A very happy start to a great weekend! My photo essay under pen name 蓝天游 on Hokkaido Sapporo 北海道札幌《雪白世界之旅》is published in today's special travel edition LianheZaobao 联合早报旅游版 dated 18 January 2019! 感谢、感恩! Thrilled to see it being featured nationwide in print! THANK YOU VERY MUCH !

In December, I spent almost two weeks staying in Finland in my best attempts to experience it like a local. If you travel as much as I do and you are giant homebody on the inside like me, you really value unpacking your suitcase for weeks and tossing your crap absolutely everywhere. I like to think of myself as almost a turtle traveler – I like to take it as slow and mellow as possible. What’s the rush? You’ll miss the best bits.

Winter in Finland consists mainly of silence, darkness and stillness, making it the ideal environment for inner journeys. Days are short and the sun stays low on the horizon. Shades of white, black and grey dominate the monotone landscapes, long blue moments preceding the dark.
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One of the most beautiful places I visited was the Töölönlahti Bay in Finland. Footpaths meander through trees along the waterside; within minutes you leave the city behind and nature envelops you. The bays were frozen over and snow glittered crisply in the sunshine. There is a walking path going around the Töölönlahti Bay and I love walking around to listen to pure nothing. This is what many of the locals do as well. To listen to the serene silence in Finland. Walking through parks in Finland was mesmerizing from the very first moment. No sound of cars in the distance, no birds chirping or wind whistling through the high trees near the frozen lakes. Only me, the stillness and our breaths that stopped for a while in awe. That’s the silence in Finland.

I used to blog pretty regularly and I really enjoy looking back through my old archives of posts. I felt that I did not blog a lot last year due to many other commitments. During my Finland winter trip, I’ve done quite a lot of self-reflection. I promised myself that I will blog more in 2019 and in a meaningful way. I reminded myself why I started this path years ago and I wish that I could continue pursuing this passion outside of a professional job.
 
It is wise for each of us, from time to time, to stop and evaluate our lives as we seek to make the most of them. The start of a calendar year provides an opportunity to look back at the decisions that shaped our lives during the past year and gives us an extra push to make adjustments for the next one. Every new January represents a natural opportunity to evaluate the direction of our lives, adjust course if necessary, adopt new habits, or make healthy changes.
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I can’t say that I’m perfect or that I’ve achieved my ideal self, because there’s still so much I’ve to work on. I also think that becoming a better person is an on-going goal to be worked on, and there’s never a real end point to reach. Someone once told me that this isn’t about making yourself liked by others — it’s about becoming someone you truly love and adore, which will in turn attract the right people and opportunities into my life. I’m always grateful to that person who told me that because it reasonates so much with me.

There are actually things — besides Christmas — that I look forward to about winter each and every year. There’s something about winter holidays that I can’t seem to get enough of. Snow, of course, is magical, but there’s a slower pace in the cold and it’s completely acceptable to spend cosy hours sipping mulled wine or indulgent hot chocolate.
 
And I always love waking up to my street blanketed in a beautiful white layer of pristine snow. One of the things I truly love about snow is how silent it is. Unlike rain, you never really know it’s snowing until you look outside. Huge blizzards can happen in complete SILENCE. It’s eerie in a really magical way.
 
With this coming trip to Finland in two days’ time, I think winter is absolutely ON THE WAY! I foresee that i will return with lots of amazing photos and stories for publication next year and i can't wait to blog them in due course.  

In the meantime, I’m wishing you all the blessings of a wonderful Christmastime and I hope Santa is good to you this year because you only deserve the best. 

The gift of love. The gift of peace. The gift of happiness. May all these be yours at Christmas.

A very weekend! My photo essay under pen name 蓝天游 on Osaka 大阪《漫步大阪富田林市寺内町 回到江户时代》is published in today's LianheZaobao 联合早报缤纷版 dated 17 November 2018! 感谢、感恩! Thrilled to see it being featured nationwide in print! Special thanks to Lianhe Zaobao, you have made my day! :) 

This is my last series of street photography in Hong Kong using a Fisheye lens. Fisheye lenses are often considered a ‘no-no’ among professional landscape and cityscape photographers. People see them as not much more than a gimmick. I often hear complaints about fisheye lenses because of ‘that ugly distortion’. I am a one camera one lens person and have strongly benefited from this approach, as it makes me pay more attention to what's happening on the street rather than worrying about which camera or lens combination would work best for a particular type of scene.  

I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about fisheye lenses myself. However, after using the fisheye for a while I slowly began to love it. There are just so much possibilities with fisheye lenses. And most important of all, they are super fun to use. Just think of crazy vertigos from rooftops or images in which distorted lines actually give meaning to an image. My fisheye lens has  become a tool for so many interesting shots, and it’s now one of my favourite lenses.

鱼眼镜头通常被认为是一种 “非专业” 的镜头，无论是专业风景摄影师或者城市摄影师用得都不多，因为鱼眼镜头具有非常夸张的透视畸变效果，所以在很多人眼里鱼眼镜头也就是个噱头罢了，出不了专业的作品。但是凡事从无到有总有个过程。我一开始也不太喜欢鱼眼镜头，总觉得像一个玩具， 但喝了鱼眼这口毒奶之后发现真是欲罢不能。简单来说鱼眼照片之所以让我感到有趣，是因为拍摄出来的画面跟我肉眼所见差别很大：直线可以变弯曲，透视畸变在这里可以夸张无比。如果拍摄的照片是以线条为主，那么甚至可以实现各种平时非肉眼常见的景色。

鱼眼镜头，我说这镜头魅力无穷，关键是很适合香港紧凑到逼戾的街道。香港一直是我心目中魔幻城市第一名​。典型的香港街头场景，信息爆炸，寸土寸金，鱼眼的夸张视角，对这种感受无疑有很大的强化作用。我这次就利用鱼眼相机拍摄香港多个地方的照片，用另一角度欣赏城市之美。

If you ever happen to be in the distinctly working class area of Ma Tau Kok deep in the entrails of eastern Kowloon Hong Kong, you might come across a set of western-style red brick buildings that contrast neatly with the surrounding residential apartments. This is the Cattle Depot Artist Village, a former government slaughterhouse now converted to artist studios and exhibition spaces.

​​For nearly a century the Depot was used as an animal quarantine area and abattoir centre. It was finally closed down in 1999 after concerns from neighbouring residents regarding the hygiene of a slaughterhouse in a densely populated urban area. Today the cattle quarantine has been moved north to Sheung Shui, near the Mainland border, while the old Cattle Depot renovated and designated a historical monument. The complex now houses the studios and offices of about 15 independent artists and artist groups. Creativity flows freely within the spacious structures of the village, a rarity in land-scarce Hong Kong.

当这座城市的高大、繁华、忙碌垄断了我的印象，我也许该去街头巷尾寻访另一个香港，在那里触摸消费主义笼罩下这座城市跳动的脉搏。打开二十世纪初的香港地图，我发现坐落在九龙土瓜湾马头角道63号的是一座牲畜检疫站。一个世纪后，棚屋下不再是牛羊，而是一群土瓜湾的本土艺术工作者。而这个曾经的牲畜检疫站有了新名字: 牛棚艺术村。

红砖矮墙、砖砌高烟囱、宽阔悬挑的屋檐、拱形门窗，处处流露出维多利亚时期农场建筑物的风格。自1999年屠宰场迁往上水后，旧址就分拆出租给艺术工作者使用。曾经一段时间，文化名人在这里开设 “牛棚书院”，定期邀请知名文化人办讲座开课，获邀的人士团体方可入内。

A very happy Thursday! My photo essay under pen name 蓝天游 on Taiwan Mt Hehuan (a.k.a. Joy Mountain) 《合欢山感受最壮丽的台湾》is featured in Lianhe Zaobao 联合早报 旅游特辑 dated 25 October 2018 special travel edition! Thrilled to see it being featured nationwide in print! Special thanks to Lianhe Zaobao, you have made my day! :) Thank U so much 感谢、感恩 。

Just like you, I have got a love-hate relationship when it comes to themed cafes.

Not all are made equally; some are photogenic at every turn but fail to deliver when it comes to satisfying the belly. Whereas others, leave us effortlessly thrilled, whether it’s the decor or the food.

Having eaten my way through most of them, I can safely vouch that this place in my hometown Singapore is worth the visit.

While real life has plenty of perks, we all deserve a fairytale-like escape from time to time. After all, there’s nothing better than revisiting that familiar sense of childlike imagination and whimsy. When you’re ready to step into a real-time storybook, look no further than this Alice In Wonderland-themed eatery right here in Singapore. This wonderland-themed cafe has a whimsical character, with its black and white tiled floors, garden chairs, and an impressive mural interpretation of Alice in Wonderland. 

Wonderland Savour has delighted visitors of all ages with its whimsical decor with great accompanying music from next door shop, friendly service and fantastic menu. No matter who you are, you’ll be enamored. It’s also a great place for some good Instagram snaps.

A very happy Thursday! My photo essay under pen name 蓝天游 on Prague, Czech Republic 捷克布拉格 is featured in Lianhe Zaobao 联合早报 旅游特辑 dated 13 September 2018 special travel edition《古美浪漫布拉格》! Thrilled to see it being featured nationwide in print! Special thanks to Lianhe Zaobao, you have made my day! :) Thank U so much 感谢、感恩 。

My photo taken @ Yoyogi Park in Tokyo  东京浪漫之秋在代代木公园 during a worktrip last December is featured in today’s Lianhe Wanbao 联合晚报 捕捉意境之美 ! Thank U so much 感谢、感恩。

The Hong Kong Island line was extended to the East at the end of 2014, with Sai Ying Pun station being the final one to be opened in March 2015. I have travelled there a few times and it is a very interesting MTR station.Not only do you have to take an escalator to reach the middle level, but you actually have to take a lift up to the street level. That’s how far down the station is.
 
There is a wonderful artwork depicting the neighbourhood – it is a painted bas relief created by Ms Louise Soloway Chan. Chan, originally from Britain who has lived in Hong Kong for over 20 years. Her artwork, 3D bass relief panels in Sai Ying Pun Station, bring together the past and present of a neighborhood where a congested, traditional wet market shares a wall with trendy Western-style cafeteria, both overflowing with the intense minutiae of daily life. The artwork shows different sights from Sai Ying Pun, for instance the escalator that has been built up to the High Street...the people shopping at the wet markets and little shops of the area...the day and day activities happening on the street of Sai Ying Pun....

西营盘铁路车站，是港岛线西延段最后一个通车的车站，以紫色做车站的主调颜色。西营盘站最大的卖点是富有当区特色的艺术品，是整个港铁网络中 “艺术气息最浓厚” 的车站。

来自英国的着名浮雕艺术家LouiseSolowayChan的3D浮雕作品，以西营盘社区街景做主题，细心观赏，街上的招牌、地盘布置、街市景象、石墙大树、人物表情都很神似，栩栩如生，实景感觉十分强烈。艺术品以西环生活面貌为主题，港铁希望乘客可于欣赏艺术品时，感受西营盘的历史文化。

Take a stroll in the streets of Hong Kong and we can find history left many its footprints: from historical sites to old buildings in all sorts of styles reflecting the old times, as if each has a story to tell. The legacy of these sites are well kept through “Revitalising Historic Buildings Through Partnership Scheme” imposed by Hong Kong Government to enhance the awareness about the importance of historic heritages through conserving and redeveloping historic buildings into good use.

Located on a hillside at Lai Chi Kok, Jao Tsung-I Academy was formerly a hospital compound. The site was used as a seaside customs station at the end of the 19th century. In the many years followed, the site has been served as a quarantine station, a prison, an infectious disease hospital and a psychiatric rehabitation center before it was closed in 2004 and left vacant until Professor Jao Tsung-I, a world-renowned scholar on sinology, selected the site for revitalization. Today the Academy serves as a cultural hub to facilitate cultural exchanges and contribute to the society in need. 

我自问未算是个文青，但每当放假想沾一身文化气息时，我总会向身边的文青朋友打探好去处，结果走了大大小小的展览、市集、咖啡室。。。走马看花过后，悟出一个真正具文化深度的地方需要环境人事兼备，单单在昏黄的灯光底下饮杯咖啡只能谈得上悠闲，称不上有文化。今次我又经朋友介绍香港文化游去处，到位于荔枝角的饶宗颐文化馆攒了大半天；喝杯茶、看本书、睇展览，就在鸟语花香中当半天文人。我经常很羡慕外地有很多古蹟，因为很喜欢那种历史沉淀的感觉。

其实香港也有充满历史感的地方，这里是饶宗颐文化馆。我早闻国学大师饶宗颐的大名，而文化馆以大师命名实有文化承传之意。一代国学大师饶宗颐教授在今2018年二月六日辞世，享年101岁。饶宗颐不但系国学大师、东方学家、艺术家，对书法、书画、诗词、古琴亦造诣极高。著作无数，亦获奖无数。佢嘅研究领域除了历史文化、宗教经典外，更系现今少有精通甲骨文及敦煌学嘅资深学者，对弘扬传统中华文化贡献良多，备受社会尊崇。