Around the Planet

Those two words, Hong Kong, meaning Fragrant Harbour, tend to conjure up thoughts of skyscrapers and shops, bustling streets and double decker buses, trams and markets. Hong Kong has all of this, but one of the most scenic and enjoyable parts of a visit to Hong Kong has to be a walk around the Victoria Peak.

Standing at 552 metres high, Victoria Peak is a mountain in Hong Kong, located in the western half of Hong Kong Island. Although the summit of the Peak is occupied by a radio telecommuncations facility which is closed to the public, the rest of it is mostly park land which is open to the public, including a circular Hikers’ Trail around the peak, which gives the most magnificent views over the city of Hong Kong, its harbor, and the surrounding islands. The Trail is well laid out and signposted, and a stroll around it is a wonderfully peaceful way in which to spend a day, well away from the hustle and bustle of lively downtown Hong Kong.

The Peak Tram is a funicular railway, which will take you to the top of the Peak, taking only twelve minutes to get from the busy financial district to the top of the Peak. Alternatively, you can catch a bus, (as I did, having chosen the one day of the year that the Tram was closed for maintenance). Both tram and bus bring you into the shopping and leisure centers above the park, composed of the Peak Tower, and the Peak Galleria. At either of these you can grab a nice meal, with fine views, before setting off on your hike.

No tour of Europe could possibly be complete without a visit to the romantic city of Paris.

Standing majestic over the city is the Eiffel Tower, which, once controversial, has now become the iconic symbol for Paris, and from La Tour Eiffel, you get a magnificent view over the whole city.

Another icon of Paris is the Gothic cathedral of Notre Dame, famous for its impressive stained glass, its flying buttresses, and its numerous gargoyles – images of ugly little goblin-type creatures that were put on the side of the building to scare the Devil away, but which now fascinate tourists, and look great on postcards.

Another great church of Paris is the Sacre Coeur, an impressive white domed basilica, situated high above the Montmartre, which is the artists’ quarter where Toulouse-Lautrec and his friends once drank absinthe and enjoyed the Bohemian lifestyle. Street artists are still to be found in here today, and, and if you care to pose for a while, you can have a good portrait of yourself sketched for a reasonable price.

No visit to Paris is complete without a visit to The Louvre, and of course the piece de resistance, the Mona Lisa with her secret smile. When the glass segmented Louvre Pyramid designed by Pei was built on the central courtyard of the Louvre it raised a bit of an outcry, but now people say they cannot imagine the Louvre without it.

Another favorite of mine has to be the Centre Pompidou, an eye-catching piece of modern architecture, which is both a library, a museum and a center for music. Equally fascinating is the area itself, like Covent Garden in London, there is a lot of street theater, with skilled performers and musicians busking for the crowds.

You may find it interesting to pay a visit to the famous Parisian cemetery Pere Lachaise where such celebrated people as Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Honore de Balzac, Sarah Bernhardt, Chopin, Yves Montand, Edith Piaf, and many other great people are buried.

The sheer beauty and atmosphere of Paris is so stunning, it always makes you want to come back.

There is so much to see in Stockholm – not only are there magnificent old buildings, some exciting new ones, plus museums, cafes, shops and entertainment, but also you are never far from parks, woods and wonderful walks by the lake or the sea, where you can just enjoy “the nature”.

In addition to the Stadshus, another place for great vistas is the Katarinahissen, which is a 38 metre high elevator at Slussen, the point where the lake and the sea meet. It has a viewing platform that gives you magnificent views over the city and the water.

If you like being outdoors and seeing animals, then an excellent place to visit is the park known as Skansen – here you can see creatures native to the region, such as elks, wolverines and grey owls. Here you can also see the some 150 old historical Swedish buildings that have been brought here from all across the country.

Located on the northwestern bank of the lovely Stockholm island of Djurgården, which has an abundance of parkland, can be found the Vaasa Museum, which provides a fascinating display of the old warship ‘Vaasa’ which sank in Stockholm harbour in 1628 and was raised in 1956. At 68m in length, 11.3m in width and 52m in height, this was probably the largest battleship of the time, but she was sunk by high winds just after setting out on her maiden voyage.

Drottninggatan (literally “Queen Street”) is a pedestrianized main street which has a lot of major shops and department stores, such as Åhléns City. Just visiting some of these places, and seeing the beautiful candles, flowers, prints and wooden furniture on display, gives you a sense of Swedish aesthetics and feel for simple, but beautiful, interior design.

Close to Drottninggatan is Sergels Torg, a modern public square in the center of the city, not far from the Stockholms Central Station. Any demonstrations going on in this politically conscious city invariably start here, and nearby you can also find the vibrant Kulturhuset (House of Culture) which, as well as hosting exhibitions of photography, music, dance, art and design, also houses Stockholm City Theatre and a library.

Stockholm has an integrated and efficient transport system, with a commuter train, a subway, and bus services, all of which can be used on the same ticket. These are focussed upon the Central Station, and from here there are regular train services to other parts of the country.

With its beautiful location on islands, fine views, history and culture, Stockholm is a place not to be missed.

On the east coast of Sweden, at the point where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic Sea, lies Stockholm, built on fourteen islands. Stockholm is one of the few cities where you are never far from a picturesque walk along the water’s edge, and there are plenty of trees, parks and green areas. It is probably for this reason, that Stockholm does not have the feeling of congestion that a lot of cities do, and Stockholm does not seem to have undergone the flight of the inner city population out to the suburbs - people still live within the city centre in attractive apartments.

Because Stockholm has cold winters, the best time to visit is in the summer, and if you are there for the longest day in late June, you will find that the Swedes really celebrate the summer solstice in style, staying up all night and having parties. Stockholm, being so far north, remains light all night in the midsummer, which is wonderful for going out in the evenings to socialise, or to enjoy “the nature”. Many people take to the skies, and in the summer evenings a profusion of colorful hot air balloons can be seen over the city, giving their passengers some magnificient aerial views over the whole of the city, and much of the archipelago.

If great vistas are what you are after then there is a wonderful view from the City Hall (Stadshus) tower, which is open during the summer months. This is also the place where the highly sought after Nobel Prizes are presented.

Gamla Stan, the Old Town, is famous for its lovely historical buildings, narrow cobbled streets and interesting shops. And when you are tired of all that walking around a popular place to go for coffee and cake is the cafe known as Grå Munken.

In my next post I will talk a bit more about some of the great sights to be seen in this wonderful city.

Once the capital of Japan, Kyoto came to prominence internationally in 1997, when the city hosted the conference that resulted in the Kyoto protocol.

Kyoto has long been popular with tourists, both within and from outside Japan, due to its abundance of quintessential Japanese sights, such as its numerous Buddhist temples, including The Golden Temple (Kinkakuji), and The Silver Temple (Ginkakuji). It has a magnificent Shinto shrine, The Heian Shrine, with its traditional Shinto colours of eye-catching vermilion painted woodwork, and contrasting green-tiled roofs, and its enormous torii archway, which is one of the largest in Japan. Kyoto is still very much the cultural capital of Japan, being the centre for the kimono industry, tea ceremony, and the traditional geisha arts.

Having been saved from bombing during the Second World War, due to the fact that the beauty and historical relevance of the city was recognised by the Americans, Kyoto is the only large Japanese city to still have a large number of prewar buildings, such as the traditional wooden townhouses known as machiya.

Kyoto is also very much an educational centre, with Kyoto University being the second university of Japan after Tokyo University, and there are also a number of big name universities, such as Doshisha and Ritsumeikan.

Having such a large student population, it’s no surprise to discover that Kyoto is also famous for its nightlife, and at the weekends the downtown streets of Kawaramachi and Kiyamachi are buzzing with activity. You can find a profusion of great and varied nightspots such as Bar Isn’t It (yes, there really is a bar with that name), innovative nightclub Metro, Teddy’s, the authentic Jamaican bar known as the Rub A Dub, Cock A Hoop, Zappa, Pub Africa, and many more. And although I have a tendency to avoid the British pub abroad, I have to wholeheartedly recommend the Pig and Whistle, popular with ex-pats and Japanese alike, which really does offer a warm welcome - and warm English beer too, if you wish.

The two best times of year to visit Kyoto are in the cherry blossom season and in the autumn, when the leaves are turning a fantastic array of colours from gold to red. The best places to see these seasonal wonders are the The Philosopher’s Road (Tetsugaku michi), Maruyama Park (Maruyama Koen), and Arashiyama. But whatever the time of year, Kyoto is a good place to be.

What better place to start a trip around the planet than London? There is so much to see and do in London that you could spend months here, and still have something new to do each day.

London has some iconic sights which are famous the world over, such as Trafalgar Square, overlooked by lions on plinths, and Nelson high up on his column, while the bubbling fountains tumble down into blue pools. Here you are surrounded by impressive buildings such as The National Gallery, St Martin’s in the Fields, and South Africa House, once the scene of vibrant protests, and a non-stop demo, back in the evil days of apartheid.

From Trafalgar Square you can walk under Admiralty Arch, and take a stroll down the tree lined Mall to Buckingham Palace. Walk the other way down Whitehall and you arrive at the magnificent gothic Palace of Westminster on the River Thames, where you can have your photo taken with Big Ben in the background. Nearby is Westminster Abbey, with its hushed interior, medieval stained glass, and Poets’ Corner. From the West End of London you can walk along Fleet Street, once the home of all the national newspapers, and then find yourself close to St Paul’s Cathedral with its imposing dome. While you are at that end of the town you might even like to pop into central London’s only Art Nouveau pub, The Black Friar, a wedge shaped pub on a corner, with the most amazing interior of marble, mosaic and sculpture.

London does not just have its great buildings, but also its wide green open spaces such as Hyde Park, Green Park and Regents Park, where you can get fresh air and exercise. Hyde Park has a lake, known as the Serpentine, where you can go boating.

A good way to get a vista of the whole area is by taking a ride on the London Eye, which gives you magnificent views of London as you slowly get higher and higher above the city.

As for shopping – you can hunt for bargains in the market at Petticoat Lane, take a look at the fine things for sale in the up-market shops of Knightsbridge, enjoy the chic delights of Covent Garden with its street performers and outdoor cafes, or go up to Camden Lock and see rather novel hand made gifts and second hand clothes.

If you are mad about history and books, then how about taking a look at the British Museum, and its famous reading room?

London is a delight for those who love art – as well as The National Gallery, there is The Victoria and Albert Museum, the traditional Tate Britain, and the exciting Tate Modern, which is dramatically housed in an old power station on the Thames.

And in the evening, when you are most likely exhausted from all that activity, why not put your feet up in one of the many traditional old English pubs, and enjoy a glass of that delicious beer known as ale?

As this blog goes on, I will have more to say about London, including some of its lesser known nooks and crannies.

Whatever your interests, London has something for everyone - it was Samuel Johnson who said that when you are tired of London, you are tired of life, and I guess he was right.