Urban Sightseeing: Nights in Asia

Filed in archive Modern World on September 17, 2007

I find myself most at home in cities. I'm not sure why. Perhaps it is because I was born in one and grew up in one. There's nothing better than a city with a good vibe. In such a place, simple things, like the smell of wet pavement after a rain, become memorable experiences.

The most memorable for me usually have to do with night-time sightseeing:




Cruising Bangkok in a taxi. The city alternates between sleepy streets with shuttered doors and frenetic areas of lights and noise.



Hong Kong is a city of lights. From the narrowest alleyways to the tallest skyscrapers, the brightness never seems to cease. I've heard Hong Kong called the New York of the East. It would be just as valid to call New York the Hong Kong of the West.



Seoul is one of the most interesting cities in Asia. It is huge, but seems minuscule compared to neighboring Tokyo and Shanghai. However, the culture is unique enough that it's easy to differentiate between Seoul and other metropolises. The winding roads of residential areas are punctuated by energetic areas where the nights are celebrated until morning.