Posts Tagged ‘vacation’

Holiday greetings: Happy New Year 2021

Friday, January 1st, 2021

It’s 2021. Happy New Year!

Photo credit: Justin Tan @_incognito08_. Sunrise at Mirissa in a whale-watching boat off the coast of Sri Lanka. Circa 2018.

Photo credit: Justin Tan @_incognito08_. Sunrise at Mirissa in a whale-watching boat off the coast of Sri Lanka. Circa 2018.

It’s a new day, new year, with new beginnings.

Let’s hope the new year brings better times and leave behind the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

May the new decade begin!

 

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Closer to home in Singapore, the skies opened up today to usher in the new decade. Video shot with Google Pixel 4 XL.

Holiday greetings: Happy New Year 2020

Wednesday, January 1st, 2020

It’s 2020. Happy New Year! あけましておめでとうございます!

This photo was taken at the entrance of Mousehole, a little town near Penzance that's famous for its Christmas & New Year lights. Photo taken with Google Pixel 4 XL Android phone.

This photo was taken at the entrance of Mousehole, a little town near Penzance that’s famous for its Christmas & New Year lights. Photo taken with Google Pixel 4 XL Android phone.

Best Wishes for the New Year.

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Holiday Greetings: Happy New Year 2019

Tuesday, January 1st, 2019

It’s 2019. Happy New Year!

 

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Sunrise over the Ella Gap in Sri Lanka. Photo taken with Google Pixel 3 XL Android phone, with auto-added saturation in Google Photos.

A new day… A new year … A new beginning.

Best Wishes for the New Year.

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Holiday greetings: Happy New Year 2018

Monday, January 1st, 2018

It’s 2018. Happy New Year!

It's the first day of 2018 today. Here's wishing all a wonderful year ahead!

It’s the first day of 2018 today. Here’s wishing all a wonderful year ahead!

May 2017 be a fantastic year for you and your loved ones!

The photos here were taken at the Xuan Zang Temple (玄奘寺)at Sun Moon Lake (日月潭) in central Taiwan, during my recent family vacation there.

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A worshipper praying at Xuan Zang Temple (玄奘寺)at Sun Moon Lake (日月潭) in central Taiwan.

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Holiday greetings: Happy New Year 2017

Sunday, January 1st, 2017

It’s 2017. Happy New Year!

A photo posted by John Tan (@tech4tea) on

Craft animals on display in a shop along the old streets of Jiufen (九份) in Taiwan. Photo taken with Canon EOS 5DsR with Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM lens.

May 2017 be a fantastic year for you and your loved ones!

Last day of 2016 – New Year’s Eve for 2017

Saturday, December 31st, 2016

It’s the last day of 2016. Hope you had a good year!

A photo posted by John Tan (@tech4tea) on

Golden Sunset at Tamsui in Taiwan. Photo credit: kkmakesandbakes (my wife). Taken with Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with M.Zuiko 25mm f1.8 lens.

Glad the year’s drawing to a close. Best wishes for the New Year!

Holiday greetings: Happy Lunar New Year 2016

Monday, February 8th, 2016

Happy New Year to all the people from cultures that celebrate this traditional festival! And to all Chinese around the world, Happy Chinese New Year!

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It’s Chinese New Year today and the beginning of the Monkey year in the Chinese Zodiac. Happy Chinese New Year!

It’s the first day of the Lunar New Year. This year, it’s the year of the Monkey, according to the Chinese zodiac.

We took the photo when our family visited Jigokudani in Nagano back in 2008 to see the unique Snow Monkeys that indulge in the natural hotsprings there amidst the Winter snow.

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Time to say goodbye to the Goat Year

Sunday, February 7th, 2016

Today is the eve of the Lunar New Year, and the last day of the year of the Goat.

A photo posted by John Tan (@tech4tea) on

Saying goodbye to the Goat Year. Today is the last day of the year of the Goat Zodiac. Tomorrow is the traditional Chinese New Year and the beginning of the Monkey Year.

Tomorrow is the traditional New Year based on the Lunar calendar and the beginning of the Monkey Year, according to the Chinese Zodiac.

The curious goat in the photo was grazing on farmland on the mountainside overlooking Zell am See in Austria.

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Happy New Year 2015

Friday, January 1st, 2016

A new dawn to a new day. A new year for a new beginning.

I hope this sunrise is symbolic of the hope that the new year brings to those looking for a new beginning in their lives. Taken handheld using a Nikon D750 with AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4G ED VR lens. Photo credit: John Tan.

I hope this sunrise is symbolic of the hope that the new year brings to those looking for a new beginning in their lives. Taken handheld using a Nikon D750 with AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4G ED VR lens. Photo credit: John Tan.

Here’s wishing everyone a fantastic 2016, a new year that will bring new aspirations and immense fulfillment.

About the photo

Snapped this shot while strolling on the beach in Thailand a few weeks ago in pre-dawn darkness.

It was a rare shot for me in that the horizon was clear of the usual haze and layer of clouds so the rising sun could be seen emerging from the horizon itself.

It was breathtaking how the nascent sun lit up the sky with golden and red hues as it tore itself from the horizon.

POTD: Who designed & built Eiffel Tower in Paris, France?

Sunday, June 28th, 2015

Photo of the Day: The Eiffel Tower is named after engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. His company designed and built the landmark in Paris in 1889.

View of the Trocadéro framed by the bottom of the Eiffel Tower. Taken with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II with EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.

View of the Trocadéro framed by the bottom of the Eiffel Tower. Taken with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II with EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.

According to Wikipedia, “the design of the Eiffel Tower was originated by Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier, two senior engineers who worked for the Compagnie des Établissements Eiffel”.

This was the dude who brought the Eiffel Tower into this world - Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923). The bust was unveiled in 1929 and is now at the base of the Northern leg of the Tower. Taken with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II with EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.

This was the dude who brought the Eiffel Tower into this world – Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923). The bust was unveiled in 1929 and is now at the base of the Northern leg of the Tower. Taken with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II with EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.

The tower was to serve as a centrepiece for the Exposition Universelle to celebrate the centennial of the French Revolution.

Incidentally, the first time I visited the Eiffel Tower was in 1989, smack in the middle of the bicentennial celebrations of the French Revolution.

Gustave Eiffel bought the rights to the patent for the design which the original designers had taken out and eventually saw the Tower to completion in time.

As with all things new, the design met with opposition and criticism right from design stage till after completion – but history has proven that the design is technically robust and aesthetically appealing.

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