Turn the switch to get cool

I took this picture in Colombo, Sri Lanka. When I wanted to switch on the fan on the ceilings, I turned the switch on a wall. The illustration of the fan was self-explanatory, actually. You can get by on just English there, but generally signs are helpful. I flew from Bangkok, Thailand to Colombo, Sri Lanka by a Sri Lankan Airline at night. I checked in to my hotel around midnight. Before I get there, I planned to have dinner at the hotel, but I was full due to the awesome in-flight meal. So, I just took a shower, took some pictures, and passed off. Next morning, I was able to see the beautiful Indian Ocean from the windows. Fabulous.

I love Spanish food culture

This is my breakfast at a nice Sandwich Coffee shop on La Rambla in Barcelona, Spain. My hostal didn't have a restaurant or cafe, but there were a lot of places to eat and drink around the hostal, so I didn't have any problems being there. In Spain, every food and every beverages were just so fantastic. I'd love to go there again to eat and drink. While I was having breakfast, I was thinking about what I would have for lunch. During lunch, I was thinking about dinner which restaurant I would go or something like that.

Are cats sensitive to cold?

The photo shows another cat-sized cat statue in Malmö, Sweden. The cat looked so cold, but actually it was well-made. I don't know much about cat's behavior, but I've heard that cats are sensitive to cold and they hate snow. I'm not sure, though. Back when I took this picture, Malmö was freezing and I thought they got snow within the previous a couple of days. Streets were kinda wet and looked icy sometimes. The cat-sized cat statue was looking for a canal and there were some more cat-sized cat statues around this one.

A rainbow over Patale Chhango

This is another photo which I took at Patale Chhango (a.k.a. Davi's Falls) in Pokhara, Nepal. I saw a nice big rainbow over the water from Phewa Lake. Cool stuff. I was there in September and I'd say the temperature was hot, but Patale Chhango was kinda cooler because of a lot of water coming from Phewa Lake. Sometimes the water pressure is quite strong and dynamic, so beware of that. Nepal is known as Himalayan country, but from my point of view, it's not only the Himalayas. There are a lot of intriguing places to see.

A memorable day

While I was taking a stroll around Athens, Greece, I found this stunning white sculpture; The Hellas and Byron (a.k.a. Invenit Chapu Sculpsit A Falcuiere, Greek: Η ΕΛΛΑΣ ΤΟΝ ΒΥΡΩΝΑ). I didn't have a guide book or information sheets or something like that, so I didn't know what it was, but it looked just so nice and I took a picture of it for my memoir of beautiful Athens. After that I walked through a pedestrian path near Syntagma Square and headed to Omonoia Square for lunch. I had one of the memorable days in Athens.

Chao Phraya River cruise

The photo shows the Chao Phraya River dinner cruise ship. The ship is owned by one of the luxurious hotels in Bangkok, Thailand. The hotel is situated on the Chao Phraya River and is actually my first hotel in Thailand. The hotel provides daily dinner cruise using this beautiful ship and take their guests to city's historic waterway to show beautiful temples, bridges and all. During the cruise they serve great traditional Thai cuisine showing traditional Thai dance with nice Thai music. The MC speaks both Thai and English and gives bunch of information for guests.

I need more rice

The photo shows some food which I had while I was enjoying Nile River Cruise in Cairo, Egypt. The dinner was sort of order styled buffet. I mean there were several chefs and they were waiting next to various food. So, I took a plate on a tray and ordered to the chefs what I wanted in front of each food. From what I remember a chef and I talked like this; "I'll have some rice." "Okay", "I need more rice" "Sure", "... more""... well, okay". Anyway, the photo shows our result. I was happy to eat a lot of rice on the huge cruise ship.

A reason of my visit

The photo shows beautiful ceilings of Belém Tower in Lisbon, Portugal which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Belém district. Many moons ago, I've met a Portuguese travel agent. He showed me some stunning pictures of Lisbon and gave me attractive information. Also, he told me some histories of Portugal. Then, he gave me a map and a Portuguese pin badge. The things he showed me and told me were just so nice, but at the time I've never been to Europe and I was thinking it sounded too hard to get there. But finally, I visited Belém Tower and took a lot of pictures with my impressions.

Headed to the Mediterranean Sea

I saw this such a beautiful view in Tel Aviv, Israel. On the first day in Israel, I headed to Jerusalem from Ben Gurion International Airport by a sherut. I spent for six nights in Jerusalem, visited the Dead Sea and Masada and all and after that returned to Tel Aviv. I felt much more relaxing atmosphere in Tel Aviv, I'd say because of the Mediterranean Sea and its beautiful long white beach. The photo shows a boardwalk to the beach. On the beach there were several places to eat and drink, so I ordered a glass of Goldstar beer and a fillet steak with the sunshine.

Lucky follows me

I was interviewed by a Scandinavian newspaper at Malmö station in Sweden. I was there as a day-trip tourist from Copenhagen, Denmark and I had a mini digital camera in one hand. After I took this picture, an attractive Caucasian woman and a tall guy came to me and asked me about my trip. Where I was from, where I would go or something like that. They were just looking for tourists and wanted to correct some comments about their trip and Malmö and then some. The tall guy was a photographer. So, it happened to be my first experience taken my picture by a professional photographer abroad. Lucky.

My dream place

The photo shows a beautiful view of Florence, Italy with the Arno River. I took this picture from Piazzale Michelangelo that the place where you can see such breathtaking Florence from above. I'd say Piazzale Michelangelo is my dream place to take some pictures of ever-popular stunning Florence. After spent a couple of nights in Florence, I visited Rome for a couple of nights, and then headed to Venice via Maranello. I have a lot of nice memories in Italy. I want to visit again one day.

Heart of a city

The photo shows outside of a Greek post office where in front of Syntagma metro station in Athens, Greece. I'm understanding that Syntagma square is the heart of the city, and around this area is always full of people. Very fun atmosphere. Come to think of it, Athens metro was quite convenient for me. I took the metro line 3 from the International Airport and got to Monastiraki station, then walked toward my hotel. Monastiraki and Syntagma is one stop away by the Metro line 3, but I'd say it's also within walking distance.

Under someone's nose

The photo shows a part of Los Angeles, California, the States. I wanted to visit famous 7th street, so got out of the station, then looked around the city. After a second, I got asked a direction from a young couple. It was my very first time to be there, though. I often got asked directions. Anyway, that day I had a couple of written postcards to send and I just needed stamps. I walked on 7th street or its surrounding area for a long time, took a lot of pictures, then right before I got to the station again, found a post office. It was actually under my nose.

Tea break in front of the Indian Ocean

I took this picture at my favorite ocean front restaurant in Unawatuna, Sri Lanka. After lunch, I ordered a pot of Sri Lankan tea and enjoyed the precious tea break in front of the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka is famous for its huge tea plantation in Nuwara Eliya and I truly enjoyed authentic Sri Lankan tea in a lot of places in Sri Lanka. By the way, Sri Lanka is formerly known as Ceylon, and then official name of the country was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. I'm no linguist, but I've heard that Sri means brilliant, Lanka means island. I personally believe that the new official name of the country is just like the country itself, Sri Lanka.

Casa Batlló

The photo shows Casa Batlló, one of the architectural works of Antoni Gaudí in Barcelona, Spain. Outside of the building is so interesting and has unique shape. I went to inside of the building as well and enjoyed a lot of stunning interior decorating and all using an English audio guide. After I visited this beautiful place, I visited Casa Milà. It was just down the street and and is also one of the great architectural works of Antoni Gaudí. On the way to Casa Milà I took several pictures for my memory. I love Barcelona and its atmosphere.

Laotian food v. Thai food

I love to eat spicy food and Laotian food is one of my favorites. I've been to Laos twice to eat and drink. In my humble opinion, Laotian food is quite similar to Thai food, but I'd say Laotian food is a bit milder I mean less spicier than Thai food, but has a lot of herb in it. Also, I just want to say every Lao food goes well with Beer Lao. The photo shows one of the Laotian food restaurants in Vientiane, Laos. I didn't have an opportunity to have dinner at this place, but the place was almost across from my hotel, so I took a picture of this beautiful place just for my memory.

Pop a shutter to make a memory

When I taking a stroll around Lisbon, Portugal, I found a big Portuguese flag above me. I love the flag, so then I tried to take a nice picture of the view, but unfortunately this is my result. Come to think of it, one of my friends asked me how she could take nice pictures without thinking anything, she meant she wanted to take nice pictures just pressing the shutter button. That was a good question, but it was so hard to answer or give her some advices. To be honest, I had no idea. I'm not good at taking pictures, but I just like to pop shutters to make memories.

Feel like an infinity pool

I can't swim, but I took this picture at my hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka while I was drinking some beer at their swim-up bar. The pool was not exactly like an infinity pool, but the Indian Ocean was just cross the street, so I could see the ocean from there and it was fantastic. I stayed Colombo for a couple of nights before I headed to Unawatuna. In the morning, I hired a tuk-tuk driver and looked around Colombo Fort and Pettah for one and a half hours or so, then returned to my hotel and started to drink beer at the swim-up bar.

Have some Greek cuisine at a Taverna

I took this picture at one of the great Greek traditional food places in Athens near Omonoia station. In Greece, Greek food place is called Taverna and the place where the photo shows is one of them. I had lunch twice at this Taverna. I remember very well that the place had a nice waiter and this great Greek cuisine went well with beer. There were so many Tavernes around Omonoia subway station and its square, but I chose the same place twice because of their taste. I also loved the atmosphere of the Taverna. It was just so nice.

Highlight of Egypt

When I visited Djoser's Step Pyramid Complex in Saqqara, Egypt, I took this picture. After I revisited Giza from Cairo to see the Great Pyramid of Giza, I visited Memphis, and then visited Saqqara by a car. In Giza, I hired a camel, a horse and an English speaking guide then looked around the area from the camel's back. The camel's back was much higher than horse's back and it was so much fun to have my first experience that riding a camel for a long time. In Saqqara, I just looked around the area on foot. The sun was sizzling and it was so nice.

It's not anything to make ado about

The photo shows Paris and its beautiful river Seine. I've spent a couple of nights in Paris and I had time to walk along the river Seine aimlessly. While I was exploring, I saw a bunch of fascinating scenery something right out of a moving movie script or its scene. Of course I went to see the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame de Paris (a.k.a. Notre Dame Cathedral) and all, plus I visited the Arc de Triomphe at night. Those must see sites were outstanding, but I also loved my relaxing time along the river Seine. I just walked. It was not anything to make ado about.

Don't sin too much in Sin City

I've stayed a couple of accommodations in Las Vegas, the States. One of the hotels was an all-suite hotel and my room was on 44th floor. The view from the windows was fantastic, the bed was big and so nice. It was very comfortable, pillows as well, plus sofas were fabulous. Also, the room had a huge bathroom and the bath was Jacuzzi. The Jacuzzi tub had a button and I was able to choose the bubble pressure from soft to strong. Also, there was a TV screen on the bathroom mirror and it showed Poker games in a casino. Vegas.

Liberty Bridge

This is a view of the Liberty Bridge (a.k.a. Freedom Bridge, Hungarian: Szabadság híd) and the river Danube (Hungarian: Duna, German: Donau) in Budapest, Hungary. The Danube is known for the second longest river in Europe, originally from the Black Forest in Germany. A lot of stories of the Danube and Hungarian bridges sounded so nice, so I was really happy to be there. From what I remember, there are 10 bridges in Budapest, and the Liberty Bridge is one of them. A Hungarian word híd means bridge in English.

Have a drink for a change

I took this picture at an outside table of a nice restaurant in Lisbon, Portugal near Rossio railway station. Unfortunately, I didn't have so much time in Lisbon, so I just kept going, kept going and then went thirsty then drank beer. After the beer was almost the same. I just kept going, kept going and then went thirsty then had nice Portuguese cuisine with some good beer. For a couple of nights and three days I repeated this pattern, and it was so nice, but it wasn't enough. I really want to return to this beautiful city one day.

Take a deep breath

This is a view of Sankt Goar (a.k.a. St. Goar), Germany. I've been there twice. The town is not so huge, and it's nestled in the Rhine valley and is famous for its beauty spots of many old castles. A very beautiful and relaxing place. Things I did in Sankt Goar were just taking a stroll around, taking some pictures, drinking German beer, having conversation, deep breathing, and such. There was never a dull moment because of this stunning scenery. I wanted to ingrain my every step and everything I saw in Sankt Goar.

Kill three or four birds with one stone

I took a picture of three must see sites of Athens, Greece. The photo shows a part of the Temple of Olympian Zeus, a long-distance view of the Acropolis of Athens on the left, and the Arch of Hadrian on the right. It was like killed three or four birds with one stone, but I liked the location, so it was time to take a picture of this view. Come to think of it, the Acropolis was visible from many places of Athens. When I had a small talk with an Italian tourist, he said we never got lost in Athens, because we could see the Acropolis from everywhere and it gave directions to us. I can't agree to disagree.

As tall as roofs

This is another photo of Yaksha (Thai: ยักษ์). I took this picture at the Grand Palace (Thai: พระบรมมหาราชวัง) in Bangkok, Thailand. These Yakshas are quite tall. They are as tall as roofs, so of course much taller than me and have a tremendous impact. From this location, you can see their faces closer. Like I said, I think you can see a lot of Yakshas at a lot of places in Thailand, but I'd say these Yakshas are must see. Huge, powerful, and beautiful as well. I've visited this place several times and always find or feel another impression.

Piece of cake

This is one of the bus stops in Madrid, Spain. When I was there, I walked a lot and didn't use public transportation, but I was interested in this user-friendly sign of the bus routes. I personally feel that using public buses is the most difficult task abroad. Especially in a country where I visit for the first time. It's so confusing. I've been to Thailand 26 times, so it's just a piece of cake to take a bus in Bangkok, but in other cases I just can't. Anyway, Madrid was sort of a tourist-friendly city. Easy to understand lots of "How to", and interesting as well.

Shoot from the hip

I took this fabulous dish in Jerusalem, Israel. Chicken Schnitzel and Goldstar. I think Schnitzel is originally from Austria and is called Wiener Schnitzel or something like that, but I took a Schnitzel in Prague, the Czech Republic and here in Israel. From my point of view, Chicken Schnitzel is a highly popular food in Israel. When I ordered this dish, a waiter asked me what I would like to eat the Schnitzel with. The variations were mashed potatoes, chips, white rice or anything else. I chose white rice without thinking. Rice is my staple food, so I shot from the hip. Anyway, I really enjoyed the lunch and the cold beer at a nice restaurant on Alrov Mamilla Avenue.

Venetian Gondolas

The photo shows a couple of gondolas. I took this picture in Venice (Italian: Venezia), Italy. The gondola is a traditional tiny Venetian boat and I'd say it's sort of a main public transportation of Venice. Very cool stuff. I enjoyed gondola ride and took a lot of pictures from my gondola. It was so much fun. Come to think of it, when I went to Las Vegas, the States, I saw a fabulous gondola place adjacent to the hustle and bustle the Vegas strip. The place is in the heart of Sin City, but the area looked quieter and more relaxing than the strip itself.

Mind-blowing

I took a picture of a part of the Parthenon, UNESCO World Heritage Site. It's an ancient Greek temple and is situated on the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. I was intrigued by the details of this famous stunning classical architecture and zoomed in some parts of the huge Parthenon with my tiny digital camera. Unfortunately, I don't know much about ancient Greek architectures, carvings and all, but from my point of view it seemed like a horse's head and lion's head were embedded with the walls. Details of the Parthenon really blew my mind.

Ingrain for good

I found this fussy lamppost in Prague, the Czech Republic. It's located in the Castle District (Czech: Huradčany) and looked like an art. A very beautiful one. I'd say almost everything in the area was so nice and just stunning. A lot of people go there to see the changing of the guard, but otherwise people able to enjoy the great scenery with a lot of impression. Just my two cents. Long-distance views of the Castle District is also very nice and quite picturesque. I'm gonna ingrain Prague's romantic scenery for good.