Zhou Zhuang is one of the loveliest watertown daytrips from Shanghai. It has magical narrow canals with atmospheric old Chinese houses and ancient temples. But what’s a place without the people? Though there’s no doubt Zhou Zhuang has become commercialized

Horse Racing Sundays : Sha Tin
One of the must experiences in Hong Kong to get a feel for local culture is to participate in a horse racing event. It took me almost 3 years in Hong Kong to finally attend one, but even though this

Temple of Heaven (Tiantan) Park : Morning Exercise in Beijing
One of the more authentic local experiences you can find in Beijing is to wake up early in the morning, around 5 or 6, and head to one of the local parks to watch the morning exercise. Tiantan Park, or

Nanputuo Temple : Xiamen
Next to Xiamen University, considered one of the must-visit attractions of Xiamen, is the Nanputuo Temple – said to date back as far as Tang Dynasty (7th century). Though I’ve seen my fair share of temples, this one’s quite

Carbon Market : Cebu City
There’s something a little creepy about walking around at night by yourself in a strange land through a negatively stereotyped city, but somehow – it’s something I find very hard to resist. In a way, it is only during night

Safed–Local People-Yemenite Guy
One of the most interesting things about Safed are the local people who live there. You get all sorts of curious combinations of origins and accents, dressed up in traditional religious clothing reflecting their sects. The one I liked the