a common sight along the state highway 73 while crossing the main divide of the south island. the clear and serene views of the arthur’s pass national park, finely composed of mountains and tussock grasslands was a parting gift to us after 5 days of travelling and gorging the staggering landscape. june 2010.
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a mysterious water monitor poked out its elongated neck through the lush vegetation while looking at an erupting anak krakatau, or might be pissed off at me for blocking the view, either way it befuddles me to this day. the sole scavenging species of pulau sertung, numbering in hundreds and closely related to the common monitor lizard, albeit a bit more slender and arguably uglier, showed no fear towards the visiting humans that we were the ones who needed constant vigilance from being mobbed, much to the delight of our local guides. january 2011.
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light traffic at the intersection of thetpathom rd. and saritwong rd. on a monday noon in the extra clean but empty town centre of su-ngai kolok, thailand. formerly made famous by the nightlife entertainment it provides but lately more in the news because of the unrest the mujahideen activity brings. june 2011.
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while tackling an uphill climb along telok paku trail, bako national park, we crossed paths with this shy terrestrial hermit crab of coenobita genus, safely retracted its whole body upon being discovered. we waited for quite sometime before it began to show its face for a solo portrait and we parted ways soon after. february 2011.
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the snow covered coronet peak, at 1,649m, is the first commercial skifield in new zealand, accessible through the narrow gorge rd. from queenstown. photo was taken 17 km away from the top of queenstown skyline gondola windy viewing deck facing northeast in june 2010.
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the most photographed object in fraser’s hill, the vine covered clock tower sits among old tudor style architecture buildings in the english village square. the spot was surprisingly empty as renovation work was in progress at the time the photo was captured in december 2007. nowadays it is brimming with people. 😦
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a backroad junction off from the great alpine road where i stopped for a quick smoking break but decided seconds later to resist from lighting up for fear of sparking a wildfire. instead i immersed myself with the stunning views of the dry winter poplars, grass and the sweeping farmlands. near tarrawingee, victoria in june 2010.
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a calm before the feeding frenzy began. a laidback huge monitor, together with hundreds of its kind, co-owner of sapi island with sabah parks management, off the coast near kota kinabalu, lazily basking under the blistering sun. quite a few (the huge, old and wise ones including this one) are deemed friendly enough to be permitted to roam freely among the visitors and been fed food excess regularly by the local tour operators. i took my love hate relationship with the ugly creatures to another level that day. mid june 2011.
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a latest resident of my parents’ home garden, presumably a descendant of the subject from an earlier post, this large female batik golden orb weaver was hauling her latest highly proteinous prey, an innocent katydid, a long horned grasshopper, although more related to crickets than grasshoppers. upon reaching the centre of the huge fortress of cluster web, her brunch was indubitably secured. perrennially intrigued, i said my prayer and left them in peace. ketereh, mid june 2011.
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i am not a fan of food in general, unlike sex, food is only good when you are hungry. however, these tropical fruits, the purple mangosteen do seem to make an exception everytime i came across them. the fruits are excellent for consumption fresh, ripe or even spoil. pic was taken at a fruit stall in kundasang, sabah. july 2008.
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nitzus 