ECONOMIC | Top 10 countries with the biggest gaps between rich and poor

No. 1 Hong Kong
No. 2 Singapore
No. 3 US
No. 4 Israel
No. 5 Portugal
No. 6 New Zealand
No. 7= Italy
No. 7= Britain
No. 9 Australia
No. 10= Ireland
No. 10= Greece


A United Nations global study was recently conducted on the topic of 'income inequality' worldwide.

TRAVEL | See Sydney & Beyond Smartvisit Card

It is not too far away now, 3 days until our long-weekend getaway oversea trip! I was considering whether it would be worthwhile to purchase a See Sydney & Beyond Smartvisit Card, A$75 for one day or A$135 for two days. What do you think Ricky?

READ THIS Ricky

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/news/article.cfm?c_id=7&objectid=10603602

TRAVEL | Hiking from Jinshanling to Simatai

If you are looking for breathtaking views in relative isolation combined with some exercise on the Great Wall, then the hike between Jinshanling(金山嶺) and Simatai(司馬台) is perfect for you, giving you a truly "authentic" wall experience. This section of the wall is further away from Beijing than other more popular parts such as Badaling(八達嶺) and Juyongguan(居庸關) , making it considerably less crowded with tourists.

Located about 125 km northeast of Beijing, the JinShanling section of the Great Wall wonders through fantastic natural scenery and connects to the Simatai Great Wall to the east.

The hike from the east Jinshanling Great Wall to the west Simatai Great Wall takes about 4 hours with a total length of 12 km. The route will span over 30 towers (15 towers in East Jinshanling and 15 on west Simatai). It's a perfect day trip outside of Beijing with some of the best scenery of the Great Wall.

Jinshanling Section

Jinshanling Section

Jinshanling Section

Some of the terrain we will need to be covering

TRAVEL | The Goldfish club in Sydney

Is it a coincidence for a bar in Sydney to be named Goldfish? This is one of the many new bars in King Cross. Ideally I would like to visit three of these bars, however given the short time we will be in Sydney I am not sure if that's possible. It appears that Sydney scene is a mile ahead of what we have here in Auckland.

TRAVEL | Sydney Opera House Open Day

8 days and counting down. There is a build up of excitement in me especially looking forward to participate in the Sydney Opera House Open Day next Sunday where we'll get a free tour inside the House and get a glimpse of some of the behind-the-scenes. Also what I look forward to is the 'Please step quietly everyone can hear you' exhibition features photographs by a Magnum photographer Trent Parke.  I think Sunday 25 October 2009 will be a great experience.

TRAVEL | Interesting game from TripAdvisor

TRAVEL | Z Trains in China

'Z' category trains (Z stands for Zhida, or 直达特快列车, meaning direct) are the fastest and most modern long distance trains in China, running on routes such as Beijing-Shanghai and Beijing Xian. They are composed of the very latest air-conditioned sleeper carriages, as well as bar and restaurant carriages.

Most Z-series train routes do not have any intermediary stops, and are generally overnight, all-sleeper trains that have travel time of around 10–14 hours.

Distance between Beijing and Xian is 1,200 km (750 miles), taking around 11 hours on this overnight train. Trip cost is around RMB420 (82NZD) per person. Save on a night's accommodation. A lot of Big 2 time!

The label of the sleepers. Each sleeper is numbered with a unique number. This is a picture of the sleeper train with 4 beds in each room.

Each train has about 10 "rooms"

ARCHITECTURE | Auckland Architecture Awards 2009

Ironbank by RTA Studio. Recognised in the urban design , sustainable architecture, commercial architecture and Resene colour categories.

Hillcrest Road Bridge by Jasmax Limited. Recognised in the Resene colour and urban design categories.

AUT Lecture Theatre & Conference Centre by RTA Studio. Recognised in the public architecture category.

NZI Centre by Jasmax Limited. Recognised in the commercial architecture category.

TRAVEL | Sydney Opera House

In just a little more than two weeks I will be in Sydney and I was thinking how exciting it will be to visit the Sydney Opera House on its Open Day on Sunday the 25th October. It is a free event running from 10am to 4pm, raining or not. Just a little bit about the House, it was designed by a Denmark architect Jorn Utzon. In June 2007 it was inscribed in the World Heritage List.