Tag Archives: Asia

Neon in the Air

Posted on March 6th, 2017 by

Flying in Style

I admit it, I am spoiled. So many people don’t get to travel. So many people don’t take the time to travel. So many people can’t afford to travel. So many people are too afraid to travel. The list is endless, some are very legitimate reasons others are less so, but if you can go and experience a place very different than where you are from, it is impossible to look at the world with the same eyes. If you dream of going someplace, get your passport today (if you don’t already have one). Start saving! GO!

This photo was taken aboard a Qatar Airbus A380 where I recently took two trips (BKK-DOH, DOH-CDG) in First Class. I am going to call it Doha, Qatar, but really its somewhere over the Middle East. This is the stairs leading into the first class cabin from the lower deck. I told you I was spoiled!

Neon in the Air
Neon in the Air

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 25 January, 2017
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 3200
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s
  • Title: Neon in the Air

The Ethereal Essence of Sakura

Posted on February 20th, 2017 by

Magic in the Air

Magic is probably the wrong word to use. I feel like Sakura is must more of an Eastern philosophical festival than my Western mind completely grasps. There is so much beauty in the blossoms of the cherry trees. The burst forth to the enjoyment of all and fill the previously cold world wrapped in winter with color and life and the most glorious fragrance. Their time here is so short, only about 10 days, then the blossoms fall (die?). When this happens, a cool breeze come through and the petals of these one beautiful flowers rain down to the ground. I can most compare it to snow, but at the same time, nothing like snow. In that moment, for me at least, is perhaps their most beautiful expression. They leave the world in a gracefully chaotic fall that I can only call magical.

The Ethereal Essence of Sakura
The Ethereal Essence of Sakura

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 9 April, 2016
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/320s
  • Title: The Ethereal Essence of Sakura

Zen Seclusion

Posted on February 13th, 2017 by

Taking a Moment

Tokyo isn’t exactly a place for quiet. It’s hustle and bustle non-stop and packet to the gills with people. This is almost doubly so during Sakura! I have found though, even in the most densely populated places you can find moments of zen.

Zen Seclusion
Zen Seclusion

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 9 April, 2016
  • Focal length: 17mm
  • ISO: 640
  • Shutter speed: 1/640s
  • Title: Zen Seclusion

Flowering Bush in Tokyo, Japan

Posted on February 6th, 2017 by

Spring is Around the Corner

Believe it or not, Spring is not far around the corner! Personally I can’t wait for winter to be over, but this realization got me thinking about Sakura. I am not traveling quite as much as in years past. Part of me is really sad about this, but it also makes me thing about the Buddhist meaning of this time in Japan. The cherry blossoms live only for around 10 days and they are a reminder of impermanence. Nothing can last forever, but despite inevitable mortality, spring will come again.

I found this flowering bush (or maybe tree) while viewing Sakura. The closer brighter blossom was nearly perfect, it too made me thing while circumambulating the Shinobazu Pond that while the Sakura gets all the attention, there is beauty all around.

Flowering Bush in Tokyo, Japan
Flowering Bush in Tokyo, Japan

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 9 April, 2016
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 640
  • Shutter speed: 1/160s
  • Title: Flowering Bush in Tokyo, Japan

Temple of Heaven Fire Baskets

Posted on October 10th, 2016 by

Favorite Historical Sites

If I had to pick between the big three UNESCO sites in and around Beijing my preference, BY FAR would likely be with the Temple of Heaven. While in antiquity this was a temple for the Emperor of China, today its is an expansive and exquisitely beautiful park near the heart of Beijing. There is a majesty in walking up the path reserved for only the emperor. There is a grandeur and elegance that masks (along with modern perception) the religous rites preformed here to bring a good harvest. If for some reason you have to choose between The Temple of Heaven, The Forbidden City and The Great Wall, I would chose in that order.

Temple of Heaven Fire Baskets
Temple of Heaven Fire Baskets

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 6 September, 2016
  • Focal length: 31mm
  • ISO: 640
  • Shutter speed: 1/1000s
  • Title: Temple of Heaven Fire Baskets

The Forbidden City Roof Details

Posted on October 3rd, 2016 by

Plans Already Defined

When you visit Beijing for the first time, or go with someone who is going for the first time, your itinerary is almost designated for you by the historical and cultural significance of the region. You have to see:

  1. The Great Wall
  2. The Temple of Heaven
  3. The Forbidden City

All three are UNESCO World Heritage sites and all three are AMAZING! It’s honestly a wonder The Forbidden City wasn’t destroyed during the cultural revolution in China, but lucky for all the world, it is still very much waiting for your visit!

The Forbidden City Roof Details
The Forbidden City Roof Details

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 5 September, 2016
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/400s
  • Title: The Forbidden City Roof Details

Badaling Section of The Great Wall

Posted on September 26th, 2016 by

7 Wonders

With our most recent trip to China, I realize I have now seen three of the New 7 Wonders of the World. Here is the completely list:

  • Christ Redeemer: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  • Great Wall of China: China
  • Machu Picchu: Peru
  • Petra: Jordan
  • Pyramid at Chichén Itzá: Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico
  • Roman Colosseum: Rome, Italy
  • Taj Mahal: Agra, India

Of course technically the wall is really multiple walls, and I only saw one very touristy section. It was very well restored, but personally I think I tend to like the less populated and more rugged hiking that might be involved in visiting one of the less visited sections. Here are a few tips, bring a hat, sunscreen, water and snacks! If you plan on going to Badaling (one of the “easier” sections to get to from Beijing) bring patience. There are over 1.35 billion people in china and I think about 1 billion visit the Badaling section of the wall each day (this maybe an exaggeration). Keep in mind despite not being “rugged hiking” it is a VERY steep climb!

Badaling Section of The Great Wall
Badaling Section of The Great Wall

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 5 September, 2016
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 250
  • Shutter speed: 1/320s
  • Title: Badaling Section of The Great Wall

Instagram Favorites May – September 2016

Posted on September 19th, 2016 by

Less, but Longer Travels

With the demise of some of my favorite travel schemes, I find myself in unknown territory as of late. In years past, I would have had to make a HUGE number of these instagram favorites posts, but this year I have only been on three international trips. I realize to many thing sounds like a LOT, but when you are used to doing six to ten, three is peanuts! The future for me seems to involve less loyalty to one airline (they seem to no longer care about this as a business decision) and less frequent, but longer trips. As always things change so maybe a new scheme will soon present itself to me! Pamela and I just returned from Beijing, China so here are a few of my favorite photos!

Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Posted on July 25th, 2016 by

Looking Back

Hiking up the mountain at Fushimi Inari-taisha brings to you a near endless expanse of torii gates. This view is more simple, but still expresses the vast infinity you feel hiking through the mountains. This is early on and the deeper into the mountains you get the more the gates begin to thin out. The more too does nature take over and you less and less see other hikers. This is one of my favorite places in Japan, but please go early and be prepared to hike a long way to find some peace this wonderful place has to offer visitors.

Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan
Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/4
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 15 November, 2015
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 3200
  • Shutter speed: 1/80s
  • Title: Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji

Posted on June 27th, 2016 by

Zen Rock Gardens

I have come to realize something about myself in this life. I deeply appreciate and love gardens. I love nature in general, and find a peaceful place where I can still my mind as I wander the natural world. I also realized I deeply dislike the actual art of gardening (and I strongly believe this is an art form). This is something I gave year after year of effort too when Pamela and I purchased our home, but the older I become, the more I realize you need to spend more time doing the things you love, and less time doing the things you do not love. That seems like common sense, but for so many of us, such a difficult thing to master. I know I was deeply moved by the gardens at Tenryu-ji, but raking this zen garden is not the same as communing with it.

Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji
Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/5.6
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 14 November, 2015
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 1000
  • Shutter speed: 1/200s
  • Title: Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji