Colorful Balconies

I haven’t been posting here lately . But I have decided to post more often.
This picture is of a office in Zürich . What caught my eyes was the beautiful red shot spray of colour in the 3 balconies. In the autumn season when all the leaves are falling down this is a wonderful sight to look at.

With love from Russia

I grew up reading Russian classics and Folk tales, and short stories . I always found Russia to a mysterious place or sometimes a wonderland . So no doubt I was jumping with joy when my husband -A had to go there. Though I didnot join him ( maybe some other time),I made sure that he took a lot of photos and sees as much of Moscow as he could after work. Having a friend there truly helped.

So here are some lovely photos with love from Moscow,Russia.

Triumph Arch build to commemorate the victory of Russia in the Patriotic War against French Emperor Napoleon in 1812.

Peter the Great Monument Also known as The Monument “300 years of The Russian Navy .

St. Basil s Cathedral on Red Square, considered to be a true symbol of Russia and an integral part of Moscow scenery, is one of the most remarkable monuments and the supreme achievement of ancient architecture of the capital.

Summer Eye candy!

Eye candy for the souring eyes due to the heat , blazing sunlight and hot humid air.

Frozen Davos Lake or Davosersee(as in German)

View of Davos from Seehorn, Davos




From the Train - a beautiful snowcapped mountain shinning in the sunlight like a mirror /Glass .

Dallas Arboretum / Botanical Garden

I was recently in USA. While I was in Dallas I went to the Botanical Garden. The tulip festival was on. The Garden was full of mind blowing varieties of tulips and other beautiful flowers. The flamboyant colors and the vivid shades of the display was so exciting. My new camera was able to capture all the beauty of the flowers.

Waterfall Aviary, (the world's tallest waterfall)Singapore

The Jurong Bird Park is home for amazing 9,000 colorful birds of 600 species . The park is truly breathtaking and is the largest bird park in the Asia Pacific, covering over 50 acres (20 hectares). But I want to write in this Blog is the world’s highest man made waterfall- Waterfall Aviary. The way to the waterfall was like in the jungle . It is small pathway with trees arching over the head and birds eating the fruits and tweeting in complete harmony and peace. We could hear the gushing sound and melody of the water falling near by. We passed a Bridge to see from the trees the beautiful sight of the waterfall. It is 30 meters(98 feet) high and made in such a way that it is hard to digest that it is not natural in the first sight.
As a nature lover I was amazed by how Singapore , a city with lack of natural resources overcome its weakness by being the garden city and build the nature in a manner that it looks as if the city was always green. Singapore has capitalized on the energy, enterprise and human skills . This is a city where the first impression is that of man’s achievements .
While most countries are cutting trees and destroying the nature in the name of development and blaming each other for the pollution, Singapore is one place where without any natural resources where the people have made it a green place.

Batu caves ,Malaysia

Batu Caves is one of Malaysia's most famous tourist and holy pilgrimage destinations. The Batu Caves are situated thirteen kilometers (seven miles) north of the capital of Malaysia- Kuala Lumpur. They are the sacred place for the Hindu's in Malaysia. They consist of three main caves and a number of smaller ones. The caves are made of limestone and 400 meters long and 100 meter high. Batu Caves is said to be around 400 million years old .

We took a taxi to reach Batu caves. It took us longer than we had estimated we had started to doze. Then we saw a tall mountain ahead of us. There was a huge gathering of tourist buses, taxis and a lot of vendors selling flowers , coconuts and garlands . Located outside Batu Caves stands the 42.7 meter high - the world's tallest statue of Lord Subramanya / Murugan . The statue is said to have cost approximately 24 million Rupees and is made of concrete,steeland gold paint. Just behind are the 272 steps to Batu Caves.Climbing the steep flight of 272 steps with an angle of almost 30degrees is quite exhausting. And also the climate so humid that we were bathed in sweat by the time we reached the cave . Did I tell you that there were monkeys on the stairs and also inside the cave. Monkeys near a temple are not new to me so I was not surprised to see a few (actually I was quite happy to see the familiar creatures :))

The biggest is the Temple Cave which has a 100 m-high ceiling .The natural opening in the ceiling allows the Sun to lit up the Cave and creates a mystic aura. On the left is the Ramayana Cave where reminiscent scenes of Indian epic myths are artistically painted along its walls.Dripping of mineralized solutions and the deposition of calcium carbonate for thousands of years have created rock formations.Stalactites and the corresponding formation of Stalagmites on the floor underneath create intricate formations . They meet and fuse to create columns which look like pillars.


This massive limestone hill is also a popular spot for rock climbing.

Unicef's Buddy Bears in Sydney

I visited UNICEF’s Buddy Bear exhibition while I was in Sydney. I was strolling around when I saw a tall cute and colorful Bear standing with its hand in air . Just when I walked towards him .. I saw more Bears .. there were almost 142 bears with designs representing the culture and tradition of its country.
The motto of the exhibition was “WE HAVE TO GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER BETTER … it makes us understand one another better, trust each other more and live together more peacefully. “
The idea for this exhibition was created 2002 by the inventors of the Buddy Bears Eva and Klaus Herlitz, having three aspects in mind: Art, Message and charity.

The bear in the center is from India. On the right is bear from Hungary and the left one is from Indonesia.

Isn't that a unique art form for a wonderful cause !

Spring is here

I am back.. If you are wondering where I was.. I was enjoying the Sun, clear skies, Hot ..Ok..it was not that hot ..I will say pleasant weather, wearing the light jacket.. Sweating ( haha ..Some thing I do only in the gym in Zürich) and all the happiness Sunlight brings in our life.. Yes the spring is here ..officially.. there are flowers everywhere.. the bare trees have small leaves now …
Here is photo of the flowers in my garden..Aren’t they pretty?

P.S : The quality is because of my mobile and also my excitement :)

An Encounter with the African Elephant

‘A’ had the pleasure of going to private natural reserve within the Krugger National Park for an Offsite in South Africa.
Krugger National Park was a long drive along the scenic plains and forests from Johannesburg. Upon reaching Krugger we were boarded on a open Land rover. We were accompanied by experienced guides and trackers.
We had short game drives to see the flora and fauna around. One such memorable drives offered an exciting glimpse of the wild world of African Elephants.
African Elephant is different than an Asian Elephant. It could weigh between 4-6 tons and has a larger body and is very temperamental.
The guide was telling us “They live in a herd led by a matriarch. Elephant use their strong ears to catch sounds made by others from the herd ...” While he talking suddenly we saw an elephant crossing the rough road in front of us. We were about 50 meters from him. Our guide immediately stopped the engine and asked us to maintain silence and watch the event unfolding.
Within moments we saw almost an entire herd of elephants crossing the road .A few young bulls stopped by to checkout who were we – a strange looking animal. It was just beautiful. After 5 minutes all the elephants left that spot and went in deep bush.

Our guide started the Land Rover and commenced the drive. No sooner had we taken a difficult right turn with a wayward climb, than we ran into a cute baby elephant. Our guide realized the danger signal and immediately stopped the vehicle . And boy were we shocked to see a giant female elephant charging at us! Her size and aggression were very scary as she ran towards us indicating us to back off. She was a mere 10 meters away from us when our guide started the engine and began reversing. Very much mindful of possibility that the herd that just passed us could return in response to the sound of this female elephant.
The reversing was a sign of respect to the elephant who seemed to appreciate it and waited for a couple of minutes before disappearing in the thick bush herself!

Miniature Park , Switzerland

If you thought this is a aerial view of some swiss city then you are wrong . This is Swiss Miniature Park in Melide near Lugano .

It had entire Switzerland’s famous monuments , buildings , parks, alps , roads and railways etc etc .. I felt like a child in the land of toys.
In the entrance we saw a small train going round and round . I wished I was a child so that I would sit in the Train !The cars, boats , Railways and Cable cars all were working except the planes . All the places displayed in the park were exact replica of the original ones.
Truly a place in a child’s fantasy !

This photo is of typical swiss town with a procession/march of Swiss people in traditional clothes with thier cows

Lake Lugano, Switzerland

Lugano is the Italian speaking part of Switzerland .. And yes as you must have guessed it shares borders with Italy and yes the beauty too.. It is a different Switzerland all together . It is casual ,warm , relaxed compared to the rest of Switzerland.

We took a train from Zurich to Lugano. My first expression after coming out of the Railway station was "Are we still in Switzerland?"

These are some photos of Lake Lugano .

SwissLife

This is Wadenswil - a town on ZuriSee(Zurich Lake) . The speciality is the life here. You will see horses, horse carriages , farm lands , farmers , cows and sheeps and goats with jingling bells .
Most people own a horse carriage and it is a common scene here ! I happen to catch this farmer in his horse carriage with his dog on the main Highway !

Orchid Garden,Singapore

Today I am taking to Singapore. We lived there for quite a while and loved it too. On one weekend when I was homesick , ‘A’ took me out and kept the location a secret – He said you will love it . The taxi took us deep and deep in greenery .
In Singapore there is greenery everywhere amidst the concrete jungle . It is fondly known as the Garden city . And trust me when I say there is no city in this world as clean as Singapore –not even Zurich(here there are cigarette butts fallen everywhere on the ground)
Ok coming back to where I was .. the taxi took us into woods .. now woods are not common in Singapore . So I sat on the edge of my seat looking out of the window trying to figure out where ‘A’ is taking me .. And then finally I saw – Mandai Orchid Garden !!!

Orchid is the national flower of Singapore.

Mandai Orchid Garden is 2 hecters of vintage display in the garden showcases a large variety of orchids on an open hillside. There are over 200 varieties of orchids which are grouped into major families namely Mokara, Dendrobium, Vanda, Aranthera, Renantanda, Aranda and Garammatophyllum speciosum (Tiger Orchid).
A wide variety of orchids are displayed in massed beds out in the open. The sloping hillside on which the beds are laid out is a stunning view to behold when the plants are in full bloom. The garden also includes the famous Water Garden, organic herb and spice enclosure, a fruit orchard, and a hydroculture plant tour and propagation garden.
I was simply hypnotized by the beauty and the vibrant colours of the Orchid. The Management does lot of experimenting with the flowers and grow new varieties. No doubt there is a different Orchid named after a actor or a famous personality.
I saw Aishwarya Rai and Shahrukh Khan’s Orchids too…

‘A’ was really fascinated by my fascination for the Orchids and that’s how we have so many of my photos with the pretty flowers ..


I got a Candlestand from the gift shop which has 2 orchids embedded inside the glass as if they have frozen in time .. always fresh as the memories of the Orchid Garden I have…




For more info: http://www.mandai.com.sg/orchids_garden.html

Goat festival , Bern

Today I would like to take you to - Berne, Switzerland . It is the capital of Switzerland. It is a very small place to be a capital of a country :0 It is even possible to see the entire city by walk. You will instantly notice lots of bear statues around. It is said that it was bear kingdom earlier, before humans killed all of them and now there are none left here. So yes Berne/Bern is named after a bear. Legend has it that the founder of Bern, Berchtold V von Zähringen, killed a bear on the Aare peninsula and this led to the town being called Bern (from German "Bär").
The old town Bern is a old town charm- the charm of the covered arcades, cobbled streets and decorated facades.
Bern according to a Swiss friend is considered as villagers in posh zurich.
Some of the attractions of this place are:- Botanical Gardens
The Clock Tower (Zeitglockenturm) was Bern's first western city gate (1191 - 1256) and is now one of Bern's most important sights.
Munster Cathedral- most impressive example of Late Gothic architecture of the city.

But the most interesting part I thought was when we were taking a walk in Old city Berne . There was huge gathering of cows and goats . It was a competition of farmers .
It was like the Goat mela. I took the picture of the preety boy who came first . And he even posed for me !

First Day First Time-Sydney

Last year in January we went to Sydney, Australia. From the plane’s window till this day it is most beautiful place and the top one in my favorite places to- be list . We went there 4 times but still didn’t have enough of it :-)
I just fell in love with the architecture , the carvings , the statues, the greenery ,the people , the beaches --all are simply magnificent.
The Australians have a casual, easy going , laid back attitude towards life. It must be because of the wonderful beaches. Who wouldn’t love to just relax and lie on the sunny beach for the entire day, get your wet feets covered with sand , make sand castles , surf and swim !

The first thing we did after keeping our bags in the Hotel ..was to walk to see the Sydney Opera house . It was just 10-12 minutes from where we stayed .
It was summer time and was very hot and everyone was enjoying it !I don't like getting tanned but this time I didn't care !
We were at the Circular Quay. As we walked along the Sydney Harbour Bridge was the first one we saw. ‘ A’ had been to Sydney before so it was only me who was jumping with wide eyes and big smile with excitement . I have never seen a bridge so beautiful .. it is so pretty( I know thats not a word for bridge!:0) .. Whole surrounding is so romantic..
Around the Circular Quay,there were many large , small , colorful ships /boats , a lineup of restaurants of different cuisines , people jogging and strolling around , enthusiastic tourists taking photos and posing in the front of the Bridge( including me) , lots of birds – seagulls and pigeons flying and hovering over those who eat French-fries/chips (they will even dance in circle for a couple of French fries and also get aggressive for it) , Tourist shop selling souvenirs … people enjoying the Sun , kids enjoying tall ice-cream cones. On the water lot of water sport enthusiastic surfing and sailing ...
We walked and I was like a kid at the fun fair and A was enjoying it :-) Well then suddenly he said Look there .. I was like woooooooow .. That’s the Opera house .. the one we used to see in the photos .. I stopped and stood there admiring … Then I thought- No it looks different in the photographs ..But then A explained that it is angle you are looking at it .. If we view it from the Sea it would look exactly like that…
We decided to catch the Boat ride to see both the bridge and the Opera house from different angles. So we ran to take the boat ride . There was a man in Caption Cook’s dress selling tickets . We got on the Boat soon .. found ourselves a good location to enjoy every possible view.
Wow everything was so lovely.. the water -just wanted to look at it (only if it was not shining so much) All the huge tall buildings around .. A also showed me his office building ( It has a Sea view …wow .. I thought) The sea has always fascinated me and this was my first time I was riding on it … It has fascinated me so much that I cannot imagine living away from it again !
Lots of houses were build just on the cliff near the Sea . So much that I thought they will slide away ..
And the opera house looked –oh well- just like we have always seen in the photographs –Magnificent ! And both of them together – Wow…

Zurich

After lot of pondering over the topic - where to start from - I have decided to start from my current location Zurich , Switzerland. Zurich is the financial hub of Switzerland . Most prominent is the Banking and the insurance sector. No wonder on weekdays in the central Zurich you will see people predominantly in Black suits only.

There is a huge lake - Zurichsee( See means lake in German) and along its sides - left and right are cities ( actually they are small so I think in some other countries could be known as suburbs ) The right side is the one which more sunlight so that area is a little more expensive than the left side . The left side is equally beautiful . There are boat rides , dinner boats , wine boats, party boats, canoe , small fishing boats, private boats on this lake .They start from Burkliplaz – the starting point of the Lake and end at Rapperswill- also known as city of roses. From the lake you can see the beautiful alps – snow capped and shinning like mirror.

The trams are the lifeline of Zurich. You can conveniently travel from one point to other in the canton of Zurich by Trams . Of course there are buses and Trains . Everything in Switzerland is on time. It is wonderful ! Also never forget to take ticket while traveling as there is a heavy fine if you don’t !

The spring / summer is the time when it is so colorful around. Flowers and greenery around, fests, BBQs, fairs, festivals, lot of tourists, cheerful faces and colorful dresses. I will post the photos in summer but now it is winter – chilly , cold , foggy ( we hardy see the sun) The first year I was here I longed for days to see the Sun in the winter .. But I finally started liking it …It is the best when it snows in the winter. Everything is White and even the sun shows up (just as the source of light without its heatJ )

The language here is Swiss German . Even high German works but I don’t speak both fluently. But luckily most people do know little bit English here and even they understand my broken German !

The photo here is taken from Uto Klum, Uetliberg – also known as the Top of Zurich. It is a hill with the best view of Zurich. Also a picnic spot with restaurant and a cinema hall and a tower to view the surrounding scenery. Also it has many walking trails and biking trails . Well but took the train there and then climbed to Uto Klum. It was a good exercise . We did promise eachother that we will come here every Saturday early morning huffing and puffing ..Hehehee.. But we are still planning to go there again !!!!!

About this Blog

As you could have guessed in the name - yes- this is a travel /& photo blog . Our Globe Trotting began 2 years back and is still on ... This is our travel journal - Our travel Diary from Singapore, Australia , Malaysia , Hong Kong , USA and Switzerland . And also some of A's wonderful trips to Indonesia and South Afrika .
So please fasten your Seat belts as we are about to take off !

As soon as the Captain switches off the Seatbelt sign we will start serving you!

We wish you all have a pleasant stay here !