Hot on the phone in Seoul
I was having a fight with Optus yesterday about my overdue phone bill. I had queries about it and they said ‘why didn’t you ring earlier?’ Because I was in […]
NOTEBOOK
Canter past Patagonian icefields. Sail the tranquil waters of Lake Como in Italy. Sip coffee in a Palestinian village. Listen to the ancient voices of Australia’s Arnhem Land. Climb the mountain paths of northern Albania. Let’s go!
Things I just don’t get about Malaysia
No kissing in taxis (see explanatory picture). The B.U.M. Equipment clothing range. For men, women and children. Er, market research, anyone? The Petronas towers. Yeah, they’re big man. Ok, they’re […]
China in transit
Killing time at Beijing airport with delays, I offer you a sample of today’s headlines in the English-language China Daily: Street food blamed for cholera outbreak. Hand-washing practices urged for professionals. […]
Things I like about Changi airport
Why I love Changi airport. Simply because the loo fits my luggage trolley in it. Singaporeans love their shopping and are happy to accommodate the trait in its visitors. There […]
Early morning over Kuala Lumpur
Flying over Kuala Lumpur before sunrise, the city of 1.8 million looks dark and empty. I’m having a flashback, oddly, to another time, arriving before dawn in a small Russian […]
A country drive: Kyneton exposed
It’s a town where the espresso consumption equates the population of 4300 people: surely 4300 espressos, macciatos, afogatos, cappucinos and lattes were dished up this weekend in Australia’s most happing […]
A new national pasttime: abusing Asian tourists?
What I did on my winter vacation: abused Asian tourists. Do you think this is a trend that’ll take off? So now I’m starting to sound like Tony Abbott (er, […]
Hot to shop: Delhi
Spices, silks, scarves and saris? Let the games begin. Delhi is full of emporiums selling jewellery and scarves. Even I got bitten by Delhi’s voracious auto-rickshaw drivers, who receive a […]