Security in a war zone

Due to the Red Mosque stand-off and the recent suicide attacks all major Islamabad hotels are operated under the strictest security measures. After your car has been checked for bombs you will be allowed to drive through the gate to the parking lot of the hotel but you are not allowed to drive towards the entrance of the lobby. As seen above a bus is placed directly in front to block the way towards the entrance of the lobby. Feeling safe now?

Photo from Islamabad in July 2007.

Modern Creators

Here we go.... Find one of the modern creators below.

Photo from Lahore in July 2007.

Welcome to the modern world: zero interest banking

Living in paradise:
Interest free but modern banking.

Advertisement from today's Pakistani Dawn newspaper.

Adding culture to a urinal

Am I getting it right?

1. Get the willie out
2. Spay some water from the Muslim Shower onto the third leg
3. Clean the wiener with toilet paper
4. Have a pee
5. Spray some water from the hand held 'bidet' onto the whammer
6. Clean the pee-dee with toilet paper
7. Call somebody to clean the floor

…or is it for women? .....because 'Women today are better hung than men!'

Photo of a ‘cultured urinal’ from Lahore’s Royal Palm Golf and Country Club in July 2007.

Friday prayers in Lahore

The aftermath of the Islamabad's Red Mosque siege is still felt everywhere in Pakistan. Most mosques are currently heavily protected as seen here on a photo from today (Friday, 27 July 2007) in Lahore.

Traffic jam in Pakistan

Photo from September 2003 close to Jhelum, Pakistan.

Real Butthead

You might recall 'the other butthead' but the pictured one from February 1991 in Pashupatinat, Nepal is real.

Architectual delight

Usually you will find these gates as entrances to parks of French castles but Manila is offering some exceptions as pictured above. What kind of architectural style has that building? Looks like a house being influenced from at least 2500 years of architectural history. It’s a remarkable job putting all that influence into the forefront by also using some color influences from Pompeii. As you know, Manila is situated on the 'ring of fire'. At least the color fits.

Photo from one of Quezon City's (Manila) gated communities in January 2007.

Beauty contest

Photo from 'O' (with merci) of a 'beauty contest' in Puerto Galera in April 2007.

Crazy about you

She must be really crazy if she enjoys you wasting all this time in traffic jams. What a triumph!

Photo from April 2007 in Makati (somewhere along EDSA).

Driver has limited view

The sign on this car is spelling out what applies to most drivers: 'limited view......'.

Photo from Sorsogon in April 2007.

After an 'all you can eat' event

Photo from La Loma, Metro Manila in March 2007.

Nude in Manila

Photo from La Loma, Metro Manila in March 2007.

Feeling safe now?

I happened to see this ready-to-use gun on the thigh of this fellow in San Fernando, Pampanga in April 2007. I wonder how many others are driving with guns in the Philippines?

Do you feel safe now?

best beds in town

Photo from Intramuros, Manila in April 2007.

Studio Type Room

For this 'studio type' room the owner also accepts bed spacers. You better inquire quickly where the arrow is pointing to. Don't miss your chance.

Photo from La Loma, Metro Manila in March 2007.

The Wild Wild East

Pack the jeepney, bring your guns,
and enjoy the beautiful scenery!

Photo from somewhere in Ifugao, Luzon Island, April 2006.

Tuko makes the real gecko sound

If you really want to know where the name 'gecko' comes from you have to listen to the sound of the Tokay gecko (or tuko as the Filipinos call it). The tuko is making the gecko-gecko-gecko sounds some 4/5 times and during the last one is sounds as if the gecko is 'out of air' and unable to produce another gecko sound.

The pictured tuko is from Laiya, Batangas in July 2004. If you have a tuko in your house/cabin you will hear such gecko sounds also at night. Actually, quite similar to cocks which also wake you up at strange hours during the night. I don’t want to go into too many details but make sure that you don’t have such a tuko above your bed since it……

Tukos are quite common in houses, less common are monitor lizards...

Tanga talk!

If it's a tanga or thong it doesn't matter. Fact is, it talks!

Photo from Cafe Havana in Malate in June 2007.

Under the Gun

The presence of guns in the Philippines is impossible to ignore. Ubiquitous signs in airports, government offices, bars, discotheques or movie theaters request that people check their firearms before entering. According the some estimates more than half a million illegal firearms are in circulation. I know, the situation seems to be better than some 10 years back but if you open the newspapers you always find a number of people being killed. I am not talking about the sad story of journalists being killed (the Philippines comes second after Iraq since 2002) but about all these neighbor and traffic disputes which often end up in using guns as the ultimate answer.

Photo from Malate in July 2007.

Hot dogs

Manila hot dogs as seen in Tiendesitas, Pasig City in July 2007.

Imodium and Manila's taxis

Trust me, you need a high dose of imodium to survive Manila's traffic. One dose, one hour is hardly enough to drive from North to South at rush hour ...

Photo from Makati, Metro Manila in July 2007.

Only in the Philippines...

Just name another country where you would find a monster billboard searching for Ms Ugly? To me, this can only happen in the Philippines. Quite culturally unique this country.

Giant billboard above EDSA at Guadalupe MRT Station, Makati in July 2007.

07 07 07 and some years back

Too funny?

Sønderborg, Denmark on 07 07 90.

Big belly diving

This pregnancy dive is showing that it makes no difference to the Archimedes' principle if a body contains another body as shown on this picture from Moalboal, Cebu in June 2007.

Where is the 'Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus' on this picture?

Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head

Let the raindrops keep fallin' on your head while being under water.

Photo from Moalboal, Cebu in June 2007.

Turtle out in the blue

Just a nice turtle picture....

If you want to learn more on 'why the sky is blue' follow me here.

Photo from Moalboal, Cebu in June 2007.

Underwater Wedding

Congrats to the newly weds!

Photo of M&M at Moalboal, Cebu in June 2007.

Mollusc Art

Mollusc at Maolboal, Cebu in June 2007.