Our visit to this port in central Vietnam took us past beautiful countryside with fish farms and rice paddies, to the major city of Da Nang and the delightful historic district of Hoi An, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.… Read More Chan May, Vietnam
Our time in Manila was spent in the old town or Intramuros district, meaning “within the walls.” The walled city goes back to the days of the Spanish Empire, a three century era that began in the late 1500’s. … Read More Manila, the Philippines
This port was our gateway to the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. … Read More Puerto Princesa, the Philippines
While Singapore is a financial and trading world powerhouse which fosters diversity and excellence, Brunei is a tightly controlled, oil-rich nation ruled by the whims of a powerful king.… Read More Brunei
Singapore’s Botanical and Orchid Gardens are so beautiful and photogenic they deserve a blog post of their own.… Read More Singapore Botanical and Orchid Garden
The miracle of Singapore is this: how did a small city-state, with no oil or valuable natural resources, transform itself from a poor, corrupt and drug ridden nation to become the most successful economic powerhouse in Asia 60 years later?… Read More Singapore
Putrajaya was entirely built up from plantation land in the 1990’s for the purpose of housing the country’s administrative and judicial center. It’s a clean, well laid out planned community, with 66 man-made lakes, lots of parks and walkways and some beautiful architecture. Only 100,000 people live there, so it doesn’t have the congestion and hustle of Kuala Lumpur which is about 20 miles away.… Read More Putrajaya, Malaysia
This city of two million is an interesting combination of go-go modern and its Asian and colonial past. Although our guides, who were Indian and Chinese, proudly consider Malaysia a melting pot of cultures where all could worship as they pleased, Muslim supremacy is institutionalized and very ubiquitous. We learned that 95% of government workers… Read More Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Penang, Malaysia The Kek Lok Si Temple is the most visited attraction on the island of Penang. It’s an amazing, huge complex, one of the most important Buddhist temples in southeast Asia and a pilgrimage center for surrounding countries, including the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong. The temple is more than a hundred years… Read More Penang, Malaysia
Malacca is a city with a storied past. Once a major trading center, it lost influence as first the Portuguese, then Dutch and later British took control and choked off other traders. Today the old city retains the flavor of these influences, as well as the Chinese and Arab settlers. It was listed as a… Read More Malacca, Malaysia
J and J Travel 