Tag: travel

Lebanon – Byblos to the Border

November 2nd, 2025

Beirut

I was pretty excited – I’ve had Beirut as a green marker on my Google Maps list for years now but obviously there wasn’t exactly that perfect time to pay a visit. Initially, I was a little cautious – there is a travel advisory map that marked out where travellers shouldn’t be going, which included the area around the international airport. At check in, my check-in agent had to move to a different counter that was signed into the airline’s system. It was busy, just like any other typical day at Heathrow. The agent then screamed at me, “Sir!” I looked at her. “Have you been to Israel?” Obviously everyone around were a little perplexed – what was I up to to the point where the agent had to ask such a question. I then went up to her to let her know that I haven’t been. But yeah, good to know that you won’t be able to enter Lebanon especially if you have an Israeli stamp on your passport.

Flight was uneventful – I did a transit for the first time via Warsaw airport. Within 5 minutes of leaving the plane, some guy came to me to ask where the smoking area was, and as I went down a flight of stairs, a bunch of guys in their mid-30s fit themselves in a baggage trolley laughing away, zooming up and down the terminal.

Immigration was surprisingly quick especially for a country where I needed a visa-on-arrival. “First time in Lebanon?” “Yes.” “Welcome to Lebanon.” I arrived at around 3-ish in the morning so I pre-booked a taxi to get to my hotel. The arrivals area of the airport was quiet except for a handful few who were waiting for their relatives on my flight. As I was texting the taxi company, in the distance, there was this guy calling out for me to which I assumed he was the driver I booked. Assuming he was my driver, I asked if he was with the company. He nodded, confident. So I hopped into the car and I was on my way into town.

I knew we were driving through the red zone so my curiosity kept me intrigued by what’s outside. As we whizzed through the empty highway, I got interrupted by my phone’s beep. It was accompanied with a text, “I’m here.” Realisation hit me – this guy wasn’t the driver I booked. My brain went a little wild with all the possibilities of what might happen next. In fact, in the travel advisory, there was the risk of foreigners being kidnapped. Uber was available in Beirut but everyone was advised against using it by their Minister for Transport themselves. For the rest of the ride, I had one hand on my phone’s SOS trigger and the other on my keys as a makeshift karambit. Thankfully, all that tension evaporated as we finally pulled into my hotel. I was charged an extortionate amount but I got to my place safely, nevertheless.

My body was crying out for rest, but I couldn’t check in yet, and the lobby wasn’t exactly the place to lie down. On my overnight journey, I’d only managed to steal a couple of minutes of sleep on the plane. I figured there might be a nice place along the coast close to my hotel to rest and watch the sunrise. My search eventually turned into a full-on hike. I spent the rest of the early morning walking endlessly along the coastline towards Raoucheh in the dark. It was quiet, save for the crashing waves and distant conversations—fishermen and friends just chilling out. It was a good feel and temperature check of the city.

All of that silence was then broken by the morning call to prayer echoing across the streets. As I entered the doors of a mosque, in contrast to the dark emptiness outside, I was surprised at how bright and full of life it was as people got ready to offer their morning prayers.

I watched the sunrise by the coast as the sun’s rays shone on the fishermen and the Raoucheh rocks in all its glory in the backdrop. I was on one end of the city so I decided to spend the rest of the day walking across all the main districts. From Hamra to Mar Mikhael, it’s as if I’ve travelled to 5 different countries; each district has its own character. It makes sense as Beirut is a very metropolitan city, representing many of Lebanese different communities. Along the way, I also got distracted by the many cats that approached me for attention – I think Beirut could rival Istanbul.

In Hamra, street art and independent bookstores told many stories. There was a memorable moment when a bookshop owner showed me a book he had written and exclaimed sarcastically, “Haha, I’m such a narcissist.” His bookstore caught my attention particularly because, within that tiny space, it had walls covered in political posters and boasted an impressive collection of old books.

Then, there was Zaitunay Bay, an affluent area with high-end restaurants I couldn’t afford overlooking gleaming yachts I too can’t afford. There was also the city centre where you’d understand why they call it the “Paris of the Middle East” with avenues and buildings blending Middle Eastern and European styles. It was also home to the grand Mohamed Al-Amin Mosque, the St. George Orthodox Church, as well as many Roman ruins. From an angle, you could see the Lebanese flag, the crescent on the dome of the mosque, as well as the cross of the church all in the same frame. In Mar Mikhael, I was spoilt by the many options of Lebanese food within the labyrinth of streets and stairs. A unique snack I had was the Soujouk Shawarma. Unlike the shawarma I was used to, the meat was bright red with a salami-like texture. One wasn’t enough. I also visited the National Museum which held an impressive collection of artefacts from across the country including a series of mummies that were in the basement.

As I looked around, I saw reminders of the struggles the country has faced. Currency was a little confusing for me at first – I was told I could get by using USD. In my first shop, I handed over a USD note, and was returned with a mix of USD and LBP. In fact, the cashier gave me multiples of their largest Lebanese notes they have available, the 100,000 LBP note. The country faced multiple inflation crises to the point where they’ve used their equivalent of their 100 dollar notes as dollar notes. So, I walked around with a bunch of oversized notes in my wallet. Each shop had very varying different currency rates that I became numb to what it actually was and simply accepted what the cashier would return to me.

Additionally, many buildings were still riddled with bullet holes from the civil war. One building, in particular, stopped me in my tracks: Beit Beirut. Standing on the corner of what used to be the ‘Green Line’ dividing the city, the architects didn’t plaster over the wounds; instead, they preserved the sniper bunkers and the thousands of bullet holes that scar the elegant facade.

In the area where I stayed, the power kept flickering on and off (I recalled a barber laughing with his customer when it cut out). Of course, I also saw whatever is left of the grain silos that exploded in 2020. Hell, Israeli drones were still flying overhead with a deafening buzz. Yet, even with all of that, everyone kept going on with their day—a testament to the resilience of the people.

Byblos

An old beaten-up Toyota screeched and pulled up in front of my hotel (the driver did admit he needed to get a new car). “Are you Muhammad?” I replied, “Yes.” “I am Jihad, and this is Osama. Yalla, let’s go!” And so, for the next three days, the three of us—Jihad, Osama, and I—went on a little adventure up and down the country.

We kicked off with a tour to the north, a predominantly Maronite-Christian area. Our first stop was Jeita Grotto, a network of limestone caves containing stalactites and stalagmites that formed over millions of years, dating back to the Jurassic period. It was impressive—I’ve never seen anything like it, and photos don’t do it justice at all. In the upper grotto, where phones and cameras were not allowed to protect the formations from flash lighting, the sights were massive and beautiful beyond description. From where I was standing, the cave ceiling was around 40 metres high, and as I looked down into the abyss below, it was about 80 metres deep. I actually got dizzy and held tightly to the railings as I ascended and descended the steps drenched from water dripping above.

In the lower grotto, where we could take photos, we had to navigate via boat, and that was equally impressive. There were formations resembling many different things, including mushrooms. Jihad asked if I watched football. “That looks like a football audience, haha.” I thought to myself: That could be any audience, come on.

We then drove around the winding hills—which the car struggled with—to get to Harissa, a town overlooking Jounieh Bay. There stood the statue of Our Lady of Lebanon, where we managed to get breathtaking views of the bay to the north and the mountains to the south. We then travelled down to Jounieh itself via this claustrophobic cable car which could only fit an absolute maximum of four people. As the cable car descended, creaked, and swayed side-to-side, Osama said, “Let’s keep still—this feels really sketchy,” to which I was like, “Yeah, agreed.” As the cable car approached Jounieh, we went in between apartment buildings which was quite funny as we had 360 views of people’s houses. We starting waving at people we passed by and they waved back.

Our final stop was the historical city of Byblos, where we explored a Crusader-era Citadel that had ruins from the Phoenician and Roman eras, as well as the old souk. The old souk, like many old markets found here in Lebanon, were built by the Ottomans and were typical of what you’d expect of middle-ages Arabian markets. It was also home to an impressive Fossil Museum which housed some of the largest collections of fossils in the world. This is due to Lebanon’s limestone-rich geography and position as an earthquake-prone area. Highlights of that was the world’s largest shark fossil, as well as this fossil of a fish still in the stomach of another fish.

Beqaa Valley

On the second day of our tour, we made our way towards the Beqaa Valley. What was pretty cool was passing an elevated point where we had a view of the valley from above. The landscapes here are reminiscent of my time in the Sacred Valley in Peru. We were driving through what the travel advisory map calls a “high-risk zone,” so we had to slow down and pass through a few fortified, concrete-blast-walled military checkpoints as soldiers armed with assault rifles peered into our windows. From my time in the police service, I know we used to look into cars to check if people were wearing their seatbelts. In this case, my educated guess told me that seatbelt compliance wasn’t exactly what they were looking for.

Anyway, our first stop was Anjar, home to the ruins of an Umayyad city dating from the 8th century, just kilometres away from the Syrian border. My first impression was that this was a huge site—though it would be superseded by the next one (spoiler alert). It’s a good example of medieval city planning; there were shops, houses, a mosque, and a grand palace that were still intact. This used to be an important stop for trade routes between Damascus and the Levantine coast. There wasn’t anyone around, so Osama and I had some fun climbing around and jumping from one wall to another, playing Assassin’s Creed.

Our next stop was Baalbek. Along the way, we passed by acres of farms—the land here is fertile for growing all sorts of crops. For the first time, I also got to see refugee camps which were mainly Syrian, and of course, you can’t help but sympathise with their situation. As we crossed into the town of Baalbek, the atmosphere shifted; we started to see more posters of Hezbollah leaders, flags, and the faces of those who died in battle.

Amidst this backdrop, I got to see the world’s largest excavated monolith—just look at the photo, it’s huge. It is maintained by Alfi, a local who is passionate about preserving history. It all started when locals began throwing trash into the site; Alfi persistently kept it clean, even when people thought he was crazy. Had me thinking – we need more people like Alfi. I bought a Shemagh from him, and he helped me put it on, which made the moment feel that much more special.

Our final stop was the most mind-blowing site I’ve ever been to (next to Machu Picchu)—the Baalbek Temple complex. A sacred site dedicated to Jupiter, Bacchus, and Venus. The Mecca for the Romans, if you will. It is among the best preserved in the world—the temples are still very well intact. It was a huge complex, and we were absolutely stunned by the scale of it; standing beneath the towering columns of the Temple of Jupiter (the largest in the world), I felt microscopic. Again, there were only a handful of us there, so we had the whole site to ourselves.

Closeby, we stopped by a restaurant for lunch that served probably the best thing I’ve ever had on this trip – Sfeehas. I would describe them as sort of like mini pizzas topped with meat in traditional levantine spices. It’s left such an impact that I still think about it today.

The South

Now, a tour of the south. Jihad, our driver, hailed from the region so he was able to give a little bit more context. We asked about the drones that were flying overhead and he replied, “Oh that one? That’s the big one!” The humor masked a grim reality; in fact, just a few days prior, Israel had launched an airstrike in a town close to where we were.

Our first stop was Sidon, where we explored a Crusader-era Sea Fort and wandered the old city. The old souk was exactly what you’d expect a traditional souk to be: tight corners and bustling with life. We paid a visit to the Church of St. Nicholas, where Christians believe that Saints Paul and Peter met. As we entered the prayer chamber, Jihad asked, “What do you think stands out about this?” We then realised it was split down the middle between Catholic and Orthodox traditions.

We then visited a traditional soap museum dating from the 17th century. As soon as we walked in, the air was thick with the scent of laurel and olive oil. We got an overview of how the soaps were made and the different types produced. My travelling partner, Osama, seemed extremely excited—I’ve never seen anyone so excited over soap. He mentioned that he was of Palestinian descent from Nablus, a city well-known for traditional olive soaps, and this was the closest he has ever been in his life to his heritage.

We drove up to a nearby mountain which housed the Church of the Waiting Lady. There was a cave where Christians believe Mary waited for Jesus to finish preaching in Sidon. Once again, there were magnificent views all around, with the sea to the west and the mountains to the east.

We then travelled further towards the south. The deeper we drove, the more the atmosphere shifted; the chaotic energy of Beirut was replaced by a watchful tension. Yellow Hezbollah banners were more and more visible at the side of the roads. We passed through multiple checkpoints, including a memorable one where a soldier glanced at me for a good five seconds, wondering what this foreigner was up to. Tyre is known as one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It’s also known as a Hezbollah stronghold and remains an active conflict zone. There was quite a bit of UN presence to ensure both Israel and Lebanon maintain their treaty obligations, and all around, there were buildings damaged by fresh airstrikes. In fact, as of writing, UNIFIL had just shot down an Israeli drone.

It’s also home to the world’s second-largest Roman hippodrome. It was massive, with stone arches stretching out as far as the eye could see, and completely empty of tourists—we had the ancient stands entirely to ourselves. Osama and I explored the site, identifying the seating galleries and imagining the routes the chariots would take around the arena. We even joked that this could be an ancient F1 venue.

We also explored Tyre’s old town which had winding alleys and colorful buildings, lined with all sorts of potted plants.

There were beaches as well—the most pristine I’ve seen so far. The water was typical of the Mediterranean—turquoise blue and water so clear you could see all the fish swimming below. The coast stretched uninterrupted for miles, accompanied by a range of hills and mountains. In the distance, Jihad pointed out and smiled. “You see that? That’s Palestine.”

The drive back to the airport was far less dramatic than my arrival—no fake taxi drivers, no makeshift karambits, just a quiet reflection on the whirlwind of the last few days. As my plane took off, banking over the Mediterranean, I looked down at the coastline one last time. I thought about the “red zones” on the travel advisory map. They were still there, of course, and the drones were likely still buzzing somewhere below. But the map didn’t show the smell of olive soap, the laughter of a bookshop owner in Hamra, or the sheer scale of Jupiter’s columns. Lebanon is a country that seems to exist in a permanent state of precarious balance, teetering between destruction and beauty. I’m just glad I finally turned that green marker on my map into a reality.

For more photos of Lebanon, head over to https://www.behance.net/itsdadanial/
Tromsø – The Farthest North I’ve Ever Been

March 15th, 2025

Tromsø & The Northern Lights

The gateway to the Arctic – Tromsø. Located at the 69th parallel (nice), it’s the northern-most place I’ve been to in my life. Surprisingly, the weather was more pleasant than when I last took off from London. There was this stark contrast between the miserable cold back in the UK which tries to kill you, and the fresh cold in Tromsø that keeps you constantly afresh. It was a clear sunny day so just before landing, we were greeted by magnificent views of the fjords – the last time I’ve seen anything as spectacular as this was on my flight from Tokyo to Copenhagen when we flew over the North Pole. That was even more so a treat, given that the in-flight entertainment on that flight was an utter disappointment. Story for another day. It was such a sight to see the rivers that weave through in between snow-covered mountains.

At immigration, the border officer went with a friendly smile, “first time in Norway?” “Yes” “What are your plans?” “Northern lights today and snowshoeing tomorrow then heading back.” “That’s all? Why? Do more!” I was going to say I’d burst my wallet if I stayed any longer because stuff here were really expensive. Man, it was like 100 quid a night for a room the size of my office’s printer room, in someone’s house with a host on his PS5 24/7.

Tromsø’s a pretty cute town. You could pretty much walk from one end of the town centre to the other in 15 minutes. It’s something you’d imagine what a stereotypical Scandinavian town would look like. Brightly-coloured wooden buildings surrounded by mountains in the backdrop. There was a harbour where I just stood there and watched small ships go by, and seamen doing whatever seamen do. In different places you’d find really tiny food bars selling stuff like soup, sausages, and fish. Some are really popular so you’d see a long line for a really small stall, and leaves you wondering where they store their ingredients in the first place. I like to think there’s a secret storage system underground like those cartoons. At night, you get this festive vibe – there’s Christmassy lights hung in different places and alleyways. All in the middle of March.

On the 2nd Day, I took this cable car to the top of Storsteinen which had a viewpoint of the city, and I do recommend getting to the top by sunset. It was such a sigh tto behold as the sun sets behind the mountains, and as the sky turns from blue to gold. That then transitions to the Northern Lights making their appearance just above you and it all culminates into a show.

On the first night, I went for a Northern Lights chase tour. I got an answer as to why the weather was more comfortable than it was compared to London. Our guide Boris mentioned that there was a warm jet stream of air starting from the Gulf of Mexico making its way to the Arctic. “Gulf of Mexico. Not Gulf of America like some old American guy decided to call it.” Let me just say, I was about to look for a piece of paper to get an autograph because I’m a such huge fan of this guy.

I’ve seen the Northern Lights a number of times, but never got sick of it. Every time, it’s a different show. Part of the fun is also the anticipation, the bracing of the cold night, and also staring into the dark sky mistaking clouds for the lights themselves. What’s gratifying is once you see this white smoke in the sky, you get really excited you get to see what most other people can’t see in their lifetime. Such a spectacle of mother nature. We spent a couple of hours driving and stopping by a few spots to find gaps in the clouds to have a clear view of the lights.

The Northern Lights are formed when charged particles from the Sun interacts with the Earth’s magnetic field, further colliding with gases in the upper atmosphere. I don’t believe in any of that science. If there’s anything I learnt from this trip and my time in Iceland, it just so happens that Northern Lights appear when the guide bangs their fist on the bus. It also just so happens that when the lights are brighter, the guide would bang harder. Coincidence? I think not.

We spent some time appreciating the lights over a campfire, some hot chocolate, and homemade cookies. I also met an Australian tourist who unfortunately lost her camera when it got blown over by strong winds. Eventually started doing a tutorial on how to take the lights with the phone. I should have started charging to compensate for my expensive accomodation.

Pretty fortunate to have got to see the lights two nights in a row! The night after, went to the top of Storsteinen, waited until it got dark, and got to see them again, this time, over Tromsø! Met a tourist from Hong Kong who had never seen the lights in his life wondering where we’re supposed to look at and I pointed to this huge cloud-looking thing, and we shared the photos we took. There also were some annoying tourists flashing their torchlights in the sky (that’s not how it works, and please don’t be that person), so I was that guy in the dark *politely* asking them to turn off their torches.

Snowshoe Hiking

Did some snowshoe hiking on the second day in Kvaløya – an island close to Tromsø. In the winter, to get to places where there were no roads, locals would either ski, snowshoe, or sled with the help of their huskies to get around. In this hike, we got the help of a couple of huskies to guide us around. My assigned huskie partner, Joker, however, lived up to his name by not being that all helpful. Navigating the deep snow and crampons was challenging enough, but he insisted on forging ahead, often leading me astray. I’d glance back to find us miles away from the main group, prompting our guides to scream at us to get back on the right path. He even had us crossing a frozen stream on the ice, while others used a safe crossing. Every time we stopped, he’d roll in the snow, adding to the general chaos of the whole thing. By the hike’s midpoint, I was sweating so profusely I had to remove my jacket, despite the cold. But it’s all good – it’s a love/hate relationship I’ve learnt to embrace over those couple of hours.

It was difficult to walk in the snowshoes. You’re supposed to walk normally but it’s a little tricky as they’re slightly heavy, and ideally you’d want them to sink in the snow and ice to avoid slipping. Again, Joker didn’t understand that. So I got home aching calves when I got home. Our journey took us through snow plains that felt like we were off to some unknown. It really did feel like we were on this whole National Geographic expedition, just that we paid for this. We rested at a viewpoint which had spectacular views of the mountains around us and a fjord down below (I’ve probably mentioned mountains and fjords like the 10th time but this is Norway anyway). We were served traditional warm blackcurrent juice (this can rival Finland’s blueberry juice and people know I have an obsession with it) and some homemade cookies. The guide who made them exclaimed, “I’m surprised everyone liked it haha.” In my head I was thinking like is there something in there that I should know of?

We ended the day in a traditional Sami Hut, or a Goahti, chatting on the day over woodfire, some absolutely delicious chocolate cake, and more warm blackcurrant juice. A really cosy atmosphere for all of us to talk through our day and wind down especially after a husky like Joker gave you a hard time.

Oslo

Oslo wasn’t actually part of the plan – I wanted to go straight home via Paris. But the night before, I realised I had to take the chance of any flight out of Tromsø given that planes were close to full. So I started listing myself for flights to random European cities in the morning – joys of airline staff travel. Quite happy to have snatched the last seat on the first plane in the morning – getting home would be a breeze via Oslo. First impressions of Oslo – as soon as I got off the plane, I was absolutely freezing. Ironic considering I’ve travelled away from the Arctic. It’s feels exactly as if I just stepped into a kitchen freezer. I had a really short couple of hours in Oslo so I tried to make the most of my time.

On the train to downtown Oslo, someone who happened to be passionate in film photography took interest in my camera and I let him fiddle around with it for a bit. “Wow this is heavy – you can use this as a weapon!” That is actually my planned secondary use of my camera… for self-defense of course. Anyway, so I started off with walking around the city centre, exploring an Opera House, a public library, and the high street. As I continued walking, I heard music reverberating across the streets, seemingly being played by an orchestra of bells & chimes. I then I tried looking for the source of the music, as if it called for me. That’s when I discovered the town hall. The interior was a work of art. Mesmerizing pieces of artwork and patterns were painted all over the walls. Every room and every floor was different and had their own personalities. It was such a treat to walk into a different room and to discover something different.

I then took a bus to the Norwegian Museum of Cultural history. There’s an open-air museum featuring replicas of buildings throughout Norway’s history. What I was interested in is a 12th-century church particularly because I wanted to examine and appreciate stave architecture up close. This structure covered in black paint, with its emblems covered in gold was quite prominently placed atop a hill, overlooking the village below. As I approached it, it felt like I’ve discovered something unknown and ancient. As you enter it, you’ll be greeted by this overwhelming smell of wood that transports you all the way back all those centuries ago. It was also fascinating to see the detailed wood-carved details of the church as well as the paintings on the wall that have been standing the test of time.

Later, I explored the Akershus Fort, which was built in the 13th century. There weren’t that many people in there so I felt like I had the whole place to myself. There were tight tunnels to navigate and there were tombs housing members of the royal family underground too. I’m sure these walls have seen and heard much; the royal politics, the war, all of it. The upper floors had rooms holding a royal tapestry, a chapel, and huge dining rooms. There was a really impressive colorful glass window mosaic in the chapel too. Pretty cool stuff.

It was a short getaway, and going back to what the border officer told me – maybe I should have done more. Maybe it’s true that price tags here are high, but it’s also true that the experience here was immeasurable too. I have Joker to thank for that. I’ll be sure to keep Norway in my future bucketlist, and be sure to spend a little longer.

For more pictures from my Norwegian getaway, go here: https://www.behance.net/itsdadanial
Peru – My Introduction to Latin America

November 30th, 2024

Peru was high up on my bucket list. As someone who binge-watches history videos on YouTube and doom-clicks Wikipedia, I was really excited to finally embark on this trip. South America, being located literally on the opposite side of the world to Singapore, is this faraway place that I’ve always been intrigued by. Finally drawing up plans for this felt like I was going on this grand adventure to finally see and experience things that I was only able to see in documentaries and pictures, for myself.

Historically, a lot of my trips were more or less impromptu – if there was any semblance of planning at all, it would be the absolute basics like transportation and maybe accommodation. Well, this one’s very different. The altitudes that we were getting exposed to were nothing that I’ve ever experienced in my life. I got into this rabbit hole of researching what altitude sickness could do to you if you don’t manage it well – things like mountain sickness, pulmonary oedema, and cerebral oedema all popped up on my screen. This was either going to be a trip of a lifetime or a complete disaster. In fact, in the week or two leading up to our trip, on top of my usual jogs, I started jogging whenever I went to Sainsbury’s and back for my usual grocery shopping. I’m just going to say this but that didn’t help. It was also the first time I had to get prescribed medication to cope with any particular environment. I got some altitude sickness pills that I had to start taking a few days before the trip started. By the way, you get this bubbly feeling in your bloodstream once you start taking them. Also, travel insurance was painful – most of the stuff we found didn’t insure us above 3,400m since that was considered to be “extreme sport.” Finding Peruvian currency was a nightmare as well. I went to many money exchanges all over London and none had any. Oddly, the only place that had some currency left was where I lived in a market town somewhere in Berkshire.

My travel partner and I set up an Excel sheet of our trip’s itinerary, and we had two extra unusual columns; one for altitude, and the other for circadian rythm. I’ll come back to the circadian rhythm but for the altitude, we had to plan carefully where we were sleeping since we had to acclimatise to the different altitudes. For example, our initial transit city, Lima, was at sea level. Cusco was about a whopping 3,400m above sea level, and we weren’t gradually climbing or anything; we were flying in straight into the city. So, we decided to descend first to Ollantaytambo at 2,800m and spend a night there. Night after night, we would then slowly gain altitude. Now, the circadian rythm, which is essentially a body clock indicator, was more for my travel partner because she flew in all the way from Singapore, whereas I was already based in London. In a fit of irony though – I dozed off more than she did.

Our flight into Cusco was a mini-journey in itself. A total of 3 flights, starting in London, transiting via Madrid, and then a final leg from Lima to Cusco. Our flight to Lima was quite interesting – we were sat in the emergency exit rows right next to the lavatory. I noticed many passengers struggle with the lavatory. Presumably, a lot of the passengers on our flight were first-time flyers, or didn’t fly frequently. Some didn’t lock the doors, leading to some embarrassing encounters, and some couldn’t open the doors either and that includes when they were trying to get out as well. I recalled some of us at the front helping to show how to open the doors, and also helped lock the doors using the secret door lock. There was one incident where this passenger started to knock on the door in a mild panic because she couldn’t get out so I helped to open it. At the break of dawn, as we finally touched down after 12 hours, the cabin erupted in applause – a first I’ve ever had in my life. I was facing directly to the cabin crew’s jumpseat so we looked at each other and we both let out a cheeky grin.

Then came our next flight to Cusco. You see, we didn’t book a confirmed plane ticket for this leg. As an airline employee there’s this benefit where you’d be able to get on a flight on a standby basis. Essentially, what that means is, you’ll get on only if there are empty seats on the plane. I was a little nervous – it was a really busy flight. We had a driver waiting in Cusco so I wasn’t sure how it was going to work out when I have to break the news that I didn’t get on my flight. I stormed up and down the terminal in trepidation, refreshing my LATAM airline app again and again hoping they assigned a seat. In fact, I let my travel partner through the boarding gate first before I did because I didn’t want to leave her behind at the airport if things didn’t go well. At the boarding gate, as the agent scanned our boarding passes, the moment of truth – the machine beeped once. A green light. I was thrilled. We were on our way.

My hands and feet got a little clammy as the plane fought the wind shear as we were landing into Cusco through this tight flightpath in between mountains into Cusco. We had really upclose views of the hills and the houses that line them just right out of our window. As the cabin doors opened, the very first thing I started thinking about was all the stuff I read on the internet. I got conscious of my breathing, and I started regulating it. After a while, though, I was like, “Hmm, well actually this air seems pretty normal.”

Journey to Ollantaytambo

As part of our plan to better manage with the altitude, we got our driver, Marcial to drive us down to Ollantaytambo, a town in the Sacred Valley of the Incas about 1.5 hours direct drive away, where we’d spend 2 nights acclimatising to the high altitudes. Marcial could only speak and understand a little English, and us, with the broken “un poco” Spanish we knew had a fun time trying to understand and communicate the stuff we’re going to go to along the way. A “si” from us would get a thumbs up, and a “no entiendo” would mean the good old Google translate. Thankfully, he had a handy pamphlet of places that we were going to visit along the way.

At our first stop, we arrived at Chinchero. We saw a demonstration of how dyes are made at a local workshop where they would make all kinds of textiles. Incan textiles are known to be very virant and colorful – as we walked in, we were greeted by tassels of a whole array of colours that were hung by the ceiling and the walls. Fascinating to see how they’ve used a variety of combination of minerals and produce to make dyes of all kinds of colours. We also saw our first few llamas whose fur are used to make those textiles – textiles that were made using baby llama wool were soft to the touch compared to older llamas.

We then walked around a bunch of ruins close by, where we saw our first Incan terraces and a small village which was a first-hand introduction to a typical Peruvian village. The ruins were a good appetiser of the tens of ruin sites we’re going to visit throughout the trip, a theme my travel partner would call, “Ruined by Peru.” As I climbed up a small flight of steps, there was something peculiar – I started breathing heavily. We realised from Cusco, we elevated higher to a whopping 3,700 km above sea level. This was where I got my first taste of altitude sickness. Subsequently, I had this throbbing headache come and go, and it wouldn’t stop until we arrived in Ollantaytambo. It started off with a little bit of sarcasm – now, I was truly getting ruined.

We then headed over to Maras Salt Mine – a prehistoric-era salt mine. As we drove down to the main site, we saw this valley akin to sort of like a white honeycomb. Legend has it that the salty waters were the tears of Ayar Cachi, one of the brothers of the founder of the Incan Empire. His siblings locked him up in a cave because they feared his strength & power. It was still an active salt-mining site – there were workers collecting salt in bags in the many vats that were there. There was also a market where we could buy this salt in small bags as well.

For our final stop – the Moray ruins. Along the way, we were greeted by our first snow-capped mountains. At the site, there weren’t any signages around so we sorta made stuff up along the way and guessed as to what these circular structures were. We thought it was a place of worship – but actually, it was widely believed to be a place to experiment with different agricultural methods. It was a good example of Incan ingenuity. Each terrace layer had a different micro-climate of its own; temperatures on each layer were different as the sun would shine at different angles.

As we further descended, our driver used a shortcut through a dodgy, rough stretch of road on the side of the mountain where we had this full view of the Sacred Valley itself. As a side note, driving here in Peru is crazy.

So now, we’re in the Sacred Valley, trying to re-saturate our bodies with oxygen, and hopefully – everything’s gonna be fine when we re-ascend. Well, not really.

Ollantaytambo

Our accommodation, El Albergue, was located next to the train station so every now and then, the building would shake from the chugging of the trains that come by. Kinda reminds me of the opening in the Polar Express but repeated a hundred times. We had a balcony which literally opens to the station platform so we could wave at people as they went on their way to Macchu Picchu. We had a really nice place to stay – it was what I would describe as a traditional hotel, and it has its own farm and gardens that we could explore.

The morning after, we decided to explore the city itself. We had to walk up this incline to get to the city centre, and the moment we got to the top, I thought we forgot our tickets to get into the archeaological sites. So I had to go all the way back down, to only realise that they were in my bag all along, and then got all the way back up again. Silly me. It didn’t help we were still acclimatising to the altitude.

The ruins were characteristic of a lot of other Incan sites; terraces lined the side of the hills. There was quite a bit of climbing involved so we took all of that as practice for more climbing that we were going to do in Macchu & Huayna Picchu the day after. A lot of the stuff we did are reminiscent of exploring some unknown Lord of the Rings kingdom – as we ascended a hill, a mysterious structure reveals itself, well most of them are actually granaries.

For lunch, I managed to have a go with Peru’s national dish, Ceviche, raw fish marinated in citrus juice, combined with other fruits and vegetables.

Nausea, throbbing headache, diarrhoea, vomiting, sore throat, and loss of appetite. Sounds like a ChatGPT WebMD collab gone wrong or a to-do list from the Devil. Well actually, I got all of these from our second evening here. That was when our bodies got absolutely well, ruined. We took turns with the bathroom. All I remember was I was moaning, lying down on my bed in multiple awkward positions, and wanted it all to end. On top of that, my gut didn’t feel good as well but I tried my best to not puke. It was very dusty too due to the desert-like climate, and my ultra-sensitive respiratory system didn’t take that well. However, we just pulled ourselves together. Also, we were quite prepared – quite literally we had a whole arsenal of meds even Boots can’t match.

Macchu Picchu

So, Day 3 – big day for us. If you’re going halfway across the world to Peru, and not see Machu Picchu, then what are you doing, right? We were quite close to being in that situation since tickets were selling out really quickly months in advance. But here we were!

So, we boarded a train early in the morning from Ollantaytambo along the winding Urubamba River to Aguas Calientes. Pretty cool views of the mountains above and it was interesting to see how the climate slowly transitioned from a tundra-like environment to the tropics. Also, it was our first time in the Amazon! Along the way we were reminded by the train’s public announcement system a hundred times that it was a, “once in a lifetime journey,” and I’d be richer in Peruvian currency than any currency exchange in London if I got a Sol for every time the train announced that.

We got a shuttle up to the ruins of Macchu Picchu and had Antonio, a guide we scouted for at the base to guide us around. Impression – he’s the kind of guy I’d love to have to be my bedtime story reader and made our tour so much better. We learnt quite a lot of fun facts about the city; how this city mainly served the nobles of the empire including royalty, astronomers, and artisans, the fact that this city was left intact because it was never discovered by the Spanish, and how intricate the brick walls denote how important the building was. You could see the difference between houses where the blocks were just mushed together, and buildings that were built nicely. I was mind blown that it takes 1.5 months to carve a standard-sized block. There was a plaza where you would clap and it would echo back. Had a bit of fun clapping as everyone else followed suit. Also got to meet up close the resident Llamas with all the arching hills in the background. This one looked like a chicken drumstick.

I’ve got a photo of me smiling with Macchu Picchu in the backdrop, but I’m really trying to stop myself from puking. It’s the same face I give whenever my boss asks me if everything’s okay at work. Anyway, we were quite prepared – quite literally we had a whole arsenal of meds even Boots or Guardian can cry.

Later that day, we bid adios to our guide, with our hands on our hearts, and our hands on our wallets (because we had to pay him). We then continued our first climb of our trip, Huayna Picchu which was known to have loads of quote, “death stairs.” Quite literally, one bad slip on any of the tight and steep slopes and you’ll be lead directly several metres to the valley below. Although our bodies were in a bad shape, all was worth it as we got to the top as we got absolutely breathtaking views of Macchu Picchu below.

Pisac

We made our way back to Ollantaytambo to catch an evening taxi ride to Pisac. I was knocked out just a couple of minutes in. Driving here is crazy anyway, and I’ve gotten used to that, but I was suddenly woken up by our driver slamming the accelerator. I looked outside the window, and we were chased by a pack of dogs. Anyway, we spent a night in Pisac, a modestly sized town at an elevation somewhere between Cusco and Ollantaytambo – so it was a perfect stopover to acclimatise. We explored the town for a bit – we visited the Artisan Market, a wet market, and aimlessly went in between the different alleys. There wasn’t much hustle and bustle in the Artisan Market, it felt like we had the place mostly to ourselves. There were tons of shops selling all kinds of art including paintings as well as traditional Incan-wear, bags and stuff of that sort.

The wet market was a lot more lively as locals went around to shop for their daily shopping. It was also an eye-opener to the type of produce that were local to that area. I’ve never seen so many variations of potatoes in my life. There were shops lined with bags of potatoes of different shapes, sizes and color, and it was fascinating to go to each one of them and examine them closely.

We also made a last-minute plan to hop on a taxi to visit a nearby lagoon called Kimsaqucha. Prior to that day – we promised ourselves that this was meant to be a chill day. The moment we stepped out of the taxi, and climbed up just a few steps, I realised something was amiss. I started panting heavily, and the air didn’t feel oxygenated enough. I then pulled out Google Maps and realised we were 4,200 metres above sea level. The good thing is at least we had a heads up of what was to come for the Humantay Lake hike the day after which was to a similar altitude, and we did get picturesque views of the lake and views on the drive to this lagoon.

After our little side-quest, we were on our way to Cusco, where it would serve as our base for the rest of the trip.

Humantay

They say you’re only lucky two-thirds of the time as a tourist in Peru. Humantay was our unlucky one-third. On the drive to Soray, where we would start our climb, as dawn broke, clouds started to form. Then, it started raining heavily. As it all persisted, we kinda accepted that the clouds and rain were never gonna clear. When we arrived, our guide, Achilles sarcastically exclaimed that we were special people to have unique weather for our climb. Yeah. Right.

Anyway, this trek was the first test of how well our bodies have acclimatised to the altitude. Our final point was at about 4,200m above sea level, and I personally have never been that high in my life (insert joke here). The night before, we were already struggling to climb up a few steps lugging our bags to our hotel at a lower altitude in Cusco. Maybe that was the “extreme sport” that insurance companies are referring to. Quite literally, on the way up, all we saw was nothingness except maybe a few horses, grass and a couple of rocks. Other than that, we bumped into a couple of “cheaters” who went on horseback to get to the top (that’s no fun). I was trying to keep up with the rest of the group – so I was finding little opportunities to catch my breath with my head down the whole time. As we got higher and the air got thinner, I got reminded of a certain scuba diving incident years ago when I ran out of oxygen (I know I was stupid). What reminded me of this was the fact that it felt like I was breathing air that didn’t have any oxygen in it. To compensate for that, I’d have to take in deeper breaths or ventilate at a much faster rate. At the top, spoiler alert, we didn’t see much. Maybe a silhouette of the mountain overlooking the lake but that’s about it. The group pretty much accepted that it was what it was, spent just a short 5-10 minutes looking around and went back down. Well – it was disappointing, but we had some optimism as we descended. We had another big trek in a few days to Vinicunca and the Red Valley. If what they say about being 2/3rd lucky was true, which, spoiler alert again, was eventually true, then we pretty much could go home happy.

Cusco

On Day 6, we had a full day to explore Cusco. We joined a free walking tour led by Elvis – “like the singer,” he said. Anyway, before that, we spent some time walking around the Mercado San Pedro and found very, like very interesting things. The one that stood out was the butcher section, where they literally had everything on display. Guts, brain, heads, everything. There was also the smoothie section where there were like 100 stalls selling the exact same thing. It’s very intimidating once you enter the aisle because literally every stall owner is gonna call out for you and wave their menus at you. Of course, we were wondering if they were selling the same thing, how are they making money? Our guide mentioned that they did business with regular customers, or in the case that you’re not a regular customer, the one with the best charisma wins. No – we didn’t mentally score the way they called out for us, we just went to the closest one for our shakes. Also, the fruits and vegetables were wild – like they were huge – you could put two heads in them, and we saw varieties of potatoes and corn we’d never seen in our lives (Peru is home to more than 4,000 varieties of potato). Corn here isn’t corn that I was familiar with back at home either. They were more like huge rice grains that complimented things like fish and meat. Roasted Guinea Pig is a typical dish here as well. For us that usually look at them more as pets, it’s of course a little unusual – but it’s something regular for them. You’ll find them sold typically in markets and stalls at the side of the street too. Elvis showed us a picture of a Peruvian version of The Last Supper which was hung up in the Cusco Cathedral, the original being painted by Leonardo Da Vinci. “What do you see here that’s unusual?” In the middle of the painting, there was a roasted guinea pig on the table.

In the middle of the square, there was a statue of Tupac Amaru II, who was well known to have led a revolt against the Spanish. One coincidence and fun fact was the statue pointed towards a statue of Jesus at the top of a hill nearby, which was previously not there when the statue was erected.

We continued our tour of the city with many interesting facts as well as some insight into Peruvian culture/way of life – we’re very glad we signed up for this. For example, by coincidence, the city was shaped like a Puma. We also noted that there were so many clock towers that never worked but our Elvis insisted that the clocks were always right twice a day. The architecture here are mostly based on Southern Spain – Elvis noted that the church’s roof resembled an Andalucian mosque. That’s because most of the initial Spanish invaders were from that region.

We ended our day exploring the Temple of The Sun – used to be an Incan temple but the Spanish built a church on top of it. Following an Earthquake, Incan walls were revealed and surprisingly, still very well intact with loads of detail on there. There was a bell tower that we could climb up to where we got a view of the city. Other than that – we tried some Picarones (fried dough in syrup) and Lucuma Shake (a fruit native to South America that Elvis mentioned tastes like peanut butter – I don’t think so, Elvis). These are things I still think about today and I wish today, had immediate access to.

In our final few days in Cusco, we pretty much explored the rest of the city. We paid a visit to the head of the Puma-shaped city of Cusco, Saqsaywaman. The site was impressive – covered a huge area with a view looking over all of Cusco. The walls were made up of massive monolithic blocks that left us wondering how they got them up there in the first place. There were loads of fun facts about the site as well – walls were zig-zagged to represent thunderbolts, and parts of the walls were modelled after different animals including the Guinea Pig. We were also shown impressive Incan hydraulic ingenuity as well. Along the way, our guide, Edmundo enthusiastically told me how he was gonna make my phone “magical” and he did take pretty impressive (and hilarious) photos of us. We also had fun sliding down a bunch of rocks on an archaeological site only to be told moments later by Edmundo that we were next to an area where they found mummies.

As for the rest of Cusco, we explored different neighbourhoods and went back to San Pedro market to explore the shops and streets we previously never explored (and found some cool stuff too other than more varieties of potato).

We then ended our trip with a chocolate-making workshop – never knew brewed Cacao drink was a thing. Also, I had chilli, salt and cinnamon in my chocolate. We also made a bunch of people clap and shout “Oi! Oi!” to Chan Mali Chan, a Singaporean folk song.

Vinicunca

This was our last of our three hikes, and our roughest. Our guide Tito, like all of our other guides, mentioned that we were very special. Agreed – the weather was almost perfect, and it just so happens that our entrance fee to the mountains were waived because the tribes based there had a little conflict over who got to keep the money. The top of Vinicunca, also known as Rainbow Mountain, was at an elevation above 5000m. If we made it, that would be the highest I’ve ever been in my life, and possibly, for a long time. After all of the altitude sickness I’ve experienced, yeah I don’t intend to go that high again anytime soon. The trek profile all the way up, assuming if it were at sea level, would supposedly be just a regular walk in the park. Reality is, altitude made it seem like a route march of some sort. Our guide brought with him an oxygen tank and mentioned to give a shout if we ever needed it. When our hike started, our group spread out because some of us fared better than others, and funny enough, we couldn’t spot our guide so I guess we’ll do without the oxygen tank then. We were assured that we could take our time but the irony was we had to meet at 10:10 at the top so I guess that wasn’t at all true.

The views were some of the best I’ve seen the entire trip – glacier capped mountains, villages in the valley below, llamas staring down at us like the majestic creatures they are. What I was more fascinated by were the local villagers running up and down the mountain in their sandals, while we were hyperventilating trying to catch our breath making baby steps. Absolutely crazy. The final 200m was rough – I stopped and fell behind for quite a bit because I started feeling dizzy, and the world started rocking around me. Took a few stops to re-orientate myself. When we finally got to the top – the views were magnificent. It wasn’t just the Rainbow Mountain bit, but the other mountains and the valley around us were spectacular too. It was a relatively clear day as well.

Our hike didn’t just end there – we decided to continue into the Red Valley, which was such a sight. There was this huge transition from the rocky plains into this sea of red.

Lima

We meant to explore a little more of Lima (we missed out Centro Historico) but instead, we experienced one of the joys of staff travel. The afternoon before, we tried for 3 consecutive flights and we couldn’t get on any of them because they were full. Well, no biggie for us – we spent a couple of hours at the airport until we finally got on the 4th try. It’s crazy that there are 35 flights a day on A319s & 20s and they’ve managed to sell them out. Need to commend the LATAM staff though who helped us relist and drag our luggage across gates! Maybe Cusco didn’t want us to leave.

Lima was a sidequest-oriented thing. We kinda knew where the main areas were but we didn’t know specifically what were there. In fact, we didn’t realise our hotel was next to a pre-Incan site. It wasn’t small either – archaeologists took decades to uncover what we were able to see today, and they expect to spend a couple of decades more. Huaca Pucllana was built as a temple dedicated to the sea, and it was used by different civilizations for multiple purposes including as a burial site. It was pretty interesting to see up close how they’ve constructed the temple using millions of mud bricks, and how they’ve buried people in the past.

Later, we took a walk along the coastal cliffs of Miraflores. I was particularly excited because living in the outskirts of London, I hadn’t smelt or seen the sea in ages. It’s crazy to think that if you were to sail in a straight line from the coast, you’d have to go through the vast South Pacific and hit the shores of Australia.

We then took an Uber to the Barranco district where we aimlessly explored different streets and alleyways. There were loads of murals to hunt, interesting shops, and stuff we didn’t expect like an old electric tram, an electric museum, and a Christmas Market. The neighbourhoods we explored (Miraflores and Barranco) – we appreciated the fact that the houses here, though modern, had some character to them. We compared them to the houses we’d typically see in Singapore (which are uninspiring). And yes, we were also very nosy – we did peep a little into people’s houses.

As the “bubbly feeling” from the altitude pills was long gone, a different kind of buzz remained. Peru was no longer a collection of browser tabs, history videos, and anxious Google searches about oedemas. It was no longer an abstract, faraway place on the other side of the world. It was now a physical memory: the throbbing headache in Chinchero, the taste of a Lucuma shake, the sheer panic of an unconfirmed standby ticket and getting chased by a pack of dogs, the breathtaking, oxygen-starved awe at the top of Vinicunca. It was also a trip of “death stairs” with epic views, kindness from guides, and history so immense it rearranged my perspective. The “grand adventure” we’d plotted on that Excel sheet as intricately as a carved single Incan brick had happened. It was real, and so much more magnificent (and exhausting) than any documentary could ever show. Whilst it wasn’t a disaster, ultimately, it was the place that had absolutely, thoroughly ruined us, in a good way. Like that cheeky grin of a flight attendant, I looked back at this trip the same way.

Peru was a good introduction to South America. It was something I would definitely consider as a trip of a lifetime. For more photos of my Peruvian trip, head over to https://www.behance.net/itsdadanial
A Hike Along The White Cliffs of The South Downs

April 21st, 2022

On one of those rare occasions when the weather wasn’t as cloudy or rainy as it usually is, we decided to go on a hike on the south coast of England. We boarded a train bound for Eastbourne, where we would start our hike. Our hike covered places such as the Beachy Head Cliffs, the Birling Gap, the Seven Sisters Cliffs, Cuckmere Haven, and finally, ending in Seaford. The hike lasted for 6 and a half hours over 20 kilometres, but that was largely because we took our time and we gave ourselves some time to rest at various points along the way.

Eastbourne, the town where we decided to start our hike, is very accessible with frequent trains calling here from London or Gatwick Airport (about less than an hour from Gatwick). You can also choose to start your hike from Seaford, which is roughly an hour away from Brighton on Bus 12X. We chose to start at Eastbourne because we could start our hike right away once we arrived. Additionally, most of the points of interests are accessible on 12X as well, however, points such as Beachy Head is only accessible on 13X, which only works on Weekends and Public Holidays.

Eastbourne Train Station

Eastbourne is pretty much a cute, scenic coastal town. It’s what I like to call a mini-Brighton. There are tons of Victorian-era buildings and a nice boardwalk that extends out from the beach. Well, we didn’t choose to spend time here since we were more into the hiking bit. Essentially, for this hiking trail, all we had to do was follow the coastline and follow the signposts that directed us along the south coast trail.

Eastbourne Beach

At the start of South Downs Way, we start to get a taste of the first of many inclines that we were going to face on our hike. At the top of the first hill at the end of Eastbourne beach, we had a nice bird’s eye view of the town.

View of Eastbourne

After a steep incline which needed at least 2 breaks, we arrived at our first checkpoint, the Beachy Head Cliffs. This was where we finally got to see clearly the huge pristine-white limestone cliffs that lined the coast. They were beautiful especially as they contrasted with the light blue waters of the English channel. Here, there was the Beachy Head lighthouse standing pretty much on its own away from the coastline. Well, according to some people, this was one of the best photographed lighthouses in the country, and I can understand why.

The Beachy Head Lighthouse

Our hike to the next stop wasn’t particularly too difficult. Along the way, there were families having their picnics, and couples walking their dogs. Surprisingly, there were also children playing and running around close to the cliff’s edge. Along the way we passed by Belle Tout lighthouse, and a huge fragrant yellow flower field which greeted us to the view of the Seven Sisters Cliffs in the distance.

Belle Tout Lighthouse

Field of Flowers

We finally arrived at Birling Gap where we got a sweeping view of the Seven Sister’s Cliff from atop a hill. At low tide, there is also a beach that we could access to get up close to the cliffs themselves. There was a café and a visitor centre as well. Here, we took our first long rest as we appreciated the scenery and enjoy a little bit of the sea breeze.

Birling Gap and the Seven Sisters Cliffs

Next was the challenging bit of the hike. This was when we walked along the Seven Sisters Cliffs themselves. We were there wondering why they were called the Seven Sisters Cliffs and we eventually figured (the hard way) that there were 7 hilltops along this stretch of cliffs. The inclines and declines were all of varying degrees of steepness with some requiring us to be careful of where we were setting our foot on. There were also rabbit burrow holes that we had to be careful of as well.

Hiking along the Seven Sisters Cliffs

After conquering the seven hilltops along the Seven Sisters Cliffs, we descended along an extremely steep decline (that gave us matching white butts) that lead us to Cuckmere Haven which was a very tranquil beach with nice views of both the ocean and the cliffs. We spent some time here to rest as we just stared at the waves crashing against the shore.

Cuckmere Haven

In between where we were and our final point-of-interest, there was a crossing at the mouth of Cuckmere River that would show up only on lower tides. However, at that time, the tide wasn’t low enough so we had to go the long way round to get to Seaford Head. Along the way, we cut across a cow and sheep field along the Cuckmere River to get to the other side.

Eventually, we arrived at Seaford Head, where we got another vantage point of the Seven Sisters Cliffs. We took another rest on one of the benches there and we almost fell asleep as the sea breeze kissed our faces and we succumbed to the hypnotic sounds of the waves. We picked a really nice spot that had a view which looked like something out of a postcard with the coastguard cottages in the foreground and the cliffs in the background.

The Seven Sisters Cliffs with Coastguard Cottages in the Foreground

The Seven Sisters Cliffs from a different vantage point

Afterward, we walked to the nearest bus stop in Seaford and boarded the 12X bus back to Eastbourne. Overall, this was a pretty nice scenic hike especially if you’re thinking of doing an outdoor activity on the south coast of England!
6 Days in Iceland

April 15th, 2022

Unlike my other trips, this was the only trip I carefully picked the dates of my travel. For a lifetime, I have always longed to see the Northern Lights myself. I was told that tourists aren’t exactly lucky largely because of the weather or they came when there was no solar activity. Months prior to my trip, I studied the solar cycle, weather trends, squeezed in free dates in between my lectures and my shifts. All of this triangulated me to the first week of April, also incidentally, the first week of Ramadan. Eventually, all of that effort paid off as I got to see the Northern Lights clearly for 2 days in a row. While I did come to Iceland mainly for the Northern Lights, Iceland unexpectedly gave me so much more, making this one of the best weeks I’ve spent in my life.

To be honest, I didn’t plan my trip until I actually got there. I got a little too caught up with my coursework. In fact, I spent my first night underneath my blanket Googling what’s interesting to see or do. While I initially hoped to rent a car, eventually, I decided to join tour groups instead over the course of the next week. I found some really good ones on platforms such as Viator and GetYourGuide. Plus, they provide hotel pickups as well! I stayed in the north side of Reykyavik, in full view of the Esja mountain range, and the view was like something out of a postcard.

Day 1

The morning after my flight, before my scheduled Horseback Tour, I decided to have an aimless sightseeing walk around Reykjavik. Everything was pretty much accessible on foot as the city isn’t exactly that huge. Down the streets, I found a mix of old and new buildings, all kinds of street art, as well as parks. Basically, I walked a loop around the city starting from the Sun Voyager, through the streets surrounding the Hallgrímskirkja area, into the city centre, and back.

The Sun Voyager

Street Art in Reykjavic

A Street in Reykjavic

Shophouses in Reykjavic

Hljómskála Park

A street in the City Centre

The main landmark towering over the city is the Hallgrímskirkja. Built in the 1980s, it has since become an icon of Iceland. The church was designed in such a way that it represented the natural features of Iceland. Its winged structure resembles basalt columns, while its triangular structure resemble that of mountains and glaciers.

Hallgrímskirkja

I was able to enter the church’s chamber and occasionally, there are organ concerts that anyone can sit in and listen to. The organ pipes were huge and were featured prominently in the middle of the chamber.

Chamber of the Hallgrímskirkja

Organ Pipes of the Hallgrímskirkja

The church also had a bell tower that I was able to climb to catch breathtaking sweeping views of Reykjavik.

Reykjavik with the Esja Mountain Range in the background

On my way back to my accommodation, there was a glass building called the Harpa, which was a concert and conference hall. The design was inspired by a honeycomb structure and it was a nice building especially to take photos of.

Interior of The Harpa

For the 2nd half of the day, I booked a Horseback tour with Solhestar to visit some red lava formations somewhere southeast of Reykjavik. Our driver took us to a place called Rauðhólar which was a cluster of remnants of pseudo-craters, common across Iceland. Pseudo-craters are formed by explosive steam when hot lava traverses over a wet surface such as a lake or a swamp. At the stable, we had to gear up a winter riding jacket and I was introduced to my horse, Valiant, who was going to take me around the area.

Icelandic Horses are pretty unique. Like other horses, they are able to walk, trot, and canter. However, unlike other horses, they are also able to, what Icelanders call, tölt and skeið. All you need to know is that they have the capability of moving stably at high speeds. There were points in the tour where the horses sped up, and as how I was taught how to trot back in England, I naturally lifted my back up and followed the rhythm of the trot. However, the guide insisted that I leave my back on the saddle, and surprisingly, it was pretty smooth.

The tour was about an hour long; it sounds short but felt really long, especially when you’re on the back of a horse the entire time. There were some really good photo opportunities along the way, however, it is not advisable to take your phone out on the move as there were many puddles and mud, and the horse will be traversing small bodies of flowing water.

For dinner, I had a really cheap but sumptuous meal at 101 Reykjavik Street Food, a small restaurant on Rainbow Street. I was served traditional Fish Stew (mashed fish with potatoes) and some sweet rye bread. It doesn’t sound much but it’s absolutely delicious, and it’s one of my favorites from Iceland.

After dinner, I headed over to the central bus station to catch a bus to see the Northern Lights in a remote area to get away from all of the light pollution. Before moving off, I was ecstatic to learn that there was good solar activity and clear weather, which were ideal conditions to be able to see the northern lights clearly. When we arrived at the sighting location, I was completely mesmerized by the sight of the lights. The lights are a little different from what you see in photos; from a first glance, they looked white, like a long huge cloud across the sky. I didn’t waste time to take a couple of photos, unfortunately however, they weren’t clear due to windy conditions that didn’t allow my phone to remain on a stable foundation. However, I was a little lucky the night after (spoiler).

The Northern Lights can only be seen between September and April, and the high chances of activity are every 20-25 days.

Day 2

On Day 2, I boarded a tour of The Golden Circle. The Golden Circle is a route northeast of Reykjavik and serves as a fantastic introduction to what Iceland has to offer. The route goes through a number of natural wonders including Þingvellir National Park, Gullfoss, and the Haukadalur Geysir area. On our way to Þingvellir, one of the most interesting things that I’ve noticed is that the landscape changes dramatically every 20-30 minutes. For one moment, the landscape is covered with snow, and then greenery in the next. This is pretty much a recurring theme for my road trips in the coming days where the scenery would change completely every couple of miles. This is due to a combination of many environmental factors such as topography, weather, as well as geothermal activity.

Þingvellir, our first stop, is an important historical and natural location. Firstly, located here is the world’s oldest parliament established in the 900s. It also used to be where historically, travelers during the Viking Age would gather in July to trade goods.

Site of the World’s Oldest Parliament

Secondly, this site is also only one of the few places in the world where the rift between the North-American and the Eurasian plates is visible. Every year, the two plates drift at an average of 2cm. There is a pathway between the two plates that you can walk through and gaze at the two huge ridges that represent each plate. Interestingly, this pathway used to be a road and in the process of converting it into a pathway, they were surprised to find a huge gap underneath the road.

Next, we headed over to Gulfoss, a canyon waterfall. It’s also known as the Golden Waterfall as it takes a golden color on a sunny day. The waterfall is fed by Langjökull, a long glacier that you can see from afar.

Langjökull

Gulfoss

Gulfoss Canyon

Afterward, we went over to Haukadalur Valley, where we got to visit a Geysir park. Geysers are made possible due to shallow bodies of flowing magma underneath the surface that heats groundwater. The constriction at the mouth of the geyser, causes water to burst, giving the occasional eruptions that you see at the surface. One thing to note when visiting the Geysir park is to never get too close to the geysers due to hot boiling water. Also, like most volcanic areas in Iceland, the area will smell like rotten eggs due to the presence of hydrogen sulfide, a gas produced from volcanic activity.

I headed back for dinner at Café Loki where I got myself a platter of a mix of different Icelandic food such as salmon on rye bread and fish stew. I also got a chance for the first time to try fish jerky which makes a really nice snack when combined with butter.

On my way back to my accommodation, I got a notification that there was high solar activity through a Telegram channel that I was in. I quickly went to the Solar Voyager area to spot the lights, and lo and behold – the Northern Lights manifested before my eyes.

Day 3

On Day 3, I decided to do some whale watching. Honestly, when I first booked this tour, I wasn’t very optimistic. I have always had the thought that the whales would likely avoid areas where large ships would traverse – I was wrong. We first set out from a historic harbor towards Akranes, a small town up north of Reykjavik. The area is also known Hvalfjarðarsveit, or Whale Fjord, due to the whale activity there. As we were on the way there, another boat reported seeing dolphins which I didn’t get to see for myself. However, soon, we got to see our first sight of humpback whales.

There are numerous tricks to anticipate spotting whales. Firstly, keep a lookout for birds. As whales rise to the surface, some of the seafood that whales feed on would be ejected through their blowholes, attracting marine birds. So wherever birds are anticipating food, that is where a whale would most likely have been. Secondly, blowholes usually would appear a couple of seconds before the whales would rise to the surface. Also, the blowholes are very visible from afar especially on a clear day.

For the rest of the day, I spent some time exploring more of the city centre, just going in and out of shops just to burn time.

For dinner, I went to another Icelandic restaurant called Salka Valka, and hands down – this was the best restaurant I’ve been to all of my time here. I had one of their mixed platters with fish of the day, sweet potato, some salad, rice, and sweet rye bread.

Day 4

On Day 4, I went on a tour of the south coast of Iceland. I visited places such as Seljalandsfoss, Skógafoss, Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach, Vik, and Jökulsárlón Iceberg Lagoon. Along the way we saw breathtaking views, Icelandic horses, as well as lone, red churches standing out in contrast to the landscape.

For our first stop – the Seljalandsfoss waterfalls area is fed by Eyjafjallajökull, a glacier atop a volcano with the same name. This volcano is well known to be the volcano that erupted in 2010 causing a huge disruption to European aviation. There is an area around the falls where you can walk around behind the falls to get a different view. However, due to icy conditions, this was closed.

Just a 5-minute walk from this waterfall, there is a hidden waterfall called Gljufrabui, which makes for a very nice photo spot.

Afterward, we headed over to Skógafoss, which is one of the largest waterfalls in Iceland. There is a trail that leads up all the way to the top of the waterfall that gives you a nice bird’s eye view of the area.

Next up was the Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach. The sand is black due to volcanic activity when hot lava cools to form black sediments. There are also other geographic formations on the beach as well such as caves and basalt columns. Just some things to take note – don’t get too close to the beach as the waves are really powerful (you can draw a straight line from the beach to Antarctica) and it is advisable not to go into the caves as there are reports of boulders falling from the roof.

Nearby, we headed to Vic, a small but important town for ships due to its location in the middle of the south coast. There is nothing much here but the town makes for a very picturesque place.

Next, we made our way to Jökulsárlón Iceberg Lagoon through Iceland’s largest desert. This was where the landscape completely changed every 30 minutes. There was a grassy plain, a snow-covered lava field, and a black-sand desert; and these rotated and shuffled every now and then. It’s one of the main reasons why I’m so intrigued by Iceland’s geography.

At Jökulsárlón Iceberg Lagoon, we first made our way to Diamond Beach where the residue of icebergs from the lagoon would get pushed back to the beach by the wave, creating this blue, ice-lined beach. Apparently, if you’re lucky enough, you’ll be able to see seals going up and down the lagoon from the beach. However, since the river was flowing faster downstream at the time, this wasn’t the case.

We then walked upwards to the lagoon itself. It was strewn with icebergs of different sizes separated from Vatnajökull, Europe’s largest glacier. This is possible due to the effects of global warming with the lagoon growing in size every year.

Day 5

On Day 5, I went on a tour of the Snæfelsness Peninsula which was on the west coast of Iceland. The key places that we visited were Kirkjufell Mountain, Lóndrangar, Búðakirkja (Black Church), Ytri Tunga Beach, and Gerðuberg Cliffs. I was quite optimistic about this tour given that the weather was sunny in Reykjavik. However, once we stepped foot onto the peninsula strong winds and snow hit us in the face. Literally. And it was painful. The visibility got pretty bad and the roads were unsafe for driving. For the whole tour, our guide had to drive really slowly to get from point to point and stop concurrently due to strong winds. None of these exactly dampened my excitement though, as I felt that the experience as a whole really fun (maybe not quite for others).

Kirkjufell Mountain

After Kirkjufell Mountain, we headed over to Lóndrangar where we had views of the ridged-coastline which look like something out of a fictional movie. The winds were especially very powerful considering that we were facing directly against the Atlantic Ocean.

We then paid a visit to Búðakirkja, also known as the Black Church. The church was painted in tar, giving it its black color. Given the weather conditions, the church makes for good photos due to the contrast.

Next, we went to Ytri Tunga Beach where there was a colony of seals. The seals are pretty shy so most of them would lie on the rocks far from the shore. However, we got to see some up-close either lounging in the waters or fighting/playing with each other, whatever it is that seals do.

Finally, we visited Gerðuberg Cliffs, which was a long line of basalt columns. They weren’t exactly clear due to the snow but the area makes up to be very scenic.

Gerðuberg Cliffs

Day 6

They say that one of the few things that you have to do in Iceland is to go on a hike. So, I booked a hike on one of the glaciers on the south coast of Iceland called Sólheimajökull, or Home of The Sun Glacier. This glacier is part of a larger glacier called Mýrdalsjökull which sits on top of Mt. Katla, which is an active volcano that is long overdue for an eruption. This hike was the best experience I’ve had in Iceland and it’s something I would recommend many to do.

Sólheimajökull

At base camp, we were given a harness, a helmet, an ice pick, and ice crampons for us to be able to walk on the glacier. Safety is of paramount importance here. As long as you follow instructions from your guide and remain attentive to your surroundings, you’ll be fine. The area itself risks things such as boulders falling from cliffs leading to the glacier itself, falling caves, as well as cracks as deep as 40 metres opening up. If anyone is thinking about climbing or even getting close to a glacial area, do closely follow the advise of a guide.

Once we got our equipment and a briefing, we followed our guide to the glacier itself. It was a little scary thinking about slipping walking on pure ice but once we got the hang of how our crampons worked, everything seemed fine. The glacier was covered in a mixture of snow and volcanic ash, and it is important that we kept a single file to avoid dropping into deep cracks or holes (that’s what the harness is for in case you fall into one).

One of the things that struck me from what the guide told us about the glacier is that it was progressively shrinking and breaking largely due to the effects of global warming. Additionally, the glacier changes its shape beyond recognition every few weeks or even days. This tour was the closest you can get to see for yourself the effects of climate change. From the expanding cracks to melting pieces of ice.

One of the best parts about this hike was that I got a chance to try and climb an ice wall. Our guide gave a quick tutorial on how to do it and the rest of us simply followed. Essentially, we had to lean forward, kick our crampons towards the ice, and use the ice pick as support.

So that was all I did in Iceland! One of the best experiences I’ve ever had in my life.
Wandering Around Catalonia

February 5th, 2022

After my first course submission for 2022, I decided to go for my first solo trip of the year and so I booked a flight to Barcelona. I gave myself around 4 days there, but I wasn’t just confined to the city itself. I also did a few day trips to towns and cities around Catalonia including Montserrat, Tarragona, and Girona. Well, 4 days seemed short but I managed to pack in a lot of things mainly because I was traveling solo.

Day 1

After spending a night after my flight, I made my way to the nearest metro station. Along the way, I came across Casa Batllo. This building also known as Casa Dels Ossos or House of Bones stands out as a stark representation of Modernist Catalonian architecture. It was first constructed in 1877 and was then redesigned in 1904 by Antoni Gaudí, a well-known architect for his works including the famous Sagrada Família which was my next destination.

Casa Batllo

The Basílica de la Sagrada Família is essentially one of the major attractions in the city. Starting its construction in 1882, this basilica is still under construction, and works are expected to be completed beyond 2026. Some of its unique features include the use of a mix of both gothic and modernist Catalonian architecture, the huge spires that overlook the city, as well as the detailed sculptures on the facade. As I entered the basilica, I was mesmerized by the huge columns and nave vaults, and the lights that shone through the colorful stained windows.

Sagrada Família

Afterward, I headed over to Barri Gòtic, or the Gothic Quarter to have my lunch as well as explore some of Barcelona’s medieval historical sites. Every alleyway and every street was pretty interesting to explore. I stumbled upon different kinds of restaurants, shops, and cafes. Some of the sites that I visited included the Cathedral of Barcelona, La Casa de l’Ardiaca, and the photogenic Carrer del Bisbe.

Cathedral of Barcelona

La Casa de l’Ardiaca

Carrer del Bisbe

Nearby, I visited the Mercado de La Boqueria which was a famous market that sold all sorts of things such as meats, sweets, as well as fruits, vegetables, and other sorts of food.

Next, I walked down the La Rambla to hop on the metro to Vallcarca on my way to Park Güell. The walk up to Park Güell wasn’t exactly easy as I had to climb up steep hills to get there, but along the way, I got a glimpse of some of the neighborhoods. Once I’ve passed the main entrance, there was more climbing to do, and I eventually, arrived at this lookout point that rewarded me with stunning views of the city. Afterward, I went down to the Greek Theatre to take a look at the intricate mosaics, and buildings also designed by Antoni Gaudi.

After exploring parts of Park Güell, I walked through some neighborhoods to get to Puente de Mühlberg to watch the sunset.

Day 2

The morning after, I caught an hour train that took me to Montserrat. Montserrat got its name from its serrated look, and the moment I caught sight of the mountain, I was just amazed at the scenery. I hopped on another train from a town at the base of the mountain that took me up to a monastery called the Santa Maria de Montserrat. This sanctuary holds an important place as a religious retreat for Catalonians and they say that you’re not Catalonian if you’ve never hiked up here which was crazy because this was at an altitude of around 720 meters above sea level.

After exploring the monastery, I decided to go for a hike and climbed up one of the suggested routes to get better views of the mountain range.

Day 3

On my third day, I decided to have my first proper day trip. I boarded a regional train to Tarragona, which was a city south of Barcelona. Along the way, I had scenic views of beaches as well as some coastal towns.

Tarragona is well known for its rich history. From the Roman Empire to Islamic Rule, and then to the Aragon Kingdom, various kingdoms have left their mark on this city. The first stop I made was at a Roman Amphitheatre where gladiator fights & public spectacles once took place. Built in the 2nd Century AD, over the years, this amphitheater was utilized for many purposes including being a church, and it was finally abandoned in the mid-20th century after serving its purpose as a prison.

Roman Amphitheatre

Next, I visited the Circ Romà which was a 1st Century AD Roman circus. It was pretty interesting to explore all of the tunnels and chambers that were under the circus itself. There was also a tower that gave me a nice view of the beachfront.

Next, I explored the Old City. Every street was just beautiful. There were really old houses, restaurants, cafes, and cathedrals for me to see. Nearby, I climbed up the old Roman Walls which had old fortification artifacts as well as different views of the city.

Roman Walls

From the city walls, I walked through the streets to get to the old Roman Forum, where administrative matters used to take place. What was left were just fragments of walls and columns.

Roman Forum

Then, I took a bus towards the North and hiked through some trails and hills to get to an old Roman Aqueduct. Photos don’t really do justice but it was really huge. You were also able to walk across the aqueduct as well and get a view of the forests to the north of Tarragona.

Roman Aqueduct

As the sun was setting, I quickly hiked and took a bus back towards the beach to catch the sunset at Punta del Miracle.

Day 4

On my final day, I boarded a high-speed train to Girona. Girona is located in the north of Barcelona and it takes just 40 minutes to get there. Just like Tarragona, this city is also full of historical sites. The only difference is that Girona is more medieval in nature as compared to Tarragona, and most of the sites here were from the 10th century AD. Spoiler alert: Girona was probably the most beautiful place I’ve seen in the past 4 days.

First, I visited Barri Vell, also known as the Old Quarter. From the various bridges, you had views of the colorful buildings that lined the River Onyar.

Within the Old Quarter, there were various sites such as the Old Fortress, the Banys Arabs, which used to be a Public Bath, and the Cathedral of Girona. There were also huge medieval city walls that you can actually climb to get sweeping views of the city.

Banys Arabs

Cathedral of Girona

View from the City Walls

Next, I boarded the bus further up north to Besalú. Along the way, I caught views of the countryside as well as views of the Pyrenees mountain range which separated Spain from France and Andorra. Besalú is a town that used to be a fort. The fort from the middle-ages still exists today, and I had a picturesque view of it from a nearby bridge. There was a bridge that I could cross to get to the old city itself which was pretty fun to explore. I genuinely didn’t know what I was expecting at every turn and I just found interesting things one after another. Given the pandemic, it was actually pretty quiet, and loads of shops were closed.

And so that was my time in Catalonia. A nice 4-day solo trip packed with lots of interesting things to see and do.
Weekend in Penang

January 12th, 2020

This was rather impromptu. Seats were running out. Ticket prices were twice they were a few weeks ago. But I really needed to take a break. And so I did. But was it worth it? Well, yes. Anyway, I’ve always wanted to visit Penang. Georgetown, specifically. Being someone who’s passionate in history and the arts, the city is like the perfect city to pay a visit. Plus, I heard about the food.

Day 0

I took a 1.5-hour evening flight onboard Scoot from Singapore to Penang, and from the airport, we took a Grab cab to our hostel in Georgetown which took another 30-40 minutes. For the next two days, Grab was our main mode of transportation since it’s the most convenient way to pay for and book a cab. The hostel we booked was The Frame Guesthouse, and it was a pretty awesome place to stay in, especially for just $12/night. By the way, the pictures for this place online don’t do justice. Props to a certain someone who’s good at finding places like these.

After unpacking our stuff, we headed over nearby next to the Kapitan Keling Mosque for some late-night Nasi Kandar with some Papadams at the side. It was delicious but I was stupid enough not to take a photo. I’m sorry.

Shophouses in Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

Day 1

Streets of Georgetown

For the first day, our objective was to go for all of the street art since all of them were within walking distances from our hostel. After breakfast, we set out at 9am and navigated our way through the streets in search for all of the street art we marked on our map.

While street art were our main destinations, along the way, we had a nice glimpse of the streets and typical life here in Georgetown. Once in a while, you’ll see Trishaws coming around the corners, hear trumpets and bells from Chinese temples, smell whiffs of spices as you pass Indian tuck shops, and once in a while, you’ll hear the call to prayer from different mosques across the city.

It’s no wonder that this city is one of the most “Instagrammed” cities in the world. We actually had a really fun time coming up with creative poses with the street art here. And there was plenty of street art so you can only imagine how much spam there is in our photo albums.

Chew Jetty

After covering all of the street art, we walked over to Chew Jetty which was a Chinese settlement on stilts. There was a narrow boardwalk walkway with shops mainly selling souvenirs and snacks as you walk further towards the sea.

At the end of the boardwalk, you’ll get a view of the channel between mainland Malaysia and Penang Island, and in the distance, you’ll be able to see Penang Bridge.

Kek Lok Si Temple

After having a hearty lunch nearby at an old-school eatery, we took a Grab to head over to Kek Lok Si Temple located at the side of a hill overlooking Georgetown. The temple was huge and impressive with tons of lanterns hanging by the ceilings and intricate Chinese art lining the walls and columns. There weren’t that many visitors that day so it was really peaceful and quiet. Inside, you were able to see worshippers conducting prayers as well as an area where you were able to write your name against colourful streaks of fabric.

You were able to climb to the higher floors of the temple where you would be able to sit down, relax, and appreciate the view of Georgetown.

Penang Hill

I have to admit that prior to moving off to Penang Hill, we actually spent quite a while debating on whether we should actually visit Penang Hill since we already had a nice view of the city from the temple, plus we were also tired. However, we made the decision to move off towards Penang Hill that evening, and we never regretted that decision. To get to the top of Penang Hill, we had to take a tram ride which cost around $10 2-way per person.

Other than the cooler environment, at the top, we had breathtaking views of the city, and it was more breathtaking when the sun started to set.

As it got dark, we concluded the day with street food at a street somewhere near our hostel.

Day 2

On the second day, we decided to visit some historical sites including the mansions that were around the city.

Peranakan Mansion

Our first stop was the Peranakan Mansion which also was a walking distance from the hostel. By the time we got there, there were already quite a number of visitors. On top of that, there was some shooting event as well so the place was a little busy.

For someone like me who has never been to a Peranakan-styled mansion before, as you enter, you’ll be amazed at how grand it is. From the furniture to the tiles to the things on display, you’ll find loads of things that you’ll associate with being owned by someone of a higher-status. Attached to the mansion itself, you would find a museum where they housed a number of historical items belonging to the previous owners.

After spending some time here, we had some mandatory laksa somewhere close to our next destination.

Blue Mansion

The Blue Mansion, was built by Cheong Fatt Tze, a prominent Chinese businessman and politician, at the end of the 19th century. In 1989, the mansion was then purchased by a group of local Penang individuals in a bid to preserve the building. Since then, it has won a number of awards from UNESCO. This place was also known as where they filmed a scene in Crazy Rich Asians.We bought tickets for an awesome group tour which was about $6 per person. Sally, the tour guide, on top of being entertaining, she provided us with a lot of interesting information about the mansion. Just like the previous mansion, I was amazed at how grand it was as well.

The visit to the Blue Mansion was pretty much our last major activity of the day (and of the trip). After getting some local lunch nearby, we collected our bags at the hostel and headed back to the airport.Overall, we had a really pleasant and fun experience in this town. From the sights to the food, everything was pretty awesome. The only thing that I dreaded was the fact that we had to return to work the day after 😂

For more photos, head over to Behance!
An Evening in Ayutthaya

March 26th, 2019

While it was more ideal to leave for Ayutthaya from Bangkok in the morning, we only boarded the train for Ayutthaya in the early afternoon since we had plans in the morning. I’ve always wanted to pay a visit to Ayutthaya especially visiting all of the historical monuments and temples that were there. Also, being Siam’s old capital city, I was pretty curious to see what it looked like. It just so happens that the city was the hometown of a friend as well.

There were a number of options of getting there; prebook a taxi, board a bus, or board a train. We decided on the train since it was the more “adventurous and scenic” route. There were a number of train classes and timings that we could choose from. We bought the regular train tickets in the regular class cabin which was about $3 both ways. The journey would take about 1.5-2 hours.

As we arrived in Ayutthaya, there were a number of tuk-tuk drivers quoting their prices for taking us to different temples and historical sites for the day. Without hesitation we just hired one for about $30 which was quite reasonable to me. Anyway, we arrived a little later in the day so we had to rush to the different locations before it got dark, and we also had to catch the sunset.

Wat Yai Chaimongkol

The first stop was Wat Yai Chaimongkol. This temple was built in 1357, and further expansions such as the pagoda that you see as you enter was built in 1592. It was a really impressive temple as you can see Buddhas lining the outer walls, surrounding the huge pagoda in the middle. At the top of the pagoda, you’ll be able to have a nice view of Ayutthaya.

Wat Maha That

Our next stop was Wat Maha That, built in 1374. Today, this massive temple is a shell of its former self, after Burmese armies sacked the temple. Across the temple complex, it will be common for you to see damaged Buddha statues. Being a larger complex, we spent more time here.

Wat Phra Si Sanphet

On the site of this temple in 1350, a grand palace used to be constructed. Later on, it was converted to a temple, and this temple was significant since it was the holiest temple in Ayutthaya when Ayutthaya used to be Siam’s capital. Again, being a shell of its former self, 3 prominent Chedis remain in the temple compound.

Wat Chaiwatthanaram

As the sun started to set, we made our way to Wat Chaiwatthanaram, which was a popular attraction, and a place that you have to be at when the sun sets. When we arrived there, there were already quite a number of tourists exploring the temple.

Overall, it was an awesome experience! If you’re thinking of escaping the busy life of Bangkok, Ayutthaya is just a train ride away!

For more photos, head over to Behance!
6 Hours in Colombo, Sri Lanka

March 21st, 2018

I was on a flight from Bahrain to Singapore with a 6-hour layover in Colombo, Sri Lanka. You see, I’m not the kind of person who would just sit in the airport for 6 hours. While 6 hours may be a short amount of time, I took the chance to quickly visit some popular areas in Colombo, Sri Lanka. I quickly hired a personal taxi at the exit of the airport (I took any price they offered), and I was on my way.

Just a tip – if you ever have a short layover in Colombo, don’t take the risk to go to Colombo, go to Negombo Beach instead! You’ll have a much more relaxing time there as compared to me rushing through different spots in Colombo.

My Sri Lankan friends told me how bad the traffic was in Colombo… and they were right. There was a huge jam close to the city and I was anxious if I was going to be able to make it back to the airport on time. However, the taxi driver assured me that all was okay.

Gangaramaya Temple

My first stop was Gangaramaya Temple, a Buddhist temple located in the heart of the city. It was a really beautiful temple and quiet temple, with some worshipping activities going on as I was there. I took some time to walk around the main temple building, and I also visited the secondary part of the temple that floated above the lake.

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Pettah Market

My next (and final) stop was the surroundings of Pettah Market. There were already a few places that I could drop by there. Petath Market was next to Fort Train Station, which was the Central train station in Colombo. It was really busy – it seemed that everyone was on their way to work. I spent a while walking around the area and trying out some of the food they were selling as the market as well. By the way, everything was super spicy.

There was a floating market nearby too but it was closed.

Wedged in between the streets, there was the Red Mosque. Pretty hard to miss.

Even for 6 hours, I had a really good glimpse of what Colombo was like and I would love to return again for a proper trip!

For more photos, head over to my EyeEm!
Yangmingshan – Where I Tell People I Climbed a Volcano Solo

May 7th, 2017

On the 3rd day of my trip to Taipei, Taiwan, I decided to dedicate the day to visiting Yangmingshan National Park. I set out from my hostel a little later that day since I was a little tired from the previous two days, and after having breakfast at 10am, I made my way towards the National Park.

To get to one of the entrances at the park, I took the train to Jiantan Station on the Red Line, and then took a bus to the Section 1, Hushan Road Entrance. The bus ride towards the National Park was pretty scenic as you move away from the city into the less-developed mountainous areas. Close to the National Park entrance were a couple of houses, but there were some recognisable shops as well such as Starbucks and a 7-11.

The distance from where I started to the top of Mt. Qixing was roughly 4km. It took me around 2.5 hours to reach the top, making some stops midway to take a break and also take a couple of photos. As compared to my previous climb on Bukhansan in South Korea, this climb was so much easier since everything was paved and there were no narrow paths or steep cliffs simultaneously.

Given that the National Park is tropical in nature, there were signs warning you to stay away from poisonous snakes or insects, and the paths were shrouded in trees, bushes and leaves. Of course, being alone, I had to keep my guard up.

Halfway through, I stopped by Qixingshan Park where there were a few huts where some hikers stopped by to rest and a large field where a cute little dog was freely roaming around.

After spending some time resting in the park, I continued my climb on Mt. Qixing. As I got closer to the top, the paths started to become less covered by trees, and grass started to get a lot longer. The sky also started to get covered by the clouds and fog expected at the altitude that I was in. Eventually, I was greeted by awesome views of the surrounding areas. While I couldn’t really see much of Taipei city itself, you pretty much have a bird’s eye view of the National Park itself. Even during the summer, it was pretty windy and cold at the top so I was pretty lucky to bring my jacket and scarf with me.

While I wouldn’t advice anyone to do so, I went back down the same way as I climbed. There were a couple of different routes you could take back down, and you would pass by some interesting things as well such as the landslide-sulphur formation at the side of Mt. Qixing. Evidently, I didn’t plan this very well. However, I got a bus which took me to Shilin Station where there was a popular night market there. And that is an experience for another post.