Culture 
Malaysia: Blue Mansion Hotel in Penang(6)
Stepping inside the cool front hall of the Cheong Fatt Tze Blue Mansion is like stepping into a bygone era. It is easy to imagine the soft padded footsteps of wives, concubines, children, relatives, servants, and hangers-on scurrying in long silk gowns through the high-ceilinged rooms, most likely whispering intrigues behind intricately carved ivory fans.
The [...]
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China: Beijing’s Song Tang Zhai Museum, a taste of hutong history
Everywhere, including Beijing, the saying “one man’s rubbish is another man’s treasure” is true. Li Songtang, now in his 60s, started collecting architectural details of houses being torn down mainly during the 70s modernisation push. He now has a collection of over 10,000 items of carved lintels, gates, screens, garden statuary, etc., of which about [...]
China: Life in Beijing
One of the great megalopolis of this world, Beijing never ceases to surprise me. Even though the number of skyscrapers has easily quadrupled since the first time I visited in 1995, you can still find quiet corners where it seems as if time has stood still. But believe me, it hasn’t. Not here. If anything, [...]
China: The eternal Forbidden City
As disenchanted as I was with the visit to the Great Wall, the thrill of visiting the Forbidden City for the umpteenth time is always there. For all its vastness, there is always a nook or cranny that can be discovered anew; always an around-the-corner detail that enchants the eye.
Especially this time, after the Olympics [...]