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It’s been a whole year since I sat in New York, imagining myself in Singapore dreaming of New York. I can’t believe how quickly a year has passed. And I have to ask myself, one year hence, if the quality … Continue reading
This gallery contains 4 photos.
Chrismas time is here… And here I am in Ipoh, Malaysia, at an amazing spa retreat – The Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat – cradled in the middle of three towering limestone cliff. I’m watching mist gather over the geothermal lake that … Continue reading
This gallery contains 32 photos.
Despite being the smallest capital city in Southeast Asia, Vientiane is no less diverse ethnically and religiously. Its commercial and religious architecture is consequently, one of the most interestingly diverse as well so far on the Grand Tour. It’s almost … Continue reading
This gallery contains 25 photos.
Where colonial and institutional architecture is concerned, Vientiane resembles its cousin Phnom Penh, with many colonial villas now housing government institutions, and many civic institutions occupying modernist and art deco buildings from the ‘50s and ‘60s. There are two main … Continue reading
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The Remains of the Day The Settha Palace Hotel is one of two legendary hotels in Vientiane, the other being the Lane Xang Hotel, built in the 1960s by the Russians, and famous for having played host to Beat author … Continue reading
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“Laos is as different from Vietnam as Big Sur is from Long Island.” Hunter S. Thompson, Checking Into the Lane Xang In Its Own Time Ten years is a long time between visits. But then, I never expected to revisit … Continue reading
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The song nears its end. We hear the same theme we heard during the introduction, except this time, it is in a hopeful D Major. It suggests that Death has won over the Maiden. We can almost imagine her, sleeping … Continue reading
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Death sounds his reply in ominous though seductive undertones. So says he: “Give me your hand, you lovely and tender form / I am a friend, and come not to punish / Be of good cheer! I am not savage, … Continue reading
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The maiden, enters and commences her desperate refrain in a contralto voice: “Pass over me! / Pass over me! / Go, you wild man-of-bones! / I am still young. / Go, rather, / And don’t touch me / And don’t … Continue reading
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The song begins in D minor. The mood is portentous. Eight bars of soft, but sinister chords on the piano echo Death himself, emerging from the water and creeping softly up to the unsuspecting maiden. The landscape here is a … Continue reading
Dream Of A City 