Annular Solar Eclipse Boxing day 2019

Dec 26 2019 -  Watching a celestial ring in formation.

2016 we had a partial solar eclipse and I remembered taking images using Nikon Cool pix P900 with a glued-on solar film which turns out to be not bad.  This year I had upgraded to the big brother - Nikon p1000 with a Thousand Oak screwed on filter ordered online. The company is from Israel.

P1000 +  Solar filter screw-on thread + gimbal 

Ideally should be at the center line to see the balanced ring and longer time at MAX.  Singapore is not too bad. I stayed at the north so have to move to the Mariana Barrage in the South.  - Map courtesy of eclipseportal.com

So this is the first time i go to see an annular ring around the sun. As the diagram suggested the best places were Southern Singapore. Marina Barrage on the kite flying Rooftop. We placed our tripods on the outer reach sea-facing side. Behind me not far away were the 2nd lines of telescope and tortilla of scopes and crowds towards the other side.

The setup is simple - P1000 sitting on a $187 carbon fibre gimbal  on the tripod. While there is no fine x-y adjustment i find it just adequate to reach 65 highest elevation sun. A cheapo $10 cable release cable and me as intervalometer  on this un-tracked setup.  The idea is to fixed one zoom 1500mm and the other at 2200mm ( for rings details). P900 was sitting next to me on a tripod shorter than my height. It was neglected save for a few consolatory taps on her shutter button there.

Small bite appears on 1 o'clock 

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Somewhere near 11:28  someone shouted " First Contact "  and the game begins.

As the moon's shadow moving across the sun we were eagerly awaiting the Ultimate phase - the thin ring of fire.  It was not the equal thickness as we are still a distance away from the center-line of the moon shadows.

Closing Ring Note the breaks in the terminal

The GOAL - the ring is CLOSED

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Restoring receding moon shadow

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By 3:30 we packed up. The mission is accomplished. The system works well. x1 fresh change of p1000 batteries. And my hands are toasted under the UV sun.

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Lijiang - Yunan China 7-20 Dec 2019

Here is a sampling of what my GH3 ( me too) see during this China Yinan trip

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Fansipan and Saba 25/8 -30/08/2019

We took the Tram Ton 11 Km - a gradual climb up and up and up.

The gradual slope up to the summit took 2 days ( lunch at 2200, overnight at 2800m ) 

Found this good depiction of how to go summit from a) cable car with 600+ steps  b) via the funicular train 100+ steps

Did the 2nd day in poor weather and heavy rain

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The height marker in this pyramid

Hanoi here I come.  

 The key objective is to climb the 3143m Roof of the IndoChia - Mt Fansipan  (Phang Xi Pang) and have a look at the rice terraces now ripening. 

 IF you come during April there will be no rice but water surface reflection on the sky instead.   

With the availability of the cable car and funicular train, many will shun the 2 days climb and took the easy way in/out with a 20 minutes ride.  

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  After exiting the custom @Hanoi International airport, as usual, I headed over the phone SIM counter to have a week coverage 300,000Dong. The prearranged taxi picked us up and a 45 minutes ride into an hourly rated hotel as we have 3-4 hours before taking a train ride to Lao Cai. Hunger set in and we tried walking in the vicinity. Settled on A roadside kebab with their bread sandwich and mineral water. We saw a Hanoi Station just oppose us and was wondering what was that - abandoned station of some type. Then towards the check out time and waiting for pick up to train station we were herded and just walk across.  That station is the train station just opposite us. WE look around and found custard apple....chicken roasting 

The street scene around our hourly rated hotel where we wash up and waited night transfer to train. WE took the 8 hrs train to Lao Chai. 

  

Custard apples were plentiful and not the altered gene large Australian type

A heavy-duty setup for grilling chicken

Start of the 11 km trail

The trekking path and scenic spots. We didn't pay much attention and rely on our guide to point out. That's why we missed out the love waterfall and the famous pass?

Our guide Mr. Singh leads the way

We called this Singapore rhododendron back home. Here is a big swap of it 

The guide says reassuringly that there is no other wild animal except Buffalo 

Short bamboo and wasteland vegetation dominated the mountain.

The porters carry our backpacks also. No joke to carry 11 Km up-slope.

Pit stop for a little rest and water

IT was a relief when we saw our destination - the cable car station. Somewhere on the ascend I caught a glimpse of a giant buddha against the mists and rain

 We took a 700,000 Dong x2 pax funicular (pendulum) train up to the summit. It was cold as my trousers and trekking boots were soaked through and poor visibility. I was shivering like a reed, the 40,000 the piping hot soya bean drink help. We went out to the replicate x3 summit markers to take some pictures. The real summit is somewhere here.     

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The 20 minutes cable car ride down uneventfully saved for a power interruption that delays the car. The carriage was huge as it can carry 10-20? persons.  Our pick up driver couldn't find us and we lost our way and it was drizzling. A kind gentleman came and through google, translation pointed the right direction to the "large watch" 100 meters away from where we found our driver.

Saba time - spend half a day walking on a paved road and admiring the now already yellow padi

The green Padi only one crop per year.

Travel light for the half-day Saba walk. The muddy and slippery road was my concern. 

Buffalo used for plowing the field

Before dehusk here is how the 'rice' looks like.  They are cut and left to dry in the sun before harvesting.

Typical scenery in Saba

Young shoots of the fern!  In Borneo, we eat the Paku and Beling too

Terrace view

Dyed black the fabric was made from hemp.

Indigo dyeing.

On our Hanoi biking tour, we visited this narrow lane with table and chair on track when the train didn't pass.

The alley nearly occupy all by the train

On our bike tour, we also visited the Banana Island where you can find large plantation of Banana. 

I sat on the other bike and here we go again

The same beer that Obama picked up here

Obama and Anthony Bourdain had visited this restaurant

They even framed up where they sat before.

Cafe time 

In our bike tour, we visited one shop that makes this wedding sweet pandan flavor cakes

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