The red eye from Saigon arrived at 7:00am, and I had about seven hours before the connecting flight was to leave for Seattle. The weather was beautiful. So I ditched the airport and took the train in to my favorite part of Tokyo, Shibuya – “crowded valley” – popularized by the film “Lost in Translation. Those Japanese are indeed interesting, funny people…
More photos in my Japan Gallery…
Ho Van Hue – the main street near our office here in Saigon – is filled with wedding dress boutiques. Paradoxically, it also has a more-then-average number of casket shops. Still, from one person’s viewpoint, you’re never too young to start wishing….
More photos in my Vietnam Gallery…
Usually the flight from San Francisco to Hong Kong arcs out over the Aleutians and down acrosss Kamchatka, but our “circle route” was much higher. Should have known. We dropped right over Siberia and into Beijing for a quick refuel before heading on to Hong Kong and then Saigon. Just an iPhone snap.
The Karakorum highway crosses the backbone of Asia, connecting Chinese Turkestan and Pakistan. The Kunjerab Pass, at 15397ft, is probably the highest border crossing in the world. This shows the highway as it leaves Kashgar headed for the Pamir Plateau.
I love this sign. Found it in the middle of the Wadi Rum desert in southern Jordan near the border with Saudi Arabia. Originally the train line was built to carry pilgrims to Jeddah, but it has long been abandoned.
