Gallery 10
Up to ten...
1. Above: Concrete Japan
Japan can be said to have a violent environment. What, with tsunamis, typhoons, volcanoes and earthquakes, there is a strong urge to tame it all and make it a safe place to live. One of the visual aspects of this civic imperative is to see mile upon mile of embankments, slopes and breakwaters concreted over in an attempt to make things fast and secure. Indeed, it is quite rare to see a natural riverbank of earth and reeds rather than the more usual grey, reinforced uniformity. This is such a strange and disconcerting sight for first-time visitors. Who profits? The cement companies of course, who are able to cash in on infrastructure projects which underpinned employment, particularly after the economic crash.
Japan can be said to have a violent environment. What, with tsunamis, typhoons, volcanoes and earthquakes, there is a strong urge to tame it all and make it a safe place to live. One of the visual aspects of this civic imperative is to see mile upon mile of embankments, slopes and breakwaters concreted over in an attempt to make things fast and secure. Indeed, it is quite rare to see a natural riverbank of earth and reeds rather than the more usual grey, reinforced uniformity. This is such a strange and disconcerting sight for first-time visitors. Who profits? The cement companies of course, who are able to cash in on infrastructure projects which underpinned employment, particularly after the economic crash.
2. Above: Ainokura
For pretty villages the world over, once World Heritage status has been conferred upon them the floodgates are open. Folks will head over to bask in the ambience from dawn to dusk. Busloads probably! For Ainokura in Gokayama, this must be some burden as the village comprises just twenty houses. But there is a village hall, public toilet, a cemetery, a shrine, a post office and plenty of evidence that this is just a normal community - apart from the signs that say, ‘Visitors are only allowed between 08.00-17.00.’ A bit of peace and quiet is not a lot to ask for!
For pretty villages the world over, once World Heritage status has been conferred upon them the floodgates are open. Folks will head over to bask in the ambience from dawn to dusk. Busloads probably! For Ainokura in Gokayama, this must be some burden as the village comprises just twenty houses. But there is a village hall, public toilet, a cemetery, a shrine, a post office and plenty of evidence that this is just a normal community - apart from the signs that say, ‘Visitors are only allowed between 08.00-17.00.’ A bit of peace and quiet is not a lot to ask for!
3. Above: Ho Chi Minh City Hall
Officially called The People’s Committee Head Office, this building on Le Thanh Ton looks down the length of Nguyen Hue. It is an enduring image of the city – you probably recognise it long before you know its name. If you are walking around town, especially at night, you will be captivated by its façade which seems to glow in the dark and draw you in. Built between 1902-08, this Renaissance style building was formerly the Hotel de Ville before becoming a government administrative centre. The best time to take in the view is during Tet when the whole boulevard is pedestrianized and florally bedecked for folks to take in the evening air.
Officially called The People’s Committee Head Office, this building on Le Thanh Ton looks down the length of Nguyen Hue. It is an enduring image of the city – you probably recognise it long before you know its name. If you are walking around town, especially at night, you will be captivated by its façade which seems to glow in the dark and draw you in. Built between 1902-08, this Renaissance style building was formerly the Hotel de Ville before becoming a government administrative centre. The best time to take in the view is during Tet when the whole boulevard is pedestrianized and florally bedecked for folks to take in the evening air.
4. Above: Pattaya Beaches
Pattaya is not really known for its beaches. More often than not the sea isn’t particularly inviting, being a shade of churned-up grey or a kind or foamy nothing-colour. But now and again if the winds and season are right, the resort can give its southern cousins a run for their money. During the covid lockdown, when to tiptoe onto the sand invited a hefty fine, the place was resplendent in the sunshine – probably how it all was fifty years ago. Pictured here: Wongamat Beach in the north, Jomtien Beach in the south, and Cosy Beach by Pratumnak Hill to the west.
Pattaya is not really known for its beaches. More often than not the sea isn’t particularly inviting, being a shade of churned-up grey or a kind or foamy nothing-colour. But now and again if the winds and season are right, the resort can give its southern cousins a run for their money. During the covid lockdown, when to tiptoe onto the sand invited a hefty fine, the place was resplendent in the sunshine – probably how it all was fifty years ago. Pictured here: Wongamat Beach in the north, Jomtien Beach in the south, and Cosy Beach by Pratumnak Hill to the west.
5. Above: Singapore F1
The Formula One race in Singapore is usually held towards the end of September and boy do they know how to put on a show. People fly in from all over, so the party atmosphere begins early, with crowds making for the restaurants and bars along Clarke’s and Robertson’s Quays. It ain’t cheap, Singapore, but many will have been saving up for this weekend. You don’t even need to buy a seat for one of the main stands, a three-day walkabout ticket means that you can go all over and see the action on one of the many screens. Headline bands play on various stages just to add the icing, as if it were needed!
The Formula One race in Singapore is usually held towards the end of September and boy do they know how to put on a show. People fly in from all over, so the party atmosphere begins early, with crowds making for the restaurants and bars along Clarke’s and Robertson’s Quays. It ain’t cheap, Singapore, but many will have been saving up for this weekend. You don’t even need to buy a seat for one of the main stands, a three-day walkabout ticket means that you can go all over and see the action on one of the many screens. Headline bands play on various stages just to add the icing, as if it were needed!
6. Above: Yokohama Chinatown
I may be missing something, but it seems to me that Chinatowns are pretty much the same in all countries. You enter a world of restaurants, bric-a-brac shops, souvenir outlets and the occasional shrine, all framed in a riot of reds. For whatever reason, the shop windows scarcely hold my gaze, not even a phalanx of swing-arm lucky cats can do it. Having said that, the one in Yokohama is impressively big, leading to a decent walk, replete with adjacent Chinese and Kanji script to really keep your senses on high alert, and exclude you from the everyday what’s what.
I may be missing something, but it seems to me that Chinatowns are pretty much the same in all countries. You enter a world of restaurants, bric-a-brac shops, souvenir outlets and the occasional shrine, all framed in a riot of reds. For whatever reason, the shop windows scarcely hold my gaze, not even a phalanx of swing-arm lucky cats can do it. Having said that, the one in Yokohama is impressively big, leading to a decent walk, replete with adjacent Chinese and Kanji script to really keep your senses on high alert, and exclude you from the everyday what’s what.
7. Above: Konbini, Japan
Konbini is Japanese for ‘convenience store’. You find them everywhere, right opposite the station exit for sure, but unsurprisingly anywhere convenient. Whether 7-Eleven (Seven & i-Holdings), Lawson, or Family Mart, they are popular for a reason. Late home from work or school, or early going to work, convenient shopping is just the way it is for busy Japan. There are the go-to meals for people on the go, as well as go-to drinks and go-to reading for folks in a hurry. Having said that, the girly-mags are carefully taped up – no time for casual browsing - buy it and go! It's not just Japan either: 'Bi Seven' and 'Di Seven' in Thailand or Vietnam means 'go to - or I am going to - the 7-Eleven'
8. Above: The Pashupatinath Temple
The Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu makes for an odd experience. Right next to the Bagmati River it is the place to go to in order to cremate your recently deceased relative. The process sees folks waiting patiently for their turn as several pyres crackle away. When the deed is done, a guy comes along and pushes the remains into the river with a broom, before setting up for the next group. The river when I was there was more like a slow-moving creek, so there wasn’t much action for the gawkers on the bridge to observe. I sat next to a family who were cremating Auntie. “Why is nobody crying?” I asked. “Because she is already dead,” came the reply! Fair enough. The temple dates from 1692, but luckily the earthquake of 2015 only damaged the outer buildings.
9. Above: Insects for Food
If you go on Lazada you can order a jumbo bag of Mixed Bugs, rather like mixed nuts. Edible insects in Thailand include: the palm weevil, cricket, giant water bug, silkworm larva, weaver ant, cicada and subterranean ant. Normally they are deep-fried, sometimes in batter but usually not, so you can see exactly what you are buying in all its very ugly glory. If these are the edible insects, it does make you wonder what the inedible ones are, and why? As you wander along inspecting the tables you have to refrain from shaking your head – you don’t want to give offence. It’s not just the insects either, there are all manner of ghoulish things on offer. Also pictured here, a shot of something to take the taste away?!
10. Above: Wat Paknam Phasi Charoen, Bangkok
The huge 70-metre tall Buddha dominates the skyline across the Chao Phraya River and is clearly visible from the elevated platform at nearby Bang Phai BTS Station. Once you are down at street level, it is obscured by humdrum suburban buildings with not even the occasional glimpse until you are almost upon it. The wat is not on the main river but on a tributary khlong, and this approach by long-tail boat is probably the way to go, as part of a multi-stop itinerary.
11. Above: Saigon Japan Town.
There is a maze of alleys in District 1, Saigon packed with Japanese restaurants, massage and spa places and hostess bars. The territory sprang up in response to Vietnam’s Japanese expat community, providing not just izakayas to remind them of home but also those little drinking dens that you find in the backstreets of any Japanese city. Perhaps it looks inviting at night, but in daylight hours it is no more than a set of grubby inter-connected passageways – not very inviting at all!
12. Above: Queuing in Japan
You can’t beat joining a queue to eliminate at a stroke any semblance of inequity in life’s small undertakings. Just stand there like everyone else and let your mind take on the cares of your choice, the least of which will be about who’s turn it is next. Nobody does it better than Japan. Compare that to the scramble of push and shove experienced in many Asian countries in order to accomplish simple missions at the bus-stop, the bank or the baker’s shop. Long may it reign, this stress-free societal order! I did think that the little flag that they give you to mark the end of the queue might say ‘loser’. It certainly felt like it, but translated it just said the name of the food-stall being queued for! Disguised glee and relief is the order of the day when you hand it over to the next person.
13. Above: Weekend at the Shrine
For atmosphere you can’t beat the buzz of the crowd as it thickens approaching your destination. If it is a particularly famous shrine or temple, folks will have come from far and wide. Likely it will have been marked in the diary weeks ago. The plus is that all the shops are open, and everybody is well turned out for the highlight of the month. The downside is that you will have to queue for that special prayer or blessing. Still, there’s an ice cream to look forward to, or the food speciality of the town whose aroma has been wafting across your path all morning – here it's Nagano, famous for its oyaki dumplings.
14. Above: Gwangjang Market, Seoul
Gwangjang food market is one of the oldest, if not the biggest in Seoul. There are 5,000 shops which can expect 65,000 customers per day. If you have ever eaten Korean food, it was likely bindaeteok (a kind of pancake filled with meat and veg); meat barbecued at the table, or else a hot pot of some sort with meat braised in a rich, pungent gravy. Do not eat that last one if you are wearing a white shirt! Swill all that down with a beer or a soju and you are speaking the language already. There is something very overpowering about Korean food – possibly the spices, or maybe just the sheer volume of the servings. Note the suspended toilet rolls in the photo – it’s going to be messy, folks!
15. Above: Sanmachi Suji District, Takayama
The Sanmachi Suji District is comprised of three adjoining streets featuring old wooden merchant and artisan houses. The tightly packed buildings, some of which are over 400 years old, conjure up an image of Edo times gone by. The crowds ambling up and down can browse the many gift shops, restaurants and sake breweries. Looking inside the cramped doorways one imagines that there are strict fire regulations, with cooking by gas a complete no-no.
The Sanmachi Suji District is comprised of three adjoining streets featuring old wooden merchant and artisan houses. The tightly packed buildings, some of which are over 400 years old, conjure up an image of Edo times gone by. The crowds ambling up and down can browse the many gift shops, restaurants and sake breweries. Looking inside the cramped doorways one imagines that there are strict fire regulations, with cooking by gas a complete no-no.
16. Above: Motocross in Thailand
You don’t appreciate the skill involved until you are standing up close. It all looks like an exercise in fearlessness, but I suspect as mastery over the machine develops, the confidence comes along and dispels any notion of fear. All you have to do then is make sure that there are no errors of judgment that can’t be instantaneously corrected. As I say, ‘all you have to do’. Maybe overthinking a bit here – the guys probably just get on their bikes and belt round the circuit, with unbridled self-belief and not a care for their own safety. ‘All under control, Guv...’ Pictures from Chiang Mai.
You don’t appreciate the skill involved until you are standing up close. It all looks like an exercise in fearlessness, but I suspect as mastery over the machine develops, the confidence comes along and dispels any notion of fear. All you have to do then is make sure that there are no errors of judgment that can’t be instantaneously corrected. As I say, ‘all you have to do’. Maybe overthinking a bit here – the guys probably just get on their bikes and belt round the circuit, with unbridled self-belief and not a care for their own safety. ‘All under control, Guv...’ Pictures from Chiang Mai.
17. Above: Beachside Restaurants, Pattaya
You are spoilt for choice with beachside restaurants in Pattaya. For one thing, it is a tourist town, for another, it has several excellent beach locations – no, I’m not talking about Pattaya main beach. Over at Wongamat or Jomtien, or up on the headland at Pratumnak, you are able to dine with a sea view at pretty much whatever $$$ level you wish to pitch in at. From a beer and a khao phat in a deckchair to a 5-star spot with an air-conditioned stunning sunset, the choice is yours. You do get what you pay for naturally, just read the reviews (or rather, read between the lines).
You are spoilt for choice with beachside restaurants in Pattaya. For one thing, it is a tourist town, for another, it has several excellent beach locations – no, I’m not talking about Pattaya main beach. Over at Wongamat or Jomtien, or up on the headland at Pratumnak, you are able to dine with a sea view at pretty much whatever $$$ level you wish to pitch in at. From a beer and a khao phat in a deckchair to a 5-star spot with an air-conditioned stunning sunset, the choice is yours. You do get what you pay for naturally, just read the reviews (or rather, read between the lines).
18. Above: Umbrella Life, Japan
The first thing everyone looks at in the morning when you live in Japan is the weather forecast. Do I take a brolly with me this morning or not? If your child attends a state/public school in Japan you aren’t supposed to drop them off by car at the school gates, so most kids get used to walking to school from the bus stop or the station, or else cycling. This has created a market for $1,000 mom-bikes with a kids’ seats fore and aft – all wrapped in plastic for when it is raining. The umbrella comes in as an essential accoutrement for daily living, with etiquette also including umbrella sheaths at the store entrance - no trailing water drips on the carpet here, mate! It seems to rain a lot in Tokyo – I looked it up – it does!
The first thing everyone looks at in the morning when you live in Japan is the weather forecast. Do I take a brolly with me this morning or not? If your child attends a state/public school in Japan you aren’t supposed to drop them off by car at the school gates, so most kids get used to walking to school from the bus stop or the station, or else cycling. This has created a market for $1,000 mom-bikes with a kids’ seats fore and aft – all wrapped in plastic for when it is raining. The umbrella comes in as an essential accoutrement for daily living, with etiquette also including umbrella sheaths at the store entrance - no trailing water drips on the carpet here, mate! It seems to rain a lot in Tokyo – I looked it up – it does!
19. Above: Higashi-Chaya District, Kanazawa
This area of wooden teahouses or ‘chaya’ has been beautifully preserved. It dates from the 1820s and was a renowned Geisha area - in fact, it still is! During the daytime the streets welcome tourists who can peruse the many upmarket craft wares in the small shops. All kinds of stylish high-end lacquerware, jewelry, gold-leaf and health creations invite you to step inside. Not to mention to the sweet-smelling doorways leading you in to purchase a scented oil diffuser to take home with you to banish those workaday odours!
This area of wooden teahouses or ‘chaya’ has been beautifully preserved. It dates from the 1820s and was a renowned Geisha area - in fact, it still is! During the daytime the streets welcome tourists who can peruse the many upmarket craft wares in the small shops. All kinds of stylish high-end lacquerware, jewelry, gold-leaf and health creations invite you to step inside. Not to mention to the sweet-smelling doorways leading you in to purchase a scented oil diffuser to take home with you to banish those workaday odours!
20. Above: Saigon Central Post Office
There isn’t much cause to send a postcard these days. Likely as not you will be home before the addressee actually receives the card, so you can tell them all about your trip in person. The main reason for the card anyway is to loudly declare: ‘I am here, and you are there – yo!’ The more exotic the location the more the card becomes a statement. There is one exception though, and that is to post it from a world-renowned attraction. As attractions go, a state-of-the-art post office is pretty cool. Looking at the folks scribbling away, I imagine that that would be the first card that they have written in years - if ever!
There isn’t much cause to send a postcard these days. Likely as not you will be home before the addressee actually receives the card, so you can tell them all about your trip in person. The main reason for the card anyway is to loudly declare: ‘I am here, and you are there – yo!’ The more exotic the location the more the card becomes a statement. There is one exception though, and that is to post it from a world-renowned attraction. As attractions go, a state-of-the-art post office is pretty cool. Looking at the folks scribbling away, I imagine that that would be the first card that they have written in years - if ever!