Photos

Technically this photo was taken in Macau, which is now a part of China, but it's designated as a special zone like Hong Kong; we were there just a week or so after the handover (from Portugal to China) in Dec. of 1999, which was exciting. This is the Moon Gate at the Temple of Ama, the oldest in Macau. It's interesting because the temple is essentially a complex of terraces going up a steep hillside with lots of stairs, which I thought was unique. One of the most well-known aspects of this temple is the lighting of giant strings of fireworks for good luck; down in the courtyard at the bottom of the hill there is red paper blowing everywhere from the exploded fireworks! They hang a long string from a pole and set them off, which we got to see! I will load another photo of the whole complex in a day or so... I thought that this architectural element was really unique. I tried to get the incense behind it in the shot also but it's not very visible...

The updated version now has a better frame, which I think really brings out the colors, and was sharpened a bit. I also adjusted the lighting, tried to compensate for the tilt in the first one and cropped it down. I think reducing the size from 800 to 750 or so actually helps quite a lot. I hope this one's more presentable!