Today’s Boarding Pass takes us to Singapore, home of Foreign Policy Design, a design strategy, design thinking & ideas bureau. I discovered their work thanks to Pooja of Notabilia who made sure I was aware of the awesome work they had done for the Wanderlust Hotel. Yah-Leng Yu takes on the role of Creative Director for the agency. I love her eye, and as someone who spent a couple years of my life designing signage, I particular love her attention to the mundane, typography and signs. All this creativity has me wanting to head back to Singapore stat… Thanks, Yah-Leng!

{Foreign Policy Design work for Wanderlust Hotel, Singapore}

last trip taken:
Do I count business trips? Nanjing/Shanghai, China. Otherwise, Tokyo, Japan.

{Berlin}

next trip on deck:
Nanjing, China

{Japan}

one place you would go back to again and again:
Tokyo, Japan. Such a vibrant city with the future and history within, never been able to finish the entire city in 2 weeks. I love to explore each neighborhood thoroughly, usually I spend 2 weeks in one neighborhood and I don’t stay at the same place whenever I am in town. I like to take my time to check out each nook and cranny carefully.

{Japan}

{Japan}

place you’d most likely recommend a friend go visit:
Can I recommend two places? Berlin and New York

{Berlin | Japan}
{Berlin}

preferred method of transportation:
By foot, on bicycle or by public transportation — it’s a great way to see the city and live like the locals.

{Hong Kong}
{Japan}

place you’ve never been but dying to go:
Kazakhstan and North Korea

{Costa Rica}

place you’d never go back:
Vietnam, basically I od-ed after numerous trips out there…

{Paris}

most memorable trip in 2 sentences or less:
Costa Rica. Three best friends taking over Central America! Sipping local Imperial beer, hilariously trying to pass by with our crudest Español, scaring ourselves silly in the pitch darkness of the tropical jungle.

{Costa Rica}
{Korea}

how do you prepare for a trip?
I usually like to do some research about the place – print some information off the web, or the library to check out a guide book. I like to travel light so I pack as little as possible but usually I still have [more] than I need.

{Paris}

how do you record your travels when you’re traveling?
Camera, pencil+moleskin notebook, and now iphone – facebook/twitter

{Japan – Paris}

what is your favorite thing to photograph in a new place?
Signage, buildings, food and people in their environment

{Paris}
{Berlin | Korea}

on an average, how many pictures to you take on a trip?
2500+ average, I just can’t stop snapping…

{Paris}
{Paris}

what’s in your “designer travel kit” ?
Sony nex-5, iphone with all the lomo and hipstamatic apps, moleskine – I still love the analog way of documenting.

{Hong Kong}

{Hong Kong}

{Hong Kong}

what do you do after a trip? how long after a trip does this happen?
Either flickr or facebook, but definitely downloading to iPhoto within a few days of when I get back usually.

{Cambodia}

{Safety manuals}

favorite souvenir/thing to bring back?
maps, tickets, labels

{Paris}

LINKS

• website: foreignpolicydesign.com
• blog: create YU
• on flickr
• @yahlengyu on twitter

Boarding Pass is a weekly column exploring the creative ways people travel.