Where?

I came across this picture of the most amazing beach but cant seem to find any credits to it.... nor its location! 

Looks like a perfect summer getaway dont you think? x

a most beautiful sight

On the road towards the dunes, Namibia.

“I think having land & not ruining it is the most beautiful art that anybody could ever want.” 

- Andy Warhol

wait for me.

The next city on my list is a precious one... dreamed & imagined from the books I devoured on it, from the photos of friends.. my heart ached to go, to touch its beautiful curves, but somehow the timing was never right.

Wait for me, I'm coming soon xxx

Cesky Krumlov... a Czech jewel

The Vlatava river that flows thru Prague passes thru Cesky Krumlov as well.. a little city 3 hours away from Prague which is a UNESCO World heritage site.



The Krumlov castle is just breathtakingly beautiful... especially with snow on the rooftops.







The difference between this castle & all the others i've seen in Prague & elsewhere is the walls... they were all painted, as though it was a blank canvas & someone decided to color it in. Isnt it beautiful? xx

the beauty of Prague

Some photos of Prague.... i took so many that i wont have time to look thru all of 'em!



Misty morning view of Prague's bridges from Letna Park.



The square of Malostranske Namesti with one of their modern trams... in fact i was surprised at how modern the city is.



Enjoying a Czech beer with beef goulash & their famous roast duck... beer is cheaper than water in all the restaurants... less than 2USD for a big mug!



At the old town square Staromestske with the medieval Astronomical Clock which was built in 1410 & is the world's oldest working astronomical clock.



The astronomical dial above shows positions of the earth & moon & sun plus zodiac signs as well as good old time of the day. Every hour, hordes of tourists stand patiently beneath the clock as 12 little statues of the apostles appear in the 2 windows above the dial, just like a merry-go-round.. After they finish making their appearance, a trumpeter high up in the clock tower blows his trumpet! It was so cute to watch.



Grabbing a picture beneath the most beautiful clock i've ever seen.



We climb up the tower & are rewarded with beautiful views of the square & the gothic church of our Lady before Tyn. From up here, one could easily imagine himself back in the old days where kings still ruled the land & town criers existed.



Before we know it, the next hour has come & the trumpeter does his job again.



The old town square is one of the most romantic places in Europe... even at sub-zero temperatures, we saw a number of wedding couples taking their pics here 💕



At sunset, we walked over to Charles Bridge, the only way of crossing the river before 1841.



Baroque statues line the bridge on both sides... if you look at the first photo above, you probably can see their silhouettes!



As dusk falls, the temperature plunges & we hurry indoors for some beef goulash.. but not before marvelling at the beauty of this bridge & the city.

a winter wonderland..

A beautiful day greeted us as we got off the train in Chamonix..



But the snow didnt let up & it continued snowing for the next 2 days we were there!



Mont Blanc in the distance..



The lovely church next to our hotel..



Taking the little train up the mountains to see the Montenvers glacier, the longest glacier in France.



Unfortunately it was all covered in fog & snow & we only caught a glimpse of it thru the howling winds.



Then just before we got on the train down, the clouds parted to give us a clear view :)



Then we went up the Aiguille de Midi by cable car only to get caught in such heavy snow we literally froze & our noses all turned red! It was -14 degs & i was not even properly dressed... everyone stared at us in the cable car... i guessed they must have been laughing at our tropical silliness.



At the summit with no view... just a sea of white for as far as the eye could see.



But the snow-capped mountains were so beautiful... just like a real-life Christmas card.
I've seen Chamonix in winter & summer... what a world of difference, but equally enchanting xx

finally it's vacation time :)

Next week...



I haven't been back to Chamonix since summer 2002... i remember the town was so quaint & seeing Mont Blanc was such a great experience.



And it's time to finally discover Prague.. everyone has been there except me! (ｏ・_・)ノ”(ノ_＜。)



We even got Elmo a little coat for the trip so he'll be all nice & toasty ♡

Sentiero Azzuro

The 'Sentiero Azzuro' is a popular hike that links the 5 villages of Cinque Terre - Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza & Monterosso. It is about 10-12km long & the difference in height is about 500 metres.

This trail was used by people from centuries ago & remained largely untouched by advances in civilisation. No roads link the villages, only trains & boats.

We started from Riomaggiore to Manarola... & i remembered thinking... Hey this is easy! All flat & wonderful sea views. But alas, this stretch was the easiest. Keeping in mind that since the villages have a marina or little harbour, one has to climb up & then go down again eventually to reach the next village.

But at every turn, we had the magnificent Mediterranean on the left, & sun-drenched olive groves & vineyards on the right. This picture was taken after about 2 hours when we left the 3rd village behind... Corniglia is higher up than the other villages so we had to climb 386 steps to reach the town center. In the distance at the upper left corner is Riomaggiore our village!

By this time, the initial flat path has long ago given way to rocky winding paths that go up, up UPPPPP... my thighs were aching like mad, i couldnt even look up the winding steps cos it would have killed the last ounce of willpower i had. Most of the hikers stripped down to their bikinis as the sun was merciless.

Finally we see the clock tower of Vernazza in the distance... so we went down endless steps again... the trail is pleasant & not that difficult for generally fit people... but the stretch between Corniglia-Vernazza-Monterosso can be challenging... all up & down & UPPP & down. The number of steps is.... my god... easily over a couple thousand.

How the villagers transport their stuff up to the vineyards & houses high on the cliffs. :)

We reach Vernazza & went straight into the sea... BLISS.

A specialty of the region -Testaroli... pasta dough with 3 types of sauces - pesto (my all-time favorite), olive oil & parmesan & bolognese.

Cinque terre is a dry white wine produced in the region & it was delicious.

When we reached this point... about halfway between Vernazza & Monteresso, the last village, i really felt like a pilgrim, grabbing my best friend & panting "The promised land". It looked so near, yet so far.

This must be what every hiker dreams of doing when it is at last finished.

Actually it's what i'd like to do every single day.. xx

Cinque terre

Each day in Riomaggiore is a faithful reminder to be thankful for nature's gifts.

One of the 5 villages of Cinque Terre - a Unesco world heritage site & national park, we chose to stay here for the week as it was quieter than nearby Vernazza or Monterosso. Plus it was the ideal location to start our hike as it's the first village.

The houses painted in traditional bright colors form a pretty backdrop for the small but busy marina.

We stayed in a modest apartment but the view from our window won us over. Every morning, the waves woke me up... I'd jump out of bed, look out the window & smile to myself. Then we would eat our breakfast & glare at the early risers who dared to take our rock. OUR rock cos it was directly underneath our apartment which was built into the cliffs. Hmph.

Never mind, we soon realised there were plenty of other rocks hehe. We explored the village on the first day... i never climbed so many steps in my life... little did i know that over the next few days, my main physical activity would be stair-climbing.

With my best friend... who's on a world tour & just finished Bosnia, Slovenia & Croatia in the past 2 weeks! For the first time in our lives, she's darker than me :P

Of course, what's Italy without the food?? Seafood spaghetti... best i ever tasted.

We could order the most boring pasta - spaghetti with tomatoes - from the most run-down restaurant... take the first bite & sigh deeply with contentment. How do the Italians do that?

An ancient monastery... and a friendly old man who kept asking us to go in.. I was more fascinated by his beret than anything else.

Best-kept secret of Riomaggiore - a kind (or forgetful) soul left his Wifi unlocked so every single day, alot of us would sit outside his home & surf the net for free. We sat alongside cats & dogs & shared satisfied smiles.

Soaking up the sun on our rock while watching the sun cast diamonds on the gentle waves.

Time to cool our hot bodies!

I jumped in & the chill of the sea surprised me... as well as the depth. It looked shallow from the rocks but underneath was a totally different world of jagged rocks, algae, fishes, dead coral... even though i'm a strong swimmer, i was actually pretty scared.

Luckily there's always the beach.

Every time the sun went a little west, we'd follow it but eventually, we had to let it go home.

The heat got too much at times... but every evening, we were rewarded with spectacular sunsets & the smell of fresh pasta cooking in kitchens... Thank god we did the Blue Trail hike to compensate for everything we ate.. trail photos comin soon xx