The lantern city (China) January 4, 2004 Last weekend, we wanted to see lanterns. We went to Zigong, a city famous for its lantern show. The people here are experts at making lanterns Riverside in Guangzhou (China) December 12, 2003 I am in my favourite cafe in Shamian Dao. They have tables outdoors, right next to the river. I often end up here reading, writing, or just watching Deep blue Mongolian sky (China) September 27, 2003 I read that Mongolia has deep blue skies. It is true. It was an intense blue. I crossed the inter-province border from Ningxia to go to a little Mutton soup in the ancient capital (China) September 20, 2003 My friends in China are often disappointed at me for not visiting the famous tourist spots - the Great Wall and the Terracotta Warriors in Xi’an. I The dancer (Korea) June 23, 2003 On the way out the palace in Seoul, I stumbled into the backstage of an event. This is where I found the dancer. It looked like a youth cultural Taking the wrong bus (Korea) June 20, 2003 About one hour before the check-in for my flight to Korea, I decided to learn Hangul. Blame the airport bookshop. The book was titled “Learn Hangul For a glimpse of (Burma) June 15, 2003 I was in Northern Thailand close to the point where the borders of Burma, Thailand, and Laos meet. At the guesthouse, someone was organising a trip Seeking discomfort (China) March 25, 2003 Some days, I wake up in strange places. Sometimes on a train hearing snores all around me. Sometimes there is a desperate little fan blowing hot air Chairman Mao was a good boy (China) March 8, 2003 In Changsha, I took a bus to Hunan Number 1 Teacher Training College. This is where Mao studied when he was younger. He was also the high school A close shave in Shanghai (China) December 15, 2002 “Friends…eh…” The consulate official was suspicious. What should have been a simple matter of adding more pages to my passport had turned into an Next page