Osaka Kaiyukan (Aquarium)

Pirarucu (Arapaima gigas). Equador rainforest tank.

Finally! I finally visited the Osaka Aquarium last Sunday. I absolutely love the place. The price is a bit steep but it is worth every penny. There are sixteen tanks, the largest of which is the Pacific Ocean tank which houses the great whale shark. Below are the photos taken at the aquarium. For more photos, please visit my flickr album.


A faithful recreation of the Great Barrier reef


The Equador Rainforest tank


The Garibaldi fish, Kelp forest tank


Sardines, anchovies and perjerries. Coast of Chile tank


The Whale shark. Pacific Ocean tank


I am the man! The Manta ray, Pacific Ocean tank. I like this picture a lot because of the pose but it is not clear. There are clearer pictures of the ray in the flickr album


The Pacific Ocean tank. Whale shark, manta ray and the bluefin tunas.


Penguin in motion. Antartica tank


Diving. Antartica tank


Giant Spider Crabs. Japan Deeps tank


Moon Jellyfishes


Atlantic Sea nettles. They look like aliens in one of those sci-fi movies.


Lion's mane jellyfish


Pacific Sea nettles


Black sea nettles


Bell Jellies


Close up of the bell jelly


Watch out! Pacific Ocean tank.


One of my favourite pictures from the set. Tentacles.

Maikos for a day

My friends decided to be maikos for a day. Well, technically it was just for an hour or so and they didn't have to do anything except to pose for pictures in the studio and for us amateur photographers. But it was fun! Mai had already posted up pictures of the day's session on her blog. Please visit the site for her personal take on being a 'maiko' for a day.



The day started with the trip to the photo studio shop. There were many packages that you can choose from with one package at a whooping price of 100 000¥! My friends, there were 6 of them, chose the standard package of 2 studio photos and a short time outside for their own photography.



The staff at the studio was most efficient. The whole process of applying the make-up and putting on the kimonos was like a factory assembly line. That particular day, the staff had to handle 60 clients.



They had to go through the whole make-up process and then, they had to be helped into the kimonos. Finally they had to wear the heavy false maiko hair.


P'Pum

Finally the girls are ready to face the world as maikos.


Jill and Bow



These were the other two ladies who were in the studio at the same time as my friends.


Bow


Jill, side profile



Yes, we had an obsession with the fan. Everyone had to have a picture taken with the fan. So cliche but oh well...


Jill, close-up


Pear, full profile



If you can just ignore the hair netting, this picture is quite nice. I should photoshop it.


Pear and yes, the fan


Mai looking regal


Mai acting!


Of course this set is not complete until we have Mai with the fan shot


I really think that this picture is like some advert for a comedy show or something!


For more pictures, please go to my flickr album.

Zelve Open Museum, Cappadocia, Turkey

Zelve Open-Air Museum is a breathtaking site, with three valleys of rock-cut houses and churches. The area was inhabited by people until 1952. It was then that the valleys were judged to be too dangerous and the inhabitants were relocated to a nearby village called Yeni Zelve (New Zelve).



There is also the remains of a simple rock-cut mosque among the churches and houses. Zelve's churches are not so fantastically adorned with frescoes like those in Göreme Open-air Museum.



The rock-cut houses. Though you can explore and even enter some of these houses, most of the the places are off-limits due to danger of collapse.



Inside one of the houses after climbing up a creaky and rusty metal staircase. The shaky ladder did not inspire confidence in me but the view from that height (not that high) and through the 'doorways and windows' was quite spectacular.



A camel, a donkey and a line of fairy chimneys. Zelve is famous for its fairy chimneys (peribacalar) which are formed when the lava covering the tuff is eroded, leaving pinnacle formations. These pinnacles are capped with harder rocks resting at the top. This is in Paşabağı, Zelve.



A smaller, isolated fairy chimney.



And the unique trio of fairy chimneys.



There were many souvenir shops around this place and if you want to buy a keepsake of Cappadocia, why not splurge on one of these? I didn't. I have my photos as memories.



This picture was taken on our way to Zelve. Beautiful isn't it?



And this is another view of the Zelve Open-Air Museum. A wider view.

Correction

In the previous three posts, I had talked about Göreme National Park. However, because my brain was obviously not functioning very well (I blame the weather!), I made a huge mistake. The rock churches are located in the Göreme Open Air Museum, not Göreme National Park. I apologize for the mistake and had made corrections to the posts. The next posts will be on Göreme National Park.

Göreme Open Air Museum, Cappadocia, Turkey. (Part III)

As I promised, the best for last. Below are the pictures taken inside the Karanlik (Dark) church in Göreme Open Air Museum, Cappadocia, Turkey. It is called the Dark church because there is only a tiny window to let the light in. Because of the lack of light, the frescoes here are very well preserved with the colours still so vivid. Take a look.



The little and only window in the church.



This is a close up of the fresco on the walls where the window is situated. As you enter deeper into the church, the interior is illuminated with yellow lights positioned on the floors.





Yes, yes, I know....my head is in the picture. You see, the 'smart' me forgot to bring along her tripod, thus I have no where to balance the camera to take this pictures. So the railings, the floor...anywhere where I can place my camera became my tripod. My head was there because the camera was on the ground and I have no idea that I was in the frame.