Having "Me" Time

I love food, I love markets, I love going grocery shopping.  The variety of produces that now abound in our supermarkets (as a result of trade) is heaven.  There is everything you could possibly want but nothing beats going to an open air market.  Europe has a culture of these markets and if you love markets, in Vienna you must surely go to the Naschmarkt.  Naschmarkt is one of the most popular market and stretches out roughly 1.5km along the Wienzeile.  It's a long walk, but you won't feel a thing being absorbed with all the produces that buildings that surround the area.  If you are an art nouveau fan like I am, you can combine the trip to the market with a visit to the Secession Building and the Wagner Apartments .  The Secession building was designed in the "Jugendstil style" and has a motto on the facade which translated says "To every Age its Art, to Art its Freedom." I am drawn to this windowless whi...

The flags on Dataran Merdeka Today it is Hari Merdeka Day in Malaysia or otherwise known as Independence Day.  It was on this day (31 August) in 1957 that Malaysian Independence from British rule was declared at Merdeka Stadium.  In the days running up to the national holiday, Malaysian flags fluttered all over the country and was seen on all the major buildings in Kuala Lumpur.  Everywhere I looked, I saw the Malaysian flag.  Such was the strength of national unity and you could tell the Malaysians were proud of their country. As a tourist, a sight you cannot miss in Kuala Lumpur is the " Dataran Merdeka " or Independence Square.  It was on this square that the British Union Flag was first lowered and replaced with the Malaysian Flag fifty-three years ago at midnight.  A historical moment in the history of Malaysia and one that signified the diminishing British colonial rule in Asia. It's incredible to think that this happen...

Back from my very brief vacation in Kuala Lumpur I must admit, I miss it already.  Flying out Friday morning and back on Sunday evening, it was indeed a very short trip but one that I'm glad I finally made.  I had been meaning to go for several years now upon the invitation of a wonderful friend there, but for one reason or another, I just never made it.  Now that I have, I wish I had done it sooner.  Being able to reunite with a long time friend was wonderful and I'd like to "Thank You" her and her family for giving me such a wonderful time there.  They were a wonderful host. There is much to see and do in Kuala Lumpur than first meets the eye.  Only a two-hour flight from Bangkok and accessible on the low-cost AirAsia it is a wonderful little getaway place to go if you are in need of an escape from everyday life whilst at the same time discovering a new culture and way of living. Unlike Thailand which is predominantly Buddhist (90percent),...