All posts tagged: asia

Singapore: The World in One City

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Originally posted on mypassengerdiaries:
On a trip to Singapore with our high school friends five years ago, we got separated from the rest of the group. The two of us – plus our best friend – got lost in the middle of the city with no working phones, no maps, and no idea where to go. We walked around with no direction, visiting little shops and trying street foods in a very unfamiliar area. That’s when we saw it: a tiny street with low-rise buildings painted in crazy colors and beautiful murals. We thought it was so different from what we usually saw in Singapore, so we decided to explore. It turned out we were in Haji Lane, just off the Arab Quarter. Boutique stores lined the street, interrupted in parts by chic cafés and restaurants. Beautiful paintings decorated vacant walls, and people lined up to get photos in front of them (we did too!). https://www.flickr.com/photos/134274848@N05/37297234085/in/album-72157686791755273/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/134274848@N05/24353153728/in/dateposted-public/ Just off the street, we could see the Sultan Mosque standing proudly with the Singaporean skyline in the…

A Day in Uluwatu

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TRAVELLING THE WORLD SOLO I awoke after a day exploring Balinese temples and the Ubud area bubbling to the brim with excitement! My best girl Tessa had landed in Bali and I was going to get to spend the day exploring Uluwatu with her. Her boyfriend Benno would also be joining us – but as he’s a pretty good egg, I wasn’t dreading being a third wheel like I normally would. After a morning swim in my little plunge pool, I took a leisurely 10 minute stroll from my villa at Daluman to where she was staying – Acacia Villas. It was located in a bit of a rabbit warren and thus could have proven difficult to find – but Google Maps had my back! Her villa was luxurious. As she was travelling in a group of six people, they were able to splash out and get something extra extravagant and split… View original post 936 more words

Midnight Swims in Bali

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TRAVELLING THE WORLD SOLO Moving my home base from Adelaide to Darwin was something that happened very quickly and something I did for many reasons. Darwin is literally on the other side of the country from Adelaide and the two cities are worlds apart. Darwin is as close to Singapore as it is to Adelaide and as a result – it is a total melting pot of culture. So what prompted the change? I have felt the need for a long term sea change for years now. Adelaide is a wonderful city, but to me it felt stagnant and monotonous, like nothing could ever really surprise me. My ultimate goal is to work with MSF (Doctors Without Borders) and with the Royal Darwin Hospital being the closest tertiary hospital for an enormous catchment area spanning three states, numerous islands and many remote communities – I knew it would be the place to really get… View original post 651 more words

What it’s like to fly business class when you have no business to be flying business class

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Originally posted on Annabel Fenwick Elliott:
The best flying experience of my lyyyfe Last week I was lucky as fuck enough to fly to Australia BUSINESS CLASS. The downside of this is that I’m ruined for life now. I live in London and my father has lived in Australia for some 20 years, so I’ve spent a lot of time on very, very long-haul flights. It’s far from pleasant, of course, being strapped into an upright chair squidged next to strangers and screaming infants for 24 hours but obviously these are first world problems. I’ve developed a formula, and coping mechanisms, and mainly it all revolves around drinking heavily and knocking myself out with sleeping tablets until it’s all over – somehow managing to keep it together during the layover – before emerging, Gollum-like, on the other end. It’s all fucked now that I have experienced what it’s like to fly from London to Australia up at the front of the plane. I flew Cathay Pacific, which I’m told is the best in the world…

Zhujiajiao: A Day Trip Out of Shanghai

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Originally posted on Reverse Retrograde:
We rode a bus out of the heart of Shanghai and into the countryside, over loads of small canals. The bus was just like a normal city bus, but barreling down the highway. The town itself was lovely. It’s a little down-and-dirty in the pits of the touristy shops on tiny lanes, so small that one could probably touch both sides of them if pressed. It’s great. The pace is palpably different from Shanghai. Zhujiajiao is a village of 60,000 to the West of Shanghai. It dates back to at the very least the 1100s, and largely preserved itself during the relative turmoil of the 20th century in China. It’s picturesque, with canals the same reflective verdigree of those in Venezia. The day we visited was hot and muggy, and the cafes along the lanes were simply too tempting. One barmaid shouted, ‘Hello! We have couches!’ as we walked past. One of the weirdest tout-calls I’ve heard in my travels. We took an overpriced but nonetheless fun gondola ride across…

Beer In Situ: Double Feature

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Originally posted on Reverse Retrograde:
This is a special Beer in Situ article: Two beerspots! On one hot, muggy Shanghai afternoon, we made our way first to Daga Brewpub and later to Liquid Laundry downtown. For you, my dear readers, sake…I’ve cut things down slightly for brevity’s sake.  Daga Brewpub Daga Brewpub 37 Taian Lu, near Xingguo Lu, Xuhui District Random, floor-bound marble busts The Space First of all, there is not a brewkit on the premises. It’s not so much a brewpub as a cafe that happens to sell craft beer. Milan-esque, in a way that only people who’ve spent time in Milan will understand. Noveau-Baroque marble busts greet you at the entrance, and the whole place is one well-honed aesthetic. The bar itself is a thing of beauty, a seemingly-antique wooden number that is both understated and striking at once. Unfortunately, smoking is allowed indoors. Meh…just part of life in Shanghai. There is repetitive and mildly stereotypical zither music playing over and over for our first fifteen to twenty minutes in the cafe.…

The Grass Isn’t Always Greener On The Other Side!!!

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Originally posted on Splash Waves Voyage:
There’s nothing wrong with leaving your problems behind and going on vacation, there’s nothing wrong with moving to another country, but don’t always feel that the grass is greener on the other side based on a visit. Visiting a country is totally different then actually living in a country, and most of the time, people have a 6th sense when it comes to knowing if you are a visitor or not. They see it in your body language, it makes them feel happy that you are amazed to be in a place that they are use to and that they see everyday. They treat you extra special, for the most part, and that experience is embedded into your brain and you think you just have to move to that country not taking into consideration of how you are going to feel when you actually have to make a living over there. Nothing wrong with relocating and experiencing a new life and a feel for new energy, but make sure you…

Why am I Dying? (냉방병)

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Originally posted on John Lee Taggart:
I’ve been suffering a little bit recently…and by suffering I mean clinging on for dear life – in fact I even thought about writing out my will, but then realised I don’t own anything of worth so just went back to crying alone instead.  Oh, but for the record my brothers can share my socks out on a first come first served basis. Now I know this sounds a little over the top, and just a smidgen dramatic but I promise you it is (mostly) the truth, and only the truth. You see the thing is these past few days I have felt like the devil himself has clawed himself into my face, rummaged around in my skull, and then worked his way down my entire body before exiting painfully out of my rear end in a fiery burst. He has plagued me with a constantly shivering exterior that would make The Cowardly Lion look broad-shouldered in comparison; he has made sleep a struggling impossibility, and has made food…