Read this blog: The one where we go beyond the walls Friday 7th March 2025 Venturing out beyond Intramuros into Manila for the first time made Matilda feel quite anxious as she had read that tourists are advised to exercise a high degree of caution in the Phillippines. However, there is a very obvious police presence: men (almost exclusively it seems) stand watch in plain pale blue/grey uniforms on street corners and at all the tourist sites we visited and there was a different Manila to be found outside the old city walls, beyond the golf course. The narrow historic streets were replaced by wide multi-lane highways and grand buildings such as the National Museum of Fine Arts [below]. There are plenty of jeepneys on the streets. After WWII the Americans left behind vehicles which the Filipinos modified and have been using for public transport ever since. They can accommodate between 15 and 20 passengers and are often highly decorated with heavy metal inspired names. There are plans to upgrade the jeepneys to make the engines less polluting but people fear this will also mean an increase in fare prices. We looked back across the golf course to the walls. […]
2025 Asia
Read this blog: The one where the cracks keep appearing Thursday 6th March We decided to walk the walls of Intramuros as our introduction to Manila. One of the walkways up to the ramparts was conveniently positioned just outside our hotel. The walls are very nearly complete and Robert decreed we should walk clockwise. Our first stop was at Baluarte De San Diego on the southwest corner of the Intramuros walls. The fortification is shaped like an arrow with a circular tower inside and dates from the sixteenth century. There is a small park surrounding the bastion which includes landmarks, monuments and fountains, including the frame of a steam engine which Robert was pleased to see was British made. The bastion was built in 1587 and was meant to be part of a larger fortification which was never completed. The Fort Nuestra Señora de Guia [below] is the oldest stone fort in Manila and is the remains of the central circular tower. Shortly after it was built, in 1593, the upper portion had to be demolished after cracks appeared. Subsequently the rest of the structure was reinforced and integrated into a new bulwark which was named Baluarte de San Diego. […]
Read this blog: The one where Matilda finally gets to use her emergency poncho Tuesday 4th and Wednesday 5th March 2025 Rain was forecast but it was still quite warm so Matilda took her emergency poncho rather than a waterproof jacket. Santa had put the poncho in her stocking about eight years ago just after she retired and she has been taking it on holiday with her ever since. When we emerged from the metro station it was raining heavily and Matilda finally got the chance to make use of this very well-travelled piece of attire. It proved quite successful: the only issue was that, because it was so light-weight, the hood kept blowing off. We planned to visit the Taipei Confucius Temple first. On the walk there we came across bear statues illustrating the “hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil” adage with a fourth one [below left] with its hands behind its back illustrating the principle of “do no evil”. The saying is derived from/attributed to Confucius: “Look not at what is contrary to propriety; listen not to what is contrary to propriety; speak not what is contrary to propriety; make no movement which is contrary […]
Read this blog: The one where we can’t avoid a glass floor Monday 3rd March 2025 We had decided to take a ride on the Maokong Gondola which runs between Taipei Zoo and Maokong [literally translated this means ‘cat area’ probably after the wild cats which lived there]. Matilda was initially expecting a boat ride on water until she realised that the Maokong Gondola was in fact a cable car. We took the Wenhu line to the Taipei Zoo stop then walked the short distance to the gondola station. Having queued at the ticket office we were told that it was “cash only” at the booth and we had to use the machines if we wanted to pay by card. An all day pass costs NT$300. The Maokong Gondola opened on 4 July 2007. Matilda was pleased that she had not known in advance that on the first day of operation in 2007, a faulty door lock left both the serving Mayor and the former Mayor of Taipei suspended in mid-air for 10 minutes. Our ride went more smoothly. The cable car spans 4.3 km or 2.7 miles and has four passenger stations although not all of them were in use when we […]
Read this blog: The one where we experience what we feel is is the longest airport walk in the world Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd March 2025 As we prepared to leave Hong Kong, Matilda reminisced about the last time she had visited around the end of March/beginning of April 1987 when she stayed with her brother-in-law Sandy. He had introduced her to Paul Simon’s Graceland album and on this trip she had enjoyed hearing tracks from it played in several bars and coffee shops. We were to fly from Hong Kong to Taiwan. Our Octopus cards were valid on the Airport Express but we had slightly miscalculated and we both found we had a HK$3 debt on each card but thankfully we were both allowed through the barrier. The new Hong Kong International Airport is huge. When we checked in and looked for our departure gate we saw that the numbers went up to 524. However, not all these numbers actually correspond to gates: there are 89 in total. At Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport you must first pass through the Animal and Plant Quarantine control to make sure you are not importing any banned foodstuffs. We noticed one woman in the […]
Read this blog: The one where we ride the Peak Tram and the Star Ferry Friday 28th February 2025 Victoria Peak, usually just referred to as the Peak, rises 1,811 feet [552m] above sea level and is the highest mountain on Hong Kong Island. In the nineteenth century it provided a natural signalling post for shipping. It was effectively a hill station, like Darjeeling and Shimla which we visited in India, where the wealthier residents could retreat from the oppressive summer heat. Before the tram was built they would have been carried up to Victoria Peak in sedan chairs. The Peak Tram has been travelling the route to the summit since 1888 and is one of the oldest funiculars in the world. It takes passengers up to 1,300 feet [about 396 metres]. The most recent upgrade to the tram was completed in 2022 and nowadays the Peak has over 7 million visitors every year. We opted just to take the tram up for the views rather than pay the entry fee to go to the Peak Tower and Sky Terrace which are above the tram stop. Between 1904 and 1947 the Peak was designated an exclusive residential area reserved for […]
Read this blog: The one where we avoid a glass floor Thursday 27th February 2025 One of the popular sites in Hong Kong is the Big Buddha at Ngong Ping Village on Lantau Island which you can reach by riding the Ngong Ping 360 cable car from the Tung Chung Cable Car Terminal, adjacent to Tung Chung MTR [Mass Transit Railway] Station. We used our Octopus cards for the first part of the journey on the MTR. The cable car ride to get there was definitely part of the attraction for us. It is popular with both tourists and locals alike so of course there was a queue. There were several options: you could pay for the basic experience which involved sharing a gondola [or car] with up to ten other passengers. Those who do not wish to mingle at close quarters with strangers can pay extra to travel with just the members of their own group. The ‘Crystal Experience’ involves travelling in a gondola with particularly transparent, clear glass windows and a glass bottom to allow passengers to truly enjoy the all round view. The ‘Crystal Experience’ is available at a premium rate as either a general group or […]
Read this blog: The one where we learn the difference between Stephen and Stitt Wednesday 26th February 2025 We were given breakfast vouchers as we checked in at the Holiday Inn Causeway Bay and when we made our way down to the restaurant on the second floor [which is only open to residents for breakfast and is a restaurant in the evening] these were exchanged for a printed sheet on which to mark our choices. Breakfast comprised a selection of four possible meals, so that if we wanted to we could have a different breakfast every day and try them all. For the first morning we both chose the egg and kale omelette. Fortified for a days sightseeing and with our Octopus app at the ready we set off on Robert’s pre-planned sightseeing route towards Exchange Square, home to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange since the 1980s. Nearby Statue Square was built at the end of the 19th century entirely on reclaimed land. At the time it was named for the many statues, mostly of members of the British royal family, which stood here until the Japanese removed them when they occupied Hong Kong during WWII. Now the only statue to […]
Read this blog: The one where we sort out Hong Kong travel cards Monday 24th February 2025 After a lie-in and with no breakfast provided at the hotel we went out planning to have a coffee and some sustenance first. A building on Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục Square rises like the stern of a ship with balcony seating on several levels for cafés and restaurants. We went to Highland Coffee overlooking the Trúc Bạch Lake to sit outside and enjoy the view, even if it was a damp, grey morning. We had not visited any markets in Hanoi this trip and decided to rectify this. Originally built by the French in 1889, Đồng Xuân Market has been renovated several times since, most recently in 1994 after a fire almost destroyed the building. Đồng Xuân Market is now the largest covered market in Hanoi selling everything from clothes and household goods to food. As it is wholesale, not retail, we were not really the target audience. Robert wanted to return to the Pasteur Street Craft Beer bar [see Selfie of the day] before we left Hanoi and had planned a craft beer walking tour for himself. The tour also took us […]
Read this blog: The one where we drank egg coffee for the first, and not the last, time Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd February 2025 Surprisingly Luang Prabang International Airport is just 4km out from the centre and so is considerably closer than the train station. It is vast but is currently obviously operating significantly under capacity. There was comparatively little to do once we passed through security and immigration but as we sat having a little liquid refreshment, Robert heard an announcement over the tannoy asking him to report back to check-in. Luckily people are attuned to hearing their own name, even when it is pronounced with an unusual foreign intonation as Matilda was totally oblivious. She allowed herself a little wry smile as he set off. Robert had to go back through security and passport control to the check-in desks and was directed to a back office which effectively opened onto the runway where they were scanning luggage and were holding his case back. It transpired that he had left his emergency telephone which he packs in case of loss or theft [without any SIM or the power on] in his hold luggage but on Vietnam Airlines all phones […]
Read this blog: The one where we walk with elephants Friday 21st February 2025 Robert had researched elephant experiences in Laos while he was planning this trip. He was adamant that we should not ride an elephant because of the training methods and MandaLao was one of the centres which people had recommended as an elephant sanctuary which was focused on rescue and conservation. Awareness about the mistreatment of elephants is growing and in India we had seen the long line of elephants standing in the scorching sun in the ‘Pink City’ of Jaipur waiting to take tourists up to the Amber Fort. We vowed then we would not be a part of exploiting these fabulous creatures. On the 14th November last year when Robert booked our visit to MandaLao some of the dates when we would be in Luang Prabang were already showing on the website as unavailable/fully booked so we were pleased that we had a confirmed booking. However, when we walked about Luang Prabang we noticed that most of the hostels and hotels, including the Sunrise Garden House Hotel where we were staying were offering elephant experiences. As we had already booked we didn’t enquire so cannot comment on […]
Read this blog: The one where we learn that Matilda’s grip doesn’t milk buffalo Thursday 20th February 2025 Many tourists visiting Luang Prabang make the 20 mile trip south west of the city to the Tat Kuang Si Waterfalls. You can hire a mo-ped and drive yourself; pay to go in an open cab on the back of a tuk tuk or you can hire a car with windows and air-con to take you there and back, allowing you to go at your own pace during the day. We asked at our hotel and a round trip to the waterfalls, including a visit to the bear sanctuary in the grounds and the Lao Buffalo Dairy en route would be $45 and take about five hours. The more rural roads in Laos are usually not wide enough to have road markings defining the two distinct sides. In addition, the edges of the roads have frequent pot holes so traffic travelling in both directions gravitates rather alarmingly towards the centre. We were very glad we had chosen to hire our own car and driver. There were works underway to widen the carriageway and these were creating a significant amount of dust in […]
Read this blog: The one where Robert doesn’t want to put his trousers on Wednesday 19th February 2025 Luang Prabang lies on a peninsula formed by the confluence of the Mekong River and its tributary the Nam Khan. It is the former royal capital of Laos. In 1545 the administrative capital was moved to Vientiane but the Lau royal family continued to live here until the communist takeover in 1975. Now the cultural Capital of Laos, Luang Prabang has a plethora of temples and colonial-style buildings along Sakkaline Road. We woke to torrential rain [see Video of the day] which was fortunately short-lived and cleared the air making the day seem slightly cooler. After breakfast we set off to see a few sites: Matilda dressed appropriately for any temple visits and Robert with his elephant temple trousers in his bumbag. The sky still looked threatening over the park where the statue of President Souphanouvong stands. He seems to have been something of a contradiction. Born a member of the Laos royal family in Luang Prabang, and originally known as Prince Souphanouvong he became the first President of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic [Lao PDR] serving between 1975 and 1991. According to […]
Read this blog: The one where Matilda has her aerosols inspected Monday 17th and Tuesday 18th February 2025 Thinking it would be easiest to give our hotel as a pick up point for InDrive, we went to the branch of Starbucks which is directly in front of the Holiday Inn for a coffee and a snack before organising transport to the COPE Visitor Centre. However, many of the streets in Vientiane are one way and it took a little time for our InDrive driver to negotiate the traffic and the one way system to be able to pick us up. From there on the journey to COPE was straightforward. The visitor centre is located in the grounds of the Centre for Medical Rehabilitation [CMR]. COPE stands for the Cooperative Orthotic & Prosthetic Enterprise and is the main provider of artificial limbs, walking aids and wheelchairs in Laos. Although many of those in need of a prosthetic are bomb blast victims, COPE also treats the victims of road traffic or other accidents and people with congenital conditions. Outside the building stands a striking sculpture made out of metal retrieved from bombs dropped by American forces. It almost seems as though the figures are running to […]
Read this blog: The one where we resisted the 80p trousers Sunday 16th February 2025 Matilda had identified somewhere she wanted to try for breakfast but unfortunately it wasn’t open on a Sunday so we returned to the Joma Bakery Café for baked morning goods. From here we booked an InDrive taxi to take us about 4km northeast of central Vientiane to Pha That Luang which translates literally as the “Great Stupa”. Its foundation dates back to the third century, when a shrine was built here to hold a relic of the Buddha. The current structure was built in 1566 after Vientiane became the capital of Laos although it has been renovated four times since then. A vast golden Buddha reclines near the entrance and the site incorporates many decorated graves. The central stupa stands in a vast compound flanked by two Buddhist temples and naga balustrades adorn many of the temple steps, guarding these holy buildings which . . . . . . feature the beautiful decorative painted carvings we have come to expect. Murals and paintings illustrating the life of Buddha also adorn some of the temple buildings. The roof of the central stupa was originally covered in gold […]
Read this blog: The one where Matilda gets to have her cake and eat it [twice] Friday 14th and Saturday 15th February 2025 Our flight to Wattay International Airport in Vientiane left from Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok and we booked a taxi from the hotel to take us there. To our surprise, the driver seemed to be trying to tell us that it was expensive in Laos. As we stood in the queue to board, the man waiting behind us first complimented Robert on his Hawaiian shirt. This happens a lot. As the conversation progressed it transpired that he was an American athletics coach specialising in the pole-vault currently travelling on a year’s sabbatical. One of his students was a teenage girl from London. When Robert told him that he was also a pole-vaulter, the coach looked at his current girth and said good-naturedly, “a little while ago”. Some readers will be surprised to find out that Robert was an English schools level pole-vaulter and still in fact holds his school record for pole-vaulting, which he set over 40 years ago. He represented not only Warwickshire AAA but also the West Midland Schools at the English Schools Athletics […]