Six giant golden shrimps shine brightly under the sun, perched above the half-moon portico of the fine white building. The Indonesian flag flies proudly over…
Trowulan: Beauty in Red Brick
I am standing in front of Candi Tikus, its red brick structure almost entirely below ground level as if the earth was purposefully dug out…
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…
Advance Australia Fare
Australia is called Down Under for an obvious reason: it is relatively remote on the world map. Its biggest cities – Sydney and Melbourne –…
Tainan: Taiwan’s Oldest City
Thanks to Taiwan’s extensive railway network, especially along the west coast, it only took us around one hour to get to Tainan from Kaohsiung Main…
The Fall of Constantinople
Istanbul, 1453. Around two thousand years earlier Buddhism began to spread across the Indian subcontinent, and for more than one millennium Buddhist kingdoms and empires…
Saigon through More Appreciative Eyes
Earlier last year, I had the thought of going to New Zealand in April. However, due to the absence of direct flights from Jakarta to…
South Sulawesi: From Cave Art to A Modern City
These days, reading about the resurgence of racism in many parts of world often makes me wonder what went wrong since the abolition of apartheid…
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…
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…