During my tour of Indochina I visited the famous jungle ruins of Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Within many of the temple compounds you would come across these traditional Cambodian dance troupes (as seen in my above photograph. The dancers would perform – for a small fee of course – exotic routines for the discerning and weary western traveller, it was all good clean fun, even if it was all a bit touristy!
In 2008 I sailed up the river Nile in a restored 1920’s Royal Steamer the SS Misr. We sailed from Luxor to Aswan over the period of a week and saw many amazing and spectacular sites along the way in this ancient land. But the most spectacular sight of all was a natural one – the African sunset!
One evening I managed to catch the sun setting in just the right spot and at the right time as it dipped down behind some hazy silhouetted palms along the banks of the river as we slowly chugged by.
I snapped this shot from the balcony of our cabin while supping a cold beer sitting on a small wooden stool watching the river pass by below. It was as perfect a moment as you could possibly want on your travels! I hope you enjoy the shot.
Tian Tan Buddha, also known as the Big Buddha, is a large bronze statue, at 85ft high it sits on a throne of lotus leaves – the Buddhist symbol of purity – and was completed in 1993, it is located at Ngong Ping, Lantau Island, in Hong Kong.
The statue overlooks the nearby Po Lin Monastery and symbolises the harmonious relationship between man and nature, people and religion. It is a major centre of Buddhism in Hong Kong.
A crazy ride via a cable car gets you from the mainland across to the island, alternatively you can hike up into the mountains from the shoreline below having crossed by boat to reach the Buddha. I took literally dozens of shots while I was on Lantau but this is still my favourite, The Buddha looks so serene when viewed directly from the foot of the steps but also so very very powerful.
The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum located in Agra, India. It is one of the most recognisable structures in the world. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It is widely considered as one of the most beautiful buildings in the world and stands as a symbol of eternal love.
This shot was taken very early in the morning, almost at first sunrise, before all the crowds turned up during my manic but also enjoyable trip around Northern India’s Golden Triangle.
JAMES HANDLON 