Tag: Photos

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Misc.

Malaysia Re-Cap

Before I tell you about Indonesia, let me relate the details from my final days in Malaysia.

As I mentioned before, I enjoyed myself immensely there. In no small part because of the food, which consists of various cross-pollinations between Indian, Chinese, and Malay cuisines. Here’re a few pics:

Laksa

Buffet at a Tropical Fruit Farm, Penang

Noodles

Dessert

After five days in Penang, a pal and I drove down to Ipoh for lunch and then continued on to Kuala Lumpur. (Ipoh is famous for both its food and for producing beautiful women such as Michelle Yeoh.) Then it was on to Kuala Lumpur.

KL boasts the famous Petronas Towers, which together are the world’s third-largest building (after Taipei 101 and the Sears Tower). Indeed, the towers are…well, imposing:

The Petronas Towers, KL

And, finally, the people: The Malaysians to whom I talked were outgoing and extremely helpful — and, more than anything, delighted to explain their country to a curious foreigner. Here’re a few of the faces I encountered during my journey:

Joss Stick Maker

A Jolly Old Chap

The Soup Man

Fishing in Penang

And here’re the rest of my Malaysia photos.

Up next: Indonesia.

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Misc.

Greetings from KL

Kuala Lumpur

I arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. I’m enjoying Malaysia immensely. It’s a country I didn’t think I’d see on this trip, but I’m delighted to have popped across the border from Thailand. I’ll relate the backstory in due time; until then, I leave you with the following photos devoid of explanation. Details to come.

Restaurant Guys

Dessert

Urinals

Me

No Durian

Indian Food

Tarik: Coffee-Flavored Cola

Star Wars Toys!

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Misc.

49 Photos from Chiang Mai and Pai

I’m back in The Big Mango (Bangkok) after the return 15-hour overnight train ride from Chiang Mai; I’m sleep-deprived and disoriented, but because I love you all so much, I’ve uploaded a bunch of new images for your enjoyment.

A few of my faves:

Wats in Chiang Mai:

Wats

Wat

Wats

A bridge near my guest house in Pai:

Bridge at Night

The train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai:

Train

A couple of self-portraits taken from between cars:

Me

Don't Jump!

My friend Somchai, a monk I met at a wat in Chiang Mai. He’s 26 years old and speaks excellent English; he has a B.A. in languages and an M.A. in political science. We had a chat about the controversy currently swirling around Thailand’s president, Thaksin Shiniwatra. Somchai took quite an interest in my journal, as you can see:

My Friend Somchai

And, finally, three simple words to live by:

A Word to the Wise

That’s all I’ve got for now, folks. I’ve received some emails asking questions about my travels, itinerary, and other stuff. Bring it on — just leave a comment on this post and I’ll try to address your query or observation in my upcoming dispatches.

Categories
Misc.

Pai, Thailand

I’m in Pai, a small town north of Chiang Mai, close to the Thailand-Burma border. Here’s the view from my room:

View from My Room

I made my way up here on Tuesday (at least I think it was Tuesday — the days have been running together in my head) after three or four days in Chiang Mai. The weather’s really forgiving here; it’s still very warm during the day, but at night you almost need long sleeves.

I’ll be heading back to Chiang Mai and then Bangkok next week; expect more photos and stories then.

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Misc.

Hello from Chiang Mai

Me and a Pal

I made it to Chiang Mai yesterday. Here’s a pic of me with a buddy. More images and text soon.

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Misc.

A Visit to Namhansanseong Park

Temple

Yesterday I spent a couple of hours hiking around the snowy trails in Namhansanseong Park, which is close to my brother’s neighborhood. The place is quite isolated, even though it’s fairly close to Seoul, and it boasts some interesting temples.

Despite (or perhaps because of) my poor choice of footwear, I only fell down (as is my tendency* here) once.

[*In case you missed it in the comments, Mike W. claims my recent spills have to do with my biorhythms.]

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Misc.

Sunset Over Seoul

IMGP1396.jpg

More pics for your viewing pleasure (scroll down for newest images). Don’t miss the corn dogs encrusted in french fries.

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Misc.

Some Links

Some stuff of note:

— I’ve posted three new items over at Gridskipper of late.

— Here’s a license plate my brother Colin and I saw here in DC the weekend before X-mas. I wanna know who’s in charge of VA vanity plate obscenity screening. Someone is sleeping on the job. (Weird side note: a bumper sticker on this car featured the word “abortion” with a line through it and said “Slavery: it was legal, too.” Um, okay.)

2015-12-13-bignuts

— Culture Bully’s 10 Favorite Mash-ups of 2005 looks promising. (Especially the Flaming Lips/Snoop Dog joint.)

— This came out before X-mas, but it’s still interesting. Andres Oppenheimer asks: “Will Bolivia’s Morales follow good or bad role model?”:

Bolivia, which has an estimated 55 percent indigenous population, will enter a new era of majority rule following last weekend’s landslide election of Evo Morales, a leftist coca growers’ leader of Aymara descent. The big question is whether indigenous-ruled Bolivia will follow the steps of South Africa or Zimbabwe.

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Misc.

You Can Call me F. Stop Fitzgerald, Vol. 2

Here’re a few new pics to feast your eyes upon.

In this first one, I did not, in fact, remove the screen of my iBook. I took the image using a technique I noticed on Flickr. I simply captured a snapshot of what was behind my computer and then made the image my desktop wallpaper. This was my clumsy first attempt. Cooler versions can be seen in the Flickr transparent screens group.

2015-11-28_comp

This photo, meanwhile, was taken using the camera toss method — you set your camera to night (long-exposure) mode and then throw it up in the air. The light source consisted of some Christmas lights at my buddy’s Chris D.‘s house.

2015-11-28_toss

And then, lastly, we have this image, which I’m quite proud of. I was stopped at traffic light and noticed a striking sunset in my side-view mirror.

2015-11-28_street

Categories
Misc.

You Can Call me F. Stop Fitzgerald

2015-11-28DCbus

Thanks to a loyal reader for pointing out that the above pic, which I recently snapped using a slow-exposure setting and a small tripod, was featured on the Washington blog DCist today. I spotted a Metro bus gliding to a stop outside my place on Rhode Island Avenue and 2nd st., NW the other night, and the rest is history. Here’s the bigger version.

DCist