https://www.scmp.com/rss/320811/feed Ronan O'Connell has been a journalist for 17 years and is based between Australia, Thailand and Ireland, reporting on travel and current affairs for the likes of CNN, BBC, WIRED, Forbes, The Guardian and The Telegraph. He has been freelancing for eight years and prior to that spent nine years reporting for daily newspapers in Australia. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Ronan O'Connell Ronan O'Connell Beyond the most prominent Unesco World Heritage sites in Asia, such as the Taj Mahal and Angkor Wat, there are many others deserving of attention. There may be fewer foreign visitors at India’s 1,500-year-old cave temple complex, in Japan’s demon-riddled sacred forest and around Macau’s historic centre, yet each has its own charms. Here are five of Asia’s most underappreciated Unesco wonders. Historic Centre of Macao Many of the United Nations agency’s World Heritage “sites” are not a single... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3341012/5-asias-overlooked-unesco-wonders-macau-bali-south-korea-india-and-japan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3341012/5-asias-overlooked-unesco-wonders-macau-bali-south-korea-india-and-japan?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 31 Jan 2026 03:00:09 +0000 With a spear lodged in his chest, the soldier topples into a fiery pit as his comrades scale a wooden fort. Amid the carnage, two giant elephants ridden by sword-wielding warriors collide head-on. These scenes tower above me, painted across an entire wall inside a monumental complex in Mae Rim, a district on the northern outskirts of the city of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. Outside, beneath the 1,685-metre (5,528-foot) Doi Suthep mountain, sits a colossal statue of Thailand’s King Naresuan,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3275887/thailand-road-trip-chiang-mai-reveals-fascinating-sights-few-tourists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3275887/thailand-road-trip-chiang-mai-reveals-fascinating-sights-few-tourists?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Aug 2024 10:15:08 +0000 Bali may be one of Asia’s most heavily touristed destinations but it’s still possible to get off the beaten track and find something underappreciated on the Island of the Gods. Here are seven lesser known yet rewarding attractions and curiosities on the Indonesian holiday island. 1) Keliki Art Village His is an artform born out of both inspiration and necessity, Pak Wayan Gama tells me, inside his small, street-front studio, its walls filled with framed works of art. An intricate style of... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3275646/bali-beyond-beach-7-hidden-cultural-attractions-away-crowds-keliki-art-village-kusamba-salt-farms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3275646/bali-beyond-beach-7-hidden-cultural-attractions-away-crowds-keliki-art-village-kusamba-salt-farms?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Aug 2024 05:15:14 +0000 Bangkok is famed for its street food but, as I learned while living in the Thai capital, its best-kept foodie secret is the hotel buffet. Many of the city’s four- and five-star hotels offer breakfast, lunch or dinner buffets that are considerably cheaper than their equivalents in Hong Kong. For example, the InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong Kong currently has a lunch buffet special offer of HK$440 (US$56) per person. The sumptuous lunch banquet at InterContinental Bangkok, an IHG Hotel is... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3265418/not-just-street-food-thailand-hotel-buffets-are-bangkoks-best-kept-foodie-secret?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3265418/not-just-street-food-thailand-hotel-buffets-are-bangkoks-best-kept-foodie-secret?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Jun 2024 03:15:10 +0000 I peer from a time-worn pavilion across a succession of royal halls, courtyards and gates built into a forested mountainside near Seoul, South Korea. A few other tourists are scouring this imperial citadel but, despite being a Unesco World Heritage site located just 25km (16 miles) southeast of the national capital, Namhansanseong remains something of a secret to overseas visitors, according to staff at the visitors’ centre. Then again, it was designed specifically to elude the scrutiny of... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3262487/inside-south-koreas-hidden-emergency-capital-city-built-should-chinese-forces-invade-and-why-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3262487/inside-south-koreas-hidden-emergency-capital-city-built-should-chinese-forces-invade-and-why-it?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 May 2024 05:15:10 +0000 Paris will be even busier than usual this summer, with the French capital hosting the 2024 Olympics from July 26 to August 11, but visitors can avoid the worst of the crowds while not watching the sporting action by visiting some of its lesser-known attractions. Fortunately, Paris is laden with intriguing and photogenic sites and experiences, some of which are relatively far from the tourist trail. 1. The Grand Mosque of Paris For some, France’s proudest monument, the Arc de Triomphe, is... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3259005/5-quieter-paris-tourist-spots-avoid-2024-olympics-crowds-notre-dame-alternative-grand-mosque?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3259005/5-quieter-paris-tourist-spots-avoid-2024-olympics-crowds-notre-dame-alternative-grand-mosque?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Apr 2024 08:15:18 +0000 Tourists visiting the Vatican City flock to its Apostolic Palace to gaze up at the Sistine Chapel’s famed frescoes, but the world possesses many other dazzling ceilings that can be marvelled at and have stories to tell. Some are decorated according to ancient design systems, others with bewitching geometric patterns, folkloric symbolism, mythical beasts or epic scenes of combat. Here are 10 of the best; from Malaysia to Scotland, and South Korea to the United States. 1. Apollo Gallery, The... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3256180/dazzling-ceiling-art-10-best-examples-louvre-charminar-hyderabad-india?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3256180/dazzling-ceiling-art-10-best-examples-louvre-charminar-hyderabad-india?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 Mar 2024 10:15:29 +0000 At Modena’s Enzo Ferrari Museum, I am trying to follow a film on a huge screen explaining the history of one of the world’s most iconic carmakers. Although the footage of red Ferraris speeding around race tracks is clear enough, the accompanying voice-over is regularly interrupted by exclamations, in a variety of accents and languages, from other visitors, as they fawn over an array of vehicles artfully arranged nearby. If any more proof were needed, the multilingual hubbub underscores the fact... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3248468/ferrari-luxury-cars-formula-one-team-and-enzo-ferrari-man-behind-marque-celebrated-modena-italy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3248468/ferrari-luxury-cars-formula-one-team-and-enzo-ferrari-man-behind-marque-celebrated-modena-italy?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Jan 2024 20:15:16 +0000 “How to give a Middle Finger, Song Dynasty Style” is an unusual name for a workshop, to say the least, so to find out more, I accept an invitation to step into a timeworn studio in Singapore’s Tanjong Pagar district, where a 71-year-old artist is hard at work. Wielding a brush thinner than a pencil, Ng Yeow Hua stares intently and ever so carefully begins to paint. Each stroke is painstakingly slow and delicate. It pays to be precise when dealing with a goddess with dozens of arms. He is... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3243726/she-made-gods-70-years-meet-matriarch-singapores-last-handcrafted-taoist-deity-producer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3243726/she-made-gods-70-years-meet-matriarch-singapores-last-handcrafted-taoist-deity-producer?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Dec 2023 23:15:19 +0000 My car has been searched, my ID scanned and my intent questioned by armed guards. Never before have I met such intense security while visiting a museum. Then again, this is no ordinary museum – it’s inside the headquarters of the United States government agency whose more than 10,000 employees are tasked with tackling health catastrophes, and which has an annual budget of US$9.3 billion. The David J. Sencer CDC Museum is the only part of this complex in Atlanta, Georgia that can be accessed by... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3242132/inside-super-secure-cdc-museum-which-reveals-story-americas-pandemic-headquarters-though-theres?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3242132/inside-super-secure-cdc-museum-which-reveals-story-americas-pandemic-headquarters-though-theres?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Nov 2023 09:15:11 +0000 On the outskirts of Hyderabad, a home of the dead has been brought back to life. The necropolis is eerie in theme, giant in stature, magnificent in design and now key to the growth of tourism in this city. The 16th-century Qutb Shahi Tombs complex is the largest such site in southern India, and its 10-year renovation is nearing completion. About 100 significant structures – tombs, funerary mosques and a mortuary bath – dot this 106-acre necropolis, which is the eternal home of the Qutb Shahis,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3241336/now-one-indias-best-places-visit-hyderabads-qutb-shahi-tombs-complex-has-been-beautifully-restored?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3241336/now-one-indias-best-places-visit-hyderabads-qutb-shahi-tombs-complex-has-been-beautifully-restored?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Nov 2023 08:15:16 +0000 As visitors enter Bangkok’s Grand Palace, they pass supernatural security guards. Standing inside the main entrance of the royal complex in the Thai capital are two towering statues, each with sharp fangs protruding from their mouths and clubs in their grip. They not only embody the colourful excess which makes the site so photogenic, but also depict a key figure from Thai mythology, the Yaksha, whose role is to protect palaces, temples and other sacred sites. While human threats are the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3239289/mythological-figures-guard-thai-temples-and-palaces-bangkok-chiang-mai-and-their-roots-hinduism?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3239289/mythological-figures-guard-thai-temples-and-palaces-bangkok-chiang-mai-and-their-roots-hinduism?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Oct 2023 03:15:09 +0000 Halloween may have become a kitschy festival devoid of any real terror beyond the fear of rotten teeth after too much sugar, but there are places that can send a chill down the spine of even the most sceptical adult. Here are five of Asia’s most haunted destinations. 1. Doi Suthep (Chiang Mai, Thailand) Bloody entrails spill from a severed buffalo head being cradled by a drunk man trying to appease the devils that haunt the mountains of Chiang Mai. Inside a Buddhist temple, surrounded by... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3239093/halloween-5-asias-most-scary-and-haunted-destinations-ghosts-spirits-monsters-possession-and-giant?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3239093/halloween-5-asias-most-scary-and-haunted-destinations-ghosts-spirits-monsters-possession-and-giant?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Oct 2023 23:15:12 +0000 At the foot of a steep peak, red-brick temple towers stand out from their jungle setting. These lofty structures, some embellished with bas-relief images depicting Hindu legends, are among more than 70 monuments that embody a fallen empire. They have been newly spruced up as part of a multi-year restoration project. About 1,700 years ago, the Champa kingdom chose this site, in what is now Central Vietnam, for its imposing headquarters. The My Son Sanctuary was the political and religious capital... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3235705/vietnams-answer-angkor-wat-less-grand-newly-restored-ancient-hindu-temple-complex-near-hoi-was-seat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3235705/vietnams-answer-angkor-wat-less-grand-newly-restored-ancient-hindu-temple-complex-near-hoi-was-seat?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Sep 2023 08:15:11 +0000 Amsterdam has more than 80 museums, including the world-renowned Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum. Hidden among the cultural bounty in the Dutch capital are five smaller, more unusual collections that celebrate not art, history or science, but are instead devoted to violence, drugs, cats, pipes and houseboats. 1. Torture Museum In an attractive town house by the Singel canal, I find myself immersed in a world of misery. The eerie Torture Museum explains many of the sadistic methods of harm that... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3231789/5-weird-amsterdam-museums-devoted-cats-marijuana-pipes-torture-and-houseboats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3231789/5-weird-amsterdam-museums-devoted-cats-marijuana-pipes-torture-and-houseboats?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 22 Aug 2023 08:15:09 +0000 From the porch of my villa, I watch a swell roll in from the Andaman Sea and crash on the western shore of Phuket. It is a dark, rainy, windy day on this Thai island. Which makes me wonder whether I’d be wasting my time venturing down the west coast, to Kamala Beach, which is scheduled to host the latest stage in the Amazing Phuket Plus Surf Festival. Billed as the island’s biggest-ever surfing event, the festival is sponsored by the Tourism Authority of Thailand and has featured five separate... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3228932/how-phuket-looking-tap-lucrative-surf-tourism-market-carving-niche-southeast-asian-destination?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3228932/how-phuket-looking-tap-lucrative-surf-tourism-market-carving-niche-southeast-asian-destination?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Jul 2023 04:45:14 +0000 With archaeological derring-do again in the spotlight, thanks to the recently released Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny film, we explore five sites across Asia where visitors can unleash their inner adventurer. 1. A prehistoric art gallery, Krabi, Thailand Silence arrives as the engine of our long-tail boat gliding along the Tha Pring river is cut. A colossal limestone peak disappears behind us as we turn into a narrow tributary draped in dense forest. “Here, here,” says the guide, pointing... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3225932/5-places-asia-unleash-your-inner-indiana-jones-ancient-wonder-india-prehistoric-cave-art-thailand?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3225932/5-places-asia-unleash-your-inner-indiana-jones-ancient-wonder-india-prehistoric-cave-art-thailand?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jul 2023 01:45:20 +0000 Temple-hopping is a popular tourist activity in Asia, but the continent also has a long-standing relationship with Christianity, embodied by magnificent churches in cities from Bangkok to Seoul. Here are 10 of the most noteworthy. 1. Basilica of Bom Jesus – Goa, India When Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama landed in Kerala in 1498, he spearheaded 500 years of European colonialism across Asia, spread Christianity in India and paved the way for the creation of Old Goa, now a Unesco World Heritage... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3224990/10-asias-most-magnificent-christian-churches-south-korea-and-singapore-macau-and-myanmar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3224990/10-asias-most-magnificent-christian-churches-south-korea-and-singapore-macau-and-myanmar?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Jun 2023 05:15:18 +0000 A minute of darkness that will happen on April 20 has placed a remote Australian town of 2,600 people in the spotlight. Situated 1,120km north of Western Australia’s capital, Perth, Exmouth expects thousands of tourists next week due to it being one of the world’s best locations to witness the total solar eclipse. For about 60 seconds from 11.27am (Western Standard Time) that day, the sun will be shrouded by the moon’s silhouette. While most parts of the world will experience only a partial... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3216679/total-solar-eclipse-another-reason-visit-exmouth-western-australia-home-unesco-recognised-ningaloo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3216679/total-solar-eclipse-another-reason-visit-exmouth-western-australia-home-unesco-recognised-ningaloo?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Apr 2023 03:15:08 +0000 St Patrick’s Day has become a kitsch event in many parts of the world, an excuse to don garish green outfits and drink heavily every March 17. But in Ireland there’s deep reverence for the country’s patron saint, whose tale can be traced through mountains, churches, beaches and villages. Here are six places in Ireland connected to the holy man, who was born in Britain and is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland 1,600 years ago. 1. Croagh Patrick The country’s holiest mountain, Croagh... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3213467/st-patricks-day-6-places-visit-connected-irelands-patron-saint-countrys-holiest-mountain-and-finest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3213467/st-patricks-day-6-places-visit-connected-irelands-patron-saint-countrys-holiest-mountain-and-finest?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Mar 2023 20:15:09 +0000 The hum of the Piazza Delle Erbe market fading behind me, I walk down Verona’s Via Cappello to a weathered stone arch graffitied with love hearts. Through the gate, above a small courtyard, is the balcony where Juliet supposedly was serenaded by Romeo. Dozens of tourists have lined up for their “wherefore art thou Romeo” moment beneath the balcony, perhaps unaware of who, ultimately, we have to thank for the world’s best-known romance. It is not William Shakespeare, even though Romeo & Juliet... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3210012/shakespeares-romeo-and-juliet-wasnt-created-bard-northern-italy-holds-true-romantic-story-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3210012/shakespeares-romeo-and-juliet-wasnt-created-bard-northern-italy-holds-true-romantic-story-and?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Feb 2023 20:15:12 +0000 In the shady grounds of Bangkok’s leading arts university, the next generation of Thai painters and sculptors are overseen by a grey-haired Italian man – one who died six decades ago. Corrado Feroci is ubiquitous at Silpakorn University. The revered artist is depicted in giant wall murals and a commanding statue. His Thai nickname, Silpa Bhirasri, inspired the very name of the establishment, which he founded in 1943. Thailand’s “father of modern art”, Feroci is one of the most important... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3208837/italians-who-shaped-bangkok-how-sculptor-florence-and-two-turin-architects-left-legacy-european?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3208837/italians-who-shaped-bangkok-how-sculptor-florence-and-two-turin-architects-left-legacy-european?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Feb 2023 10:15:08 +0000 Ants crawl up my arm as I shift a vine obscuring a weathered grave. A shaft of light pierces the tree canopy above, illuminating its tombstone, and I want to get a clearer look at its inscription. I’m hoping to get a sense of how old this and other tombstones engraved with Chinese characters are, and how long they’ve stood on this forested hill overlooking Malacca, in southwest Malaysia. The tombstones stretch to the crest of a ridge and beyond in this, the largest Chinese cemetery outside China... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3207344/zheng-hes-malacca-temples-biggest-chinese-cemetery-outside-china-and-museums-dedicated-ming-dynasty?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3207344/zheng-hes-malacca-temples-biggest-chinese-cemetery-outside-china-and-museums-dedicated-ming-dynasty?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Jan 2023 05:15:07 +0000 They once cloaked the streets of Singapore, hanging above the entrances to Chinese temples, businesses, schools, homes and clan associations. Featuring calligraphy carved into camphor or teak wood, Chinese signboards were a good-luck charm, an icon of Singaporean culture – and a lucrative source of income for the artisans who made them. Now, however, there is only one traditional signboard business left in Singapore, according to the city’s Heritage Board. Yong Gallery is operated by woodworkers... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3205098/inside-dying-art-chinese-signboard-making-meet-two-men-keeping-traditional-craft-alive-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3205098/inside-dying-art-chinese-signboard-making-meet-two-men-keeping-traditional-craft-alive-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Jan 2023 05:15:08 +0000 Clutching expensive bags, wearing designer sunglasses and changing poses swiftly, one young person after another is photographed in front of a hulking old building in downtown Singapore. The appeal stems from its window shutters, which are variously purple, blue, green, gold, orange and red. This flood of colour has made the building a prime backdrop for social media images, planting it on Singapore’s busy influencer trail along with locations such as Marina Bay Sands and Gardens by the Bay. The... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3201542/how-singapore-got-rid-corruption-and-cleaned-its-act-illustrated-step-step-graftbusters-trail?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3201542/how-singapore-got-rid-corruption-and-cleaned-its-act-illustrated-step-step-graftbusters-trail?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Nov 2022 23:15:10 +0000 Numbats, bilbies, woylies, quenda, malas and boodies may all sound like creatures found in a fantasy novel, but they are all real marsupials that are being given a helping hand to avoid extinction in one of Australia’s newest national parks. Numbats have pointed noses, long tongues for catching insects and red-brown fur marked by white stripes. They are between 30cm (1ft) and 45cm in length, including their bushy tails. About 99 per cent of Australia’s numbat population has died out and there... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3201092/endangered-australian-native-animals-and-plants-given-protection-new-national-park-south-perth?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3201092/endangered-australian-native-animals-and-plants-given-protection-new-national-park-south-perth?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Nov 2022 08:15:10 +0000 My guide, Made, leads me down a stone alleyway, past stalls laden with traditional souvenirs such as keris daggers, wayang kulit shadow puppets and batik fabrics. Although Bali’s tourism industry is recovering from the pandemic, there are few customers. At the end of the alley is the Besakih Temple, where we encounter a group of men wearing bright sarongs and knotted udeng headwear. Their expressions are stern. Made has been doubling as my driver and guide to Bali but now he peels away, telling... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3196738/bali-indonesian-empire-double-crossed-chinese-hides-plain-sight?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3196738/bali-indonesian-empire-double-crossed-chinese-hides-plain-sight?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Oct 2022 05:15:08 +0000 As couples picnic, children romp and friends joke in a serene London park, my mood is comparatively sombre. Staring at a plaque dedicated to Princess Diana, I’m imagining what it must have been like for Britain’s Prince William, who was just 15 years old when his mother died in a car crash on August 31, 1997. Twenty-five years later, Diana looms so large over London that many tourists follow her trail across the British capital. The Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Walk, 11km (7 miles) long,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3190017/princess-dianas-footsteps-walk-through-london-past?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3190017/princess-dianas-footsteps-walk-through-london-past?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 31 Aug 2022 08:15:14 +0000 Since 1970, Chinese dragons, Japanese lanterns and Malaysian flags have marked a unique festival in a remote Australian outback community. Two thousand kilometres (1,240 miles) from Perth, the nearest city, Broome is renowned for its 22km-long beach, seaside resorts, rugged interior and annual Shinju Matsuri Festival, a celebration of its Asian and Aboriginal heritage. In the far north of Western Australia, Broome has a significant population of Asians, their ancestors initially having come in... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3188722/australias-16-day-celebration-asian-cultures-held-remote?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3188722/australias-16-day-celebration-asian-cultures-held-remote?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Aug 2022 03:15:16 +0000 In the densely forested hills that overlook Perth, Western Australia, a cluster of white domes contrasts starkly with the city’s famously blue skies. A rumble rolls through this idyllic setting, and the roof of one of the domes cracks open, allowing the telescope within to be trained on the midday sun. What it captures is relayed to a television screen in front of me, in the dome’s control room. “You can see sun spots here and here,” says Matt Woods. With clicks of a computer mouse, he gradually... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3187781/trail-space-exploration-history-australia-neil?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3187781/trail-space-exploration-history-australia-neil?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Aug 2022 05:15:20 +0000 Although the iconic Sydney Opera House now dominates Bennelong Point, a new monument highlights the ingenuity of the Aboriginal Australians who lived on this land for thousands of years before it was appropriated by the British. Placed on a prestigious spot on Sydney Cove overlooking the opera house and Sydney Harbour Bridge, the city’s freshest attraction is a stunning, six-metre-tall, crescent-shaped hook: a sculpture that celebrates the ancient fishing skills of Aboriginal Australians, one of... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3181928/australias-aboriginal-history-celebrated-stunning-new?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3181928/australias-aboriginal-history-celebrated-stunning-new?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Jun 2022 23:15:16 +0000 They weave, mould, etch, stitch, carve and glaze in the same styles and locations as their ancestors did for centuries. Vietnam’s most traditional big city, Hanoi has more than 800 craft villages that are home to artisans. Each community specialises in a specific craft. Some have perfected lacquerware, others ceramics, stonework, embroidery, folk painting, paper making, silk production, hat weaving, grass-mat twining or religious-idol carving. Some villages, such as Van Phuc (silks) and Bat... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/3182056/traditional-artisans-front-and-centre-tourism-promotion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/3182056/traditional-artisans-front-and-centre-tourism-promotion?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Jun 2022 05:15:11 +0000 Local governments and businesses across Southeast Asia have been busy during the pandemic, opening all sorts of tourist attractions, from the green to the glam. Benjakitti Forest Park, Bangkok, Thailand It’s hard to believe I’m in downtown Bangkok. The mad traffic is absent, the city’s din is muted, its nest of skyscrapers is distant, and a flock of birds has just swooped over my head and landed in the wetland below my feet. Benjakitti Forest Park is borderline surreal and so welcome. In the... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3179431/vertical-gondola-ride-singapore-bangkoks-downtown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3179431/vertical-gondola-ride-singapore-bangkoks-downtown?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 May 2022 04:27:16 +0000 Sydney is Australia’s most Chinese city. The capital of New South Wales is home to nearly 500,000 people of Chinese descent and, beyond its Chinatown, a variety of locations highlight this cultural connection. From art to religion, warfare to landscape design, the Chinese influence is visible across Sydney, which in February began to see the return of foreign tourists, who had been barred from Australia since March 2020 as the country attempted to stem the import of Covid-19. (From April 17,... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3172555/chinese-sydney-beyond-chinatown-temples-war-memorial?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3172555/chinese-sydney-beyond-chinatown-temples-war-memorial?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 Apr 2022 05:15:24 +0000 “Aalingoon came into the bay and lives beneath the sea,” wrote late Indigenous pearl shell carver Aubrey Tigan Galiwa, quoted in Lustre, a 2018 book about the Australian pearling industry. “He comes out every full moon, when it’s a big tide. As he floats on his back, as he drifts, the scales fall off his back, and turn into goowarn [pearl shells] as they drift down to the seabed below. The tides come in and chuck them everywhere, on the reefs, all around the islands. This way he always gives us... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/3117690/indigenous-and-asian-slaves-were-lifeblood?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/3117690/indigenous-and-asian-slaves-were-lifeblood?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Jan 2021 23:45:18 +0000 Donald Trump may disagree, but on November 3, Joe Biden was elected the 46th president of the United States. The win came thanks in no insignificant part to the voters of Philadelphia, who helped deliver Pennsylvania – Biden’s home state – to the Democratic challenger, taking his total of electoral college votes to 273, enough to declare victory. Outside America, the change of president was celebrated near and far, but perhaps nowhere more enthusiastically than in Mayo, the Irish county that is... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3111485/county-mayo-philadelphia-joe-bidens-homelands?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3111485/county-mayo-philadelphia-joe-bidens-homelands?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Nov 2020 17:15:08 +0000 I am surrounded by splendour reduced by time and the elements – broken statues, eroded stupas and once mighty walls that have crumbled. A grand civilisation existed in Sukhothai eight centuries ago. The capital of the first independent Thai kingdom, this is where the country was born and its artistic style forged. Sukhothai was one of 66 sites dubbed a Creative City by Unesco in October. The United Nations body picks these cities based on their achievements in, and commitment to, the arts, split... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3041458/sukhothai-could-thailands-answer-angkor-wat-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3041458/sukhothai-could-thailands-answer-angkor-wat-be?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Dec 2019 10:00:07 +0000 What is it? A couple of islands and surrounding waters that have long been a popular destination with West Australians and are about to come to the attention of Chinese tourists. Where is it? The Shoalwater Islands Marine Park hugs the coastline off the town of Rockingham, about 45km south of Perth, the capital of Western Australia. About 15km long and 4km wide, the park has two main islands – Penguin and Seal – which, together with large coral reef formations, make up a natural barrier that... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3007458/zhang-ziyi-chinese-reality-show-make-shoalwater?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3007458/zhang-ziyi-chinese-reality-show-make-shoalwater?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Apr 2019 02:45:12 +0000 Dam Vu cannot stop smiling. In a quiet backstreet of Binh An, one of Ho Chi Minh City’s more affluent neighbourhoods, the architect is giving me a tour of the whimsical kindergarten his firm has just completed. With its bold, orange-and-yellow colour scheme and quirky design, Chuon Chuon Kim 2 Kindergarten has been created with the happiness of its young users in mind. Leaning on a spiral staircase that leads to a third-floor ceiling that is punctured by small holes to give the appear­ance of a... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/2137270/how-ho-chi-minh-city-architects-are-reshaping?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/2137270/how-ho-chi-minh-city-architects-are-reshaping?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Mar 2018 07:15:45 +0000 It is proving difficult to concentrate. A cocktail of adrenalin, astonishment and apprehension is leaving me intoxicated by my surroundings. Watching the road, however, should be the priority; I’m riding a motorbike in unpredictable traffic yet the sights flanking the tarmac are demanding my attention – and often receive it. Waves are rolling in off the Indian Ocean, sending foam sliding across golden sand to the feet of tilted palm trees, where fishermen are resting. Exotic birds circle and... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/1858989/laid-back-and-friendly-sri-lankas-southern-coastline-slice?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/1858989/laid-back-and-friendly-sri-lankas-southern-coastline-slice?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Sep 2015 00:00:30 +0000