Germany and Austria

Recently I had a business trip to Ulm in Germany.  Since Cindy decided to go with me, as she had not visited Germany yet, we decided to go a few days early, and come back after the weekend was over.  This way I could have a couple of days to do some sightseeing with her.  Also since we would be close to Munich (actually flying in there), we agreed to meet up with some good friends from Bangalore who now are back living in a suburb of Munich called Neufahrn.

On the first couple of days there, we just went around Munich.  The first day was miserable cold and rainy.  The second day was a bit better.  We visited the Olympic park, the BMW world, and the city center.



On Sunday we visited Schloss Nymphenburg and a few other places.  Here are Cindy and Eva on the walk up to the entrance.

And a shot of the gardens.  By late Sunday, the weather had turned pretty nice, though still had a few clouds blowing through. 

Monday I had to go to Ulm, and Cindy followed a couple of days later after some other sightseeing.  Here Cindy is taking a picture of a relief map of the center of the city, which is right next to the big church in the city, the Ulm Munster.  It has the highest steeple in Europe (maybe even in the world).


It is absolutely awesome on the inside.  We climbed it later in the week.



Here you see the square in front of the church as we are just starting to climb up the 768 steps to the top.    And here is the view from the top.

And a few photos from the trip up...






Taking a rest on the way up.  768 is a lot of steps to climb.  161 vertical meters (though we didn't actually sit on top of the spire, so we only went up 150+ meters.

Friday, we headed back from Ulm to Munich to stay with Hans and Eva again.  They were so kind to take us to a beer tent at the Fruhlingsfest. 



And then over the weekend we went through Austria to Innsbruck, and then Salzburg where we spent the night.  Sunday after seeing Salzburg, we returned to Munich and hopped our plane back to China.

From our Austria tour:

First day lunch spot:



Innsbruck:


Over the pass to Salzburg:






More photos on Flickr.

Ygrayne and Ally visit China

Wow, I cannot believe that it is May and my last post was in December.  Obviously some things have happened which I haven't blogged, and I'll have to go back and add a couple of posts.  But since I have these photos ready, I'll put them up now.

Ygrayne and her friend Ally visited during the end of April and first couple days of May.  They first came to see us in Hangzhou.  Unfortunately I had to work during most of that time, so I don't have much to show for that.  Cindy took them around and maybe she'll post some photos of their adventures around the lake, up the Lei Feng Pagoda, and He Fang street.

Over the weekend they were here, we took them to Beijing to the Forbidden Palace, the Lama Temple, the Confucius Temple and to the Great wall:

And then they went to Xian to see the Terracotta Warriors. I don't have photos of that, but they had a grand time seeing the Mosque, the Warriors, having traditional dumplings and other things. Then they came back to Hangzhou for a couple of days before leaving back to the states.


All in all, we had a great time with them, and enjoyed their visit a lot. Here are Ygrayne and I at the Lama Temple, Beijing.

Gross National Happiness

We visited Bhutan, the country which aspires to the highest Gross National Happiness,  in November with Eyes On Asia.

  We flew into Paro from Singapore via Kolkata.  The flight was uneventful, but sort of exhilarating the last bit.  Coming up from Kolkata, we flew towards the Himalayas, seeing some beautiful peaks.    Then we started to descend to the airport, following the river upstream, between the mountains, looking down at the rice paddies as we turned following the valley.  It was an exciting start to a great week.

 I didn't know quite what to expect from Bhutan.  I hadn't had much time to do research before going, as it had been a very busy few months up to that time.  Basically what I knew, is it is a Bhuddist nation which is somewhat isolated by choice.  Basically visas were limited to reduce the tourism and maintain the national culture and identity.  So I was going in sort of blind so to speak, I just knew we were going for a photo tour (as we had done in Myanmar a year before).  Jamie and Felix had arranged it all, and I expected it would be as well planned as Myanmar was.

So the first day, after deplaning, and going through immigration etc, we found our guide Tenzin, and we were off.  First stop was the local market.  Markets can be great fun for the local color, flavor and getting an idea of the foods, but very hard to shoot usually as the light can be very difficult.   This guy was selling aluminum pots he made by hand.  Others were selling mostly vegetables.

Af

After that we went on for lunch, wandered the town a little   and to our hotel.

Then we headed back into town to try to catch some good photos of the Dzong in the afternoon light. 
As it was already well into the afternoon, there wasn't much light inside the courtyard down below.    But there were some beautiful paintings on the walls.  We found out later on during our trip that many people still study to become painters and they then spend their lives painting such murals, or other paintings on people's houses.    Unfortunately we had arrived too late in the day to catch the dzong in all its glory in the late sun, because the parking was above, and by the time we had explored a bit inside, and gotten down below, the sun was already leaving the dzong, and we were too close to get a good view of it.  So we decided we would have to come back another day.  But the week was off to a great start, and we finished it with a tasty dinner of local foods in the hotel.

The next day we started with a tour of one of the local villages, and a visit to a farm house.   Here we got to try the local butter tea.  It seemed that everyone in our group didn't like it, except for Cindy, who learned to like it in Ladakh, and I. 


This was taken in their kitchen/eating area.  Here is the grandfather of the house, sitting by his bowl of rice, with his butter tea.  Outside, a couple of the local women were threshing grain, and our driver tried to give it a try.
   The ladies were laughing very hard because he wasn't too good at it.   The threshing machine was operated by foot, kind of like a treadle sewing machine.  You had to get it going the right way at the  right speed, and then hold the grain down over it to knock it loose from the stalks.

 There were a variety of paintings on the walls of many of the houses, this one was typical of one particular subject--the phallus which brings happiness.   I won't say more about it, there is plenty to read about on the web.


Originally we were supposed to go see a festival in another town, but the airport was closed just a few days before the festival, so we couldn't go.  Our host tour company arranged for a dancing group to perform for us in the villlage, so we would get a taste of that the festival had been like.




The local villagers came to watch as well, making it all the more fun for us.

And of course because it was done specifically for us, we also got the chance to ask for some poses to get some close ups of the dancers.


And they were relaxed afterwards, having some tea and treats, before leaving.  This was one of the musicians, just finishing up a call on his cell phone.


We also had a chance to try our hands at archery, the national sport, and then see some of the dancers try it out.


From Paro, we went on to Thimpu (the capital).  There we visited the big dzong where the king works.   During the week, you can only go in for an hour or so after working hours are over.


   We also visited a chortan where there is a constant stream of visitors coming to pray, or maybe just have a chat with a friend.




In the afternoon we visited an art school, where they had everything from painting to sewing (costumes for dancers etc), to sculpture.

And after that we went up to a small monastery on the hill.   We were lucky enough to find them making candles just outside the building.



Most of our group went early the first morning in Thimpu, up to the big buddha being constructed on the hillside overlooking the city.   I wasn't feeling too well that am, so I decided not to go.   Cindy and Felix wanted to go back the 2nd morning to get better light, they were just too late the first morning, so I tagged along the second time, and it was beautiful to see the statue getting lit up by the first rays of the sun.


We headed back to Paro that morning, and were lucky that one of the guides for the company we were with was having a house blessing.  We were invited to stop by.  This is a yearly event, and they invite most of their neighbors, and the local monks to do the blessing.
They also served some breakfast, so some of us had 2nd breakfast...
and Cindy got some more butter tea.
Our guide Tenzin and driver Sonam were like Laurel and Hardy, always joking around.  On the way down from the village back to the car, Sonam carried Tenzin down the steep rocky hillside.   Sonam was actually the funnier of the two, though either he was a bit more shy, or didn't feel good about his English, he was a bit quieter, but always with a twinkle in his eyes. Tenzin also liked to tell jokes, he told me several over the week.

We got back into Paro in time to find the right place to photograph the dzong.   Felix and I started at the bridge under the dzong, and then walked about a kilometer downriver, and tried out spots along the way, till we found the right angle.  Then we just had to wait for the right time at sunset to get the dzong in the best light. 

On our last day we hiked up to the Tiger's Nest Monastery.   We were served lunch up there, and then decided to wait till the sun was going down, again to catch the better light.  We had to hike back down (about 900Meters vertical) to get to the car, and it was almost dark by the time we go to the bottom.  Still it was worth the wait.
 

Yes, here you can see the last of the sunset hitting the mountains above the Monastery, and the moon coming up over the horizon.

All in all, it was another great trip to another interesting part of the world.  I think what I liked best is the good natured sense of fun, the fact that the country tries to keep some of there traditions alive, and the very open and sincere nature of the people we met.


As always more photos on Flickr.

A visit from my sister

My sister, Maya,  came to visit with her youngest son, Reed.  Reed had never traveled outside of the US, and for my sister it had been many years, maybe even decades.  We were very much looking forward to their trip.  We started out around Hangzhou.  We visited He Fang Street.   A local shopping street with lots of little tourist shops and restaurants.    The street has been renovated to look like an older shopping street in Hangzhou.   We got there by walking down the little market street right around the corner from our house, where Reed was fascinated by the various animals on sale for food--turtles, eels, fish, etc.  We also saw the local fungus shop, fruit stands and the like.  He has specifically asked to go to a market, so we did this and satisfied his curiosity.

He Fang street is a delightful place to wander and enjoy the sights.  We enjoyed a visit to the Drum Tower, and the local Chinese Medicine shop.

The next day, I took Maya and Reed for a ride around the lake on bikes.   We enjoyed sitting by the lake.  and taking photos of the scenery and all the other tourists.  Even though Maya and Reed thought it was crowded, it wasn't too bad by Hangzhou standards.  We went to the top of Lei Feng Pagoda, where Reed was asked to be in a picture with some Chinese tourists.   Maya and I visited the local art museum, which always has interesting exhibitions.  This time there was an exhibition of Seals from various districts, which have been collected by Seal Societies.  Here are a couple of examples:     And there was some sort of fibre art exhibit, some if it was strange, other parts rather cool.

Maya, Reed, and Cindy had an opportunity to do some things during the first part of the work week while I was slaving away in the office.  They went for a couple of boat rides-- one on the lake, where you drive yourself (or at least Reed did), and one on the water taxi on the grand canal.  They also did some shopping etc.

For the 2nd half of the week, we all went to Beijing.   There we saw the Forbidden Palace, and the Great Wall.  This was my second visit to both, and I saw parts of the Forbidden Palace which I hadn't seen before.  Particularly the concubine quarters, and the house where the only foreign visitor stayed-- the English teacher for the last emperor.  Managing Reed in his wheel chair was a bit of work at times, but it made the whole day possible as he didn't get so tired from all the walking.

In the garden area behind the concubines houses:

Outside the palace, before we went in, we saw the guards practicing marching for their daily flag raising ritual.

The palace is a grand overwhelming place, constantly under maintenance and repair, with many colors, and shapes.

We had a guide for the day.   She was very informative about the palace and surroundings.   Here she is telling Maya and Reed about the bird statues which are also incense burners.

After we finished up at the Forbidden Palace, and had lunch.  Reed was tired out, so Maya and I went to the Lama Temple.   I didn't know in advance that it was built originally as quarters for part of the royal family, and later converted to a temple.  It was therefore very reminiscent of the Forbidden Palace, but on a smaller scale.  Still pretty big though.    It is still very much a working temple, and full of people worshiping.    There must have been at least 25-30 shops outside between the subway and the entrance to the temple selling incense and other religious items.

Next, we went to a Confucian temple just down the road.  It was much more quiet and formal seeming.  It was a very interesting contrast to the Lama Temple, and I would recommend visiting both.

The next day we went to the Wall, and the Ming Tombs.   Unfortunately we didn't bring the wheel chair with us so the tombs were a bit of a bust.  But the wall was beautiful in the fall colors, and we had a blast.    It is amazing how steep parts of the wall are.    Reed managed very well with his cane.

After coming back from the tombs, we let Reed rest a bit, and Maya, Cindy and I wandered the city a bit.
These guys were a bit stiff and formal, but kind enough to pose with Cindy and Maya.


Then we picked up Reed for the final ultimate Beijing experience, which Reed had been planning for weeks before the trip.   The deep fried scorpions.  Go Reed! 

As always there are a few more photos on Flickr.

A peaceful trip west

Maya wanted to go see the Great Wall, the Forbidden Palace, and the Terracotta Warriors and Horses while she was visiting us in China.  So Cindy took her to Beijing for the first two, and then we all went to Xi'An for the weekend.  We had three days there (I arrived Thursday night, and they arrived Friday morning) so we got to see a fair bit of the city but there is definitely more to see than we were able to see.

Before Cindy and Maya arrived I took a short walk from our hotel to the West Gate.   It is obvious to see that Xi'An was a gateway to the western world from China.  There are definitely people with different facial structures, and the art is also a bit different from Eastern China.  I also noticed many people using the park which goes around the outside of the wall, like these guys playing a game on the sidewalk.

The first day, our guide MJ, who was absolutely wonderful by the way, took us to the Muslim quarter, and around a bit of the city.  We saw the Great Mosque.  It was really interesting because it obviously had some Chinese elements one would not normally expect to see in a mosque.   For instance there were carvings of animals on some of the walls.  I didn't get many good pictures in the Mosque.

But we did get to see much of the daily life going on in the Muslim Quarter, which literally was 1/4 of the old city, right around the corner from our hotel. 

We had a delicious local dinner that evening-- dumplings.  They served it at a restaurant in the hotel, where there was also a performance which hilighted the old court in the city, since it used to be one of the capitals of China.

Saturday we went to see the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, on the way to the terracotta warriors. 
The story of the monk who went to India(basically fleeing) and how he spent time there becoming one of the highest deciples of Buddhism, and then his return to China is rather interesting.  He wrote a diary of his trip, and it is used by historians to understand life in those times.  He came back to China and once the pagoda was built, the Emperor made him abbot.  Many of the abbots' remains are buried here, some marked just by stones, others with slightly more elaborate markings.  The grounds around the pagoda are pretty, and I ran across this gate/doorway to the office, which I thought very beautiful.   I wish the entrance to my office was so nice...

From there we proceeded to the Terracotta Warriors and Horses.  The complex is large, and you have to ride up to the museum complex from the parking lot in small electric carts (or you can walk).  We got up to the main complex and went in to the first of the "pits".   The pits are exactly that, places where the archeologists have dug down to find the terracotta warriors and horses.  The main pit is huge, the building covering it is on the scale of an airplane hangar.     This first picture is a view of about half the buiding, looking down the length of it.  There are thousands of these terracotta warriors, each of which has been painstakingly put back together after being dug up.  They were broken either by a mob which entered the tomb during an uprising shortly after the Emperor died, or by the collapse of the tomb from fires set by the mob.  Here you can see across the pit, at the front row.   These guys were made by hand,  Maybe some of the body parts were moulded but the heads and faces particularly were each differently shaped.  Some of the faces are definitely mongol in nature, others more "classic chinese".  MJ explained how you could tell the different types of warriors by their hair style and other attributes.   The infantry had one "knot" on the right side, archers wore it on the left so as not to interfere with the bowstring.  The higher ranks had two knots...    This general was obviously fairly well off as he had a bit of a paunch, not skinny like the infantrymen. Fortunately we weren't there during a big holiday time as the crowds were manageable.  MJ said that Xi'An gets 10 million visitors a year, mostly Chinese.

After viewing the first pit, we went to lunch.  Outside the restaurant I caught this guy obviously waiting for his guests, riding a Jade Horse while texting on his phone.

We saw two more pits after lunch, and then a short movie about the history of the place, and its importance as a historical site.  We also bought a book which was signed by the farmer who found the first shards and brought them to the attention of the government.  He's a bit of a celebrity in Xi'An because he helped establish it as a major tourist destination.

Sunday, our last day,  we started the day with a walk (and bicycle ride) on the city walls.  They are fairly well maintained and have been upgraded a couple of times.  They started out as rammed earth, then brickwork was added later, and finally there were rain gutters an other adornments added. Here you see MJ explaining to Cindy why the abutments (buildings on the wall) are spaced at even distance of 60 Meters all around the wall.   This has to do with how far arrows will fly for the defense of the wall.   It was a grey day, and was raining when we first climbed the wall.  But by the end it was dry enough for us to rent bikes and ride a ways around the wall.  Rather bumpy, but fun.  After going on the wall, we were taken to a local gallery where we had the opportunity to learn a bit about Chinese calligraphy, practice a bit ourselves, and see some of the local art.  We saw both folk art styles and more modern styles, though the folk art was more interesting to us.


Finally then after lunch at Grandma's Impressions.  We went on to one more Emperor's tomb (Hanyang tombs).   He came after the one who had the terra cotta warriors and horses we saw first, and since the economy wasn't doing so well, and he realized that maybe there would be another revolt if he spent so much on his afterlife preparations, all of his terracotta warriors, horses, pigs, fowl, courtiers, etc were scaled down.   The site was found in the 80's when the expressway was being built.   The government knew there were tombs in the area, but didn't know that they extended so far beyond the actual burial mounds which are still visible from a fair distance away.   The museum is much more modern, accessible, and the viewing of the artifacts still in the ground is much closer, but it would not be able to handle quite the crowds that the first site can.  Here are a few photos.

Then we had to go to the airport and fly home.  Again MJ was great.  We booked him through China Oddysey Tours.

And as always there's more on my Flickr.