Sunday, January 31, 2010
Japanese Garden Images
After visiting a japanese garden we ask ourselves what is deliberate, what is accidental? Does it truly offer hidden meaning behind those rocks or ponds? Japanese gardens reveal themselves only detail by detail and so to enjoy the hushed silence here is to appreciate the Japanese aesthetic, which puts great value on what is implied not shown...
Hakodate Images Gallery
Hakodate is the largest city in southern Hokkaido. As one of the first cities in Japan to be opened to trade with the outside world, there are some traces of foreign influence in Hakodate, notably with regards to architecture in the Motomachi District. The city's famed Asaichi or Morning Market draws visitors from all over Japan for its plentiful and cheap seafood (especailly crab) as well as its distinctive architecture, old fangled streetcars and red brick warehouse district which has been turned into boutiques and restaurants for a bit of nightlife.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Phnom Penh Images Gallery
Located at the confluence of the Mekong and the Tonle Sap rivers, Phnom Penh has become far more pleasant and has tidied up in recent years though perhaps not "The Paris of the East" pre seventies, the city's French colonial buildings are still beautiful in a crumbling way and its streets make for a pleasant walk especially along Sisowath Quay down by the Tonle Sap River the heartbeat of the city.
Hanoi's Old Quarter
Hanoi Old Quarter is one of the Asia's most unusual and lively places. Here you can browse for giant red candlesticks, silk, snake wine, woven mats, coffee, musical instruments, "ghost money" or lacquerware - or just have a bowl of pho noodle soup. Navigating the maze of streets and alleys is an adventure though it is easy to get lost in the Old Quarter simply climb into a rickshaw or cyclo and let the driver show you around.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
I timed a recent photo assignment in Cebu, of the renowned accoustic guitar makers on Mactan Island, to coincide with the renowned Sinulog festival...a kind of Carnival-in-Rio extravaganza of costumes and street dancing. It turned out to be a hit. Since the guitar makers were pretty straightforward, easy to photograph and eager to be interviewed that part of the work was quickly taken care of in a couple visits to the guitar workshops in the village of Abuno, just a few kilometers outside Cebu airport. Back in the city, the streets were erupting with costumes of every hue and frill known to man though the theme was "agriculture" it seemed to be loosely interpreted. Almost every group has its "queen" who carries a statuette of the Santo Nino, the city's patron saint and to whom the festival is dedicated. My first Filipino fiesta - and what fun!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Kyoto is the ancient capital of Japan but it is unlike other former capital cities. Kyoto has seventeen UNESCO World Heritage sites, more than any other city in the world. Despite the city's long history it is still a thriving, living, breathing center of arts and culture as much as it ever has been.
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