day 1 pt 2

When I travel I tend to grab a map, memorize where I am, and where I need to go and then stick a compass in my pocket. This way, if I ever become disoriented, I just have to check if I'm going in the general direction rather than whip out a map to signal to everybody that I'm a tourist.

This was the plan for my first day out. Hit the Ladies Market (flea market), Nathan road, Fa Yuen Street, goldfish market, flower market, bird market and then head on back. I'd then shower and then meet up with Harry and Aaron for Dinner.


I'm not going to ask whether there's a humane way to make these fish these colours. There probably isn't



Apparently, people buy a lot of fish here. There were dozens and dozens of shops like these lining the streets



On my way to the flower and bird market



Some birds for sale. This place I will not visit again. There's something creepy about 100's of birds calling out from cages, many of whom have escaped and fly about you. Also, birds generally eat worms, and insects, which is the other thing that they sell there. I'll spare you the pictures.



That's over $50US a pop!

Day one cont'd

I call Harry when I arrive at the Cityview hotel in Yau Ma Tei. Lucky for me they have an airport shuttle that waits for you at Kowloon station. 2 more points for HK.

We plan to meet up later so I have the morning and the afternoon to explore by myself. My first day in Hong Kong seemed to last forever. Time seems to tick by that way when you have some time to yourself. Which is probably why Asia this time passed by in a wink, whereas Japan seemed more timeless for me.

Here are some pics from my morning walk.



Setting up for the ladies market




Hong Kong, much like Tokyo has lots of alleyways with really soft light pooling into them.



The city is still waking up

Starting all over

So now that I am back I can do proper posts with images that I've actually colour corrected.

Day one


Airports to me constitute the first impression of a country. It's that moment when you meet a person for the first time and they either look you in the eye and shake your hand firmly, or you get a passing glance with a rubbery grip. Hong Kong has a nice airport. It is convenient, well laid out and clean. Furthermore, like any proper airport to a major city, there is a train that will take you into the city. Definitely a good first impression.



I was expecting crazy architecture and neon lights. I've seen the pictures. But standing infront of something like this building and staring (like a tourist) is the only real way to appreciate how this city has come to terms with its architecture and its advertising.

Missing it

Found myself missing vietnamese food today.

Grabbed some Pho and some Nem Nuong. Yum. Would have been nice to wash it down with this:



They didn't have it :P

More Halong

Here is another.

We got lucky that day as the clouds disappeared for a bit of sun. All these pics are out of Picasa so there's very little image manipulation I can do. It really was that nice that day. Especially considering we technically signed up for the tour on the wrong day and so shouldn't have been there anyways.

back in LA

sad.

Asia was awesome.

Here is Halong Bay.



*EDIT* Made it bigger by request

People

I'm about to leave Singapore now. For such a modern city, it's suprisingly hard to find cheap internet. This one cost me $7.80 to buy tea. It seems like the poorer the country, the more available free internet there is. Strange.

Anyways, not much has been done here due to the CRIPPLING HEAT. This place is HOT and HUMID. It's pretty ridiculous. At night and in the mornings, it's quite nice though. Definitely one of the most impressive cities I've ever visited. I could probably live here for awhile. Here are some random Vietnam pics:


Fits four

EARLY morning smoke



Selling at the market



We rode past some REMOTE villages on our cycle tour. These kids were pretty fascinated with us. Didn't know what to do or say, so they just sat on the ground.



This village was less remote and the naked kid ran out from his hut to meet us. The Mother quickly followed.



We biked up a dirt path into a green tea field where workers were picking leaves. I tasted a couple at their insistence. It tasted like strong tea.



Stopped for a lunch break from riding. I think I'm in two of my 3000 pictures. All courtesy of mirrors.

mopeds

No entry on Vietnam would be complete without an ode to the moped. We only saw two accidents, both of them minor. The crazies that ride these things are the bravest people on the planet. Second only to the pedestrians when they try and cross the street.

First prize goes to this guy HOLDING ONTO the refrigerator he just put on his moped.




A lot of the walls in Vietnam are blistered with this stenciled numbers. I have no idea what they mean, but they look cool in a picture.





A store selling helmets. Luckily, everyone seems to wear one here.




Just liked they way these were stacked next to each other, just like the architecture behind it.




I never could quite capture the insanity of how densely packed these suckers get. I think I would need an aerial shot. Here was an attempt.




I snapped this one during an insane rickshaw drive through the city. Definitely a fun ride.




I leave Vietnam tomorrow. I ended up taking over 2000 pics here alone.

planes trains and automobiles

On the last day of our trip to Halong bay, we took a bus to a boat. Hopped on another bus. Ate lunch, then took a different bus to a van, that van took us to Hanoi. We got on a taxi, which brought us to our plane (which we boarded after first taking a bus there). Finally, exiting the airport we were ripped off by a security guard there and ushered into an SUV taxi. We paid about double the rate. Don't trust people in uniform. Below is one of the memorable moments in our van ride from Halong to Hanoi. The man running the van kept adding people along the way. It was ridiculous.

catching up

I'm in Ho Chi Minh now, and have been once again graced with internet access. Being the snob I am, I'm reluctant to post the pics I like best since I don't have a colour calibrated monitor out here, but I'll here are some from Hanoi and the bike tour:

A calm in the ridiculous traffic in Hanoi




We ate at this local lady's house/restaurant




This is a view from the last leg of our bike tour. The road below is the path we took.

bike tour

Dear Jane,

Please spot the health code violation. Those hands are that of a CUSTOMER by the way.

The ride itself was awesome. I have better pics. I'll share them later.

In Vietnam

I am in Vietnam now.

First day continued

I spent the day roaming around the Yau ma tei area, stuffing my face as much as I could. The apartments here have the most interesting facades. Strewn with air conditioners and clothing lines, each unit is tightly packed to the next. After several hours of walking I met up with my friend Harry for some dinner and some pool.

Arrived

 

So I made it to HK. Flight was shorter than I thought due to an overflowing array of movie choices. I also lucked out and for once didn't get the fat person spilling over my chair next to me. It was actually empty. Thank you global recession.

I've forgotten how humid weather feels like because I always seem to visit Toronto when it's nice and cold. Yes, that's right NICE and COLD. HK is a little on the muggy side, and a lot on the smoggy side.

On the plus side, so far, I am taller than everyone that I've seen. (I didn't count the white people)

left overs

kollaboration9_20090221-6, originally uploaded by akim_hobo.

My camera is back from the shop and squeaky clean. Here are some left overs from the show

boots

kollaboration9_20090221-14, originally uploaded by akim_hobo.

The Jazmin sisters' boots.

The guitar of Kina Grannis

kollaboration9 Tilt action

kollaboration9_20090221-3, originally uploaded by akim_hobo.

Had some fun with my new tilt/shift lens before the show. That long line of suits were our ushers.

kollaboration9

kollaboration9_20090221, originally uploaded by akim_hobo.

The red carpet was madness. Outside, it was even more hectic. This is when BOA arrived.

train

toronto_09-001, originally uploaded by akim_hobo.

Took the train yesterday to Kollaboration 9. The show was crazy. 6,300+ people, sold out and then some. I was supposed to be the backstage photographer, but I got caught up in ticket/police/parking/celebrity problems so i only got a couple out from early in the afternoon. Taking the train gave me some photo ideas.

Here is a train in Toronto.

pink

I wanted to print a gigantic flower for my sister's birthday present because she told me how much she liked one hanging on a wall at her wedding.

I ended up stitching a whole series of closeups of this flower together to get this image. It doesn't look it, but there's enough pixels to print it 4 ft x 4 ft. Unfortunately, I didn't think ahead about how I would ship something so big to Toronto. So I ended up only printing it 1 ft x 1 ft.

Oh well, I'll print it huge some day.

billboards

toronto_09-004, originally uploaded by akim_hobo.

If there's one thing I like more than water towers, it's billboards. The above and below pics were taken at the distillery district in Toronto

clear skies

toronto_09-006, originally uploaded by akim_hobo.

I think today it was nice outside. I wouldn't know though because I am sick at home.

I took the above picture waking up one morning in my sister's condo.