Osaka Castle

Let it go
Osaka’s castle is right around the corner, so it was an easy first target. The castle grounds are massive, several huge moats, immense defense walls, a huge garden… and in the middle this gem of a castle. It played a major role in Japanese history, notably in uniting the island, and in the fierce fight […] Read More

Ueno

Let it go
After Ameyoko, I walked over to Ueno Park, where I had been already a couple of days earlier with Brandon, Paul, Mike and Marco. This time I wanted to visit the National Museum of Western Art. Ok, it might be a bit weird to run into the one museum in Tokyo that has the exact […] Read More

Tokyo in the rain

Let it go
The rain was really torrential. All day long. To a point where you really do not want to set foot outside. Even in a new city. I got TV, high speed internet, who cares, there’s lots to watch. But, curiosity won. At least I wanted to go see the Tokyo Metropolitain Museum of Photography, it […] Read More

Māori

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I’m fascinated with Māori culture. The first thing that astonished me is how visible it is here. In culture, language, names and people, you see Māori all around. Māori words have penetrated the Kiwi English, besides the occasional Kia Ora. Unlike Australia, where I actually only ever saw a handful of Aborigines. I was astonished to see Australia […] Read More

Pasifika

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This weekend Auckland was all about the Pacific Islands. Pasifika, a two-day festival was held in the Western Springs Park. Creating a parcours throughout the green and around the lake, the Pacific Islands presented themselves with numerous stands, stages, entertainment, food, information, arts and crafts… Held since 1993 it has become the biggest festival of its […] Read More

Volatile

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The weather is so volatile right now, it’s hard to plan anything. You wake up, it’s grey as can be… turn around, wake up again, blue skies… jump in the shower, ready to go out, it’s raining. Do some surfing, blue skies, out for coffee… walking home, back in the rain… I want to do […] Read More

Icon

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Finally, I ticked it off my list. The ultimate tourist attraction in Sydney: its Opera. It is an iconic building. One of the few that instantly identifies with its city, like probably only the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, or the Golden Gate Bridge do. More so, it’s a modern building, opened in 1973, it only […] Read More

Muriel (…and then some art)

Let it go
The sun is back – for a day. Still, I followed my usual routine of blogging, sorting pics and booking stuff in the morning in my corner Café, cute Forbes&Burton on the corner of, you guessed it, Forbes and Burton Streets. After that, a stroll through the parks towards the Art Gallery of New South […] Read More

Endless rain

Let it go
It rained cats and dogs on Sunday. I’ll remember Sydney as the rainy city. So I spend the morning in a café, checking flights, itineraries etc. for New Zealand. In the afternoon I went to see a movie – again. The Hobbit (Part 2). Maybe in a sense to prepare for New Zealand’s South Island. Maybe […] Read More

Dallas Buyer Club

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It’s raining cats and dogs in Sydney so I have spent a lot of time in cinemas – and more is planned. I never saw a Matthew McConaughey movie – at least none I remember. He usually plays those easy-to-forget romantic comedies, fine if nothing else is on TV, but nothing with a bit of […] Read More

Burning the man

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I got up at 7 in the morning today to try and secure tickets for Burning man. It’s this massive festival that takes place every year in the Nevada desert at the end of August. Thousands of people come together for a week in the desert, build Black Rock City, create art, share, live, love… […] Read More

Meeting Meryl

Let it go
It was a grey, rainy-ish day yesterday in Sydney so I went to the movies to finally see Meryl Streep in August: Osage County. It’s about a family reunion, and Meryl plays a sick pill addict. Prime stuff, like only she can do. It’s creepy, she’s so far out…. just brilliant. It won’t happen now, […] Read More