Finally home...

And it was so great! I didn't need to arrange accommodations, transportation, tours, meals, or other things inherent to a traveler's daily routine... I just had to follow them!

Their house/garden alone would justify the visit, as it was a constant invitation to tranquility and/or frank conversation that generated much learning!

However, I must highlight of Toronto, where its modern geometric buildings happily coexisted with neighborhoods with very peculiar atmospheres, as well as the famous Niagara Falls—of course!

The details of Nancy & Randal's home also caught my attention! After all, they embody the love that belatedly united them...

Fhotos

I arrived in Lisbon on the 17th, where the tight hugs from Claudinha and Madá were much desired!

At home, more delicious hugs and flowers prepared by Sofia, as well as a welcome sign written in several languages!

And before concluding this note, I must thank the friends who have kindly commented my news in this site, which has been a significant stimulus for its continuation:

Alfredo, Ana Carla, Artur, Belinha, Cláudia, Conceição, Domingas, Elvira, Filomena C, Filomena F, Francisco, Inês, Lígia, Lisiane, Luchia, Luis, Manuela A, Manuela P, Isabel, Rita, Sofia, Teresa G (2), Tina, and Zezinha.

(I've already thanked the others who provided feedback through other means!)

Chicago - A pleasant surprise!

A bustling city surrounded by water...

Trains winding between buildings...

And the eternal BLUES!

(That's what the flu made possible, but thankfully it's over!)

San Francisco - Sin City in Color...

A city of grand reliefs bathed by its sumptuous Bay...

Buildings from various eras create distinct atmospheres...

Trams bring movement to the streets...

San Francisco in Color...

San Francisco - The City of Sin in Black and White...

Bodies and souls out of sync...

Some, lying down or sitting with their heads hanging down, seemed to be dozing...

Others, sleepwalking...

Sometimes... heated monologues...

Straightforward words without a target...

Eye contact is avoided...

And we, the others, move on without looking back...

I can't record...

I'll just leave a few notes from the others... in black and white!

Draft - New Zealand

Similar to Asia and Australia, here are the main indicators of the trip execution in New Zealand:

·        I traveled almost 4 200 km on the 2 islands (about 3 000 Km between cities and 1 200 Km on tours);

·        I took 2 train trips and 3 bus trips, at an average cost of €72 and €45, respectively, as well as 1 plane trip costing 80 € and another by boat costing 56 €;

·        I took 5 tours at an average cost of 166 € (the tours related to the film “The Lord of the Rings” are significantly more expensive);

·        I paid 19 € for a museum (seniors discount only for residents);

·        I spent an average of 25.5 € per night in a hostel.

I cooked or bought ready-made meals at similar prices to Portuguese ones and I went to inexpensive restaurants where a burger & beer cost around 20 €.

Wai-O-Tapu & Te Puia - Alchemy Workshop ...

Rainy and Windy Weather...

Company in the Alchemy workshop...

Without a standard-bearer...

Sometimes cold... sometimes hot...

Green and blue... yellow and red...

Acquired Substance from the Essence of the Earth...

It was a permanent delight!

Queenstown - City bathed by a lake that breathes ...

The ancients say that a brave warrior defeated the Giant Matau...

His fallen body gave birth to the great Lake...

And Manata, loved by Matakauri, was finally Freed!

Maybe they lived happily ever after... Or not...

Because the heart of the deceased seems to make the waters of the lake rise and fall...

I can say for sure and without fiction that Queenstown is a seduction!

A shore filled with crystal clear water...

With bare trees that seem to want to embrace in an eternal invitation to skirt...

Further ahead... another glacier...

Lenda do Lago Wakatipu:

“ Long ago, before the promise of gold brought Pakeha to Otago, the Maori roamed the land, hunting for moa and greenstone and eels. Manata and Matakauri, two star-crossed lovers, lived in a village in the area. The couple were not allowed to marry as Manata was the daughter of the chief, and Matakauri was a commoner.

One night, a giant taniwha named Matau stole into the village and kidnapped Manata. He carried her away to his lair in the hills and tied her to him with a magical cord.

Manata’s father was distraught. He asked the young men of the village to go and save Manata, offering her in marriage to whoever brought her home safely. The young men were afraid, but Matakauri, who loved Manata with all his heart, followed the nor-west wind to the still-young mountains where the giant lived. He found Matau asleep, with Manata lashed next to him.

When Matakauri was unable to cut the enchanted cords, Manata begged him to go, fearing that the giant would wake up and kill him. Matakauri refused to leave her; but as Manata began to cry, the love in her tears dissolved her bonds, and they escaped.

Matakauri brought Manata back to the village, and the couple were allowed to be married. Later, fearing that Matau would return to cause more trouble, Matakauri went back to the mountains where the monster lived. He found the giant sleeping, lulled by the warm wind, and he set a great fire around him. The hot wind caused the flames to roar violently; the taniwha’s body burned so long and so hot that a trough hundreds of metres deep and 75 kilometres long was created.

After Matakauri left, the rains came and filled the newly formed valley with water, which is now known as Wakatipu, the trough of the giant. Although the giant has been dead for many long years, his heartbeat can still be seen in the steady rise and fall of the beautiful lake that is his resting place.” (in Open Sources)

Milford Sound - There's a Party in the Mountains!

I don't know if the Clouds came down to Earth...

Or if the Mountains ascended to the Sky ...

I only know that the Clouds danced among the Mountains...

And these, happy with the company, adorned themselves for the fantasy...

They adorned themselves with ribbons and water ruffles...

Tulle covered the slopes...

And in the absence of flowers, the light was divided into 7 colors...

Maybe some cloud was engaged... Or not...

I only know that Nature was in Celebration!

Photos

It was a fantastic cruise...

Traveling is a must ... and by train it's great!

I like the sound that announces itself...

I like the rhythm with which it moves...

I like the landscape passing in the opposite direction to its destination...

I like the gentle sipping it allows...

I like the erratic chatter it provides...

I like the rhythm of a quiet read...

I like leaving... I like arriving...

I like traveling!

And the train is my favorite means of transport!

Photos

Northern Explorer Train:

And to remember the interrails I did with my friend Mena, I leave you with short videos of the trip between Auckland and Wellington:

(Videos made with a cell phone and without prior knowledge of the route...)

Christchurch - A quiet city ...

A place to stop and spread out the distance ...

A quiet city reminiscent of other latitudes ...

Spacious gardens ...

Enjoy the outdoors!

Picton - A peaceful place...

A small town of passers-by and residents...

Enigmatic surroundings...

Young people absent... Seniors present...

Peaceful daily life...

Positive change and honesty as a Dream...

Hostels in the big cities of Australia and New Zealand are currently home to many young people who are employed (in unskilled jobs) or who are looking for work.

These are the new immigrants who come mainly from some Asian countries and Latin America, as far as my experience has allowed me to ascertain.

Some of these young people have the soul of travelers and, among them, I met a young couple with curious dreams...

Emi dreams of the ability to generate positive impacts on people and Sofia's main goal is to remain honest with herself...

Beautifully formulated dreams...

On the sacred mountain of the Maori people...

In the beginning... the Prayer in the language of the Gods...

Then... the Song in Maori...

In the end... the Song of the Birds...

In the beginning... the Horizon limited by the Mountains...

On the way up... the Vision hidden by the Mist...

At the top... the White Universe...

On the way down... free from the Mist... the Multicoloured Landscape...

Lake Rotoaira appeared... and beyond... Lake Taupô... too...

In the end... the Tropical Forest!

At my request, guide Kenny allowed the recording of one of the songs:

Still on the subject of the Maori people...

The current queen of the Maori people (Nga Wai Hono) was appointed to succeed her father, as her two older brothers did not meet the requirements considered necessary to occupy the throne.

Although the position has normally been occupied by men, this is the second time that the Maori people have chosen a queen, with the first queen (Te tairangikaahu) having been appointed to position on an equal footing with Queen Victoria in negotiations with the British colonizers,.

Perhaps not everything has been properly resolved...

Traveling is necessary...

In the seclusion of Tongarinho National Park...

Two friends with vibrant laughter stood out in the silence of the Mountain...

It was a pleasure to meet them!

And I couldn't resist listening to their dreams: Katie Tooney and Grace Toniol - inseparable friends!

Auckland... Surrendered to its liquid component...

Wandering through the city towards the sea...

Wandering along the walkways of the Marina...

Enjoying a lazy lunch next to boats ...

Waiting for the light at the end of the day...

Surrendering to Auckland's liquid side!

Photos

The spell of the Trees...

In search of the blue of the Waihou River...

I stayed in Putaruru...

I lost a color...

I wan a palette: green, brown, gold and even crimson...

Some trees, partially or totally bare, displayed their shameless shapes...

Others displayed multi-colored foliage...

The shadow of the clouds added relief...

It was the end of an autumn afternoon...

Hobbiton - Day full of Fantasy...

I imagine Peter Jackson traveling through the beautiful New Zealand landscapes...

I can imagine his surprise when he found Alexander's farm...

Identifying it as the perfect place to materialize Tolkien's Universe...

How wonderful it was to travel through the bucolic county of Middle Earth...

The feeling of being able to cross paths with Frodo and Bilbo at any moment...

I didn't remember the plot, but the magical atmosphere of the Lord of the Rings is unforgettable!

It was a day full of fantasy!

(Movies watched with my son - teenage version)

Auckland... clear waters...

I surrendered to the clear color of its liquid component...

You can see the great love for boats, certainly inherited from the Maoris...

Draft / Australia

Similar to Asia, here are the main performance indicators for this country/continent:

·        I visited 5 cities and 2 islands during almost 1 month (around 6.316 km travelled);

·        I took 4 train journeys for an average cost of 59 € and 1 by plane for the sum of 115 € (the cost of travelling per km by plane is lower than its equivalent by train - 0.04 € versus 0.35 €);

·        I took 4 tours for an average cost of 75 €;

·        I attended a show for which the ticket cost 54 €;

·        I spent an average of 31 € per night in a hostel.

·        Visits to museums and exhibitions were free, although this is not always the case;

·        I used public buses with low prices and, whenever the driver did not have change, the journey was free.

As I was already tired of hamburgers and pizzas, whenever I had the opportunity I cooked or bought ready-made portions at prices similar to those in Portugal.

NOTE: The vendors were Indian and the sauces also followed their traditions...

The dematerialization of the word...

Since I couldn't bring physical books on this adventure, I bought my e-book reader...

I recognize the possibility of permanent reading...

BUT, it's not the same thing...

I miss the body/book...

The tactile and visual experience...

I miss the connection between hands...

The hug almost close to the heart...

I miss the permanent imbalance in weight distribution...

Only interrupted halfway through reading...

I miss the gentle fingering of the pages...

Mobilizing action of almost all senses...

I lack contact with the organic essence of the book...

I don't like words only existing between one click and another...

I don't like books corresponding to a line in the menu...

And I don't like statistics...

Reading is a pleasure!

Books are not ephemeral works!

And wandering through bookstores is almost always a fantastic adventure!

E.book reader - Only when travelling!

There will surely be alternatives to cutting down our precious forests...

(Concoctions during train journeys)

Back to Sydney...

In farewell mode...

I had a long breakfast on the terrace...

Ladies my age, with rugs in tow, were drinking their morning tea...

A sportsman was having breakfast with a book...

Teenagers were chatting happily between spoonfuls of their "porridge"...

An elderly couple was drinking coffee with milk and sharing a muffin...

The morning here is calm...

The terrace is located in an area bordering the center of Sydney...

Where the houses are reminiscent of Notting Hill, with added value due to the Art Nouveau-inspired balconies ...

Great Ocean Road... The Greatest War Memorial!

Built by retired soldiers, it was dedicated to the soldiers who died during the First World War and it provides a connection between the cities of Torquay and Allansford (240 km).

Today, it is a pleasure to drive along its winding path along the sea...

After all ... the sea is such a great sculptor!

Melbourne - A Vibrant City...

A city crossed by the Yarra River with its serene banks...

With its remoteness... growing agitation...

The streets are predominantly Asian in layout...

Evidence of the pressure of emigration...

Last Saturday:

On one side of the river, a Korean festival was taking place magnificently... contagious joy...

On the other side, a rally against multiculturalism was taking place... worrying speech...

Signs of emerging tension...

But the city is Vibrant!

Fhotos

Great Barrier Reef... With barriers...

The rough seas turned the trip from Cairns to Upolu Reef into an adventure worthy of Disneyland...

The boys and girls was thrilled with the jumps from the boat...

(I, as a precaution, put on my seatbelt...)

After about an hour of travel... the boat stopped in the middle of the high sea ...

A strong wind made the sea even more agitated...

Confident in the safety procedures, I jumped in too...

And it was indeed an extraordinary sight:

Corals of different shades and shapes:

Some looked like lettuce, others like mushrooms, others like stems stripped of leaves, others like small bushes, others like human brains...

There was movement among them... possibly due to the currents...

or, perhaps, respecting an unknown choreography...

Almost always in groups, coming and going from I don't know where, multicoloured fish busily crossed my gaze...

Electric blue... ... Silver with or without stripes... Yellow... Blue/Green whose colours faded as they moved...

I don't know their names, but I will never forget their shapes and colours...

Starfish rested gently on the flat surface of the reef...

All this was what I saw and didn't record during the breaks, and there were quite a few, when I raised my head to remove the water that, due to the surf and the wind, was blatantly entering my snorkel...

Of course I got an overdose of salt water!

But, it was worth it!

I'm just sharing with you a video of the reef, whose images are quite close to what I witnessed...

(I don't have a suitable camera for this purpose... Sorry!)

Note: In the video the sea was calm... If our adventure had been filmed, it would resemble scenes from the film "The Guardian" starring Kevin Costner...

Cairns... City kissed by the Sea...

Sea without waves... and fragmented...

Creates lunar space...

Habitation of flyers...

For people: Forbidden territory...

The Promenade, the bench and the pool remain entertainment valued...

Further away, the Rain Forest reminds us of what the Earth was like in ancient times...

Magnetic Island or Magic Island?

Guided by the famous Izzy's Dad (Netflix series Izzy's Koala World):

I met rock kangaroos…

I visited the Koala Clinic…

I explored forests…

And I dove into the serene sea…

I didn't find any turtles or dugongs…

But I did see MERMAIDS…

Among them, I chose the most beautiful one to share with you!

The island is not Magnetic… it is Magical…

The Australian Dream...

There is symmetry in the distribution of the light-colored houses...

Pick-up trucks drive along the asphalt...

There is space for friendly greetings... (even for strangers like me)

Leafy gardens beautify these places...

Boats reveal the Greatest Love of their owners...

And the Sea is so close by...

There is time for contemplation...

Here... Life is good!

Photos

Skippy ... Skippy ... Skippy the Bush Kangaroo ...

In this place... 40,000 years ago...

They were much larger...

And they shared their habitat with Komodo dragons...

Separated by tectonic movements from their contemporaries,

Today, they live alongside humans, koalas...

And they correspond to the image I have of the late Skippy...

All this in the paradisiacal landscapes of the island of North Stradbroke...

Australia - Brisbane

The river gave it its name...

Man changed its structure...

A place where the new coexists with the old...

And the green was not forgotten...

Photos

Sydney Opera House... A masterpiece!

From a distance... they look like winged boats resting in the bay...

Up close... you can see a Conglomerate of Gigantic Shells...

Home to the most Precious Pearls of Humanity...

Singing... Music... Dance...

Happy are those who can delight in such arts...

(I had the opportunity to watch the classical dance show "Manon" and it was simply superb!)

Good morniiiiing... Sidneyyyyyyyy

A spacious city where...

The new and elegant buildings coexist harmoniously with the older ones...

The green parks are present...

The magnificent beaches are part of the neighborhood...

There is space... There is time....

And the people seem light-hearted...

In its plentiful streets...

No one says hello to me anymoreor asks for a photo...

No one calls me Madame, Mame or Máma anymore...

The smiles are reserved for the necessary interactions...

I feel sooooo... sooooo ... GOOOD!

Draft / Asia ...

It might be interesting to share some important negative aspects that I witnessed, as well as certain indicators related to the completion of this adventure.

Regarding the negative aspects, I would like to mention:

• Pseudo-amorous contacts between seniors from "rich" countries and young girls in Phnon Penh ... (including little hands on the legs of restaurant waitresses during lunchtime ...). In contrast, in Thailand, tourists were warned from the very beginning about the prohibition of prostitution ...

• City streets were generally not very clean and lacked effective maintenance;

• Natural paradises invaded, in an unharmonious way, by structures designed exclusively to satisfy the needs of tourists ...

• Unregulated traffic, making crossing it a permanent adventure!

(not applicable to Singapore)

And with regard to the performance indicators, I would like to mention that:

• I travelled through 5 countries and 1 city-state for about 3 months:

• I used 4 flights included in the BVM, which were complemented by 9 plane trips and 5 bus trips, whose average prices were, respectively, 109 € and 12 €;

• I took 11 tours with an average cost of 47 € each, in addition to another 2-day boat tour costing 172 € (whenever the places to be visited were outside the cities I used this system);

• I attended 4 shows with an average cost of 10 €;

• I spent an average of 10 € per night in a hotel/hostel and an equivalent amount per meal in a restaurant (this last figure is empirical).

Now that I'm in Sydney, where everything is different, I remember some happy moments from my trip that were fortunately recorded:

To be like me...

Their niqabs fluttered as they climbed the steps of the Entrance...

They looked like birds ready to take off...

I approached a small group... I would like to photograph them...

The answer, in perfect English, came in the form of a question:

Is it for publishing on the internet? Only if they allow it - I replied...

And not even the recording of the voice was authorized...

My interlocutor was a student of Islamic languages who remained nameless, ageless...

A voice coming from somewhere had abruptly cut off the communication...

All I learned was that she DREAMED of finishing her studies and teaching, traveling and...

BEING LIKE ME...

The next day, I returned to the National Library of Jakarta...

The shutters were closed... It was May Day...

... Perhaps there are secrets that will remain hidden....

Strolling through Jakarta...

Man dreamed...

The architect designed...

And the engineer embodied...

Giant geometric solids rose in the sky...

Habitation of the most privileged in Jakarta...

A place of contrasts, where May Day was celebrated by the underprivileged with sumptuous fanfare...

Everyone was smiling...

Some asked for photographs...

A quick visit to Nusa Penida...

In order not to question the satisfactory evolution of the remains of the small accident and in the time I had left in Bali, I only participated in a simple tour to one of the closest islands - Nusa Penida, where the tourist pressure subtracted the impact of the natural beauty of the island...

Here are some photos ...

Clique aqui

Now in Jakarta, more specifically at the National Library of Indonesia (a fantastic structure!), I remember plans to visit the Gili Islands and Sulawesi...

Maybe I'll go back one day...

Galungan/Kuningan... Speechless...

The calendar indicates Kuningan...

No one has been able to explain its meaning...

But, you know that:

It is time to decorate the entrances...

It is time to feed the gods...

It is time to engrave the symbol of Good Luck/Well-Being on the skin...

It is time to celebrate with families...

It is time to parade along the beaches...

There is joy for everyone!

Adventures that happen... And Islands... There are Many!

The Komodo dragon was the reason for the mini cruise I took from Buan Bejo to the island of Flores, which was once ours...

The traditional boat offered the minimum comfort expected...

The trip went well, although from the beginning I realized that the safety rules were not the best, considering European standards...

When, on the way back, the sea became rough and the waves grew to an almost frightening size...

I left the upper part of the boat that I had adopted as my habitat and went to the place I considered safest, i.e., next to the control cabin...

The waves were relentless and a large sailboat that had been rescued by our boat was leaning dangerously towards us...

Fortunately, it was safely delivered to another boat somewhere in the rough sea...

I admired the skill of two precocious sailors who, in a very fragile little boat and with only the help of ropes (for me they were ropes, not cables), unhitched and hitched the sailboat to one and the other boat...

Fantastic!

I remained seated on one of the benches next to the captain, because the storm was relentless...

And then a larger wave threw me (and the heavy bench I was holding onto) onto the table in front of me...

The pain was intense and prevented me from immediately responding to the guide, who, in a flash, appeared to ask how I was doing and recommend that I go to the cabin...

Damn! It's basic: On boats, equipment must be secure, especially when the sea is not flat!

For the remaining 3 hours of the trip, I remained lying down in the cabin, avoiding movement and, above all, taking deep breaths...

After being hauled off the boat in excruciating pain, I went to the local hospital, where a kind doctor treated me very well!

(interesting fact: the young doctor asked me beforehand about the possibility of being assisted by a nurse men ...)

Thank the gods, nothing was broken! Only 3 days of pain was predicted...

The deadline has passed and the pain has reduced significantly... but, as a precaution, I have abandoned the plan to visit Suwali Island...

I will be relaxing in Bali ...

I also plan to visit other islands in the vicinity of this one...

After all, around here: Islands... There are many!

On the dragon trail...

For Two Days...

A Sea was my Land and a Boat my Home...

Between Night and Day, the landscape was colored purple...

It was the call of the Mountain...

With the light of the Sun, the velvety islands paraded gently, always different in their similarity...

It was the incentive to the Silence of the Coves...

It was the invitation to Dive into the warm Turquoise Green Waters...

On the night horizon, the bright points confused me:

Were they Boats that were Flying? Or Stars that were Floating?

The waves entrusted me to the World of Dreams...

It was the place of pink sands...

It was the place of summer deer...

It was the place of frightening dragons...

Those fantastic lizards that have been carrying chromosomal information since time immemorial...

It wasn't a Dream, it was Reality...

And, arriving at the starting point, on a Sunday morning...

The boys and girls played in a different way...

That will also be the Future of our Tomorrow...

Fortunately, there was a smile in their eyes...

Sweet Easter!

I wish you a super peaceful Sunday with your family and/or friends!

May it be a day full of good memories!

Big kiss from Bali (this time Easter will be different...)

And I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all the direct and indirect feedback I received!

Bali... much more...

In addition to its pleasant beaches, Bali is full of spirituality...

And despite the isolation to which the island was subjected for countless years, today it reflects cosmopolitanism thanks to the tourists from all over the world who visit it...

Fortunately, the villagers of Penglipuran no longer need to live in windowless houses made of bamboo... They have been preserved and support several shops!

Some Ancestral Rituals...

Today, the Bali Aga people claim this origin and, isolated by the Kintamani mountain and Lake Batur, maintain some ancestral customs...

Whenever one of their members completes their life cycle, they are covered in a white cloak and placed in a prism-shaped bamboo frame that is left in one of the 11 available places next to the Taru Menyan tree... (in addition to 1 place reserved only for the chiefs of the tribe)

This is the Terunyan cemetery, one of the 3 of this people...

The others are reserved for their members who died young or by accident, i.e., without completing their life cycle (e.g. without marriage) ...

(Scientists claim that the absence of bad smell in the cemetery cannot be explained solely by the scent of the Taru Menyan.)

On the road ...

Nature offers Earth and Water...

Man manages the portions...

When Earth is scarce, Man conquers the Mountain...

When Water is excessive, Man redistributes it...

The fields become lakes...

And the Earth, grateful, reflects the Sky...

Fhotos

On the Island of More Than a Thousand Temples...

Bali is home to the Hindu minority of the Indonesian people, and given that in every home there is a temple used for family ceremonies (e.g. weddings), it is easy to understand the estimate of the number of temples/shrines on the island: around 20 thousand!

I would like to highlight the temples of Kehen (near Ubud) and Pura Dalem (Ubud), where, in one, I found the symbol that, in Sanskrit, svtika, means "Good Luck"/"Well-being" and, in the other, I attended two night shows (Kerta and Kecak/fire dance).

Ver Fotos

Bali... over here...

A day in the company of a guide who dreamed of the past...

Dharma, an ageless man, was the result of an arranged marriage between his grandparents who belonged to the 6th generation of a family from the island of Java...

He married by his own decision and has 3 daughters...

This guide told us many things about the places visited and about current Balinese society, among which I would like to highlight the following:

Marriages are freely chosen, but after marriage, the newlyweds go to live with the boy's family;

A man may marry a second time, as long as his first wife expresses her consent (in writing, I asked for such confirmation...);

All children must go to school for several years.

Answering the question about how the arranged marriages of previous generations worked, he said that at that time there was no TV or internet... people only knew the reality of their villages...

And when asked about his dreams/desires (I was afraid that the language might betray the objective of the question given the first answer obtained), he said that he has no dreams for the future, that he only dreams about the past...

Because if he dreamed about the future, he would run the risk of being disappointed whenever reality diverged from the dream...

The past is more important, because it determines the present...

After all, it is so simple...

(Dharma, as a Hindu, believes in the existence of a single God who presents himself in different forms, as well as in reincarnation, stating that a human being may come to be reincarnated as an animal or even a tree... it will depend on his conduct...)

On the way to the Domes...

Parts of everyday life spill over into the narrow streets of the less privileged neighborhoods...

Among the overlapping roofs, minarets and domes of multiple colors and shapes rise up...

It is life marked by religion... Or religion marking Life...

Fhotos

Next of the hijabs...

Beautiful waves frame the feminine faces of complacent empathy...

They say they grow up dreaming about using them...

On the balcony of a house, children of different ages wait patiently for their meal...

A silhouette of a busy woman does not notice my approach...

I gesture to one of the children to ask for my permission to record such a unique daily life...

The child, with some concern, questions the woman, who promptly gives me a NO...

The woman has seriously damaged eyesight...

Disturbed, I thank her silently...

Back at the accommodation, a poster had been altered... only in the image of the woman...

And in the accommodation, a young non-native traveler wears a hijab...

A strange pillow hanging from her backpack is in disrepair...

You will stay in the room that had been mine...

Stories that remained unknown...

The Earth offering the Heavens...

With the increasing light of the sun, Bromo, Seremu and Batok gain color, shape and volume...

The effluvia of Bromo and Seremu rise gently and metamorphose into clouds...

It is the Earth offering to the Heavens...

The ancients say that there are Angels within it...

In the Yogyakarta Sultanate...

A place of war and power games...

Time of Sultanate and Principality...

Reorganized sovereignties: Special Region of Yogyakarta!

Sultan Hamengkubuwono X (crowned on 03.10.1998) lives in the Royal Palace / Kraton, part of a complex built according to Javanese architectural lines and in order to protect the daily life of the court...

Of course I did not meet the sultan, nor any other member of the royal family...

All that remains is the record of one of his humble servants...

On 05.05.2015 the sultan renamed Princess Mangkubumi as Mangkubumi Hamemayu Hayuning Bawana Langgeng ing Mataram, which places her in line to inherit the title! Until now, this possibility was forbidden to women!

Photos

Yogyakarta - A city surrounded by temples...

After a particularly dull Jakarta, I headed to Yogyakarta by bus on a predictable 6-hour journey, but it took about 16 hours... It was worth having Jenny and 2 other young Dutch people with me, otherwise it would have been terrifying...

Here, temples are kings and the Borobudur/Prambadan duo did not disappoint...

Morning coffee on Setumbo Hill was a majestic experience...

I was the only participant on the tour...