Vignettes of the World
My Travel Journal
“Ah Jie, I tell you the saying that we have about the ethnic minorities of Guilin,” Xiaohuang was keen to introduce me to the territorial politics of the province, “ages ago, the different ethnicities fought for land. It is said that those who won the …
Guilin, in Chinese, means “a grove of osmanthus.” The osmanthus is, therefore, in every way representative of Guilin. From the way that osmanthus trees wave fragrance in their native habitat, to the way that its tiny yellow flowers perfume in coffee, the osmanthus stands tall …
My family wanted to visit Guilin for their biannual trip. Unlike my last trip to Guilin, which was a solo adventure in the same year, I had to plan for a group of five adults. There are two older members of the family. As such, …
Panyu is the haven of food in Guangzhou, which is a heaven of food itself. I took my family to Panyu because of the great food, and it certainly did not disappoint. The following is in random order and it is not a ranking. Baomaye …
In early December, the beautiful bald cypress at the Dafushan Forest Park had not yet turned red. There was a whole afternoon of free time, so I decided to take my family for a stroll at the Dafushan Forest Park anyway. In the wintertime, when …
There are endless things to do in Guangzhou, which is known to the Chinese as the City of Rams. In a recent family trip, I took my family first to Panyu, as part of Guangzhou, then we headed on to Guilin in Guangxi Province to …
I had just about a little more than a half day in Osaka and so I decided to visit Shinsekai. Time stopped at Shinsekai after the reconstruction period post WWII. Meaning “New World,” Shinsekai was once a beacon of hope for Osaka. The area developed …
Visitors of Nara must not miss the Nakatanidou mochi as it is certainly a precious intangible heritage of Nara. In my Japanese food entry, the Nakatanidou mochi is the only food that I thought was an absolute must-try in this Japan trip. I passed by …
The Toadai-ji Temple is a significant temple within the grounds of the Nara Park. I simply took a look of its outside, and did not bother to queue a long line to see the big Buddha statue inside. Suffice to say, the imposing Nandaimon Gate …
I had concluded my journey in Kyoto after five full days touring numerous temples for Momiji. It came time for Nara, and I headed out on the slow Nara train in the morning. I arrived into a Nara that was slightly overcast and notably colder …