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Oh, the places
you’ll go
Lonely Planet travel writer and photojournalist
STEVE TAN takes us through the best cities he’s
visited. He’s been to a few.
Rome, Italy
I made a wish at Trevi Fountain for my return
to Rome to be ensured and realized
the bottom of it was glistening with gold,
silver, and bronze. Being the most famous
Baroque fountain in the world, this fountain
receives €5,000 per day. The money
collected is used to feed Rome’s needy.
LiSBon
Portugal
Jakarta, Indonesia
Huge malls such as Grand Indonesia
are scattered across the city, and you
can find street food everywhere. Prices
range depending on how much food
you take or how hungry you are. It’s
sold by hawkers peddling their goods,
such as mixed rice, satay, cakes, or
tempeh, on bicycles or carts, notably
around the Kemang Raya area.
The Galerias Romanas in Lisbon is an underground Roman gallery,
said to be a portico crypt from the reign of Augustus, and is
located at Lisbon’s downtown area. It’s open only once every September.
Since much of the area is flooded, it takes up to a month
to prepare this monument for public access. Waiting time can be
up to 3.5 hours, and access is via a hole in the ground located in
the middle of the street.
Salzburg, Austria
There are Mozart impersonators everywhere.
And they want money. They
also do many things Mozart wasn’t famous
for — breakdancing, rapping,
acrobatics, balloon twisting, fire eating,
magic, you name it. On the bright
side, you will see some Mozarts playing
piano or violin on the streets.
Gweynedd, Wales
Gweynedd has Europe’s longest town
name in Welsh: Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.
58 letters in length, it translates into
English as St. Mary’s Church in The Hollow
of The White Hazel near to the
Rapid Whirlpool of Llantysilio of the
Red Cave. Seeing this made my day.
ChiAng mAi
Thailand
Talk to any locals outside
Chiang Mai and they will ask
if you’ve been here. This city
is a keystone of any journey
to Thailand. I played with tiger
cubs, kissed king cobras
(non-venomous ones), had
snake wines, watched elephants
playing football, and
had a monkey attack me.
I did what I had to do. I’ve
lived here!
Kolkata, India
Called the “city of furious creative energy,”
Kolkata is known among its people as the
birthplace of modern Indian literary and
artistic thought. I had a chance to visit the
National Library of India and learned about
Bengali literature and was lucky enough
to sample some machher jhol, a local dish
of rice and fish curry. That was the most
productive flight transit time ever spent.
Bruges, Belgium
Bruges boasts some of the worlds’ finest
chocolates and chocolatiers — and they
all come in different packaging, flavours,
decorations… and human body parts.
If those tiny truffles, marzipan, or tarts
can’t satisfy your palate, you can try
eating their two top-sellers: penis and
breast-shape chocolates. I decided to buy
a pair of DD-sized chocolate breasts for
my relatives in London.
BordeAux
On June 21, the entire city turns into a nightclub to celebrate Fête de
la Musique, an all-night music celebration of the summer solstice.
Thousands flock around the city to display their musical talent,
from street performance at its iconic Place de la Bourse, to dancing
along its ancient Rue Fernand Philippart.
San Francisco, USA
In San Francisco, I chatted with the
friendliest homeless guy I’d ever met.
We talked for nearly an hour on Christmas
Eve before I treated him to Burger
King and Starbucks at 12 am. The homeless
people of San Fran aren’t just the
friendliest — they also have the most
creative signs I’ve ever seen. “I slept with
Lindsay Lohan last week — please help.”
Nairobi, Kenya
Most people stay for a night or two
in transit, coming in and out as soon
as they can. Southeastern Africa is,
to me, the best place to do parachuting.
If you dare, go up 20,000 feet and
jump down at 200 km/h while enjoying
the view across the African savannah!
AmSTerdAm
FuSSen
There were over 5,000 prostitutes in Amsterdam five years ago. Today, there are only 1,100. They
come from all parts of the world, as young as 18 and as old as 83. They pay taxes, have their own
hospital and church (which you can only enter through a hotel), and a strong union that managed to
shut down four blue windows operated by male gigolos.
Neuschwanstein Castle lies just 5km away from the Austrian border,
and is located on a very high rugged hill. Standing from there
looking below at all the trees and mountains made me feel like I
was a king living in Lord of The Rings’ Minas Tirith or at Hogwarts.
Check out the rest of
Steve Tan’s favourite
cities in our new online
series, “Around the
world in 80 cities.”
var.st/aroundworld
14 the VARSItY magazine MARCH 19, 2012 15
France
Xi’an, China
Xi’an is a stop you cannot miss. It’s old and
mysterious. Here, the first emperor of China,
Qin Shi Huang, was buried amongst thousands
of terracotta warriors. He started building
a grandiose mausoleum at age 13, and its
secrets and legends were lost with him over
the years. Seeing the terracotta army and
Mountain Li where the tomb is gave me an
eerie sensation of how the world was once
upon a time.
Phuket Islands, Thailand
Soft drinks served in a plastic bag,
toilet paper used as a napkins on restaurant
tables, gasoline in whisky bottles,
and beach chairs made of plastic
blue pipes — Thailand’s largest and
most popular island has all it takes to
amaze me. Phuket is famous for its
surfing, so don’t forget your speedos!
the NetherlaNds
Oxford, England
Germany
As you walk around the colleges of Oxford
University, be sure to look up once
in a while. All over Oxford’s buildings
are gargoyles (technically “grotesques”
as these don’t spout water): some in the
shape of faces, some animals, and some
entire people. The keenest of eyes will
spot the funnier ones — the one picking
his nose, the one relieving itself…
Tokyo, Japan
When I visited Tokyo, I got tired while wandering
the streets and did a back squat outside
a building while opening a white-powdered
mochi bits caramel candy. Long story
short, they thought I was begging for money
and doing heroin. As the police dragged
me away to the police station, I realized
I was squatting behind the Bank of Japan.