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Day trip to Sergiev Posad

June 5, 2015

75km to the northeast of Moscow lies the town of Sergiev Posad (Zagorsk in the Soviet era). Although it is nowadays an industrial centre with a population of over 100,000, its fame rests on the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergii (a Lavra is the highest rank of Orthodox monastery, and there are only four in …
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Massive Moscow

June 2, 2015

This massive metropolis captures Russia at her most extreme: her communist austerity and her capitalist indulgence; her devout orthodoxy and her uninhibited displays of wealth and power; her enigmatic ancient history and her dazzling contemporary culture. Moscow is the seat of political power in Russia, but it is also the country’s cultural and commercial center. …
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Island-town Sviyazhsk

June 1, 2015

bridge over the Volga river on our way to Sviyazhsk the Russian flag fluttering in the wind The place where the Sviyaga River flows into the Volga forms the idea for Pushkin’s lively tale of the Island of Buyan. Sviyazhsk was built by Ivan the Terrible as a fortress for the siege of Kazan, and …
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Uncovering Tatar culture in Kazan

May 30, 2015

Kazan railway station Kazan is not a well-known city outside of Russia, but this special autonomous region is actually the third capital of Russia, after Moscow and St Petersburg. The architecture and culture of Kazan are distinctively different from the rest of Russia, due to the ethnic Tatars. They don’t look very much different from …
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Day trip out of Yekaterinburg

May 29, 2015

For something away from the city and closer to nature, do take the opportunity to visit Ganina Yama when  you are in Yekaterinburg. I don’t know the specifics of taking public transport to this place as I was lucky enough to be driven by my host’s mother to this place for a short sightseeing tour. …
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Yekaterinburg, crossroads of Asia and Europe

May 28, 2015

Yekaterinburg, is the fourth largest city in Russia, with a population of 1.3 Million. Yekaterinburg was founded in 1723, and was named after Peter the Great’s wife Catherine I. From 1924 to 1991, Yekaterinburg was known as Sverdlovsks (Свердло́вск) , which was named after the Bolshevik leader Yakov Sverdlov. Yekaterinburg is situated on the eastern …
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Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

May 27, 2015

Bishkek is the capital of Kyrgyzstan and only a 4h drive from Almaty. These two cities are separated by the mountain range. For Singapore passport holders, a visa is not required to visit Kyrgyzstan for 30 days, which makes it even more enticing to explore this Central Asian country. Arriving in Bishkek where I had …
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How to cross the China-Kazakhstan border at Khorgos

May 21, 2015

The process of getting from Urumqi, China to Almaty, Kazakhstan is simple because there is a direct bus. The Northern Long-Distance Bus Station is at Heilongjiang Road. Almaty, Kazakhstan (via Korgas) – takes about 24 hours and ¥440, tickets can be bought at the international bus station at Nianzigou (碾子沟国际客运站 +86-0991-587-8637, mandarin speaking). The international …
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Urumqi understatement

May 19, 2015

Urumqi is the capital city of Xinjiang province in China. This autonomous region has received negative media publicity due to separatists carrying out bomb attacks and instigating riots in recent years, but during our stay in the city we felt perfectly safe as there was a strong police presence. We had originally wanted to visit …
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What to do in Khovd, western Mongolia

May 16, 2015

Khovd may be a small city, but it is the largest of five aimags, making it the provincial capital. It is a tranquil town surrounded by nature, with mountains looming in the distance. Actually the whole of Mongolia is full of nature that is within easy reach from the cities. For some cultural capital, visit …
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Longest bus ride ever

May 15, 2015

After four days in UB, it was time to get out of the city and head to the countryside. Khovd was our next destination, located in western Mongolia and 36h away by bus. We bought our bus tickets the day before at the newly renovated Dragon bus centre. You can take bus 26 or 27 …
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Land of Horses

May 11, 2015

Mongolia has been awesome so far. Staying in a ger with a Mongolian family is the best thing ever. They have four children, but the eldest son is studying in the countryside, so only the three girls stay at home with their parents; they go to school during the day and come back in the …
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How to get from Beijing to Ulanbaatar the cheap way

May 8, 2015

From Beijing stadium (subway station exit C) take bus 407 alight at Jian xiang qiao dong (健翔桥东) bus stop then change to bus 658 to Xi jia huo zi (郗家豁子) which is opposite Bei jiao ( 北郊) bus station. The ticket from Beijing to Erlian cost 200Y, and the guy told us he usually charges …
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Wonder of the World – Great Wall of China

May 7, 2015

What’s a visit to Beijing without seeing the Great Wall of China? There is a Chinese saying that 不到长城非好汉 which means those who have not been to the great wall are not good guys. So today I fulfilled this saying by visiting and climbing the many steps of the Great Wall. The wall is so …
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Tiananmen square and around

May 6, 2015

On day two in Beijing, we romped the seemingly endless courtyards of the Forbidden City and stood in the centre of the Chinese universe Tiananmen square. I used to confuse those two because they are found in the same area. However, after reading the guide book for the explanation, I finally manged to differentiate the …
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Welcome to Beijing

May 5, 2015

Beijing is a massive capital city with a population of 11 million residents. Its subway system is the third largest in the world and makes it really convenient to get around the city. However, the distances between stations are big so be careful not to miss your stop. Beijing feels like an international city brimming …
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Manila not my vanilla

April 24, 2015

Manila is a chaotic, congested, polluted, crowded and dirty city. There is even a large rubbish dump in the middle of the city where children will play in it and scavage for stuff, but conditions have largely improved over the years and there is a strong sense of community among the people living there. Contrast …
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5 reasons not to take the public transport in Manila

April 23, 2015

Of all the public transport systems that I’ve taken during my travels around the world, the one in Manila has got to be the worst. Please read on to find out more. So, feeling adventurous today, I decided to try out the various modes of public transport in Manila. I took the jeepney and the …
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Swimming with whale sharks

April 22, 2015

Instead of going back to Cebu to catch the bus to Oslob, we managed to get a direct ferry from Panglao to Oslob to watch the whale sharks. Oslob does not have a nice beach like Alona, but many tourists flock here to be able to swim with the whale sharks. It costs 1000P for …
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Chocolate hills and turquoise waters

April 21, 2015

Cebu is located in the Visayas region of the Philippines and it contains many islands, which makes it the perfect beach and diving paradise. Fret not for those who do not know how to dive, you can either enjoy sunbathing by the beach or rent a boat out for island hopping and snorkelling. There are …
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How to apply for a Russian visa in Singapore

April 17, 2015

**Update 26 Sep 2019** Currently, instead of going down to the Russian embassy, there is a dedicated team at the Russian Visa Application Center in Singapore to apply for your tourist visa. Address : Cecil street 135, level 8, Singapore 069536 Website: http://www.vfsglobal.com/russia/singapore Telephone number: +65 6692 9873, Email: info.rusg@vfshelpline.com. The Russian Visa Application Center …
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How to apply for Kazakhstan visa in Singapore

April 13, 2015

Kazakhstan Embassy Address: 1 Kim Seng Promenade #09-04/05 Great World City, East Office Tower Singapore 237994 Tel: 6536 6100 Email: embassy@kazakhstan.org.sg Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan The Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan is accredited to Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, with its office at Great World City. Since one of the stops along …
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How do I fund #donstravels

April 9, 2015

 So many people have been asking me how do I manage to fund my extensive travels, as it always seems that I am on the move. So far this year, I’ve been doing one overseas trip each month (Myanmar, Japan, Malaysia and coming up soon, the Philippines), adding new countries to my growing list. I …
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