Archive

It’s been a good year, again. A lot of travel (43 cities, 12 countries, 100K+ kilometers), a lot of laughs, a lot of good food. A promotion and the largest deal we’ve ever done closed at work. And, most importantly, a kind young lady agreed to marry me. I end 2012 feeling very fortunate.

NOTE If you are reading this in a news reader such as Google Reader, or inside Facebook on a tablet, you might want to open this in a dedicated browser window as the photo layout may work better.

JANUARY
In January I returned to Scotland in winter, this time to the Isle of Skye, accompanied by my good friend (and accomplished photographer) Corin Dimoupolous and guided by local expert landscape photographer David Langan. We spent a long weekend exploring the island, and, weather permitting, shooting a few landscapes.

Glen Shiel Reflection

Torrin Beach – View of Loch Slapin and Blaven

Duisdale Beach, Sunrise

Duisdale Beach

Neist Point Lighthouse

Ord Beach (View of Loch Eishort)

Ord Beach – Rock Detail

Breakish Beach looking out over Applecross

Talisker Bay

Glen Brittle Fairy Pools

The Old Man of Storr, Sunrise

Elgol Sunset

FEBRUARY

The coldest month saw us on a mini-break to an even colder place: Berlin. Despite icy temperatures we had a great time exploring both the historic and modern aspects of this vibrant city. We ate well and drank better.

Berlin Wall at Topography of Terror site

Reichstag Dome Reflection

Sony Centre Roof, Potsdamer Platz

Berlin Abstract

Astronaut Mural by Victor Ash, Kreuzberg

Roa Mural, Kreuzberg

Moon and Fernsehturm, from Mitte

Star in the style of Shephard Fairey, Friedrichshain bar

Jewish Museum Staircase

Museum Island, Winter Light

Berliner Dom and Fernseturm

Berlin Holocaust Memorial in Winter

MARCH, APRIL, MAY

These months were fairly quiet, at least in terms of photography for me, as they consisted mostly of a series of work trips which didn’t allow much time for quality snapping. Must do better.

However, I did manage a few shots around London in the downtime.

JUNE

June saw another personal trip to France for a wedding in the Dordogne – but first stop was a few days in Paris. (More Paris shots can be found in the original blog post.)

After Paris we moved to the Dordogne and Limousin region for our friends’ wedding. This was a lovely few days in rural southern France, touring the medieval fortress towns along the river, and eating as much duck, pate, and Limousin beef as we could manage. Again, for more photos go and check out the original blog post.

JULY AND AUGUST

In the late summer, London was host to the 2012 Olympics and we were lucky enough to visit the Olympic Park as well as going to see the Men’s Hockey and the Men’s Basketball Final. It was a magical time in London, and I will always remember what it was like to be here in the thick of it.

We began September with a lovely late-summer break to the Cyclades: a two-part trip to Mykonos, famed for its maze-like streets and raucous nightlife, and Santorini, land of a million postcard views. More photos can be found in the original blog post.

Old door in Ano Mera, Mykonos

Kitchen of Niko’s Taverna, Mykonos

Sunset at Little Venice, Mykonos

Harbour fishing, Mykonos Town

Typical Blue Church Dome, Imerovigli, Santorini

Nap time, Mykonos Town

Panorama of Oia at Sunset, Santorini

Inter-generational fishing, Ammoudi Bay, Oia, Santorini

Wedding Spot, Firostefani, Santorini

Oia, Santorini

Bougainvilla, Firostefani, Santorini

The morning after I returned from Santorini, I boarded another flight to Bangkok for work. Fortunately I allowed myself an extra day there to get reacquainted with this city, and to sample some of the myriad food delights on offer in its street stalls and markets…

Central Bangkok

Jim Thompson’s House, Bangkok

Food Stalls, Chatuchak Market, Bangkok

Pad Thai, Chatuchak Market, Bangkok

Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok

Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok

Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok

Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok

Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok

Wat Pho, Bangkok

Wat Pho, Bangkok

Wat Pho, Bangkok

Tuk tuk and monks, Bangkok

Wat Arun at Sunset, Bangkok

OCTOBER

Early October saw me on yet another work trip, this time to Ankara and Istanbul in Turkey, where I was fortunate enough to have a few free hours to myself here and there to wander the old town and the nightlife district of Beyoglu. It’s always good to return to Istanbul.

Hagia Sofia and Fountains

Fish Sandwich Boats, Golden Horn

Suleymaniye Camii Ceiling Detail

Blue Mosque at Sunrise

Desolate Alleyway, Galata

Sandwich Vendor, Galata

Phoning Home, Yeni Camii

NOVEMBER and DECEMBER

November and December were all about our trip to Japan and Hong Kong. Though I am only about a third of the way through processing the photos from that trip, what I have gone through thus far is encouraging and more photo reports from this trip will be gracing this blog over the course of January. Of course, this is the trip that hosted the aforementioned proposal, so it has a special place in my heart.

For the second instalment in our Japan trip, we find ourselves travelling through the very distinct landscapes of Hakone – a volcanic spa area near Mount Fuji – and Nara, a verdant and picturesque former imperial capital filled to the brim with centuries-old landscaped gardens, temples, and shrines.

NOTE If you are reading this in a news reader such as Google Reader, or inside Facebook on a tablet, you might want to open this in a dedicated browser window as the photo layout may work better. Also, there are more photos from these locations available in the corresponding set over on Flickr.

HAKONE

After our first few days in Tokyo, we were city’d out and ready for a change of scene. A quick Shinkansen bullet train and then a series of switchback local trains found us in Hakone, an area of volcanic scenery, hot springs, geysers and lakes surrounding Mount Fuji. It is also an extremely popular destination for Japanese tourists as it is so close to Tokyo. So, at times, one feels like one is at an amusement park, in an endless series of queues to board various funiculars and cable cars. But the moment your cable car comes over the first ridge and you see Mount Fuji dominating the horizon, it’s all worth it.

Mount Fuji from the Hakone Ropeway

Mount Fuji from Owakaduni, Hakone

One of the obligatory and fun bits of the day tour of Hakone is Owakaduni, halfway along the ropeway, which is a national park area on the side of a mountain which is perforated with steam geysers venting sulphurous gases from the volcanic water table below. It is the done thing amongst the Japanese day trippers to visit this area, take a photo of the geysers, and then queue to buy an egg which has been boiled black in the sulphurous waters. We skipped the egg.

Sulphur Steam and the Moon Rising, Owakaduni, Hakone

Steaming sulphur vents, Owakaduni, Hakone

Sulphur Egg Man, Owakaduni, Hakone

Hakone, as it turns out, was not the photographic treasure trove it might have been for me. This is not because of any fault of the subject matter, but of the preoccupation of the photographer with a more important capture. Back in 2007 I was very impressed with the beauty of the view from the Hakone Detached Palace Park on the shores of Lake Ashinoko, and took this panoramic:

We have the picture above enlarged and hanging on our wall at home, and take great pleasure in contemplating it. So, it seemed like a nice place to propose marriage. Much rejoicing followed, though we never found this exact spot again, given the context, the view was just as impressive.

Steam rising near Lake Ashinoko

Wooden Owl in Hakone Detached Palace Garden

View of Lake Ashinoko and Mount Fuji from Hakone Detached Palace

Hakone Detached Palace Garden

NARA

In a bit of a happy post-engagement haze, we moved on to Nara in the Kansai region. Nara was Japan’s first permanent capital, established in 710, and attracted powerful families, becoming a political and religious power centre. The legacy this left is a small, attractive city of low buildings, but the main attraction of Nara is certainly the large Nara Koen (park) and the various temples, lakes, gardens, tame deer, and bountiful autumn colours to be found therein.

The woman on the stairs, Nara Park

Heron and reflection, Nara

Twins, Nara

Kami Statues, Nara Park

Steps leading through Kataoka Plum Grove to Sagiike Pond, Nara P

Ukimido Gazebo, Sagiike Pond, Nara Park

Ukimido Gazebo, Sagiike Pond, Nara Park

Deer grazing near Sagiike Pond, Nara Park

Catching up, Nara Park

Catching up, Nara Park

Tame doe and autumn colours, Nara Park

Autumn Colours in Nara Park

Dead tree and autumn colours, Sagiike Pond, Nara Park

Stone Steps and Leaf Fall, Kataoka Plum Grove, Nara Park

Temple Building, Nara Park

Within Nara Park there are some stunning gardens, chief amongst them the Yoshikien and Isuien Gardens, adjacent to one another and both examples of immaculate landscaping in harmony with the surrounding countryside. Of course, in common with most Japanese gardens, these were liberally sprinkled with Japanese maple and gingko trees, and as we were bang in the middle of the autumn colour peak, there was a brilliant show of leaves, both on the trees and on the ground.

Yoshikien Garden

Stone Steps, Autumn Colours and Leaf Fall, Yoshikien Garden, Nar

Maple Leaf Fall, Yoshikien Garden, Nara Park

Pathway, Yoshikien Garden, Nara Park

Pond, Yoshikien Garden, Nara Park

Stone Lantern, Yoshikien Garden, Nara Park

Isuien Garden

Isuien Garden was build as a “mirrored landscape” mimicking the hills surrounding it, and meant to draw your eye towards the main gate of the Todaiji Temple in the background.

Pond and Todaji Temple Gate, Isuien Garden, Nara Park

Flowing waterfall, Isuien Garden, Nara Park

Teahouse, Isuien Garden, Nara Park

Reflecting Pond, Isuien Garden, Nara Park

Pond and Todaji Temple Gate, Isuien Garden, Nara Park

Landscaped stream, Isuien Garden, Nara Park

Stone Lantern and Pond, Isuien Garden, Nara Park

Todaiji Temple

The main temple in Nara Park is Todaiji, the largest wooden structure in the world. The main Buddha hall or daibutsu houses a 15m bronze Buddha image as well as guardian demon statues.

Todaiji Temple “Dabutsuden” Main Hall, Nara Park

Nio Guardian King, Todaiji Temple, Nara Park

15m tall Bronze Buddha, Todaiji Temple, Nara Park

Nigatsudo Hall

The Todaiji Temple has a sub-temple up on a hill – the Nigatsudo Hall – which is (yet again) situated within some amazing autumn foliage.

Temple roof decoration and autumn colours, Nara Park

Graves near Nigatsudo Hall, Nara Park

Nigatsudo Hall and Autumn Colours, Nara Park

Dragon spigot, Nigatsudo Hall, Nara Park

Stone Lantern , Sangatsudo Hall, Nara Park

Kasuga Taisha Shrine

Finally, nestled in the southeast corder of Nara Park is the Kasuga Taisha Shrine, the most important Shinto religious site in Nara. Kasuga Taisha is known as the Lantern Shrine, with hundreds of stone lanterns littered throughout the forests surrounding it, and hundreds of worshipper-donated bronze lanterns hung throughout the main complex. There are also regular donations of rice, cabbage, and sake to keep the kami spirits appeased.

Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara Park

Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara Park

Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara Park

Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara Park

Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara Park

Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara Park

Detail of Homotsuden Treasure Hall near Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara

Stone Lanterns near Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Nara Park

That’s it from Hakone and Nara. The next episode will take us back into the cities of Osaka and Fukuoka, where we will see neon nightscapes, samurai castles, and sumo. See you then.

In this inaugural post covering our recent three-week trip to Japan and Hong Kong, I will cover the vibrant, pulsating, and overwhelming city of Tokyo. We began and ended the Japan leg of our trip here, spending about four full days here, and could easily have done a week if given the opportunity.

Tokyo is a city of contrasts, and although it is not outwardly a beautiful city, it is one that rewards the intrepid urban explorer with scenes of utter urbanity right next to jaw-droppingly beautiful parks concealing peaceful shrines and temples.

NOTE If you are reading this in a news reader such as Google Reader, or inside Facebook on a tablet, you might want to open this in a dedicated browser window as the layout will work better.

When we first landed in Tokyo, it was an assault on the senses, but a very welcome one. Staying in Shinjuku that time meant that we were right in the heart of the restaurant and bar scene, and we wasted no time getting stuck into an izakaya (pub with food), visiting my favourite (tiny) bar “Albatross” in the Shomben Yokocho (“piss alley”) and ending up at a late-night ramen joint where we had to order through a vending machine.

Shinjuku, early evening

The lights of Kabukicho, Shinjuku

Shomben Yokocho (“Piss Alley”), Shinjuku

Shomben Yokocho (“Piss Alley”), Shinjuku

The days we spent thereafter (on both visits) were spent covering a great deal of ground in both Western and Eastern Tokyo, and below is a selection of the experiences we had. As per usual there are many more photos to be found in the equivalent set over on Flickr so I do encourage you to check them out.

Yoyogi Park and the Meiji Shrine
As per last time I visited Tokyo, the first morning of our trip happened to be a Sunday, and the best thing to do on a Sunday if you are in West Tokyo is to head down to Yoyogi Park and the Meiji Shrine. The former because there are usually odd people about (more on that later) and the latter because there is usually a Shinto wedding or some other ceremony going on. We were in luck because (as on my last trip here) the Seven-Five-Three “middle childhood” blessings were taking place at the Meiji Shrine, which meant loads of adorable Japanese kids in kimonos with their elegant parents only too happy to pose for photos.

Shinto Wedding, Meiji Jingu

Girl in traditional Seven-Five-Three dress, Meiji Jingu

Seven-Five-Three ceremony family, Meiji Jingu

Three-year-old participant in Seven-Five-Three ceremony, Meiji J

Posh Seven-Five-Three girl, Meiji Jingu

Near the Meiji Shrine is the Meiji Garden, which is well worth the ¥500 (£4) entry fee as it is a lovely imperial garden set around a teahouse and a small lake, lush with vegetation and with the maples just beginning to show the very first signs of the autumn colours (momiji), and with kimono-clad women laughing amongst themselves.

Traditional Chrysanthemums outside Meiji Shrine

The very first signs of autumn colour (momiji) in Meiji Gardens

Kimono-clad women laughing together, Meiji Garden

Outside the Meiji Shrine and Garden is Yoyogi Park, a large green space providing some respite from the surrounding intense urbanity of Shinjuku, Harajuku and Shibuya. Yoyogi Park on Sundays typically means a mixture of different “tribal” groups coming out to play, such as the Tokyo Rockabilly Club (previously) and cosplay people dressed up in animal suits. But today was pretty quiet in the park, even for such a nice day, and so we were able to enjoy the gingko trees beginning to shed their leaves.

Strangers, Tokyo Rockabilly Club, Yoyogi Park

Gingko trees beginning to drop, Yoyogi Park

Ueno Park and Yanaka

One afternoon towards the end of our trip we trekked up to Ueno Park, another haven of tranquility in the midst of the Tokyo sprawl. By this time the autumn colours had well and truly arrived in Tokyo, and it made a dramatic backdrop to the small shrines dotted amongst the park’s small hills and dales.

Inari (“fox”) kami statue, Ueno Park

Shrine and autumn colours, Ueno Park

Lantern and autumn colours, Toshogu Shrine, Ueno Park

Autumn Colours, Ueno Park

Near Ueno is an old neighbourhood (shitamachi) called Yanaka that is one of the last surviving pockets of low-rise “Old Tokyo” that remains. It is dotted with quiet market streets and various temples and shrines. In one of them we were approached by an 81-year-old man with good English who explained that there was a monument to a poet and his famous lover, a real beauty of her time, and that he had had the honour of hosting an actual blood descendant of the poet’s lover at the temple. We were suspicious at first but he gave us a print of a painting he had done to commemorate a line in the poem about someone letting a boy’s pet sparrow fly away. A lovely and odd little encounter, very Japanese.

Temple carving closeup, Dai-enji Temple, Yanaka

Buddha and autumn colours, Tenno-Ji Temple, Yanaka

Tokyo Sky Tree and Asakusa

A new addition since my last visit, the Tokyo SkyTree now looms over northeast Tokyo and you can use it to orient yourself wherever you might be, being that it is 684m / 2080ft tall. There are observation decks at 350m and (if you pay an extra 50%) at 450m. We attempted it one afternoon but were put off by extremely long queues. Returning the next morning we would have been OK if not for high winds causing restrictions to the operations of the lifts. More queueing ensued, and, in a very Japanese (i.e. crowded) fashion we finally got to go up the thing after a total time investment of four hours. Was the view worth it? Juuuuuuust barely. I am not sure I would go through that again; I imagine that for Tokyoites it’s somewhat the same as New Yorkers’ attitudes to the Empire State Building. Something for the tourists.

Asakusa Shrine and the Tokyo Sky Tree

Tokyo Sky Tree Reflection

Approaching the Tokyo Sky Tree from the canal

Southeast Tokyo from the Sky Tree

Looking down from the Tokyo Sky Tree

Tokyo Sky Tree casts a long shadow

Much more rewarding is the other de rigeur visit of northeast Tokyo, which is to Asakusa and the Senso-ji temple therein, whose massive front gate complete with giant paper lantern is a symbol of Tokyo. A long street, packed with visitors sampling temple-themed pastries and deciding whether to buy plastic swords, leads back to an open space with another large gate, a five-story pagoda, and the main hall. All around are places to determine your fortune, often by donating a ¥100 coin and gaining the privilege of shaking a stick out of a tin, then matching the script on the stick with a series of drawers, retrieving a piece of paper with your individual fortunes. Our fortunes were mixed, but Nicola’s prophetically told of success in marriage awaiting her…

Child looks up at lantern of Hozomon Gate, Senso-ji Temple, Asak

Crowds around incense smoke, Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa

Main hall, Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa

Shinto Kami Statue, Asakusa Shrine

Sitting Buddha, Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa

Ceremonial pails, Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa

Tsukiji Fish Market

Something I missed last time around is the famous fish market of Tsukiji, in southeastern Tokyo. It was imperative that we visit it this time, as evidence continues to mount that the current, rather organically-grown market will be shuttered in the next couple of years, moved to some brand-spanking-new state-of-the-art facility where the real work will go on at ground level and tourists will be confined to some overhead gallery. Which is, on balance, appropriate given that it’s a wholesale market and the tourists just get in the way in the old setup, but I would have felt robbed had we not been able to wander around the tiny lanes, dodging motorcarts and stepping around discarded tuna heads, interacting with the market sellers and watching the meticulous process of filleting a sea eel up close. Behind glass and/or upstairs from the action will be a very different kettle of fish indeed.

In any case we were spared the ignominy of rising at 3AM to contest for a place watching the famous tuna auction, as it was now December and the auction was closed to the public for the busy holiday season. So we arrived jauntily at 9AM to see the wholesale market, and found to our delight that there was plenty of frozen tuna still to be seen, it’s just that in this case there was nobody yelling about it. We were OK with this.

Squid Hanging, Tsukiji Fish Market

Outer Hall, Tsukiji Fish Market

Worker sawing frozen tuna, Tsukiji Fish Market

Frozen tuna waiting to be sawn apart, Tsukiji Fish Market

Parked carts, Tsukiji Fish Market

Worker filleting a saltwater eel (“anago”), Tsukiji Fish Market

A word in your ear, Tsukiji Fish Market

Discarded tuna head and scraps, Tsukiji Fish Market

Fresh tuna for sale, Tsukiji Fish Market

Tuna knives, Tsukiji Fish Market

Deadly fugu (blowfish), Tsukiji Fish Market

Fresh octopus, Tsukiji Fish Market

Tuna ready to be shipped, Tsukiji Fish Market

Taking a break, Tsukiji Fish Market

That’s about it from the Tokyo side. We went to many more places in Tokyo than this, of course, and there were a host of nightlife and eating establishments that we may well document in due course. But Tokyo is too vast to ever fully capture, and that is surely a good thing.

Western Tokyo and Mount Fuji from the Tokyo Metropolitan Governm

Next up: the Fuji region of Hakone, and the tranquil park and temples of Nara.