Mount Titlis, the year round snow capped moutain

When I planned my visit to Switzerland, 2 places came to my mind. Lakeside place and snowcapped mountain. I looked at the iteniaries of the tour companies and decided on Mount Titlis as the snow capped mountain to visit, but not to a skiing place, but to where non skiing visitors go. I first planned to stay a night each at Lucerne and at the base of Mt. Titlis, but Linn Zaw Win advised to go there for a day trip as we would be back in Lucerne and could make the next leg of our European trip to Paris earlier the next day.

Titlis is a mountain of the Uri Alps, located on the border between the cantons of Obwalden and Berne. Wikipedia

Elevation: 3,238 m

breakfast 26 May 2016

Croissants in European countries are good. They are cripsy, unlike those in UK and Myanmar which are just croissant shaped buns.

After breakfast we went to Lucerne station.

Lucerne / Luzern, Switzerland

We had to go to Engelberg by train to visit mount Titlis,

Lucerne station on right

We always stayed at places within easy walking distance of the train stations of places we stayed for the night so the first thing is to walk to Lucerne station.

We had to take the 9:10 am train to Stans — Engelberg from platform 13.

Lucerne station is a large one

The train ride to Engelberg passes through beautiful places.

Beautiful Swiss countryside.

We finally arrived at Engelberg

Then take a bus ride to Klientitils at the base of mount Titlis.

Once on the bus and till back at Engelberg, it was like we were in India. Indian movies always feature scenes of Switzerland including the snow mountains, so finding Indians at mount Titlis is not strange, only NOT finding them in Lucerne IS!

We went up to ride the Titlis Express

and had to wait a while

finally, our turn came and many more behind

views while on the cable car

cows look small

cows grazing

first view of snow on the mountain

first view of a glacier

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ski elevators were empty

skiing center

views from high up the cable car ride

nearing the end

we entered the glacier cave

It was cold and I wore all warm clothes I brought.

The walkway to Titlis Cliff Walk was Closed

After exiting, we had a spectacular view of the Swiss Alps

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We went outside into the sun and snow

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And handled real snow for the very first time in our lives.

 

 

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near the mountain top

 

There were many at the mountain top, mostly Indians.

The summer sun make us hot even with the snow and we had to take off the outermost warm clothes.

 

we went on the Sky Walk

 

 

on the Sky Walk

There was an Ice Flyer

Ice Flyer

we did not ride the Ice Flyer,  Nor ski and the Cliff Walk was closed

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snow on the walkway had to be cleared regularly by the staff

We had to get down in time for the train and there was a group of younf Indians in our cable car who look rich.

 

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Back at the base waiting for our bus

Back at Lucerne

It was an unforgettable trip.

White Cliffs of Dover

Dover is also another place I have not thought of visiting but Jimmy came with Tin Aung on the morning of 5 May 16 and took us there on a picnic (he had brought a ground sheet and a basket full of drinks and food) and it was another unexpected nice trip

.

There’ll be bluebirds over
The white cliffs of dover
Tomorrow
Just you wait and see

I’ll never forget the people I met
Braving those angry skies
I remember well as the shadows fell
The light of hope in their eyes

And though I’m far away
I still can hear them say
Bombs up
But when the dawn comes up

There’ll be bluebirds over
The white cliffs of dover
Tomorrow
Just you wait and see

There’ll be love and laughter
And peace ever after
Tomorrow
When the world is free

The shepherd will tend his sheep
The valley will bloom again
And Jimmy will go to sleep
In his own little room again

There’ll be bluebirds over
The white cliffs of dover
Tomorrow
Just you wait and see

There’ll be bluebirds over
The white cliffs of dover
Tomorrow
Just you wait and see

Read more: Vera Lynn – The White Cliffs Of Dover Lyrics | MetroLyrics

white cliffs of Dover

I have known this song since I was a lad but had not seen the movie.

 

bluebirds are a group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous bird in the order of Passerines in the genus Sialia of the thrush family. Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. Wikipedia

The White Cliffs of Dover are cliffs that form part of the English coastline facing the Strait of Dover and France. The cliffs are part of the North Downs formation. The cliff face, which reaches up to 350 feet (110 m),^[1] owes its striking appearance to its composition of chalk accented by streaks of black flint. The cliffs stretch along the coastline for eight miles (13 km), spreading east and west from the town of Dover in the county of Kent, an ancient and still important English port.^[2]

It is said that the Dover cliffs can be seen from the French coast across the Straight of Dover. This narrow water that separates France from England is the scene of the long history between the 2 countries with Anglo Francophone Wars, even the WWs and Trade, both legal and blackmarketeering throughout the centuries.

The cliffs have great symbolic value in Britain because they face towards continental Europe across the narrowest part of the English Channel, where invasions have historically threatened and against which the cliffs form a symbolic guard. The National Trust calls the cliffs “an icon of Britain”, with “the white chalk face a symbol of home and war time defence.”^[3] Because crossing at Dover was the primary route to the continent before the advent of air travel, the white line of cliffs also formed the first or last sight of Britain for travellers. In World War II, thousands of allied troops on the little ships in the Dunkirk evacuation saw the welcoming sight of the cliffs.^[4]

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the white cliff

We walked a long way to the distant South Foreland lighthouse, Dover

South Foreland lighthouse, Dover at a distance

getting nearer

there was an English teashop

with free places

but we picnicked outside

 

South Foreland lighthouse, Dover

 

 

Shakespeare’s Birthplace

Stratford-upon-Avon, a medieval market town in England’s West Midlands, is the 16th-century birthplace of William Shakespeare. Possibly the most famous writer in the English language, Shakespeare is known for his sonnets and plays such as ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and ‘Hamlet’. The Royal Shakespeare Company performs his plays in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and adjacent Swan Theatre on the banks of the River Avon.

Stratford upon Avon – Oxford – London map

I have never thought of going to Shakespere’s birthplace and had not read about it but got there unexpectedly on 3-May-16 when our friend Jimmy Myo picked up us at the hotel in Paddington we were staying. He already had picked up Min Sein and May Khine and he took us to Stratford-upon-Avon. It was a  nice trip and brought back to my memory Shakespeare’s short stories in the English curriculum during High School: Hamlet; The Merchant of Venice; King Lear_ and also the famous Romeo and Juliet, the movie Shakespeare in Love.

Stratford-upon-Avon

Stratford-upon-Avon, a medieval market town in England’s West Midlands, is the 16th-century birthplace of William Shakespeare on the banks of the River Avon.

Court Jester at Shakespeare’s birthplace walk road

Memorial Stone

In front of Shakespeare Center

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Shakespeare’s homes

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Shakespeare family tree

Shakespeare home

With play actors

cabinet

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dining table

kitchen

stove

Work table

upper floor window

writing table

Master bed

children’s room

some have no bed

night pot

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exit

Jimmy who took us to Shakespeare’s birthplace

We were then taken to Anne Hathawa’s home not far away.

Anne Hathaway’s home

It was an unexpected  nice trip, thanks to Jimmy.

Gawrangyi Kyuun ေဂၚရန္ဂ ်ီက ်ြန္း Kyway Gyaing ေၾကြခ ်ိဳင္

The name Gawrangyi Kyuun ေဂၚရန္ဂ ်ီက ်ြန္း is a very strange one because Gawrangyiေဂၚရန္ဂ

်ီ is the name of an Indian tribe that came to work in Myanmar during the colonial times. My friends do not know exactly from where and what type of Indian they are. There were many groups of Indians at the time: the Ponnas, soothsayers of high caste who settled in Myanmar since ancient times and were advisors to Myanmar Kings; Tamils who came from Tamil Nadu and is the most populous group of Indians in Myanmar nowadays; Bengalis who were from Bengal and the 2nd most populous group; the Chittee / Chettier, well known, who were money lenders; Moguls, northern Indians whose were the ruling classs of the last Indian dynasty, Aryans from further West, maybe Iran,the Punjabis from Punjab, the Sikhs, also from the northwest India, the Khawtaws (now called Bengalis) from the land that is now Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan. I suspect the Gawrangyi to be another name for the Tamils. Did Gawrangyis live on the Gawrangyi kyuun? If so, where are they now? There are no Gawrangyis on Gawrangyi Kyuun nowadays!

The Kyuun is also a misnomer nowadays as it means island. Although up to around 1970 Gawrangyi Kyuun was an island and coastal boats passed through the waterway, but since around then a sand bar developed and it became a peninsular. But the name, both Gawrangyi and Kyuun persists.

As Gawrangyi Kyuun is the part around Ngayokekaung that protrudes into the sea, boats would have to avoid it or boats in trouble would land there to ask for help. Maybe a boat of Gawrangyis were stranded on its beaches on their way to Rangoon to find their wealth as Myanmars nowadays leave home and go abroad to find theirs.

The land bridge that now connects the Gawrangyi kyuun to the mainland

I heard of the Gawrangyi kyuun only recently. It has become popular only for about 2 years since a new road was built to Ngayokekaung. Previously Ngayokekaung and Gawrangyi Kyuun had only boat travel by sea available.

Even now, the Ngayokekaung road from the Ngayokekaung hill on the Pathein – Maw Tin road to Ngayokekaung is still a bad all weather rock road which is being cemented in certain places. However, the road to Gawrangyi Kyuun from that road along a circuitous road along the upper streams is a very bad dirt road that is not passable after the rains until it has become dry and should only be driven by 4 wheel drive off road vehicles and other high axle cars.

Although getting there is difficult, it is popular not only because of the clear waters, good beaches and beautiful rocks, but also because it is still in the virgin stage, unspoiled and with few visitors on the clear beaches where one feels like being at a private beach on an isolated remote island.

The following are photos of the Kyway Gyaing near Gawrangyi Kyun

In a few years, the road will be better and more will visit, spoiling it.

The road map to Ngayokekaung.

One can drive or take a bus to Ngayokekaung and then transfer to Gawrangyi Kyun from there with motorcycle rides and a ferry.

We went along with the Royal Ruby group and the trip left Yangon at night time. We were collected near our home at 7:30 pm but after taking on another group and waiting for the big bus, finally left Yangon Hlaingtharyar only at 9:30 pm after filling up.

I woke up at a stop near the Nyaungdon bridge in Pantanaw township and had coffee.

Beyond that, I woke up again at the Ngayokekaung hill stop and had mohingha early before dawn.

There were interesting posters and sights at the Ngayokekaung hill.

We went ahead on the road to Ngayokekaung and soon dawn came.

However, it was still dark on the road.

Daylight came in time.

Soon, we reached the Kyway Gyaing

The Kyway Gyaing village road

I had a quick dip in the sea before lunch was ready.

On the beach were …

…crab boles and footprints

crab holes

beached tree stump

The beach was deserted most of the time

The south side of the Kyein Gyaing ၾကိမ္ခ ်ိဳင္

Kyein Gyaing beach front.

Gawrangyi Kyun at far north

Double room beach front bungalows where we stayed

Dining room and the FOC tubes for guests

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The next morning we went for a walk to the north end of the Kyway Gyaing where there are rocks.

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Versailles

The Palace of Versailles, Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. Wikipedia

When the château was built, Versailles was a small village dating from the 11th century.

It is just 30 minutes away, some 20 kilometres (12 miles) southwest of the centre of the French capital (point zero at square in front of Notre Dame)

Versailles was the seat of political power in the Kingdom of France from 1682, when King Louis XIV moved the royal court from Paris, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in October 1789, within three months after the beginning of the French Revolution. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of the system of absolute monarchy of the Ancien Régime.

I have read about Versailles from the stories, novels, articles and history books about the French Revolution,  King Louis XIV and Queen Marie Antoinette (whose’s remarks “Why do’t they eat cakes if they do not have bread?” is one of the most famous Quotes of all times), so when I planned my visit to Paris, I made sure Versailles is on my iteniary.

We went there with a half day tour although one can go there by train.

After failing to get off near the Tour company office and having taken a mercedes limousine taxi, we went to Versailles on a bus full of tourists from all over the world, but we were the only ones from SE Asia.

King Louis XIV

Louis XIV, known as Louis the Great or the Sun King, was a monarch of the House of Bourbon who reigned as King of France and Navarre from 1643 until his death in 1715. Wikipedia

Versailles Palace

Statute inside the palace grounds

The Versailles garden is the most beautiful garden I have been to.

 

The sculpture of Louis XIV

 

The wall murals of the palace are magnificent.

 

So too are those on the ceilings.

 

 

Ceiling

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The King’s reception room

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The Royal Bedchamber

The Hall of Mirrors!

Mirrors must be scarce and expensive at the time that mirrors were used to decorate the room.

Hall of mirrors

The Hall of Mirrors

Louis XIV on horseback

 

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Bas reliefs

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Statutes

And paintings on the wall!

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Royal staircase

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Statute on the gate post

 

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We all gathered near this post and returned to Paris where we had Chinese lunch so that we can have rice.