This city is breathtaking!

I never got used to the feeling of coming out of a tunnel and seeing mountains right in front of my eyes, as a part of the city. And seeing the ENDLESS bluest ocean beckoning with the coolest breezes and beige sand. Shamelessly, I sat all day drinking mate and doing nothing but feeling the ocean on my skin. Lather with sand, rinse with salt water, repeat. On Sunday, car free street in Copacabana has people dancing, playing music, enjoying the last bit of sunlight.

I already miss the city!

It reminds me a bit of a European city because of the colonial architecture, and also of new suburbs in the USA, but also of peaceful residential streets in Asia. And yet there are streets that are straight out of transportation best-practices: car free, wide bicycle boulevards, brand new street rail cars, abundant public realm.

The city is so green!

I saw plants I never knew about, and ate food that I’ve never seen. In the winter, it is still hot and sunny. Perhaps that’s why there are so many trees in the developed parts of the city. Under the massive shades, I feel calm and relaxed. It is the first city that I feel more in love with the more I think about.

Once the sun goes down, the hills light up and I’m reminded that Rio de Janeiro isn’t just a dream city. Its challenging geography and social class segregation is visible to any visitor. The landscape and social structure of the city is changing so fast. Given the progress that the city has made, I wonder what lies ahead for this growing and modernizing city.

I’ve only discovered a tiny portion of this vast city. Until next time!

I arrived in Edmonton on a lazy Sunday afternoon and wasted no time getting to downtown. The core was quiet and sleepy. With very few people around, I had time to explore the streets by myself.

The city has a mix of old and new. The new buildings look like they’re straight from Singapore, and the old look like they’re out of New York. It is a mini version of two very separate worlds.

I really like the city’s efforts to create public space. Downtown is very walkable and inviting.

The art gallery is the most outstanding building in the city!

I also got the chance to see a bit of Edmonton when it first began as a Fort. It’s amazing that a place that was once desolate and cold is now a fast growing city.

I have very few photographs of Ha Noi.

I don’t think I collect memories of Ha Noi the way I do other cities. It’s hard to feel like a tourist in my home city, at the same time, everything I experience in this city seems like it’s the first time.

As one of the oldest cities I’ve been to, Ha Noi reminds me that city building isn’t always about being idealistic and building the best solution – it is more often about finding solutions that fit within what had been constructed. And there are buildings and roads in Ha Noi that haven’t moved in its 1000-year history. So that’s why alleys are so narrow and sidewalks are thin. And some buildings are narrow with sub-standard structures. But that’s also why the city has created a blueprint for itself, with road rules that can only be learned from living there and enduring the grinding traffic, and intertwining alleys and sub-alleys that only locals could know.

That’s why there’s no shortcutting through local neighbourhoods (you’d get lost). And traffic patterns take on a form of its own, with close interactions that actually feel safer than what I’m used to. That’s why people are so willing to help out a stranger who’s lost. There’s so much to this city that makes the people of Ha Noi unique. They find a sense of belonging and identify in the knowledge of this city.

I am jealous of that sense of belonging in a city.

After visiting this city, I would love to read up on the history of planning of this vast metropolitan. With a long history of being the capital of South Korea, going through war-torn years and reconstruction in the modern era, the city definitely has a lot of fascinating crossovers between the old and new.

I loved walking on the pedestrianized narrow streets that lead visitors right into the heart of food and shopping heaven. Without much effort to block out cars, the walking environment feels safe and organic.

I had a week of eating great food, taking long walks and reflecting on the role of transportation on a city’s development. With a railway system fast, efficient, well maintained and extensive, Seoul has no problem moving people.

From above, the city’s density is apparent, flanked by mountains and divided by the Han river. No doubt the city is a world-renowned centre of urban development, economic growth, and business centre.

The city is young, busy, hip, clean and bright. I loved strutting along the wide sidewalks, sometimes dodging patios on one side and unexpected opening doors on the other side. It’s refreshing to be in a city that is always moving.

I was so impressed by the many public amenities that Chicago has to offer. Millennium park is the world-famous attraction; Lincoln park is only a 20 minute bike ride away; the zoo in the park is such a joy to explore and stroll around in; the hidden greenhouse on the second floor at the Navy Pier was such a pleasant discovery.

I also took some time to explore University of Chicago and the Museum of Contemporary Art. They are great places to get lost in for the outstanding aesthetic quality.

It’s a very exciting, exhilarating and beautiful city.

I’d summarize Toronto as ‘homely but homie’. Although the streets are usually packed with people, the city still feels barren and undecorated. Pragmatic to a fault.

But for the same reason, Toronto is not pretentious. The lack of green space makes the moss-covered buildings stand out. The lack of bike lanes make the brave cyclist outstanding. The abundance of concrete boosts the aesthetic of the brick.

Although disappointed at the lacklustre complete street design in Toronto, I was fascinated by how well road users share the space and organize themselves. A form of ‘disorganized chaos’ as Jane Jacobs had described of big cities: “Intricate minglings of different uses in cities are not a form of chaos. On the contrary, they represent a complex and highly developed form of order.”

The modern aspects keep the city interesting. It’s a joy to photograph the city’s architecture.

So although I would say Toronto is quite ugly, it is unpretentiously so, and you get what you see in this city of 2.7 million.

A spread-out city – often I feel so small in this vast space. It takes a long car ride to get to the place I thought is close by. Within the hidden sockets of the city are hipster cafes, bookstores, restaurants… But stretched across the landscape of the city are highways and barren roads.

Crossing the city at night to get to our restaurant, me and my friend watched as the night lights illuminate our paths, then disappear. I wonder if people often find it lonely in this city.

Looking out at the city from the 15th floor of GSU, I found a nice quiet moment to be content. Away from my real life and Atlanta’s reality, it was a nice getaway.

Portland wears an enormous smile on its face. I was greeted with a break in the clouds, allowing the grass to shine with some sunlight while the damp smell of the rain was still lingering.

Waking up from a nap at 8 am, the last minutes of sun beckons us to head into downtown Portland from Kenton. We saw the night lights appear from afar and grabbed a bite in a sandwich shop. Walking around at night, I was surprised to see Powell’s bookstore still open and couldn’t resist indulging in the massive collections. I didn’t want to leave the store, but there was more to see.

Downtown is some kind of public art gallery. I had only the 18.5mm lens with me, which was nice for night-time pictures, but I found it hard to capture the vibe. Without a wide-angle lens, my camera saw details, while Portland was much decorated with life-sized art.

People come to Portland for donuts and craft beer, but I was much more interested in the bikes and street art. Biking around the city one afternoon, I found tranquility and bliss. I appreciated the sun, and felt happier on two wheels than I had ever felt. We crashed a TEDx event, walked through the Japanese garden and discovered some cool stores on our way. Cool, friendly, relaxed. Portland definitely didn’t disappoint.

Till next time! I wish I didn’t have to get back in my car and drive back to Canada.

I rushed from Changi to Paragon on Orchard for a dinner with old friends. The moment I got into a cab, all the nostalgia hit me in the face, like a flood. The PIE opened up in front of me, like a journey into the past.

It’s different writing about Singapore this time. When I moved to this city 9 years ago, I was amazed at its wide roads, green space, fast lanes and cleanliness. This time, it feels like my memories were made into a movie and I’m merely an audience.

My old friends greeted me with familiarity – except now they were in fancy working clothes and professional bags. Walking through the stores at Paragon, I realized how much less impressed I am with the glamour of shopping malls than I was before. I couldn’t contain my excitement to see Singapore outside of the air-conditioned buildings. A tourist could see Singapore in a few days and be astounded at how developed this dragon of South East Asia is. Probably the most westernized and connected city of the entire region, Singapore strives to preserve its identity in the changing globalization trend. I also reflected on my impression this time when I came directly from Malaysia. The similarities are obvious: language, people, food. But this city has created its own image and vision.

I avoided Marina Bay Sands and Clarke Quay and Sentosa – I slightly regret not visiting the new Universal Studios. Instead I went to Bukit Timah and Farrer Road – the place Kevin Kwan describes with satire in “Crazy Rich Asians” as the haven for the disgustingly wealthy. But to me, it was a place of memories: Coronation Plaza, the Botanical Gardens, prep school uniforms…

I remembered how much I missed this place and why I didn’t want to leave. I had a love affair with this place; falling so hard as a doll-eyed 15-year-old. But I never got the chance to grow up and mature here. I keep longing for the feeling of being here again. Actually being here, not just being present. And I realized, I obsess over this place the same way one would obsess over an unfinished relationship.

As my day ticked away, I once again wanted to hold on, stay a little longer. This place isn’t the same as the one I dreamed about, but will always have a special place in my heart.

I landed in Malaysia at around 6 pm, and after taking a bus into the city, and then hopping on the monorail, I found myself kinda lost in the narrow streets of Bukit Bintang. Old, some abandoned, and dark apartment buildings unfold as I try to navigate the uneven sidewalks, with potholes and broken paving. Then all of a sudden, Jalan Nagasari appears, filled with people tourists, locals, food, music, drinks, 24 hour shops, and I felt like I just fell through a rabbit hole into wonderland.

I could walk around all day in the massive shopping malls, and then along the pedestrian-only elevated path from Pavillion to the twin towers in no time. I could also hop on the Rapid Rail and ride for 40 minutes out of KL central and another city opens up. I found it so ironic that KL is so connected in this regard, but people still find it difficult to commute.

KL is westernized and fancy in some places, historical in some other places, and run down in a few spots. It’s hard to expect what to see. The country’s long history of colonization, new growth and modernization has created a mish-mash of landscapes, architecture and food.

Most of the time I didn’t know what I was eating, only that it was the most delicious meals I had a long time. I don’t travel for food, but I could go around all night in Jalan Alor for those skewers and frog meat. I could also eat a fancy meal in Pavilion. Kway Teow on the sidewalk. Some other food I can’t pronounce in a parking lot.

In this culturally rich city, you could keep exploring the many elements of ethnicity and religion. It’s astounding to me that so much diversity can exist in one place, and the issues that are not talked about in the open. It’s a complicated city, and as a tourist who scratched the surface of the deep political and cultural scene, I’m hooked.