How I started travelling

My friend James drived me to Johor Bahru in 1986 which is my first time travelling out of the country. The second time is my coworker  organised a group trip to Genting Highland to Malaysia in 1989

Undoubtedly Johore Bahru is my most visited foreign states, the next was Batam of Indonesia which I whiched 4 times and enroute to Selat Panjang. Since than I had visited 37 countries

Numerous countries I travelled more than one time, all the countries I travelled to is holiday.

I hoped to travel to all the developed countries around 30.

My criteria for frugal travels are accomodation near the city spectacular view and chinese foods. I used all mode of travels. Backpacking, free and easy follow group tour and solo.

I had travelled to 4 continents 

Between 1998 to 2007 I had stopped travelling bring up 2 children

My travels photos https://www.instagram.com/p/BqEO9Zbg0zY/

Doha Qatar

http://travelguide.sg/Article/37-and-counting/

Searching for Chinese restaurant in Vienna

When I went to tours I usually search for Chinese foods. As usually in Vienna, from my hotel after some sightseeing and photo taking.

The Central Business District is within walking distance from the hotel where I stayed, the Intercontinental Hotel. 

The amazing church is one of the largest there. St Stephen’s Cathedral. 

The exquisite stained glass were beautiful.

After walking and taking photos for sometimes I decided to look for a Chinese restaurant.  I found a Chinese restaurant.

You can see the bowl of seafood soup was huge, the chef formerly work in Singapore as he told me, it cost nearly 3 times in Singapore. The chef told me the food here in Vienna mostly are fusion, the cooking style which mixed with other countries like Japan

My most intensive medias interview ever

The online version; http://www.straitstimes.com/business/poor-in-maths-good-with-numbers

I had forwarded my testimony to Rachel Boon  of Straits Times Money Desk about my chanting to gohonzon, overcoming my poverty, family disharmony and sickness, from sleeping in the street to fulfillling my childhood dream of travelling through my investments.

She agreed to write the investment part but not my chanting part.

Subsequently Rupali Karekar who had 17 years journalist experiences. Emailed me many questions about my life and asked me for documentary proofs of my investments claims for verifications.

How I second time developed  a way to predict the topics that came out of my GCE O Level, that I didn't pass, I passed all three with better result than the earlier 3 and used the same methods to predict the stock market, which I am able to travel the world from sleeping in the street.

Through and forth for more than 2 weeks of intensive interviews through various emails, whats apps, phone calls & face to face, I forwarded her numerous documentary proofs.

Rupali Karekar replied me with various part of my story, which I need to correct it numerous times.

Then we met face to face interview. Which she asked numerous questions  using her laptop and recorded down what I said in 2 recorders, for one and the half hour and left. Later the cameraman came and took numerous pictures of me.


Featured in Asiaone: http://www.asiaone.com/business/poor-maths-good-numbers?utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&link_time=1476678112#xtor=CS1-2

At New York Stock Exchange

My amazing 100 landmarks collage selfie

The amazing New York City tour

Brooklyn Bridge

Going to the New York City on my own was one of my most challenging experiences in my travels. In an amazing 4 different modes of transports, by shuttle bus, railway, subway and cab.

I took a shuttle bus from the hotel to the Brunswick station railway line to Penn station in NYC, then asked one lady she brought me to the subway, to take the subway to Canal Road station at New York City Chinatown.

                                           Photo: The train to Penn station

At 10.35am, which I started my journey, and  reached the Chinatown, after my meal at New Wong Hon restaurant at nearly 2 pm, and started walking to Brooklyn bridge, the crowd were huge, and then started walking to the Wall Street, which was barricaded.

                                        Photo; Deep fried squid at New Hon Wong

After taking some photos I walked back to Chinatown, ate a huge bowl of fish head soup. Then try finding the Canal Station this time is only 2 stations not 5 stations as before when I came. 

I got to keep asking people for directions. Walking up out of the station looking for Penn Station railway line and back to Brunswick Station at New Jersey to take a cab home to the hotel, the trip from New Jersey is more than 50 KM  and back to the hotel at 7 pm.  

Tomorrow morning the group got to leave the hotel and to tour NYC and then took a flight back to Singapore

I went on my own as the tour group went to shopping nearby at New Jersey. I toured NYC my own in case if I followed the tour group and miss something I was not able to see.

Wall Street

                                                Canal Street NYC Chinatown

                                                      NYC Chinatown

My most nerve wracking journey - Travelling to Hallstatt

Fortunately I am able to go there, with the discouragement of the Singapore tour agency, and the discouragement of the tour director there, I insisted on going there myself, took a cab from the hotel in Vienna, to the railway station, traveled 300KM. 

That day the group is going to Slovakia, I am going on my own to Hallstatt.

Mystically one person seated opposite me told me he is going there too, reach there still got to take a boat to the opposite shore.

This place is the photo I had framed for 20 over years from a SGI  magazine, which I hope to see, I am finally able to see it.

I still got to back to the return journey, I can't missed it, the tour group, which will leave Vienna tomorrow early morning,  Luckily met a lady sitting opposite said she too going to the same place too, to Vienna - my most nerve wracking journey.

The photograph on the train, by the German undergraduate, who was on the same route as me back to Vienna, we had a nice  conversations, she was studying filming, completed her holiday.

When we reached Vienna, help her brought the luggage down as the luggage was heavy

Henry Leong at the most popular amazing landmarks of the world

http://www.relax.com.sg/article/interests/the-cool-things-singaporean-saw-on-trip-spanning-31-countries

Row One:  Grand Canyon USA,  London Bridge, Tien An Meng Sq China, Sea food Batam, France Disneyland, Efflel Tower, Sydney Bridge Australia, The Mermaid Copenhagen, St Peter Germany, Pompeii, Stockholm Sweden,  Then Swiss Apline Mont Blanc

Row Two: River Rhine Swiss, The Parliament Budapest Hungary, At the Castle Hill Budapest, Ronald Reagan statue Budapest, Hero Square Budapest, Nobel Museum Stockholm, Schönbrunn Palace Vienna, Hallstatt Austria, Schonbrunn Palace Vienna, Chesky Krumlov Czech Rep, Windmills of Amsterdam, Shafe Prague Cathedral.

Row 3: Charles Bridge Prague, Prague Castle, Wenceslas Square Prague, Fuji Mountain Japan, Dresden East Germany, Dresden East Germany, Stockholm Sweden, grauman's chinese theatre, Munich River, Linlerhor castle Germany, Neuschwanstein castle Germany, Great Wall of China.

Row 4: The Opera House Sydney, World tallest building Taipei 101, Mount Cook New Zealand, Lake Tekapo New Zealand, Universal Studio USA, Sognefjord Norway, Steam Clock of Vancouver Canada, Walter Peak High Country Farm New Zealand, The 3 sisters mountain Australia, Camel Hill, Guilin China, Bangkok, The Peak Hong Kong.

Row 5: River Seine Paris, Dresden Germany, San Francisco Bay, Capilano Suspension Bridge in Vancouver Canada, Zurich, Zurich, Thames River UK, Tvinde Waterfall Norway, France Disney, Wat Arun Pagoda Bangkok, Bergen Norway, Xian China.

Row 6: Prague Charles Bridge, Helsinki Finland, Oslo Norway- Behind is Akershus Fortress, Las Vegas USA, Grouse mountain Vancouver, San Francisco Bay Shopping, Nyhavn  Copenhagen Denmark, Amsterdam canal, Vancouver, Frogner Park Oslo, Entrance to cavern with stone carving Guihai Stele Forest Guilin China, World largest gold ingot Las Vegas.

Row 7: Xi Mending Taipei, Flam Norway, Dr Sun Yet San Memorial Hall Guangzhou, Istanbul Turkey, Sibelius Monument Helsinki, Mandarin Restaurant Lake Wakatipu Queenstown New Zealand, Border Mexico, Copenhagen Canal, Background Prague Castle, Oslo suburb shopping, Chesky Krumlov Czech Rep Chinese Restaurant, Norway small town

Row 8: Intercontinental Hotel Vienna, Kjosfossen Waterfall, Norway, Yang Tse Kiang restaurant Bergen Norway, Taipei man made cave restaurant, Genting Highland Malaysia, Los Angeles USA, Geilo Norway, Copenhagen canal, Copenhagen Hotel, Munich Chinese Restaurant, Chinese Restaurant Dixon Road Chinatown Sydney, Steamboat at Lijiang River China.

Row 9: Night dinner at Prague, Shilin night market Taipei, Stockholm, Munich, Guilin hill China, Background Prague Castle, Las Vegas USA, Batam Kelong, Xian, Senate Square Helsinki, Xian, Pagoda Bangkok

To be continue

My travels photos

http://rivers-seas-canals.blogspot.com/


http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/profile.php?id=654436739&v=photos&viewas=654436739

Henry Leong's photo galleries

Our children

Batam

At a live seafood restaurant near the sea, Batam


At the Batam kelong, watching the wonderful sights of rising morning sun and sunset.




In some Chinese New Years I spent my holidays with my relatives in their house in Batam. The pace of life there is relaxing, not so fast as Singapore, their seafood is fantastic and inexpensive.

Among all curry I like Indonesia curry, the best because of it natural taste
At an Indonesia curry restaurant
My relatives drove my whole family to different restaurants in Batam.

The 88 restaurant have rows and rows of inexpensive seafood stalls. There were TVs with large screens around showing football shows.

There were lions dances and a lots of firecrackers were let off, reminiscence of the early 60s days in Singapore were firecrackers were allowed.

I tasted a few countries spicy sotong(squid) I like Indonesia the best.


In a different trip, the kelong at Batam, Indonesia which were organised by People Association for singles. I think these program that I joined, were among the happiest & the most memorable.

Indonesia had ten thousands islands, which some are very interesting to explore.

In the morning when I woke up to watched the beautiful sun rise and set, what an enchanting sight. Late into the night can watch the beautiful moon. I because of little air pollutions which made the atmosphere so wonderful.

Karaoke were provided. Sing your heart to content. Because the kelong now caught less fishes, so they were converted to tourist attractions. We can view the fisherman pulled up the nets with their daily catch from the kelong.

Fresh spicy seafood were provided for our meals, were some of the tastiest because of the freshness.

30 of my wife family members went to take photos in a photos studio, when I visited her at
Selat Panjang, an Indonesia Island.

It was first time for the the photo studio had to take pictures for such a large family. Subsequently my mother- in- law had eight more grandchildren .

Photo at my mother in law house at Selat Panjang four hours journey by boat from Singapore

To reach there it needed at least 3 and the half hour by boat. First we got to stopover at Batam.

It was an exciting journey. At the island their pastimes are riding a motorbike round and round the island at night.

I was curious that in the morning they let their chicken out of their houses to roam around. At night the chicken know how to find their way back home.

One of my most romantic moment was to hired a trishaw (tricycle) to ride, around the island with my future wife.


View my slideshows:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/henryleong/