photography

The Real Iran Pt2: The Biblical City of Persepolis

November 19, 2011 by Bino 2 Comments

Many countries have that one landmark which serves as the national symbol as well as its #1 tourist draw. As Angkor Wat is to Cambodia, Machu Picchu to Peru and Great Wall to China, in Iran that place is Persepolis. Over 2,500 years old, this former capital of the Persian Empire is emblematic of the strong Pre-Islamic heritage which this nation proudly carries. Way before associations with the “axis of evil” came about, it is Persepolis which people in the past two millennia have come to associate with Persia.

the gate of all nations

Some forty years ago when Iran was still under a secular government, a grand celebration with a lot of pomp and pageantry was held in Persepolis by the then Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi to commemorate 2,500 years of Persian Civilization. The guest list included the who’s who in global politics at that time, and also comprised our then First Lady Imelda Marcos who represented the Philippines for the event.

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The Real Iran Pt1: Touchdown Shiraz – But No Wine?

November 15, 2011 by Bino 8 Comments

naranjestan garden

I had been looking forward to this trip since 2007 when my interest in traveling to Iran started. I had just traveled to Turkey earlier that year, and after finding it to be one of my best travel experiences, I vowed to see more of the Middle East next time. However, it did not materialize until four years later – I had constantly been putting it off in favor of nearer destinations. But this year, with all the uncertainty and the revival of the nuclear programme issue in recent months, I decided it was now or never. It had been pending in my travel list for far too long.

With only a limited number of days in Iran, I decided to depart from the usual practice that most travelers have of arriving and departing through Tehran. Fortunately, Qatar Airways started flying to Shiraz recently, which was the southernmost city in our trip so we could just make our way northwards and skip a potentially hazardous domestic flight. The actual flight to Shiraz from Doha turned out to be more like a short hop over the Persian Gulf, and before I knew it, I was in the waiting area of the airport terminal negotiating for the fare with the cab drivers. Despite all the horror stories I heard with the immigration procedures, I got my visa in a few minutes after presenting my reference code. Then, I was off to Shiraz!

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Ha-Ha-Ha Long Bay

August 31, 2011 by Bino 10 Comments

The sole reason why we decided to have a 3-day Hanoi trip instead of making it a Saturday-Sunday affair was because of Ha Long Bay. The name has been entrenched so strongly in many a travelers’ minds that it’s become one of the must-visit places in Southeast Asia. With a name that literally means “Descending Dragon’s Bay,” how could one possibly pass this up?

While limestone karst formations are not peculiar in the region (Guilin in China; Krabi in Thailand and Coron in the Philippines all come to mind), what separates Ha Long Bay from the rest are the sheer number of these rising up from the sea – there’s over 3,000 of them! It makes for a very fine view, especially during sunset where the scenery can appear like a painting baked by the golden colors complementing the limestone silhouettes.

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Things to Do in Vientiane – Ideas For Southeast Asia’s Sleepiest Capital

January 4, 2011 by Bino 9 Comments

basking in the golden sunlight – Pha That Luang

Ahead of my November visit, I was told by all the guidebooks to expect a very sleepy town in Vientiane considering that it is the capital of a country with fewer people than Singapore but 300 times the size. The first encounter I had with the city was on arrival after an annoying flight delay due to rain in KL, during the night before our bumpy trip to Luangprabang. I did not really expect much in terms of fun things to do in the capital.

Vientiane is a town in many sense of the word. It is compact, no tall buildings and still quite provincial. But by no means was it sleepy… or did I miss anything?…

Easy Daytrips Around Luangprabang in Laos

December 18, 2010 by Bino 8 Comments

The area around Luangprabang in Laos is filled with a number of popular daytrip opportunities. Two have practically become must-see destinations that they’ve been included as part of any default itinerary of Luangprabang-bound visitors.

Kuang Si Falls

We spent our first evening haggling with the many travel agencies in town for a good deal to take us to two sites – the famous Kuang Si Falls as well as to the much talked-about Pak Ou Caves. Both are near Luangprabang. Both are also within one hour car ride away and are described as “must see” places. The friendly chap who entertained us at the travel agency we settled with gave us a supposedly good deal for both daytrips. He even showed us the other receipts for the day containing supposed suckers who signed up at a higher price. “We are not Europeans!” was my default justification to be charged fairly. So did it work? We were able to bring our price down by only $1 per person – nothing fantastic, but still better than nothing. We shopped around and the prices were pretty much standard across the board….

Exploring the UNESCO World Heritage Town of Luangprabang

December 12, 2010 by Bino 4 Comments

The 8-hour car ride from Vientiane was one of the bumpiest I’ve been in. The driver couldn’t speak English but seemed as if he was on a mad dash to see who could get to Luangprabang first. Our van literally jumped every few minutes as it also had to contend with the relatively poor state of the roads. We came ahead of many other buses and vans plying the same route – and ended up arriving in the town a good 2-3 hours earlier than most. Not too shabby, except that our driver kept at this speed despite the harrowing cliffs that were prevalent in the few hundred kilometer journey.

at luangprabang night market

Luangprabang was literally our first real destination in this trip. We took a short plane ride to KL, where we also spent the night. Next day, our flight to Vientiane got delayed because of an unexpected massive downpour – and we spent that night in Vientiane. So by default, we were on “transit” for 2 nights, albeit in different places.

I had high hopes for Luangprabang – given that it is a UNESCO World Heritage Town after all and I heard quite a lot of rave reviews about it, both from friends and from independent travel magazines. But after we had crossed into the city limits, it looked like any provincial town in Southeast Asia. The town is quite spread out, but the overwhelming majority of the attractions are actually situated in the main street called Sisavangvong Road….

Bhutan: Hassle-Free Tips

December 8, 2010 by Bino 10 Comments

A trip to Bhutan is an experience in itself. It’s one of the most isolated countries in the world (Bhutan certainly ranks near the top) . Breathtaking scenery, thousand year old monasteries, gross national happiness, a different way of life – the country certainly has a lot to offer.

Paro International Airport

So if Bhutan is in your travel checklist, let me share some tips. I’m not claiming to be an expert here, but I reckon I can shed light to some things. I suppose there aren’t really a lot of other people around who can give tips for Bhutan so here goes….

In Pursuit of (Gross National) Happiness, Pt2

November 29, 2010 by Bino 2 Comments

Woke up at 6:30. Our guide was not going to pick us up until 9 but I decided to take my morning walk around Thimphu. My other companions were still in la-la land. I peered out the window and the sky was a total gray like the day before. The morning air was quite cold, yet I still pursued my plan of walking to Trashi Chhoe Dzong near the northern end of the city.

Trashi Chhoe Dzong

This “walk” took nearly 30 minutes and entailed a distance of 2 to 3 kilometers each way. I passed by many curiosities – government buildings draped with ornate paintings, schoolchildren dressed in the national costume making their way to school, passers-by looking at me curiously… it was a mix of these as I observed the people around me starting their days. I arrived at the dzong, took some quick snaps, had a short conversation with a security guard, then turned back using another way. From the ground, Thimphu seemed much more compact than it looked when we viewed it from high up. There were lots of open spaces and natural greenery that weren’t so apparent previously. Thimphu is easily one of the most scenic capital cities in Asia….

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