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Sapa, Vietnam

A #nofilter photo of the idyllic terraced paddy fields of Sapa.

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Pre-war shophouses along Koon Seng Road, Singapore

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Angkor Wat, Siem Riep, Cambodia

“In any man’s memories there are those things that he doesn’t reveal to all, but perhaps only to his friends. And then there are those he won’t reveal even to his friends, but perhaps only to himself, and even then in confidence. But then, finally, there are those that a man is afraid to reveal even to himself, and any decent man accumulates quite enough of those things. That is, it’s like this even: the more he is a decent man, the more of them he actually has.”

- Notes from the Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky

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Sacromonte, Granada, Spain 🇪🇸

The tradition of living in caves is very much alive in Sacromonte. Laid in a desultory fashion amongst the hills, the living quarters often host Flamenco performances by dancers from the Roma gypsy community. Flamenco performed with great ardour and festivity in an intimate setting is very much the order of the day here. After I was treated to a scenic view of the hills at one of several vantage points during a free walking tour, I visited a Flamenco tablao with a dimly-lit interior that made for an atmospheric evening. The night ended with lots of dancing and a majestic and romantic view of the lit up Alhambra <3

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Natra Bintan, Indonesia

Back in the day when we took traveling for granted either by neglecting it while burying our heads deep in work or by ill appreciating the little precious time we had in some of the most idyllic settings. How are the mighty fallen!

How many of us are feeling indignant now that remote work isn’t a Utopia like we thought it would be (at times it has proved as interesting as a brick) and travel - plausibly the least onerous of our numerous concerns at present - utterly impossible, a reality that was unthinkable just a few weeks ago?

“On the morning appointed for her departure Tess was awake before dawn - at the marginal minute of the dark when the grove is still mute, save for one prophetic bird who sings with a clear voiced conviction that he at least knows the correct time of day, the rest preserving silence as if equally convinced that he is mistaken.”

- Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy

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Kuang Si Falls, Laos

What a visual treat 😍 The water cascades down over the rocks like a delicate bridal veil.

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Sunset on Mekong River, Luang Prabang, Laos

There really isn’t much to do in this Unesco site and ancient capital other than while away the idle hours in sleepy Old Quarter languidly sipping on lattes and watching glorious sunsets on the Mekong River.

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Bamboo Bridge on Nam Khan River, Luang Prabang, Laos

This bamboo bridge is washed away during monsoon every year, and locals rebuild it once every six months. We had to pay a small fee to cross it and the amount largely goes to the family that does the reconstruction.

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Non Nuoc beach, Danang, Vietnam

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Hoi An, Vietnam

From Danang, the girls and I did a little day trip to Hoi An where the shop houses stood cheek by jowl. It was pleasant to wander through the streets in the late afternoon watching store vendors sell all kinds of paraphernalia for tourists. We then whiled away a few hours (what’s new) sitting and chatting in a highly raved restaurant called MIX. When the sun set, the lanterns that lit up the streets and the river were a sight to behold.

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Petronas Twin Towers at sunset (seen from Kampung Bahru), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

A little yet relentless village in a formidable city - a juxtaposition of old and new.

“O Lente, Lente Currite Noctis Equi! Run slowly, slowly horses of the night. It’s from Ovid she says. In Latin, the line goes at a slow gallop... why are they the horses of the night? They pull Time’s chariot. He’s with his mistress. It means he wants the night to stretch out, so he can spend more time with her.”

- The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

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Batu Caves, Selangor, Malaysia

Many years ago, an Indian trader chanced upon the primordial Batu Caves and likened its opening to Lord Murugan’s ‘vel’ (spear). What unfurled shortly after was a consecration of the site in dedication to the Hindu deity.

I planned an elaborate train route to get here from Kuala Lumpur before it dawned on me that the more convenient mode of transport would simply be a Grab ride. And what a day it was with little respite from the heat! So I was pleased not to be walking under the scorching sun.

We revelled in the celebratory atmosphere of பத்து மலை and the saturated colours of the stairway made for stunning pictures, but because it was hot and filled with throngs of tourists and we were drenched in perspiration in mere minutes, I felt ambivalent towards the site.

What was more, though many devotees were present and it was apparent it’s still a working temple, a few impudent tourists derided the sanctity of the site by being loud and mocking the monkeys, making me quite reproachful of their disrespect.

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Straits of Malacca, Penang, Malaysia

We beheld this serene, inimitable view at sunrise from the balcony of the Eastern & Oriental hotel. A tranquil mood came over me as I noticed the lonesome little boat and its boat man on the water in a vast blue ocean that spread as far as the eye could see.

“It did not matter if the old way between them was gone and a new way would have to be found.”

- A Place For Us by Fatima Farhern Mirza

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Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

We did a little walk with a brochure in hand trying to spot those Penang famous murals. Plenty of them were faded and had lost their original glory so I was somewhat miffed. Before the walk, we had taken respite in a Peranakan restaurant called Auntie Gaik Lean’s Old School Eatery; their dishes were commendable and the cold Bandung cheered us up immensely in the heat. As they say in the books, “the sun poured down like lava.”

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Tower Bridge, London, England

London - not my cup of tea. What can I say... the cold weather doesn’t agree with me and it isn’t mere hyperbole when I say I was ‘sleep-walking’ throughout the three days in the city on account of jet lag and exhaustion. The redeeming aspects (in my book) were the free walking tour, quality time with friends xoxo and Hyde Park :)

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Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England

We braved the storm to witness these standing stones and walk around the Stone Circle.

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View of Mezquita de Córdoba from Calleja de las Flores, Cordoba, Spain

“And yet what precisely is this ‘greatness’? Just where, or in what, does it lie? I am quite aware it would take a far wiser head than mine to answer such a question, but if I were forced to hazard a guess, I would say that it is the very lack of obvious drama or spectacle that sets the beauty of our land apart. What is pertinent is the calmness of that beauty, its sense of restraint. It is as though the land knows of its own beauty, of its own greatness, and feels no need to shout it.”

- The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro