單獨監禁 Solitary Confinement ...

We create our own Prison walls 

and forgot where we left the keys

...

 

命運與選擇 Fate vs Choice ...

Fate is probably 

a Mutual choice

...

 

永远无法治愈的伤口 Wounds that never Heal ...

Unfortunately, life's wounds that never heal

is most often grieved alone

...

 

任性而行 Do what you want ...

a Photograph is a self-expression

nobody else has to like it

...

 

宁静 Sereneity ...

Sereneity is
when the Heart and Mind
at Peace with each other
...

Melacca Strait Mosque 

马六甲海峡清真寺

帕格尼尼的音乐 Paganini's ♪ ♫♫ ♪ ♪ ♫♫ ♪ ...

Played classical guitar
for a few years in high school,
not violin but
Paganini and Bach's guitar pieces
are some of the most challenging
'Caprices Op.1 No.24'

...

Melacca

朽烂与死亡 Decay and Death ...

If only we can appreciate
decay and death
as a beautiful milestone
of every living thing
...

Melacca Zoo

马六甲动物园

通货膨胀 Inflation ...

A bowl of Wan Ton Mee 
was about $3 to 4 Malaysian Ringgit 5 years ago, 
Now it is $6 to $9 Malaysian Ringgit minimum; 
the 'poor' are bracing 

for tougher times ahead...

Melacca City 马六甲市 

Nikon D90 f10 @ 1/200

用相機繪畫 Painting with a Camera ...

Photography, 
painting without a brush and canvas 
...

Streets of Melaka City 

马六甲市  

Nikon D90 Nikkor 18-105 

ISO 200 f11 @ 1/125

领导者还是跟随者 The Leader or a Follower ...

Ironically many want to be a Leader;

but without followers, 

there are no Leaders 

...

Location: Malacca Butterfly & Reptile Sanctuary 

马六甲蝴蝶和爬行动物公园
Nikon D90, Tamron AF SP 90mm f/2.8
ISO 1600, "M" mode 1/320 @ F9, 0 EV, WB=Shade

God is with us 神与我们同在 ...

Prayers and blessings
to those impacted
by the Sandy Storm
in New York and America
...

Melaka St. John's Hill 

马六甲市 圣约翰山

Swan 天鹅 ...

I think we all love to see
the elegance of a Swan's neck bending 
...
Did you know that a
"Swan neck" deformity
is a deformed position of the finger
with the nearest joint to the palm is bent away from it 
...

Melacca Zoo 

马六甲动物园

Time to reflect 反映的時間 ...

To be honest, 

I have never looked at the mirror 

to reflect on myself, 

...

Melacca China Town

A Photographer's Excitement 一个摄影师的兴奋 ...

旁观者迷
 páng guān zhě mí
...
I can never understand why a photographer
is so much excited about seeing the 
play of light and shadows 
until I picked up a camera myself 
...

Malacca Sultanate Palace 

苏丹国宫殿

Fading away 逐渐消失 ...

It is better to burn out
than to fade away
(Neil Young)
...
my interpretation
...
It is better to die in one second
than to die slowly
or
the fireworks that light up the sky brilliantly
than a dull candle that burns itself slowly
...
then again
some say
it may be sweeter to linger in the dust 
...

Straits of Melacca at Melacca ...

Love wheels 爱轮 ...

马六甲
Melaka

Moment of silence for NZ's 240 quake victims 为新西兰的240地震灾民默哀 ...

"This is not just New Zealand's tragedy, 

it is an international tragedy 

that is touching the lives of thousands around the world"

My condolences go out to the 

beautiful people of New Zealand ...

Night falls in the Straits of Melacca 

黄昏在马六甲海峡 ...

Malacca Island 

马六甲岛

Sultanate Palace Melaka 苏丹国宫殿 ...

Oct 30, 2010 Melaka

The Malacca Sultanate Palace is an exquisite piece of Malay architecture
and is a replica of the original 15th century palace of Malacca's extinct Sultanate.

The palace is built based on sketches found in the ancient "Malay History" ...

 This wooden replica of the Sultan's palace houses the Malacca Cultural Museum.

These wooden windows are typical of traditional Malay houses ...

The hall ways of these Palace are only filled mostly with natural lights
from the windows and handrails ...

creating very interesting light and shadow ...

The three-storey building is divided into eight chambers 

and three galleries including chambers of the Royal band, weaponry, 

decorative arts, emissaries and gifts, a recreation hall, 

an audience hall and an Islamic hall.

Sad and beauty arises 悲伤和美丽时 ...

Signs of economic troubles ... an abandoned construction site ....

As I find beauty in it ... one early morning ....

For months, cars passed by this construction site; unwary of what was behind the story of these abandoned pillars ....

As if the pillars will stand here forever; the longer it stays here like this; the more worry I see the economy future of this country is heading to .... 

But nobody seems to want to talk about it, as opposite these pillars are rows of uncompleted abandoned shops. My heart feels as I drive past these places ..... 

Yet, that aside ... one can still find beauty in such sad places ....

The Next "Short-sighted" Emperor "近視"皇者风凡 ...

Dragon robe and crown is a sort of costume worn by emperors on the most important occasions in ancient China. Dragon robe refers to the noble dress decorated with rolling dragons while dragon crown is the noble hat.

The dragon embroidered on the robe demonstrates the worship of dragon totem in ancient China, while the shape of the crown (slightly round front and square rear) contains the cultural content of "Round heaven and square earth". The exquisite and graceful dragon robes and crowns preserved in the Palace Museum are an embodiment of supreme dressmaking technique in ancient China. Moreover, they can reflect the aesthetic consciousness in traditional Chinese culture. 

The emperor's words were considered sacred edicts (聖旨), (the Chinese words in the picture below) and his written proclamations "directives from above" (上諭). In theory, the emperor's orders were to be obeyed immediately.

"正大光明" (Chinese words below image) translates to "Open and aboveboard, Without concealment or deception" .... at least in theory ....

"聖旨" or " "directives from above" from the above which really means if you disobey the emperor's orders, you or even your family will be be-headed; and there are no avenues to say otherwise. 

"正大光明" Open and aboveboard, Without concealment or deception. 

To have these 2 words depicted together in the same room is really the biggest irony as where is "Openness and aboveboard" when Obeying the Emperor's orders are the ultimatum. Think of it like this, the entrance to the room says "Openness" "正大光明" which is very inviting but once you walk into and facing the emperor; it says obey me "聖旨".

Today, many societies claim the greatness of the philosophy of "孙子兵法" of "Sun Tzu's art of war" in its application even to the business world, which is all fine; and I myself have read the interprestations several times.

BUT, perhaps the business world have also learned something from this picture of "正大光明" and "聖旨"; as today all marketing products will have the "Great Packaging" in the "Outside" to persuade the customer BUT once you have purchased the product, you are somehow stuck with the "Ugly Truth" of what is Real "Inside" .... 


If you think about it, isn't all POLITICS and POLITICIANS the SAME .... 

On the lighter side of things, for less then $1.50 USD; you can get into an Emperor's robe like this and enjoy a few minutes of it here in a Chinese Restaurant in Melacca China Town.