisely exercising caution while walking for long periods under the hot sun

 in the countryside, clothes are left to dry on wooden fences

nearby, a cow is butchered and every part of it is offered for sale by a woman whom i imagine may have helped raise the cow

 in this part of the world, gasoline is sometimes sold in used pepsi bottles

 a hand-cranked gasoline dispenser at a countryside general store

 a tidy amount of vegetables offered for sale on the roadside

a kitchen staff at a high-end riverside seafood restaurant enjoying their lunchtime break as one fishes for his dinner

 a tugboat pulling along four rescued fishing boats up the mekong river

 a tour boat happily chugging along into an approaching storm front

most children everywhere seem to share a universal happiness

 and a shared sense of curiosity

 even if it means running naked into a dirty pond in pursuit of a small frog to satisfy his curiosity while bringing him happiness

 elsewhere near the center of a large city, children playing far above the ground in an active building construction site

 a little known fact - chasing pigeons creates a huge amount of happiness for everyone involved

 a young girl in the country enjoying swimming in the river and riding her bicycle on her summer vacation

 a cute little girl studying the commotion of village children running around

in stark contrast to the preceding pictures - gruesome remains exhibited to the world at the monument to the multitudes who perished in the killing fields

 sometimes there just are not enough words

a heartfelt memorial to journalists who were killed near this spot during the vietnam war

an old villager stops to describe the events that he witnessed as a young lad on the night the journalists were executed

at the same spot - a small Bodhi tree stands with the engraved stone - now looked after by the grandfather of the young girl in the foreground

 eerily peaceful here now

 morning street scene near the riverside

 from the comfort of a tuk-tuk, saw a lady passenger on a motorcycle holding up her own intravenous feed

 a family outing

 royal palace guard getting their instructions under a hot mid day sun

country market alongside a highway south of the capital city

 another meat vendor in the village market amused at the picture-taking traveler

 wat po under active renovation

 two monks taking a break along the river

i must assume that small crabs are in season for much of the season

village children running to greet visitors to a country temple