Pit 2, located 20 meters north of Pit 1 is very different. Smaller (but still 6,000 meters square), and shaped in an “L” it contains mixed military forces of archers, charioteers, cavalry and infantry. At present, a large portion remains unexcavated.
I would think that when deciding if you wish to be an archaeologist, the first question you should ask yourself is “Do I like jigsaw puzzles?”
Well preserved charioteers.
If you have followed this blog at some point you know that one of my favorite places to visit while traveling is a market. Beijing was no different. The markets are the best places to enjoy the “life” of a city.
When you stand outside a street vendor like this, it makes our North American dining experience seem so .. pedestrian.
A few black and whites.
It also seems like their food is fresher. Farmer to market …. perhaps it is different in January.
Our last tour in Beijing was the traditional residences of China, which are slowly but surely disappearing under the crush of concrete.
Hutongs (simplified Chinese: 胡同; traditional Chinese: 衚衕; pinyin: hútòng; Wade–Giles: hu2-t’ung4) are a type of narrow streets or alleys, commonly associated with northern Chinese cities, most prominently Beijing.
In Beijing, hutongs are alleys formed by lines of siheyuan, traditional courtyard residences.[1] Many neighbourhoods were formed by joining onesiheyuan to another to form a hutong, and then joining one hutong to another. The word hutong is also used to refer to such neighbourhoods.
Since the mid-20th century, the number of Beijing hutongs has dropped dramatically as they are demolished to make way for new roads and buildings. More recently, some hutongs have been designated as protected areas in an attempt to preserve this aspect of Chinese cultural history.
A few of my favorite shots from around the Hutongs.
Everything is painted grey … I was told in large part due to the previous Olympics, although now it is the standard. Black and white shots seem to be the best, as it was rather hazy.
Very old mailboxes.
Progress. Slowly, but surely, the old buildings disappear.
Many of the cars have pieces of carpet or wood against the wheels – to stop the dogs and cats from marking the tires.
Mixed in behind the side streets are a few remaining temples and buildings – buried deep.
This many hundreds of years old plaque (if I remember correctly) is a list of the local elders.
History disappearing.
Our time in Japan has come to an end.
We could have stayed longer, but factors played out that a different choice was the right one for our family. Leaving a country is always a bittersweet experience, there are things you are looking forward to in your next destination while you know there are things that you will miss from the previous country. You also get into a groove in a new country after 2 years …. that groove is over.
In no particular order are the things I will miss about Tokyo:
Safety and cleanliness: A society that is homogeneous with very little immigration means that they have 3,000 years of shared tradition and values which drive their society. The downside is that it leads to rigidity, hierarchy and significant innovation constraints. On the plus side, it makes Japan truly unique. There is no garbage because people care about their society and are too proud of Japan to litter. You can walk a back street at 2:30am and be completely safe, while a 4 year old child can walk to school with zero issues. That is truly unique.
The people: Our western society is so fast paced and all about the push. I will admit to being too abrupt, irritable or not polite enough. In Japan, as a whole, that is not the case. Sure the subways get crowded but over the last two years I have come to respect the little things like the politeness of a bow. We as westerners have not lost all of that and not everyone is rude (insert Canadians saying “excuse me” joke here), but in Japan it is the way that they all live. I heard a story the other day where a fellow was in Japan teaching English and he happened to mention to a few of the women he was teaching that he found Tokyo cold. The next day they showed up with extra blankets and a warm jacket for him. The sense of community, sharing and “team” is alive and well in Japan.
The food and drink: If you like food, you need to go to Japan. Good food on every corner, with more drink choices than you can imagine. There is no where like it. Odd to think that Tokyo has more Michelin stars than any country in the world and Canada, sadly barren.
January and February: Why? Because if you want snow you can jump on a train and be at the ski hill in 90 minutes. Otherwise, my heavy winter jacket did not come out once in over 2 years. Now that is the type of winter that I love – tennis in January.
Amazon.jp and Japan Post: I know, miss a postal system? Japan Post is amazing. Order something on Amazon on Saturday morning at 8am (and you can order EVERYTHING on Amazon) and see it arrive that same evening. A post man working on a Saturday night? Now that is customer service.
The 5pm song: Every evening in Tokyo at 5pm huge loudspeakers play a song. I have been told it is so that children know it is dinner time. How quaint.
Vertical parking: Why? I don’t know. But I always found it interesting and Roppongi Towers has to have the most advanced parking system in the world.
The wonderful, oddity of Japan: As I have said before, living in Japan is like living on Mars. You could never feel more different (As a side note, I have heard Japanese say the same thing about when they are in North America). They do so many things differently than us and it is always interesting to stumble upon new things. A simple example; they have these sinks in the washrooms in our office and I could never figure out what they are for.
Turns out they are for brushing your teeth and the button on the left (blue swirl) is a special flushing button that swishes water all around the bowl in a circular motion to clean the sink. And of course, don’t get me started on Japan’s greatest invention – the Toto. I had 3 installed into my house in Canada instantly – and yes there is a Toto Canada, and yes they sell their products on Amazon.
Japanese English: I love to read interpretations. I snapped this one recently because of the gargling insert. I also like the detailed instructions – it feels like mom wrote it – “don’t forget to wash under your fingernails” (smile)
Facemasks: This might seem like an odd one, but I like facemasks. To understand the Japanese facemask culture, you need to understand how they think.
To the Japanese, facemasks are about being polite. If you have a cold, you wear one so that you will not get anyone else sick. If you have a baby, you will wear one so that you don’t bring home any germs. To see someone wearing a facemask in western society is an oddity, in Japan it is incredibly common – people wear them everywhere. On a few occasions I have worn them when ill in the office, I have worn them at home to try not to spread a cold when I get off a plane and I love wearing them when on a plane (for hydration reasons – a great way to reduce your chance of getting a cold or sore throat).
A reflection on their community focused culture.
Last but certainly not least, Japanese customer service: Customer service in Japan is THE BAR. There is nothing that compares and it is consistent, people take pride in their work and bend over backwards to service the customer. The primary driver for this is that the Japanese people expect excellent service and are therefore willing to pay higher prices – something “Lowest price every day” mentality in North America has destroyed – it is our consumer choice.
Good-bye Japan. You are very, very unique in this world.
The Japan Times has an interesting feature called “Well Said” which is all about helping the gaijin integrate into the local society. In their words, it is all about “sounding natural in Japanese”.
While having breakfast at the hotel last week I enjoyed the topic of this Well Said! It is particularly Japanese.
I cannot imagine the Washington Post or Globe & Mail using ‘Lets go drinking after work’ as an acceptable scenario to help learn English and integrate into the business culture (smile).
Now, to truly understand this Japanese scenario, you have to read between the lines. The reason why Mr. Sere actually has only Y1,000 in his wallet (roughly $10) is because he has almost spent the allowance that his wife has given him for the week or month. He is simply using the credit card as an excuse for spending too much this week/month or to hide that fact that his wife only gives him a small allowance.
All true. Read more here.
Japanese commercial music – you hear their synthetic version of elevator music everywhere. I did not expect to see it on the floor cleaner.
I hope he has earplugs. Can you imagine listening to that all day long?
I thought these people were dressing up as part of the Forbidden City – as an attraction. Turns out that you can rent traditional garb to wear during your visit.
This is a common thing in Japan also – where men and women will rent kimonos for the day and tour around the city. I tried to think what a Canadian equivalent would be – his and her Mountie uniforms?
In the Forbidden City the most interesting thing to me was the roofs. I can only imagine how much was lost during the different cultural purges of the last century.
Right below the roof at the front of this shot is where a Starbucks use to be. It was removed prior to the Olympics as it was not good for their image. I would hate to have seen the lineup.
A few more roof shots from around the city. Grass can grow in the toughest of places.
Deer are a popular ornament for under the roofs. Blue deer.
Last shot.
In the Forbidden City, Beijing, China.
A little bit on the history of the wall:
is a type of screen wall with reliefs of nine different Chinese dragons. Such walls are typically found in imperial Chinese palaces and gardens.
Early reference to the tradition of putting a screen wall at the gate is found in the Analects, 3:22: therein, it is mentioned as a trivial ritual norm ("The princes of States have a screen intercepting the view at their gates". 邦君樹塞門, trans. by James Legge).
Built in 1771. It is beautiful to look at.
Across from Tiananmen square, our next stop:
The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty. It is located in the center of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum. For almost 500 years, it served as the home of emperors and their households, as well as the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government.
Built in 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 buildings and covers 72 ha (180 acres).[1] The palace complex exemplifies traditional Chinese palatial architecture,[2] and has influenced cultural and architectural developments in East Asia and elsewhere. The Forbidden City was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987,[2] and is listed by UNESCO as the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world.
Filled with buildings that once housed royalty, it is worth a wander.
Our guide mentioned that this is a single piece of stone, climbing up the steps. If I recollect the story correctly, it took thousands of people a very long time to move it here as one piece and then hundreds to carve it – with dragons.
Dragons are everywhere.
According to Wikipedia, the Chinese dragon remains important in today’s Chinese culture:
Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, hurricane, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck for people who are worthy of it. With this, the Emperor of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power and strength.[1]
In Chinese daily language, excellent and outstanding people are compared to a dragon, while incapable people with no achievements are compared with other, disesteemed creatures, such as a worm. A number of Chinese proverbs and idioms feature references to a dragon, for example: "Hoping one’s son will become a dragon" (望子成龍, i.e. be as a dragon).
The number of dragons is very important – on the roofs, always an odd number. But not all lucky numbers are odd (to my surprise).
One things is consistent through the shots, the grey sky.
As I have mentioned before on this blog, when traveling we love to visit markets; seeing what the locals eat and how they live their lives.
I would say that the Chinese medicine market was a new level of different for our travels. As we pulled up our guide explained that these markets are in decline, replaced by Chinese pharmacies that carry every type of herbal medicine imaginable.
Perhaps the decline is a display issue. A few of these sellers were bagging their wares to sell to other shops.
A few of my favorite shots.
That is a bag of snakes.
I cannot remember, but these were some type of fish. There was a common theme through the market, almost everything would cure one condition … and contribute to fertility or virility.
Odd to see Sea Horses.
The shells of turtles, for some reason that bothered me.
As did seeing these deer horns.
Last shots. Of course, there has to be lots, and lots of beetles.
Really interesting to see.
This is the Temple of Heaven, on a warm day with the smog backdrop. We were not there on a clear blue-sky day.
The Temple of Heaven, literally the Altar of Heaven (simplified Chinese: 天坛; traditional Chinese: 天壇; pinyin: Tiāntán; Manchu: Abkai mukdehun) is a complex of religious buildings situated in the southeastern part of central Beijing. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest. It has been regarded as aTaoist temple,[1] although Chinese heaven worship, especially by the reigning monarch of the day, pre-dates Taoism.
To me the more interesting view is the walkway to the temple. Filled with retired people and families, enjoying each other – playing cards and different board games. There is a lot going on, and I am sure there is some money changing hands in some of those games.
Shirts optional. The Chinese men had an interesting cultural norm of pulling their t-shirts up from the bottom and tucking them through the neck, exposing their mid-sections. It was hot, but for me, not hot enough to resort to that (smile).
I think I would call this shot “friends”.
Traveling around Asia you become accustom to different levels of garbage. In the emerging countries where people are trying to make a living you see garbage everywhere for logical reasons; when you are trying to feed your family, ensuring that every plastic bag is picked up doesn’t really make the priority list.
In Tokyo, which went through a terrible pollution stage post World War II, the emergence of wealth has led to incredible cleanliness. Garbage in Japan is about as common as immigrants – not often seen; truly the cleanest city in the world.
Which left me wondering, what would it be like outside of the business areas that I was accustomed to in China? We have all read about the terrible pollution, so would that also mean that the same disregard for the environment is prevalent along back streets?
The answer was a a surprise – it is quite clean. As we traveled around Beijing and Xian, you did not see piles of roadside or back alley garbage. Instead, I saw a lot of people collecting garbage.
My favorite garbage collectors were those at Tiananmen Square and like many people in China, they were on electric scooters.
Wasn’t that a book? No, it is the Monk who sold his Ferrari.
Well, it would appear that the monks of Japan are not so interested in selling. I am amazed by the number of BMWs you see at shrines around Tokyo. When I asked a colleague, he explained that many of the shrines are handed from family to family, and are exempt from taxes.
Interested if anyone has a link – my searches on the topic proved futile.
A few shrine shots around Minato-ku, Tokyo.
And of course, a BMW
Last shot.
It is a colorful city. Config: Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 28-300mm f/2.8 USM.
Sitting in one of the canal locks (there are many).
You also see some interesting wildlife on the canals. To answer your question, yes – it really is that big. This is not the zoom making it look bigger.
On the canals of Bangkok. Config: Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 28-300mm f/2.8 USM.
Collecting water.
As we rode down the river, lots of people were playing music. Some with some very big speakers.
These homes exist in the shadow of some of the world’s most modern buildings.
Reminds me of Hong Kong.
After all of my posts on India, I am left with a sense of awe. We went not knowing what to expect, a little worried and questioning if it was the right trip for us.
India is a full-on, visual assault. People, activity, honking, smells, traffic, chaos, laughter, despair – all these words describe it. But in the end, I think I would trend toward words like ‘vibrant’ and ‘colorful’ as the ones that truly capture India.
Yes, I think the right word is “colorful”.
It is not for everyone. It is definitely not for the first time or unseasoned traveler.
Personally, I cannot wait to go back.
If you live in Japan, you know that the Japanese are dog crazy. With a plummeting birth rate, the dogs are clearly filling a gap.
This little fellow is in the pet store down the street. Take a guess at the price.
You are probably wrong.
That translates to roughly $20K CDN. Premium, for sure. If you are going to have a dog that expensive, you better buy a dog stroller.
You better buy a carrier too.
Of course, if you are having a tea party, everyone needs to be dressed up – bow in the hair and all.
Japanese love their dogs. Check out this site from some amazing Japan dog photos.
There are 3 ways to the top of the Amber Fort, walk (it is long), a jeep up the side streets (our method) or an elephant ride that wanders up the hill.
I jumped in front of this one as it made its way back down the hill.
The road up and down the hill is packed with jeeps. Elephants randomly walking into the middle of the street do not speed things up.
Neither do the random cattle. Wandering free and completely unafraid.
I had a chuckle at this sign. Not an issue.
This fellow was moving much, much faster than we were.
It was very hard not to jump out of our parked vehicle for some authentic popcorn. But the rule was clear, no street food, no matter how seemly innocent – not even popcorn.
Never a dull moment.
On the way to Delhi, India.
I love the colors and vibrancy of India.
The second stage of the sales cycle was to show us how they made a carpet.
Hand woven and then burned with a torch to remove the extra silk.
An intricate process of burning (to tighten and seal the knots) and shaving. With the wool carpets he took a blade to the fibers to finish the process.
While it is all staged to facilitate the sales process just like in other places such as Murano, Italy, it was interesting to watch. The problem I have as a “tourist” is what is the right price? This vendor was pitching us rugs that ran from $5K-$12K USD. While I know silk rugs in downtown Toronto often go for that price (or more), I was instantly on the defensive. Certainly they send those to foreign markets at a fraction of the cost – so what is the right price?
In the end, that is why we did not buy. Perhaps we would have if we felt there was a compelling reason and a deal to be had due to the “buy from the source” scenario.
Being Expats our propensity to “consume” is quite low. Beside the fact that we are living in Tokyo, we have entered into a phase in our lives where we are getting rid of things – not adding. It has to be pretty special to get into our suitcase on a trip.
Our guide had scheduled a stop at a textile shop which is a collective and one that he trusts. I have a long sales background and appreciate a good selling process. Their process is all about creating that emotional tie, letting us know the background on the collective and walking us through how the carpets are made.
The selling process started with showing us how they print silk by hand. Amazing to watch.
The finished process.
Made me wish that we needed something. Carpets, their high price item, were next.
I kept seeing these sidewalk barbershops as we traveled the roads of India – often too late (our van had already whizzed by). On our last couple days in India I set a goal – get a few shots before it is too late.
Config: Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 28-300mm f/28 USM. Having the 300mm helped.
I think that the blue chair might be a barbershop standard.
This is the only barbershop that I spotted inside – on the way from Jaipur to Delhi.
Incredible India! I just loved having a camera there.
Another TripAdvisor advised detour in India, we stopped at our second step well. Throughout the trip it never ceased to amaze me how advanced Indian engineering was. Abhaneri was built for one reason, to harvest rain water.
Stepwells, also called kalyani or pushkarani (Kannada: ), bawdi (Hindi: बावड़ी) or baoli (Hindi: बावली), barav (Marathi: बारव), vaav (Gujarati: વાવ) are wells or ponds in which the water may be reached by descending a set of steps. They may be covered and protected and are often of architectural significance. They also may be multi-storied having a bullock which turns the water wheel ("rehat") to raise the water in the well to the first or second floor.
I wonder when the last time this step well was full?
We were not allowed down.
Beautiful green water with thousands of steps and I counted 14 levels. Amazing piece of 8th century work.
The architecture around the well was stunning.
Random chunks of block filled the corridors, from temples in the area.
For the traveller moving from Agra to Jaipur (or vice versa), it is an interesting detour.
As we approached the potter’s home his family gathered around. It was a simple demonstration, showing us his craft.
I love the bright colors of the community.
With no signs of electricity into the home, it was all done the old fashioned way – by hand.
His watch seemed an odd contrast to the surroundings.
While traveling from Agra to Jaipur we detoured into a small town. We went to see how the locals live and to see a potter. Config: Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 28-300mm f/2.8 USM.
Every street, regardless of location, has one thing in common – water buffalo and cows.
The potters house.
Cow dung was spread out on the roofs of many of the houses – they use it for fuel.
I was allowed to look inside one of the homes (below), and it was as you would expect. Simple open rooms, with a fire pit and sleeping quarters on mats. It was also filled with smiling children, staring at the gaijin.
The potter was next.
When we moved to Tokyo I found it very hard to figure out. As expatriate assignments go, Japan is like moving to Mars and dramatically more complex than when we moved to Europe.
As a public service announcement, I share a few key learnings in the hope that it helps others in the future.
Tokyo is the safest and cleanest city in the world. It has beautiful parks and perplexing rules. The Japanese people are incredibly friendly and will openly try to help you out as a foreigner.
But it can be daunting, as I described in this post. I hope this helps others.
Outside of Agra is Fatehpur Sikri, a small city that would often serve as the summer capital:
The city was founded in 1569 by the Mughal emperor Akbar, and served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1571 to 1585.[1] After his military victories over Chittor and Ranthambore, Akbar decided to shift his capital from Agra to a new location 23 miles (37 km) W.S.W on the Sikri ridge, to honor the Sufi saint Salim Chishti. Here he commenced the construction of a planned walled city which took the next fifteen years in planning and construction of a series of royal palaces, harem, courts, a mosque, private quarters and other utility buildings.[2] He named the city, Fatehabad, with Fateh, a word of Arabic origin in Persian, meaning "victorious." it was later called Fatehpur Sikri.[3] It is at Fatehpur Sikri that the legends of Akbar and his famed courtiers, the nine jewels or Navaratnas, were born.[citation needed] Fatehpur Sikri is one of the best preserved collections of Mughal architecture in India.[4]
Ornately built with incredible detail everywhere. It is an architectural wonder, and quite the “summer home”.
While we were there it was quite cloudy and foggy. We are just fortunate that the entire trip was not that way.
The most interesting part of the fort was the insight into the male/female lifestyle. At different spots through the fort Anu (our guide) would point out where they celebrated – with dancers and musicians – always pointing to where the women would be located/segregated, often behind some type of screen or up on one of the balconies.
Interesting insight into a Moghul’s summer life. As an aside – a point on literacy embedded in the Wikipedia entry:
Fatehpur Sikri has a population of 28,754. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Fatehpur Sikri has an average literacy rate of 46%, lower than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 57%, and female literacy is 34%. In Fatehpur Sikri, 19% of the population is under 6 years of age
We had many conversations with our guide on literacy, education and the class system in India. It became apparent that there is a lot of local skepticism around the claimed national literacy average of 72%.
This fellow was very proud of his camel and the grooming. A majestic animal. He was offering rides outside of Fatehpur Sikri.
Love the intricate designs. He loves his camel.
It seems that regardless of country, students always get stuck doing manual labor to “build character”. In this case it is weeding and cutting the grass (with their hands) at the Tokyo police academy.
There must have been 200 of them. The only difference between them and their brethren everywhere ? Most of them were wearing a face mask.
Ever since we landed in Japan two years ago I have constantly been smiling at the little things that are so different. Truly, I say it again and again, living on Japan is like living on Mars. It could not be more different than Canada.
Case in point, music. J-pop is everywhere and I personally find the dollification (I made that word up) and boy/girl band music confusing and well, not reeling me in. That artificial, tinny, synthetic type of music can be found everywhere in Japanese society. It is particularly grating in D2, my local hardware store, which has found a way to make elevator music even more soul crushing by replicating it via synthetic organ music.
To give you an insight into this music, I pass on a video. It is me recording what it is like to be on hold with an un-named Michelin 3 star restaurant in Tokyo.
I live on j-pop Mars (smile).
In most countries when you think of a construction worker you think of a hardhat, steel boots and safety equipment.
In the land of paradox, where rules abound and business culture is all about adhering to the norms and coloring within the lines, the attire of the Japanese construction worker continues to confuse me.
Construction pants? Well yes, but they are these huge, flowing baggy things that look perfect for getting caught in an auger and ripping off a limb. Called a Tobi trouser.
Tobi trousers or tobi pants are a type of baggy pants used as a common uniform of tobi shokunin, construction workers in Japan who work on high places (such as scaffolding and skyscrapers).[1] The pants are baggy to a point below the knees, abruptly narrowing at the calves so as to be put into the footwear: high boots or jikatabi (tabi-style boots), often brightly colored.[2]
According to a spokesperson for Toraichi, a major manufacturer of worker’s clothes of this style, the style was developed from knickerbockers. The regular knickerbocker-style pants are called nikka zubon ("zubon" means "trousers," and "nikka" or "nikka-bokka" is a gairaigo–transformation of the word "knickerbockers"). The excessively widened ones are calledchocho zubon.[1] This style has also entered popular fashion,[3] as evidenced by the emergence of toramani ("Toraichi maniacs"), die-hard fans of Toraichi trousers.[1]
Construction boots? No. Usually soft boots with the big toe separate to allow for slip on footwear (i.e. flip flops). Definitely not steel toe. He happens to be wearing running shoes. Called the Jikatabi. I personally like this commentary on the boot “Though slowly being replaced by steel-toed, rigid-sole shoes in some industries, many workers prefer them for the softness of their soles”.
Hard hat? Infrequently. The bandana seems to be a team favorite.
One could say that construction mirrors culture – where tradition is tantamount, despite the changing world around them. Or perhaps, the right term is “to spite the changing world around them”. The paradox that is Japan.
The only way that we found out about this wildlife sanctuary is through TripAdvisor, and my unwillingness to accept a pre-canned trip. I am glad we did.
The sanctuary is a little bit out of the way and I wish we would have scheduled more time as they also have a elephant sanctuary in the park – 30 minutes away. If you read through the TripAdvisor reviews, there will be people complaining about some fees such as the “take picture” fee at the entrance to the park. For me, it was worth every penny. These people are doing amazing work and we made a donation on the spot.
It is a rather heartbreaking story. Wildlife SOS started in 1995 with a movement to save the “dancing bears” of India. Ripped from their mothers at an early age their noses are pierced, teeth are broken and they are trained to “dance”. Their owners move from town to town, entertaining the villagers. Through a program of buying back the bears and helping the previous owners find a new livelihood (i.e. become a rickshaw driver), they have slowly eliminated the practice. Very few remain and it is now illegal.
It is truly amazing work they are doing and these bears appear so content in their huge, open sanctuary. The sloth toed bears are beautiful and incredibly serene.
You can see the mark where the ring was initially in place. Now, long gone.
Relaxing.
They also rescue other animals – which we did not have the time to see (regrettably). Although we did have a ton of fun playing with their dogs – rescued from the streets of the city, and beyond happy. This fellow was a vixen (smile).
I would highly recommend watching this video to understand the plight of these bears. You can donate here.
I am a Starwoods guy. Whenever I can, our family stays in their hotels because that is where I stay on business. A friend coached me when I first came out of university – pick a hotel chain and stick with it – that is how he gets a free week in Maui every year.
That qualifying statement complete, the Four Seasons is impressive. We stayed at the Four Seasons in Cairo years ago and it is one of the best hotel we have ever stayed at. The view helped.
Recently we were speaking with someone who had managed the restaurant at the Four Seasons in Tokyo. We were discussing the Japanese culture, creativity and education. He provided the following insight (paraphrased from memory):
It was a real challenge at the restaurant because our staff struggled with the westerners. At a Four Seasons it is very common for the guest to not order off the menu. They expect to order what they want and have us prepare it.
This is very different than the Japanese clients. I cannot remember any Japanese client every asking to order outside the menu. It just isn’t how they think and our servers really struggled with dealing with the custom ordering.
It just isn’t how the Japanese were taught to think and as the world continues to change, I wonder as to what will be required out of the Japanese education system, is it being altered to deal with change? (I believe the answer is no). We all need a good dose of Finnish education.
Everyone knows about the pollution problems in China, especially people in Asia. The cities function in a perpetual haze with varying levels of visibility.
While walking down a street in Shanghai the other week I saw a gaggle of scooters coming my way. Not an uncommon appearance in Asian cities.
As they sped towards me I was expecting to be assaulted by the smell of gasoline and the high pitch hum of single stroke engines. To my surprise, they zinged by quietly. It turns out that most scooters in China cities are electric. They are cheap to power and cheap to buy ($100-300).
A bear I would never buy. The warning is very clear about language.
I believe this golf visor was in the men’s section.
The below translates into roughly $60USD per melon.
And Tokyo is the 6th most expensive city currently!
It is a question I asked many people before we traveled there for 10 days with a wide range of answers; what is the right amount of time?
Reflecting on our time in the country, I would pass on the following opinions (feel free to disagree):
The tourist sites become repetitive: The pink city, the blue city, Delhi. The architecture of India is surprisingly consistent. Once you see a couple temples, forts and Tajs, they begin to look the same. Therefore if you are planning, remember that. We went to Agra, Jaipur and Delhi. I do not feel that we missed much by not hitting the other northern cities and am very glad that we didn’t make the very long trips.
That isn’t to say that the south isn’t different. It is and we will make another trip to hit the south of India.
It isn’t about the tourist sites: Had we followed the itineraries that were presented to us by travel companies we would have missed out. I spent a lot of time searching different locations on Tripadvisor and opportunities to take us off the beaten path. Into villages, on to locations that others don’t usually go to. The Taj Mahal was interesting, but I wouldn’t call it the highlight of the trip. The highlights for us were often down side streets.
I began to form this opinion at Sikandra tomb, the tomb of Akbar the great. Magnificent building? Yes. Did it have anything different than the other tombs we had seen? Not really. It was at this point in the tour that we started to actively push away from the top, commonly visited sites in the cities.
It is tiring. India is a full on assault on the senses. A 100km drive can take 5 hours. Everything is caked in dust. You will see flaunted wealth and the saddest of poverty. We booked in breaks at our hotel to just relax or it would have been to much.
As I said in a previous post, our private guide gave us this flexibility and truly explained India to us. The culture, the rich history and he was very flexible as we evolved our itinerary as we went.
And to answer the question again on safety – just be smart. We had a few run ins, but we were never in danger. We stood out in the crowd (My wife and boys are blonde), so expect lots of stairs, people asking for money and a few other things. As a group, it was safe. It is just about being smart.
India is an incredible place, but it is not for the first time traveler.
Our trip to India involved 3 cities (Delhi, Agra, Jaipur) with driving in between. What would be considered a fast and simple drive in Europe or Canada was arduous in India. The country is filled with half completed roads, which (I was told) stands as a testament to the bureaucracy and corruption that plagues the country.
For a tourist that means long – bumpy drives. Each city would be 5-7 hours apart. We booked a van.
The benefit of that distance is that you can open the window and watch the people go by. As we drove I truly enjoyed watching the trucks.
In Canada, truck drivers pride themselves on how shiny their truck is. In India, it is all about the colors and the bling.
Another big cultural difference. In Canada blowing the horn is an act of anger – done infrequently.
In India, everyone does it, all the time. I mean, all .. of .. the .. time. It is one of the things that makes traveling in India such a full on, sensory overload. On almost every truck, they actively encourage it.
I also learned that inflammable is not the opposite of flammable. English can also be a mysterious language. I particularly enjoyed the “specialist advice” to stay upwind.
Incredible India.
As seen on the road from Delhi to Agra, India. The farmers take this to the extreme.
All along the route, there was much to see. People still collect wood to cook and heat their homes. Agra at this time of year is coolish (6C).
This vehicle was doing around 80 km/h and that last fellow was barely on.
In India you see everything and the contrasts are significant. As you drive you will see a $250K Mercedes driving beside a camel. There were a lot of camels.
They fit in well with the water buffalo.
These water buffalo also provide insight into the speed of traffic in India. They roam free along with the cows.
As I wandered around Chofu I started to get lost. Fortunately I had my iPhone and used it to locate where I was and where I had left the car. Somehow I had gotten quite far off track so I cut through a park to get closer.
I came across these gents heading out for work. They were trimming trees in their tiny little truck. There seems to be a lot of little specialty vehicles in Japan.
You are not allowed to do a lot of things in the park. The “no golfing” was the one that caught my eye.
I do not know why, but apparently this guy is a lucky man. Why does his poster have English on it? You have got me.
I wandered past a train station. It seemed like everyone on the platform was looking at their phone.
It never stops amazing me how many bikes there are in Tokyo. Probably one of the reasons why there are very few obese people in Japan, they all ride bikes (and don’t eat western fast food). The bikes are everywhere on the streets and at certain train stations, they even have their own parking lot.
A friend of mine is constantly writing about the cone culture in Japan. They are literally everywhere and often, head scratchers. Cone madness.
The “this is a sidewalk” coning.
The “garden in waiting” coning.
The “please don’t walk into my air conditioner that is closely tucked away and you would never hit it anyway” coning.
My final shots of Chofu. As you walk through Tokyo, a land of 40 million, you will also come across random plots of land that have remained farm land. This “farm land” is often crammed in between apartment buildings and 2 story houses that are 500 square feet per level (including land).
And like so many farmers that I know, they have a tough time throwing things out. You never know when you will need it …
A greenhouse waiting for spring.
Love the look of this building. I cannot begin to guess the age.
A good wander.
When we went to India over the Christmas break we did not realize that we were taking such a risk. When I say risk I am not talking about safety. I am talking about weather.
Little did we know – it was a terrible time to go to India. In the evenings it gets cold and that causes fog. Lots of fog. According to our guide he went to places like the Taj Mahal many times and all they saw was fog. How terrible would that be?
With this new insight we made a plan as we traveled from Delhi to Agra; the weather would dictate where we would go when and Anu would pick when we went to the Taj Mahal.
It turns out, we were very lucky. According to our guide .. very, very lucky.
Before I get into the Taj Mahal, I need to backtrack. The experience is an interesting one. You stop off at the tourist arrival area where you board electric buses to head to the Taj. This is in an apparent effort to reduce pollution.
They also provide you with some clear guidelines on what you should not do. I am very glad I left behind my nife, colors and helmate.
Very glad because the Ministry of Defense was ready to jump into action in their very intimidating car.
You get dropped off and have to walk to the entrance – through stalls, craftsmen and tourist hawkers. Oh yes, we also had to stop for water buffalo. They were crossing .. near the Taj Mahal.
They came up from the river bank onto the road and back down .. a normal day in the life of a water buffalo, passing through thousands of tourists.
It has to make you smile. On your way to the Taj Mahal, and you get stopped by a herd of buffalo. Incredible India. I expected the sights below, not the water buffalo.
In moments we arrived. This ticket got us past the long local lines and in to see one of the wonders of the world.
The Taj Mahal.
I thought it odd that this man would re-shoe his horse in the middle of a busy Old Delhi street.
It turns out that used horseshoes are very valuable in Indian culture. Business people buy them for good luck.
The man on the left is waiting for the horseshoe – money in hand.
The Old Delhi markets are a real mix. Inside a city block you can find everything; spices, food, textiles, with a little bit of everything in between.
When it comes to colors and textiles, the Indian culture is all about color.
The Indian culture also loves their marigolds. Street vendors were selling them everywhere – especially near temples.
Did I mention that watching the street vendors and not being able to try any of the foods was torture?
This fellow was making these amazing deep fried, cinnamon, crispy sweet cakes. How do I know? They had them in the hotel at breakfast – a place where we could eat the food.
The Indian spice markets are like the textiles – filled with colors. I had one vendor try to sell me a huge bag of cardamom for a couple dollars – definitely not Tokyo prices.
A wonderful “wander”.
Throughout India you see these on doors, walls and hanging in the air – to ward off evil spirits. In this case they are warding the spirits and locking them out.
Remember, always look up. They were hanging all around the markets.
I think it is a lime – with chilies.
How do you describe the Delhi markets? Many words come to mind. Rich, alive, colorful, crammed, dusty, packed, rambling, chaotic. All apply including “interesting”. On Christmas eve day, we wandered the textile and spice markets of Old Delhi. Every alley filled with sights.
These are two of my favorite shots – capturing the essence of the alleys of Old Delhi (Config: Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 28-300mm f/3.5 USM)
This sign was hanging outside a string of fireworks shops.
A few fireworks with very interesting names.
The fireworks were right beside the “Dental Depot”.
And this empty office, which our guide said was the sanitation office – they must have been out and hard at work.
More tomorrow.
The use of English in Japan can be interesting. Take a guess at what this company’s business is?
The definition of weathercock:
A wind vane (or weathercock) is an instrument for showing the direction of the wind. They are typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building.
I only figured it out by looking in the window (smile) and noticing the colors that are inside of the lamp by the door.
I was recently having a discussion with a friend about the merits of black and white versus colour photos.
I have not been a big black and white shooter (mostly because black and white is a process for me with Lightroom). However, I have become a fan of black and white for people. In a black and white photo the focus become the characters in the shot, you are not distracted by colors.
Take this shot for example, a street vendor around the spice market in Old Delhi (Config: Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 28-300 f/3.5 USM)
We happened to be stuck in traffic and these guys were having an animated conversation. Perhaps about the weather or the latest cricket scores? I post both shots, with the black and white being my favorite.
To me color of his head scarf and the mangos is a distraction while the muted wardrobe of the street vendor means that he is not a focal point. The street vendor almost fades into the background.
I am going to start producing a lot more black and white. That being said, I remain a handheld HDR fan – a great feature of the Canon 5D Mark III – for other photos.
Interested in the experiences and opinions of others.
If there is one photo that I took while in India which “describes” Delhi, this would be my choice.
Modern capabilities (electricity, communications, internet and everything else in between) strewn across the street in chaos. The word I would use is “chaotic”.
How these two guys make heads or tails of the wiring is beyond me?
Michael Weening: a few pictures 