The LambCutlet Disorganisation

Hadn’t realised it has been over a month since the last Photogasm™, which no doubt would have led to many a frustrations for which I apologise. Singapore in the summer of 2005 was certainly an interesting experience, as from childhood I was told it was “much like Hong Kong, though cleaner and stricter” though now as an adult, was keen to get back into Asia if only for the fact that the cost of living shall be cheaper.

Sod’s Law dictated that on coming up from Alice Springs that my suitcase was to have been delayed, so I only had what I was carrying upon my person which wasn’t the greatest of starts. Turned out to be a blessing as my delayed lugguage entitled me to an automatic SG$120 compensation, which pretty much covered the cost of the hotel I stayed at in Geylang for the 7 days I was in Singapore!

Geylang itself was pretty colourful, packed with about 10 streets worth of stalls all shapes and sizes serving tasty, cheap food pretty much all around the clock! The number of times I got offered “massages” from girls outside certain establishments also caught my eye (and explains why when I was still at the Changi International Airport and getting a hotel room, was asked if I was sure I wanted to be in Geylang). Didn’t actually find out till recently that Geyland is actually the legal red-light district of Singapore…

The smell of Asia gave me a good poking up the nostrils too as Singapore still makes extensive use of open storm drains, the adformentioned food stalls will often put tables and seating right up to them, which combined with the summer heat & humidity, can cook up a rather “fragrant” odour. Ironically, it very much reminded me of the open-air 大牌檔 (Dai Pai Dong) that my relatives and I used to frequent rather a lot, though are now banned in 香港 (Hong Kong) for health and safety reasons!

Anyway, being a rather devilish day today (6th of June, ‘06), it’s enough rambling from me and time to bring forth a new Photogasmic™ explosion, completely uncensored from Singapore! ;) Hold on tight to your knickers…

The 400-ish photos of this little Asian city-state, plus the trip onwards to 香港 (Hong Kong) are listed right here:

1. Republic of Singapore (新加坡共和國/Republik Singapura) - A week from the 10th of August till 17th of August in “Disneyland with a Death Penalty”, better known as the Republic of Singapore (新加坡共和國/Republik Singapura)!
2. 1421 Theory Exhibition (一四二一年理論展) - An exhibition inspired by Gavin Menzies’ pseudoscientific and pseudohistorical book, “1421: The Year China Discovered The World”
3. Zheng He & Maritime Asia Exhibition (鄭和與海洋亞洲展) - The very factual and educational “Zheng He & Maritime Asia Exhibition” at the National Library of Singapore
4. Sentosa Island Resort, Singapore (新加坡聖淘沙休闲度假島/Peta Pulau Sentosa, Singapura) - A day trip on the 13th of August to the island resort of Sentosa on the southern part of Singapore
5. Little India, Singapore (新加坡小印度/Little India, Singapura) - Around and about the district of Little India on the 14th of August and 16th of August
6. Chinatown, Singapore (新加坡牛車水/Kreta Ayer, Singapura) - 77% of Singaporeans are Chinese anyway, so “Chinatown” appears to be a bit of a misnomer. Still this ethnic enclave dating back to British Colonial times is also known as “Ox-cart Water” (牛车水/Kreta Ayer)
7. Kampong Glam, Singapore (新加坡甘榜格南/Kampong Glam, Singapura) - The Kampong Glam district of Singapore, which under the Raffles Plan was originally designated for the Sultan of Singapore and his household, as well as Arab and Malay communities
8. Chinese Garden, Singapore (新加坡裕華園/Chinese Garden, Singapura) - Designed by the Taiwanese Prof. Yuen-chen Yu, the Chinese Garden is an expression of Chinese gardening art covering some 5,800 square meters located on Jurong Lake complete with SMRT station in its namesake!
9. Republic of Singapore (新加坡共和國/Republik Singapura) to 香港 (Hong Kong) - Farewell Singapore (新加坡/Singapura) and time for the next stop of the Asian Invasion… 香港 (Hong Kong)!

For those of you that have been following these Photogasm™ will know the ones from 香港 (Hong Kong) are already published and the 600 from there will make a nice round 1000 photos for today! ;) The 300-ish from the Hong Kong Museum of Art will have to wait till another day after I’ve gone through 雲南 (Yunnan) and 澳門 (Macau)… I’ve been gagging to unleash those and just can’t keep it in any longer. :P

The end of April is upon us and what better way to see it off than having another huge Photogasm™ of knicker elastic straining proportions? ;) Though my stay in the Northern Territory totalled just 7 days where it was mostly at Alice Springs (with the exception of 1 day on a long trip to the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park), it was still very action packed!

That week in the beginning of August ‘05 was to prove an unexpected (though welcome) break from having any Internet connectivity whatsoever. Also, the weather in the Red Centre took a little getting used to as it was the winter season and where for the entire week I saw not one bit of cloud, not even a little one. This meant the air was actually very cool and dry, though being so clear meant the sun still packed quite a punch. So the side that faced the sun would get roasted and the side facing away would get rather chilly…

Being someone that doesn’t drive, it was time to hire a bicycle like I did in Hawai‘i so that I could get about Alice Spring and the nearby area. The Penny Farthing Bike Shop was the place I settled for in tracking down a stead and did the trick for the 5 days that I needed it. I think I must have covered over 150 kilometers on it, with 50 kilometers being when I decided to ride the Simpson’s Gaps Bicycle Path to Simpson’s Gap on the West MacDonnell Ranges and back! :D

Further heroics occured on the penultimate day where aside from getting up at a completely unreasonable 5 a.m. so that I didn’t miss the coach for the tour at Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, was that when we got our two hours at Uluru for sight-seeing, I managed the 10 kilometer trek to circumnavigate the rock. The coach driver did decide to pretend to drive off, though that didn’t fool me for one second! ;)

Still… enough monologuing from me, so here comes the Photogasm™ from the Red Centre!

… and in time honoured fashion, the albums individually:

1. Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia - A week long stay from the 3rd of August till the 10th of August in Alice Springs, Northern Territory right at the heart of the Red Centre
2. Alice Springs Desert Park, Alice Springs - Cycling out to the Alice Spring Desert Park on Larapinta Drive located about 5 kilometers west of Alice Springs
3. Simpson’s Gap Bicycle Path, West MacDonnell National Park, Northern Territory - A 50 kilometer round trip by bicycle to Simpsons Gap of the West MacDonnell Ranges via the Simpsons Gap Bicycle Path
4. Alice Springs Telegraph Station, Alice Springs - A visit to the Alice Springs Telegraph Station Historical Reserve located 4 kilometers north of Alice Springs
5. Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Northern Territory, Australia - 18 hour day trip with Emu Run Tours to the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park which is now Aboriginal land
6. Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia to Republic of Singapore (新加坡共和國/Republik Singapura) - Leaving the Southern Hemisphere as I travel from Alice Springs, NT, Australia to Republic of Singapore (新加坡共和國/Republik Singapura) via Melbourne, VIC, Australia!

Till the next Photogasm™ (finally back in Asia!) in the “Disneyland with the Death Penalty”, otherwise known as Singapore! ;)

I hadn’t actually realised that my stop in Melbourne in July of last year, was the most southerly point of my travels till I had double checked on Google Earth just today, where I was 1 whole degree further south than my transitory stop in Auckland, New Zealand… Wooh! :D

On the other hand, I was quite aware the Southern Hemisphere have their seasons the wrong way round, it was still rather weird to have experienced the depths of the Melbournian winter, even though the calendar quite clearly stated it was July! Was really good to have seen 貝貝 again, as the last time I saw her would have been back in October ‘04 when she was in Bangor, Gwynedd.

Anyway, another stop… another knicker elastic straining Photogasm™! ;)

… where the four albums individually are:

1. Melbourne, Victoria, Australia - A week of sightseeing around Melbourne from the 28th of July till the 2nd of August having spent 5 days since the 24th of July crashing at where 貝貝 was living!
2. Melbourne Aquarium, Victoria - A visit to the Melbourne Aquarium located on the corner of Flinders Street and Kings Way to have a gander at various types of water-dwelling fauna
3. Albert Park, Melbourne, Victoria - An afternoon wonder around Albert Park & Albert Park Lake, otherwise known as the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit when the Formula 1™ circus is in town! ;)
4. Melbourne, Victoria, Australia to Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia - Heading into the outback on the 3rd of August as I travel from Melbourne, Victoria via Adelaide, South Australia to Alice Spings, Northern Territory!

So till the next Photogasm™ “Down Under”, which shall be from the outback in the heart of the red centre that is Alice Springs & Uluru-Kata Tjuta in the Northern Territory of Austrlia! ;)

Oh memories from Brisbane and travelling half way round the world to visit Nykky for her 30th birthday! Admittedly 10 months ago, I was actually unsure whether to travel eastwards or westwards to Australia till the realisation is was about £1000 cheaper to fly all the way round the world via economy class, than fly on boring old business (though comfy) class from London to Brisbane and back!

Whilst I wasn’t actually going to fly by business class, the chance to be able to do all that travelling in one go (hey, I was footloose at the time!) was just too good to miss. Looking back, I’m glad I’ve done it though the route from Brisbane onwards compared to my original plan of “World Domination” worked out a little differently… All in a good way though! :D

Anyhow… without any further ado, the Photogasm™ of 6 days in Brisbane and journey onwards to Melbourne!

… with the three albums individually:

1. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia - Catching up with Nykky for her 30th birthday in Brisbane and where the planned fortnight-to-month long stop was cut to just 6 days! :P
2. Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane - A few random photos taken inside the Queensland Art Gallery in Brisbane on South Bank Parklands
3. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia - Heading down to Melbourne to catch up with 貝貝 for the first time since seeing her in Bangor, Cymru

Stay tuned and hold on to your knickers for more Photogasms™ from “Down under”! ;)

The short 5 days in Hawai‘i during the middle of July 2005 were memorable for a whole multitude of reasons. Having been accustomed to chilly Europe, the 30°C to 37°C day time temperatures coupled with humidity of 80% to 90% gave rise to heat indexes (how hot it feels) of a high 37°C to an utterly insane 75°C. The only respite was that like Ísland, there were frequent downpours of rain which cooled everything down!

Whilst I was in Vancouver and planning where I should stay in Hawai‘i, my plan to be “off the beaten track” could not have been better realised. I managed to find Hedonisia Hawaii whom offered budget lodgings in the middle of jungle, where the nearest town Pāhoa is some 8 kilometers away. As I don’t drive, the only way I could get around was by bicycle, which at that point was something I had not done for the best part of 6 years.

So it goes without saying I am still pretty impressed with myself in having covered over 200 kilometers as I cycled about to Pāhoa, Hilo, Kapoha and Kaimū! The most heroic effort would have been the 37 kilometer slog up to Hilo on a 36+kg excuse of a “bicycle” probably purchased from Walkmart. I figured there would be a shop where I could hire a decent steed and found just the thing by the way of Da Kine Bikes located on Furneaux Lane.

Now that I had two bikes, the plan was to catch the evening bus back to Pāhoa and cycle the remaining few kilometers. Sod’s Law would dictate I managed to miss the last bus despite arriving at the bus stop 5 minutes before its timetabled departure time! Curse you Walmart for taking far longer than you should have when I was trying to purchase some proper bicycle lights!

Repeated attempts to get a lift back in the direction of Pāhoa proved fruitless… so what I finally did (now that it was close to midnight) was to cycle the lighter hired steed using just the one hand whilst towing the 36+kg piece of shit with my other one. All 37 kilometers back to Hedonisia Hawaii! I arrived utterly shagged out sometime around 3 in the morning… Looking back, it’s a miracle I’m here to tell the tale! :D

Oh and here are the photos I vaguely remembered to take whilst I wasn’t dying from heat exhaustion! ;)

I sneaked in the journey from Hawai‘i to Brisbane, Australia too as it marked the point I had travelled further than half way round the world plus it was the day where the 18th of July lasted just a few ten minutes by virtue of having passed the International Date Line heading westwards! :D

Three flights in 30-ish hours took their toll on me though, but at least I managed to arrive in time for Nykky’s birthday on the 22nd of July after flight cancellation shenanigans… All albums once again:

1. Vancouver BC, Canada to Hilo, Hawai‘i, USA - The journey from Vancouver, BC to Hilo, Hawai‘i… the only state of America aside from Alaska I’d willingly go to of my own free will! :P
2. Hawai‘i, USA - A rather barmy 5 days at Hedonisia in Hawai‘i mostly bicycling around Pāhoa, Hilo, Kapoha and Kaimū
3. Hawai‘i, USA to Brisbane, Queensland, Australia - The joys of crossing the International Date Line and hopping from the 17th of July to 19th of July as I travel from Hawai‘i, USA to Brisbane, Australia via Nadi, Fiji and Auckland, New Zealand!

Look out for further Photogasms™ of my antics down under in Australia! ;)

For you regular readers (I count all… ooh, 3 of you?) and know the fact I didn’t get to get to 香港 (Hong Kong) till the 17th of August, 2005, are probably wondering why the Photogasms™ from Hawai‘i, Australia and Singapore ones are not the next sets in line as the last ones were of a Canadian flavour!

Well, it’s quite simple really… a number of photos had already been published from the time I was in 香港 (Hong Kong) and of all remaining sets, they were also the most ready. Further more, I am the god-king of my own blog and can do as I damn please! :D Nothing to do with the fact Susi has been prodding me to hurry up… no Guv’nor, most certainly not! ;)

I’m pretty sure the 600-ish photos shall keep even the laziest of you at work with plenty to waste company time with (not that I suggest you do such things of course! ;)) and I hope if’ll give a small flavour of why I think 香港 (Hong Kong) is one of the most arse-kickingly-cool places in the world. :D

Right… deep breath, and hold on to your knickers! :P

The albums individually are:

1. 香港 (Hong Kong) - The mammoth stop in 香港 (Hong Kong) from the 17th of August till the 5th of November
2. My 27th birthday back in 香港 (Hong Kong) - Birthday celebrations for me with family and friends in Hong Kong… the last would have been my 12th way back in 6th September, 1990!
3. Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations in Moorse Park - Some photos of myself with my cousins, nephew and a few other of their friends down at Moorse Park with laterns and candles, enjoying a Mid-Autumn Festival evening out!
4. 二零零五年中秋節大坑舞火龍 (The 2005 Mid-Autumn Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance) - A unique event of Hong Kong, the Fire Dragon Dance was originated in Tai Hang of Causeway Bay circa 1880 in an effort to ward off evil spirits that were harming the Tai Hang village!
5. Mid-Autumn Festival lantern display at Victoria Park - Some photos of the lanterns in Victoria Park after seeing the Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
6. Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware, Hong Kong Park, Central - A visit to the permanent exhibition and the temporary exhibition of “Tea Ware by Hong Long Potters 2005″
7. 沙田 (Sha Tin) - A day trip up to 沙田 (Sha Tin) in 新界 (the New Territories) of 香港 (Hong Kong) to visit 萬佛寺 (The 10 Thousand Buddha Monastery) with an unexpected detour to 寶福山 (Po Fook Hill)
8. 香港 (Hong Kong) to 中國大陸雲南省麗江 (Lijiang, Yunnan Province, Mainland China) - Off to “South of the Clouds” as I leave behind 香港 (Hong Kong) and head to my first stop at 雲南省麗江 (Lijiang, Yunnan Province)!

There’s still another 300-ish just from the Hong Kong Museum of Art, though I’ll leave that to after the ones from Hawai‘i, Australia and Singapore! My reasoning is that it’ll actually follow on quite nicely from them and lead into the next sets in 雲南 (Yunnan)! :D

Till the next Photogasm™… ;)

Updated: 2006-06-07 00:25 UTC by Jonathan Stanley

The ones from the Hong Kong Museum of Art shall have to wait for another day, as the next schedualed Photogasms™ shall be from “South of the Clouds”, right from 中國大陸雲南省 (Yunnan Province, Mainland China)!

Gosh! Aren’t you lot lucky… Photogasms™ in two successive days, albeit this time round is just a little “mini” one to keep you all warmed up. :D At this rate I might actually get all the photos published before the end of March! Then again… I wouldn’t count on that! ;)

Anyway, this set of photos are from the day-trip I took on the 9th of July ‘05 to visit my paternal aunt Jean whom lives Victoria, British Columbia. Also there to greet me was my cousin Penny and her husband Jerry.

I actually recall meeting cousin Penny in 香港 (Hong Kong) as a wee lad when her and a friend did some travelling in The Middle Kingdom and passed through the ex-British Colony. Will have to have a dig through the old analogue photos and post the relevant ones in “The Family Archives” of that first meet-up. ;)

But before nostalgic digitisations, here commeth a Photogasm™ with Victorian characteristics!

Hope it’s not too much of a tease for Hawai‘i, Australia and beyond! ;)

Appologies for taking so damn long for the first Photogasm™ of 2006 and I hope the knicker elastic have not been overly strained! ;) Anyhow, today is a bit of an odd day as it marks one whole year from my return to Blighty from 香港 (Hong Kong) after spending best part of 3 weeks there visiting family for the first time in 15 years and also the shocking fact it has been three months (near as makes no difference) since the end of my World trippin’!

phpBB related things are keeping me busy, namely answering phpBB.com advertising queries promptly so they don’t get forgotten about and such things as moving the phpBB.com server to its new home at OSUOSL. Still, I’ll do my best in getting the remaining stacks of photographs I had taken on my travels online to share with the rest of the world… namely because Susi has been nagging me lots about them! ;)

Oh, did I mention something about photos?

Raaar! :D The three albums are:

1. Vancouver BC, Canada - Pictures of the 5 days in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
2. Stanley Park, Vancouver BC - An afternoon stroll around Stanley Park on the first full day in Vancouver BC
3. Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Park & Classical Chinese Garden - The first full-sized classical