Category: Asia
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Hiroshima, Japan
Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshū, the largest island of Japan. It became best known as the first city in history to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on it at 8:15…
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Kyoto, Japan
Nestled among the mountains of Western Honshu, Kyoto was the capital of Japan and the residence of the Emperor from 794 until the Meiji Restoration of 1868, when the capital was moved to Tokyo. During its millennium at the center of Japanese power, culture, tradition, and religion, it accumulated an unparalleled collection of palaces, temples…
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Lijiang, China
Lijiang is in the Yunnan Province with Jade Dragon snow-capped mountain at 4600 meters is a ‘top’ attraction. The Jade river divides into three and its streams form the canal and waterways which flow along the old town streets. The indigenous Naxi people and Dongba culture share a close relationship with nature in this high…
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Hangzhou, China
Famed for its natural scenery, Hangzhou and its West Lake (西湖 Xī Hú) have been immortalized by countless poets and artists.
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Suzhou, China
Suzhou, previously transliterated as Su-chou, Suchow, and Soochow, is a major city located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province in Eastern China, located adjacent to Shanghai Municipality. The city is situated on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Taihu Lake and is a part of the Yangtze River Delta…
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Zhongdian, China
This area which now takes on the name of Shangri La in 2001 mostly for marketing reasons. The town is split between Tibetan and Han Chinese residents, as well as a fair smattering of Naxi, Bai, Yi and Lisu, with the surrounding countryside entirely Tibetan. Such images as the great Yangtze river (third longest in…
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Xian, China
Xi’an is more than 3,000 years old and was known as Chang’an in ancient times. For 1,000 years, the city was the capital for 13 dynasties, and a total of 73 emperors ruled here. Xi’an is the undisputed root of Chinese civilisation having served as the capital city for the Zhou, Qin, Han, and Tang…
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Halong Bay, Vietnam
Hạ Long Bay is located in northeastern Vietnam. According to local legend, when the Vietnamese were fighting Chinese invaders, the gods sent a family of dragons to help defend the land.
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Beijing, China
King Wu was the first to declare Beijing the capital city in 1057 BC. Subsequently, the city has gone by the names of Ji, Zhongdu, Dadu, and finally Beijing when the Ming Dynasty Emperor ChengZu chose the name in 1421. Before 1949, Beijing was known as Peking by the Western world. After 1949, the city’s…
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Udaipur, India
Udaipur is referred to as the “Venice of the East”, the “Most Romantic City of India” and the “Kashmir of Rajasthan” (a reference to Dal Lake) and not without reason. Tourists flock to this enchanting old & modern town in the heart of the Aravalli Mountains, which offers three interconnected lakes within the town –…
Matthew Laurence 