1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #547 - Heli ride to Lukla, Nepal

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #547

- Heli ride to Lukla, Nepal

(No airport looks or feels like Kathmandu's internal flights section, especially those flying to Lukla, the gateway to the Everest Base Camp trek. So much chaos - but it works! Regular flight were delayed due to thick clouds in Lukla. But the helicopters were buzzing about like a busy bee's nest. So off we go to Lukla, some 50mins away, in one of  Air Dynasty's choppers. If these guys sound familiar, it is because they were the same guys who brought us down from Tengboche, as part of its heli-rescue 2 years ago. Haha, what coincidence)

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #546 - Katy Perry "Witness" Concert, Singapore Indoor Stadium

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #546

- Katy Perry "Witness" Concert, Singapore Indoor Stadium

(We missed out on getting the tickets for Bruno Mars, so we were not going to miss out again on the other superstar, Katy Perry. Her "Witness" concert must have at least 10 costume changes, with props of all kinds being put on stage and constantly rotated. The sound system was loud and thumping, but it could have been a tad lower, so that we can hear Katy's voice better. Of course, the big song came out last - "Firework" - compete with fireworks on stage and around parts of the stadium - see video below. It was a spectacular ending for a real showwoman, at the top of her game, still. But where is my recent favourite, "Feels"?)

 

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #545 - Evita Concert, Marina Bay Sands

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #545

- Evita Concert, Marina Bay Sands

(It was an experience we wanted to have, especially after our recent trips to Argentina, including Ushuaia last November. True to Andrew Lloyd Webber form, the show was slick and professional staged. The main song, Don't Cry For Me, Argentina, of course took the cake. Now, my cultural immersion of Argentina is complete - maybe)

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #544 - Old Town, Stockholm

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #544

- Old Town, Stockholm

(Before flying back home, we stopped at Stockholm and enjoyed our day out at the Old Town. We remembered our last trip here 5 years ago when we were given 1hr to see this Old Town by the tour group manager. This time, we had plenty of time on our hands to soak up this loely part of Stockholm. We even stopped at the bakery in front of the Nobel Museum to have our fill of their freshly baked cakes. We succumbed to temptation and decided to wrap home a bag full of their cakes - very nice!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #543 - Aurora on Huskies Sled, Kiruna

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #543

- Aurora on Huskies Sled, Kiruna 

 

(We couldn't come all the way here in Arctic Kiruna and not ride on a husky-driven sled. So we combined both this ride and another opportunity to hunt for a new but elusive aurora. We arrived at the ranch, with nearly 40 huskies here. Again, we slipped into another set of arctic clothings and boots, and off we go - 12 handsome huskies pulling 5 people, including our guide Pierre. In -22C temperature, we were literally getting frozen as the huskies dutifully brought us some 5km into the pine forest, to rest beside a tent. The fire in the tent was much-needed, in this coldest temperature we have ever experienced. But the 'fire' outside the tent was the real star - another Northern Lights, this time even more spectacular, opened up right near the horizon of the forest. It even started dancing in the sky for us. What a sensational way to end our arctic experience here in Kiruna - simply wow!)