Sepia Dreams in Hong Kong

During my last trip to Asia (in May 2014), I spent 2 days and 1 night in Hong Kong. I was staying at the Sheraton Hotel in Kowloon and was lucky enough to get a harbor view room. I arrived in Hong Kong a bit later than planned on a Saturday (don't recommend driving across the border from China to Hong Kong on a holiday weekend... ridiculous traffic!!)... and did not get a chance to enjoy the room that day (wanted to get out and do some shopping/eating!). When I finally did get back to my room on Saturday evening, I was too tired to even close the shades and passed out. The next morning I awoke to the sunrise. I had been out late the previous evening and was planning to sleep in... so I got out of my bed to close the shades. However, when I got to the window, I could see that the lighting on the city was spectacular. The sun had just peaked above the horizon and it was hitting the buildings at a nice angle. Therefore, I decided to take a few photos from my room before going back to sleep. As I look closer at these photos, I can't help but be amazed at the apartments and townhouses situated on Victoria Peak (the mountain behind Hong Kong City). If you're lucky enough to have 50+ million dollars lying around, you can put your name in the queue to try purchasing one.

A Walk in the City

Here are the last few images I took while strolling around Chicago with my parents on a cold/windy December evening... didn't want to spend much time out of the car this evening, but still managed to take some photos.

China... A Work in Progress

In Southern China, everything is covered in a layer of dust (never paint a building white). The main reason for the dust is because the cities are still being built (every time I go back, there is a new giant building). As you travel around the Pearl River region, you will see giant cranes on the horizon, skeletons of buildings, and new roads being built. Guangzhou is constantly expanding outward (as are the cities of Dongguan, Shenzhen, Zhaoqing, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, and Zhongshan). Eventually, all of these cities will merge and China will have the world's largest "mega city" with a population of 42 million people. The numbers are mind blowing. I'm not sure if China's plans will work (they need better roads)... but the infrastructure, high speed rail lines, and public mass transport will hopefully reduce the need for cars.

Burning Incense

Burning incense at the Shaolin Monastery. People would make a small donation, grab an incense stick, and then walk into the temple to pray. The group I was in tried to do the same thing... but we were blocked by the monk from entering the temple. I think there was a non-white people policy (or at least they didn't believed we were buddhists).

Breaking Dawn in Ho Chi Minh City

Breaking Dawn in Ho Chi Minh City. The view from the rooftop of New World Hotel... looking toward Bitexco Financial Tower (largest building in Vietnam)

Flat Iron Building

 Two different views of my favorite building in NYC... on a rainy weekday.

June 20, 2011

Enjoying a summer day along the Charles. Photo was taken from the Mass Ave Bridge... looking towards Beacon HIll. You can tell it's summer because of all the sailboats in the water.

June 14, 2011

Looking at the city of Minneapolis from across the river. I liked how all the power lines mixed in with the sky... created a cool effect. The power lines in this picture are actually connected to the hydro-electric dam at Saint Anthony Falls. The dam used to power the entire city of Minneapolis. I wanted to come back here at night and take a picture of the city lights, but some random security guard told me that the river area was not so friendly at night. It seemed ok to me??

From afar, the downtown area looks pretty massive... but it's actually quite small. The buildings you see in this image make up the entirety of the downtown area (doesn't go any further back or to the side). Nonetheless, the suburbs do extend out rather far.

June 13, 2011

Pillsbury A Mill

This used to be the largest and most technically advanced flour mill in the world... sitting along the banks of the Mississippi River. However, in 2003, the mill ceased operations and now sits abandoned (would have been awesome to sneak inside of it!!). A developer recently purchased it with plans to turn the building into a loft-style apartment complex. I hope it works out... and the building keeps its charm.

March 8, 2011

Sepia toned dream.

This is a lake in Zhaoqing, China. I tried to give this photograph a mixture of modern and retro. You can see vivid details of the white rock in foreground, but then I blurred out details in background... making it look a bit like an old painting. Anyways, I thought it came out pretty cool.

March 6, 2011

Gulls and Ben.

Enjoying the view of Big Ben from across the River Thames. I had decided to go on an epic walk from East London to Tower Bridge to Big Ben (upon my arrival to London). Jet lag was definitely kicking in at this point... legs were also getting quite week. It is a very beautiful walk along the river though.