TRAVELS ABOUND

Originally a travel blog, now a photographic look at Crystal's adventures and meanderings around the world

[travelsabound]

Istanbul Archaeology Museum Exterior / İstanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri Istanbul, Turkey 2012

Photography by Crystal Sagady @travelsabound

[travelsabound]

Istanbul Archaeology Museum Interior / İstanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri

Istanbul, Turkey 2012

Photography by Crystal Sagady @travelsabound

[travelsabound]

Galata Bridge Area Istanbul, Turkey

Photography © Crystal Sagady @travelsabound

[travelsabound]

Lake Batur Bali, Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound

[travelsabound]

Car trip to Kintamani / Side Trip to Coffee Farm Bali, Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound​

[travelsabound]

Kintamani Temple Bali, Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound​

[travelsabound]

Bali Bird Park Bali, Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound

[travelsabound]

Ubud Market Bali, Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound​

[travelsabound]

Monkeys found on Monkey Forest Road, Ubud Bali Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound​

[travelsabound]

Lotus Cafe and the Back of the Palace Ubud, Bali Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound

[travelsabound]

Scenes from Around Ubud, Bali Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound

[travelsabound]

Elephant Safari Park, Bali Indonesia

Photography © Crystal Sagady travelsabound

[travelsabound]

So...

as some most of you can tell I haven't been too great at keeping up with this blog. And seeing as I have tons of photos queued up and not much text, it would seem I was not made to be a writer.

SO from now on, I will be using this solely as a travel photography blog so I don't have to stress about  writing things down (not that I am sure people where reading it anyways) and so stuff doesn't sit around for years.

Anyhoo, in summary look forward for more content from me soon and less writing. I am active on tumblr via other blogs, so always feel free to let me know if you have any questions about locations, travel advice or whatever, I would love to hear from you.

-C

[travelsabound]

Kuta: 1, 2, BEACH!

Our first stop in Bali was Kuta. We booked our first Airbnb a few minutes away from the airport, so it was located more on the edge of things but as it was just a few blocks from the beach we didn't really care too much. Our first week was serene with days on the beach, drinks in the pool and meandering bright sunlit malls next to the water (all of which was amazing and a bit of culture shock in contrast to the crowds and congestion of China that had been our world for the last few months). As such there wasn't much to report on since we were lazy sods.

[travelsabound]

Wandering People's Park (Shanghai Museum and the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art)

And m̶o̶n̶t̶h̶s̶ years later, here are the last few pictures from China. Taken in and around Peoples Park in Shanghai, including the Shanghai Museum and the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art. As you can see I had a fascination with both walkways and currency, along with the more regular exhibits.

[travelsabound]

Shanghai World Financial Center

The Shanghai World Financial Center (SWFC) wasn't exempt from the crowds of the holidays but because of the required elevator lift to the top the crowds were a little more controlled. As a result there was a little bit of a wait in line but Anna and I were entertained readily enough by the the miniature Shanghai model which took up a large part of the room (complete with day to night transitions, fireworks and lightning storms). Finally we made it into an elevator that zipped us up to the 97th floor where we mounted an escalator to the observation deck on the 100th floor.

Now there are two options when buying tickets for the SWFC observations decks, the first is the cheapest which gives you access to the 94th floor and the a second on a little more expensive that gives you access the 94th, 97th and 100th floor. I would absolutely recommend if you are going to spend the money anyways, go all the way and shell out for the 100th floor because that is really where its at. When we stepped off the escalator to the 100th floor Anna and I where met with walls of glass on either side views stretching to the horizon. Every few feet the tiles on the floor give way to solid fiber glass giving you large unfettered views of the Pudong side of Shanghai below your feet.  Its really quite an amazing view.

Due to the wait in line and our lazy day timing we ended up arriving right in time to watch the sun slowly set down for the day. And really there is no better place to watch the colors change and fall away than from up in the air. After dark fell and the lights of Shanghai flickered on like trails of fire through the streets, we made our down to the 94th floor where we browsed the shop before taking our leave.

[travelsabound]

Shanghai Our Days Away

After saying our farewells in Nanjing, Anna and I boarded a train for Shanghai where we planned to spend our last days in China. Once there we had sights we wanted to see (having missed them the last few times) and some errands Anna needed to accomplish before leaving the country (closing bank accounts etc).

After observing the lack of crowds in Nanjing we thought we where okay in regards to National Day tourism however, to our dismay we found they had quadrupled in Shanghai. This was discovered on our foray out to the Shanghai Aquarium, where the crowds were so packed on the first floor we could barely see the glass of the aquarium tanks. The press eased up a little on the lower floor allowing just enough space for maneuvering. But when we reached the moving sidewalk (which takes you through glass tunnels placed at the bottom of large tanks containing marine ecosystems) it was shoulder to shoulder with people alternatively shoving for you to move faster and stopping to look at something (This was in great contrast to Anna's last experience where she and her coworker where the only people in the entire building besides the employees). Neither of us being overly found of crazy crowds, this quickly led to bitter frustration and solemn vows to try to avoid the major tourist spots for the rest of our visit. In order to fulfill our determined vows, we tended to hang out in the (laid back & non-touristy) neighborhood where we had rented a room (being lazy, lazy people) before venturing forth later in the day hoping the endless press had eased up a little.

Even with our lazy schedule firmly in place we still managed to get in a few sights before saying zài jiàn to China. We navigated the bustle of tourist crazy Nanjing Road and meandered the French Concession at night peering at the bright window displays of tailor shops before seeing a film at the Cathay Theater. We rode the elevator to the top of Shanghai World Financial Center to watch the sun set and wandered People's Park, taking in the museums and sculptures (photos of both locations to follow in the next few posts) but finally our time in China drew to an end. So we packed up our bags and readied ourselves for our next adventure, boarding our plane for Bali in the early light of the dawn.