Cliff(y) Goes Travelling

Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia If there's one day trip that simply can't be missed when visiting Melbourne, it has to be the Great Ocean Road, a spectacular coastal drive stretching over 240 km along the southern coastline of the state of Victoria. Rather than renting a car, my travel buddy and I opted to join the Great Ocean Road Reverse Itinerary Tour organised by Hit the Road Tours .

257 Senjojikishita, Gifu City, Gifu, Japan Rising to a height of 329 m, Mount Kinka stands proudly along a section of Nagara River in the heart of Gifu City. Formerly known as Mount Inaba, which was the name of the original castle perched on top of it, it's the most famous mountain in the city. Visitors can take a ropeway to the summit, a convenient alternative for those not keen on hiking all the way up.

Quba District, Azerbaijan Welcome to Part 2 of my Quba and Khinaliq Tour. As a quick recap, in Part 1 , I covered the journey from Baku to Quba with two brief stops at a convenience store along the highway to see Beshbarmag Dag, and at Qachrash Forest respectively. The day tour saw me getting pretty close to Russia, the closest I've ever been to that largest country in the world, in fact.

Quba District, Azerbaijan After enjoying the half-day group tour to Qobustan by TES Tour, my BFF and I embarked on a full-day group tour to Quba and Khinaliq by the same tour operator on our second last day in the country. On our way to Khinaliq, which is known to be the highest and most remote village in Azerbaijan, we passed by the city of Quba.

Qobustan State Historical and Cultural Reserve, Qobustan, Azerbaijan Azerbaijan is known to be the country with the most mud volcanoes, having more than half of the world's 700 spready broadly across the country. The locals call them bozdag (lit. grey mountain). Still on the half-day group tour to Qobustan by TES Tour, we shall now move on to see those small mud-ejecting craters not too far from  Qobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape . 

Qobustan State Historical and Cultural Reserve, Qobustan, Azerbaijan Daily: 9.00am - 5.00pm Qobustan is a small municipality that's approximately 65 km from Baku, a perfect destination for a day trip. Located to the west of the settlement is a historical and cultural reserve, part of which features archaeological monuments with captivating rock carvings that have been preserved from the Upper Paleolithic era to the Middle Ages.

Clementi, Singapore In October 2020, a Singaporean by the name Brice Li captured a stunning footage of the misty foliage of Clementi Forest, which has since attracted the attention of many. It was a fun experience trekking in the muddy forest, which led me to an old Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) railway tunnel.

From Bukit Timah Road to Holland Road, Singapore Keretapi Tanah Melayu, the main railway operator of Malaysia, used to operate train services between Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and Woodlands Train Checkpoint till mid-2011. Somewhere along the 24-km route is now a nature trail named Green Corridor. The legendary Clementi Forest, which has recently enjoyed the limelight, is accessible from the trail. 

Icefields Parkway, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada How many of you've had the experience of walking on a glass-floor walkway? For someone who's afraid of heights, the idea seemed rather daunting to me. The cliff-edge Columbia Icefield Skywalk offers a spectacular view of Sunwapta Valley at Jasper National Park.

Icefields Parkway, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada Athabasca Glacier is one of the six principal 'toes' of Columbia Icefield, which is the largest ice field in the Rocky Mountains. It shares the same name with Athabasca Lake that means 'place where the reeds grow' in the Cree dialect, an aboriginal language with the highest number of speakers in Canada.

The Whistlers Trail, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada The Whistlers, standing at 2,470 m above sea level, is a mountain in the Trident Range of the Canadian Rockies. The easiest way to reach the summit is to take  Jasper SkyTram  to an elevation of 2,263 m and trek all the way up. Take note that the ascent can be pretty steep.

Maligne Lake, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada Spirit Island is a peninsula that looks like an islet, which is located on a remote shore of Maligne Lake. Surrounded by high peaks and glaciers, it's a view many people associate with the Canadian Rockies. Most people get up close and personal with Spirit Island via cruise tours. Paddling on your own can take four hours one way.

Maligne Lake Road, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada Prior to the trip, I'd booked Premium Lakes and Wildlife Tour with SunDog Tours priced at C$174.00 (~S$180.20) per person. Maligne Canyon, the first destination in the itinerary, is the deepest canyon in Jasper National Park with a depth of more than 50 metres at certain points.

3690 Park Road, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Daily: 7.00am - 6.00pm (winter) or 7.00pm (fall) or 8.00pm (spring & summer) If you're thinking of doing suspension bridge crossing without wanting to pay such a hefty price at Capilano Suspension Bridge Park, you should schedule Lynn Canyon Park into your itinerary. First opened to the public in 1912, the park covers an area of 250 hectares.

South of Helsinki, Finland Welcome to the second part of my adventure in Suomenlinna, one of the seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Finland. After exploring the northern island as described in Part 1 , my BFF and I made our way to the southern island to discover more of the unique military architecture.

South of Helsinki, Finland Translated as 'Castle of Finland' from Finnish, Suomenlinna is an inhabited 18th century sea fortress built on a few islands off the coast of southern Helsinki. Designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991, it offers a picturesque landscape that's perfect for a day trip from the city.

Johan & Margaretha, Suriname As mentioned in the previous post , one of the activities that my BFF and I experienced during the boat trip organised by Orange Travel was exploring a small, peaceful coastal village. It's home to a few hundreds of citizens, most of whom are of Javanese and East Indian origin.

Paramaribo, Suriname Orange Travel is a highly reliable tour and travel company based in Paramaribo. Prior to our arrival, my BFF and I'd engaged them to book a spot for a popular 3-hour trip that'd bring us across Suriname River and Commewijne River in the northern part of the capital city.

Zaandam, the Netherlands A trip to the Netherlands isn't complete without getting up close and personal with its windmills. Historic windmills and distinctive wooden houses have been relocated to the recreational area reminiscent of an 18th century village. Due to its proximity to Amsterdam, many people choose to go to Zaanse Schans on a day trip.

Kisikli Neighbourhood, Istanbul, Turkey Daily: 8.00am - 12 midnight With the help of my sister, my BFF and I finally made it to the Asian side of Istanbul. We'd wanted to go to the scenic Camlica Hill during our first visit to Turkey, but we didn't manage to. With the recent opening of the first half of the Uskudar-Cekmekoy metro line, it's now much easier to reach the hill by public transport.