London 2016: The Journey

We have wanted to go to the UK for many years now but we finally decided to go in January because it is the least busy season at work.  We also have finally accumulated enough airmiles so we didn't have to pay for airfare, plus family and friends based in UK have invited us to go too!

The long journey started with a 5:00 AM flight from Manila to Hongkong where we had an almost 5 hour layover.  Thankfully, our Citibank credit cards allowed us free use of the Plaza Premier lounge at the Hongkong airport where we were able to enjoy free food and drinks, plus a comfortable place to rest before the 12 hour flight to London.

We took advantage of  CX's inflight entertainment by watching several movies and even managing a few of hours of nap on the plane.  Finally after 12 hours, we arrive in cold, cold London!  London Heathrow is huge!!!

While waiting for our host GD, we had to get coffee to warm ourselves at Caffe Nero.

Finally, we are with GD and kids having dinner at Harvester.

Singapore on Business (2nd in 2015)

It was my first time at the Mandarin Oriental Singapore.  I really loved the room and the view. Loved the buffet breakfast which came with the room, I got to eat dimsum everyday.  Took my parents and Auntie CM to dinner at Mandarin's Cherry Garden which had unbelievably good Chinese food.  Also had the chance to meet up with high school friends based in Singapore at Marche.

5 Day Roadshow: First Stop, Kuala Lumpur

This official trip was a 5-day roadshow with 3 countries to visit.  First stop was Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.  My last trip to Malaysia was in 2003, 12 years ago. A lot has changed, from the airport to the buildings, to the shopping malls!

We stayed at the Shangri-la Kuala Lumpur, which was cozy and comfortable, and costs less than the Shangri-la Manila.

Also had a photo taken at the Petronas Towers since i didn't get a chance 12 years ago.

Hongkong August 2014 - Day 1

E and I were fortunate to have had the chance to go on this trip together.  We looked forward to it because Hongkong is our happy place.  For this trip, we used Asiamiles mileage points and as usual we couldn't get an earlier flight, so we had to settle for an evening flight.  Whatever we saved for the air tickets was offset by indulging in staying at our favorite hotel Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel.

Photos at the airport:

We got to the hotel at around 9PM, and we thought that we could still dine at a nice Chinese restaurant.  But the restaurant in Harbour City rejected us saying that they already took last orders. Fine, sayang, gutom pa naman kami!

We settled for Cafe Marco at our hotel.

Our cozy room for the next four nights!

Atlantic City Adventure

We were so lucky to celebrate Aunt S' birthday with the S family in Atlantic City. We stayed at the luxurious Tropicana, one of the biggest casino hotels in the city. We tried our luck several times, and ended up shelling out USD30 and losing to Tropicana's slot machines. On hindsight, that could have bought me 1 pair of jeans or 2 hoodies...

But no regrets, because our Atlantic City holiday proved to be a very unique experience-- E learning poker on slots, outlet shopping and scoring a USD15 hoodie from H&M, walking along the Boardwalk in freezing cold and being in the middle of the festive holiday season in Atlantic City. It was great!

Lunch at the Tropicana Coffee Shop

The Christmas Tree inside Tropicana Marketplace with our niece and nephew.
Walking along the Boardwalk

Dinner at Hooters

The Boardwalk outside the Tropicana Marketplace

Philippine Airlines and San Francisco International Airport

For our 2nd US trip, E and I decided to try Philippine Airlines to take advantage of their promotional rates (around USD650 for RT tickets exclusive of taxes and other surcharges, total amounted to about USD1,000, still cheaper than other airlines). Our travel time to New Jersey was cut to almost half compared to our last US Trip (20 hours this year vs 37 hours last year). We missed Singapore Airlines' inflight entertainment but the non-stop flight to San Francisco made up for it.

It was very cold when we got there, we had to wear scarves, gloves and jackets inside the airport. We spent around 4 hours waiting for our flight to New Jersey that's why I was disappointed that the San Francisco airport did not have free internet access.

I insisted on a photo by the Ghirardelli store (one of my favorite chocolate stores)
No free internet!

Reality Bites

After about 22 glorious days in the US, we are now back in Manila. We arrived at around 5AM yesterday, January 17 and I was on my way to school to teach at around 8:30 AM. Yup, I went straight to work. But no regrets whatsoever... I work hard, and I play hard:)

Macau City Center

Although we stayed in Macau for 6 days, we only had a few hours to see the city center. We went to the Senado Square. We found it very quaint and pretty. We bought most of our "pasalubong" of Macau delicacies here. We also went around to look at the stores. Surrounding the area were several shops selling factory overruns of clothing. Also, most brands found in Hongkong were there, like Giordano and Bossini.

My Venetian (Macau) Holiday

Technically, I was in Macau for official business. But that didn't stop me from enjoying the city, and especially the Venetian. No doubt, it is Macau's greatest attraction. The Venetian was so grand, and so big, we got lost often on our first two days.

Cocktails by the Lagoon
The Food Court. Note the blue sky above, which is artificial.

Photos were not allowed in the casino itself, so we tried taking photos from the floor aboveThe Venetian Hotel Lobby

By the indoor canals where one can take a gondola ride. The gondolier in the background is a Filipina who had an astounding voice. If you watched Mel and Joey's feature on Macau, she was the lady gondolier interviewed by Joey. The Shopping Mall itself was so big, we didn't get the chance to visit all the stores.

We got to watch the spectacular Zaia of Cirque du Soleil

The Venetian Macau

I thought that our suite at the Venetian deserves an entry of its own. This was our home for one week and we absolutely loved it. Note the two queen-sized beds, plus a den with a sofa bed. This room could easily fit 6 people...

I "Heart" Hongkong

Hongkong is on top of my most loved places. Good friends to see, fabulous shopping and there's always something new to discover. On our way to Macau, my designated room mate and travel partner for this trip AF and I decided to make a quick stop-over in Hongkong.

We stayed with AF's good friend ES on Lantau Island. Her apartment had this fabulous view!


After a hearty buffet lunch at Citygate Novotel's coffee shop, which was ES's treat by the way (Thanks, ES!), we went straight to Festival Walk in Kowloon Tong specifically for H&M and Uniqlo. This is the first time I've seen these brands and I loved them.

Festival Walk

After Festival Walk, we went to Tsim Sha Tsui. AF and I, being both bag lovers, had a great time at LV, Gucci, Tod's and Burberry. I'm just amazed at the crowds in LV and Gucci, it was like a midnight sale in SM, I am not kidding. Nope, we didn't buy anything, but had such a great time looking!

We had dinner with good friend RW at OVOlogue (66 Johnston Road, Wanchai, Tel. No. +852-25276088). The place was amazingly beautiful. It was in a 120 year old building and also serves as an art gallery/design showroom. And we had good food as well. We had the dimsum platter, steamed garoupa, beef, fried chicken and steamed vegetables with garlic. Thanks for the delicious treat, RW! We had such a great time with you.

Good friend RW and travel partner AF at OVOlogue

Me and RW

On our last day, AF and I spent a few hours at Citygate Outlet Mall (located directly above Tung Chung station, an MTR ride away from Central), which was just adjacent to ES' apartment. All Hongkong shoppers should visit this place first before going to other Malls. It has the outlet shops of Polo Ralph Lauren, Kate Spade, Bally, Burberry, Giordano, Esprit, Nike, Adidas and a hundred more stores.

Citygate Outlet Mall

Before we knew it, it was time to go to the ferry terminal to catch our ferry to Macau:-(

Dining in Singapore

Singapore is definitely food heaven, and during our stay, we had some of the best that Singapore has to offer:

Jumbo Seafood (various locations, we went to the the Riverside branch, 30 Merchant Road #01-01/02 Riverside Point, +65-65323435)
A trip to Singapore wouldn't be complete without a visit to this fabulous restaurant. Its specialty is crab. We had the popular Singaporean chili crab and the Black pepper crab. We also had the delicious Prawns in cereal. I love this dish! We were pleasantly surprised when TS paid for the bill! Thanks, TS! It was a fantastic meal. The Riverside branch's location is perfect because it is in the Clarke Quay area, the heart of Singapore's nightlife.

On our third day in Singapore, E and I spent the day in Orchard Road. We had lunch at Pepper Lunch (Ngee Ann City) and had the Pepper steak (yup, I was a bad girl). The Pepper steak in the Singapore branches was cheaper by at least about P100+ than the Manila branch, I wonder why. And, while walking along Orchard, we couldn't resist the street food of Old Chang Kee.

We also had the chance to go to a hawker center when E's friend S brought us to the Bukit Merah town center where we had a couple of local favorites (sorry, don't know the names of the dishes, but I had vegetables and fish).