Category Archives: Architecture It is only a short hop from Singapore to Indonesia by boat or plane, but it may as well be a whole world away (q.v. From Resort to Reality). Last month, after a week in the ultra-modern high-rise city-state of Singapore (Magical Flying Machines and Gardens by the Bay), my husband and I took a side-trip to […]  What an amazing place Bagan must have been in its heyday! “Bagan is a gilded city alive with tinkling bells and the swishing sounds of monks’ robes” – attributed to Marco Polo‘s late-12th-century account. Probably founded in the mid-to-late 9th, the city was the political, economic and cultural capital of the Pagan Empire for 250 years, and would […]  Religion and religious faith are the heart of Ireland. So, it seems fitting that one of the most fascinating religious/historical sites sits at the heart of the country – almost dead centre – where the traditional east-west land route crossed the River Shannon. It is also apposite that this site, dating back to the earliest […]  There are no straight roads in Ireland. The country is dotted with lakes and bogs, and the carriageways meander around them, taking in sites and villages along the way. This makes for charming and unhurried driving – there is no point rushing or trying to get too far in any one day. Of course, this […]  Pyin Oo Lwin (or Maymyo), a small town 67 kilometers (42 mi) east of Mandalay is an odd place, with it’s dusty streets and Wild-West look. According to Wikipedia: “The town began as a military outpost established near a small Shan village with two dozen households…”, becoming a permanent military town by 1896. Tour books will tell you the town still feels “anglicised” […] |
|
