It turned into something interesting

The photo shows HSB Turning Torso. It's the tallest building in Scandinavia and is situated in Malmö, Sweden. I didn't have any ideas how to take better photos of this unique shaped skyscraper, but in a way this photo turned into something interesting. HSB Turning Torso looked totally different from lots and lots of buildings in Malmö, and I'd say it stuck out like a sore thumb, but actually I went there to see this unique shaped skyscraper this close to me. In one word, it was amazing. Speaking of unique shaped buildings, I saw a lot of them in Tel Aviv, Israel. I've posted some of them on this blog so far, but I think I have some more photos of that unique shaped buildings in Tel Aviv. They don't look similar to HSB Turning Torso, they look rather different, but I think they are also amazing architecture.

Get a sense of reality

I took this photo outside of my hotel in Hollywood, Los Angeles, the States. I flew in Los Angeles from Bangkok, Thailand by Thai Airways International flight TG 794. It was about 16-hour flight directly from SE Asia. The plane landed at LAX around 10:00 p.m., so my first day in Los Angeles was next to nothing. I took this photo early in the first morning. I got out of the hotel for breakfast and found a flag of the Stars and Stripes was hoisted above the entrance. Then, I really felt that I was in America.

Laotian tuk-tuk

The photo shows Laotian tuk-tuk. I took this photo in Vientiane, Laos near Patuxai. Compare to tuk-tuks in Thailand or Sri Lanka, Laotian tuk-tuks look more like motorbikes. Around the front wheel exactly looks like a motorbike, but around the back wheels looks like a rickshaw or a carriage. Lao tuk-tuks make a noisy sound like Vroom, Vroom and I think it's sort of a sound of Vientiane; the capital of Laos. Fun to hear, fun to ride. Tuk-tuks are ubiquitous in South and South East Asian countries. I used them a lot of times in Bangkok, Thailand, Vientiane, Laos, and many cities in Sri Lanka. I'd say tuk-tuks are roofed motorbike with three wheels. Very useful vehicles to look around a city. If you take tuk-tuks, it's important to negotiate a price in advance. That's the only thing you need to memorize.

I got a train to catch

I took this photo in Belém, Portugal right before I caught a train to Cais do Sodré station in Lisbon. When I was waiting a train bound for Cais do Sodré, a train came from Cais do Sodré stopped at Belém a bit earlier than the train bound for Cais do Sodré, so I just took a photo of it from the other side of the platform. There were so many tourists in Belém to visit world-famous must-sees includes a couple of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, but the station itself wasn't crowded I mean almost empty.

Llanberis Pass in Snowdonia, Wales

I took this photo in North Wales, in the UK. In the morning, I headed off to North Wales from Liverpool, England by coach. I visited Conwy, Caernarfon and its castle then drove through Snowdonia National Park. I was so impressed during the scenic drive onto spectacular Llanberis Pass and I couldn't keep my eyes off from the coach windows. After enjoying the mountainous scenery of North Wales, the coach headed back to Liverpool where my hotel was. While I was exploring the city, I got lured in by the rich smell of curry and chose Indian Chicken Curry for dinner. I love the smell of curry.

Turn it on to attract attention

I took this photo in Malmö, Sweden when I was walking on an empty street aimlessly. It was Sunday morning and almost all shops in Malmö were closed. However, the shutters of shops were kinda interesting exactly liked the photo shows. I was there a bit earlier than their opening time, but I could see inside of the shops through the shutters coz the shutters looked more like metal frames. I think it was a great idea to take someone's attention no matter if the shops were still working in preparation for opening.

Essential spice in Sri Lankan Rice and Curry

The photo shows a wide variety of spice to make authentic Sri Lankan curry from scratch. I took this photo in Negombo, Sri Lanka on the last day of my fifth visit. I've been to Sri Lanka six times and spent 144 days in total. I wanna be there right now and wanna eat Sri Lankan Rice and Curry at each meal. Their staple is rice and they also love to eat roti. Roti is kind of like bread and is often seen in South Asian countries. They eat roti with curry. In the morning, they love to eat Idiyappam. Idiyappam is kind of like thin noodles and goes well with curry.

Too good to last

I took this photo in Vientiane, Laos in June 2005. The advertisement of Thai Airways International said New York One Stop. The sales copy meant THAI passengers could fly to New York on a direct flight from Bangkok, Thailand. The advertisement had left such a strong impression on me and it really caught my attention. The route had actually already abolished, but nonstop flights from Bangkok to Los Angeles were still in service in 2010, so I took THAI and flew to stateside for the first time. It was a very very nice flight.

Fraumünster church in Zurich, Switzerland

I took this photo in Zurich, Switzerland. The photo shows the Fraumünster church and its clock tower. The clock tower stood out against the sky and looked so beautiful. Speaking of clock towers, when I was traveling around Sri Lanka, my driver showed me lots and lots of clock towers in almost every cities I've visited such as Negombo, Colombo, Chilaw, Gampaha, Mount Lavinia, Keggalle, Kandy, Dambulla, Habarana, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Inawaluwa, Sigiriya, Nuwara Eliya, Kosgoda, Hikkaduwa, Galle, Unawatuna, Koggala, Munneswaram, Dalawela, Thalpe, Habaraduwa, Kalutara, and so on. For the rest, my driver continued to show me clock towers in each cities. I don't remember the city names somewhere I didn't see a clock tower, but whatever. Clock towers in Sri Lanka looked different by city and looked so nice. That being the case, I should have taken photos from the beginning and should have made a list or something. Hindsight. When I realized that, it was too late to turn back.

A day is just beginning

The photo shows beautiful view of Athens, Greece. I took this photo when I visited the Acropolis. I flew to Athens from Bangkok, Thailand by Thai Airways International flight TG 946. It was actually a red-eye flight with a couple of fantastic inflight-meals. The plane landed at Eleftherios Venizelos on time; 7:25 a.m. which meant the day was just beginning. I was ready to rock 'n' roll. What do you wanna see in Athens? The Acropolis is it, so first things first, I visited the Acropolis and viewed this ancient city from above.

Facade of the Florence Cathedral

I took this photo in Florence, Italy. The facade of the Florence Cathedral (a.k.a. Basilica of Saint Mary of the Flower, Italiano: Basilica di Santa Maria Del Fiore). The beautiful cathedral is very famous for its Dome (Italiano: Duomo) and is located in Piazza del Duomo. I think Piazza del Duomo is the heart of the historical city and the area is one of the very common tourist trails in Italy furthermore in Europe. There are also the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile in Piazza del Duomo. Those three are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Highly mobile small animal

I took this photo at Botanical Garden in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was my first time that I've seen this small animal, so I'm not sure, but I found a squirrel who was running around a circle. It's hard to estimate exact number, but it was about 20 to 30 centimeters long, much bigger than chipmunks, and it ran very quickly. I wanted to take some pictures, so I needed to wait for the right moment that it stopped running around. It was hard to take a photo of a highly mobile small animal, but ended up I made it. Hooray!

The King can do no wrong

The photo shows the bronze Statue of Stephen I of Hungary against a huge rainbow. I took this photo in Budapest, Hungary. The Statue of Stephen I is situated in front of the Fisherman's Bastion (Hungarian: Halászbástya) on the castle hill. The Fisherman's Basion is a popular Neo-Gothic style terrace and is situated near Matthias Church. Those things mean the castle hill in Budapest is full of must-sees. The rainbow was a lucky thing for me. It looked like Stephen I waved the magic wand and made the huge rainbow across the sky.

Lunch at the Cairo Tower, Egypt

The photo shows my lunch at a restaurant of the Cairo tower in Cairo, Egypt. Three things I had there were Greek Salad, Cheese Sub with crisps, and Luxor beer while I was viewing Cairo city from above. I like heights. The high-rise buildings where I've visited were Baiyoke tower in Bangkok, Thailand (328m), Pattaya Park Tower in Pattaya, Thailand (240m), Stratosphere in Las Vegas, the States (350m) and then some. The highest place where I've visited was Dochula, Bhutan (3,150m).

Niglihawa Ashokan pillar

I took this photo in Niglihawa, Nepal. According to an information board in Niglihawa, this place is identified with the birth place of Kanakamuni Buddha. One of the must-sees in Niglihawa is a couple of broken Ashokan pillars and the photo shows one of the pillar which stands on the ground. The other pillar laid flat on the ground. I could see ancient scripts on both of the pillars. Some of the letters looked like English letters, and some of the letters looked like symbol marks. I wish I could read them.

The Terraced Gardens at Sanssouci

I took this photo in Potsdam, Germany. Potsdam is situated about 25 kilometer away from the German capital Berlin, and I visited Potsdam as a half-day excursion from Berlin by train. There was a previous summer palace of Frederic the Great. The palace is called Sanssouci. The photo shows panoramic view of the Terraced Gardens looking down from the palace. The weather wasn't exactly nice when I was in Potsdam, but at least I was able to enjoy this panoramic view of the Terraced Gardens at Sanssouci.

A tuk-tuk on level 77

The photo shows a tuk-tuk of Bangkok, Thailand. Tuk-tuk is a three wheeled vehicle and often see them in South and South East Asia as a taxi. Also, tuk-tuks has various name to describe themselves such as Indian rickshaw, three wheeler, baby taxi and so on. I took this photo on level 77 of the highest hotel in Bangkok, Thailand. The hotel offers buffet breakfast on level 76 and 78 every morning and I took this photo after fabulous Thai breakfast and cups of coffee. It was definitely the highest place where I've seen a tuk-tuk.