It’s that time of the year again when I’m anticipating my annual winter holiday in Hong Kong, a tradition that only resumed in 2023 after a three-year pandemic-induced hiatus. To me, what makes Hong Kong such an endlessly attractive place is the wide variety of […]
Author: Bama
New Hopes Rising from the Ashes
On a particularly sunny day in June 2023, James and I revisited the National Museum of Indonesia as we were curious with how it looked after being closed for renovations. Across the courtyard of the old wing, a few statues that were placed at inconspicuous […]
How Good Meals Saved the Day – A Kintamani Story
In November 2022, when the skies of Bali were mostly gray, I found myself standing in the courtyard of a large Hindu temple complex I had never been to before. The island’s tourism industry was still recovering from the nightmare that was the Covid pandemic, […]
Anping: Where Modern Taiwan Began
When a country is named after a place, you know the latter must have played a significant role in the nation’s history, and is expectedly well worth a visit. On a sandy peninsula once called Tayouan in the southwestern corner of Taiwan (in what is […]
An Enchanting Land Called Uzbekistan
Please forgive my absence in the past two weeks as I have just returned from a trip to one of the countries I most want to see. Uzbekistan had been on my wish list for more than a decade. One of the first things that […]
Tainan: Taiwan’s Oldest City
When James and I were planning our trip to Kaohsiung, I was fixated on making a mental list of interesting places to see in this southern Taiwanese city. However, he was very insistent on visiting Tainan as well, some 50 km north of Kaohsiung. I […]
Saigon through More Appreciative Eyes
In July 2011, my younger and more judgmental self was walking the streets of Saigon, Vietnam’s largest city as well as its economic hub. Maybe it was the heat, or the incessant motorcycle traffic, or the fact that a few days earlier I was still […]
The Three Lakes of Bedugul
A long time ago in the north of Bali an ancient volcano erupted, leaving a giant caldera in the aftermath. While studies on this past natural disaster are limited, one thing is certain: this part of the island has been blessed with a high amount […]
Ta Som: A Serene Sanctuary
If someone mentions an ancient Khmer temple entangled with giant tree roots, you would probably think of Ta Prohm, the iconic centuries-old ruins that are almost as popular as Angkor Wat itself. And if someone brings up Jayavarman VII, the powerful king who was also […]
The King’s Father and the Serpent
What would you do if you became the ruler of an empire with a history spanning centuries and known among its neighbors for its majestic temples? For Jayavarman VII, the king of the Khmer Empire in the late 12th century CE, the answer was simple: […]
West Kowloon: Hong Kong’s Soft Power Push
Hong Kong has always been a place where new buildings and skyscrapers are constantly added to the skyline. However, it is now in the middle of a major construction boom, even for Hong Kong standards. Currently, at least two megaprojects are taking shape in Kowloon, […]
Bali is (Still) a Good Idea
Imagine waking up to a view of fiery skies with silhouettes of volcanic peaks. And when the sun has risen higher on the eastern horizon, its soft rays cast a gentle warmth that brings the forests and rice terraces on nearby hills to life. The […]
What an Amazing World! 