Sunday, May 12, 2013

Bobbe's trip to Morocco, part 6: Bobbe hits the beach

Here is part 6 of Bobbe's report from Morocco:

Last weekend, I decided to relax by going to the beach. Morocco has a very long coastline, so it has lots of beaches. If you look at a map, you will see that it borders two different bodies of water: the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic coastline is longer, but both are very nice. Looking at a map, can you find the name of the strait that connects the Mediterranean and the Atlantic? That strait separates Morocco from Spain, but the bit of land on the Spanish side is actually owned by the United Kingdom. That bit of land has the same name as the strait. Can you find it?

Thursday, May 9, 2013

My trip to Hong Kong, part 2: I visit the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple

As in Singapore, it is possible to find beautiful, relaxing places in Hong Kong where you can get away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. One good way to do this is to go to a Buddhist temple. Lots of people in Hong Kong, as in other parts of East and Southeast Asia, are Buddhists. Buddhists follow the teachings of a man named the Buddha, who reached what is called "Enlightenment" in northern India more than 6,000 years ago. Buddhist temples often have lots of statues of the Buddha, generally in lots of different poses. The temple I visited, known as the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple, has a particularly large number of statues. In fact, the name of the temple is a misnomer; there are at least 13,000 Buddha statues on display inside it. I lost count very quickly of how many I had seen, so I just went around taking pictures of as many as I could.

Monday, May 6, 2013

My trip to Hong Kong, part 1: I learn about the city

In the past month, I have been to three very small, very urban places on the continent of Asia: Singapore, Kuwait, and now Hong Kong. Unlike Singapore and Kuwait, however, Hong Kong is not an independent country. It is actually part of China. It is located partly on a peninsula and partly on several islands in southern China next to the South China Sea. Can you find Hong Kong on a map?