The day started with a short ride to what I would say was the most ornate of subway stations I had ever seen, that is, the Louvre-Rivoli station. They have made it look like you are actually walking down the hall of a museum! This of course takes you to the Rue de Rivoli along which the Musee du Louvre runs. I made my way down the side of the building in order to enter the inner courtyard. At this time of day, the only people milling about were Army security personnel toting their riffles (gotta keep that Mona Lisa safe!). The building itself is absolutely stunning. I then passed another archway to catch my first glimpse of that famous glass pyramid. First, I do have to admit that it is smaller than I had imagined ... read more

After a breakfast of coffee, baguette, croissant and a pain au chocolat, I headed to the metro station en route to the area of Montmartre, where I would spend most of the day. In order to avoid the throngs of tourists and locals that inevitably gather there, I first started with Sacre-Coeur. This huge basilica, whose construction was completed in 1914, sits atop a hill (known as La Butte de Montmartre) and can be seen from many a vantage point throughout Paris. On my arrival, it was actually the very first thing I saw as I rode the train into the city. The basilica itself is white in colour, said to be due to the calcite that the stone produces when it is exposed to rain water which in essence bleaches the stone to this pale ... read more

A few photos from Siem Reap and my visit through the temples in Angkor. I have also included a couple of videos because sometimes a photo just does not do it justice! ... read more

I have made it back safe and sound. A little worse for wear but had a good 12-hour sleep (except for a little fur ball incident at 3 am ... Charlotte's way of saying welcome home mommy!). With one more day at home, some good sleep and general laziness I should be fully coherent in the next couple of days. Of course, I was excited to see all of my photos ... as always some turned out, some didn't. So here are a few from Vietnam (there's less so faster to go through!) ... ... read more

With only about half a day, I had three things on the list of things to do before leaving HCMC. I guess that two out of three isn’t so bad! I knew I had gotten up early but didn’t realize that I was actually quite quick in getting ready so even the small restaurant fronting my hotel was not opened … oh well; I’ll grab breakfast somewhere on the street I guess. I hopped into a cab and didn’t even bother asking … I already I had my book at the ready for the taxi driver to take me to the Jade Emperor Pagoda. You would think that after almost two weeks I would be “templed out” but no, not at all. I am still awestruck at the sight of one of these amazing buildings. I ... read more