Memories to our visit to Luxor – Valley of the Kings Luxor Egypt about 20 years ago. Nostalgia is also in the quality of the photos even though I did little bit of editing to them. History is in the statues photographed.
Looking back at the colorful windows from downtown Vancouver.
Same place, two strikingly different compositions of this narrow lane, and you find yourself captivated by entirely new aspects. Do you feel the same? The other image irresistibly draws your gaze towards the windows and shutters, despite offering a wealth of intricate details beyond its landscape counterpart. The interplay of light and shadow weaves a dynamic tapestry that elevates the textures of the buildings. Each detail enlightened, allowing us to revel in the artistry of the architecture. Above all, I love the contrast and the play of light here—the very essence of monochrome and black and white photography. It accentuates shapes and forms, urging us to dive deeper into the image, as the absence of color beautifully challenges us to discover elegance in both simplicity and complexity.
Taken in Villefranche sur Mer
We arrived at Peterborough around 2 and our accommodations were ready. To my surprise we
stayed in a house owned by elderly gentleman named Jim. Somehow, I was expecting motel again.
His house was split in half and this pleasant fellow lived in the other half of the house. After arriving fairly early we had plenty of time start exploring the area. We managed to visit Bay of
Islands, Bay of Martyrs and The Grotto.
Bay of Islands Coastal Park is part of an Aboriginal cultural landscape. The Southern Ocean has carved a stunning collection of rock stacks and sheltered bays with and small beach coves near Peterborough. This one was nearest to us and our first stop.
Bay of Martyrs. According to local legends, it got its name from a pretty brutal showdown between the Kirrae-Wurrong people and the early European settlers. This clash, which some folks call the “Bay of Martyrs,” resulted in the tragic loss of many Indigenous lives and is crucial in understanding the area’s colonial past. The cliffs surrounding the bay are a reminder of that tough time, showing the lasting impact of colonization on the land and its original peoples.
The Grotto was fun because we arrived just after a bus load of Asian tourists. When I saw the steps and long line of people leading down to the Grotto I thought I would never be able to see it. Then I realized that they were all patiently standing in line waiting for their turn to take selfies or have friends take pictures against the Grotto. I wasn’t having any of is, so passed everybody in the line, because there was plenty of room on the deck to take pictures. Luckily, there was a lady standing there who called “next” every 30 seconds to get the line moving. I thought she was the guide for the group but later I saw her with her husband, who had been standing in line that I passed. Anyway, I got some decent pictures but not right in front of the Grotto.
The Grotto is perhaps the most enchanting of all the rock formations in this part of Australia. Part-blowhole, part-archway, part-cave.
After having only the disappointing breakfast/brunch in Port Fairy we had to go grocery shopping in
Port Campbell. Got some disappointing sandwiches , we were having so much bad luck with our food choices and finished them with tea in our beautiful half-house, but not halfway house. Then it was time for another beautiful sunset. This time we welcomed at Bay of Islands.
The afterglow of the sunset.
After we settled in that evening we got a very disturbing phone call from Ritva’s cousin Heli. She informed us that we wouldn’t be able to visit Ritva’s other cousin, Kari, in the mountain city of Talbingo. Kari’s wife, Susan. had just gotten bad health news and she was not, understandably, in a state to welcome guests. Such sad news to receive. We had planned on staying for few nights with them and we were slightly panicking. However, Heli graciously welcomed us to stay as long as we wanted in their home. Phew, problem solved, for now. So grateful.
To be continued 😀
Text credit Mara Sillanmäki
On the way to the Great Ocean Road, we had one more motel to stay the night, in Mount Gambier. Mount Gambier is famous for its Blue Lake, caves and sinkholes. Blue Lake was unbelievably blue. But we were lucky because it’s blue only from November to March. The rest of the year its water looks like in any other lake. However, Blue Lake was formed by meteorite, and it is deep as well.
It is really blue, a stunning shade that captivates the eyes and draws you in. I took way too many photos to prove it, capturing the depth and vibrancy of the color from various angles and perspectives, ensuring I could hold onto this mesmerizing view long after I leave.
Later we went to the Umpherston Sinkhole, which had an English garden in the 1900’s and even a small pond inside of it. The pond went dry and when Mr. Umpherston passed away nobody took care of the garden. Luckily the sinkhole has been renovated and is a lush green spot in the area worth the visit. Only thing that spoiled the visit was the wood mill next to it. The exhaust fumes from the mill were really bothering me down in the sinkhole. Hopefully, it was wind direction and it’s not like that every day.
From sinkhole we drove to Little Blue Lake 15 kilometers away from Mount Gambier. To me the water looked more green than blue, but it was a fun place to visit and see the locals swim and dive from the cliffs. I was afraid even to look at the approximately 10-year-olds diving. I would never jump myself.
Dinner was at Casa de Tequila. Maybe they had good tequila, but the food was disappointing. Where were the spices? Staff seemed all be Asian. Maybe none of them had ever tasted real Mexican food or they hadn’t studied the recipes too carefully in the kitchen?
What surprised us around Mount Gambier, was the amount of pine forests. They seemed to go on and on. Pine wood is not indigenous to Australia, so they had all been planted at some point. Planting pine wood is understandable because building material is needed, and I guess pine doesn’t take over the indigenous trees and plants? We come from the land of forests, but we were still amazed by the size of the forests. Also, we get a fit every time we see an area with clearcutting in Finland. They are ugly. I’ve never seen clearcutting like this before. Once again, the size of it. But you have the landmass here, I guess? By the way Fleurieu Peninsula had large pine forests as well.
In morning we didn’t see any nice places for breakfast, so we hit the road. We didn’t see any cafes or restaurants on the way but around noon we couldn’t take it anymore and had to take a break in Port Fairy. Town was packed. We found out there was running event going on from short distances to kids to all the way to marathon. We were able to find an empty table. Food was disappointing once again. How can you ruin hamburger and fries, even if it was busy.
text credit Mara Sillanmäki
Tucked away on South Australia’s rugged Limestone Coast, is the stunning Robe coastline. Tons of travelers have pulled up here and ended up totally enchanted by its charm, and the word got out, that is how we found it.
After arriving we took a quick drive around the area and went to find our sunset spot. It’s hard to miss the brightly painted, 12,2 meters tall Cape Dombey Obelisk. The path to the Obelisk was closed as it sits on an eroding promontory and is unsafe to access. Pounding waves on the rocks around the obelisk could lead to it collapsing into the sea at any time, but there was also a chance it could remain there for another 100 years. You can also see the Robe Lighthouse in some of the photos, we only saw it from the distance.
I hope I’m not wrong saying that that photos tell the story better than my words could. Click the images to enlarge them, I recommend it.
When leaving Fleurieu Peninsula it was time to visit McLaren Vale. We stopped at Tourist Info to get some tips which wineries to see.
They recommended three different types of places and luckily enough we took their advice. First stop, and the one we liked the most, was Coriole Vineyards. It was small and cozy and the scenery to the area was great. Coriole was getting ready for a wedding later during the day. Bridesmaids hanging signs and the restaurant setting tables and chairs. It was also the most photogenic place.
Second stop was to the most famous cellar door in the area, D’Arenberg. D’Arenberg is famous for its cube that you can see online every time you make a search for the area. You can see the building from far away and it really stands out. In a good way? I really can’t say. To me it doesn’t fit in. They hold wine tasting in the cube, but we passed. They also had Salvador Dali’s sculptures inside but the tree huge sculptures outside were enough for us. I was more interested in the old machinery that they had for display
We also went to the The Art Evolution Marquée. Currently exhibiting certified limited edition graphics and artworks by Picasso, Marc Chagall, Salvador Dali, Charles Billich and Toller Cranston, all of which are heavily collected internationally and shown in major exhibitions worldwide. We saw them , but we surprisingly ended up not buying anything
Third stop was Wirra Wirra Vineyards, where we had lunch also. The restaurant was trying too hard to be fine dining. My Slow and Low Brisket was okay, but Ritva’s Chicken Caesar Salad was just weird. A piece of chicken and a clump of salad on top of it. I was new in the menu and I’m sure they had had some feedback already because two people asked her, how was the salad. Nice place though and they had some funny tiles in the toilet. Oddly we didn’t take photos from this vineyard
From McLaren Vale we headed to Murray Bridge. For some reason I thought it was big and something to see. Granted, it is the first bridge across the magnificent Murray River and historic, but it was really nothing to see. Also, it was hard to find a good spot for photos. From Murray we drove towards city of Robe, where we were going to spend the next night. We drove through Coorung National Park, which seemed to last forever. We got to Robe before the sunset, and we saw the coastal limestone area and Robe Obelisk. Nice little town and a good place to rest.
The story is to continue in another post 🙂
Text credit Mara Sillanmäki
One night would have been enough at BreakFree Hotel but we had already paid for two nights. In the morning, we spent couple hours at the empty pool area, and I managed to burn myself a little bit. I wasn’t cautious enough while spreading the suntan lotion. I must mention that the temperature had dropped from 38 to 24 degrees overnight.
Rest of the day was spent in Normanville and Carralinga. The haze made the coastline look super soft, giving it this dreamy vibe that kind of mixes the sky and sea together. Plus, the light shifts when you look around in different directions along the beach, casting a warm golden glow that really brings out the shapes of the land. It’s one of those spots where you can just chill and soak in the laid-back surroundings and the gorgeous views that are all around you.
Fortree Lookout had an old truck as attraction, we noticed several old trucks during our trip. Also the colorful water tank was interesting.
The sunset at Second Valley takes the cake for the day. First of all, I helped Asian male free a stingray from his fishing hook. I held the pole, and he cut the line. I asked him about the hook still in stingray’s jaw. He said that in salt water it can get rid of hook quite fast. Does it rust fast of something, I don’t know. Second Valley had all you needed for taking beautiful pictures. A dock, rocks and limestone coast.
Ever changing sky.
Text credit Mara Sillanmäki
It was time to move on. Next two nights we would spend in Wirrana Cove in Fleurieu Peninsula. Once again, the traffic was not bad at all in Adelaide. I’m sure it can be bad, like in any big city, but we didn’t manage to find any traffic jams. We drove close by another famous wine region, McLaren Vale, but we decided to come back on our way out. The views in Flerieu were gorgeous, stunning, beautiful, magnificent, awesome, splendid, superb, amazing, astounding, astonishing, marvellous, impressive, wonderful. Pick any word you like… Rolling hills, costal areas, forest, you name it. It had it all.
We got to BreakFree Wirrina Cove Hotel before, but we were able to check-in instantly. Probably, because there was hardly anybody staying there. It was off-season but the hotel was in a bad way too. We can’t recommend it if they don’t renovate fast. No rest for the wicked, so after carrying the luggage to the room we headed towards Jervis Bay. Jervis Bay is port from where you catch the ferry to Kangaroo Island. We were forewarned that there is nothing to see in Jervis Bay besides the lighthouse, maybe. That proved to be true, but we stopped at every beach on the way; Wirrina Cove, Second Valley and Rapid Bay.
Jervis Bay, not much to see.
Especially Second Valley was beautiful, and we ended up going back there the next evening for the sunset. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the time or money to go to Kangaroo Island. Instead, we headed to Victor Harbour. On the way we nearly hit a deer jumping across the road. Also, stopped at Delamere General Store for ice cream and Crunchies candy bars, that Ritva remembered from her childhood. Guess you had to be there, as the saying goes, because I don’t care for them, even though I like just about anything sweet.
Marina St Vincent was the first stop in Wirrina Bay – we thought about getting boat to see sights but it was not due to off season available the days we were there, nothing to see here except for few boats.
Rapid Bay is well known for its very long jetty. While the original jetty built in 1940 is closed to the public, a new jetty (opened in early 2009) is now available for use. The color of the water aah
We didn’t really get inspired by Victor Harbor, even though I went to check out the railway to Granite Island. Granite Island might have been interesting, but it was too far to walk and railway wasn’t running. However, we managed to do some shopping for clothes. I bought a fabulous Billabong bucket hat and Ritva bought few summer clothes. While I was waiting for Ritva, I managed to buy 6-pack of Coopers Pale Ale and some McLaren white wine from the bottle shop.
Victor Harbor really did not inspire us as we had hardly any photos from there.
Second Valley at day time
On the road again.
In the evening, we had drinks outside our room and the animals came out. First the magpies. One of them was eating from my hand. Then the kangaroos came. First couple and then a whole horde on them. Even though they were used to people they didn’t let you closer than 5-10 meters. I know the locals don’t care for them that much but for us tourists they are so cute. The rest of the evening was spent washing laundry. I pushed wrong buttons, and the dyer just wouldn’t stop for some reason, and I ended up spending a big portion of the evening in the laundry room.
The day will continue on another post as there are so many photos to share, but this was the last of sunset when we got back to the at the hotel.
Text credit Mara Sillanmäki
Last stop was as mentioned before Henley Beach, where Ritva had lived as a small child. The duplex
was still there and that house was only about 200 meters from the ocean. The value of the property
might have gone up since the late 60’s when they lived there.
At the beach I heard techno music and I saw people dancing on the grass. I got closer and noticed
that most of the dancers weren’t young as I expected. They must have members of the original rave
era, them being in their fifties and sixties. There was a lady mixing and a MC hyping the crowd. It
sounded really good and I even sent some video clips to our son, who is a DJ. He liked them too.
Henley was much busier than Glenelg and a fun beach. For lunch we had fish fry for two that was
more like for four people. Couldn’t finish all that batter and grease. Too hungry to take photos of the food and also it was so hot as we could not find a spot in the shade and had no wish to inside the restaurant.
To be on a beach and not take sunset photos would be a crime. The beauty of nature unfolds before your eyes as the sun dips below the horizon, painting the sky with hues of orange, pink, and purple, creating a breathtaking canvas that seems almost surreal. Time passed quickly while watching people and the ever changing colors of the sky, each moment providing a new angle of light and shadow, a new opportunity for capturing the perfect shot. A local had kindly told us on which side of the pier the sunset was better photographed, with less people in the way.
Text credit Mara Sillanmäki
It was too early to go to our final destination of the day, Henley Beach, so drove to famous Barrossa Valley for wine tasting at Seppelfield Wines. Ritva had wine and I had water, as always. Seppelfield is one of the oldest wineries in the region and they had a mausoleum up on a hill for the founders, but it was too hot to go up there. It was 41 degrees, which tells us that autumn is just around the corner for South Australia. Barrossa has Jacob’s Creek vineyards and many more that were familiar to us. There are many small vineyards, but most of the area is owned by big companies, even though they don’t always use the name of their main brand.
Seppeltsfield Road is just under an hour’s drive from Adelaide in South Australia .The palm trees along the road look out of place, I looked up the history of the the western entrance to that starts off with this awesome Avenue of Palms – a five-kilometre stretch of Canary Island Date Palms, planted by the Seppeltsfield workers back during the Great Depression. Now, there are over 2000 heritage-listed palms lining the sides of Seppeltsfield Road, and it was worth seeing.
Most of the time we enjoyed the rolling hills, which offered breathtaking views and a sense of tranquility that was hard to match. The waterlines above the ground are something we don’t have in Finland for the obvious reasons, such as climate and geography, but their unique presence here did get our attention and the cows 🙂
On the way we passed, Millbrook reservoir, the deep blue water caused us to stop. I found out that the reservoir got its name from the little town of Millbrook that used to sit right above the dam. They tore Millbrook down when they were building the reservoir, but it used to be a lively spot along the main road from Adelaide to Mount Pleasant.
Once again so many images that I am going to do a separate post on Henley Beach.
Text credit Mara Sillanmäki
Tuesday’s schedule was decided the night before because the weather forecast promised 43 degrees Celsius for Adelaide. It was going to be driving day for us. Staying and walking around city would be murder. First stop Mount Lofty’s Summit. You got a real nice view of the city from there, but getting really good photos was not that easy. This girl from Fidzi it was her first time traveling aboard, she was so excited to be there that she had her photo taken with a flag. I had to capture her joy. The color coordinated couple, no other reason than that.
From there you got a good overview of the city. Next stop historical German city of Hahndorf. Hahndorf was picturesque but it’s hard to get good pics because the parked cars ruin the view, ours included. We did manage to get a few.
Being off-season Hahndorf was quiet besides the lunch hour, when it was hard to find parking. And it was so damn hot that we didn’t walk around as much as we would have wanted. Instead we parked ourselves to a small café for strawberry smoothies and shared a piece of cake. As you can see from the photographs it was an old town with nice historic details all around. Antique stores were fun to go through.
Text credit Mara Sillanmäki
Monday morning, we had to get up early to make the flight to Adelaide. The flight was 2 hours, and the time distance was 30 minutes. The scenery from the airplane was fascinating when we got closer to Adelaide. Sometimes it looked like they had made crop circles. We had reserved a car from Hertz for the next three weeks. We were told that they had a high-end Corolla for us 😊I never found out what high-end in this case means. Maybe it had good cruise control, because it was the only thing I thought was above normal. And the rent-a-car places never disappoint. You always go the counter expecting you have paid all expenses beforehand, but NO! This time they blamed a third party, Finnair, that we hadn’t paid the return fee. Return fee was returning the car with New South Wales plates to Sydney in NSW. What can you do. We had to pay 250 euros extra.
First few kilometers were exciting hence, to driving on the wrong side of the road but I got into the groove fast. It is much easier driving nowadays because of the navigation systems. You can mostly concentrate on driving and not reading a map.
Boutique Hotel Adabco close to the center of the city proved to really nice and the room was really large. Only negative thing was that there is no free parking. You had to park on the street for maximum of two hours between hours of 8 am to 6 pm. Naturally I ended up with a parking ticket for 66 AUD. Breakfast was included but not on the premises but in Greek café Diaspora. We had walk for about 400 meters but the choices for breakfast were good.
We spent the afternoon and the sunset at Glenelg Beach. We got there around 4 pm and found deckchairs for us at the Moseley Beach Club. Luckily it was off-season so were able to keep the chairs until past sunset at 8 pm. Of course, we bought lunch and couple cool drinks to justify our stay. Temperature was close to 40 degrees Celsius so it was also good to have umbrellas to cover us. Later during the day bar had a skilled guitar player/singer. He played suitable mellow songs for us: Bob Marley, the Eagles, CCR, etc.
A funny Welsh guy came to talk to us few times. He was getting more drunk and louder each time but he was a lot of fun. I sure he had a rough morning because they had on early flight waiting for them. His son was getting married in Sydney in few days and a group of 19 people from the same Welsh village had been travelling for few days before the wedding. The rest of the group is going to be pleasantly surprised at the wedding because a guy from the village, who emigrated to Australia 30 years ago, is going to show up.
Sunset was beautiful and the lighted Glenelg ferris wheel was great too. Check out the pics!
Please note that paragraphs and spacing is all messed up, I have redone this several times, in the edit mode it looks good. After publish, not. WP is the problem this time at least.
We took a taxi from the airport to Yehs Hotel for obvious reasons. Naturally we couldn’t check in at
9 am. So, we left our luggage and headed to gorgeous Queen Victoria Building (QVB) which was just
next door. I headed to nearest medical clinic recommended by our travel insurance provider. The
first one refused me because they only took Japanese tourists. The receptionist at the next clinic had
a fit when she heard I had a flu. She handed me a mask and told me to get out and buy a influenza
test from a pharmacy and then call them back. Going to the doctor’s office while sick seemed to be
forbidden in Australia.
Eventually I got the test for Covid, RSV, influenza A and B and took it, I had influenza A, Ritva didn’t.
The medical clinic had already closed, and it was closed the next day, Saturday, as well. I called my
travel insurance helpline, and they told me that getting a doctor’s appointment in Australia is next to
impossible and I would have to go to hospital and wait in line. I called a hospital and luckily, they
recommended me to an online doctor, Medmate.
Medmate doctor called me back and said there was nothing they could do to save.., no, to help me,
besides rest, drink lots of fluids and eat painkillers. However, he wrote Ritva a prescription for
Tamiflu to hopefully prevent her from getting the A-word. The prescription probably helped because
Ritva didn’t get the influenza, just common flu. But we had to cancel a dinner for the next evening
with our local mates, Kylie and Damian.
For some reason, Yehs Hotel had upgraded us to a larger room, which was nice. Big room next door
to QVB. Can’t go wrong with that.
I must admit we didn’t stay in our room after the diagnosis, but I was wearing a mask. Hopefully I
wasn’t a super spreader, and I would like to say I’m sorry. We had saved our Opal cards for the
public transport from our last visit to Sydney 6 years ago and we had nearly 20 AUD left in them. You
could travel by tapping your credit card at the tram stops. It made us wonder why we can’t make
that method of payment to work in Finland. We are supposed to be very advanced nation in
technology. As it turns out, in few days I read online that city of Helsinki, Finland, was introducing
this method of payment. Oh, happy day!
So off we went to Circle Quay and to the Rocks. We had dinner at Italian restaurant at the Rocks. At
the table next to us was an American couple from the state of Georgia. They were not your typical
American middle-aged couple because they had travelled extensively around the world, and they
knew other countries existed and mattered. Let’s just say they were not MAGA.
After a pleasant dinner, Manly Pale Ale and good conversation with the Yanks, or is it just convo
Down Under, we walked slowly to the Opera House for few snapshots. I even managed to climb the
stairs and take some artistic pictures. The place was packed. No surprise there it being Friday.
I nearly forgot, Ritva bought a lovely hat from a “salesperson” who wasn’t interested in doing his job.
However, she was able to complete the transaction only to leave the hat into our hotel lobby after
the checkout.
Saturday afternoon we finally had to go and eat again. We found something online, called the Rook.
We chose the place close by and it promised to have Aussie bar food. It was a roof top place and
when we got of the elevator, I was ready to leave right away. The music volume from the restaurant was deafening. Not willing to walk further we decided to give it a shot anyway. We talked to the
server, and she told us that they have a drag show every Saturday afternoon and the drag queens
would take a break soon and turn down the volume.
Staying was a great choice. The restaurant was packed with exuberant birthday party, hen party and
coming out party people. Other people obviously knew that there would drags shows at 2 and 3 pm.
We had so much fun just enjoying the shows and the happy people around us. Drag queens had
dance competitions, etc. for the patrons. Luckily, they didn’t pick us from the crowd. Instead, they
chose birthday queens, brides to be and the guy who was celebrating his coming out of the closet. I
must say Aussie people are much less reserved compared to us Finns. I can’t imagine having an
afternoon show like that in Finland without having people falling over drunk. How does a Finn
recognize another Finn abroad. The other Finn is staring at your shoes.
For food we had chicken burger, prawn rolls and we split donut fries for dessert. Delish!
After the meal I went to pharmacy the get the meds. The street corners next to QVB and Town Hall
were really lively with buskers, winos and people praising some guy called Jesus. I wish I’d had the
strength to stay longer to enjoy the big city vibes.
On Sunday we pulled ourselves together and headed to Circle Quay again and plan was to take the
fast ferry to Manly Beach and observe manly men doing manly things at the Manly Beach. Fast ferry
took only 20 minutes to reach the destination, and it was only a 500 meter walk to the beach. On the
way the beach we saw a couple with a sign – Free discussions, about anything for free. The sign
didn’t say JW.org so probably they were not Jehova’s Witnesses, but I was afraid to ask anyway.
They didn’t have any clients at the moment, but I didn’t have the courage find out what the deal
was.
Manly Beach is an old and beautiful beach with people just walking, jogging, surfing, suntanning,
barbecuing and sitting in shade leisurely. We just sat in the shade and enjoyed peoplewatching.
Lunch we had in a Mexican restaurant. We both had nachos, with beef and prawns. On they way
back to the ferry we walked along Market Street that had a lively Sunday Market going on. To my
great surprise and horror, Ritva was not able to walk through the market without buying anything.
Scarf it was.
The scenery from the Manly ferry is just georgeous: Sydney Harbor Bridge from a different angle, the
Opera House, navy ships, Darling Point, Bradleys Head, Syndey Harbor National Park, Hornby
Lighthouse, etc. On the way back we saw coast guard with flashing lights, and we thought that there
might have been an accident. Luckily, it was only the catamarans competing in SailGP and coast
guard directing traffic. There were many big motorboats in the harbor with spectators on board to
follow the race. Later on, we saw those catamarans racing underneath the Harbor Bridge.
From the ferry, we went to a café in Circle Quay to rest some. Quay was filled with people because
Caribbean Cruiseline’s Ovation of the Seas was docked in the harbor. What a huge ship. While sitting
in the café we saw indigenous people playing, jugglers and a guru floating in the air.
Rest of the evening we spent at the Opera House people watching and waiting for the sunset.
Not really a bench, but you still can sit on them. I took this shot as the chairs looked so right in their place, the colors on the chairs match so well to the foliage in the background.
The modern architecture in Singapore is really fascinating and to some extent they are trying to be environmentally conscious. You can see plenty of parks and trees just about everywhere and many buildings have gardens inside, on rooftops or balconies. Also because of high functioning public transport, they proudly say it’s the best in the world, the traffic wasn’t bad and air quality seemed fine.
We spent the only evening of our visit basically in front of the Marina Bay Sands Shoppes and Expo. However I had enough stamina to walk to The Gardens by the Bay to see the Supertree Grove and take pictures of the beautiful ArtScience Museum, shaped like a flower, and, of course, Marina Bay Sands hotel. Everything seemed to be close by, even the Flyer, even though you would have to walk a bit from destination to another destination.
The Shoppes included every imaginable high end fashion shop and the canal of the casino. Being so huge it was hard to capture good photos from the Shoppes, but hopefully were able to document the essence of the area.
To capture the Water and Light Show in Marina Bay was also hard. The lit skyscrapers as a backdrop were obviously nice but documenting the show proved to be challenging. What was really fun however was that the show was so close to the event area that you got wet by the showers from the fountains. People in the know were prepared with raincoats and umbrellas but I wasn’t wise enough. Fortunately, it was a warm night. It goes without saying that the area was a really popular spot for photographers. We saw wedding and fashion pictures taken by the bay.
No sight of infinity pool or Marina Bay Sands Observation Deck for us because the Deck was reserved for private function. But the hotel offers a magnificent sight itself.
Text credit: Mara Sillanmäki
Before flying off to Singapore I asked for recommendations of what to see and do from an old workmate, who had visited the country a couple times before. Without her advice we would have most likely missed the highlight of our visit to Singapore – ATLAS Bar. So, thank you, Saila!
We even passed on Raffles Bar, the famous home of the drink called Singapore Sling, because of my friend’s recommendation and we don’t regret it at all. Anyway, to the ATLAS Bar. Bar is located in Parkview Square in one of the grandest and most expensive office buildings in Singapore. I didn’t check any details beforehand about the bar or the building so the whole time we thought the building was built in the 1920’s when Art Deco style was in fashion. But no, this impressive building was finished only in 2002. Not being an architecture buff, I could not tell the difference.
The money they must have spent to let’s say recreate a building like that and even the courtyard in front of the building was like an art gallery. The gigantic statues of men holding balls in their hands and other impressive statues, the gargoyles guarding the building and overall décor just spoke volumes of how much time and resources were used to create this marvel. The exterior surface of the building is clad in brown granite, bronze, lacquer, and glass, so I’ve been told by the internet. The building is sometimes referred to as the Batman building by locals because it reminds of Gotham City. The interiors drew HBO’s “Westworld” to use it as a filming location in season three of the dystopian science fiction series.
We had reserved an afternoon tea at 3 pm, so in we go. Reservations for the afternoon tea are always recommended because the bar can be fully booked. Inside of the ATLAS Bar was even more stunning. I couldn’t take my eyes off the centerpiece bar, the magnificent tower of gin, located at the far end of the area. The tower holds over 1300 gins and is two stories high. I can only guess how they get the bottles down from the tower. When we were present, I didn’t see any acrobats climbing the structure and flinging down bottles to bartenders.
We are not used to dining or drinking in opulent surroundings like this, but the staff made us feel very comfortable from the beginning. We had reserved afternoon tea, so tea we had. The 68 SGD order included a welcome drink, two types of tea or other soft beverages and a collection of savory and sweet bites. For a while we didn’t touch the food because we just wanted to look at the beautiful set up. We felt like king and queen for two hours with the service and everything we consumed. I haven’t googled yet what were the dishes we ate, for example vol-au-vent is not in my vocabulary, but they were delicious. Here is a list of them to those of you who are in the know.
Savory: coronation egg, brioche / lobster on crystal bread / smoked salmon rillette, vol-au-vent, kaluga caviar / tomato basil arancini / gougère, farmers bacon, comté / shrimp, rosatella espuma
Sweet: scones, jam and clotted cream / canelé de Bordeaux /popcorn cream cone | rhubarb tartlet, cinnamon streusel / blueberry choux /rhum baba | pistachio amaretti bonbon
There is also a picture of the page from the drink list – ATLAS Vintage – that listed different gins from 1910’s to present. I even passed my decade, the 60’s, because martini from that era would have been 125 SGD. Martini from 1910’s was 275 SGD. I have no idea if they would have made a difference. Does gin age like whiskey or cognac?
Stepping into ATLAS bar was like stepping back to the roaring twenties. Words can’t really express the experience we had at ATLAS Bar. So luckily, we have a few pictures to explain. Even though it felt like a crime to gawk and take pictures because of the serene and affluent atmosphere. But being layman/layperson, we got over the feeling really fast.
P.S. I never figured out what the Coke ad was doing in the building with its Chinese(?) motif but somehow it fit into the décor as well.
Text credit: Mara Sillanmäki
Unfortunately, our stay in Singapore was hampered by a flu. We managed to experience some of the sights but so much more was left to uncover maybe some other time. The only full day in the city started with a visit to Singapore Flyer which is now only the second highest ferris wheel in the world with 165 meters. Folks in Las Vegas had to have bigger and better one, so they built a wheel that is 168 meters. The day was cloudy and drizzly but the view to the Marina Bay and all over the city was obviously quite breathtaking.
As mentioned above, insult to injury, it was raining most of the day. However, rain always brings more opportunities for photographers – reflections and watery filters. It was easy taking pictures because we got to Flyer early and there was hardly anybody there besides us. We had one cabin for just the two of us. Maybe other people talking would have made the experience more enjoyable because the elevator music in the cabin was so damn annoying. The music loop lasted 15 -30 seconds and it was looping the whole time. Like waiting on the phone for your sales rep, who never answers. Very annoying. Hopefully they do something about it, otherwise we are never going back 
Also we were kind of forced to go through “immersive adventure at the Time Capsule that takes you on a thrilling journey through Singapore’s past, present and future.” Might have been thrilling but unfortunately, we were not in the mood due to ill health. This picture captures the only thing that caught our attention.
Singapore has a long history, but the present dominates the skyline. Fortunately, some of the old world still remains standing and you are able to see it even from the Flyer. What the buildings actually were, remains a mystery to us. The modern architecture really stands out, like the flower of ArtScience Museum, Esplanade-Theatres on the Bay and everything in the Gardens by the Bay. Skyscrapers are just skyscrapers and can be seen in every big city.
What can I say about the Gardens by the Bay! Not much besides us both seeing the Supertree Grove, Flower Dome and Cloud Forest in the distance. We were planning on seeing the Gardens by the Bay Light Show from the Observation Deck of Marina Bay Sands but somebody with some extra pocket money had reserved the deck for a private function and spoiled the evening for us common people. So, we can only imagine what the Supertree Grove, pictured below, would have looked like all lit up.
This is the first of my Singapore posts! The text is written by my husband, Mara, who has a knack for capturing the little details and telling them in a way that makes our adventures come alive. I’ve been trying to nudge him into start his own blog because he’d be really good at it—his friends and family love how he paints pictures with his words. It is where he can let his creativity run wild and connect with more people who dig his take on and life. By getting him involved in this project, I’m hoping he’ll feel inspired to spill his thoughts and experiences more often.
Posted as part of Six Word Saturday
I have had an opportunity to travel and see new places for a month, what a trip it has been! Every day was filled with new sights as we explored destinations that I had wanted to visit. I truly got to see some wonderful places. Each had its own unique charm and beauty. I also met family and friends that I have not seen in years. This made the experience even more special. I am ever so happy I got to do this trip . My mind is filled with unforgettable memories. My husband is going to help me word these memories as he kept daily notes on what we saw did in the following posts
The trip back home felt like it took forever, and I was seriously sleep-deprived; it took me a whole week to feel normal again. Even after such a tiring adventure, I am still feeling the aftermath. Honestly, the pressure to catch up on everything is a bit overwhelming. Then I went through my photos, it was a new reason to stress out. I realized I had snapped thousands of pics on my journey. Each one needs a good look; did it really capture what I had in mind? Now, I’ve got to sort through them all. I need to wrap my head around what I shot. Only then can I tackle the job of editing each one. Since I shoot in RAW, the editing is super important and pretty time-consuming. Normally, I love this creative process, and I’m set on enjoying it this time too. I’m ready to dive in, and I’ve already started with our first stop. Now I can bring them to life through editing and figure out which ones are worth keeping.
These I took with my iPhone as we approached our first destination Singapore from above. I am amazed how good photos the phones take these days. We we also rather amazed how many container ships there were.
I have seen your comments, but days are so full of surprises and new things so I haven’t been active on any social network. Three weeks and 4100 km underneath us and still few more days left.
I will be getting back home later next week..
Today driving t pepply beach, loved this road
I looked at old photos during the weekend as needed to release some space to my hard drive. I say these and they were fresh in my memory as I saw these two challenges and thought they are so suitable for them even id old photos. Taken in Paris 2006 🙂 I do have to say nowadays I would pay more attention to framing and composition.
To Dan’s and Cee’s CFFC topic this week: Commercial buildings or store fronts and Dan’s Monday Window
I took a trip down memory lanes, dreaming of warm places while watching the snow fall outside my window. The cold outside contrasted with my warm memories, making me yearn for warmth while the winter’s chill wrapped around me.
These photos were taken several years ago, ten years ago during a memorable trip where we drove a bit inland in Sal, Cape Verde. The area we explored is likely more developed now. I would say this is an area where many locals live. As we ventured further, we marveled at flat desert are dotted with colorful houses. These particular photographs were captured on the way to Salinas de Pedra de Lume, an extraordinary salt mine, which certainly left a lasting impression on our journey.
One Word Sunday at Debbie’s here
Artifacts from Pompeii, including intricately designed pots, beautifully crafted vases, and detailed statues, serve as a breathtaking window into the lives of the ancient Romans who thrived in this bustling city before the catastrophic earthquake.
One Image 4 Ways – I saw this topic in one of Leanne’s posts and I love editing, as it allows for endless creativity and expression. For this particular challenge, I thought I would do more than just a few little tweaks to the image, aiming to truly explore the depth and versatility of a single photograph. But hey, I got carried away, so I ended up creating more than five variations, even though I ultimately decided to just post five . (click to enlarge images)
Each edit showcases a different approach, demonstrating how even minor adjustments can dramatically alter the mood and impact of the original image.
A version with changes sky and darker tone, and one with limited color palette and more intense sky.
It is incredibly fun to see what you can do with an image, and I hope my interpretations inspire others to experiment with their own photographs in creative ways.
Original sky and three color versions
These images of an old vacant building from Tallinn are from ten years back, but now I decided to share them with you. The building itself has quite a history, I am sure, but I do not know it , having served different purposes over the years before being left vacant. The windows, the patterns of peeling paint, weathered wood, and the play of light and shadows.
These windows are my entry for this week for Ludwigs Monday Window challenge, a perfect opportunity to showcase the timeless beauty and mystery captured within these frames.
Ritva Sillanmäki Photography 