LAST EDITED ON 04-22-05 AT 02:53 PM (EST)I was inspired by Sittem showing us his(?) wonderful photos of the Chicago Finish Line here, so here's my share of photos of TAR locations! (Don't laugh at those with the ugly mug in it - that's me.)
In a new thread to prevent hijacking of Sittem's one and to stop bandwidth from getting killed.
TAR1, TAR2 - BANGKOK, THAILAND
Bangkok Intl Airport
Remember the specially designated areas that read 'For Monks Only'? This one was especially hard to find.
Royal Hotel
Where Kevin/Drew spent their first night, near the Democracy Monument. I also have a photo of the hotel where the Guidos sat on their Fast Forward, but haven't had the time to scan it into my computer yet.
Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn
The cluebox was on the left end of the photo, just at the top of the stair landing.
This puppy (or one of its relatives) licked Rob awake about five years ago!
The alleyways behind the temple, where teams that chose the Private option of the Detour had to find their cars. Really confusing and huge neighbourhood.
Wat Pho, the Temple of the Reclining Buddha
Yep, here's the Buddha, directly across the river from the Temple of Dawn.
The most fiercely-competed-for Fast Forward yet. It was fun though!
Siam Train Station
In the heart of the city, where Tara/Wil still work, or worked.
Erawan Shrine
About five minutes walking distance from the Siam Station. The cluebox was at the right end of this photo.
Confusion Now
Just walk straight north for fifteen minutes and you'll hit Klong Mahanak and Pratunam Pier for the boat.
Here's the bird market, located across the street from Loha Prasat. Sadly, the market has been pulled down after the bird flu scare of 2003.
And here's Loha Prasat, where Cyndi/Russell winded up, and started climbing the stupas.
Confusion Later
Lee Tee Beo Shrine in Chinatown, the place where teams burned and offered cars to their ancestors. A killer to find that I happened to stumble upon, there are too many corners and bends in the area. Just try walking north and west from the White Orchid Hotel until you hit Soi 16.
Tuk Tuks
Remember the tuk tuk battle between Chris/Alex and Gary/Dave?
Pak Klong Talad
The flower market at the start of Leg 2.6. The specific stall is along Thanon Chakkaphet, a few stalls away from the main junction of the market.
Hualamphong Train Station
Where teams waited for their train to Chiang Mai.
TAR2 - CHIANG MAI, THAILAND
Actually passed by the elephant camp where they washed elephants, but didn't take any photos.
Mae Ping River
A really bad shot of the river that the teams rafted down. Head north from Chiang Mai and you will definitely pass the river before reaching Chiang Dao.
Karen Village
Actually, this is just a random Karen Village. The one that TAR visited was just east of Chiang Dao.
Wat Chet Yot, the Temple of Seven Spires
Another bad shot taken from a bus. It's on the northeastern edge of the centre of town, take a taxi there.
TAR2 - HONG KONG, CHINA
On my second trip taking photos in Hong Kong, my camera ended up being stolen in Guangzhou, up in mainland China. Sorry about that.
Central Plaza
The (once) tallest building in Hong Kong. You can go up to the 46th floor to the viewing gallery. Photos are somewhere with someone in China.
Wong Tai Sin Temple
The main temple complex, a short walk from the train station.
The 'mall complex' to the left of the temple, where fortune tellers sell their trade. Here's the shop of Amelia Chow at the basement level!
Star Ferry
Here's the Tsim Sha Tsui side of the Star Ferry, linking this to Wan Chai where Central Plaza is.
The Star Ferry making its way across the harbour.
Where the cluebox was located, at the bus terminal outside the ferry pier. The producers actually made a mistake, putting this at the exit to the Central ferry instead of the one from Wan Chai.
Wishing Tree
In the New Territories, quite a way out of town. You can take a bus from the main KCR train line.
Herbal Tea
Sang Sang Medicine Hall, at 53 Reclamation Street, a really long walk away from the Star Ferry pier. Walk up Nathan St, turn left on Saigon St and right again on Reclamation St.
HIT Container Terminal
The world's largest container terminal at Kwai Chung. You can actually get a pretty good view of the entire port by taking 'A' buses from Central to the Airport.
Duk Ling Junk
For tourist bookings every Thursday. You'll have to book tickets with your passports at one of the tourist centres around town, like the one in The Centre (where Mary/Peach mistakenly went to). There's really very little space for a mat in the boat, but apparently they managed to squeeze it on board.
Repulse Bay
There are two statues there, and I'm not sure if this is the photo of the correct one. One is of Tin Hau, the goddess of the sea, the other Kwun Yam, which I think is pictured here. The two statues stand side by side on Repulse Bay. Take any 6 bus from Central.
Stanley
Continue on the same bus down to Stanley. Here's the location of the cluebox, right in the centre of the photo.
And here's Murray House, where the teams were directed. There's always some dragon boating going on in the background.
Lucky Building
The building that got Oswald/Danny the fastest flight to Sydney. It's on Wellington Street in Central. The Starbucks they patronized is further down the street towards the Bank of China, and the shopping mall is the Landmark, a posh place just a right turn from the Starbucks.
TAR3 - KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA
KL Intl Airport
The place where Ken/Gerald were prancing around!
Petronas Towers
Performing another TAR task: getting locals to take photos of me and the towers on a digital camera.
Ampang Park
The train station which Teri/Ian bumbled into looking for the shopping centre. It's right outside the mall.
The Quick Foto shop with blatent product placement! Walk straight after entering the mall, then turn left halfway down. Something to note, the Kodak EasyShare machine is no longer there...
KL Railway Station
More for tourists than for transport, Teri/Ian make another wrong turn and head here while looking for the train to Singapore.
Train to Singapore
It's a long half-day ride, but the scenery outside is nice. Memories of Flo playing cards with Drew.
TAR3 - SINGAPORE
Also have photos of the booth where Colin 'intensely' made his flight bookings, but I'll have to scan that in as well.
Train Station
Actually a part of Malaysia right smack in downtown Singapore, this is where you end up when you take the train to the island.
National Orchid Garden
Here's Margaret Thatcher! Oh, and almost all the teams ran through the patch of grass with a sign that said 'Keep of the grass'.
Singapore Zoological Gardens
Still remember Teri's paper underwear? The manatees here sure do. Take a bus from Yio Chu Kang train station.
Bukit Panjang
Choa Chu Kang Central, block 229, unit #10-137. Get there by taking the Light Rail one stop from Choa Chu Kang. The block is the one directly to the north. Take the lift to the 11th floor, walk left down the corridor, then walk down the staircase to the 10th floor. It's not that hard, really. Even though Phua Chu Kang doesn't live here, bring earplugs still - the whine of Flo still reverberates throughout the estate.
Fountain of Wealth
Site of the. Lamest. Roadblock. Ever. The one that they didn't even air. Well, I went ahead and ran three times around the fountain anyway. The cluebox was on the right side of the path to the centre.
Mount Faber
Where John Vito/Jill were sadly eliminated. The mat was on the arrow pointing towards 'Haw Par Villa'. Be warned - the run up to the lookout point from the road is rather tiring.
Covered the places in Manila, including the Giant Duck at Masapang (six hour bus ride from Manila), the Malaguena Motors Factory (taxi driver thought I was crazy for making him drive two hours out of town) and the Coconut Palace (the guide there asked if I watched TAR!), but they disappeared with the camera that got stolen... I'll be going backpacking across Vietnam soon, so that will be two more legs completed. Please share your journeys and experiences!
LAST EDITED ON 06-22-05 AT 02:25 AM (EST)Continuing my ill-fate with cameras (is that even a word?), most of the photos of my latest trip died along with the memory card that crashed and had to be reformatted. Did manage to save the photos that I developed though, so here's the Vietnam leg of TAR3!
Bac Ho Statue
Right in the middle of town, you won't miss it on a tour around the city.
Cai Be Floating Market - Easy Buy or Hard Sell
The floating market is a two-hour bus ride away from Ho Chi Minh City, and isn't as big as the episode made it look. Ran into another 'storm of the century' there, apparently it rains there every afternoon in the summer!
2A Ton Duc Thang - Cyclo Pick-Up Point
Lost the photo of the building, but you can see it here on the left. The numbering system is a little strange here; the Legend Hotel is also numbered 2A. Ton Duc Thang swerves west onto another street at its southern end, and it's on this other street that you can find the building.
Café Thu Thiem
Take the ferry near the northern end of Ton Duc Thang, it costs like 1 cent to get across. Locals will look at you crazy; no tourist ever goes over to the other side of the Saigon River. Sadly, I've to announce that the Pitstop for the Ho Chi Minh leg is no more. The bamboo structure is still there, but all the furnishings are gone, save a couple of tables. Turn right once you get off the ferry onto the only road in District 2, then walk for 5 minutes before there's a bend to the right towards the river. The Pitstop was sited just before the little bridge across Rach Cau Ong Cay.
Ga Saigon - Train Station
Another place where Flo whined, the train station is a little out of the way to the north of the city. The benches in the second terminal that Flo was sleeping on are actually used for queueing, so there must have been a crowd of unhappy Vietnamese waiting around for her to move her... behind. Most other train stations, Hanoi, Danang and Hué have the same basic design, and it's true that they play horribly loud music in the morning to wake everyone up!
Hien Lam Cac, Imperial City, Hué
The Hien Lam Pavilion is on your extreme left once you enter the Imperial City. Pretty hard to find if there's no one around to ask directions.
Nam O - Basket Boats or Basket Bikes
Sorry, pictures of Nam O were deleted. It's just a little north of Danang, and all trains and buses between Hué and Danang pass through the town. (This is not a distance for taking taxis!) It's quite a distance to paddle the basket boats; the river is really wide. If you don't see a basket bike on the roads, you can find one at the Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi.
Thu Bon River, Hoi An - Raising Fishing Nets
The river runs past the centre of the town, and you can still see many of the fishing nets hanging above the river. Bach Dang Wharf is halfway between the Japanese Covered Bridge and the Central Market.
China Beach - Pitstop
Beautiful beach with clear waters. A 20-minute cab right out of Danang will bring you here. On the opposite side of town is the Quang Minh Temple, the last clue in Vietnam. Not many taxi drivers know about it, but they will all try to fake you into getting into their cars; make sure they know where they're going.
That's it for now, hopefully we can cover the entire racecourse eventually!